The Invisible – Part ii –

The Evidence of Things Not Seen

—- The Invisible —-

Part ii

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1)

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The SEEN and the UNSEEN of Dark Matter

The vastness of the unseen is greater than the seen. No one can define or give the span of eternity, and yet, eternity is the cradle of the unseen. I am writing from our perspective here on earth, for within the kingdom of God there is the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom of God’s Christ, and the kingdom of the world. And within all of these are many different societies, different economies, and different beings. Our earth is visible to us because we are earth dwellers. It is also visible to the Almighty God for the invisible God looks throughout the world with His piercing eyes.

For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. (2^nd Chronicles 16:9)

Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. (Hebrews 4:13)

Sin is the spiritual dark matter of mankind.

The angels of God also have sight into this world. 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. (1^st Peter 1:12) There have been a few men on earth who have looked into the invisible and have had the things of heaven revealed to them. They have partaken of heaven’s reality as a witness to us. The whole book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ is a series of windows into the invisible. The realm of the angels and Spirits of God is just as visible to them as our realm is to us. Remember, Adam walked with God in the garden that God had formed. Adam had FULL view of the invisible as the reality of the seen, but because of Adam’s sin our eyes are held in spiritual blindness. Sin is the spiritual dark matter of mankind. Now scientists tell us that dark matter engulfs and devours all light, thus, making scientific dark matter a perfect example of sin. Dark matter does not define itself, apparently. It has no parameters; it is only defined by the appearance of light that reveals it. Dark matter is the black monster that devours everything. We are told that it devours stars and planets, and they are but its desert. So, in our day, the darkness of sin is revealing itself to the minds and hearts of men. We have seen the power of Satan’s darkness all around us. The only power against this dark matter is a LIGHT strong enough to swallow it up or dissolve it with light. Let’s look at dark matter in another light: darkness was over the face of the deep. At that time there was no light. Darkness engulfed everything. It had virtually swallowed everything, and in this dark realm came a voice, Let there be light.

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Genesis 1:1) And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. (Genesis 1:2) And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. (Genesis 1:3)

I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light. (Jeremiah 4:23)

This light divided the darkness and became completely separated from the darkness. This is the first time that God used the word GOOD because the light contained the goodness of God. God did not describe the character of the darkness; therefore, we should assume that it is a symbol of the darkness of evil in Satan, the devil, that has tried to destroy all of God’s work. This light was not the sun and the moon for the creation of the solar system came after the Light came forth. For God is Light and in Him is no darkness at all. Darkness or dark matter cannot overcome the Light of God. This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. (1^st John 1:5)

I will repeat. God DIVIDED the Light from the darkness; therefore, Light became a symbol of the GOODNESS of the God of creation. And darkness became the symbol of evil. Scientists tell us that dark matter grows by what it swallows. In the spiritual realm this is the darkness of sin that feeds on what it swallows. Light reveals, darkness conceals and hides. Light gives physical life, and darkness (as in dark matter) destroys that which is life. We should see this parallel in our universe as both the physical side and the spiritual side. Dark matter is the ultimate destroyer of all things that it consumes. It destroys all that comes in contact with it. Scientists speak of black holes as a possible entrance into another world, this would be an impossibility for a black hole is just a mass of black matter without end. This is the same spirit of sin that is within mankind. Sin has darkened man’s spirit, and is the destroyer of man’s soul, and corrupts man’s heart. Sin will devour the whole being, for sin brings forth death which is the ultimate darkness for 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) God’s Light and Life is greater than sin and the dark matter of death. This is the subject that we are writing about which contains the things SEEN and the things UNSEEN. This article will define Light and the dark matter of sin.

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The UNSEEN in the Life of Christ

The UNSEEN and the SEEN in the life of Christ, the manifestation of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was to bring Light and Life to a world of darkness because the black hole of sin had swallowed up all of humanity.

In him was life; and the life was the light of men. (John 1:4) And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. (John 1:5)

And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. (John 3:19) For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. (John 3:20)

Although men rejected the Lord of Light and Life, His Light was greater than man’s darkness. For sin had no claim upon Him. The whole world was living in the darkness of sin when the glorious Light of God came into the world as Jesus Christ. His invisible Light pierced the darkness on the night of His birth. For now, the invisible God became visible to man in Jesus Christ. But where did all this begin? It all began in the determinate counsels of God before the heavens were created, and before the world was created.

The ONE GOD, the ONE SPIRIT manifested Himself as the Son with a Father, and a Spirit which would be to us, the Son Christ and/or the Spirit of the Father. The Father sent the Spirit of His Son INTO our hearts crying, Abba, Father. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. (Galatians 4:6)

I always go back to The Law of First Mention, and in Genesis 1:2, we have the first description of God: that God is a SPIRIT. Later in the gospel of John, the Lord Jesus confirmed this. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:24) Let’s view the Godhead. It is the Spirit of the Godhead that binds both Father and Son. And the Holy Spirit makes up the ONE of the Godhead. No one can take a Spirit apart for the ONE Spirit binds the Son and the Father in the complete Godhead; they are inseparable. Although man does his best to separate and to divide the Godhead, it cannot be done. The Godhead is unified in ONE SPIRIT. The Spirit of the Father is the same Spirit of the Son; the Spirit of the Son is united to the Father by the Holy Spirit which is also called the Holy Ghost. Man is body, soul, and spirit. Now divide these three. It cannot be done. It is impossible for a man to divide himself and to divide the being that God created. So, what holds man together? It is the spirit of man within. To see ourselves, we must see the invisible, the spirit that is within us. This spirit gives us the awareness of life, our body does not control us, it is our spirit within that has control over our body. We are born with the spirit of man, the same spirit of Adam, and the same spirit of sin. This is confirmed in 1^st Corinthians 2:11, For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. This is the spirit of man. This is how we came into this world. We came into this world with the spirit of man under Adam’s sin. However, let’s consider 1^st Corinthians 2:13 -16, and Galatians 4:6.

Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. (1^st Corinthians 2:13) But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1^st Corinthians 2:14) But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. (1^st Corinthians 2:15) For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. (1^st Corinthians 2:16)

And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. (Galatians 4:6)

As the children of God, we are born again by the Spirit of God. We become a partaker of the divine nature in God’s own Spirit, and we receive that Spirit at the new birth. And it is the Spirit of God that opens to us our new life through the word of God and gives us spiritual understanding. Just as the ‘spirit of man’ gave us awareness of life at our natural birth, now the Spirit of God in our new spiritual birth gives us awareness of life in Jesus Christ. So that when we go to the word of God, it is no longer a mystery to us, for the Spirit of God gives us an understanding. Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. (1^st John 4:13) But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things. (1^st John 2:20)

According to the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, it is Jesus Christ, Himself, who is the Spirit of prophecy. And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See [thou do it] not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. (Revelation 19:10) So, God has revealed that not only is the Lord Jesus the Spirit of all prophecy given of God, but it was His Spirit in the prophets of old that gave each particular prophet His prophecy of things to come.

Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: (1^st 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. (1^st 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. (1^st Peter 1:12)

It is the word of God that has declared that the Spirit of Christ was in the prophets of old, and their prophecies were marked by the Spirit of Christ who is the Spirit of prophecy. This is why we see the Lord Jesus Christ as Prophet, Priest and King. He fulfills all the divine realm through these three positions. He IS the Spirit of prophecy; He IS the Priest after the order of Melchisedec; and He IS the King of righteousness. So, these prophets of old gave us a look into the future, and also gave us confidence in the past prophetic word being fulfilled. For many of their prophecies have already come to pass. Let me give you this nugget of gold: as the children of God, we have the prophetic Spirit of Christ within us; as the children of God, we are told in the scriptures that we are a royal priesthood uniting us with our King and the genealogy of our redemption. Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. (2^nd Peter 1:4) We are also designated as kings in Revelation Chapter 1. What gives us this awareness? It is the Spirit of Christ within. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:2)

But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. (Romans 8:9)

And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. (Galatians 4:6)

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The UNSEEN in the Life of Zacharias

In the gospel of Luke, Chapter 1, we have God fulfilling the past prophetic word, revealing the present, and showing us the future. In this first Chapter of Luke, we see the ministry of the SEEN and the UNSEEN. The work of the UNSEEN is revealed first to Zacharias. Zacharias’ name means ‘Jehovah will remember.’ Zacharias was the husband of Elisabeth, who was a daughter of Aaron in her genealogy. Her name means ‘God of the covenant,’ and/or ‘God of the oath.’ The name Zacharias is equivalent to Zechariah in the Old Testament.

There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. (Luke 1:5) And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. (Luke 1:6)

I want you to notice their collective obedience to God, And they were both righteous before God, this was not a casual and ‘off the cuff’ statement by the Holy Spirit, but it was deliberate. These people, both Zacharias and Elisabeth, in their obedience to God were both kept by God, they were both righteous before God, and they were also blameless before God. Can two walk together, except they be agreed? (Amos 3:3) We should understand what the Holy Spirit is revealing to us that God had kept these two for this particular time, and it was God in the UNSEEN who had prepared them both for this hour, for this day, and for this time. (Read Luke Chapter 1, verses 5 -25.) In these verses we have the UNSEEN revealed in many ways. First, it is, of course, revealed to us by the Spirit of God; then through the UNSEEN, the angel Gabriel who stands before God reveals himself to the SEEN. This gives us a supernatural view over the entire Chapter.

There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, we are directed to the time frame of Herod who was a tyrant, and the self-professed king of Judaea who ruled through the authority and consent of Rome. Do you see how Satan works in the UNSEEN? God was about to send His King, and Satan had already raised up a king to prevent God’s King. The King of the Jews was about to be born, and we have a Gentile claiming the throne over Judaea. Both God and Satan are battling in the UNSEEN realm. We see this in Herod as Satan influencing man to be the god of this world because it was the Holy Spirit who placed Herod name as the lead into this Chapter for a reason. Herod is a usurper, and a type of the man of sin in Revelation Chapter 13. And then we have the counteroffensive; for God has a certain priest marked out by God by the name of Zacharias. This name alone reveals a long history of prophecy that Jehovah will remember. Zacharias He is of the course of Abia, which in the Old Testament is Abijah.

The seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abijah, (1^st Chronicles 24:10)

There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. (Luke 1:5)

Although names and words are spelled differently in the Old Testament from the New Testament, the meanings of the names remain the same. Abijah was of the sons of Aaron. But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of incense, and were appointed for all the work of the place most holy, and to make an atonement for Israel, according to all that Moses the servant of God had commanded. (1^st Chronicles 6:49) Notice, that ONLY the sons of Aaron, and Aaron himself, could offer incense on the altar of incense. By Abijah’s name being linked to Zacharias, and Zacharias having the authority to offer incense on the golden altar of incense connect both Zacharias and Abijah to the sons of Aaron. If this was not so, then both Zacharias and Elisabeth would NOT have been following the commandments of God. So, this would confirm that Zacharias was a true descendant of Aaron. And then to seal this, Elisabeth is connected to the daughters of Aaron by the Holy Spirit of God. For the true sons of Aaron were not to take a wife of the daughters from the other tribes, nor daughters from other Levites, but they were specifically to take a wife under the direct authority of Aaron’s priesthood. There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. (Luke 1:5)

In 1^st Chronicles 24, we have the division of the sons of Aaron in their genealogy and David reaffirms their duties within the sanctuary of God. What we want to see is God’s hand working from Aaron and his sons all the way through Levitical history to Zacharias keeping the record of God’s genealogy. It is God who preserves and protects His own, and His ways. He preserved Noah and He preserved Zacharias as one of His own and kept the lineage of Aaron pure ALL the way to Zacharias, Jehovah will remember. God kept His appointed high priest PURE (Zacharias) in his generations as He kept Noah pure in his generations BEFORE the flood. These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. (Genesis 6:9)

The Almighty God is not only a Creator, but He is also a Keeper, and a Preserver. All the things that He intended to do before the foundations of the world, He will keep and preserve all in perfect order according to His perfect will. He KEPT the genealogy of Noah perfect through all his generations so that He would have a man, a man preaching righteousness, and a man who acquired grace and who walked with God.

Now fast forward to Zacharias in the gospel of Luke. Zacharias was also perfect in his generations from the days of Aaron. God’s hand had led throughout the generations of the priesthood. Not only do we see this relationship as one of the sons of Aaron, but we also see that both Zachariah and his wife were both obedient to the commandments of God. They were both righteous in God’s sight, and they were BLAMELESS before God. Undoubtedly the Holy Spirit took these words and used them to SEAL the priesthood of Zacharias, Jehovah remembers, and Jehovah confirms.

The Holy Spirit also shows us the battle between God and Satan. Why did the Holy Spirit place Herod into the introduction of Luke Chapter 1? One of Herod’s claims to fame was his construction of the Temple, and to this day it is still referred to as Herod’s Temple. There was also a group of followers who were called after his name, the Herodians. This was an influential political group advocating Herod’s place of a deity in the political forum. This small bit of information ties Herod to Genesis Chapter 3, ye shall be as gods. We should remember that in those days’ darkness was over the whole world, Christ was coming to bring light and life into that darkness. Herod, by his actions, was not only building a Temple for himself, and building a following through the Herodians for himself, but he was building a place for himself through the first temptation by Satan, ye shall be as gods. It is a fact that Herod and many leaders and Caesars all proclaimed that they were deities. This is the same thought among political and religious leaders today, and do not forget the super-rich, they also think that they are gods of this world. They are self-appointed gods with power and wealth. We see this in real life in the WEF (World Economic Forum). Tell me, who appointed and made this group head over all global decisions? Who elected the WEF to rule and govern over this world? These self-appointed little gods behind their masked foundations (such as the C. foundation and their global initiative, the B. & L. G. foundation, the S. foundation, the R. foundation, and their black ops buddies) buy and sell nations as a pass time from boredom. They work under the unseen power of Satan himself to DOMINATE and to destroy lives in every way that they can. (Do you think that the election computer system that was created to handle ballots was accidently named ‘The Dominion Voting System’? There is a big difference between VOTES and BALLOTS. This voting system was created for only one purpose and that is to DOMINATE.)

Man’s psychology from the fall was centered on his innate desire to reign and rule over his brother. We saw this in Cain and Abel, and when Abel would not bend and STOOD for God’s righteousness then Cain slew his brother. Cain wanted the earth for himself, and the works of his own hands. What these many little power gods don’t understand is that as they individually acquire more power and more wealth, they then proceed to devour each other until only one stands in darkness in Revelation Chapter 13. (Many call this greed as devouring ‘Capitalism,’ but it is deadly ‘Communism.’ Both are based on economic issues; one is private ownership and the other is collective ownership.) However, scripture informs us that the dark monster of Satan will control the hordes of the world, through many facets: economic, political and religious. He will use all facets of the sin of mankind to set himself in the temple of God showing himself to be God. The battle is not economics. The battle is centered around Satan’s obsession to be as God.

So, we see back in time of Herod, the old lie of Satan was still alive and well. It was the same influence of Satan, and the same wealth of Satan, the same power of Satan, the same rule of Satan, however, God would move in an offensive counter action against all darkness and evil. The Almighty God, possessor of heaven and earth, kept one priest for Himself, thus, keeping his genealogy pure through the course of time, and throughout Israel’s history. Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. (Matthew 22:29) These are the words of the Lord Jesus in the days of His ministry. This verse shows the authority of the scriptures, and the power of God to keep them and to keep His own in any circumstances. How did the Holy Spirit state it? Both Zacharias and Elisabeth were walking in the commandments of God to fulfill the word of God by the power of God. Zacharias, as the descendant of Aaron, was fulfilling his course which ONLY a descendant of Aaron could do. Zacharias and Elisabeth lived in a land that had been torn by war and inner strife. Since the return of the nation from their captivity in Babylon to their land, the proper order of Levitical priesthood had deteriorated to a state of ruin. This included the corrupt priesthood in the days of Roman rule. In fact, against God’s commandment there were TWO (2) high priests who were political appointees, much as religious leaders of today. Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests, the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. (Luke 3:2) These two men were high and lifted up in their own self esteem. They were at the pinnacle of their corrupt society. And this was a day of ruin. However, with God nothing is impossible. God kept this godly couple for Himself, so that the scriptures might be fulfilled in their son, John. A man SENT from God. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. (John 1:6) Pay attention . . . to the little things. John was a man sent FROM God, not sent BY God. This man, John, was part of God’s prophetic purpose BEFORE the world was. God saw John in the bowels of the earth long before the days of Zacharias and Elisabeth.

My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. (Psalm 139:15) Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them. (Psalm 139:16)

All of John’s members were written in God’s book of life. John was conceived to fulfill God’s prophetic will and purpose. And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years. (Luke 1:7)

Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. (Isaiah 40:1)

Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins. (Isaiah 40:2)

The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. (Isaiah 40:3)

Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: (Isaiah 40:4)

And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. (Isaiah 40:5)

The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: (Isaiah 40:6)

The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass. (Isaiah 40:7)

The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. (Isaiah 40:8)

O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! (Isaiah 40:9)

Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. (Isaiah 40:10)

He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young. (Isaiah 40:11)

This prophecy in Isaiah is very important in the conflict of both the SEEN and the UNSEEN. When these scriptures were given to the prophet Isaiah, by the Spirit of Christ that was in him, this was the UNSEEN world to the prophet. The only way that he could see them was through the eyes of faith, believing as Abraham, that God would fulfill what He had promised. This prophecy was not only awakened in the days of Zacharias, but the completion of this prophecy is still waiting to be fulfilled by Israel’s Lord and King, the Lord Jesus Christ. Zacharias and Elisabeth were a tremendous part of this prophecy by Isaiah, although they were not mentioned in Isaiah, the thought of comfort was fulfilled in the day of Zacharias and Elisabeth for the prophetic word would be fulfilled in their son, John by his voice crying in the wilderness,

And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? (John 1:19)

And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. (John 1:20)

And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No. (John 1:21)

Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? (John 1:22)

He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. (John 1:23)

It would be the son of Zacharias and Elisabeth who was sent FROM God to announce the Son of God, the King and the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. Zacharias, in fulfilling his course, went into the Temple and offered up incense upon the golden altar. He was the LAST of God’s high priests who offered incense in the Temple.

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The UNSEEN in the Incense

Incense was very important to God. Therefore, He mentions this THREE times in the 1^st Chapter of Luke because THAT incense was/is a type of the sacrificial death of the Lord Jesus Christ, that when He offered Himself, He was a sweet incense to God the Father. 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. (Ephesians 5:2)

According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. (Luke 1:9) And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense. (Luke 1:10) And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. (Luke 1:11)

As Zacharias was offering the incense to God the Father, God the Father was also seeing His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ offering Himself. There is much more to the offering of Christ than just the cross. Christ offered His LIFE as He walked the streets of Jerusalem and the roads of Galilee. He offered His LIFE in all its facets made up the compound of that sweet incense to God.

At that moment as the incense rose up into the presence of God, Gabriel, the angel who stands before God, appeared at the right side of the altar of incense. This event of the UNSEEN becoming the SEEN changed the whole history of Israel, and the nations. This was the beginning of God’s LAST great offensive against evil that would continue all the way to the great white throne of judgment and the creation of a new heaven and a new earth. This offering of incense by Zacharias was an ascending smoke of the life of Christ that even before the Lord was conceived, the purpose and will of God was being fulfilled. Gabriel told Zacharias that both his prayer and his wife’s prayer had come up before God, and that they would have a son, and Gabriel was instructed by God to give Zacharias the name of his son which would be called John. Remember that both Zacharias and Elisabeth were well stricken in age . . . well past the time of childbearing. They had been praying for years for a child, and Elisabeth had suffered reproach for being barren, but NOW in God’s time, in God’s miracle of the UNSEEN to the SEEN God would grant their prayer although Zacharias could not believe the words of Gabriel. I write this just as a thought, Gabriel had already announced himself, and he had told Zacharias that he stood before God, and yet, Zacharias doubted the words of Gabriel. We see the infirmities of the human mind and heart, and we see how fragile faith is. To reaffirm the promise of God, Zacharias would lose his voice until the birth of his son, and it would be Zacharias who confirmed his name, And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all. (Luke 1:63) “Jehovah is a gracious giver,” or “God gives grace.” As the incense ascended up to God, there was a multitude outside praying, and they became concerned by the length of time that Zachariah was taking inside. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense. (Luke 1:10) And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple. (Luke 1:21)

All the offerings spoke of the life and sacrifice of Christ our Lord when He offered Himself without spot a sweet incense to His Father for our sin. That event shook the foundation of the world both in a physical sense and in a spiritual sense.

And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it. (Exodus 30:1) A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. (Exodus 30:2) And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about. (Exodus 30:3)

And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. (Exodus 30:7)

And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. (Exodus 30:8)

Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall ye pour drink offering thereon. (Exodus 3:9)

And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the LORD. (Exodus 30:10)

Even the sun in the sky had to close its eyes and darkness came over the whole world, thus, showing the magnitude of the offering of Christ, and that all His creation beheld the Son of God crucified for the sin of the world.

See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven: (Hebrews 12:25)

Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. (Hebrews 12:26)

And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. (Hebrews 12:27)

Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: (Hebrews 12:28)

For our God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:29)

In the Old Testament throughout the history of Israel’s sacrifices, all the animals, the meat offering, the birds, and the incense were all facets of the sweet savor of Christ to God. They were all part of God’s great story that led up to the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ suffered for sin through both the offering and the travail of His own soul. This was something that Adam or anyone of Adam’s race could not do, it took a Man from the UNSEEN, a Man of eternity, a Man from heaven SENT from God the Father, a sinless and blameless Man, a pure and holy Man, a soul without a trace of Adam within to satisfy the righteousness of God. Only THIS ONE of deity could satisfy the righteousness of deity so that sinners like me and you could enter into the presence of God through the sacrifice of His Son, who is the love of God in His Son Jesus Christ. Now being born again we have peace with God, and we are embraced in the righteousness of God in His righteous Son.

As this unique incense rose up from the altar of incense God smelled the precious offering and was pleased with it. Zacharias was God’s chosen servant filling the course of Abia, which means ‘Father.’ 1^st Chronicles 24:10 connect Abia with Abijah, so that the meaning is expanded and Abijah means ‘whose father is God‘ or ‘Jehovah.’ It is amazing how much information that God the Holy Spirit gives us in Luke 1, verses 5 and 6. From my calculations from all this information, Zacharias was the rightful high priest, however, because he lived in a day of ruin, man was the ruler over the Temple. Both the rule of Herod (being political) and the rule of the rulers of the Jews was also political, so that Zacharias was not accepted by man, or man’s political organizations. Nevertheless, he was God’s servant, and God tells us this in Luke Chapter1. This is the list of Zacharias’ qualification: one, his genealogy was pure; two, his wife’s genealogy was pure; three, they were both righteous before God; four, they walked in all the commandments of God; and five, they were obedient to all the ordinances of the Lord, thus blameless.

Now, let’s compare Zacharias and Elisabeth to another servant of God whose name was Job. There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. (Job 1:1) Job was perfect and upright before God, he feared God, he eschewed evil, and then in verse 8 of Job Chapter 1, God calls Job my servant. And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? (Job 1:8) We see that there was no one like Job in all the earth. He was a perfect and upright man before God. With this light from Job, we see the standing of Zacharias and Elisabeth as they walked before God. As God preserved Job from Satan, so Zacharias and Elisabeth were both preserved by God in their day and time. God had preserved them even to their old age. Which in itself is a great testimony before the Almighty God. Do we need any further qualifications?

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The UNSEEN Supernatural Acts in the SEEN

But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. (Luke 1:13)

And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years. (Luke 1:18)

This statement by the Holy Spirit of God concerning Zacharias and Elisabeth is supernatural in itself, and what would develop in this Chapter is totally supernatural. What happened to Sarah and Abraham was supernatural as documented in Genesis Chapter 17 was also supernatural.

And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be. (Genesis 17:15) And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her. (Genesis 17:16) Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear? (Genesis 17:17)

What man cannot do the great and mighty Creator can. For with God nothing is impossible. For with God nothing shall be impossible. (Luke 1:37) And we are just beginning, if you want the word of God to live in your heart, you must, as the psalmist, give God’s word a place in your heart. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. (Psalm 119:11) Think of this statement that I am about to make, and put God’s light upon it, as faith conceives the Spirit of Christ in your heart, so faith gives life to the word of God in your heart, just as Christ has life in Himself, so His word has life within its pages. It is not just knowledge that comes from the word of God, it is the breath and life of God within the words that gives us assurance of our faith in Christ.

Remember that both Zacharias and Elisabeth were obedient to the commandments of God. They did not go every Sabbath to the temple and sit in comfortable pews. Zacharias was called of God from a city in the hill country of Juda; And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda; (Luke 1:39) And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. (Luke 1:40) Whenever Zacharias traveled to Jerusalem to fulfill his priestly call, it was a deliberate journey of his appointed priesthood to fulfill his course as he had been called of Jehovah, the still small voice in his heart would lead him. In verse 8 of Luke Chapter 1, Zacharias title of priesthood is confirmed. And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, (Luke 1:8) According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. (Luke 1:9) Having a title as priest was not enough, he had to be a direct descendant of Aaron, as we have seen that ONLY the sons of Aaron and Aaron himself could attend the things of the Tabernacle in the holy place. And ONLY Aaron, as the high priest, could go into the holy of holies. This is what we see in Aaron himself; he was a type or prelude to the High Priesthood of the Son of God as Melchisedec. Only the Savior with His own blood could enter into the Holy of Holies in heaven, and this was confirmed in the book of Hebrews.

For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: (Hebrews 9:24) Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; (Hebrews 9:25) For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. (Hebrews 9:26)

We should also see the sons of Aaron, as they were figures or types of the priesthood of all believers in Christ. There is however one exception, we, as the sons of God, can enter into the holy of holies. Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, (Hebrews 10:19) Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. (Hebrews 10:22)

It is Christ who made a way for us in His own blood by placing it on the mercy seat in heaven for us, therefore, He has dissolved and taken away all our sins. And gave us life in His Spirit to free us from The Law of Sin and Death. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:2) These are verses you should consider.

But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; (Hebrews 19:11) Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. (Hebrews 19:12)

Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. (1^st Peter 1:5)

Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. (1^st Peter 1:9) Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: (1^st Peter 1:10)

And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. (Revelation 1:6)

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The UNSEEN in the Life and Death of Zechariah

Remember that both the names of Zacharias and Zechariah, means “Jehovah will remember,” revealing God’s preserving hand according to His will and purpose, even when the vehicle is not obedient to God.

In 2^nd Chronicles Chapter 24, there was a high priest by the name of Jehoiada during the time period when Jezebel’s daughter (Athaliah) married the son (Jehoram) of the king of Judah (Jehoshaphat). (Do not get confused. There were two kings named Jehoram: one was the son of Ahab from the northern kingdom of Samaria, and the other was from the southern kingdom of Judah, the son of Jehoshaphat.) We are, of course, writing about the southern kingdom of Judah. When Jehoram (Joram), king of Judah died, his son Ahaziah ruled, then when Ahaziah died, his mother Athaliah usurped the power of the throne and became queen over Judah and Jerusalem. Attempting to destroy the seed royal so that there would no longer be any seed left of the line of David she killed everyone from the line of her husband EXCEPT for one infant. Athaliah slaughtered ALL the children of the royal line and that included ALL of her own GRANDCHILDREN. This was a massive slaughter where generations from the line of David and Jehoshaphat were murdered. This is an example of how evil eats its own.

And when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal. (2^nd Kings 11:1) But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons which were slain; and they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bedchamber from Athaliah, so that he was not slain. (2^nd Kings 11:2) And he was with her hid in the house of the LORD six years. And Athaliah did reign over the land. (2^nd Kings 11:3)

This child was rescued, taken and hidden in the Temple under the care and protection of the high priest Jehoiada for seven years. This was God’s preserving hand, preserving the seed of David. Athaliah was the only queen to rule over Judah, and she reigned for seven years. She had the same character as her mother Jezebel who was an idolater and a priestess of Baal. The name Jehoiada means ‘Jehovah is knower,’ God KNEW who He could trust with His royal seed, and in all the days of Jehoiada Joash did right in the sight of the Lord. Jehoiada lived to an age of 130.

Joash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Zibiah of Beersheba. (2^nd Chronicles 24:1) And Joash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest. (2^nd Chronicles 24:2) But Jehoiada waxed old, and was full of days when he died; an hundred and thirty years old was he when he died. (2^nd Chronicles 24:3)

Jehoiada was the ONLY high priest who was buried among the kings of Judah, the sons of David. And they buried him in the city of David among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, both toward God, and toward his house. (2^nd Chronicles 24:16) When this godly priest died everything fell apart for Joash was NOT a child of faith. He was running on Jehoiada’s faith. After Jehoiada’s death Joash fell into sin, and because of the influence of the young men around him, he began to worship other gods. Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of Judah, and made obeisance to the king. Then the king hearkened unto them. (2^nd Chronicles 24:17) And they left the house of the LORD God of their fathers, and served groves and idols: and wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their trespass. (2^nd Chronicles 24:18) God tried to reach the heart of Joash to turn him away from his evil. God sent prophets to rebuke him and the young men around him, but collectively they did not listen to the prophets and continued to serve other gods, the gods of this world, the gods of gold, the gods of silver, the gods of stone, the gods of groves, the gods of high places, and the gods of evil. Their hearts were so consumed with sin that when Jehoiada’s son, Zechariah, rebuked them Joash did not remember the kindness and care of Jehoiada.

Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them again unto the LORD; and they testified against them: but they would not give ear. (2^nd Chronicles 24:19)

And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you. (2^nd Chronicles 24:20)

And they conspired against him, and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the LORD. (2^nd Chronicles 24:21)

Thus Joash the king remembered not the kindness which Jehoiada his father had done to him, but slew his son. And when he died, he said, The LORD look upon it, and require it. (2^nd Chronicles 24:22)

And it came to pass at the end of the year, that the host of Syria came up against him: and they came to Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people, and sent all the spoil of them unto the king of Damascus. (2^nd Chronicles 24:23)

For the army of the Syrians came with a small company of men, and the LORD delivered a very great host into their hand, because they had forsaken the LORD God of their fathers. So they executed judgment against Joash. (2^nd Chronicles 24:24)

Joash gave the order to not only kill Zechariah (who was then the high priest) but ALL the sons of Jehoiada, the godly man who had cared for him and who had guided him for decades, however, when Zechariah was dying, he said, The LORD look upon it, and require it. God forgets nothing as the meaning of Zechariah’s name: Jehovah will remember. Now Jehovah DID remember. The same young men who led Joash away from the Lord were also killed, and the servants of Joash conspired against Joash and slew him. And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and slew Joash in the house of Millo, which goeth down to Silla. (2^nd Kings 12:20)

And when they were departed from him, (for they left him in great diseases,) his own servants conspired against him for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest, and slew him on his bed, and he died: and they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not in the sepulchres of the kings. (2^nd Chronicles 24:25)

And these are they that conspired against him; Zabad the son of Shimeath an Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith a Moabitess. (2^nd Chronicles 24:26)

Notice that the conspirators against Joash were Ammonites and Moabites, they were worshipers of heathen deities, and the enemies of God although they were descendants of Lot. And also notice, that Joash was NOT buried with the kings of Judah for God did not recognize nor accept Joash as His king, he had forfeited that honor and place.

And the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? (2^nd Kings 12:19) And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and slew Joash in the house of Millo, which goeth down to Silla. (2^nd Kings 12:20)

The house of Millo was more than a fortified wall structure built as a defense for the city of Jerusalem. The house of Millo was not only a massively structured wall with ‘fill’ known as landfill ‘trash, ‘and ‘debris.’ The HOUSE OF MILLO also contained a temple of worship in competition to God’s place of worship in the city of Jerusalem, towers, and living quarters for defenders and for royalty to oversee the areas of defense. Joash perished surrounded with his gods of stone surrounded with ‘trash’ and ‘debris.’ Very fitting that when Joash was killed, he and his gods of stone were identified with trash and as worthless dirt. Yes, God remembers. And to even draw us into what God thought of Joash, the Holy Spirit adds to Millo and another place by the name of Silla. This was a weighing station where goods were weighed. Sillo means ‘weighing,’ or ‘weighing house.’ Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. (Daniel 5:27) Joash was trash that had been weighed in the balance and found wanting. Yes, God remembers. God had accomplished His purpose because Joash had left a seed, so that the line of David was preserved. Now do you think that God does not remember. When the Lord Jesus condemned Jerusalem with the words, ‘your house will be left unto you desolate,’ seventy years later, the exact number of the years of their captivity in Babylon, Jerusalem was destroyed by the armies of Rome under Titus in 70 A.D. And the temple was leveled to the ground. Jehovah will remember!

Paul wants us to understand this when he wrote that everyone should examine themselves whether they are in Christ or not. Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates? (2^nd Chronicles 13:5) In all this we should see the will and purpose of God that sometimes as (with Joash) the evil one is used to preserve the seed of David. Even after the death of Joash, God allows us to see further into His utter distaste and displeasure with Joash for Joash was not even credited for being a king. And when they were departed from him, (for they left him in great diseases,) his own servants conspired against him for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest, and slew him on his bed, and he died: and they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not in the sepulchres of the kings. (2^nd Chronicles 24:25)Yes, God remembers.

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The UNSEEN in the Work of the Priest

In Luke Chapter 1, we have much more in the UNSEEN in the fulfilling of prophecy for God is not only remembering but FULFILLING the prophecy that He had given. The first prophecy regarding Zacharias ‘God Will Remember’ or ‘God Remembers’ was given to Isaiah, The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. (Isaiah 40:3) Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: (Isaiah 40:4) This prophecy would be fulfilled in John, the son of Zacharias and Elisabeth. The uniqueness is this: that we are seeing that both the UNSEEN and the SEEN world are working side by side to fulfill the word of God. The watchers are watching. This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men. (Daniel 4:17)

And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. (Luke 1:11) Here by the altar of incense, which is designated by the Lord, as most holy (But Aaron and his sons offered upon the altar of the burnt offering, and on the altar of incense, [and were appointed] for all the work of the [place] most holy, and to make an atonement for Israel, according to all that Moses the servant of God had commanded. 1^st Chronicles 6:49) we find the UNSEEN with Gabriel being revealed to the SEEN (who is Zacharias). The God of creation is assembling all things according to His word. The angel Gabriel is giving God’s decree, God’s word, and what will be fulfilled in the life of Zacharias. We see in Gabriel that ministering spirit in his angelic commission.

And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. (Hebrews 1:7)

Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? (Hebrews 1:14)

Although Gabriel is the messenger, he is relating the living word of God to Zacharias from his own Creator, the God of heaven and earth. Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. (1^st Peter 1:23) God gives us His written word of God. However, within this written word of God, is the authority of life. Notice how Peter connects our new birth to the living word of God. Man only thinks of the pages with print on them, but God has breathed LIFE into those pages, the same breath that He breathed into Adam, He has also breathed into us in our new birth by the Living word of God who is His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. The entire creation hangs on the word of God. God spoke ALL into existence and gave it life. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. (Hebrews 11:3) As I breathe, so that I may speak, so the Creator of ALL things BREATHED a deep breath and then SPOKE the worlds into existence and created ALL that we SEE, and ALL that we SEE was made by the UNSEEN.

In our new birth, we are formed AGAIN. It is the Spirit of God who comes upon the old man, and puts that holy thing within the heart, and the Spirit takes that holy thing and transforms the creature into a child of the living God with a relationship of a son with a father. Which is much greater than the natural, for now the Father is Holy, now the Father is righteous, and now the Father has offered up His only begotten Son for US who bear the name of Jesus Christ within us. We are formed by that very Spirit of the great Creator, and yes, He knows every heartbeat, every breath we take, every step we make in this world, and not only for us, but He is long suffering so that every person in Adam has the opportunity to repent.

Now, let’s go into the holy place with Zacharias. First, he must sanctify himself before God. He must be cleansed within and without. He is going into the holy place of God, and defilement must be left behind. Even the worldly garments must be changed. He must put on the priestly garments that are set apart for his priestly service. We also see this in the garments of the saints that we have washed our garments and they have been made white in the blood of the Lamb. These garments that we wear in our spiritual life are not like any other garments. And lastly, before Zacharias entered in, he washed his hands and his feet with the waters of sanctification. Only then can the true priest of God enter into the holy place. In Luke 1:8, Zacharias executed the priest’s office. And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course. The Holy Spirit gives us the word executed; it was a determinate action. The word executed also brings to us a particular way, the right way, according to the word of God Zacharias was fulfilling his course by the authority of his priesthood. We have already seen that he walked in the commandments of God and God’s righteousness and was blameless before God. But in this part of the history of man those commandments included being sanctified and cleansed before he could enter into the holy place and fulfill his course to burn incense on the altar of incense. This altar of incense was most holy unto the Lord. And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the LORD. (Exodus 30:10) We should understand that the daily ministration of the priest included not only the lighting of the candlestick, but in the morning to offer up incense on the altar of incense, and in the evening to repeat it so that it was a continual incense ascending up to God as a sweet savour. Once a year on the day of atonement, the high priest would anoint the four horns of the altar of incense with the same blood that was placed on the mercy seat. And he would take the golden censer and place incense from the altar of incense into this golden censer. He would also anoint the censer with the blood of sacrifice, and THEN, he entered into the place of the MOST HOLY in the holy place where the altar of incense was placed, and this incense ascended up to God; it was a sweet savour of the spotless life and sinless life of Christ. It was joined together with the sacrifice by the anointing blood on the four horns of the altar. Then the high priest would take that sinless and spotless life of Christ and place it IN the censer, anoint the censer with the sacrificial blood and then in through the veil into the Holy of Holies. And then, before God, the high priest would take this spotless life of Christ mingled with the blood of sacrifice and place it on the mercy seat between the two Cherubim looking on and wondering at this wonder of atonement.

We should see in the work of the high priest what Christ has done for us in His life as the Lamb of God, in His life as the sacrifice for sin, in His life as High Priest (under the oath of Melchisedec) to take His blood into heaven above and place it on the mercy seat to redeem things that are in heaven and things that are in earth. The altar of incense, although neglected by modern man, is a symbol and type of the purity of the life of Christ here on earth. And the fulfillment of that life when He Himself took His own blood within the veil and placed it on the heavenly mercy seat above.

And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it. (Exodus 30:1)　

A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. (Exodus 30:2)

And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about. (Exodus 30:3)

And two golden rings shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it withal. (Exodus 30:4)

And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold. (Exodus 30:5)

And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee. (Exodus 30:6)

And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. (Exodus 30:7)

And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. (Exodus 30:8)

Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall ye pour drink offering thereon. (Exodus 30:9

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The UNSEEN in the Holy Oil and the Holy Incense

We also have the holy oil and the holy incense. The holy oil speaks of the Spirit of Christ. The holy incense speaks of the life of Christ, both in His walk and in His sacrificial death upon the cross. In order to form the holy incense a combination of materials had to be BEATEN into a powder. This was done according to the art of the apothecary and NO ONE outside of the priesthood could make this substance, nor place this special perfume on themselves. The chemicals or articles that were given was God’s specific formula from above and could not be duplicated outside of the divine priesthood.

Moreover the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, (Exodus 30:22) Take thou also unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet calamus two hundred and fifty shekels, (Exodus 30:23) And of cassia five hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and of oil olive an hin: (Exodus 30:24) And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil. (Exodus 30:25)

And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, This shall be an holy anointing oil unto me throughout your generations. (Exodus 30:31) Upon man’s flesh shall it not be poured, neither shall ye make any other like it, after the composition of it: it is holy, and it shall be holy unto you. (Exodus 30:32) Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a stranger, shall even be cut off from his people. (Exodus 30:33) And the LORD said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight: (Exodus 30:34) And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy: (Exodus 30:35) And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy. (Exodus 30:36) And as for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto thee holy for the LORD. (Exodus 30:37) Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people. (Exodus 30:38)

This also shows us the life of Christ that our transgressions, our trespasses, were laid upon Him, He was BRUISED for our iniquities and the chastisement of the Lord was upon Him and with His striped we are healed.

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. (Isaiah 53:4) But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)

In Exodus Chapter 30, God is using the tangible that which is SEEN to relate the UNSEEN wonders of His beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Once the priest had entered into the holy place, every step was before the Lord, the UNSEEN God. It was God Himself watching Zacharias as he offered the sweet incense up to God, and God seeing in them, the ascending incense, the wonder and purity of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Although Christ came forth AFTER the son of Zacharias John, Christ was already the Lamb slain before the foundations of the world. What miracles we see in this 1^st Chapter of Luke. The SEEN and the UNSEEN revealed to us by the determinate counsels of God. The incense ascended as the sweet savor of the life of Christ; the altar of that sweet incense built from an incorruptible wood and overlaid with gold was as God’s righteousness. The four horns that were anointed with blood on the day of atonement spoke of the far-reaching impact of Christ’s atonement for His atonement cleansed both the heaven and the earth.

For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: (Colossians 1:16) And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. (Colossians 1:17) And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. (Colossians 1:18) For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; (Colossians 1:19) And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. (Colossians 1:20)

By anointing the four horns we also see the redemptive power of the blood of Christ. Remember that the altar of incense was called most holy so that He satisfied God’s claims in His sacrificial death for EVERY man. Let us see one more blessing in the altar of incense. It had a crown of gold around the top edge. This speaks of His eternal Kingship united with His priestly order after the order of Melchisedec. There was also a crown around the table of shewbread. This is symbolic of the crown that He will wear when He comes to set up His millennial kingdom and to reign over Israel and the world. Remember, upon the table of shewbread there were twelve loafs of unleavened bread speaking of the redeemed tribes of Israel as they enter into the millennial kingdom with their King of righteousness. (Hebrews Chapter 7 and Revelation Chapter 7)

Also, the holy oil is only mentioned one time in the New Testament in Hebrews Chapter 1, verses 8 and 9. But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. (Hebrews 1:8) Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. (Hebrews 1:9) The oil of gladness is the fullest and the purist and the complete fulfillment of the holy oil. What qualifies this oil as holy? God in Himself declared. Be ye holy, for I am holy. In Hebrews 1:8 and 9, we see the Son of God upon a righteous throne with a sceptre of righteousness; therefore, He could not be anointed with anything less than holy oil. The holy oil and the holy spices both were not to be duplicated showing the uniqueness of the Son of God. That He was not of Adam. He was truly the Man from heaven. Both the oil and the spices speak of the life and light of Christ, the sweetness of His life before God and the light of life that He gave to man for the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

The Tabernacle in Exodus was as a rainbow of the life of Christ. Every article, every color, every ordinance, and every commandment related to God’s Christ who is the fairest of all. Every glitter of this jewel of Christ was available to man when He was manifested and tabernacled among us, and here before the altar of incense (that speaks of the glory and righteousness of God) Zacharias sent the sweet incense up to God. This is the only time that this altar is mentioned in the gospels. Notice that in Hebrews Chapter 9, Paul left out the altar of incense when he wrote about the ordinances of first covenant and the holy services of the earthly priesthood but included the golden censor in the holy of holies. Why? Because the atonement of Christ and the Lord’s walk on earth was complete, He is NOW seated in heaven, so the Holy Spirit concentrates on the blood of atonement once and for all for Christ was the COMPLETE Redeemer of man. He finished His life and His work on the cross and became the essence of good things to come.

But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; (Hebrews 9:11) Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. (Hebrews 9:12) For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: (Hebrews 9:13) How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (Hebrews 9:14)

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The UNSEEN in the Golden Altar and in the Censer

Now to glorify the finished work of Christ we have the golden altar and the censer in the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ. However, through Revelation Chapter 6 we are in heaven, and this relates to the judgment upon the earth. This judgment begins in Revelation Chapter 6 (the number of man) and will become so intense that man will hide themselves from God and from the Lamb.

And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; (Revelation 6:12)　

And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. (Revelation 6:13)

And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. (Revelation 6:14)

And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; (Revelation 6:15)

And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: (Revelation 6:16)

For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? (Revelation 6:17)

This sixth seal in the sixth Chapter is divine judgment on man. This shows the character of the hearts of mankind in these last days that they will hide themselves from God. However, let’s back up to the altar of incense.

And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: (Revelation 6:9) And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? (Revelation 6:10) And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled. (Revelation 6:11)

Here in the sixth Chapter of the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ we have a tremendous contrast between the children of Adam and the children of God. Everything concerning the children of Adam has to do with the world, the wars, the pestilence, the famines, and the complete breakdown of the worlds’ economic systems. And then lastly, because the world will not repent, judgment in the wrath of the Lamb blasts forth. However, Revelation 6 is the number of man, and what do we see in man’s wickedness? He has slain the children of God. Why? Because they were true to the testimony of Jesus Christ. In the altar of incense in Revelation 6, we see the presentation of the glories of Christ in heaven, and we see under THAT altar those who were slain and will be slain for their testimony of Christ. These are the overcomers of their time. It was in their days that they held their testimony. It isn’t what I did, and it is not what I do, but it is what is between those two, when our hearts cry out to God, What MUST I do? Showing that it is God and ONLY God who His children owe obedience to. These saints under the altar of incense, the GOLDEN altar, speak of ALL the preciousness that is IN Jesus Christ, and the death of these saints are precious in His sight. When we read these verses in Revelation Chapter 6, we should see our own hearts with the apostle Paul, for he could say of himself, that he died daily for Christ. He considered himself crucified with Christ, and that his only glory was the presence of death upon the cross of Christ. In the book of Romans, Chapter 13:12, Paul stated that the night is far spent, and the day is at hand. His, ‘How long O Lord,’ was Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The saints under the altar of incense listened to the voice of these who are precious in the sight of God. Their very words speak of their life’s testimony, How long Lord, holy and true? If they had been in our day alive, they also could cry out, Even so, come, Lord Jesus. In Revelation 6, we also see that God’s vengeance will overcome the earth, and they who dwell on the earth. They will suffer not only for their own particular sins, but they will suffer for all the blood that was shed from righteous Abel to the son of Jehoiada, Zechariah, to the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, and for every saint in the Age of the Church who has forfeited their lives willingly for the glory of God.

The gold of the altar of incense speaks of the righteousness of God as a blanket that covers these saints under the altar, and the wood under the gold was incorruptible wood. And the golden censor will be filled with the fire from the altar of incense and cast into the earth as judgment upon the earth.

And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. (Revelation 8:3) And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. (Revelation 8:4) And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. (Revelation 8:5)

We see in Revelation Chapter 8, that the cries of Revelation 6 are answered by the Almighty through His angel. The censer is cast into the earth FULL of fire, full of all the judgments from heaven. These are not man-made judgments, or man being used of God. These are divine Supernatural judgments from heaven over the unrepentant race of Adam. Those who dwell on the earth will be aware of the source of this judgment and they will also KNOW that it is God Almighty who is the Judge, for this will be the day of God’s wrath against Adam’s race. They will cry out, ‘Hide us from the face of Him who sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb,’ which is the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ will send HIS judgment into the world when the sixth seal is opened. Man fills most of this sixth Chapter, and the sixth seal is the judgment upon man showing that the Holy Spirit of God KNOWS His math.

And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; (Revelation 6:12)

And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. (Revelation 6:13)

And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. (Revelation 6:14)

And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: (Revelation 6:16)

For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? (Revelation 6:17)

Compare Revelation Chapter 6, verses 12 – 17 with Revelation Chapter 8, verses 5-13.

And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. (Revelation 8:5)

And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. (Revelation 8:6)

The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up. (Revelation 8:7)

And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; (Revelation 8:8)

And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed. (Revelation 8:9)

And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; (Revelation 8:10)

And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter. (Revelation 8:11)

And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise. (Revelation 8:12)

And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reas on of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound! (Revelation 8:13)

As we compare these two Scripture sections, we see the initiation of the judgment in the opening of the sixth seal. Then we see, the actual judgment in the censer being cast into the earth FULL of FIRE. And now, we can behold ALL the judgments of Revelation Chapter 6, that they are from heaven and not made by man. Man will know without a doubt that they are under the judgment of the Almighty God. This world will not be a pleasant place to be in. There are two things taken from man during this period of time: God will show NO MERCY, and He will reveal NO GRACE to the unrepentant hearts of Revelation Chapter 6. God lights the fuse of judgment and mankind will have to take the devastation of God’s judgment upon them.

God has a set of divine scales whereby He weighs the kingdoms of man, whether they are rich or poor, bond or free, kings or peasants, they are ALL weighed in the scales of God’s righteousness.

Right now, as Satan has released evil into the leaders of the nations of this world today, man has willingly embraced these evils; evil has in fact become man’s religion, and God is weighing mankind in the balance. When He sees the last ounce of sin added to His balance, He will break loose His judgment on the children of Adam. This judgment will come from the fire from the golden altar and from the blood of the saints.

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The UNSEEN in the Prayers of the People

We need to compare two different points of time: in the days of Zacharias at the golden altar God was going to send grace and mercy. In the book of the Revelation, man has rejected that grace and that mercy in God’s Son, Jesus Christ. We also see a distinct difference in the two angels: Gabriel had a message of great peace and great joy in a Savior that will be called the Son of God; the angel in Revelation 8, is an angel of judgment, and he cast that judgment into the earth. Because of Gabriel’s respected place of standing before God, we see him as a messenger and prophetic angel to Zacharias and to Mary. To Zacharias, Gabriel’s message was to an aged priest, (verse 10) and while Gabriel was delivering his message and his prophecy to Zacharias, there was a multitude praying outside of the Temple, they were praying at the time of incense, when mankind is gathered together in prayer with sincere hearts to God, God’s ear is open. He hears the sorrow, he feels the pain, and He understands the waywardness of man. This once great nation under David and Solomon was then under the bondage of Rome, and thus, the people were praying for the consolation of Israel. (Much as the United States today, the people speak about freedom, and yet, they are in bondage to a corrupt and unrighteous government.) The people outside of the temple praying were symbolic of all those who are physically and spiritually enslaved and who call out to God for a Deliverer. God was about to provide a Deliverer in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. God was going to answer those prayers in a supernatural way. He was going to give His voice to John, the son of Zacharias, and He was going to send His Son, Jesus Christ from heaven.

In Revelation 6, we have the martyrs of the Lord Jesus praying, How long, O Lord. Today, we need to hear that same cry from the Bride of Christ, the Church most holy. However, outward profession alone without possession of the Holy Spirit of God within DOES NOT make the professor of the Church most holy, but an imposter, which is the world church of Satan. These of the world church are not praying, Even, so, come, Lord Jesus. They are entrenched in this present evil world, and their gods are fame and fortune. They love the world and have no time or love for Christ. They want God to love them without any responsibility to God Almighty. In the salvation of souls, when a soul becomes a new creation that new creation is called to follow after God as a worthy servant. The imposters, however, choose to align themselves to a full-blown pandemic of an unrighteous Laodicean church loving themselves and their gold more than they love Christ.

And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; (Revelation 3:14)

I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. (Revelation 3:15)

So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. (Revelation 3:16)

Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: (Revelation 3:17)

In verse 14 of Revelation 3, (And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; ) the Lord Jesus presents Himself in three distinct ways: the first way, He proclaims that He is the AMEN, He is the finality, as HE is the beginning of all things, He is also the end of all things, and by using the word AMEN this is HIS FINAL MESSAGE to the church of the world.

The second distinction is that He proclaims His faithfulness in contrast to the unfaithfulness of this Laodicean world church, for He is the true and faithful witness of God. And the third distinction is His witness from the creation of God, it is He, the Lord Jesus, who begins the creation of God. And He has been that true witness since the beginning of the creation of God. There is no variableness nor shadow of turning for the Lord Jesus is the true Light and perfection of God. In contrast to the Lord’s witness and the Lord’s faithfulness we have the vacillating church that is neither cold nor hot. Satan has blasted it with the arctic cold of his unrighteousness. Since they are not committed to the Son of God, He casts them off, He spews them out of His mouth. But why? Because thou sayest. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. Here is the testimony of this ungodly church, I am rich, I have all the worlds’ treasures, I have vaults of gold in my tabernacles of Rome, I am increased with the world’s merchandise, and the merchants of the world bring their treasures to my doorstep. I have need of nothing, for I have exalted my own self above the things of God. Then their ignorance is unveiled for they know not the word of God, they know not the righteousness of God, they know not the grace and the mercy of God, they know not the Spirit of God, and they do not know the Christ of God. So, the Lord Jesus Himself proclaims, and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. Their garments are full of holes, and their hearts miserable because their own hearts condemn them. They are poor for in their zeal to acquire the treasures of the earth they have laid no treasure in heaven for themselves. They are blind to the things of God but have zeal and sight for the things of the world. And they are naked before God and have not acquired the garments of the saints washed in the blood of the Lamb. This is where we are in the world today. Should not every Christian pray and cry out to God that we would be delivered out of this world and into the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ until He hears the cries, Even so, come, Lord Jesus, He will delay His coming.

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The UNSEEN in the Message of Gabriel

The SEEN and the UNSEEN is in the altar of incense before Zacharias, and although this altar is SEEN it is an example of the UNSEEN. Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount. (Hebrews 8:5) Zacharias KNEW what Moses saw in the mount because to be in such a righteous position Zacharias had to be a diligent student of the word of God. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. (Luke 1:6) We, as believers, are told that we are of a royal priesthood, since Zacharias had such a knowledge from Moses and the prophets of the word of God in his age why then is the royal priesthood today so ignorant of the word of God?

Zacharias looked at the altar of incense and KNEW that in a like manner there was an altar of incense above. God had been preparing this man since his birth for this time, for such a time as this, and what a time! Many do not see the fullness of this miracle because they know not the holy scriptures. Zacharias KNEW that the altar of incense before him was the example of what Moses saw in the holy mount. And then, to really impress to us the SEEN and the UNSEEN we have the meeting with Gabriel, the angel who stands before God on the right side of the altar of incense. In the supernatural sense of the scripture, Zacharias saw in the altar of incense that which is above in heaven. In Gabriel, he saw that which is in heaven revealed to him on earth in the angelic sense where the UNSEEN becomes the SEEN at that point in the history of mankind, God is moving closer to the fullness of time. But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law. (Galatians 4:4) Now remember that if a priest was neither sanctified nor washed clean, and if his life was not in communion with God, as Nadab and Abihu, he would not come out of the holy place alive. This should also teach us, as the children of God, to cleanse ourselves by prayer and the word of God before we enter into the presence of God. Undoubtedly Zacharias knew the history of Nadab and Abihu, therefore, when Gabriel appeared Zacharias was afraid, he could have thought as Nadab and Abihu, could this be my end? No, the angel, Gabriel, sent by God, said to Zacharias, Fear not, Zacharias.

Do you see in this altar of incense a divine symbol of Christ? The shittim wood was known as the incorruptible wood, and the gold that overlaid the wood was a symbol of God’s righteousness.

And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it. (Exodus 30:1)　

A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. (Exodus 30:2)

And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about. (Exodus 30:3)

But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard. (Luke 1:13) We are told through scripture that the prayers of the saints ascend up to the presence of God whether it was from Hagar in the desert, or Zacharias in the temple, their prayers went up before the God of impossibilities . . . . for nothing . . . . nothing is impossible with God.

The foreknowledge of God is SEEN in the testimony of Gabriel when Zacharias was told that he would have a son, and that his name would be John, (‘Jehovah is a gracious giver‘) and that he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb. This is the only documentation of a man filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother’s womb. The uniqueness of John was testified by the Lord Himself: He was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light. (John 5:35) John was to be a vehicle, a man to turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord as he would go before the Lord in the Spirit of Elijah. What an introduction of a son who is not yet born and even greater yet, a son not yet conceived. This was better than ultrasound. God (through His angel) announced a son BEFORE conception to fulfill divine prophecy from the days of Isaiah.

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The UNSEEN Goodness of God in the Altar of Incense

The altar of incense, the prayers ascending, the holy perfume, the holy oil, and the cries of broken hearts, souls and spirits standing outside of the Temple of God found a place through which they could approach a righteous God. Through the incense that ascended to God, the incense of Christ’s sacrificial life and His death God accepted as a sweet savour; thus, the goodness of God was also symbolized in the altar of incense. Besides what the altar of incense symbolizes, and what the incense represents what were the other many UNSEEN aspects of Gabriel’s ministry and message to Zacharias? Gabriel’s message was not only for Zacharias, but it is documented also for them since Zacharias and for us TODAY and for those who follow us TOMORROW. But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. (Luke 1:13) Gabriel knew the difference between boys and girls. There is both a temporal and divine truth and witness in a day when the world has become insanely confused. Not only killing the children of God in the womb, but then through satanic thought and actions, attempt to change the sex of the child that was given by God; consequently, we are witnesses to an insanity unlike the world has ever known experienced. I am thankful that a child of God is neither male nor female, we belong to a new race that has been separated from the world of Adam. We are safe from this world because we are a heavenly people, we, as the children of God belong to the UNSEEN.

We need to see another fallacy that those who say that they are Christians do not know whether they are Christians or not. What are the signs of this ignorance? They vacillate between the things of the world and the things that they profess. They profess to be of Christ, and yet they have neither the evidence of the righteousness of Christ, nor the evidence of the Spirit of Christ, nor the evidence of the word of God within. The slithering serpent of all guile, the chief of liars and murderers, Satan, has deceived mankind in believing that they can stand before God without God’s righteousness in Jesus Christ.

Satan has been furiously working to complete his image of a man who will be the beast of Revelation Chapter 13. This great red dragon has lied to the world and to the nations, he has lied in the church and to the church because he is the father of all lies of which we have many today. As the devil increases his lies, liars also rapidly increase their lies, thus, imaging their father the devil. Isn’t it amazing that the truth of God sets a person free, where the lies of Satan and the world put a person into bondage. This is mankind in shackles, staked to the ground, as the sun roasts him; they will die in utter agony as there is nothing within themselves to release them from the shackles and stakes that binds them to the ground. Any help or hope that man can have must come from without, from outside of his own strength, from outside of his will, from outside of his own form, from outside of his soul, and from outside of his spirit. Man remains chained to the earth without God and without hope in this world, but nothing . . . . nothing is impossible with God.

To the person shackled to the ground, Christ He will come, and He will break those things that bind man, and He will set man free. Only through what ascends up to God will God hear and answer, ‘What must I do to be saved?’ From a heart that is bound to sin, from a soul that has been lost to sin, from a spirit that has been covered with sin, call on the name of the Lord and God will hear, and He will break those shackles and deliver that heart, that soul, and that spirit from the torment of hell and from the lake of fire. Satan, the adversary of the souls of man, does not love man, but destroys man whenever and wherever he can. He turns man against man through wars, through hate, through greed as in Judas under the control of Satan. Feeding the spiritually starving masses with evil secular and religious fallacies Satan is the father of lies, and he has been lying for a long, long, time. God’s desire is that mankind would be obedient to His Son and to His word. Satan’s desire is that man would be obedient to lies and sin and grovel at the cloven feet of Satan begging for more sin. Yes, world this is you. You cannot hide, God sees all whether it is in darkness or light ALL is open to Him who sits upon the throne of all creation.

The greatest betrayal in all the history of mankind was perpetrated by a man named Judas. Oh, yes, there have been many betrayals in the past, and there will be betrayals in the future, but that betrayal is marked out in the history of mankind as the greatest betrayal of all time. Judas walked with the disciples, he walked with Christ, he was one of the twelve chosen by the Lord Jesus, but Judas did not have a clean heart. Even when the Lord Jesus chose Judas, he was already in the realm of the slithering serpent Satan. The Lord could look on him and say, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? (John 6:70) On the night of the Lord’s betrayal, the serpent Satan ENTERED into the heart of Judas, fully possessing Judas, and the greatest betrayal in the history of mankind then took place. It was not only Christ who was sold for thirty pieces of silver, but Judas sold his own soul in this transaction with evil. You see that sinful and unclean hearts are open to the moving and will of Satan. Many times, you hear man speak in many ways concerning his own will; yet I have never heard anyone express that they follow and do the will of Satan. Man may acknowledge their own evil, but even in this, mankind thinks that they have their own will, a will that is free, but this also is a fallacy for a will under the control of evil is not free. This is what so called ‘free will’ is open to: it is open to the will of sin, the will of evil, the will of death, and to the will of Satan. It is opposed to the will of God’s Christ, to the will of God’s righteousness, to the will of God’s wisdom and understanding, and it is opposed to the will of faith. Do you still see that man in shackles is staked to the ground in the burning sun with no water and without help or hope? But with God nothing is impossible. Man cannot free himself, God must free him, and God has provided through faith, the key to the shackles in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Hebrews 11:6) Compare this verse from Hebrews 11 to the gospel of John Chapter 8 verse 44, Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. With God you see divine freedom in faith in the invisible God. In John 8, you see the imprisonment of sin in the life of the children of the devil, he takes the authority of a father over his own children. He teaches them to lie, and he teaches them to thirst for blood in the murders of mankind. In the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, one branch was filled with the goodness of God, the other branch was full of all evil. Adam symbolically became that tree. However, because of sin that Adam brought into the world, Adam had a propensity for evil. We see this affinity for evil in Adam’s son Cain; through the children of Cain, we are also shown that they all had this very same propensity to lie and to murder. God worked outside of the realm of mankind and put the seed of faith into the heart of Abel, the first person of faith. And in his opposition to evil Abel forfeited his own life in his obedience to God. We see the wicked evil side of Adam in Cain, and we see the goodness of God in Abel. This is all magnified in Christ, the Goodness of God; the sweet incense of His life; the sweet savor of His death, for His love became SEEN in the incense of the cross.

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The UNSEEN God is SEEN in the Impossible

The life and the walk of Christ on earth were symbolized in the incense that ascended up to God. Christ was also symbolized in the altar of incense itself as the incorruptible Christ, the incorruptible righteousness of God. In front of Zacharias was all the Goodness of God in the Lord Jesus Christ in the golden altar of incense, and the Goodness of God came down from heaven through the message and ministry of the angel Gabriel sent by God to inform Zacharias of the impossible. The impossible birth of a son who would turn many hearts of Israel to the Lord by the will of God. God broke the chain of impossibility by giving Zacharias and Elisabeth a son. Remember the course of Abia means ‘Father,’ this is the same name in the Old Testament as Abijah, which means ‘Jehovah is father.’ Aren’t you glad that as Zacharias saw the UNSEEN that you also SEE the UNSEEN. You have a Father in heaven, who you can say, Jehovah is my Father, and you can address Him with the love of your salvation in the Son of His love, the Lord Jesus Christ. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. (Galatians 4:6) Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. (Galatians 4:7)

This is a divine awakening by the Spirit of Christ given by the Father to bring many sons unto Himself. This is a divine relationship and possession with the Creator of all things. When a child of God steps through the curtain of death at the new birth, they leave both sin and death behind, and now they become an eternal being in God’s divine love through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and he is placed within the everlasting life of the Lord Jesus Christ. Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life. (Hebrews 7:16) If you place the thoughts of man beside the thoughts of God, if you see that the ways of God are higher than the ways of man. When you truly and honestly judge yourself and not judge God, then you can say that there is nothing impossible with God, and that God has chosen us in Christ before the world was, and when the world is gone and evil no longer, we, the children of God, will be in His new heaven and new earth. This entrance into a new heaven and a new earth will not be gained through our own works or our own self will but through the work and will and blood of another: Jesus Christ. It is only His blood and His divine power that sets us free from sin and death, and was and is the Son of God’s love, the Lord Jesus Christ.

When Gabriel came to the earth and presented a gift to Zacharias by the name of John, Zacharias was unable to believe that what he had prayed for would be accomplished, Zacharias was made speechless until the birth of his son.

And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father. (Luke 1:59)

And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John. (Luke 1:60)

And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name. (Luke 1:61)

And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called. (Luke 1:62)

And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all. (Luke 1:63)

And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God. (Luke 1:64)

The visible and the invisible has been opened to us in this study; things that we cannot see, yet they are a substance to faith.

Elisabeth conceived and when she was in her sixth month, again the angel of Gabriel was sent from God, however, this time Gabriel was sent to a virgin named Mary. God is presenting more of the UNSEEN to us. (From Gabriel’s side, he stood before the throne of God, he was in God’s realm above, all that was created and all that is SEEN is tangible in the eyes of Gabriel. Gabriel proved himself to be an obedient servant of God, both Gabriel and Michael with many other angels stood with God in Lucifer’s rebellion. I know that it is difficult to imagine that there was war in heaven because Lucifer wanted complete control of God’s heaven. He wanted to be a god worshiped by all the beings in heaven. However, in this conflict, in this great battle, in this great war between two entities, God was victorious over His own creation.) You do err for you know not the scriptures, nor the power of God. The impossible to God is the reality of His divine righteousness that all will be done to fulfill His righteousness and His goodness for nothing is impossible with God. So, again, God sent Gabriel to instruct Mary that the Holy Ghost would come upon her, and that holy thing within her womb would be the Son of God. The incorruptible Christ was then conceived by the Holy Ghost, and Mary would be with child, who knew not a man.

The Supernatural is well at work. The Holy Ghost is the enactor of the life of Christ; thus, that holy thing within Mary’ womb was sent of the Father. Multiple times the Lord Jesus told us in the gospel of John that He was SENT of God, and that He was SENT from His Father. Once again, let us remember that we are dealing with the Supernatural. The Supernatural mind of God is completely outside the actions, thoughts and reasoning of mankind. We find in the Old Testament that God’s ways and His actions and His thoughts are completely separated from the actions, ways, and thoughts of mankind. 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)　

Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Isaiah 1:18)　

In Chapter 1 of the book of Isaiah God gives the opportunity to mankind to reason with the Supernatural. However, man is not capable of seeing his own utter worthlessness. He does not see the damage of sin within himself, and this is why man, as a whole, denies sin and some even deny the existence of sin. This is what God has to reason with: minds that have become twisted from good to evil; minds that are shackled to the world and bound by the dominion of the prince of this world: the devil. This is why the Supernatural is so important, and why we should pay attention every time the Holy Spirit reveals the Supernatural through scripture. I am only writing about what the Bible reveals, and not the imaginations of man. Here is a Supernatural situation that I am sure that man would not have written, this is the record of the Holy Spirit of God, Mary traveled to a city of Juda in a mountainous region where Zacharias and Elisabeth lived.

And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. (Luke 1:36)

For with God nothing shall be impossible. (Luke 1:37)

And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda; (Luke 1:39)

And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. (Luke 1:40)

And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: (Luke 1:41)

As Mary entered into the room and saluted Elisabeth . . . . the babe leaped in the womb of Elizabeth. What happened? John, yet unborn was called ‘the babe,’ a living baby. He (NOT IT, but the babe) leaped for joy. Here is a scriptural warning, it is a scary thing for all the proponents of abortion to comprehend that life exists BEFORE birth. Life (in the natural sense) begins at conception. However, deeper within the mysteries of God, all our members are written in the book of life BEFORE the foundations of the earth. Man is very aware that life BEGINS at conception! However, man is so perverted in his sin that he has a thirst for blood, even the blood of the unborn. Man because of sin, is a natural predator of his own kind. Man will NOT accept God’s commandment, THOU SHALT NOT KILL. This is why, mankind picks on those who have no voice in the womb. Man doesn’t have to listen to their pleas, man doesn’t have to accept their terror and their suffering as they are torn and sucked from the womb and cast into the waste heap. All murderers have hearts of murder, and this nation, the United States of America, have just begun to feel the judgment of God because of their own wickedness and murder against the children of God. Brazenly forsaking God for their own lusts, they forsake their own children. Whether it is the lust of their flesh, or their lust for money or fame, it is still LUST. And through LUST they have forsaken their own souls.

The apostle Paul saw this world in its present evil condition in our current time frame and he warned mankind of the consequences of its evil. Mankind has not evolved to goodness, but he has degenerated into more evil. The majority of the population of this world have all forsaken God. And if it were possible, they would kill God. They have tried hard in their minds, and their hearts to completely erase the thoughts of God and replace those thoughts with perverted sins and evil imaginations. Yet God still sends His voice throughout the whole world. God’s word is not void. God’s word has life within itself. The very breath of God is in His scriptures, and the word of God will accomplish exactly what God sends it to accomplish: to condemn sin, and to give eternal hope in Christ Jesus our Lord.

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More to SEE in the UNSEEN Golden Altar of Incense

We are dealing with much more than just John the Baptist and his father Zacharias in this message. So, let’s return to the altar of incense. This altar of incense was very important in the path of salvation for on the Day of Atonement when the horns of the altar were anointed with the blood of sacrifice. Therefore, based on the blood of sacrifice, the incense that ascended took on a higher value because it was related to the blood of sacrifice, and this was the LAST STOP before entering in through the veil into the holy of holies. Now, again, once more, I repeat that this altar was first built out of shittim wood, which is the incorruptible wood, called by God incorruptible, for this golden altar was a type of Christ, and Christ was the incorruptible Seed, Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. (1^st Peter 1:23)

There were four horns on the altar, symbolizing the surroundings of all humanity, whether it is East, West, North and South, all of mankind is judged in light of God’s righteousness. Then on this altar of incense was a crown of gold that was outside of the four horns. This was symbolic of the crown of righteousness. Here symbolically was the King of Israel, the King of the Jews, and the King of nations.

1. The King (Isaiah 33:17) (Luke 19:38)

2. The King of the Jews (Matthew 2:2)

3. The King of Israel (John 1:47-49)

4. The King of saints (Revelation 15:3-4)

5. The King Eternal of all ages (1 Timothy 1:17)

6. The King of Righteousness and Peace (Hebrews 7:1-3)

7. The King of heaven (Daniel 4:37 then 34)

8. The King of glory (Psalm 24:7,8)

9. The King of kings (Revelation 19:12-16)

10. My King and My God (Psalm 5:2) (Psalm 44:4)

11. King over all the earth (Psalm 47:2, 7)

12. The King of nations (Jeremiah 10:7)

Let’s also consider the measurements of the altar of incense. And he made the incense altar [of] shittim wood: the length of it [was] a cubit, and the breadth of it a cubit; [it was] foursquare; and two cubits [was] the height of it; the horns thereof were of the same. (Exodus 37:25) Being foursquare showed God’s righteousness witnessed against the world, and that ALL are under condemnation.

The altar was also two cubits high. Now let us consider the measurements of this altar in the math of the Holy Spirit. As the blood was applied to the four horns, we see mercy for the whole world. We see the condemnation of the whole world through the length of it [was] a cubit, and the breadth of it a cubit . . . . the length and breadth of the whole world were under condemnation. The two cubits in height is the witness of God the Son and the Son of man against the world. From the Highest Himself, man is condemned under the righteousness of God (which is the gold that covered the whole altar of incense).

Again, in God’s timetable, in the fullness of time, we have the four horns of the cross anointed with the blood of Christ. His hands and His feet and His brow pierced with the crown of thorns, were the four horns of mercy (in type) that cried out to the Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. This shows the mercy of God to man, and what was brought to man in the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ. This was the love of God ascending up to the Father in the sweet savor in the Son of His love.

Christ, as the Creator, so loved the world that He GAVE HIMSELF without blemish to satisfy the righteousness of God in Himself. Remember that we are at the altar of incense, we are at the cross, and we also find out that the cross is the way to paradise. One of the thieves, while dying, spoke to the Lord Jesus and said, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. (Luke 23:42) The reply from his Creator was And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise. (Luke 23:43) The wounds and suffering of the cross are the outward things that man could see. However, when the eternal sufferings of Christ for sin began, the world was veiled in darkness. As darkness was upon the deep, darkness was then upon God’s Christ, as He cried out, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46) My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? (Psalm 22:1) The body that was prepared for Him (Hebrews 10:5) was then in the travail of His soul. As the Author of all life, He entered into death to defeat death. As we see in Hebrews Chapter 2 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; (Hebrews 2:14) He who is the cradle of eternity submitted Himself as the Son of man to enter into the death of man, and defeat and destroy that death for every man. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. (Hebrews 2:9) Remember, this was THAT Body PREPARED for THIS purpose in the fullness of time.

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The Perfection of the Invisible High Priest of God in the UNSEEN

We should also see that the altar of incense was placed just before the veil that separated the holy place from the holy of holies. The veil itself was embroidered with beautiful colors of threads depicting the heavenly realm in the Cherubim to show that there is a veil between the SEEN and the UNSEEN world of God. The Cherubim are the guards of heaven to keep the impurities of the earth out of God’s presence. In order for Aaron to enter into the inner place called the holy of holies, he had to pass through this veil, and before he could pass through this veil he HAD to stop at the golden altar of incense and anointed this altar with blood. While the Lord Jesus was on the cross, in preparation of the veil being removed and rent from top to bottom, He proclaimed, It is finished, and commended His Spirit into His Father’s hands. He then entered into death as the Man Christ Jesus, and laid within the tomb three days, but God the Father, would not see His Holy One see corruption. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. (Psalm 16:10)

Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. (Acts 2:27)

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)

Wherefore he saith also in another [psalm], Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. (Acts 13:35)

What do we have before us? The book of Acts has two main features, it is known as the acts of the apostles, however, in the Supernatural, it is the acts of the Holy Spirit of God. So therefore, the Holy Spirit of God doesn’t remind us once or twice, but THREE times that God’s Holy One, the Lord Jesus Christ, in His death would not see corruption. This is the shittim wood, the incorruptible wood; when the tree is growing, it is that same incorruptible wood, and when it is cut down it retains that incorruptibility. So, it is a perfect example of the Lord Jesus walking the streets of Jerusalem, and the dusty roads of Galilee as the Incorruptible Christ. Then, when He was cut off OUT of the land of the living, He maintained that incorruptibility by the power of God. The psalmist projected this, and the Spirit of God in Acts confirmed it, that even in the death of the Son of God He was incorruptible. God gives us an overlay of the incorruptible nature of the Lord Jesus Christ in Hebrews Chapter 7, verse 26. For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens. In this verse we have a picture of the eternal Son. He was spotless in His life, and He was separated from all the sin and the sinners of the world. The body that was prepared for Him could not suffer corruption in life or death and NOW when Christ ascended, this same Jesus ascended higher than the heavens to receive and officiate as God’s High Priest of the royal priesthood of Melchisedec. He was and is both Priest of the most high God, and King of righteousness and peace. In His resurrected form (with no corruption) He officiated, by Himself, the last stage of eternal redemption when He took His own blood and ascended on high. This great High Priest entered into the veil of heaven and after He had anointed the four horns of the altar He went through the veil and placed His blood on the eternal mercy seat of God. Once in the fullness of time, never to be repeated, by His own blood He acquired our redemption and satisfied all the claims of God against us because of Adam’s trespass against God. All the years and centuries and millenniums, the angels of God looked on over an empty mercy seat in heaven until the Lord Himself, this same Jesus, the Son of God, the Son of man ascended and placed His blood on the eternal mercy seat. There is NOW a witness in heaven on that mercy seat the incorruptibility of Jesus Christ. The eternal righteousness of Jesus Christ, the eternal grace and power of the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal sacrifice and redeeming blood is in heaven forever.

For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; (Colossians 1:19) And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. (Colossians 1:20)

For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; (Hebrews 7:26)

Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life. (Hebrews 7:16) For he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. (Hebrews 7:17)

How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (Hebrews 9:14)

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:2)

All these verses have a connection to the UNSEEN. The Lord Jesus through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot unto God. As that holy thing was placed in the womb of Mary by the Holy Ghost, and in His birth, that holy child came forth, He walked this earth as the Holy Man of God and presented Himself to man as the Holy Son of God. In His life, his footsteps, and the works of His hands, His miracles were beyond reproach for He was spotless, sinless, and incorruptible. Christ Himself is a witness of God’s love and God’s grace and truth. The marvelous plan of redemption all began in the determinate counsels of God. Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: (Acts 2:23) The determinate counsels of God progressed throughout creation and time BY His foreknowledge. In the beginning, He understood and KNEW the exact time period for the fullness of time when He would send His Son into the world to be the Savior of man.

But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, (Galatians 4:4) To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. (Galatians 4:5) And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. (Galatians 4:6) Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. (Galatians 4:7)

From this point the fullness of time, time goes backwards, and time goes forward, but this fullness of time is the highest of time. It is when ALL time meets in God’s eternity. Man’s redemption is fulfilled in the fullness of time. All is accomplished in the fullness of time by the death of the Son of God’s love. In the book of the Revelation, we have time will be no longer. For the history of mankind will be concluded, and the time of mankind will cease.

And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer: (Revelation 10:6)

But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets. (Revelation 10:7)

The fullness of time takes us to the end of time when the mystery of God will be finished, and the kingdom of our God will be complete for His Christ will reign over eternity. As Christ began the counsels of God by speaking the first words of creation and forming the heaven and the earth, as He began it all, it will all come to God’s plan of finality.

God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, (Hebrews 1:1) Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; (Hebrews 1:2)

Again, we enter into the UNSEEN, for the Lord Jesus created all things, and those things did not exist before He created them. The UNSEEN power of God was now SEEN in the Word of His power as He created the heaven and the earth. Looking into John’s vision in Chapter 10 of the book of the Revelation as time ends, and the mystery of God is complete, although we are not at the end of the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, let me remind you that this entire book is a series of windows into the mysteries of God and God, many times, presents these windows out of sequence, yet they are totally connected by the Spirit of God. All the visions of this wonderful perfect book lead us to The End of the mysteries of God when all is complete. We began in the gospel of Luke, Chapter 1. We have seen the beginning of a revelation of the UNSEEN to the SEEN. We have seen important aspects of the counsel and plan of redemption of the Almighty God that began in the vision of Zacharias, Jehovah Will Remember; He will look upon it and require it.

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12) Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. (Hebrews 4:13)

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. (Isaiah 55:11)

The UNSEEN God has been revealed in His Son, Jesus Christ. It is Christ WHO IS the manifestation of the invisible God. Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: (Colossians 1:15) Christ being the Spirit of prophecy, has brought us to Luke Chapter 1 through the previous writings of the prophets with the Spirit of Christ within them. In their writings of passed times they projected the fullness of time and in Luke’s gospel Chapter 1, the Spirit of prophecy brought the world to the time of Christ which is the fullness of time. As we watch the second hand of God’s time clicking by, we see ALL the facets and pieces of the glorious tapestry of redemption woven by God in the Son of His love the Lord Jesus Christ. We began with a man who was sent from God, John the Baptist, who was full of the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb, Elisabeth ‘God of the oath,’ or ‘God of the covenant,’

What God has promised He will fulfill. The promises to Abraham, the covenant with Israel, redemption for the world, the finality of man, and in the end a new heaven and a new earth, everything that God has promised He sealed it with an oath, and by His Word. Everything will be accomplished within His Word from the beginning to the end. And there will be a record from the end back to the beginning. There are many things that we see even UNDER sin that God allowed Adam to live. Yes, he would die, but he had many years to think of what his sin brought into the world. Adam saw that he gave seed to a murderer that killed his own righteous son, Abel. And through Abel, God began to fulfill the promise of His Seed in Genesis Chapter 3. For Abel was given the seed of faith by the UNSEEN Spirit of God that quickened the heart of Abel and transformed Abel into a child of God. The first man of faith was the first born of the Seed which is Christ. 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) For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. (1^st Corinthians 12:13)

The one seed is the one Spirit that is Jesus Christ. It is the Spirit of Christ whom God the Father has put in our hearts so that we become the sons of God. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. (Galatians 4:6) We see the same miracles in Luke Chapter 1. The Holy Ghost in that holy seed, that holy thing within Mary’s womb, gave proof of life in her greeting to Elisabeth. In this we see the work of the Spirit of God as Mary’s salutation was heard by John, for he leaped within the womb of Elisabeth, not just moved, but leaped. Some have said that John could not wait to proclaim his message, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord.‘

And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: (Luke 1:41)

For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. (Luke 1:44)

The awareness of John in the womb of Elisabeth reacted to the presence of his Lord in Mary’s womb. Both John and Elisabeth KNEW the presence of their God to show us the marvelous communication of the Spirit of Christ in the UNSEEN. In this one Chapter we have a complete novel of the UNSEEN. This Chapter has left many scholars astonished and unable to cope with the knowledge of God. The key to this first Chapter of the gospel of Luke is the writing of the Spirit of God. What is revealed in this Chapter cannot be revealed by man, it was only revealed by the Spirit of God. The Spirit of God allows the child of God to enter INTO the very womb of God’s word. How many times has the pulse increased and the heart jumped for joy as the heart hears the still small voice of the Lord Jesus. Luke Chapter 1 is the first presence of the UNSEEN God recorded in the womb of Mary. As we study the writing of the Holy Spirit in this Chapter, there is a divine presence in the womb of Mary that nothing is impossible with God. For with God nothing shall be impossible. (Luke 1:37) As John leaped, we see John’s reaction to His Lord. We are brought into the UNSEEN communication without words through the Spirit of Christ touching the womb of Elisabeth and John receiving the presence of his Lord. What manner of man would this be from heaven above? For the Son of God, at this early stage in the womb of Mary, was already declaring that His heavenly kingdom was at hand. And today, only a child of the Seed and Spirit of Christ can understand the presence of Christ and feel the presence of Christ. We understand these things with a childlike faith within the womb of God’s Word. Can we see with open eyes the invisible? In ending this message before part iii let’s review a few points that we have SEEN of the UNSEEN.

1. Herod wanted to be God.

2. Zacharias was the true high priest preserved by God from the tribe of Levi and the sons of Aaron.

3. The obedience of Zacharias to take a wife from the daughters of Aaron.

4. Both preserved by Jehovah – Jehovah will remember.

5.And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. (Luke 1:6)

6. Zacharias fulfilled his course as a true high priest among the politically corrupt appointed Pharisees and false priests.

7. The appearance of Gabriel (who stands before God) one of two angels named after the fall of Lucifer, (Michael is the other angel).

8. A prayer that spanned decades was answered in God’s time frame.

9. Gabriel appeared to Mary; a virgin chosen of God.

10. That holy thing from heaven was the HOLY in the smallest element in a special body prepared before time.

I look forward to part iii as a little child before my God. May the Lord look on it and remember. Time to close.

Amen and Selah.

This article may be used, but not for gain. Freely ye have received, freely give.

All Scripture references are from the King James Bible. (KJB)

The Invisible – Part ii –

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