The Just Shall Live by Faith – Hebrews 10: 36 – 39 –

The Just Shall Live by Faith
(Hebrews 10:36 – 39)

For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. (Hebrews 10:36)
For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. (Hebrews 10:37)
Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. (Hebrews 10:38)
But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul. (Hebrews 10:39)

—— ◆ ——
The Patience of the Just

   As children of God, we need to consider through our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ our walk of faith. We, as the children of God, need to have patience for it is not OUR will but God’s will that we aim to please and fulfill. We should remember the Supernatural work with us has taken us out of Adam’s world. It has separated us from the children of Adam as well as from the prince of this world, Lucifer. Both man under sin and Lucifer are contrary to God’s will. Everyone around the child of God in Adam is a stranger to God as we, the children of God, are strangers to the world. Man in his fallen nature is impatient in everything that he does. He waits impatiently for the rising of the sun, a small point but very effective when examining man’s impatient nature. Man has an impatient mind. He has an impatient heart, and an impatient spirit. Sin has made man impatient in everything he does. So, therefore, it leads to an impatient world, and impatient governments, and impatient societies and impatient religions. The Bible tells us to wait on God. Man tells us that he has no time for God because he is impatient to do his own will. Biblical patience can only come through the Spirit of God to the heart that is one with Christ.

Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ: (2nd Peter 1:1)
Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, (2nd Peter 1:2)
According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: (2nd Peter 1:3)
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. (2nd Peter 1:4)
And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; (2nd Peter 1:5)
And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; (2nd Peter 1:6)
And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. (2nd Peter 1:7)
For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2nd Peter 1:8)

   In these verses we have a divine formula for excellence which Adam cannot acquire. First and foremost, we have acquired precious faith through the righteousness of God (as Abel) in the more excellent sacrifice, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Then the Spirit of God teaches us biblical math for we see the multiplication of both grace and peace through the knowledge of Jesus Christ. We need to answer this first multiplication. I ask you, How much knowledge, godly knowledge, do you have in the grace and peace of our Savior Jesus Christ? It is through THAT knowledge that grace, and peace are multiplied.

—– ◆ ——
The Just and the Knowledge of Christ

   In this Chapter of 2nd Peter, knowledge is mentioned five times which is the number of grace, and through the word of God, the word knowledge is mentioned 172 times. So, I would believe that KNOWLEDGE must be recognized in two ways: the knowledge of good and the knowledge of evil. The very first mention of knowledge is AT the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Peter through the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ takes us BACK to THAT tree where sin came into the world through Adam. Peter presents, through the Spirit of God, another Man, a Man from heaven, hanging upon the tree of good and evil. Think of it, all the knowledge of God, all the creatorial power of God, all the wisdom of God, all the righteousness of God, all the faith of God and ALL the love of God hanging on the tree on the mount of deliverance, the place of the skull. Read 1st Peter 2:24 and 25.

Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. (1st Peter 2:24) For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls. (1st Peter 2:25)

   Now to see the complete wisdom of the Spirit of God in joining the path of our redemption and for us to grow in grace the last mention of knowledge in the Bible is found in 2nd Peter 3:18, But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen. This is the GOOD knowledge that we have acquired through faith that we can grow IN grace through the knowledge, biblical knowledge, of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ both in the Old Testament and the New Testament to the last words in the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Therefore, pay attention my little chicks, the first problem of man was when SIN came AT the tree of the KNOWLEDGE of good and evil, it created a history of man, the history of sin and iniquity in the children of Adam of sin and iniquity. The last mention of knowledge is to GROW IN GRACE where sin and iniquity has been removed and a new creation is brought forth to learn and gain KNOWLEDGE of their Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. It was Christ who hung on the tree, although He knew no sin, He bore the sin of the whole world for us. The first mention of knowledge in the 2nd epistle of Peter relates to the last mention in 2nd Peter 3:18. But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen. The first mention is 2nd Peter 1:2, Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord. Peter began with the multiplication of grace and peace. Both grace and peace come from the one who holds the keys of faith. Through faith we as the children of God, receive both grace and peace from our Lord Jesus Christ. And the more that we grow in grace in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, peace is multiplied to us although the whole world comes against us. Again, we see the work of the Holy Spirit in the continuity of the Scriptures, and how He uses the word of God to develop our faith and multiple our grace in our blessed Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In 2nd Peter 1, verses 5 and 6 again we have biblical math of addition. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; (2nd Peter 1:5) And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; (2nd Peter 1:6)
   In this Supernatural math which can only be attained by the Spirit of God, we are to ADD to our faith: virtue, and to virtue we are to ADD KNOWLEDGE, and to knowledge we are to ADD temperance, and to temperance we are to ADD patience, and to patience we are to ADD godliness.  All this knowledge is the knowledge of good for the knowledge of the holy leads to the full knowledge of Christ.
    The knowledge of Christ through faith leads to the grace of God. And to GROW, or to ADD to your grace, it MUST come from the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Yet, man does not want nor desire this knowledge. Man wants to follow in Adam’s footsteps, in the vain knowledge of evil and ungodliness. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; (Romans 1:28) It was man who chose NOT to retain the knowledge of God. It was man who cast off God. So, therefore, God gave them over to a reprobate mind as man rejected God. A reprobate mind is not capable of the knowledge of God. God is DONE with that reprobate mind. It is completely shut off from the knowledge of God; thus, they live in THIS life in utter darkness with NO light, and they love to have it so.

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)

   So, God rejected them, and today they still deny God, and they still are cast off from God. To understand the situation of mankind without God, one should understand that there is NOTHING left in man to seek God, for man is reprobate before the Almighty.

Reprobate silver shall men call them, because the LORD hath rejected them. (Jeremiah 6:30)
Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. (2nd Timothy 3:8)
And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; (Romans 1:28)
They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate. (Titus 1:16)

   This word reprobate is only used four (4) times by the Spirit of God throughout the entire Bible. The number four is the number of the world (the Earth number) and they that dwell therein, man. The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. (Psalm 24:1) The world of Adam and his race are a reprobate world built on the building blocks of sin as in the tower of Babel and the works of the flesh under the authority of the prince of this world, who is the devil, that old serpent. It is he who controls the satanic forces of this world.

   The Bible gives us a sharp contrast between good and evil, between the wisdom of the world and the wisdom of God. Here are a few verses to mull over. I will not comment on these verses, but I would like you to consider and to think them over.

The lips of the righteous feed many: but fools die for want of wisdom. (Proverbs 10:21)
Folly is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom: but a man of understanding walketh uprightly. (Proverbs 15:21)
Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it? (Proverbs 17:16)
For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness: thou hast said, None seeth me. Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee; and thou hast said in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me. (Isaiah 47:10)
This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. (James 3:15) For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. (James 3:16)
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. (1st Corinthians 3:19)

   When we look at the wisdom of man without God, we see the evil forces working in man’s own self-destruction. Just follow the path of man’s continual war against himself is to destroy his own race: the species of man. It is a never-ending battle pushed by the evils of Lucifer. We can see the self-destruction in the personal life of man and in his religious life even to the point of religious wars and annihilation due to his many belief systems. A man can have idols of stone, silver, gold, wood, but all these idols are centered in the heart of man and it is the heart that brings forth these religious wars both SEEN and UNSEEN due to the evil within mankind. All this affects his daily life, his political life (ruled by the government), his social life (ruled by society), and as the evil increases in Adam’s race the world loses all patience with the things around them. They choose their gods according to their self-desires and lusts, and who and what they want to be. Man loses or has lost all godly understanding. If one would just read with intelligence Genesis 6 and Romans 1, they would see the ungodliness of this world. The spiritual condition of the world is driven by the supernatural division of evil put forth by Lucifer and in the hearts of man due to man’s sin. In the days of Noah, everything that man yearned for came from his own evil imagination. The center of that evil according to Genesis 6:5 was the HEART of man, the same heart that exists in our world today. And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (Genesis 6:5) I want you to pause and, in your mind, consider the world around you. We live in a world of imagination. Although a great multitude of books are titled fiction, they should be titled ‘Imagination.’ 
    We live in a make-believe world of vain imagination. The entertainment industry is built on the imagination of mankind. The children in schools are taught to use their imagination that they are neither male nor female. David was right when he said that he was a worm, a no man, however, it was David talking about his spiritual condition’ however, the spiritual condition of children is neither biblically taught in our schools, nor in the multitude of churches. Man sees all children as good, although they are from the seed of Adam, and this seed is sin and iniquity. We grow up being fed on fairy tales, make believe figures that do not exist, and heroes that are highly esteemed because of their murderous conquests. When all these fairy tales hit the hard reality of an evil world, man has no way out. So, he turns to drugs, or drunkenness, or perverted sex, or sports of all kinds, and through man’s imagination he projects himself as a participant in that sport. How do I know this? Just watch his reaction when his favorite team loses. And when all the games will not satisfy, man feels that money is the only way to wisdom and inward peace. Yet, money drives man in the opposite direction from wisdom. Study the life of Solomon and see what took his heart away from God. See the impurities of evil that Solomon allowed into his life, into his being, that eventually corrupted his wisdom, and after you see these things then read the book of Ecclesiastes with fresh eyes looking at the sadness of the heart and how far Solomon had strayed from the wisdom of God. The world is not a happy place. The world is not known for wisdom; however, the world is known for sin and iniquity for goodness is not man’s most important product or achievement.
   In a gathering of the multitude, when a wave of human happiness comes over the crowd, this is for a moment in time, for later the mind of men, the heart of man, the spirit of man, the soul of man comes back to the hard reality of an evil world. We have all met people who live in a fantasy world. They have NO reality. They wander through the darkness as drones of the devil. You could call them the walking dead, and they will be yanked out of their fantasy when the Angel of Death comes to them. He will take their soul to the reality of hell, and they will be tormented day and night.

There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: (Luke 16:19)
And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, (Luke 16:20)
And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. (Luke 16:21)
And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; (Luke 16:22)
And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. (Luke 16:23)
And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. (Luke 16:24)
But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. (Luke 16:25)
And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. (Luke 16:26)
Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: (Luke 16:27)
For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. (Luke 16:28)
Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. (Luke 16:29)
And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. (Luke 16:30)
And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead. (Luke 16:31)

   This is the only place in the divine Scriptures that the reality of hell is exposed in an actual person. The Spirit of God did not give him a name, only a position as a rich man. The Spirit of God wants us to understand that this person in hell covers all the ungodly who suffer in the flames of torment for what was DONE or NOT DONE in their life. Sober, sober thought, so now I have you for THE JUST SHALL LIVE (NOT DIE) BY FAITH.

—– ◆ ——
The JUST Shall Live by Faith

Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. (Hebrews 10:38)

   Paul said of those who are committed to the Lord Jesus Christ, to the saving of our souls, we are not of them who draw back, that turn back, we are not of those who stand by and just watch, we are of those who have committed our souls to the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the doorway to life. The Lord Jesus, who cannot lie, declared that ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life no man cometh to the Father but by me.‘ Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6)
  This verse not only shows the fullness of the Son of God that He is the way of everlasting, but He is also the pinnacle and monument of truth, and within Him is ALL life, and no one can approach the Father EXCEPT through the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. This shows the fullness of who Christ is, but WAIT, it also shows the complete emptiness of mankind that Adam’s race is incapable of approaching God unless they come through the Lord of glory and enter in through the veil of His flesh which is an open door to heaven . . . for the just shall live by faith. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. (John 10:9)
   In Hebrews 10:36 the Spirit of God brings out another act of patience. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. This is in direct relationship with the coming of the Lord. As God is long suffering toward usward, we should be patient on His behalf knowing that the coming of the Lord is SURE for He will come and will not tarry. For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. (Hebrews 10:37) We are to anticipate His coming at any moment in time. As we yearn to see Him, our faith has painted a spiritual image within our hearts of the ONE who we yearn for, and we know that we will see Him as He is. We also know that we will be like Him, and as we follow the will of God through the darkness of this world, we must have the patience of Job. When the world around us is falling apart right before our eyes by all the evil sins, the signs of the day have manifested themselves before us. And it is a good time to lay hold of the truth in Hebrews 10:37, for Christ will complete His promises. He will come again and receive us unto Himself. Then in Hebrews Chapter 10 as we contemplate the coming of the Lord, what a perfect place for the Spirit of God to reveal once again that THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH. This is also a reminder of the Old Testament saints for this phrase was first mentioned in Habakkuk 2:4 Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith. In Habakkuk Chapter 1, Habakkuk saw the evil of his day and the suffering of the righteous under the thumbs of evil masters as the king of Babylon tore apart the promised land before the eyes of Habakkuk. As Habakkuk saw the suffering of saints in his day, so also in Chapter 10 of Hebrews we also see the suffering of believers not only from their adversaries but also through the corruption within the Church. As the godly in the age of Habakkuk had suffered in the flesh, so also did those in the age of the Church when the book of Hebrews was written also many suffered in the flesh and had lost their tangible wealth and assets. As we study the days of those Hebrew believers, they closely resembled the suffering of the faithful in Habakkuk Chapter 1.

Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? for spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention. (Habakkuk 1:3)
Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth. (Habakkuk 1:4)
They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad. (Habakkuk 1:15)

   In verses 3 and 4 we see the breakdown of society in the absence of justice and the tyrannical rule of man. In verse 15, we see the spiritual side under the direction of Lucifer against the righteous catching precious souls in his net of evil, and then those nets are worshiped by Lucifer’s fishers of men. Yes, Satan also has fishers of men, another counterfeit of the devil. The Lord referring to His gospel tells us that He will make His disciples fishers of men. These are the nets of good where the nets of Lucifer are evil. In Romans Chapter 1, we have our study verse once more, THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. (Romans 1:17) This phrase, The just shall live by faith is placed in the book of Romans just before the wrath of God which also compares to the book of Habakkuk, for after this phrase of Habakkuk we also have the wrath of God revealed.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; (Romans 1:18) Tiny Side Note: the word wrath is document in nine (9) verses in the book of Romans, for a total of eleven mentions. ◆ End of Tiny Side Note.

Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith. (Habakkuk 2:4))
O LORD, I have heard thy speech, [and] was afraid: O LORD, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy. (Habakkuk 3:2)
Was the LORD displeased against the rivers? [was] thine anger against the rivers? [was] thy wrath against the sea, that thou didst ride upon thine horses [and] thy chariots of salvation? (Habakkuk 3:8)

   The vision of Habakkuk was of the ungodly and what was fast approaching upon them and also upon the righteous by the evil workings of men.

And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. (Habakkuk 2:2) For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. (Habakkuk 2:3)

   As we see in Hebrews 10, there is an appointed time for the coming of the Lord. For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. (Hebrews 10:37) What a comparison to the vision of Habakkuk. It was an appointed time in God’s order, for yet a little while, and He will come, and will NOT tarry. And then the comparison of THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH in both the books of Hebrews and Habakkuk. Habakkuk’s vision covered his time as Roman’s Chapter 1 covers the complete time frame of the ungodly. As Hebrews Chapter 10 brings us to our present age and time that we should wait patiently for yet a little while, and He (the Lord Jesus) who is the One appointed in due time will come to receive the just who lived by faith, and who walked from faith to faith, and who grows in grace and in the KNOWLEDGE of the Lord Jesus Christ. The coming of the Lord Jesus Christ is never out of the consciousness of the saints: every day, every hour, waiting patiently for He who shall come, will come, and will not tarry. Although the angels do not know that moment in time, they also wait patiently. It is only God the Father who knows the exact moment that He will send His Son. Just as He knew the exact moment when He SENT that holy thing from heaven to be the holy child and to be that Holy One. He SENT His Son to be the sacrifice for sin. He will also send His Son to gather His loved ones home. Whether they sleep IN Jesus, or are alive, 

When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:4)

Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. (1st John 3:2)

   So be patient my loves, the Lord WILL come for us, and in a twinkling of an eye, we WILL BE changed as we ascend UP to meet the Lord in the air when this mortal shall put on immortality, and this corruption will put on incorruption.

But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. (1st Thessalonians 4:13)
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. (1st Thessalonians 4:14)
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. (1st Thessalonians 4:15)
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: (1st Thessalonians 4:16)
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. (1st Thessalonians 4:17)
Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (1st Thessalonians 4:18)

—– ◆ ——
The JUST Separated from the Ungodly

  Let’s do some intense thinking now. Let’s compare this vision of Habakkuk and what it is all about and compare it with Romans Chapter 1 and Hebrews 10:38. In Habakkuk the JUST are separated from the ungodly. Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: (the ungodly) but the just shall live by his faith (the godly). (Habakkuk 2:4) Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine, he is a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all people. (Habakkuk 2:5) In Habakkuk 2:5 we see the ungodliness of man in his transgression, we also see the adulterous spirit of man (neither keepeth at home) and as hell cannot be satisfied (who enlargeth his desire as hell) so the evil heart of man cannot be filled with his unrighteous works, thus, he consumes the evil nations and heapeth unto him all the people. IN THIS we see the masked adversary behind the scenes (Lucifer) destroying the nations and consuming the people with evil.
   In Romans Chapter 1, verse 16, The JUST are separated by the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Here we once again find SEPARATION of the godly from the ungodly. As THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH binds the righteous to the God of eternity, verse 18 of Romans 1 shows us that the ungodly are chained to the WRATH of God for all eternity.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16)
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. (Romans 1:17)
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; (Romans 1:18)

   In Hebrews 10:38, the JUST are separated from the ungodly. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. (Hebrews 10:38) But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul. (Hebrews 10:39)
   What a way to end Hebrews Chapter 10, with the surety of faith to faith, The Just SHALL LIVE by faith. For I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20) And I believe to the saving of the soul.

To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, (Hebrews 12:23)
And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. (Hebrews 12:24)
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)

—– ◆ ——
The JUST Made Perfect Through FAITH, the GIFT of God

   In this section in Hebrews Chapter 12 we see the wonder of JUST men made perfect in Christ. To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, (Hebrews 12:23) This justification comes through faith and faith is the true gift of God. The result of faith IN Jesus Christ is the imparting of God’s grace to each child of God. In Romans 1:17 faith to faith is the ONLY time we see the phrase faith to faith in Scripture. It is connected to the fullness of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and through the gospel, man is justified by their heart felt belief in the Lord Jesus Christ.
   As we walk through this world, each step we take is faith to faith. We live by the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ as we see in Galatians 2:20 and Hebrews 12:2. We are justified in the death of the Lord Jesus Christ by the faith of the Son of God for He is the Author and Finisher of faith. He possesses ALL faith, and He gives the gift of faith to man.
    Faith MUST come first to man as the gift of God for Abel first received faith BEFORE he was made righteous before God in the more excellent sacrifice. By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. (Hebrews 11:4) God waits to Chapter 11 in the book of Hebrews to not only define faith but He gives us examples of those who walked by faith.

   In Hebrews 12:2 the Author of faith and the Finisher of faith is directly connected to His own sacrifice AND the work that He finished on the tree, and for the joy that was set before Him from the beginning of the world and the creation of man. He endured the cross for that joy of all the redeemed. This joy can be seen in Hebrews Chapter 2, verses 10-15.

For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. (Hebrews 2:10)
For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, (Hebrews 2:11)
Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee. (Hebrews 2:12)
And again, I will put my trust in him. And again, Behold I and the children which God hath given me. (Hebrews 2:13)
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)
And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. (Hebrews 2:15)

   Do you see the joy in the song in verse 12, Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee. We also see the joy that was set before Him in the Old Testament. The prophet Isaiah wrote in Isaiah 53:10 and 11, Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. (Isaiah 53:10) He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. (Isaiah 53:11) We see the joy that was set before Him in the offering of His soul. In Isaiah, we see the joy that was set before Him BEFORE Calvary. In Hebrews 2 we are reminded of that joy in the wake or in the finished work of Calvary. In Isaiah 53:11 we see the justification of the children of God IN the finished work of Christ LONG BEFORE His birth. And again, it magnifies and finalizes THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH. BY His KNOWLEDGE shall my righteous servant justify many. This also falls in line with 1st Corinthians 1:30 and 31. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: (1st Corinthians 1:30) That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. (1st Corinthians 1:31)

   We are MADE (in our new birth) the wisdom of Christ, the righteousness of Christ, the sanctification of Christ, and the redemption and justification through the finished work of Christ. When a person realizes that the Author and Finisher of faith IS also the possessor of ALL faith and that it can only come as a Gift from Him because He loved me and gave Himself for me. (Galatians 2:20) He endured the cross, despising the shame as well as enduring the vileness of man and the enmity of Satan for the JOY that was set before Him. In the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, Chapter 13, verse 8, And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. We see the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Although this verse is recorded in the book of the Revelation, it shows us the overwhelming POWER in the omniscient God. We know that He sees ALL, but can we fathom the depth that He is able to see ALL of the history of His creation IN ONE PRESENT VISION. It is beyond our comprehension, and yet, in Revelation 13 we behold the fact that in the determinate counsels of God and in His foreknowledge, He saw the sacrifice of His beloved Son on the cross of Calvary from the foundation of the world. And Christ, being part of that counsel, SAW Himself as the everlasting sacrifice, the Gift of God so that The JUST would have everlasting life IN the Son of God.

—– ◆ ——
The JUST Justified and MADE Sons by The Thrice Holy God

   In the gift of the Son of God to man He was the Man from heaven, He was the Man of Bethlehem, the Man of Nazareth, the Man of Jerusalem, thus, the Man of the cross was and is the Man from heaven. Pilate not knowing the full magnitude of his own words proclaimed, Behold the man. (CLICK HERE to read more about Behold the man,) This was a statement beyond understanding. This was the holy thing, the holy child and the Holy One. In Isaiah Chapter 6 we have the thrice Holy man, the Lord of glory sitting upon His throne. The same holy thing . . . HOLY; the holy child . . . HOLY; the Holy One . . . Holy. And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. (Isaiah 6:3) In Psalm 24 the last verse asks, Who is the King of glory? The answer from the Holy Ghost is, The Lord of hosts. This is the same Lord of hosts in Isaiah 6:3. In Psalm 24:10 we have the same Man with clean hands and a pure heart. It is HE and HE alone who can ascend into the hill of the Lord and stand in the holy place with the blood of His sacrifice and place it on the mercy seat. Who is the Lord of glory? The Lord of glory is The Lord of Hosts, the Holy thing, the Holy child, the Holy One, the Lord Jesus Christ.
   In Isaiah 6 we have the thrice Holy Man, the Lord of glory sitting upon His throne which is magnified in the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ in Chapter 4, verses 8 – 11, and Revelation 5: 9 – 11.

And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. (Revelation 4:8)
And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever, (Revelation 4:9)
The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, (Revelation 4:10)
Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. (Revelation 4:11)

~

And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; (Revelation 5:9)
And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. (Revelation 5:10)
And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; (Revelation 5:11)

   ➥ Before we continue on, let’s backtrack to Luke 1:35. And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. In Luke 1:35 we have the holy thing coming from heaven and He would be called the Son of God.
   ➥ In Acts Chapter 4, in verses 27 and 30 the Lord Jesus is called the holy child Jesus. For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, (Acts 4:27)

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)

   By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus. (Acts 4:30)

   ➥ The Spirit of God also designates the Lord Jesus as the Holy One in Acts 2:27 and 3:14, 15. Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. (Acts 2:27) But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; (Acts 3:14) And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses. (Acts 3:15)

   It seems as though all of these Scriptures can overwhelm the mind, but when we hear the clarity of the Spirit’s voice, we see the infinite and omnipotent God from before the foundations of the world. The first voice that was heard from the vacuum of nothingness was the voice of the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. It was HIS voice that created the heaven and the earth. It is HIS voice in the determinate counsels of God that God would make man out of dust in His OWN IMAGE, and only the Lord Jesus Christ can be the Justifier of mankind. (This is the same image that was manifested before man in the fullness of time. It was also the same image in Isaiah 6:8 who declared, Here am I, send me. Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.) And we, as the children of God, who have been born of HIS Spirit are called sons by the Almighty God.

Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. (1st John 3:1)
Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. (1st John 3:2)
And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. (1st John 3:3)
Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. (1st John 3:4)

~

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: (John 1:12) Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:13)

—– ◆ ——
The JUST are of a NEW RACE Created IN Christ

   From the vision of Isaiah in Chapter 6 to Revelation Chapters 4 and 5 we see the faith of Abel, the faith of Enoch, the faith of Noah, the faith of Abraham, the faith of Jacob, the faith of the patriarchs, the faith of Joseph, and the faith of Moses (the proper child), the sent child to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt.
   Now we have the Man from heaven, the Man with clean hands and a pure heart, ONLY HE can stand in the holy place. He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. (Psalm 24:4) Behold, this Man came forth in 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) 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)

   This Man was SENT from heaven to lead us out of this world to our home in heaven where ALL the children of God can rejoice in the Man of their salvation, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will deliver us to our Father’s house.
   The nation of Israel had an earthly leader in Moses. We, the children of God, have a heavenly possessor for He has sent His Spirit to dwell WITHIN our hearts, that WE should do the will of God for His good pleasure, and NOT of OUR will, nor for our pleasure. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. (Hebrews 10:36)
   Now we see patience within the will of God being obedient to the Spirit of God working within us to DO THE WILL OF GOD according to His good pleasure. Since Adam brought sin into the world, we have witnessed God’s patience with ALL of mankind, especially with Adam and his descendants and their multitude of sins. As we follow the sin of man through the pages of his own history, we see that man is NOT patient, and he is the opposite of God’s will and purpose. Therefore, man in Adam must be discarded and a NEW RACE created IN Jesus Christ. As God has created us, the children of God, through the Spirit of Christ, He has left us in the earth to do His will according to His good pleasure. He could have removed our bodies, or better, separated us from the flesh at the moment of our new birth in Jesus Christ, but He did not. We are here to fulfill God’s will according to His good pleasure. The words after ye have done the will of God we see the promises or receiving the promises of God.
   The promises of God are without repentance as He promised to Abraham He will FULFILL those promises both IN us and the Israel to come. We see the promises of Abraham are directly related to BOTH Israel and the Church of the Living God. We are in the promises to Abraham. Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. (Galatians 4:28) And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. (Galatians 3:29) I have often thought that in the promises to Abraham God expressed the earthly seed as the sands of the sea, and the heavenly seed as the stars in the heaven.

And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, (Genesis 22:15)
And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: (Genesis 22:16)
That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; (Genesis 22:17)
And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. (Genesis 22:18)

   What we should realize in Genesis is that ALL the promises previous to Chapter 22 were solely of the earth. NOW in Genesis Chapter 22, an angel of the LORD speaks out of heaven much as Hebrews Chapter 12:24-27.

And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. (Hebrews 12:24)
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)

   We have here both the promises of an earthly seed and a heavenly seed to Abraham.

—– ◆ ——
The JUST Obtain Sonship IN Christ

   Now, let’s take this further into the promises of God. 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) Here the Spirit of God declares the true seed IS a heavenly Seed and that SEED is Christ. All the children of God come from THAT seed which is Christ. The heavenly seed is the Supernatural seed which creates a new race of people which are the children of God and BY adoption joint-heirs with Christ and have obtained sonship IN Him. Again, we see the promises of Abraham in Galatians 3:29, And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
   Returning back to Genesis Chapter 22, we are as the stars in the heavens, a heavenly people members of the Body of Christ, bone of His bone, flesh of His flesh and all in the heavenly promises given to Abraham. Again, in Galatians 4:28 the Spirit of God reminds us through the faith of Abraham that we have the continuance of that seed of faith. According to Hebrews 11:4 Abel possessed that same seed of faith as Abraham which is now given to the children of promise IN Jesus Christ.

   In Ishmael and Isaac, we have a sharp division, the Spirit of God reveals to us (through the book of Galatians) that Ishmael was born after the flesh, and Isaac was born after the Spirit. This is great illustration of God separating the seed of man from the seed of promise. This was a great division in the man of the flesh (Ishmael) and all of his characteristics, his personality, and his will that was driven by his flesh and his sin. Now, Isaac was born of the Spirit, we see this godly division all the way back to Isaac. Isaac can relate to John Chapter 1, verse 13, Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. (Galatians 4:28) But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. (Galatians 4:29) Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. (Galatians 4:30) So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free. (Galatians 4:31)

   This separation between the flesh and the Spirit is of divine origin for we have the same separation between Cain and Abel. Cain was of the flesh, a murderer and persecutor of Abel, and Abel was of the Spirit. Later we have the same separation in Esau and Jacob as we travel through Scripture, we even see this separation through Aaron and Moses, and between Saul and David. The seed of the flesh in Adam runs through the entire Bible as also does the seed of the Spirit of God in Jesus Christ which separates the children of God from the children of Adam. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. (John 1:12) We must consider the power of the Spirit of God to maintain His thoughts through generational development of the Bible from the beginning to the present day. The word sons in John 1:12 is very important because it connects US with the seed of Jesus Christ and that we are born of HIS SPIRIT and God the Father sends the Spirit of Christ into our hearts to confirm our sonship. The proof is in Galatians 4:6 and 7, 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)

—– ◆ ——
The JUST Receive the Promise

   For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. (Hebrews 10:36) Hebrews 10:36 prepares us for the translation of the saints AND the second coming of Christ as the Lord of lords, and King of kings, as we see in Hebrews 10:37, For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Here we have the assurance by the Spirit of God, AND we also have the assurance with the two witnesses of God at the ascension of Christ that THIS SAME Jesus will come in like manner. (Could these two figures of men be as the two witnesses of Revelation Chapter 11, verses 3-12). 

And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. (Acts 1:9)
And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; (Acts 1:10)
Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. (Acts 1:11)

   Hebrews 10:37 is a statement of the Spirit of God, and we should embrace THAT promise as Abraham embraced the promise in his day. We should not only see the earthly side of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, but we should also see the heavenly side in the translation of the saints when they will meet the Lord in the air.
   The earthly side of the sacrifice of Christ was to Abraham and his earthly seed. The heavenly side of the sacrifice of Christ was that of Enoch, the seventh from Adam. Today both Jew and Gentile, both bond and free, both male and female who are born again as the children of God belong to the heavenly side of the seed of promise. The earthly side of THAT promise as the sands of the sea will be fulfilled IN the millennial Kingdom of Jesus Christ. As a child of God today at the moment of our new birth we become a heavenly subject under God’s will and NOT our own. We are partakers of the heavenly promise with Christ who has delivered us FROM the earth in our Supernatural birth. We, according to Hebrews 10:37, look for the Son of God coming in the heavens to receive us.

But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. (1st Thessalonians 4:13)
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. (1st Thessalonians 4:14)
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. (1st Thessalonians 4:15)
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: (1st Thessalonians 4:16)
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. (1st Thessalonians 4:17)
Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (1st Thessalonians 4:18)

   Although it has been millenniums since the Lord Jesus visibly ascended, we patiently are waiting as we fulfill the will of God according to His good pleasure. God has been very patient with the world since the death of His Son on the cross at Calvary. The crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ was the pinnacle of man’s sin and enmity against God. At that same time, it was the expression of God’s love, God’s mercy and God’s grace in the very sacrifice of the soul of His Son to redeem man unto Himself. As we patiently wait for Christ to call us home, we have a very important promise given to Israel as a nation in Hosea 6:1-3.

Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. (Hosea 6:1) After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. (Hosea 6:2) Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth. (Hosea 6:3)

   As we patiently wait, let us also consider the prophecy of Habakkuk in Chapter 2, verses 2 – 4. And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. (Habakkuk 2:2) For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. (Habakkuk 2:3) Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith. (Habakkuk 2:4)
   Israel waits for the reign of their Messiah, when He will rule as Lord of Lords and King of Kings and deliver them from all their enemies and set up His millennial Kingdom on earth. He will rule as both Priest after the order of Melchisedec and King according to the covenant of David.

   On the heavenly side, as the translation of Enoch came BEFORE the flood, so the translation of the Body of Christ will come BEFORE the tribulation. This does not mean that this evil world will not persecute those who are faithful to Christ TODAY. As the Cain Syndrome that was established by Cain STILL exists today, we see our world multiplying evil; thus, we will soon see persecution let loose on the faithful. (CLICK HERE for more about the Cain Syndrome.) The righteous are ALWAYS marked out by the world of evil for evil cannot coexist with the righteous because they originated from two different men: those of Adam are from the evil side of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, those of Christ are from the good side of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It was NOT the tree that brought sin into the world. It was ADAM’S disobedience to God’s word. It was NOT the tree of Calvary that took sin out of the world. It was the MAN CHRIST JESUS upon the cross that sacrificed Himself to take sin out of the world.
   Returning to the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, in the book of Hosea Chapter 6, it is the Spirit of God reassuring Israel by her divine husband, Ishi.

And I will visit upon her the days of Baalim, wherein she burned incense to them, and she decked herself with her earrings and her jewels, and she went after her lovers, and forgat me, saith the LORD. (Hosea 2:13)
Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. (Hosea 2:14)
And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt. (Hosea 2:15)
And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call me Ishi; and shalt call me no more Baali. (Hosea 2:16)
For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name. (Hosea 2:17)
And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely. (Hosea 2:18)
And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies. (Hosea 2:19)
I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the LORD. (Hosea 2:20)
And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth; (Hosea 2:21)
And the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel. (Hosea 2:22)
And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God. (Hosea 2:23)

   When you compare these verses with the beginning of the third day mentioned in Hosea Chapter 6, verse 2 (After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight) in the New Testament in the last days, scoffers will come and they will say, Where is the sign of his coming?

Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, (2nd Peter 3:3)
And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. (2nd Peter 3:4)
For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: (2nd Peter 3:5)
Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: (2nd Peter 3:6)
But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. (2nd Peter 3:7)
But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. (2nd Peter 3:8)
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. (2nd Peter 3:9)

   Chapter 3 of 2nd Peter begins with the last days, and those days speak of the earth. Once the Church is taken home and resides in heaven, evil will yet abound more in the earth as never before. For three and a half (3 ½) years the people of the earth will do that which is right in their own eyes as in the days of the Judges. After three and a half (3 ½) years, Satan will raise up the man of sin, the great pretender, and Satan will place this Beast upon the throne of Satan as god of this world. Here we will find the mark of The Beast. This is NOT God separating, but Satan separating the Just from the unjust by the mark of The Beast. Those who refuse the mark will be slain as the magnification of the Cain Syndrome. Most likely, they will be beheaded for their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. In 2nd Peter Chapter 3, in the last days BEFORE the coming of the Lord in His second appearance, we have a world as it was in the days of Noah. Evil has abounded to the point that God HAS to send TWO witnesses to minister the righteousness of God to an evil world. AND they also will be slain by the evil kingdom of The Beast. Remember that Noah was the ONLY preacher of righteousness before the flood. And his preaching was rejected by the WHOLE world. In the kingdom of The Beast, the WHOLE world will reject the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ in physical form to the earth to stamp out evil and rescue Israel from the hatred of the world. In THESE days, before His coming there will be scoffers of the unrighteous world denying His coming as they denied His coming when He was born in Bethlehem to be the Savior of man.
   In the beginning of the THIRD DAY in Hosea Chapter 6, IS NOT for the Church, but for Israel. Since this time frame is so close according to Hosea Chapter 6, then the translation of the Church IS even closer. When we see a millennium as a day, according to the word of God, then we have already begun the third day or we are IN the beginning of the third day.
   In the beginning of this third millennium which also represents the third day in conjunction with the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ on the third day, remember that He appeared in the morning of the third day; however, He did NOT reveal Himself to His brethren UNTIL the evening of that same day. He ascended up to His Father BEFORE He met with His brethren in His glorified state. CLICK HERE to learn more about Touch me not.  CLICK HERE for much more about Touch me not. CLICK HERE for much much more about Touch me not. 

Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master. (John 20:16)
Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God. (John 20:17)
Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her. (John 20:18)
Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. (John 20:19)

   In verse 18 Mary Magdalene went and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord and that He had spoken to her, and she repeated what He had told her. Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God. Then when that day was waning, Christ appeared to His brethren. Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week . . . came Jesus and stood in the midst. All had to be completed in heaven. He first had to ascend and place His blood on the heavenly mercy seat and then return in His glorified Body to reassure His brethren. The Son of God had fulfilled His glory that He had spoken of with the Father in John Chapter 17. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.

   Make no mistake. His brethren saw a Man that was manifested on earth from heaven in HIS DIVINE GLORIFIED BODY anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows. This same Man, the fullness of the Godhead bodily would later VISIBLY ascend and take up His divine position at the right hand of the majesty on high. Christ is the hope of Abel, the hope of Israel, the hope of the Kingdom, the hope of Jerusalem, the hope of all those of THE JUST who live by faith of the Son of God who loved them and gave Himself for them.
   To conclude Chapter 10, we are not of them who draw back, that turn back, but we LIVE IN Christ from faith to faith, and we have no pleasure in our souls in those who reject God’s Christ and the word of God. Hebrews Chapter 10 begins with good things to come, and we will see that further in Hebrews Chapter 11, and we will unlock the treasures of faith in the house of God, the Jerusalem, which is above, the mother of us all. We will see JUST men made perfect in Christ, and we will seal the Spirit’s fire of faith for THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH forever more.

Selah and Amen.

   We have been in the book of Hebrews for many years, and we have advanced as the Spirit of God has allowed us to progress. We have not taken this book of divine writ lightly. By God’s grace we will open the jewel of faith in Chapter 11. I feel as Abraham must have felt as he sat in the doorway of his tent when the three men approached. What will the Lord reveal to us in the days to come?

Amen.

© Copyright – Michael Haigh
Published on April 12, 2024, at 3:00 PM (EST).
Article may be used, but not for gain. Freely ye have received, freely give.
All Scripture references are from the King James Bible. (KJB)