When The Lord Comes to be Glorified in His Saints!
There is coming a time when the plan comes to completion, production ceases, the assembly lines gets shut down and dismantled. The quotas are filled all systems are go. The manufacturing plant is no longer needed.
As applied to creation and the Creator/designer and engineer, the command was given in the beginning to “make man in our image and likeness”. The product off the line are those who’ve obtained godliness, meaning God-like-ness of being re-made in His image. All of time and creation as well as the Gospel message itself, was given for Gods offspring to come into fruition. For God to have a harvest of those who have become uniquely like Him, “having put off the old man” in the fashion of Adam and “having put on the new” one like Christ. And they do this during their lifetime here as sojourners. This was the plan from the beginning and has been the purpose for all creation and of the workings of the Gospel as it transforms the hearts and minds of everyone who responds to the invitations.
This is why Christ told us that “the wheat and the tares mature together”. There is a final harvest different from the earlier gleanings and this happens when the opposition (the counterfeits and thieves) seems the most fierce. “First the seed then the stalk, the leaves then the full head of grain.
Paul said that the purpose of the Gospel is for the body of Christ to have equality among His members as seen in Ephesians saying 4 “11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the [e]edifying (development) of the body (and the building) of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity (and an equalization) of the faith and of the (full) knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man (a completed saint) to the measure of the stature (equal in height, weight and value) of the fullness of Christ; as joint heirs and co-equals with the only Begotten Himself, us now having all things in common, having already been “given every spiritual blessing in Heavenly places”, and then learning how to use them. Ephesians 1
Christ then being the Chief Cornerstone and the first one set in place, and “we are all living stones assembled together (each of us in our own order to be) a habitation of God in the Spirit”. This is what the gospel supplies in the here and now.
Here we will emphasize “in the Spirit” for those who think God should appear as a man in a certain place at a certain time for you to become like Him? That is simply just a scriptural misunderstanding because the working of the gospel produces NOT beggar’s, but those authorized being “seated in the Heavenly places in Christ”. Eph 2.8
Upon this completion of “the body of Christ” with the full number being reached, Him at the command center, there is equality and cooperation among His members. There is no preference one over the other, for we are all co-equals. The spoken of differential treatment and the rewards “according to works” are for those pictured at the final Judgment as seen in Revelation. 20.12+13 and 1 Peter 1.17
When the quota called the elect is reached, creation as we know it is no longer needed. Then it is time to impliment the next phase.
That is why 2 Peter 3.10 says, 7 But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and [b]perdition of ungodly men and why Jude says, Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, 15 to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”
These are proof that creation delivered the goods, and why a second coming expectation is confusing, which actually just means the last coming because His comings are many. (1 Corinthians 15.1+)
The last coming is not to save, fix, redeem or repair but to shut down the production line. If that’s not the case, Christ wouldn’t be “seated waiting for His enemies to become His footstool”. We’d all be fighting along with Him
And why Paul says “10 when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who [d]believe.
Yes the seeds He’s sown, have taken root in our hearts and re-spirited in our minds, and with our dedication and persistence to “lay hold of why Christ laid hold of us”. His seeds brings forth His fruit. Seeds meaning words because His words are His DNA, coupled with His Holy spirit, not just in part but as Christ said “be ye filled”. We now have no gaps or blank spots. And as He said “those who believe in Me shall be gushing fountains of living waters. We then being filled to the full, shaken up and overflowing, we’ve received all He has said and own them as if they are our own because they are.
Despise not the gift or the gift giver ye despisers lest He take away what you think you have and ye be found poor blind and naked.
You see the production line we call the gospel doesn’t just make vessels to be used by God as though He wants us to vacate and give up ourselves and become dead without the new because you are found waiting. (Think of the wicked servants) But to put on our new self like His self. We have our own self like His self to put on and use. To have put off the old without the new is to be “poor, blind and naked”. Where then is your body?
The distinction is this. If God wanted you to leave your vessel emptied of youself for Him to live in Himself without you, He never would have put you in human form to begin with. So quit abdicating your responsibilities by doing so. He doesn’t want you to vacate it for Him or He wouldn’t have made you. He wants you to own up and co-operate with Him. He gave it to you for you to own up to the gift and use it for His cause. What He wants is for you to adopt and own your own version of Him for you to operate as if you were Him because you have his word and Spirit, then you also have His desire, empowerment and authority. It is the Elect who are the authorized versions for others conversions. “For even the angels behold the face of our Father” in us,and even demons tremble and cowar.
And from 1 Corinthians 6, 2 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 3 Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?
And when our number and training is complete? Then “The Lord comes to be glorified in His saints”, holy ones and the Elect.
The point of all of this is for you to understand that the gospel was given not for you to die to self and remain dead. If you are a believer who has “put off the deeds of the flesh” and feel dead, it is because you didn’t accept the exchange.
Each time we put something off, we get a new empowerment in return. This becomes the new you in contrast to the old you. “Old things do pass away and all things do become new” before this age expires. “What was sown corruptible is raised incorruptible because everything that arises in the ascention is in contrast to what it previously was and our ascention activation is now. A weakness for a strength. “And all things are of God”. What a blessedness. This gives you the ability to laugh when your outward man does something stupid, but to give glory Glory to the Father for learning how to walk incognito, despite your human looking exactly the same.
And from 1 Corinthians; 26 For [k]you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many [l]noble, are called. 27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 28 and the [m]base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29 that no flesh should glory in His presence. 30 But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption— 31 that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”
It is those whose works have been accomplished, having completed our exchange, having entered our Rest. We have ceased from our works as God has ceased from His, which is the prize for our carnal exsistance. And in this way God has re-made us in His image and likeness in our invisible parts like His invisible parts.
For those who are reformated and refit through the gospel and being empowered by the Holy Spirit. You are the watchers and the holy ones. Watchers because you are observant for discovery purposes. You are holy ones because of God the Fathers protection guards you as you walk among the enemy. If you remember the Jewish leaders sought to apprehend Christ at the feast to kill Him and “He walked right through their midst” as though He was not there. That’s what the sanctification looks like. We call this, walking in cogneto because we have the natural ability to blend in.
Wasn’t Christ seen after His resurrection as a Gardner? And as a stranger on the road to Emauas? And on another form behind closed doors in the upper room? Same for us. Own it and have fun with it. Get used to the favor and protection of the Holy Spirit who was a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day. She was the Brooder of Jeru-shalom, the helper and comforter, the teacher and protector of the elect. What a blessed new reality of being hidden “in Christ”, then when Christ is revealed to the world, it will not be to reveal to us our new self, no it will be to reveal us too when He drops our covering of walking incognito and taking charge because “we are complete in Him who is head over all principalities and powers, accept the power He shares with us the Elect. The gift is complete. This is the “behold the Lord comes with thousands of His Saints to execute judgement. But for now? The Kingdom of God is at hand
Amen