You have Heard it Was Said of Old…

These were some of the words first spoken from The Christ, after He had come from His Baptism by His cousin John, whereby John beheld the spirit of God descend like a dove to remain upon Him. This was the man called Jesus who proved He was the Christ through these series of events.

You see He had to undo the curse from Eden where Adam became dead to the things of God by losing the Holy Spirit. When God breathed into Adam and he became a living being”, that had nothing to do with the oxygen in his lungs, but the breath of God, He calls His Holy spirit This is The Breath of God, His companion/counterpart of His Son and our Savior called The Christ and Adams replacement being “a life giving spirit” as explained here by Paul the Apostle.

“42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: 43 It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. 45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam (Christ) was made a quickening spirit. Read full chapter

Even as John the Baptist testified of Jesus that “ when He (Christ) was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he (John) saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:

This is what qualified Christ to be Adams replacement of putting all who believe in Him, back on track as practicing images of the Living God  who are “working out their own salvation with fear and trmbling”.

This is the one time reversal of the fall, even as the voice of Heaven said “the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him (Christ), and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.

Of being the new creature we become like after we receive the Holy Spirit too.

And again”And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, 2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun (think about Pauls encounter with Christ as “the Bright light form Heaven) , and his raiment was white as the light. 3 And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with Him. 4 Then Peter said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. 5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; Him, shall you hear (and focus on Him and NOT Moshe or Elijah). 6 And when the disciples heard this, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.

That until Christ as a man, was baptized with the Holy Spirit, that the Law would remain in place as a holding mechanism “till faith comes”. But “after faith has come” the law was done away with and put off like a filthy rag. That “the law was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; 

And “24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, for us to be justified by faith. 25 But after faith is come (meaning acquired), we are no longer under the schoolmaster (called Law). 26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ (and not slaves serving masters and lords). 27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is no longer Jew nor Greek (classifications), nor is there bond nor free, nor male  or female: for ye are all one (and co-equals) in Christ”

And as Peter describes our gift saying “According as his (Christs) divine power hath given unto us everything that pertains to life and godliness (of living life on a godlike fashion the way God lives), through the knowledge of (knowing) Him who hath called us to glory and virtue: 4 Whereby we  were given exceedingly great and precious promises: that through these, you are already partakers of the divine nature, having (already) escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust (of following the needs of your old lower nature). Providing that you use these provisions in the “renewing of your minds).

Showing us that Christ was the un-doing and the expiration of the Law because the law becomes irrelevant being “expired” because of the New Covenant, Will and Testament” associated with new like in the Spirit, for the heirs to have access to their inheritance, being us  who are adopted into the family of God through the same means being our Baptism and our cross over from death to life as was dimly portrayed at the Red Sea with Moses whereby at that collective baptism, the angel of death passed over, then to have all their enemies drowned in the Red Sea for them to go on to acquire and apply the provisions of the gift of God in Christ as pictured in Israel the people and not in the land of Israel.

As it was said in the beginning “in that day you shall surely die”, mankind became dead and unresponsive to the things of God. Now for those who associate with Christ, “And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam (Christ) was made a life giving spirit.

Do NOT insult the giver of this “life in the Spirit by reverting to old forms of religion that are powerless to save and an insult to the giver of life who paid such a high price for you. ”

It was Christ, the Son of God and son of man, who became the prototype and manufacturer of a new species in that we willnever die. Even as Christ said “And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? And we hope you say yes because to believe in what is presented here is the pre-qualifier of your new citizenship in the New Creation.

Not that the new creation is new in the sense of just being made. For it is new in the sense that it is eternally new and never gets old, and it just may be made new for you, but Adam and Eve had it from the beginning and why 1 John says “Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.

Here is a high Point we would like to make.

When Christ came to put in place the replacement of the Old called The New Testament/Covenant, He also had to expire the whole Law era interlude. And He started by saying “You have heard that it was said to those of old…”

The ironic thing is was the institution of the New through the blood of Christ that made the Old Covenant old and expired as a testimony on how NOT to do it. Christ was the first One to call the Law era old because He was the Law eras completion first as the first one who could keep it because the Law is a picture of Him. And because the New came, the Law some call the Ten Commandments, and the laws of Moses, should now only be referred to as Old, because they had lost their relevance with the one time coming of Christ. There is no other coming or another saving of any sort but to grapple with this by faith, one on one with God by yourself. That the whole law era interlude anticipated this. Even as it is said of the Old. The Coming of Christ did this!

“ 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; 22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: 23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 24 Being justified freely by his grace (apart from the Law) through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: for Him to be just, and the justifier of those who believeth in Christ. Read full chapter

SO for us having our do-over as a result of this New Union to replace the Old, we have another heritage other then the death that comes upon all of humanity of the old law order. And to ensure that all the old order would reach the obvious conclusion of breeding death, the Law era was given for “Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made;

Meaning that  “till the seed should come to whom the promise was made;

“When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.

Being The Savior and Christ some call Jesus all meaning the same thing. With His arival on the seen as the last sacrifice, the law era interlude was over. If this was NOT true, Christ in no way could say “The Kingdom of God is at hand”, nor could He forgive sin because He became the payment for it and where payment has been rendered there is no longer a reckoning or an accounting of sin because keeping track of it was only a book keeping method. Even as Paul taught to Rome, for us to “reckon it to be so”,

These are things already given and appropriated, to be forgotten and lost, to have many if not most, to go back to reckoning and accounting their sin as though there is more that needs to be done but NO. That would be double jeopardy. Christ does not have to come back but for one thing. As 2 Peter states “10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall beburned up. 11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, 12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? 13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

And just as a quick note here. Sin is singular. Meaning that when we receive the gift of salvation, our sins (plural) are forgiven in that there is no longer a tracking method and no accuser. The sin nature has been covered in two senses. One is by way of payment rendered and two by way of covering it up to make it disappear for “Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; 2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) 3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.

The Kingdom of God is at hand in this way still.

Amen