#545 – UNDERSTANDING THE FOUNDATIONS From Easter

            The Long Overview Of God s Unfolding Plan

                        The Eternal View of Calvary and Easter; Resurrection

                                    Dividing God s Purpose Into Two Covenants and Two Fulfillments

May 28, 2013

When we think about Calvary we always relate it to sacrifice, the shedding of innocent blood and forgiveness of sins. Of course that is basic but much more took place that reflects the complete Feast of Passover. The slaying of the Passover Lamb was essential but the eating of the Passover Lamb and the adherence to eating the Unleavened Bread for 7 days was also essential. The Blood on the lintels and doorposts was essential just as the method of eating the Passover Lamb was fundamental to the whole Feast of Passover.

However, establishing the facts concerning the Sacrifice of Calvary requires that we also accept and understand the full Reality of ALL the Easter Events (including the Resurrection the Ascension and Being Seated at the Right Hand of God) becomes the focal point of any understanding about God s Eternal Purpose. We must realize that Calvary cannot be separated from the Resurrection and the forty days of teaching about the Kingdom of God and the Feast of Pentecost which was Fifty Days later. Why? Jesus was with His disciples for 40 days teaching about the Kingdom of God which had not yet occurred. He instructed them to do NOTHING until after the Feast of Pentecost. In other words all this is still part of Calvary, Passover and the establishment of the New Covenant! Therefore, let us look at the TYPE in more of its fullness.

Lev 23:4 ‘These are the appointed times of the LORD, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at the times appointed for them.

Lev 23:5 ‘In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight is the LORD’S Passover. 6 ‘Then on the fifteenth day of the same month there is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. 7 ‘On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work. 8 ‘But for seven days you shall present an offering by fire to the LORD. On the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work.’” 9 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and say to them, ‘When you enter the land which I am going to give to you and reap its harvest, then you shall bring in the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. 11 ‘And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD for you to be accepted; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12 ‘Now on the day when you wave the sheaf, you shall offer a male lamb one year old without defect for a burnt offering to the LORD. 13 ‘Its grain offering shall then be two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering by fire to the LORD for a soothing aroma, with its libation, a fourth of a hin of wine. 14 ‘Until this same day, until you have brought in the offering of your God, you shall eat neither bread nor roasted grain nor new growth. It is to be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places.

Lev 23:15 ‘You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete Sabbaths.

 

16 ‘You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the LORD. 17 ‘You shall bring in from your dwelling places two loaves of bread for a wave offering, made of two-tenths of an ephah; they shall be of a fine flour, baked with leaven as first fruits to the LORD. 18 ‘Along with the bread, you shall present seven one year old male lambs without defect, and a bull of the herd, and two rams; they are to be a burnt offering to the LORD, with their grain offering and their libations, an offering by fire of a soothing aroma to the LORD. 19 ‘You shall also offer one male goat for a sin offering and two male lambs one year old for a sacrifice of peace offerings. 20 ‘The priest shall then wave them with the bread of the first fruits for a wave offering with two lambs before the LORD; they are to be holy to the Lord for the priest. 21 ‘On this same day you shall make a proclamation as well; you are to have a holy convocation. You shall do no laborious work. It is to be a perpetual statute in all your dwelling places throughout your generations. 22 ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, moreover, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, nor gather the gleaning of your harvest; you are to leave them for the needy and the alien. I am the LORD your God.’”

 

From verse 15 to 22 is the Feast of Pentecost which is directly lined to the Feast of Passover. These ARE the appointed times of the Lord. Keeping a partial Feast at any of these appointed times of the Lord is certainly not acceptable. But this is Old Testament so what has that got to do with us?

 

1Cor 5:7 Clean out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. 8 Let us therefore celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

 

Celebrating the Feast of Passover, in its ultimate reality, must include the Resurrection and the eating of the Unleavened Bread. This MUST include the forty days of teaching about the Kingdom of God and His instruction about Pentecost!

 

Mat 16:6 And Jesus said to them, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”

 

Mat 16:12 Then they understood that He did not say to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

 

In viewing these first four Feasts it is clear that the Resurrection, the Ascension and His being Seated at the Right hand of God is all integrally linked to these Feasts. The Throne is inherently linked to the Kingdom of God!

 

The Kingdom and the Kingdom of Priests is peaking into view from the Throne of God.

 

In other words these seven day events become climatic to the final fulfillment of the first dimension of God s Eternal Purpose that began in Genesis 1. These same events become the BEGINNING of the Final fulfillment of the second and last dimension of God s Purpose for this present earth and its systems. When the final event takes place in Revelation 20 there will be no more use for this earth or for the world system that is functioning upon it. In Revelation 21 a new Genesis, a new beginning, takes place with a totally new creation. For that reason every thing of the old creation must disappear. Why? There is no provision to mix the old with the new.

 

The complete overview of all the events of the past six thousand years, which include this time period of the church age, must also extend our view to include the World Yet to Come. The World Yet to Come is the climax of what began in Genesis one. Before this earth was restored in Genesis 1:2, God predetermined, predestined and set in motion the final completion of His Plans for eternity future for this present species of mankind. Since God is a Creator He will continue to create. That final fulfillment for this earth dimension and the redeemed saints is called The Tabernacle of God and this tabernacle is referred to as the world yet to come.

 

The Key to understanding The Tabernacle of God ( the final fulfillment) must begin in a clear understanding of the first moment of Genesis 1:2. In Genesis 1:1, it is assumed, there was the earth and it s world system BEFORE this earth and it s world system existed. That former earth and it s world system was under the dominion of angels. That former earth, its society and its human inhabitants, became so corrupt that God destroyed everything on the earth by submerging the earth into great depths of water. Peter is referring to that time and that destruction that continued for an undetermined amount of time in which total darkness surrounded the earth.

 

2Peter 3:4 and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” 5 For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, 6 through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. 7 But the present heavens and earth by His word are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

 

2Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. 11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, on account of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat!

 

2Peter 3:13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new

 

earth, in which righteousness dwells. 14 Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless,

 

Peter is NOT speaking about Noah and the flood at that time when the earth was destroyed, being flooded with water. Why? The world was not destroyed at that time but was just flooded with water for a short time period. Also, then he mentions the heavens. But the present heavens and earth by His word are being reserved for fire, are the same heavens and earth that existed in the days of Noah. Therefore, Peter must be referring to the earth before this one which already existed in Genesis 1:1. In Genesis 1: 2 God restored the light! In Genesis 1:9 God restored the earth by separating the waters above from the waters below so the former earth once again became dry land. Some of us assume that the demons and the fallen spirit world rose up with the earth and the dry land and are with us in the invisible / spirit realm today. They are still waiting for their final judgement!

 

This present earth and it s world system was established and began to exist again in Genesis 1:2. God’s revealed purpose in Genesis 1 was to re-populate this earth after is was restored. To do that God created a man, the first Adam. To re-populate the earth it was necessary to create a woman for Adam, the first Eve.

 

Adam originated from the restored earth realm, the dirt, and so he was earthy. It is essential that we understand this tremendous difference between the first Adam and the Last Adam. Why? The Last Adam ( the second man) was from heaven. God is just dealing with these two men. The church He is building is integrally linked to the Last Adam who was conceived from heaven. Why? The Last Adam and His household includes the Church He is building. This fuller and more complete viewpoint of the Last Adam, Christ Jesus, is as our Great High Priest over the house of God! These seven days (Passover / Easter) was the Genesis of the final fulfillment of God s plan that is revealed in Revelation 21!

 

1Cor 15:45 So also it is written, “The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. 47 The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven. 48 As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 And just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. 50 Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

 

It is essential that we clearly recognized that the Last Adam became a Life giving Spirit. This is the Spirit of Christ or the Living and Abiding Word of God! One of the reasons for these various Foundations is found in the conflict between these to images identified as the first Adam and the Last Adam. Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. The conflict is between the living soul and the life giving spirit. This conflict is between the earthy and the heavenly. This conflict today is between the outward man (earthy) and the new inner man (heavenly). This conflict today is between the soulish and the spiritual. Most all conflicts, visible and invisible, evolve out of these two realms.

 

Jesus bore the image of the earthy, the first Adam, and He also bore the image of the heavenly, the Last Adam. He, like us who are born of God to become Christians, bear these two images. He, as well as us, has an outward man from the earth realm and a new species of man, conceived and born of God, from the heavenly realm. One is soulish and the other is spiritual. One is from the earth and the other is from heaven. The basic conflict within each of us is between these two realms.

 

From Genesis 1 to Malachi 4 we can observe the history of the earthy man, the first Adam, and his genealogy. This creation of man from and in the earth realm was an obvious failure when set within the Ultimate Purpose of God because being of the earth and with created life he was incapable of fulfilling that ultimate purpose. This was NO surprise to God. How do I know that? That is because BEFORE the foundation of the world God had already established His Eternal Conclusion to this creation which is the Tabernacle of God. The Tree of Life, in every generation, is linked to God s Eternal Purpose!

 

Rev 22:1 And he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, 2 in the middle of its street. And on either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

 

It seems obvious that the nations are separate from the New Jerusalem. There is a distinction between the fruit of the tree for the New Jerusalem and the leaves of the tree for the nations

 

This Tabernacle of God reveals three levels of perfection or three levels of growth and three levels of completing God s Eternal Purpose! These are revealed as (1) The New Earth, the lowest level ( the outer Court) (2) The New Heaven, the intermediate level (the Holy Place) and (3) the New Jerusalem, the highest level (the Most Holy Place). Mount Zion ( the throne of God) is part of the New Jerusalem dimension. The New Jerusalem is reserved for the bride of Christ, the perfected / mature and completed Church which He is building. This is also the place prepared for the Manifested Sons of God and the Priesthood after the Order of Melchizedek.

 

The Lampstand Church, of this church age, that does NOT repent and overcome in that dimension will not advance to the New Jerusalem ( the Throne of God) and will inhabit the New Heaven. The Lampstand Church, of the church age, that DOES repent, develop, overcome and grow up into God s predetermined perfection for that dimension will inhabit the New Jerusalem. This includes Mount Zion and the Priesthood after the order of Melchizedek and the Throne of God. Those who attain to that perfection are referred to as the Kingdom of Priests!

 

 Everything that happens during the church age is designed and predestined to fulfill God s Eternal Purpose and bring Joy to His Heart. Will every believer complete His purpose? Of course not, and that IS the desperate situation among Christians today as evidenced in the visible church! However, thank God, the Tabernacle of God ( the full heaven) has three places so God has designed a place for everybody, but everybody will NOT be in the same place. Our calling is to ascend to the highest place, the New Jerusalem, and this is referred to as the high calling. These perfected saints are also referred to as Mount Zion or the Mountain of the Lord or as the Throne of God! These perfected believers are also the Bondservants of God.

 

John 14:2 “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. 3 “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

 

Jesus is building the New Jerusalem for His Bride, His perfected church, and when that city is complete He will come again, and receive you to Myself ; that where I am, there you may be also. What is the reason for this delay in His coming again? That can only be attributed to this lack of the perfection and the completion of the Bride, the New Jerusalem!

 

How do I know that the City is the perfected People, the Bride of Christ and a Holy Priesthood?

 

Isa 60:14 “And the sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you, And all those who despised you will bow themselves at the soles of your feet; And they will call you the city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

 

Isa 61:6 But you will be called the priests of the LORD; You will be spoken of as ministers of our God. You will eat the wealth of nations, And in their riches you will boast.

 

But what IS the significance of the resurrection in this whole plan of God? The Resurrection, 2000 years ago, marks the mid point in God s Ultimate Purpose. Not the mid point in years but the mid point between these two creations or two images or these two men, the earthy and the heavenly, the outward and the inward, the temporal and the eternal and these two realms of life, soulish and eternal or the psuche and the Zoe Life. But why not assign this point to Calvary? That is because Calvary is the death of the old systems while the New Systems can only function out of the resurrection realm.

 

The earthy, the outward, the temporal, the soulish, and the psuche {created life} are the normal for mankind before Calvary! After Calvary ( resurrection) it is the heavenly, the inward, the eternal, spiritual and the Zoe (uncreated Life} that is normal for the New Covenant believer following Calvary and Pentecost. The resurrection marks this mid point in God s Purpose. The Christian is predestined to make the transition from the old soulish life [before Calvary] to the new Spiritual Life [after resurrection.] Therefore, the experience of resurrection is included in our personal salvation.

 

Heb 9:22 And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

 

Thank God for the forgiveness of sins but let us NOT confuse that grace with full salvation which includes our death, burial, resurrection, ascension and being seated with Christ.

 

1Cor 15:13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; 14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.

 

1Cor 15:16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; 17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied. 20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. 21 For since by a man (first man) came death, by a man

 

(second man) also came the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming, 24 then comes the end, when He delivers up the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.

 

If Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins is rejected as false doctrine by many evangelicals because they only relate sins to the shedding of blood (Calvary) and NOT to resurrection. Is there a difference between forgiveness of sins and becoming alive in Christ through His resurrection? Yes! What IS that difference? It is the difference between these two images or these two men, Adam and Christ, the outward and the inward, the visible and the invisible, the temporal and the eternal. Making the full transition from one to the other is what we are calling salvation. Growing up in all things into the Head is what we are calling Full Salvation. Growing up and becoming Sons of the High Priest and functioning within His Body is what we are calling the Priesthood after the Order of Melchizedek. The Priesthood after the Order of Melchizedek is related to the New Jerusalem, Mount Zion and the Throne of God. It is THIS Priesthood that is referred to as The Kingdom of Priests. It is also called Kings and Priests. Why? Melchizedek was both a King and a Priest of God Most High.

 

The point I am making is that NONE of this would be possible without these seven days called Passover or what we call Easter. These seven Feasts of the Lord assigned to Israel are called the appointed times of the Lord! These Feasts are types and shadows of the fulfillment within the New Covenant. While the fulfillment differs in detail and reality they still represent the appointed times of the Lord.

 

Lev 23:2 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and say to them, ‘The LORD ‘s appointed times which you shall proclaim as holy convocations--My appointed times are these:

 

Lev 23:4 ‘These are the appointed times of the LORD, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at the times appointed for them.

 

Lev 23:5 ‘In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight is the LORD’S Passover. 6 ‘Then on the fifteenth day of the same month there is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. 7 ‘On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work. 8 ‘But for seven days you shall present an offering by fire to the LORD. On the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work.’” 9 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and say to them, ‘When you enter the land which I am going to give to you and reap its harvest, then you shall bring in the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. 11 ‘And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD for you to be accepted; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.

 

At Calvary, the day after the weekly Sabbath was the resurrection. From this time onward Jesus was invisible but God permitted Him to become visible to certain people.

 

Each of the other ordained feasts were also called the the appointed times of the LORD. Understanding these Seven Feasts is essential for us to understand the total End Time Harvest. This is beyond the scope of this study but reveals the importance of understanding these seven days of Passover / Easter!

 

The purpose of these last several studies relating to the laying the full foundation, (all seven foundations) as life experiences, is to complete the basic beginnings for us to qualify to participate in the final fulfillment of God s Eternal Purpose. That means preparing to take our predestined place in the Tabernacle of God or the World yet to Come. AFTER all the foundations are experientially laid, there is still the personal going on to perfection. Only laying the foundations with silver, gold or precious stones will be acceptable to God and any other substitute material will be rejected. Unless the complete foundation is laid, God will NOT permit us to go on to the next dimension or to ascend to the next realm. Preaching irrelevant messages, religious concepts and denominational theories to those who do NOT have the full and experiential foundations is called having church. By now it should be clear that all this is a big waste of time and effort that produces NOTHING eternal. This lack of growth and the status quo of the visible church reflects the futility of just having religious meetings. This, of course, applies to both the preacher and the congregation.

 

What, then, IS relevant to teach and preach to those who are in the process of this transition from the outward man to the New Inward Man, Christ? Preaching ANYTHING except these foundations and the total transition from the first Adam to the Last Adam is the ONLY thing that is relevant in preparing people to fulfill God s Eternal Purpose!

 

This transition is first seen in the Prototype Son and specifically during these 7 days from Sunday to Sunday which includes the sacrifice of Calvary. The first Sunday is when Jesus left Mary and Martha s house and traveled to Jerusalem. This Sunday began at 6 PM on the Sabbath day which is our Saturday evening. This Sunday, as every Sunday at that time, began as it was getting dark. ( The Evening and the Morning are the first day) The first Sunday (the day after Sabbath), following Calvary, began at 6 PM on Sabbath evening which was Saturday and began what we call Sunday or the day following the Sabbath. The Thursday BEFORE Calvary was also a Holy day or a High Day or a Sabbath day because it was the first day of unleavened bread. Jesus was NOT put into the ground on Friday evening as is taught because this

 

next day was NOT a Saturday Sabbath but a Feast Day Sabbath. Being ignorant of the Seven Feasts is the reason for this error. Good Friday is a religious fantasy.

 

John 19:31 The Jews therefore, because it was the day of preparation, so that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.

 

When the day following this Saturday Sabbath ( three days and three nights later) was fully come, (Sunday morning) Mary and Martha went to the tomb and Jesus was already resurrected. He had been in the ground three full days and three full nights. What He did during those three days and three nights is beyond the scope of this study. These three days are given as a sign or proof of the transition from one realm ( Jewish) to the next realm (Christian). ( From the realm of death to the realm of resurrection). Descending to The heart of the earth dealt with what is earthy. The Resurrection deals with what is heavenly!

 

Mat 12:39 But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign shall be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; 40 for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

 

So let us follow the events that led up to this climax of the first dispensation ( from Genesis 1:2 to Calvary) and the fulfillment of the Old Covenant. Certain things had to first be in perfect place before everything of that dispensation could be fulfilled and the new dispensation could begin. These series of events could be defined in these seven steps.

 

(1) The birth of a new species of man on the earth. (2) Approximate 30 years of development of this new man. (3) Approximately 3 ½ years of public ministry for the identification and manifestation of this New Species of man. (4) His Welcome and acceptance of this man in Jerusalem and a mandate to make him king to fulfill scripture. (5) The total rejection of this man of Adam s race {the first creation man-the outward man} by the multitudes. (6) This old outward man was sentenced to death on Calvary being displayed naked in full view of and with the approval of the multitudes. Here the outward man is fully exposed and in death He was apparently a failure. (7) The Resurrection of the New Man -Christ- the invisible inward man- who was born of the Sperma of God with a Zoe Life so that death could NOT hold Him. This Resurrection Life followed death. The Resurrection Life that we receive has already passed through death and is called Eternal Life.

 

Act 10:38 “You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed by the devil; for God was with Him. 39 “And we are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. And they also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross. 40 “God raised Him up on the third day, and granted that He should become visible, 41 not to all the people, but to witnesses who were chosen beforehand by God, that is, to us, who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead.

 

The New Man is invisible in the earth realm. However, God granted that He should become visible for a time of about 40 days! Since God is ONLY dealing with two men, the first man and the second man, the first Adam and the Last Adam, Calvary signaled the end of the first man, Adam, attempting to fulfill the plan and purpose of God. Adam now is one corporate man that includes ALL who were born from Adam. Now God would put all His anointing, expectation, purpose, grace and calling on the new creation man, the second man, Christ Jesus! Now the second man has become a new ONE corporate man, Christ!

 

In the New Covenant, God has focused wholly upon the New Man- the corporate Christ- to complete God s Eternal Purpose. According to God s revealed purpose these new creation beings- true believers in Christ- were to become the body of Christ , the heavenly Man who is of another and an entirely different species from the first Adam. Jesus was to be the Sovereign Head over this body of believers. Any believer who has not made Jesus Christ their Sovereign Head is not a member of His Body! The purpose of these various foundations is the preparation of this body of believers ( the body of Christ) to become an eternal Priesthood. Each true believer, in every generation, MUST be born of God. If they complete and overcome in this preparation stage, they can graduate to the next stage which is the Lampstand Church. The preparation stage is the moving from the first Adam and his fallen characteristics to the Last Adam and His perfected attributes. This transition is called Christianity.

 

It is obvious that the visible church is still in this preparation stage. This is not wrong as long as the process of preparation- growing up in all things into Christ- is continuously progressing. The sad fact is that in most all places there is very little growth taking place. Why? Simply because these foundations are being ignored. What is being practiced, as an unauthorized substitute, is preaching irrelevant messages on various subjects that do NOT contribute to these essential foundations being experienced. What is the result of this failure? There is no transition from the earthly to the heavenly, from shallowness of the first Adam to the fulness of the Last Adam. The result is that No preparation for the Eternal Priesthood after the Order of Melchizedek is being completed.

 

This question always arises; But are these believers in Jesus saved? If saved means not going to hell then we would say, YES! However, if saved means completing the purpose for which God saved us, then, we would have to say, NO! Are they saved as far as the New Jerusalem? We would have to say, NO! Are they saved as far as New Earth? Maybe!

 

2Tim 1:9 who has saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, 10 but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death, and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,

 

According to scripture, those that He saved He also called to fulfill His Eternal purpose! This Purpose was initiated for us in Christ Jesus! This purpose and grace was not available to the Old Testament saints so we cannot use them as an excuse for lukewarmness.

 

Still, God has a place for everyone but everyone will not be in the same place ! Then where will these various believers be? Some will be on the New Earth, some will be in the New Heaven and some will be in the New Jerusalem. How will their place be determined? By their perfection or by how much they have grown up in all things into Christ! Those who are saved but who are NOT conformed to His Image and Likeness might be assigned to the New Earth which is also a part of heaven and is certainly a wonderful place . The Tabernacle of God, with its three places, is called heaven.

 

The job description for the five fold ministry is the perfection of the saints which is the necessary preparation to dwell in the New Jerusalem. This extended view of heaven is really not complicated at all but heaven has been confused and modified by what is called the gospel of salvation as if heaven was just one place.

 

John 14:2 “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places ; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you . {this is a different place. } The Father has His own house and now the Son has His own house. The Son is preparing a house / place for His bride} 3 “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

 

Just because someone is a preacher does NOT mean he is qualified to become part of the New Jerusalem. Some preachers may not even qualify for the New Earth. Since the general consensus is that all believers will sit on the throne and rule with Christ, this concept of qualifying is publically condemned. Some preach that the only qualifying is by grace and faith or to accept Jesus as personal Savior.

 

Of course, we speculate that the New Jerusalem is reserved for the New Creation man, the New Species man who has grown up in all things into Christ. Both head and body must be of the exact same essence and substance! This Fulness of CHRIST is the one new man, Head and body, or the bride of Christ. The TWO have become ONE! We are assuming that receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also is referring to the bride.

 

But what has all this to do with the Outward Man, Jesus, entering into the earthly Jerusalem, his rejection and sentencing, Calvary, death, burial and resurrection, ascension and being seated at the right hand of God? Since death, burial and resurrection is part of our foundational experience it seems reasonable that Jesus IS the prototype man / Son who established not a way but the whole way. Now Christ Jesus, the Last Adam and the First Fruits of the one New Creation Man , who is now invisible has overcome and is seated on the right hand of His Father. Those who overcome and qualify for this ultimate dimension, can sit with Him of His Throne. To assign the Throne to every carnal and baby believer appears to be rather ignorant and just wrong in the light of all the scriptures.

 

Rev 3:21 ‘He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

 

If overcoming just means to accept Jesus as personal Savior, as some preach, then the throne will be quite crowded and including a lot of problem people and casual believers. Both the Government for the thousand year reign (millennium) and the Eternal Government cannot be established upon these carnal, fleshly and underdeveloped qualities that are inherently linked to first Adam. ONLY the corporate Last Adam, the High Priest and His body can qualify to rule over all the works of His hands.

 

The RESURRECTION LIFE of the New Creation Man, the New Species, marks the beginning of the New Covenant provision. It also marks the END of the old man after the first Adam man. This signals the end of the earthy and the birth of the heavenly. Easter marks the division between the first man and the Second Man. It also marks the end of living by the tree of knowledge and the beginning of living by the Tree of Life, Zoe! All who are still part of the first man will prefer to live by and to gain more knowledge. These will remain in the natural and earthly state.

 

Those who are of the Second Man will rush to participate in His death, burial and in His Resurrection and to complete the various foundations for their next dimension of the overcoming life. Overcoming, AS HE OVERCAME, is not a one time experience but requires a complete foundation for overcoming! My theory is that these Seven days, from Sunday to Sunday, contains the basic understanding of OVERCOMING AS HE OVERCAME! Leaving Calvary, the death, the burial and the resurrection out of the realm of overcoming seems rather ignorant.

 

Philip 3:8 More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ, 9 and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith,

 

Philip 3:10 that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; 11 in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

 

Philip 3:12 Not that I have already obtained it, or have already become perfect, but I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

 

Philip 3:15 Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that also to you; 16 however, let us keep living by that same standard to which we have attained.

 

Paul had attained to some degree of perfection and acknowledged others who had achieved to some measure of perfection but Paul was warning these to keep living up to the same standard they had attained so far.

 

Of course, the theme discloses that Paul was NOT satisfied with this partial perfection. He was pressing on to attain to the ultimate perfection. Why? Because, that is exactly why Christ Jesus laid hold of him, that he might complete the ascending call. He describes this as the Resurrection of the dead. [In Greek this is called the OUT RESURRECTION. ] His goal was to become perfect so he could qualify for THAT RESURECTION! We are guessing that he is referring to what is called the Rapture of the first fruits.

 

Two different words are used for resurrection. The power of His Resurrection is G386 α α στασ Gk. anastasia an-as’-tas-is a standing up again, that is, (literally) a resurrection from death (individual, general or by implication (its author)), or (figuratively) a (moral) recovery (of spiritual truth): - raised to life again, resurrection, rise from the dead, that should rise, rising again.

 

 That I may attain to the resurrection is a different word. G1815 ε α α στασ exanastasis ex-an-as’-tas-is a rising (from death:) - resurrection.

 

EX is translated out or he is speaking of the out resurrection as something he was seeking! We are guessing that the out Resurrection is the snatching away of the saints which some call the Rapture. We believe the first fruits of the harvest of the earth will be the man child in Revelation 12 or the returning again for His Bride. AFTER that He will come for those who are His at His coming. This is the main harvest in the middle of the tribulation. Of course the gleanings will be gathered in at the end of the great Tribulation.

 

Rev 14:1 And I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a voice from heaven, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps. 3 And they *sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one could learn the song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchased from the earth.

 

Rev 14:4 These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they have kept themselves chaste. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb. 5 And no lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless.

 

These ones who are standing on Mount Zion have already ascended into the Spiritual, invisible, and eternal dimension. Chaste , eunuch, or virgin in this realm is not physical because in this realm they neither marry or are they given in marriage. It this realm there is neither male nor female. Why? Male and female were only for the earth realm in order to repopulate the earth. One of the early fathers castrated himself in order to fulfill Matthew 19:12.

 

Those who were redeemed from the earth are not of the old creation but of the New Creation and New Species. This new creation is NOT male or female. Why? He is an entirely different species. Therefore, chaste , virgin , eunuch, or not defiled with women must be interpreted as something separate from the physical realm. Also, that is because it was God that ordained marriage and the relationship that follows! Therefore, I am guessing that these words must be interpreted from the spiritual, invisible and eternal realms. The Old Testament eunuch was a type or shadow and NOT the New Covenant reality that applies to the new creation man, the corporate Last Adam. Mount Zion, the New Jerusalem, is not for the first Adam or any of his genealogy but ONLY the Last Adam and His Body, the body of our great High Priest!

 

Mat 19:12 “For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept this, let him accept it.”

 

The context here is NOT about ministry but about divorce and remarriage. Eunuchs among the Old Covenant society who were to be with the king s women and to protect and look after the kings wives were castrated so they could not impregnate the women with their own sperm / life.

 

The spiritual application has to be applied to this problem of popular pastors and ministers impregnating their own life, ideas, concepts, doctrines, traditions and culture into the church, which they must guard and prepare as the bride of Christ. For the minister to keep himself chaste is a big thing. For a minister to save the church and then protect it to ONLY receive the resurrection Life of Christ Jesus is truly a monumental thing.

 

For a pastor / minister to NOT physically sleep with his wife while impregnation the church with his own life, concepts and philosophies is a serious error that can affect his and others eternal destiny. Why? These will never see the New Jerusalem. To make yourself a physical eunuch ( no sex) for the sake of the kingdom of heaven is attempting to function in the wrong realm of the physical and the temporal.

 

2Cor 11:2 For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin. 3 But I am afraid, lest as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds should be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.

 

Paul knew the difference between a believer and a pure virgin. He understood his responsibility was to NOT impregnate his life, concepts and philosophy into the church that he was ordained to keep ONLY for Christ! Just let the Divine Sperma do its eternal work. Every pastor / minister should be aware of this distinction and to resist the serpent s deception. The physical eunuch is part of the old system. A spiritual eunuch is part of the new system.

 

While this study falls far short of the seven day revelation related to Calvary, maybe, at least, we should be aware that what God has provided is more than adequate to present each of us as a chaste virgin to Christ. Harlots are comfortable with MIXING sperm and this is called harlotry. Harlotry in the pulpit is a very serious offence.