The Spirit of Christ

The Spirit and the Word

The Spirit and Life

The Living and Abiding Word of God

 

April 28, 2016

I have been asked to clarify certain points about the Spirit of Christ. It is because most of the focus has been upon the “Coming of the Holy Spirit” at the first Pentecost that the Spirit of Christ has been neglected or ignored. Of course certain groups of Fundamental Churches have confused the Spirit of Christ with the Holy Spirit and then thought they had received the Holy Spirit when they were born again. In the New Covenant there should be NO confusion over these two Eternal Spirits. Even though the Fundamental Churches manifest no evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit when they were”saved,” they still insist, with no evidence, that they have received the Holy Spirit “When they are saved.” However, what they actually received was the Spirit of Christ. Of course the Spirit of Christ is also “Holy”, but He is not the Holy Spirit that came in the New Covenant way at the first Pentecost. It is at that point in this study, when we mention the Spirit of Christ, that we loose all fundamentalists. Why? That is because they do not recognize the Spirit of Christ because they think the Spirit of Christ IS the Holy Spirit! The Spirit of Christ is the First Spirit that we receive to be saved. We receive the Holy Spirit when we are Baptized in the Holy Spirit. We receive the Spirit of the Father when we Love Jesus and keep His Word.

John 14; 23 "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our abode with him

The Apostles received the Spirit of Christ when Jesus blew His Spirit (“the Spirit Holy”) into them following His resurrection. (Literal Greek)

John 20:22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, (blew into them) and *said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. (The Spirit, Holy)

However, the Apostles did NOT receive the Holy Spirit for another 49 days. On the

50th day following the slaying of our Passover Lamb the Apostles were “Baptized in the Holy Spirit.”

Act 1:3 To these He also presented Himself alive, after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days, and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. 4 And gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, "Which," He said, "you heard of from Me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now."

The first Spirit they received was the Spirit of Christ and 50 days later they received (were Baptized into) the Holy Spirit. The first Spirit ( the Spirit of Christ) was for New Birth and the Second Spirit (the Holy Spirit) was given for service.

Luke 24:49 "And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high."

Act 2:38 And Peter said to them, "Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 "For the promise is for you and your children, and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God shall call to Himself."

Luke11:9 "And I say to you, ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall

find; knock, and it shall be opened to you. 10 "For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it shall be opened. 11 "Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? 12 "Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? 13 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?"

The Holy Spirit does not come into us UNLESS WE ASK. The Fundamental Church and many others refuse to ask because they assume they received the Holy Spirit when they were “saved.” Therefore, they very seldom receive the Holy Spirit or they refuse to receive Him because of the Speaking in Tongues! Many believe that all the gifts passed away when the last Apostle died!

God is ONE GOD who is Spirit! In this study we will show that it is clear there are, at least, two Spirits in addition to the Father, who is Spirit. (1) The Spirit of Christ and (2) the Holy Spirit and both work in similar but diverse ways. For example; The Spirit of Christ is the Sperma (Semen) of the Father responsible for giving us life in the rebirth process and is our personal experience of primary salvation! This how He can know those who are His. What we really receive as the Spirit of Christ, who is the Living and Abiding Word of God! Why? That is how we are born again. For that reason the Spirit of Christ IS also called the Living and abiding Word of God. Since the Word of God is eternal and was with the Father in the beginning so, also, was the Spirit of Christ with the Father. However, the Spirit of Christ was in the world during the Old Testament times! However, during the Old Covenant times He seemed to be limited to speaking (as the Word of God) in the Prophets. This occurred for about 3000 years before the Word was made Flesh and dwelt among us.

Roman 8:9 However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. 10 And if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you.

In this one set of Scripture it is clear the Spirit of Christ and the Holy Spirit are two different Spirits. It was the Holy Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead! It is through the Spirit of Christ that we BELONG to Christ Jesus or are of the same birth and same species, born of God, as Jesus.

Romans 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

Here the “Law of the Spirit of Life” in Christ Jesus manifests in the same function as the New Spirit, the Spirit of Christ, in the new believer! This is when we are born again from above. For any preacher to assure anyone they are “saved” by saying certain words when , in fact, they did not receive the Spirit of Christ, the Living and Abiding Word of God, ( the Semen of God) is a very serious mistake.

Eze 36:26 "Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 "And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.

(1) New Spirit= The Spirit of Christ

(2) My Spirit= The Holy Spirit

(3) New Heart= New Inner Man.

The New Spirit brings us salvation or new birth. This Salvation was prophesied by the Spirit of Christ from as far back as Enoch. Salvation is linked to the Spirit of Christ, the Living and Abiding Word of God!

1Peter 1:10 As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful search and inquiry, 11 seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven--things into which angels long to look.

The Spirit of Christ was in the Old Testament prophets and He Prophesied about Christ and about our Salvation. All Prophesy is NOT only by the Holy Spirit but the Gospel (of the Kingdom) is SUPPOSED to be preached by the Holy Spirit, now within the New Covenant. Unfortunately, many preachers are still only preaching by the Spirit of Christ. This brings a limited message that focuses upon the sufferings of Christ and the glories that follow! In the New Covenant the Gospel of the Kingdom is preached and all the aspects of His Eternal Government and the details concerning God’s Eternal Purpose is revealed and preached by the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

1Peter 1:20 For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you 21 who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. 22 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart, 23 for you have been born again not of seed (Spora, Sperma, or Semen) which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and abiding word of God.

If we are born again by the Living and Abiding Word of God and also by the Spirit of Christ, which way are we really born again? The Spirit of Christ and the Living and Abiding Word of God are two titles given to the same Spirit! Before the New Covenant times, the Word of God came to the prophets as the Spirit of Christ.

Hebrews 1:1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom (or for whom) also He made the world. (The ages) (LIT)

If the Spirit of Christ was in the Old Covenant prophets and before Mount Sinai how long had the Spirit of Christ been available to reveal the Word of God?

Jude 1:14 And about these also Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, "Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, 15 to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him."

Enoch lived about 3000 years before Jesus but prophesied about Jesus, the Lord, coming with many thousands of His holy ones! The next coming of the Lord, with thousands of His perfected believers, was prophesied by Enoch in the seventh generation from Adam. This is fulfilled in Revelation 19. How could Enoch know or prophesy such a thing? By the Spirit of Christ who was in him!

Jude 1:20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith; praying in the Holy Spirit; 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. 22 And have mercy on some, who are doubting; 23 save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh. 24 Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

Mat 10:16 "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; therefore be shrewd as serpents, and innocent as doves. 17 "But beware of men; for they will deliver you up to the courts, and scourge you in their synagogues; 18 and you shall even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles.

Mat 10:19 "But when they deliver you up, do not become anxious about how or what you will speak; for it shall be given you in that hour what you are to speak. 20 "For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.

Not only did God speak through the prophets, the Old Covenant way, but God will also speak in us, in the New Covenant way. How does God speak? By the Living and Abiding Word of God, through the Spirit of Christ! Therefore, we should NOT think it is strange or weird that God still speaks through the Spirit of Christ today.

Act 16:6 And they passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, having been

forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia; 7 and when they had come to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them; 8 and passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas. 9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a certain man of Macedonia was standing and appealing to him, and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." 10 And when he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

It is amazing that there is so much confusion about how God has designed the church to

function. When Jesus said “I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH” He obviously meant that God would be involved in all aspects of its building. The Holy Spirit forbids, the Spirit of Jesus does not permit and then God calls.

The fact that the “Spirit” in referred to by different names should not confound the issue. We read about the Spirit of Glory, the Spirit of Grace, The Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of Truth, the Spirit of Prophesy, the Spirit of Life, the Spirit of Holiness, the Spirit of Jesus, the Spirit of the Son and the Spirit of your Father. The Seven Spirits of God does not mean that God is divided into seven Spirits but that These Seven Spirits of God (seven manifestations of the Spirit) provide the Illumination for the Holy place.

GOD IS SPIRIT, but the Spirit of God is called by various descriptive names with various manifestations. GOD IS SPIRIT but manifests Himself in Seven Specific ways as the Seven Flames of Fire, the Seven Spirits of God and as the Seven Eyes of the Lord. GOD IS SPIRIT but manifests Himself as The Spirit of The Father, The Spirit of the Son, The Spirit of Christ, the Holy Spirit. GOD IS ONE with may manifestations! GOD IS ONE but speaks in various ways!

Heb 1:1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son!

God also spoke by angels but can now speak in us! While few Christians believe this is possible, nevertheless, the scriptures confirm it; "For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you. It seems reasonable that this “speaking” is normal for true believers.

In other words, God spoke to us in His Son and now will also speak in His sons! If we have the Spirit of the Father He should be able and willing to speak in us! Rejecting ANY MANIFESTATION of The SPIRIT of GOD is really stupid.