LUKE (Chapter 17) - The purification of the holy place in order to come to “the end of all flesh” (Part 6)

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In and by Christ, we must (be willing to) be cleansed of all sinful words and actions which may be exchanged from man to man. We must live in that abundant love of God, whereby we, too, become merciful and gracious towards our neighbor.

This new chapter discusses the irritations and temptations our old nature can cause in the heart and life of our brothers and sisters in Christ. In and by Christ, we must be (willing to be) delivered from our old nature, especially from all actions and/or words which give cause to irritation and temptation; wherewith we may offend our brothers and sisters, and whereby their progress (or growth) in God's Kingdom may be hampered or prevented.

Luke 17 verse 1-2: "Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, then that he should offend one of these little ones."

By "one of these little ones" the Lord Jesus means a sincere child of God; a person (large or small, young or old) who, like a child, knows that he is dependent on the Father in everything. The Lord Jesus not for nothing depicted His greatest Gospel preachers as little children: "And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me" (Matthew 18:5). "Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, re-ceiveth not me, but him that sent me" (Mark 9:37). Compare also with Luke 9:48. "And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward" (Matthew 10:42). "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" (Matthew 18:10). By "their angels" is meant "the born-again spirits, of God’s children which serve God" All being well the believing person who is truly born again of God, must be just as humble as Him, Who said: "...and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart" (Matthew 11:29). When Jesus, our heavenly King, was here on earth, He did not walk as a Prince in Palestine (the present-day Israel), but as a humble Servant of God the Father, with as His only and greatest desire: to save sinners for eternity. How very differently, strayed far from this divine example, many Christians and preachers, who preach God's Word, walk among their fellow believers and neighbors today! Let us not bring to irritation and temptation our neighbors, and certainly not those "little ones" (namely our brothers and sisters); whereby we, as it were, bring them to resentment and sin. That is also the reason why God says that for such believers it might be better "that a millstone were hanged about their necks and they be cast into the sea"; whereby is meant that it would be better that such unbelievers (possibly by force) be removed from the fellowship (the congregation of brothers and sisters; the church), that they no longer hinder or block the others' way to salvation, holiness and justice. Not for nothing God says: "Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm" (1 Chronicles 16:22; Psalm 105:15). "For he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of His eye" (Zechariah 2:8b). Christ would rather see the opposite of the (sinful) attitude which causes sin and temptation in the Church; namely the fruit of the Holy Spirit, which must grow to fullness in the NEW MAN; this is the true fellowship! For love towards our brothers (and sisters) is the characteristic of being children of the Lord Jesus. "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to an-other" (John 13:34-35).

In and by Christ, we must (be willing to) be delivered from all spitefulness.

According to the Lord, the first attitude which causes sin among fellow believers is spitefulness or implacability in spite of the fact that the other, guilty party possibly already asked for forgiveness.

Luke 17 verse 3-4: "Take heed to yourselves: if thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him."

For the Lord proclaims a gospel of reconciliation. "To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation" (2 Corinthians 5:19). He, Who paid for us an unpayable debt, wants us to live in the same spirit towards each other. He wanted to express this in the parable of the unmerciful servant; which we can read in Matthew 18:23-35, and which ends with these words: "And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses." Does not "the Lord's prayer", the model prayer the Lord gave us, teach the same thing? "And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors" (Matthew 6:12). The Scriptures then continue in the verses 14 and 15 with: "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, our heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." We serve a merciful God, Who wants His children to be merciful as well as a result of the mighty, inner workings of His Spirit. "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" we are taught by one of the basic rules of Jesus' sermon on the mount (Matthew 5:7). This is why He also gave us the parable of "the good (merciful) Samaritan" in Luke 10:25-37. His express demand with regard to His children is: "Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful" (Luke 6:36). Returning to our subject we see the reaction of the disciples, who, on hearing His teaching, answer with:

Luke 17 verse 5-6: "And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamore tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you."

Indeed, no man can fulfill this rule for living in his own strength. By his faith in God, he must be justified in such a way, that he can do this, for "the just shall live by faith" (Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11, Hebrews 10:38). Faith in God and in His wonderful promises make possible the impossible!

In and by Christ, we must (be willing to) be delivered from all conceit/vanity that we ourselves are quite something already.

If there is something that upsets the relationship between brothers and sisters, it would certainly be the irritating sin of pride: namely thinking we are a lot more than others.

Luke 17 verse 7-10: "But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? and will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow (think) not. So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done (only) that which was our duty to do."

When we, by the grace of our high God, may serve because He called us (personally and for that "special" task), let us then not imagine to be better or more spiritual than the other, "common" brothers and sisters; thinking to be "bood buddies" already with our God, and already belonging to the group of His "chosen confidants"! It would suit us, saved sinners, to "condescend to men of low estate" (Romans 12:16b); for how easy "the old man" within us, if he is not yet completely destroyed by the inwardly working power of the Spirit, would rise again, and destroy all the spiritual work of the Holy Spirit in us. Let us therefore follow the advice of Jesus, and say to ourselves: "We are unprofitable servants; for we have only done that which was our duty to do." One day all weakness and all our sinful "flesh" will have died (off) by His workings in us (1 Peter 2:24), and we then could live and walk entirely in His resurrection power. Even, or especially, when we are truly humble of heart and expect everything from Him, then we, by faith (and that correct state of the heart), could now already say jubilantly: "...we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is" (1 John 3:2). All glory to God for this!

CLICK HERE if you want to read this study (Chapter 17) – that is to long for the Blog.

By E. van den Worm

LUKE (Chapter 16) - The purification of the holy place in order to come to “the end of all flesh” (Part 5)

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In and by Christ, we must be willing to be delivered from all unholy desires for earthly things (such as: money, unholy sex, fame).
This chapter, too, we are to see in the light of the veil (i.e. the curtain that separated the Holy Place and the Holy of holies) of the Israeli Tabernacle: hereby is meant the breaking off of all (powers of) sin in our flesh – by the union with His body that was broken for us, and His blood that was shed for us – in the strength of the Holy Spirit.
We will now have a closer look at those sins, which will always reveal the (sinful) flesh by the unholy desire for (much) money and property; for unholy and unrestrained sexual experience and for receiving fame and honor (thus applause) from people.

In and by Christ, we must be willing to be cleansed of all Mammonish idolatry.
The Scriptures start with the greatest and most committed sin: namely the desire for (much) money, riches and possessions. It is the dance around the gold calf, the worship of the mammon, which is done in many ways and in all intensity in this world... The Scriptures warn us emphatically for this: "For the love of money is the root of all evil..." (1 Timothy 6:10).
Luke 16 verse 1-8: "And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods. And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward. Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed. I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses. So he called every one of his lord's debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord? And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty. Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore. And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light."
The Lord here pictures the way of life of a dishonest steward. He was a man who had no difficulty using his lord's money for himself. But these dark practices of his were discovered, and his lord dismissed him and asked him to account for his stewardship. But, being self-centered and unjust, he looked for a way to still be able to provide for himself, after his dismissal, if in a dishonest way... He even made his lord's debtors accessories to his dishonest practices, that he might blackmail them later, when he would be pressed for money, with the papers they themselves signed in hand. He did this for the purpose that these debtors might not deny him the necessary money as part of the loot, for fear to be accused by him of being accessories to the deceit. And that lord praised the well thought-out action of that dismissed steward, whereby he insured the future for himself.
The Scriptures then make a comparison and compare the action of the children of this world regarding their future, with that of the children of God. And the Scriptures conclude that worldly people insure themselves more carefully of a "good" (earthly) future than the children of God do regarding their eternal future. Children of God should manage their finances as carefully and honestly as possible, yet with a "loose hand" as well; that hereby neither the "100 measures of oil", namely the 100% ministry in the Spirit they owe their heavenly Father nor the "100 measures of wheat", namely the 100% ministry of the Word, are influenced unfavorably. The child of God should rather spend his money on the labor of the Lord. And those who receive this money will thank God for the (generous) gift and pray for the mercy and blessing of the Lord for the (generous) giver. This last thing is said in different words in the following verse:
Luke 16 verse 9: "And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations."
According to the Lord the being of the mammon (as it is the god of the money) is unrighteous and in practice we also notice this to be so. Often "trade" in essence is swindle; one often competes with one another in a dishonest manner, and one recommends things as being "fantastic", while one would not want to buy them oneself. The stain of unrighteousness clings to money... Therefore the Lord advises us to rather make friends with this "unrighteous mammon". Whereby is meant that we had rather, by means of gifts from a loving heart, act in such a way with our money that, if we should be in need (this is: when we, spiritually seen, are lacking towards the Kingdom of God), God will be gracious towards us to call us (again) to repentance and to His mercy. It goes without saying that such a child of God could still be lost if he does not want to respond to God's gracious call to repentance.

Luke 16 verse 10-13: "He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."
God here compares two things with each other, namely the earthly possessions and the heavenly (and thus divine). Money and goods on the one hand, and the divine, heavenly gifts on the other. He then calls the gold (or money), thus everything that is meant by the unrighteous mammon, "least" in the life of a child of God! And so it has to be! God, His Word and His labor, working in and through us by the Spirit, must be for us "much" (namely the most important) in our life, and finances "least" (namely the least important). If, however, we are unrighteous (thus dishonest) in finances, then we are clearly (still) bound to mammon, and the Lord then cannot (and will not) let us share His spiritual gifts and riches. The Lord has also made us stewards over all the money he entrusts us with. The money belongs to this world, because it is necessary for buying and selling; it is not something special which belongs to the Kingdom of God. Therefore the Word says that money is "that which is another man's"; that we, who subjected our heart and life to Him and His Kingdom, must spend well. If we are dishonest in money matters, then He will not give us the portion in Him, He already gave to us in His Word. For if He would entrust those heavenly and divine matters to us, then we – because we have not yet been delivered from this mammon, from the unholy desire for (more) money and possessions – would use these (divine) powers for ourselves, and not for the good of His Kingdom. If we still have such a wrong (namely self-centered) condition of the heart, then another (in this case satan) will be ready to give us his spiritual powers and anti-anointings. Let us therefore heed this warning! Therefore it is very necessary that we, as children of God, show our preference, strongly and keenly, with regard to our God Who blesses all, with regard to our Savior; while we must use "the filthy lucre" with a loose hand. We cannot serve God and mammon.

Luke 16 verse 14-15: "And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him. And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God."
"Love of money", as we already saw, is "a root of all evil!" For it is an all-controlling longing for (more) money... With the Pharisees this dark desire was firmly rooted in their heart, because of which they were a bad example as religious people and leaders of the Jews of that time. But God is not to be linked up to the gold (with the love of money in a human heart), because the darkness has not a single part of the Light (2 Corinthians 6:14).
Woe that servant of God who falls by the stealing-in of the mammon. For, when one has received special gifts of the Spirit, such as that of healing, then great amounts might be paid in collections. And instead of spending these collections, with a wise heart, on the building up of the Kingdom of God, such "laborers of God" build themselves villas (with all the frills), and also see to it that they have large bank accounts... They began in the Spirit, but they clearly end (up) in the flesh... Let us not follow them. Let us watch ourselves that we do not long for (more) money, for this is an idolatrous and magical power. Only when we are sincere and steadfast in the Lord, the mammon (i.e. the [idol] god of money and possessions) cannot get us in his power.
When a religious leader (clearly) is guilty of an idolatrous form of love of money, and is accused thereof, then his reaction may often be like that of the Pharisees in Jesus' days: "They derided (scoffed at) Jesus!" in answer to His accusation, in an attempt to justify themselves (verse 14). And "self-justification" is a form of pride..., which was the reason the Lord said: "Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God."

CLICK HERE if you want to read this study (Chapter 16) – that is to long for the Blog.

By E. van den Worm

LUKE (Chapter 15) - The purification of the holy place in order to come to “the end of all flesh” (Part 4)

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A threefold parable of God's redeeming love.

In and through Christ we must be willing to be delivered of every spiritual mistake and self-will in the service of the Lord.
How often children of God follow their own sinful heart, and that they act willfully while serving their Lord and Savior. Many Christians often do not ask themselves, whether they do walk and act in and by the Spirit of the Lord. How often is the Lord not saddened by the stubborn actions of many a child of God, because, tempted by one's own deceitful heart, one over and over again tries to justify oneself before God and men.
Strikingly the Lord Jesus Christ tells us in this chapter, by means of three parables, of a spiritually mature laborer, and child of God, who also acts so willfully (and thus wrongly), but – we must give God alone all thanks for this – also of His redeeming love, whereby he is found again and brought back home (with God and His Church), because he let himself be found by that divine love!

The first parable: The lost sheep.
Luke 15 verse 1-7: "Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them. And he spake this parable unto them, saying, What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance."
We read here about the redeeming love of the Son of God. In this parable the relationship between shepherd towards sheep is discussed. Some two thousand years ago the Savior gave His (earthly) life on the cross at Calvary; but now, by His resurrection in the NEW (divine and eternal) LIFE, He is united in the spirit with His spiritual Body, namely the Church, and all its members. He now is, for all eternity, united with humanity in the spirit, with all who have accepted Him in their heart as their Lord and Savior.
What is a shepherd without sheep; what is a head without the body? By (physically) dying and rising the Son of God, by His (Holy) Spirit, has become the Head of the Church, His (spiritual) Body. What is a vine without its branches? What is a bridegroom without his bride? By His death and resurrection, which brings us (and all who are willing) redemption – He forever entered into this wonderful relationship with those who sincerely believe. He sought this union with the (believing) person; this union is given Him (by the Father), and the joy over this must have been so immensely great that He was fully prepared to suffer the shame and death on the cross; and because of which He was able to meet this suffering courageously. He is the Prince of Life, but He put Himself under the heel of the prince of death to save mankind. He (voluntarily) surrendered to the power of darkness, to satan. Satan is (and remains) His enemy, but He voluntarily put Himself under his heel to save you and me, His Church, His Body and His Bride, by sharing the human body, vulnerable to sin (He, as the Son of man on earth, had a will of His own). The joy of these (spiritual) riches, He knew, would be great for Himself as well as for His Bride(church)!
The sheep in this parable is not a lamb, but a mature sheep in a (special) group of a hundred! This has a deeper meaning, for the number 100 can be divided in 2 x 50, whereby the number 50, seen in biblical light, is God's code for the infilling with the Holy Ghost. These two groups of 50 sheep refer to God's children and laborers of the so-called "Former Rain" (whereby is meant the first outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost; see Acts 2:1-4), and those of the so-called "Latter Rain" (whereby is meant the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the end-time), which now is about to break through. Therefore, to keep it brief: this sheep belongs to the Bride-church. Thus, it is a Christian, filled with the Holy Spirit of God; a Christian belonging to the "elite corps" of Jesus! What made this sheep withdraw from the flock (the Church) and from its Shepherd? It had tasted the sweet relationship with Jesus; it had the sweet guidance to the green pastures of God's Word, to the very quiet waters of the comforting communion with the Holy Spirit. What made it draw away from Shepherd and flock? What was the reason? Slowly, ever so slowly, and undetected by the unwatchful eye, the poison of sin penetrated little by little the heart, once purified by the blood of Jesus. By the cleansing in the blood of the Lamb of God, this heart used to live in fervent devotion for Jesus and His Kingdom. Clearly a fiery "first love" was present. But by the almost imperceptible penetration of sin that (spiritual) fire was quenched... Because of it the sheep inwardly went through a straying from the only and right way, so that it did not feel at home with the Shepherd and the flock. The self-willed ego-life again flourished... and because of it, it reached the point that it separated itself from the Shepherd and the flocks... All kinds of causes could be mentioned for this, but in fact they were all caused by a three-headed monster, namely by the (sin)monster of lust. This monster tempts with... a beautiful man and/or woman, and sinful enslavement to sex; with (pursuing) riches, or the worries and many activities of (daily) life; a self-willed labor for Jesus or pride; a desire for honor, fame and the applause of people.
We are not told why this sheep drew away from the Shepherd and the flock. What we do know, is that this three-headed monster will try carefully and resolutely to sneak into hearts which are devoted to God. And if it is successful, the self-centered life, in different areas of life, will surface again, and before one realizes what is happening, one (again) is a prisoner of some lust which leads to sin! Slowly, but surely, this force of sinful lust will then come and dwell in that life, and will force the human spirit to satisfy this lust; because of which the person, who at first was a servant of justice, now again has become a servant of sin.
One could also become disloyal to the Lord by following (the will of) another person, while that will in essence is contrary to the will of God. And that person could be: an essentially apostate minister, a friend, one's own husband or wife. One could also idolize the minister, one's own husband, wife or child, or another person, with the sad result that one automatically strays from the Savior because of this. For, if we no longer love Jesus Christ above all and everything (else), if we no longer give him the (seat on the) throne of our heart, but give that place to something or someone else, then all mercy will (have to) leave us, and we will lose the bond with His Holy Spirit and His Word. Then we will separate from the Shepherd and from the flock.
Nowadays we see many separate from the flock; they no longer visit the congregations. And, most assuredly, even if they claim the opposite, they have left the Shepherd. Their heart no longer is the property of Jesus; their heart does not have the first love for Him anymore, for if that were so, they, in spite of everything, would be found in the circle of the flock and, above all, at His feet.
Drawn away by lust and self-will the sheep strays further and further from the Shepherd and the flock, and becomes increasingly more entangled in the thorns of the wilderness of this life. But, alleluia (praise ye the Lord), there is One, Who came to seek that which is lost; the rescue operation initiates from Him, from Him personally. It comes forth from the compassionate heart of the Shepherd: "He leaves the ninety-nine and goes after that which is lost, until He finds it!" The Spirit of the Lord seeks for the lives of those who once belonged to His flock. He seeks them with His searching love: He calls them with a wonderful Word of grace. He goes to them, He approaches them, He calls them; He calls those whose hearts have almost been totally destroyed by sin. Blessed that sheep that responds to the call of the Shepherd. So many believers were lost in the wilderness of the earthly life. Some used to preach the Word full of fire themselves; namely the news of Him, Who died for us on Calvary, in order to give us a NEW LIFE here on earth, and ETERNAL LIFE in the Kingdom of God. But many did hear the call of the Shepherd (again), but did not respond; they stayed away and were lost forever! But this sheep was blessed, because it responded to the call of the Shepherd! It bleated, it called for help! Glory to Jesus! "And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me" (Psalm 50:15).
Beloved, that is how it is when we respond to the call of that almighty Shepherd of Love. When we do, and in all sincerity say: "Yes, Lord, here I am, the lost and strayed sinner!", then He will put us upon His shoulders. We do not have to take care of the homecoming, He will do that for us. He will rectify what we have spoiled (botched), without any reproach, if we confess our sins to Him (Proverbs 28:13). He it is Who will take us back to the safe circle of the flock (the Church of the Lord), whereby we will be one of the 100 (2 x 50) again. Glory to God's great mercy! He it is Who carries us upon His shoulders, Who fills our heart with new joy and courage, whereby we receive strength to fight in the life of the cross (i.e. the dying process of our old life), and to enter into His Kingdom. It is Jesus Who will restore all things for us, when we again accept Him in our heart, because for Him all darkness must disappear. Then that same first love will be kindled again which made David exclaim: "For by Him I have run through a troop (with Him I will defeat [the army of] the enemy); and by my God have I leaped over a wall!" (2 Samuel 22:30; Psalm 18:29). It is God's mercy when this first love is kindled (again) in our heart and life, but this first love must burn in each laborer of Jesus! O, that first love, the love for Jesus, that love that is so needed and necessary, also for the labor for Him. But, this first love must go together with the "fear of God", whereby is meant the fear to again stray from God into the desert of sin of this life; the fear which keeps us alert to shut every little door and chink to satan that might cause us to stray again.
Beloved, let us maintain that first love. It burns in the hearts of those who have just discovered the great love and mercy of Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross. But do you still have this first love? For with all, who are not alert enough, who do not walk in the fear of God, this first love will gradually disappear, because of the powers of those monsters of lust and self-will. Therefore we must see to it that we remain in this first love, in the ardent love for Jesus. We must continue to feel this burning longing for Jesus in our heart and life. Even after thirty, forty or fifty years. For, however long we have walked (in faith) with Jesus during our earthly life, this first love must lead us, and must be the basis of our everyday life. This first love must be the motivation of all our labor, of all our speaking. It is the love wherewith we love God with all our heart, with all our mind, and with all our strength. It is by this love that we can reach the final phase of our sanctification and our justification; whereby we will also experience that perfect love towards our neighbor; yes, even towards those who hate us! It is by this love for Jesus that we will stand as conquerors on the shores of the crystal sea (see Revelation 15:2).
This sheep then again returned to the flock; this child of God fortunately came back again in the circle of his brothers and sisters; in that circle where he can love his Lord and Master and can serve Him, because he has been delivered from all self-will and sinful lust!
Glory to Jesus!

CLICK HERE if you want to read this study (Chapter 15) – that is to long for the Blog.

By E. van den Worm

LUKE (Chapter 14) The purification of the holy place in order to come to “the end of all flesh” (Part 3)

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In and through Christ we must be willing to be delivered from the noxious terrestrially and worldly minded view(s) of life.
This new chapter deals with the fatal, worldly influence(s) in the life of Christians; an influence which is experienced by the body (verses 1-6), the spirit (verses 7-11), and the soul (verses 12-24). It is the influence which is exercised on each worldly minded person (and thus also on each worldly minded Christian) by the spirit of this world; by the (demonic) forces in the air, whereby, in our human nature, from birth, there is rebellion against God and His will. And because of this influence by the tempting and deceiving forces going forth from satan, many Christians are reduced to spiritual death, to a life without God and without rules, because the power coming from satan fills them.
But God wants to cleanse us from every sinful lust in our natural spirit, soul and body, which this demonic worldly spirit seeks to manipulate by means of its temptations and deceits. That is also the reason why He says to us: "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters..." (2 Corinthians 6:17-18; compare also Isaiah 52:11 and Revelation 18:4). And, if we really do what He asks of us, He will fill us with His nature and Spirit, so that we will be (or become) truly children of the almighty God.
At the end of this chapter (verses 25-35) He advises us to, carefully and with discreetly, accept the purifying and sanctifying working of His power of grace, because it is solely this way of the cross – namely the way we, in and through Christ, must go in order to (completely) die to (the powers of) sin within ourselves – which will lead us to the blessed presence of the fullness of His Spirit in us.

The spiritual death brings sickness in the body.
Luke 14 verse 1-6: "And it came to pass, as he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath day, that they watched him (closely). And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy (or oedema). And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath day? And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go; and answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the Sabbath day? And they could (or rather would) not answer him again to these things."
The spiritual death reveals itself here in the dropsy (oedema; this is a sickly [abnormal] accumulation of fluid in the body) of that person, who was also invited into the house of the chief of the Pharisees. The same way the spiritual death can reveal itself in all kinds of sickness in our body, and weaken it, sometimes unto death. But Jesus came to deliver us (completely) from this spiritual death and from all its effects in our body, soul and spirit. And He will heal us, if we surrender to Him (completely), so that we will experience that wonderful rest (of the soul) which is in Him (see Matthew 11:28-29). But, in order to be (completely) healed by Him we must have completely mended our ways and turned away from all the old and sinful things in our heart and life. Also there must be, besides faith in Him, the desire to be (completely) delivered from all influence(s) of the spiritual death, which also causes sickness.

The spiritual death brings pride and the desire for honor and/or fame in our spirit.
Luke 14 verse 7-11: "And he put forth a parable to those which were (also) bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them, When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honorable man than thou be bidden of him; And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee. For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."
The Lord here tells us a parable of someone, who was invited to a wedding feast. So are we all invited to the marriage feast of the Lamb of God (Revelation 19:6-10). Every worship service or (public) expression of our faith must be seen in the light of this spiritual feast.
Man finds himself, by nature, and thus under the influence of the spiritual death, very important and, at any occasion, loves to assign himself an important place. This, unfortunately, is also the case at all religious occasions, where one loves to be seen, and heard. Positions in the Church, which were taken this way, whereby one was driven by pride and the desire for honor and/or fame, unfortunately disturbed and/or ruined many gatherings already; sometimes to the extent that congregations were torn apart thereby... When do we learn to subject to that mighty guidance of God's Spirit? When will the sincere plea live in our heart which only asks: "Lord, what would You have me do?" On the other hand many spiritual leaders are also guilty of stubbornness (self-will); of the (often strong) tendency to rule and of short-sightedness, whereby they, and not the Spirit of God, have the say-so.
All those, who by their willfulness, and thus driven by pride or the desire for honor and/or fame, have taken in (or even won [by fighting for it]) positions in the Church of God, or who were called by people or by themselves (and so not by God!) to hold certain positions in the Church, and thus act in their own will, always oppose the Spirit of God, and by doing so harm the Body of Christ! Is it not Christ alone Who is the only Builder of the New Jerusalem (Hebrews 11:10; Psalm 127:1-2)? Therefore we all are to be called by Him alone, in order to be used as living instruments in and by His building Hand (1 Corinthians 3:10)! Is not Christ alone the only Good Shepherd (John 10)? Therefore all, who are called by Him to the pastoral function, should only be living extensions of His shepherd heart!
The satan, who is the cause of the spiritual death within us, always holds out the false hope to us of a great ministry in the Church and in the world. Let us therefore learn to recognize the voice of satan, and rebuke him, in order to (be able to) take in a lowly place at His feet, giving Him all the glory; to (be able to) hear His loving commands there concerning our ministry in Him, that we perform those in His strength (Romans 12:3). This way we shall learn to honor each other; namely the anointing which (also) works through our brother and/or sister. We shall also learn to esteem others more than ourselves (Philippians 2:3). If we have the sincere desire in our heart to serve Him, and if He has also called us personally thereto, then He shall lead us also personally to that position (appointed by Him) in Him. He will personally prepare us to (be able to) do good works (see Ephesians 2:10). As Christians we should not use our elbows; but God will remove all obstacles personally! In this way He also put David on the throne of Israel. The Word of God is applicable here: "He that believeth shall not make haste" (Isaiah 28:16)!
Should we, however, fill a position in the Church of God while we have not been called to it, and led by the Spirit of God, then we could, if we have a winning human personality, draw many to us and captivate them, but because of us these will, during their earthly life, not become "citizens of heaven" (by which is meant a life of complete subjection and devotion to God). For this is something only the Spirit of God can do. And if we are not called, we miss the so needed anointing of God, because only His anointing can work strongly and with power in the hearts of the audience, whereby they, should they really want this, could be (completely) delivered and renewed by His power. "For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."

Because of the spiritual death our soul will crave worldly possessions.
Luke 14 verse 12-14: "Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbors: lest they also bid thee again, and a recompense be made thee. But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: and thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just."
Here the Lord describes what the motives of the soul are, that is ruled by the spiritual death: such a person is looking for a reward. Such a person likes to receive in return, in some form or another, what he gave the other. Only when we act in the opposite way, will we be deemed holy by the Lord, because it is proof that we have been renewed by Jesus and His Gospel. The NEW LIFE within us is not looking for a reward, but, prompted by the love of God, will give without any desire to receive something in return.
From the above it becomes clear what an enormous difference there is between the desire for (more and more) worldly goods, and the sincere desire for more and more of the Bread (i.e. the spiritual food) of the Kingdom of God. As we can read in the following verse, one of the listeners to Jesus made an allusion to this during the meal in the chief of the Pharisees' house.
Luke 14 verse 15: "And when one of them that sat at meat with him heard these things, he said unto him, Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God."
And, as we can read below, Jesus took up the remark and showed, how all desire for the Bread of the Spirit could disappear gradually, even from the heart of the children of God, when they, by not being alert (enough), have allowed the spiritual death into their life. Then the possession of (many) earthly goods may seem more important to them than eating of this divine banquet, whereby is meant the union with the Lamb of God at His Marriage feast.
Luke 14 verse 16-24: "Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. And they all with one consent (in agreement with each other) began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them (try them out): I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say unto you, That none of these men which were bidden (first) shall taste of my supper."
With the supper described above, the great Supper of the Marriage of the Lamb is symbolized by the Lord. It is a prophetic type thereof. Here the appalling fact is expressed that those that were invited to this supper, at the time that the Marriage of the Lamb will be celebrated, will have more interest in their possessions in this world, than in the partaking of this (divine) banquet. They give greater priority to worldly goods than to the spiritual and divine.
Those that are (will be) invited to the Supper of the Marriage of the Lamb are children of God; they are the ones who were cleansed in His blood and filled with His Holy Spirit. But we see what will happen in the end-time under the influence of the (ever) increasing unrighteousness: the love for their Lord and Savior, with many, will cool because of the (often unconsciously) permitted intrusions of the spirit of this world (Matthew 24:12). Therefore, especially in this end-time, we must fight sin in all its forms, so also worldly-mindedness, with fire and sword; in order to keep those outside the gates of our heart! (James 4:4). The prophecy of the parable of the five wise and the five foolish virgins (Matthew 25:1-13) tells us, that the spirit of this (present) world will have such a great effect on all of the Kingdom of God (namely on all ten virgins), that it will entirely fall asleep (spiritually)!

CLICK HERE if you want to read this study (Chapter 14) – that is to long for the Blog.

By E. van den Worm

God’s victors of the end-time

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The restored (re-established) concept of God’s offer of mercy brought to us by the Lamb of God.
Revelation 6:1-2 "And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. And I saw, and behold a white horse; and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer."
The Book of Revelation knows three kinds of judgements of the Lamb of God:
• The seven seal judgements;
• The seven trumpet judgements;
• The seven vial judgements.

These judgements are coming more and more severely over the world of sinful mankind. In principle these judgements are meant to make mankind see that they are to sincerely repent before God of their sins, if they are to be spared God's judgement.
Isaiah 26:9b "...for when Thy judgements are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness."
At the beginning of this sermon we read about the first seal judgement, and God's Word says in 1 Peter 4:17 the following:
"For the time is come that judgement must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?"
Thus, the first seal judgement is meant for the Church, the house of God, for the repentance of the Church. This is to happen by the preaching of God's Word (will). But this Word was damaged by satan[1] from the beginning; it was weakened by human and satanic influences. For only the pure Word of God is mighty and powerful to bring redemption and sanctification to sinful, repentant mankind.
Thus, this first seal judgement is meant by the Lamb to re-establish/restore the spoken word, the Word of Truth, in order that it is brought in the power and according to God's intention and views/insights. The Word of God that convicts sin, and God's offer of mercy that is offered to mankind in and by the finished sacrifice of the Lamb, must be preached clearly in the Church first.

As already mentioned, satan wanted to damage the Word of God from the beginning, so that it could not have the effect God meant it to have. Satan sealed the roll of Scripture with seven seals. They are seven great sinful bonds, that keep mankind from understanding the true meaning of God's Word because of their by sin darkened thinking. The Lamb, and only the Lamb, can and must break these seals one by one, so that God's Word can be understood clearly again by repentant mankind.
Thus, the first seal that is to be broken brings about the recovery of the understanding of the powerful divine Word, of the divine gospel of redemption. Every recovery happens slowly because of the wrong insight of the Word. He begins to shine His light of judgement in the Church, so that converts might come to Him, and He could grant them mercy and proclaim to them the Word, the Word of the cross; and to make them into conquerors/victors by and in the power of His Word and Spirit, in order that He could use them later as heralds of this victory over sin and satan.
For this purpose He re-introduces the Baptism in the Holy Spirit in the Church, which in this vision of John's on Patmos, is typified by the white horse, the power of God, which God's laborer and servant is to wear.
Much is taught wrongly about this white horse and its rider. At first one was taught that this rider is Christ Himself, but this rider still had to overcome in the end-time, while Jesus Christ already won the victory over satan on Calvary almost 2000 years ago.
Then, one is taught, again wrongly, that this rider is the antichrist. This, too, cannot be true, as the white horse in scriptural sense typifies God's power and righteousness. Besides this rider was crowned with the victor's crown, and he rides conquering and to conquer, while the antichrist, from God's point of view, is anything but a conqueror.
Ezekiel 21:25-27 "And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end, Thus saith the Lord God; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him."
He (the antichrist) here is called the 'prince of Israel', because he maintains to be the returned Christ, the King of Israel.
The true meaning of this white horse and his rider is, that here the victors of the end-time are pictured. Here God's servant of the last days is pictured, who stands and goes in the victory over sin and satan which he gained by being planted together with the victory of the Lamb, with His death and resurrection (Romans 6:5).
This is the reason we do not see an arrow here, no weapon of attack, for the battle against satan was fought by the Lamb 2000 years ago, and the victory was won and the debt of sin paid for. But he holds forth the true Word of God, typified here by the bow, triumphantly. In this way he lifts up the Word of the cross.

CLICK HERE if you want to read this study – that is to long for the Blog.

By E. van den Worm

[1] We write the word satan not with a capital, as it is not a name, but a word meaning opponent or adversary, accuser.

LUKE (Chapter 13) The purification of the holy place in order to come to “the end of all flesh” (Part 2)

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The rejection of unrepentant Judaism – until the time of the end.

The majority of the Jews and their leaders in Jesus' time lived an unrepentant life.
Luke 13 verse 1-5: "There were present at that season some that told him of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galileans were sinners above all the (other) Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all (other) men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish."
Here the Lord reproached the Jews in His days for their un-repentance... Not only the Galileans, that were slain by the sword of Pilate, but all Galileans were sinners. Not only were those inhabitants of Jerusalem, who were buried by the fallen tower of Siloam, sinners, but all inhabitants were! This does not mean, that the Jews of Jesus' days were not religious. They most certainly were! But their religious practices and actions came from their (sinful) flesh; they did everything by following their self-will. And, even if the works of the flesh seem right in the eyes of men, they are always diametrically opposed (and thus contrary) to God's will. For God wants us to turn to Him with all our heart (and soul), so that we may be open to His works of grace; that we come to the true purification and sanctification of our life and inner being. If this is a spiritual truth today, in the days when Jesus walked on the earth and lived among men, it was exactly the same! We must therefore be willing to be delivered from our self-will! For this self-will is always at war with the will of God; even if sometimes, superficially, it seems to agree with God's will (Romans 8:5-8)!

A life without sincere repentance is unfruitful for God's Kingdom.
Luke 13 verse 6-9: "He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down."
In above text God the Father is pictured as the owner of a vineyard, and that vineyard is the world. And in that world He had planted a fig-tree, and that fig-tree is God's symbol (of the twelve tribes) of Israel. The dresser of the vineyard here is the symbol for the Lord Jesus Christ.
The three years that the owner (i.e. God the Father) waited for the fruit of the fig-tree (i.e. Israel), are an indication of God's offer of grace to Israel. In the Old Covenant time this happened through the shed blood of sacrificial animals; and in the light of the New Testament it is an indication of God's offer of grace (in the first place to the Jews – see Note 1 on page 3) in and through the sacrifice on the cross (and the shed blood) of the Lamb of God. All bloody sacrifices of the Old Testament pointed to the perfect Lamb, and thus the perfect sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. After all, He was to spend three days and three nights "in the heart of the earth", when He fulfilled that offering (see Matthew 12:40).
Our conversion and our belief in God's perfect sacrifice and in the omnipotence of Jesus, His Son, is a necessity for God, and the only way to bring about a NEW LIFE of spiritual fertility within us (and to develop it). His works of grace had to do that for the Jews in those days, and must do it for us also today. However, this is only possible when there is a sincere longing in us to surrender all self-will to Jesus Christ; a desire to be completely delivered from our self-will. Just as Jesus Christ was killed on the cross (and had to be killed) for our sins, so too must we covet (and pray for) this process of the cross in our thinking, heart and life, whereby we express the will that we too are prepared to completely die to our old and sinful ego, to our sinful "flesh". When the Lord sees this sincere desire in us, then it shall be done in our life, so that all thoughts and desires, all our actions and walk, etc. which are not according to His will and pleasing, be de-stroyed, over and over again.
The fig-tree (type of a religious Jew) bore no fruit, but only leaves. And leaves only serve the life of the tree itself; but fruit serves the reproduction, and serves the life of others. A religion according to one’s own view therefore is always ego-centric, and will always seeks one's own advantage and honor, even if this is often hidden under beautiful show moti-vations. It is only the love of God, planted in the purified heart of man, which brings forth eternal fruit.
We also see from this parable, that our Savior is very patient, and that His sole purpose is to grant us grace (still). That therefore was the reason the dresser of the vineyard (type of the Lord Jesus Christ) requested another year's respite of the owner (type of God the Father). He wanted to give extra care to the tree (type of the religious Jew) by digging around the tree, and fertilizing it. As you can see, we have a wonderful (and very gracious) High Priest, Who prays and intercedes for us with God, and Who wishes to bring us to repentance by allowing trials in our life, and Who wishes to put His pre-cious Word in our heart. These trials and this Word of God must convict us of our un-repentance, and of our self-willed attitude; they are to cause us to repent and surrender to Him, that He cleanse us of all dead works, and of all sinful thoughts and desires.
We see the same patience with regard to the Jews of those days in Israel. The judgment of God did not follow immediately after the rejection and crucifixion of the Son of man. God waited approximately another forty years, and during that period the Gospel of His grace was proclaimed among the Jews. It was only around the year 70 B.C. that God's judgment was fulfilled over this nation. Then the city of Jerusalem was burned down by the Roman armies, and many were killed by the sword. The survivors were exiled from their country... and were scattered over the whole earth!

The Pharisee, the false laborer, came into being by the unrepentant life of the Jews at the time.
Luke 13 verse 10-17: "And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day. The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? And ought not this woman, being a daughter (of the line) of Abraham, whom satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years (already), be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day? And when he had said these things, all his adversaries were ashamed: and all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by him."
We see a woman, who, because of a decease in the muscles, had become very crooked, and had been bent down for eighteen years already, and was not able to straighten herself. It is the same with sin within us. It can bind us in such a way, that we cannot but sin. The same way the drunkard is driven to his strong liquor; the junkie to his needle; the whore-hopper to the whores; the adulterer (and thus married man) to his mistresses; the gambler to the gambling house! It (sin) then has become such in that life, that one cannot do without it anymore (and often does not want to either). How far a person who follows (likes to follow) his own will, in whichever way of life, can be driven away from the (complete) freedom of sin and bondages we (can) have in Jesus Christ, our Savior. Therefore, beloved, it is important that we obey Him in all things! Let us therefore seek Jesus at all times, that He, through our faith in His sacrifice on the cross, make it possible for us to – in and by Him – be completely free from every sin and every bondage. He will deliver us from all bondages, just as He did that for that woman on that Sabbath. It was Sabbath, when Jesus delivered her. The same way we, too, will be (completely) delivered by Jesus, when we are and remain in that Sabbath of faith – by the which are meant the rest in faith and the subjection wherein we expect everything from Him – because by His death on the cross He brought about eternal redemption from all works of darkness for us (Hebrews 9:12).
Just as Jewry by its un-repentance brought forth Pharisees, so you and I will be hypocrites in all labor for Jesus if we do not repent to the depth of our heart (and soul) in order to (be able to) receive from Him all the necessary works of grace in our heart and life. The Pharisees occupied themselves, zealously, with useless religious acts, whereby they eventually ruined themselves more and more, because these religious acts had nothing to do with (the service and subjection to) the LIVING God; with the result that they were kept in bondage of (the power of) sin. The Pharisees were, and continued to be, money grabbers and were desirous of the honor (and appreciation) of people! You can see how dangerous a religion can be when one follows (or likes to follow) one's self-will; for one only deceives oneself!

CLICK HERE if you want to read this study (Chapter 13) – that is to long for the Blog.

By E. van den Worm

The prophecy of Ethan, the Ezrahite

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About the perfect New Covenant in Christ Jesus implied in Psalm 89.

Psalm 89 verse 15-18:
"Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance. In they name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted. For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy favor our horn shall be exalted. For the Lord is our defence; and the Holy One of Israel is our king."

This is a prophetic Word, taught by Ethan, the Ezrahite. For the Old-Testament believer lived on divine promises, which he had not yet obtained in his earthly life.
Hebrews 11:39-40, "And these all, having obtained a good report (of God; that they pleased Him) through faith (in God's promises, Word), received not the promise (of God); God having provided some better thing for us (of the New Covenant), that they without us should not be made perfect (we are to teach then in Jesus' Millennium, and are to lead them to perfection in Him)."
Let us look at these verses in Psalm 89 in the light of the end-times.
Psalm 89, verse 15a: "Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound (of the perfect, true Word of God)..."
In the end-times the eternal Gospel will be proclaimed.
Revelation 14:6, "And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven (the kingdom of heaven on earth, which is the Church), having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people."
It is only by this Gospel that sinful man can be brought into the perfect salvation, and into the perfect rebirth of God, and so to walk in God's light.
God's Gospel knows the teaching of grace, of forgiveness of sins by the repentance of the sinner and by his washing in the shed blood of the Lamb of God; but also the teaching of the perfection, the perfection in Christ. This doctrine will only be fully taught, understood and accepted in the end-times.
The so-called "foolish virgins"[1] of Matthew 25:2-3 only accept the teaching of grace of God's Word, the forgiveness of sins by the washing in Jesus' blood.
The "wise virgins"[2] also accept the teaching of perfection of the Gospel, the perfecting sanctification in and by the power of the Spirit. The teaching of perfection is, amongst others, expressed in Ephesians 4 verse 13:
"Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (the full nature of Christ)."
Psalm 89, verse 15b: "...they (the Christians) shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance."
These Christians shall then, in perfect purity, delivered from all darkness of sin, live, walk and work in the light of God's Spirit.

His sudden, INvisible return in the Spirit.
This return of Jesus Christ shall first be introduced by His Spirit of sanctification[3], Which shall reveal Itself as fire in order to deliver those, who have accepted Him as such, completely from all sin.
Malachi 3:1-4, "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord, as in the days of old, and as in former years."
The first Angel is God's Spirit, Who, through His anointed servants, prepares God's people to open themselves willingly for His purifying fire.
(In the end-times) the Church has been lulled into a spiritual sleep by satan[4] (see also Joel 1:1-20).
Matthew 25:1-7, "Then shall the kingdom of heaven (here on earth) be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh: go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps."
When, in the end-times, the Word of God is preached in the full light of the Spirit, there will be a general wakening in the Church from this sleep of sin (both the foolish and the wise shall spiritually awake; verse 7). Thereafter the Spirit of Jesus Christ shall reveal Itself as a purifying fire in all the willing, in all who truly love Him.
Matthew 3:11-12, "I (John the Baptist) indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
This fire of the Holy Spirit shall burn up all the chaff (the old, sinful life) that is on the threshing floor of our heart. We must suffer this purification patiently. Then He shall build His divine Christ-nature in us; let us share in the marriage of the Lamb; unite Himself in and through His Spirit with His Bride.

The characteristics of the Christ-life of the Bride of the Lamb.
1) Continuous joy and divine righteousness characterize her then, when she experiences the marriage or union with the Lamb.
Psalm 89, verse 16: "In thy name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted."
Revelation 19:6-8, "And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints."
2) Divine glory and authority will then characterize her.
Psalm 89, verse 17: "For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy favor our horn (strength) shall be exalted."
Participation in the marriage will further give the Bride of the Lamb divine glory and power. She will be clothed with the sun of God's righteousness, and will be crowned with the crown of twelve stars of the Holy Spirit.
Revelation 12:1, "And there appeared a great wonder in heaven (i.e. the kingdom of heaven, namely the Bride[church] here on earth); a woman (i.e. the wife of the Lamb) clothed with the sun (type of the Father), and the moon (type of the blood covenant of the Son) under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars (type of the Holy Spirit)."
During and after the marriage she will be glorified with the sun dress of the Father's righteousness. She stands on the moon, the blood covenant of the Lamb, and she is crowned with the crown of twelve stars of the Holy Spirit. This divine glory will also be seen and experienced by the people around the Bride of the Lamb.
Isaiah 60:1-3, "Arise, shine: for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising."

3) Her Christ-life is also characterized by complete divine protection against satan.
4) Finally she will – "at a point in time" – be changed, and her body shall put on eternal divine glory.
Psalm 89, verse 18: "For the Lord is our defence; and the Holy One of Israel is our king."
Zechariah 2:5, "For I, saith the Lord, will be unto her (the Bride of the Lamb) a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her."
Let us therefore meet this hectic end-time, full of satanic injustice, revelations of obscure (occult) powers and great divine judgments, with good courage in the protection and glory of our almighty God.

Amen.

By E. van den Worm

[1] See – on our Website http://www.endtime-messenger.com/ – the study: “The 5 wise and the 5 foolish virgins and their destiny in the end-time”, from E. van den Worm.
[2] See note 1.
[3] See - on our Website - the study: "Sanctification", from E. van den Worm
[4] We write the word satan not with a capital, as it is not a name, but a word meaning opponent or adversary, accuser.

The prophecy of Ethan, the Ezrahite - PDF for printing

Turn (away) from your evil ways

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Leave the dimension of darkness
Ezekiel 33:11 "Say to them, says Adonai YaHWeH, I do not rejoice over the death of those who are evil, but I do rejoice in the conversion of their lifestyle. Turn away, turn away from your evil ways, for why should you die, o House of Israel?" (literal translation)
Repentance is an act of will of man, when he turns to God, and is willing to leave his sinful ways. However, it is not merely a deed at the beginning of a life, that seeks renewal through God; but it is an attitude of life for each new day thereafter. We live in a world, wherein the evil one reigns; a world which is under the strong influence of the inspiration, work and management of the evil one and his forces.
Ephesians 2:1-3 "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others."
Ephesians 6:12 "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."
Previously, we all thought, lived and worked in the lusts of our flesh, doing the will of the flesh and of thoughts/ideas of our own.
Romans 8:6-8 "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God."

Sins in thought lead to sins in words and to sins in deed
Therefore we could not think and live in the flesh, and at the same time want to live the Christian life: going to church and praying. This is an impossibility, because the true Christian life is a different spiritual dimension than carnal living, thinking and working.
Life in the Spirit and according to His will is the dimension of the light, while carnal living is the dimension of darkness, without God. Therefore the Lord does not hear and see them if he prays unto Him.
Isaiah 59:1-2 "Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated (in dimension) between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear."
Therefore the world does not understand us and considers us odd, weird and mad. Therefore: do not leave the dimension of light, and continue to endure living in, and being repentant unto, God.
1 John 1:7 "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."
Our spirit must continue to walk in the light of God's dimension, but we, in the body, still are in this world and its dimension of darkness. Therefore we are to walk circumspectly, and must wash our feet continually in His blood; because, involuntarily, we come into contact with sin.

What do we have to watch out for?
1. In the first place our thinking is defiled, and it must be washed in His blood immediately, because sinful thoughts will become sinful considerations of the heart, and we will thus be stained with that sin. If we remain in the light of God, we will remain in His Spirit and in His love.

1 John 2:10 "He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him."

2. Our spirit and soul must continue to walk, live and work in the dimension of light in the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, and must avoid the dimension of darkness.
2 Corinthians 6:14-18 "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty."
1 Corinthians 7:1 "Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman."

3. We must take care that our tongue not speak anymore according to the world's thinking.
Matthew 12:36 "But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgement."

4. We must also watch not to walk anymore according to the flesh and in the lusts of the world.
1 John 2:15-17 "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever."

a) The lusts of the flesh lead to the sins of the flesh, to sinful lusts, which lead us to idol worship, to sexual sins. Others again make their belly their idol, and live to eat.
b) The lusts of the eyes lead to the sins of the soul, to craving material things, and to money madness, to mammon worship; to living in luxury.
c) The sinful lusts of the spirit lead to haughtiness; to lust for power; to pride of life; to sinful, woman’s vanity.

Let us therefore take care not to walk in these regions of the dimension of darkness, but continue to walk in the dimension of God's light. Let us therefore practise the circumspection/caution of the righteous.
Let us walk in the spirit of John the Baptist, of whom is said in Luke 1 verse 17:
"And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
Therefore, continue to think, walk and work daily in the way of life of the repentant unto God. This way we could faithfully obey Him, and continue to walk on the highway of mercy. Then He shall lead us into His heavenly holy place, already here on earth.
Hebrews 4:14-16 "Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."
In this way the High Priest, our Shepherd, shall, by His Holy Spirit, lead us step by step inwards into the heavenly holy place of God, to our heavenly Father.
John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him (Thomas), I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me."
He is the only Leader, Who leads us unto eternal life; He alone is the Truth; He alone leads us towards our Father-God, to the almighty, merciful and holy YaHWeH.

By E. van den Worm

Turn (away) from you evil ways

LUKE (Chapter 9) - Like a divine shewbread in this world (Part 1)

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This part teaches us to keep God’s Word of protective grace on the table of our purified and sanctified heart!
In the previous chapter we had a close look at the servant, namely the priest of the Lord, being a glowing candlestick in this dark world to bring to others the light of God's truth unto their salvation; now we will see that the life of the priests, God's children, themselves are as many wondrous signs in this world by their relationship with Jesus Christ, the Bread of Life. Their life, in the light of the Israeli Tabernacle, should be like a "shewbread". In the Holy Place of the Israeli Tabernacle stood "the table with twelve shewbread". Know, that 12 is the symbolic number of the Church, which should be the revealed fruit (or: the result) of the Holy Spirit. A "life like a shewbread" therefore means: a life, where in the glory of God is revealed. Chapters 9 and 10 must now be seen in the light of the twelve shewbread.

The prayer life, the true gauge of our spiritual hunger.
Beloved, we cannot be a shewbread in the world by our own strength. We must give Him access into our heart. And He will only come into our heart and being when we truly long for Him, and seek Him with all our heart... (Jeremiah 29:13). There also must be found a willingness in our heart to obey Him; a subjection of our whole being, whereby He can make us obedient. These are the conditions for being able to be baptized with His Holy Spirit. Only the wish to be baptized, without the act of seeking Him in prayer, which is characterized by a total surrender, in this case will not help you much further. Not for nothing it is written: "Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain..." (Zechariah 10:1a). The true gauge of your longing for the Lord is your prayer life. How much time do you spend daily on the seeking and admitting of Jesus? How much time do you spend on seeking contact (communion) with Him? You should add up the times of struggling, seeking prayer until you found contact (communion) with that great Shepherd (i.e. Jesus); until you actually reached the spiritual Rock (i.e. Jesus), on which you, together with Jesus, could build your spiritual house (Matthew 7:24); you will then discover how much you truly long for Jesus; in what measure you truly want to be used by Him.
I know, you all long for (more of) Him, but you are prevented by all kinds of things, and these things are as many fruits of the increasing iniquities, such as: watching TV too much, and looking at the wrong TV programs; reading novels or gossip magazines; maybe even lust-arousing (pornographic) literature; the desire for more (or more beautiful) material possessions, whereby and wherefore you have to work overtime. You see, the things which keep us away from Jesus, and from prayer, can be of different sorts! The devil will do his utmost to keep you from praying; because nowadays he is weakening the prayer-life by tempting you with all kinds of worldly things, just as he made that fruit in paradise desirable to Eve. He will take away that "continual sacrifice" – namely the continual dedicated prayer based on His finished work on Calvary (Daniel 12:11; 2 Corinthians 4:10-11)! Because of the sin of this prayerless or prayer-poor life (1 Samuel 12:23) we could never have communion with Him, and because of this we could never come to the status of "shewbread" in this life.

We must become wondrous signs in this world by communion with Jesus Christ, the Bread of Life.
Luke 9 verse 1-6: "Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases. And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick. And he said unto them, Take nothing for your journey, neither staves, nor scrip (travel bag), neither bread, neither money; neither have two coats apiece. And whatsoever house ye enter into, there abide, and thence depart. And whosoever will not receive you, when ye go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet for a testimony against them. And they de-parted, and went through the towns, preaching the gospel, and healing every where."
He called the twelve disciples unto Himself – namely the apostles sent (out) by Him; but here these apostles represent all the laborers of Jesus, high and low. Before sending them away He first gave them a portion of spiritual power over all demons and sicknesses (Luke 10:19). Here, they had not yet received the baptism with the Spirit, but they acted in the power of God which, as it were, was transferred unto them. The laborers of the Lord, from the time after the first Pentecost outpouring (see Acts 2:1-4), must act in His Name, under the guidance of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
Essentially it remains the same: a child of God, by his communion with the Bread of Life, is put in this world as a wondrous sign! And it is only by this communion, and solely under His express guidance that he can fulfill the great mission, which is written in Mark 16:15-18, because the Spirit of God alone is the Binder and Looser of sins and powers of darkness! "And I will give thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:19). Compare this with Matthew 18:18. So all satanic powers and forces had to fall back before the apostles, and so all powers and forces of the (spiritual) darkness will still make way before each child of God, that is willed with the almighty Spirit, as long as he only does what the Spirit commands him to do. Do you then under-stand that the words of such a child of God are binding and loosing; that the preaching of such a person is binding and loosing; that such a ministry is binding and loosing? For the Spirit of God Himself is then active in and through His servant!
How wondrous such labor in the Spirit is, when the life of God's servant has been completely crucified, and the Lord does not find any resistance anymore. In the end-time God will bring part of His Church to such a position. This then will be God's Bride(church), namely that part of the Church which was willing to follow Him... in such a Bride-church; and, spiritually seen, they will be indeed "without spot or wrinkle"!
Verse 3 says: "Take nothing for your journey, neither staves, nor scrip (travel bag), neither bread, neither money..." Nothing was to be taken that could support them (could help them). They were to completely depend on the omnipotence of God; there had to be faith which leaned completely on the almighty Sender. Verse 4 says: "And whatsoever house ye enter into there abide..." When someone of a town, wherein is preached, has accepted the Word, and offered the preacher lodging, and thus hospitality, then that preacher should not move to someone else's house, because e.g. that house might be more comfortable; for so the love of the first one is rejected. And such behavior would not go with the Spirit of the Sender, and is unworthy of a laborer of the Lord! Verse 5 urges even to "...shake off the very dust from their feet..." of the towns that are not willing to receive God's laborers. There is not to be any relationship between God's laborers and those who reject His Word.

Luke 9 verse 10-11: "And the apostles, when they were returned, told him all that they had done. And he took them, and went aside privately into a desert place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. And the people, when they knew it, followed him: and he received them, and spake unto them of the kingdom of God, and healed them that had need of healing."
The corresponding verses in the other Gospels tell us, that the apostles had returned to the Lord with great joy, on account of the miracles they were able to perform during their mission, because the Spirit of God was being revealed.
The Lord then took them to an area near Bethsaida, and He departed alone to a desert place. This way He wanted to teach His disciples, that after that release of divine power, dedicated, humble prayer was needed... for the restoration of a person's spiritual inner being. When a servant of God was allowed to act so wonderfully in His Name, it is a good thing when that servant, after such a powerful service, retires in the shadow of the cross; the place he belongs to, together with all other believers whom Jesus has won out of the world (Luke 17:10).
There once was a preacher who was wonderfully used by the Lord. He was used so wonderfully, that he... sometimes had problems with his ego. He testified, that, after having been used so wonderfully, he needed many hours in prayer in order to arrive again at that humble subjection to God, wherein the Lord could use him.
Of ourselves we all are unprofitable servants (Luke 17:10), because all activity should be guided by Him alone. He is the only Builder of the New Jerusalem (Matthew 16:18; Psalm 127:1-2)! He is the only One, Who could form Christians into real and (spiritually) mature children of God. He is the only One, Who could make His children into perfect saints of God! After such a servant of God has retreated with Him, there will be new labor in Him again for him Therefore we read, that the people returned to Him afterwards. The Gospel was brought to them, and He again healed the sick. Labor and prayer should always alternate. If there is much work, then many prayers should go before, and many prayers should follow! The spiritual "battery" must be recharged again and again.

CLICK HERE if you want to read this study (Chapter 9) – that is to long for the Blog.

By E. van den Worm