The 7 characteristics

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The 7 characteristics of a true and anointed servant of the Lord Jesus Christ and member of the Bride of the Lamb in the end-time

What Scripture says about this:
1. They bring to the Lord as a burnt offering, all of their old, sinful life.
Isaiah 61:8 "For I the Lord love judgement, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them."

They hate their old, sinful life wherein they are bound, and give it to the Lamb of God that they be completely delivered from it by the divine sharing in His death on Calvary; this being brought about by the washing in His shed blood and the purifying power of the Holy Ghost's fire. God hates the robbery for burnt offering. This means, that we should not surrender in part unto redemption, but wholly. His true servants live up to this and strive for perfect sanctification by the Holy Spirit of the Lamb of God; of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2) Then the Lord Jesus will call such true servants to partake of the marriage supper of the Lamb, and they will obey His voice.
Revelation 19:9 "And he (the messenger angel of God to the apostle John) saith to me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God."

For the rest of their life they will then continually partake of the Lamb's marriage supper-table. This means that they preserve their salvation by the Lamb by continually bearing about in their heart His dying (see 2 Cor. 4:10-11).

3) Then the Lamb will accept them as future members of His Bride and will prepare them hereto.
Luke 17:34-37 "I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken and the other left. Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together."

He will gather them as members of His active Body.

4) The spiritual burning of the Holy Ghost's fire will then purify them and completely free them from sin.
Not only forgive, but also free them from their bonds of 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, and 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."

Levi is the tribe of Israel serving the Lord in His tabernacle and temple, and symbolically stands for the true, anointed servants who serve the Lord as bringers of the Word.
If they are sanctified they will be able to bring God's Word as a pure offering in righteousness to the Church. Judah and Jerusalem are symbolic for the New-Testament Church of the Lord. By this fire and the spirit of sanctification God's servant is made faultless, without spot and without wrinkle (see Ephesians 5:27); and he walks and works as a perfect conqueror over satan and sin (see Revelation 12:11). He will prepare and use such persons as true Gospel preachers and teachers in the world, and will mark them among the workers as such by their charisma and anointing.
Isaiah 61:9 "And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed."

5) He shall clothe them with the garments of salvation, with the robe of righteousness, and with His divine nature (2 Peter 1:4).
Isaiah 61:10a "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness;..."

Revelation 19:8 "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."

Psalm 45:13-15 "The king's daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold. (And outwardly:) She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee. With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought: they shall enter into the king's palace."

6) When the marriage has taken place, He will adorn His Bride with divine glory and authority.
Isaiah 61:10b "...as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels."

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)."

a) The sun stands for the justice and glory of the Father;
b) the moon for the Lamb of God and His blood covenant, wherein the Bride of the Lamb stands;
c) the twelve stars for the omnipotence and authority of the Holy Ghost, with which she is crowned.
She then is clothed with all the glory of God. Great power, knowledge and wisdom of the Holy Ghost is then put onto God's true, anointed servant, preparing him so for his final battle and labour in the Lord.
He will gird on (equip) them inwardly and outwardly with the whole armour of God.
Ephesians 6:10-13: “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 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 the high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

7) When the marriage (the union with the Lamb) has taken place He shall use His servant as His instrument worldwide
in order to
1) restore the Church, which has deteriorated because of satan; and
2) to bring about the worldwide revival, whereby the harvest shall be innumerable (Revelation 7:9; 14:14-16).

Isaiah 61:11 "For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations."

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

By E. van den Worm

LUKE (Chapter 11) - Our life must be a lovely fragrance (namely as of incense) before God’s countenance

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In the light of the Israeli Tabernacle we must see this chapter in the sign of the altar of incense. For the altar of incense is the place where we, in prayer and worship, come to God and His Christ.
When we have read all chapters so far, we have seen the divine ascent (by the which a higher spiritual level is meant) in the heavenly Tabernacle. We went from the sevenfold candlestick, which typifies the revelation of God's Good (Gospel) Message in the power of the LIVING Christ, to the table with the twelve show loaves, which speaks of communion with this powerful (and LIVING) Word of God, whereby the sinner changes into a child of God, into a show loaf of and for God, in this sinful world. By this experience of the indwelling Christ and His mighty, inner workings, the child of God comes to true worship of his great Redeemer and Savior; of his great Lord and God, with which we then (in the spirit) have come near to the altar of incense. And every time the revelation of His Word in us becomes more wonderful and glorious, we come to a deeper experience of communion with Him, which goes together with an increasing dying to self; whereby we come to glorious worship of our Savior and God.
In this way we become acquainted, over and over again, and in increasing measure, with this divine triangle in the holy place of His spiritual tabernacle: namely with the candlestick, the table of show loaves, and the altar of incense. It is this divine triangle which sanctifies us by the power of His blood, His Word and His Holy Spirit. It is also this divine triangle which – when we will have finally been completely freed of all flesh (namely of all our sins and our sinful nature) – will let us, through the veil, into the perfect life of God's Holy of holies. And this perfect (and thus holy) life God's Bride(church) must already have here on earth in order to be able to experience the wedding feast with her heavenly Bridegroom, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Part I: How we must come to God in prayer
11 verse 1-2a: "And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name."

1: We must come to Him in absolute acceptance of His Fatherhood, in obedience and respect for Him. In the very first place our altar of incense (in the spirit) must be characterized by worship of our great God and His, for us, so lovely Name.
In those days, when Israel's high priest had to enter the Holy of holies once a year, at the Great Day of Atonement, he was to do this with in the one hand the blood of sacrificial animals (for the atonement of sins), and in the other hand the smoking censer (Leviticus 16:12-14). This incense is symbolical for our worship. Before everything else, we must come to Him with praise and worship!
We will not look at seven points in total, to see how we can come to Him in (and by) our prayer-life. We saw that the first point was: come to Him in worship, namely in surrender of our sinful being on the basis of the shed blood of Lamb of God.

2: We must come to Him with absolute acceptance of His divine lordship.
11 verse 2b: "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth."
We do not come to God to, in the first place, ask Him for something, but we come in the first place to Him to give ourselves to Him. "Thy Kingdom come." Where? Deep within our own heart. "Thy will be done." Where? Again, deep within our own heart, in our own life! For, God must be able to, after His will and pleasing, be King (and thus Lord – Ruler) in our own heart and life, that He fulfill His will – in and through us – just as He can do this in heaven!

3: We must come to Him pleading upon His blood.
11 verse 3: "Give us day by day our daily bread."
We know that this "bread" does not only refer to the bread in the literal sense, wherewith we feed our body, but also and in particular, to the spiritual food, which is the "Bread of Life". For this "Bread of Life" is His flesh – the true spiritual food – and His blood –the true spiritual drink– (see John 6:51-58). And this is called the Word of the cross, by the which is meant His sacrifice on the cross for us (for the atonement of sins). Therefore we must look upon His finished work on Calvary, and plead upon His (atoning) blood, but we also must form one planting with this atoning sacrifice of His, whereby is meant that we, too, must be willing to completely die (off) to our old, and thus sinful, life (Romans 6:5; 2 Corinthians 4:10-11).
As we now know, Israel's high priest was not allowed to enter the Holy of holies without this atoning blood (of sacrificial animals), just as he was not allowed to enter without incense. If he did, he would be killed – just like Nadab and Abihu, Aaron's sons (see Leviticus 10:1-2), were slain by God's judgment.
"Give us day by day our daily bread". So we must come to Him, daily cleansed by His blood, and daily sharing, in the spirit, His dying on Calvary. This is what we need from Him day by day.

4: We must come to Him confessing all our sins of the past (and with all our needs).
11 verse 4a: "And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us."
As well as confessing our sins God must be able to find in our heart the willingness to forgive others, who are indebted to us. And it must be such a willingness, that when they come to us for forgiveness for their crime, we (in the same moment) will be able to do so with all our heart. As children of God we should not harbor any grudges and/or hatred against anyone, whatever they may have done (or still do) to us. We must have forgiven them in our heart already, so that when they come, we, urged by God's love, will be able to grant them that forgiveness (Mark 11:25-26).

5: We must develop a sincere desire to be (completely) purified and sanctified by Him.
11 verse 4b: "And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil."
Herewith are meant the needs of the future; the time lying before us. Prayerfully ask the Lord to put a deep longing in your heart for complete purification and sanctification; it is a prayer very pleasing to God. This will lead us to a life wherein we will be completely free from (the power of) the evil one, whereby we also will be completely free from sin, and from the power of our sinful flesh and our sinful lusts! The plea: "Deliver us from evil" means: "Father, deliver us (completely) from all dark desires, so that the evil one and his temptations will have no hold over us anymore; because our sinful flesh and our sinful lusts will be dead completely through Your works of grace." Then our flesh can be no playground for the evil one anymore! He wants to take us there; and this will also happen if our heart is sincerely aimed at this.

6: We must come to Him with perseverance and boldness.
11 verse 5-8: "And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth."
We must come to Him with the same perseverance and the same boldness as this shameless friend. God will then give us what we desire (after His will and pleasing). We may come to God and boldly claim His promises, given in His Word.
This friend asked shamelessly for three loaves; and these are symbolic for the perfection in God! He is the type for the sinner who comes to God and claims His promise of perfection in Him... in order to, in the fullness of His nature and being, be able to serve others in the midnight hour; in the hour when the dark forces will rule (as never before)... He asked for the three loaves in order to stand (and persist) as a pillar of God in the midst of the storms of this age – storms of unrighteousness, because the majority of humanity live without norms and values, without God and His law – to be for others in this world as God's channel of salvation and NEW LIFE!

CLICK HERE if you want to read this study (Chapter 11) – that is to long for the Blog.

By E. van den Worm

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 10) - Like a divine shewbread in this world (Part 2)

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Communion with the Bread of Life brings mission in divine holiness
We see here that unity with Jesus results in holy labor. The number 70 (10 x 7) topologically stands for “perfect holiness”. Thus spiritual labor in perfect holiness is involved here. If, in the first shewbread (Chapter 9:1-11), we saw that our labor must be in the strength of the Holy Spirit (and this, of course, goes for ALL labor in Him), expressed there in the number 12; here we see which spiritual level our labor, in the power of the Holy Ghost, must reach; namely that of perfect holiness.

The number 7 in God’s Bible always points to the end-time, namely to the moment the period of God’s grace (a 2000-year period), wherein we are (still) living now, will be closed. Prophetically this tells us that during the last worldwide revival of God’s latter rain (this is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the end-time), of which we now already have received “the first drops”, a service in such holiness will be revealed; a service in God’s full justice and power, to which Obadiah 21 refers: “And Saviors (namely God’s anointed) shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau (herewith are meant: worldly Christians); and the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.”

Luke 10 verse 1-2: “After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come. Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers into his harvest."

Let us reflect for a moment on this “therefore” of the Lord. There are only few believers who are willing to work for Jesus with complete dedication of self. It is written, “The harvest is great, but the laborers are few!” As a result of His saints’ prayers, Jesus could bring about a change in this. He could make devoted laborers of repentant sinners, should they really want to; and draw them out of their social jobs to come and work in His Vineyard. Please note: we should not emit ourselves! We should not imagine that we be called, for such an imaginary calling never brings us Jesus’ nec-essary cooperation, namely the anointing of the Spirit, Who must do the work through us. We must be called by Him! And even if we are called and sent by Him, then we still must scrupulously follow his guidance through prayer contact with Him.

There are also different kinds of calling. The one is called to be an evangelist, the other a teacher, yet another a local shepherd, and the next a prophet; and, in the near future, during the worldwide revival of the great latter rain, we will see again apostolic callings. Apostles are the pillars of God’s Church here on earth; “all-round” laborers who will have the general leadership in the power, wisdom and love of the Holy Spirit.
Besides these five great callings we also find the smaller callings of “help” in the spiritual Body of Christ; these are helpers who, amongst others, must help the local shepherd to fulfill his pastoral service, such as: elders, deacons, youth group leaders, Sunday school teachers, choir members and leaders, musicians, typists and printing assistants, etc. We cannot push ourselves into such a calling. Should we do so, we would find out that it does not “work”, because God denies us the necessary anointing and devotion! It is God’s Spirit alone, Who can make us fruitful, in whichever spiritual labor; it is also God, Who determines for us the nature of the calling, because He, as no other, knows our heart. We may have a desire to serve the Lord in a certain calling; but a desire is not a calling (1 Timothy 3:1). However, each calling basically knows the human desire to be able to work for Jesus. But it always is the Lord alone, Who sends (forth) His laborers into His Vineyard (Mark 4:13).

Luke 10 verse 3: “Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.”

In this short command “Go your ways”, which the Holy Spirit gives, and will give, to His “emissaries”, lies a mighty force to send out, which urges the called to work for Jesus, irresistible drawn by His divine love; even if this labor takes them into circumstances which are not pleasant or comfortable, yes, which even might be dangerous! “Lambs” need the Shepherd; they do not have strength in themselves; their strength is that Shepherd. For when the wolf comes, then it is up to the shepherd to resist and chase off the wolf... Do not imagine that you are strong or clever enough to defeat the wolf, the satanic power, which reveals itself in the worldly person. It is God’s anointing in you which must do it through you! Never forget that you, as Jesus’ laborer, are up against a well organized, spiritual power of darkness, of spiritual evil (demonic forces) in the air which have the present world in their power, and which (in greater or lesser measure) lead all worldly people (Ephesians 6:12). But on the other hand we should also never forget that the Lord Jesus said: “...be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33b). In and by Jesus we will win the victory over the powers of the world and of hell! But this also shows us how important it is for this spiritual battle, to be equipped by Jesus with the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-20). The stronger God’s servants are clothed with God’s Spirit, the stronger the resistance of hell will be revealed in the attitude of the worldly person. This is the reason that Jesus warns us for the danger of wolves.

CLICK HERE if you want to read this study (Chapter 10) – that is to long for the Blog.

By E. van den Worm

The hope of divine glory

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Ephesians 1:17-20 "That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places."

When Jesus starts to work in our sinful human nature with His Spirit, we shall first be born again of God and will experience a divine relationship with Him. Then the first spark of life will be ignited in our sinful nature. Thereafter He will baptize us in His Spirit. Generally we then will speak "in tongues" when He has made His abode in us. Scripture also teaches that He first will come and live in our body.
1 Corinthians 6:19 "What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?"
But man does not only exist of a body; he especially is soul and spirit. Thus, God's Spirit must be able to take possession of our inward man, and this is a sanctification process.

1. The first Work of the indwelling Spirit
Now the point is that we should put our old nature continually and willingly in the baptism of fire of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, that our old nature may die at His hand, and the new nature of Christ may grow freely to maturity. This is the first work of the indwelling Spirit of Jesus Christ.
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 thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
This divine fire must purify the threshing floor of our heart of all sin, of al the old, sinful life, of all the chaff (the old man), that the pure grain of the new life remain. This is the first work, that the Spirit of God will do after the experience of the baptism in the Spirit, if we submit willingly to Him; we must want, desire, this.
Romans 6:3 "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?" (this applies to the baptism in water as well as the baptism in the Spirit)
John 16:8 "And when he (the Holy Spirit) is come, he will reprove the world (the worldly mentality, also that of the convert) of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgement."
This chastening (purification) work of the Spirit must result in our absolute sanctification (see the sixth work of the indwelling Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ).

2. The second Work of the indwelling Spirit
He not only wants to cleanse us of sin, He also wants to strengthen us against satan's[1] further attacks and temptations.
Ephesians 3:16 "That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man."
Isaiah 9:5 calls Him "Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God."

3. The third Work of the indwelling Spirit
He also wants to give you new divine life.
Titus 3:4-7 "But after that the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life."
Galatians 5:22 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith."
Ephesians 3:17-19 "That Christ (the New Life) may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God."
This New Life must grow (as all that lives grows) to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:13). (See the fifth work of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.)

4. The fourth Work of the indwelling Spirit
He also wants to share with us His anointing, that we might help Him with the proclaiming of the Gospel to the salvation of others.
Acts 1:8 "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."
Then He shall give the ones He called ministries and gifts to the edification of His Church, that they might help Him therewith, as He Himself will build His Church. These gifts and ministries must increase and result in the perfect ministry. In Scripture this is taught in the increase of the talents (Matthew 25:20-23).

5. The fifth Work of the indwelling Spirit
The Spirit will further make His faithful perfect here on earth already.
Colossians 1:27-29 "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: Whereunto I also labor, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily."

6. The sixth Work of the indwelling Spirit
He shall also sanctify His faithful disciples here on earth that they could sin never again, although living in the midst of a sinful and angry generation.
1 Thess. 5:23 "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the presence (literal translation) of our Lord Jesus Christ."
1 John 3:9 "Whosoever is born (and bred) of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born (and bred) of God."

7. The seventh Work of the indwelling Spirit
Further the Spirit of Jesus Christ shall glorify His faithful disciples here on earth already; He will clothe them both inwardly and outwardly with the glory of the Bride.
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)."
Romans 8:30 "Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified."
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."

8. The eighth Work of the indwelling Spirit
The Spirit of Jesus Christ must also grow in us until we are completely submerged in Him (1 Corinthians 12:13).
Ezekiel 47:1-5 "Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar. Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters on the right side. And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ankles. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins. Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over."

9. The ninth Work of the indwelling Spirit
He is given to us by the Father as an eternal indwelling Friend, Counselor, and Lord.
John 14:16 "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever."
Isaiah 9:5 calls Him "Wonderful, Counselor, everlasting Father".

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.

The hope of divine glory

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

Jesus, the Son of man (a Son of David), the Lamb of God

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The great sacrifice of the Lamb of God for the salvation of the world, lost in sin
Isaiah 53:1-3 "Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not."
Thus begins the prophecy of Isaiah, 700 years before the birth of the Messiah, about the sacrifice that, at the crossing point of the ages, the Lamb of God must bring to rout the sin of man. Here God's Spirit utters His grief about the indifference, the insensitivity, and the contempt of mankind, lost in sin, and especially of Israel; in the eyes of God this is an all-encompassing event at the crossing point of the ages for the salvation of mankind, here called "dry ground". Something of God sprouts here into one root of His prophetic Word, which has come alive, and which He declared immediately after the fall (into sin) of the first human couple.
Genesis 3:15 "And I will put enmity between thee (satan[1] and his power of sin) and the woman (Eve and repentant mankind, which is to be born of her), and between thy seed (all unrepentant men that are inspired by satan) and her seed (all penitent people that turn to God); it shall bruise thy (the sin serpent's and the power of satan's) head, and thou shalt bruise (hinder) his heel (the heel tendon; the walk of the people who have repented and allow themselves to be led by the inspiration of God's Spirit)."

1) The Son of man (the incarnation of God's Son, a Son of David)
That "root" in Isaiah 53:2 is the incarnation of the Son of God, Who went out from the Father for this purpose (John 16:28) and came into Mary's womb to unite Himself with her ovum, thus bringing forth the Son of man.
Romans 1:3-4 "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead."
After the flesh He is the Son of man, a Sprout (Descendant, litt. a Sperm) of David (a sinful man), of Mary. This is why we read in Romans 8 verse 3:
"For what the law could not do (namely the justification of man), in that it (the law) was weak through the (sinful) flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness (Greek: homoioma) of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh."
The Greek word "homoioma" means copy, equality (of sinful man).
Hebrews 2:17-18 "Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like (Greek: homoioma) unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted."
Hebrews 4:15 "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."
God, and also God's Son, cannot be tempted with evil (with sin) (James 1:13), but the Son of man could, because He, after the flesh, was a descendant of the forgiven sinner David. Hence, after His soul, the Son of man experienced temptations of His flesh, but He overcame them all and kept His blood pure.
Hebrews 10:5 "Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body (David's flesh) hast thou prepared me."
Thus, the Son of man was made sin for us from His birth (2 Corinthians 5:21) and bore our sins in His body. He was therefore killed on the cross for our sins.
During His earthly walk He had a human will, which is contradictory to God's will.
John 6:38 "For I came down from heaven (and became Man), not to do mine own (human) will, but the will of him that sent me."
Would He have been only God's Son, as in the case of His earthly revelation form as Melchisedec at the time of Abraham (Hebrews 7:1-3), then only God's will would have been in Him, and He would never have been able to be tempted with sinful temptations, because the Son of God, not mixed with fallen, carnal man, never could be tempted. Let us honor the Word of God, as concerning this "being the Son of David", and not stubbornly take away from or add unto it, thus defiling God's Word.
It was in order to save us that the Son of man made Himself so vulnerable to temptation and sin; yet He remained without sin. He had to be a member of the sinful human family, representing mankind, in order to be able, in their place, to pay for the sins of man. But men in Jesus’ time seeing Him, did not esteem Him. He was despised by them, and rejected, and only desired by few; this according to Isaiah 53:2-3.

2) The Lamb of God.
The heavenly Father made Him a sin offering for the human sin.
Isaiah 53:4-7 "Surely he hath born our grieves, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. all we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and e was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the laughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.”

3) His death and the 3 days and 3 nights.
Matthew 12:40 "For as Jones was three days and three nights in the whale's belly: so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."
Isaiah 53:8-10 "He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for he transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand."

4) The resurrection.
Acts 2:23-27 "Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it. For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved: Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope: Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption."
The pains of death were loosed for Him. The body suffers no pain when dead, but the soul does The Lord Jesus was in Hades, the domain of death, for three days and three nights. Jesus said to the murderer, who repented unto Him on the cross, "Today you shall be with Me in paradise" (Luke 23:43). This must have been through the Holy Spirit, be-cause Jesus, at that time, was in Hades in the body. It is written in Acts 2:26-27: "...My flesh shall rest in hope, ...and thou wilt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption". Thus, His body was not to see corruption (decay); this would have set in on the fourth day, and He arose after three days and three nights. In verse 27 it is also written: "Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell (Hades)...". This verse also tells us, that His soul was in Hades for three days and three nights.
Acts 13:32-35 "And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David. Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption."
Because man is a unity after spirit, soul and body, so it is with Jesus, the Son of man. His Spirit, the Spirit of the Son of God, also had to go into Hades. Hence the Son of God and the Son of man must be born again of God. The Son of God, before His incarnation, was born of God in the eternity of the past.
Micah 5:2 "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be Ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting"
Now that He dies in the unity of the Son of man, He must be born anew of God. Hence it is written:
Hebrews 5:5b "Thou art My Son, today (i.e. with His resurrection from the dead) have I (the Father) begotten (made to be born) thee (the Son of man)." (See also: Psalms 2:7b; Acts 13:33b; Hebrews 1:5)
In the depths of Hades at first a small Godly Light was inflamed, Which gradually became larger and larger. What tu-mult that must have caused in satan's domain! Then the Son of man arose as the victorious Lion of Judah, went up to satan and snatched from him the keys of death and hell.
Revelation 1:18 "(I am the First and the Last): I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death."
Now He can deliver all souls, which repent unto Him, from the prison of sin and death, and lead them into His eternal life.
Ephesians 4:8 "Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity (of sin) captive, and gave gifts (of forgiveness, redemption and renewal) unto men."

5) The ascension, His task as Highpriest at the right hand of God in His throne.
Hebrews 9:11-15 "But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance."
Having risen from the dead, and ascended into heaven, the Lord Jesus as God's High Priest, seated at God's right hand, can now deliver many from the power of satan and sin, and bring them into the eternal glory with Him, and, them being sanctified, He can lead them to our Father God in the highest heaven.
Isaiah 53:11-12 "He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."
To God be all glory!

Amen.

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.

Jesus, the Son of man (a Son of David), the Lamb of God.