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Romans Chapter 8 8:1 There is therefore now > Because of what I have taught you, hereafter, we will think of our state with God in a new frame of mind. Your outlook should be that which is attentive to our future with him, as it is rejecting the past, as not relative to your present or future with Christ. The mind-shift within you, should be effective in altering your perceptions of life on earth from now on to live for Christ alone. no condemnation > And what that is in detail, is this, that God has forgiven your sins, and taken you in as his very own child, whom, he himself will nourish and care for. This he does of his own desire to be for us, what we cannot be or do for ourselves. Living thru us, a life of joy and passion, in a body that is void and empty of its own holiness. Because of that, he no longer stands in judgment of us, due to the sins of our flesh. They have been dismissed without punishment coming upon us, because Christ took upon himself it for us. for those > This is not just an across the board dismissal of sin for all of mankind though, it is for those who respond to the desire of God to save man. Not mans desire to know God, but in response to Gods desire, towards man, they are converted. All this he gives us without remorse or regret on his part for our future. He plans it out for us, so that we can receive the most abundance, that he has to give us. God is optimistic about us in his own thinking, he does not dwell on us in pessimism. That is a human way of trying to relate to man, where Gods approach to man is, in what state he is viewing mankind now. Gods ways are not fully understandable to man, so the best we can do is try to phrase it, in some like mannerism of mans thinking. who are in Christ Jesus. > That is what he has set aside for everyone who follows after Christ, for those who have made that final decision for life, as a trust in his hands. Our new destiny in our spiritual life can be described in these human conditions: That he restores the lame to walk for him, in his ways never before possible; Our eyes once blinded by darkness, he heals so that we see thru him; Our issues of blood that left us rejected and weakened, he heals so that we are purified thru him; The demons he cast out that possessed us in bondage, he replaced with his own possession of his Holy Spirit, that controls us thru him. All these were not just physical aliments to be healed, but spiritual guidelines to be subject too. Examples of what he has done spiritually to be our power to life thru him, all parallels of a spiritual life on earth, thru him. 8:2 For the law > That is possible because the greater work of the law that saved us, was not the written code, but that which came to fulfill the written code. Which was done as Jesus lived the law, satisfying its requirements and taking it away from us and replacing it with another law. A second coin, so to speak, from what I taught early, but with a new value to it, that the first coin did not contain. This is a new currency that is not based on its material value, but is based in the value that God has cast the coin too be. So in the presence of his mind, it is an intrinsic value based in that which he spent, to gain you for himself. Therefore a priceless value in monetary thinking, one that cannot be spent-down or revalued to a lesser standard. Its fixed value, is based in the blood of Christ, which was spent to purchase your freedom. Therefore every coin. of every soul, is that equivalent value to God, not more, not less, should that value be to the human mind also. of the life-giving Spirit > This new law was not one of duty upon man to obey commands, but mercy from God to take away sins and allow God to live thru the weakened bodies of man. That old law had only showed what was absent of it in man; holiness. This new law though, is a new method of man and Gods relationship, that is not based on the physical or moral attributes of mans abilities to recognize and reveal the truth of God in themselves, which was the old law. Much of what we have to come to terms with in this new relationship, is that the old way of thinking has to be altered, so that we no longer try to be gods to ourselves. Trying to attain eternity with God, thru the moral conduct of our flesh or the punishment of penance, for atonement of our own flesh, to redeem ourselves in the sight of God. in Christ Jesus > So then Christ took upon himself not only the duty of the law that saved us, but also that responsibility for us, which sets us apart from our sinful bodies and performs thru us, the holiness of God to do good works in us. This give us a position, in relationship to God, that before did not exist as a normal state of man. The efforts of the old man were never acceptable to God, but this new man, is God, in us, and therefore, exactly that which he desires us to be. Mind you, this relates to our new position with God, as Christ functioning body on earth, not to this flesh ever becoming acceptable in its own behavior before God. has set > This means that a new order of things has been established by God, not man, and is now in effect for us to exist in. It is a completely new set of circumstances that allows us to interact with God from in a bi-directional capacity. God no longer only governs us by decree from above, now he governs us from within by mercy. Taking our request to heart, so that in our reasoning with him, we might learn the true nature of God and his creation, as children in its future. you free > So where the old law condemned us to its prison of sins condemnation, this new law has freed us from the constraints of these lifeless bodies. Whose paralysis rendered us impotent of any ability to do righteousness. We now thru Gods spiritual connection, have bodies that perform the miracles of life, in that, out from a lifeless body, a resurrection has already accrued, for those that are redeemed, to live in the presence of Gods glory, as we exist here in a sinful body. God has made a division between the two, that man could not achieve and has allowed us access to himself, as a result of that action. from the law > So that which was our judge, which is the written code, has been removed from the bench so to speak and another judge. Who is Christ Jesus, who has replaced the written code, and has offered mercy to all those, who throw themselves upon the mercy of his court, pleading guilty on all counts of the previous law. So that in the admission of guilt, the death sentence, is commuted to eternal life in prison, in the sinless body of Christ. of sin and death. > For where the old judge, which was the law, threw all who were guilty into prison and put them on death row, to die by decree under hard labor. This new judge, the law of spiritual life with Christ, offers a pardon to all those who confess their guilt and then sets them free, from that sentence of death and sins bondage, that would not allow them to exist in a Holy state. A state that we did not have available before Christ, because we only had one body to live in, which was diseased with sin. But now we have a new body, a new creation, that is as sinless and pure as Christ our Lord, because it is Christ our Lord, whose body we are. It does not exist in the physical realm as is the flesh, but in the spiritual realm, where it does though reign supreme over the desires of the flesh. Not having any desire though to purify the flesh to a state of holiness, but to make it subject instead, to the Spirit of truth, in its course in life on this earth. 8:3 For > Here now is what we have as our continuing premise of what God did as a legal maneuver around mans condition, by entering in a new plea of general guilt on mans behalf for them. In doing this, he was able to wrench control of their destiny, away from the prosecution, under the prosecuting law. Relieving the law of its say in the matter and allowing sentencing to proceed, as according to the judges discretion. God achieved what the law > What the laws state of existence consisted of, was a different nature than man had been created to exist in, in that law was a nature of decree, but man was made for the nature of mercy. God created man to live for eternity, thru his natural acts of mercy to sustain man indefinitely. Mans body was not created to exist or sustain itself, in the event of rule by decrees, man was meant to live in the freedom of Gods presence and the innocence of it. This is not to say that man would not have knowledge of decree, he did in the garden, just ignorance to their meanings, leaving them in a state innocence, thru the acceptance of Gods rule over them. In this case, ignorance, truly was bliss, and correct, because it trusted wholeheartedly, in the sovereignty of God. could not do > That left without innocence and therefore accountable, because the law failed to redeem what it was actually there to condemn, as was its intent and purpose. It had a mission to show the fallacy of mans flesh and the glory of God. It was meant to divide, not reconcile, only God could adhere to the law, for it was of him that it came to man, it was the nature of God, but not man. Because the law required perfection and mans flesh required failure, God saw mans condition as hopeless without his intervention. because > You see, the only way the law is profitable to man, is if it exist outside of his natural existence, meaning, by man having never crossed over into violation of it. The law exist between God and man, in the same way it does between man to man. It is a place safety for any law abiding citizen, but grounds for punishment for those who violate its statues. If you were in a state as before, a citizen of the Garden of Eden, the law was a safety barrier for you from evil. But once you violated the law, you became what the law was there to defend against, a criminal, acting against the innocent. it was weakened > Man then began to operate in a hostile environment then, and that was a result of the fact that man now having become sin(a criminal in human terms), could not support the weight of Gods law and be trusted to adhere to its decrees. It failed under the weight of its pressure of perfection and constant scrutiny that the law enforced in itself upon man. It became as malnourished, from the absence of food from the tree of life, in that, the tree gave back more then life took away. But mans sinful flesh always consumed more then it returned to itself, therefore leaving us, always existing in a state of ill-repute before the law. An unquenchable hunger, to do sin in violation of the laws decree to obey it, despite its crippling effects on the body. through the flesh. > So our flesh became the harbor of sin, it maintained itself as a shallow port that never went to sea to find the righteousness of God. It had no adventure for the freedom holiness, without sins involvement. But rather an addiction for being docked in a slowly rotting grave, that new not its own fate. Yet spent its days in search of the very same that it has, even though, it was never satisfied with what it had attained for itself in this state. By sending > God seeing this condition as unacceptable state, forced his opinion of it on man, by interfering with the process of man. God acted without mans informed consent, as to what was actually needed to save man from his criminal state. Man was in too deep in his involvement as a criminal state, to be able to aid in his own defense, so God acted alone, in what was needed to resolve mans criminal behavior before God. He only gave us a recorded history of it in the prophets of old, so that we could trace it back and see the glory of his handiwork for man. But we were ignorant as to what he was doing, until after the fact of it having occurred. So God enforced his will on mankind, as was his right to do as God, and as need be, as our savior also. his own Son > God in sending his son, so that man could trace the life of Christ back to God and then find his course home to God, thru Christ. That in his son God had mapped out and delivered too man, the ability to pilot a ship of passage, out of the harbor where they lived in the port of sin, and return them to the righteous ways of the Father. Because Jesus had an instinct for the open sea, and he new the righteousness of the Father from where he came. in the likeness > This Jesus was made visible to mankind, thru the taking on the human form of man, becoming as we are, but absent from him, was a sinful flesh though. This was done in order for Jesus to interact and communicate the message of the Father. To do this, he first needed to become human and set things right at the human level. So God left his heavenly state and sent his son into the human form of mankind. The big difference here though, was the absence of a physical link to have a sinful history thru Adam. Jesus had no male seed as his origin in life, only a feminine link thru the virgin Mary, which was not sinful so far as her being a carrier of sin, because sin is in the male seed. of sinful flesh > He looked like us, but that is where the comparison ends, his flesh was Holy and just, his Spirit was alive to the Father and he was not a prisoner of sin or the flesh. He looked as though he were fully human, but his nature was not infected with the disease of sin and his instinct and intention was to be Holy before his God. A purity ran thru his blood that was never tainted or defiled by sin. But as a human, he fully represented mankind and any action he achieved in life, could benefit all of the human race, just as did Adams sin, did affect all of human race. and concerning sin, > So having this power over sin as he did, he made war against sin, Christ was on the offensive against sin from the day of his birth, he went out against it in battle and defeated it. But his defeat of sin, was in the form of having noting to do with it, he rejected sin as a state of existence. He viewed all aspects of the law, as he encounter every temptation of sin in relation to the law, but never committed a criminal act of sin in violation of the law. Therefore, the law defended Christ, so far as him having ever sinned himself. he condemned sin > Jesus then superseded sin, by mastering life without sin, from birth to the grave. So as a Lord over sin, he then captured it by taking it to the cross of death with him and into the grave, where from he rose to new life, but death remained in the grave. So as the master of life in the face of sin, Jesus was more powerful than sin. Because of that, Jesus was able to receive the punishment of mans sin upon himself, as one more powerful than sin itself. It therefore could not eternally condemn him, but he could eternally condemn sin, as having no more eternal authority over man, reversing thereby the affects of Adam in himself. Where Adam took his being born in a perfect state of creation and then made his life subservient to sin. Jesus took on being born into our imperfect state where sin was abundant and proved his life of holiness, and became sin at the cross thru death. The opposite of Adams action, of making sin alive in dying spiritually to holiness, for the sake of becoming alive to sin thru life. Jesus died to sin and made it subservient to his holiness, Adam died to holiness and made his life subservient to sin. in the flesh, > So sin no longer has a claim on those who abide in their new spiritual body, who take claim to Christ Lordship and live by his guiding Spirit. They are alive by way of his living Spirit in them, which exist as a dead connection to the flesh, so far interaction is concerned. So what Christ did was prove, sin as an inferior state to Gods holiness, even when it had everything in its favor and all odds were stacked against Christ, in sins dominance throughout the earth. Sin could not reign higher in all its fullness, against the loneliness of Christ alone on the earth. This one man, the son of God, was more powerful than all of mans sin and the powers of demons, all coalesced together in battle against him. Christ reigned supreme in his own holiness, alive to the Father, despite the ravages of sin, that encompassed him here on earth, as he caused it all to implode in on himself, in self-destruction. Where sin was drawn unaware into its grave, by the power of Christ to sustain himself in its abuse of death, yet survive its assault himself, while it was brought down to defeat, without recovery over Christ. 8:4 so that > The reason this happened this way was so that man could know the truth and that would free them from the lie of sin. It was intended to demonstrate an idea from God to man, that man had not figured out on his own. the righteous requirement > After this they came into understanding with Gods holiness and the laws ability to hold us accountable to sin, it set a standard achievement for everyone to follow. No longer could man decide on his own, what was or was not right or wrong, it no longer was pinned to what their our feelings were on the matter. It was based on Gods given law, which was not negotiable in any detail of it. Yet the flesh of man could not negotiate its wait out from under the laws condemnation. So there was made a new way for man to come under the obedience of the law, without actually obeying the law himself. of the law > The written code was not arbitrary in its enforcement, it was equal to all who were alive in the flesh. Because of this, man was unable to achieve any of the laws requirements on his own. may be > Instead of multiple laws that required continuos obedience, God narrowed it down to one single act of attrition on mans part. In a plea of guilt under the law and a admission that Christ was the Lord over man and their sins atonement. fulfilled in us, > After which, God wanted us to live according to the law, thru the Spirit, not that it would save us from death, but that we might not be caught in the trap of recycling sin and be a prisoner of its addictions in our flesh. God also wanted to uphold and make it known, that the righteousness, that was in the law, was not harsh or cruel, but just and right, and yes merciful to those who obeyed it, that is, if they could have obeyed it. God wanted it to be preached fully throughout the world, that his Holy decrees were perfect in truth and right in every circumstance. That they never failed themselves, only the use of them failed, in the hands of mankind. They were the right tools, in the hands of the wrong workers, who could not use them. who do > What we now have available to us then, is opportunity, to live right, without the condemnation of failure. God is no longer upset, just because we tried and failed, it does irk him though, when we fail to even try to build a healthy relationship with him. The reason being, that he went to great odds to save us, so we could have a relationship with him. If we then, just continue to dwell in a pool of self-pity, it makes your life a fraction of what it could have been with him. So you are vital to God, and in all your ways, he takes value in your positive response to him. not walk > This is possible by the attitude we have in surrendering our will to Gods control when we pray for God everyday to overpower us, so that thru our weakness, his strength is shown thru us. We choose not to be preoccupied with the ceaseless desire of the flesh, to pleasure itself in sinful behavior. That which expresses itself in such sins as greed and lust, which are never satisfied, or bitterness and hatred, which are never quenched in the fire of the soul. Every such sin, that never dies away from being yielded too and is over with. But only leads one down the further path of preoccupation with them, till one day it is all you live for. according > But you have chosen wiser, so that you live in such manner, as to deny sin its day in you, by having an absolute pattern in your life, that does not attend to that of physical desires, but that of the spiritual desires, which exist in the heart of God. You do not join it the public parade and celebration of sin, as those who do whatever the flesh craves in them to be a part of and do. You separate yourself from them, despite their antics against you, and see that which they have, as a charade and deceit. Because they labor themselves all day, just so they can submit themselves into the hands of folly and loose their inhibitions and restraints for a time. Thinking it to be freedom, which it is freedom from the law of moral character and dignity, for a time. Until the day that the judge comes for them and holds them accountable for their actions or their folly even catches up to them in life. Wounding their future among mankind who rejects their lack of discretion in public, and separates themselves from such in work or society. to the flesh > But one must learn to abandoned the desires of the flesh and their controlling influence over you. One must leave behind the desires to live with your addictions and bad habits. This is a life long process of defining your life in Christ and not the ways of man, which you did by nature. But man will be there everyday, trying to convince you that you have lost you passion of life, not knowing that all they really have going for themselves, is a passion for death, that one day, will have its way with them. but > This is done at the place where we set our goals, to make our daily life and aspirations of desire, a paramount in our life, sequenced and in sync, to Gods activities and glory. Where we relish the spirits control, as the first and foremost desire in life. Its the same prayer every day, day after day, in mortifying the flesh every day, requesting and returning the control of our life and wills, to the Spirit. Because you never reach a point, where the flesh, is not in need, of being put to death, by the Spirit everyday. Sin will always be seeking an audience and attracting your attention to it, it is always alluring you to be lost in its delusion. Just as in movie, where it attempts to draw you into to acting out, as though you were one of the characters, yourself. But you are wise to its ploys and special effects, so that you dismiss it for what it is. according > So that you live in such manner, so as to acknowledge the spirits success in you, by having an absolute pattern in your life. That does not attend to that of physical desires, but that of the spiritual desires in the heart of knowing God. You join in the public parade and celebration of Christ, as those who also do, whatever is that which is the passion of God in them to do. You separate yourself from the world, and join the body of Christ in their efforts, to do the will of God. This is not a state of hard labor as it was in the flesh, where man struggled with himself and against other men. There is freedom from sin, when there is life in the Spirit, as a pattern of daily living. There is unity of yourself, with yourself, in your peace of conscience, as you live in this spiritual life. And there is unity with other men, for the greater glory of God, that you all live, in an altogether unity, live under. to the Spirit. > And then by this you dwell in the spiritual body of Christ that takes power over you and makes the dead flesh, submit to his living Spirit. And that is walking in the Spirit and dying to the flesh, so you must recycle your prayers to this effect, everyday for the rest of your life. The power is in the continued walk in the Spirit, which involves the full body of believers, contributing to one another, which is the meaning of fellowship in the Spirit of Christ body, the church. So walking in the Spirit, is a lifestyle of reconnecting to the Spirit, everyday, not just once a week or so, that will never do. 8:5 For those who live > It becomes to them, that by which they are known, they make their identity in league with some form of humane thinking. It is the prize goal in life that they seek, it far outstrips the true values in life, that they trade in exchange for the false imageries in life, so much so, that they wish to appear to be seen of them, in the eyes of others. It is often said that some auto mechanics, will work on everyones car but his own, and so his family must ride around in a rusted out piece of junk. This is a case in point, that displays the false notion that mankind can live under, where they are driven by exterior opinion of themselves, rather than the truth of who they are. How they take care of their family condition, says far more about them, then what the world uses them for. This concept is true in whatever endeavor you take in life, in what is your motivating factor, it could be body building, game playing, work related, even a pastor can abuse this concept. It is what ever you trade your time for, in order to gain the respect of that earthly title, at the expense of what should be the true vital concerns in your life. according > When you join in that kind of lifestyle building activity, you are assigning yourself a place among that crowd. It than becomes a station of duty upon you, that you must live up to and sacrifice for. It is not a free station in life and will always cost you the most precious things you have. All so that you can gain the most worthless of value in return, for your expenses and expenditures that you give up to acquire it. to the flesh > All of which is done so, by the will of the flesh to be dominated by its own sin. It draws everyone in to its own web of deceit, using the same lies, yet tailored to each individual, as a master of deception, designed just for them. It knows your senses in life, for that which you are responsive in every detail. It is studying you, as your own investigation of yourself develops, and immerges out of your actions of self-gratification. Leading to the formation of ideological lifestyles, which come out of exploring your senses. Then as one born into its habitation, sold of ones own choice, to live to it, according to its vices in you. You actually devise and give birth to the very sins, that bind you most in life. They are a product of your own imaginations and fantasy, that give them such extreme power in your life. But if they were not of your own invention, they would be of little influence on you. But because you chose them in your own thoughts, to be known in society in life, in that manner, or even in a secret life, that you express in your thoughts or private life, they reign over you as master over a slave. have their > So your conscience then, is formed out of misguided deeds, that subject you to do the things that are ill-mannered, to say the least. As that which you must do, to be of service in this life. You actually gain your reputation, based on the wrong that you excel in, rather than the right deeds of virtue. Whether that wrong be actual deeds as thievery, or excessive use of your natural abilities to gain a reputation among your peers, at the expense of your family. I knew a mother, whose son was a thief and everyone knew it, she said she knew that she should not be proud of the fact that he had stolen over 500 cars and only got caught stealing 2 of them, but she still bragged about it all the time. That is what living in the midst of sinful lifestyle produces in you, a false sense of pride and misguided center of morals. But it is just as wrong to use quality traits to disguise the failure in your personal life, as do some in the ministry of pastor, who help everyones elses family, while their marriage and children are far from their hearts or care that they give others. Both produce a false center of morals, based on earthly precedence, without Gods consent on either, as a true state of virtue that is found in him. outlook > What that state in life then produces, is a negative possibility of a very broad foundation, but only allows them to build a very narrow tower of existence. One that has but one point of view, no matter the height of achievement in life. All other directions have blind sides to them, that make them unknowable to those who have given themselves over to a sinful lifestyle. To them, all that exist is that to which they have focused the sight upon, they are one minded individuals, who live only for that sin to which they have adhered themselves to. They determine who they are, by the standards laid down by the world of the flesh around them, that qualifies them in their life and sustains them in it, thru the false acclaim that they receive thru them. But as I said, the foundation of society, can produce a very broad spectrum of support for it, making it all the more deceitful. shaped > This then molds and encourages them into this lifestyle that fits exactly, into what they have entertained in themselves to be. They have preoccupied themselves in life, thru the fantasies that they have acquired from observing life. From that, they have developed sentiments for those worldly goals, as having some value in attaining them. Then from that, they progress to have formed an opinion, that seems as though it is the only thing in life of value worth pursuing. So they sacrifice, the worthwhile things of life, for the worthless reputations in life, that they have lived for. All which came from having a curiosity, that led them to have a fascination, with that sinful state in life. by the things > This then determines the future that they now know and the end result of what they shall become. Their lies shall make them known as liars of ill-repute, just as all other sins will multiply themselves thru them in the same way, setting in concrete, the foundation by which that they live. of the flesh, > All of which is based in the diseased illness of sin, that lives in the flesh, an incurable body that is submitted to sin. It has no other cause in life itself, other than to occupy itself with the desires of sin and the false allure of them. but those > On the other hand, we whose desire it is, to be in the glory of Gods righteousness, as the offspring of their hearts knowledge of Christ, to be in them. They choose a path counter to the dying flesh, by aligning themselves with the living Spirit. They have discovered that there is a alternate life living in them now, thru the Spirit of Christ that came alive in them thru repentance of this sinful lifestyle. We have discovered that God has managed our way out of this sinful body, by creating in us a new body that is a part of Christ himself. Having Christ as our definition of our standard in life, to which we are seeking to attain it in us, by his ideas of promotion, which are contrary to the worlds. It then, at its core, does not have a standard devised by the world and its desires for self-promotion. But rather it has the God of the universe as its center, which fills us with his virtue, as our core intent. Which means we gain character by Gods definition, not mans, and we do not seek a name in the world, but in the name of Christ, we are promoted with him, by his family values. who live > Their lifestyle is established not in the things of this world, which are all perishing away. They do not look for the things of the world to save them, but that which is of God. They sacrifice the things of the world, which are worthless, for the things of the spiritual life, which are priceless. They have in themselves a destiny, that exceeds anything in this life, that it could possibly offer to them. They have set their sights and are making their marks in life, outside of this worlds capacity to deliver up either an equal or to make a comparison of achievement to it. according > Their union with God is made by joining him in his kingdom here on earth. That allows you to begin participating in the coming heaven, that is now your destiny. You have chosen sides against the world and for God. You now realize that those who achieve and have high status or opinion in this world, are losers in the kingdom of God, and their only status is before men, not God. Whose is the only opinion that matters, as his is the only command or statesmanship, that will survive his own judgement of such, among creation. to the Spirit > So as maturing believers, they have adhered themselves to that which is not of this world, nor can it be touched by our humane efforts. It does not come out from us thru a humane heart, up to God. But flows outward from the throne of heaven, into the soul of man, to make him alive from an external power source. Your internal generator and its concept of things, must be shut down and reconnected by God, into his external and eternal fire, the Holy Spirit. Whose flame never dies or losses any of its energy, in fact, its flame thrives and burns even brighter on the draw of man, as it shows the glory of God, in its effectiveness in man. have their > So that they have objectives in life, that are not human based, but are based in the things of God. Their home is in heaven and their thoughts are for home. That is how they evaluate their view of things, they do not test it against what men think in life, but by what it is that God says on life in his word, that matters to them. outlook > So their tower by which they view things is not built by them, but by God, who is a the strong High-Tower. He who sees all things in every direction, is then given to us so that we might see not just the finite things of man, but the eternal heart of God and all that he plans for us and his church . shaped > Out of that, we develop our lifestyle culture, so that it reflects the heart of God and not man. We take to ourselves, the molding and image of Christ in us, which is what we then display in this world for others to see. We capture the picture of Christ in our hearts, as he lives eternally and visually thru us. by the things > So the lifestyle that encompasses those that are of Christ, is one which demonstrates and multiplies those things that are external from mans flesh and live in the body of Christ. They become formed by those things that are from heaven, where their real home is, and seek its decor upon them, to be that of what the Father wills for them. They have an establishment in life, that is based in the spiritual world, that the physical world can not relate to, absent Christ and the Holy Spirit in them. of the Spirit. > So that which is spiritual is brought about by the Spirit, it flows into man to fill up all his ways, with the things of Gods righteousness. None of it comes out of the man originally, until it first comes into him thru the power of the Holy Spirit. Then it can live thru him, as part of how God has changed their nature to be Christ like, in them. 8:6 For the outlook > The things that are detrimental in determining the worlds attitude, that make up who they are, when certain things are at the core of their being. They reduce their vision to seeing only the things that are worldly and sinful as being relevant in life and they see no value or worth in the things which are spiritual. Because they exist for the temporal things that only exist in the flesh, they cannot relate to the reality of the spiritual. Because in truth, the spiritual things do not exist for them, in their life that that exist in the body alone, which is born only into the flesh. They are not the product of Christ redemption, which means they do not have then, the ability to produce it in them, as evidence, the Spirit of life, as proof of Christ. They are actually close-minded, even though they are claiming to open-minded, their openness is to sin and not to godliness. They completely shut the doors of their hearts to God, but open themselves to sin and its state in life. That is what their mindset of being open-minded is, in that, they are willing to explore sin as a course in life only, not God, whom their minds are closed to. of the flesh > And those are things, that are born out of the flesh, and press you into some form of person that represents that sinful flesh. The reason being, is that, that is all that exist for them, that being, what they have in the form of their bodies. There is no light at the end of the tunnel for them, only darkness awaits them no matter the choices that they make. The body, in and of itself, has no other options in life or death, it has but one destiny, predetermined already by the decree of God. With which it has no escape from that destiny, it is set and fixed for them. is death, > The only thing you have left in life then, is to die, because the world and its sin, is on death row, waiting for its judgment. So if you do not have the living Spirit of Christ already in you when you die, you will proceed into the waiting court of justice before God, which will pronounce your final destruction from before him, for eternity. Without a Spirit that is already alive in Christ, it will be to late for them, once they cease to live in the body, to live on from there in the presence of God. As God will have had his fill of their obstinate minds, sending them into eternal darkness, never to see his face again. but > On the other hand though, we have another action of God, working in this world, to effect a completely different outcome, from that which we already have at birth, if we were to do nothing to respond to Gods call to repentance. This other action has its basis in the mercy of God, to alter our present and eternal destiny, from death to life. Its whole plan was devised by God, without mans informed consent or input as to how it would achieve mans salvation. Its entire formation was outside the realm of human influence or design, and runs counter to any thinking, that would be plausible or logical to man. Therefore, it make no sense to those who have only a carnal mind in them, as their only perspective in life. In that, they see everything in life, through the stain colored glass of this world. Which prevents and filters out the real substance of God in his glory, which is not found in the evidence of their sinful flesh of our worldly existence that they subsist in. Their sin prevents it from being seen or even perceived as a reality by them. Its reality is there though, even more-so than their sin, but they have no spiritual senses to perceive it with, like they do their physical senses of the body. For them to receive the spiritual senses, to be able to pickup on Gods glory, they first must receive Christ. Who will give them a new Spirit with a spiritual sense, that actively follows Gods in his glory only. God will give them Christ in their ignorance, so that they can believe and receive the Spirit of truth, so that they are able to sense his glory. But he will not make them sensitive to his Spirit, without Christ first, they must receive Christ, to gain the Holy Spirit of truth. the outlook > But the attitude of the one who sees with the vision of Gods High-Tower, does not see the things of the flesh, as that of being worth the effort that it extracts from those who engage it. Their inclinations have come alive in them thru a spiritual mind that was brought to life for them by God, when they received Christ as Lord. Therefore their purpose in life, now has a completely different basis to it, than does the mind of those who are lost. Their view of life comes to them from its source in heaven, not from their perceptions of this world or what man rationalizes or makes philosophies in, so as to achieve a means to an end. They got God, the world does not, so they have his perspective, as their perspective in life. Which is a broad view of eternity from Gods eyes, as opposed to that narrow vision of mans finite and limited existence in time and space. of the Spirit > They seek that which comes into them from the Spirit of God, which lives in perfect communion with God and them, and then working thru themselves, the things which are of God. God actually takes place in their lifes, which is so foreign to our human flesh, in that, it cannot coexist in its sinful state with God, as an active presence before him, so that it is put down and subdued by God, taking place in our life. is life > So unlike the flesh, we are brought into this new existence, by Gods activity in us. He superimposes himself and his imprint on us, as his property of ownership. We live our life, while yet in human form, as he makes his presence and existence in us. In doing this, we must be willing disconnect ourselves from the wants of this world, and engage God in the Spirit world, where he is living and preparing good works for us on our behalf. God is proceeding with eternity, with or without us, so we must daily come alive in the spirit, and mortify or put to sleep the desires of the flesh. So that which is already occurring in eternity, is in our presence also and happening thru us as we engage God, where he is, not where we think ourselves to be in our reasoning of things. and peace, > And that which comes from God does not destroy, but builds up the child that lives for God. They experience the Spirit of God living thru them, which in turn produces an eternal and a peaceful existent while still on earth. You enter a process of joining God, in God. God himself is the experience that you encounter, it is not what he leads to, it is him that is all fulfilling. A hard concept even for the believer to take in, but one day it will be fully clear to us, that which is God. Our minds are trained to think in achievement and God is all for that, but it is Gods encounter with you, that will be an end, in and of itself. 8:7 because the outlook > Due to the fact that the attitude we have, towards the way we chose to adhere ourselves, to a particular mindset in life, is also that which determines our character. The very fact that if one puts most or all of its emphasis in life, on the things that are a creature of mans making, not Gods. Then that will resolve itself in a state that does not have anything in kind or likeness to God. It is a restricted view of life that has its standards in itself, which exist in a bubble, that does not contain the true nature of God. When they have their existence in themselves, and see that as encompassing all that there is to know. Then they have submitted themselves to what the human experience is, only within in its own ranks, leaving out the reason of their existence before God. Which is the majority opinion of the reason, "why", we exist. of the flesh > When that mindset is set to pursue things, that gratify the sins the flesh craves after, and to satisfy them by recycling your will to do the things, that increases your reliance on self-gratification, you become an addict of sin. That is the inherent goal of sin in the flesh, to cause you to become dependent on self-gratification, within the confines of your sinful nature and material world of existence. Its goal is to exclude and completely phase out the eternal sensibilities, that God had created in us as a warning mechanism, against our own self-destruction, which the flesh is continually attempting to disarm. Your flesh and its sin nature, is playing you for a fool, which we are all weak to engage it in. That is where it gains access to you, when you play its game, in any small part, it wins. is hostile to God, > Then they by being in league with this sin nature, it becomes thru this act of conspiracy of sinful events, the enemy of God. Whom they then fight against, having taken the side of evil, in substitute for the righteousness of God. As a result they embrace evil and hate the things of God. They first fall prey to it, then assume its identity, till in the end, God makes war against them, as a reprobate mindset, that they have become. From that point on, they are living for the sensation of disobedience and doing evil for the sake of doing evil, it becomes who they are in life by definition. for it > Because at this point, it no longer is responsive to God or his holiness. Its mindset has become so soiled by its worldly nature, so much so, that it is completely absent of acknowledging God as creator in a real sense. It has chosen to proceed only in the knowledge of that which the flesh is able to sense in its physical world. does not > The prospect at this point, that it is even so remote a possibility, that it would willing prescribe to Gods law, except in pretense of deceit to do more evil. That it is so completely absent its moral code or conscience, to be allowed to exist even in a fallen society, due to its preying on other humans as its course in life. submit > For sin rages against all that God has established in his dealings with mankind, it revolts in utter rebellion against Gods righteous attributes, it reviles against Gods law of holiness. Therefore, for it to now come under that arena of influence, with a real heart of integrity, is gone for good. Because that state can become so vile, if it is allowed to continue unchecked, even mankind will either put them away or destroy them. That is of course, sin at its worse, but even the general society exist in this battle with Gods law, though for some it may be buffered due to adherence to general community laws, it is still at enmity with God. to the law of God, > For the righteousness of Gods is expressed in the written code of God. As it came from his Spirit to be given unto man, as a standard by which thy must be measured and measure things themselves, so they are able to judge between right and wrong. man even if they acknowledge Gods laws, will dissect the meaning of them to some lesser standard for themselves, while using them to accuse everyone else in their fullness. nor is it able > In fact, it is so forbidden for sin in the flesh to have fellowship with God, it is rejected by him as a alien enemy to his righteous existence. It is Gods mortal enemy, to which he will one day completely destroy. Their eternal compatibility is impossible, so in that God is Holy and all powerful over sins continuance, it will cease to exist in the presence of God. God will one day put down all rebellion that has rallied against his glorious nature and raise his banner of victory over sin. to do so. > So dont try to serve God by way of your flesh, he is not interested in your good looks, or fancy speeches. How much money you have or your ability to debate every subject in the world. He hates the things of the world, so your knowledge of the world, is at odds with him and only serves to show your carnal thoughts, of worldly interest. We consistently and constantly, rewrite all the commands of God, to due the things we want to do in cursed state we exist in. We never obey them at face value, they are always interrogated into our form, as tokens of religious behavior, rather than absolutes to be obeyed. 8:8 Those who are > Everyone who desires the things that entertain the flesh have a warped sense of judgment, because they have no absolute law, by which they establish right from wrong. Their guiding force in life, are the desires and fantasies that they choose to see life thru. That becomes their standard bearer in life, which is a foul standard with God. in the flesh > All of their ideologies come from worldly pursuits that puts satisfying the flesh above all else. They have no eternal destiny, therefore they strive for only temporal accomplishments, that fade away with the passing of every new envy and lust. This is a place of position, their stake in life as they see it, based in only the temporal and worldly points of view. cannot > Because they begin with a false premise as to what is relevant as to what is discernable and must be taken into consideration when evaluating life. They always come up with the wrong answer and end up in the wrong place, in opposing God by aspiring to do the wrong thing, where God is not found, instead of discovering God by seeking him in his laws, which is where he is. please God. > So in that they have no eternal value in what they have done or accomplished, they are meaningless counterfeits of currency, in the richness of Gods kingdom, utterly worthless to the respect of Gods honor. Because they are not valid according to Gods description of authenticity, they are considered as frauds and fakes, as that is what they are. So as with anyone who was defrauded by someone elses action, God is not out to praise them for having tried to imitate him thru deceitful acts. Not without the intention of being with God, in the use of his law, but constructing a false array sinful standards that they should live under. Then presenting them to God as an acceptable currency to him, to which he has no foreign exchange to deal with your form of currency, to him it is worthless. 8:9 You, however, > That which is in your past, what you were like before you new Christ, is being taken over, as God takes up residence and occupies the controlling interest in your life. That is the contrary thing that is occurring in your life, that is so inexplicable or mysterious, an unexplainable concept to the human nature, of those unaware of Gods glory. are not > But that is an existing state, for those to be confounded by, who have no living Spirit in them, only the experience of the world, which is not the case in your life now. That is, or at least should be, a condition of past-tense for you, this should sound like someone you once were, or even someone to whom you cannot even relate any longer too. A former person whose memory has faded to you, to such a degree, that they are a separate person, from whom you have now become. One should even wonder, how they could have ever fallen for such a depraved state as that in the flesh, now that you are alive in the Spirit. in the flesh > That daily grind, of what once were meaningless repetitions, that enslaved you to commit things that were not of God. Are now the former things of your old life that God is putting behind you. That which formerly controlled your destiny, has been superceded by a more powerful force and intensity of draw, which is pulling you in a completely different direction. but in the Spirit, > He accomplishes this by giving you the power to live thru his Spirit, which enables you to live beyond you own human limitations. This is not a harsh persona, as was the flesh that was always demanding and pressing you to do for it repeatedly without reward, but rather at your expense. The Spirit of God, is resourceful and patiently training you in the nurturing of Gods nature, to envelope you with his nature, that is not rushing to some end, God is its own end, that is your destiny that you have already arrived in and God is simply and slowly revealing that to you. So that you can take it in and be assimilated in him, in your life, as one who exist in him. if indeed > That is, I am assuming you have fully committed your lives to live after the precepts of God. That is the assumption when speaking to ones own family, that we are a relation to one another, which means we have the same Father in God, the same history and know of our stories together as a family. If on the other hand, what I am saying to you seems cloudy and unclear, as though a case of mistaken identity, then we will not know what the other is talking about. It is like trying to reminisce with a complete stranger about how you grew up together, rather an odd concept to get around in reality, isnt it? the Spirit of God > Your past is actually now related to all the workings that God has done thru the faithful, to him throughout the history of man. That is how we are now all come to be relatives to one another and know the others history, though having never met them. It is because we are growing up in the same family of God, that exist in only one dimension of eternity, His. It is our place among Him, that makes each persons story and reminiscing, that of a familiar story among us, because we have all now lived it, with them, thru our great God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. lives in you. > They abiding in you as welcome guest or member of your own family would be, to take up permanent residence in your home. As the living power of Gods Spirit is alive and at work in you, establishing among you the working gifts of the church. God is active in the place where he is living, which means he is active in your life also. His companionship and presence are part of your life now, he is sometimes a quiet presence and sometimes very vocal, but he is always there with you at all times. Now > On the other hand, the opposite is also true for them whose home is vacant of spiritual life. In this case their home is abandoned and without upkeep, it is falling into disrepair, as it has no covering for it, to prevent its eventual collapse. That is the present state, where there is no one at home, except in the physical realm. So then there is nothing living in them, to carry them over into the presence of the Spirit world, which is a needful gap to be bridged. if anyone > So I would advise all of you, to know what is in your own hearts and to be sure that you are not just pretending to go along with this church thing you are seeing, just because you do not want to appear unaware or uniformed. Your own self analysis, is a necessary part of life on earth, because the flesh is always trying to falsely imitate religious etiquette in order to mislead you in life. you need to evaluate whether or not it its origin is in the prodding of Spirit or an urgency in the flesh. does not have > For if you are living in pretense of knowing God, you are only deceiving yourself not God. For God sees beyond your mortal efforts and understands the true intent of your heart. You see, God knows where he is living and where he is not. It is not a strange thing for God to figure out about you, he is either in you or he is not. If there is light in you, then God is at home in you, if there is only darkness, then God does not dwell in you, because God is light, and he enlightens those in whom he lives. Those who live in darkness, do not consider the things of God as a response to him. They are rather defining life according to their own worldly concept, and expecting God to follow along with them in their own quest. That is a carnal mind, functioning in the head knowledge of the churches presence, without the heart knowledge of God at home in them. Because without Christ in them, they are not receiving an internal explanation of God, without which, they will not understand the true nature of God, because they are hearing without an interrupter, words without meaning. the Spirit of Christ, > For the true living and indwelling of Christ Spirit, is evident to all those who know him. Because you become a new creation, which is the body of Christ himself, expressing itself outward from within you, not and outward pressing of external influence, as was the law. Which dictates your conformity to it, but an internal power that is enabling you to live above your human ability. Because the light that dwells in you, is Christ, he is the evidence to you that God has taken up residence in you. But if you look upon the church as some strange thing, that you cannot comprehend its reasoning or relationship to you, as some how irrelevant. Then the Spirit of Christ is not living in you, but is apart from you, which is damning to your eternal soul. this person > So if your relationship to God is still an external one of burdensome decrees and rules that you do only to be acceptable to others. To draw attention to your own good deeds, so as to justify yourself in and thru the flesh, that is not of God, but a failing human effort, which is rejected by God. They are living to God under false pretenses, that shows that they do not know him, for they have no real heart for him. Their goals in life are all carnal and they are absent a spiritual conscience to things, except to maintain a religious image of themselves. does not > This type of person, must be viewed, not just an outsider mind you, but also an enemy of treachery, one who is not just passing by, but has criminal intent in what they are doing. They are existing in a struggle against God in their lives, they are not just passively existing in life. They have a course and a structure to them, that is anti-God as their base in life. If you are not with God, you are against him, so they are Gods mortal enemy. They are rejecting God, in full view of what he is doing in the church, which makes their obstinate attitude to God, even harder than the wayward person who is cold to God out of ignorance. belong to him. > By way of this attitude they are not any relation to God and are not his child, because they sought to do in the outward working of their flesh, what only God can do by the inward dwelling of his Spirit. The outward deeds of the flesh are pride and self-righteousness, which are sin and not of God, which is what these without Christ are doing, but among the church, are only pretending to be part of the family. 8:10 But if Christ is in you, > So if you have made a life commitment to Christ and are alive by the indwelling of him thru you. If you are existing by way of an internal source of power of having encountered Christ, rather then an external obedience thru head knowledge only. The visual perceptions of your mind, have been enlightened to see the true nature of God and what are his plans for you. Because if Christ is in you, you notice him to be at work in your way of thinking. You become aware of issues in life, that are not part of your former thinking. These are Gods voice of guidance, awakening in you a new Spirit. your body > Then that physical sin that once determined your fate, not just eternally, but how you conducted your life on earth, has been immeasurably altered position in you. Where it once had total rule over you and your eternal destiny. It has now only one fate for itself, but not for you. It is not part of you new eternal life and will not be carried over into eternity with you. is dead > For that old body of self rule, has been put down and you have a new body which is Christs that you now live. The body itself, this physical state that you dwell in, must still meet its fate in the grave. Its corruptible nature is a permanent one, without a physical redemption aspect to its future. because of sin, > You see that old body was not redeemable, because it was sick with a terminal illness of sin, it has to die off. So God created you a new body which is part of Christ unity of believers. You now function as part of his body the church, even though you still must exist in your life, in your mortal body. It is a dying presence before you, as it fades in its will power over you, giving way to you Spirit of Christ. but the Spirit > Whereas, you also exist as a spiritual partner with Christ, thru his indwelling Spirit. Which is dominant over your mortal body and has controlling interest, which increase its influence as you dwell with him, learning the ways of Gods nature. Your future is not the old, but the new, which is with Christ where he is and where you are going. is your life > Thru this, your life is continually being conformed to the image of Christ, which enriches your mortal existence, to a supernatural plane, that it could not know of apart from Christ. Your immortality now exist in the spiritual realm, not in the physical mortality of the body. This presence you have on earth, is giving way to your true nature with God, that has its stake in his eternal presence, not what is remaining of this physical world. God is the parent that is leading us to be as he is, an eternal being, alive in him, solely for that purpose. because of righteousness. > This comes about thru the exposure and influence of Gods holiness that dwells in you. Exposure to Gods radiation of glory has an terminal effect on the flesh that causes it to go into remission and lose its draining power over you. It cuts off its blood supply of the mortal flesh living in and for the world, with the spiritual giving blood of Christ, which has a purifying effect due to his holiness. Christ is able to remove the toxic effects of sin that have been polluting you in life. Allowing our lives to flow too and thru him, as a filter of our present thinking. Which presents us back to the world, as ones disenfranchised by the worlds influence over us. Because Christ holiness has interrupted the constant flow of sin entering into our lives, as we receive present day substance from him, instead of from the world. We first look to Christ to see what our present day, consist of be composed of, which means we exist in him, as the primary reason that we are alive. 8:11 Moreover if the Spirit > The question that you should not dwell on, is whether or not God wants you closer to him, than that of your current state is sometimes willing to be. Because God is actively coming for you as an intervening force in your life, just as he existed in the life of Christ in the fullness of his nature. of the one > So those who truly know Christ and have this same Spirit alive in you, as part of this union with his body of believers. Do you know also, that is the power of which Christ was sustained himself in, that was his purpose also, to have lived and died with. who raised Jesus > This is Gods Spirit also that raised Jesus from the dead where he was crucified for your sins. This Spirit was not a formation of mans thoughts, where he conjured up false idols of worship. This Spirit came forth from God to mankind, apart from mans natural instinct, where in ignorance, he knew not that such a Spirit of power was even in existence. from the dead > As for mans perception and understanding of things, life does not come out of death. To mans understanding, only death comes from life, but God who is the author of creation, created life from death. Which is contrary to mans understanding or comprehension, apart from his Spirits revealing this truth to us. Which is why it is a stumbling block and foolishness to those who examine Christ, in their own capacity to understand it. Because without Gods Spirit of revealing himself, it is a blind dark alley of course-less leading. Their eyes cannot see thru the darkness of the human vision to see the spiritual world of Gods provision. To them the things of God lead now where to which they have any desire to follow. Their instinct tells them to avoid the dark blind alley, but that is of the flesh. lives in you, > But what you have are spiritual eyes that sees thru the darkness of their blindness and dwells in you as a beacon of light that penetrates the darkness of mans human vision. To lead you upon a lighted path that the world cannot see, this becomes your life that leads you thru the deadly effects of the flesh. So what appears to them as a dark and blind alley, you see as a well lit exit from the past, as a way into Gods presence. the one > So you are able to see that the one who came to Christ, to lift him out from the effects, of the sins of man having been displayed on him, as judgment and death. This is the same one that is on a rescue mission for your also. It is the resources of him that is the relevant factor concerning your condition on earth and the future you have with him. who raised Christ > So God who raised Christ by the power of his spiritual dominion, has authority over all things, whether physical or spiritual. He can even cause evil flesh to perform in ways contrary to its nature and do the work of righteousness, against its own will to do so. He is not depending on you to due his righteousness, he is the righteousness, that is being revealed thru us, that is the crucial observation of ourselves in knowing God. So it is his power that we are establishing in us, not ourselves being of some use to him. from the dead > Because once the flesh is dead, it does not rise up and walk any longer by way of its own bodily functions. It ceases to exist among mortal man, but not where God is concerned, there is no death to God, because all things come either to life or death on his command. Their former state is not relevant, because their former state had no power of its own, to hold onto that which they were, neither life has power to stay alive, nor does death have power to stay dead. It is totally in the will of God, life leading to death, or death leading to life. An abstract for mans thinking, but the simple will of God, out from which need only proceed his thoughts, to have either occur. will also > If he did it once, it is his intention for that pattern to continue, to move you from one state of existence, into another. God, once set upon a plan of action, does not rescind his order, even more so, in that, he said that he would do it, to and for the faithful of Abrahams seed. God will attain that which he has chosen to do, simply because all things exist, at his will to have them exist. So it is not a strange thing for God to do his will, even if its concept is foreign to mankinds thinking. make your > God has in fact, an individual plan for each of us to exist in his purpose for us. We are not just involved in the overall plan of God, but rather, we are the details of it, that he is seeking out to be in us. mortal bodies > It is the power of Gods Spirit that all things either continue or cease to exist, nothing has any self-sustaining power in and of itself. Beyond that which God endowed it to have. Wherefore, whether as man who was created to be codependent on God from the beginning of creation, as part of their creation. Or the angels who were not created codependent, in that they have been created in eternal body form, but continue to exist according to Gods will and his glory. Our mortal bodies continue only at the desire of his will, to allow them to exist. alive > He is intending to give you a life worth living, despite the fact that the sinful flesh is against him in this. It is part of his desire for you to have life in him, to begin that process in you, despite the deeds of the flesh. This should not seem a strange thing, seeing as we know that he takes no pleasure in the sinful state of the body. That he should give us power in life, to cause it to give way to a life led by the Spirit and not the flesh. through his Spirit > They are both all together that which comes about according to Gods Spirit, whether in life or death, existence or coexistence, we are in that state as a result of who God is, not what we made ourselves to be. We know what we know, because the Spirit has made us to know it. We did not find salvation, it came for us and took us into Gods presence, as a gift from God. We responded to it discovering us, but we did not go out and find it of our own thinking resources. who lives > It is then the residence of Gods Spirit that has taken possession of your bodily form, to make it live a life, that is God centered and not just self-centered, as is its nature to be. God is causing the life body of man, to contradict itself, in that which is occurring in mankind itself. God is doing selfless acts thru us in our mortal existence, so that we are able to experience the fullness of who God is. in you. > Our life is a result of the living Spirit of God who indwells us, as a result of his power to do so. It is for his pleasure that he chose to do so, he is not drawn to us because of our existence, but we are drawn to him due to our having been created to be coexistent and dependent, on him. 8:12 So then, brothers and sisters, > It has become incumbent upon all of us who have received this power, as an act of mercy from God, that we have become part of Gods family and part of one another. If that is the case, that we all exist in one another, thru God, that is our Spirit life in us, as its base existence. we are > Than that defines our allegiance for us, because we no longer exist in the mortality of the flesh, we now exist, in the immortality of the Spirit. We have separated ourselves from this body by choice, when we chose Christ as savior, as our allegiance in life. under obligation, > So we are not duty bound to the flesh, but we have a duty to live within that power that demonstrates our commitment to God. In submission to his spiritual control, how else would we be shown to be true children of his. To ignore his might would be a denial of him, but to embrace his power and control, is the right thing to do, having become indebted to his love for us. The flesh has control, so long as the living Spirit of God is not present, but we are alive in the Spirit, so the flesh has lost it control over us. not to the flesh, > And this would also include the rejection of living for our mortal bodies, as if they were the dominant controlling force in our life. When they have already been put to death, as pertaining to their own claim of ownership over us. to live > So it is important to live your life after the manner by which you attained that life. Not after the former manner, to which your mortal bodies were in bondage to sin, that existed in a self-serving mentality in life. according > Where their function, was to function for themselves, as an end-it-itself. The former you, existed in self-interest, that enforced its will upon you, as if you were a weak host, to a strong visitor in your home. It was as if you became host to a parasite in your body, that took control of your mind and body, but than left you to suffer the consequences, of the wrong it did in you. to the flesh > Because all of what you did prior to having the living Spirit of God dwell in you, came about from the corruption of your sinful nature. Which is no longer allowed to have the final say as to how you live. So you, by duty to the Spirit, need also to reject the corruption of the sinful flesh, that once had power, over your host body. 8:13 (for if you live > This lifestyle that you adhere yourself to and identify yourself with, has a determining factor as to what God will allow to happen to you, in your life on earth. What dominates you, is a direct result of your own allegiance you make in your life, what you live for is what you shall become a product of. You cannot say in amazement, "How did things turn out so wrong in my life", when everything that you did, was motivated by pleasures of what excited or what was excited by the desires of the flesh. according > The urgencies of the flesh, always reveal the nature and source of its control over you. The more the necessity of it coming to completion or fruition in our life, the more you know it has its basis in sin and not in God. Because as it presses you into conformity, it is acting itself out on your physical senses. That in itself, is the red flag of warning that it is being controlled by the sinful nature in us, rather than the Spirit of God who is not rushing us to get something done. God controls time and is then therefore, in no hurry for you to do something thru you, as if it otherwise wont get done. God does want consistency in you as a virtue, but you should not, as a demanding dominance, cause things to be rushed. Where it is pressing you into a state, where it is vital to your success or failure, as a timeline in your life, determining you worth and value in a project. to the flesh, > If that allegiance, is to fulfilling the desires of your mortal bodies, then you will reap the benefits that the body is only able to achieve. You will be confined to the limits that are available to you, that are the direct results of the sinful nature, that exist in it, to dominate you with. The flesh has its rewards, but they are not anything like the rewards of the Spirit, that has its home in God. All of the rewards of the flesh, are related to what exist only in the flesh, material gains that cater and seduce the desires of the flesh. But in the end, what has life made obvious to happen, will also happen to everyone else who lives, is clear. They will die regardless of their accumulations in life, they will perish without the benefit of what they have done, of being any consolation in the afterlife. Where it will condemn them all, for what they did in living for the sinful desires in them. you will die), > In the end, it will take away everything that you tried to make possible, from living for the sinful flesh. By retaining it for itself and gaining you only death, for all that you pursued in your efforts to please it. Because everything that comes out of the flesh produces death, not life, in the eternal state that comes about, from everyone who first comes to life, in the flesh. Only to die as a result of having been born and lived a life of dedication to the sinfulness of the flesh. but > On the other hand though, we have a life motivation that is not based in the desires of the flesh. In that, it does not originate that which it does or desires to do, from out of the senses of the human body. It in fact, seems contrary to what is the normal thing to do, its piece does not fit into the human puzzle or framework of things. For the very basic reason, that it is not part of the human puzzle. It has a foreign basis to it, that does not relate itself to a human instinct or process that we relate to. We are all learning an alien language and way of communicating to this strange encounter, that we have had with God. if by the Spirit > If your allegiance, is that to the glory of Gods spiritual eternity, that has come to life in you. So that your lifestyle and that by which you identify yourself, is a result of the spirit of God dwelling in you. Where you ignore the desires of the flesh, as you once did your interest of the Spirit of God. Giving over your allegiance to that which is in Gods favor, as opposed to that which is the desires of the flesh to do. The Spirit than becomes your source of finding your direction in life, which is not pushing you to achievement, but resting with you in the invitation, of living in the existence, of what God is doing, with you as a dependant in him. you put > So this is where your action in life takes place, not in the activity of what the flesh wants to exercise in you, so that it has a strong grip on you. But rather where it enters in to physical atrophy, do to its lack of use. You do have a say in this matter, as that is what God wants you to clearly understand. Is that which is of the flesh and its call to you, and that which is his voice and how he is demonstrating his power over the call of sin in you. to death > Then the sinful nature of you body will starve to death from lack of attention. Just as your spiritual life suffers from lack of attention, when you live to the desires of the flesh. But it is good that your flesh suffers loss, because that is your spiritual gain, when you are alive to and living in your spiritual growth in you. The body will surely one day die, but what degree of control over you, will it have on you, when that day comes. Will it be a night and day difference, because you do not know the face of God, when you pass over to the afterlife. Will he have to explain to you who he is and help you focus your thinking to him. Or will the flesh have been so starved, by you life in the Spirit, that you are barley aware that it has died. As you were already in the fullness and presence of God when you died in the body. the deeds > This body, is one that delivers itself over to the evil things that it knows. It does not sense the things of the Spirit, it lives to give itself over to earthly passions and desires that strengthen its hold over you. So that you are a victim of its desires, for the entirety of your life. But that is where you must draw the battle lines in your life, dividing that which is existing in the flesh and what are its practices in life. Leaving that than behind or on the other side, while you take your place among the spiritual things, that lead you to Gods real presence in you, with a spiritual sense of him, not a physical sense of him. Do not look to your physical senses, for the spiritual presence of God, as God does not dwell there in them, as they only communicate the presence of physical existence and hurried desires. They are representations of sin being activated in you. Gods presence though, is uncommon and irregular to the flesh and it does not agree, with that which the Spirit is saying to you, as God. of the body > As the functions by which you deal with life in your body are determined by the control of Gods Spirit in you. For he has authority over all good and evil, as he is able to promote good and deny evil. For only God can cause the sinful body to perform the deeds of a Holy God. Though the body is not credited itself, with the goodness of God, it is subdued and powerless to resist, the power of Gods Spirit of control in you. So the senses of the body, war against the voice of God, as the Spirit utters its voice as you relinquish your devotion, from the flesh, to the Spirit. Despite the temporal senses of the flesh, that give way to the true sense of wonder, that is alive in the Spirit. you will live. > By that attrition of the fleshs resources over you, you will come to life thru the power of his Spirit, not only throughout future eternity. But also you come to life in your joy on earth, even though you exist in a corrupt body. God gives life, where before only there was death, this is the power God to live thru you. The flesh itself, does not and never will improve in its own reality or worth to God. But because God has power over all things, he will force its subjection to his Spirit. So that it simulates the effects of his Holy behavior in you and that will be life for you on earth, that is relative to God in heaven. 8:14 For all who > Which begs the question, who is this in reference too, just the general audience that hears, just the passerbys. Or is this specific in nature, only to those who stop and take a place among them that respond to God call of repentance and life with him. It is the latter, those who respond and realize not only the gravity of what is at stake. But the awesome and inspiring expression of the mercy and grace, by which God has approached us, who were his mortal enemies, yet he came with an offering of peace and life, rather than death, by which we were already defeated by him, as death already rules the flesh. are led > So as a direct result of that which has become your guide in this life, because everyone follows after something. We all set our sights on something, that carries us along towards a goal, that identifies our motives and our perceptions, that form our alliances that we that we adhere too. This then becomes our driving force in life, which becomes your future. So those who do not live according to the human sensations of life. But rather, follow after the new living presence of God in them, as their guide in life and into eternity. by the Spirit of God > So that alliance that exist and is controlling them, is that which comes from God and is a direct result of having fellowship with his Spirit and living according to the power of his Spirit. Then it is from that source which my motivations are conceived, which is that of the Spirit, that I will then become reproductive in. As it produces in me, things that are spiritual, and not things that are mortal. Things that last forever and not things that cease to be at my death. are the > It is this group of people, that know the difference and are not living in ignorance to the truth. That have a stake in God and his eternal existence with him. They have a home and it is not in relation to what exist in the earthly realm, so far as possession or position is at stake. Those things are irrelevant in the eternal existence with God, as they do not pass over from life into death. Anything that is visible and tangible to the eye, will cease to be in death. Only that which is intangible and invisible to the eye, will be present in the afterlife. sons of God. > So what is mortal is that which is temporary and dying off, but that which is spiritual, is that which is forever, and that, is in being part of the offspring of Gods family. Which makes you a child out of his power, to produce in you, eternal life out of a dead body. Not that the dead body is credited with life, but that the Spirit is given power over the will of the flesh. So that you are able to presently live, as though you were already in the eternal presence of God. A past tense state of existence with God, that is now at work in you, as a completed salvation. 8:15 For you did not > This thing is how does not look on this relationship, in that, God was not looking at mankind as something he just wanted to conquer to take advantage of them. To do that he would not have had to suffer on our behalf, he could just have created a new race of people, without the will to resist him. No, this battle had to do with his emotion affections for that which he did already create, as being dependant on him for their survival. receive > Because of that being in him, that which God gave to us, entrusting it to our care, that we might become reproductive, in our possession of his pardon. So that we might become proficient in the use of his holiness, that was foreign to us as a state of existence. the spirit > This meaning that God did not capture us with and attitude of adding to us even more hardship than what we had in life. But rather, just the opposite, in that, what he gave to us, was a feeling that was not one of confinement, but more like we had been rescued from a prison that held us for the sins we did against him. So the prison that held us captive, us one that he had created, but now he was issuing release forms, instead of prison sentences. of slavery > In doing this God did not encase you in a glass jar, just so that he could admire you as some treasure to be displayed of his conquests in you. On the contrary, he released you from the bondage of the drudgery of sin and made you a messenger of his glorious wealth, and the power of his Spirit. He wants you to be in the world as a witness to his glory, so that others viewing you freedom thru him, might make the same request and find the same mercy for them, waiting in him also. leading again > The flesh is always misleading you, as it always does, into false conclusions and the abuses that exist in it. Because the bondage of sin, does so in making threats against you and your thoughts, of what will happen to you if you do not obey and go along with that which it demands of you. But God is not engaging you with this type of attitude, what he wants is for you to run to him, not away from him. He wants to draw you into his presence, so that you are able to grow there with him, into a mature and understanding person, with clarity of thought in your thinking. to fear, > Because sin caused us to run and hide from him from the very beginning, as did Adam and Eve. Which controlled us by terrorizing us, as an overpowering force, full of threats and abuses, coming against us. Sin that is alive in man, makes him know that he is not resting in the safety of Gods presence. Because when we are fully engulfed by God, in sinless perfection, we are ignorant to sin as a weapon of threat against us. The controlling mechanism that worked in you in the flesh, was that of violence and avoidance thru intimidation of us, from standing up against the prevailing evil. The first revelation or act of sin that it produced in man was fear, as Adam and Eve hid from God. Man would be in perfect harmony with God, without any fear, if there is no sin to contend with in that relationship. That is what God is trying to now tell us, that he has created in us, a perfect and sinless relationship to him. It does not exist though, in the flesh or this body, but rather, in the spiritual realm of existence. So when you approach God and live in the spiritual form to him, there is peace and safety with him in his presence. but > Instead of causing your weakness, as sin does in your life and therefore causing alarms to go off in your mind, every time you venture to do anything. God has granted you power and assurance of those things that he brings you into. Where sin makes you subject to even deeper bondages of itself. Gods Spirit releases you to live in even greater power of his Spirit, which reproduces itself into even greater freedom and power. So God is leading you into victorious living, not defeatism. Where you only bemoan the past, living in indifference to the new life he is desiring to make known in you. you received > So in this, you have been given the source of his glory, that which is of God, is now of you also. That which first came out of God as its origin, comes out of you now also, so that you have as your basis in life, God. He is your beginning, middle and end, if you want to think of it in finite form, so to make it somewhat more practical to the human mind. But in truth, he is infinite in all aspects of time, so once we pass over into that spiritual have form, having our basis in him. We will also exist in the infinite, knowing the fullness of or existence in him, that is timeless, but more than our present minds can conceive its nature of. the Spirit of adoption, > As God chose you to be a recipient of his mercy, he also chose you to be a member of his family. An offspring of who God is, a reproduction of himself, but not just a fake copy of the original. He himself has been made alive in you, so that you can claim an inheritance in him and a right of passage to his throne. You are not a stranger to him, but his welcome child whom he loves, he sees himself in you just as does any father sees himself in his children. His union with you is thru his Spirit and enjoys your company with him, as a product of himself. by whom > So out of that compassion that he showed to us, we now have his Spirit of compassion alive in us thru his Spirit. Thru which we come to him in that fashion, that his Spirit has clothed us in. When we arrive at his door, he does not say who is it or who are you. He knows you already as his own flesh and blood, welcome at all times with him. It is our likeness in him, that makes us uniquely a part of his existence. we cry, > So when we call out to God, it is not in some impersonal fashion, that has some foreign culture to it in Gods eyes. He clearly recognizes our voice and the clothing that we come before him wearing, as that which he has given us to wear, a reflection of his glory, thru his son alive in us, because he sees himself in us. "Abba, Father." > So our voices ring out to him as that of his own sincere love, being returned to him as that investment that he made in us. So we are able to speak to him in very deep personal tones, that are music to his heart, and he pulls us closer, to hear us speak from his loving Spirit, to ours. As we reveal the personal affections of our hearts to him saying, you are my Father and I love you! 8:16 The Spirit himself bears witness to > This is your living evidence, of who you are now become. He speaks to us intending for us to hear his voice from within, he melds himself to our conscience, so his voice is a part of our own thought process. He testifies to us, of his presence and that he is with us, with the Father and son as our God, making their home in us. our spirit > Then our Spirit, which he has made alive in us, senses the Spirit of Gods fellowship and so we are able to become consciously aware of Gods presence in us. Our Spirit listens and speaks back to his Spirit and becomes the living evidence, which is always there testifying to us of our unity. This is not done or accomplished in the physical manifestation of our natural state, so we should not look in the physical realm, for the evidence of God in our life. It is not in the things that have a material base to them, that we find or establish Gods presence in our life. Those things are not relative and do not relate to us, his being in our life. Those things though on the other hand, are the evidence of sin and our need for another form of existence. In fact if anything, it is our separation from the physical things and our ability to not have our identity in them, that are more evidence of God in us, than the existence of them in our life. Many a wealthy men, hate God at the core of who they are. This is just a basic statement though, in reference to the absolute intentions within us, which is the real evidence of God. God is pleased to heal our land and make abundance a normal part of our life with him, when we are at peace with him. As it is also said, that the first thing to suffer when men who are steeped in sin, is the land around him. that we > Thru this unity within our Spirit, we are not foreigners to God, alienated from him due to the mistrust of our sins, just the opposite is true. Instead of doubt, we have unity and assurance, that God is with us, and because it is not based in the day to day physical or emotional state that we live in. The Spirit passes over and supercedes the temporal things in life, having no ill-effect on our assurance of God being with us and on our side in all things. are Gods children. > We are become known to him, due to that union of are spirits, as that which makes us alive to what we once did not even know existed. This also makes us his children, whom he loves to be with and contributes to us, as does any good Father towards his children. God does not take us in, as children of abuse, but as children of mercy. Children who live with him in his presence, God is not an absent Father, but one of conviction and provision for his children. 8:17 And if children, then heirs > They have a legal right of ascension, that comes to them as an inheritance from having been made into Gods children. This means that you have an eternal part in all of Gods future plans. Not like it is here on earth where it is here today, and gone tomorrow, but everlasting and as reliable as God is eternal. (namely, > To be more specific, and so that you know exactly what is I am telling you in the meaning of this, Im going to spell it out in detail for you. You have a title, in fact, its a title of entitlement, which means that it entails privilege that is irrevocable upon having received it. The world cannot interfere with its benefit to you and God will not annul that which it is. In that, he created the position, as for the intent that it could not become revocable under any circumstance. heirs of God > We are descendents of God, which means we came out from him, not too him. Our knowledge of him is not external, as one who reads about God from some written journal, but internal as one experiences him from having lived in their life, the life that was formed of God. Who they now are, they are as a living legend of the glory of God. They have an internal imagery of God the Father, from his living Spirit having formed us from within. We are the subject of Gods fascination, as we a part of the birthing process of the creator God, his very expression, alive in us. He is in form, that is, that which we have become in spiritual rebirth in him, is God expressly, in us, as part of us, and therefore inseparable from himself. and also fellow heirs > So we are all is this together, equally we share in his life thru him as a right of our inheritance. We belong to him as much as he belongs to us, yes, you have a claim on Gods glorious existence. He made you a rightful owner of his glory, you are a full partner with him in his kingdom, and shall rule with him in his presence. God views you as a companion in that which you are participating in, and insider to what is going on with him. with Christ)- > This will come about thru the work of Christ, in that you are become Christ body, and in the form of Christ body, you shall be seated and receive a throne of power with Christ. Just as a man and woman become one flesh in marriage, you will become one Spirit, in marriage to Christ. Having the same place at his side, so what the Son does in eternity, so also does his wife take her place with him. if indeed > The truth is, that on this earth, if you proclaim Christ, you will inevitably get the same treatment that he did. If God in the form of the son, suffered the scorn and hatred of this world, what makes you so special to receive as pass from it. God certainly never promised that, in fact, what God promised was persecution. So count your blessings in the good days, because they will not last. The point here though is not that there must be suffering, but that in all likelihood, there will be some to contend with and if you are Christ, you will have to just tough it out. we suffer > So when suffering is present in your life, you know that it is thru Christ that you are suffering. That as Christ body, you suffer together with him in this world, in that, it has been judged into suffering, as a result of its disobedience to God. Not all suffering is in the form of persecution, we still live in a cursed world, despite our salvation and that will breed discomfort, out from that state which it is. Salvation never promised a pass on Gods original curse on this creation, only the confidence that you have, that when it is over, it will be done with forever. with him > Then it is also in Christ that we are subject to trials and the scorn of a world that rejects Christ kingdom, we take our part in all that comes against Christ. Whether the attacks are of the devil or the hatred of mens hearts toward God, that is directed at us, what comes out of them in despising God, also will despise us. What is clear in this, is that once you choose to go with God, you have taken sides in an active war zone. One that is ongoing in both the spiritual world of God angels, against the demonic forces of the devil. And in the physical world where the sinful flesh of man, is at war with the holiness of Gods nature to be supreme, over mans sin nature. We are right square in the middle of this battle and there is no chance that we will not bare at least some battle scars, from one of those encounters. But you should not be ashamed of having been in the battle or from having taken a wound in the course of it. Though it is not in anyway a part of you origin of your salvation, it is a result that having taken place in you life. so we > That being as it is, it is what is taking place on earth, but we did not come to Christ in hope of having just a few good years on earth. In fact, when we came we to Christ indifference to life on earth. We came to see this life as not being fit to be established, but as being subdued to the presence of our new life, that exist in the form of a spiritual body. may also > But that is what comes out of your temporal existence in your mortal bodies, it is life that is fit for a corrupt flesh that wars against Christ, even as you still battle the sinful flesh as I do myself. But that is all temporal and not what comes to you from God, God is giving you better things, things that last eternally and have with them the glorious attributes of Gods character, embedded in them. it is this existence on this earth, that is setting the stage, for that which will be our eternal state to come. Those who are more willing to bare the scorn of this world, will receive a great reward in heaven, not in the form of greater salvation, but in the form of blessing from a God who honors his allies of holiness. Those who take pleasure in this world and its comforts, have their rewards now, and that is all they will have. be glorified > Those though, who justify God in the presence of a fallen world, have taken Gods glory into themselves already and have known its effect on them. So that when they come into Gods kingdom, they will have a familiar sense of that which if taking place in them. The hope that they lived for on earth, and tasted of in small measure only, is now becoming the only presence they now, without the taint of sin, to shadow its existence in them any longer. What they waited for and served in their lives to have in them, has come into full view, beyond what their thoughts had imagined. Now they are existing in a state of Gods promotion of glory, that makes the prior life on earth, as irrelevant an existence, as the dirt washed away, after a hard days work in the fields. with him. > So when it all comes down to your new life in a new body, which is Christ body. Then you will ascend with Christ and reign with him in the fullness of Christ glory. Because you were born out of God and are entitled to that state, as is the very desire of the Father, to glorify his children thru his son. God is looking forward to the day when there is no division between you and him, caused by the misleading of the flesh. So that he is able to shower us with his blessing and not have to deal with mans inclination of thinking himself something in the flesh, for having received them. 8:18 For I consider > I want you to know very clearly the frame of mind I have, when I consider the difference between this fallen world and Gods glorious kingdom in heaven. How I perceive things of this world, to which I must also reconcile on a daily basis, as how I must respond to them. For my own way of thinking on this, I have come to the conclusion, that there is not a calculation, that is worth the time it would take, to try to work out some formula. That would approximate or estimate, that which is representative, of the temporal problems or difficulties of being a Christian on earth. As compared to that which is eternal in heaven, that is full of blessing without end. Do you see the challenge of even trying to assemble the two into a workable formula. The earthly existence formula, always calculates out and ends with a period, at the end of a whole number. Where the eternal calculates out to be an infinite number, that never rounds down into a final answer. Its formula is never resolved to a final solution, because it is eternal. that our > So with that in mind, I simply do not try to balance the two. Instead, I abandon the temporal as worthless, and adhere to the eternal, which is without end. I leave behind my thoughts and promotions of this world, as they are trying to promote and offer them to me, as having any relevance, to that which I have set my sights too. It would be childish of me, in my way of thinking, to try to evaluate, what it is I am gaining, as to that which I am losing in this world. I do not want to sit around like children do, making sure that someone else did not get more pieces of candy than I did. Im on a mission, not on a scorecard keeping challenge of events in my life. Not with myself and not in comparison with others. If the world gets to eat all the cake and ice cream, and all I get some simple bread and butter, Im good to go with that, I dont even spend a thought about it. I know what is at stake here, even if others do not, let them have what they got, if its all they want, its all theyll get in the end. present sufferings > The flesh that I live in is already condemned, and therefore God is not trying to rescue my flesh. Is he subduing its influence over me, yes! But not trying to comfort or appease it in anyway, that would make me more dependant on it and turn me away from him. It would be self defeating for God to give me great riches and comfort here on earth, only so that I would go off into endless worldly ventures on my own. So as a result of that understanding, I am able to reason out, that what my life goes thru, though it might bring about intense pain and frustration to me. Is not the final chapter of my presence with God, in fact, it is not even in the book, which will become my eternity. God will bring a permanent end to all the things, that this world did to me, replacing them with even more of himself, than I can express in any length of words. cannot even > There is no way to juxtapose or make a parallel comparison here, to be able to state with any form of reality, so as to say; If you give up this you get that; or if you suffer this, your pleasure will become this. It is like that old saying of trying to compare apples and oranges. There just is no relative comparison, that we can express, that would do justice in human words, our existence in eternity, in the fullness of Gods glory. So try not to think in forms, of how much or in what measure, you will receive Gods blessings and glory. It is truly immeasurable in any human form. be compared > So I chose not to focus on my present condition, but to discard it as not having any relevance, as to who I am thru Christ. This current state that I am in, is not even an objective argument, to have a rational debate about. As to whether or not it is worth the effort to struggle with the flesh, in providing it comfort, while I am in the pursuit of Gods presence. It is like trying to throw a small stone against the flood waters to stop their advance. It is an irrational effort to think in such a way, as to compare the hold of the flesh over me, to the coming flood of power, that is upon me now when I am with Christ, both now and forever. to the glory > The world of this flesh is barely a speck in the universe of Gods creation. All that we strive over, is almost none existent in the eternity of Gods glory. So our perspective, is crucial in maintaining our vigilance, to live in the Spirit of Christ coming, while we live on this earth. To set our sights on what is beyond and not to be intimidated by the ideas being promoted in this world. As to what it is that supplements your life and makes it rich or worthwhile. The world has nothing but itself to rest and take assurance in. It has itself and nothing more, as that which it strives and set its sights upon. But we know that what it is striving for, is a vapor in the wind, having no substance to it. Except in the minds of those who create its delusion, into a false or virtual reality, absent any virtue or value. It is all based on an illusion, that they have created in their minds, a story book romance, that always ends in tragedy, rather than the happily-ever-after, that they thought it would lead them too. that will be > The problem that the world will have in this, is that they are not able to put aside themselves and their false notions, of what history has taught every generation, that has come before them. Which is, that they are living a lie, that is outside of the faith and love, that comes to us from God. There is absolutely nothing on this earth, that it produces, that will have satisfied you, when it all comes down to your death bed. So what is awaiting those, who have turned their life over into the security of Gods salvation. For them, there will be a new reality, that compared to this reality, will make this life, nothing more than a blink of the eye. So miniscule a detail, that if it were not for the knowledge, of what a great and glorious thing, God did for us in saving us at the cross. All thought of our humanity, would be discarded as nothing value, in the process of eternity. revealed to us. > All of which is coming to us, will be in a realm of existence, when Christ establishes his eternal glory, without rival or question. As his being the only glory that exist, and in that time, we will come to know all whom God is. It will finally dawn on us, how much more we should have lived all our life, for the one true glory, which is Christ made more known in us, while on this earth. At that time, there will be no questions, because it will all be present before us, the fullness that Christ himself is, as he was the answer himself, all along. 8:19 For the creation > This is not just a singular event in your life alone, a lot is hinging, on what God is doing throughout all of creation. In relation to what he is also doing, in each individual that comes to know, who Christ is and the living Spirit of God, that has taken up the indwelling, of himself in man. Creation has a stake in mans salvation, just as does, everyone who is saved. The lion and the lamb, are at war, due to mans sin, as well as we are. eagerly waits > For we are all in a state of morning, from that which has come upon us from the fall of man, and that which will finally close the book upon the curse. That which has plagued us all, is in a state of deep anticipation, for all of Gods glory to be fully known and understood by creation itself. It will, one day in itself, be a breath taking event, for which we know now that when it occurs, our struggles will end, as we enter into the sinless existence of Gods presence. The longest line ever known, is being formed to get in early, so to not miss out on any of what occurs there with God. for the > This then is what is being waited for with anticipation, that is, its arrival, as the reason that we are sustained now, in this state we are in. It is the hope that we have, that it is already secured for us, one day in the future, where it becomes a present state, rather, than a future hope. revelation > As to the understanding of it completely, so one day the unfolding of all that has transpired, thru all of creation it will be known. What a great salvation, was brought about thru the work of Christ, will be made known to all of creation and the curse will end. The truth of what Christ did, will no longer be up for the issue of debate among those with minds to think. It will be the state of truth for all who are self-aware, that Jesus is Lord of all, but in special relation to those, who have been saved by faith in him. So that they can rejoice, in what they were in waiting for, while existing in the previous state of sin. That held them from knowing holiness, apart from the remorse of the sin, that dwelt with them in the flesh. of the > So the event itself, of those who will be involved in this, they are the objects that are waiting to be uncovered. It is their involvement in this that is what is making it a timely event. Though it is what will be revealed to them, that being Christ, that is at the center of this. It is their participation in this, that is Christ intention for it to occur. As Christ himself is in full knowledge of himself, it is his creation that he desires, to awaken to this full state with himself. sons of God. > Those who became Gods children, thru the course of trusting in Christ work to save us. Will become permanent heirs to the Fathers kingdom, which will become their present state forever. Neither the past nor the future will exist any longer, only their present fellowship with God, without end or time. For with God, all time is present tense, for all eternity is present before him at all times. He is as present in the past, as much as he is present, in the future, as he is present in this very moment in time. Just as a speaker looks out over an audience and sees those on his left, those in the middle and those on the right, and they in turn are all focused on the speaker. God looks out over the audience of time and sees the past, present and future, and all of time is focused on him, waiting for his instruction. 8:20 For the creation > All that is created and cognate of Gods redemption, is aware of what God doing. They have become aware that time is fleeting and earth is passing away, but they themselves are not in control of time, but are controlled by it. Those who are in league with God, are looking forward to his control of time, but those who are against God, are dreading it. Because it will mean the end of them, as having any controlling interest in what happens to them, as they only exist in time, which they would wrestle away from God, bur cannot. was subjected > As all our parts in this drama that must be played out, we have been assigned a place and space in time. In which we are to dwell and contribute our lives, to the working out of this life. Either as we are being saved from the drudgeries of sin, or being held accountable for that which they have committed against God here on earth. to futility- > As a result of this they must also labor in vain to efforts, that bring about no lasting satisfaction. They are instructed and are taught in lifes lessons, of what must come to be and what is the utter waste time it is, to be caught up in their own sins. All of mans labors, in the end, come to nothing and have no lasting value here on earth. It is all a big waste of their time, for those who do not know God and await his arrival and the end of time on earth. not willingly > And this not of their own choosing, for they would rather not be in bondage, but the fallen state of man must be established in every individual. Even after they have been redeemed of Christ, or unless they forget from what they are saved and forget his mercy. Man must live out his life under decrees of Gods curse, till time has expired and God has closed the book on the existence of time, concerning mans occupation of earth, in a separated presence of God. but > This is not occurring though, outside of Gods control, just because he is not fully present in life on earth, in the fullness of his glory. God is settling an issue in heaven, at the same time he is settling his issue, with mans willful objection to him being God. because of God > It is God who chose this course for man to follow, God in his providence has chosen the way mankind shall live and only God has a say, in every detail of what transpires in their life. The fact that God has allowed man to exist, in a state of sin that is against him, comes out of his desire to first establish his glory, thru which we are recipients of his mercy, to save some of us from his eternal judgment, that most will endure. God himself, has total control over all that transpires in space and time, and it is only at his behest, that man is continuing in the state that he is in. Absent Gods will, man and time, would cease to exist. who subjected it- > It is by his design, that man should live out his life in subjection to sins curse, and come to understand fully what it took for God to save man from himself. Though we have been freed from the curse of the sin in our flesh, our flesh is not redeemable and must exist in its fallen state, until time is complete. Because of that, we have a part in that which God is doing, it does no good to reject that as the state we are in. Because without this ongoing state, we would have never come into existence, because we would have never been born into time itself. in hope > So out of this, our anticipation for redemption is heightened, and our longing to go home with God, is made a firm foundation, before we leave this world and all of its despair. We become aware of Gods coming glory, before we ever are allowed to see it or have a part in it. That is the function of this life on earth, to make us aware, to teach us of that which God is, before we come face to face with him, in eternity. Whereas, the angels are created fully aware, they wonder at us in amazement, in both what God is doing and how we respond, knowing what they know, of the fullness of his glory. 8:21 that the creation itself > As a result of this, all of what is enlightened according to Gods living Spirit, becomes aware of what God is doing, and that the curse is not forever, but temporal upon them, is redeemed also. will also > And they will be part of Gods new plan, they will not be left behind, neither will Gods Spirit leave them ignorant of what will occur to them. It is cumulative, in that it is creation, altogether, that will respond to mans final freedom. The bonds of earth, that hold all that exist here, will follow the lead of what happens to man. be set free > As they will find, that they have been released and all that was binding them to sin, has been done away with, so that, it no longer exist. The effect of mans sin that had kept them prisoners of man sin, will be reversed. from the bondage > Due to the fact that what held us prisoner was life itself, it kept our spirit in bondage to our flesh, which was terminally diseased with sin and incurable. In that all creation was sentenced along with mans lead into sinful living. So with mans complete freedom, will come creations freedom also. of decay > Which it now exist only to die, it feeds only on self-destructing desires, that bring it to only further ruin, in its temporal existence on earth. That is a result of the process of mans leading creation into sin, which is without Gods blessing, to sustain it against the wild nature of itself, that developed out of mans sinful lead. into the glorious > But the day will come when the body in its current state will be no more, that which was temporal, will be changed into the body of the glorified Christ. A separate but married body to Christ himself, and this body will exist with Christ in his eternal state. This will occur as an action or event, just as did mans fall in the garden. It is not a slow metamorphosis that happens over time, it will be a singular event, that brings it about as a new and permanent pattern, that creation will follow. freedom of > It will be as its nature, a time of ceremony and celebration when it occurs. It will find itself as responding to what is happening as a reflex of what is occurring, just as it did in the fall, only with the opposite effect. Instead of following mans lead into sin, it is coming out from under that curse, that has been canceled by this event. Gods children. > In this new body, we will be set permanently free, from all that deluded and swayed our thinking. We shall proceed with all that would be to Gods glorious righteousness, and we be to God his own children, and part of his kingdom. With which creation shall be loosed also along with us. 8:22 For we know > So Gods has given us instruction as to what shall come to be, he has taught us thru his Spirit what things have brought us to our current state. This was one of the first things that we were taught about all of creation, that we were and are responsible for leading and caring for it. that the whole creation > And we are not in this alone, because the whole earth was cursed in its subservient position to man. Because what came upon man, came upon the earth, when man disobeys God, the land shows signs of Gods judgment. If man live in a right relationship to God, then creation itself is blessed with man and God heals the land. It is bound to us, as though it were a prisoner of the ball and chain effect. groans and suffers > Everything goes into a sign of mourning, due to the fact that it becomes an abducted prisoner to sin. It bears the scars of mortal battle, it is weakened and left ill by the effects of mans sin. It plays its part in us, it also strikes back at us for how we live in our relationship to God. together > That link, has always been an inseparable one, that forced it to be in sin with man. It has never had a choice or a say in the state that it is in, it only has a reaction to what has occurred in mankind itself, it cannot lead, it can only follow. until now. > And all of these conditions continue, even to this very day, as it has been, is how it shall be, when one is in a state of sin. God does not heal the land separated from sin, the land will always be a waste product of mans sin. But with repentance in the heart of man, comes relief from the tortures of his sin for creation. As God subdues the sinfulness in mans flesh, thru the power of the Spirit, so he also subdues the reaction of creation, against mans sin. Because God has veto power over all things, he is able to intercede and interfere with the nature of things on earth. 8:23 Not only this, but we ourselves also, > So know that we know Christ, we can know and understand what it is that has trapped us, and caught us in its snare. So we have vision in a dark world, that reveals the workings of sin. We have insight into the troubles around us, because we are the informed ones by God, who tells us plainly, that we are the cause, but that we will also lead it out of its suffering in the end. who have > It is how God has had mercy on us, that there is hope ahead for all creation. God has planted in us the hope of salvation, in that, he has begun his work already in us. The efforts of God in settling the issue of man is ongoing, but it will all accumulate, until that one coming day, in which, it will all be settled at once. The important fact in all this is, that we do have a part in Gods plan for what is occurring, we are included in it, if we have faith in Christ. the firstfruits > We are the beginning results of Christ labor in us, to redeem us to the Father and to do good works thru his power, and of that power. We are the first of many generations that will receive that power, which is only a demonstration of it, not the final stage. God is planning a great harvest one day, in which he will call all the faithful, to live before him in full consciousness of each other and himself. Now we live each day, in partial knowledge of him and each other, but one day we will all be united in him. of the Spirit, > And that power is what indwells us and makes us alive, it is this Spirit of Gods holiness that instructs us. That we are living in a dying body, that has been discarded by God, as having any redeeming value to it. God is not in the process of improving your body, he is only subduing it, in the sanctification process of the spirits control. So that what is occurring is, that life in the control of the flesh is diminishing, while our life in the Spirit is the more obvious to us, that is sanctification in this life. The flesh will always remain fully corrupt, but the Spirit is already fully Holy and perfect in us. groan inwardly > So in that, we mourn and grieve our existence, that must be lived out to the end, on this earth and in this body, which is our enemy. Life binds us to our enemy and only death removes us from its prison. So our Spirit along with the Holy Spirit, anguish over mans daily struggle with mans sin in the flesh. Because we now know the truth, the truth sets us free to know God better, but also the with that, we know better, the sickening state, that we ourselves exist in, before the God, that we long to be in total harmony with. That is what then frustrates the Spirit, the sorry state that the flesh lives in, in full view of the Spirit. as we eagerly > In this fallen state then, we have a great anticipation, for that which will release us from the abusive relationship, which we have with our own bodies. We long for that which is eternal to begin and separate us from that which is temporal. We now know, that the sooner Christ takes total victory over man, the better off we will be for all eternity. We have now with Christ, common knowledge of our condition, and it is not a pretty picture, for us to exist in. Knowing full well that we are doing by nature in our bodies, that which is against our new nature, which is in our Spirit. We now know how creation feels, in having been drug into mans state, as we are now also separate spiritual entities, that must also tolerate the sinful acts of mans flesh. Though we morn and regret the existence of it. await our adoption, > Because at this time we are in a lifestyle pattern of holding out, until Christ has returned. We occupy this life thru Christ and wait for its sinful flesh, to be brought to an end. In which we will then be brought into Gods family, as permanent residence in Christ, legal citizens of Gods heaven. We are currently away from our real home, we exist now as ambassadors in this world, as emissaries of Christ to this world. That is our function in many varied forms, until that final day comes, when God calls us home and his mission is complete. the redemption > Christ work will then be completed and all who called Jesus Lord, will then be redeemed from the grave of death and their sinful desires will end forever. Which means all that we new before, will be fully converted from the decay that it was, into a permanently preserved body, that is not susceptible to the corruption, that is now in us. of our bodies. > Your mortal bodies being transformed into immortal bodies incapable of sin. The sinful flesh is discarded and your new body will be received by the Father, as Holy and good before him, in the fullness of his glory and presence with you. That old sinful body will disappear forever and your new body, will have no inclination of its old counterpart that once housed you. You will literally move into a new home, just as you would move into a new house on earth, if the previous one burnt to the ground, taking all it contents with it, only yourself surviving in the end. All things then are new, and there is nothing of that past home there with you, in the new home. So it will be for you in heaven, not only a new body, but a new country so to speak, will become you home forever. 8:24 For in hope > There is in us a longing desire to attain this eternal state of seeing Christ face to face. We experience this desire most when we are in struggles against sin or when we are in a deep state of worship. It makes it self real when we are focused in this either of these manners. It is only when we are led away in our worldly desires that we lose our focus on the eternal and then begin to concentrate on things that are temporal, that we suffer in our faith the most. we were saved. > But when we have the proper character at work in us, we are protected from sins effects and are able to pass thru this life. Living outside of the flesh and its attempts to be a controlling influence over us. We are able to hold on, because we know that this is not all that there is, but that there is something, much greater coming down the road for us. It is like setting up camp along side a road, waiting for the parade to come. You know its not here yet, or you would not be waiting. But once it comes, you will receive what it is that you have been waiting for, thats when the celebration begins, but for now, we wait in the anticipation of its arrival. That is the present picture of our salvation, we have come to the parade route, which is Christ, but the parade and celebration of it, has yet to begin, which is the actual redemption. Now hope > This desire we have therefore, is not something that you acquire once on earth and then you are fully complete. In that, it is not a present condition that is always before us. But rather it is an ongoing process, that is reached in an eternal condition, that we attain at the end of this life. That is the true aspect of waiting, knowing what is going to happen to us, in the future for us, is worth the wait. that is seen > For if it were now visible and tangible to your physical touch, then you would already have what you were waiting for. It would be to you a present tense, as a state of mind. If we have possession of something, then it is already with us, so that we would not be looking forward to its arrival. is not hope, > But that then would no longer be something that you are desiring to attain, but would be something that is currently in your possession. So desire is diminished in possession and replaced with living with, that which you have acquired. Now possession is greater than hope, but hope excites the meaning of possession. Because if you posses that which you did not hope for, where is the meaning of its possession to you. What is the meaning for example, of attaining a vault full of gold, if gold has no meaning to you. In that, it is not a currency or decoration, but just part of the ground that you walk on, it is but glittering dirt to you. because > So due to the fact that he who posses something, is no longer waiting on its arrival, he has no reason to look for its delivery, when he has already attained it. Now, there are many among us, without hope, in that, they have no hope in Christ. What they now have, is all that they will ever gain, they are limited to what is present for them in this life. And that which they gain in this life, will all be lost in death. But that is not us, because we are not acquiring things in this life, as though it were something to be acquired. We have a greater hope ahead of us, that does not include the things of this world. who hopes > So from that, we know that desire is based on that which is to come, not on that which we already have. The idea is, where you place your hearts desires, then that becomes your treasure in life also. So the hope of this world is based only in worldly status and the thinking of men. To go after and attain that which is attainable in this life. It is practical for them then, to do just that which they are doing, which is the problem with it, in that, it is practical, not supernatural or beyond them to acquire all that they have. for what > A wife does not desire to see her husband, who is away on a trip, until he has left, and then once he has returned, the desire has been fulfilled. Of course, some wives cannot wait for their husbands to leave for their trip, but that is another topic altogether. But they have as their basis, the same nature in desire, which is the cause of the hope in them. Desire then is our object of discussion itself, that being their desires in them, to see something come about, is the same point or object in all of us. he sees? > The moral of the story here then is, that hope is based in unfulfilled desire, not in possession. Even though possession is greater than hope, hope can sustain us through the hard times, by focussing our thoughts on the outcome, and not the present wait that is before us. When you understand this principle, then you are able to apply it to your life and have hope in Christ for our future with him. 8:25 But if we hope > So what is the meaning of this exercise of our faith, in that we are continually looking forward to some coming event. It broadens out, our total consideration, to take in the facts of afterlife, instead of just this physical life. It causes us to consider the possibility, that what is occurring, may mean very little in the overall picture, so that it should not dominate us in our lifestyle actions or reactions to it. It may mean that we have to let go of something, that the world greatly prizes, just for the sole reason of having the right perspective, in our overall life. So that we are always looking to something ahead of us, as our determining force in life, rather than the current pressures of this world, that wish to shape us now, into that image which we are, based in its urgency of life. for what > All that we have knowledge of now with Christ, informs us, that the future before us, is more important, than the present things of this world. Which will all be left behind when we die, and have no impact in eternity, as to that which supports us there. Our reaction to things of this world on the other hand, will have a real impact, as to the rewards that we have in Christ in eternity. But none of the acquirements of this world, will be present or note worthy in the eternity of Christ. So that makes cause, for us to make adjustments in this life, as to the manner in which we live it and view what occurs in it, in retrospect of lifes failings and Christ victories. But how? we do not see, > Well for one thing, waiting on the future, keeps our thoughts and focus off the past things, which we did see occur that wounded us. It then builds thru faith, your Spirit of hope, which is a blessing in and of itself. It disposes of doubts, based on what you have experienced or seen in your past. Which can be a source of bitterness and leaves you with a bad taste in your mouth, as to what you have to look forward to in this body and replaces them with the desire of another existence. That is not a result of bodily attributes of this life, that function against us, but rather the sweet taste of a fresh life, in a new world. A point of reference in life, that is not a law of obedience or the hurt of a past reference. But of grace, that is mysterious in this life form, only receivable and point worthy, as a life reference in the forever realm of thinking. It brings about a systematic change in us, that leaves behind old pillars and standbys, that support us, even in our Christian walk, as unnecessary restraints, that would hinder us in our walk towards God in eternity. Just as every child has need of supports in learning to walk, or security blankets as a
reference point in its life, to give them stability and gives them commonsense of their
new experience in them. We must also, as Christians, move away from the needed, but
hindering stabilizers, that we took up in our early walk with Christ. So that we are able
to march forward toward him, unencumbered by those first childlike things. As we do, then,
Christ becomes more real and visible to us in his kingdom and this world becomes less
relevant to us. So those first things need to become less real and less restraining to us.
If we want to walk on the water, so to speak, we must see Christ as our reference point
and not the sounding waves crashing around us, as the dominate theme in us. Christ must
first dominate us in our thoughts, for Christ to dominate us in our life and that happens
as we focus and change our point of reference. The law and grace are the same thing in the
end, with different points of reference. The law looks back at what was right for us to
learn and gave us guide post and commonsense security. Grace achieves the same as the law,
but thru faith, both the law and grace say the same thing, but are at different reference
points, in reference to God. The law helped you learn to walk as you held onto them as
your support, faith then uses grace, to keep you moving toward God, without the old
supports. The law looks back, but must be let go of, where grace looks forward, and rest
in faith as its support. But both say holiness, both are the Father, son and Holy Spirit.
The first got us going, the second sees us thru to the end. But it cannot be understated,
that the law and grace say the same thing and produce the same thing in Gods realm. Only
in sinful man do they produce opposite effects, but both are guides to holy living. The
law adhered to is grace, and completed grace in us, is the law, they are not at odds with
each other, it is sin, that is at odds with both of them. > So we become passionate about what we do not have, we anticipate the release from this worlds hold over us. We look forward to what will await us on the other side of death. A fantastic adventure that rivals any thoughts, that man in his imagination could ever conjure up on his own. Its the prospects of our future with Christ that should excite us into a new way of thinking, that is not logical in the sight of man. Not foolish for the sake of being foolish, but foolish in the logic of mans thinking. Because it plays down this world, but plays up, that which we cannot now taste, touch or have tangible presence of. Because it is spiritually discerned and not physically reliable or attainable. It has no value in the mind of man, but is priceless in that which it is, because it is God, period, whom we a seeking to attain. for it > So we have a possession, that is not definable in the standards and aspirations of this world. It is not a substance that exist in the physical senses of worldly man. But it is more real than man. Because man in all that he is, is still temporal and finite, limited in everything that he is. But that which is outside of mans time, is the truth and true reality. Mans existence, is the real imitation or fraud that exist. Because it has no lasting value, or self supporting existence in life. Whereas God, is forever without change or differing perspective of things. with endurance. > The prospect of it alone, is so exciting that we are able with a spiritual mind, to make a rational comparison, to what we have on earth. And then come away with a conclusion, that it is much healthier for us to maintain, that focus on this coming event, that units us with Christ. As that of an exercise, which will, in and of itself, produce a strong and vibrant faith, that others will see in you. Allowing you to let go of the past, as you move towards his grace. 8:26 In the same way, the Spirit > So he fills us with his power thru the Holy Spirit, the Spirit is insightful down to the most minute details of our life. Nothing escapes his notice or is beyond his comprehension, because he is permanently in our life, 24/7. Thru the good days and the bad, the Holy Spirit has come alongside us, in order to befriend us and guide us in the ways of the Father. In fact, the Holy Spirit knows us better than we know ourselves. Because the Holy Spirit is not misguided by the deeds and desires of the flesh, he knows our true potential, thru God in what we shall become. helps us > In fact, he knows before we do, what will help or hurt us, and is preparing us for the eventualities that will come before us. It is in Gods interest, that he is accumulating that which is best for us, on our behalf. He is engaged in an ongoing process, that is reinforced with his authority and power, to cause things to properly occur in our life. Not to achieve greatness in this life according to its standards, but to lead us in grace to that new life ahead of us, with God as its standard. in our weakness, > What we struggle with, he takes on as our defense, he places himself in the midst of our struggles, anticipating what it is that is troubling you. He operates as a self-diagnostic intercessor on your behalf, able to peer into your soul, which you are not able to even see, and interrupt the meaning of your souls need. The Holy Spirit, is there as our teacher under grace, not under the law. Because it is by grace, he is not there to condemn, but to correct and nurture to health, just as does a mother her own child. The mothers goal is not to ruin her child, not even in discipline, but to mature her child to become and adult. So it is with the Holy Spirit, who is there to help us get it right, not to beat us up if we get it wrong. Nothing would please the Holy Spirit more, than to see us get it right every time, but until that day, he supports us in that which we need help in. He is both a nurturing mother and a best friend in times of trouble, who speaks to the Father on our behalf. for we > The problem arises within us, as we are confused by the differing pulls at us from the sinful flesh, and the holiness of God, that we are adjusting to. At times we want the one and not the other, this a the warring that is going in all of us. Sometimes we have learned to see are way clear of the battle, but other times, we are lost in the "fog-of-war" and need help to guide us clear. This is part of our weakness and state in this life, that we are at war, and God knows it better than we do, because it is him whom we are at war with, in these bodies. That is why he has provided the Holy Spirit for us to communicate thru the battle lines with, to him directly, so that he can save us from his destruction in this war. He will accept surrender from you, in every battle you fight against him, but you will need the Holy Spirit, to work out the plans of that surrender. Not all surrenders to God are unconditional, they may require action on your part. do not know > Because if we cannot even see the soul, how do we understand how it functions, it is not tangible to our touch, in fact it is elusive to us in almost every facet of its existence. It is self aware, but unsearchable by our own voyages in our attempts to map it out, we seek its meaning and find nothing that is sensible to us. We simply cannot put our hands around that which we are, in order to properly choose its destiny, because it is being drawn by two different forces, the flesh and the Spirit. The flesh wants to subdue the soul into its destruction and the Spirit wants to take it fully into the presence of God. how we > It is the flesh that finds itself mindless and ignorant, irrational at every turn of events, because of its condition. Therefore, it does not have the presence of mind or inclination to come before God in the right way. It does not know the way home to God, not even the right direction to begin the march to him. Everything appears too random, without focus or attention to detail, as to what is the right thing to do. You can simply not come up with a logical solution to you problem, so all you can do, is just sit down and cry about it, and that is okay. should pray, > Because of this state in us, we are often left speechless, when confronted with the issues that are of God and how we engage God in our conversation with him in prayer, as to how we address what we cannot see or understand. That is part of the problem of that "fog-of-war" syndrome, that leaves us at a disadvantage. Unaware of the right direction, due to the lack of vantage point that you have as a result of being in the battle, but not above the war in our perspective of things. but > The Holy Spirit on the other hand, is fully aware of our souls need and that of which it desires most. Both in relation to what it needs to achieve in life, and Gods overall sovereign control of this war with sin. This is the dividing line in your life, that gives you access to the vantage point of God. That which you have, but the lost world does not have, in relationship to God. This is what separates the saints from the sinners, the Holy Spirits interaction in your life, right along side of you. This is what is active in you, that allows you to come out on top, even when you are sitting at the bottom. the Spirit himself > That is where the Spirit comes in and helps us by praying for what we do not even comprehend. The Spirit knows the future, while we only know the past and present, the Holy Spirit is our prayer partner, always ready to be at our side and speak to the Father on our behalf. The Holy Spirit represents Gods intimate action and knowledge of what is going on in us, in our daily life as Christians. Because he is there present with us when life is occurring, we need not explain it to him, but rather, just look to him for the way out of that which is battling for us. So when you cannot pose the questions to God, look for the answers, to come to you, from the Holy Spirits action in your life. intercedes > Sometimes, we just need help in having someone explain that which we do not understand. Because we are so limited in our spiritual vision, we are in need of a translator, not only in speaking to God, but in hearing from him. In communicating the infinite to the finite and back again. The Holy Spirit has come to live with us, as its part in us. It is intimately aware of our yearnings and desires, both in honesty and dishonesty. Because he is there at all times, he knows how to communicate back to God, the right words and needs we are having. We pray in the Spirit, thru the son, to the Father. This is the process ordained by God, that keeps us in constant contact with the triune God. It functions as a filtering process in both directions on our behalf. So the Holy Spirit is going before us, bringing God to us and us to God, as his relationship to us and to God. for us > The Spirit knows the Father and always ask for the right things in our life, the Spirit is not dissuaded be earthly desires and lives as always in an eternal frame of reference from which it is able to discern your every need. Keeping in mind, that when he speaks, there is silence in honor of his voice, God does not speak over the sound of the Spirits voice, because they honor one another. The Spirit is our consular-attaché, whose opinion is highly regarded, as the revered-opinion-of-choice. In that, his opinion is not to be exceeded by any others and the Father agrees, as does the Son. The Holy Spirits opinion is perfect. So the Spirit is not just speaking for us, but over and above us, in what we are able to request or have knowledge of. A superior position, with absolute insight into that which is occurring in us. with inexpressible > The Holy Spirit is filled with emotions on your behalf and is able to express these feelings in ways, that are not to us sensible words, that we can articulate ourselves. There are many languages on earth with differing translations that can confuse the true nature and meaning of what is said. But in heaven, there is but one voice and language between the Father, son and Holy Spirit. They converse in a voice that is not in words so that man is aware of what is said. They have their basis of speech in the essence of who they are as a union together, they know the mode of the others heart, because that is the message of their heart also. Language and the misrepresentations of it, are our difficulties here on earth, but in heaven, they have one common language that is known between them. groanings. > It is a language that speaks to the Father from the deep, to the deep, unspeakable sounds that reveal the whole truth of the matter. The Spirit has a different point of reference than we do, in fact, it has an eternal view of things. Knowing us before creation and that which will occur in us for eternity. The Holy Spirit sees the whole Timeline of your life, not in part or in limited interest in its outcome. It is able to speak with foreknowledge to the Father, of that which will occur in you and in wisdom, of what it is that is most important for you, in your issue in life. 8:27 And he who searches > God probes mankind and creation, as it is his, to command and rule over. He probes the hearts of mankind, looking for the hearts of those, who are willing to be led into his presence and find repentance in his word to them. Though God probes all the hearts of the people on earth, he continues with them, who have come into repentance already, building a relationship with him. Wanting to know them and them to know him. His joy is to see us mature in him and become more like him in our thinking. He knows the difficulties that lie ahead of us, so he plans for us the very best way for us to be a part of him. our hearts > Because he looks intently at the meanings within us, to find integrity, for what is his purpose. Finding in you the methods he will use, that will bring glory to his name. Within in all of us, are the truths and potentials that he created in us, to be made manifest thru his glory and use of them. Within in all of us are certain boundaries that define, that who we are. God is able to see all the details of who we are, the good possibilities and the weak values that limit us also. None of us are limitless, we all have to be found by him first, for it to be able in us, to be led into his presence. knows the mind > And because the Father and the Spirit have the same thoughts and have eternal perspective of all things. They think exactly alike, and know already what the other will say. They do not debate with one another, but they do converse and discuss that which they do with sincerity for us. For them it is the joy of their existence to have this fellowship, in which they contribute to one anothers perspective of things. They share the same values and goals, from which never come any divisions. But sharing the same values and goals, makes it a worthwhile venture for them to be in, they know the outcome, but enjoy the trip there. of the Spirit, > This makes the Spirit in unison with the Father on our behalf, the Spirit exist in the heavenly realm of the Father and sees with an eternal purpose for us. The Spirit knows the manner of things and what are the perceptive abilities of the ones involved with them. The issue is not whether the Spirit is properly aligned with the Father and Son. That is a given, the cause behind what they are doing in this, is relating to God, what it is that the person is in need of, to guide them thru or sustain them in resources to get there. And what it is that they are able in themselves to receive from God as a resource. We are not all equal in our present walk with God, we are all each operating as an individual, in a collective walk with God. As is demonstrated here, in the inner workings of the Triune God, working together, individually, yet collectively. because the Spirit > And due to the fact that the Holy Spirit dwells within us and is in continues fellowship with us. He knows our needs even when we dont understand what is happening to us. Not just what we think we need, not a wish list made up fantasies and passing thoughts. But deep rooted passions, that need to be grown and nurtured on the vine of life, so that they can be useful in ministry for Gods glory. intercedes > This is the functioning part, that the Holy Spirit then plays in the Trinity. Acting as a go between for the saints and for the Father and Son. Making communication possible in both directions, taking the will of God in a very present way to man, and the needs of those who are his children, to God for consideration of those needs, from God. There intercourse with on another is eternal and always has been, but ours is temporal and instructional for our behalf. on behalf > The Holy Spirit pleas our case before the throne of God, so that all our concerns are met with the will of God, as the right concluding answer for us. The Spirit knows what the Father wants to hear concerning that which we need, at the stage we are in. Relaying that information to the Father, so that we can rest assured, that we have been heard before the throne of God. of the saints > So he speaks to the Father on our behalf and makes request for us that the Father will agree with. He explains to the Father our progress and difficulties and the Father then causes that which is for our good, to come about in our lives. God is on the side of the saints, and the Holy Spirit and God work together to assure that it all comes out correctly, in the working of Gods will. according > Where mankind is wavering in all the things that they do, rushing in one direction and then another like a flock of birds. God is precise in what he does at all time, ever moving forward with mankinds path into eternity, not swayed as man is by every breeze that comes along. Or as men are, herded together to follow one mans lead and than another. to Gods will. > This all according to what the purpose of Gods will is for your life and for our eternal benefit. Not just the temporary time on earth, but into the ever lasting things of man in heaven. It is Gods sovereign plan that is at work here, what he has chosen to do, will be done, and if he is able to include us in it, that is his will also. 8:28 And we know that all things > That every thing that happens in your life, has a purpose, a purpose designed by God, to enlighten your understanding of him and aid you in your walk. There are no things that occur in your life, that he is not aware of. That he could not have prevented, that we have seen as a negative perception on our part, or that were positive, that he did not either cause or want to have happen. They all happened in full sight of him, at his behest or tolerance of it. work together > They are all part of the larger puzzle, that is designed to complete you life in Christ body. They may seem disconnected and out of shape when looked at separately, before they are properly applied in your life. But when they are assembled by God, they develop into the picture of you, that he created to be unique in every aspect. for good > And this disfigured piece of the puzzle, that may seem too insignificant at the time, to have any measurable value to it. Matures into a picture that would be incomplete without it, and if we saw it from Gods vantage point, we could see the necessity of our endurance of it, as this part of us. for those > He places high value on your differing parts that he is creating in you, it is for your benefit that he is so precisely fitting you into his kingdom. That which is abstract now, will all make sense when you see what it is that he shaping you for in the future, there are no accidental trials here, that never turn to gold. God is forming diamonds out of our clay, that we alone, would not have known its power to be done in us. who love God, > So any one whose heart is in favor of Gods will and wants to do everything that is pleasing to him. We then will have an advantage in disadvantage, where others who suffer from the loss of what occurs, have no gain in it, only loss. Because God loves us much more then we know and is raising us to be good children, by not doing everything for us, but by sustaining us thru the difficulties, that confound us. He has given us a higher social order to live by, not to make us superior, but to increase us, as that which we are. To help us find ourselves in him, and him in ourselves. A community, just as does the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. who are called > Because God did not stand by silently while we perished, but called out to us to warn us of the danger, that was waiting to destroy us throughout all eternity. He studied us and examined the hearts of his people, so he could save us. He vested his being into making us into his image, that he originally intended to have happen in us. according > God did not need man to complete himself as God, that was never his intended purpose behind mans salvation and life in him. God did though create mankind as dependant upon him for survival on a daily basis. So thru this, God is engaging mankind to fulfill that which he is doing with all creation as a whole. Man is part of Gods plan, because we were created as his dependants and God is seeing that thru. to his purpose, > Because with God there are no accidents in our life, but rather events timed to help us mature into his image, which we saw in the life of his son, Christ Jesus. He is making us Christ-like, both in the sufferings and the joy that we encounter. Its basis and action in our life, is to fully establish his glory before all creation, so that they can know the fullness of his glory. Because that is our eternal hope, not the temporary state that we have here now on earth. 8:29 because those whom > Though God is more than able to encounter man as a random event of creation, the fact that he is God and in control of creation, means he knows who you are already, as a part of his creation. He was already aware of you before you came onto the scene, even if you were a surprise or accident to your parents, he knew who you were and of your arrival. Because of that, he has studied you as a case history of his creation, having created you, he is responsible for dealing with you as part of his creation. God will not just walk away and say, whatever! Letting you determine the final outcome of his creation. God has examined you and found you able to receive his grace and call to repentance thru his son. he foreknew > Because of that, God was well aware in advance what things he would allow to come upon you, in your walk with him. In that thru them he might work out his will, by establishing the things in our future, to be an exact measurement of the person he has chosen to make you into. The whole of what your response to his call of grace to you, is the leaving behind of your self-will. Where you are leaving behind being at the center of it, in order to establish Gods-will in you, with Christ being at its center for you, Christ being the goal or target here. You are willingly making Christ the objective in your life, that is the whole idea of becoming the elect of God, the chosen ones, by grace, to become Christ-like. Because your hearts were examined by God to be found willing, to respond to his grace and call to repentance. he also > We must all realize that God has the same objective for each of us, but in order to get us to that point and reach his objective for us. He acts upon each of us individually, according to our own special needs, which he created into our personalities as humans. So God is on the case, so to speak, doing the necessary things that alter us into his intended purpose for us. To get to that point of destiny, you cannot opt out of any of the things that God brings into your life. They are all significant for your development, and will bear the resemblance of Christ in the end, as they leave his mark upon you. Just as does metal being struck by the whitesmith on the anvil, a whitesmith, is a blacksmith who works on precious metals, which we are become to God. A whitesmith does not require that the metals be heated in most cases, and is working to produce a work of art, as opposed to a blacksmiths iron which is forged with heat and returns to its hardened condition. A precious metal though, always remains pliable in the hand of the whitesmith, although it is work hardened in the process, gaining strength from the forging process, it remains a soft metal. predestined > He didnt just predict what would come about in your life, but he orchestrated and ordered the sequence of them. So that he could mold and form you into another image then that in which you were found. God has planned for you in eternity, not just here on earth and he is shaping you now for that eventuality when it comes. God has prearranged your eternity with him, based on your responding to his call into repentance, thru his son, Christ Jesus. God has removed the meaningless random of events of mankind from your presence and turned them into useful tools for your benefit. to be conformed > He has determined in you, to alter in a permanent form, the attributes which make up the character of who you are. He has determined to not make just make a temporary fix or makeup some superficial façade, by which others may see you by. But by method of internal redirection, he reorders the basic instructions that dwell within your soul. So that you respond in a different way, to the same set of circumstances. Situations, that would have once tripped you up and left you wounded in sin, are now examples of his glory showing thru you in them. Just as it all occurred in the life of Jesus, where what occurred was meant for evil, God meant and used for the accomplishment of good. to the image > Thereby, rebirthing you as a living offspring of his holiness, making his attributes alive in you. Not a false image as other adhere to false Gods, that are conjured up to deceive us into believing in a lie, producing a feel good mentality toward God. But a true image of the living and breathing God, an outward expression of the inward living being of God in you. This is not just an outward façade that God is constructing around you, this has roots in you, that are growing outward to produce this image of Christ. As these roots deepen and penetrate your life in Christ, they become the dominate life force in you. Showing forth Gods original intent for mankind, as Christ repopulates the earth with his offspring. All of which, are a resemblance of himself living in the lives of those who are chosen by God, to exist in the glory of his grace, as exemplified by his son. of his Son, > Whom you have seen alive in the flesh as he lived on the earth, and have heard the testimony about given to you by others. Because all of God was visible in the life of his son, that which Jesus responded to, was a life lesson for you to look to as our guide also. Jesus was and is the living representation of who you should be like on earth, so in that, anyone and everyone, knows the answer of Gods call in their life. As to the daily details of your life, how you should love and live is in the story of Christ himself. From that God will define your ministry in church, but it must begin with you being Christ-like, for each and every person. Do not try to make your life and ministry big, just make it personal everyday, and God will define the best size of your ministry for you. that his Son > So that thru his son, you would have the true image of his desire for you, and where he is leading you is where Jesus went. The person you should be is an exact replica of the manner and way Jesus lived his life on earth. Christ lived his life being counter to the ways of the world. To the world, his was a backwards way of living, unprofitable and unsustainable. Confounding the natural order of things on earth. Christ upset the cart of mankind, by always walking against the flow of humanity, but yet at the same time, along with the will of God. Christ was forging a new ordering of things, based in the eternal ways of his Father, not upon the suppositions or speculations of mans thinking. Christ was and is the absolutes of God, in living human form on earth. would be > As a result that incarnation of God in human form that we knew as Jesus the son of God. God us establishing a never before race and nationality of people, never before in existence on earth before. Theirs is a completely new creation by God, before which there was none. No man was in the likeness or example of who Jesus was, as God incarnate form, born into the human race. the firstborn > Jesus was the first one to accomplish in the flesh, what God intended all along. He was fully alive in his Spirit to God and his flesh had no authority over him to order him to commit sin in his life. The possibility of sin was there, but his instinct was to please and glorify his Father. Jesus was the only and first man in the flesh to do so, no one else ever lived fully for God, regardless of that consequence on earth. Jesus became the first person to walk with God and never sin in his presence, and as a result of that. God had a willing and sufficient sacrifice for sin, so God crucified him on the cross for having lived so. Not in judgment of him, but in substitute judgment of those of us whom would be called into his repentance, as a result of Jesus having a God centered act of life. So God judged Jesus as sin, because-of-us, so that Jesus could take possession of us,
away from Gods judgment and death, and give us life, because-of-God. What Jesus did, he
did because-of-God, not what God did to Jesus, he did because-of-us. Jesus lived
completely centered on God, as his goal in life. When that occurs, then God is able to
freely give the abundance of who he is, as he is unhampered by his duty to judge sin. As
all judgement now has been handed over to pass thru the lambs judgement and now occurs
thru Jesus instead. God is able to reestablish his fellowship with those who responding to
life in Christ. Are no longer under Gods judgment, but instead live in the goodness of his
grace. > Jesus is now then our leader, not to make our lives more full of ourselves, but to make us also God-centered, thru him, so that God can live fully thru us. As we focus on God, God is glorifying himself thru us, which is far beyond any imaginable thing, that we could prescribe for ourselves, in our own course in life. brothers and sisters. > And that my fellow believers, is what God is accomplishing in your life also. You too will come out the other side of your trials, refined and purified from the sins that once dominated your life, which squelched your hopes and dreams. But know your hope is everlasting and your dreams are of an eternal glory, that is much more then a dream. It is an eternal excursion, that never subsides back into the drudgeries of life, so long as it is God-centered. 8:30 And those he predestined, > First he determined what manner of people we should be, in that alone we know he is making us into the image of his son, but also our placement in the body of the church, as his Sons believers. So God has said this, I am predestining or have made up my mind, that all of you are to become like my Son, as the manner in which you live your life. That is the preset or predestined standard that he has set for you, it not different for each of us, it is the same in that sense, that we are all to become Christ-like. he also called; > Secondly, he then made a direct appeal to our hearts, that we should clearly see who his Son was, by revealing in us, the power of his Sons faithfulness to him. That he would give us the strength to believe in his Son, as his invitation is personal to everyone that is willing to hear his voice. He wants no one to go off into sin, but because very few are chosen in this manner of being called to be Christ-like. Because so many refuse to listen when he calls to them. It is because they refuse to hear his call, that few are chosen, when he calls them into repentance, thru his Son. So those he called; are those who respond to his invitation to become Christ-like, the call itself, is to become Christ-like, as he predestined man to be, he destined us to be as Christ is. That is your destiny in Christ, to be gathered together for a single purpose, not for diversity of opinion or to find ourselves or our own identity, but to found as a replica of Christ, period. You are being called to abandon self and identity, for that of Christs in you. and those he called, > The Third part of this process, is a change in our legal status before him. Where we were once condemned, with those who rejected his calling to be predestined, as our own destiny to be changed into the image of Jesus. We are now those who accepted his calling, to come out our past and into his presence. In that we have accepted his invitation to come under the judgement process of Christ and receive forgiveness as a result of our trust in God, thru the process of trusting in Christ. It is the accepting of Gods process of salvation, that has saved us, many are going unsaved, despite the work of Christ, merely because they are unwilling to respond to the call from God to trust in his process of salvation alone. That process of trusting, is then, trusting in Christ alone to provide us with salvation, by believing in him, as to have achieved salvation for us. he also justified; > So in this new legal status, we are no longer found guilty before his coming court of judgement. We have been given a substitution to stand trial in our place, his son Jesus, who has been judged innocent of sin, in our place, as our defense of how we lived our life on earth. God is always pleased with Jesus life, so he calls us Holy thru his sons life, because of how he lived and died in our place. So here again, God has gathered us into a special group of people, having their sole identity in Christ alone, not standing on their merits, but in Christs, which makes us legitimate before God. and those he justified, > Then finally as his last act, because Jesus was substituted for us. God has also included us in Christ current position in heaven for eternity. God is not going to move on to some new interest and let us just pass away as historical remnants, he will retain us in his presence for all of eternity. Because we now have legal status before him, we have a legal claim to be in heaven with him. He has given us a right to exist with him in heaven forever. he also glorified. > So he has adorned us with his glory, which is Christ glory thru us. Giving us a position unlike others of his creation, in that, we are seated along side his son in position of leadership in heaven. Then when that final day comes, to bring an end of man in the flesh on earth, we will then be with God forever. There, we will work with God for all eternity, in the events that will occupy our lives forever. This again, is a gathering of the saints, under the heading of Christ as their Lord, no individuality in this glorying process, the glory is Christ glory, shone thru us as those who are his. 8:31 What then shall we say > Having laid things out as I have, what conclusions should we draw from this, what applications do we make to our own lives. What should our attitude be in light of the fact, that God has order certain paths to our lives, to be preset for each of us, exactly the same. If that is the case, that it is already a certainty in our lives, that this will be our predetermined outcome for us, which what I mean to say, is being Christ-like. about these things? > Should we despise things we dont like or the way that people treat us? Should we despise them, knowing that God has put them directly in our paths and orchestrates them to happen? Are the actions of others, who are not aware of what you are assured by God, really, be at all relevant to the way we should respond, as a church of believers? Should the fact that these things go on around us, create doubt in us about who is in charge of the universe, knowing that God is just using them to show their darkness and frailty, in light of his glory and strength? Should any of this concern us in the least, so as to make us worry about such things? If God > Ask yourself, who is God? Who is the one who speaks and all creation, whether good or evil, must yield to his authority? It is God alone, who has absolute control of everything that occurs in all of creation, that which you see and that which you do not see, continue or cease to exist, all at his behest. is for us, > If in any event that takes place in your life that grabs your attention, if we have learned any one key principle from it, it is that if God has order it. So if he has said let it be so, and saying in this fashion, let it have this effect. If God has taken up our cause to bring us out from the world, despite the action of this world. His authority and position being exceedingly greater than all that occurs in this world, in that he created it all. If the one who created all the powers that be, lower than himself, in position and power. who can > What chance do what they say or want to do, have any chance of defeating what God wants to have occur in our lives. If they can only do what he allows them to do, then that is all that they will ever be able to against you. They are in essence, toothless tigers in search of prey, all bark but no bite, so to speak. They can put a good spin on things and puff up their chest all they want, but they cannot do anything without God giving them authority to make it occur. be against us? > Who is able to prevent that which God is empowering us to do, who can override the absolute power of God and make his ruling, null and void? Who can make God meaningless over his own creation, and thereby defeat us? What and where is their basis of operation, that gives them identity, authority or strength to overcome the power the God who created them. God has not ceased or yielded his power to anyone, accept to Christ, who is God incarnate for mans salvation and all judgment of creation. So they who have turned away from God, have done so to their own destruction and we should pay no heed to them or their intentions. 8:32 Indeed, he who > When the Father, who is above all power that exist, whose attributes are all perfect and Holy in all that is his character. When he is the one, who initiated what has occurred for our benefit, that is something, in and of itself, to take notice of. When he is behind this and it his investment that is backing the process of moving our salvation forward. did not spare > When he does not withhold any of his effort in order to accomplish, that which he has determined to do. But goes beyond what our human thinking is able of itself to devise a solution to. Having set himself up to suffer a great loss in the short run, in order to gain only a portion of mankind in return for his investment in us. That value that he placed in us, could not be found in us, but had to be determined by that which was not based on us, but in what he was willing to pay for us. his own Son, > Because of that, he surrenders the life of his only son, and turns his fate over to the certain outcome of a fallen humanity. He willing removed the security from his own sons life, in order to loss it intentionally, in the hands of sinful man and the devil. Knowing full well, what the outcome would be to such vulnerability, if he released him, into the domain of sinful mankind, his son being in a state of pure holiness. but gave him up > Allowing them to defeat his body and abuse his position, that is of the Father. Intentionally placing him in this position before men, so they could destroy his body and kill his flesh. In order, as they saw it, to defeat God from his place of authority over men. God let them believe that they were defeating him, by defeating his son. But little did sin know, that it was putting the noose around its own neck and releasing the trap door on itself, in what it was doing. So God gave up the life of his son in bodily form of the flesh, as a sacrifice to mans sin. With a trick up his sleeve for sin itself, he did an end run around the consequences of sin, by drawing into its own destruction and off the backs of saints. He baffled sin and drew it into his trap of destruction, taking away its eternal power over man. for us all- > This the Father did to save us, from that which we could not even comprehend, was destroying us and separating us from him. We who didnt even realize the depth of trouble, that we were in with God, got saved by him for out benefit, at his cost. how will he > Now that this is done, nothing is obstructing the God of all mankind, from doing whatever he wills to do for us. Therefore, that is exactly what he is doing, not turning earth back into the garden, that it once was. Sin is still excessive on earth and he does not want to reward such behavior on earth. On the other hand, the saints are his new offspring and he wants them to be aware of him in their lives. So he is using them to do his work here on earth and giving them gifts, with the authority to evoke them at their will, to ensure our participation in his kingdom. not also, > Now, would not such a God, who went to such great length to save us from destruction, a destruction he was compelled to bring upon all of mankind due to his own holiness. Then engage us as a result of having completed the saving process, including us in what he is doing. along with him, > Would it not stand to reason, that our Father and our Lord Jesus, who have already freely given up their most precious possessions. Which was each others complete fellowship with each other, not to mention Christ suffering on the cross. That they after having completed such an extreme labor in us, want to reap the rewards of such an act. freely > The point is, that God did not go thru the sacrifice of his only son, just to set us aside after the fact and forget about us. His sons sacrifice, made us valuable to him, because of the great price he paid to gain our salvation. This means that God is going to pile it on for our benefit in the lesser things also, that do not require a sacrifice, but are the benefits of it. give us > He is wanting to pull us into himself and love on us with all that is in him, as that which will benefit us on this earth. Now that does not include God allowing us to run off into sinful activity as a result of that. What God is doing, is encouraging us to move ahead with a passion for living for and in the eternal things in life. In the building up of the church body around us, for fellowship with each other. all things? > And in so doing, would he not continue, in that same pattern of giving to us all the gifts that would mature and sustain us. Will he not also feed and clothe us, prepare for us labors of benefit, that would define us as his children before those who are his enemy. He did so much to bring us into his family of fellowship, and that being only the beginning of his desire, to give us his power over that which he has created. 8:33 Who will bring > Even if they accuse you of your sins, they still have no argument before God concerning your sins. Because to God, they are not admissible as evidence against you any longer, therefore they have nothing to charge you with. any charge > Whether it be your attitude or a real grievous sin which you have done, all will be turned away in the court of Gods evidence. Not that God wants you to sustain them in your life, he doesnt, but they have no longer any eternal consequences on your fate and eternal relationship with God. against Gods elect? > God is the defender of his chosen people, not their accuser. The enemies words are meaningless drivel, that God hears as endless babbling by those whom he will condemn for their own sins, of which they accuse the true children of his, as doing. You see, God is taking note, that while they deny sin, they convict themselves of its existence, in accusing the saints of sin. It is God who justifies. > It is God who has taken the cause of his people upon himself, he has lifted the burden of salvation off of mans legal ability to perform it for himself, and put it upon his son who has taken our eternal fate upon himself. The point here is that it is God who enforces finial judgment, therefore, it does no matter what anyone else might say about his saints, their opinions, simply do not phase him or effect how he treats us. All their complaints, just fall on deaf ears, in that he does no longer judge us guilty of our sins as having hold of our eternal fate. Our relationship can be interfered with in sinful activity, but not our eternal destiny. 8:34 Who is the one who will condemn? > They are powerless to enforce or convict us of what they are accusing us of, which is the very guilt by which they themselves live according to by their own admission. So far as God is concerned, there is only one person that has ever lived, that is capable of bringing a charge against us and making it stick and that person is Jesus his son. Christ is the one > It is in the power of Christ, that we are sustained in this day and in eternity also. None of what they say against us will live on past their own lips, let alone their own lives. Christ is the only legitimate authority, who has any right to judge all of mankind and his judgment is final. So Christ is the only opinion that we should pay any attention to ourselves, in this matter of what other men might think or say about us. who died > For when Christ took our sins to the cross and died with them, taking them into the grave with him. He deposited them there, never to be recovered or remembered again, they are a forgotten history, that will not be repeated or remembered by God ever again. But you are not just sustained by the fact that your sins were buried in the gave in Christs death, there is much more to it than that. (and more than that, > At that time, God then turned his back on our sins, leaving and abandoning them in the grave and turned his face then towards us his children, that we should always be before him forever more. God altered our eternal fate, in what Christ did at the cross, the reason being is, that he did not leave his son in the grave, when he bound our fate with his. He sent us to the grave with Christ in our sins, binding our fate to his, but then performed a rescue mission of his own, on his son, which rescued us along with him. he was raised), > And this was the power that he displayed, when he took back his own life after having given it up for us. So that he could die with and for our sins and then leave them dead in the grave, while he rose again in his glorified state, with a new body for us and him to reside in forever. So we died with him in sin and we were raised with him into the eternal glory of his life also. who is > So where is Christ now, but there with the Father, ruling and executing his authority once again as that which he is. Jesus has returned to the throne, that he came from before he came to earth, to save us from our sins. at the right hand > So now Christ has risen in his eternal state and has taken his rightful place in heaven, there he is beside the Father. Who has been given all authority over man and his eternal fate is in the hands of Christ. Whomever Jesus declares as forgiven under his protection, is not questioned by the Father, but accepted by him as having been properly redeemed by him. of God, > There in the midst of all authority is the glorified Christ, who has retaken his previous position as a member of God and his glory. and who also > From there, he does not just count us as distant memories of his past, but acts on our behalf for the good of our souls. This is the place where Christ is making his final stand as his alliance with us. Once this action is occurred in our life, it becomes an impenetrable fortress, as our defense against sin. Because Jesus has gathered here, all of what is needed to sustain us, before the Fathers condemnation of sin. We are able to rest in his assurance and protection there. is interceding > He speaks to the Father for the things which we need, not just in salvation. But for the ministry of our labors and what it is that we have been chosen by him to do, preparing for us the power, to do beyond our earthly abilities. for us. > What is key here, is Christ position in the Fathers eyes and the weight of his son words before him. The Father has in his son, the utmost respect and opinion of him. This meaning that if Jesus says to the Father, these are mine, I have died for them, treat them as you would me. Then the Father treats us as his own loving children, with the respect that he would give to his own son, Jesus. Because that is the light that he now sees us in. 8:35 Who will separate us > Do they have power to divide what God has put together, they are weak before God and it is like trying to cut steel with a rubber knife. They who would divide us from our God, are attempting a task without the necessary tools to accomplish their task, nor shall they ever have such power. Because that power requires in it basic essence, the love of God to separate us from God, which is what Christ was only powerful enough to do. When he took our sin upon himself and the Father forsook him and separated himself from Christ. So only God has power to separate or unite himself with us, that is why he saved us in the first place, because only he has this kind of power. from the > It is in understanding the object of what is a stake here, that makes it so clear, as to what makes it inseparable from us. It is that which Christ fought for and won, that is what he is defending. It is not just a spoken into existence object, that God could create again and again. Christ suffered and died once for this object he calls his love. It is not a created love, it is an earned love, that is his possession alone to engage others with. love of Christ? > So then, when Christ came to earth and set himself up to be our sacrifice of sin, he conquered all that could have swayed him from loving us throughout eternity. That which was only capable of causing God to separate us from his love, was our own sinfulness. But now that Christ has paid our debt to sin, nothing can keep him from loving us with all that he is. Because Christ took our separation from God upon himself, so that we would not have to. We therefore, are now inseparable from Christ love, as the new nature that we are, in that we are his body, or himself to put it bluntly. Will trouble, > Lets look at the details of life on earth and consider them point by point, just so we can illustrate this ideal. What if in your life you feel oppressed, from lifes labors or something like that. Life is competitive in the workplace, God will not leave you, just because someone else is better at their job, then you are and they are making sure you now it. His love for you is undeterred by this difficult time in your life and he does not weigh your worth to him, against others. You are just as valuable to him when you are not struggling and considered the best, as when your are having difficulties in your accomplishments. or distress, > What about anxiety, when the pressures of family and the needs seem greater then the supply. When everybody wants more then what you have to give, youre being narrowed in on all sides and their seems to be no easy avenue for you to take. Gods love does not abandon you, just because you have run out of resources to accomplish your task. He is not with you because of your ability, but because of his ability to be beyond all that you are able. That is why God chose you, because of his resource of love, not yours. or persecution, > And what of those who hate the name of Christ and seek the destruction of the saints. If in Christs own death they could not accomplish this, but instead reunited us to God. Then this same threat against your own physical being, will have the same effect. If you live thru it, you shall dwell closer then ever before to God and if you die you will be in his very presence forever. But his love will remain constant throughout its ordeal in your life. Not everyone will die from persecution, but if you live for Christ, not everyone will live thru it. But it will in any event, only serve to unite you closer to Gods love, then in the state you were prior to your persecution. If you do die, it will only serve to testify about Gods love for man, just as it did in Jesus, you will be joined with God in his testimony. or famine, > What of the lack of food, did not Christ teach us "that man does not live by bread alone", for where there is hunger, there is suffering. But that is not able to end love, we dont hate our children when they hunger, neither is Gods love diminished from hunger in us. So we cannot use food as a test of love, because it is a weak measure of it. or nakedness, > What of proper clothing to cover our bodies, was not Christ striped naked in his suffering for our sins, and was that not his love in action for us. So if we suffer this embarrassment in public, Christ is not ashamed of us, neither does his love look away until we clothe ourselves, he new our nakedness before we were born. or danger, > What of all the risk that comes with living on earth, thieves and robbers, trouble makers and liars. Christ was crucified with thieves and had compassion on the one who believed in him. Judas robbed him of is very possessions and stole from the money bag of Christ. So he knows of this kind of loss also, and the Pharisees caused him trouble and generated lies without end against him, and yet Gods love was not swayed from the salvation of mankind. or sword? > And what of those who are murders and destroy lives, was not Christ pierced with the sword after his death, but his love still saved us. That which has power over the flesh, is still powerless against the love of God. The sword has no more power to separate us from Gods love, over our living flesh, than it did over Christs body after his death. What is important in all of these things, is that they only have a temporal status in
their effects on our life. If all your focus is on life and all that life has to offer,
then youll never know our understand the love of God, as anymore than a, here-today-
gone-tomorrow, concept, which it is not. But once you do know its eternal life force, you
are freed from the worry of these things. Because you have moved beyond this worldly
domain and into his eternal presence already. 8:36 As it is written, "For your sake > It is not for our own cause that these things are upon us, but for Gods glory, that his truth is revealed on earth thru us. That is why we are in this condition, it is an act of war against God that they hate us. Because their own thoughts accuse them when they see us. We remind them of their own guilt and refusal to repent, so they despise us for that. we encounter death > They set themselves against us and plot ways that they can kill us. They are around every corner, just waiting for an evil opportunity against us and constantly we have to watch our backs, so that they dont kill us from behind. all day long; > And Im not talking just an occasional situation here, this is our life on a daily basis, it never ends. We have to be on guard even when we sleep, we are under the constant threat of death. we were considered > You know, they dont even regard us as human beings, they think less of us then all other living creatures. They defile us with their words in public, and seek to make an example of us for everyone to see their hatred for us, so that others will hate us too. as sheep > If they could, they would herd all of us together into one area, so they could relish the victory over us and the put an end to us once and for all. Because they see us as nothing more then mindless animals, beast that are worthless in every account, to them, we are better off dead. to be slaughtered." > There they would lift their hand against us as an act of war against God and kill all of us in a raging blood bath, to utterly wipe us out from existence. To them it would be a feast and a time of celebration to see us all die, they would even conjure up a lie and say that they are doing God a favor. 8:37 No, in all these things > Everything that God has planned, is always carried out just as he planned it to be. God is precise in every detail of our lives, he studies us with the joy of knowing his love for us, which is more powerful then their hatred for us. So whatever we come up against, is insufficient to prevent us from moving the gospel forward. we have > The way it is this, God has completely settled this issue of mans sin and the position of our unity with him is indivisible. God has made us such a part of him, that we are so intimately one with him. That we are no longer able to be separate from him, under any circumstance, whatsoever. complete victory > In fact, the war is already over for the souls of man, the enemy has been crushed and are in full retreat against Christ authority and power. We simply need to understand this fully and completely, not letting the devil trick us into thinking, that we are his captives and his prisoners of war. He lies, and all we need do is resist him in Christ and he will once again retreat from his deception. through him > So the power of God saved us thru the act of Christs redemption and we are now able to go forward with the gospel. Letting the world of evil fall away from us, as Christ dwells in our souls, thru the power of the Holy Spirit. who loved us! > Because Gods love is much more fervent, the any evil schemes against us, that the devil will conjure up to deceive us. Gods passion in rescuing us, is his desire to be our Father, and no one, messes with Gods children and gets away with it. 8:38 For I am convinced > I have seen the evidence of this and there is no doubt left in me as to the richness of Gods love towards his children. We are always on his mind and he savors the fellowship he has provided for us, that we are now able to live before his throne as his own offspring, in that he created us for himself, for this purpose. that neither death, > So what power does death have over Gods union with us, none what so ever. Because our life with God is already outside of these bodies of flesh, our true existence with God is only fully revealed when these fragile bodies are broken away. Even as jars of clay that conceal the true wealth of who we are, we now exist in these temporary vessels, that hold our souls, while God saves as many as can be saved from eternal death. So if someone threatens you with death because you have believed in the living God of love, his words are meaningless, in his ability to restrain Gods love. He is the deceived one, even if he kills you, you only become an eternal presence with God, not separated from him. nor life, > Even the breathe of life that enables us to continue in these bodies, that are not for him. Is not able to keep out his love from penetrating deep within us and separating out from us, that which is glorifying to him. God is able to divide our sin from our actions in life and love that which he makes right in us. While subduing that which is vile and unwilling in us, to give him glory. This happens in the way parents raise their own children, loving what is innocent in them, while at the same time opposing what is wrong. So who can spare you and offer you life eternal, only God. If those who hate you and God, offer you life from your renouncing your faith, they cannot back it up, for only God makes man alive. They are deceived once again by their own conceit and hatred of God. nor angels, > Not even those who already exist in the spiritual realm of God, are able to come between God and his love for us. They are all subservient to his desires, for they are created below him. Whether they are his angels who serve his holiness, but are to weak in their own strength to conquer, God will give them power, or if they are fallen angels that are in rebellion against him. None of them have the power that restrains his love from living thru us and in us. In fact they are even in now in subjection to us, due to the power of Christ blood. nor rulers, > Not even the divisions of leaders, who surround everyone with their commands and authority, have the ability to command an end to Gods love for us. They will speak only unanswered orders, that no one under them will be able to obey. They might as well order them to stop the wind from blowing or stop the waves from crashing upon the ocean shores, as to stop the love of God from reaching us. Once again their own conceit has deceived them into believing their own lie, that they themselves are a god who commands the things, which are the possession of the one and only true God. Love is Gods chief possession, that he rules over supremely and solely. There is no love that is not of his creation, that he is not master over, neither are there kings that not subservient to him. nor things that are present, > Not even that which is before us every day, whether they be things that are pleasing and joyous or things that are remorseful and shameful. They are all secondary to Gods permanent presence, in all things that he has created. Time is not a restraint before God in any way, he is as much in the past, as he is in the present or future. They are all permanently before him, because he created all of time that exist. His love invades time at any point it exist, because he intersects with time, with his love in all of its expansion and in any expression, that time makes itself aware. He is first and foremost expressing his love for us thru time, there is no other purpose to time, except for the expression of the glory of his love, for us, in it. nor things to come, > Even the future does not exist apart from the love of God. Whether it is in the coming prophecies, concerning what will happen with man in persecution and judgement or days of rest and renewal. All come from Gods desire to love that which he created for his own glory. These things have already been predetermined to happen, for this very purpose and nothing in the future, is able to prevent that which God has already chosen to do. nor powers, > Not even those who have acquired power, over those who have faith in Christ, are in any position to restrain Gods love from reaching us and glorifying him. Their power is restricted to that which is themselves, which is mere fantasy in their minds. They have no power to instruct anything to happen, that is a result of a spoken word. Their power is all hypothetical and conditional, all of their so called power, is dependant on others obeying what they order to be done. Because they are interdependent on one another, but God is independent, of any and all created things. God requires no agreement from others for his power to be real, it simply is. Where mans power only comes from others who agree to become subservient to their power, God requires no agreement from others for his power of love, to be real and sovereign. 8:39 nor height, nor depth, > Even if we go below to where the earth is dark and void of light, deep into the caverns of the earth. Neither the solid rock of the earths core or the spiritual enemies of Gods domain, where they try to bury us in the depths of sin, are able to seclude us from the mercy of Gods love for us. Though they try to hide us and separate us out for our destruction and away from our hope of rescue. God is not stopped by either rock or the plots of demons to defeat his love. God is able to penetrate the deepest of rock and the strongest bondage of the demons sin. To God the rock is as calm air is to us and is easily passed thru, and sin does not touch him, as he does not consider its presence a matter of restraint or a bondage that it prevents him anything. nor anything else in creation > In fact, if Ive left anything out that you might have a thought too, concerning this application of Gods love, being sovereign over everything that is. I want you to extinguish that thought from your thinking. Because my whole point, that I have labored in words to express to you, is that God is already there, wherever it is that you might have fears of abandonment, by way of rejection from his mercy of love. There is neither hiding place or forced separation into isolation, where God is not God, at all times. In everything, and in all dimensions of space and reality, Gods love will survive that in which it encounters. In fact it is not even contestable, Gods love being so much more dominant, then all the forces of creation combined. will be able > So out of this, we learn that God is strong and creation is weak. Creation resist, but God penetrates, creation evades, but God invades. This being the case then, there is no possibility, that God will be out maneuvered and not take us in as his own and keep us as that which is his. Even thru the adversities that come upon us, the power of God is supreme in every event, that occurs in our life. to separate us > There can be no division of Gods power, creation is not able to divide God into regions and dominions that are off limits to God. Only creation is divisible and contentious over that which it presides. God is in harmony within himself and unhindered by seclusion. Whether by method of choice or forced capture of man, over man or his sins of bondage. from the love of God > Because the very nature of that which is Gods love, is the highest power of God, and the source of his glory, that we experience in his love for us. It is thru this endurance, which he glorifies himself thru his unmatchable love for us. His love, is the essence of his glory. The state of his glory, is based in the institution of his power to love in complete perfection, not just that which is loveable, but also that which is unlovable, is not a difficult object for him. It may not be attractive in its form, but it also does not prevent his love from reaching it. in Christ Jesus our Lord. > And how did he express this to mortal man, so that man could not only benefit from it, but also perceive it working out before us in action. He did this thru the work of redemption, that his son Christ Jesus our Lord did on the cross, so that we could see his love in action. And have as a continues work in us, his immeasurable action of love for us. |
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