LIFE IN THE SON - Part III
It is mission critical that we
recognize, reverence and receive JESUS CHRIST, THE SOURCE OF ALL LIFE. Why? Because
whoever takes THE SON…GETS
EVERYTHING!
Prayerfully ponder the following
scripture passages:
I John 5:11-12 And this is the
record…that GOD hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in HIS SON.
He that hath THE SON hath life; and he that hath not
the Son of God hath not life.
Ephesians 4:13-15 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; but speaking the truth in love may GROW UP INTO HIM in all things, which is the head, even CHRIST.
To enhance our
understanding of our covenant connection with the person and work of Jesus
Christ, let’s take a closer look at our fore-parent, ADAM. First of all, please be reminded that GOD is never surprised by whatever GOD CREATES! So God was not blindsided or shocked by Adam’s sin; and God is never surprised
by our sins! Believe it or not, God made Adam with full knowledge that Adam
would eventually mess up! Because
the intent-of-creation (what The Designer originally had in mind) was
NOT the first Adam, but the second Adam, JESUS CHRIST! Indeed, this is a mystery, but I contend that
God created man with full and free will.
All will agree with that; some may disagree with this: In God’s permissive
will, He allowed man to descend down the ladder-of-sin, which gave GOD a reason
to become like MAN, so
that MAN could have a season
to become like GOD! Ponder this prayerfully. God was neither shocked nor surprised by
Adam’s sin.
On the 6th day of
creation, all the stuff-of-the-universe was complete. And God said “That’s
good!” But, there was nothing in creation that LOOKED-LIKE-GOD! Let me explain this way. As much as you love and emotionally connect
with your pet, you are not actually the same being as Lassie or Rex! Therefore, as close as you are to Fido, in
the final analysis, (relationship-wise) your pet cannot provide ALL of the emotional fulfillment that
might be attained in a relationship with another human being. No matter how intelligent your cat seems to
be, you can never derive full conversation!
Admittedly, you can talk to Caesar, but however you interpret his
purring and mewling, Caesar is incapable of full communication with you. Your pet
might sense your emotional state, but s/he cannot completely commiserate with
you, simply because s/he cannot understand the details or nuances of your
darkest hour. Ultimately, you
will need something more human (someone more like you) with which to connect
and commune! [Editor’s Note to
Pet Owners: Please understand the ‘spirit’ of my discourse because I know that
you truly ADORE your pets!] J
Since all truth is
parallel, first I have presented natural truth; now we may more readily discern
spiritual truth. On the 6th day of
creation, notwithstanding the infinite variety of flora and fauna that were
present in the universe, THE CREATOR needed something more! I submit to you that GOD
created US from the same mindset and love that
we experience emotionally at the birth of our children. Mothers and fathers, we know those feelings
quite well. There is an indescribable
pride and joy in your first gaze upon the face of baby Brian or cuddly
Cindy. Indeed, you see someTHING-of-YOURSELF laying in that
bassinet.
ON THE SIXTH DAY, GOD BREATHED SOMETHING OF HIMSELF INTO ADAM.
Think about that. It is a both a
natural and spiritual truism that you cannot place your lips on something
without that something becoming part of you, and without you becoming part of
that something. Now hear this: Be
careful who you kiss! J
On a more serious
note, despite the fact that Adam was created from dust and brought to life by
the very breath or PNEUMA of God, he soon fell from God’s
grace, headlong into sin and shame. And GOD had to provide an efficacious remedy
because man could not possibly save himself.
To wit, the gospel of John records the miracle of KENOSIS, i.e. that God poured out of Himself, the Eternal Word, into Jesus Christ, the Living Word. (John
1:14) That’s what I call PHASE ONE of the salvation plan. In PHASE TWO,
Jesus embraces a substitutionary death on our behalf, and as recorded in John
20:22, Jesus “BREATHED on them [us], and said unto
them [us], Receive the Holy Spirit.” That
is, Jesus Christ pours out HIMSELF,
THE LOGOS (the Living Word) into US, and we are baptized into the body of christ. In PHASE THREE,
which is “The Great Commission,” recorded in Matthew 28:19-20, christ declares our obligation (after we
receive Jesus Christ, the Living Word) to pour
out a deposit of ourselves (i.e., christ IN US, “the hope of glory” into unbelievers everywhere.
(Colossians 1:27) WOW…what all-wise, sovereign and mighty
God we serve!
Stay tuned…more to come tomorrow.
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