“Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven”. Matthew 18:3
If you have any inclination about eternity, this message should have your attention. Jesus is giving us a roadmap to repentance. How do we become like little children? What are little children like? To me, little children are the personification of love. In a well-behaved child, we see the personality of Jesus. All of the love they possess is evident as they interact with each other. Their blissfulness is to be sought after. The mandate of the Lord Jesus Christ is easy to accept when understood by example. The kingdom of heaven is in your midst. As we age, we become less like love, and less like God the creator of love. As we seek worldly gain, we lose sight of love and become motivated toward the loving ourselves more than loving others. The world teaches to strive for reward above all, even the expense of others. The kingdom of God teaches to strive for reward through showing love for and serving others. “And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is My disciple, truly I tell you, he will never lose his reward.”…Matt 10:42 We expect immediate gain in exchange for effort. But that reward will perish. “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”…Matt 6:19-21 “No one can serve two masters: Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”…Matt 6:24
By the grace of God, even in this fallen state with all of its challenges, life on earth is an experience that we wish would never end. I declare to you that life in the kingdom of heaven will never end and the glory of it will outshine anything that earth can produce or imitate. “Therefore, do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the world strives after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.”…Luke 11:31-33
God himself has authored his love story that is embedded in his written word. His story extends from the beginning to the end of the earth and will continue to be written into the everlasting future as we live with him for evermore. He has proven the authenticity of his saga with an abundance of prophetic fulfillment, demonstrating that he always keeps his word. If God said it, you should believe it. The birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ identified and fulfilled 109 historic prophecies written about him. The risen King said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End”…Rev 22:13 In This short story written here you will find it supported throughout with God’s written words, surpassing human opinion. When reading this, do not gloss over the embedded scripture. Through the power of God himself the eyes of your heart will be opened.
Beginning with the title scripture stated by the Son of God himself, we find a promise with dire consequence. There is no lack of clarity in it. The Lord Jesus has made little children our example. He has made them the role model of our highest aspirations, that being entry into the kingdom of heaven. This is a vital promise, and it is paramount that we understand it. Even so, it is misunderstood by the wise and the prudent who stumble over it. Why? Because we have all forgotten what it is to be little children and even find them beneath us. The truth is that little children possess what God desires even while they know very little. This is undoubtedly because they have no problem trusting and receiving the love and security that surrounds them. It is also written, “Now people were bringing the little children to Jesus for Him to place His hands on them, and the disciples rebuked those who brought them. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not hinder them! For the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who does not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And He took the children in His arms, placed His hands on them, and blessed them.”…Mark 10:13-16 And again it is written, “But the chief priests and scribes were indignant when they saw the wonders He performed and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” Do You hear what these children are saying?” they asked. “Yes,” Jesus answered. “Have you never read: ‘From the mouths of children and infants You have perfected praise?”…Matthew 21:15-16 It was the little children who glorified God for his wonders, not the wise and prudent men of the temple. It is paramount that we learn how to change and become like little children. We are commissioned by Jesus to regain our grasp of childhood likeness and to change. What a different picture that paints of repentance.
In the process of becoming adults, we are overcome by the indoctrination of worldly achievement and success. “There is a way that seems right to man, but the end thereof is death.”…Prov 14:12 The Lord Jesus said to the disciples “whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be the slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” … Mark 10:42-45 This adds to the likeness of little children, to be the servants of all even as the Lord Jesus himself came to be a servant. Little children are always ready to obey their father and are rewarded with the joy that their obedience brings. As the Lord Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”… Matt 11:28-30
What a great value our God has placed on his little ones. “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices more over that one sheep than over ninety-nine that did not go astray. In the same way, your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.”…Luke 15:12-14 The Lord Jesus also said “It would be better for him to have a millstone hung around his neck and to be thrown into the sea than for he who causes one of these little ones to stumble.”…Luke 17:2 The Lord Jesus referred to his disciples as little children because of their lack of understanding about his teachings. “Little children, I am with you only a little while longer. You will look for Me, and as I said to the Jews, so now I say to you: ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’”…John 13:33 Little children please their father by trusting in his promises.
Another interesting point is made by Paul who wrote to the Corinthians. Paul was explaining how until that time men were void of the promises of God and need to grow up in the him. He was not demeaning children when he said, “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.”…1 Cor 13:11 At the same time, Paul was making it clear that we will not fully understand until that which is perfect is revealed. He was not demeaning children but making men aware of our need for growth, albeit becoming like little children in the process. Paul does not try to make grown men understand the power of the faith of a little child. Instead, he expounds on the virtues of love. Paul’s mission was to plant the seed of the Gospel of Christ in as many ears as he could, to provide the ground and water for growth in the Spirit of God. Like leaven, the Word of God causes whomever it reaches to rise, and its spreading cannot be undone. “My word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”…Isa 55:11 The whole earth will become leavened by the Word of God. “The kingdom of the heavens is like leaven, which a woman having taken, hid in three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”… Matt 13:33
It is not our lot to prepare the adult heart for the sown seed. We should however take great care to speak the word of God at every opportunity to sow the power of faith. “Faith come by hearing and hearing by the Word of God”…Rom 10:17 The ministry of Paul through the Holy Spirit established the Church in the Gentile world. This fostered Godly homes where the fruit of the spirit teaches little children the Word of God in the love of Christ, empowering through faith the coming generations to spread the gospel of Christ until the whole earth is covered with the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Little Children Reveal God's Love
The Lord Jesus spoke of the likeness of little children. Even children with only limited knowledge soon come to an understanding of rules that require obedience. The likeness of a little child is learning acceptance of required rules of behavior, and the obedience to them.
“If you keep My commandments, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and remain in His love. I have told you these things so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”…John 15:11 When we obey God’s Word, the fulness of joy is released in our hearts and it draws us to further obedience. In the likeness of God our Father, parents must teach their little children to understand the law and the right way. “For when Your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness.”…Isa 26:9 Fathers, teach them early. Little Children quickly learn that their joy is directly related to their obedience. The likeness of a little child is the unwavering faith in the blessings that follow obedience. The little child is the owner of a pure and tender heart filled with faith, hope and love. “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”…Prov 22:6
Guard against injustice. It is through a deviation in justice that childlike faith becomes damaged. There is a great injustice in the teaching of false promises that are later in life revealed as myths. These are assaults on the faith of a child. When these false promises are shattered as fantasies, the faith of little children become doubt. I submit that Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy are all assassins of faith directly affecting the ability of little children to believe the real promises that are made by God. The older we get the more we experience injustice. Confusion about the truth causes our hearts to become hardened. Through it all, the theme of being continually faithful and obedient to the authority of God’s word is the answer to injustice. The last chapter in the Old Testament is more relevant today than ever before.
“For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, when all the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble; the day is coming when I will set them ablaze,” says the LORD of Hosts. “Not a root or branch will be left to them. But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will go out and leap like calves from the stall. Then you will trample the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day I am preparing, says the LORD of Hosts. Remember the law of My servant Moses, the statutes and ordinances I commanded him for all Israel at Horeb. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and awesome Day of the LORD. and he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers. Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse.” … Malachi 4 Fathers teach your children that disobedience is unacceptable for a very good reason. There will be no disobedience in the kingdom of heaven, because it will have been conquered by the blood of the Lamb.
The guideline for obedience is simple. “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another.”…John 13:34 That is a message that little children of all ages can understand. Far in advance of impending judgement, Gods has shown patience as he is unwilling that any should perish. “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance.”…2 Pet 3:9 How then should we live?
Substituting slave for employee, “Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything, not only to please them while they are watching, but with sincerity of heart and fear of the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it with your whole being, as for the Lord and not for men, because you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as your reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Whoever does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.”…Col 3:22-25 Little children unlike adults are resilient and can be taught forgiveness for injustice. Teach them to move onto the next adventure through forgiveness, forgoing the hardening of their hearts.
Becoming like a little child is easy if you listen to and obey the word of God. The Lord Jesus has made little children our example. They should be our greatest role model. Let us learn from them to become better teachers of one another. How great a love, faith, and hope we forget and leave behind as we outgrow our own personal Garden of Eden. The young family is the home which brings children up in the way that they should go through a new generation. Here are the benefits of obedience and the example to all fathers. “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness, maintaining loving devotion to a thousand generations, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin. Yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished; He will visit the iniquity of the fathers on their children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.”… Ex 34:6-7
Children are not Innocent
The child is not innocent as we assume but is born in sin and a recipient of the consequences of things that happened before their birth. Every one of us by the will of a man inherits blessings or iniquity. As we in turn pass along to our children both in blessing and iniquity. As God said to Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born, I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” … Jer 1:5 It is believed that Jeremiah’s father was Hilkiah a High Priest during the reign of King Josiah. That linage likely has a bearing on the act of God in the life of Jeremiah. On the other hand, the iniquity of the fathers is at work in the world. There is an assault on the family structure which is cascading into a descent that crosses generational boundaries. The changes in traditional values erode the relationship between the father and the son causing blindness and the loss of fundamental provisions that sustain life. We are progressively losing the basic trade skills among our youth that are essential to the preservation of civilization. Entire generations have been lost in disobedience. Every Israelite who came out of Egypt perished in the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness because of disobedience and rebellion to God’s promises and provisions. During that time God raised up a new generation to inherit his promised land.
How do we cope with the injustice that comes through a rebellious generation? Technology has progressively separated humanity from God’s nature. Children are born into their new generation and assume the current state of affairs as normal. Children are then becoming progressively unnatural without the benefits of traditional values. We have unwittingly sown and cultivated the seeds of destruction at our doorstep. We are confronted with the divide between the father and the son because of new technology that makes the teaching of the father outdated and seemingly irrelevant. As the slope of deception steepens the need to reach children with this message becomes more urgent. Technology is sold as making life easier but is revealed as producing new problems requiring advanced solutions, with no end in sight. There are many issues seeking man-made solutions to man-made problems. The promise of the Kingdom of God is the answer to all of the issues faced by humanity. As it is presented in the word of God, based on the historical accuracy of scriptural prophecy, it is the trustworthy answer to the rebellious generation as the ultimate hope. More than ever, the likeness of a little child embodies this hope. It is through a new generation that God restores blessing. It is understanding the absolute requirement of obedience to the Word of God so that we are held blameless and receive the abundant love of the Abba Father, (aka Daddy). We are to be obedient to God for our own sake and teach others to do likewise. Everything else is a vortex of chaos that keeps us ever trying to resolve the unresolvable. There is peace in accepting the Headship of the Lord Jesus and laying everything at his feet. “Cast all your cares on him for he cares for you.”…1 Pet 5:7 Do not make the burden yours to carry. Deal with the things that God has given to you and demonstrate your patience when suffering to build up others. Let the rest belong to the world. We obtain our position as little children by accepting full pardon for our sins. We are made perfect in his sight, and he no longer remembers our sins. We see the compassion and grace of the Lord who is slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness, maintaining loving devotion to a thousand generations, and we inherit the Kingdom of God.
The Nature of the Heart
The heart is a separate spiritual sensing entity apart from the mind, and is the temple of the Holy Spirit to those who believe. “A man is a Jew because he is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code.”…Rom 2:28 A man is not saved keeping the law, but by living a life in a relationship with the savior from sin. A pure and tender heart is rooted in love, faith, and hope. It is preserved by obedience to the Word of God in spite of injustice. “Faith come by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.”…Rom 10:17 “What? know you not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which you have of God, and you are not your own?”…1 Cor 6:19-20 Without a pure heart, spiritual perception and discernment are not possible. Without the eyes of the heart, the Holy Spirit is dismissed, and faith is overruled by the requirement of physical proof. Carefully guard the attributes of your pure heart and nurture the Holy Spirit in love, faith, and hope. “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”…Phil 4:7 Otherwise our understanding is engulfed in the contradiction of an ever-expanding deception. That deception replaces the trust in the Word of God and fills the mind with a cloud of smoke.
Without the spirit dwelling in the heart, the hardness of proof becomes the law, and the influence of the heart is only an emotional response. It sustains life and drives ambition in the flesh but lacks the tenderness to bridge the gap between the mind and the spirit. The Holy Spirit dwelling within the heart prevents the heart from becoming hardened. If the Holy Spirit is grieved, we become entangled in a conflicted conscience and we go adrift in preoccupation of earthly matters. Somewhere along the course of our lives, we must rediscover what we have lost. We are born in sin, a living eternal soul, and outgrow our childlike faith. To regain it, we must be born again. Unless that occurs, the preoccupation of our minds prevents the seeing and hearing of the Spirit. God is always calling. “He who has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit of God is saying to the churches.”…Rev 2:7 We need not convince men of the truth, that is up to the Holy Spirit of God. It is ours to speak the Word of Truth that spiritual ears may hear it and deliver it to the heart. Then, the transformation occurs of the renewing of the mind. “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.”…Rom 12:1-2 “He has come to set the captive free.”…Luke 4:18 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit. A broken and a contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”…Ps 51:17 He does not break the heart, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”…Ps 147:3 We look outside of ourselves for comfort when we go through disappointment and brokenness. That is where we find the Lord standing at the door and knocking. By his grace, we can receive the healing of his love as we ask him to become the Lord of our lives.
Obedience is the Key
Crying out in not enough to to be forgiven. Our healing comes from the revelation that we are fallen and cannot save ourselves. When our hearts are broken, by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus, we can experience the favor of the Holy Spirit coming to our aid. “Whoever shall call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.”…Rom 10:13 That means He will come to your rescue. But, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”…Matt 7:21 That is clarified by the Lord’s healing of the blind man Bartimaeus. “He cried out, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So, they called the blind man. “Take courage!” they said. “Get up! He is calling for you.” Throwing off his cloak, Bartimaeus jumped up and came to Jesus. “What do you want Me to do for you?” Jesus asked. “Rabboni,” said the blind man, “let me see again.” “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road. “…Mark 10:48-52.
Bartimaeus was healed but Jesus did not say your sins are forgiven. Because he began to follow Jesus, he was given the opportunity to believe and obey the word of God. Crying out to the Lord Jesus for mercy is not the same as asking for forgiveness and repentance. It is a tender moment when the Spirit of God is received into the heart. That happens when you realize who the Lord Jesus is and accept what he has done for you. We become obedient to his call and begin to do his will. That is evidence the Holy Spirit he is poured into our hearts. When we hear with spiritual ears there is no misinterpretation. Yet the words that seem foolish to world.
“And as for you, the anointing you received from Him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But just as His true and genuine anointing teaches you about all things, so remain in Him as you have been taught.”…1 John 2:27 “Make every effort to present yourself approved to God, an unashamed workman who accurately handles the word of truth.”…2 Tim 2:15
Your acceptance of his great salvation is a revelation. By the confession of your mouth that Jesus Christ paid the penalty for all of your sins, you are then saved. This reveals what has been hidden from you, that your name has always been written in the Lambs book of life since before the foundation of the world. “For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence. In love he predestined us for adoption as his sons through Jesus Christ, according to his good pleasure.”…Eph 1:4-5 Evidenced because you heard his call and obeyed his voice, yours is the eternal glory of the Kingdom of God simply by believing in his promise and doing his will. Even though God knows all, our journey through this life reveals to us not only who God is, but who we are even to our own selves. Through this experience we will fully understand his final judgements. We will understand the part we had during the separation between darkness and light
The heart cries out to be reconciled with God and reunited with that which we have lost and forgotten. We are wooed by God to search for him with all of our hearts. He gives us an absolute promise he will be found. “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore you from captivity.”…Jer 29:13-14 “And without faith, it is impossible to please Him. For it behooves the one drawing near to God to believe that He exists and that He becomes a rewarder to those earnestly seeking Him out.”…Heb 11:6
The Heart is the Door
“Behold I stand at the door and knock, if any man hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and sup with him and he with me.”…Rev 3:20 Then, through the tenderness of a heart redeemed by God, we are transformed into a new creature by the renewing of our minds…Rom 12:2 The love for God becomes known, and we begin to reflect that love by esteeming others as better than ourselves. “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”…Phil 2:3-4 If we begin with knowledge, our minds require evidence which overrules our faith in the proof of evidence. Faith requires no proof but “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”…Rom 10:17 It is through the heart that God enters a man, not the mind.
The Building of the Bride
Just as Adam, one of a kind, was placed among many living creatures, and not one was found to be a suitable mate, neither was a mate found in all of creation suitable for the one and only God. When he said, “I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.”…Matt 16:18 He was referring to his bride made with his own hands. God is building a bride, and we are the living stones. “As you come to Him, the living stone, rejected by men but chosen and precious in God’s sight, you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in Scripture:”…1 Pet 2:4-6 He made the cornerstone of his Son out of his own self being born of virgin, he is the first born among many. “On this rock will I build my church.”… Matt 16:18 We are like cells in the body as individuals with a relationship through the blood. Until the day of his return, there will continue to be the building of the glorious bride described in Rev 21:9We must take care not to rely on our heart to tell us things that we want to be true. This is only possible when God plants his desires in our heart so that our desires are his desires. What a glorious place to be in his will. We are convicted by the Holy Spirit when we go astray. But “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”… I John 1:9 There is an emotional aspect of the heart which operates independently of the Spirit of God, giving us a free will. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”…Jer 17:9 For instance, even in the best of circumstances, no man can know the heart of his betrothed. Yet every man trusts with a vow that his betrothed will remain faithful with only the assurance of faith, hope, and love. This vow is a covenant that God intends for life, never to be broken. Yet because of sin, divorce is permitted. In order for God to have a bride without the possibility of divorce, sin must be not only forgiven, but killed and buried. “He came to his own but his own did not receive him. But those that do receive him, to them gave he the power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:”…John 1:11-12 The death of Christ on the cross was the death of sin. The burial of his body was the permanent grave of sin. The resurrection of his body guaranteed the conquering of sin forever. “And upon this rock, I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against her.”…Matt 16:18 Holy matrimony between God and his church is the undeniable evidence of God’s desire. He reveals his desire for every man to experience. Let every believer rejoice that God has reconciled his beloved forever without the possibility of unfaithfulness.
When God created Adam in his own image, he said of him, “It is not good that man should be alone.”…Gen 2:18 Out of Adams own body, God created a perfect helper, a wife. The mystery revealed in Christ is that God created the cornerstone for a perfect bride for himself born of a virgin. As he did for Adam, he did for himself. For out of himself his mate was created. Jesus Christ is the rock that Daniel described to Nebuchadnezzar that was cut without human hands and will fill the whole earth. “As you watched, a stone was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and crushed them. Then the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold were shattered and became like chaff on the threshing floor in summer. The wind carried them away, and not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that had struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.”…Dan 2:34-35
Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of the Church which is the body created by God, his body . We are the Saints of God through Christ sealed in the Holy Spirit. As God is a triune one, being the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit we see a great continuance of the oneness of God revealed. We, the Church, are the temple of the Holy Spirit. We who are in him are the bride making us one with Christ. Christ is one with the Father which is the greatest truth. The mystery is that God the Father, and God the Son, and by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, God the Bride are one. Do not take so great salvation lightly.
“So the Jews gathered around Him and demanded, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
‘I already told you,’ Jesus replied, “but you did not believe. The works I do in My Father’s name testify on My behalf. But because you are not My sheep, you refuse to believe. My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them out of My hand. My Father who has given them to Me is greater than all. No one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and the father are one.’ At this, the Jews again picked up stones to stone Him. But Jesus responded, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone Me? “We are not stoning You for any good work,” said the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because You, who are a man, make Yourself out to be God. Jesus replied, “Is it not written in your Law: ‘I have said you are gods’? If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and the Scripture cannot be broken— then what about the One whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world? How then can you accuse Me of blasphemy for stating that I am the Son of God?” … John 10:25-34
Christ is one with the Father! We are one with Christ because we are his body, and he is the head! We are heirs to the Kingdom of God! Do not take such great salvation lightly.
“Then the sovereignty, dominion, and greatness of the kingdoms under all of heaven will be given to the people, the saints of the Highest. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will serve and obey Him.”…Dan 7-27 We are made in his image and his likeness with his desires. God even in all of his perfection has a free will and chooses with desire. He created man in his own likeness to reveal himself and his desires in a way that can be understood by us all. We learn through a lifetime of experience to understand the greatness of what God has done.
Come, I will show you wife of the Lamb
In every marriage, faith prevails over the mind. Marriage is a covenant of faith, based on a promise, not knowledge. This faith-based aspiration is the very basis for civilization. God has woven his desires into humanity. He clearly desires a worthy wife for himself as many references are made to his bride throughout the bible. But we see the glorious eternal Bride as described by John here. “Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls full of the seven final plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city of Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, shining with the glory of God. Its radiance was like a most precious jewel, like a jasper, as clear as crystal. The city had a great and high wall with twelve gates inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, and twelve angels at the gates. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south, and three on the west. The wall of the city had twelve foundations bearing the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The angel who spoke with me had a golden measuring rod to measure the city and its gates and walls. The city lies foursquare, with its width the same as its length. And he measured the city with the rod, and all its dimensions were equal—12,000 stadia (roughly 1500 miles!) in length and width and height. And he measured its wall to be 144 cubits by the human measure the angel was using. The wall was made of jasper, and the city itself of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were adorned with every kind of precious stone:
The first foundation was jasper,
the second sapphire,
the third chalcedony,
the fourth emerald,
the fifth sardonyx,
the sixth carnelian,
the seventh chrysolite,
the eighth beryl,
the ninth topaz,
the tenth chrysoprase,
the eleventh jacinth,
and the twelfth amethyst.
And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, with each gate consisting of a single pearl. The main street of the city was pure gold, as clear as glass. But I saw no temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, because the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its lamp. By its light the nations will walk, and into it the kings of the earth will bring their glory. Its gates will never be shut at the end of the day, because there will be no night there.
And into the city will be brought the glory and honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who practices an abomination or a lie, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.”…Rev 21:9 In order to fulfill the splendor of the perfect bride, God had to overcome the issue that Eve revealed. He had to defeat the sin of disobedience while maintaining her free will.
The Cost
God desires a bride who freely chooses to love him forever without the possibility of imperfection. In order to do that, sin had to not only be forgiven but conquered and forgotten. God paid dearly to fulfill this desire. It required all of the saga of creation to be played out as we are all witnesses. With the payment of his death, for what was already his absolute right, he conquered all unrighteousness in his resurrection making him King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We who are now in Christ Jesus have become his bride. The price was the payment for every sin since Adam, all of the consequences of man. He paid in advance for the redemption of every human heart that hears his call and forsakes its own to follow him. “For you are not your own, but have been bought with a price”…1 Cor 6:20 “For while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us “…Rom 5:8 What faith he demonstrated having died in advance. ” I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins.”…Isa 43:25
What a glorious vision shown to John of what and who we are in Christ. We are made holy simply by believing that he paid the price to make us perfect. He purchased us from the grave and made us perfect by killing sin on the cross in the death of his own incarnate self. He made us worthy and now we are not only with him, but we are in him, making us one with him.
Like Noah’s Ark, he is the way of escaping from the destruction that is to come. “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.”…2 Pet 3:10 We, the elect, are safe within him forevermore. He has made us to become one with him, joint heirs with Yeshua the Christ.
God is a God of procreation. He is not celibate as he has already begotten the first born among many. Just like the picture of holy matrimony, the two will become one. With the death of sin and the resurrection fulfilling the perfect bride, you can be assured there will be offspring of the living God. I submit that it will require the infinite universe to contain the dwelling place of the family of God. “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe in Me as well. In My Father’s house are many Mansions. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and welcome you into My presence, so that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” … John 14:1-4
God has guaranteed with his life that his bride will be faithful for eternity. He purchased the right to create a perfect bride for himself with his own life. It is the reason he made the world. He took total responsibility for it and purchased it with his own blood. He bought that debt with his own life and made a way for anyone who wants to share in his eternal glory. That is why there is only one way to God. “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins.”…Isa 43:25
The Greatest of These is Love
He used the sword of love to conquer sin and sickness and death. “Greater love has no one than this, that one should lay down his life for his friends.”…John 15:13 He has delivered his bride into his eternal Kingdom without spot or wrinkle. He has redeemed us through Christ to a higher plain than we could have ever known. He purchased a perfect eternity and defeated the thief who stole his creation and robbed him of his bride. Anyone who can hear his voice and follows him is welcome to the greatest wedding feast in all of creation. Put your faith in the one who purchased your salvation.
“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a ringing gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have absolute faith so as to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and exult in the surrender of my body, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no account of wrongs. Love takes no pleasure in evil but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be restrained; where there is knowledge, it will be dismissed. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial passes away. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I set aside childish ways. Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love; but the greatest of these is love.”…1 Cor 13:1-13
Without love, everything we have learned is of no consequence. When we change and become like little children, we become love. Because of little children, the kingdom of heaven is always in our midst, and it is at hand.
“It will be worth it all when we see Jesus, Life’s trials will seems so small when we see Christ. One glimpse of his dear face, all sorrow will erase, so bravely run the race till we see Christ.” Esther Kerr Rusthoi
This is my Prayer
Lord, you have established your purpose and your throne for all to find. It is your intention that through the discourse of the flesh, your character becomes knowable. While proving justice mingled with mercy, you have made yourself not only knowable but approachable and embraced. You have made a way to reconcile the sinner with your holiness, while preserving the perfection of your character. You then bestowed your character upon your bride. Because of you, we the elect are found in Christ to be pure without spot or wrinkle. As you created Adam to become the father of all humanity, you have borne the responsibility for every sin of the flesh done by the will of man. You sent your word into the world, and the word became flesh and dwelt among us. You purchased the pardon for every sin with the death and resurrection of your incarnate self. Because you cannot separate your word from yourself, when Yeshua cried, My God why have you forsaken me, It was because when your word died, so did you. By your word are you justified and by your word you are condemned. While your incarnate person died, sin was left in the grave, and you arose the resurrection and the life. You suffered and died as the final payment for the redemption of all who trust you. We will be resurrected and gathered unto yourself to become one with you in holy matrimony, your eternal bride, the church.
You are the God of all creation. As Adam, in your image, has filled the earth with offspring, Yeshua and his bride will fill the universe with a holy priesthood so that it will be fulfilled when you say to Abraham, “As the stars of heaven are without number, so will your descendants be.” When you created Adam in your image, you said of him, “It is not good that man should be alone” even as Eve was formed from Adams own body, Yeshua was formed from your perfect fatherhood mingled with the fulfillment of the promise of the law and the prophets through obedience of the flesh. We, the obedient to your word are joined together forever through Christ. All of your creation has been made for the revelation and sharing of your glory.
The completed work of the cross conquered sin and death and hell. Ohh Lord, there is no place in your eternal kingdom where unrighteousness is welcome. “And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you: God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.”…There will never be divorce between the Lamb and his bride. You ohh God have made for yourself an Eve who will never again hear the hiss of disobedience in her ear, and she will always dwell in the fullness of your glory in obedience to righteousness to the fullness of joy. We will be the little children of the kingdom of God. The conquering sword is the sword of Love. The same sword is your Spirit and your Word which issues from your mouth to slay your enemies. Love conquers all. Your patience is that you are unwilling that any should perish, and you continue to call all who can hear. We trust your mercy to send laborers into the harvest and every one of your lambs be accounted for. Let the sound be clear and deep and wide so that all ears will hear the call. Heavenly Daddy, teach me to hear your voice. I will listen and I will obey. Deliver me from my own vices and replace them with spiritual gifts and the fruits of your Spirit. Create in me a clean heart, Ohh God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence. And take not your holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation.
And the Lord said, “I will give you the desires of your heart, because you seek me with all your heart, I will be found of you in all your days. Because you have depended on me to guide your steps, I have planted my desires firmly within your heart so that when you do your own will, you will be doing my will. In that way, we will become one, even now that your joy may be full.”
I pray, Lord God, that you will not limit me to the faculties of my flesh. and you will not limit me to the knowledge of language. You have given me the gift of the tongues of Angels, and I know the presence of your Spirit bearing witness through me in holy intercession with you, the highest who sits on the Throne. Give to others the interpretation as you would have the body to be edified. Thank you for the worship that is within me. It fills my heart to overflowing. Let the words of my mouth and my hearts meditation be acceptable to Thee ohh Lord my strength and my redeemer. Let me not be become a distraction or bothersome to others but let the love of your Spirit fill the air with sound of glory. Let me always be an instrument of your praise never being ashamed of the gift that you have given me. Your gift within me transcends my mind and understanding but I know whom I have believed and while I may not understand your words, I know your voice, and I will follow you. Let all spiritual gifts manifest in your presence.
It is in my heart to shout your praise in the assembly. Ohh Lord, let not the report of men be my encouragement. I have spiritually discerned that there is a movement of your Spirit while you are glorified in praise. Let those who can hear be filled with your Spirit. Place me among those whom you know, and also who know you. I am not ashamed of the gifts that you give to me. I pray for the gift of prophecy that the whole body will be edified. Until then, I will be faithful to speak those things hidden from understanding that left hand may not know what the right hand is doing. I pray ohh Lord that you will move in ground shaking evidence of your power. I ask that you heal in ways that requires no other report for evidence. Let there be a movement of your Spirit that transforms your body from spectator to facilitator as we move in harmony, in one accord in your name. Let me not call undue attention to myself. I am inclined to be harmonious in the Spirit with others heralding your praises. It is clear to me that my gift is not for the body but is a bold petition to the throne of the highest God in intercession. I experience your habitation in the exhortation of the tongues of Angels. Let me be a conduit of your love to everyone I meet in the name of Yeshua. Teach me how to love others as you have loved me. It is clear to me that you inhabit the praise of your people. It is clear to me that your habitation is within my heart when I glorify your name in the Spirit. I need your guidance and temperance when I experience your entrance into the room where you manifest your presence in Spirit and in Truth. As you inhabit the praise of your people, I am asking for a new outpouring of the manifestation of spiritual gifts within the assembly. Prepare us Lord, to be poured out into the streets with signs and wonders that buildings cannot contain, and no man can deny. I am asking that as your body nears the resurrection, we hear your voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her my people so that you will not have fellowship in her sins, and so that you may not receive of her plagues”. As Moses cried out your words “Let my people go.” your miracles devoured those made by magicians. Let the works of your hand and the sword from your mouth leave no doubt among those called by your name, that the earth belongs to you, and you are reclaiming it from the thief. Let the Feast of Tabernacles begin! Gather the tares into bundles and remove them from the harvest and gather the wheat into your barn. Let the Harvest begin!
In the name of Yeshua the highest God, make your church known as the invitation to join the Wedding Feast of the Lamb in preparation for your Eternal Kingdom which will be given to your Saints, and never be replaced by another.
I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins. Isaiah 43:25