Two Different Oaths

If ancient Israel and the covenant they had with God is as Hebrews describes then these people and their covenant are nothing but shadows.

KJV Hebrews 10:1
 1.  For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.
 
I read in scripture that Jesus said that we are to be perfect as our Father in heaven.

KJV Matthew 5:48
 48.  Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

KJV Hebrews 7:19
19.  For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God.
 
The message of the book of Hebrews was to show that the old covenant can not produce salvation and that all of it was only a shadow of the new covenant in Jesus Christ.  I have written before about Abraham; Abraham was a gentile who lived with his father and worshiped idols before God called him. When God called Abraham, Abraham became a Christian because God taught Abraham the gospel and about the son God would have who would be the messiah. In Abraham all the nations of the Earth would be blessed and Jesus was the promised seed of Abraham according to the flesh.  The nation of Israel did not exist in Abrahams day and neither did the old covenant God would later make with Israel.  There was an oath God swore to Abraham that did not involve the old covenant or the carnal nation of Israel. Abraham had no inheritance in the land that God would later give to his carnal descendents.

KJV Acts 7:3-5
 3.  And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee.
 4.  Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Charran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell.
 5.  And he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his seed (The glorified saints)after him, when as yet he had no child.

Abraham was promised an inheritance far greater than the nation of Israel.

KJV Romans 4:13
 13.  For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.

Abraham will be in the first resurrection, he is one of the 144,000 of Gods elect saints and is of the first stage of the church, the ancient saints listed in Hebrews 11 and one of the two loaves of leavened bread in Leviticus 23. The inheritance of the saints is to be a joint heir with Jesus. They are the first fruits to God and the lamb.
Abraham had no part in carnal Israel or the old covenant that would come 430 years later.  The old covenant did not void the oath God swore to Abraham or transfer the oath to the carnal nation of Israel.

KJV Galatians 3:6-18
 6.  Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.
 7.  Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.
 8.  And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.
 9.  So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.
 10.  For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.
 11.  But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
 12.  And the law is not of faith: but, the man that doeth them shall live in them.
 13.  Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
 14.  That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
 15.  Brethren, I speak after the manner of men; Though it be but a man's covenant, yet if it be confirmed, no man disannulleth, or addeth thereto.
 16.  Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.
 17.  And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.
 18.  For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise.

What Paul is saying here is that ancient Israel under the old covenant was never an heir to the promises God made to Abraham.  In order for anyone to receive the promises they must come to Abrahams seed, Jesus, who is the heir and we then joint heirs with him by faith.

The blessing and cursing under the law was an entirely different oath that did not in any way alter the oath God swore to Abraham.  Those under this old covenant oath were under a curse that can only be removed if they come to Jesus.  So, until carnal Israel does come to Christ they are not heirs with the church, with those of the faith of Abraham.  The carnal Israelites then and today are not the heirs of the oath God swore to Abraham because the oath did not come through the law but by promise. Abraham and all the saints will when Jesus returns inherit the Earth and be a blessing to all nations.

The oath God made with Abraham and the oath God made with carnal Israel are completely different oaths that had nothing to do with each other.  Carnal Israel and the old covenant was only a shadow of the oath God swore to Abraham.  Israel made a covenant of death but Abrahams was to life.  Under the law Israel inherited nothing because due to disobedience lost what they had been given.  The only way for carnal Israel to ever have hope to share in the oath God swore to Abraham is to do what Abraham did, have faith and become a Christian.

Comparing The Two Covenants

As mentioned the old covenant was only a shadow of the new covenant. We are familiar with many of the shadow types; Aaron as a type of Jesus, all the sacrifices typing that of Jesus and so on.  The one thing both covenants had in common was that obedience was required to receive the promises each contained.  The old covenant oath had blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience.  Carnal Israel did not even meet the requirement to have the blessings under the law and because of idolatry the entire nation fell under the curse.  The southern kingdom of Judah was only permitted to return from captivity in Babylon because Jesus had to be born in Judea to fulfill prophecy.  According to the condition of obedience Israel failed and is to this day under the curse of the law.  It cannot be that Israel could be blessed and cursed at the same time; this is very important to understand and since they are yet in disobedience to the covenant they are yet cursed with no blessings from God at all.  Remember, the blessings under the law were not the blessings of Abraham, the two oaths were not the same.  The new covenant requires obedience to the gospel and living by faith and love while shielded by grace.  The new covenant provides repentance from sin or those times we break the covenant and will forgive us.  The old covenant will not forgive and provides no repentance therefore once Israel sinned and forsook God the curse overtook them.  Scripture says that God divorced Israel, cast them out of the land and no longer calls them His people.  Carnal Israel is totally cut off from God and they killed any hope of being reconnected in this age when they killed Jesus.  God has not forever cast off carnal Israel and will in the millennium convert them to Christianity. The only way anyone can be an heir to the oath God swore to Abraham is to become a Christian.
 

The Truth About Temptation
And the Kingdom Mind
By
Lee
Monday, January 9, 2012 

KJV James 1:2-4
 2.  My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
 3.  Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
 4.  But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
 
Why should we view falling into temptations as a joy?  Temptations try or prove our faith because in order to resist giving in to the temptation we must use the Holy Spirit and exercise our faith in what God promised.

KJV 1 Corinthians 10:13
 13.  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
 
Gods Spirit in us will help us to not give in to the temptation and provides a way to escape Satan’s efforts to get us to think about the evil and consider in our minds, think in our thoughts of the evil.  As I have explained in other articles, sin is our thoughts, the words and deeds are the manifestation of those thoughts and that we do not have to commit the act only think of it and this is what sin is.  Jesus confirms that it is our evil thoughts that defile us and are sin. There is no such thing as “potential sin” if we are born sinners, sin is what we are.

KJV Matthew 15:19-20
 19.  For out of the heart (Our human spirit) proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
 20.  These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.
 
The temptation then is not sin, it is not a sin to be tempted, but sin is the entertaining of the evil idea, considering it in our minds. James describes this.

James 1:14
14.  But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
 15.  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
 
The temptation, if it involves being drawn into lust and entices us, is what sin is and sin brings death. Lusting is breaking the 10th commandment and all manner of sin involves lust because we must think about the sin in our mind and that causes a desire in us to manifest the sin outwardly using our members, our body, as a servant of sin.  This is what defiles us and as Jesus said it is our evil thoughts.  In reality, what we need saved from is our evil thoughts, our evil nature that we acquired by being servants of the Devil.

KJV John 8:34
 34.  Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
 
KJV 1 John 3:8
 8.  He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.

Jesus was manifested to destroy this work of the Devil in us.  Since sin is our evil thoughts this means that our minds must begin a process of change so that we no longer think evil and if we do not think evil we will not do evil. It is no wonder then that the law could never give salvation. God through Jesus transforms our way of thinking and is purifying our minds.  It is the mind, the spirit of man, that God is working with.  Below are  scriptures that tell us this.

KJV Isaiah 26:3
 3.  Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

KJV Romans 7:25
25.  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

KJV Romans 12:2
 2.  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
 
Our minds must be renewed, changed, so that we no longer even think of doing evil.  This is the kingdom mind being developed in us now and will be completed when we enter the kingdom.

KJV Ephesians 2:3
 3.  Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

KJV Ephesians 4:22-24
 22.  That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
 23.  And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
 24.  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Who is this new man we are to put on that God created in righteousness and true holiness?
 
KJV Galatians 3:27
27.  For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

KJV Ephesians 2:15
 15.  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
 
KJV Colossians 3:10
 10.  And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him (God) that created him (Jesus): Yes, God created Jesus.

The new man is Jesus.  We put on Jesus at baptism.  Jesus was in the image of him who created Jesus, Jesus was in the image of God and we are being transformed to be in the image of Jesus, who had the perfect mind, the kingdom mind that we should want in us?

KJV Philippians 2:5
 5.  Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

Jesus already had a mind of the kingdom and he is our example of the mind we are to develop. We are being transformed of mind to be like Jesus was when on this Earth.

KJV Philippians 4:7
 7.  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

KJV Colossians 1:21-22
 21.  And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
 22.  In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

In the body of Jesus, in his flesh and by his death, God made it possible for us to be of the kingdom mind as Jesus was when in the flesh.

KJV 2 Timothy 1:7
7.  For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
 
The reason Jesus never sinned is because he had the mind we hope to be given when born into the kingdom of God and the kingdom mind is unable to sin therefore Jesus was unable to sin.  How can the temptation of Jesus be a farce if it is overcome by a kingdom mind?  Jesus was our example of the kingdom mind. Jesus was tempted but he could not be tempted with evil as we so often are. His encounter with Satan proved that Jesus could not be tempted with evil. The saints are yet capable of sin and will be as long as we are in the flesh.  The saints are a work in progress.

A good work is being done in us and will be completed in the day of Christ Jesus but as a man Jesus was the demonstration to us of that completed work.  Haven’t you ever asked, how did Jesus ever live 33 years and never sin?  It was not just a matter of making good choices, it was because God created Jesus righteous.

KJV Isaiah 53:11
11.  He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
 
You and I were not righteous until God imputed righteousness to us because of our faith in this man Jesus. Jesus was born of God and had no human father, God was his Father.  Gabriel told Mary that her child would be born by the power of the Highest, the power of the Father.  Jesus was born of God.

KJV 1 John 3:9
 9.  Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
 
In order to believe Jesus could have sinned you would have to believe that Jesus was not born of God and that Jesus was not righteous. Anyone who says that Jesus was not born of God is antichrist.

KJV 1 John 4:3
 3.  And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

God created His son with the kingdom mind so that Jesus could be the messiah and those who deny this in effect deny Jesus and God.

KJV 1 John 2:22-23
 22.  Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.
 23.  Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: [but] he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.

 If we are to develop the mind of Christ then it is the kingdom mind in Christ that we must be conformed to.

KJV Romans 8:29
 29.  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

In order to be the first born of many to follow, to be the object of our salvation by the will of God, it was necessary that the mind of Jesus be kingdom quality in a fleshly body. Jesus was a human being in the sense that he was a soul but he was a soul of a much higher level and we are all souls.  The soul of Jesus was accepted by God as the sacrifice for the sins of the world and therefore was of far greater value than all other souls and this because his human spirit was as ours will become when we enter the kingdom of God. 

KJV Isaiah 53:10
10.  Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
 
For the saints to have the hope in the kingdom to be unable to sin, this man Jesus had to have a mind or spirit that was unable to sin. If while in the flesh Jesus was the king of the kingdom of God then would not the king have a kingdom mind?

KJV Luke 22:29
 29.  And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me;

KJV John 18:37
 37.  Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.

KJV John 1:49
49.  Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.

KJV John 12:15
 15.  Fear not, daughter of Sion: behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass's colt.
 
The kingdom mind is a mind that cannot sin because it was born of God and even if tempted by the Devil will not respond to evil, it cannot be tempted with evil. If this type of mind would be placed into a human body and become a soul then this soul would be a far different soul than all other souls.  Due to total absolute and complete sinlessness and possessing his flesh in righteousness when he died his body would not decay as other men.

KJV Acts 2:27
 27.  Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

KJV Acts 2:31
 31.  He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.

KJV Acts 13:35-38
 35.  Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
 36.  For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption:
 37.  But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption.
 38.  Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins:
 
The life of this soul, this man, would be priceless in the eyes of God so much so that if others would have faith in him God would forgive their sins and begin a process in them to transform them into the same mind.  This perfect man would be as perfect as his Father and God because he told us that we would have to be also.

KJV Matthew 5:48
 48.  Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
 
This perfect, righteous and impeccable man would be of the same love as his Father and God, a love that cannot think evil and therefore cannot sin.
 

KJV John 15:9
 9.  As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.

The saints would have confidence and hope in this man that they can be delivered from the bondage of sin and in a future kingdom where they will be made unable to sin as this man was unable to sin and also being made immortal as this man was.  Let this kingdom mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus.

Has Anyone Ever Seen God?

Did Adam and Eve see God in the garden of Eden? Did Abraham see God?  How about Moses, did he see God?  I have heard some people say yes, the people mentioned above did see God, but did they.
 
First we will look at Moses.  On the mountain and in the case of the burning bush it is thought that Moses saw God and heard the voice of God.  The testimony of Stephen in Acts 7 gives us the answer.
 
KJV Acts 7:29-31
 29.  Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Madian, where he begat two sons.
 30.  And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush.
 31.  When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him,

KJV Acts 7:38
38.  This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:

KJV Hebrews 11:27
 27.  By faith he (Moses) forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.
 
So we see that Moses never saw God but an angel.
 
God uses angels as His messengers and places in them His own name and the angels speak with authority and as though they were God because they represent God and have Gods name in them.
 
KJV Exodus 23:20-21
 20.  Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
 21.  Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for My name is in him.
 
Angels are spirit beings that God uses to serve those God calls and chooses, those who are saints and heirs of salvation.
 
KJV Hebrews 1:13-14
13.  But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?
 14.  Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?
 
Below are some other scriptures that show no one has ever seen God.
 
KJV John 1:18
 18.  No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

KJV 1 Timothy 6:15-16
 15.  Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of Lords;
 16.  Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.

KJV Colossians 1:15
 15.  Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

KJV 1 Timothy 1:17
 17.  Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

KJV 1 John 4:12
 12.  No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.

Now for the clincher, the comment of Jesus Christ himself.
 
KJV John 5:37
 37.  And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
 
So then, that settles it, no one has ever seen God or heard His voice except for Jesus, he did.
 
KJV John 6:45-46
 45.  It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.
 46.  Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he(Jesus) which is of God, he hath seen the Father.

Jesus claims to have seen the Father.  Since Jesus is Gods son and our messiah and mediator between us and God then I believe him. 
 
 Through Jesus someday all the saints will see the Father.

Doubt

Doubt, as defined by Webster is; something that is uncertain, untrustworthy or undependable.  Doubt adds the element or condition to a situation that indicates it can not be sure and that hope placed in it has the possibility of failure.  If faith in God and Jesus Christ is to be a sure thing then there can be no doubt.  If it had been possible that Jesus could have sinned then faith is meaningless and salvation in question.  The words of all the prophets who foretold of the coming messiah could not be trusted.  The people in the days of these prophets heard words that would have been unreliable, uncertain. 

God Himself swore and oath to Abraham and to David about a promised messiah who would be Gods salvation to humanity and reign in a future kingdom of God.  God swore this oath, how reliable, trustworthy, dependable and certain do you think this oath would be?  The oath God swore dealt with all future events in the life of Jesus Christ His son.  Jesus knew of this oath that God swore and how when God speaks with and oath the outcome is certain.  Prophecy is called a sure word and prophecy comes from God.  All of these ancient people recorded in Hebrews 11 from Able on had the hope of a messiah and lived in faith in this oath and the absolute certainty of its fulfillment.  But for those who say Jesus was a potential sinner imagine how this would have effected these ancient people.  How can anyone read the scriptures below and even for a minute think that Jesus Christ was a potential sinner and exactly like all men in every way who by good choices provided salvation to humanity. If true we would be saved by luck and not faith.

KJV Isaiah 42:1-4
 1.  Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
 2.  He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
 3.  A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
 4.  He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.

KJV Isaiah 42:6-7
 6.  I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;
 7.  To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.

KJV Isaiah 44:24-26
 24.  Thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;
 25.  That frustrateth the tokens of the liars, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish;
 26.  That confirmeth the word of his servant, and performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built, and I will raise up the decayed places thereof:

KJV Isaiah 49:5-7
 5.  And now, saith the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength.
 6.  And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
 7.  Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.
 
Abraham and David, who believed in the promised messiah and the oath God swore to them would have had their faith and hope crushed if they had been told that this messiah could possibly sin. This would have been doubt and doubt destroys faith.