Sin Shall Not Have Dominion Over You

With Grace, peace, and love to the brethren.  May these words be received with thanksgiving and encourage all to press onward to the high calling.

The Lord requires us to correct and clarify a key doctrine not adequately addressed in a recent gathering.  It is essential to quickly cut off any inroads of our adversary into our heavens, not to defile the faith and defraud our brothers and sisters in Christ.  We hope all receive the correction in meekness, as the Scriptures witness, so we can continue to grow together.

When Jesus Christ comes to us the second time, it is for salvation apart from sin.  Christ’s coming for salvation is a tremendous promise that few are given the faith to believe.  When He comes, the end of sin is in view.

Heb 9:28  So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. 

The power of God to overcome and cease from sin in this age is the Promise we have been covering of late in our studies.  It is not some theory; it is the very Promise of God who cannot lie.  One of the biggest lies in the orthodox churches of men that carries over into our time in Spiritual Babylon is the lie that we cannot cease from sin.  This giant plank ensures one remains blind, with this lie being on par with the lies of eternal hell, free will, and the trinity.  Such a belief is a complete denial of the faith when we say one cannot overcome sin through the power of the Living Christ.  Such a doctrine is not of faith and denies the power of God.  It is another Jesus and is not the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  It is a denial of Jesus Christ, the Scriptures and the power of God.

Mat 22:29  Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. 

We do not exit Spiritual Babylon until this doctrine of devils is removed from our eyes.  Then, if the Lord wills, we can receive the true Gospel.  Until we are awakened from this lie, we are not overcoming our sins, as we lack the requisite faith in God and His power unto salvation.  May some awaken out of their sleep and receive the light of the truth.

Eph 5:14  Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. 

Before truth comes in Spirit,  we have been told many lies, including that there is no ceasing from sin in these clay vessels.  Please do not downplay the power of God or any of His promises in any way.  This belief that one cannot stop sinning because we still abide in sinful flesh denies the Lord.  It is unbelief in the promises of God and even the Words of Jesus Christ.  We can be perfect and will get there if we endure in the faith.

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

If we gather in the heavenly Jerusalem, the church, we are gathered with spirits of just men made perfect, being with Christ who now lives in the hearts and minds of His Elect.

Heb 12:22  But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 

Heb 12:23  To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 

Heb 12:24  And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. 

The Lord does not command us to do anything, like being perfect, that He does not equip us to accomplish.  When the Promise comes, the power of God comes, and then we can be perfect as our Father, who sits in our heaven, is perfect.  Few believe they can be perfect, as they must be given the faith to believe it and get past all the lies, and then wait for the Promise.   Believe the Lord and not any man.  He has meat to give us, but we do not know of it until it is given.  It is the power to overcome sin.

Luk 24:49  And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high. 

When we have been born again of the water [John] and the Spirit [Christ], we sin not and we keep ourselves in obedience by the indwelling power of God.  The tempter no longer wreaks havoc in our heaven.

1Jn 5:18  We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not. 

Once the Promise comes, we have been given everything we need to produce godliness and be holy in all our behavior.  Nothing lacks.

2Pe 1:3  According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

We have the power of the Living Word of God sitting in our heaven and have cast out the devil who is the father of the carnal mind not subject to the law of God [See Rev 12:7-10].  We have new understanding of the Scriptures for correction, instruction in righteousness and preach the Gospel so everyone may be made perfect in Christ Jesus.

Col 1:28  Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: 

Sadducees believe there is No Resurrection:

A spiritual Sadducee believes there is no resurrection from death [sin] in this life.  They do not believe the Lord or that His power utterly saves us from sin while we abide in vessels of flesh.  They are convinced one remains in their sins, contrary to the Scriptures and the words of God, for their entire physical lives.  As a result, the Sadducee says there is no overcoming of sin in this life, meaning one cannot be made perfect.  As your faith is, so be it unto you, says the Lord.  As a result, Sadducees do not overcome, remain dead in their sins, and are not saved until the next age despite their profession of faith.  Sadducees do not understand the Scriptures nor the power of God, denying the resurrection, the Lord’s angels, and the power of the Holy Spirit to deliver us from sin.

Act 23:8  For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit: but the Pharisees confess both. 

Christ warns us to beware of the leaven of the Sadducees and the Pharisees, which is the lies they speak and obey.  These are fellow Jews, our brethren of Israel, and we reason with them to persuade them of the truth.  They have a known zeal for God but without knowledge.  Only the Lord can give the increase according to His will.  [See Romans 10:1-4]

Those who preach and live by the Gospel are commanded to judge the law of faith and correct lies that creep in and can devour the flock.  The lie that one cannot overcome sin has no place in the household of God.   If we do not act to burn up the lie, the blood of the saints taken astray would be on our hands.  We are bringing judgment on this critical matter of doctrine.

Mat 19:28  And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 

All of us are Sadducees for a season until the Lord has mercy, opens our eyes, and brings the Promise in the appointed time.  Lord willing, some brethren can be awakened from their slumber.  For the hope of the resurrection, the faith that we do overcome sin, the ministers of the Gospel are persecuted by those who still walk in the flesh, not having the Promise. Flesh does not want to hear the truth; it would rather stay in its sin, warm itself by the fire, and say they have already been delivered.

Act 23:6  But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question. 

Overcoming sin requires suffering.

Overcoming sin requires much suffering.  To follow Christ, we must deny ourselves, pick up a cross, and follow Him.  It is not going to be comfortable; it is going to be painful for a while.  The way is not easy, but if we believe and wait for the Promise, we receive the Comforter living inside of us that brings the power to succeed.  Don’t deny the faith.  If we suffer with Him, we are reigning with Him, right now, as the time is at hand, if we have the Spirit.  We follow the example of the Lord, and this is how we cease from sin.

1Pe 4:1  Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;[Now, not out there]

1Pe 4:2  That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

Our lives are no longer ours; we have been redeemed for a price.  We belong to God, and our life is sacrificed to the Lord.

Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. 

When the Promise comes, we are justified by the measure of Christ’s faith we are given, but we still have to walk it out and suffer.  Jesus Christ is not a minister for sin, and we cannot continue to live in sin, being sons of God.  Any lie to the contrary needs to be burned out of our hearts.

Gal 2:17  But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin?  God forbid. 

Without the shedding of blood, our suffering in the flesh, there is no remission of sin.  We shed blood by laying down our lives to follow the Lord, striving against all impulses of sin.  The Lord helps us with the Spirit, our Comforter, who is the Promise and brings the needed power and chastening.

Heb 12:4  Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.

Heb 12:5  And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:

Heb 12:6  For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.

We need Christ’s faith and power to resist to the shedding of blood and overcome sin.  Flesh is too weak.  That is why we exhort all to believe, tarry, and pray for the Lord to come with His salvation by the Promise.  Ask, and you shall receive it in due time.  Ask the Lord for the Promise.

Mat 7:7  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 

One has to live through the seven plagues to enter the Temple and finish the race.  Those who finish the race, enduring to the end, are saved from their sins now.  Their judgment is completed, and they overcome sin now, not in the age to come.  Today is the day of salvation when Christ comes.  John had a vision of those who had overcome, the angels of the Lord, whom the Sadducees also deny.

Rev 15:2  And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. 

We get the fullness of the Spirit when we depart these clay vessels, never dying, yet we overcome now in our day of the Lord with the earnest deposit of the Spirit.

All the Apostles agree that we overcome sin now in these bodies if we have the Spirit of God, the power on high, in us.  Here is Paul.

Rom 6:5  For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: 

Rom 6:6  Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 

Rom 6:7  For he that is dead is freed from sin. 

If we have received the baptism of Christ, we are indeed dead to this world as Christ lives in us and we SHALL be in the likeness of His resurrection.  It is not a maybe.  Having Christ living in us, the body of sin is destroyed, and we no longer serve sin.  Without the Promise or its hope, we remain dead in our sins, no matter what faith we express.  If Christ lives in us, sitting on His throne, we are dead to sin, and Christ is revealed in all our behavior, and all things are made new.

Rev 21:5  And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.  And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 

We mortify [kill] the lusts of the devil that live in our sinful flesh [the earth] by the power of the Spirit, the Living Commandments of faith we have been given.  If Christ is risen in us, we overcome sin; there is no other outcome.

Col 3:1  If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 

Col 3:2  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 

Col 3:3  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 

Col 3:4  When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. 

Col 3:5  Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: 

We are to be dead to sin and alive to Christ.  Christ only dies once for salvation.  He does not continually die for our sins after He comes to us; He comes once for salvation.  If Christ comes and dies for us and is raised in our heavens, we are caused to live for God and no longer ourselves.  That is the work of grace, living in us, in the throne that chastens us to sin not.

Rom 6:10  For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 

Rom 6:11  Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Rom 6:12  Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 

Rom 6:13  Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 

Once the Promise, the Truth comes into us, there is no longer a sacrifice for sins.  If we willfully continue in sin, we will have every expectation of fiery judgment that will consume the adversaries of God.  His grace shall prevail. See Hebrews 10.

After the Promise comes, a season is needed to establish ourselves and be settled, but it is not long.  Satan knows his time is short, and the Lord works quickly on the earth.  We resist steadfastly in the commandments, and we overcome, and in a little while, we are settled and established.

1Pe 5:9  Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

1Pe 5:10  But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. 

We strive to be perfect and holy at every turn, knowing the Lord is faithful to finish the work and bring salvation.  Being young in faith, we may fall until we are established and strengthened in the grace of God.  Yet we never turn the grace into a license to keep sinning so that grace may abound.

Gal 5:16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 

But this little season is far different from a belief that says we do not overcome and stop sinning.  Even in a body of sinful flesh, the power of God is greater.  When we walk in the Spirit, we resist, overcome, and gain victory through the Lord Jesus Christ.

1Co 15:55  O death, where is thy sting?  O grave, where is thy victory? 

1Co 15:56  The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. 

1Co 15:57  But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 

This victory over sin is right now if we belong to Christ and have the Spirit in us.  It is not out there in the future, which is the Spirit of the Pharisee.  It is TODAY.  Is the Spirit in you?  We have an easy test to find out.

Rom 8:9  But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.  Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. 

Rom 8:10  And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 

Rom 8:11  But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. 

If we are still walking in the flesh, being overcome by sin, we do not have the power of God working in us.  When Christ comes for salvation, apart from sin the second time, we have been redeemed and belong to Him.  We are made debtors or also spoken of as bond servants.  By the power of God now dwelling in us, we mortify the lusts of our flesh, meaning we overcome sin.  We are either sons of God or not, and our fruits tell us what is true.

Rom 8:12  Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. 

Rom 8:13  For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. 

Rom 8:14  For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 

Rom 8:15  For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. 

Rom 8:16  The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 

This does not mean we won’t stumble, particularly in our youth, after receiving the power unto salvation.  It takes a season to be settled and strengthened in the new realm in which we live.  But those lacking faith, take this and turn the grace of God into lasciviousness and a justification to remain dead in their sins.  Worse, they think they already have the Spirit and no longer hope or pray for it to come.

We never rest from doing the Lord’s work and say we have arrived, but continually press onward and upward for the high calling.  We get our crowns of glory, the fullness of the mind of Christ, when we depart the physical realm to be with the Lord in Spirit.  We never stop running until then.

2Ti 4:6  For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. 

2Ti 4:7  I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: 

2Ti 4:8  Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. 

Twisting Scripture to Stay in Sin

We need to address some Scriptures often used, to the exclusion of scores of others [many included here], to support a doctrine that there is no overcoming of sin in this life, even with the Spirit.  This set of Scripture does not nullify the scores of other Scriptures that tell us we are made perfect, as our Father who sits in heaven is perfect.

1Jn 1:8  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 

1Jn 1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

1Jn 1:10  If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. 

This is not the sum of the Word, not even the sum of John’s first epistle.   John and all the Apostle letters are written to those who do not yet have the Promise, Christ dwelling in them, and to those to whom Christ is some into their heaven.   Once the Promise comes, the Living Christ with the Power, sin no longer has dominion over us, and we do not cling to the lie that we do not fully overcome our sins.

The same epistle of John also tells us that if we stand in the grace of God given to us in Christ, we cannot sin and we do overcome.

1Jn 3:9  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. 

1Jn 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 

John also writes that if we do not keep His commandments, the Spirit of Truth is not in us, and we do not yet have the Promise and are not in Him.

1Jn 2:4  He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 

1Jn 2:5  But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. 

1Jn 2:6  He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked. 

John warns us not to be deceived by the lie that we are righteous even when we do not overcome sin.  If we are still sinning after our little season, we remain of our father the devil, and have not the Spirit of Christ.  Jesus Christ does not fail to take away all sin in whom He comes.  We need to repent of our unbelief and then be baptized.  Do not be deceived.

1Jn 3:7  Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. 

1Jn 3:8  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. 

1Jn 3:10  In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. [Loving brethren is obeying God]

The narrow way of reconciling all of this is to acknowledge our failings, which are sins, which disappear as we mature in faith and learn to walk in the power of the Spirit.  We never boast or claim to be without sin because we know what we are without the Spirit of the Living God leading us.  Yet to say one cannot be perfected in this age is a lie that shipwrecks the faith of many.  Perfection, which is holiness, is the very reason the Lord comes.

We still abide in a flesh body that has sin in its members, but now we have the power of God working in us.  We struggle and groan, yet we still overcome because Christ, the Lord of the universe, is stronger than the flesh and the devil.

Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 

Perfection Comes on the Third Day

This prophecy is not a maybe; it is a promise that the Lord is faithful to perform for all those given the gift of faith.

Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected 

Following Christ means striving to be perfect and holy in all our behavior. Anything less than that is a lame sacrifice not acceptable to God, and we remain blind and lead ourselves and those who follow us into a ditch.  We need to be perfect, as our Master in heaven is perfect and guides us to be.

Luk 6:39  And he spake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind?  shall they not both fall into the ditch? 

Luk 6:40  The disciple is not above his master: but every one that is perfect shall be as his master. 

If we continue in sin, we are not following the Lord or walking in the Spirit.

Through the blood of the everlasting covenant, the great shepherd of the sheep, the Living Lord Jesus, is making us perfect in all ways.  He finishes this work before our race in these clay vessels ends.  Do not let anyone steal your crown as you run this race with endurance.

Heb 13:20  Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 

Heb 13:21  Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever.  Amen.

How do we become Perfect?

We must let go of our false glory [the shadow] and the spiritual riches we have accumulated over many years of seeking God.  This is difficult, and few are made willing to make this deal with the Lord.  The parable of the rich young ruler gives the lesson.

Mat 19:21  Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

Mat 19:22  But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

To follow Christ, all the past glory and religious experiences we hold dear need to be let go, as they are just the shadow of the truth.  The shadow of Christ, the law, has some glory, yet is only a temporary schoolmaster to hold us until the Living Christ, the Promise, comes.   Many who hear the true Christ, which is the Gospel and the Promise,  cannot let go of these riches, thinking they need nothing, not knowing they need the Promise.

Mat 19:23  Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 

Mat 19:24  And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

A rich young ruler is under the spell of the false prophet who lives in them until the Promise comes and burns that spirit up in the fire.  Our inward beast and false prophet are tossed into the lake of fire when Christ comes the second time for salvation apart from sin.  [See Rev 19:20]

The one thing the rich young ruler lacks is the Promise, which is the faith of Jesus Christ.  Sadly, he was unwilling to give up his possessions [the spiritual riches] to follow the Lord in Spirit and Power.  Conversely, Paul was willing to sell all his possessions to follow Christ and immediately saw all those prior religious experiences of glory and spiritual riches as dung.

Php 3:7  But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. 

We attain the fullness of our crown when we depart the clay, so we always walk pressing toward the mark for the prize of the high calling, which is the crown of righteousness and glory we receive when we finish the race.

Php 3:12  Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 

Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 

Php 3:15  Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you. 

Php 3:16  Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing. [being perfect in all]

When Christ comes in power, all our past glory and spiritual riches instantly become dung.  It is why, for example, we have taken down scores of older studies written in the dead letter and not with the power of the Gospel.  None of our prior walk or work was in the power of the resurrected Jesus Christ within us.  When brethren believe they are already rich and lack nothing, the Promise is not needed, and the asking price is too high.  Remaining in the letter of Christ and not the power, there is little overcoming, and one does not seek the very thing they desperately need.  The Living Christ remains far off.  The Lord must bring us to the point of selling all those spiritual riches to buy the pearl of the Living Gospel.

Denying the Resurrection

Believing one cannot completely overcome sin is saying Christ is not raised from the dead inside of them.  This belief denies the resurrection and thus proves that Christ is not now in them.  All Scripture is written in parables to have one think outwardly instead of in the Spirit, meaning “within you”.

1Co 15:12  Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?  [within you]

1Co 15:13  But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen:[within you]

1Co 15:14  And if Christ not be risen [within you], then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.

If we continue in sin, it’s a litmus test that Christ has not yet risen in us.

1Co 15:16  For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen:

1Co 15:17  And if Christ be not raised [within you], your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.

Thankfully, the Lord is the Saviour and His Word and Promises are true.    We are witnesses of His resurrection within us, and we hope for this blessing to come to all the brethren.

1Co 15:21  For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.

1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

Victory Through Christ

Today is the day of salvation if one has received the Promise.  Today is the third day, the day of the Lord, once the Promise comes.  It is not past, it is not in the future, it is TODAY.   We do not receive the grace of God in vain.

2Co 6:1  We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain. 

2Co 6:2  For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 

Paul’s showing us the mystery below does not speak of the end of the physical age, as we all once believed.  The mystery is Christ coming for salvation now, in this age, with His Promise while we are in clay bodies.  In the twinkling of an eye, He is raised within us, and everything changes.  We are a new creation immediately and no longer know Jesus Christ in the flesh.

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

1Co 15:51  Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

1Co 15:52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

1Co 15:54  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

Once raised with Christ, death is no longer applicable.  Those who receive the Promise have been resurrected from the dead with Jesus Christ.  We shall never taste death, as we have been resurrected unto eternal life.

Mat 16:28  Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom. 

If we are God’s elect, we are perfected on the third day, our day of the Lord, and are given dominion over sin.  We are ruling and reigning with Christ RIGHT NOW and have become His kings and priests on the earth.  We reign for a thousand years, one day to the Lord, and wait for the rest of the dead, representing all humanity, to be raised in the age to come.  The chosen few are the blessed, receiving the first resurrection now, so we, in turn, can be used to bring the blessing to others in the lake of fire.

Rev 20:5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.  This is the first resurrection.

Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.[today, which is our third day]

Given the Spirit of Promise, we now reside in the Lord’s courts and become doorkeepers in the house of God.  A far better place to be than to dwell in the tents of wickedness, who are all men who have not the Spirit of the Living God dwelling in them. [See Psa 84:10].

Living in John’s baptism, while we tarry, we abide in hope and our faith and wait for the Promise that comes with the power unto salvation.

1Jn 2:28  And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming. 

1Jn 2:29  If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him. 

We recently studied Pentecost coming to the Church at Ephesus in Acts 19. Those disciples were quickened and raised from the dead, receiving the Baptism of Christ. Paul writes to them in the past tense of their old way of life before the Promise came, which has now given them overcoming. They have been quickened and raised out of their sins into life in the Spirit.

Eph 2:1  And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 

Eph 2:2  Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 

Eph 2:3  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. 

Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 

Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

Once raised by the Promise coming, we are God’s elect walking in power.  The Holy Spirit cleans us and causes us to obey the commandments.

1Pe 1:2  Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. 

We run our race with endurance.  Yes, there are falls at the start as we learn to walk worthy of our calling and election into the grace of the living God.  The young in the faith are exhorted to resist and strive until Christ is fully formed in them.  That is the role of the Body to wash feet, comfort, admonish, and exhort the young onwards to maturity.  The chastening of our Father works the work of righteousness.  He does not fail to bring total salvation and loses no sheep.

Beware antichrists in the World

We do not yet know the Lord; if we claim one cannot be perfected in this life, our faith is unbelief in the Promise of God.  Such are the deceived and deceivers, the antichrists who deny that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh.

1Jn 4:2  Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 

1Jn 4:3  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. 

Denying Christ has come in the flesh is spiritual language, meaning one denies the power of God in their flesh to give them overcoming and complete salvation from sin.  We try to persuade our brethren caught up in this lie to repent with one or two admonitions.  If they do not repent, we sin ourselves if we continue to eat and assemble with them.  We cannot let anyone fleece and devour the flock the Lord has set before us.

2Jn 1:7  For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh.  This is a deceiver and an antichrist. 

2Jn 1:8  Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward. 

2Jn 1:9  Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God.  He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. 

2Jn 1:10  If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: 

2Jn 1:11  For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.

We do not wish this on anyone, but we must obey God and not men, having no respect of persons.  The way is narrow, and very few are given to find it.

Strive to be perfect until the race is over.  The Lord does not fail to perform what has been Promised.  Be ye holy because your Father in heaven is Holy.