God's Wrath is Not For You {Part Two}

To read part one click here.

Here I am thinking out loud again. I want to begin this post with a few verses to keep in mind...

“Many shall purify themselves and make themselves white and be refined, but the wicked shall act wickedly. And none of the wicked shall understand, but those who are wise shall understand." Dan 12:10

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail."
Lam 3:22

"In love a throne will be established; in faithfulness a man will sit on it— one from the tent of David— one who in judging seeks justice and speeds the cause of righteousness." Is 16:5

“So I will come near to you for judgment. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive aliens of justice, but do not fear me,” says the Lord Almighty."Mal 3:5

So my personal view is that Jesus was sent to die for the world out of God's frustration or wrath against the enemy, the Destroyer. He was sick of seeing his little ones perish and so He sent Jesus as sacrifice to cover us in His protective blood. Remember the blood of the passover was to protect from the Destroyer, not from the destruction of God. God is not a destroyer! The devil is the Destroyer. And so the blood of Jesus protects us from the destruction of the enemy. If we don't accept the blood we are handed to the enemy for destruction. God's judgment is righteous because we have chosen our own destruction. So the judgment from God is separation from His protection by our choice not His.

"By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood, so that the Destroyer of the firstborn might not touch them." Heb 11:28

"...nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer." 1Cor 10:10

"To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus." 1Cor 5:5

Now lets look a little closer at the concept of wrath and judgment in the New Testament. The word judgment in the Greek is krisis meaning to separate, to approve. So again the cross and the blood are the point of separation. Those who choose the blood are protected, those that don't are "approved" of their choice and "separated" given to the destruction of the enemy. Then both are separated.

God's Wrath is Not For You

I was reading in the book of Jeremiah the other day when I found myself glancing to the opposite page. This is the verse that caught my eye...

"Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says: “See, I will refine and test them, for what else can I do because of the sin of my people?" Jer. 9:7

One of the things I have been thinking about lately is the concept of sin, punishment and judgment. I talked a little about this a few days ago {click here}. What also seems to always play a role in that is the concept of the wrath of God. So these are some of my thoughts on the whole thing. I haven't totally worked it all through, so consider this post as me thinking out loud.

I have always been of the mind that sin is and of itself the punishment. That God is not the one punishing but instead is allowing the sin to punish on its own. Sin in the Hebrew mean "to wander from the way" the way being God's way. So when we sin we go our own way contrary to God's way and that just so happens to be the Devil's way. There in lies the punisher, the one who seeks to kill, steal and destroy. The other side effect from sin is separation from God. So the destruction and separation the sin causes is the punishment. But that destruction and separation isn't caused by God it is caused by the person teaming with the enemy.

"Because you have said, "We have made a covenant with Death, and with Sheol we are in agreement." Isaiah 28:15

I still don't understand how people get in their minds that our God is a God of destruction and death. That God seeks destruction or separation for any man. A God of war yes, a God of justice yes. But the war has always been and will always be against sin and the Devil, NOT THE PERSON! That is his justice and that was the cross!  He took the wrath of the enemy that was intended for us. He stood in for us so that we wouldn't have to be separated from God.  He was separated from God for us.  He took the death that was intended for us. But he conquered death! He took the control over death from the enemy so that all my have the choice of redemption and everlasting life. That we never have to be separated from God.  What I still am trying to figure out and have questions about is this...Did Jesus have to die to appease God's wrath for us or or was his wrath for the sin that separated us from him? Yes, God is totally indifferent to sin and hates it.  But Jesus who was God in the flesh had indifference to sin but never the sinner.  I guess that is why there is a few different views of atonement {penal substitution view, ransom view and Christus Victor}.  Still trying to work those out...lol.  Ok...getting off track...back to the Old Testament.

Sin is the Punishment

Just a quick list as to where I get the idea that sin is the punishment in and of itself. A list of Hebrew words and their actual meanings that are translated as "punishment" in the King James Version. The number is the Strongs concordance reference number. So in your Bible it says punishment but in the Hebrew...well take a look...

Words translated as PUNISHMENT in your Bible

H8433 Towcheleth-correct, rebuke

H6486 Pequddah-care, custody, visitation

H6485 Paqad-to attend to, to visit

H5352 Naquah-to be empty, be clear, be free

H4148 Muwcar-instruct

H5771 'Avon- guilt. {seen in the bible as the phrase "punishment of their iniquity" it is really just this one word in the Hebrew. See below}

H7725 Shuwb-turn back {seen in the KJV as the phrase "will not revoke its punishment" or in the NIV as the phrase "will not turn back my wrath". In the Hebrew just the one word.}

H7561 Rasha-wicked

H2403 Chatta'ath-sin

The Emperor's {and Queen's} New Clothes

Many, many years ago there was a king and queen who were exceedingly rich and wise. They lived in the most beautiful kingdom of Edemshire. They had everything they could ever want and were totally content.

One particular thing the king and queen of Edemshire were known for were their glorious clothes. People from all over the kingdom would come to banquets and parties just to see what the master tailor had created for them. Their style set the stage for the kingdom. Everyone wanted to dress as gloriously as they did.

One day a swindler came to the kingdom posing as a tailor. Upon entering Edemshire he demand that the guard at the gate take him to see the king and queen. He told the guard that his name was Planos. He went on to say that he was a master tailor from a far off kingdom and that he had been summoned by the king and queen. The guard obliged. He thought the new tailor must have been summoned for the upcoming Jubilee.

Planos was taken directly to the king and queen. They were both very excited to meet this new tailor. Planos declared to them that he could make clothes even more magnificent then they had ever seen. Not only would the colors and patterns be splendid, but the clothes would have a special power. Planos the swindler tailor went on to explain that the clothes that he would make would be invisible to anyone that was stupid or unwise. The king and queen had never heard of anything like it. They were sold! Their curiosity got the better of them. So the king and queen gave Planos a large some of gold to get started on the new invisible clothes.

Get Up And Walk!

Building off the last few posts I think it is safe to say that man does not have a "sinful nature". Man is not intrinsically evil. Man was created in the image of God for good purpose. The notion that God created someone in His image to be evil means that God is evil. God is not evil, He is good. Man has chosen against his Creator to sin. It is the devil that is evil and desires to destroy us. We sometimes get talked into that destruction via the devil's deception and our choice to sin.

Who Stole Your Identity? {Part Two}

Continued from part one...click here.

How come God allowed this crushing blow of the enemy? How come He didn't step in and save them? How come He didn't work His Spirit into them? Because He didn't want to override the choice that they had made. Notice the cry of the prophets in the old testament. It was always in the form of a warning. A warning telling the people to cry out and turn back before they are crushed by the enemy. Unfortunately the ravishing and deception had taken it's toll and they choose not to turn back. They kept sinning and self destructing. This led to the crushing blow and devastation of the enemy. Bondage ensued.

The Israelites were in Egypt nearly 350 years before they cried out to God for deliverance. They were in Babylon 70 years. Listen to the warning of Hosea prior to the exile in Babylon.

"I long to redeem them but they speak lies against me. They do not cry out to me from their hearts but wail upon their beds." Hosea 7:13-14

Even after God had responded to the cries from Egypt they were so broken they didn't believe it.

"Moses reported this [deliverance] to the Israelites, but they did not listen to him because of their discouragement and cruel bondage." Exodus 6:9

They had completely lost their identity. I can hear people saying "Nope. This is just who I am. This is my life now. I guess this was meant to be. I'm just a sinner." Lie from the pit of hell! God created you with loving intention and good purpose from His image. If you choose to cry out God He will be faithful to bring you back to that good purpose. But we like the Israelites trade this truth for a lie.

"But they will reply 'there is no hope': but we will walk after our own devices, and we will everyone do the imagination of his evil heart." Jeremiah 18:12

See how the crown of God's creation now in fact thought they were evil. The oppression had totally robbed their identity. Again the Hebrew word for evil is 'ra; which simply means bad or dysfunctional as was discussed in the prior post. The Hebrew word for imagination in this verse is sheriruth meaning stubborn. It is from the root word sharar in the sense of twisted. This Hebrew word is also sometimes translated as the word lust. See it is a twisting of reality, a lie. Their heart is not evil just as lust is not love.

But the choice of the people usually swayed the response from God to the situation. When they did not choose to repent he would hand them over to the enemy.

"So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices." Psalm 81:12

But at the same time God would always leave the door of hope open. He always gave the option to return to Him and the identity that He had created.

"...remove all it's vile images and detestable idols. I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove the stony heart out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh." Ezekiel 11:18b-19

So what was to become of this virgin who had been ravished and deceived? This people who had lost their identity. This people who were broken and in bondage. This people that were now giving themselves to prostitution. They repented and turned back to God. God forgave them and comforted them. That was the first step to a process of healing. In the next step God called to rebuild the foundation and walls, rebuild the temple, rebuild the intimacy. In the book of Nehemiah they rebuild the wall. In Ezra they rebuild the temple. Isaiah calls for all those things.

"Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and raise the age old foundations." Isaiah 58:12

Countless times in the old testament God calls people to "Be holy, for I am Holy", "Seek righteousness", "Follow my laws, decrees and celebrations." Other times He says "Choose this day whom you will serve." or "Choose life." In this process of healing God comforts, gives hope and teaches righteousness. Moreover He takes this broken, blemished prostitute and make her clean and married.

"No longer will they call you deserted or name your land desolate...for the Lord will delight in you, and your land will be married." Hosea 2:15

"In that day you will call me 'my husband' you will no longer call me 'my master'...I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion." Hosea 2:18-19

Remember that it takes a long time to recover from abuse. It takes the support of God and others. It takes a daily renewing of the mind, heart and spirit. The Israelites were in the wilderness 40 years trying to work through the damage bondage in Egypt had caused. They were no longer in Egypt but still had the oppressed identity that had formed there. Heck some of them even wanted to go back. They didn't know how to live free of bondage. Like a battered wife returning to her husband. Like Stockholm Syndrome where the person taken hostage falls in love with the captor. Their vessel was shattered. That vessel had to be rebuilt before God could fill it. This is why the time in the desert learning the law and sacrifice was so intense. They were on house arrest and in rehabilitation all at the same time.

The point to remember is that no one is a lost cause. God did not ask them to do anything He didn't think they could achieve. Why? Because God is a loving God. Now I am not saying that anyone could perfect the law. No man could do that. But when God was telling them "Be holy for I am Holy" He meant it. But how could He have such high expectations for man? Because man was created in the holy image of God. He gave man an image of His mind, of His heart and of His spirit. He created man out of love with good intention and for good purpose. So when he called man to be holy what He was really saying was "Be who I created you to be!"

What I hope you take from these last couple of blogs is a new sense of identity. God took special care in creating you. You are not a mistake. You are not wicked or evil. You are not beyond repair. Yes we all make mistakes but no one needs to be in bondage. Don't take on the dysfunctional identity of sin and the devil. Don't believe the lies that he tells you. Repent and be comforted by God. Then start on the road to healing. There is hope! You can't be worse than the Israelites with houses full of idols, the temple of God defiled with worship to other gods. Sacrificing their children to Molech and then having orgies with the temple prostitutes in the sacricifial blood. And if you are in fact that mixed up there is still hope for you because there was hope for the Israelites.

We are even better off than the Israelites! We have the benefit of Jesus and the permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit. There was neither of these things in the old testament. They had to sacrifice and follow the law only by command of the Lord and their own volition. It was this way until the time Jesus came. Jesus came as the atoning sacrifice for all mankind. He came to bind up the broken hearted and to set the captives in bondage free. The Holy Spirit was sent to comfort, give grace and power. To give us supernatural power to overcome the schemes of the enemy and resist temptation to sin.

"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak though the flesh, God did by sending His son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin. And so condemned sin in the flesh." Romans 8:3

Now we have a vessel that has not only been repaired but made new. We have a vessel that can be permanently filled and fortified with the Holy Spirit. This doesn't make us impervious to temptation. But it should give you a new start. A new identity. You are a new creature created in the image of God, washed clean in the blood of Jesus and fortified by the Spirit. Stay on track to renew your mind, heart, and spirit. Seek the will of God, seek righteousness and be free. This is your starting point. Everything doesn't happen instantaneously it's a process. But I will tell you you will NEVER be free from bondage if you keep the identity of a sinner. You must start with the foundation of freedom. Don't settle for anything less. Don't believe the lie that "this is just who I am and that's that." I believe that when Jesus said He was the way, the truth and the life that it was two fold. Like this...

WAY- 1}the way we should follow here on earth; Jesus. 2}the way to the Father in heaven.

TRUTH- 1} the truth of who God is. 2} the truth of who you were created to be.

LIFE- 1}victory on earth over sin. 2}victory over death; that is eternal life.

Use this as your guide. Be patient and press on toward the goal of fullness and intimacy with Christ. I will be spending some more time on this subject in regards to what the new testament says. Specifically exploring the concept of the flesh and the Spirit. Also discussing some of my own bondage and how I got through it. So stay posted.

Who Stole Your Identity? {Part One}

One of the first verses I remember learning as a little girl was in the book of Psalms. I remember the day in school, probably about 1st grade, that we we told to draw a self portrait. Once we completed that picture we were to write this.

"For you formed my inward parts; you covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are your works, my soul knows full well."
Psalm 139:13-14

That verse along with knowing that when God created man He said he was "very good" gave me a great understanding of the character of God. Even though I was only about 6 years old these verses told me that God loved me and knew me. That I was special, unique and created in His image. As I got older I learn about sin and the enemy. How the devil seeks to destroy what God has created. How he tempts you to take you off the path of relationship with God. So like any good parents do I was taught to make good choices. Choices that would keep me in the good and prosperous plan that God had for me. Choices that steered clear of the lies and deception of the enemy. My parents taught me that we were born into battle between God and the devil. That we were created as a vessel that was to be filled with God. When we don't the devil will chip away at your vessel till it breaks.

"If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you don't do well sin is crouching at the door; and it's desire is for you, but you must rule over it." Genesis 4:6

This gave me a real sense of responsibility. It gave me an understanding that my choices on a day to day basis had an effect in the spirit realm. My choices would either glorify God or give way to the temptation of the devil. Remember in the garden we didn't just sin. We were tempted and deceived by the devil to sin. If the serpent wasn't there would we still have disobeyed? I don't think so. But God knowing the will and the character of the devil set boundaries to protect us. I learned to do the same in my own life.

"Do not remove the ancient boundary with your forefathers have set." Proverbs 22:28

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commands that I give you today are to be upon your hearts." Deuteronomy 6:4-6

I also learned to quickly repent when I had made a mistake. To take responsibility for my choice and get back on the right path. There was no "the devil made me do it" or "that was just my sinful nature acting up" in our house! If I ever said anything like that my dad would sit me down and say "No, Cherie that is not who you are or who you were created to be. You are a child of God in His image so act like it!" He would go on to say "Don't glorify the devil to say he has that much power over you. 'Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world' anything other than that is a lie from the pit of hell!" Ahhhh...I can hear those words as if it were yesterday, not 30 years ago. Maybe it is because I am now using those same word with my 6 year old daughter. A strong foundation is not easily broken. Boy was I glad about that. Years later the rebellion of the teenager began to brew. The foundation my parents had instilled in me was to be a saving grace.

What is sin? The Hebrew word for sin means to wander from the way. In other words you believe the lie of the enemy and turn from God. When we repent, we acknowledge the above and take responsibility then turn to God. The Hebrew word for repent means regret. It also means comfort...to comfort oneself or God's comfort. Now if you do not repent for a sin right away and just heap sin upon sin something different happens. The desire that you had to repent lessens. You sink deeper into the lies and deception of the enemy. You begin to forget who God created you to be and you still refuse to be comforted. Now you have wandered so far from the right path you have lost your identity all together. Not only is your vessel empty of God it is smashed by the bondage of the devil. You are lost, broken and in total despair.

Now a few things to point out here. Bondage and oppression is brought on by the relentless chipping away of the enemy. It is solidified by the choice of the person not to turn around. What often times happens is that the oppressed take on the identity of the oppressor. The person is not only in bondage the are putting others in bondage as well. Let's look at the old testament for examples of this.

Here you have a group of somewhat righteous people that God often refers to as virgin Israel. So God warns virgin Israel not to be deceived by foreign gods {the devil} but to keep their eyes on their first love God. But virgin Israel was deceived and forgot their fist love. The begin to act as an adulteress and their hearts deteriorate to that of a prostitute. See the progression?

"It {wisdom} will save you from the adulteress, from the wayward wife with all her words which flatter, who has left the partner of her youth." Proverbs 2:16

"Why will my son be ravished by an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of a foreign woman?" Proverbs 5:20

"They became prostitutes in Egypt, engaging in prostitution from their youth. In that land their breasts were fondled and their virgin bosom caressed." Ezekiel 23:3

The Hebrew word for virgin when referring to Israel means pure, unblemished. Another interesting note. The English words ravish, rape and rob come from the same root word meaning to carry off. Rapture is in the same family. In french rape' means the refuse of grapes after the extraction of the juice in wine making. The oppressive rule of the Egyptians in the bible is described with the Hebrew word radah. This word means to tread as in a wine press. Can you tell I love word etymology? Really though where am I going with all this?

God created man good and in His image. It was a combination of the ravishing of the devil and personal choice to lead him away from God. The relentless attack of the enemy can lead a sinful person into bondage. The point being no one started out that way. No one is born a prostitute. Prostitutes or porn stars are usually people that have been abused, lost their identity and lead a broken life. The same was true of the Israelites when they turned from God. This grieved the heart of God to see the crown of his creation, man, to act so wickedly. Meaning they were not functioning in the way they were created; for good purpose and relationship with God.

In the Hebrew there really is no word for wicked or evil. Anytime you see either one of those words in the bible they are a translation of the Hebrew word 'ra. 'Ra simply means bad. It is my understanding that the ancient Hebrews didn't think in terms of good and evil but more along the lines of functional and dysfunctional. Good is functioning properly; how you were created. What does dysfunctional mean? Impaired or abnormal function. Can you see the difference? Sin and bondage to sin is not because you are evil. It is because you are broken. This breaks the heart of God who crated you whole.

"Let my eyes overflow with tears night and day without ceasing. For my virgin daughter-my people-have suffered a grievous wound, a crushing blow." Jeremiah 14:17

Click here for Part Two of this blog.

Love & War (Part Five)

Click here to read part four.

I want to take a quick look at a story in Genesis 20. We have been seeing a lot of how the wicked are destroyed because of their sin and the righteous are spared. But what happens when it is the righteous who sin against the pagan? Does God still intervene? I am happy to say yes...our loving, gracious God does. I give you Abimelech king of Gerar.

Abraham and his wife Sarah are traveling through the region of the Negev. When they come upon the region of Gerar Abraham is afraid that these people don't honor his God; so he lies. Sounds a little backwards I know. None the less Abraham lies and says that Sarah is his sister. Maybe the whole Sodom thing was still fresh in his mind. I don't know. Bottom line he lied-sinned-stepped out of the will of God. So Abimelech upon seeing this hot, single woman in her 90s takes her to be a part of his harem.

On night God comes to Abimelech in a dream. Not Abraham, Abimelech. God says "You are a dead man because of the woman you took, as she is another's wife." Gen. 20:3 Oh my goodness God is speaking to a pagan! And look the pagan responds "Lord will you destroy a nation even if it is innocent? He told me she was his sister...with a pure heart and clean hands I have done this." Gen. 20:4-5 God then says to Abimelech "Yes I know you have a clear conscience so I have keep you from sinning. That is why I did not let you touch her." Gen. 20:6

So here we have God speaking to a pagan king and Abimelech responding un-alarmed and unafraid. This shows us that along with the close proximity of the spirit realm in ancient times God did not only appear or speak to the righteous. God was made known to pagan and righteous people alike. (I am going to talk more on this latter.) Interaction with the spirit realm in ancient times was common.

So God goes on to tell Abimelech to return Sarah to her husband Abraham so that "you and yours" will not die. Remember sin=death and in the old testament prior to Jesus that meant actual death. What a gracious, loving God to warn Abimelech. Just as warning Cain "sin is crouching at the door" Gen. 4:7 But unlike Cain this pagan heeds the words of a righteous God and returns Sarah to Abraham. Wow...a God fearing, righteous pagan. Who knew there was such a thing. LOL.

So Abimelech returns Sarah. He is a little pissed at Abraham but does not let the devil take hold of the situation. Instead of being pissed...he honors Abraham and Sarah. And in turn he honors God in the situation instead of the devil. Warfare! He brings Abraham sheep and cattle. He offers Abraham workers to work for him. He tells Abraham he can live anywhere in his kingdom. To top it all off he brings 25 pounds of silver and gives it to Sarah. "I am giving this to your brother...to cover the offense against you...you are completely vindicated." Gen. 20:16 Love how he still says "brother". Come on he had to get a little jab right? :D But what Abimelech did was sacrifice goods that he owned for the vindication of Abraham. He atoned for Abraham's sin. That is righteousness!

At the end of the chapter Abraham intercedes for Abimelech that he too will be vindicated from any wrong doing. In the face of Abimelech's righteousness and honor how could God refuse? Well he didn't. God gave life back to the household of Abimelech. The surprise ending is that God had made all of the women in Abimelech's household barren because of Abraham's sin. If Abimelech had refused to return Sarah and sinned; death would have come to his household via infertility. The other catch is that Sarah had not yet bore Isaac at this point. What a mess it would have been if Abimelech did have sex with her and nine months later Sarah would have been wondering who the baby daddy was! Wow, what a good, gracious, loving God to both the pagan and the righteous. Let's check the sin/dominion formula on this one...

Creation-"You and yours will die" Yours meaning all your livestock and land.
This was averted because Abimelech did not sin.

Humanity-Death via infertility. Averted because Abimelech did not sin.

The Devil-Gains no dominion. The devil looses out on account of Abimelech's and Abraham's
righteousness.

Man himself-Abimelech does not sin and vindicates Abraham for his sin. Life for both!

Too bad that they don't all turn out that way. But this shows that all through the old testament God was known to many. It also shows that God honors the righteous man whether he is pagan or not. Righteous is righteous full stop. Finally God wants to bring life into any situation he can. Death and destuction is not the heart of God. The heart of God was and will always be love, life, and grace. Aren't we lucky!

Love & War (Part Four)

To read part three click here.

Continuing to look through the old testament at the concepts of sin and punishment. Building off the idea that sin is a stepping out of the will of God and into the will of the devil. When we do this we in fact punish ourselves. We make the choice to step out of God's plan that is life and righteousness and in turn we step into the devil's plan of distortion and death. We have also been discussing that when we sin it effects all that we have dominion over...creation, humanity, the devil and ourselves. If you are totally lost it may help to read the prior blogs. :D

When we meet Abraham in Genesis 12 we learn quite quickly that he is a righteous man who has relationship with God. (At this time his name is actually Abram but that's another story. We will just call him Abraham to simplify) We also in chapter 12 meet his nephew Lot. They have been traveling and living together. But they come to a piece of land that is unable to feed both of their herds. We also learn that their workers or herdsmen are not getting along. So they decide to go their separate ways. Abraham leaves to the high country of Hebron and Lot to the plains of Sodom.

Genesis 14 give a great snapshot of the constant battles between the people groups of this time. Remember this is before the "Israelites" even exist. But the devil was already getting very good at stealing man's dominion and causing his will to come to past. Death and destruction. It is during one of these battles that Abraham's nephew Lot gets carried off as a prisoner. Abraham hears of this and sends a rescue party. The rescue is a success and upon return Abraham runs into two very different kings. Melchizedek king of Salem is a righteous man who has relationship with God and the king of Sodom who does not. To honor the king of Salem Abraham gives him a tenth of the spoils. The king of Sodom sees this gesture and says to Abraham "give me the people and keep the goods for yourself." Gen. 14:21 Notice Abraham's response "I have raised my hand to God...I will accept nothing belonging to you, not even a thread or strap from your sandal..." Gen. 14:22-23. Can you see the battle in the spirit here? Abraham is refusing to hand even a shred of his dominion to anything unrighteous. This is warfare. Lot on the other hand after just being rescued returns to Sodom. Sodom means burning.

A couple of chapters we find Abraham in his tent in a town called Hebron; which means fellowship. Abraham looks up to see God an two angels. Remember the spirit world and the natural world were nearly one in the same in ancient times. As soon as Abraham sees them he bows down in respect and invites them to stay for a feast. He gets Sarah to make bread from the best flour. He has one of his men kill the best calf. He brings other choice food to complete the feast to honor his guests. One funny note here...the Lord asks "Where is Sarah?" when she is standing just a few feet away. Remember in Eden? "Where are you?" or with Cain "Where is your brother?" Sarah has a lacking relationship with God. So even though she is in the presence of God; He can sense the separation of her spirit. So here they are feasting with Abraham having a little chit chat. Then God says "the outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin is grievous." Gen 18:20 Robert Alter's commentary for this verse notes two things:
1) the Hebrew word here for "outcry" "is often associated...with the shrieks of torment of the oppressed."
2) the Hebrew text reads "the outcry of Sodom..." not "the outcry against Sodom..." This is how it reads in the KJV as well.

Now is this sounding at all familiar from the last blog? Remember the outcry of torment of the people prior to the flood. It was so bad that Lamech even names his son Noah; which means comfort. See how the devil was once again using the dominion he gained from man to twist and distort God's created? These people on a physical level were engaged in "grievous sin" but even still their spirits were crying out in torment. Isn't the devil twisted! This is the spiritual battle of good vs evil.

So Abraham catches on pretty quick that these cities, five in all, were to be destroyed. He bargains with God not to destroy the cities if at least 10 righteous people are found. Abraham is trying to save his nephew Lot. God agrees and sends the two angels to Sodom to check things out. Lot happens to be at the front gate when the angels arrive. When he sees them he too bows down in respect and invites them to his home for something to eat. So what feast does Lot prepare? Flat bread. Flat bread and cheese? NO. Flat bread and meat? NO. Flat bread and wine? NO. Flat bread and beer? NO. Just flat bread. A far cry from the feast or shall we say offering that his uncle had prepared. Think relationship or lack there of. So while they are eating "all the men from every part of the city-both young and old-surrounded the house." Gen 19:4. Kinda sounds like the all encompassing wickedness of the people prior to the flood doesn't it.

So "all the men" it turns out want to have sex with the new men in town. Makes you wonder if Lot got the same treatment when he moved in. If he did...makes you wonder why he is still living there. Anyways...Lot in his demented sinful mind offers the huge group of men outside his two virgin daughters instead. What a loser huh! Well the men of Sodom are not satisfied with that offer and try to break into the house. The angels strike the men of Sodom with blindness...a physical blindness to mirror what was obviously a spiritual blindness. Lot's name by the way means "covering or veil" in the bad sense. The angels then have to basically drag Lot and his family from the city before it is destroyed. I think they really would have preferred to stay. They are totally clueless as to how wicked things are there and don't really believe the cities are to be destroyed. Total deception till the death is a specialty of the devil.

Now I would like to note here that sexual deviation was not the only sin of Sodom. In fact I believe the sexual deviation was just secondary to the underling often deep rooted sin. Ezechiel 16:49 says "This was the sin of Sodom...she was arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and the needy." Think of these things on a spiritual level. A spirit of pride, a spirit of lust, and a spirit of broken will. Sodom was immersed in the wicked schemes of the devil because they had given away their dominion. A broken will breeds complacency and it is always a door for the devil to come in and take over. So just like the flood the wickedness of the devil is destroyed by the righteousness of God. The fact that a total loser like Lot was considered righteous enough to be spared gives a good picture of how unrighteous the others in those towns were. I also think it was because Lot was related to the righteousness of Abraham if only by a small thread. Remember Abraham was the one who interceded for Lot. So lets check our sin/dominion formula...

Creation-Fire and brimstone (or pitch) Gen. 19:24
Vegetation of the land destroyed Gen. 19:25

Humanity-The outcry of Sodom is great & the sin grievous Gen. 18:20

The Devil-Total dominion via the broken will of the people Eze 16:49

Man himself-Death by total disassociation with righteousness

Is this starting to make sense? I hope so.

Sad to say this story ends much in the way that it ended for Noah. Lot even after being rescued from Sodom does not seek God or righteousness. The angels implore him to flee to the high country. I think spiritual they were saying "Get back to the righteousness in Hebron. Get close to God! Take charge of your dominion!" But Lot doesn't listen. Days later we find him drunk in a cave(wandering) and having sex with his daughters. It sounds like the pride, lust and broken will of Sodom had claimed another victim even after the physical cites had been consumed. The devil was still on the prowl for dominion and man was falling for it. The battle of good vs evil continued. Click here to read part five.

Love & War (Part Three)

Click here for part one...click here for part two.

Between the time of Adam and the time of Noah there isn't too much information in the bible. Genesis chapter 5 is really just a genealogy that connects the two. It does also give us the hope that even though there wasn't much righteousness in the earth there still seems to be a tread of commitment to God via the seed of Adam. Remember this is the seed that will strike the devil's head...Jesus.

Back to Noah whose mane means "rest". It was said of Noah by his father Lamech "He (Noah) will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands." Gen. 5:29. The Hebrew word for toil in this verse is "itstsabown" which means pain or sorrow. It is only used in the bible 3 times. Once in Gen 3:16 where God is telling Eve of the curse now on humanity because of sin. And second in Gen. 3:17 where God is telling Adam of the curse now on creation because of sin. So Noah's dad is saying that Noah will be a comfort from those curses. Remember sin is the punishment. Sin also effects that which we have dominion over...creation, humanity, the devil and ourselves. Lamech's words make evident that both on a spiritual level and a physical level the whole world both human and earth is greatly suffering from the torment of sin and the devil. The overwhelming choice to give the devil dominion through sin has become a crushing weight. Evil is winning the battle.

Now Noah was a righteous man. Righteous meaning just, upright or straight. So to be righteous is not allowing sin to bend, twist and distort. When we are righteous it automatically takes dominion back from the enemy and ceases the bending and twisting of the devil. This is warfare! At this time Noah was the ONLY righteous man. Genesis 6:5 tells that "every inclination of man's heart was evil all the time." Meaning that their heart or their spirit was set on evil not just their mind but their whole being. It goes on to say "all the people on earth had corrupted their ways." Gen 6:11"the earth was corrupt in God's sight and was filled with outrage" Robert Alter's commentary notes here that this was "a perversion of nature by man [that then needed] a reversal of creation by God." I would like to add to this comment that it wasn't that man himself was evil. Man had become evil by coming in line with the will of the devil to distort and destroy. The word evil and wicked are from the same Hebrew word "ra" meaning bad, hurtful, malignant; giving pain, unhappiness and misery. Notice that humanity at the time of Noah is simultaneously wicked and tormented. Sin is the punishment. Sin and the punishment thereof is the will of the devil not God.

So the devil was having a grand time. This grieves the heart of God to see His beloved creation once again falling prey to the schemes of the devil. Remember God came out of the garden because He still longed to have relationship with us. So when it says in Gen 6:6 " The Lord was grieved that He had made man...and His heart was full of pain." It is because He didn't think that we would continually and so easily take our God given dominion over to the devil. We were meant to be battling the devil, not joining forces with him. God is in pain over the painful (both physical & spiritual) state of His created.

God takes a drastic measure to remedy this situation. If you trust in a God that is full of love, justice and grace you must assume that His choice was the best choice. It must also give you a picture of how extremely wicked things were. These were not people that just skipped church on Sunday, they were people totally consumed by the demonic of the devil. So God floods the entire earth. The flood is an act of spiritual warfare against the devil. God washes the earth clean with the waters of the Holy Spirit. He saves the animals(since they are only subject to wickedness via mans sin)and He saves Noah and his family. Noah was the only righteous man who was walking in relationship with God.

So lets see if our dominion/sin formula worked this time. What had the sin in the time of Noah effected? (Those of you confused read part one and two first :D)

Creation-"painful toil of our hands" Gen 5:29
Plus most every living thing was flooded and died.

Humanity-needed comfort in their pain. Gen 5:29
they had corrupted their ways Gen 6:12

The Devil-had almost total dominion of the earth via man
"man was only evil all the time" Gen 6:5

Man himself-wandering in wickedness & torrment . Death by association.

Another way to look at the loss of life in this situation is something that I alluded to earlier. That the people were saved from the dominion and tormenting of the devil by the cleansing water of the Holy Spirit. Remember it was said of Noah that he would comfort the people. For all we know our gracious, loving God gathered all those people lost in the flood back into His arms in their death. Released from the clutches of the enemy. Just a thought. Also BTW there is no mention of the words wrath, sin or punishment concerning the story of the flood in the bible.

When Noah comes out of the ark God very quickly makes a new covenant with him that is a kin to the covenant with Adam & Eve. God says "TAKE DOMINION! Over the earth, over humanity and over the devil! Quit giving your dominion of these things to the devil! I don't have the heart to flood the earth again so get it right this time! Multiply righteousness instead of wickedness!" Gen. 6 translated by Cherie. See the flood wiped out the the physical world and people but it did not wipe out the spiritual realm of the devil. The devil is poised and ready for round two. So it is enormously important that Noah heed the word's of God. See when fail to use our dominion righteously it is an open door for the devil to use it wickedly. Unfortunately for Noah he didn't lock the door and fell prey to the schemes of the devil.

Genesis 9:21 says that Noah became drunk and laid uncovered in nakedness. He gave his dominion away just like in the garden. Noah gave way to his own desires instead of God's and sin laid bare the nakedness of his unprotected spirit. And so it was that the battle of good and evil continued to weigh heavy against the goodness of God. But God keeps His promise never to flood the earth again. Soon after there was another man who walked with God in righteousness. A man that God makes covenant with. A man that God implores to take dominion. A man whom God will multiply into a righteous nation. Until now man was implored to multiply themselves. Now God is stepping in saying "I will multiply you". Until now man was implored to seek God and righteousness themselves. But now God is stepping in saying "I will show you how to be righteous." God has now stepped up His personal involvement in the battle of good vs evil. And the man at His side was Abraham.

Click here for part four.

Love & War (Part Two)

To read Part One click here.

What are the principles of sin & punishment in the bible? What does it mean to sin? What is the consequence? How does God punish sin? Does He punish sin? or Does man punish himself? I believe that when we sin the consequence goes far beyond ourselves. I believe this to be true because of what God gave us dominion over. Sin in my definition is stepping out of the best that God has for you. In turn it is a separation of relationship between God and man. The first time that we see the word sin in the bible it is the Hebrew word "chatta'ah" which simply means sin. It is from the Hebrew root word "chata" meaning to miss the mark or wander from the way. So all together sin is wandering from the plan and relationship of God.

When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden it affected everything that they had dominion or rule over. What do we have dominion over? Psalm 8:6 says "You made him (man) ruler over the works of Your hands; You put everything under his feet." Man has dominion over all creation, all humanity, the devil and ourselves. Now this isn't to say that God isn't sovereign, He is. But he chose to give us rulership of these things. Not that God doesn't have His own plan for these things but so that we could work His plan together in relationship. At least that was the hope before we chose otherwise. So when we sin it effects that which we have dominion over. It separates us from God, creation from God, humanity from God and the devil from God. Now with the devil it gets a little interesting. The devil wants to be separate from God. He chose that before man first sinned. So when we sin it further separates the devil and we come in line with his will instead of God's. So our sin gives the devil allegiance in his separation and we end up by default glorifying the devil instead of God.

Let's look at Adam and Eve and what fell prey to their sin. After they sin God says to Eve your pains in childbirth will increase and man will rule over you. (Gen 3:16) This is the consequence over humanity. Physical pain, disease and death. On an emotional level He says you will seek mans rule instead of God's. God was not saying men will now rule women. (Though it has been interpreted incorrectly that way) It was broader than that. You have chosen humanity to rule you instead of God. Your desire is humanity and not God.

To Adam God says "cursed is the ground because of you..." Gen 3:17. This is the consequence over creation. This is natural disasters, global decay, drought etc. I even believe that some of the carnage and suffering that we seen in the animal kingdom is due to our sin. If you think in the simple terms that sin=death and prior to sin there was no death...then our sin has had a huge affect on the animal kingdom.

To the devil God said "cursed are you...I will put enmity between you and the woman." Gen 3:14 God goes on to say that the seed of the woman will crush his head. This being the first prediction of Jesus. I also want to note here that in the original Hebrew of these verses God only personally curses the devil. To both Adam and Eve he is just stating fact. That because of their sin things are going to change. Not God's curse/consequence the sin's curse/consequence.

Finally sin separates us from God personally. Notice the first words out of God's mouth after Adam and Eve sin. "Where are you?" Now why is an all-knowing God asking where someone is? Because sin had brought separation. This was further illustrated by Adam and Eve being sent forth from the garden. God didn't banish them. The Hebrew word is "shalach" which means to let go, set free, or send away.

So when we sin it effects all humanity, all creation, the devil and ourselves. It effects that which we have God given dominion over. And the effects are from the sin not from God. Remember sin is stepping out of God's plan so the result of sin is not God's plan. Sin is the punishment. More on this in a bit.

Let's see if our little formula works with the next recorded sin in the bible. The murder of Abel by his brother Cain. What I first want to point out is that God did not stay in the garden after Adam and Eve left. God came out of the garden because of his longing for relationship with man. And now that sin has entered the world He comes out of the garden to protect us. So God sees that Abel's heart isn't in his sacrifice the same way that his brother's is. He isn't giving God his best, not offering wise but relationship wise.

So what does God do? Well he doesn't curse him or cause him to burst into flames. God comes to Cain and sits down for a little chat. A heart to heart if you will. "Why are you angry?" God asks "And why has your countenance fallen?" Countenance meaning face. Since we are created in the image of God our countenance is the reflection of God in us. See with Cain God can feel the same separation as He did with his parents in the garden. "Why has your countenance fallen?" is similar to "Where are you?" God already knows that Cain has sinned in his heart. So God is desperately trying to intervene before this sin goes any further. God is trying to protect Cain. God goes on to say "If you do what is right will you not be accepted? But if you don't do right, sin is crouching at the door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." Gen 4:6-7

This is a wonderful visual of the battle that the devil has wages for mans dominion. It is also a fantastic showing of God's longing to protect us from the destruction of sin, that is the devil. See it is sin that is crouching at the door with desire to destroy man. It is not God waiting for us to screw up so He can punish us. The sin is the punishment. Just as God is trying to save Cain from that punishment so it is through the whole old testament. The battle of good vs evil.

Cain then by his own freewill chooses not to listen to the warning of God. Cain murders his brother. Then God comes back to Cain to have another little chat. "What is this you have done? Your brother's blood cries out from the ground. Now you are under a curse...the ground will no longer yield crops...you will be a restless wanderer on the earth." Gen 4:10-12. Now lets check our formula. What has Cain's sin affected?

Creation-"the ground will no longer yield crops".

Humanity-"your brother's blood cries out".

The Devil- his desire has been fulfilled.

Cain himself- "will be a restless wanderer" a wander from God

Woo Hoo it worked!

Now where is God in all this? I mean He must be pretty pissed since this is the first murder in all history. He should probably make an example of Cain so man will know not to piss off God by sinning. Nope! Not our loving, gracious God. Cain comes to God and says "My punishment is more than I can bear!" This is exactly what mankind does. We blame God for the consequence of the sin that we chose over the better advise of God. God is no more sending Cain from His presence than Cain has chosen to leave His presence by sinning. Just like in the garden. But God sees Cain's heart is in a place of repentance. So God puts a mark on Cain to protect him from the death he fears in wandering the earth. This is the loving, gracious God of the old testament.

Now let me point out in this little chat between Cain and God it is the first time that we see the word "punishment" in the bible. The Hebrew word used here is "avon" (no not the make up lady) which means iniquity or guilt. The root word is "avah" meaning to bend, twist or distort. What does iniquity mean? Websters says "wickedness or evil". Does God heap guilt on us? No, the devil does. Does God twist or distort his beloved creation? No, the devil does. So see the sin is the punishment. Punishment is the will of the devil, not of God. So when Cain is saying "My punishment is more than I can bear". What he is really saying is this wickedness and distortion of the devil is not what I wanted. He is repenting and that is why God accepts his heart and puts a mark on him. A mark that takes Cain out of the will of the devil and back into the will of God.

Click here to read part three...

We Were Not the First to Fall (Part One)

So in my studies for this book I wanted to take a closer look at sin. What is sin? Where did it all start? Is this thing our fault? Did God trick us or did the devil? What is the consequence of sin? How does God decide how to punish us? Is it really fair? So this is the beginning of my journey to hopefully answer these questions.

Where to start? At the beginning? NO. Let's start with Jesus. Jesus led a perfectly pure life. How do we know this? Well because Jesus is God in human form. And God is pure and holy without blemish. See our God is not like the gods of other religions. He isn't half good and half bad. He is ALL good ALL the time.

When looking up the word sin on "Blue Letter Bible" in the original Greek and Hebrew; I came across the Greek word "anamartetos". It is a Greek word for sin used in the new testament only ONE time. So it must be pretty special right? It is a familiar story of a woman about to be stoned to death. Jesus steps in and says "Ye without sin cast the first stone..." John 8:7. Now in the original Greek the word for "sin" is "anamartetos" which means " he who has not sinned". Jesus was talking about Himself. "let he who has not sinned cast the first stone..." In other words, let me be the Judge. Now this is our PERFECT God.

Now as discussed in prior blogs Satan was an angel that God created. I think he was created prior to the creation of the earth. Job 38:4-7 basically says the the angels rejoiced when God laid the foundations of the earth. I also think that angels were created with a freewill. Why? Because it is the only way for a creator God to create something out of love. And also because Satan was the first sinner. Ahhhh...isn't that a nice load off your chest; to finally know that man wasn't responsible for screwing everything up! Well...hold that thought.

"Your heart became proud on account of your beauty and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth..." Ez 28:17 So Satan's sin was that he thought he could be higher than God. The result of his sin was eternal separation from God. Pretty harsh? Not really. First Satan choose to leave by sinning. The separation is just the result of his sin, not the punishment of God. Also the extremity is due to how much wisdom Satan had of God. You know the old saying "the more knowledge...the more responsibility". Satan KNEW God! He was there when the earth was created. He was in God's heavenly kingdom. It says in Ez 28:14 that God anointed him as the guardian angel of heaven. So Satan was not only an angel in the presence of God, he was an angel with special responsibility and power! So when he sinned it had HUGE consequences. The result was eternal (since angels don't die) separation from God. Several of the other angels decide to go with Satan. "And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandon their own home..." Jude 6. Now their sin has separated them eternally from God as well.

Now I believe that this separation took place in Gen. 1:4 "God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from darkness." Genesis continues with God creating the whole earth. God affirms with each day that what He has created is good. Next God creates man. He creates man in His own image. He creates man out of love and with the ability to choose. Free will. God never controls His creation that is not love. To man he gives dominion and rulership over the whole earth. To me this implies that this earth will operate differently than heaven. God is still sovereign but with this creation He is allowing us to rule as humans via our own choices. The first example of this is God allowing Adam to name all the animals. (Gen 2:19-20). God could have named the animals but He didn't. He wanted us to be in charge of this new creation. He wanted us to use our intelligence and take ownership. God is not insecure. He his confident enough in His sovereignty that He was willing to sacrifice some power out of love for His creation and man. There was only one rule! Do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil.

Now if we read Gen 2:9 "God made all kinds of trees grow out the ground; trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." What do these trees mean? And who put them there? Well in Rev. 22:2 it says that the leaves of the tree of life are "healing for all nations". So the tree of life is really just how it sounds. It is God's perfection and life eternal. Notice God never tells Adam that he can not eat from this tree. He does however tell him not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If he does he will die, the Hebrew word here means "doomed to die". Simple as that.

So what is this tree all about? Well lets not forget about Satan. Remember at this point he has chosen separation from the goodness and perfection of God. This in turn has made him a sinner and evil- not by God's judgement but simply as a result of rejecting God. Now I PERSONALLY believe(and this is new to my brain as of the last week or so studying) that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is the "tree of the knowledge of the battle between good and evil". In other words knowledge of the battle between God and Satan that at this point was in full swing!

Let me explain. Satan has left God of his own free will. Satan is allowed in the garden via his freewill. Satan is pissed at God. Satan wants to be God. Satan is seeking dominion. Satan sees his opportunity to have dominion over the earth through man and for man to worship him instead of God. We know that Satan has degree of power via being created by God as an angelic being. Satan has the power to create evil. He does this by twisting or manipulating the perfection God created. Therefore I believe that Satan took a tree that God had created and twisted or manipulated it for his own purpose. The tree of the knowledge of the battle between good and evil was in the garden because of the devil not because of God. God put the tree of life, the devil put the tree of death. Now this does not mean that God didn't want to have knowledge. Our totally intricate, intellectual brain is NOT a result of sin. God made us that way from the beginning. The knowledge of this tree was simply the knowledge that the devil existed and there was a battle.

Now where in the world did I come up with something like that!?! Well let me point out a few things that I have come across in my study for the last couple of weeks. This is new to me too. So stick with me...

Remember God says that he created "all kinds of trees that are pleasing to the eye and good for food". But He also makes it very clear NOT to eat of the tree of knowledge or you will die. So the tree of knowledge is NOT good for food. The trees God created were. Therefore He did not create this tree! Remember that God can not sin, there is no evil in him. So he can not create evil. Still having a hard time swallowing this? Well let's move on to Eve.

Eve is created by God out of the same love and with the ability to choose. Eve is the second part of the equation of Adam or humankind. She is for relationship, co-rulership and gives Adam the ability to multiply. In other words have sex. Oh my! See God could have decided to populate the entire earth Himself, but he didn't. He made it that man and woman would create something together out of love in God's image. All babies are the image of God when born. Whether they decide to keep that image is a different story.

So there were Adam and Eve naked before the Lord with no shame because they were without sin and fear. They were in the perfection and protection of God because they were in the secure, loving presence of God. God walked with them.

Then who screws it all up? Ah the devil! We forgot about the devil! Wouldn't it be nice if we could pretend that the devil didn't exist? Well he does. And a spiritual battle has been going on ever since he sinned.

So the devil comes to Eve and tempts her with the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of the battle between good and evil. Now the fact that this fruit is "tempting" is further confirmation the the devil put the tree there and NOT God. God will never temp you. James 1:13-14 says "When tempted, no one should say 'God is tempting me'. For God cannot be tempted by evil nor does He tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed." It goes on to say that the result of sin is death, and that every GOOD gift is from God...not evil. This is exactly what happened in the garden.

The devil by his own free will created this tree to tempt man. He wanted dominion over the earth. We saw us as his meal ticket and blood lust ensued. If he could get us to trust him and not God he gains worship of God's creation and dominion over the earth via man's free will.

Now what is interesting are the original Hebrew words used to describe the fruit. Remember God says that the trees HE created were "pleasing to the eye and good for food". Now in Gen 3:6 it says "When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom she too some and ate it." The Hebrew word for "pleasing" when God is describing the fruit He created is "chamad" which means desire, precious, to take delight in, beauty. The Hebrew word that is used to describe the "pleasing" fruit Eve takes a bite from is "ta'avah" which means desire, lust, covet. "Ta'avah" is from the root word "avah" meaning crave, be greedy or prefer. So God would NOT create something that would make us covet or lust. This is the fruit he told us not to eat! So why was the tree there? Because Satan put it there via his freewill.

God would have never created something that would have tempted us to sin. That would NOT be a loving, good god. And our God is. God intended perfection for us without sin and death. This sin caused Adam and Eve to step out of the perfection of God. Sin is injecting imperfectness(if that is a word) into the perfection of God. So what was once perfect is now tarnished. This was NEVER God's plan for you...it was Satan's.

Now what are the first words out of God's mouth after this event with the fruit? Continued in Part Two...

So...What's With All the Rules? PART TWO

Click for "PART ONE". Now if we fast forward to the new testament we have Jesus. He is the atonement and sacrifice for all sin. But in regards to the law it seems we find opposing things. 1) that Jesus has fulfilled the law and 2) that Jesus has abolished the law. First lets take a look at what was going on with the law before the death of Jesus.

The first thing to note is that there were about 400 years between the old testament and the new testament. By the time we get to the new testament the keepers of the law, the Pharisees and Sadducees had become very legalistic. That is to say the law and regulations had become a way of judging others commitment to God. They would also add to the law their own made-made rules as a way of exclusion. Their way of pushing away the people they thought were not worthy of God. The Pharisees and Sadducees had begun to worship the law instead of God. They had turned the loving, protecting rules of God into control and exclusion of the people. That was never what God had intended the law to be.

So in this respect Jesus did most certainly abolish the law! He became the sin offering once and for all. He did this that we might have life in the Spirit and eternal life here after. Remember on the cross he says "it is finished". I believe He was in some part talking about the law. How the law had been up until that point was now done. Moreover Jesus was now for all people both individually and globally; not just to those who had been set apart as a nation to receive the law and bring the seed of Jesus to past.

Now Jesus also just as importantly fulfilled the law. See through Jesus there is now grace for our sins. But we must be careful not to use grace as a freedom from the law per say. Grace is the freedom from the consequence of breaking the law which was ultimately death either spiritually or physically. But for the most part the actual rules of the old testament still apply. It is the application that is different. There is now a higher calling through the Spirit in Christ Jesus. We no longer follow the law for law sake; we are new creatures that follow the law via the Spirit. You see everything we now do is as worship and expressing intimacy with God through Jesus. In doing this we automatically fulfill the law that was given in the old testament.

We must be careful to acknowledge both the abolishing and fulfilling of the law by Jesus. Jesus' death for us is not a free ticket to ride. We don't get to live in sin because by grace we now get to go heaven. Paul addressed this many times in the letters he wrote to the first Christians. He was very clear about not being legalistic. For example not to get caught up with clean and unclean foods, to drink or not to drink. See some of the rules of the old testament were only to carry out a short term purpose. Remember protecting the seed of Jesus. Think of it like you not having to wear diapers anymore because now you know how to use the potty. (sorry we are potty training my 3 year old right now...that the first example that came to mind ;D) There were things that the law had commanded that now were left to us to use our better judgement. Always checking with the Spirit and the principles of God as a guide.

Now Paul was also VERY clear that that some rules were not to be negotiated. Grace does not mean that we can participate in sexual immorality or idolatry or any of the other BIG no-no sins as I call them. There is a huge difference between now being able to eat pork and being apart of an orgy at the local temple. Agree? So Jesus did both abolish and fulfill the law, not one or the other but both. Paul sums it up like this to know then how we should live. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with it's passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit." Gal. 5:22-25 Not convinced it's that easy? Pick any law from the old testament and it should fall under one of the fruits of the Spirit. Whether pertaining to you personally, to others relationally or to God's intimacy. Also keep in mind that temple that was only available to a few was now opened up by Jesus so that ALL peoples could be included.

A few final things to keep in mind....click to continue in PART THREE.