Plainer Words since 1968
March 27, 2014
PLAINER WORDS ONLINE … FOCUS ON EPHESIANS
PART 8
In Part 7 of our studies on Focus On Ephesians, we wrote the following:
We belong to two creations. We have our part in the old, and we have our part in the new. Our part in the old creation came to us by way of our birth. We really had no say-so in it. Likewise, as part of the new creation, in the final analysis, we had very little say-so about our part in the new creation—which is the Church over which Christ Jesus is the Head (Page 35).
We were born into the Old Creation. There was a point in time when we exercised faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, fully believing in Ephesians 2:8. This one act of faith secured for us a place in His New Creation—the Church over which Christ Jesus is the Head. Subsequently, we learned a sublime Truth which is, we were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4). The Church, which is His Body was a New Creation. It was not a branch of the Church in the Wilderness over which Moses presided (Acts 7:38); nor, was this New Creation an extension of the Acts Period Church of God. Paul originally named this Ecclesia of the Mystery—the One New Man (Eph. 2:15).
TWO EVENTS PRECEDES HIS APPEARING [EPIPHANIEA]
The Resurrection and Change of Ecclesia-Members: This is to say, the Members who are, either, dead or alive will have a miraculous transformation. Jesus Christ is “given to be the Head over all things to the Church, which is His Body, the fullness of Him that filleth all in all” (Eph. 1:22-23). This will become manifest to the world when the LORD creates new heavens and earth (cf. Isa. 65:17-66:1). There will be many multi-faceted events concomitant with the bringing-in of the Pre-Millennial Kingdom of God.
Many members of the Church, which is His Body are living today. While this Church is not in session, it began about 1951 years ago. But, most of its members are dead, i.e., fallen asleep in Christ and are awaiting their “Exanastasis” (to wit, their prior or out-resurrection; Strong’s #1815). The “Exanastasis-ones” and the living members of this Church will be changed or transformed into His likeness (Strong’s # 3339).
“If by any means I might attain unto the Resurrection [Exanastasis] of the dead” (Phil. 3:11).
Upon our resurrection or change, the Lord Jesus will call us into session. Then, and not until then, will the Church begin to function.
Each member of this New Creation, meaning me and you, when we are raised or changed, we will put on immortality just prior to the Appearing of His Glory (Titus 2:13). Don’t be fooled; no-one, as yet, has put-on immortality except the Lord Jesus Christ:
“Which in His times he shall shew, Who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to Whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen” (1 Tim. 6:15-16).
CHRIST’S DAY WILL BE FREE OF SIN AND CORRUPTION
The LORD speaking, concerning the appearing of His Day, announced in Isaiah 65:17:
“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth;” this creation will be free of sin and corruption. This coming of the new heavens and earth will be populated with human and angelic beings who will be without sin. (One divine account of the Pre-Millennial Kingdom’s new creation should be read in Isaiah 65:17-66:1. It is profoundly enlightening).
The heavens will be cleansed. The earth will be purified and, not only that, but Adam’s sin will no longer be imputed to man.
John the Baptist foretells that Christ will eradicate the earth of sin.
“I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but He [Jesus] that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: He [Jesus] shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: Whose fan is in His hand, and He [Jesus] will thoroughly purge His floor, and gather His wheat into the garner; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (Matt. 3:11-12).
“Thoroughly purge” = to cleanse perfectly; Strong’s # 1245. “His floor” refers to His world. The “wheat” are the worthies of entrance into the Kingdom. The “chaff” are the unworthies. They will burn with unquenchable fire. Perhaps, there will be “Lakes of Fire” through-out the earth in which the “chaff” will be thrown.
Each and every individual’s life will be instantaneously reviewed by the Righteous Judge, and an immediate answer is issued to, either, live during the Day of Christ or die, immediately, in the Lake of Fire. Or, as I have pondered, might some unworthies be divinely smitten by a Godly act of spontaneous combustion? Don’t knee-jerk as this being preposterous! Consider King Herod during the “Acts of the Apostles.” He died a hideous death by being eaten alive by maggots because he didn’t give glory to God. The events during the Book of Acts were a foretaste of the Pre-Millennial Kingdom of God.
“And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man. And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him [Herod], because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.” (Acts 12:22-23).
“Was eaten of worms” is the translation of “skolekobrotos” (NT:4662), i.e., diseased with maggots:
Every living man, woman, and child who Christ determines to be as “chaff” (worthless, infidels, incorrigibles,—or, Belial-persons) will be denied entry in the Pre-Millennial Kingdom. All of the living who are condemned will die abruptly.
All of the dead, from Adam onward, who meet the Lord’s standards to live again during the Day of Christ, will be resurrected in an orderly fashion—“every man in his own order” (1 Cor. 15:23). They will be raised according to their “class,” “sort,” “kind,” or their ‘likeness.”
The Lord Jesus will consider every man, woman, and child who is in the state of death. Those who fail to qualify to live again during the Day of Christ will remain in the state of death. The Lord renders His verdict on them while they are dead. In plainer words, He will not raise them to life, then, pronounce His verdict, thus, sending them back to the grave.
These are the ones the Bible refers to as “the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished” (Rev. 20:5). Then they will be raised up and stand before the Great White Throne and will be judged according to their works. If they are found “wanting,” their end will be the Lake of Fire (Rev. 20:5).
The New World will be free from corruption (1 Cor. 15:40). No corrupt politician will occupy a place in any government in the world. Corrupt institutions will not exist. With this said, it must be emphasized that man will be capable of sinning. He will be tempted to sin. But, the one tempted knows that he has the In-Dwelling- Over-Coming-Power to deny the temptation.
“There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it” (1 Cor. 10:13).
The sin that the Tempter will exploit will not only be robbery, murder, stealing, drunkenness, bribery, thefts, adulteries, homosexual acts, hatred, rancor, treason, and rioting. The Tempter and his fallen angels, who will be alive and well during the Pre-Millennial Kingdom, will target the mind of mankind.
The lust of the flesh
The lust of the eyes
And the pride of life (1 John 2:16)
These sins will be known by the world as the sins unto death. We are shown another sin unto death and it will be associated with the Lord’s Supper which will be a UNIVERSAL ORDINANCE.
“Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep” (1 Cor. 11:27-30).
Remember, during the Day of Jesus Christ, there will not be FREEDOM OF RELIGION.
Jesus Christ will be highly exalted
His Name will be above every name
At His Name every tongue in the world
Will confess He is LORD
To the glory of God the Father (Phil.3:10-11).
Interestingly, the Lord Jesus Christ told the Devil, in capsule form, what one of the Principles of the Pre-Millennial Kingdom of God will be:
“But He [Jesus] answered [the Devil] and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4).
This verse, as well as others, indicates that during the Pre-Millennial Kingdom, the written Word of God is not the only divine instruction mankind will receive. The LORD will verbally speak to an individual, to a small group, to a family, to a nation, or to all of the world at the same time. Sometimes His words will not be heard by a crowd except by an individual. Maybe, the crowd thought it thundered, but an individual heard the words of the LORD clearly.
God called out a Company of believers to be members of New Creation who were to bring into being the Church over which Christ Jesus is the Head. Paul christened this newly formed Body of Christians as the “One New Man.” In the beginning, the “One New Man” was made up of Jews and Gentiles who moved from the faith of the Acts Period to the Faith for Today—“Today” being Present Truth of the Mystery.
~~THE END~~
Copyright© 2014 by Thomas L. Ballinger
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