Bible Study: I am Intimately One with God in Christ

Hi Everyone

We are continuing in the “Who I am in Jesus Christ” series.  This section is called

“I am Intimately One with God in Christ” and this is the first part – “Born Again, A New Creation, A New Man” 

The notes are designed to work with the audio, so do have a listen if you were not at the Bible Study.

Pray this blesses you as much as it has blessed me putting it together.

Do share it as you are!

Chris

We Are New Creations

There cannot be such a thing as a Christian who is not born again:

John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (NKJV)

God is spirit and the only way to Him is through spirit.  For as long as our spirits are dead in sin, we cannot relate with Him.   This is why Jesus came, that with His finished work, the Holy Spirit might be not just with us, but in us, treasures in earthen vessels.  This is why we must be born again of the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; 

We see Christ’s love for us in dying for us that we too are dead to our old selves, the sin nature.  No more again are we slaves to sin – that has been taken from us and we have no more excuses for sin, save an un-renewed mind that does not realize this truth for a fact.

15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. 

This is about realizing the finished work – we now live our lives for His sake, that in dying to ourselves, we live.

16 Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer. 

We have to see each other in the spirit as what Christ has made us to be.  Some of the Corinthians had seen Christ in the flesh, but that’s not Him anymore.  We know Him according to the Spirit, and we see each other similarly, as those made new by His Spirit.  We are not who we see with our five senses – as our minds are renewed, we must expect to become different, transformed into the image of Christ.  We must never give ourselves an excuse to not live up to the hope of calling.  We must never curse each other by declaring that brother so-and-so is always like this or sister-so-and-so is like that.  We can have certain attributes while being renewed, but as long as our minds are being renewed by the Word, we must never expect to stay in the sample place very long.  Seed in good ground will always grow and we who are fervent in the things of the eternal, the things of Christ, will bear fruit.  This is what the Word itself says.

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 

We ARE New Creations.  That must dawn on us – we must realize this and the gravity of it.  We can walk away from this verse with a casual “Hallelujah” or we can explore this in detail to seek out what this New Creation is all about.  

Jesus died that we might be these New Creations for a purpose.  If we walk through life not knowing this nor understanding its implications, we miss the very purpose of life on earth!

One New Man

Ephesians 2:14 For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, (NKJV)

There is one new man from two.  God and us are one again, the finished work of Jesus.  Again, this is something we need to meditate on a lot, to consider the implications of.

Put Off the Old, Walk in the New

Ephesians 4:17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; 19 who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. 

The Gentiles, those who do not know Jesus, have no choice.  With only the soul and the body, the mind and the flesh, their decision making will always be based on the needs of the flesh, which is subject to the Law of Sin and Death.  Corruption is inevitable; outside of the power of the Holy Spirit working in us, we would similarly have no choice but be slaves to sin.  Paul is exhorting the Christians in Ephesus here that they no longer have to live like these.

20 But you have not so learned Christ, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: 22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. (NKJV)

We are taught by Christ, who is in us.  As we delve into the Word, our minds are renewed and we are able to put off our former conduct, that of the old man that the World without Christ is condemned to live with.  Those of us in Christ have the right to put on the new man, created according to God, made in His image, to will and do as He does, in true righteousness and holiness.

The New: God’s Image

Colossians 3:8 But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, 10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, (NKJV)

This passage of Colossians says a similar thing – we have the right, the ability to put off all these characteristics of the old man, and the ability to put on the new man that is being renewed in knowledge according to God’s very own image.  We are made in His image, but we have to be renewed towards it.

Walking in Truth

1 Peter 1:22 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, 23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever, (NKJV)

Truth is a person.  The Word is also a person.  His name is Jesus.  When we obey what Jesus has taught us, we obey truth.  His Word planted in us is incorruptible seed.  It will grow and it will bear fruit.

John 15:5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. 7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. 9 “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. 10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. 11 “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. (NKJV)

We are all parts of the vine.  As we abide in Him, we will bear fruit.  This is His promise to us.  As His words abide in us, we can walk in His power and provision and the World can see that we have a God who is with us, and the Father is glorified.  These are the hallmarks of being a disciple.

We cannot be a disciple without the Word of God dwelling in us.  Keeping Jesus’ commands keeps us in His love and when these happen, His joy remains in us.

The Take-Away

• We are new creations, made in the image of God, not mere men
• Our old selves are gone – the sin nature and all with it
• We contain the power of the Holy Spirit – He wants us to become like God
• We need keep, trust, have the Word in us more than our senses
• We need to know His love for us, that we might die to ourselves

Bible Study: Unplugged Sessions - God IS With Us

Hi Everyone

A little different this week - while taking a break from the "Who I Am in Jesus Christ" Series, I shared a message from the heart, about how God IS with us and how the realisation of this will make all the difference in our lives.

You can have a listen to the message by clicking this link.

Do please share it as you are blessed!

Chris

Because He First Loved Me

I love, because He first loved me.

1 John 4:19 We love because he first loved us. (NIV)

1 John 4:10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (NKJV)

and this is love

1 Corinthians 13:4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. (NIV)

1 Corinthians 13:4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. (NKJV)

I can be patient, longsuffering of others, because God from the beginning of time suffered long for me, was patiently awaiting my return (2 Pet 3:8-9), still deals with me with all patience in teaching me, in renewing and washing me with the Word (Eph 5:25-26).

I can be kind, because God is always kind and gracious to me (Eph 2:4,7), especially in sending Jesus to the Cross.  Now that our sins have been paid for, I get to enjoy the fullness of His kindness towards me manifested in the blessings of scriptures, especially Deuteronomy 28:1-14.

I can live free of envy because the Creator of the Universe is not envious that I enjoy so much grace and blessing at His Son’s expense, that I became free for the torment Christ went through, that I became as righteous as God Himself because Christ became sin (2 Cor 5:21).  In fact, it pleased Him to bruise His Son for us (Isa 53:10).

I do not have to boast, to parade myself, because God never did that to win my heart.  Quietly, He loved me, healed me, made me whole in my spirit and He continues to renew me everyday.  Today, all of Heaven’s glory has already been given me (John 17:22) and all of creation is waiting to see this glory that exceeds anything I could ever be in myself (Rom 8:19).

I do not have to be puffed up.  Instead, I can submit and be humble and that is okay, because the Son of the Most High God submitted Himself, becoming a man when He was God, to be murdered by His own creation that I might live (Phil 2:8).

I never have to behave rudely to protect myself because my God was never, is and never will be rude, even in chastising me (Matt 14:31).

I never have to look out for #1, protect and preserve myself, because He is always looking out for me (Ps 23:4).  He gave Heaven’s best for me (Matt 13:45) and is for me (Rom 8:31-32) and I can never again be separated from His love (Rom 8:38-39, Eph 3:18-19).  If God is for me, none can be against me.  I can now die to myself, lose my life (Matt 16:24-26, John 12:25).

I do not have to get angry easily, because God exhausted His wrath against sin on Christ (2 Cor 5:21).  Toward me, He is slow to anger and rich in mercy (Ps 103:8, Ps 145:8) and will never lose His cool with me.

I never have to bear a grudge again nor remember an evil done against me because He never keeps any record of my wrongs.  In fact, Christ has wiped clean the record of my wrongs (Col 2:13-14) and has made me a New Creation (2 Cor 5:17), like having a completely new identity in the face of a criminal record.

My nature today is to rejoice in Truth, the Word, not evil, because God first did that for me, allowing His Truth to set me free from the slavery of sin (John 8:31-36) through the finished work of Christ.  Unlike the World, my taste for sin is gone, having died to sin (Rom 6:2, 1 Pet 2:24).

I can look out for others because God bears me up and protects me always.  He will never leave me nor forsake me (Heb 13:5).

I can trust God because He trusted me, so much so that before there was hope that I would ever believe, He died for me (Rom 5:8).  He has entrusted me with His very best, putting His Holy Spirit in me so I can trust Him freely (2 Cor 4:7).  The keys of Heaven are in the hands of the Church (Matt 16:19, Matt 28:18-19)!

I can have hope for others for better things because God has such good plans for me (Jer 29:11).  He has a great hope of calling for me, even if I don’t fully realise it (Eph 1:18).  He is not done with me and will never give up on me.

Christ bore the worst possible for me on the Cross and persevered through the worst conditions imaginable that I might bear all things.  Because of what He has done, I can do all things through Him who strengthens me (Phil 4:13).

I can give unfailing agape love, because God’s love for me will never fail.

I love, because He first loved me.

Bible Study: I am Loved and Accepted Completely in Christ Part 8

Hi Everyone

Here’s the final part of “Who I am in Jesus Christ - I am Loved and Completely Accepted in Christ”.   This is Part 3 of “Set Free by His Love”.

The notes supplement the audio, which you can access here.

Do share this as you are blessed.

Chris 

Set Free by Love to Love

Possibly the biggest effect of sin on Man is the false thought that each man must live only for himself, that it is every man for himself.  This is part of the curse and it completely disables this world.

No Spirit of God = Total Depravity

The thought that you have to look out for #1 is completely out of line with scriptures.  Any such lines of thought are against the Word and are the spirit of Antichrist!  Without the Spirit in us, only the Law of Sin and Death operates.  Things only grow darker and darker the further we move from the Lord.

Without God, we cannot love like God does, His unconditional agape love, and we can only sin. We think we can but scriptures tell us that no one is good in himself (Isa 53:6).  Outside of Jesus, we live in the futility of our minds.  We are trapped and bound only to live a fallen life.

Ephesians 4:17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; 19 who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. (NKJV)

The depravity of sin has to be realized.  Life on earth outside of Christ is absolutely futile and hopeless, here and in the hereafter.

The good news today is that we no longer have to live in the futility of my mind.

Loved, We Love

1 John 4:19 We love Him because He first loved us. 20 If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? 21 And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also. (NKJV)

Loving God is manifested in loving our brethren.  One who truly loves does not crave love for himself.  True love craves love between those he loves.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (NKJV)

Love always gives.  Without God giving us His love, we would end up depending on each other for love first, all like mirrors trying to reflect light without a source and finding only darkness.  That’s why this world is a mess.  We are all wanting to be loved, waiting to be loved but not knowing how to give it.  We can only love as we have been loved.  This is the same in the church.

Freedom from #1

The world says “Look Out for #1”.  Those who believe this will forever be ensnared by it.  We were never created to live for ourselves.  He set us free from ourselves.  He set us free from the need to derive pleasure in life for ourselves, to defend our own ego, our own esteem, to assert our own rights.  The fact is the sin nature in us has been taken away and it dead!

Romans 6:11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NKJV)

John 8:31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” 33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. 35 And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. 36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. (NKJV)

We are set free as our minds are renewed by truth, for we were slaves of sin, but we need to be renewed, part by part.

I Can Actually Die to Myself!

Your sin nature is already dead.  If we trust what the Word says, we don't have to give thought any longer about what the other guy is thinking of us, whether we look good enough or whether someone will criticize me.  We won't live life driven by fear of something that will happen to us.

We are dead to self, alive in Christ.

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. (NKJV)

We need to know that and learn to walk in it.  Then we can be free to love others with no thought for ourselves, true agape love!

Dying to Live

We could not do this before.  Without the finished work of Christ, we were doomed to live only for ourselves, and according to what our Lord said, we would never truly live.

Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 25 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works. (NKJV)

There is reward for the fruit that we bear when we die to ourselves, lose our lives to live for Him.

Matthew 10:39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it. (NKJV)

Mark 8:35 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. 36 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? 37 Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? (NKJV)

Luke 9:23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. 24 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. 25 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? (NKJV)

Luke 17:33 Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. (NKJV) 

John 12:25 He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. (NKJV)

Truly we can enjoy the love, joy, peace, can be longsuffering, good and kind, have faithfulness, gentleness and self control.

Romans 13:8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. (NKJV)

It Starts Here Again

Who He has made us to be by His work on the Cross, the love He has for us.

2 Corinthians 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. (NKJV)

When we know who we are in Him and how much He loves us.

John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (NKJV)

Ephesians 3:19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (NKJV)

We need to know that and learn to walk in it.  Then we can be free to love others with no thought for ourselves, true agape love!  When we start to do this as a church, it is called a “REVIVAL”.

The Take Away

• Without the Spirit of God in us, we are a depraved bunch, slaves to sin
• Jesus has set us free from sin; we no longer have to live in the futility of our minds
• We no longer need to live for ourselves – we are truly free
• We die to ourselves by knowing and accepting His truths
• As we die to ourselves, we truly live, living out the hope He has called us to, His glorious plans for us

Bible Study: I am Loved and Accepted Completely in Christ Part 7

Hi Everyone

Notes for “Who I am in Jesus Christ - I am Loved and Completely Accepted in Christ”.   This is Part 2 of “Set Free by His Love”

Do have a listen to the audio here as well.

And please do share this as you are blessed!

Chris

Set free from the Law of Sin and Death

This whole world outside of Christ is decaying.  There is nothing outside of Christ that is getting better!  Here’s what Paul says:

Romans 8:22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. (NKJV)

The Ruler of This World

The moment Adam fell, it is as if a person went from man to cockroach, only worse.  It was a big fall, much bigger than we can ever imagine.

The result put the World into the hands of the devil as we see from the next few verses

Matthew 4:8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.” (NKJV)

John 14:30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me. (NKJV)

John 16:11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. (NKJV)

1 Corinthians 2:8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. (NKJV)

Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. (NKJV)

We are in enemy territory today.  We are in the world, not of the world. (John 15:19, Rom 12:2)  Those who are in the flesh are subject to his rules.

The Law of Sin and Death

Sin that Adam introduced comes at a terrible price.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NKJV)

This is a law like any natural law e.g. gravity.  Adam “discovered” this law:  That without the Spirit of God, Jesus in us because of His finished work, death rules in this world.  Everything goes downhill, everything is corrupted.  Nothing will get better, everything just decays, falls apart.  This is death.

We see how this separation from God caused Man to devolve very quickly (Noah, Tower of Babel, Sodom and Gomorra, ).  Again and again, without the Spirit of God, Man just heads in a downhill spiral.  Going by flesh is always death;  moving mountains is always by Spirit (Zech 4:6).

Romans 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. (NKJV)

While sin was not imputed until there was the Law of Moses, the Law of Sin and Death was in full operation from the day Adam fell.  This is a law like any natural law (gravity, electricity etc.) – if we defy this law, its effect will be on us.  Like jumping off a tall building and meeting the reality of gravity or sticking a fork into a power socket and getting shocked by electricity, sin always bring death.

The Law of Moses and It’s Purpose

The Bible likens the Law of Moses to a punishment system for children.  This was to prevent the Jews from receiving the full effect of the Law of Sin and Death.  If Man did not know the Law of Moses, sin would kill Man as a whole, like a child not having a rules at home and doing dangerous things and hurting/killing himself.

Galatians 3:24 Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. (NKJV)

The word tutor is the Greek word pedagogue, which refers to a strict teacher.  This strict teacher kept one race in line – the Jews, that the Saviour might come from this line.  Thus the Law of Moses was given to protect us, that there would be a race of people who were set aside for God, not at risk of destroying themselves completely in sin.  

The Law of Moses cannot make us right with God, anymore than a speed limit sign can make you free from speeding tickets!

Romans 3:20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. (NLT)

The Law of Moses simply showed us how we are offside.

The Law Was Fulfilled By Jesus

Only in Christ are we above the Law of Sin and Death, so until this time, the Law of Moses was needed:

Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (NKJV)

New Living Translation is a little more explicit in the laws part here:

Romans 8:2 And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. 3 The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. (NLT)

The Law of Moses could not save us from the Law of Sin and Death, but Jesus has.  The Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus negates the Law of Sin and Death, like the Law of Lift in an aircraft seemingly defying the Law of Gravity.

Jesus took the curse of the Law for us, and became sin.

Jesus Took the Punishment of the Law

Galatians 3:10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.” 11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.” 12 Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.” 13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”), (NKJV)

By fulfilling the Law, the sting of death has been removed.  Sin has been conquered and we now only have the blessings.  This phrase in verse 10 actually came from:

Deuteronomy 27:26 ‘Cursed is the one who does not confirm all the words of this law.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ” (NKJV)

So the curses that Jesus bore on our behalf was really the curses mentioned in this part of Deuteronomy.

The Result of the Law Fulfilled

Deuteronomy 27 speaks of the laws that the children of Israel had to keep.  If they kept all these, they would be blessed.  If they failed in so much as one of these, they would be cursed.  Indeed the Law is a tough schoolmaster!  Thanks be to God, in Jesus it is as if we kept all of the law already, fulfilled by Christ.  (Matt 5:17)

So because of the finished work of Jesus on the Cross, we get to enjoy the blessings:

Deuteronomy 28:1 “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. 2 And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the Lord your God: 3 “Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country. 4 “Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks. 5 “Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. 6 “Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out. 7 “The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. 8 “The Lord will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand, and He will bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you. 9 “The Lord will establish you as a holy people to Himself, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in His ways. 10 Then all peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord, and they shall be afraid of you. 11 And the Lord will grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground, in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. 12 The Lord will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. 13 And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. 14 So you shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right or the left, to go after other gods to serve them. (NKJV)

Quite an impressive list, isn’t it?

In the same stroke, when Jesus fulfilled the Law, in Him we avoid the curses that the Jews got when they boke so much as one of the laws:

This is what we avoided in the finished work of Christ, what the Jews got for breaking the Law

Deuteronomy 28:15 “But it shall come to pass, if you do not obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments and His statutes which I command you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you: 16 “Cursed shall you be in the city, and cursed shall you be in the country. 17 “Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. 18 “Cursed shall be the fruit of your body and the produce of your land, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks. 19 “Cursed shall you be when you come in, and cursed shall you be when you go out. 20 “The Lord will send on you cursing, confusion, and rebuke in all that you set your hand to do, until you are destroyed and until you perish quickly, because of the wickedness of your doings in which you have forsaken Me. 21 The Lord will make the plague cling to you until He has consumed you from the land which you are going to possess. 22 The Lord will strike you with consumption, with fever, with inflammation, with severe burning fever, with the sword, with scorching, and with mildew; they shall pursue you until you perish. 23 And your heavens which are over your head shall be bronze, and the earth which is under you shall be iron. 24 The Lord will change the rain of your land to powder and dust; from the heaven it shall come down on you until you are destroyed. 25 “The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies; you shall go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them; and you shall become troublesome to all the kingdoms of the earth. 26 Your carcasses shall be food for all the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and no one shall frighten them away. 27 The Lord will strike you with the boils of Egypt, with tumors, with the scab, and with the itch, from which you cannot be healed. 28 The Lord will strike you with madness and blindness and confusion of heart. 29 And you shall grope at noonday, as a blind man gropes in darkness; you shall not prosper in your ways; you shall be only oppressed and plundered continually, and no one shall save you. 30 “You shall betroth a wife, but another man shall lie with her; you shall build a house, but you shall not dwell in it; you shall plant a vineyard, but shall not gather its grapes. 31 Your ox shall be slaughtered before your eyes, but you shall not eat of it; your donkey shall be violently taken away from before you, and shall not be restored to you; your sheep shall be given to your enemies, and you shall have no one to rescue them. 32 Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people, and your eyes shall look and fail with longing for them all day long; and there shall be no strength in your hand. 33 A nation whom you have not known shall eat the fruit of your land and the produce of your labor, and you shall be only oppressed and crushed continually. 34 So you shall be driven mad because of the sight which your eyes see. 35 The Lord will strike you in the knees and on the legs with severe boils which cannot be healed, and from the sole of your foot to the top of your head. 36 “The Lord will bring you and the king whom you set over you to a nation which neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods—wood and stone. 37 And you shall become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword among all nations where the Lord will drive you. 38 “You shall carry much seed out to the field but gather little in, for the locust shall consume it. 39 You shall plant vineyards and tend them, but you shall neither drink of the wine nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them. 40 You shall have olive trees throughout all your territory, but you shall not anoint yourself with the oil; for your olives shall drop off. 41 You shall beget sons and daughters, but they shall not be yours; for they shall go into captivity. 42 Locusts shall consume all your trees and the produce of your land. 43 “The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower. 44 He shall lend to you, but you shall not lend to him; he shall be the head, and you shall be the tail. 45 “Moreover all these curses shall come upon you and pursue and overtake you, until you are destroyed, because you did not obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which He commanded you. 46 And they shall be upon you for a sign and a wonder, and on your descendants forever. 47 “Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the Lord will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you. 49 The Lord will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand, 50 a nation of fierce countenance, which does not respect the elderly nor show favor to the young. 51 And they shall eat the increase of your livestock and the produce of your land, until you are destroyed; they shall not leave you grain or new wine or oil, or the increase of your cattle or the offspring of your flocks, until they have destroyed you. 52 “They shall besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the Lord your God has given you. 53 You shall eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and your daughters whom the Lord your God has given you, in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you. 54 The sensitive and very refined man among you will be hostile toward his brother, toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the rest of his children whom he leaves behind, 55 so that he will not give any of them the flesh of his children whom he will eat, because he has nothing left in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you at all your gates. 56 The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground because of her delicateness and sensitivity, will refuse to the husband of her bosom, and to her son and her daughter, 57 her placenta which comes out from between her feet and her children whom she bears; for she will eat them secretly for lack of everything in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you at all your gates. 58 “If you do not carefully observe all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, THE LORD YOUR GOD, 59 then the Lord will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary plagues—great and prolonged plagues—and serious and prolonged sicknesses. 60 Moreover He will bring back on you all the diseases of Egypt, of which you were afraid, and they shall cling to you. 61 Also every sickness and every plague, which is not written in this Book of the Law, will the Lord bring upon you until you are destroyed. 62 You shall be left few in number, whereas you were as the stars of heaven in multitude, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord your God. 63 And it shall be, that just as the Lord rejoiced over you to do you good and multiply you, so the Lord will rejoice over you to destroy you and bring you to nothing; and you shall be plucked from off the land which you go to possess. 64 “Then the Lord will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods, which neither you nor your fathers have known—wood and stone. 65 And among those nations you shall find no rest, nor shall the sole of your foot have a resting place; but there the Lord will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and anguish of soul. 66 Your life shall hang in doubt before you; you shall fear day and night, and have no assurance of life. 67 In the morning you shall say, ‘Oh, that it were evening!’ And at evening you shall say, ‘Oh, that it were morning!’ because of the fear which terrifies your heart, and because of the sight which your eyes see. 68 “And the Lord will take you back to Egypt in ships, by the way of which I said to you, ‘You shall never see it again.’ And there you shall be offered for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you.” (NKJV)

Indeed a long list.  So you see, in Christ, we have been set free from

• The curses for breaking the Law of Moses and
• The Law of Sin and Death itself

And are now the recipients of the blessings of keeping the Law.  We defy these laws by operating in the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus, when we walk in the Spirit, when we choose to hearken to His Word and put our faith in what it proclaims Jesus has already accomplished on the Cross for us.

Don’t allow anyone/any creature from convincing you otherwise.  These are all parts of the new creation, who you are in Jesus Christ.

The Take Away

• The Law of Moses has been fulfilled on our behalf
• The curses for breaking the Law of Moses are gone!
• Only the blessings are left, as if we kept the whole Law!
• The Law of Sin and Death has no hold on us

This is in the New Creation, our spirit man, what Christ accomplished on the Cross.  As we walk in the Spirit, and gaze at who we are in Him (2 Cor 3:18), go from glory to glory and enjoy the blessings.  We are equipped to invade the world with the Kingdom of Heaven in us!