What Shall I Do - Part Sixteen Feb 26, 2023 by: John Herbert | Series: What Shall I Do... Audio Study Notes PDF Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Heb 4:2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. We shall continue today to look at those who mixed the gospel with faith and those who didn't The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday February 26th 2023 What Shall I Do…….. Part 16 1). Ex 19:6 And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.” 7 So Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before them all these words which the LORD commanded him. 8 Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do.” So Moses brought back the words of the people to the LORD. We have looked in some detail during our past weeks of study, at the first generation of Israel to come out of Egypt and the generation of eternally saved Jews alive either side of the Lord’s crucifixion and resurrection. a). And simply put, we have seen how both these generations had been given God’s instructions, that they might fulfill the purpose for their eternal salvation, the purpose for their creation in Jacob, the purpose for God’s restoration of the earth and Man’s creation, which is the Seventh Day – Heb 4:2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. The good news concerning the Seventh Day and their part in it had been ‘preached’ to the entire first generation, but only Joshua and Caleb mixed the good news with faith. They all heard exactly the same words, but the outcome was diametrically opposite for each. b). And the same thing can be said for the generation alive at the Lord’s first Advent. They had in their possession the complete OT Scriptures. They had these very Scriptures made flesh present with them and they had heard what the Word made flesh said - Mt 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Jn 5:45 Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you—Moses, in whom you trust. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” But just like the generation to come out of Egypt, what they heard was not mixed with faith by the majority of the nation - Jn 5:37 And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form. 38 But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. 39 You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have life for the age; and these are they which testify of Me. 40 But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life. [for the age] And as a consequence, their national experience paralleled that of the first generation – Mt 21:43 “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. But there were individuals at the Lord’s first Advent who did hear and what they heard was mixed with faith, just like Caleb and Joshua – Jn 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the same was true for the same generation during the time of the reoffer of the Kingdom of the heavens by the Church during the Acts period. Individuals heard and had faith, the nation didn’t – Acts 2:38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” 40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” 41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. Acts 28:28 “Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it!” 29 And when he had said these words, the Jews departed and had a great dispute among themselves. The same good news was preached to all, but with diametrically opposite outcomes. c). And all of this, via Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome, had brought us to - Heb 6:7 For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God; 8 but if it bears thorns and briers, it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned. And before we come back to these verses, let’s remind ourselves of something about the Book of Hebrews - Heb 2:5 ¶ For He has not put the world to come, of which we speak, in subjection to angels. The human author of the Book of Hebrews is not known to us, but the stated purpose for the Book being written is. It is a Book about the change of rulership that will take place at the advent of the Millennial Kingdom of Christ, when the earth will no longer be in subjection to angels, it is a Book about the Melchizedek Priesthood and the positions of rulership on offer with Christ in His Kingdom for those found worthy to occupy them, during this time. And it is within this overall context that our verses from Hebrews Chapter 6 must be kept and understood. d). As we saw last time, the verses from Hebrews Chapter 6 portray the earth that receives the rain that often comes upon it. It is the same earth and the same rain, however, what can be produced by the earth, after receiving the rain, can be entirely different. On the one hand the earth can bear herbs that are useful for those by whom it is cultivated, resulting in blessing from God. Or on the other hand the same earth can produce thorns and briars, which are rejected by God, whose end is to be burned. e). We had also seen last time that the writer of Hebrews used this metaphor from nature to give clarity to that which he had already said in the verses that precede it - Heb 6:1 ¶ Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2 of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of age lasting judgment. 3 And this we will do if God permits. 4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame……7 For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it Our writer is dealing with those Christians who complete the journey to spiritual maturity, those whose faith is brought to its goal and those who don’t, those who don’t have faith to the saving of the soul. e). Those who hear the Word of the Kingdom with respect to their heavenly calling, their inheritance, and the promised positions of rulership, the epignosis knowledge, who then govern their lives with this end in view. And those who hear exactly the same Word of the Kingdom, the same epignosis knowledge, but then choose to govern their lives after a different fashion – 1 Co 3:14 If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. 2). We will recall from Hebrews 6:7-8, that the earth that bears the herbs is cultivated; ‘it bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated’, and the use of the word cultivated would clearly denote work being done for the purpose of producing fruit. a). And what this work is, this cultivation of the ‘earth’, is also to be found in Hebrews – Heb 12:5 And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: “My son, do not despise the child training of the LORD, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; 6 For whom the LORD loves He child trains, And scourges every son whom He receives.” 7 If you endure child training, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not child train? 8 But if you are without child training, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. And we will remember that those Jews from the generation at the Lord’s first Advent, who we had looked at earlier, who had heard and believed in His name, were given the right to be child trained. Let’s revisit the verse – Jn 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: And we will also remember Jesus’ own words on this subject – Mk 10:15 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” And according to the imagery from the verses in Hebrews Chapter 6, if the earth is cultivated, it will bring forth fruit. If it is not cultivated, then it can only bring forth thorns and briars. In other words, we can be child trained and dealt with as sons or we can reject the child training, and not be dealt with as sons, but dealt with as being illegitimate instead – De 23:2 “One of illegitimate birth shall not enter the assembly of the LORD; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the LORD. So, the Lord does a work in us, the child training of the Lord, the metamorphosis, and out of this child training will come works on our part of faithful obedience. Something which is in complete accord with that which Scripture teaches concerning the salvation of the soul – Jas 2:20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Ru 2:23 So she stayed close by the young women of Boaz, to glean until the end of barley harvest and wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in-law. So, we see that the earth that receives the rain is used as a metaphor for the Christian who receives the Word of the Kingdom, and the Christian who hears must then be subject to the child training of the Lord and engage in works of faithful obedience connected with having received this Word; cultivation that will then produce herbs useful for those cultivated, producing fruit then that will lead to receiving blessing from God. A present process with a future reward. b). And this agrees with what we know from the Scriptures – Mt 21:43 "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. Jn 12:24 "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. Jas 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. As we have seen, the nation of Israel, under Moses, was first completely redeemed from the bondage of Egypt. And having been redeemed from the land of their birth under the authority of Pharaoh, they were then taken to the land of their calling, the land of Canaan; a land associated with rulership as a firstborn son, a Theocracy, and the promises made to Abraham. c). For the nation of Israel, everything that happened beyond the Red Sea had to do exclusively with the land of their calling, something that remained then, and remains now for them, yet future. d). From God’s perspective, which is the only one that counts, all issues surrounding slavery under Pharaoh were dealt with irrevocably on the night of Passover and did not need to come into view again. e). And similarly, with us, we were all born dead in trespasses and sins in the land of our birth, under the jurisdiction of Satan, in slavery to him. We were born alienated from God and had no spiritual life. Hence the absolute imperative for the impartation of spiritual life. f). As we put faith in Christ’s finished work on the cross of Calvary, so, we were saved by grace, and passed from death into life. We have been given life in relation to eternity, and it is a free gift – Eph 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, Consequently, we are no longer slaves of sin as we were previously – Ro 6:6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. And from this point onwards the land of our calling and our inheritance are the only things in view - 1Pe 1:3 ¶ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. And as with Israel, it is that surrounding our inheritance and the Seventh Day and not eternity, that God deals with exclusively in the life of the Christian beyond their eternal redemption. Eternal matters are never dealt with again, and there is no need for them to be, as Christ’s work on the cross is finished. It was finished in time past and continues in that finished state in time present. And finished is finished. We will remember Ro 11:29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. In other words, God is not going to change His mind about, nor take from us, either His gift of eternal life nor our heavenly calling - Nu 23:19 "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Whether we choose to believe it or not, whether we like it or not, or whether we want it or not, everyone who has ever believed on the Lord Jesus Christ is eternally saved and will appear at the Judgment Seat of Christ. g). And whether we choose to believe it or not, whether we like it or not, or whether we want it or not, everyone who has ever believed on the Lord Jesus Christ has the heavenly calling and has been redeemed for that purpose. There is nothing else to say concerning the reality of these two things. They are as they are. 3). But if we go back for a moment to post redemption Israel in the wilderness, we can see that although God’s calling for them to receive their inheritance in the land of Canaan was irrevocable, it can never be given to anyone other than the seed of Abraham through Isaac and Jacob, the individual Jew’s participation in the fulfillment of that calling was not guaranteed but was conditional – Ex 19:4 'You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to Myself. 5 'Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. 6 'And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel." It was conditioned upon their faithful obedience – ‘if you’, ‘then you will’. a). And, again as we have seen, even though all of Israel heard the same words from God regarding the land and what was required of them to enter the land and receive their inheritance, it was only Caleb and Joshua from the entire generation twenty years old and above, who were faithfully obedient to it. b). And we should note that for the rest of that generation, their unfaithfulness was not somehow passive. Except for Joshua and Caleb, they saw only with their natural eyes and heard only with their natural ears and were deceived by what they saw and heard. Consequently, they believed the man of the flesh rather than that which God had said. This the Scriptures call rebellion. And by such an action they chose to keep themselves under the dominion of Satan. And this is something that we must not take lightly – 1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened to them as types, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. In conjunction with this, at Christ’s first Advent, we have seen a repeat performance by Israel, this time in relation to the Kingdom of the Heavens. This was the message that Jesus came with and the purpose for which He had been sent - Lk 4:43 but He said to them, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent." And from the evidence of Scripture the entire redeemed generation alive at Christ’s first advent heard the same words, from the One who was born the King of the Jews, the One who is, the Word made flesh – Jn 18:20 Jesus answered him, "I spoke openly to the world [the Jewish nation]. I always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where the Jews always meet, and in secret I have said nothing. Some one-hundred and twenty had believed what God had said and had gathered in an upper room waiting for the day of Pentecost. The rest, who had heard the same message chose not to believe and forfeited their inheritance in the Kingdom of the Heavens, rejecting both the Messenger and His message - Jn 19:15 But they cried out, "Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!" Pilate said to them, "Shall I crucify your King?" The chief priests answered, "We have no king but Caesar!" Rome, like Egypt, would be a type of this world and Caesar, like Pharaoh, a type of the god of this world and here we find an eternally redeemed people choosing to embrace the enemy of their soul, leading to death, rather than embracing their King and their God leading to life – Ro 6:16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? And the consequence for their choice was inescapable and was spoken from their own mouths - Mt 27:25 And all the people answered and said, "His blood be on us and on our children." And amid this proclamation of the offer of the Kingdom of the Heavens to an eternally redeemed people we have another metaphor taken from nature to demonstrate the unfruitfulness of national Israel because of the absence of faith – Mk 11:13 And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it. When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. The fig tree of course pictures Israel, completely barren at the time of Christ’s first advent, the season for fruit production was not then, nor even now, remaining yet future, after national repentance, during the Millennial Kingdom. d). And, as we have seen, the same metaphor of the fig tree was used again in another parable to describe the re-offer of the Kingdom of the heavens to the same generation of Jews, by the church, which began on the Day of Pentecost following the Lord’s crucifixion, resurrection and ascension – Lk 13:6 ¶ He also spoke this parable: "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 7 "Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, 'Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?' 8 "But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. 9 'And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.'" The re-offer of the Kingdom of the Heavens then, was given again to Israel by the one new man, the Church, beginning with Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost. e). The re-offer was heard, with digging and the fertilizing to follow, and there would be one of two outcomes; either the tree would produce fruit, or it would produce no fruit and be cut down. f). And in relation to the Kingdom of the Heavens, the latter has been the outcome for national Israel, as we know - Acts 28:25 So when they did not agree among themselves, they departed after Paul had said one word: "The Holy Spirit spoke rightly through Isaiah the prophet to our fathers, 26 "saying, 'Go to this people and say: "Hearing you will hear, and shall not understand; And seeing you will see, and not perceive; 27 For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them."' 28 "Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it!" 29 And when he had said these words, the Jews departed and had a great dispute among themselves. Then if we go back to Matthew Chapter 13, we have a parable there that is part of the sequence of seven parables that outline the history of the dispensation of the Church, a parable which also draws from nature after a similar fashion to those we have already looked at – Mt 13:18 "Therefore hear the parable of the sower: 19 "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom……. Familiar territory for us, but where this is going will have to wait until next time, if we remain and the Lord is willing, and we have prayed. What Shall I Do - Part Sixteen Feb 26, 2023 Speaker: John Herbert Series: What Shall I Do... Category: Sunday Morning Download Audio x
Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Heb 4:2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. We shall continue today to look at those who mixed the gospel with faith and those who didn't The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday February 26th 2023 What Shall I Do…….. Part 16 1). Ex 19:6 And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.” 7 So Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before them all these words which the LORD commanded him. 8 Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do.” So Moses brought back the words of the people to the LORD. We have looked in some detail during our past weeks of study, at the first generation of Israel to come out of Egypt and the generation of eternally saved Jews alive either side of the Lord’s crucifixion and resurrection. a). And simply put, we have seen how both these generations had been given God’s instructions, that they might fulfill the purpose for their eternal salvation, the purpose for their creation in Jacob, the purpose for God’s restoration of the earth and Man’s creation, which is the Seventh Day – Heb 4:2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. The good news concerning the Seventh Day and their part in it had been ‘preached’ to the entire first generation, but only Joshua and Caleb mixed the good news with faith. They all heard exactly the same words, but the outcome was diametrically opposite for each. b). And the same thing can be said for the generation alive at the Lord’s first Advent. They had in their possession the complete OT Scriptures. They had these very Scriptures made flesh present with them and they had heard what the Word made flesh said - Mt 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Jn 5:45 Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you—Moses, in whom you trust. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” But just like the generation to come out of Egypt, what they heard was not mixed with faith by the majority of the nation - Jn 5:37 And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form. 38 But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. 39 You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have life for the age; and these are they which testify of Me. 40 But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life. [for the age] And as a consequence, their national experience paralleled that of the first generation – Mt 21:43 “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. But there were individuals at the Lord’s first Advent who did hear and what they heard was mixed with faith, just like Caleb and Joshua – Jn 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the same was true for the same generation during the time of the reoffer of the Kingdom of the heavens by the Church during the Acts period. Individuals heard and had faith, the nation didn’t – Acts 2:38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” 40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” 41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. Acts 28:28 “Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it!” 29 And when he had said these words, the Jews departed and had a great dispute among themselves. The same good news was preached to all, but with diametrically opposite outcomes. c). And all of this, via Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome, had brought us to - Heb 6:7 For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God; 8 but if it bears thorns and briers, it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned. And before we come back to these verses, let’s remind ourselves of something about the Book of Hebrews - Heb 2:5 ¶ For He has not put the world to come, of which we speak, in subjection to angels. The human author of the Book of Hebrews is not known to us, but the stated purpose for the Book being written is. It is a Book about the change of rulership that will take place at the advent of the Millennial Kingdom of Christ, when the earth will no longer be in subjection to angels, it is a Book about the Melchizedek Priesthood and the positions of rulership on offer with Christ in His Kingdom for those found worthy to occupy them, during this time. And it is within this overall context that our verses from Hebrews Chapter 6 must be kept and understood. d). As we saw last time, the verses from Hebrews Chapter 6 portray the earth that receives the rain that often comes upon it. It is the same earth and the same rain, however, what can be produced by the earth, after receiving the rain, can be entirely different. On the one hand the earth can bear herbs that are useful for those by whom it is cultivated, resulting in blessing from God. Or on the other hand the same earth can produce thorns and briars, which are rejected by God, whose end is to be burned. e). We had also seen last time that the writer of Hebrews used this metaphor from nature to give clarity to that which he had already said in the verses that precede it - Heb 6:1 ¶ Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2 of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of age lasting judgment. 3 And this we will do if God permits. 4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame……7 For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it Our writer is dealing with those Christians who complete the journey to spiritual maturity, those whose faith is brought to its goal and those who don’t, those who don’t have faith to the saving of the soul. e). Those who hear the Word of the Kingdom with respect to their heavenly calling, their inheritance, and the promised positions of rulership, the epignosis knowledge, who then govern their lives with this end in view. And those who hear exactly the same Word of the Kingdom, the same epignosis knowledge, but then choose to govern their lives after a different fashion – 1 Co 3:14 If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. 2). We will recall from Hebrews 6:7-8, that the earth that bears the herbs is cultivated; ‘it bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated’, and the use of the word cultivated would clearly denote work being done for the purpose of producing fruit. a). And what this work is, this cultivation of the ‘earth’, is also to be found in Hebrews – Heb 12:5 And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: “My son, do not despise the child training of the LORD, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; 6 For whom the LORD loves He child trains, And scourges every son whom He receives.” 7 If you endure child training, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not child train? 8 But if you are without child training, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. And we will remember that those Jews from the generation at the Lord’s first Advent, who we had looked at earlier, who had heard and believed in His name, were given the right to be child trained. Let’s revisit the verse – Jn 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: And we will also remember Jesus’ own words on this subject – Mk 10:15 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” And according to the imagery from the verses in Hebrews Chapter 6, if the earth is cultivated, it will bring forth fruit. If it is not cultivated, then it can only bring forth thorns and briars. In other words, we can be child trained and dealt with as sons or we can reject the child training, and not be dealt with as sons, but dealt with as being illegitimate instead – De 23:2 “One of illegitimate birth shall not enter the assembly of the LORD; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the LORD. So, the Lord does a work in us, the child training of the Lord, the metamorphosis, and out of this child training will come works on our part of faithful obedience. Something which is in complete accord with that which Scripture teaches concerning the salvation of the soul – Jas 2:20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Ru 2:23 So she stayed close by the young women of Boaz, to glean until the end of barley harvest and wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in-law. So, we see that the earth that receives the rain is used as a metaphor for the Christian who receives the Word of the Kingdom, and the Christian who hears must then be subject to the child training of the Lord and engage in works of faithful obedience connected with having received this Word; cultivation that will then produce herbs useful for those cultivated, producing fruit then that will lead to receiving blessing from God. A present process with a future reward. b). And this agrees with what we know from the Scriptures – Mt 21:43 "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. Jn 12:24 "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. Jas 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. As we have seen, the nation of Israel, under Moses, was first completely redeemed from the bondage of Egypt. And having been redeemed from the land of their birth under the authority of Pharaoh, they were then taken to the land of their calling, the land of Canaan; a land associated with rulership as a firstborn son, a Theocracy, and the promises made to Abraham. c). For the nation of Israel, everything that happened beyond the Red Sea had to do exclusively with the land of their calling, something that remained then, and remains now for them, yet future. d). From God’s perspective, which is the only one that counts, all issues surrounding slavery under Pharaoh were dealt with irrevocably on the night of Passover and did not need to come into view again. e). And similarly, with us, we were all born dead in trespasses and sins in the land of our birth, under the jurisdiction of Satan, in slavery to him. We were born alienated from God and had no spiritual life. Hence the absolute imperative for the impartation of spiritual life. f). As we put faith in Christ’s finished work on the cross of Calvary, so, we were saved by grace, and passed from death into life. We have been given life in relation to eternity, and it is a free gift – Eph 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, Consequently, we are no longer slaves of sin as we were previously – Ro 6:6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. And from this point onwards the land of our calling and our inheritance are the only things in view - 1Pe 1:3 ¶ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. And as with Israel, it is that surrounding our inheritance and the Seventh Day and not eternity, that God deals with exclusively in the life of the Christian beyond their eternal redemption. Eternal matters are never dealt with again, and there is no need for them to be, as Christ’s work on the cross is finished. It was finished in time past and continues in that finished state in time present. And finished is finished. We will remember Ro 11:29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. In other words, God is not going to change His mind about, nor take from us, either His gift of eternal life nor our heavenly calling - Nu 23:19 "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Whether we choose to believe it or not, whether we like it or not, or whether we want it or not, everyone who has ever believed on the Lord Jesus Christ is eternally saved and will appear at the Judgment Seat of Christ. g). And whether we choose to believe it or not, whether we like it or not, or whether we want it or not, everyone who has ever believed on the Lord Jesus Christ has the heavenly calling and has been redeemed for that purpose. There is nothing else to say concerning the reality of these two things. They are as they are. 3). But if we go back for a moment to post redemption Israel in the wilderness, we can see that although God’s calling for them to receive their inheritance in the land of Canaan was irrevocable, it can never be given to anyone other than the seed of Abraham through Isaac and Jacob, the individual Jew’s participation in the fulfillment of that calling was not guaranteed but was conditional – Ex 19:4 'You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to Myself. 5 'Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. 6 'And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel." It was conditioned upon their faithful obedience – ‘if you’, ‘then you will’. a). And, again as we have seen, even though all of Israel heard the same words from God regarding the land and what was required of them to enter the land and receive their inheritance, it was only Caleb and Joshua from the entire generation twenty years old and above, who were faithfully obedient to it. b). And we should note that for the rest of that generation, their unfaithfulness was not somehow passive. Except for Joshua and Caleb, they saw only with their natural eyes and heard only with their natural ears and were deceived by what they saw and heard. Consequently, they believed the man of the flesh rather than that which God had said. This the Scriptures call rebellion. And by such an action they chose to keep themselves under the dominion of Satan. And this is something that we must not take lightly – 1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened to them as types, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. In conjunction with this, at Christ’s first Advent, we have seen a repeat performance by Israel, this time in relation to the Kingdom of the Heavens. This was the message that Jesus came with and the purpose for which He had been sent - Lk 4:43 but He said to them, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent." And from the evidence of Scripture the entire redeemed generation alive at Christ’s first advent heard the same words, from the One who was born the King of the Jews, the One who is, the Word made flesh – Jn 18:20 Jesus answered him, "I spoke openly to the world [the Jewish nation]. I always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where the Jews always meet, and in secret I have said nothing. Some one-hundred and twenty had believed what God had said and had gathered in an upper room waiting for the day of Pentecost. The rest, who had heard the same message chose not to believe and forfeited their inheritance in the Kingdom of the Heavens, rejecting both the Messenger and His message - Jn 19:15 But they cried out, "Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!" Pilate said to them, "Shall I crucify your King?" The chief priests answered, "We have no king but Caesar!" Rome, like Egypt, would be a type of this world and Caesar, like Pharaoh, a type of the god of this world and here we find an eternally redeemed people choosing to embrace the enemy of their soul, leading to death, rather than embracing their King and their God leading to life – Ro 6:16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? And the consequence for their choice was inescapable and was spoken from their own mouths - Mt 27:25 And all the people answered and said, "His blood be on us and on our children." And amid this proclamation of the offer of the Kingdom of the Heavens to an eternally redeemed people we have another metaphor taken from nature to demonstrate the unfruitfulness of national Israel because of the absence of faith – Mk 11:13 And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it. When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. The fig tree of course pictures Israel, completely barren at the time of Christ’s first advent, the season for fruit production was not then, nor even now, remaining yet future, after national repentance, during the Millennial Kingdom. d). And, as we have seen, the same metaphor of the fig tree was used again in another parable to describe the re-offer of the Kingdom of the heavens to the same generation of Jews, by the church, which began on the Day of Pentecost following the Lord’s crucifixion, resurrection and ascension – Lk 13:6 ¶ He also spoke this parable: "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 7 "Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, 'Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?' 8 "But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. 9 'And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.'" The re-offer of the Kingdom of the Heavens then, was given again to Israel by the one new man, the Church, beginning with Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost. e). The re-offer was heard, with digging and the fertilizing to follow, and there would be one of two outcomes; either the tree would produce fruit, or it would produce no fruit and be cut down. f). And in relation to the Kingdom of the Heavens, the latter has been the outcome for national Israel, as we know - Acts 28:25 So when they did not agree among themselves, they departed after Paul had said one word: "The Holy Spirit spoke rightly through Isaiah the prophet to our fathers, 26 "saying, 'Go to this people and say: "Hearing you will hear, and shall not understand; And seeing you will see, and not perceive; 27 For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them."' 28 "Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it!" 29 And when he had said these words, the Jews departed and had a great dispute among themselves. Then if we go back to Matthew Chapter 13, we have a parable there that is part of the sequence of seven parables that outline the history of the dispensation of the Church, a parable which also draws from nature after a similar fashion to those we have already looked at – Mt 13:18 "Therefore hear the parable of the sower: 19 "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom……. Familiar territory for us, but where this is going will have to wait until next time, if we remain and the Lord is willing, and we have prayed.
