From Time To Time - Part Twenty One Feb 18, 2024 by: John Herbert | Series: From Time to Time Audio Study Notes PDF https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T040_20240218.mp3 Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Ro 2:28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; 29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God. We will continue to look at the old man, the new man, the letter, and the Spirit. The full text of the message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday February 18th 2024 From Time to Time – Part 21 1). Ro 2:28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; 29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God. 2 Co 3:5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. We had seen last time the connection that exists between the letter and the old man and between the Spirit and the new man. And as we see from 2 Corinthians Chapter 3 the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. The old man then, the man of the flesh, is inextricably linked to the letter and death in the Seventh Day. Whereas the new man is inextricably linked to the Spirit and life in the Seventh Day. And we have seen that through the work of the Spirit as He brings forth the wisdom from above, a transformation, the ‘metamorphosis’, takes place through the renewing of our minds, the renewing of the new man. An inward change completely apart from any effort from us. a). On the other hand, a slavish adherence to the letter, a work of the old man, can only bring about the outward appearance of righteousness, the ‘metaschematizo’. A self-righteous, self-generated mask that never produces change, that has a satanic origin - 2 Co 11:13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. [metaschematizo – a purely outward change that is deceitful] 14 And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works. [not according to their outward appearance] And what the Scriptures intend to convey to us by the use of the phrase, ‘the letter’, and the self-righteousness that it generates is identified in – Col 2:20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations— [the letter] 21 “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” 22 which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, [the metaschematizo] but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh. What is revealed to us here is something we have probably all done and maybe are continuing to do, and that is, through the actions of our old man we try to change our old man. An impossibility, because this outward, superficial form of ‘righteousness’, which is not righteousness at all, is of no value against the indulgence of the flesh. And therein can only lie frustration, exhaustion, and discouragement. We cannot use our flesh to overcome our flesh. The old man cannot be changed, nor can he become righteousness through his own efforts. The only scriptural solution for the old man is death, and he cannot, and will not die to himself. Only by the Spirit is this possible. And in this work of the Spirit, we are to have faith. We are to believe what the Lord has said and be fully assured of the outcome as He is faithful – Heb 10:22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. And it was the deception to return to the effort of the old man as the means by which to achieve the salvation of the soul, to receive the righteousness which is from God, that we had seen with the Galatians as they turned away from the faith to keeping the Law of Moses and physical circumcision, as they turned to the letter, to self-imposed religion, to the commandments and doctrines of men, instead of following the Spirit by faith – Col 2:11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. And we had seen how self-imposed religion, keeping to the letter through of the traditions and doctrines of men, by the effort of our old man, rather than following the Spirit, could easily be applied to the reason that we gather together on a Sunday. The self- righteous observance of a day for its own sake compared to faithful obedience to what the Scriptures have to say about our purpose for doing so. The former will always appeal to the old man as a way to make him feel good about himself and the latter is dependent upon embracing ‘the circumcision of Christ’. Having no confidence in the feelings of flesh but settled in the absolute assurance of what the Spirit guarantees by faith. And there may well be other examples of self-imposed religion that have come from the traditions of men that are part of our thinking. Hence the absolute necessity of having our minds renewed so that we may think in line with the Scriptures rather than falling back to reliance upon any of the Laodicean leftovers we have grown up with that are the letter only – Col 3:1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. 5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, 7 in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. 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, 11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all……………… 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And in v16 we again come back to the purpose for us gathering together as seen in Hebrews Chapter 10, that we would consider one another to stir up love and good works as we let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly in all wisdom, exhorting one another, and so much the more as we see the day approaching. 2). And to continue with our study of the old man and the new man we can return once again to Saul - 1 Sa 15:7 And Saul attacked the Amalekites, from Havilah all the way to Shur, which is east of Egypt. 8 He also took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. 9 But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed. We had seen last time that God had given Saul, through Samuel, the command to utterly destroy Amalek, as the Amalekites, because of their previous history, had proven themselves to be in total opposition to God and His purposes for His people Israel. The Amalekites had the dubious distinction of being the first nation to fight against Israel following their deliverance from Egypt. And the Amalekites purpose for fighting against Israel at that time was to stop the Jews from receiving their inheritance in the land promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And into this we can add Ge 36:12 Now Timna was the concubine of Eliphaz, Esau's son, and she bore Amalek to Eliphaz……….. Amalek then, was the grandson of Esau, the grandson of the man of the field, who had despised his birthright, despised his inheritance, by selling it for a bowl of lentil stew, giving up the one thing of true value in his life to satisfy a temporary fleshly desire. a). And so, the Scriptures reveal to us how the descendants of the man who despised his birthright fought against the descendants of Jacob, the one who had rightfully received the birthright despised by Esau, to stop those descendants inheriting that which was rightfully theirs. b). Or to view this same thing from another direction the firstborn, Esau, had been rejected for despising his birthright and the second, Jacob, had been established in his place. And recorded in the Book of Exodus, we have the descendants of the one rejected trying to prevent the descendants of the one established from receiving that which was theirs – Ga 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. As we put these things together, keeping in mind the typology that shows Esau to picture the man of the flesh and Jacob to picture the man of the Spirit, and remembering what we have looked at so far this morning, we will realize that God’s command to Saul to utterly destroy Amalek goes beyond the literal annihilation of a nation, beyond that contained in the letter of it. This command in effect was Saul’s test to see if he would utterly destroy the ‘Amalek’ in his own life, his old man, by faithfully following the Lord’s command to utterly destroy the Amalekites – Ga 5:16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. In essence then, would Saul, as king of Israel within the Theocracy that had begun at Sinai, despise his own birthright by failing to fulfill God’s command because of a temporary fleshly desire. Or would his fleshly desires be overcome by faithfully following the Lord’s command? And of course, we know the answer – 1 Sa 15:19 Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do evil in the sight of the LORD?” 20 And Saul said to Samuel, “But I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal.” 22 So Samuel said: “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. 23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you from being king.” 24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. Within this overall picture then, we can see Agag, king of the Amalekites, as the personification of Saul’s old man, his man of the flesh, who had despised his birthright because of his fear of the people and remained alive and well. And the Amalekites sheep and oxen, and the best of the things, picture exactly the same thing from another perspective. They picture Saul’s old man once again, that he was not prepared to utterly destroy because he wanted to keep what he perceived to be the best of it, being honored by the people. Or to say this another way, having received and understood God’s command to him, Saul’s old man, the man of the flesh, had taken the ascendancy over the man of the Spirit with Saul’s old man then dictating the course of action he would take. c). And Jesus addressed this very thing within a context that will readily apply to us – Mt 16:25 For whoever desires to save his life [keep Agag alive] will lose it, [for the age to come] but whoever loses his life for My sake [utterly destroys Amalek] will find it. [for the age] 26 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, [the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good] and loses his own soul [for the age]? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul [in Esau’s case, a bowl of lentil stew and Saul, to please the people]? Lk 12:4 “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into Gehenna; yes, I say to you, fear Him! And that pictured through Saul’s encounter with the Amalekites, readily forms a type from which we must learn because of the specific command that has been given to us, found in - Ro 8:13 For if you live [consistently] according to the flesh [let Agag live] you will die [the Kingdom will be taken from you]; but if by the Spirit you [consistently] put to death the deeds of the body [utterly destroy Amalek], you will live [reign with Christ in the Kingdom]. Just so that we are clear, consistently putting to death the deeds of the body is accomplished through the metamorphosis as our mind and our new man are renewed and we live by faith. It is a work of the Spirit as He brings forth the wisdom from above, the ‘epignosis’ knowledge that brings about our transformation. And the part we are play in this can be found through Moses words to Israel as they were confronted by the might of the Egyptian army at the Red Sea – Ex 14:13 And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. [have faith instead] Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, [the old man] you shall see again no more forever. [following the Judgment Seat] 14 The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.” Or we could say – Eph 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 3). Because of the overall context into which this event in Saul’s kingship must be placed, Saul has only one opportunity to get it right, and for ourselves, in the antitype, we also have only one opportunity to get this right, but we can rejoice that our success or failure is not based upon one single event as was Saul’s – 1 Pe 1:17 And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear [the fear of the Lord]………. Our one opportunity covers the time of our stay here, while we remain in this body on this earth. And specifically, the time we have had here since we heard the Word of the Kingdom. And during the time of our stay here, having heard the Word of the Kingdom, we are to ‘consistently’ put to death the deeds of the body. Again, this is not a one-time event, it’s not all or nothing in a single moment, but we should consistently, by faith allow the Spirit to keep our old man in the place of death more than we forget this and choose to allow the old man to have the ascendancy in our life. a). The Lord knows our weaknesses, and He knows that inevitably, because of the sin nature, there will be many times, metaphorically speaking, when we allow Agag to remain as king, and He has made the provision necessary for this to be dealt with when we do. b). Let’s remember the encouragement we found a couple of weeks back in – 1 Co 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. The way of escape that He makes available to us is the Throne of Grace – Heb 4:15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. As we come to our High Priest to confess that we have let Agag remain as king, so in response to our faith in doing this, we will obtain God’s mercy and be granted His grace. God’s mercy as Christ’s blood shed at Calvary cleanses us from our unrighteousness in doing so, so that we will not experience death in the age to come because of it – 1 Jn 1: 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And His grace, to allow us to remember once again and reaffirm exactly where our old man has always been – Ro 6:5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 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. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. Ga 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 [the physical body] I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Our old man was crucified with Christ, and as such he should remain dead to us. But my own experience is such that this is something I must constantly re-remember and then have faith in that which God has said concerning it. Although hopefully my mind is being renewed, I still have to make a choice as to what I believe in any given moment. c). And according to the Scriptures we all have the propensity to choose to live consistently under the headship of the old man, the man of the flesh, either forgetting or not believing that he was crucified with Christ. Saul of course becomes the type for those who make this wrong choice – 2 Sa 1:1 Now it came to pass after the death of Saul, when David had returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had stayed two days in Ziklag, 2 on the third day, behold, it happened that a man came from Saul's camp with his clothes torn and dust on his head. So it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the ground and prostrated himself.3 And David said to him, “Where have you come from?”So he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.”4 Then David said to him, “How did the matter go? Please tell me.”And he answered, “The people have fled from the battle, many of the people are fallen and dead, and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.”5 So David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?”6 Then the young man who told him said, “As I happened by chance to be on Mount Gilboa, there was Saul, leaning on his spear; and indeed the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him. 7 Now when he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I answered, ‘Here I am.’ 8 And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ So I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’ 9 He said to me again, ‘Please stand over me and kill me, for anguish has come upon me, but my life still remains in me.’ 10 So I stood over him and killed him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord.” These verses provide an account of the death of Saul at the hand of an Amalekite, who obviously would not have been there to take Saul’s life had Saul utterly destroyed Amalek as he was commanded to do. Because he had not done that, not only is the Amalekite responsible for Saul’s death but we also see him taking the crown from Saul’s head and the bracelet from his arm, the regalia of regality. The symbolism of these actions will not be lost on us. And what will also not be lost on us is that this section of Scripture begins by drawing our attention to the third day, David had stayed two days in Ziklag, 2 on the third day……Given that David stayed two days in Ziklag, and then, on the third day….provides the inescapable connection with the Lord in the heavens for two days, the two thousand years of this dispensation, with the Third Day following. This scene then provides a type for that which will happen at the end of the two days of this dispensation. And at the end of the two days of this dispensation we know exactly what will take place – Re 1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, 11 saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,” and, “What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.” 12 Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. At the end of the two thousand years of this dispensation, at the very moment of its expiration, all Christians from the dispensation will be resurrected or raptured into the presence of Christ as Judge. And each individual will then be judged ‘according to his works’, works of faithful obedience, which within our present context, would be consistent works concerned with keeping the old man, the man of the flesh, in the place of death through the transforming work of the Spirit. But what of those who have consistently allowed Agag to live? Those who have by their actions proven that they have not believed what God has said about the old man being crucified with Christ? d). The picture is unambiguous. With respect to the Third Day, which is also the Seventh Day from Adam, death is seen. Not physical death as with Saul but death with respect to the soul and rulership with Christ in the Millennial Kingdom, poignantly portrayed by the removal of the regal regalia from Saul – Re 3:10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. 11 Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. And it is interesting for us to note that the command to ‘Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown’ comes in the Lord’s letter to the church in Philadelphia. The only one of the seven churches that receives no condemnation from the Lord. The church that bears the name, ‘Brotherly Love’. We will continue to look at this next time though, if we remain and the Lord is willing, and someone has prayed. From Time To Time - Part Twenty One Feb 18, 2024 Speaker: John Herbert Series: From Time to Time Category: Sunday Morning https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T040_20240218.mp3 Download Audio x
Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Ro 2:28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; 29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God. We will continue to look at the old man, the new man, the letter, and the Spirit. The full text of the message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday February 18th 2024 From Time to Time – Part 21 1). Ro 2:28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; 29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God. 2 Co 3:5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. We had seen last time the connection that exists between the letter and the old man and between the Spirit and the new man. And as we see from 2 Corinthians Chapter 3 the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. The old man then, the man of the flesh, is inextricably linked to the letter and death in the Seventh Day. Whereas the new man is inextricably linked to the Spirit and life in the Seventh Day. And we have seen that through the work of the Spirit as He brings forth the wisdom from above, a transformation, the ‘metamorphosis’, takes place through the renewing of our minds, the renewing of the new man. An inward change completely apart from any effort from us. a). On the other hand, a slavish adherence to the letter, a work of the old man, can only bring about the outward appearance of righteousness, the ‘metaschematizo’. A self-righteous, self-generated mask that never produces change, that has a satanic origin - 2 Co 11:13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. [metaschematizo – a purely outward change that is deceitful] 14 And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works. [not according to their outward appearance] And what the Scriptures intend to convey to us by the use of the phrase, ‘the letter’, and the self-righteousness that it generates is identified in – Col 2:20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations— [the letter] 21 “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” 22 which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, [the metaschematizo] but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh. What is revealed to us here is something we have probably all done and maybe are continuing to do, and that is, through the actions of our old man we try to change our old man. An impossibility, because this outward, superficial form of ‘righteousness’, which is not righteousness at all, is of no value against the indulgence of the flesh. And therein can only lie frustration, exhaustion, and discouragement. We cannot use our flesh to overcome our flesh. The old man cannot be changed, nor can he become righteousness through his own efforts. The only scriptural solution for the old man is death, and he cannot, and will not die to himself. Only by the Spirit is this possible. And in this work of the Spirit, we are to have faith. We are to believe what the Lord has said and be fully assured of the outcome as He is faithful – Heb 10:22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. And it was the deception to return to the effort of the old man as the means by which to achieve the salvation of the soul, to receive the righteousness which is from God, that we had seen with the Galatians as they turned away from the faith to keeping the Law of Moses and physical circumcision, as they turned to the letter, to self-imposed religion, to the commandments and doctrines of men, instead of following the Spirit by faith – Col 2:11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. And we had seen how self-imposed religion, keeping to the letter through of the traditions and doctrines of men, by the effort of our old man, rather than following the Spirit, could easily be applied to the reason that we gather together on a Sunday. The self- righteous observance of a day for its own sake compared to faithful obedience to what the Scriptures have to say about our purpose for doing so. The former will always appeal to the old man as a way to make him feel good about himself and the latter is dependent upon embracing ‘the circumcision of Christ’. Having no confidence in the feelings of flesh but settled in the absolute assurance of what the Spirit guarantees by faith. And there may well be other examples of self-imposed religion that have come from the traditions of men that are part of our thinking. Hence the absolute necessity of having our minds renewed so that we may think in line with the Scriptures rather than falling back to reliance upon any of the Laodicean leftovers we have grown up with that are the letter only – Col 3:1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. 5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, 7 in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. 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, 11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all……………… 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And in v16 we again come back to the purpose for us gathering together as seen in Hebrews Chapter 10, that we would consider one another to stir up love and good works as we let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly in all wisdom, exhorting one another, and so much the more as we see the day approaching. 2). And to continue with our study of the old man and the new man we can return once again to Saul - 1 Sa 15:7 And Saul attacked the Amalekites, from Havilah all the way to Shur, which is east of Egypt. 8 He also took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. 9 But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed. We had seen last time that God had given Saul, through Samuel, the command to utterly destroy Amalek, as the Amalekites, because of their previous history, had proven themselves to be in total opposition to God and His purposes for His people Israel. The Amalekites had the dubious distinction of being the first nation to fight against Israel following their deliverance from Egypt. And the Amalekites purpose for fighting against Israel at that time was to stop the Jews from receiving their inheritance in the land promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And into this we can add Ge 36:12 Now Timna was the concubine of Eliphaz, Esau's son, and she bore Amalek to Eliphaz……….. Amalek then, was the grandson of Esau, the grandson of the man of the field, who had despised his birthright, despised his inheritance, by selling it for a bowl of lentil stew, giving up the one thing of true value in his life to satisfy a temporary fleshly desire. a). And so, the Scriptures reveal to us how the descendants of the man who despised his birthright fought against the descendants of Jacob, the one who had rightfully received the birthright despised by Esau, to stop those descendants inheriting that which was rightfully theirs. b). Or to view this same thing from another direction the firstborn, Esau, had been rejected for despising his birthright and the second, Jacob, had been established in his place. And recorded in the Book of Exodus, we have the descendants of the one rejected trying to prevent the descendants of the one established from receiving that which was theirs – Ga 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. As we put these things together, keeping in mind the typology that shows Esau to picture the man of the flesh and Jacob to picture the man of the Spirit, and remembering what we have looked at so far this morning, we will realize that God’s command to Saul to utterly destroy Amalek goes beyond the literal annihilation of a nation, beyond that contained in the letter of it. This command in effect was Saul’s test to see if he would utterly destroy the ‘Amalek’ in his own life, his old man, by faithfully following the Lord’s command to utterly destroy the Amalekites – Ga 5:16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. In essence then, would Saul, as king of Israel within the Theocracy that had begun at Sinai, despise his own birthright by failing to fulfill God’s command because of a temporary fleshly desire. Or would his fleshly desires be overcome by faithfully following the Lord’s command? And of course, we know the answer – 1 Sa 15:19 Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do evil in the sight of the LORD?” 20 And Saul said to Samuel, “But I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal.” 22 So Samuel said: “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. 23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you from being king.” 24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. Within this overall picture then, we can see Agag, king of the Amalekites, as the personification of Saul’s old man, his man of the flesh, who had despised his birthright because of his fear of the people and remained alive and well. And the Amalekites sheep and oxen, and the best of the things, picture exactly the same thing from another perspective. They picture Saul’s old man once again, that he was not prepared to utterly destroy because he wanted to keep what he perceived to be the best of it, being honored by the people. Or to say this another way, having received and understood God’s command to him, Saul’s old man, the man of the flesh, had taken the ascendancy over the man of the Spirit with Saul’s old man then dictating the course of action he would take. c). And Jesus addressed this very thing within a context that will readily apply to us – Mt 16:25 For whoever desires to save his life [keep Agag alive] will lose it, [for the age to come] but whoever loses his life for My sake [utterly destroys Amalek] will find it. [for the age] 26 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, [the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good] and loses his own soul [for the age]? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul [in Esau’s case, a bowl of lentil stew and Saul, to please the people]? Lk 12:4 “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into Gehenna; yes, I say to you, fear Him! And that pictured through Saul’s encounter with the Amalekites, readily forms a type from which we must learn because of the specific command that has been given to us, found in - Ro 8:13 For if you live [consistently] according to the flesh [let Agag live] you will die [the Kingdom will be taken from you]; but if by the Spirit you [consistently] put to death the deeds of the body [utterly destroy Amalek], you will live [reign with Christ in the Kingdom]. Just so that we are clear, consistently putting to death the deeds of the body is accomplished through the metamorphosis as our mind and our new man are renewed and we live by faith. It is a work of the Spirit as He brings forth the wisdom from above, the ‘epignosis’ knowledge that brings about our transformation. And the part we are play in this can be found through Moses words to Israel as they were confronted by the might of the Egyptian army at the Red Sea – Ex 14:13 And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. [have faith instead] Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, [the old man] you shall see again no more forever. [following the Judgment Seat] 14 The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.” Or we could say – Eph 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 3). Because of the overall context into which this event in Saul’s kingship must be placed, Saul has only one opportunity to get it right, and for ourselves, in the antitype, we also have only one opportunity to get this right, but we can rejoice that our success or failure is not based upon one single event as was Saul’s – 1 Pe 1:17 And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear [the fear of the Lord]………. Our one opportunity covers the time of our stay here, while we remain in this body on this earth. And specifically, the time we have had here since we heard the Word of the Kingdom. And during the time of our stay here, having heard the Word of the Kingdom, we are to ‘consistently’ put to death the deeds of the body. Again, this is not a one-time event, it’s not all or nothing in a single moment, but we should consistently, by faith allow the Spirit to keep our old man in the place of death more than we forget this and choose to allow the old man to have the ascendancy in our life. a). The Lord knows our weaknesses, and He knows that inevitably, because of the sin nature, there will be many times, metaphorically speaking, when we allow Agag to remain as king, and He has made the provision necessary for this to be dealt with when we do. b). Let’s remember the encouragement we found a couple of weeks back in – 1 Co 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. The way of escape that He makes available to us is the Throne of Grace – Heb 4:15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. As we come to our High Priest to confess that we have let Agag remain as king, so in response to our faith in doing this, we will obtain God’s mercy and be granted His grace. God’s mercy as Christ’s blood shed at Calvary cleanses us from our unrighteousness in doing so, so that we will not experience death in the age to come because of it – 1 Jn 1: 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And His grace, to allow us to remember once again and reaffirm exactly where our old man has always been – Ro 6:5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 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. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. Ga 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 [the physical body] I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Our old man was crucified with Christ, and as such he should remain dead to us. But my own experience is such that this is something I must constantly re-remember and then have faith in that which God has said concerning it. Although hopefully my mind is being renewed, I still have to make a choice as to what I believe in any given moment. c). And according to the Scriptures we all have the propensity to choose to live consistently under the headship of the old man, the man of the flesh, either forgetting or not believing that he was crucified with Christ. Saul of course becomes the type for those who make this wrong choice – 2 Sa 1:1 Now it came to pass after the death of Saul, when David had returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had stayed two days in Ziklag, 2 on the third day, behold, it happened that a man came from Saul's camp with his clothes torn and dust on his head. So it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the ground and prostrated himself.3 And David said to him, “Where have you come from?”So he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.”4 Then David said to him, “How did the matter go? Please tell me.”And he answered, “The people have fled from the battle, many of the people are fallen and dead, and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.”5 So David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?”6 Then the young man who told him said, “As I happened by chance to be on Mount Gilboa, there was Saul, leaning on his spear; and indeed the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him. 7 Now when he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I answered, ‘Here I am.’ 8 And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ So I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’ 9 He said to me again, ‘Please stand over me and kill me, for anguish has come upon me, but my life still remains in me.’ 10 So I stood over him and killed him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord.” These verses provide an account of the death of Saul at the hand of an Amalekite, who obviously would not have been there to take Saul’s life had Saul utterly destroyed Amalek as he was commanded to do. Because he had not done that, not only is the Amalekite responsible for Saul’s death but we also see him taking the crown from Saul’s head and the bracelet from his arm, the regalia of regality. The symbolism of these actions will not be lost on us. And what will also not be lost on us is that this section of Scripture begins by drawing our attention to the third day, David had stayed two days in Ziklag, 2 on the third day……Given that David stayed two days in Ziklag, and then, on the third day….provides the inescapable connection with the Lord in the heavens for two days, the two thousand years of this dispensation, with the Third Day following. This scene then provides a type for that which will happen at the end of the two days of this dispensation. And at the end of the two days of this dispensation we know exactly what will take place – Re 1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, 11 saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,” and, “What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.” 12 Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. At the end of the two thousand years of this dispensation, at the very moment of its expiration, all Christians from the dispensation will be resurrected or raptured into the presence of Christ as Judge. And each individual will then be judged ‘according to his works’, works of faithful obedience, which within our present context, would be consistent works concerned with keeping the old man, the man of the flesh, in the place of death through the transforming work of the Spirit. But what of those who have consistently allowed Agag to live? Those who have by their actions proven that they have not believed what God has said about the old man being crucified with Christ? d). The picture is unambiguous. With respect to the Third Day, which is also the Seventh Day from Adam, death is seen. Not physical death as with Saul but death with respect to the soul and rulership with Christ in the Millennial Kingdom, poignantly portrayed by the removal of the regal regalia from Saul – Re 3:10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. 11 Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. And it is interesting for us to note that the command to ‘Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown’ comes in the Lord’s letter to the church in Philadelphia. The only one of the seven churches that receives no condemnation from the Lord. The church that bears the name, ‘Brotherly Love’. We will continue to look at this next time though, if we remain and the Lord is willing, and someone has prayed.