Wednesday 24 April 2013

TIME TO HIDE / THE STRONG CITY

All saints dwell in the house of the lord(Prov 23:6). It is also referred to as a secret pavilion from the strife of tongues(Psalms 31:20). This place of refuge is important especially in a dry season, a season of war. There is a season of drawing the sword, and a season of retreat into hiding. This is a season of retreating to hide in the stronghold. The hiding place is the glory of God. It is a garment of protection from contrary elements, the seal or cover of men. Glory can be good or bad depending on the source. The glory of God is good it is the strong city of believers. It is rich in depth and diverse and called the manifold glory of God for this reason. Glory is mostly on many occasions referred to as wealth in earlier practiced modes of sealing scripture, especially in the old testament. The old testament is quite rich in teachings of the glory of God though. Some of these examples include; 
  • Proverbs 10:9(wealth is a strong city.) This means that glory surrounds one as an important line of both defense and offence. It is the principle that determines the availability of counsel(and power) for war. It rains on both the wicked and the just and it is therefore a fact that both will seasonally experience a time of protection and a time of stripping of the protection for testing. This is discoursed in the seasons of war.
  • Proverbs 11:4(Riches do not profit in the day of wrath(signifying the change of seasons especially for the wicked when the wrath of God is poured onto the wicked.))
  • Scripture provides a hint on how to build this stronghold: A house is built through wisdom, established by understanding, and chambers filled by knowledge(Prov 24:3). This filling with power is the increase of the glory of God in ones life. This makes wisdom, understanding and knowledge the greatest of the gifts of the Spirit of God. It is the key to the power of God, which is His glory. This is further reiterated: (A man of knowledge increases strength(Prov 24:5)).
The preceding examples shows how the glory of God is the strong city of men. The glory of God is not a feeling. It is a question of fact - spiritual facts. The first is salvation, or true baptism. The presence of light (which is the glory of God) is another(let your light shine in the presence of men). The question of the presence of light in our temples is discussed in the ark of the covenant. The light then becomes the witness of God to men.Being a living sacrifice is also another matter of facts of a spiritual nature. It is for these reasons the spirits of men are tested by their fruits.Other factual conditions include things like obedience to God and submission to authority. Being  facts that can waver, it is important to be conscious to remain within the protective bounds of the glory of God. Just as one can walk out of a strong city in the physical realm, the same is true for the spiritual realm because the Spirit of God cannot not imprison one against their will. 

There is a time for confrontation, and a time to hide. In seasons of hiding, there is no counsel(and subsequently, power to war.) Such, as now is, a time to hide when you see evil (Prov 27:12). Just because some powerful preacher stirs you up to spiritual warfare does not mean it is time to war. These are also not times to meddle in fights that do not concern you because petty situations have a way of blowing out of proportions in these times(Prov 27:8). Self control is another key to sticking in the safe place of hiding. Being without control of  impulses is likened to a city without walls(Prov 25:28) which means to be unprotected. Things that need control include things like anger, fear(Prov 29:25), even bad company(Prov 29:24). Stay in the hiding place, the strong city. 


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Friday 5 April 2013

PRINCIPLES OF GOD CONCERNING THE TEMPLE

In the design of the temple and practice, several principles a had to be adhered to. The temple was designed to offer sacrifice to God, a King, a great King. His people may have shortcomings, but the offerings had to be have to be without blemish. This is what is worshiping in the beauty of holiness. These principles of holiness were hidden with the instructions of the ways of offering that made up the mosaic law. We shall examine these principles as presented in the law, and see what they foreshadowed in our temples,the new temple of the Holy Spirit.

For all offering, there was a specified time within which the portion of the priests had to be eaten(Lev 7:17), three days. It was assumed that within these three days, the offering, now food, would still be safe to ingest. This was especially so for the vow and voluntary offering, among other animal offerings that the priests or the offerers were given a portion(Lev 7:33). This is the principle of the incorruptibility of the offering. As corrupt offering are not received by God(Ps 15:8) Remember that Christ died for three days, and in those days the bible says; He (God) would not let His anointed see corruption. So three days the time set to assure the purity of the sacrifice, and Christ was a Sacrifice in place of the sin offering for humanity. As far as the offering of fellowship goes, corruption of this offering comes in the mixing of darkness and light, for what fellowship do these have with each other? it is written.

The person eating the sacrifice should not be unclean(Lev 7:20). Jesus expressed this in other words: When going to offer a sacrifice, and you remember of a grudge you have with your brother, leave the sacrifice on the alter, and first go reconcile with your brother, then you can offer the sacrifice. The bible also talks of giving joyfully (which is why I discourage giving out of being scared of impending doom,) or wholeheartedly. The presence of any negative/wicked emotions in our spirits would act as an uncleanness, and really it is a lie, when for example you are telling God how you love Him, while at the same time killing your enemy in your mind. Jesus put it thus: How can you say you love God who you cannot see, When you cannot love your brother, who you can see?

It is important to note that all the fruits of the Spirit grow within us to a fullness, and it is impossible for most men to be overflowing with the same to all men, but the perfection here comes with letting go of the contradicting emotions. With time, such negativity stifles the flow of the fruits of the Spirit and within some time of this rebellion, one gets dry in the spirit. The principle also refers to the priesthood receiving the gift(Lev 7:33). They must be right with God. From here comes the principle of laying of hands, fellowship, and watching who is laying hands on you. discernment of the spirits of men here is important. Drink from your own cistern. The people can err, not because they were not right with God, but because those ministering on their behalf make an abomination of their offering by disgracing it(1 Samuel 2:12-17). We are all priests now we give other people the functionality of being our priests when for example, we seek prayers, we give or "plant seed"(which is a more committal form of giving,) e.t.c. 

Eating of any manner of fat was forbidden(Lev 7:20). This refers to the glory of the gift. It is not good to take too much pride in ones gift or service to God. Christ talked of the pharisees who enlarged their phylacteries, and choice the public places to pray so that people could see how religious they were. He said, they had gotten their reward. Their reward was the short lived glory and praise of the people, and fleshly pride. It is either God gets the glory and it becomes an acceptable sacrifice, or you get the glory and the sacrifice becomes an abomination to God. When giving, let not the right hand know what the left is giving, and give as to God, not to men.

Peace offerings were to be delivered to the temple personally(Lev 7:29,30). Then, these included vows, and voluntary offerings. In our new temple, herein falls all sacrifices after one accepts Christ. It includes all the gifts of God that we give back in offerings(Like love, joy, fellowship, etc). This principle calls for a close relationship with God. Relationship cannot be built through a proxy. It has to be cultivated, with time as an investment too. 


We give what we were first given. This was a principle in the old and now too in the new testament. God plundered Egypt on the passover, and gave Israel gifts, which He later asked of for the building of the temple. The temple is a creation built by the gifts of God to men and the gifts of men to God. When God withholds, it is not to be a gift. This was so in the Babylonian garment and precious metal stolen by Achan in the fall of Jericho when God had specifically ordered that everything had to be burnt down and the gold and silver had to go through fire. This led to the defeat of Israel by tiny Ai. The same happened when Saul, the King spared some cattle for "sacrifice" in a city where all living things were to be destroyed. This would have been an abomination of offering. It resulted to his rejection as a King of Israel by God. God does not give wickedness, and in return He does not receive wickedness for an offering (Ps 15:8). When Israel made an idol in the desert in place of God, they did this. They were offering a wicked sacrifice to A Holy God. God responded with a plague and a separation of only one tribe that would in future draw near for His service. Now the principle stands, worship God is spirit and in truth, in the beauty of holiness. Our idols can also be our fattened flesh or lusts in rebellion to God.

Scriptural examples of abominations for offering
  • The sacrifices of the wicked are an abomination(ps 15:8, 20:27),God loves a cheerful giver.
  • The ways of the wicked are an abomination to God(ps 15:9) The way of the righteous man is pleasing before God.
  • The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination(prov 15:26). Think on things that are right, holy, of good report, pure.
  • Pride is an abomination(Pr 16:5) God exalts the humble.
  • A king that commits wickedness is an abomination(pr 16:2). On the same note, he that justifies the wicked an condemns the just is an abomination before God(Pr 17:15). The same is the wisdom behind the law of diverse weights and measures which were forbidden to be carried in the same bag(Pr 20:10.) It represents mischief and inequality in apportioning judgement, which is the function of the devil, the accuser of the saints. The ancients used unjust measures of weights to steal from their customers and this law ensured that only what was just in weight according to their resources was given to the people. For this reason, the spirit of God asserted through His Son on inequitable judgement; first get rid of the log that is in your eye before pointing out the speck in your brothers eye.  






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