Tag: Philosophy

The MYSTERY of INIQUITY: Exploring the Roots of Evil in Human Nature

“The Unravelling of The MYSTERY of INIQUITY: Exploring the Roots of Evil in Human Nature”

Throughout history, humans have been plagued by the presence of evil in the world. Despite countless efforts to eradicate it, evil persists, and its origins remain shrouded in mystery. The concept of iniquity, or moral wickedness, and the elusive nature of evil has been a topic of philosophical, theological, and scientific inquiry for centuries.

  • What motivates individuals to engage in harmful and immoral behaviour?
  • What drives people to act in damaging and morally questionable ways?
  • Is it a trait of human nature, the result of societal and environmental influences, or is the work of a nefarious entity?

This blog investigates the enduring riddle of moral immorality/wickedness, sometimes known as the “mystery of iniquity,” as well as the origins of evil in human nature. Join me as I embark on a quest to try to understand one of the most lasting and puzzling features of the human condition.

So, what drives people to act in damaging and morally questionable ways?

Some contend that evil, which serves as a contrast to goodness and empowers people to make moral decisions, is an essential part of the human experience. Some contend that evil is a human invention used to explain actions that are thought wrong and is not a true thing.

Even if we are unable to identify this “mystery of iniquity,” we may observe the pervasive effects it has on us and the world around us. The Bible describes how a spirit known as “the prince of the power of the air” works in the hearts of the wicked and disobedient children (Ephesians 2:2). With the fall of man, we sort of gotten “iniquitous”.

God saw that every imagination of the thoughts of man’s heart was only evil continually. (Genesis 6:5) – thoughts of iniquity (Isaiah 59:7).

The Lord’s requirement for the circumcision of the heart makes sense. Only through “circumcising” our hearts, a divine process, can we prevent this mysterious entity from exerting influence over us and impeding God’s work. You may recall reading that “the flesh lusts against the Spirit” 5:17 in Galatians

This flesh (the body of sin), what is it?

The result of the fall is a spiritual environment hostile to God that is produced within our very selves (alienated and enemies in our mind by wicked works – Colossians 1:21 – being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance – Ephesians 4:18/2:12).

Regardless of one’s spiritual beliefs, everyone has them ingrained in their personality. Simply said, when the glory of the magnificent gospel of Jesus Christ shines in our souls, you would discover that sensation of unrighteousness, that feeling of uncleanness within us. Simply defined, the awareness of sin.

David cried, Behold, I was shaped in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me (Psalm 51:5). But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed (James 1:14). For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil (wickedness) (Mark 7:21). From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it (Isaiah 1:6). For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwells no good thing (Romans 7:18).

Let God be true, but every man a liar (Romans 3:4).

What is that wild, ravenous lust or degeneracy that seeks to control us? What caused one third of the heavenly angels to fall?

A third of the stars in heaven were swept down by the tail of the great dragon, that ANCIENT serpent, called the Devil, and Satan according to Revelation 12:4,9.

What caused even Lucifer, the anointed cherub, to fall from his uprightness? Ezekiel 28:14,15

The “mystery of iniquity,” the evil force alluded to, must be a creation of God, whose identity is currently concealed from us, and it is apparent that it is accountable for all of this.

I prefer to trust God’s word over human convictions. The truth is that sin has caused total depravity to penetrate every atom and fibre of our being. And only Jesus Christ, the Son of the most High can release a person from the power of this death.

There is something that is happening in a person in an utterly incomprehensible way that we are unable to understand (a strong want or tug of lust that comes from the heart – the presence of evil within the heart of man – Romans 7:17-21); this is the result of the “mystery of iniquity” at work. The MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS, AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH are some of the other names for this embodiment of wickedness (Revelation 17:5).

According to Revelation 17:4, she is holding a golden cup that is full of filth and abominations that will be spread throughout the entire world. I must say, she has virtually won over everyone’s hearts with her promiscuity in the age we are in. Regrettably, both young and elderly have fallen prey to her.

This spiritual being, or whatever it is, has such power over humanity that it would cause the monarchs of the planet to engage in fornication, and the people of the earth to consume the fornication’s wine (Revelation 17:2). No one born to a woman will be exempt from its effects. How can one who is born of a woman be clean, asks Job 25:4?

A Christian would still have to battle it every day even after being set free from its influence and tentacles by pleading the priceless blood of Jesus Christ. We reckon that its legal claim over us gets rescinded in Christ. While the sinful nature or sin itself no longer has domineering power over a Christian, as stated in Romans 6:14, it can still exert great influence and harass a babe in Christ (immature in spirit; Hebrews 5:13,14), whose flesh isn’t crucified with its affections and lusts (Galatians 5:24/1 Corinthians 3:1-3).

According to the Bible, we must constantly work with the help of the Holy Spirit to overcome the old man (the body of sin – Romans 6:6 – where this evil resides – Romans 7:17-21), which is corrupt according to the lusts of falsehood (Ephesians 4:22/Colossians 3:9).

What harm does this evil do if we don’t deal with it? It fights against the intellect to enslave us to the law of sin, according to Romans 7:23. Romans 6:12–16 urges us to avoid allowing this evil to rule in us and to refrain from using our bodies as instruments of righteousness for sin.

And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts (Galatians 5:24)

To live, haven’t we been told to mortify the works of the flesh by the power of the Holy Spirit? — Romans 8:13. One could envisage the situation of a sinner and the ungodly if the righteous are hardly saved (1 Peter 4:18)

Now we have brought to light the facets of our flawed nature, through which this nefarious force known as the “mystery of iniquity” exploits us.

See how great a salvation God in Christ hath wrought! Christ Jesus gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world (Galatians 1:4).

In actuality, “evil’s” effects have existed in some form or another since the dawn of time, manifesting itself in various ways. History is rife with examples of evil, from the biblical tale of Cain and Abel to the heinous acts of ethnic genocides.

Some believe that evil is a learned behaviour, shaped by social and cultural factors, but I beg to disagree; I think that ‘corruption’ has become ingrained (an inherent aspect) in human nature and that everyone has the potential to commit wicked things as a result of the fall. To whom we yield ourselves servants to obey determines the outcome – Romans 6:16. If so, don’t we have to work on our salvation from depravity? Philippians 2:12/2 Corinthians 7:1

Religions have a variety of justifications for the existence of evil. Yet we need to take seriously what the Bible has shown us.

In conclusion, the concept of iniquity and the elusive nature of evil has been a topic of philosophical, theological, and scientific inquiry for centuries. While we may not be able to fully unravel the mystery of iniquity, we can observe its effects on ourselves and the world around us.

The Bible reveals that this mysterious entity has great power over humanity, but we have the power to overcome it with the help of the Holy Spirit. Through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we can be delivered from the power of this present evil world. It is up to us to continually work on “circumcising” our hearts and mortifying the works of the flesh, so we can prevent this mysterious force from exerting its influence over us and impeding God’s work.

We must remain vigilant in our battle against the old man and the works of the flesh and continue to seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our daily lives.

 

 

Does God Initiate Both GOOD and EVIL?

“Unpacking the Enigma: Does God Initiate Both GOOD and EVIL?”

God is intrinsically a Creator; and the only self-existent One out there. Creating is His nature. He takes pleasure in creating. He must create and create and create.

If we believe that the phrase “in the beginning” represents the “genesis of all things,” then it follows that God began creating the heavens and the earth at the exact moment He appeared or when He began Himself. It is ludicrous thought. That would contradict His eternal past and imply that He had a beginning.

We simply cannot draw the conclusion that God’s creation of the heavens and the earth was His first setting because we cannot place Him inside the confines of time and that He resides outside of that creational dimension.

He has existed forever and eternity. He is without beginning or end. Can you envision the past continuing forever–an everlasting past? For Him, there is no beginning. We cannot analyze the things of God while we are bound to this mortal existence since we are creatures that are inherently based on time (Ecclesiastes 3).

Since the fall of man, there has been a void left in the mortals’ hearts. This chasm, which is a result of the fall, or consequence of the fall has also been filled with the ominous question: Who is He? Does God exist? Is God real?

God was not disregarding man’s innate yearning to know his Creator, nor was His silence an indication of His animosity or exhibiting abhorrence for His creation. After making a covenant with a man He summoned out of Ur of the Chaldeans (a heathen named Abram), God founded the nation of Israel through his descendants in order to utilize them as a platform for revealing Himself–to show the world He created for Himself who He really is and to raise up a holy seed from among them who would ultimately bring SHALOM to the dilapidated world.

“God so loved His cosmos”.

When the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son (Galatians 4:4).

God sent His own Son to explain or put an end to these mysteries. Then “grace and truth” appeared – John 1:17 – Apostle Paul states: we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory – 1 Corinthians 2:7 – Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit (Ephesians 3:5). Jesus said, For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known (Luke 12:2) –  Of which the prophets have enquired and searched diligently – 1 Peter 1:10 – which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God – Ephesians 3:9 – Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints (Colossians 1:26).

As the Creator, He always ought to be creating. For that is His nature not just His hobby. It makes sense why He is known as “The Creator.” Human mind cannot fathom this Almighty – nor can we comprehend God enough with our finiteness.

The creature cannot have life apart from God. As God contains everything, He must also be present within His creation. He must uphold all things, without which nothing would exist. For in Him we live, and move, and have our being (Acts 17:28). Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord, One that inhabits eternity (Isaiah 57:15). Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord (Jeremiah 23:24).

Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance? (Isaiah 40:12) Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing (Isaiah 40:15).

To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him? (Isaiah 40:18) It is He that sits upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretches out the heavens as a curtain and spreads them out as a tent to dwell in: (Isaiah 40:22) To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One (Isaiah 40:25).

His breath in our nostrils – Genesis 2:7/7:22/Job 27:3/Lamentations 4:20 – causes everything to exist, including our ability to breathe, see, smell, taste, and discern objects. A living thing exhales to recover, replenish and to maintain itself; nevertheless, when God exhales, He does so to rejuvenate everything. When human’s exhales carbon dioxide it is absorbed by plants in photosynthesis. Similar to how plants use carbon dioxide that humans exhale as part of the photosynthesis process, God’s exhalation is His very Spirit, which is taken up by all of His living creatures.

It is impossible to count the angels in heaven (innumerable – Hebrews 12:22) or measure the sand on the sea floor (Jeremiah 33:22), but is there anything too difficult for the omnipotent God who treats nations as a drop in a bucket and counts them as minute dust on a balance? Indeed, He treats the islands as a very small thing. He also measures the waters in the hollow of his hand, metes out heaven with a span, comprehends the earth’s dust in a measure, and weigh it – Isaiah 40:12–15. He mentions how many stars there are and calls each one by name – Psalm 147:4. And to whom will you compare God then?

Unlike Lucifer, the anointed Cherub – Ezekiel 28:14 – who was given the office to reign upon a civilization and failed to carry out God’s will and ultimately perished from glory – Isaiah 14:17 – God through Christ, heals the broken in heart and binds up the wounds (Psalm 147:3) – Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite (Psalm 147:5) – The Lord lifts up the meek: he casts the wicked down to the ground (Psalm 147:6)

Can you picture God holding all the sand and all the deep waters in His palm to weigh them? Can you envision God addressing all the galaxy’s stars by their names and making sure that none are missed? Can you believe that God is aware of the number of hairs that have fallen off each of us, both the dead and the living? Do you understand why the mountains tremble and molten fire erupts from them? The mountains flow down at God’s presence (Isaiah 64:3) – He looks on the earth, and it trembles: he touches the hills, and they smoke (Psalm 104:32).

Are you familiar with the components of the winds? They seem to be appearing everywhere, but are they actual beings or just a phenomenon in the world? Revelation 7:1 Are you aware that the sun, which gives this world its light and life, has a home of his own and that he is carrying out the Creator’s edict to the letter? Psalm 19:4-6

Who will you use as a comparison for God, who created everything? To whom will you compare Him? How would you provide Him with a place to live? Can you fit the all-powerful, all-knowing God inside a shrine? Does He reside in man-made temples? You’ve got to be crazy, I guess.

The beings that consent to live in shrines or demand that shrines be created to facilitate them or that which agrees to live in shrines or demands that shrines be built to facilitate them should be beings/ entities that are restricted, deranged, that have a beginning, and are destined to perish in due course. It is not God who comes to dwell in shrines that humans have created. In human-made shrines, it is not God who visits and takes up residence. He penetrates the hearts through His steadfast Spirit, whereupon He is sanctified to dwell. As a Supreme Being, God Almighty is the opposite and has neither beginning nor end.

Since creation, that is inclusive of the angelic beings are incapable in producing anything good or bad without God’s consent, then we must understand that God who is Perfect and Holy must be the One who’s CREATED evil also; otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense. A creature like a cherub cannot ENGENDER evil. No wonder the New Testament divulge the existence of an entity named “the mystery of iniquity” (2 Thessalonians 2:7). It is kept a great secret for the now. Someday we shall know.

  • But though he causes grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies.

For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.

To crush under his feet all the prisoners of the earth,

To turn aside the right of a man before the face of the most High,

To subvert a man in his cause, the Lord approves not.

Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commands it not?

Out of the mouth of the most High proceeds not EVIL AND GOOD? Lamentations 3:32-38

  • What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not RECEIVE EVIL? (Job 2:10)
  • I (yatsar – (through the squeezing into shape); to mould into a form; especially as a potter) form the light and create darkness: I (`asah – accomplish, execute, provide, perform, bestow) make peace, and CREATE EVIL: I (Yhovah – (the) self-Existent or the Eternal One) the Lord do all these things (Isaiah 45:7)
  • I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: There is none other than Him who is the cause, originator, genesis of all things. From Him must proceed all things; by His command must all things take form or come to fruition or emerge. He spoke and it was done – Psalm 33:9 – He upholds all things by the word of His power – Hebrews 1:3.

Know then, that as there is the “great is the mystery of godliness” – 1 Timothy 3:16, there is “the mystery of iniquity” as well – 2 Thessalonians 2:7.

I don’t see God has created anything that is fail-safe or impregnable yet. Maybe, He did not begin a perfect age yet, I can only conjecture! If it was fail-safe, it wouldn’t have been made subject to vanity or putrefaction or bondage of corruption – Romans 8:20. This perspective is supported by the Bible, which states that “that which is partial shall be done away when that which is perfect is come” – 1Cor 13:10 – Not as though I had already obtained perfection or both: rather I pursue both (Philippians 3:12).

We who are in Christ our redeemer, who is the only Way to perfection, are on that journey to be made whole, complete. Even the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same (Romans 8:20). What for? There must be an explanation. It wouldn’t make sense if it didn’t, now, would it?

The entirety of creation is the handiwork of a master craftsman, and just as a potter works on his creation and subjects it to various processes, God has likewise made his creations/creatures to go through similar stages of growth.

Because of this, the word “yastar” is frequently used in the Bible to describe a potter’s work with clay. God originally gave man a clay-like makeup because of this reason. It was done on purpose. I assume that this earthly construction was a temporary undertaking in His eyes. Our physical body is likened by the apostle Paul to a seed – 1 Corinthians 15:42-44. Now, why would he do it if there was no justification?

For mankind, God had bigger goals in mind. While the first man is from the ground, the second Adam comes from heaven – 1 Corinthians 15:47,48. Christ, the Son of Man, was what God intended for every man to evolve into when He formed man out of dust and breathed into him life. And so, it is written, the first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit (1 Corinthians 15:45).

Am I making sense? There is no way we could understand the causes of all the evil that befell humanity if we do not adopt this viewpoint. I couldn’t comprehend the causes of all the humankind’s woes until I understand about God through the holy Scriptures. If this were not the case, the focus and worries would shift to the wicked being and his plans. In light of the knowledge that God is supreme and that He rules over both human kingdoms and His own creation, Daniel 4:17,25,32/5:21, we may see that there is still hope for us.

Since the devil is a “fallen angel” and is a creation of God, we simply cannot attribute any glory to him–even instituting of evil. He is not the cause, but he is a fallen entity. As the breath of God and the word of his might sustains everything–the creation of God doesn’t possess the potential to create. Now don’t read me wrong! When the Bible portrays “Lucifer” as perfect in all his ways when he was created – Ezekiel 28:15 – that discloses to us an enigmatic/ambiguous nature of “evil”, the causation of evil.

If according to God, Lucifer was perfect in his ways from the day he was created until iniquity was found in him – Ezekiel 28:15, how would it make him the instigator of evil. It doesn’t make sense. How can perfection and evil co-exist? Was he the devil and a beloved son of God at the same time? God was so fond of him that He even made a lament for him after his fall and covered the deep for him (Ezekiel 31:15). The planet was submerged in water for this reason before God brought it out again to create a new species called man.

The chaotic earth that we see in Genesis 1 is the upshot of Lucifer’s rebellion. The submerged earth that we see in Genesis 1:2 was then a gesture of God’s lamentation over Lucifer. God hath set him so: he was upon the holy mountain of God (Ezekiel 28:14). He was the most exquisite creation that God delighted in, and every precious stone served as his covering when God formed him. He was heaven’s greatest composer as well.

Ezekiel the prophet describes him as the anointed cherub who was set up by God upon the holy mountain of God. Before his fall, in the original Garden of Eden, he was given a world to rule – Ezekiel 28:13. It makes sense why he envied Adam and Eve. For he once controlled this globe. Because of this, he continues to fight for it. I believe Lucifer, the anointed cherub, received ‘the Mimshach’ – which in Hebrew means, “anointed” – Mimshach was used to describe the unprecedented beauty, splendours, and stretched forth wings of Lucifer – Ezekiel 28

If Lucifer was evil, then that would contradict the word of God, which says the contrary – Ezekiel 28:15 – He was Perfect = tamiym = from 8552; entire (literally, figuratively, or morally); also (as noun) integrity, truth: — without blemish, complete, full, perfect, sincerely (-ity), sound, without spot, undefiled, upright(-ly), whole.

How could we then conclude that Lucifer IS the evil one, when he WAS not. We know that after his fall that he’s become the devil or the adversary of God. Unless God intended to have one, there can be no adversary for God. Since Yahweh is God, He must cause things – He must create one, right?

Did the ‘evil one’ fell from his call? No, Lucifer the prefect one, fell from his consecrated state through rebellion. If he was upright according to God, where did ‘pride’ originate from? This we now know that God made Lucifer to be ‘the evil one’ – ‘the wicked one’ – Satan, which means the adversary. That can be proper, but where did iniquity come from that made Lucifer fall?

We simply cannot answer this question as, God refers to it as “mystery of iniquity” – 2 Thessalonians 2:7. We must then realize that God has kept this mystery from being investigated for the now. As we cannot fathom the depth of God (the mystery of godliness – 1Timothy 3:16) for the now, the mystery of iniquity also remains a prohibited zone for our minds to stray into.

The mystery of iniquity continues to be a forbidden territory for our minds to wander into, just as we are unable to comprehend the depth of God (the mystery of godliness; 1 Timothy 3:16) for the time being.

However, we might be able to glean something out of that verse in Thessalonians. I see it as a spiritual entity that pervades the entire created world. We don’t know for sure whether this disembodied evil spirit entered Lucifer and he thus became the devil or Satan; but we know that there is a spirit that work in the children of disobedience, which is also known as the power of the air – Ephesians 2:2. We consider it as the spirit of Satan, but I believe that is not a correct description. This is the same spirit that ‘the man of sin’, the false Messiah will also be enthralled with.

Bible says, the evil spirit from God came upon Saul (1 Samuel 16:15/18:10). For the same reason: ‘Pride’ had led to this inception of evil.

The divine Being God who alone is the causation of all things, proceeds both evil and good. Evil as a chastisement or destruction or damnation or punishment.

The Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil (Genesis 3:22).

The evil, the death is all God’s handiwork meant to fulfil His eternal purposes. The evil or death are not some kind of influence or a force, but spiritual beings created by God, vessels of wrath fitted to destruction, if you will – 1 Corinthians 15:26/ Revelation 20:14/Romans 9:22.

The combination of that evil spirit from God (the mystery of iniquity) and the angelic structure of Lucifer is a force that needs to be reckoned with. That concoction of a creature has become Satan, who now instigates evil. But this ‘strong man’ that bedevilled the world was brought to its knees by the Lord from heaven – Mark 3:27/Col 2:15. And ‘the violent one’ Jesus Christ, not only bound this ‘strong man’ but also spoiled his goods – Matthew 11:12/12:29 – he took it by force and incapacitated the devil, which is called Satan.

Now the question is: Wouldn’t ‘knowing good and evil’ make God unholy and imperfect? Not a bit! God is perfect and Holy in every sense. He is a holy God and a righteous Judge. He is ‘the Judge of all the earth’ that judges righteously and without partiality – Genesis 18:25.

Only an omniscient God can be the “Judge of all the earth”. Hence, God is the “Ultimate Entity” that none would want to content with. His character is devoid of any wickedness. He is sinless and unflawed in every manner. His holiness, which distinguishes Him from all other beings, is frequently regarded as the very core of His being.

Furthermore, God is a just Judge. What would a judge then do? What is the Judge’s function? What authority does He possess, and how far would He go to punish, chastise, or vindicate?

In issuing judgments, a just judge must be fair, impartial, and unbiased. He upholds the law and is influenced by moral and just values. The law of God is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good (Romans 7:12)

If an accused person is judged to be guilty, a just judge must impose a sentence that is proportionate for the seriousness of the offense. It is His responsibility to decide whether the accused person is guilty or innocent. He will have mercy on whom He will – Romans 9:15,18 – He found none righteous, no, not one – Romans 3:10 – for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God – Romans 3:23 – In Adam all died – 1 Corinthians 15:22 – Therefore, as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation (Romans 5:18). Who condemned us? God, the great ‘Judge of all the earth’. His law condemned us – Romans 7:7,8.

Hell is a term used frequently to describe the particular kind of punishment for the doomed, the particular form of the retribution meted out to the condemned. Hell is depicted as a region of anguish, sorrow and torment where the damned go to spend eternity separated from God.

What therefore must God have in His purview or at His disposal if He is the “Judge of all the earth”?

Just as a master has the authority to punish or reprimand a disobedient servant, God also has the power to condemn and punish those who rebel against Him. Matthew 18:34 and Revelation 21:8, suggests that those who do not follow God’s will may face eternal punishment in a lake of fire and brimstone. At the same time, He also has reserved a place for them who are free from condemnation. Does that make sense?

What I’m attempting to say is that because God is a righteous Judge and must carry out the duties of a Judge, anything He does—including punishing, condemning, destroying, reprimanding, humiliating—won’t render Him unholy or corrupt. It is impossible to ever classify His deeds as evil or unjust; rather, they are righteous and holy. He is bound by His own Laws, and they are just and holy – Romans 7:12. He maintains everything by the word of His power, isn’t that right? He has therefore, magnified His word above all His name – Psalm 138:2.

Whom are we fighting? Against whom are we at war? Against rulers of the darkness of this world, against principalities and powers, as well as against spiritual wickedness in high places (Ephesians 6:12). Who did Jesus Christ succeed in defeating? You do realize that he spoiled ruined (incapacitated) principalities and powers? (See Col 2:15). Who, why, and for what purpose did all that is visible and invisible, including all thrones, all dominions, all principalities, and all powers were created? All things were created by the Word of God, and all things were created for Him (Colossians 1:16). For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. (Romans 13:1).

Can you not see the Almighty Creator at work in all of these?

  • “The great and terrible God (Nehemiah 1:5)
  • It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31)
  • For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regards not persons, nor taketh reward (Deuteronomy 10:17) –
  • For the Lord most high is terrible; he is a great King over all the earth (Psalm 47:2)
  • Say unto God, how terrible art thou in thy works! Through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee. (Psalm 66:3)
  • the Lord is with me as a mighty terrible one (Jeremiah 20:11)
  • And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake (Hebrews 12:21)
  • And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead (Revelation 1:17)
  • Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver (Psalm 50:22)
  • That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever (Joshua 4:24)
  • God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all of them that are about him. (Psalm 89:7)

Why did God create an entity like “Pharaoh”—who is a type of Satan, the “prince of this world”?

Let’s not assume things but let the word of God interpret itself.

For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, even for this same purpose have I raised (exegeiro = from 1537 and 1453; to rouse fully, i.e. (figuratively) to resuscitate (from death), release (from infliction): — raise up.) thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. (Romans 9:17)

Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? (Romans 9:21) – vessels of wrath fitted to destruction (Romans 9:22) – the vessels of mercy (Romans 9:23). Therefore, hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardens (Romans 9:18). Nay but, O man, who art thou that replies against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus? (Romans 9:20) He does what pleases Him. For He is the Creator, God Almighty. For who hath resisted his will? (Romans 9:19)

For the Scripture now discloses that God dwells in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see (1 Timothy 6:16). But then we shall know everything, when He will cloth us with an eternal body – when death shall be swallowed up of life.

Evil or Death or Hell are spiritual beings created by God, or vessels of anger fitted to destruction, if you will, rather than some sort of influence or force. Behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him (Revelation 6:8).

So, what can we learn from all these? We learn that God created everything intended to serve His eternal purposes. For BY HIM WERE ALL THINGS CREATED, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: (Colossians 1:16). And He is before all things (the pre-existent divine Being, whose name is called the Word of God – Revelation 19:13/John 1:1), and by Him all things consist of (Colossians 1:17). And all things are of God (2 Corinthians 5:18) – for whom are all things, and by whom are all things (Hebrews 2:10).

 

References:

  • What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? (Job 2:10)
  • GOD IS SOVEREIGN – Since God is the BEGINNING and He contains everything – He must be the sole creator of evil also. Let’s analyze the Scriptures.
  • Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations he hath made in the earth. (Psalm 46:8)
  • I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things. (Isaiah 45:7)
  • Shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it? (Amos 3:6)
  • Who hath made man’s mouth? or who makes the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the Lord? – Exodus 4:11
  • Deuteronomy 32:39 says, “See now that I, even I am he, and there is no god beside me; I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.” God holds final sway in every death and every life.
  • God sent an evil spirit – Judges 9:23
  • The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him – 1Samuel 16:14,15/18:12/19:9 – the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house – 1Samuel 18:10
  • And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will persuade him. And the Lord said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so. 1 Kings 22:21-22
  • God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another – Rom 1:24
  • And the Lord smote the king, so that he was a leper (2 Kings 15:5)
  • And the Lord rejected all the seed of Israel, and afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until he had cast them out of his sight (2 Kings 17:20)
  • And so, it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the Lord: therefore, the Lord sent lions among them, which slew some of them (2 Kings 17:25,26)
  • And the Lord sent against him bands of – 2Kings 24:2
  • Thus, saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon – Jeremiah 29:4
  • I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil. And I will persecute them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, and an astonishment, and an hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations whither I have driven them: Because they have not hearkened to my words, saith the Lord – Jeremiah 29:17-19 – I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people (Zechariah 12:3)
  • God appointed a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. So, Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. But when dawn came up the next day, – God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered – Jonah 4:6,7
  • And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his (Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon) hand (Daniel 1:2)
  • A ravenous bird (ayit – a hawk or other bird of prey: — bird, fowl, ravenous (bird)) from the east, the man that executes my counsel from a far country (Isaiah 46:11) – about the anti-Christ!
  • The Lord hath mingled a perverse spirit in the midst thereof: and they have caused Egypt to err in every work thereof, as a drunken man staggers in his vomit. (Isaiah 19:14)
  • And I will give it into the hands of the strangers for a prey, and to the wicked of the earth for a spoil; and they shall pollute it. (Ezekiel 7:21)
  • The Lord hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. (Proverbs 16:4)
  • evil came down from the Lord unto the gate of Jerusalem (Micah 1:12)
  • “Abraham fell into a deep sleep and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. Then the Lord said – Genesis 15:10-12
  • I will lay my vengeance upon Edom by the hand of my people Israel: and they shall do in Edom according to mine anger and according to my fury; and they shall know my vengeance, saith the Lord God (Ezekiel 25:14)
  • But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him. (1 Samuel 16:14)
  • And the evil spirit from the Lord was upon Saul (1 Samuel 19:9)
  • And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel (1 Chronicles 21:1) – And again the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he moved David against them to say, Go, number Israel and Judah. (2 Samuel 24:1)
  • And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will persuade him. (1 Kings 22:21) – And the Lord said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so. (1 Kings 22:22) – Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil concerning thee. (1 Kings 22:23)
  • Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: (Acts 2:23)
  • I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me: That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord, and there is none else. I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things. Isaiah 45:5-7
  • Evil is God’s punishment to the transgressing creature. If Satan is the author of evil, then how come He was once said to be perfect in all his ways until iniquity was found in him. Where did pride come from?
  • Therefore, God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.
  • Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones.
  • He gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done

God rulers upon all Kingdoms

  • The most High rules in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and sets up over it the basest of men (Daniel 4:17,25,32)
  • The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: he turns it whithersoever he will (Proverbs 21:1)
  • And he changes the times and the seasons: he removes kings, and sets up kings: (Daniel 2:21)
  • For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, even for this same purpose have I raised thee up (Romans 9:17)
  • Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwells on high, (Psalm 113:5)—the Lord, who does all these things (Acts 15:17)?

But though he causes grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies.

For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.

To crush under his feet all the prisoners of the earth,

To turn aside the right of a man before the face of the most High,

To subvert a man in his cause, the Lord approves not.

Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commands it not?

Out of the mouth of the most High proceeds not EVIL AND GOOD? Lamentations 3:32-38

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notes on SIN

“Sin” holds no gravity unless there is an enacted law (Rom 7). The imaginations of the heart, every thought, and actions that opposes the order of God – or every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God – 2 Cor 10:5 – is sin. Trusting in God and casting all our cares upon Jesus is the proper way – 1Petr 5:7 – but if we choose to worry, doubt, and murmur that is sinful. We could also define sin as a spiritual force (a law imputed because of the original sin – Rom 5), which is active in the members of our being – which war against the law of mind to bring us again into its captivity – Rom 7. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die – Rom 8:13 – the effect of yielding our members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin – Rom 6:13 – yielding our member’s servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity – Rom 6:19. All unrighteousness is sin (1 John 5:17)

Sin was present even before Adam transgressed, wasn’t it? The first recorded sin is the rebellion of Lucifer. Sin is breaching of the proper boundary which God hath laid. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee (Psalm 119:11) – it is then clear that sin gets its leverage by our disobedience to God’s ways. It is defiling of the mind and conscience – Titus 1:15/Heb 12:15/Ezekiel 28:18 – but keeping a good conscience toward God is the right way. And the effect of conceiving lust in the heart – James 1:15 – is that one would become insensible to any moral and spiritual obligations (fail to recall that we are debtors – Rom 8:12 – one could be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin – Heb 3:13 – Harden not your hearts – Heb 3:8,15) – that is to be deprived of the fear of God, which was the state of all of us one time – Eph 2:3/Col 1:21 – before mercy and truth purged us – Pro 16:6/ Eph 2:4,5. For the fear of the Lord tendeth to life – Pro 19:23 – The fear of the Lord hates all evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth – Pro 8:13 – by the fear of the Lord men depart from evil – Pro 16:6. The first virtue which enters the heart of man when he is purged of his iniquities is the fear of the Lord – for it is the beginning – Ps 34:11/111:10/Pro 1:7,29/2:5/9:10/14:27/15:33/19:23 etc…

For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not – Ecclesiastes 7:20 – If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us – 1 John 1:8.

Sin was present way before Adam – by which even the heavenly things got defiled – Heb 9:23 – Lucifer the anointed cherub was perfect in his ways until iniquity was found in him – Isaiah 14:13/Ezekiel 28:2,6,13-15. Iniquity = perverseness, unjustness, unrighteousness; wickedness, etc… I would say ‘sin’ is the condemnation, the consequence of letting lust to be conceived in the heart – Rom 6:12,13/James 1:15. The angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation – Jude 1:6 – they left the God-ordained path and were condemned – Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to be utterly unchaste – Jude 1:7 – whose effect was suffering the vengeance of eternal fire – Jude 1:7.

For that they (Israel) hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord: They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof – Proverbs 1:29-30 – why? Because they forsook the fountain of living waters – Jeremiah 2:13 – they denied the Holy One and the Just – Acts 3:14/Luke 12:9 – they put away the word of God from them, and judged themselves unworthy of everlasting life – Acts 13:46. That is a sin unto death – 1John 5:17 – they blasphemed the Holy Ghost, which is unpardonable sin whose end is eternal damnation – Matt 12:32/Mark 3:22,28,29/Luke 12:10.

Through Adam sin entered into the world and all men got condemned, and sin was not imputed until the law came (Rom 5:12,13). So we see that the Law was added because of transgression – Gal 3:19 – If the law came later, then what did Adam transgress? Another law? Yes, Thou shalt not – Gen 2:17 – and its repercussion affected all of the human race – Rom 5:12-14.

Sin is the transgression of the law of God – 1John 3:4/ When lust* (which is ingrained in our corrupt nature – Mark 7:20-23) hath conceived* (when we make provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lust – when we let sin reign in our mortal body – when we yield our members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin – when we yield ourselves, servants, to obey sin unto death – Rom 6:12,13,16/13:14), *it brings forth sin – James 1:14, 15/ Adam transgressed the law of God – Gen 3:3/Rom 5:12-17/1Tim 2:14/Gal 3:22/Rom 7:14/ To him that knows to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin – James 4:17/ When ye sin so against the brethren and wound their weak conscience, ye sin against Christ – 1Cor 8:12. So you see, when sin is referred to, it always speaks in relation to the law. A covenant consists of commandments, seals, and promises. The Old Covenant was faulty (Heb 8:7,8), but we must not be ignorant of the fact that God hath brought in a new one (a better covenant – Heb 8:6 – which too has its law, promises, and seal). Ergo, the transgression of the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus too is counted as “sin” (Heb 2:1-3/10:28,29).

Are we free from sin? Yes and No. The fact of the matter is that we are judicially free from “the sin” – the power of sin gets broken when we believe in Jesus Christ – Rom 6:12/8:3. Know that, it is not flushed out of our being yet, but we are told to make no provision for sin to reign over again – Rom 6:12/13:14. Our flesh/man’s physical nature, which is corrupt – Eph 4:22/Rom 7:17-20 – isn’t reinstated yet – the price is already been paid on the cross of calvary – Col 1:14 – but the redemption of our vile body isn’t taken place yet – Rom 8:23/Phil 3:21 – For he that is dead alone is freed from sin – Rom 6:7. Though we are freed from the power/ dominance/jurisdiction of sin/ and we now hold the rein – Rom 6:12-14,16/13:14/1Cor 9:27/2Cor 10:5 – Yet not without sin! – Rom 7:24-27/1John 1:8/2Cor 7:1/Eph 4:22/1Pet 4:1,2/John 15:2/Mark 7:20-23.

Then what are we remitted from? The original sin – Rom 5:12/ Remission of sins that are past – Rom 3:25/ the believing Jews are redeemed from the transgressions that were under the first Testament as well – Heb 9:15/ Purged from old sins – 2Pet 1:9/ The times of this ignorance God winked at – Acts 17:30.

He saved us (from everything that we need to be saved from or that which separated us from God) and planted us on the Rock which is Christ – to walk in newness of life – Rom 6:4.

Now, we are washed, we are sanctified, we are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God – 1Cor 6:11 – to not draw back unto perdition – Heb 10:38,39 – but that we might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness – Col 1:10-13.

God hath secured you in Christ; the power of sin is broken (Rom 8:3/ 6:12,14); delivered from the power of darkness (Col 1:13); he gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world – Galatians 1:4 – Christ hath blotted out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way (Col 2:13,14,15); you’ve been justified freely; washed with the Word and sanctified by the Spirit (Rom 3:24,30/Gal 3:8/1Cor 6:11); your spirit has been revived by the Spirit of God when you believed (1John 3:9/John 3:6/1Pet 1:23); your body now is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1Cor 6:19); ye have an unction from the Holy One (1John 2:20/Acts 3:14); exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us is made available through Christ to walk this life (Eph 2:7); hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light (Col 1:12); have received the Spirit of adoption (we are sons), whereby we cry, Abba, Father (Rom 8:15,23); now we can come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need (Heb 4:16/10:22); the love of God is shed abroad in your heart by the Holy Spirit (Rom 5:5); ye have been sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise (Eph 1:13): and we have a hope which is sure and steadfast as an anchor of our soul (Heb 6:19); we have the Holy Spirit the comforter whom the Father hath sent and Jesus Christ the high-priest of our profession interceeding for us all the time (Rom 8:26,27,34/Heb 7:25); we have forgiveness/cleansing of sins when we walk in the light (1John 1:7,9); hath made us accepted in the beloved (Eph 1:6). In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace (Col 1:14/Eph 1:7). What more could you ask for? According to as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue – 2Pet 1:3.

What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? Isaiah 5:4

Therefore, if we sin willfully (it is the deliberate transgression of the divine will – transgress the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus/ the perfect law of liberty – Rom 8:2/ James 1:25/2:12) after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins – Heb 10:26/2Pet 2:20-22. He that despised Moses’ Law died without mercy – Of how much sorer punishment to us, if we sin willfully – Heb 10:26-29/ Rom 6:1. For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again – Pro 24:16. The just man will be in a constant struggle with himself for the uncleanness of his heart than having pleasure in it. To him, sin is something which he contends with on a daily basis, though much grace is made available to deal with it. He fasts often and prays continually and is diligent to intercept the vile disposition, which he holds within the members of his body. Such a one is a spiritual man. But we are talking about those who are yet carnal (choose to live after the flesh) and walk as a mere man – 1Cor 3:1,3 – If ye commit sin (if we continue in sin – if we perpetrate that which our corrupt nature already is disposed of/ constituted of – James 1:14,15/Mark 7:20-23/Matt 5:28/Rom 7:24-27/Eph 4:22/Jeremiah 17:9), then ye are convinced of the law as transgressors – James 2:9! There is no doubt that there is forgiveness in Christ – 1John 1:7,9 – but due to not putting to death the inherent sinful nature through the Spirit – Eph 4:22/2Cor 7:1/Col 3:8/Rom 8:13/13:12 – many have become unfruitful – Mark 4:19 – forsook the right way – 2Pet 2:15 – being cast forth as a branch, and is in a withered state, according to the spirit – John 15:6/1Tim 1:19 – and one could be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin – Heb 3:13 – Harden not your hearts – Heb 3:8,15.

A catalyst is an outside substance that speeds up a chemical reaction. In fresh, wet concrete, calcium is the catalyst that causes it to harden quickly. Here SIN is the catalyst!
As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance – 1Pet 1:14.

But are we under the law anymore? Why do we even mention the word “sin” if the majority insists that we are not under any kind of law? Bible clearly states that sin is the transgression of the law – 1John 3:4. This then means that there is a law that we need to adhere to, isn’t there? And if there is such a law, then there should be some form of punishment involved when one transgresses it! Unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation, and wrath (Romans 2:8). For there is no respect of persons with God (Romans 2:11)

For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation (Hebrews 2:2,3).

Could any defile the marriage bed and get away with it? Heb 13:4/ Could we condemn/ judge others and escape the judgment of God? Rom 2/ Could we yield our bodily members to uncleanness and escape its consequence? Rom 6:18,19/ Could any live after the flesh and be secure? Rom 8:13/ Could anyone love this world/money and keep his soul? John 12:25/Mark 8:36/1Tim 6:6-11/ James 4:4/1John 2:15/Luke 8:14/ Could we commit fornication and be spared? 1Cor 6:18/ What will be the effect if we partake of the Lord’s supper in an unworthy manner? 1Cor 11:27-31/ Why wouldn’t we take a sword to defend ourselves? Because Jesus has commanded us not to, has he not? – Matt 26:52 etc……

For the commandment is a lamp, and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life – Pro 6:23. God says, My son, bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck and it shall keep thee – Pro 6:21. Only fools despise wisdom and instruction – Pro 1:7. He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul – Pro 15:32. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight – 1John 3:22. The things that the Spirit of the Lord inspired men to write are the commandments of the Lord – 1Cor 14:37 – holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost (2 Peter 1:21). For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous – 1John 5:3. And this is love, that we walk after his commandments – 2John 1:6. By this, we know that we love the children of God when we love God and keep his commandments – 1John 5:2. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him – 1John 3:24. And hereby we do know that we know him if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth, not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked – 1John 2:3-6.

Most laws condemn the soul and pronounce sentence. The result of the law of my God is perfect. It condemns but forgives. It restores – more than abundantly – what it takes away – Jim Elliot.

For without a law sin is dead – Rom 7:8 – If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us – 1John 1:8,9/Rom 7:16-23/2Cor 7:1 – If the Bible declares that we are not without sin, and sin can appear as sin only if there is legislation – how come we say there is no law for us to abide by? I am not prescribing the Judaistic circumcision and observance of Torah/ the Jewish sanctuary atonement ordinances (the ceremonial laws), which the Gentiles were not required to observe according to Acts 15 and Acts 21. But the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus is our mandate. In the Old Testament, all the law and the prophets hang on two commandments “loving God and loving man” Matt 22:40 – The New Testament instructs us also the same – Rom 13:8-10/Gal 5:14. James 2:8 calls it “the Royal law”/ the Law of Christ – Gal 6:2. Only a soul that goes through purification by obeying the truth through the Spirit can genuinely love the brethren – 1Pet 1:22 – to possess “the unfeigned love” is crucial – 1John 3:16/2Cor 6:6. Elect through sanctification of the Spirit, unto (until) obedience – 1Pet 1:2 – obedience unto righteousness – Rom 6:16 – How shall we escape, if we neglect? – Heb 2:2

Why the Epistle of James identifying those that love the world as adulterers? What empowers him to condemn someone like that if it wasn’t for an enacted spiritual law that’s been established upon better promises? The Bible says that the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good – Rom 7:12 – The problem was not the law but our hearts – For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin – Rom 7:14. When you come to Christ, your “condemned” status in Adam – Rom 5 – changes to “made righteous” through the last Adam – 2Cor 5:21/Rom 5:19 – but that is our “legal standing” before God – we were condemned in Adam, now are we free from it and have peace with God – Rom 5:1 – blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross – Col 2:14 – but that won’t change the fact that sin still lurks within every one of us, waiting for a chance to devour. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us – 1John 1:8/Rom 7:16-23/2Cor 7:1/1Pet 2:11/4:1,2. Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof – Rom 13: 14 – Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin – Rom 6:13 – Now yield your member’s servants to righteousness unto holiness – Rom 6:19. One can derive power to resist his flesh and its urge only by walking and living in the Spirit.

Now tell me, which law are we not under? Are we free to sin? Is there any Christian out there who don’t have a propensity to sin, whose heart and mind is void of unclean thinking? I do have to fight on a constant basis to keep my heart clean; I have to depend on the Holy Spirit to keep my heart pure. I have to let the word of Christ dwell in my spirit richly in all wisdom to not let sin reign in my mortal body – Col 3:16/Rom 6:12. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee – Psalm 119:11/Eph 5:26. Otherwise, what is purging for? John 15:2 – why do we have to guard/keep our hearts with all diligence – Pro 4:23? What’s the point of making a confession, and the need for cleansing of all unrighteousness? 1John 1:9/Rom 1:18. The inherent sin, which we are indwelt with is a threat to every individual, if not dealt with – Rom 7:16-23/2Cor 7:1/ 10:5/Eph 4:22/James 1:21.

Can we commit adultery, fornication, drunkenness, lustful thinking, murder, covetousness, blasphemy, pride, etc, and remain a true Christian? For the tree is known by its fruit, isn’t it? Matt 12:33/Luke 6:44. We do guard our hearts on a daily basis in obedience to the word of God, don’t we? The whole New Testament is comprised of precepts. Are we not bound by these laws of God? If we are led by the Spirit, we are not under the Law of Moses (the ceremonial laws)(yet not without law to God, but under the law to Christ – 1Cor 9:21/ the righteousness of the law shall be fulfilled in us who walks after the Spirit – Rom 8:4). Because the first covenant (a covenant consists of commandments, seal, and promises) was faulty – Heb 7:19 – a second better one was sought and was established upon better promises – Heb 8:6,7 – that is the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus – the perfect law of liberty – the Royal law – Rom 8:3/James 1:25/ we shall be judged by that law – James 2:8,12. We know that what things soever the law says, it says to them who are under the law – Rom 3:19 – Law of Moses exposed sin – Rom 7:7 – It was imposed on them – Heb 9:10 – Christ did not abolish the law – Matt 5:17/ 1Tim 1:8/ for it is holy, just and good – Rom 7:12,16 – the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith – Gal 3:24 – The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul – Psalm 19:7; but the law of commandments contained in ordinances, that’s what He abolished – Eph 2:15 – but the law of the Spirit of life in Christ washes us from our filth – Eph 5:26. The law condemned men – and sin by the commandment became exceeding sinful – Rom 7:13 – that the Grace and truth, which would come by Jesus Christ – John 1:17 – alone could save us. We find then, the law is holy, just, and good. 

Can anyone of us then look down on or judge those who perpetrate sin? NO. Are we better than those that commit sin? NO. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8). It is solely the goodness of God that leadeth us to repentance – Rom 2:4/11:22/1Cor 10:12. Therefore, work-out your salvation with fear and trembling (pass the time of your sojourning here in fear – 1Pet 1:17). For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure – Phil 2:12,13.

God would brand a person as “righteous and holy” the very moment he believes in the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ (Rom 4:25/ 5:11,19/ Heb 9:22/2Cor 5:21/1Cor 1:30/Eph 5:1-2/Isaiah 53:4-6/1Pet 2:24/1John 2:2/4:10), to help him walk in newness of life, and not in corruption and bondage again. Being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross (Col 2:13,14). Does that mean, we need no more cleansing? No. Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child (newborn in Christ)(Pro 22:15), and just like the toddlers are trained and taught; our good Father also, who is in heaven, allows us to go through many a process to purge all impurities from within us (Heb 12:5-11/Job 5:17/Pro 3:11/John 15:2). At the same time, the word of God also invades even the dividing asunder of soul and spirit and of joints and marrow, to bring into light all the intents of our hearts (Heb 4:12/John 15:3/1Tim 4:5), which would result, in an ongoing transformation into the likeness of God’s dear Son Jesus. Ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit (1Pet 1:22).

Having, therefore, these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God – 2 Cor 7:1 – by the washing of water by the word – Eph 5:26.

God can only set us free from all clutches and tyranny of sin that dwells in our flesh (nature), which continuously drag us away from doing the things of the Spirit (Rom 7:14-25); when we make up our minds to mortify the deeds of the body with its lusts and affections, through the Spirit, and reckon ourselves dead unto sin (Rom 8:13/1Pet 4:1,2/ Gal 5:24). Sin will always try to influence you: Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof; neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God (our compliance is required – this is part of working out our salvation – Phil 2:12) as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God (Rom 6:1-13). For (then) sin shall not have dominion over you (14).

For if we sin willfully (also means, loving this present world like Demas, departing from faith –1Tim 4:1/2Tim 4:4,10/1John 2:15,16/James 4:4 – like Judas Iscariot who was numbered with the twelve, and had obtained part of the ministry and apostleship – Acts 1:17,25/Matt 10:1-5 – who by transgression fell – Acts 1:25 – and err from faith –1Tim 6:10/ Heb 6:4-6/Jude 5 – dreadful among all sins – sin unto death –1John 5:16,17 – done willfully – intentionally – by personal choice – we have no right to pray for such –1John 5:16 – for it is impossible to renew them again unto repentance (if they fall away); seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame – Heb 6: 4-6 – As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool returns to his folly/ if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein (and be entangled with the pollutions of the world), and overcome – Heb 6:4-6/10:26-29/Pro 26:11/2Pet 2:20-22/1John 2:15,16/James 4:4/Rom 12:2 – who through the absence of faith denies the Lord that bought them, by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of – 2Pet 2:1/1Cor 10/15:17/John 12:48/Rom 11:20-22 – Example: Judas Iscariot, Demas, Ananias and Sapphira etc… Matt 26:14/2Tim 4:10/Acts 5).

Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man whose heart departs from the Lord (Jeremiah 17:5). Know that Jesus cannot shed the blood again, and without shedding of blood is no remission (Heb 9:22). There will be no more offering for sin (singular – which God had condemned in the flesh of His Son)(Heb 10:18/Rom 5:12-/8:3). He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing (by spiritual fornication – that is coalescing with the world or be carnally oriented), and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? (Heb 10:26-29) After that we have received the knowledge of the truth (after that you are cut loose from the umbilical cord of the Spirit, to be led – them that are mature in spirit, that are of full age – Heb 5:13,14), there remains no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries (1Cor 11:30/Rom 6:19/8:13 – KJV – but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin (this sin is due to the presence of sin within every one of us – Rom 6: 16/7:23/1John 1:8-10/2Cor 7:1 – sin not unto death –1John 5:16,17, yet could lead to death if neglected or unattended – Rom 8:13); and hence, when we confess our sins (if we are remorseful – He giveth grace unto the humble – James 4:6), he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness –1John 1:7,9 – All unrighteousness is sin – 1John 5:17 – and whatsoever is not of faith is sin – Rom 14:23.

To initiate us into the kingdom of Christ/ to justify and to reconcile us back to God – to make us walk in newness of life, the Blood of Christ alone would suffice – that is the justification of life – a free gift to all who would believe in the shed blood of the sinless lamb of God – Rom 3:24/5:18.

The sanctification of the Spirit and the washing of water by the Word and sufferings alone purifies our soul of its depravity – 1Thes 4:3/Eph 5:26/James 1:21/Heb 12:10,11/ 2Thes 1:4,5/Job 23:10/John 15:2/1Pet 1:22/4:12-14/5:10/ 1Tim 4:5/2Tim 2:21.

Did God choose us because we were a better lot?

Are “Sins and Diseases” interrelated?

CONDEMNED because of breaking the TEN Commandments!!! Seriously?