October 16, 2006

• Friday Bible study -PASTOR THEODORE VAN DYKE,JR.

  Friday Bible Study.

  Pastor Ted continued on the theme that he spoke about at the breakfast. I am not going to repeat what I posted yesterday for he covered some of the same material, but I will include extra details that he added on Friday.

  Pastor Ted talked about how things in the natural give us pictures and types of the spiritual. He also cautioned us that we can be deceived by things that look very spiritual, but are being done by someone who is carnally minded.

  Because we had a lot of newcomers to Friday’s Bible study, Pastor Ted went over Revelation 1 and 2 with them, the same content as the breakfast talk.

  We are the Body of Christ. We are to be His witness. And we grow faith to faith, glory to glory.

  Revelation 3:14 …These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God.

  Jesus was there at the Beginning of creation. This is a specific beginning. Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega. The Alpha is the first Adam, and the Omega is the 2nd Adam (Jesus).

  The first Adam is the natural, the second – the Spiritual. We move from natural to Spiritual.

  We were given the law in the natural to bring us to the Spiritual. If we didn’t know the Law, we wouldn’t have known our need for a Savior.

  We don’t come out of Egypt, without the wilderness experience, before we get to the Promised Land.

  Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.

  Everything that we experience in the 3rd dimension, in the world, points to spiritual truths. For example the Lamb (physical) points to the sacrifice of Jesus, the Lamb of God (Spiritual).

  Romans 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.

  Our flesh is the carnal mind. If we are thinking carnally we are at enmity with God. We need to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. Carnal knowledge puffs up, makes you smug. You can have tons of information, and miss the Spirit of God. That is not to say that education isn’t beneficial, but you need education and the Spirit of God to produce fruit.

  There are going to be many false prophets in the last days.

  1 Corinthians 2:10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.

  Pastor Ted pointed out that sometimes people want to insult us by claiming that we are “too spiritual.” You can’t become too spiritual if you want to search out the deep things of God.

  Jesus had many disciples when He was doing the signs and wonders. When His teachings turned more spiritual and Jesus began to explain His purpose on earth, many of the disciples left Him. Those teachings would have required more from them than just the prestige of signs and wonders.

  Then Pastor Ted pointed out about the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil as he covered them during the breakfast.

  In the Bible many of the things that are described really point to Jesus. In Proverbs 31 the virtuous woman is not just a wife, but also the Church which is the Bride of Christ.

  1 Peter 1:20 He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.

  The prophesies provided by the Holy Spirit are not for just personal interpretation, but also for the Church. And all the prophesies must line up with the Word of God. Peter must agree with Mark, Matthew with Genesis, etc. All must line up with what God says.

  In an aside, Pastor Ted pointed out that Hagar (who gave birth to Ishmael and the nation of Islam) was a bondswoman – carnal ; – Sarah (spiritual) who gave birth to Isaac supernaturally when she should have been infertile at 99 was the princess of Israel. The fights today relate back to these times when Ishmael felt that he lost out on his inheritance – but it was God who chose the nation Israel.

  Leah had a veil over her eyes, Rachel was the desired one. Looking at their children (Heather’s note, as we saw in my Genesis study) gives a lot of insight into the development of the Nation Israel.

  The Birth of Christ was a supernatural birth – the Holy Spirit (God) was the Father, not carnal man.

  1 Peter 1:12-13 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven–things which angels desire to look into. Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

  When John was caught up to Heaven in Revelation, he saw things Spirit to Spirit. We compare spiritual with spiritual.

  When we learn in the Spirit things that differ from what we are taught in the flesh through our traditions, what are we going to do with it? Everything taught in Church is not of God, some is of the flesh and man’s traditions. As God opens our eyes to His truth, we are then accountable to God for what we do with the truth that He reveals to us.

  We then looked at a Parable of Jesus – and sought to see the symbols behind the parable.

  Luke 10:25-37

  The Parable of the Good Samaritan 25 And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
  26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?”
  27 So he answered and said, ” ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ”
  28 And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.”
  29 But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
  30 Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
  31 ”Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
  32 ”Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side.
  33 ”But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion.
  34 ”So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
  35 ”On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’
  36 ”So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”
  37 And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

  (Heather’s note: I copied the above from Lifeway’s Bible study tools).

  Verse 25: Who is the Certain Lawyer? The Pharisees and scribes who taught the law. Religious people who try to legalize Christianity, those how have the idol of education, but do not know the Spirit of God.

  The World is the Church World, and and at the time Jesus spoke the parable it would have been the scribes and pharisees who tried to kill Jesus. Today, our false doctrine also kills.

  In verse 30 – the sinner, the certain man would be Adam, and the thieves- satan. They stripped the sinner of clothing. Satan did that to Adam and Eve, for they were stripped of the glory of God and became aware of their nakedness after listening to satan and disobeying God. God provided rainment for them, but it was temporary. And in verse 30 it states that the man was left 1/2 dead – satan left mankind spiritually dead because of their disobedience to God.

  Verse 31 speaks of a certain priest – that priest would have been Moses – and the law. Moses could not cross over to the man (the law would not permit him to serve in the temple if he had defiled himself with this sinner), but Moses was unable to cross over to the Promised land because of his disobedience. Instead of speaking to the rock to produce water, Moses struck the rock, and destroyed the picture of Jesus that God was portraying through the rock. Verse 32 – This priest represented the Levitical Priesthood. God allowed the building of a temple and the yearly ritual of the sacrifice to atone for the sins of the nation. It was an incomplete sacrifice, for only Jesus could provide a pure sacrifice for all time. So this man could not minister to the fallen sinner.

  The Samaritan would not have been respected by the above two priests, they were considered half-breeds. They stayed in the land during the period of captivity and intermarried with the locals. Their version of Judaism was not honored in the Temple worship. This Samaritan represents Jesus – for Jesus was in effect a half-breed – the product of Mary and the Holy Spirit, He did not have an earthly father. He was of a different bloodline from the Israelites. Jesus was from the order of Melchizedek. He came from Heaven to Earth to heal our sins. Notice that verse 34 he used oil (Spirit) and wine (His blood) to heal the man. He then sets the man on an animal (beast – His body, which He gave up for our sins), and brings him to the Innkeeper. The innkeeper is the overseers of the Church, and they were to take care of the man.

  Notice that the innkeeper was given two denarii – a denarii is a day’s wage – so we are talking 2 days (a day is as a thousand years) so we are talking 2000 years, and then the Samaritan (Jesus) is coming back. He will then settle up the account for any more that is spent on the healing of the man.

  Jesus has told us to occupy until He comes again. We are to occupy by taking care of these hurt ones, helping them come to Jesus. So who are we to be the neighbor to? Anyone in need of salvation. Those who are wounded in this life.

  So we can see that this Parable has to do with Adam being cast out of the Garden after satan stripped him of God’s glory. The Law, the priesthood of Aaron and Levi, revealed to man their need for a savior, but could not redeem the sinner’s sin. We need a savior, with compassion who will bandage our wounds, bring healing from sin through the Holy Spirit and the blood. We now have spent 2000 years in the Church age, and have been bringing this message of salvation to a hurting and lost world. One day Jesus will return. And we will have the Omega in our midst.

  We then read Psalm 139

  Psalm 139

  God’s Perfect Knowledge of Man

  For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

  1 O LORD, You have searched me and known me. 2 You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. 3 You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways. 4 For there is not a word on my tongue,
  But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether. 5 You have hedged me behind and before,
  And laid Your hand upon me. 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it. 7 Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? 8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. 9 If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, 10 Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me. 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,” Even the night shall be light about me; 12 Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You. 13 For You formed my inward parts;You covered me in my mother’s womb. 14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. 15 My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them. 17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! 18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You. 19 Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God!
  Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men. 20 For they speak against You wickedly;
  Your enemies take Your name in vain. 21 Do I not hate them, O LORD, who hate You?
  And do I not loathe those who rise up against You? 22 I hate them with perfect hatred;
  I count them my enemies. 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; 24 And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.

  (Heather’s note: That is my prayer, that God searches me and lets me know where I stand in His Kingdom and what can I do better. I find this Psalm both comforting and disquieting. But I am learning to love it more as I grow in Christ.)

  Have a blessed night,

  Heather

  • 10:58 am
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