Speaker 1: 0:01

Hello and welcome to the Waking Up To Grace podcast, where we celebrate and explore the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ. Tune in to the Waking Up To Grace podcast on every major platform. You can also listen to our episodes and read our full transcripts at wakinguptogracecom. And now here's Lenny.

Speaker 2: 0:22

Welcome back to the Waking Up to Grace podcast. Everyone. Today's topic in our Roman study is glory, honor and immortality. I'd like to begin with an analogy, to get our minds pointed in the right direction For a moment. Imagine that you're on a relaxing vacation. You walk along the shoreline of a beach feeling the wet sand on your feet, the temperature is just right, there's a calm breeze in the air, accompanied by a crystal clear blue sky full of sunshine. As you're taken in your surroundings, consumed with thankfulness, you come across a person sitting in a chair in the shade. This person is fully consumed in their smartphone. Anxiety is written on their face as they aggressively swipe and scroll on the screen of their device with their fingertip. You say to them Hello there, how are you doing today? They reply oh, I'm just watching instructional videos with details on how to plan a relaxing vacation. Something just doesn't sound right about this, does it? How can someone have something right in front of their face and still be looking for it? Could there be anything more futile in this life than to be seeking something that we already have? Oftentimes it's downright tragic. In my last message, number 59, we left off discussing how the first century apostles were awaiting their salvation, which they believed was coming soon, at the return of Christ Yeshua and the resurrection of the dead. In our Romans passage we read To those who, by patience and well-doing, seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. That's Romans 2.7. The first century apostles were certainly seeking glory and honor and immortality. They were seeking eternal life. That was the promise they received from their Lord.

Speaker 2: 2:15

I constantly speak out against doctrines of legalism that tell us we have to maintain our fellowship with Yahweh. Under the new covenant, salvation and fellowship are synonymous. They're one and the same. Salvation in the New Covenant age puts us in a perfect fellowship with Yahweh. That's what grace is all about. Apart from knowing we're right with God, we can never fully embrace the grace that we have been given If we're honest with ourselves, while under legalistic doctrines that teach things like positional salvation and positional fellowship, we'll forever be stuck on the religious treadmill of becoming right with God. Our work will never be good enough and we'll struggle to worship in truth due to our error. I discuss these positional doctrines in message number 20.

Speaker 2: 3:03

But another tragedy in the Christian world today is the loose end that most believe never got tied for the forefathers of our faith in the first century. Most scholars will tell you that the apostles who laid down their lives for the gospel in the first century believe that Christ Yeshua would return in their generation. And even more shocking is the fact that Yeshua himself told them this explicitly. We studied these things in my last several messages. If we were to believe, as most do today, in a future return of Christ, then we find the apostles still in the grave, sleeping and awaiting their final redemption. Almost 2,000 years later, they continue to wait for the day they can be united with their Lord and Savior.

Speaker 2: 3:48

This is a reality that those who hold to a futurist eschatology gloss over. They often come up with ideas like the heavenly realms are timeless, so we'll go right to heaven when we die. But that concept is far removed from what we see in scripture and what was believed in ancient times. According to scripture, the dead sleep in Sheol until the judgment. The faithful saints, yahweh's elect, awaited the promised resurrection that would come at the final judgment. They awaited glory and honor and immortality. We cannot get around this when we study it out. I go over these details further in message number 15 and 16. If you missed those episodes.

Speaker 2: 4:32

If we ignore what is written, all we are left with is making up fine-sounding jargon about how we travel in time to be in heaven when we die. It makes many people feel better, but only in ignorance. Ignorance does not build us up spiritually. It only harms us in the long run. Those who claim that we go right to heaven when we die are correct, but their eschatology tells them otherwise. That's where the time-traveling nonsense comes into play. They want to believe that all the work of Christ is finished without redemption. But if Christ did not return, redemption and salvation did not come. Glory and honor and immortality remain as a promise yet to be fulfilled.

Speaker 2: 5:14

When we believe things in error, we lose the power of the truth, we lose the context that leads us to a deeper understanding of the grace of God and we allow error into our thinking. To a deeper understanding of the grace of God, and we allow error into our thinking. In my experience, as one who has experienced it firsthand, a small error causes a large issue in our understanding. We should always seek to understand what Scripture actually means, not what it looks like it means because of what we've been told. We need to understand what the writer was telling their audience or what Yeshua meant when he spoke to his audience. This takes intentional practice and a lot of grace and prayer. I believe the Spirit of God teaches us truth when we genuinely seek it.

Speaker 2: 5:58

Our human pride and ignorance are the biggest obstacles we face. Not Satan, who was thrown into the lake of fire in AD 70. I know it's hard to imagine Satan doesn't exist when you follow the affairs of our world, but study what scripture says about mankind apart from the Lord, it's actually not that hard to believe. We need to take responsibility for our own behavior and our own ignorance. Did Paul not constantly teach such things?

Speaker 2: 6:31

Getting back to the topic of glory and honor and immortality, when we connect highly documented history with the text in our Bibles, we find that Christ Yeshua was faithful and did make his spiritual return exactly as he intended to in AD 70. The apostles and all of the saints no longer await redemption. No time travel necessary. This is a big deal, isn't it? I think so, but in most Christian circles the whole concept of redemption is a complete mess. It's taken so far out of context that it gets completely taken for granted and turned into double talk.

Speaker 2: 7:05

When presented the doctrine of preterism, many Christians will respond that doesn't matter to me. What is the difference? If he came or he didn't come, I'm saved. That's all that matters. The funny thing is, they're happy to carry on proclaiming that he's coming soon and that Satan is doing this and that, even though it doesn't matter to them. To say that Christ Yeshua's return in the first century doesn't matter is to say that salvation and Yahweh's promises don't matter. If he didn't come in that generation, as he said he would, then salvation did not come when it was promised. The new covenant age was never established. It was never consummated. The work of Christ was left undone. Are you comfortable believing that?

Speaker 2: 7:53

I don't think I was much different than anyone else prior to being introduced to the full preterist doctrine. I believed redemption and salvation were considered to be in the future, because those who spoke of it hadn't died. We receive the promised redemption when we die is what I thought. That's why we see all this talk about waiting for it. Does that paradigm sound familiar to you? It probably does, because that's what our Christian leaders are telling us.

Speaker 2: 8:21

But if we come across a view of scripture that's contrary to what we've been taught, should we not study it out? Do we want to be that person who seeks what they already have, that person on the beautiful sunny beach seeking out a relaxing vacation while swiping at their smartphone. This would be like inheriting a plot of land on a large oil well, all that valuable oil is yours, but you don't even know it's there. You own it but are utterly unaware of the riches that you possess, unless something happens to make you aware you might spend your whole life struggling to survive when you were wealthy all along, had you simply knew the value in what you inherited. Believing that you have salvation when your eschatology is in error would be like someone telling you that you live on an oil well, but you don't actually know for sure. How much faith do you have in mankind? Would you want to drill into that land and see the oil for yourself? Would that not change your confidence? Just a little bit? Yes, a large bit. Right?

Speaker 2: 9:24

This is what it felt like for me when I discovered the truth about grace, the truth about our right standing identity in Christ, the truth about the redemption and salvation that we now have, that is ours as promised. The first century apostles had the Spirit of God, they were right with the Lord, sin was dealt with and they were no longer under the obligations of the law. They were set free from the sin and the death that came through Adam. The Spirit of God was their promised seal for redemption. They had that golden ticket, promise from Yahweh for entering the promised land and living eternally with the Lord. They were promised glory and honor and immortality. But that ticket needed to be redeemed and the event was the return of Christ Yeshua in AD 70.

Speaker 2: 10:12

To those who think the timing of Christ's return doesn't matter, my challenge is this does truth matter? In John 8, 31 we read so Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him If you abide us free, then error must put us in bondage. Following this logic, in order to be free, we must be seeking truth right. We must be living by truth in order to live free. John 4.23 reads but the hour is coming and is now here when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. That was Christ Yeshua speaking. When we're born of spirit, we're saved. We're now spiritually alive, according to scripture.

Speaker 2: 11:10

But if we worship in error? Do we please the Father? Is it not our calling as Christians to seek truth? Are you certain that the things you believe about the Lord are true? Do you genuinely seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit or are you holding on to what is familiar rather than challenging your theology? Do you seek the counsel of God or the counsel of man? When you're confused about a topic? Are you afraid to be cast out for being different than the mainstream church?

Speaker 2: 11:40

I know what it's like to be ignorant and naive. I think this is the default way that we come into the world. It takes a conscious effort to think for ourselves and question our ignorance. If seeking all truth happened automatically for all Christians, we wouldn't have so many denominations, would we? When our leaders can't even agree on things, should we not be checking up on those leaders? Should we even need a leader as a Christian today? To be clear, I'm not saying should there be leaders. I'm saying should we need leaders? I want to challenge your thinking on this and also reveal truth about your Christian identity that you may not realize defines you. Knowing who we are in Christ is knowing the truth about ourselves, and what better way to worship in truth than to know who Yahweh made us to be, what we became at salvation.

Speaker 2: 12:31

If you're caught up on my messages, you know that I believe the spiritual gifts of the first century Christians ended in AD 70. This concept can only be understood under a preterist view of scripture. If there's no definitive end to these things, then they must still exist. Right? I'm not going to dive into this topic heavily today, but Melissa and I talk on it in episode number 35. If you want to go back and look at that.

Speaker 2: 12:56

Here's a quick list of some of the spiritual gifts that were divinely given in the first century century Administration, being an apostle, discernment, evangelism, exhortation, faith giving, healing, helps, hospitality, knowledge, leadership, mercy, prophecy, serving, speaking in tongues, teaching, wisdom and there's more than these. In fact, pastor is a spiritual gift. On top of that, we don't even know what exactly makes a pastor a pastor if we study it out in our Bibles. We have to make assumptions to come up with what we see today in the institutional church. The main point I want to make here is that we can claim all we want that we have a spiritual gift from God, but these gifts we see in our scriptures did not come from any human origin. They were miraculous. It wasn't just mere spiritual guidance, it was all-out divine intervention. Some had this gift, some had that. Some might have had no special gifts given. They were instructed to pray for them if they desired them. Why? Because they were a gift from God.

Speaker 2: 14:13

You didn't go to school to enhance your gift of teaching. You were given it. It was yours immediately. Are you following me? If knowledge was your gift, you didn't study to obtain it. Are you following me? If knowledge was your gift, you didn't study to obtain it. In those times, spiritual gifts were the norm. Today we call it a miracle. Have you ever truly met a scholar who didn't study, or a teacher who wasn't taught? Or a Christian who could see truth in scripture without any prior knowledge? Have you heard someone speak a language that they never learned? That's what many of the first century Christians were doing. They didn't babble a whole bunch of nonsense to each other and claim to understand it. They were given the gift of languages, tongues, and the gift of interpreting those languages for others.

Speaker 2: 15:00

1 Corinthians 12. There has always been confusion in the churches. We see this throughout Paul's letters and in the book of Acts. But has there ever been such poor leadership as we have today. Poor leadership began as soon as the apostles faded away into eternity. Why is that? Because the gift of leadership no longer exists. The gift of teaching is not being given. The spiritual gift of discernment is not present. We now have to follow the guidance of the spirit within us and learn at a human rate of ability. We have to train our minds with the truth. Testing the spirits is now done by searching the scriptures and seeking their intended meaning, and this only humbly, through the spirit. We are fully dependent on the Spirit for these things. So pride and ignorance will always blind us if we're not careful. Is this still miraculous? Indeed it is. Without spiritual guidance we could never see anything at all.

Speaker 2: 16:00

1 Corinthians 2.14 says the natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. So it would not be how smart we are or how hard we try, but rather how spiritual we are and how much we are led by the Spirit of God. Paul continues saying the spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. Paul continues saying If we all have the mind of Christ, why don't we all see the same truth in Scripture? Why are there so many denominations in Christianity today? From my vantage point, it's poor leadership and poor teaching, alongside a blind faith from the audience of those poor leaders and teachers. Be honest with yourself. Do you follow Christian leaders because you like the way they speak or you like the feel of their messages, or do you check the scriptures to be sure what you are hearing is true and gravitate toward those with truly good content?

Speaker 2: 17:10

Christians all argue that what they believe is in the Bible. They throw out Bible verses to prove their belief system. But proof texting is only useful if we know what the author actually meant in the text. Things are not always as they seem. For example, what did Christ Yeshua mean when he said Therefore, be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect? After all the terrifying things he said about sin going deep into their thought life, he leaves his listeners with that. I explain this passage in detail in message number 24. But do people go around quoting that passage, thinking it will scare people into acting better? And doing the best they can, as many in error believe is an acceptable standard to the Lord. There was no door open to doing the best we can when Christ Yeshua laid out the law in its purest form in Matthew 5-7.

Speaker 2: 18:06

It is my belief that we all have the mind of Christ when we receive the Spirit of God, but we are not always using it. I think this is very obvious, whether intentional or not. I also think we are literally getting trained not to use our spiritual abilities by our leaders. As I mentioned in message number 50, today's church environments are so off-base biblically that we don't even know what it looks like to worship as a church or share what we've learned in our own studies anymore. We just follow the leader. We go to institutions that make us comfortable and look for them to tell us what to believe and what to do. It's a lot like watching the news. Does anyone ever question the source of their favorite news network and whether they can trust that person at the top funding the whole operation? It looks good, so we just go with it, don't we?

Speaker 2: 18:55

In the first century Christians would have spent a lot of time in the temple and various synagogues. That's where the scriptures were. So they gathered with the Jews and were even given the chance to share their personal views. Can you imagine the intensity in that environment? This is how the believers reached the spiritually dead. Ordinary people could teach others from the scriptures. They had a chance to speak. There was not one speaker every week doing all the talking. Of course, there was a time when they were kicked out of the temple due to the corruption of Israel, but prior to that, the temple would have been the place to study scripture. They could share and learn from different perspectives. Later, in Romans, we'll find Paul asking the Gentiles who were becoming hostile to the Christ-rejecting Jews to conduct themselves properly in order to keep the peace in the synagogues. They were representing him while he was not there. Paul wanted to reach as many Jews as possible. He loved his Jewish brothers.

Speaker 2: 19:56

I have to take a moment to give a quick spoiler for those who may want to study it out ahead of time. You may remember when I announced that Melissa would be going through Romans together with me, kind of like when I went from writing up study guides to doing blog posts when we started our ministry. Getting started was the main objective, but the Lord is refining our systems as we go and we're just loving it. I hope you guys are learning and growing with us as well. But getting back to my spoiler, melissa recently finished her personal study on Romans and has taken incredible notes along the way, and I get to go over those with her. It's a total team effort and our conversations have blessed us abundantly in Christ, all of which we'll be passing on to you guys over time. I'm far behind her as I'm putting all of our shared learning into messages and recording them, but we both gain insight constantly through this process. We're teaching each other. It's just so enjoyable, I can't say enough about it.

Speaker 2: 20:56

So the other day in our early morning discussions, melissa asks me who do you think Paul is talking about in Romans 13 when he's speaking on submission to governing authorities? I responded it's funny. You would ask that as I've been pondering it in the back of my mind ever since I started this Romans study. I've read through Romans numerous times this year and previous years and those passages just don't sit right with me. I can't see them as government entities such as the Roman government. It just doesn't fit.

Speaker 2: 21:26

I'm beginning to believe that Paul is speaking about the governing entities of Israel in the temple and synagogues, but I can't prove it. I need to study it out more and reconcile certain parts, to which Melissa revealed that she did study it out and that she believes that my answer was correct and it can be proven. She explained it all to me. I asked the hard questions, and within a couple days, we both see it as truth. If you ever wondered why Paul would seem to be telling you to be obedient to a tyrannical government, he isn't. He isn't telling you to be like the rebel Barabbas either. Case in point governments love to use this passage to cause Christians to submit to their evil doings, but Romans 13 is not about them. That couldn't be further from the truth.

Speaker 2: 22:14

Romans 13 was about winning over the elect Jewish believers in the synagogues through proper conduct. That's it. I can't wait to get to that message. I really wanted to share a bit on that. Now, though, due to how evil and corrupt our governing systems are these days, I'm still going to dive deeper, but there's a book that I'm sharing a link to here if you're interested. It's called the Mystery of Romans the Jewish Context of Paul's Letters. If you're listening by podcast, you'll have to go to my blog post to get the link. Otherwise, just look up the title on Amazon the Mystery of Romans, the Jewish Context of Paul's Letters. But getting back to our message Today, each church has its own established hive mind.

Speaker 2: 22:58

If you're of that hive, you have to stay in line with that hive mind. They keep you safe by protecting you from other perspectives. Even if you're one of them, you stand a chance of being silenced if you share something that is not approved by their board members. We are so far removed from the ways church was done in the first century that we have become spiritually deflated and dull. In America we talk all about free speech as they take it from us little by little, but free speech in the institutional church was removed long ago, never to make its way back. If it were not for free speech in the Jewish synagogues, how would the truth have spread the way it did in the first century? It wouldn't have. Yahweh used those establishments to build the church and shortly after the apostles' lives on earth, mankind changed everything completely.

Speaker 2: 23:51

It's my belief that Christianity will remain watered down and dull until we go away from that structure that we've been handed down by man-made tradition. We need to bring spiritual life back into the church in a bad way. What authority do our church leaders have and how did they receive it From a seminary school? What if the seminary schools were wrong? If they have the market cornered on truth, then why are we not of one mind and spirit? Why all the denominations Thousands of denominations out there? The mind of the seminary is clearly divided, so why do we put our full trust in it?

Speaker 2: 24:29

At one time, I thought I had the spiritual gift of discernment, but then I changed my mind about certain areas of scripture. Many today think they have the spiritual gift of teaching, but then we find error in their words. Others claim they have the gift of healing, but the people they heal get sick again. And, of course, the healing only works for those who have faith. That's not how it worked in the scripture. Guys, you can't blame the person you're healing for your lack of abilities. If we have the spiritual gift of knowledge, we would not have to study. Sounds great, doesn't it?

Speaker 2: 25:04

I encountered a person online who claimed to have been given biblical knowledge from the Lord. There was only one little problem Nothing, he said, lined up with scripture. If we have a spiritual gift, it would have to be perfect. The results would have to be perfect. The results would have to be perfect. Yahweh does not produce error. It's plain to see that we don't have these gifts today, and it's plain in scripture why we do not have them today. I talk on this in message number 35. Those gifts were for establishing the church. The church has been established. The perfect is here. We're in the promised land of the new covenant age. Whether you believe it or not. We don't need these miracles any longer. We have our inheritance.

Speaker 2: 25:48

In Paul's letter to the Corinthians, he told his Christian audience that they have the mind of Christ, but he said something before that that we should make note of. The spiritual person judges all things but is himself to be judged by no one. What do you think Paul means by this? I think Paul is referring to our identity as Christians and the fact that we seek spiritual truth from the Lord and not man. This is something that takes a conscious effort, an effort that I observe very few making today. One of the biggest issues would have to be that we just don't realize how good we have it and most don't realize the value of what they have. We can't grasp how great the gift of glory and honor and immortality truly is. If you were to receive a great inheritance, one that would give you everything you could ever need, maybe like that property in a large oil. Well, what might be the biggest problem you'd face upon receiving it? As time went on? What might be your biggest struggle? Getting lazy, taking it for granted, forgetting what it was like to not have it? I think these things are the primary issue we have in Christianity today.

Speaker 2: 27:00

Do you know what one of the primary things that Yahweh wanted for his people in Israel was? We read it over and over as we go through the Old Testament of our Bibles. He wanted them to remember. The word remember appears 166 times in our ESV translation of the Bible. In multiple instances, israel was told to remember their deliverance. In Exodus 13 we read. Then Moses said to the people Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand, the Lord brought you out of this place. Without a conscious recognition of deliverance, it would be forgotten. The strength of faith would fade and get lost through the generations. Did that person on the beach who was anxiously scrolling on their smartphone to learn how to take the best vacation, appreciate the fact that they were already there? No, they couldn't appreciate the vacation they were on because all of their focus was on their smartphone.

Speaker 2: 28:01

We can apply this principle to our total forgiveness and right standing with the Lord. When we have that mainstream paradigm of constantly standing before the Lord in guilt, asking for more forgiveness daily, hourly or however often needed we can easily lose track of our deliverance, not to mention how much of the value is diminished in our daily living. As we ask for something that was given to us as a gift through Christ Yeshua, we cast doubt on our own faith. We can also apply this principle to salvation and redemption, which is our glory and honor and immortality. When we parrot the phrase Christ is coming soon and we're living in the end times, we actually place ourselves in a false period of time. How well will people navigate through their day without any sense of time If Christ already came? How pleased is the Lord with you? When you go around saying that kind of we don't realize how good we have it. If not for grace, christians today would be getting zapped by Yahweh into oblivion by the minute.

Speaker 2: 29:07

Our salvation and redemption in Christ is a parallel with Israel's exodus out of Egypt. Israel's exodus from Egypt was a shadow of the spiritual exodus that came through Christ Yeshua. First, yahweh brought Israel out of the bondage of Egyptian slavery, just as Christ Yeshua first delivered his people from the bondage of the law and sin. Next, over a 40-year period of miracles, signs and wonders, israel entered into the promised land. Just as, over a 40-year period of miracles, signs and wonders, from Pentecost to AD 70, christ Yeshua came in judgment and brought his elect into eternity to be with him in the new heaven that was prepared for them, and he established his spiritual kingdom on earth. But what about those who were still alive at the judgment, you might ask? We can let Paul answer that.

Speaker 2: 30:00

Let's break down 1 Corinthians 15, 50-56. Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold, I tell you a mystery we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. Let's stop here and consider some questions before we finish the passage. 1. What would be considered the perishable and what would be the imperishable? 2. Before we finish the passage, let's see if the rest of the passage answers these questions for us, and then we'll talk about it. Paul continues, for the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperishable and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable and the mortal puts on immortality, when the perishable puts on the imperishable and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written death is swallowed up in victory. Oh death. Where is your victory, oh death? Where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. Paul seems to clearly lay out the answers to our questions here. One the perishable would be our mortality.

Speaker 2: 31:39

Think back on the original sin of Adam and Eve in the garden. The death was spiritual right. Yes, they immediately died spiritually. That was the original sin. We all inherit that at birth. Did Adam and Eve bring physical death into the world? Not exactly. They were not immortal to begin with. We read in Genesis that Yahweh removed them from the garden that contained the tree of life lest they live forever. It wasn't taking away his spirit that caused them to be mortal, it was the access to the tree of life in the presence of Yahweh. Adam was a mortal man living in a spiritual realm with Yahweh and his divine counsel. If he had not lost the spirit of God and remained in Eden, it would seem he had everything he needed. But, as we know, the command came and the rest is history. We'll dig into that later.

Speaker 2: 32:32

In Romans, the mystery that I see here is not the resurrection of the dead. Most of the ancient Jews knew that was the promise of Yahweh. Not all of them agreed, of course, but most looked forward to the resurrection of the dead. It seems to me the mystery here that Paul describes would be the change that would take place in those who were living, and that change would take place in the Jew and the Gentile, those who had faith in Christ Yeshua. As we learn from the Old Testament scripture, sleeping was often referred to as dead. Those who died slept in Sheol awaiting the day of the Lord. The last trumpet was the day of the Lord, the final judgment that we've been studying the last several episodes. The living would be changed because death had been defeated.

Speaker 2: 33:19

Their golden ticket was now redeemed, their identity was now redeemed. They now had possession of what was promised Glory and honor and immortality was now in their possession. To the Ephesians, paul wrote the Spirit of Yahweh is our counselor. This is true now and it was true then. But we have something that the Christians prior to AD 70 did not have. They had the promise of glory and honor and immortality. We have glory and honor and immortality. Can you see the difference? They had the ticket with the promise. The ticket would be valid for redemption on the day of the Lord.

Speaker 2: 34:06

Those who were living at the resurrection were redeemed. They were given eternal life. It was now in their possession. Their golden ticket was redeemed. The glory, honor and immortality of the new covenant age was now consummated.

Speaker 2: 34:22

From that day forward, all who believe receive salvation and redemption immediately. We receive that highly sought after glory and honor and immortality. We receive that highly sought after glory and honor and immortality is a change in the inner being. It's a change in identity. Prior to the day of the Lord, they were mortal beings. They had the promise of eternal life within them, but they would still sleep in the grave. They would sleep and chill waiting for redemption. We who are in Christ in the new covenant age no longer sleep. We've been changed. Our inner being is now eternal and cannot die. We will go right into heaven to be with the Lord. Not only is the spirit of Christ dwelling in us, but our life is now as long as his.

Speaker 2: 35:07

Thanks to the return of Christ and the resurrection of the dead. The cross and resurrection dealt with sin. All who believed were made right with God through the blood of Christ and through his resurrection were gifted with his life-giving spirit. Christ defeated death at his resurrection, but did not bring eternal life to the saints yet. His promise is as good as gold, but it had not yet come to the faithful as of the time of our New Testament writings. As Yeshua said in John 5.27, and he has given him authority to execute judgment because he is the Son of man. Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, and those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done good to the resurrection of life and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. Now, getting back to our Romans passage, we read To those who, by patience and well-doing, seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. That's Romans 2.7.

Speaker 2: 36:10

Let's take a moment to look at some passages that talk about the glory of God, luke 24. Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory? John 17. And now, father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. Acts 7.55. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

Speaker 2: 36:41

Based on these passages, when, would you say, christ Yeshua was glorified? When did he receive back from the Father his glory that he had with him before the world existed? It would have to be at the ascension, wouldn't it? That's when he went back into the heavenly realms. In Acts 1, we read and when he said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes and said Men of Christ Yeshua in AD 70,. How did he appear?

Speaker 2: 37:28

In Luke 21, we read reappear. In Luke 21, we read and then they will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. So again, at Pentecost, when they received the Holy Spirit, they were reconciled to God by the blood of Christ and sealed for the day of redemption. The saints were not yet glorified, but faithfully waited for what they hoped for. They knew they would be glorified, but at the time of our writings they had not received glory and honor and immortality. We can see this in the context of many passages in Paul's letter to the Romans Romans 2.7.

Speaker 2: 38:05

To those who, by patience and well-doing, seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life Romans 3.23. Romans 5.2. Romans 6.4. Rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Romans 6.4. We were buried, therefore, with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life Romans 8.18. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us Romans 8, 21,. That the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God Romans 9, 23,. In order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory.

Speaker 2: 39:14

So there seems to be a change that took place in the inner being of those who had the Holy Spirit and were still living at the parousia the return of Christ. They received his glory that had been hoped for. They were now glorified creatures. Redemption had come. The promised salvation was received. Every believer who comes to Christ now and receives his spirit receives all things. We receive every element of his finished work.

Speaker 2: 39:43

Glory and honor and immortality define us as Christians. We are the glory and honor of our Lord. We represent the glorified Christ Yeshua. We represent the glory of Yahweh. We have the spirit of glory dwelling within us. Glory and honor and immortality have been delivered through the return of Christ Yeshua. We're no longer hoping for salvation. We're no longer hoping for redemption. We're no longer waiting for the return of Christ. We have everything.

Speaker 2: 40:14

And if you're familiar with scripture and the first covenant Yahweh made with Israel, if you're familiar with life before the new covenant age, that reality should wipe every tear from your eye. On the note of wiping every tear from our eyes. I know you're probably thinking so. If the new heaven was prepared in AD 70 and the judgment and resurrection already occurred then, are we living on the new earth right now? It's hard to accept this at first. I do realize that I had the same initial reaction.

Speaker 2: 40:46

It seems like a total ripoff when we read Revelation 21 and 22, with the paradigm that we're all taught today. Revelation 21, 4 reads he will wipe away every tear from their eyes and death shall be no more. Neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more, for the former things have passed. This is the single passage that nearly every human being will, proof-text when you share the preterist view. But let's not forget the power of the work of our Lord that was to come and which we now have.

Speaker 2: 41:19

1 Corinthians 15 reads For the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written Death is swallowed up in victory, o death. Where is your victory, o death? Where is your sting? The sting of death is the cross and resurrection. Upon his return, he brought the life and redemption that was promised to those sealed with his spirit. We now also share victory over death.

Speaker 2: 42:08

For the Christian, death shall be no more and the crying and pain are in the context of the heavy yoke of the law, the bondage of sin and death. In the old covenant age, those who died died knowing their sin had not been dealt with. They died hoping for redemption and life. Those who lived lived seeking mercy and forgiveness. When they made a sacrifice for their sin through the blood of an animal, their sin immediately began counting against them all over again. They had to constantly be dealing with their sin and paying the price for disobedience. According to Yahweh's righteous justice system, even the faithful paid a price for breaking faith with Yahweh. The faithful under the old covenant longed to be saved from their sin. They longed for redemption. They died in their sin. They died waiting for salvation.

Speaker 2: 43:05

And again in Revelation, right after no tears or death, we read to the thirsty, I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. Right after no death and no tears, we have living water being given to those who are thirsty, without payment. What do you think the living water is that will be given to the thirsty? In John 7, we read On the last day of the feast, the great day, jesus stood up and cried out. In John 7, we read whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given because Jesus had not yet been glorified. So it seems that there would be evangelism on the new earth, wouldn't you say? Why would we need to receive this living water if we had no death or tears? We have to seek a different understanding, don't we? And to further drive this point home, we read in the next verses a different understanding, don't we? And to further drive this point home, we read in the next verses the one who conquers will have this heritage and I will be his God and he will be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral sorcerers, idolaters and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death. If we're paying close attention here, we see that sin will still remain on this new earth. Those who reject Christ, the faithless, will still face a fiery judgment. In the end, they will die and go right to judgment.

Speaker 2: 44:47

A few verses later we read For its temple is the Lord, god, the Almighty and the Lamb, and then in 21-27,. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life. This is a beautiful picture of the new covenant age. Only those who understand grace could appreciate this. This is a spiritual glory. This is a beautiful picture of the new covenant age. Only those who understand grace could appreciate this. This is a spiritual glory. This is grace.

Speaker 2: 45:18

Then Revelation 22,. A little further down, then, the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and the Lamb Through the middle of the street of the city. Also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it and his servants will worship him.

Speaker 2: 45:49

We again see this view of Christ being preached and his spirit being given to those who hunger for it. Why would the nations need healing? Well, after the Tower of Babel, the nations no longer had Yahweh as their God. Now, all nations and people who the Lord calls upon can eat from the tree of life once again. If the new earth only had perfect people who were saved, why would there be a need for any of this?

Speaker 2: 46:15

And once again, a few verses later in Revelation we read Blessed are those who wash their robes so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. The Christians are inside the spiritual kingdom of Christ on earth, while the unbeliever is outside the gates. In a bit earlier backtracking it is written and its gates will never shut by day great and awesome day in AD 70, he brought with him glory and honor and immortality. In Luke 21 we read cloud with power and great glory.

Speaker 2: 47:12

Now, when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. You who are in Christ Yeshua are now eternal beings. Death has been defeated for you. The sin and the death that we inherited through Adam has been fully dealt with. In the Christian, we now have direct access to the Lord face to face. He dwells among us and the spiritual tree of life has been re-established among mankind. If that's not good news, I don't know what is. That's what I got for now. Grace and peace to you all, and may the glory of our Lord shine within you. May rivers of living water flow from your heart. See you, guys next time.

Speaker 1: 47:52

Thank you for listening to the Waking Up to Grace podcast brought to you by the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ. If you enjoyed today's episode, we would love to hear from you. You can send encouragement our way right from our episodes and transcripts page or reach Lenny privately from the contact form at wakinguptogracecom.