THE LAW OF FAITH
Part 5
In
the whole Old Testament the word “faith” occurs only twice (Deut. 32:20; Hab.
2:4), and even the verb form, “to believe,” is far from common, appearing less
than thirty times. What we find in the Old Testament is not so much a doctrine
of faith, as examples of it. It sets
forth the life of the servants of God as a life of faith. That which differentiates their lives from
others is the revelation of God unto them in their day and their commitment to
God’s will and purpose, implicitly involving unwavering trust in and obedience
to Him.
The
foundation of Israel’s
faith was the revelation that God had given to the fathers and to Moses, the
covenant that He had made with them at Sinai, and the conviction that the
covenant promises would some day be fulfilled.
Old Testament faith is never
mere assent to a set of doctrines or outward acceptance of the Law, but utter
confidence in the faithfulness of God and a consequent loving obedience to His
will.
In
contrast to the extreme rarity with which the terms “faith” and “believe” are
used in the Old Testament, they occur with great frequency in the New Testament
— almost 500 times! It is in Paul’s epistles that the
meaning of faith is most clearly and fully set forth. Faith is trust in the person of Jesus, the
truth of His teaching, and the redemptive work which He accomplished by His
death and resurrection, and, as a result, a total submission to Him and to the
great purpose of God being fulfilled through Him in union with His body, the
true church. Faith in His person is
faith in Him as the Son of God, the God-man, the second man from heaven, the
last Adam, who
died for us and rose again, effecting our justification, making possible our
quickening — our new birth into the God-family, and ultimately co-equal status
with God’s glorious firstborn Son, in all the magnificence, inheritance, and
dominion that belongs to Him.
ELEMENTARY THINGS
“Therefore
leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection;
not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith
toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and
of resurrection of the dead, and of judgment age-during” (Heb. 6:1-2, King
James Version & Young’s Literal Translation).
The
King James Version here instructs us to leave the “principles” of the
doctrine of Christ in order to press forward unto perfection — that is, maturity. The Moffat translation says, “Let us pass on
then to what is mature, leaving the elementary Christian doctrine
behind.” The Weymouth version reads, “Therefore leaving elementary
instruction about the Christ, let us advance to mature manhood.” The Amplified Bible renders, “Therefore let
us go on and get past the elementary stage in the teachings and doctrine of
Christ…advancing steadily toward the completeness and perfection that belongs
to spiritual maturity.” Can we not see
by this that what we are admonished to leave behind is the FIRST ELEMENTARY
PRINCIPLES of the doctrine of Christ and these are enumerated for us: (1)
Repentance from dead works (2) Faith toward God (3) Baptisms (4) Laying on of
hands (5) Resurrection of the dead (6) Age-lasting judgment.
Let
us take special heed to the writer’s words, noting that he does not tell us to
destroy these first and elementary principles, or throw them away. Just leave them and GO ON! Everything God has given us and all that God
has brought us through in our walk with Him in the kingdom of God
has been necessary stepping stones to get us started toward the ultimate goal
of perfection and fullness in the Christ.
Yet the vast majority of Christians never get beyond these first stepping stones
— these elementary rudiments of the teaching of Christ. It is of singular interest to note that the
Holy Spirit of inspiration firmly declares that ALL of these elementary principles pertain
to the realm of children — babes in Christ.
The writer makes this clear when he further says, “For everyone who continues to
feed on milk is obviously inexperienced and unskilled in the teaching of
righteousness, that is, of conformity to the divine will in purpose, thought,
and action, for he is a mere infant — not able to talk yet! But solid food is for full-grown men,
for those whose senses are trained…” (Heb. 5:13-14, Amplified Bible). Two significant things stand out in these
passages — all six of the “first principles” of the doctrine of Christ are baby
food, and not one of them is
strong meat for the mature sons of God!
It
is extremely easy to spot a spiritual babe, an immature child of God, be he the
believer in the pew or the preacher in the pulpit, for he will always be
dwelling around one or more of these ELEMENTARY PRINCIPLES…laying and relaying
that foundation. Now there is nothing
wrong with laying these foundations for those that need them, but the immature
babes in Christ will always be known by the fact that they continue to minister
these things over and over and over again to God’s precious people who should
be going on to higher things. Think
about it — how many church congregations are you acquainted with that preach
the simple gospel of salvation and give an altar call every Sunday morning — week
after week after week! And those
Christians sit there in those services
Sunday after Sunday drinking that same diet of
spiritual milk. Those same
preachers, day after day, and year after year, continue to use milk and minister
milk to the people of God. No wonder
that they NEVER
GO ON TO PERFECTION! Those who remain on this elementary level are
often referred to as “Fundamentalists” or “Evangelicals.” And
the writer to the Hebrews pointedly identifies these as BABES THAT CAN’T EVEN
TALK YET!
Any
“Fundamentalist” will be busily defending these elementary principles of the
doctrine of Christ, and will readily brand you a heretic should you speak any
truth beyond those foundation stones.
That’s all they know! Start
talking about perfection, sonship, the manifestation of the sons of God, the
order of Melchizedek, bodily redemption, the restoration of creation, bringing
in the kingdom, or any of a hundred other things related to God’s great
redemptive and restorative purposes and they have not the foggiest notion of
what you’re talking about! I have no
hesitation in saying these fall into the category of those to whom the apostle
wrote in our
chapter under consideration when he said, “Being designated and recognized and
saluted by God as High Priest after the Order of Melchizedek. Concerning this (the Melchizedek Order of
Priesthood) we have much to say which is hard to explain, since you have become
dull in your spiritual hearing and sluggish, even slothful in achieving
spiritual insight…you have come to need milk, not solid food” (Heb. 5:10-12,
Amplified Bible).
These
babes, as little children do, will always be absorbed in great disputes over
the fine points of doctrines, ordinances, sacraments, rituals, baptismal modes
and formulas, outward appearances, eats and drinks, church government,
etc. But don’t think for one moment, my beloved, that this realm of
immaturity and childishness is limited to those moving on the salvation
level. For another of these elementary
principles is described as, “the laying on of hands.” This identifies many Christians who are Spirit-filled,
having spiritual gifts, and moving in the ministries of prophecy, healing, and deliverance. Who can deny that this includes such groups
as Holiness, Pentecostal, Charismatic, and
Latter Rain or Move of God. These
movements have definitely carried a people forward in God — beyond the mere
salvation level to greater dimensions in the spirit through the “baptism in the
Holy Spirit” and the gifts of the Spirit. Impartation of blessing through the
laying on of hands becomes prominent in these ministries. Hands are laid on for healing, deliverance,
in casting out devils, with prophetic utterance for confirmation and direction
from the Lord. But there is one fact
that generally does not change with these groups — they continue to zealously
lay again and again the foundation of the ELEMENTARY PRINCIPLES of the doctrine
of Christ! It can be clearly seen that even these gifts and ministries have to
do both with the doctrine of “baptisms” and “the laying on of hands” — two of the ELEMENTARY PRINCIPLES OF THE
DOCTRINE OF CHRIST! The message is just
this: Wherever you are in your walk in God my beloved brethren, DON’T STOP
THERE! Don’t magnify any of these
elementary principles as though these were the great end that God is
after! Men will establish what they
perceive to be a strong position in relation to these first principles, and
fight to the death to defend it, then when the Spirit commences to reveal
deeper truth and move in yet a new and more profound measure among a people
they immediately cry “false doctrine!” and “false prophets!” as though they
were the fountainhead of all truth and experts in the deep things of God. It should be plain to every quickened heart
that even the spiritual ministries of which we have spoken above are part and
parcel of the ELEMENTARY PRINCIPLES of the doctrine of Christ. None of them pertain to the deep things of
God or to spiritual maturity. Not one!
I tell you sadly and with weeping heart that some of the most carnal,
immature, and unstable ministries I have encountered throughout my many years
of walking in the Spirit of the Lord were men and women possessing phenomenal
giftings of power. In spite of their lofty prophecies and spectacular signs and
wonders they were, in their state of being, mere babes in Christ fervently
laying the foundation stones of elementary things. Thus many miss out on the great and
glorious truths and operations of the Holy Spirit reserved for those who “leave
these things” and “go on to perfection.”
Oh!
that once and for all we might clearly see that nearly everything we have
experienced up to now has been in the realm of elementaries! And it is from HERE that we are exhorted to
GO ON TO PERFECTION. You don’t go deeper
into the elementary rudiments in order to go on to perfection — spiritual
maturity as a son of God. Oh, no! We must leave the first principles in order
to find an entrance into all the glorious fullness of the Son of God! If you chose to remain in the first
principles you simply will never
arrive at spiritual maturity in God.
Mature sonship lies beyond it all.
The first principles are merely the “elementary school” for those who
would be sons indeed. They constitute the “in part” realm in which
we move before that which is perfect is come!
LET US GO ON TO PERFECTION is the present call of the Spirit.
ELEMENTARY FAITH
In
Hebrews 6:1-2 the Holy Spirit lists FAITH among the elementary principles of
the doctrine of Christ. Let us note that
it is not simply faith of which the Spirit speaks, but a particular dimension
of faith which is spoken of as FAITH TOWARD GOD. This distinction is important, as we shall
see clearly later on. The word “toward”
is translated from the Greek word epi which means “upon,” “to,” or
“toward.” The Greek Interlinear New
Testament which I have at hand renders this as “faith upon God.” The thought is of a faith which turns one in
a specific direction and thrusts him upon GOD. This faith is directed totally toward
God and bears along the one identified with it so that he in turn is
directed toward and cast upon God. The
Amplified Bible comes very close to rendering the correct thought from the
Greek: “Let us not again be laying the foundation of…the faith BY WHICH YOU
TURNED to God.” Thus, “faith toward
God” is that elementary ministration of faith to us by the Holy Spirit
which turns us around from our stumbling in darkness, blindness,
ignorance, sin, and death, and brings us to life and relationship with
God. Elementary faith is the faith that
first of all saves us — and which also lays hold upon the many elementary
blessings and benefits included in our childhood walk with God — healing,
deliverance, material provision, gifts of the Spirit, answers to prayer,
redemptive foundational truths, etc.
We
must not, however, dwell here in this realm of elementary faith, only exercising
faith for our physical and temporal needs and things associated with our
spiritual babyhood walk in God. We are
exhorted to leave this realm of faith and go on to perfection, that is, to a
perfect, full, and mature faith. We must
go on to a greater faith which will lay hold upon better and higher things…the
ultimate purposes
of God…a faith that will bring the body of Christ unto “a perfect man, unto the
measure of the stature of the FULLNESS OF CHRIST.”
The
perfection of faith in the body of Christ in this new kingdom day shall lead it
into an ULTIMATE FAITH which shall enable it to grow up into full stature of
Christ, thereby coming unto full and mature sonship to the Father. This faith will also bring the sons of God
into their inheritance, a full and complete redemption in spirit, soul, and body. The divine law of faith dictates that the sons of God cannot possess the measure and
quality of faith that will bring them to manifest sonship until God has first
worked into them that elementary faith for the everyday, practical things of
our lives — supplying our needs, healing our bodies, solving our problems,
overcoming life’s challenges, and tapping into the spiritual world of reality by
the mighty operation of the Holy Spirit within.
How can one bind the strongman and conquer death if he can’t even
overcome the influences of the world and the devil that pressure him in his
daily walk? It is in the realm of
elementary faith first of all that God must work, develop, and strengthen faith
in our lives. But this is not by any
means the ultimate reality or accomplishment of faith!
The
Spirit daily deals with us in these elementary areas of our experience to bring
us progressively into a relationship with Himself in faith where we can believe
God — proving that whatever God has spoken to us shall surely come to
pass unto us. And let all who read these
lines be assured that this hour demands a special dispensation and degree of
faith to believe and know with certainty that the things the Spirit is speaking and setting before His
called, chosen, and separated elect for this generation shall surely come to
pass! It is one thing to talk about
sonship and the kingdom
of God
and quite another thing to have that truth and revelation firmly inworked and
established in our hearts, seasoned with a faith that will actually appropriate
the reality, power, and glory of what God has promised.
This
is why the Spirit is sounding the trumpet across the land, thundering the
kingdom message from one end of the earth to the other! There are those who hear the trumpet sounding
for the next great moving of God in the earth, and they pull up their tent
stakes, fasten their eyes upon the
forward moving cloud of His presence and glory, and faith is being
evoked in them to literally walk out every dealing of God in
their lives until they fully and completely qualify through the processings of
God to receive a kingdom and glory that far transcends any glory yet revealed
unto men.
THE POWER AND GOAL
OF FAITH
“And
Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: and Enoch
walked with God…and all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and
five years: and Enoch walked with God: and he was not (found); for
God took him” (Gen. 5:21-24).
“By
faith
Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found,
because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this
testimony, that he pleased God...without faith it is impossible to please
Him” (Heb. 11:5-6).
“And
Enoch also, the seventh from Adam,
prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands
of His saints (Greek literal: comes the
Lord in holy myriads of Himself)” (Jude 14).
It
is becoming increasingly clear to all who today walk in the Spirit of God and
have an ear to hear what the Spirit is saying that every indication and sign is
pointing to the imminence of the long awaited hour of the great unveiling of
the sons of God. It should certainly not
be difficult for us to see that, if a company of saints is to be transformed
into the image and likeness of Christ and made partakers of the power of His
resurrection, and reign with Him in an age when Christ rules in the hearts of all
men and in the affairs of every nation and people, then they most certainly
must be possessed of a faith greater far than the elementary faith by which we
first believed. One of the greatest
means of grace given to the Lord’s people at any stage of our growth and
development in Him is the power of faith. While I suppose immense volumes could
be written about faith, I am inclined to believe that vast volumes are unnecessary
for the spiritually enlightened to grasp the eternal significance of the faith so
vital to our apprehending that glorious calling and ministry that looms just
before us. Our spiritual life is a very powerful thing. It grows and increases by continual contact
with God. That explains how it is that in
the verses quoted above we find that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, walked with God and by
faith was translated that he should not see death. Surely we can see that his translation faith
was evoked in him as he walked with God!
The
life of Enoch is a wonderful parable pointing to all those blessed ones who are
called to sonship to God. Enoch serves
as a type of the Christ, Head and body.
The inspired record states that he was “the seventh from Adam.” The word “from” denotes action and movement
from one place or position to another.
It means away from. Adam is the man of
disobedience and unbelief, the man of sin and death. Enoch was the seventh away from Adam, away from the Adamic
nature, the flesh man, the carnal mind, the earthly, human identity, the
natural constitution, the soulical disposition, and the curse of sin and death,
and all that pertains to the world of
Adam in his lost state. Away from! What a revelation those two words bring to
our spiritual mind! Seven is the number
of divine perfection; to be the seventh away from Adam is to stand in all the beautiful
perfection of man as God created him to
be and intends for him to be. To be the seventh from Adam
is to be as far away from the Adamic
life as it is possible to be and stand in a perfect identity, a divine state of
being, a heavenly realm of life and glory.
Seeing then, that these things are so, who can doubt that this great
truth is clearly what Paul had in mind when he
wrote of the transition from Adam to Christ in
these expressive words: “The first man Adam was
made a living soul; the last Adam
was made a quickening spirit. Howbeit
that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward
that which is spiritual. The first man
is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. And as is the earthy, such are they also that
are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the earthy,
we shall also bear the image of the heavenly” (I Cor. 15:45-49).
Time
and space do not permit us to give an exegesis of the meanings of the other
five men who lived between Adam
and Enoch, but suffice it to say that each of them are fitting types of our
progression from Adam to Christ. The
name Enoch means “initiated.” It points
to an initiation, an introduction or admittance into a fraternity, society,
organization, or order by sharing secret knowledge. It involves a secret ritual or ceremony by
which one is inducted
into the mysteries of the order. The New
Testament term mystery carries the same connotation and Jesus taught much
concerning the “mysteries” of the kingdom of heaven. The Greek word is musterion meaning “a secret
known only to the initiated.”
Jesus stated plainly that it was not given to the multitudes who
followed Him for the loaves and fishes (blessings) to know these mysteries of
the kingdom, but to His select disciples, His most intimate footstep followers,
it was given. Of the revelation given to
Him by Jesus Christ Paul
declared, “Now to Him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel,
and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which
was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest” (Rom. 16:25-26). On another occasion he wrote to the saints in
Corinth, “We
speak a wisdom among them that are perfect
(full-grown, spiritually mature): yet not the wisdom
of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: but we
speak the wisdom of God in a mystery
(a sacred secret), even a hidden wisdom,
which God ordained before the world unto our glory: which none of the princes
of this world knew (including all the vaunted religious leaders of Israel): for
had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory” (I Cor.
2:6-8). Passage could be piled upon
passage where Paul
speaks of this hidden mystery, the mystery of Christ, and the elect’s
fellowship in the mystery. Those who are
inducted into this order of the Son of God are
the “initiated” typified by Enoch, the seventh from Adam.
Great is the mystery!
There
are secrets known to the called and separated elect of the Lord which are of
necessity hidden from all worldly people and all carnal Christians. Those who are apprehended unto sonship to God
for this new kingdom day manifest an abounding and ever increasing love for the
Father, for it is the Father’s heart, wisdom, power, and purpose
that is made known unto them. These are
as the apostle said, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon
us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not” (I Jn.
3:1). This unique relationship with the
Father is disclosed by their fervently laying hold on all things that concern
His wise
purpose of the ages. The love of the
sons for the Father is not in word only, but in deed and in truth. Reverently
they submit to all the Father’s dealings, His chastenings and corrections, His
counsel and His commandments. These people display a quiet abandonment and a
gracious and happy submission to all the Father’s ways and will. These elect saints are more than mere
believers sitting on a church pew and participating in the programs and methods
of their church system. In fact, these
holy sons of God have no affinity at all with the carnal church systems of man
and care not one whit for their static creeds, distorted doctrines, lifeless
rituals, empty ordinances, and carnal-minded, flesh-appeal programs. To be led by the Spirit of God is now their
meat and drink. Content they are in
heart to sit at the Father’s feet and to know Him and be known of Him. They are a people chosen by the infinite wisdom and foreknowledge
of God before the ages were framed.
Their body, soul, and spirit have become sanctified by the cleansing of
the blood of Jesus and the sanctifying power of the Holy Ghost. Their lives are being transformed by the indwelling power of
Christ’s resurrection and they are progressively being changed from glory to
glory into His likeness and image. His love toward all men everywhere of all
generations is being perfected in them in preparation for their
approaching ministry of restoring the
whole of creation back into fellowship and union with God again. The elect of God are to be found everywhere,
though in any age they are few in number.
They are not the darlings of popular religion, but they are called and
chosen of God and will be found dwelling in the secret place of the Most High,
and under the shadow of the Almighty.
Enoch was the seventh away from Adam, a complete departure
from all carnality, sin, limitation, and death. We have read in Hebrews chapter
11 that it was by faith that Enoch was translated that he should not see
death. The Greek word here rendered “translated”
is metatithemi
which means “to transfer, transport, exchange, change sides.” Surely you will have noticed that the Greek word does not
convey the idea of an “upward” motion as does our English word “translate.” It means merely to “transfer” from one place,
realm, or condition to another. When we
“translate” language, for instance, from
English into Spanish, we do not take anything up, we just “transfer”
the thought from one idiom to another.
Anyone who has used a transfer pattern knows that the image from the
pattern does not go up, it is imprinted (transferred) from the pattern to
another object. Money may be transferred
from one account to another, it is moved but it doesn’t ascend up to
heaven! Now, a transferral may be
upward, but the Greek word does not mean that exclusively nor primarily. Enoch
was translated, Enoch was transferred, Enoch walked with God and one day as he
and God were walking along together in blessed fellowship Enoch suddenly
stepped right out of one dimension, out of one realm, out of one condition and
state of being, into another world of reality, power, glory, and dominion. Whether
it was a physical movement upward through the vastnesses of infinity I know
not, but I do know that for Enoch his reality was transformed from the earthly
to the heavenly, from the natural to the spiritual, from limitation and death
into the eternal and fadeless kingdom
of God. Oh, the wonder of it!
Now let us notice how Enoch achieved
this remarkable transferral. It was not
by power — there is no record of Enoch performing any prowess in signs,
wonders, miracles, or exploits of mighty works.
It was not by gifts, not by works, not even by righteousness, not by
anything but faith. “By faith Enoch
was translated that he should not see death.”
BY FAITH! It was a faith obtained
by walking
with God. “And Enoch walked with
God: and he was not; for God took Him.”
It is impossible to disconnect the walking with God from the faith by
which Enoch was translated, transferred into the incorruptible and immortal
realm of divine life. Let everyone who
has ears to hear stop and take earnest heed, because the Spirit today testifies
everywhere among the elect of God that faith is obtained by walking with
God. It is not something we can conjure
up by any self effort or even an intense desire to lay hold upon it. Faith comes by what God reveals Himself to be
unto us and such revelation of God and His will and ways comes only and always
by walking in intimacy of fellowship and vital union with the Lord of
glory. When we walk with God long enough
and far enough in the light of His presence and glory we too will eventually cross
over into transformation into His image and likeness to be as He is.
There’s another interesting thing
about Enoch. This is found all the way
back in the opening chapters of the book of Genesis where we find the long list
of genealogies from the days of Adam
forward. “And Enoch lived sixty and five
years, and begat Methuselah: and Enoch walked with God after he begat
Methuselah three hundred years…and all the days of Enoch were three hundred
sixty and five years: and Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took
him” (Gen. 5:21-23). Now isn’t that
profound — and that is all the record says about Enoch! All the days of Enoch were three hundred
sixty five and he walked with God. In
biblical numerology a “day” stands for a “year” and a year can also represent a
day. I won’t belabor the point by citing
examples of how that is revealed in the prophecies of the scriptures, but
suffice it to say it is confirmed again and again in the sacred record. Here we find that Enoch lived in that
prophetic time scheme; he lived for 365 years which may be viewed as 365 days for
there are 365 days in each year. This
fact in itself is one of the marvelous internal evidences of the inspiration of
the scriptures, for in Bible times a year was reckoned as being composed of 360
days, not 365. The Holy Spirit of
inspiration has here provided for us an amazing example of His infinite
knowledge and wisdom. Even when men believed differently God knew
and recorded the true number of days in a year.
Isn’t it wonderful! The 365
years, or 365 prophetic days of Enoch’s walking with God bespeaks the cycle of
God’s dealings in his life. It means
that when he came to the end of that time, the end of a day of years, when he
had fulfilled all that was required of him in each and every dealing and
purpose of God in his life, when the full cycle was complete and he reached the
end of that "day” of the Lord in his walking with God, Enoch had
accomplished all that God had ordained for him.
In the epistle to the Hebrews we have this simple and instructive
statement: “By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was
not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he
had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to
please Him” (Heb. 11:5-6). Again, my
beloved brethren, there is no record of mighty works or great external
accomplishment, merely the faithful testimony that Enoch knew God and was known
of Him and he PLEASED GOD. If we listen
carefully to the gentle whisper of
inspiration we will see at once wherein it was that Enoch pleased God. “By faith Enoch was translated…for
before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to
please Him.” Surely we can see by these words that it was
Enoch’s faith that was pleasing to God, so pleasing, that he walked right into
the heavens of God’s Spirit. For all of
those 365 years Enoch walked in the Spirit of the Lord, fellowshipped with God,
experiencing within himself every appointed purpose of the Lord, growing mighty
in obedience and blessing, becoming strong in confidence, expectation, and
faith until by that faith he crossed over in
spirit, soul, and body. He walked
with God in every dealing of God and came to the place where he believed
God in all that God required of him.
To every challenge the Lord raised up in his path Enoch said,
“Amen.” He staggered not in unbelief
and pleased God by his unswerving faith.
Let us, then, cast aside all
hindering weights that our fleshly heart of unbelief and religion’s carnal
traditions have heaped upon us and, delivering our feet from the shackles that
tie us to all earthly limitation, let us lift up our countenance unto the
distant peaks sublime and to every word God speaks to us in this important hour
let us breathe a hearty “Amen,” running with patience the race that is set
before us, looking only to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith. We will understand a great mystery when we see that we have entered into a
covenant with God. It is not only a
covenant with God, it is God’s covenant. In the Old Testament God says again
and again, “I will make my covenant.” It
is God’s covenant and all we are asked to do is ratify the covenant by saying
“Amen.” When Yahweh met Israel upon the
blazing pinnacles of mount Sinai
He revealed His covenant to the people through Moses. Yahweh didn’t ask them whether they wanted a
covenant, the initiative was solely His and Moses delivered it to the people on
behalf of Yahweh. The people responded
saying, “All that Yahweh has spoken, we will do.” Do you see it? Israel simply said “Amen” to the
covenant! Amen — so be it. To all that God has spoken we say “Amen” — we
will do it, so be it! Of course Israel failed to fulfill their
promise because they were weak in their flesh and corrupt in their hearts and
had not the power within themselves to keep the commandments and precepts that
Yahwey delivered to them. Yahweh was
faithful, but Israel
played the harlot and forsook the covenant of their God.
It is a most remarkable thing that
God says in Hebrews 8:10-13, “For this is the covenant that I will make with
the house of Israel
after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind,
and write
them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to
me a people: and they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his
brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me from the least to the
greatest.” Today, as at Sinai, God does
not ask us, precious friend of mine, whether or not we want a covenant. He announces His covenant with this
irresistible declaration, “This is the covenant that I WILL MAKE.” Yet, we must say “Amen” to the covenant. “And they shall BE to me a people.” Those words denote an action on our
part. The requirement that is laid upon
us today is the same requirement laid upon Enoch, the seventh from Adam. The requirement is to walk with God and
please God. It is faith that pleases
God! In this new kingdom day the elect
sons of God are called upon to say “Yes” to all that the Father brings into our
lives to accomplish His work in us. His
work is to put His laws in our minds and write His covenant in our hearts, and
our part is to walk forward in faith, saying, “Amen!” God says, “I will BE to you a God,” and we
gladly respond in faith, “We will BE to you a people!” Yes, Lord!
As we submit, as we obey, as we stagger not in unbelief, becoming strong
in faith by walking with God from victory to victory we bear this
testimony that God is pleased. Aren’t you glad!
As we come to the end of our cycle
of Father’s dealings we, too, will step into a new world, a new dimension of
life and glory, into a new and higher and greater reality and power of the kingdom of God
that we’ve never experienced before. As we stand upon our two feet we will cross
over into a new administration of life, incorruptibility, glory, majesty,
dominion, power, grace, love, mercy, compassion, goodness and blessing. As we walk with God and are strengthened in
faith we step into our inheritance in God.
Hallelujah,
it’s all BY FAITH! It’s not by power,
it’s not by works, it’s not by gifts, it’s not even by prayer, but it’s
altogether by faith. That is the
mystery.
We are coming ever nearer to the day
when the kingdom
of God
shall triumph in the world, bringing its blessings, benefits, righteousness,
and power to all mankind and every nation.
All about us there is the knowledge that old things are rapidly passing
away and the only hope for the world is the new day of blessedness so long
desired and prayed for by the people of God.
The whole creation for six thousand years has ceaselessly groaned for the
manifestation of the sons of God. This
blessed manifestation will at last set creation free from the bondage of
corruption and usher all men everywhere into the glorious liberty of the sons
of God. It has been long in coming, but
the spirit of prophecy in the body of Christ through the past several decades testifies
beyond any doubt that it will soon arrive.
Once, in the world’s darkest hour, in the fullness of time God sent forth
His firstborn Son, Jesus Christ, to suffer and die for the world, and when the
fullness of time comes once more, nothing will hinder or prevent the
manifestation of all the members of the Christ body, the sons of God. Just as
surely as Enoch walked with God and stepped over into the realm of
incorruption, glory, and power, so in this significant hour the sons of God who
are walking in the Spirit of the Lord shall suddenly cross over into their full
inheritance as manifest sons of God. In
the day of the manifestation of the sons
of God heaven and earth will rejoice and every creature will be
glad. The Lord will not hide His power
forever nor leave His high and holy purpose for mankind and the nations of
earth unfulfilled. Enoch is the pattern
and the pattern proclaims that this wonderful manifestation in and through the
saints will be accomplished BY FAITH — PLUS NOTHING!
Beautiful gems of truth are to be
found in one of the Bible’s smallest books, the general epistle of Jude, the
brother of James. Following his
salutation Jude exhorts the saints with these poignant words: “Beloved, when I
gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful
for me to write unto you, and exhort you
that ye should earnestly contend for the faith that was once delivered unto the
saints” (Jude 3). There is a beautiful
subject introduced in these words and that subject is described as the “common
salvation.” Now by common salvation the
apostle doesn’t mean that it’s ordinary, or base, or something without much
value. That’s not the intent at all, for
no salvation from the great God of glory could be lacking in status, value, or
distinction. Jude simply means that our
salvation is something that we’re all participating in, it’s common to us. It involves all of us as the people of God
and should any of us walk out today into the streets of our town or city and speak with anyone, the homeless
guy with his shopping cart, the drunk on the sidewalk, the prostitute at the
curb, or the banker, the shop owner, the college professor, or any man or woman
of any status of life, we can mention to any or all of them this common
salvation because all humanity — every man, woman, boy, and girl on the planet
is included in this great salvation of God.
Jesus Christ is truly the Saviour
of all
men, and He is also the Saviour of the world. Yes, He is!
He is not just a Saviour “for” the world, as the preachers so foolishly
suggest, but He is indeed
the Saviour OF the world — thus the world will be saved by Him. And this, my beloved, is the common salvation. It is indeed
wonderful!
The special blessedness that unites
the hearts of all who read these lines is that we have been chosen by the grace
of God to be the firstfruits of His redemption, the first of all mankind to
experience the blessings and benefits of this common salvation. As that
firstfruits God must accomplish within us the totality of this great
salvation. For us, the deep and glorious
things of God and a full salvation in spirit, soul, and body are common truths,
for we have been apprehended by God for a complete and total redemption, the
sample and prototype of what this common salvation will ultimately be for every
man. Divine, incorruptible life and
power and glory are the finished product of this common salvation. I will not have anything on you, my beloved,
you will not have anything on me, for
God shall present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. We are all destined for a full and free and
total and complete redemption, transformed from the earthly into the heavenly,
as Enoch, the seventh away from Adam,
initiated into the likeness and image of God’s firstborn Son.
Now then, Jude says that he was
giving all diligence to write to the saints concerning this common
salvation. But in connection with that
beautiful truth he adds that it was needful for him also to exhort them that
they should earnestly contend for THE FAITH that was once delivered unto the saints. What do you think he means by “the
faith”? And what do you suppose he means
when he says that the faith was “once delivered”
to the saints? It is more than a
coincidence that the apostle calls our faith “the faith,” for it indisputably signifies
that in all the world there is only ONE FAITH.
That faith is not a religion, it is not a denomination, it is not a movement, nor is it a creed.
Unthinking and unenlightened people are always asking, “What faith are
you?” I understand what they mean, they
are asking what you believe, what religious system or movement you adhere to. That’s what they want to know. They are looking for insight into your ideas
about God and the Bible. These folk are
sincere in their query, but I have no hesitation whatever in telling you that
none of those things they are so concerned about have anything at all to do
with THE FAITH. The faith is not a
system, nor a doctrine, nor is it religious performances of any kind. Faith is none of those! Faith is not static, nor is it something
organized or structured. Faith is a living
reality and power. The apostle Paul revealed precisely what the faith is when he wrote, “I
am crucified with Christ: nevertheless
I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life
which I now live in the flesh I live by THE FAITH of the Son of God, who loved
me, and gave Himself for me” (Gal. 2:20).
Can we not see by this that THE FAITH is nothing more nor less than the
living, energizing, quickening, sustaining faith of the Son of God. It is God’s very own faith, the same
faith by which the worlds were framed, the faith of God Himself, the faith
which God is — raised up in us by the power of the Holy Spirit. Oh, the wonder of it! This is the secret that has been hidden from
the minds of all carnal Christians down through the ages. Jesus commanded His disciples, “Have THE
FAITH of God.” Oh, yes, I know the King
James Bible says, “Have faith in God,”
but that is not how the Greek text
reads. The words of Jesus were, “Have
THE FAITH of God.”
Paul tells us that there is “one faith.” He states that this “one faith” is “the faith”
of the Son of God. That living faith has
been given to us in the power of our regeneration. The testimony of the spirit of truth is that
this is the only faith there is! It is
the one true faith. See now how Jude
informs us of a further truth regarding
this faith, the great truth that “the faith” was “once delivered to the saints.” You will notice in these words that the faith
has not been delivered
to the saints five times, nor ten times, nor one hundred times, nor a million
times. The faith is not dispensed on the
installment plan, nor does it come down from heaven each time a person hears
the word of salvation and, trusting in Jesus, is quickened and made alive in
Christ. That is how many people conceive
of it.
But no, Jude says that this faith was given once to the
saints. The question follows — if it was
given once, when was it given? How was
it given? The beautiful truth is that
there are a number of things in the progressive unfolding of God’s purpose
through the ages that we find God did only once.
It is interesting to read in the
book of Hebrews, chapters seven through ten, and find where it is stated that
Christ once suffered, Christ was once offered up, being made a
sacrifice on our behalf once and for all, and then with His
blood He entered once into the holy place in the heavens of God’s Spirit
to appear there for us — on our behalf.
There are several other examples in other places, but these will suffice
for the present. We are prone to lightly
pass over many profound statements of holy scripture, but the statements just
referred to cause us to wonder why God would do something only once if it is so
good. Yet — that is just the point! You see, my beloved brothers and sisters,
anything that needs to be done over and over again is neither complete,
all-sufficient, nor very powerful. Let
the heart of every earnest believer be assured that there is great significance
and divine purpose in the fact that many glorious things God has provided for
us have been done only once! Thank God
that Jesus was offered up once, that He hung on the cross only once, that He
shed His blood only once, He died once,
He rose once, He ascended once, and appeared in the holy place for us
once. Again we ask, Why only once? How my soul exults in the answer to the
question! It is my deep conviction in
the spirit of the Lord that God did all these things, and many more, only once
simply because He had to do them only once.
Can we not see that it was unnecessary to repeat them again
because out of the divine and omnipotent accomplishment of that once there is
an eternal outflow of the efficacy, the life, the victory, the love and mercy,
the wisdom
and goodness, and its redemptive power.
That is the mystery!
You need do a thing only once if
from that one act there is an abounding and eternal outflow of its accomplishment. Let me give you an illustration. A man drills an artesian well. He strikes water, the water gushes up out of
the earth and for years, decades, and centuries it continues to flow and flow
and flow. I remember when I was a boy in
south Alabama
there was an artesian well right near the center of the town where I was
raised. They had piped that water and
made it as a water fountain in a spot by the sidewalk and many times when we
went to town I loved to go there and drink from that fountain. There was never any need of a spigot because the water
was always flowing day and night. That
was the marvel in my little childish mind, that every time we arrived there the
fountain was flowing. No one could turn
it off, for there was an abundant, unending supply. Many years later, after I was grown and
married and had children of my own, we visited my former home town and one of
our stops was at the fountain. Wonder of
wonders, it was still flowing! I drank
again, as did my children also.
May the Spirit of the Lord give each
one who reads these words the spirit of thoughtfulness and revelation to grasp
the beautiful truth that some man drilled that well, he drilled it once,
because out of that once there came a perpetual flow and an abundant
and never ending supply. So in order
to do something once and never
need to do it again, you must have two things: an inexhaustible and infinite
supply, an unlimited and eternal outflowing.
Ah, that is exactly what we have in Jesus! He was once offered, one time, and here we
are two thousand years later and we have stepped into that divine stream that
flows from Immanuel’s veins. Oh, bless
the Lord O my soul, and all that is within me bless His holy name! It is as the prophet has written, “And it
shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop with new wine,
and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah (praise) shall
flow with water, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of
the Lord, and shall water the valley…” (Joel 3:18). “In that day there shall be a fountain
opened to the house of David…for sin and uncleanness” (Zech.
13:1). “Jesus answered her…Whoever takes
a drink of the water that I shall give him shall never,
no never, be
thirsty any more. But the water that I
will give him shall become a spring
of water welling up, flowing, bubbling continually within him unto eternal
life” (Jn. 4:14, Amplified). “To
the thirsty I Myself will give water without price from the springs of the water
of life” (Rev. 21:6, Amplified).
Beloved of the Lord, we have stepped
into that flow today and its life has overwhelmed us and we have drunk of that
life and been quickened by that life, we have been transformed by that
life-flow, and we have heard the voice of the Almighty out of that stream and
we are being changed in spirit and soul and body by His power. All this is out of something that He did two
thousand years ago. Oh, yes! There are things yet to come to pass that will need to be done only once. The sons of God will be revealed for the deliverance
of creation and they will be manifest once, just as the firstborn Son of God
has appeared once at a consummation of the ages to put away sin by the
sacrifice of Himself. There will be a
stream from that once that will encompass all the ages and every spirit that
has ever existed and every person that
has ever lived and all creation shall be set free from the bondage of corruption and given an entrance into the
liberty and glory of the children of God (Rom. 8:19-23). The stream from the sons of God is the same
stream from Immanuel’s veins, the ever-increasing river of God
that shall flow and flow until everything everywhere shall live unto Him. In that blessed day all shall know the glorious truth penned by the writer of the chorus
that says:
His
love has no limit,
His
grace has no measure,
His
power has no boundaries known unto men;
For
out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He
giveth, and giveth, and giveth again!
It is very important that we see this
truth, because once we understand it, we comprehend as never before the unfathomable depths in the
words of the apostle when he exhorts us to contend earnestly for the FAITH ONCE
DELIVERED TO THE SAINTS. Infinitely
significant are the words John adds to this in his first epistle, “For
whosoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that
overcometh the world, even our FAITH” (I Jn. 5:4). Does he say, “This is the victory that
overcomes the world — even our gifts?”
Or, “This is the victory that overcomes the world — even our power?” Or again, “This is the victory that
overcomes the world — even our ministry?”
Ah, it is none of those.
It is greater than all. This is
the victory that overcomes the world — even our FAITH! I perceive that in
this hour God is stirring afresh and quickening
in new dimensions that faith that will bring us into
our inheritance as the sons of God. It’s
only
by faith! For many years I have been blessed and challenged by the
words of the little chorus:
Hallelujah, it’s all by faith,
Hallelujah, not a faith of my own;
Hallelujah, it’s all by faith,
By the faith of the Son of God!
All that God has promised us, all that God
requires of us, all that God shall do in and through us is BY FAITH. I rejoice in gifts, I thank God for power, I
praise God for His love, His mercy, His faithfulness, and His multiplied
blessings. They are all a part of the
package, but the victory that overcomes the world, the victory of all those
great saints who in ancient times did exploits, the victory of Enoch, the
seventh from Adam, to be translated into the fullness of Christ, the victory
that will enable the sons of God to
conquer sin and death and hell and bring blessed release to the whole of creation
— indeed, the victory that overcomes the
world IS FAITH. What a revelation
that is!
This living faith has been given to
the saints of the Most High once.
It is the faith of God, the faith of His Son Jesus Christ;
therefore it was given to us by and through Jesus. This stream of faith was not always flowing
as Paul so ably makes known in his letter to the
Galatians. “But the scripture hath concluded all under
sin, that the promise of faith by Jesus Christ might be given to them that
believe. But before faith came, we
were kept under the law, shut up from the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our
schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by
faith” (Gal. 3:22-24). The
Amplified Bible reads a little closer to the Greek text, saying, “Now before THE FAITH came, we
were perpetually guarded under the Law, kept in custody in preparation for THE
FAITH that was destined to be revealed.” I find
myself too limited in both expression and articulation to set forth this
truth as I should do, but I pray the Holy Spirit to take these words and anoint
all who read, imparting the ability to see that with Jesus THE FAITH CAME, THE
FAITH WAS BROUGHT FIRST TO THE SAINTS,
IT WAS GIVEN IN THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT ONCE, AND OUT OF THAT ONCE FLOWS THE LIVING STREAM OF A DIVINE
FAITH THAT IS INFINITELY AND UNCEASINGLY FLOWING OUT TO ALL MANKIND. ONCE! ONCE GIVEN!
ETERNALLY FLOWING! There is
an abundant supply, my friend. Let me
close this message by quoting the words of
the Lord Jesus who has brought us this faith — “Have the faith of God.” May
we, like Enoch, walk with God until by faith we cross over into the fullness of
God. Amen!
To be continued… J.
PRESTON EBY
