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Learning To Be A Son – Chapter Ten – The Father’s Blessing

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LEARNING TO BE A SON

CHAPTER TEN

THE FATHER’S BLESSING

Unlike slaves who have no rights in the house, a son has a right to his father’s name, his father’s home and his father’s inheritance.  As children of God the Bible teaches us that we have these rights.

The Father’s name

It was Jesus’ mission to do two things – to reveal the Father and to take us to the Father. Jesus took pains to teach His disciples the true nature of the Father, both by what He said and by what He did. He was in constant conflict with the religious authorities because He insisted that the law of God was more about mercy than about rules.

In His high priestly prayer on the eve of His death, He assured the Father that He had revealed His name to His disciples – not the names by which He was known in the Old Covenant but by the name “Father” which was foreign to them because they did not understand the fatherhood of God.

Adam and Eve lost their rights by rebelling against God, and became slaves to fear through Satan’s deception. By His death Jesus would reconcile those who believe in Him to the Father and they would be “adopted” into His family as His beloved children, restoring to them everything they lost at the Fall and especially the fellowship He intended from the beginning.

His first message to His disciples through Mary after His resurrection was:

Go . . . to my brothers and tell them, “I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ (John 20:17b)

His death had brought about a new status. From God’s perspective they were now on a par with Jesus – He was not ashamed to call them brothers (He. 2: 10). Everything that Jesus was as a son was potentially theirs as well. The Father loved them just as He loved Jesus. They were given the Spirit of adoption, and the witness of the Spirit that they were children of God, as are all those who believe in Jesus.

Jesus not only told them about the Father; He also showed and taught them how to relate to the Father as His sons and daughters in loving submission and obedience. He gave them the right to use His name as their authority for approaching the Father. He revealed the nature of His Father enshrined in His name.

The Father’s house

It was the Father’s desire from the beginning of time to dwell with His people. Even when sin drove the first pair from God’s presence, He still desired to live among them. The tabernacle was His way of showing them His desire and at the same time, making it clear that they could not approach Him except through animal sacrifices. These were a picture of what He had promised – one who would crush the head of Satan and bring them back into fellowship with Himself.

The temple was the permanent structure in Jerusalem which took the place of the tabernacle for the same purpose. But even the temple was symbolic of something better. God cannot be contained in a building, but He has chosen to make His dwelling in the inner shrine of His human temples. All those who have been bought by the blood of Jesus are indwelt by the Holy Spirit.

Satan targets what is most precious to God – our fellowship with Him. Sin and all its spin-offs, independence and its fruit, i.e., making our own rules, cuts us off from fellowship with the Father.

But not only does He want to have continuous fellowship with us through the Holy Spirit, as sons our role is to “continue the house”. As His sons and daughters, it is our role both to reveal who He is and to bring others back into the household of God.

The Father’s inheritance

As the children of God we have a legal right to His inheritance. As co-heirs with Jesus we have an inheritance which is far superior to material things. Our inheritance comes to us through what God has promised (Heb. 6:12; 2 Cor. 1: 20). What had God promised? He has promised that we become partakers of His divine nature (2 Pet. 1: 3-4)

The problem is that the earth and all mankind have been corrupted by sin. God is untainted by corruption and He cannot have fellowship with that which is corrupt. God took care of the problem by sending His Son to deal with our sin and to restore His nature in us so that we can escape the corruption that is in the world. Just as Adam passed on his corrupted nature to every generation, Jesus has restored His nature in all who believe His promises, the perfect nature of the Father which He refines and purifies in us through the discipline of hardship and suffering (Heb. 12: 10)

The inheritance is already ours because the testator, Jesus has already died. It is our responsibility to make the promises of God ours through faith and patience, not what we want to make our lives cushy and comfortable, but to form in us the fullness of God’s nature in the likeness of His Son.

He calls us to leave the world and it corrupting influences and be separated to God. He has promised to dwell with us and to be our Father and we will be His sons and daughters                                                                      (2 Cor. 6: 16-7:1).

The Father’s nature

God is holy love. He is separated from everything that has been corrupted by sin. As His children, He insists that we be separated from sin to Himself. God is generous. He requires that we show who He us by our generosity, not only with our resources but with our attitudes.

The manifestation of God’s sons

Sin corrupted the whole universe which is waiting in pain for the manifestation of the sons of God (Rom 8: 19-21). This will be the sign that everything will be restored, including the heavens and the earth. Jesus’ return will be the cue for the restoration of all of creation and the final judgement of the rebellious angels who followed Satan. They will be condemned when God is vindicated.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Have you read my first book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (Copyright © 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it!

ISBN: Softcover – 978-1-4828-0512-3,                                                                              eBook 978-4828-0511-6

Available on www.amazon.com in paperback, e-book or kindle version, on www.takealot.com  or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

My second book, Learning to be a Disciple – The Way of the Master (Copyright © 2015, Partridge Publishing), companion volume to Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart, has been released in paperback and digital format on www.amazon.com.

For more details, check my website:

http://luellaannettecampbell.com/

Have you read my blogs on www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com ?

 

 

 

 

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Don’t Do It

Bible Study, , ,

DON’T DO IT

See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau who, for a single meal sold his inheritance as the oldest son. Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. Even though he sought the blessing with tears, he could not change what he had done (Heb. 12: 16-17).

Some things we have done in our lives can be changed. Other things can never be changed and what remains is the pain of regret. Some sins can be forgiven and the consequences will fade into the distant past. Other sins, forgiven though they may be, will stay with us and haunt us for the rest of our lives.

As far as the sin of our unregenerate past is concerned, God wipes the slate clean.

As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us (Psa 103: 12).

However, there are consequences we cannot escape which will follow us for the rest of our lives. King David knew this only too well. His moment of indiscretion with Bathsheba dogged him and his family for the rest of their lives, wrought havoc between him and his children, and resulted in rivalry, bloodshed and war. Even the legitimate son, Solomon, born of his union with Bathsheba, turned out to be a failure and paved the way for a split in Israel which was never healed.

What the writer points to here is two kinds of behaviour that stem from a dangerous mind-set that will inevitably lead to disaster; sexual immorality – a spiritual disease that has gripped the world because people ignore God and make their own rules. Let’s examine this single meal, attitude a little more deeply. Why has the world dispensed with God’s instruction not to be sexually immoral?

Let’s look at it this way. People worship false gods, not so much because they are convinced that their gods and what they stand for are the truth but because their gods approve of their sinful behaviour. They ignore God because they are looking for instant gratification. Instead of understanding that God created us in His image and that our lives must be lived in line with who He is, people have created gods in their image because they want to live as they choose. Inevitably, false gods approve of what is basest in human nature, sexual immorality and violence to get their own way.

In my country, our so-called democracy is a cover-up for mob rule. Marches and protests, which are supposed to bring about change, usually end in bloodshed, vandalism and looting. Sexual immorality, which is approved by the gods the people worship, has resulted in both an exploding population of illegitimate children and an out-of-control incidence of AIDS and AIDS-related deaths.

Government coffers have been so plundered by greedy politicians and civil servants that the people groan under the weight of taxation and escalating costs. The country’s infrastructure is gradually collapsing because the money supposed to be used to run the country is either leaking into private pockets or given to the masses to support their ever-increasing number of illegitimate or orphaned children.

Why is this happening? The bottom line is that the majority of people want instant gratification with no thought for the future or for consequences. That was King David’s problem – hence he took Bathsheba; and it was Esau’s problem, hence he sold his birth right for a bowl of beans.

The difference between the godly and the ungodly boils down to this – the ungodly live only for now and for what they can grab for themselves while the godly take God seriously and live with an eye on the future because every choice they make now affects what happens to them later.

Casual sexual liaisons leave a trail of consequences which cannot be changed. Living only for now and making choices for instant gratification results in the same thing, a trail of devastation which cannot be changed. The writer says, “Don’t do it!” Jesus is a clear example of someone who kept He eye on the goal and moved steadfastly towards it.

And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Heb. 12: 1b-2).

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Have you read my new book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (copyright 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it!

Available on www.amazon.com or www.kalahari.com in paperback, e-book or kindle format, or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

Check out my blogsite at www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com

 

The Gospel In A Nutshell

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THE GOSPEL IN A NUTSHELL

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you who, through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time (1 Peter 1: 3-5).

Peter wasted no time in launching into his message to the believers scattered across Asia Minor. Talk about the gospel in a nutshell! And he did it so well!

These were people with no Bible except perhaps an odd copy of the Old Testament Scriptures if there was a synagogue nearby – and then they would have been denied access to it anyway. It is very unlikely that any of them would have possessed their own copy. They had to rely on what they had been taught and on good memories to boot.

They were surrounded by idolatry, Jewish fanaticism and roving false teachers whose influence would have crowded in on them as well. How were they to survive against such odds? Letters! Their very own Scriptures! Although the apostles didn’t know it at the time, they were writing Scripture. Every precious letter with its message of Jesus and explanations about their faith and how to live it daily in a hostile world was to be supernaturally preserved for the church down the ages and they were the first to read them.

Peter had already made it clear to them that they were much more than sinners saved by grace. Although they might have been nothing in the eyes of the world, they were everything to God. He took a great deal of trouble to rescue them out of the world and He was not about to abandon them through indifference or neglect. Hounded by their enemies though they might be, they were secure in God for time and eternity.

It was a timely message, to be sure. Perhaps some of them would have been tempted to dump this Jesus-thing and go back to their old lives. Had this message not brought them a packet of trouble? Was it worth the suffering? Wouldn’t it be better just to go back to the way they lived before the apostles came and put this heavy on them?

Peter was emphatic. ‘You need to understand what this is all about before you make a rash decision like that. This faith in Jesus is so much bigger than the here and now. You have to take the long look. This is about you and God, and eternity and an inheritance far more wonderful than you can ever imagine. Why would you want to give that up just to dodge a few hardships now?’

Salvation is a God-thing from beginning to end. It was through God’s mercy that they had been given new birth. What did that mean? Their birth in Adam brought with it a natural rebellion and enmity against God. They had to start all over again to be acceptable to God, but there was no way they could do anything to change their sinful nature. God did it, not because He felt sorry for them but because of His mercy. Without His intervention they were doomed. He cancelled their past and gave them a new start through Jesus.

God’s salvation is huge, all-embracing and soaked in His goodness. He didn’t just forgive our sins so that we would no longer be a stench to Him. He drenched us in His kindness. Can you get a hold of that? A living hope! No matter what people do to us because they hate God, they can never extinguish the hope we have that when our physical lives are over here – and they can cut them short if they want to – that’s only the beginning. Jesus’ resurrection guaranteed that.

An inheritance! That’s huge too. If you are heir to your father’s estate, you will only get what he has and what he can give you – and that may not be very much. But to be an heir of God! That’s different. God sums up His will in two words – ‘all things’.

He that overcometh shall inherit all things . . . (Rev.21: 7 – KJV).

What are these ‘all things’? Everything God has promised (Heb. 6:12); His nature (2 Peter 1: 4); the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 5: 3); the earth (Matt. 5:5); everything that Jesus inherits (Rom. 8: 17). What more could we want? The possibilities are overwhelming.

‘So don’t give up when the going gets tough,’ he counselled them. ‘You have too much to lose.’

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

Time To Read The Will

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TIME TO READ THE WILL

“At that time, the son born according to the flesh persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. But what does the Scripture say? ‘Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman’s son will never share the inheritance with the free woman’s son.’ Therefore, brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman but of the free woman.” Galatians 4:29-31.

When a family member dies, the surviving members can’t wait for the reading of the will, especially if the deceased was a wealthy father or grandfather. “Who gets what?” they want to know. God also made a will, and when the testator died, His heirs inherited His estate. Paul declared that, because we are God’s sons and daughters through faith in Jesus, we are His heirs and co-heirs with His Son.

How here’s a twist in the tale. Jesus is God. Because He died we, God’s children, all receive our inheritance but, because He lives and He is God’s Son, He is also God’s heir and we are co-heirs with Him.

“In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son whom He appointed heir of all things and through whom also He made the universe.”  Hebrews 1:1-2.

God appointed Jesus to be heir of “all things”, that is, all things.

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or authorities; all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together.

“And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood shed on the cross.” Colossians 1:15-20.

Paul was talking about Jesus, the incarnate Son of God. In His humanity and because of His perfection as God’s Son who came to earth in the flesh and lived and died as a human being, He earned the right to the position and authority God gave Him – the highest name, the highest place and the highest authority in heaven and on earth (Philippians 2:6-11). He inherited “all things”.

Because of God’s mercy, He reconciled us to Himself through Jesus, restored us to our position as sons and daughters and placed us “in Christ”. Because of that, we share everything He has and owns because we are co-heirs with Him.

What do we share with Jesus?

1. Just as we share our human father’s nature – the sin nature of Adam – so, in Christ, we share our heavenly Father’s nature.

“Through these (His own glory and goodness) He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” 2 Peter 1:4.

2. We share in the “all things” which are Jesus’ inheritance.

“He who did not spare His own son, but gave Him up for us all – how will He not also along with Him, graciously give us all things?” Romans 8:32.

That means that, as God’s children, we have access to everything we need here in this earthly life, to live godly lives.

“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness.” 2 Peter 1:3.

How do we access these resources? Through faith in His promises.

“We do not want you to be lazy, but to imitate those who, through faith and patience, inherit what has been promised.” Hebrews 6:12.

3.The outcome of appropriating God’s promises for power to live a godly life and the resources to do so, is eternal life.

“But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of righteousness, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.” Romans 6:22.

The will has been read. The inheritance is ours. It’s time to possess what we already own.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.