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Jesus sent the twelve out instructing them to do as follows: “Do not go into pagan territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town. Go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and as you go, proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. You received gifts without charge, so give without charge,” Matthew 10. 5- 8. Jesus cured many people of diseases, of sicknesses, of evil spirits, and gave the gift of sight to many who were blind. Peter said, you must repent, and be baptized in the name of Jesus for the forgiveness of (Past 2Peter.9) sins, and you (may) will receive the gift of God’s Spirit, Luke 7. 21; Acts 2. 38. Do not let your spiritual gifts be unused, and take great care about what you do and what you teach. Always do this and in this way you will save both yourself and those who listen to you, 1Timothy 4.14-16. Branches are cut off due to their loss of faith, and should they regain faith, they will be grafted back on. (You are put in a position to live in God, in union, and this is the grafting of you on to the holy tree.) This free gift is from the compassion of God, Romans 11.20- 22. The chosen will receive a spiritual gift to place each in unity, as to accomplish the building up the spiritual body of Jesus Christ. As separate spiritual components of the body of Christ, one will become spiritually mature with the fullness of Christ present in that one. If our faith, and knowledge, enters adulthood, we will no longer be child like in the Spirit, and at the mercy of possible false teachings. If we live by the truth, in love, we shall grow in all ways into genuine spiritual maturity. Then as separate parts of the spiritual body of God/Christ we will perform perfectly, in unity with the other parts, according to our purpose, and function. Ephesians 4.1-16. If you are offering a gift at the altar, and you remember that a fellow Christian has something against you, first become reconciled to that fellow Christian, and then offer your gift at the altar, Matthew 5. 23- 24. Old covenant had laws governing worship, and Priests could enter only into the outer tent to carry out their acts of worship. The inner tent could be entered once a year only by the high priest himself, while taking the blood offering for his own faults and the people's faults. A veil separated the chief priest from the holy place in which God resides, and the chief priest could not enter the veil when God was present, or the priest would die. Leviticus 16.2- 3. The spirit of God discloses that a way of entry for us, through the veil, is not yet available under old covenant rules. (Jesus Christ has now penetrated the inner veil for our continual entry into spiritual union with God. Hebrews 6. 19- 20.) Gifts, and sacrifices, offered under the old covenant, could not bring a worshiper protection for the inner, (spiritual,) self. Hebrews 9.6-10, but the new covenant does allow for inner spiritual protection, Hebrews 9. 13- 14 The gift of wisdom from God was predestined to be ours, (but one must pray for the gift,) 1 Corinthians 2.7. God will give us those gifts which will make us holy, 1Thessalonians 4. 3- 5, causing us to share in His greatness, Romans 8. 29- 34. May the Lord make your heart's stand firm in Holiness before God our Father, 1 Thessalonians 3. 11- 13. (We must do our part, and must remain holy, 2 Corinthians 7. 1; Ezekiel 18.24.) After Adams sin, God's judgment gave the sting of death, (one remaining as dust forever, Genesis 3. 19,) to sinners, but God's gift, which arose after much sinfulness in the world, removed that sting of death (by giving us a spiritual nature, so we are able to follow God’s law, Ezekiel 11.19- 20.) thereby releasing us from being a slave to (past) sin, and being justified. Through the sin of Adam, death (remaining as dust forever,) established its reign. God’s kindness is available to place us in a right relationship to live in Christ / God, while making us holy. Through one act of sin, death (remaining as dust forever) reigned, and through one act of kindness, the sting of death (remaining as dust forever, Genesis 3. 19,) was removed, Romans 5.16-18. (Do not break your faith by sin, Colossians 1:21-23; Ezekiel 18:24; Romans 11. 16. 20. God’s justice, recognized through the law, and prophets, is now familiar outside the law (God is just regardless). It is the same justice of God that comes through faith to Jew and pagan alike, who believe in Jesus Christ. All have sinned and forfeited God’s glory, and all are justified (freed from past sins) through the free gift of God’s grace. We are liberated by Jesus Christ, who was sacrificed by God (as to free us from past sin) through our faith. By this action, God made justice known, by overlooking (past) sins to demonstrate God’s justice in the present age. This shows that God is just and justifies, (removing past sins of) everyone who believes in Jesus. Our boasting is excluded by faith, if we maintain that one is justified by faith, and not by works, (faith not accompanied by action is dead, James 2. 17,) does faith make the law useless? No, we are giving the law its true value, Romans 3.21-28, 31. (God mentions that following God’s law is necessary to maintain righteousness, Ezekiel 18. 24; Romans 11. 20- 21) Desire the gift of love first, and set hope for other gifts from the Spirit of God, 1 Corinthians 13. 1- 4. God's wisdom is not the way of the worldly people, but God's wisdom is proved as being the right way, and is proved by all who have the gift of God's wisdom, Luke 7. 30- 35. You were dead through the crimes, and the sins, in which you used to live when you were following the way of this world, obeying the ruler who governs the air being the evil spirit at work in the rebellious. We were among them too by living sensual lives, ruled entirely by our own physical desires and our own ideas, and by nature we were as much under God's anger as the rest of the world. God loved us with so much love that He was generous with His mercy. When we were dead (remaining as dust forever, Genesis 3. 19,) through our sins, He brought us back to life (or resurrection to possible eternal life in glory, Daniel 12. 2,) with Christ. It is through Grace that you have been saved, (given resurrection from remaining as dust Daniel 12. 2,) and raised us up (in union) with God, through Jesus Christ, and given a place (in union) with God in Heaven. This was to show for all ages to come, that God’s goodness through Jesus Christ was infinitely rich in God’s grace. By God’s Grace you have been saved (given resurrection from remaining as dust, Genesis 3. 19,) by faith, and not by anything of your own doing, (A person is not justified by faith alone but by what he does, James 2. 24.) through a gift from God. We are God's work of art created in Jesus Christ, to live the good life and from the beginning God meant this is how we should live, Ephesians 2.1-10. I am glad to hear that you are standing firm in one spirit, in one mind, and striving together in the faith of the gospel. By a gift of God, you have been given salvation, saved (given resurrection from remaining as dust, Daniel 12. 2,) through Christ, Philippians 1.27, 28. We received God’s Spirit to understand Spiritual gifts freely given to us through God’s Spirit, which is not a worldly Spirit. We can not use words of worldly wisdom, for we must use words of the Spirit of God, since spiritual words will combine spiritual truth and spiritual thought. An unspiritual person will not accept things which come from the Spirit of God, for these things appear foolish to human nature, and can only be properly judged by Spiritual discernment. Proper judgment cannot be overturned by the unspiritual opinion of others, 1 Corinthians 2.12-16. “Think of our Lord's patience, as your opportunity to be saved.” This was said Brother Paul, who is so dear to us. He told you this when he wrote to you with the wisdom that is his special gift. He always writes like this when he deals with salvation, and this makes some points in his letter difficult to understand. They are the points that uneducated and unbalanced people distort in the same way as they distort the rest of Scripture, a fatal thing for them to do. Be careful not to be carried away by errors of unspiritual people. Remain on the firm ground that you are standing on, and continue on growing in the grace, and knowledge, of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, 2 Peter 3.15-18. The words I spoke in the Gospel I proclaimed, were not in smooth talking words of wisdom, but were a display of the power of the Spirit of God, and your faith should not depend upon worldly wisdom, but should depend upon the power of God’s words. When we speak to the spiritually mature, we use wisdom from God and not worldly wisdom, which passes away. When we speak in the wisdom of God, our words are a hidden mystery to the worldly wise, 1 Corinthians 2.1-7. Make peace with God and be reconciled (in union with) with God, then all your happiness will be restored to you. Welcome the teaching from God’s lips, and keep His words close to your heart, Job 22: 21, 22. Before the world was made, God chose us in Christ to be holy, and spotless, and to live through love in God’s presence, and kindness, that we should become God’s adopted sons. Through Jesus Christ, we praise the glory of God’s grace, being a free gift to us, and through Christ’s blood we gain our freedom, the forgiveness of our (past) sins. Such is the richness of the grace which God has showered on us in all wisdom and insight. This being the predetermined plan of the one who guides all things, as is decided by God’s own will. We are chosen, for God’s greater glory, to be the people who place their hope in Christ before Christ even appeared. Now you, in Christ, have heard the message of the truth and the good news of your salvation, and have believed in it. You have been stamped with the seal of the Spirit of God, which is the promise, pledge, of our (possible) inheritance; to bring freedom for those whom God has taken for His own, and to make His glory praised, Ephesians 1.4-14. We have seen that through our Lord Jesus Christ, by faith, we are judged righteous and at peace with God. We were yet helpless when, at the appointed moment, Christ died for the sinful. It is not easy to die even for a good person, but for someone really worthy, a man might be prepared to die for them. What proves that God loved us is that Christ died for us while we were yet sinners, and died for us to make us slaves to righteousness. It is likely that Christ would save us from God's anger, for when we were reconciled to God by the death of his son, we were still enemies. Now that we have been reconciled, we count on being saved by the life of His Son; not only because we have been reconciled, but because we are filled with joyful trust in God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have already gain our reconciliation, Romans 5.1-11, (you are in union with God, but your life style will be a factor for remaining there, James 2. 12, 13; Romans 11. 20- 21.) By His divine power, God has given us all the things that we need for life and for true devotion, bringing us to know God himself, who has called us by His own glory and goodness. In making these gifts, He has given us the guarantee of something very great and wonderful to come. You should be able to share divine nature, and escape corruption in a world that is sunk in vice. To attain this, you will have to do your utmost yourselves, adding goodness to the faith that you have, add understanding to your goodness, add self-control to your understanding, add patience to your self-control, add true devotion to your patience, add kindness toward your fellow man to true devotion, and to this kindness add love. Without these, a man is blind, or else shortsighted, for he has forgotten how his past sins were washed away. Brothers, you have been called and chosen. Work all harder to justify it and if you do these things there will be no danger that you will ever fall away. In this way you will be granted admittance into the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, 2 Peter 1.3-11 (but inheritance of the Kingdom will require doing good deeds, Matthew 21. 43.) Non Jewish who were not interested in righteousness, nevertheless received this free gift because they had the proper faith. Some Jewish made great efforts to obtain righteousness through following God’s law but they were unable to carry out the requirements of God’s law. Their idea of religious success was based upon complying with the law, and without faith, therefore, they stumbled over the stumbling stone. It is written, Isaiah 28.16, I will put into Zion a stone to trip over, a rock which makes them fall. Whoever has faith in God will not stumble, Romans 9.30-33, (but a Jewish person who is baptized in the name of God, in trinity, will receiver the gift of the Spirit of God, and with a Spiritual nature, that one will not stumble since that one can now follow God’s law, and obtain righteousness, Ezekiel 11. 20; Genesis 26. 5,) Blessed is the man who keeps his faith when trials hit him. The reward is the gift of life. James 1.12. There are many parts in a single body, and each part has a different purpose. This is how it is with all of us, who are united with Christ, form one body. Each of us has a different purpose and our gifts differ according to God's discretion, so let us use them accordingly, Romans 12.4-6. When you were slaves to sin, you had no need to be obligated to holiness, and what did you gain from your evil behavior. You probably feel ashamed about that evil behavior which ends in death. Having been freed from (past) sin, and made a slave to God, which leads to holiness, then ends in eternal life in glory. Sin leads to death, but the free gift from God is (can be) eternal life in Union with God/Christ Jesus our Lord, Romans 6.16-18. The great point of all that we have said is that we have a high priest of exactly this kind. He has a place at the right hand of the throne of the divine Majesty in the heavens, and is the minister of the sanctuary along with the true tent of meeting, which the Lord, and not a man, set up. The duty of every high priest to offer gifts and sacrifices, and has something to offer. In fact, if Christ were on earth, He would not be a priest at all, since there are others, who make the offerings while following the law, and these offerings maintain only the service of a model which is only a reflection of the heavenly Church, (God’s Universal invisible Church,) For Moses, when he had the tent to build, was warned by God who said, “see that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain,” Hebrews 8.1-5. Jesus said, “Those who hear my word, and place trust in the father who sent me will have eternal life. Without being judged, one will pass from death to life.” Truly, the time is coming, and it is already here, when the dead shall hear the voice of the son of God, and all who hear shall come forth, Those whose deeds were good shall be resurrected to life, and those whose deeds were evil shall be resurrected to judgment for as the father has life-giving power, so has the son as a gift from the father. As the son of man, Christ has been given authority to execute judgment. Christ said, “I cannot judge according to my feelings but I must judge according to the facts. It is my desire to do the will of my father and not my will,” John 5. 28- 30; Daniel 12. 2. We have wisdom to offer those who have reached maturity, not a philosophy of our age, but the hidden spiritual wisdom of God which we teach in our mysteries. It is wisdom that God predestined to be our glory before the ages began. We teach what Scripture tells us, things the eye has never seen and no ear has ever heard, and these are beyond the unspiritual mind. We teach that which God had prepared for those who love him, the very things God has revealed to us through God’s Spirit, for God’s spirit reaches the depths of everything including the depths of God. The depths of God can only be known by God’s own spirit, not by human spirit. It is not from the spirit of the world, but from the Spirit of God, that we have received our gifts. We teach not in the way of philosophy, but in the way of the Spirit, since we spiritually teach about spiritual gifts, or other spiritual things. Who can know the mind of God, except with spiritual assistance, 1 Corinthians 2. 6- 16. God confirmed their witness with signs, marvels, miracles of all kinds, and by freely giving the gifts of the Spirit of God, Hebrews 2 .3- 4. God's gifts were not from a Spirit of timidity, but a Spirit of power, love, and self-control. Never to be ashamed of witnessing to the Lord or ashamed of me for being his prisoner, but with me bear the hardships for the sake of the good news, relying on the power of God who has saved us, and called us to be holy; not because of anything we ourselves have done, but for His own purpose, and by His own grace. This grace has already been granted to us, in Jesus Christ, before the beginning of time, but has only been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus. He abolished death (one remaining as dust forever), and He has proclaimed life and immortality through the good news, of which I have been named a Herald, apostle, and teacher, 2 Timothy 1.7- 11. When we were baptized into union with Christ, we were baptized into the likeness of Christ’s death and by baptism, we were buried with Christ and laid dead, (we died to unspiritual nature and can gain a Spiritual nature,) that as Christ was resurrected from the dead in the splendor of God, we too may live a good life, (a Spiritual nature life.) If we have become united with Christ in the likeness of Christ’s death, certainly we shall also be (can also be) in the likeness of Christ’s resurrection, (knowing that our old self of unspiritual nature was crucified with Christ and our body of sin might be done away with. We should no longer be slaves to sin, due to our Spiritual nature, but can we claim that we are no longer a slave to sin, for we are able to sin and we do sin.) If we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Christ. Know that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again and death is no longer master over Christ. The death Christ died was for sin, (our past sin, 2 Peter 1. 9,) Romans 6:4-9. (We will surely die, but Christ’s resurrection clears the way for our resurrection.) Christ’s death made it possible for us to enter into union with God, and receive the Spirit of God John 16. 7. (We did not die to sin, for the Spirit of God has made it possible for us to obey God’s laws, and not be considered a sinner, Ezekiel 11. 19, 20, If we were dead to sin, we would not sin at all, but who of us is not a sinner?) The resurrection of Christ came first, and then came the Spirit of God, John 16. 7. (It is through the Spirit of God that we entered into union with God, and we may receive a spiritual nature, all due to the help of God’s Spirit, also, we may become an heir of God’s Kingdom, Leviticus 18. 5; Matthew 13. 40- 43, 47- 50; Deuteronomy 15. 4- 5; Hebrews 6. 11- 13; Ezekiel 11.19, 20. God will judge us, through Christ, Romans 2. 16,18, and God will decide who will be an heir to His Kingdom, resurrected from the dead to eternal life in glory, and who will be resurrected from the dead to everlasting disgrace, Acts 24.15; John 5. 29- 30; Daniel 12. 2.
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