starter nine

Failure to read this message from page one to the last page and from chapter one to the last chapter could cause the reader to misunderstand this message. Please read page to page and chapter to chapter. Thank you and may God bless the reading of His Word. CHAPTER ONE

Ephesians 6:13-17, “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation.” Once we have obtained enough truth to repent and been born again and thereby becoming a new creature that is dead to sin with wisdom and have become the righteousness of God through Christ Jesus and sanctified, justified, glorified or honorable and begin to build our peace with God so that we can fellowship with God by the cleansing blood of Jesus and boldly take the shield of faith and quench ALL the fiery darts of the wicked with the Word of God, then we can understand and receive the next piece of God’s Armor, the Helmet of Salvation.

Everything we have learned to this point and will learn in the next eight chapters is necessary to have on the Helmet of Salvation. Once again the definition of born again, “gennao”, means, “to procreate (properly of the father, but by extension of the mother); figuratively to regenerate:-bear, beget, be born, bring forth, conceive, be delivered of, gender, make, spring.” Overcome, “nikao”, to subdue (lit. or fig.) conquer, overcome, prevail, to get the victory. Salvation is the Greek words “soteria” and “soterion.” The combination of the meanings is rescue or safety (physically or morally): deliver, health, salvation, save, saving. Defender or by implication defense: salvation.

When I put on the Helmet of Salvation of being born again, I had to know enough of the truth to realize that God was real and that His Son Jesus died for my sins. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” And just enough “rightstanding” and peace and faith to talk to God and tell Him I wanted to do things His way and obtain the Helmet of Salvation of being born again although the Helmet of Salvation was not a spiritual reality to me. I immediately began to tell people that I was born again and the Holy Spirit made sure I remembered my born again date and time so that He could remind me when the enemy would come over and over and over again to try to convince me I wasn’t born again until my born again Helmet of Salvation was permanently anchored in my soul.

To be able to go through the fire as found in First Peter 1:6-9 we must be able to understand and put on the Helmet of Salvation pertaining to our new covenant or New Testament that our Lord Jesus established for us on the cross at Calvary. “Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.”

To better understand our blood covenant with God I am going to take a teaching from E. W. Kenyon’s book, “The Blood Covenant” that explains a covenant between men. He has a very gentle approach to an African explorer of the late 1800’s named Henry Morton Stanley that differs from historians’ evaluation of the man, but we are just simply using it for an example of a blood covenant between two men. He has just explained that the blood covenant in Africa has never been known to be broken. To break a blood covenant in Africa is like receiving a death sentence. It is so sacred that it is in effect to the children of the third and fourth generations. It is a covenant that is perpetual, indissoluble and cannot be annulled. [The book was written in 1948 so I am not sure these statements are valid in 2014.]

Slightly edited [Everything in [ ] is mine:] from “The Blood Covenant” by E. W. Kenyon

“’THE COVENANT IN AFRICA’ One illustration of Stanley’s might help us to understand the significance [of the blood covenant]. When Stanley was seeking Livingstone, [Another African explorer that had not been heard from in several years and Stanley’s newspaper had sent him to search for him.] he came in contact with a powerful equatorial tribe. They were very war-like. Stanley was not in condition to fight them.

Finally, his interpreter asked him why he didn’t make a strong covenant with them. He asked what it meant and was told it meant drinking each other’s blood.

Stanley revolted from such a rite, but conditions kept growing worse, until finally [the interpreter] asked him again why he did not cut the covenant with the chieftain of the tribe. Stanley asked what the results of such a covenant would be, and the interpreter answered, “Everything the chieftain has would be yours if you need it.”

This appealed to Stanley and he investigated. After several days of investigation they arrived at the covenant. First, there was a parlay in which the chieftain questioned Stanley as to his motives and standing, and his ability to keep the covenant. [Praise the Lord we aren’t interrogated before we are born again and make our covenant with God]

The next step was an exchange of gifts. The old chieftain wanted Stanley’s new white goat. Stanley was in poor health and goat’s milk was all he could take for nourishment, so it was very hard for him to give this up, but the chieftain seemed to want nothing else. So he finally gave up the goat, and the chieftain handed him his seven-foot copper-wound spear.

Stanley thought he had been beaten, but he found that wherever he went in Africa with that spear, everybody bowed to him and submitted to him. [In the story of “The Prodigal Son” as found in Luke 15:11-32 in verses 22-24 we see where the Father gives His seal to His son when he comes back home, “But the Father said to His servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand [The ring had the Father’s seal and was like being sealed with the Holy Ghost in Ephesians 1:13-14 and was a guarantee of the son’s inheritance. With the ring he could go anywhere and buy and sell and people knew that his father would pay his debts.], and shoes on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.” Wherever we go in the spiritual realm we have the guarantee of the Father of our inheritance through the Holy Spirit and have authority to claim that which is ours.] Everything the chieftain [God] has will be ours if we need it.

The old chieftain then brought in one of his princes. Stanley led forth one of his men from England.

Then the priest came forth with a cup of wine, made an incision in [the prince’s] wrist, and let the blood drip into the cup of wine. He cut a like incision in the wrist of the young Englishman, and let his blood drip into the cup of wine. Then the wine was stirred and the bloods were mixed.

The priest handed the cup to the Englishman and he drank part of it and then he handed it to [the prince] and he drank the rest of it.

Next they rubbed their wrist together so that their bloods mingled. Now they had become blood brothers.

These two men were only substitutes, [Jesus was our substitute] but they had bound Stanley and the Chieftain [like we are bound to God by the Blood of Jesus and the Holy Ghost], and Stanley’s men and the Chieftain’s soldiers into a blood brotherhood that was indissoluble. Then gun powder was rubbed into the wound. So that when it healed there would be a black mark to indicate they were covenant men.

The next step in this ceremony was the planting of trees. Trees that were known for their long life.

After the planting of the trees, then the chieftain stepped forward and shouted, ‘Come, buy and sell with Stanley, for he is our blood brother.’

A few hours before, Stanley’s men had to stand on guard about their bales of cotton cloth and trinkets, but now he could open the bales and leave them on the street and nothing was disturbed. For anyone to steal from their blood brother, Stanley, was a death penalty.

The old chieftain couldn’t do enough for his new found brother. Stanley couldn’t understand the sacredness of it, and years later wondered about it.

As soon as the two young men had drunk each other’s blood, a priest stepped out and pronounced the most awful curses that Stanley had ever heard; curses that were to come upon him if he broke the covenant. Then Stanley’s interpreter took his part and pronounced curse upon the old king, his wife, his children and his tribe, if they broke the covenant with Stanley.”

Genesis 12:1-4, “Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him;”

Genesis 13:14-18, “And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee. Then Abram removed his tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the LORD.”

Genesis 15:1-6, “After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.

And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus? And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And He brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward Heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and He said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and He counted it to him for righteousness.”

We find God's covenant with Abraham in Genesis 17:1-14, God speaking, “And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.

And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession: and I will be their God."

And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; every man child among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.”

Colossians 2:10-13, “And ye are complete in Him [Jesus], which is the head of all principality and power: In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with Him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised Him from the dead. And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath He quickened together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses;”

Romans 2:28-29, “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter [of the law]; whose praise is not of men, but of God.”

Galatians 5:6, “For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.”

Galatians 3:6-9, 29, “Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith [This is talking about us!] are blessed with faithful Abraham.” “And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

The word impute in the Greek is “logizomai”, to take an inventory, i.e., to estimate. Second Corinthians 5:19, “To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them;”

Romans 5:12-13, “Wherefore, as by one man [Adam] sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.” Romans 4:13-15, “For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect: Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression. Therefore it is of faith that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,”

Romans 4:1-8, “What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found?For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt? But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his [our] faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, saying, Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.”

Conclusion: Sin was in the world from the time of Adam until Abraham and from Abraham until God made His covenant with Israel by giving Moses the Ten Commandments and the law. By the law is the knowledge of sin, but praise the Lord that God does not keep a record of sin when there is no law, because sin is not imputed where there is no law. When Abraham believed in the Lord it was counted to him for righteousness and blessed are we who are righteous by faith for where there is no law there is no transgression. We will find as we study the covenant that our biggest obstacle to the abundant life and doing greater works than Jesus did isn’t sin but nasty, horrible UNBELIEF which is a lack of faith that God has not only forgiven our past but also any sin that we commit or have committed since we were born again and that we are worthy to take His Word and win each and every battle.

Hebrews 3:12-14, “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called today; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;” First John 1:7-10, “But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His Word is not in us.”

I am going to include the Ten Commandments and then the blessings and cursing as found in Deuteronomy 27 and 28. The blessings were to be declared from the top of Mount Gerizim and the cursing from the top of Mount Ebal once a year.

Exodus 20:1-17, “And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in Heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain.

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made Heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house; thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.”

We have all broken the Ten Commandments at sometime, but as you read the Old Testament most of the time when Israel got into trouble with God was when they began to worship other gods. There are good people in all religions and most people anywhere in the world only want to be able to worship, work, play, love and take care of their families without fear. How many different religions are there in the world? I am amazed when I hear people say, “What difference does it make, it is the same god no matter what religion?” Remember that Christian just simply means follower of Christ. Unless a religion makes the Bible, the Word of God-Jesus-The Son of God the center of their religion they are not following God’s plan of redemption for all of mankind.

John 1:29, “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” John 14:6, “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” Matthew 7:14, “Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” John 3:15-17, “That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.” Matthew 22:37-39, “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”

I just went online and found out that there are so many different religions that they are too numerous to count. Wikipedia said that there are reported to be 38,000 Christian denominations. Wow! I don’t want to give the devil glory, but that is a super job of taking God’s simple plan that He began on the day of Pentecost when Peter answered the question “What shall we do?” with Acts 2:38, “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” and coming in with his fiery darts of deception and splitting the church over and over and over again into 38,000 denominations. What can I say but, pray in tongues and the understanding daily!!! First Corinthians 14:14-15, “For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also:” God’s plan for His church will continue to be ineffective until we fulfill:

Ephesians 4:11-16, “And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into Him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:From whom the whole body fitly joined together compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.”

And then there are all our man-made gods that we worship on a daily basis: Sports teams and their stars, celebrities, politicians that we think can save the world, rock stars, cartoon characters, soap operas, churches, preachers, choirs, evangelist, you make a list of whatever you or someone you know idolize and you can see where God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are not usually number one on someone‘s list of things to worship. Exodus 20:3, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” Deuteronomy 28:15, “And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.”

Deuteronomy 28:1-15, “And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all His commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.

Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out. The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways. And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.

And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.

The LORD shall open unto thee His good treasure, the Heaven to give the rain unto thy land in His season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.

And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them: And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.”

The New Testament is loaded with blessings and promises of God and Philippians 4:19 sums it all up, “But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” and we don’t need to be sick and tired and broke and divided into 38,000 denominations and more religions than we can count.

But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all His commandments and His statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:” If you want to read them go to Deuteronomy 28:16-68 and remember that they are part of the covenant God made with His people Israel through the law. God has spent a lot of time convincing me that I am no longer under the law and I am blessed and can not be cursed, because I have put my trust in the Lord. Jeremiah 17:7, “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.”

God has already given Moses the Ten Commandments and the law and he has read them to the Israeli people. Exodus 24:3-8, “And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do.

And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto the LORD.

And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient.

And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath made with you concerning all these words.”

Leviticus 16:1-22, “And the LORD spake unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the LORD, and died; And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat. Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on.

And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house. And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself: And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil: And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not: And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.

Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the veil, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat: And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness.

And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel. And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the LORD, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about. And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.

And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat: And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness: And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.”

What is propitiation? What is the propitiation? I used to wonder why God used the word propitiation since I couldn’t pronounce it and I looked up the definition in my Strong’s Concordance and I determined that it meant “atoning victim.” Why didn’t God keep it simple and just use “atoning victim” instead of propitiation? He wants us to obey Second Timothy 2:15, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” and check things out for ourselves. Propitiation is the Greek word “hilast

n” which means an expiatory, an atoning victim, or specifically the lid of the ark (in the Temple):-mercy seat, propitiation. Expiatory is to expiate which means to make amends for (wrongdoing or guilt); atone for.

Matthew 27:50-53, “Jesus, when He had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom;” This is the same veil that Moses was told to tell Aaron to be careful when he entered the veil that “he die not.” But now by the Blood of Jesus we can boldly enter into the very throne room of God-the Holiest. Hebrews 10:19-23, “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh; And having an High Priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised ;)”

Romans 3:19-26, “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. ”

First John 2:1-2, “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”

First John 4:9-10, “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. ”

The first time I looked up propitiation I didn’t notice or understand what mercy seat meant. Jesus replaced the mercy seat in Leviticus 16:1-22. Jesus is now our mercy seat. Paul and John by the inspiration of God applied the name Propitiation to Jesus to assure us that Jesus was the true Mercy Seat because He is designated as the place where we come to deposit our sins and to make amends and be reconciled by confessing our sins and then He washes and cleanses us in His Blood so that we can enter into the Holiest with a clear conscience in full assurance of faith and fellowship with God and have our prayers answered.

Hebrews 8:6-13, “But now hath He [Jesus] obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also He is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.

For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. For finding fault with them, He saith [In Jeremiah 31:33-34], Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. 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 neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. In that He saith, A New Covenant, He hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.”

Matthew 26:26-28, “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.”

John 19:32-37, “Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with Him. But when they came to Jesus, and saw that He was dead already, they brake not His legs: But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced His side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. And he that saw it bare record and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe. For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of Him shall not be broken. And again another scripture saith, They shall look on Him whom they pierced.”

Hebrews 13:20-21, “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that Great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” Remember, remember and remember through the blood of the everlasting covenant.

Colossians 1:12-14, “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet [qualified] to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son: In whom we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins:”

Revelation 1:4-6, “John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from Him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before His throne; And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, And hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”

Revelation 7:9-17, “After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God forever and ever. Amen.

And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? And whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple: and He that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.”

Revelation 12:11, “And they [the brethren] overcame him [satan] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”

Washed in the blood of Jesus is the same blood we have been referring to in First John 1:7-10, “But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His Word is not in us.” And that is how we overcome the devil because the power of sin is broken in our lives and when the accuser comes we can confidently say that we are cleansed by the Blood of Jesus and our robes are white as snow.

Those clothed with white robes were a great multitude, which no man could number from every nation, kindreds [race or tribe], people and languages that came out of great tribulation and their robes were made white by being washed in the cleansing blood of Jesus. Ephesians 5:25-27 “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; That He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word, That He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” Washed is the Greek word “apolouo” to wash fully, have remitted;

And now under the new and better covenant we have boldness to enter in to the very presence of God knowing we are cleansed from all unrighteousness, Hebrews 10:1-23, “For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? Because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. ⁵herefore when He cometh into the world, He saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.

Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. Above when He said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first that He may establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till His enemies be made His footstool. For by one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that He had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh; And having an High Priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised;)”

Hebrews 9:11-15, “But Christ being come an High Priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once into the Holy Place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

And for this cause he is the mediator of the New Testament that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. ”

We read earlier about the veil in Leviticus 16:15, “Then shall he [Aaron or the high priest] kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the veil, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat:” is the same veil that was rent in twain, ripped in half, split in two pieces in Matthew 27:50-53, “Jesus, when He had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after His resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.”

Leviticus 16:2, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.” It was rent in twain because it was no longer needed, because under the law Aaron was warned not to come into the Holy place within the veil that he die not, BUT NOW Jesus has taken His blood into the Holy of Holies in Heaven itself so that we can BOLDLY enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus knowing we are washed in the blood of the Lamb and our robes are white as snow not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing.

Many times I will be entering into the Holiest by the blood of Jesus and I begin to think of things I have done in the past that I have already confessed and been forgiven of and I will stop and begin to feel unworthy to enter into the Holiest. Philippians 4:6-7, “Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Be careful for nothing means don’t worry about anything your sins are cleansed by the Blood of Jesus.

Our daily battle against principalities and powers and the rulers of the darkness of this world and spiritual wickedness in high places and the fiery darts of the wicked are to keep us from entering the Holiest with full assurance of faith. We must learn to defeat the fiery darts and hold fast the profession of our faith in Hebrews 10: 17-18, “And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.” so that we won’t be thinking satan’s negative thoughts when we enter into the very presence of God Himself when we enter the Holiest. Our spiritual enemies want to keep us in the past and destroy our future. Philippians 3:13-14, “But this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

Ephesians 6:16, “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.” We must not let satan come between us and God because we will feel as if our covenant with God has been broken and it will never be broken, but through the wiles of the devil he will make us feel like it has been broken. satan will do anything to keep us from reaching the seventh piece of the armor of God and having a productive prayer life as we discussed thoroughly in chapter six. The wiles of the wicked are designed to get us into a position where we don’t have confidence to boldly approach the throne of God.

Romans 8:31-39 again, “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” So that we can boldly enter into the Holiest and make our requests known.

Webster's dictionary's definition of immutable is “never changing or varying; unchangeable.” Hebrews 6:13-20. “For when God made promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no greater, He sware by Himself. Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.

And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is an end of all strife. [This is speaking of a covenant between two men] Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise [that's us] the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath: That by two immutable things [His promise and His oath], in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us. Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an High Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec."

I just looked up immutable in the thesaurus on my computer and here is a list of words I could replace immutable with: abiding, changeless, consistent, constant, enduring, eternal, fixed, immortal, incorruptible, invariable, lasting, perennial, permanent, stable, unalterable, unchanging, undying, unwavering covenant with God.

Romans 3:19-31, “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the Justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? Nay: but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. Is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also: Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.”

Galatians 3:8-14, “And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham. For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God it is evident: for, the just shall live by faith. And the law is not of faith: but, the man that doeth them shall live in them.

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.”

We are all under the law until we are born again and, unfortunately, we can exercise our free will and go back to our old ways and continue to live under the law and feel like we are cursed even though we are born again and have been redeemed from the curse of the law instead of being set free by the redemptive powers of the Cross and God’s Word. Let the redeemed of the law say so!

First Corinthians 1:30, “But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.” Let's review redemption. This redemption is the Greek word “apolutrosis” which is (the act) ransom in full, i.e. (figuratively) riddance, or (specifically) Christian salvation; deliverance, redemption and is what Jesus did on the cross. Ephesians 1:7 is another scripture that illustrates the redemption Jesus obtained for us on the cross, “In whom [Jesus] we have redemption [Ransom in full] through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.”

The other redemption is the same word, “apolutrosis” which is deliverance. Ephesians 1:13-14, “In whom [Jesus] ye also trusted, after that ye heard the Word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise. Which is the earnest [like earnest money-a guarantee] of our inheritance until the redemption [deliverance] of the purchased possession, unto the praise of His glory.” We are redeemed by the works of the cross, sealed by the Holy Spirit and then our redemption is completed as we yield to the works of the Holy Ghost. People think that we are fully redeemed when we are dead and Jesus takes us to Heaven, but that is not what God intended, He wants us ready for the Master’s use now and teach others how to be redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.

Ephesians 1:1-14, “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will.

To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the beloved. In whom we have redemption [Ransom in full] through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace; Wherein He hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence [insight];

Having made known unto us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He hath purposed in Himself: That in the dispensation of the fulness of times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in Heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him;

In Whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated [determine before, ordain-God had a plan for those that put their trust in Him] according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will: That we should be to the praise of His glory, who first trusted in Christ.

In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the Word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption [deliverance] of the purchased possession, unto the praise of His glory.”

We are in a covenant relationship with God and the Holy Ghost seals that covenant. The Greek word for sealed is “sphragizo” and it means to stamp (with a signet of private mark) for security or preservation and is from the word “sphragis”, a signet (as fencing in or protecting from misappropriation); By implication the stamp impressed (as a mark of privacy, or genuineness), literally or figuratively:-seal. From my experience I can do things that, in my point of view, break my covenant with God, but the Holy Ghost is always there when I finally come back to God and confess my sin and ask for forgiveness and be cleansed from all unrighteousness. It is imperative that we realize that when we go to God and confess our sins that we are forgiven and cleansed by the blood of Jesus. Philippians 3:9, “And be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.”

See why God had to be sure that we knew that we had received the Holy Ghost by speaking in tongues instead of just assuming that we received the Holy Ghost. I can’t emphasize enough the importance of realizing that we are sealed by the Holy Ghost so God can help us become what He has predetermined we would be, and what we want to become, because we can’t go through the “fire” without the Holy Ghost.

Matthew 3:11, John the Baptist talking, “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance; But He [Jesus] that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire.”

And now can you see why we didn't put on the Helmet of Salvation first and that God put His armor in that order for a reason, because we must be born again to put on the armor and obtain salvation in any area. We can't apply the armor until we understand that piece of armor and when satan would fire his fiery dart of “Your really not born again” God would remind me of October the eighteenth, nineteen eighty-three at three pm. satan knew if he could keep me from understanding the truth of God’s plan of redemption he could keep me from putting on the Helmet of Salvation in the area of being a born again child of God that is sealed by God’s Holy Spirit of promise. I needed to understand the “Starter Kit” that God gave me through His Son and to know that being born again and being saved were two different things. I wonder why satan never told me I wasn't born again before I was born again?

Romans 5:8-11, “But God commandeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.” The definition of atonement from my computer program is “‘katallage’, to reconcile, reconciliation, restoration, exchange. Atonement is a change or reconciliation from a state of enmity between persons to one of friendship. Between God and man it is the result of the redemption, the divine act of salvation, the ceasing of God’s wrath. In the New Testament it means reconciliation, i.e., restoration to divine favor by bringing about a change in man, conversion, the means or occasion of reconciling the world to God.”

Matthew 26:26-28, “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; for this is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.”

First Corinthians 11:23-26, Paul speaking, “For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which He was betrayed took bread: And when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying, This cup is the New Testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till He come.”

Isaiah 53, “Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.

Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet he opened not His mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He openeth not His mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare His generation? For He was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was He stricken. And He made His grave with the wicked, and with the rich in His death; because He had done no violence, neither was any deceit in His mouth.

Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He hath put Him to grief: when thou shalt make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand. He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong; because He hath poured out His soul unto death: and He was numbered with the transgressors; and He bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.”

For years I took communion and didn’t have the slightest idea what I was doing and after I actually became a Christian I would think of His pain and suffering that Jesus endured for me on the Cross. There is a song that says “When Jesus was on the Cross I was on His mind.” I knew that He had taken my sins, but I really didn’t know what that entailed.

The bread had no meaning to me except it was His body that was broken for me. “Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.” Now I know from Isaiah 53 that He was striped for my healing, that He was wounded for my transgression, He took my sins on Himself and He was bruised for my iniquities. Now when I take the bread I think of Him being striped, bruised, wounded, chastised for my peace and I am now justified-declared not guilty because He took my sins away.

In the past when I would drink the symbolic blood I would remember that He shed His blood for the remission of my sins and that He took my sins away. I now know that He not only shed His blood for the remission of my sins, but He was making a blood covenant with my Heavenly Father that is an everlasting covenant that is sealed by the Holy Spirit. Now when I drink the blood I ask Him to show me anything in my life that is not pleasing to Him and confess any sin(s) that I haven’t confessed and now when I take communion I know I am renewing God’s covenant with me and I really think each of us should start every day with communion. I use Christianbook.com they have the wafer and the juice in one easy pack of 100 for only $25.25.

And we need to remember Matthew 27:50-53, “Jesus, when He had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after His resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.” So that we can Hebrews 10:19-23, “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh; And having an High Priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised ;)”

Now anything I read in the New Testament, my immutable covenant with God, is a part of that covenant. All the promises that He wants me to prosper and be in health as my soul prospers, I am healed by the stripes of Jesus, He took my sins and sicknesses, He wants me to have sufficiency in all things and enough left over to abound to every good work, that Jesus became poor that through His poverty I might be rich and that He will supply all my need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus and on and on and on.

And I will always remember that this is the blood of First John 1:7-10 that cleanses me from all unrighteousness so that I can boldly approach His throne with a white robe without spot or blemish and make my requests known and He will hear my requests and move mountains to grant my requests according to His will.

In the book of Numbers God told Moses to send a man from each tribe of the children of Israel to search out the land of Canaan, the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey that God had already told them that they would possess. They brought back fruit of the land that took two men to carry to show the people and said it surely was a land of milk and honey, but ten of them said that the people and their walled cities were stronger than Israel and Israel couldn’t go up against them. Only Caleb and Joshua remembered God’s promise and had faith that God was with them and that they were well able to possess the land. Caleb and Joshua had entered into God’s rest because they remembered and believed God’s promise to give them the land, but the other ten had forgotten God’s promise and no longer believed He would give them the land. Go to God’s Word and look for scriptures pertaining to your situation and STAND! The Israelis scripture here should have been, Exodus 33:1-3, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I sware unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it: And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: Unto a land flowing with milk and honey:” or Leviticus 25:38, “I am the LORD your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan, and to be your God.”

Numbers 13:26-14:24, “And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.

And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? Were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.

Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.

And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? And how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have showed among them? I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.

And Moses said unto the LORD, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;) And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou LORD art among this people, that thou LORD art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night.

Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying, Because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness. And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.

And the LORD said, I have pardoned according to thy word: But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD. Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it: But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it. (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.) Tomorrow turn you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea.” Praise the Lord for mercy and grace and First John 1:9 and power over all the power of the enemy. Luke 10:19, Jesus speaking, “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.”

Hebrews 3, “Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to Him that appointed Him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house. For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house. For every house is builded by some man; but He that built all things is God. And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; But Christ as a Son over His own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, Today if ye will hear His voice, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.)

Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called today; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end; While it is said, Today if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses. But with whom was He grieved forty years? Was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness? And to whom sware He that they should not enter into His rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.”

Hebrews 4, “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. For we which have believed do enter into rest, as He said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For He spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all His works. [Genesis 2:2] And in this place again, if they shall enter into my rest. Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: Again, He limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts. For if Jesus had given them rest, then would He not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into His rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His.

Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. Seeing then that we have a great High Priest that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an High Priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Anytime you are troubled boldly go the throne of Grace by the Blood of Jesus and ask Him to forgive you and read His Word to Him pertaining to whatever you have unbelief about.

One day I was reading my Bible and got to what I heard one pastor describe as “those horrible scriptures in Hebrews six” and as I read them and the fiery darts about “you aren't really born again” started flying, I asked God to show me some “good news” in these scriptures. I had the privilege of going into Darrington Prison in Rosharon, Texas every Monday night for about a year and I was amazed that they could point out every scripture that are perceived to be “condemning.” John 3:16-17, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.” Romans 8:1, 9 and “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.” We took care of that in Chapter Two when we were sealed by the Holy Spirit of God and ALWAYS remember that we are in spiritual warfare in a war that was won on the Cross and we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but spiritual powers that we have authority over in the Name of Jesus.

James 5:19-20, “Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.” Remember the multitude in Revelation 7:9 that couldn’t be numbered that had their robes cleansed in the blood of the Lamb. Do you think for one minute that the multitude that couldn’t be numbered were people that went through life without sin? Their robes were washed in the blood of Jesus because they had sinned. We have all sinned and come short of the glory of God.

Hebrews 5:10-14, speaking of Jesus, “Called of God an High Priest after the order of Melchisedec. Of whom we have many things to say and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing. For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”

Hebrews 6:1-6, “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection [Teliotes-one who has in his own person raised faith to its perfection and so set before us the highest example of faith]; 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 eternal judgment. And this will we do, if God permit. For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put Him to an open shame.”

Romans 10:6-11, “But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into Heaven? (That is, to bring Christ down from above :) Or, who shall descend into the deep? (That is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.) But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed.” Jesus has ascended into Heaven and He is not coming back, so just forget it and go to First John 1:7-10 and confess, accept the fact you are forgiven and cleansed by the blood of Jesus of whatever and pick it up and go forth and share the good news of peace with God.

Continuing in Hebrews 6:7-20 “For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned. [Stage three of the parable of the sower, Mark 4:18-19, “And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the Word, And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things entering in, choke the Word, and it becometh unfruitful.”]

But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak. For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have showed toward His name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister. [If you don’t have a work and labor of love I suggest that you get one. Volunteer, smile, hug, encourage, listen, preach, or give of your time and talent by preaching, cleaning, filing papers, praying for others or whatever. Stage four of the parable of the sower Mark 4:20, “And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the Word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.” James 2:18, “Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works.”] And we desire that every one of you do show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

For when God made promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no greater, He sware by Himself, Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife. Wherein God, willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath: That by two immutable things [His oath and promise], in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an High Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.”

Colossians 1:12-23, “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet [qualified] to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son: In whom we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by Him were all things created, that are in Heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him:

And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell; And, having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in Heaven. And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled In the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in His sight: If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel,”

The word hope in Hebrews 10:19 and Colossians 1:23 and the word faith in Hebrews 10:23, “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; for He is faithful that promised;” are the same word. It is number 1680 in my concordance and is the Greek word “elpis” from a primary “elpo” (to anticipate, usually with pleasure); expectation (abstract or concrete) or confidence:-faith, hope.

We can have confidence that God is going to keep His promises. Hebrews 10:35-36, “Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.” First John 5:14-15, “And this is the confidence that we have in Him that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us:And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.” Romans 15:13, “Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.” Amen, amen, amen.

There are some people that take Hebrews 6:1-6 as meaning that a person can lose their salvation. They think God is in the abortion business and will actually reverse the experience of Acts 2:38, “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

What God is trying to get His people to do in Hebrews 6:1-6 is to go on past repentance, faith, baptism, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment to perfection, maturity. He is telling us that we can't bring Jesus down from Heaven or resurrect Him from the dead and crucify Him again every time we do something to separate ourselves from God or grieve the Holy Ghost. We have already been enlightened, tasted of salvation, filled with the Holy Ghost, know the Word, and know about Heaven and God wants us to quit worrying about being saved after you have been born again and sealed with the Holy Spirit.

First John 2:1-2. “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous: ²And He is the Propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”

Hebrews 10:14-20, “For by one offering He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that He had said before, This is the covenant I will make with them in those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; and their sins and iniquities I will remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin. Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus. By a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the vail, that is to say His flesh.”

You need to go back and start at page one and read the message over again if you think this means you can die and go to Hell after you have been sealed by the Holy Ghost of promise. God doesn’t have plans for failure, only plans for failures. You are either going through the fire or under an attack from the wicked, Ephesians 6:11, “Put on the whole armour of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” And remember that Galatians 5:13-26 was written to Christians.

“For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

Now the works of the flesh [the devil] are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.”

First John 5:10-15, “He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made Him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of His Son. And this is the record that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the Name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the Name of the Son of God.

And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us: And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him."

Ephesians 2:1-10, “And you hath He quickened [Made alive], who were dead in trespasses and sins, Wherein in time past you walked according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lust of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved,) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace, in His kindness toward us, through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God before ordained that we should walk in them."

John 6:35-40, “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. But I said unto you, that ye also have seen me, and believe not. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from Heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me. And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which He hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of Him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.”

All you can do when you yield to the attack is just keep on fighting and the other choice is to quit and let the devil win and that is not what God intended when He sent His Son to die for our sins. First John 3:8, “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” God inspired Paul to write in Philippians 4:11-13, “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” I will never quit in the Name of Jesus, but the most important thing to remember is that He will never give up. First Corinthians 1:8-9, “Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Luke 4:18-19, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised. To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” How do we fulfill this scripture for Jesus when we ourselves are concerned about being taken captive or we are captive? God does not want us worrying about losing our salvation, but to go on past 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 eternal judgment unto perfection and fulfill Second Timothy 2:19-26, “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work.

Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes.

And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.”

If we spend all our time trying to save us we can’t help anybody else to be saved. We must understand that we have an everlasting covenant with God that is sealed by the Holy Ghost when we speak in tongues to receive the Holy Ghost and if we don’t understand this we will not have the faith to exercise our authority in the spiritual realm and begin to change our circumstances and the circumstances of others and set the captives free. John 8:32, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.”

Hebrews 13:20-21, “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that Great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.”

Remember the list of words we could replace immutable with: abiding, changeless, consistent, constant, enduring, eternal, fixed, immortal, incorruptible, invariable, lasting, perennial, permanent, stable, unalterable, unchanging, undying and unwavering!