Joe's Blog

I have already shown that God has revealed Himself to us in various ways. (See “God’s Revelation” post under Doctrine or Theology Tag.) If God has revealed Himself to us then He must be “Knowable”. If God is knowable then we should be able to determine His nature to the extent of the revelation. The problem comes when we fail to realize that we are finite creatures trying to know an infinite God. We must be very careful not to fall into the trap of trying to lower God to make Him more knowable. Many false religions fall into this trap of bringing God down to the creatures level. The term we use for this, as explained in the last post, is Continuity of Being.

Job 11:7-9(ESV) ⁷“Can you find out the deep things of God? Can you find out the limit of the Almighty? ⁸It is higher than heaven—what can you do? Deeper than Sheol—what can you know? ⁹Its measure is longer than the earth and broader than the sea. Isaiah 55:9(ESV) ⁹ For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

As finite creatures, God is incomprehensible to us. Our minds are incapable of fully understanding God. Yet even with this limitation we do have the ability to know Him. There is an abundance of scripture that indicates we can know God (Jer. 9:23-24; John 17:3; Heb. 8:11; 1 John 5:20; see also Gal. 4:9; Phil. 3:10; 1 John 2:3; 4:8). The greatest revelation of God is found in John 14:9(ESV) ⁹Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Christ then is the visible revelation of the unseen God. We will discuss this in more detail when we look at the Trinity.

Why is it important for humanity to know God? This is the most important question we can ask, and our eternal destiny is based upon our answer. If the God of the Scripture exists then humanity must answer to Him. If God created us then He has every right to demand that we obey Him. If God created us then His rules will be followed and His creatures will have to abide by those rules. Those creatures who do not wish to follow His rules will be subject to His justice. These facts are inescapable if the Biblical God does in fact exist.

Having said that, it then becomes extremely important to know God and what His demands are. It is for this reason that God has revealed Himself to us and has made Himself knowable to man. Genesis 1:26-27(ESV) ²⁶Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” ²⁷ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Man was not created like the other animals. God had plans for mankind and those plans included dominion over the earth. Because man was to exercise dominion over the earth God created him in His own image.

Man is the finite image of the infinite God and reflects His nature in a limited way. Those attributes of God can be broken down into two categories, incommunicable and communicable attributes. The incommunicable attributes are those attributes which God cannot share with man. The communicable attributes are those that God shares with man. It is important to understand that even those attributes that God shares with man are limited in there scope because of the finite nature of man. For instance where God is omnipotent (all powerful), man has limited power in accomplishing his will. Where God is omniscient (all knowing), man has only limited knowledge and  understanding.

We will begin looking at the attributes of God in the next post. If you believe that man is just another creature that has evolved the same as any other creature then you are in for a rude awakening when you finally meet the Creator. God created man with a specific intent. God knew that one day He would have to become man so His creation of man was one of care and purpose. It then becomes an insult to God to believe that we are no different from other animals. We are the image and likeness of the eternal God. God is fully revealed in the person of His Son Jesus Christ. For those of you who believe in evolution I would consider the fact that this theory is directly opposed to the revealed God of the Scripture. No matter how hard you try to fit evolution into scripture it just doesn’t work. It is a false religion based upon pagan beliefs and fits only with the Continuity of Being world view of the secular world. It denies the very nature of God.

As I begin our study in some of the basic truths of Christianity I need to outline some basic assumptions. All people have biases and interpret writings based upon preconceived assumptions.  I am no different. My assumptions are simple. I believe there is a God who created everything. My view then would reflect this assumption. Those who do not hold this belief will interpret things differently. They will either assume that God does not exist or they may not know if He exists.

I have explained this briefly in other posts, but because of the importance of this when it comes to studying God, I will try to expand my position. There are really two positions to take when it comes to God. Either He is the creator and therefore distinct from creation, or he is part of the creation and therefore bound by the natural laws of creation.

“Continuity of Being” defines the belief that is followed by all those who do not believe in the existence of God the Creator. I will call this Paganism because it has been in existence and changed little from its basic assumptions since recorded history. This includes all those who do not believe in the biblical account of creation including the account of Adam and Eve.

Some of the assumptions for Paganism are first, that there is no biblical creation. God was either not involved at all in creation or He was the force that started evolution or simply guided evolution. The ancient pagan accounts of the beginning of the world tell us that the god’s were fighting and struggled for supremacy, which in turn brought about the world we see today. This is a very simplified description, but it is very similar to the theory of evolution. Both believe that the world was created out of chaos. So from chaos we somehow got order.

Another assumption is that nature is the ultimate control over everything. In other words if there is no such thing as a God who can create out of nothing, then something must have existed which caused everything to become as we see it. Today that is the Big Bang. Those who hold to this view assume that there is no power greater than that which is already present.

Because of the assumption that there is no power beyond what we can define from the natural order they cannot believe in the God of the Bible. This creates several problems that the pagan philosophy cannot answer. I will mention only two of these problems. First there is no beginning for evil in the world. Evil has always existed. This is why their explanation of the universe begins with chaos. This is why the eastern religions believe that the ultimate state for man is annihilation. They take it to the logical conclusion and are honest about escaping this evil habitation. They do it by believing they will cease to exist or become one with everything, another way of saying no individual existence.

The second problem is that if evil has no beginning, then it will have no end. The eastern religions understand this problem much better than the western religions. The western religions believe the answer to evil is found in the goodness of man. Just a brief look at history shows the fallacy of this belief. The problem with not having an end of evil means there is no ultimate hope for eternal joy and peace.

If you do not believe in my assumption of a creator God who is separate from, and greater than His creation, then you may want to read a blog written by an evolutionist. Only the Biblical account of creation tells us about the beginning of evil, and also tells us about the end of evil.

Proceeding with the understanding that I assume the biblical account of creation in a literal context, I will begin our study on God starting in the next post. My hope is that I can make an incomprehensible God somewhat knowable. Not an easy task.

Over the past couple of months I have attempted to put a framework around the scripture. There are 66 books written over an extended period of time and yet they have a consistent message throughout. I have tried to tie this message together so the big picture can be seen. This is important because if you do not know the context of scripture you will err in your interpretation

We started with the fact that there are false prophets who will try to pervert the truth. Understanding that, it becomes necessary for us to have a method by which we interpret the scripture. If we have no consistent way of understanding scripture then we are subject to all the winds of doctrine. The method used by most conservative theologians is called the Grammatical/Historical/Contextual method. This is also know as the “literal” method. This simply means you use the rules of grammar and word meanings that existed at the historical time of writing, and place them in there immediate and extended context.

We also looked at the two dominant theologies present today, Covenant and Dispensational. Both use the “literal”  method of interpretation with the exception of bible prophecy. Because Covenant Theology believes the Church has replaced Israel as God’s chosen people, they must allegorize those portions of scripture in which God makes unconditional promises to the nation of Israel. Covenant Theology is based upon Reformed Theology which is Amillenial. The scripture is filled with passages that state Christ will rule a kingdom from the throne of David. Revelations tells us that this kingdom will last for 1ooo years or a millennium. Amillenial means that they believe there will be no physical 1000 year kingdom, but rather a spiritual kingdom. This then requires them to interpret the scripture that contains references to a physical kingdom allegorically or spiritually.

Dispensational Theology believes the Church and Israel are distinct and that God will literally fulfill all of His promises to Israel. Israel has a destiny and the Church has a destiny. A consistent “literal”  interpretation of scripture will lead to what is know as a Pre-millennial understanding of prophecy. This means that they believe in a literal millennial rule of Christ from David’s throne, and that Christ will return before He establishes His kingdom here on earth.

We looked at the “dispensations” or stewardship periods of history. This is what defines Dispensational Theology. God has instituted different economies throughout history and man fails in each case.

We also looked at the Covenants God has made with man. We noted that God made 5 Covenants with the nation of Israel. Four of those covenants were unconditional and one (Mosaic) was conditional. We spent time on the New Covenant which was given to Israel where God said He would write His low in their hearts and they would be His people  and He would be their God.

We then looked at how the Church fits into history. In Romans 9-11 we saw how God had not rejected His people Israel, but rather temporarily set them aside because of their rejection of Christ. It is because of that rejection by the Jewish people that we as Gentiles are able to enjoy the benefit of the New Covenant. When the full number of gentiles complete the church then God will again return to His people Israel and all Jews will end up recognizing their Messiah.

We then looked at what is going on in history today. We talked about the ascension and session of Christ. Christ physically ascended to the right hand of the father. For the first time in History we have a Human Being who has ascended above everything to the very throne of God. He will descend in the very same manner when He returns. His session consists of taking captive people under Satan’s rule, giving them gifts and sending them back to the church to continue the battle. He is also the high priest who makes intercession for His people continually. This is how we remain secure from the accusations brought to God by Satan.

The session also consists of God placing all of Christ’s enemies under His feet. When this is accomplished then Christ will complete history by returning to earth and setting up the promised kingdom. At the end of this kingdom Christ will do away with evil and a New Heaven and New Earth will be created which will be our eternal destiny.

My intention is to continue with some of the basics of Christianity. I plan on starting with trying to explain what makes people a Christian. This is the eternal question. There are two destinies. Lord willing we can find out what real Christianity is so we can enjoy all the blessings which God has prepared for those who love Him. I plan on starting in my next post with the doctrine of God.

In the last post I began describing the session of Christ. I indicated that the New Testament writers used Old Testament imagery to define what Christ was doing now that He is seated on His Fathers throne. There are three OT passages that portray this imagery. The first was Daniel 7 which used the “Son of Man” imagery. The other two are Psalm 2 and Psalm 110.

Psalms 2:1-12(ESV) ¹Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?  ²The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, ³“Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.” ⁴He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. ⁵Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, ⁶“As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.” ⁷I will tell of the decree: The Lord said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. ⁸Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. ⁹You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” ¹⁰Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. ¹¹Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. ¹²Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

The imagery of Psalm 2 contains the Royal Son of God reigning. It is the imagery of God’s chosen king taking possession of all the nations and ruling them in justice and with a rod of iron cp. Rev 19:15. The Royal Son has been formally accepted by God Vs. 7 and is to pray to God for world dominion Vs. 8. the nations are given the opportunity to willingly submit to the Son before being forced to Vs 10-12.

The New Testament writers demonstrate that just as the Royal Son is fully accepted by God so also is Christ. Hebrews 1:1-7 demonstrates that Christ has received a more excellent name that any created being. We also find this in Philippians 2:6-9 where God has given Christ a name above all names. All this was done because of Christ’s perfect obedience to God’s will. It is this perfect obedience which allowed Christ to become the second Adam and free the human race from the disobedience of the first Adam.

Christ was declared as the Son of God throughout the Gospels, but the full legal authority to claim the inheritance had to wait until the work of Christ on the cross had been complete. Ephesians 1:20-22(ESV) ²⁰that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. ²²And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, .

It must be noted from the above passage that Christ’s full inheritance and authority extends well beyond just the human race on planet earth. His authority and dominion will encompass the entire creation including all angelic beings.

Just as Daniel 7 indicated a future kingdom so Psalm 2 also indicates this future kingdom. We must therefore conclude that the time when all things are subject to Christ is still future. Psalm 2 is describing the future kingdom promised in the Davidic Covenant. Just because the current session of Christ has Him ruling over the hosts of heaven does not mean this is a fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant. This will not happen until all enemies are placed under his feet. New Testament writers are using the imagery of Psalm 2 to describe the position and session of Christ and not the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant.

Psalms 110:1-7(ESV) ¹The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.” ²The Lord sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your enemies! ³Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of your power, in holy garments; from the womb of the morning, the dew of your youth will be yours. ⁴The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, “You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.” ⁵ The Lord is at your right hand; he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath. ⁶He will execute judgment among the nations, filling them with corpses; he will shatter chiefs over the wide earth. ⁷He will drink from the brook by the way; therefore he will lift up his head.

Psalm 110 adds an new feature into the session of Christ. Under the Mosaic Law it was forbidden for a King to function as a priest under the Aaronic priesthood. Christ was from the kingly tribe of Judah so in order to function as a priest He goes back before the time of Abraham when the gentile office of Priest/King existed Gen 14:18-20.

New Testament authors use this imagery not only to show Christ is fully accepted, but also to indicate His role as Priest. It is in this capacity that Christ now makes intercession for us continually. Romans 8:34(ESV) ³⁴Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

In these three OT images – Son of Man in Daniel 7, Royal Son of Psalm 2, and King/Priest of Psalm 110 are key devices for understanding the current session of Christ. They all teach two truths. First Jesus Christ ascended to the very throne of God and was given authority over the entire universe. Second, He now waits tell the Father places all His enemies under His feet so He can exercise this authority directly over all nations. Between these two events the Church is being built. We belong to Christ and are to battle Satan until Christ can exercise His authority directly over the earth.

Daniel 7:9-14(ESV) ⁹As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames; its wheels were burning fire. ¹⁰ A stream of fire issued and came out from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened. ¹¹I looked then because of the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. ¹²As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time. ¹³I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. ¹⁴ And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.

The past few posts have dealt with the birth of the Church. We looked at the ascension of Christ from the earth to the throne of God where He was seated at the right hand of God. When Christ was seated he began what is known as His “session”. The new testament writers use three old testament passages to give us the imagery to explain the session of Christ.

The first of these passages is Daniel 7. The nation of Israel had suffered God’s judgment for failing to keep the Law of Moses. God had been faithful to His promise to take the nation away if they continued in their rebellion against the covenant. Babylon had been the agent God used to judge Judah in 586 BC. From that point on Israel no longer controlled its own destiny. The gentile nations would have dominance in the world until their time was ended.

In Daniel 7 God gave us a vision of who and what these gentile nations would be. In each of the pictures God shows that they are portrayed as sub-human in their moral character and thus not fit for human rule. The only exception to this is the fifth kingdom described as being ruled by one like a “son of man”. It is this kingdom and king that will be given dominion over the earth and it will continue forever. This fifth empire is the only one that demonstrates it has the capacity and right to rule over the earth.

From the description of the first four kingdoms we understand that not only does the sub-human beast represent a founding king, but they also characterize the people of that king. In the same way, the son of man not only represents the founding king, but also the people who will inhabit this fifth kingdom. We see that this is so in vs. 27. Daniel 7:27(ESV) ²⁷ And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey them.’ Thus the interpretation of the fifth kingdom includes those who belong to the king. The imagery then is that the fifth king casts down all the previous kings and establishes an everlasting kingdom ruled by his people. This has not occurred in history and must therefore be future.

We see in Daniel 7 that this future king will be given dominion and glory and a kingdom. The New Testament writers describe Christ as receiving glory and honor at His session  Matt. 26:64, 28:18; Mark 14:62; Heb. 2:9; Rev. 1:18. In this way God is declaring that Christ is the final ruler of the fifth kingdom. The culmination will have to wait until the people of Daniel 7:27 have been established.

Another way the imagery is used to show Christ’s session is that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him. This is picked up in Matthew 28:18-20(ESV) ¹⁸And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”, and in Acts 17:30-31(ESV) ³⁰The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, ³¹because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”  The session of Christ thus marks a point in history when God again deals with all of humanity. The Jew was placed in history to counter the unbelief of humanity and were to be the light of the world to show mankind the true God. The session then takes us back before the call of Abram to the time between Adam and Abram when God dealt with all mankind.

It is during the present session of time then that Christ is building His kingdom from all nations and tongues and peoples. We can also understand from Daniel 7 that the completed session of Christ has not been fulfilled. In order for the king to establish the kingdom the nations must be judged and the current world ruler (Satan) must be destroyed. It is from the absence of this imagery that we understand the full session of Christ is yet future.

There are two other Old Testament verses that are used to show the session of Christ and I will deal with them in the next post.

Ephesians 4:8-10(TNIV) ⁸This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.” ⁹(What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions ? ¹⁰He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)

In the above verses Paul uses Psalm 68 as a basis for what Christ is doing after His ascension. Psalm 68 is a victory Psalm in which David sings God’s praise for leading His people to victory beginning at Mt. Sinai and continuing through the conquest and settlement under Joshua ending with the reign of David.

David tells us that God descended from His heavenly throne to Mt Sinai and led His people to victory while dwelling among the people in the Ark of the Covenant. God was present and manifested His glory from His earthly throne throughout the campaign to conquer the land.

Paul uses this picture to say that Christ did the same thing. He ascended to His throne to lead His people to victory and reclaim what Adam had lost. There is a slight difference though. God took many captives and received gifts from man, while Christ took many captives and gave gifts to man.

In essence Paul is saying that like God who descended to earth to lead His people in war, Christ Ascended to Heaven to take His throne to lead.  Ephesians 1:19-23(ESV) ¹⁹and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might ²⁰that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. ²²And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, ²³which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

He is above all power, authority, dominion and every name. There is no one who can displace Christ in this war and He is currently placing all things under his feet. He is over all things and the Head of the body which is the church, which is the fullness of Christ.

Christ cannot rule without a people. What good is a king without subjects to rule. Christ is currently collecting His subjects. He does this by taking people captive. All humanity belongs to Satan when born and needs to be taken captive by Christ to escape the Satanic kingdom. When Christ takes a captive He does not keep that person in chains, but rather gives them gifts and sends them back to the front lines to continue the battle. Christ is building the Church and providing it with everything necessary to win the war.

Christ has given you a gift if you belong to Him. You are to use that gift to strengthen the Church. Our job is to continue building the Church until it is complete. Christ gives us the talent to do that. The more we participate in this endeavor the closer we come to completing Gods work. There will come a time when that last person who will complete the Church will be taken captive. When that happens then be prepared to meet our Lord. 

The Church was born after the ascension of Christ. It was at that time that Christ sent the Holy Spirit and began taking possession of His inheritance. Christ is currently leading His people to victory as He reclaims what Adam lost. The Church is the means by which He is accomplishing this. He is taking out a people from Adams progeny to rule with Him when He expels the usurper. We will explorer what other functions Christ does during His session in future posts.

As we continue our journey through the Bible using the Grammatical/Historical method of interpretation (literal method) we want to look at the Church. Previously I have demonstrated that God’s people in the Old Testament were the Jew. God made unconditional promises to them which have not yet been carried out. In the fullness of time God sent His Son to fulfill God’s purposes in history. Israel rejected God’s Son and as a result salvation was brought to the Gentiles until Israel returned to their God and accepted their Messiah.

What then is going on during this time period where the Gentiles are experiencing the blessings of God and the Jew is experiencing His hardening? The present time period or dispensation is know as the age of grace or the Church age. So what is the purpose of the Church? In order to understand the purpose we need to look at the ascension and session of Christ.

The Church had a beginning, and it started in heaven after the ascension. By looking at the ascension of Christ we can better understand what is exactly involved with the current dispensation. Lets begin by looking at Acts.

Acts 1:9-11(ESV) ⁹And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. ¹⁰And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, ¹¹and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

Prior to the above event Christ repeatedly told the disciples He would be killed and that He must ascend back to where He came from. John 6:62(ESV) ⁶²Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? John 16:28(ESV) ²⁸I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.” John 7:33-35(ESV) ³³Jesus then said, “I will be with you a little longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. ³⁴You will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come.” Not only did He tell them about His ascension, but He also revealed that when He did return to His fathers house He would somehow empower those He left on earth. John 14:12(ESV) ¹²“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. John 14:28(ESV) ²⁸You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.

Christ’s disciples still did not have a clue about what is going on because at the ascension as they stood looking up, two angels had to explain what the significance of the event was. The significance was that Christ physically went up through the air into heaven. The ascension was a physical event because Christ has a body in His humanity which demands location. Hebrews 4:14(ESV) ¹⁴Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. Christ’s body passed through the heavens which indicates that it was a physical journey through space. From this point on we never see Christ on earth again. When anyone had a vision of Christ (Stephen, Paul) it was always of Him in heaven. Christ’s body has a physical location at the very throne of God. Just as He physically ascended into heaven so shall he also physically return. It is this event that is next on God’s timetable.

After Christ ascended He sat down on His Fathers throne where  He began what is known as His session or rule. He began to do what needed to be done to accomplish God’s purposes. Christ could not do what was necessary to reclaim earth until He claimed the throne. He now sits where nothing can touch Him. He has taken the high ground where it is impossible to defeat Him. Part of that session involves the Church. It is at the session of Christ that the Church had its beginning and we will look at that next.

We have seen in the previous posts that God has every intention of carrying out His promises to the nation Israel. We have seen how God has operated in history during the various dispensations and the promises He has made to mankind in general and also Israel specifically. We have also looked at the book of Romans where Paul demonstrates that it is only because of God’s mercy that salvation has come to the Gentiles because of Israel’s hardening. Let’s examine what is going on since Christ’s ascension and see what this thing called the “Church” is, and what purpose it has in history.

Acts 1:6-8(ESV) ⁶So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” ⁷He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. ⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 

After the resurrection and just before the ascension of Christ the disciples were apparently still confused as to what was going on. They wanted to know when Christ would bring in the promised kingdom. All the disciples were Jewish at this point in history and know what promises God and Christ had made concerning Israel. They were under the impression that those promises were about to be fulfilled thus the question “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”. We see from Christ’s response that indeed there will be a restoration of the kingdom to Israel, but it will be in God’s time. The disciples were to wait until the Holy Spirit would begin revealing all truth to them. They were to concern themselves with spreading the Gospel throughout the world.

After the Ascension of Christ he took His rightful position at the right hand of His Fathers throne. We have a human being now occupying the seat of power in heaven. There is a physical spiritual body (we will all enjoy this body at the resurrection) of a human being (Christ) seated at the right hand of God. Christ has won the war. No one can touch Him when He occupies this position. We are simply waiting for God to make His enemies His footstool. It is here that Christ will function as our High Priest making continual intercession for those that belong to Him.

The first act that Christ accomplished when He reached the throne was to send the Holy Spirit to His church. This happened on the feast of Pentecost ten days after the ascension. This is an important event in the history of the world. For the first time in history God indwelled humanity permanently. This is what the New Covenant was all about. God indwelling believers and writing the Law in their hearts. Sealing them as children of God empowering them to live for God. There are many things that happen when we become a Christian. I hope to explain them in future posts if Christ delays His coming.

This is the birth of the Church. If the Church has a birthday then it is safe to say that it did not exist before that day. It also follows that if the Church has a birthday it has a different purpose and destiny from the Old Testament saints, and Israel. It is my belief that the future of the Church is to be the Bride of Christ. They are those whom Christ has purchased since His resurrection. There destiny is forever linked to Christ and His destiny. I believe that Christ will call the Church to be with Himself at some point in the future. That we will be taken out of the world, receive our new eternal bodies, receive our rewards at the judgment seat of Christ, and be married to Christ just before He claims His inheritance. I also believe that we will be priests and kings and rule with Christ from New Jerusalem during the Millennial Kingdom.

These are but a few distinctions that Covenant Theology would not agree with. So I hope you can see that by using a consistent literal interpretation of Scripture you realize a clear cut distinction between Israel and the Church. They have separate destinies and purposes. We also begin to realize that the future is also very different from the Covenant Theology position. Perhaps we can cover some of those differences in future posts also.

Romans 1:16-17(TNIV) ¹⁶I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. ¹⁷For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

Romans 11:33-36(TNIV) 33Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! 34“Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?” 35“Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?” 36For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.