Beware of those who mind earthly things

Beware of those who mind earthly things

Israel walked under the physical letter of the law. Their faith was connected to signs and miracles which showcased the power of God in this earthly environment. Their inheritance is the earth, the physical realm, the tangible things.

Today, however, in this dispensation of grace, we are called to walk according to a different realm. We walk according to the newness of the spirit (grace), not the oldness of the letter, (law). (Rom.7.6). Our dispensation is not connected to the natural world. Our faith is not connected to signs and miracles, or to anything tangible. Paul writes that our walk is from faith to faith (Rom.1:17), from our initial faith in the gospel to our continued faith in the knowledge of the Word, applied to our daily walk. Our inheritance is the heavens, the spiritual realm, the things that are not of this world.

Now, why do I mention all this?

Being In Christ Part2 201127

What does it REALLY mean to be 'In Christ'?

According to 2 Corinthians 5:17, when you hear the Gospel and respond positively to the faith that wells up inside you, and you call upon God, ---in that moment you are sealed into the body of Christ (in Christ) by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor.12:13) and you become a new creation (or a new creature, KJV 2 Cor.5:17). But, notice the word "if" in the verse. This makes it conditional! It is only if we are in Christ that we are a new creation! In order to understand what "a new creation" means, we need to dig into what is means to be "in Christ".

Paul, The First into a New Program

Paul, The First into a New Program

It is incredibly important to understand God's Word in the right context, and this is greatly supported by identifying periods of time, being aware of patterns or nuances, recognizing people groups and changes in program or instruction throughout the Bible. The example below is one such instance where, based on what Paul says, "that IN ME first...as a pattern...", it could be a bit confusing what he means by it! We have to dig in deeper and analyze why Paul said this and understand it in context with right division in the Word.

Two Verses that might Challenge your Doctrine (Part.2)

Two Verses that might Challenge your Doctrine (Part.2)

This is part 2 of the series

Click here to start with Part 1

The two verses I deal with in this article played a HUGE role in helping me to understand the Bible in its proper context. If one does not understand how to divide the Word and bring context to the two verses that are mentioned in this article, they can be pretty hard to interpret correctly. As I mentioned before in part 1, these are the two verses that got me on the path of studying the Word in a dispensational way, (or as Paul puts it, rightly dividing the Word of truth, 2 Tim.2:15). The reason is because these two verses mention some very interesting things, things that will cause you to question if you actually read the verse correctly, things that will certainly make you think twice about what Paul was really saying.

Two Verses that might Challenge your Doctrine (Part.1)

Two Verses that might Challenge your Doctrine (Part.1)

The following two verses referenced below played a HUGE role in helping me to understand the Bible in its proper context. If I never knew at that time what I now know about the Bible, these two verses would have been hard to swallow, hard to digest, hard to agree with! I trust you get my point. :)

In actual fact, it is these very two verses that got me on the path of studying the Word in a dispensational way, (or as Paul puts it, rightly dividing the Word of truth, 2 Tim.2:15). The reason is because these two verses mention some very interesting things, things that will cause you to question if you actually read the verse correctly, things that will certainly make you think twice about what Paul was really saying. 

The Connection between Abraham and Paul (Part.2)

The Connection between Abraham and Paul (Part.2)

This is part 2 of the series
Click here to start with Part 1

Lets connect the dots between Abraham and Paul

Having set the scene, in part 1, that creation is corrupt in both heaven and earth, we indicated that God predestined the cleansing of these two realms by two separate people groups. Genesis 22:15-17 is an incredible verse that describes the two people groups in God's plan of redemption, but lets have a look at some even more incredible connections (similarities or parallels) within these two people groups.

The Connection between Abraham and Paul (Part.1)

The Connection between Abraham and Paul (Part.1)

Setting the scene

There are 2 programs in God's PLAN of redemption; an earthly program and a heavenly program. We all know that Genesis 1:1 reads,

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Heaven and earth are two separate realms that make up God's creation. We should also be aware that both these realms are corrupt and need 'cleansing'.