|
DISPENSATIONAL DISINTEGRATION
GRACE IN ECLIPSE A Study on Eternal Rewards by Zane C. Hodges, Th.M.
critiqued by MILES J. STANFORD -- August 1993
DISPENSATIONAL DISINTEGRATION GRACE EVANGELICAL SOCIETY PURPOSE -- The stated purpose of GRACE EVANGELICAL SOCIETY (GES) is to "promote the clear proclamation of God's free salvation through faith alone in Christ alone...." The Society is located in Roanoke, Texas, and its leadership is composed of Zane C. Hodges, Robert N. Wilkin, Arthur L. Farstad, and Charles C. Bing. The primary ministry of the Society has been to promote free grace for salvation through faith alone, in opposition to John MacArthur's Lordship Salvation--which erroneously amalgamates initial faith and discipleship. The basic outreach of the Society is by means of a semi-monthly 4-page "GES News" paper, and their semiannual Journal. FREE GRACE (LIMITED) -- While the Society stands for grace, and "free salvation through faith alone," that does not extend to the life of the Christian. Mainly through the writings of Dr. Hodges, the Society promotes the Overcomer error identical to that set forth by Joseph C. Dillow, in The Reign of the Servant Kings. THE OVERCOMER ERROR -- This particular Overcomer error is as follows: The Christian may live a carnal and unfaithful life, and yet be assured of "entering the Kingdom" (they mean the Millennial Kingdom). On the other hand, unless the believer lives a consistently faithful and victorious life to the very end, he will forfeit his rewards, heirship, reign with the King, and stand in danger of being bound and cast into "outer darkness," with "wailing and gnashing of teeth." DALLAS THESIS -- In the Spring 1992 issue of the Journal of Grace Evangelical Society, pp. 11-34, there is an article by Gregory P. Sapaugh, pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church, in Starkville, Mississippi. The title of the Paper is, "A Call to the Wedding Celebration: An Exposition of Matthew 22:1-14." It is an abridged rewriting of the author's thesis, "An Interpretation of Matthew 22:1-14" (Th.M. thesis, Dallas Theological Seminary, 1991). INTRODUCTION -- In his Introduction, Sapaugh states: This article is an exposition of Matthew 22:1-14, commonly referred to as the "parable of the Wedding Celebration." It is one of the 12 parables in Matthew concerning "the Kingdom of Heaven," and one of three which speaks of "the darkness outside." The prevailing interpretation of the passage is that it concerns the loss of eternal salvation. But a close analysis of the details of the parable yields some problems with this position. The goal of the article is to give an explanation that fits the details and imagery of the parable, and which is in harmony with the context of Matthew and the teaching of the NT (p. 11). All Overcomer teaching is centered in Matthew: the Sermon on the Mount in general, and the Parable of the Wedding Celebration (22:1-14) in particular. Hence Gregory Sapaugh's Overcomer article is in "harmony with the context of Matthew," all right, but in what portion of "the teachings of the NT"? Certainly not in the grace realm of the Pauline Church Epistles! NON-DISPENSATIONAL – "As for the NT, all is OT (Law) to Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 19." Charles Feinberg said, up to these points "the NT is Jewish all the way." The Overcomer teaching takes that which belongs to Israel and her Millennial Kingdom, and fastens it upon the heavenly Church. This is akin to all Covenant, as well as the Saucy-Bock-Blaising progressive Neo-Dispensationalism, teaching. UNDERLYING ERRORS -- There are two errors that must be established in order for the Overcomer aberration to exist: (1) To make Jesus' Jewish disciples Christian, and (2) to make synonymous the Kingdom of God, and the Kingdom of Heaven. CHRISTIAN JEWISH DISCIPLES -- (1) Therefore it seems most reasonable [emphasis ours] to see the Parable of the Wedding Celebration as being addressed, not to the religious authorities, but to the crowd of people, many of whom believed Jesus to be the promised Messiah. We would thus expect the lesson of the story to be primarily directed to those who believe in Christ (p. 13). The Jewish disciples, who "believed Jesus to be the promised Messiah," were in no way Christians. They were believers in the Messiah and His coming Messianic Kingdom. But Christians, "those who believe in Christ," are of an altogether different new-creation species; a heavenly race, re-created in the glorified Lord Jesus Christ. Those kingdom matters, such as the Parable of the Wedding Celebration, have nothing to do with the heavenly Body of Christ, and cannot be applied thereto. SYNONYMOUS KINGDOMS – (2) The parable proper begins in vs. 2: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man, that is, a king, who gave a wedding celebration for his son." The setting of the parable is a royal wedding party and is compared to the kingdom of heaven. The kingdom of heaven is the kingdom of God. "The kingdom of heaven" occurs 32 times in Matthew and is unique to his Gospel. That the kingdom of heaven is equivalent to the kingdom of God is first of all borne out in parallel passages in the other Synoptic Gospels where Mark and Luke use the "kingdom of God." Perhaps the most compelling evidence for equating the two terms is found in Matthew 19:23,24: "Then Jesus said to His disciples, Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." From this passage, the two terms are clearly synonymous (pp. 13,14). It has been at least a decade since the dispensational leaders forsook the rightly divided kingdoms, and began to consider synonymous the Messianic Kingdom of heaven, and the all-encompassing Kingdom of God. This merging of the two makes it possible to apply to the Church that which has to do with Israel. It enables the Overcomers, and Progressives, to get the Church into the Messianic Kingdom, and vice versa. KINGDOM DISTINCTIONS -- But this merging causes the breakdown of dispensationalism, which stands for the distinction between the two kingdoms, hence the separation of earthly Israel and the heavenly Church. Dr. Scofield did not fail to rightly divide the Word of truth: The Kingdom of God is the great inclusive term. The Kingdom of Heaven has its full manifestation in the millennial reign of Christ over the earth. The Church is a distinct Body of saved ones between Pentecost and the Rapture; and she will be associated with Him in the rule when the Kingdom of Heaven is set up on earth. The Kingdom of Heaven is in the Kingdom of God, but it does not follow that the two terms are synonymous. For example, the State of Texas [including Roanoke] is in the United States, but it is not the United States [however much Texans may think otherwise!]. Because it is in the US it has much in common with the US. It has the same president, the same Constitution is the supreme law, the same language is spoken [oh, sure!], but it would be mere confusion to speak of the State of Texas and the US as interchangeable. The Kingdom of Heaven is in the Kingdom of God (Addresses on Prophecy, pp. 106,107). In his Introduction to Dr. Chafer's The Kingdom in History and Prophecy, Dr. Scofield wrote: Perhaps no truth of the divine revelation has suffered more in the hands of interpreters than that concerning the kingdom. Following the Roman Catholic interpretation, Protestant theology has very generally taught that all the kingdom promises, and even the great Davidic Covenant, are to be fulfilled in and through the Church. The confusion thus created has been still further darkened by the failure to distinguish the different phases of kingdom truth indicated by the expressions "kingdom of heaven," and "kingdom of God." The NT reveals the present dispensation as a parenthesis in the prophetic program during which the Church is called out from among the Gentiles [and Jews], a stranger and pilgrim Body, belonging to the Kingdom of God, but in no sense identical with the Millennial Kingdom of heaven (pp. 5,6). OVERCOME, OR ELSE -- These final Sapaugh statements are typical of the Overcomer teaching, i.e., "faithfulness" and "good works" to the "very end," or it is "outer darkness" for you! The parable of Matthew 22:1-14 concludes in vv. 8-14 with an extension of the offer of a place at the wedding celebration of Christ to all people including the Gentiles. Many accepted the invitation and prepared themselves with faithful Christian living which is required for presence at the banquet. The unfaithful and disobedient believer who did not prepare himself for the banquet found himself excluded from the joy of co-reigning with Christ at the banquet (p. 33). One valid motivation for being faithful to Christ is the glorious prospect of receiving rewards and, as Matthew 22:1-14 teaches, reigning and fellowshipping with our King in His kingdom. In the words of Matthew, they are for the ones who are clothed in the "wedding garment" of good works. The one not so clothed will be consigned to the "darkness outside," which is figurative of an experience in the kingdom with serious restrictions. For the truth is, that while all believers are eternally redeemed, only faithful believers will eternally reign (p. 34). GRACE IN ECLIPSE -- A STUDY ON ETERNAL REWARDS Authored by Zane C. Hodges; published by Redención Viva, 1985, 120 pages. FOREWORD -- Dr. Charles F. Stanley, pastor of First [Southern] Baptist Church of Atlanta, wrote the Foreword of Dr. Hodges' book. It is evident that Dr. Stanley also promulgates this Overcomer error: In this timely work Prof. Hodges presents an exegetical-oriented treatise on the doctrine of rewards and their relationship to the Gospel. Through a careful analysis of the pertinent passages of Scripture, he argues conclusively that the believer's faithfulness or unfaithfulness to the cause of Christ in this life will result in both rewards and regrets in the life hereafter. In refocusing our attention on the eternal consequences of obedience or disobedience to God, Prof. Hodges has surfaced for us the biblical perspective on sin in the life of the believer. STANLEY ERROR -- Further evidence on the Overcomer error is reflected in Dr. Stanley's book entitled Eternal Security, Oliver-Nelson Books, 1990: To be in "outer darkness" is to be in the kingdom of God but outside the circle of men and women where faithfulness on this earth earned them special rank and position of authority [emphasis his] (p. 126). Now imagine standing before God and seeing all you have lived for reduced to ashes. How do you think you would feel? How do you think you would respond? Picture yourself watching saint after saint rewarded for faithfulness and service to the King--and all the time knowing that you had just as many opportunities but did nothing about them. We cannot conceive of the agony and frustration we would feel if we were to undergo such an ordeal; the realization that our unfaithfulness had cost us eternally would be devastating. And so it will be for many believers. Just as those who are found faithful will rejoice, so those who suffer loss will weep. As some are celebrated for their faithfulness, others will gnash their teeth in frustration over their own shortsightedness and greed (p. 127). PAUL, THE FORSAKEN -- Nearly a century ago Wm. R. Newell lamented: Just as definitely as Moses received the Law for Israel, so Paul received the Gospel of the grace of God (1 Cor. 15:1-4) for us, for the Church. How unutterably sad to find Christians shutting their doors in the face of Paul as he comes to tell them the glories of the heavenly message given to him--"the unsearchable riches of Christ"! In his last Epistle Paul mourns that "all which are in Asia"--of which Ephesus was the capital!--"turned away from me" (2 Tim. 1: 15). The lamenting and mourning continue to this very day. Paul could still mourn: All who are in Covenantism, Lordship Salvation, Neo-Dispensationalism, and Overcomerism, have turned away from me. DR. ZANE C. HODGES Dr. Hodges' book, Grace In Eclipse, represents the standard Overcomer error, in which he has developed doctrine concerning the past, present, and future of the Christian. From the Church Epistles? In no way--but rather from Matthew: the Sermon on the Mount, an admittedly metaphorical parable from Matthew, and Israel's Messianic Kingdom! As are all Overcomer advocates, Dr. Hodges is a close adherent of the writings of G. H. Lang: It is right for G.H. Lang to say of the "outer darkness" that, "Few expressions have been treated with more laxity and liberty than this, though, seeing its solemnity, it should have received very exact study." His point is well taken and his general discussion of the term is outstanding. Most of the observations made by the present writer are anticipated by Lang (p. 118). MATTHEW-MINDED -- Crafted, anti-dispensational reasoning is the basis for his Overcomer theme: It is a useful conception to describe this Gospel [Matthew] as a "manual of instruction in the Christian way of life (p. 114). "In fact, the Sermon on the Mount can be seen as a masterful interweaving of Christian ethics. To be sure, the Sermon contains no overt salvation text such as John 3:16. We cannot be certain, however, that in its uncondensed form it did not. As all would agree, Matthew 5-7 take only a few minutes to read, and the actual sermon must have been much longer. Matthew’s condensation is what serves the purpose of his Gospel, and there is no good reason for thinking that Matthew’s Gospel was not written with a Christian audience in view (p. 21). PRE-CROSS JEWISH DISCIPLES "CHRISTIANIZED" – Before Jesus undertook to become a public preacher, He had already indoctrinated His disciples in the basic truths of salvation. In John’s Gospel we see that the disciples of Jesus have already become believers before the public ministry began (John 1:35-51; 2:11). The words of Jesus are pre-Pauline! The objection may be raised that it is inappropriate to read the words of Jesus through Pauline spectacles. But why? Paul himself claimed to have received his gospel directly from Jesus Christ (Gal. 1:11,12) (p. 19,20). DUAL GOSPELS -- With leadership and teaching such as this, it is little wonder that the mis-directed Church is earth-bound, and kingdom-driven. Jesus, as Messiah-King, preached the Gospel of the Kingdom exclusively to the lost sheep of Israel. The disciples believed on Him as such, the kingdom content of that Gospel being primarily the Sermon on the Mount. Paul, on the other hand, received the glorious Gospel of the grace of God directly from the glorified Lord Jesus Christ, his heavenly Gospel being directed exclusively to all sinners, Jew and Gentile alike, for re-creation in the ascended Saviour, Head, and Life of the heavenly Church. "WORDS OF JESUS" -- Though he [a disciple] had found the narrow gate and, by faith, passed through it on the restricted way, yet the question remained about how and where he should now construct his life’s experience. And to this there could be one answer for him also. He must build on the words of Jesus, for if he did not, calamity awaited him as well--not the calamity of eternal hell, to be sure, but calamity just the same. No wonder then that Paul strove to run a winning race and to avoid disqualification by his Judge (I Cor. 9:27). No wonder he entertained the thought that the life’s work of a man might be consumed by the flames of the Judgment Seat of Christ (1 Cor. 3:11-15). It is quite true that Paul taught justification apart from works. But he did not teach Christian living apart from works (pp. 24,25). There are two assertions to be considered here. (1) "He [a disciple] must build on the words of Jesus." (2) "But he [Paul] did not teach Christian living apart from works." KINGDOM TEACHING -- (1) It is true that the Jewish disciples were to build on the words of Jesus, as primarily depicted in the Sermon on the Mount--character traits developed commensurate with Messianic Kingdom requirements. But that has nothing whatsoever to do with the Christian, a member of the heavenly Body of Christ! Dr. Chafer said: Little would be known of the out-called heavenly Body from the teachings of Jesus, and nothing could be known from any portion of the OT, where it [the Church] is not once directly mentioned (The Kingdom in History and Prophecy, p. 74). SAVED BY FAITH, BUT... -- (2) Here is chronic Covenantism, i.e., salvation (justification) by faith, but sanctification includes works. Grace Evangelical Society was formed "to promote the clear proclamation of God's free salvation [justification] through faith alone in Christ alone." But it is evident that that does not include sanctification, since for them Paul "did not teach Christian living apart from works." This is an eclipse of grace! To be sure, we have also accepted an invitation to live in God’s kingdom. That destiny can be ours by simple faith alone, and is never subject at all to divine review. But to set forth on the pathway to Christian living is to hear God’s call to the highest privileges which eternity affords. It is to respond to the challenge to become joint-heirs with the King and to enter richly into His special joys. But before the celebration begins, there must come the review! The next words are solemn: "Then the king said to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen" (Matt. 22:13,14) (pp. 88,89). HEIR, HIDDEN ON HIGH -- The Christian, unlike the kingdom Jew, will not "live in God's kingdom"--by which the author means the Millennial Kingdom. Nether do Christians have to "respond to the challenge to become joint-heirs with the King." The home of the member of the Body of Christ is in glory--his life is "hidden with Christ in God" (Col. 3:3). The Christian is an heir by new-creation birth: "The Spirit Himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God; and if children, then heirs--heirs of Gods, and joint heirs with Christ--if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified together" (Rom. 8: 16,17). [All Christians suffer with Him; all Christians are glorified with Him.] "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Rom. 8:18). "And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore, thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ" (Gal. 4:6,7). "Heirs according to the promise" (Gal. 3:29), [not according to challenge, or works; and never forfeited]. THE BIG BACKDOWN! -- Here one must keep firmly in mind that we are dealing with a parable filled with symbolic elements. The man’s hands and feet are bound, our Lord reports. But no one takes this binding literally, even if it is thought that an unsaved man is in view. Indeed, the wedding garment he lacks is not literal, nor for that matter is the wedding supper. The Savior’s parable is a magnificent metaphor (p. 89). All of this Overcomer structure is built upon Matthew's Parable of the Wedding Banquet. If it is admitted to be but a symbolic, metaphorical parable, how is it that their leaders draw from this non-literal, parabolic, source to construct a doctrine upon which the eternal future of the Christian hinges? Parables are not the basis of doctrine. There is no suggestion here of punishment or torment. The presence of remorse, in the form of weeping and gnashing of teeth, does not in any way require this inference. Indeed, what we actually see in the image itself is a man soundly "trussed up" out in the darkened grounds of the king’s private estate, while the banquet hall glows with light and reverberates with the joys of those inside. That is what we actually see. And that is all! (p. 89). Upon what basis does the professor visualize all this? Is it too much to expect clear and sound doctrine for such an important aspect of the believer's future? OVERCOMER THREAT -- It is enough [too much!] to say that the failing Christian has missed a splendid experience of co-reigning with Christ, with all the multiplied joys which that experience implies. It is enough to affirm that he undergoes a significant exclusion from the "light and gladness, joy and honor" (see Esther 8:16) [Esther?] which the co-heirs experience in Christ. If he can view such a loss with equanimity now, our Lord makes it clear that he will not view it that way hereafter: "There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." And well there might be! The unfaithful Christian, like the ill-dressed guest, has missed the wedding supper just as surely as did those who spurned the invitation to begin with. Thus he joins the crowded ranks of the many who are called to co-worship, and misses the elite number of the few [emphasis ours] who actually attain it. And that is worth crying about! (p. 90). These Overcomer leaders have placed the Church in double jeopardy. They have relegated the heavenly Christian to Israel's earthly kingdom; and then threatened him with loss of all and banishment to "outer darkness" if he fails. Unless Dr. Hodges' Overcomer claims are viewed from the dispensational standpoint, he will convince, and thereby crush, you. "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth" (2 Tim. 2:15). KINGDOM COERCION -- The present-day Overcomer movement, as represented in such textbooks as Dr. Hodges' Grace in Eclipse, and Dr. Dillow's The Reign of the Servant Kings, is coercive, and threatening. The threat is that if the Christian fails to be "faithful" to the very end, and fails to produce (with God's help, of course) an adequate "cloak of righteousness," plus qualifying character for Israel's Millennial Kingdom--he will gain entrance, but will be deprived of all the kingdom benefits therein. He will not qualify for heirship, he will not reign with the King, he will be excluded from the light, and banished to "outer darkness." All believers share in the latter, aspect of that glory, the final resurrection; but only those who put to death the deeds of the body will share in the former, the future reign of the servant kings (Dillow, p. 381). GRACE GROUND -- What the Overcomer "grace" advocates fail to realize is that the member of the Body of Christ is a product of total grace, from start to finish, completely apart from any supplemental Christian "works." He is the fruit of the exclusive grace of the Cross-work of the sovereign Godhead: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. "If by grace, then is it no more of works; otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace..." (Rom. 11:6). MY SOVEREIGN FATHER -- Dr. Chafer knew and stood for the sovereignty of our heavenly Father: No human will [not even that of the Christian] was ever created to defeat the will of God, but rather the human will is one of the instruments by which He realizes His purposes for humanity. It has always been thus and must be so of necessity, since God is what He is. The one who meditates on the Person of God, the eternity of God, the omnipotence of God, the sovereignty of God as Creator of, and Ruler over, all things [including Satan and his demons], and the elective purpose of God, will be fortified against that form of rationalism [such as overcoming!]--subtle in character and natural to the human heart--which imagines that, in His creation, God has unwittingly so tied His own hands that He cannot with that absoluteness which belongs to infinity realize His eternal purpose (Systematic Theology III:235). "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He did predestinate, them He also called; and whom He called, them He also justified; and whom He justified, them He also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?" "For all things are for your sakes, that the abundance of grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God" (Rom. 8:28-31; 2 Cor. 4:15). FROM GLORY TO GROUND ZERO The following countdown is to establish the fact that grace has been eclipsed: the Overcomer error receives a grade of Zero. It fails to show that the "least" Christian overcame in Christ at Calvary (Gal. 2:20); that Christ glorified is his Life (Col. 3:4); and that that glorified life is eternally "hidden with Christ in God" (Col. 3:3). [15] - THE HEAVENLY KINGDOM -- Now what about my true position as a lowly Christian who often fails to maintain good works? Actually, I am already a member of a heavenly kingdom, the Kingdom of God; and have been ever since the moment I was reborn, by grace alone--at 4:30 p.m., September 19, 1940. "Giving thanks unto the Father, who hath made us fit 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 [heavenly] kingdom of His dear Son" (Col. 1: 12,13). "Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a people of His own, that ye should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1 Pet. 2:9). [14] - "GREATER" THAN THE GREATEST -- Being in Christ and the heavenly Kingdom of God, I am an heir of God and co-heir with the Son. We can compare my standing with that of a member of Israel's earthly Messianic Kingdom, whose earthdwellers are not in Christ, not members of His Body. They are under Him as King, earthly subjects of His theocratic kingdom. John the Baptist was a believer in the Messiah, and died as such. He was not a Christian, but will be a subject of the Millennial Kingdom. The Lord Jesus said of him, "He shall be great in the sight of the Lord" (Lu. 1:15). "Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist..." (Lu. 1:15; 7:28a). But when Jesus spoke of a member of the Kingdom of God, He said, "...but he that is least in the Kingdom of God is greater than he" (Lu. 7:28b). Living union with the glorified Lord Jesus Christ makes the infinite difference! [13] - I AM A CHOSEN, AND A CALLED ONE -- "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 sons by Jesus Christ to Himself according to the good pleasure of His [sovereign] will" (Eph. 1:4,5). Our Father has "called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began" (2 Tim. 1:9). [12] - I AM FORGIVEN, ACCEPTED, AND COMPLETE IN HIM -- "Having predestinated us unto the adoption of sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His [sovereign] will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, through which He hath made us accepted in the Beloved; in whom we have redemption through His Blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace." "And you are complete in Him, who is the Head of all principality and power" (Eph. 1:5-7; Col. 2:10). [11] - I AM A RECIPROCATED GIFT -- As a member of the Body of Christ--a part of His Beloved Bride--I am a gift of the Father to the Son, and a gift of the Son to the Father. "I pray for them; I pray not for the world, but for them whom Thou hast given Me; for they are Thine. And all Mine are Thine, and Thine are Mine; and I am glorified in them" (John 17:9.10). Dr. Chafer knew: The imagination will not have gone far astray if it pictures a situation in eternity past when the Father presents individual believers separately to the Son--each representing a particular import and value not approached by another. Like a chest of jewels, collected one by one and wholly diverse, these love gifts appear before the eyes of the Son of God. Should one be missing, He the Savior, would be rendered inexpressibly poor. Immeasurable and unknown riches of grace are latent in that superlative cognomen, those whom Thou hast given Me (Systematic Theology III:250). [10] - RECIPROCAL INDWELLING -- I am in the Father: "...unto the church of the Thessalonians, which is in God, the Father" (I Thess. 1:1). The Father is in me: "One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (Eph. 4:6). I am in the Son: "There is, therefore, now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:1). The Son is in me: "I am in My Father, and ye in Me, and I in you" (John 14:20). I am in the Spirit: "Ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit" (Rom. 8:9). The Spirit is in me: "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is of God" (1 Cor. 2: 12). [9] - I HAVE AN INHERITANCE, RESERVED IN HEAVEN – "An inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you" (1 Pet. 1:4). "The Spirit Himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God; and if children, then heirs--heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ" (Rom. 8: 16,17). "Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance; for ye serve the Lord Christ" (Col. 3:24). [8] - I AM TO BE RAPTURED – "For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord" (1 Thess. 4:16,17). [7] - MY GLORIOUS GLORIFIED BODY – "For our citizenship is in heaven [not in Israel's earthly Millennial Kingdom], from where also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change our lowly body, that it may be fashioned like His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself" (Phil. 3:20,21). There I will be, in glory, with my glorified body, indwelt by His glorified life, which is my life. All-glorious, whether or not I receive a single reward, and whether or not I lose all, consumed by fire. Whatever, I will still have all of Him! And that alone is infinitely more than any will have in the Messianic Kingdom, all outside of Christ. "For we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones" (Eph. 5: 30). [6] - AT THE BEMA, THE REWARD SEAT -- At the Bema I will be, both in body and life, like the one who is seated there. I will be completely conformed to His image--body, soul, and spirit. "We know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is" (1 John 3:2). "As we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly" (1 Cor. 15:49). It is not I who shall be judged, in that my glorified life is His life. All that was done in my unredeemed body, as a Christian, will be tested there. "Every man's work shall be made manifest; for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire, and the fire shall test every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built upon it, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet as by fire" (1 Cor. 3:13-15). "For we must all appear before the judgment [reward] seat of Christ, that everyone may receive the things done in the body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad [acceptable, or unacceptable]" (2 Cor. 5:10). Whatever works in my Christian life that have their source in the old Adamic man, the flesh, will prove to be unacceptable. They will not survive the test-fire--a total loss. They will go up in smoke. What a stench! Good riddance to "good old self"! Whatever works in my Christian life that survive the test-fire, will be rewarded. And that will be pure grace, because all such works were of Him who is my life, by His Spirit! "Being confident of this very thing, that He who hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.... For it is God who worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Phil. 1: 6; 2:13). [5] - SPOTLESS AND NON-WRINKLE! -- "For I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy; for I have espoused you to one husband that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ" (2 Cor. 11:2). "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" (Eph. 5:27). [4] - THE MARRIAGE OF THE LAMB -- "Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to Him; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white; for the fine linen is the righteousnesses [His] of the saints (Rev. 19:7,8). [3] - HERE WE COME!! -- Married, the glorified Bridegroom and His Bride leave heaven for earth, to establish Israel's Millennial Kingdom--over which the King and His Bride will reign and during which they will celebrate the Marriage Supper--a thousand-year honeymoon! "When Christ, who is our life, shall appear [on earth], then shall ye also appear with Him in glory" (Col. 3:4). [2] - "BRIGHT SHINING AS THE SUN" -- My body is glorified, like unto His body; my glorified life in that body is His life. All is ablaze with glory. "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Rom. 8:18). "This, then, is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all" (1 John 1: 5). Subject that to the Overcomer's "outer darkness," or any other darkness! [1] - INCOMPARABLE -- No subject of the Millennial Kingdom will ever so much as approach my personal position as the Bride of the King--neither John the Baptist, King David, Abraham, Isaac, nor Jacob. They and all Israel shall admire me, as part of the glorious Bride of their King, who co-reigns with Christ over the earth during the Millennium. They will be invited as guests, but not participants, of the Bridegroom and Bride's wedding celebration. "[God] hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus; that in the ages to come [millennium included] He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus" (Eph. 2:6,7). [0] - ZERO GRADE! -- Here is the Bride, her unacceptable works burned, her acceptable works rewarded, married, ablaze with glory, ready to celebrate and reign--and there is still no Millennial Kingdom! Hence, there is no possibility of applying the Overcomer's favorite Parable of the Wedding Banquet (Matt. 22:1-14) to the Church or the Christian. "Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God, our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen" (Jude 24,25). |
|
MJStanford
Home | MJS | Hungry Heart Devotional | Testimony | Memorial | Order Books | Email Best viewed in Explorer 6+ or Netscape 6+, 1024x768 screen display, 16 bit color or higher, and JavaScript on 900MB (2,000+ pages of text) Copyright © 1996-2009 withChrist.org Last updated: December 04, 2008 (Materials by Miles J. Stanford are republished here under exclusive permission from the author.)
|