One of the great mysteries in Scripture concerns the identity of Jerusalem. Today many Christians wait to see a new temple built in old Jerusalem and yearn for the day when this same old Jerusalem shall be made a praise upon the earth. But, the prophecies concerning Jerusalem do not deal with old Jerusalem and Ezekiel’s vision concerning a new temple do not relate to some new physical temple that will one day be built in old Jerusalem. No, these prophecies speak about the overcomers of God, the sons of God and the Bride of Christ, whom John saw as New Jerusalem descending from heaven.

In the Old Testament it is primarily the prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel who spoke about this new Jerusalem. We need to interpret the prophets through the filter of the Revelation given to John and the other New Testament apostles and prophets. For example, what does John mean when he says, “Then the angel^[a] showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ² through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life^[b] with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” (Revelation 22:1-2, ESV)

First, take note that in this passage John says the very same thing which Ezekiel prophesied when talking about the new temple to come. Look particularly at verse 12 below to see this. Ezekiel said,

Then he led me back to the bank of the river. ⁷ As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other. ⁸ And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea;^[b] when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh.^[c] 9 And wherever the river goes,^[d] every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea^[e] may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes. ¹⁰ Fishermen will stand beside the sea. From Engedi to Eneglaim it will be a place for the spreading of nets. Its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea.^[f] 11 But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt. ¹² And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing. (Ezekiel 47:6b-12)

Notice that trees grow on each side of the river. The river itself is the water of life, Jesus Christ. The water, representing Christ’s truth and life, flows to the salty sea. This sea is mankind. Mankind dwells in the salty, murky, dark waters under the firmament of heaven. Remember the second day of creation, “And God said, “Let there be an expanse^[a] in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” ⁷ And God made^[b] the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. ⁸ And God called the expanse Heaven.^[c] And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.” (Genesis 1:6-8) The waters “above the expanse” are the waters of life.  A time is coming when this water above the expanse will flow into the water below the expanse. This will make the salty water into “fresh” water, that is, it will bring life and healing to the “fish of the Great Sea.” The fish are men. Remember that Jesus calls us to be fishers of men. But, what are the trees? Isaiah prophesied,

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
    because the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;^[a]
    he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
    and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;^[b]
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,
    and the day of vengeance of our God;
    to comfort all who mourn;
³ to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
    to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
    the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;
that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
    the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.^[c]
4 They shall build up the ancient ruins;
    they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
    the devastations of many generations. (Isaiah 61:1-4)

The trees we see in Ezekiel and Revelation are these “oaks of righteousness.” These are the firstfruits of God, the first human beings besides Jesus ever to be glorified with immortal bodies. To them will be granted a “beautiful headdress” in place of the ashes of dust they now bear. Today they mourn under the burden of their faint spirit, their unfruitfulness, and the sin of their flesh. Tomorrow they will be clothed with a garment of praise. Tomorrow, at their glorification, they will produce new, good fruit each month. Their leaves, their produce, will bring healing to the nations. To them it shall be granted to build up the ancient ruins, to raise up the former  devastations, and to repair the ruined cities. These trees are the ones whom the Bible also calls “New Jerusalem,” as prophesied by Isaiah.

For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
    and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not be quiet,
until her righteousness goes forth as brightness,
    and her salvation as a burning torch.
² The nations shall see your righteousness,
    and all the kings your glory,
and you shall be called by a new name
    that the mouth of the Lord will give.
³ You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
    and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
⁴ You shall no more be termed Forsaken,^[a]
    and your land shall no more be termed Desolate,^[b]
but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her,^[c]
    and your land Married;^[d]
for the Lord delights in you,
    and your land shall be married.
⁵ For as a young man marries a young woman,
    so shall your sons marry you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
    so shall your God rejoice over you. (Isaiah 62:1-5)

 This is the same image which John saw and wrote of.

⁹ Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.”¹⁰ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, ¹¹ having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. ¹² It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— ¹³ on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. ¹⁴ And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. (Revelation 21:9-14)

So, when John says, “Then the angel^[a] showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ² through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life^[b] with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations,” (Revelation 22:1-2) this speaks of God’s Spirit, God’s water of life, moving without hindrance through the very essence (“middle of the street of the city”) of each overcomer who comprises New Jerusalem! And it is this unhindered flow of the water of life, the very fullness of Jesus Christ himself, which produces in us ongoing fruit which will bring healing to the entire earth! Let us then each aspire to become these oaks of righteousness that will heal a broken and hurting world.

The Bible speaks to people who know God, not to people who do not know him. Jesus reserved his harshest criticism and judgment for the religious leaders, those who believed they stood the very closest to God. “To whom much is given, much shall be required.” The apostles warned us that those who teach the Word of God shall be held to a higher standard of accountability than those who do not. The writer of Hebrews warned that it would be better to have never believed in the Gospel than to turn away from its truth.

Jesus did not lightly say that people who bear bad fruit would be cut off of his vine (separated from him) and would be thrown into the fire to be burned. This burning is the second death which occurs in the Lake of Fire according to the Book of Revelation. The Lake of Fire is the application of God’s Law upon those who refuse to obey him in this flesh. This is also the place that Jesus calls the “outer darkness.” This outer darkness will be the place where rebellious men finally learn to obey their Creator. Their rulers here will be those sons of God who have learned to obey God to the best of their ability and who yearn to walk with him in total perfection and obedience, only doing what they see their Father doing. They will rule with a “rod of iron,” the application of God’s Law. No longer will men be allowed to carry out every sin they conceive. Every single sin will be punished according to God’s perfect plan of justice. For example, those who lead slovenly lives and expect everyone else to feed, clothe, and pay for their drugs will become the slaves of those who exercise self-control. Yes, in God’ perfect economy even slavery has its place, the place where rebellious sinners learn obedience.

Therefore let us learn how to judge our fruit and let us be sure that we bear good fruit instead of bad. Paul defined the criteria for good fruit to the Galatians. And remember, to understand the good we must also understand the bad. Paul said,

¹³ For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. ¹⁴ For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁵ But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.

Keep in Step with the Spirit

¹⁶ But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. ¹⁷ For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. ¹⁹ Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, ²¹ envy,^[d] drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. ²⁴ And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

²⁵ If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. (Galatians 5:13-26, ESV)

 Paul then elaborated upon these ideas to the Ephesians.

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. ² And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

³ But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. ⁴ Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking,which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. ⁵ For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. ⁶ Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.⁷ Therefore do not become partners with them; ⁸ for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light ⁹ (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), ¹⁰ and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. ¹¹ Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. ¹² For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. ¹³ But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, ¹⁴ for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,

¹⁵ Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶ making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. ¹⁸ And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, ¹⁹ addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, ²⁰ giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, ²¹ submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. (Ephesians 5:1-21)

And to the Romans Paul said,

⁴ Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God. ⁵ For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death. ⁶ But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way ofthe Spirit and not in the old way of the written code. (Romans 7:4-6) 

Today we have a choice. Do we live according to the Spirit and therefore produce fruit for God? Or, do we set our minds upon the flesh and upon deeds of darkness? If we live according to the flesh then we will produce fruit for death and our place will be in the outer darkness when Jesus comes to judge the world. If we produce fruit for death we will be found unworthy to be called a son of God and God will assign us a place with the hypocrites where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.”

(Note: I understand that every sincere Christian is at a different place in his or her walk with God. There will be people whom God accounts as his son whom we would probably despise if we merely knew them after the flesh. For an excellent teaching on this topic see chapter ten of Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. C.S. Lewis was one of God’s prophets who taught much about becoming a Son of God. See especially his masterpiece entitled Till We Have Faces. Then read my book When We Awake which you can find in the links on the left of this page).

When we believe in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins and for the salvation of our souls we receive the earnest of the Holy Spirit, which gives us the power to become sons of God. We do not suddenly become sons of God like so many falsely teach. Simply re-read the parable of the sower and the seeds from the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke to see this is so. Also remember John 1:12, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” So far you and I have only received power to become sons of God. We have not yet been made sons of God. Nevertheless, Jesus and the prophets did give us clear instructions so that we could discern whether or not we walk upon that one, narrow path which will result in our manifestation as a son of God. Those instructions include the doctrine of fruit which we are now studying.

The Gospel begins with John the Baptist saying,

“You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. ⁹ And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham.¹⁰ Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.“ (Matthew 3:7b-10 ESV)

John spoke to the religious hypocrites of his day, the Pharisees and the Sadducees. I speak to the religious hypocrites of my day, those who call themselves by the name of God and yet teach men to do evil in his name. These are those who call evil good and good evil, who are righteous in their own eyes, and yet are filled with nothing but dead men’s bones. They hold the truth in unrighteousness and teach the doctrines of men in place of the doctrines of God. They do not follow the narrow path of God’s Word, nor do they teach others to do so. They make men into the sons of Hell which they themselves are, thus making men into the image of their father, Satan, rather than into the image of God. As John warned, these shall be cut down and thrown into the fire.

Jesus himself spoke about bearing fruit toward God many times in his ministry. Early on he said,

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. ¹⁶ You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷ So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Thus you will recognize them by their fruits. (Matthew 7:15-20)

Here, like John before him, Jesus criticized religious leaders who pretend they serve God, but in reality are false prophets. He told us we could recognize false prophets by looking at their fruit. What is their fruit? Anything dealing with their life, for example, their wife, their children, their dress, their demeanor, their habits, their teaching. A person’s fruit is that which you see concerning him. Is the fruit bad or is it good. Would you eat it, that is, would you want that type of fruit in your life. It is very common, for example, that people consider preacher’s kids to be brats, or to be arrogant. If the kids exhibit these traits what does that tell you about their father and mother? So, examine your fruit. First identify it. What is your fruit? Now determine whether your fruit is good or bad.

If you think your fruit may tend toward what God would judge to be bad, then consider Jesus’ next teaching about fruit:

³³ “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. ³⁴ You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. ³⁵ The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. ³⁶ I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, ³⁷ for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:33-37)

If you can “make” your fruit either good or bad, then you must have some control over your own tree, your own self, right? The nature of your tree depends upon the treasure in your heart. Where is your treasure, on earth or hidden in Christ above? The vast bulk of Scripture concerns building up your treasure in heaven. Our treasure should be the oil of the Holy Spirit which we must have in order to see God. We seek this oil by faith in the holy Son of God. We act upon this faith by works of obedience which God gives us to do as we seek his face. Our actions, like Abraham’s before us, prove our faith. By this shall we be justified in God’s sight. None of us create our good fruit by obeying God or his law perfectly. Our fruit develops by drawing upon and having faith in the sap which feeds and nourishes our tree, the living water of Jesus Christ himself (his flesh and his blood in the spiritual).

Jesus explained this shortly before men crucified him. He said,

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. ² Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. ³ Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.⁴ Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. ⁵ I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. ⁷ If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. ⁹ As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.” (John 15:1-10, ESV)

Again, examine your own fruit. Be diligent and be honest. What exactly is your fruit? Now determine whether your fruit is good or bad by holding it to the light of God’s word. Jesus said that the word that he spoke would judge us. So shall his word judge our fruit.

I Am Called By Your Name

Your words were found by me
and I ate them;
Your words became joy to me
so I ate them

I found delight in your words
and I ate them;
Your words delighted my heart
so I ate them

Because I ate your words
I am now called by your Name;
Yes, I ate your words
and I am called Shem Yehovah Elohim Tsaba*

Shem is the son of Noah from whom the Shemites (Semites=Israelites) come. The word Shem means “name.” Yehovah is the Jewish name for God (Jehovah) and means “the self-existent or eternal one,” and is also translated “LORD.” Elohim is the plural word for God and occurs many times, beginning with Genesis 1:1, i.e. “God created.” God calls his people Elohim, “I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.” (Psalm 82:6) It is the name for the glorified sons of God. And, Tsaba means “host” or “a mass of persons organized for war.” This phrase occurs at the end of Jeremiah 15:16.

One time when Jesus healed a blind man, the man said, “I see men as trees walking.” (Mark 8:24) This statement always puzzled me. Why was it recorded in Scripture? What did it mean? Until now I thought it merely meant that his vision was cloudy, that he could not yet clearly see natural things. Now I believe that it represented an opening of the blind man’s spiritual vision and concerns a work that God wants to do in all of us, and he wants to do it NOW. Consider the context.

Mark 8 begins with Jesus miraculously feeding four thousand people with seven loaves of bread and a few small fish. After they all ate to their satisfaction the disciples picked up seven baskets of leftover pieces. Immediately following this miracle the Pharisees demanded Jesus to perform some type of sign for them. This deeply troubled Jesus. Hadn’t he just done something quite amazing by multiplying a few loaves and fish into enough food to fill thousands? Even his disciples did not really understand what such a miracle meant and so, when they forgot to bring enough bread to eat, they fretted and feared when Jesus told them to “beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” (Mark 8:15) They thought Jesus referred to their failure to bring leavened bread to eat. Jesus knew their thoughts and said,

“Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened?¹⁸ Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember?¹⁹ When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” ²⁰ “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” ²¹ And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?” (Mark 8:17-21)

Here Jesus lays bare the problem with all of us. Our hearts remain hardened by our lusts and the deceitfulness of sin. We have eyes to see natural things, but we fail to see spiritual things. We have ears to hear natural sounds, but we fail to hear the whispering wind of the Spirit. We have minds which remember many things, but we fail to remember the spiritual truths and the miracles which God has already done in our lives. And so live for our fleshly lusts and we fear and we fret when we forget something or our circumstances don’t look too bright or feel just right. So, Jesus then reminds them (as he reminds us now) of his miracles concerning bread and asks them (us), “Do you not yet understand?” He knows they don’t and so, by the Holy Spirit, Mark then records another miracle with a blind man. Why now? Because Jesus’ own disciples were still blind to the spiritual truth he taught and represented, just as many of his disciples even today remain blind to the truths revealed throughout the Bible. Here is the story which follows:

²² And they came to Bethsaida. And some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him. ²³ And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, “Do you see anything?” ²⁴ And he looked up and said, “I see people, but they look like trees, walking.”²⁵ Then Jesus^[c] laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. ²⁶ And he sent him to his home, saying, “Do not even enter the village.” (Mark 8:22-26)

When we come to Jesus we are as this blind man. We can see nothing. We are as babes just come from the womb with eyes open, but not yet able to fix them upon anything or understand anything. When we believe in Jesus we allow ourselves to be touched by him; we allow him to pour living water (spit) into our eyes. The question then becomes, do we now see anything? That is, do we see anything for ourselves, or do we just mimic and parrot what our teachers tell us?

This story of the blind man sets forth a two-fold work in believers. When we first believe in Jesus we receive the earnest of the Holy Spirit which is the power to become a son of God. See John 1:12. But, we do not yet see everything clearly. Instead, says Paul, we see through a glass darkly. Our spiritual perception remains dim during this season of our faith for now we see “darkly,” not “clearly.” But we, like Mark’s blind man, should at the very least see what looks like trees, walking. This means that we should be cognizant of and recognize God’s trees who walk in the earth these days. These are the men and women among us, and hopefully we ourselves, who bear the righteous fruit God requires of his plants. Consider the following verses:

Blessed is the man^[a]
    who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
    nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
² but his delight is in the law^[b] of the Lord,
    and on his law he meditates day and night.

Yes, it is we, we who were born blind to God and filled with a sinful nature, who need God (Jesus) to spit (pour living water) into our spiritual eyes so that we can begin to see his ways. And as we learn to see we will begin to observe men (God’s servants) as trees walking, producing the fruit of righteousness that our LORD requires.  And when we faithfully do that, then Jesus will touch us a second time, will heal us completely by giving us glorified, immortal bodies, and then, and only then, shall we indeed see clearly!

In the beginning God created each plant so that it would reproduce itself with its own particular seed. God purposed that each plant would produce its own seed and thereby, from that seed, create its own particular fruit. Genesis recounts this part of creation as follows:

¹¹ And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants^[e] yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so.¹² The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. (Gen. 1:11-12)

And when he created animals he created each one so that it too would create its own seed and then reproduce “after its own kind.”

²⁰ And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds^[g] fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” ²¹ So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.²² And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” ²³ And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

²⁴ And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. ²⁵ And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. (Gen. 1:20-25)

Finally he created man “in his own image” and this created being also produced his own seed (sperm) so that he would thereafter propagate “after his own kind” as well.

²⁶ Then God said, “Let us make man^[h] 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.”

²⁸ And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” ²⁹ And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. (Gen. 1:26-29)

Later, God revealed to Moses that his eternal law forbids the mixing of one plant seed with another type of plant seed, one type of animal seed with another type of animal’s seed, and man’s seed with any other type of seed, whether plant or animal.

You shall keep my statutes. You shall not let your cattle breed with a different kind. You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed, nor shall you wear a garment of cloth made of two kinds of material. (Leviticus 19:19)

This profound truth revealed in Leviticus 19:19 betrays the motives of much of science in these later years. More and more we see scientists mix and change seeds through genetic manipulations.  We see large corporate interests, like Monsanto, create new organisms by genetic modification which do not reproduce their own seeds. We see governments around the world outlaw the possession of natural seeds, beginning years ago with beneficial plants like hemp, (Just watch some YouTube videos about the health benefits of hemp oil), and continuing today with the European Union’s new proposed law to outlaw the possession of any seeds not approved by the government.

Today we live in a world of “chimeras,” bizarre mutations of animals which scientists create through their callous disregard of God’s Law. The ancient books of Jasher and the Bible reveal that this type of genetic manipulation of God’s creation first became common in the days of Noah and led to God’s destruction of that world by water. Jesus said that the time just before his second coming would be “as the days of Noah” with respect to sin and lawlessness. Clearly the signs that these are as the days of Noah appear everywhere now, which means that the end of this age is at hand. And since we now see the end of the age approaching it seems to me that we ought also see signs of God’s main purpose for creating this world, and in particular, for creating us. This means that we should now be able to observe God’s fruit in the earth.

For many years I have taught that God’s primary purpose for creating man was to re-create himself, to “have children” so to speak. We call our children the “fruit of the womb.” God’s children, then, represent God’s fruit. This is why the Bible calls the sons of God the “firstfruits of creation.” They are the overcomers revealed in Revelation 14.

Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. ² And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, ³ and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. ⁴ It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb, ⁵ and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless. (Revelation 14:1-5 ESV)

 So now let us begin to examine how the Bible describes this special fruit we should now be able to see.

²³ And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. ²⁴ And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. ²⁵ And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” ²⁶ And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. ²⁷ And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?” (Matthew 8:23-27)

I daresay that compared to the faith of Christ all of us now have “little faith,” but some have less and some have more faith than others. We live now in that time prophesied by Jesus when “men’s hearts will faint with fear from what is coming upon the earth.” The sons of Satan are now well upon their way upon destroying much of the beautiful earth God has created. He is busily destroying this world even now with his manifold nefarious schemes. And some of us do not now possess the faith we need to meet the disasters lurking around the next corner. My hope is that this little teaching will help us acquire the faith we need in order to prevail. Everything depends upon acknowledging and feeding the implanted word of God within us. Remember the word of James, brother of Jesus.

   Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creation.

    [19] Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;  [20] for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness that God requires.  [21] Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.  James 1:18-21 (ESV)

The book of James, like every other book of the Bible, speaks primarily about the salvation of the soul, not the spirit.  The reason for this is that Jesus’ death and resurrection effected spiritual salvation for every man, woman, and child who ever lived or will live and nothing we can do will add or subtract from that.  This is our spiritual salvation.  It is true that we need to learn about that and come to believe it so that we understand that we have now been reconciled to God through Jesus.  The next thing we must do, though, is to get up and walk out of our prison of sin, our bondage to sin.  This deals with the salvation of the soul and is accomplished through the implanted word. This is that which will empower us to prevail in the dark days.

One of Jesus’ most memorable parables concerns the implanted word.  He said,

“A sower went out to sow.  [4] And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them.  [5] Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil,  [6] but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away.  [7] Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.  [8] Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.  [9] He who has ears, let him hear.”  Matthew 13:3-9 (ESV)

 No one, of course, could understand this parable so Jesus explained it, saying,

“Hear then the parable of the sower:  [19] When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path.  [20] As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy,  [21] yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away.  [22] As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.  [23] As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”  Matthew 13:18-23 (ESV)

Many people interpret this story to mean that only the last group of people achieve ultimate salvation while the rest fail to get saved and so spend eternity in hell.  That is wrong and false doctrine.  We are the soil, the earth upon which the seed is scattered.  Remember, God made man of the dust of the ground.  The seed is the word of God.  Each man, each piece and type of soil, hears the word of God in some form during his life.  That person, that soil, bears his own responsibility with respect to the word he hears.  Everyone hears the word of God through a variety of sources. The question is, what is each one going to do with that specific word God has given to him or her?

James says to to receive the word with meekness.  We each have hard hearts that want to go our own way.  We always think we are right, but we need to meekly admit and accept that only God is really right and that Jesus tells us through his word exactly what God says is right.  Consider the prophets:

The word “break up” here means to “to till the soil.”  We are the soil.  This phrase speaks of breaking up, or tilling, our hard unproductive ground, our hard hearts.  In order for the the word of God to take root in our soil, our individual lives, our land first needs to be tilled and broken up.  This is partly each man’s responsibility.  This is why the Bible teaches both God’s sovereignty and man’s duty.   God plants his word in us, but what have we done to prepare and keep the soil he has planted his word within?

Is your life characterized by impotence with respect to God’s word?  Do you find that the devil always snatches the word from you, leaving you unproductive in the sight of God?  Do you fret and worry about all things, failing to trust God for your provision?  Do you lust for ever more worldly goods?  Do you plow with wickedness instead of the word of God and, therefore, reap iniquity and eat the fruit of lies? Then break up your fallow ground!  Receive with meekness the implanted word!  Just begin to do the first thing that you know the word says to do.  Your ground is not destined to always remain hard and unproductive.  Shoulder your responsibility and get on with it.  Like a farmer, begin to turn your unproductive soil (life) into land that produces fruit.  Remember, God is making man into his image and your decision to become part of that process is integral to that plan.

This is how each of us must now prepare for the evil days we have entered. These days will grow harder and more evil. The devil is afoot, but greater is he who dwells within us. Now take this little teaching and grow in faith. Remember the word of God which you have and do it. This will begin to break up your fallow ground and will allow new seed (word of God) to sprout, which will in turn cause new and greater faith to arise in your heart.

But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed our report? So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:16-17)

I have known since I wrote the last post on the New Covenant that the theme of this post would be based upon Romans 10:17, the truth that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. But it was not until this morning that it occurred to me that I really ought to examine the verse that Paul quotes from Isaiah before I wrote about it. So today I read Isaiah 53:1, the source of this Scripture. I did not just read that verse though. I began at Isaiah 52:13 and read through Isaiah 55:13. And once again I saw an amazing thing… how the Book of Isaiah so often sheds light upon truths revealed in the New Testament.

First, this passage from Isaiah prophesies and predicts the centuries later suffering and crucifixion of our Savior, Jesus Christ. It is here where we first learn that God will send a particular servant who will be cruelly despised and tortured by men, a servant who will offer himself up as a living sacrifice and offering for the sins of all mankind. Yes, here resides the wonderful verse which reveals that all men have gone astray from their Creator, but that God laid mankind’s iniquity upon Jesus instead of the sinners themselves.

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:6)

And it is just before this where Isaiah says, “Who has believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?” the verse which Paul quotes in Romans 10. Now consider what Paul says next.  ”So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Interestingly, Isaiah talks about this very thing within the passage of Scripture from 52:13 to 55:13. Before considering the particular verses remember that in the Book of John Jesus calls him “the water of life” in chapter 4 and “the Bread of Life” in chapter 6. Also recall from many previous teachings on this site that the Biblical definition of “food” is God’s Word, or true doctrine. The following verses make this abundantly clear:

⁸ Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. ⁹ Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods which have not benefited those devoted to them.¹⁰ We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. (Hebrews 13:8-10)

Amazingly, then, later in this passage under consideration in Isaiah, the prophet speaks directly about food. He says,

“Come, everyone who thirsts,
    come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
    come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
    without money and without price.
² Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
    and delight yourselves in rich food.
³ Incline your ear, and come to me;
    hear, that your soul may live;
and I will make with you an everlasting covenant (the NEW COVENANT!),
    my steadfast, sure love for David. (Isaiah 55:1-3)

And now we have come full circle.  Isaiah has given us the secret for obtaining faith from God. We have to come to Christ for food and water, that is, come to him for the truth of His Word. Then we have to “buy” that food (truth) from him.  But, we don’t buy it with the money of men like we do “for that which is not bread.” We spend our dollars, our silver, and our gold for the natural foods, wants, and pleasures our flesh desires. But that is not true bread, says Isaiah. Instead we need to buy Christ’s water, bread, wine, and milk. But, these are spiritual things and we “buy” them “without money and without price!” How?

We buy Christ’s food, Christ’s truth, by “listening diligently.” Do you really care about the things of God? Or do you pretend you are a “good Christian” because you regularly attend church, say your prayers, and retain friendships with a few other “Christians?” Paul says that “faith comes by hearing.” You can only hear, says Isaiah, if you come to Christ, incline your ear to him, listen diligently for what he has to say to you, and then eat (take to heart) that which he says. THIS IS what it means when Paul says that “hearing comes by the Word of God.”

And this is why Paul begins his statement concerning faith by referring us to Isaiah 53:1. To have faith means that we become obedient to that “word of faith” each of us individually receives. “But they have not all obeyed the gospel.” No, we Christians have not all obeyed the gospel, nor have we obeyed the individual words of instruction God has given us. Instead, many of us have turned the doctrine of faith into a gospel of “grace to sin.” Others of us turned the true gospel of grace into a set of laws that bar many from salvation. This is why Paul says that whatever we do which does not proceed from faith is sin (Romans 14:23) and is also why he says not to quarrel over many doctrinal opinions (Romans 14). As we diligently listen to Christ, then he will lead us into all truth, “For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:17)

The Biblical feast of Second Passover begins this week on the evening of Tuesday, April 23. The Passover Lamb itself for this feast this year would be sacrificed in the afternoon of April 24 and the prophetic Passover of the firstborn sons of God would occur during the night of April 24 into April 25. I have now come to believe that God will “birth the manchild” at this particular time in some particular year. Please see my recent series on the Feast of Passover to understand what I am talking about if you don’t already. Also read my previous posts concerning Second Passover. (You can use the search bar at the right)

My point is this, Jesus prophetically fulfilled First Passover by resurrecting from the dead as the firstborn son of God. The Manchild, the overcomer first fruits sons of God, will, I believe, fulfill second passover by being “passed over” by the death angel and will then be changed “in the twinkling of an eye” into their immortal bodies. All of this will, I think, happen on some future week of Second Passover (which also includes the second week of unleavened bread). This could happen this year, but I have no specific word from the LORD about that. I actually do not think it will happen this week, but I do believe the year is near when it will.

As always, then, keep your spiritual house in order and free of leaven, without sin and hypocrisy.

The LORD be with you this beautiful day!

So what is the real difference between the Old and the New Covenants? It is the difference between flesh and faith, between works born of the natural, un-renewed mind of man and works born of the Holy Spirit.  It is the difference between man’s strange fire born of his fleshly mind and God’s fire which consumes the flesh. Remember Nadab and Abihu!

Amazingly, though, this covenant of faith has always been available to God’s people.  Consider how Hebrews affirms that “the gospel” was preached to the entire nation of Israel which left Egypt with Moses. “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.” (Hebrews 4:2 KJV)

So, why did the gospel not profit those Israelites under Moses to whom it was preached? Hebrew 4:2 says it is because the word of the gospel was not mixed with faith. Now let’s consider the rest of this passage from Hebrews.

4 Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. ² For good news [gospel] came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened.^[a] 3 For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said,

although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. ⁴ For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” ⁵ And again in this passage he said,

⁶ Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news [gospel]  failed to enter because of disobedience, ⁷ again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,

⁸ For if Joshua had given them rest, God^[b] would not have spoken of another day later on.⁹ So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, ¹⁰ for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.

¹¹ Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. ¹² For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. ¹³ And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Hebrews 4:1-13)

Pay close attention to verses 2 and 6 above. Verse two says that Israel heard the gospel but that the gospel did not benefit them because they did not mix the word of the gospel with faith. But verse six says that those who heard the gospel did not benefit from it because of their disobedience. Applying logic to these two verses we see that failing to mix the word of God with faith is the same as disobedience. This means one of two things, either lack of faith equals disobedience or disobedience results in lack of faith. The latter, I think, makes more sense. This means that Israel’s disobedience to God’s word resulted in a lack of faith which then caused them to fail to enter into God’s rest, into the good of the gospel. According to the Book of Hebrews this very thing can happen to Christians as well.

Nevertheless, we find that it is faith not good works that establishes our standing in Christ and with God. Remember Paul’s words,

3 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. ² Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? ³ Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by^[a] the flesh? ⁴ Did you suffer^[b] so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? ⁵ Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith— ⁶ just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?

⁷ Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. ⁸ And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify^[c] the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” ⁹ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. (Galatians 3:1-9, ESV)

So, how do we get the faith to mix with God’s word which we need to be able to enter into his rest and thus into his Kingdom? Can I simply decide to believe and then suddenly become a man who is profited by the gospel? This seems to me to be the crux of the mystery of the gospel. What is it exactly which separates the overcomer in God from the one that does not overcome? How and why is it that one Christian receives the crown of life and the other rewards Jesus mentions in Revelation 2 and 3 and the other Christian has his name blotted out of the Book of Life according to Revelation 3:5?

I believe the passage quoted from Hebrews 4 above reveals the answer. Anyone who would be an overcomer must act upon the word of God which he has received, which he knows to be true. He must obey Jesus Christ. These acts of obedience will lead to ever more revelation of God’s word and will, in turn, lead to more good works. This is what Paul means when he says,

¹² Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, ¹³ for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:12-13)

Even though Paul does exhort us to work out our own (soul) salvation we must remember that it is God himself who actually works his will within us in order to accomplish this. This is the New Covenant, the covenant which is from faith to faith. “For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:17 KJV)