Kingdom principles past vs. New Covenant future

I understand that Matthew 5 – 7 is written to the Jews, but when does it apply to them?  Is this passage describing the Kingdom?  If this instruction is for the Kingdom, why would they need it since they will have the Holy Spirit within them, the Law will be written in their hearts, and the Lord will cause them to walk in his statutes?

It applied to the Jews at the time the Lord Jesus Christ was talking to them. It is regarding and referring to kingdom principles – things that will be the norm in the kingdom – the righteous standard under which the kingdom will operate.  If this doctrine only applied to the kingdom, they wouldn’t need this instruction – particularly right then when the Lord was speaking to them; because under the New Covenant, the Spirit of God will be in them, causing them to keep his commandments.

Jeremiah 31:31

Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:

Ezekiel 36:37

Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock.

But Matthew 5 – 7 (and any other doctrine of the Lord Jesus Christ in his earthly ministry) was not only giving instructions about how the Kingdom will operate in the future, but also what the righteous standards were that they were to live by at that time.  Obviously, it would be the power of his word working in them then.  In the future, it will be the Spirit of God doing the work in them.

So, Matthew 5 – 7 was both (1) a present reality to those who were there and heard the Lord Jesus Christ detail the righteous standard to get into the kingdom and (2) a future hope of the kingdom.  He was preparing them to enter the kingdom by teaching them kingdom principles that had to be lived by at that time.

Remember that the Jews did not only have to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as their Messiah and be water baptized according to John’s baptism…

Mark 16:16

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

Luke 7:29

And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John.

…but they also had to do the works that Jesus Christ gave them.  They had to keep his word—his commandments—to the best of their ability without the Spirit of God in them.  You see that in John…

John 14:15

 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

John 15:10

If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.

Here are his commandments for the nation of Israel:

Matthew 5

1And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: [Notice he went up.  He is the Messiah.  Mountains in scripture represent kingdoms.  He is King.] and when he was set [royalty is seated], his disciples came unto him:

 

2And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,

3Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

We know the kingdom wasn’t there yet; he was saying they needed to have humility—a broken spirit before God.

 4Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

Again, that’s in the future coming Kingdom.

 5Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

‘You’re meek now; you will inherit the earth.’

 6Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

You hunger and thirst now, you will be filled in the kingdom.

 7Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

You’re merciful now; you obtain mercy then.

 8Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

You must do that now in order to see God.

So when you look at Matthew 5, 6 and 7, although they are Kingdom principles, they also applied to Israel at the time of Christ’s earthly ministry and before the dispensation of grace began in Acts 9.

Matthew 6:10

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

They’re waiting for the kingdom to come, but Christ’s instructions apply to them in the present.

 

Matthew 7:12

Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.

They have to keep the law and the prophets (keep his statutes) in order to enter the kingdom.

Matthew 7:13-14

Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:  Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

 

Matthew 6:33

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness [right now!]; and all these things shall be added [what they would eat and drink] unto you.

You might be asking: Even though the Lord is going to provide all those things in the kingdom, didn’t the Lord Jesus Christ provide what they would eat when he was on earth?

Matthew 14:19-20

And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.  And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full.

Here, Christ was giving them a taste of the kingdom.

 

Hebrews 6:4-5

For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,

 

Matthew 5:19

Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

The kingdom is still future and these commandments are the issue.

 

Matthew 5:21-22

Ye have heard that it was said of them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the [future] judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

The law said that if you killed a man you were in danger of judgment, but the Lord Jesus Christ is saying that even intent—being angry with your brother without a cause—will be judged.

Matthew 5:27-30

Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:  But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

The Lord was giving them instructions on how to get into the kingdom.  These things will be the righteous standard in the kingdom and he will cause them to keep his commandments; but the disciples who heard these instructions during his first coming needed to also keep these righteous commandments then to make it into the kingdom.  They were to work and do it in their own strength to the best of their ability; and when they failed they were to offer the proper sacrifice.  If they endured to the end they would be saved into the kingdom.

For Israel, it was like the seven days of creation:  work six days and rest on the seventh day.  They worked in their own strength six days (their lifetime).  It was a time of testing to see if they would do what the Lord said through Jesus Christ.  If they continued in his word until their death—or until the kingdom came—then they would get into the kingdom and the Lord would cause them to keep his statues.

Isaiah 42:21

The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness' sake [the Lord Jesus]; he will magnify the law, and make it honourable.

In essence, the things that the Lord tells Israel in Matthew are the Law.  The Jewish leaders with all their traditions of men had dishonored the law.  They brought it down from its original intent—love—to a system of rites and rituals that would produce self-righteousness apart from a proper heart attitude.

Isaiah 29:13

Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:

 

Mark 7:6

He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

 

Matthew 5:17-18

Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

So in Matthew 5 – 7, the Lord is magnifying the law and making it honorable.  He’s giving the true intent of the law.  He is clarifying it for them.

Hopefully this helps!  

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Northern California Grace Fellowship

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 Heir of God or Joint-Heirs with Christ? 

Wrongly Deriding Joint-heirs with Christ

To Confess or not to Confess.....that is the question

I realize that Romans 10 is addressed to Israel but do verses 9 – 13 say that it is still possible for Jews to get into the Kingdom program by confessing their sins, or is that how they could be saved only before the revelation of the mystery?

As we know from rightly dividing the word Romans, chapters 9, 10 and 11, are a parenthetical interruption of what Paul is telling the Gentiles about the cross.  Romans 9 is a summary of Israel’s past and how God dealt with them under their Kingdom program.  Romans 10 describes their present situation in the dispensation of grace.   Romans 11 is their future situation when God will deal with them again as a nation.

Many Lordship Salvation proponents use Romans 9 and 10 to say that you must "confess with your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord for salvation."  Paul wrote that in context, and it is not how Paul desires for you and me as Gentiles today to share the Gospel.  We use:

1 Corinthians 15:3-4

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

So what is Paul saying in Romans 10:9-13?  Notice verse 9 begins with ‘that’ which shows that this is part of a thought that he is already dealing with—the thought that he’s dealing with in chapter 10

Romans 10

1 Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.

So chapter 10 is dealing with the nation of Israel.  Paul is dealing with Jews in Rome (we know that from Acts).  There are lost Jews and saved Jews in the Body of Christ in Rome.  And as Paul writes Romans, there are also saved Jews under the Kingdom program – the Little Flock.

Paul is dealing with any objections from Jews, particularly lost Jews, regarding the word of Christ.

4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.

So Paul is particularly speaking to Jews.  Notice that he refers to Moses because the Jews respected Moses’ authority.

5 For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.

This is in Time Past when God was dealing with Israel under a performance-based acceptance system—the Law.  They could live eternally by doing the Law.

6 But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart [the inner man], Who shall ascend into heaven? [that is, to bring Christ down from above:]

The Jews would say ‘Who will ascend to Heaven to bring Messiah down?” Paul is telling them they don’t have to ask that.

7 Or, Who shall descend into the deep? [that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.]

If they believed that he came and he died; they don’t have to ask who will descend and bring him up because he is resurrected—he’s alive.

 8 But what saith it? [What did Moses say?] The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;

Every time the Jews read the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms, they were reading about the Lord Jesus, the Messiah.  That is the context for verses 9-13. They were looking for Christ; they were confessing the Messiah.  They understood that Messiah was to come, so they should confess with their mouth.

 9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.

13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

So this is directed at the Jews.  This is Jewish terminology.  To ‘call upon the name of the Lord’ is to ‘confess with their mouth the Lord Jesus.’  Notice that he is not saying ‘confess your sins.’  I think a lot of people interpret that as saying we must confess our sins or confess that Jesus is Lord.  They change the meaning.

Paul is just telling them to call upon him.  That is Jewish terminology.  Jews would call upon the Lord.  In other words, they would accept him; they would be saying ‘Jesus we know that you are our Messiah, and we know that you are raised from the dead.’  That is how the Jewish reader would understand this.  Paul doesn’t use this terminology for Gentiles.

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Regarding your questions about the Kingdom – no, God is not offering them the Kingdom in this passage.  When Paul wrote Romans it was almost 30 years into the Dispensation of Grace and it was too late for Jews to be saved under the Kingdom program.  Paul is saying that they could have made that confession before the revelation of the Mystery if they had believed the Gospel of the Kingdom.  But even now if they do as Paul did and say ‘Who art thou Lord?’ and call upon the name of the Lord (again, Jewish terminology), they will not get into the Kingdom, but they will enter the church, the body of Christ by faith. 

Romans 10
12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.

13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

If you read the rest of the passage, it shows that Moses and the prophets had offered them the kingdom but they didn’t believe it.  Paul tells them in Romans 9 how they could have received the kingdom before the Mystery was revealed.  But now since the revelation of the Mystery in the Dispensation of Grace, those Jews who call upon the name of the Lord would get saved into the church the body of Christ.

Romans was written during the transition period of the book of Acts; therefore there are many Jewish things going on.  We wouldn’t use Romans 10:9-13 to show Gentiles how to get saved today.  But when Paul wrote this, he could use those passages to show them how they could have received the Kingdom; and also to show them how they could be right with God in the heavenly kingdom as members of the body of Christ.

Hopefully this helps...Maranatha! 

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Northern California Grace Fellowship

Do you have a question for Pastor Ron?

 Heir of God or Joint-Heirs with Christ? 

Wrongly Deriding Joint-heirs with Christ

P.S.  I thank God that he has given us understanding simply because we BELIEVE his word, and the method that he gave us to study it…right division. Also, as we grow in Pauline truth, we start to understand even the more “subtle” things of scripture, such as how God was dealing with those Jews in the early part of this dispensation.

When it comes to those Jews, they operated, as Paul quotes from Psalms in 2 Corinthians…

2 Corinthians 4:13

We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;

The Jews were very familiar with this principle from the Psalms

Psalm 116:10

I believed, therefore have I spoken: I was greatly afflicted:

It was in this spirit that Paul and the Jews did what they did.

Romans 10:8-13

But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.  For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

A form changing experience...part 2

What happens when a soul is thrown into hell? 

Hell is like a holding cell where prisoners are kept until they appear before the judge.  Hell is the place of the departed dead.  The Lord explains what happens to a lost man who goes to hell, the place of flames and torment in Luke 16.  His account of Lazarus and the rich man is not a parable!  But, Christ is telling us what happened.  Some try to say that it is, but the Lord doesn’t ever name anyone in his parables.

Luke 16:19-22  

There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom:

That is exactly what happened.  The angels carried him.  Why did he go to Abraham’s bosom?  Because he desired to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table.  He did that according to the law which told the Jews that those who had more were supposed to help their brothers – to be their brothers’ keeper; and Lazarus, based upon faith and knowledge of that word, went to the rich man looking to receive from him.  So obviously Lazarus was a believer because one of the ministries of the angels in Time Past was to carry men’s souls to Abraham’s bosom in the heart of the earth.

Matthew 12:40  

For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Luke 16:22-24 

…the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.

So we can see that he didn’t immediately degenerate into a worm.  His soul still has his human form.  Notice that he lifted up his eyes; he’s in torment; he seeth Abraham afar off.  He can see.  He saw Lazarus in his (Abraham’s bosom.)

Notice again that he hasn’t degenerated into a worm; he has a tongue and he feels tormented in this flame.   So no, the soul that goes to hell does not immediately degenerate into a worm; it has the form of a human body.  Degeneration into a worm doesn’t happen until the lake of fire after the lost person’s soul stands before the Lord at the great white throne judgment.

Revelation 20:11-12  

And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.  ¹²And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

But over the course of time, the soul that is thrown into the Lake of Fire degenerates into a worm, or what we call a maggot.  But it’s not immediate; it’s a process over the course of time.

Whether lost souls are in hell or the Lake of Fire, they still have complete recollection of who they are, and there will be eternal memory and recollection of everything that happened in their life.  It is a horrifying thought.  That is why Christ came to die - to keep us from this.

Regarding the issue of recollection in the afterlife, notice what is says here,

Luke 16:25-31  

But Abraham said, Son, remember [notice, he says to remember!] that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.

Again, the rich man knew who Lazarus was even after they had died.  And although he never met Abraham who lived 2,000 years before; he knew him.  Once you’re in the spiritual realm you know everything.  Now watch how he remembers his family…

Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him (Lazarus) to my father's house (so he remembers his father’s house) For I have five brethren (he remembers how many brothers he has); that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.  Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets (they have the Bible); let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.  And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

So it’s clear that in the afterlife the lost will have recollection of who they are and everything that happened in this life.  In the spiritual realm the lost will know all things - even people they never met.  They’ll remember their family and friends.

We trust by Almighty God’s word and his faithfulness that they received enough testimony in their lifetime to trust the Lord.  We trust that God’s word is true.  It was their responsibility to personally trust in the gospel of the grace of God.

Genesis 18:25

Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?

We (the redeemed) will also recognize all the saints (at the rapture if we’re ‘alive and remain’ unto the coming of the Lord (1 Thess. 4:15), and in heaven.  And when we are in heaven, we will also be aware of our loved ones who are not there; but because we have the mind of Christ we will have the understanding that they had the choice to believe on the Lord but they chose not to; so the Lord righteously gave them what they wanted.

Isaiah 66:24 

And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.

That is the Lake of Fire.  We can be comforted by knowing that we can trust the Lord.

Hopefully this helps...Maranatha!

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Northern California Grace Fellowship

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A form changing experience...part 1

Just to be clear, when a soul is thrown into Hell, does it immediately degenerate into a worm but it still has complete recollection of who it is and everything that happened in this life?  What a horrifying thought!!

When a lost man dies and his soul thrown into hell, it doesn’t immediately degenerate into a worm.  That happens over a course of time, in particular when he is thrown into the lake of fire.

Revelation 20:15  

And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

One of the seven sayings of Christ while he was on the cross was from Psalm 22…

Mark 15:34  

And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

Psalm 22:1 

My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me…

Verse 6 says that ‘I (Christ) am a worm, and no man;’

 

Psalm 22:6  

But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.

Evidence of that is another saying of Christ on the cross…

John 19:28  

After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.

That is because Christ’s soul was being offered for sin and he was experiencing the ‘second death’ of the lake of fire.

Revelation 20:14  

And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

Christ was experiencing our second death on the cross. God made his soul an offering for sin.

2 Corinthians 5:21  

For he [God the Father] hath made him [God the Son] to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

So in essence he was experiencing what a soul will experience in the Lake of Fire.  Psalm 22:6 is a prophecy.  That was the thinking (that which was in the mind) of the Lord Jesus Christ as he hung there on the cross.

So the worm has to do with the lake of fire, hence, “I thirst.”

...to be continued.

Hopefully this helps!

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Northern California Grace Fellowship

Do you have a question for Pastor Ron?

Mortal versus immortal Kingdom bodies

Will the Jewish believing remnant that enters the kingdom after the Second Coming of Christ have mortal or immortal bodies? 

There will be some believing Jews who will die under the persecuting hand of the Antichrist and be resurrected in the kingdom.  Their souls will go to be with the Lord until he returns to set up his kingdom; they will come with him and receive their resurrected bodies.

Matthew 22:30 

For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.

There will also be a future remnant of Jews who believe on the Lord as Messiah who will survive the Tribulation period and literally walk—alive—into the kingdom.

 Matthew 16:28 

Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.

 

They will have mortal bodies that are subject to death before he sets up his kingdom; but the moment they enter the kingdom they will put on immortality. 

1 Corinthians 15:54  

So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

They will no longer be subject to death; they will not die.  They will still have natural bodies, but they will be like Adam’s and Eve’s bodies were before sin entered. 

Romans 5:12  

Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

God will give those believers his Spirit living in them; he will cause them to keep his commandments.  They won’t sin against God; therefore they won’t die.  Adam and Eve had the ability to sin but they failed the test; but these believers will not be able to sin because God will cause them to keep his commandments under the New Covenant.

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:   Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:   But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.  And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

Ezekiel 36:24-27 

For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.  A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.  And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Why will they go from mortal to immortal and still keep their natural bodies?  Because they’re going to procreate to fulfill Isaiah 9.

Isaiah  9:7  

Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

His government will continually increase.  He will fulfill his promise to Abraham through the Jews who walk into the kingdom in natural, immortal bodies:

Genesis 22:17 

That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;

God will populate the kingdom by these Jews.   But those who were resurrected and those who survived the Tribulation and walked into the kingdom will not have the ability to sin.

However, Isaiah 65 (a prophecy about Jerusalem in the millennial kingdom—that is, the first 1,000 years of the eternal kingdom) makes it clear that their offspring will still have to be born with a sin nature; they will have the ability to sin and some will.

Isaiah  65:18-20 

But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.  And I will rejoice in Jerusalem [the Lord will be with them], and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.  [So, this is obviously talking about the kingdom.] There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.

God is focusing on Israel, his people.  They will live such a long time that a person 100 years old will be considered a child.  But notice that it says ‘for the child shall die an hundred years old’ is called a sinner.  Jews who walked into the kingdom with natural, immortal bodies will be marrying and having babies.  Their offspring will be under the law, but God won’t cause them to keep the law as He does their parents and all the other Jews who believed on the Lord and survived the Tribulation.  These Jews, born in the kingdom, will be required to keep the law just like the people before them and like the gentiles in the kingdom.

The Jews born in the kingdom who survive that initial 1,000 years by passing the test and not dying in their sins, will then be sealed unto the eternal kingdom and have the Spirit of God living in them.

Hopefully this helps! 

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Northern California Grace Fellowship

Do you have a question for Pastor Ron?

 Heir of God or Joint-Heirs with Christ?