Address—C. Hendricks
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Please turn with me to Genesis chapter 2.
Genesis chapter 2.
Verse 7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground.
And breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.
Man became a little soul. Verse 18 And the Lord God said it is not good that the man should be alone. I will make him and help.
Need for him, and out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field.
Every fall of the air and brought them up to Adam to see what he would call them, and whatsoever Adam called every living creature that was the name thereof.
And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the follow the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found in hell meet for him. Here God creates the man out of the dust of the ground, and then he creates the the animals out of the dust of the ground. Verse 19 Out of the ground the Lord God formed every east of the field, and so on.
And he brought them to the man. He had said it is not good that the man should be alone, I will make him and help meet for him. And so he creates man, and he creates all the animals and brings them to the man, gives names to each one, but it says there was not found in all those.
A suitable one for his heart.
But for Adam that was not found in hell, need for help, then we have this beautiful, unique, distinct creation from the Lord in verse 21. And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept, and he took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh instead thereof, and the rib which the Lord God had taken from man.
Woman, and brought her unto the man.
And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and fleshed of my flesh. She shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man. Therefore shall man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife, and they shall be 1 flesh. So here we have the This is the only book that tells us this.
How God created the woman. He created man of the ground and dust of the ground. He created the animals of the ground, but he didn't create the woman that way. Instead He created her out of 1 of Adam's ribs.
So that she was part of him.
It's probably the most beautiful type we have in scripture of Christ in the church.
This is not fanciful thought. We're going to turn to a passage in the New Testament that that builds upon this portion that we just read in Genesis 2.
Showing us very clearly that what was in the mind of God in creating the woman for the man and the way he did it was Christ in his church. Christ in his church.
And when he saw her, he said, this is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. No doubt about it, no question about it. This was the most beautiful creature that God made for Adam.
Soon as he saw her, he recognized her as such. He shall be called woman because she was taken out of man. And we're going to look at a passage in the New Testament that beautifully unfolds the spiritual significance of what we've just read, Ephesians 5. And there's no way that you can understand Ephesians 5 without understanding a little bit about Genesis chapter 2.
Genesis has been called the seed plot of the Bible.
It is the book of beginnings. It tells us how man got here. Tells us how man was got here, tells us how the woman covered.
Have you made the woman of the dust of the ground like he had made Adam? She wouldn't be connected to him. She wouldn't be part of him. He wouldn't have been able to say this is not one of my bones and fleshes by flesh.
She wouldn't have been taken out of him and she wouldn't have been part of himself.
As she was the way God created her and this is all. This all has a spiritual significance. Before I read this passage in Ephesians 5, I want to read verse 32. Start with and let's keep this in mind as we read these verses. This is a great mystery.
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But I speak concerning Christ and the church now. I was going to talk about the marriage relationship.
In the first time, Adam and Eve, man and the woman.
She was brought to him and became his wife. She was his bride, but she was more than his bride, more than his wife. She was a member of his body.
She was made from him, building right out of this rib parted him, owed his bows flesh of his flesh.
That couldn't be said of any of the animals, only in the only of the woman. And this is what the apostle Paul. Now from that passage unfolds the great mystery of Christ in the church.
Ephesians 5, verse 22.
As we read these verses, we're going to read God's thoughts about the marriage relationship. Not man stops, but God stops.
Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the right, even as Christ is the head of the Church. Immediately he draws the analogy.
The husband, a picture of Christ.
The wife, Eve, Adam, Eve, the wife, The picture of the assembly, the Church. And as the man is the head of the woman, Christ is the head of the church. As the woman is subject to the man, so the church is subject to Christ.
God's gods as Christ is the head of the Church.
So man is the head of the world, the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is head of the Church.
And here is the stage of the body, to preserve her of the body, even as the Lord Jesus cares for his assembly and preserves it. Therefore, verse 24, as the church is subject unto Christ.
So let the wives be to their own hospitals in everything.
It's reciprocal. The husband, wife relationships, the picture of Christ in the church, and as the church is subject to Christ select the wives be subject to their husbands.
In subject life is a picture of an in subject church.
Picture of the false church, the church that says I say the Queen, and shall see no sorrow.
A church that teaches and a church that rules independently of her head. The husband, Christ as the false church. That's the harlot church that's spoken of in Revelation 17 and 18, the Mother of Harvest, nominations of the earth. But here you have the true church, the subject church, the church that is subject to Christ.
And the beautiful picture of that subjection.
Is shown in the subject Wife to the husband.
And then he brings out verse 25, the love of the husband for his wife. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for him.
So when the husband loves his wife, it is a picture the marriage relationship of the lovely of Christ for his assessment.
He gave himself for it. That's past.
And then in the next verse, 26, we have his present activity at the right hand of God that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the Washington Word. That's what he's doing right now. He's sanctified the church, set it apart for himself, and he's fitting her, washing her, cleansing her by the water of the Word. So every time we're under the sound of the Word of God and every time we read it, we have the cleansing.
Power of the Word of God applied by the Spirit of God so that our thoughts and our ways and our habits and our conduct might be according to God's thoughts and that our thoughts might be brought into harmony with his. And that's what he's doing for his assembly. He wants to present it to himself. That's the next verse. 27 a church glorious. 27 that he might present it to himself, a glorious church.
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I haven't spot a wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blood. This is the end result. This is still future.
Presentation day is still to come. He has presented himself to God, offered himself to God for her. He is presently sanctifying her and cleansing her with the washing of water by the Word. And one day soon, very soon, also very soon, will present her to himself. Suitable. He's working to thicker, to be suitable to himself.
And so she will be. She'll be holy.
Ended up leveraging and then he from this he immediately goes back to the natural relationship of husband and wife and says so ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. Why Eve was part of Adam's body and when he loved her, he loved himself and that's what he goes on to say.
Either loving his wife, love of himself, and when the Lord Jesus loves the assembly, he is loving himself. In fact, she is even called in First Corinthians 12/12 The Christ.
Whereas your body is 1 and half many members and all the members of that one body being many are one body. So also is the Christ. We we would think that that would read. So also is the church, because he's talking about the church. He's talking about the members here on earth, but he gives those members here on earth the name of the head of the Christ. So the assembly united to the heaven, heaven is called the Christ.
And so when he loves her, he loves himself because she is a part of himself. She bears his name. You get that? Again, in Genesis 5, it says he called their name Adam, not Adam and Eve, but he called their name Adam. So she gets his name, and so the assembly gets Christ's name. 1 Newman, the mystical man proposed of the body on earth.
United to the heaven, heaven, and the name of that one Newman, is the Christ.
Of Christ, this is the great mystery.
He said, But I speak concerning Christ with the Church, and the marriage relationship sets forth this great mystery.
And the first married couple literally, not just figuratively, but literally, she was not only his bride and wife, she was a member of his body. And these are the two figures that Paul dwells upon here and unfolds so beautifully in this passage, the mystery of Christ of the church.
A company that he loves or the thought of the bride and the wife is the love of the husband.
And the care of the husband for his wife. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and gave himself bread.
He might sanctify cleansing it with the washing of water by the Word, that he might present it to himself, a church glorious altogether suitable to him.
No spots, no wrinkles, nothing. Just that it's holy and blameless before him. So I've been to love their wives as their own bodies, as their own bodies. Because she's really a part of him and he that loved his wife loveth him self.
No man ever yet hated his own flesh. And when Adam looked at Eve, he says that's my flesh.
She wasn't a distinct creation from the dust of the ground like all the other animals were, because she came up with that.
And that is the type that the Apostle Paul here by the Spirit unfolds this great mystery of Christ in the Church from.
No man ever yet hated his own flesh, but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord, the Church. He goes back and forth. He talks about the natural relationship with husband and wife, and he talks about Christ in the church. Back and forth, back and forth, because the one is the picture of the other.
Now verse 30 for we are members of his body, of election of his bones.
You have one of the more modern translations. That last part of the verse is missing.
And all it reads is we are members of this body and it stops.
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Mr. Darby puts it in brackets of his flesh and of his bones, but he puts it in. Mr. Kelly doesn't even bracket it.
I have a New Testament according to the majority text in the Greek, and I searched it and I looked at it. I had convinced myself. I was persuaded that of his flesh and of his bones is definitely there. It should be there. It was written there by the apostle Paul. The reason that's questioned, the reason it's not in some of the translations today, is because some of the manuscripts doesn't have it.
They don't have it, and I believe the reason they don't have it is because the truth was too high, too much for certain scribes to grasp until they left it out. I am persuaded that you ought to read exactly as it reads here in our King James translation. We are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. And that's taken from Genesis 2. As he saw Eve, he said, this is now bolt of my bones.
And flashing my flashing. Notice the precision of it. It's another thing that convinces me of the accuracy of it, that it is scripture.
The Lord Jesus as the risen Christ. When they looked at him, they thought maybe he was a spirit.
And he said, handle me and see, for a spirit hath not what flesh and bones as you see behind. So there isn't Christ as flesh and bones. We are members of his body, of his flesh and of his bones. Our connection with Him is in resurrection. There isn't that the glorified man descended man.
And the spirit sent down from the ascended man.
To indwell us, and to unite us to one another into that glorified man and other, so that now it can be said stupendous truth. We are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His books only, can be apprehended spiritually.
For this cause.
Shall man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his life, and they too shall be 1 flesh. Again, that's quoted from Genesis 2. God is the one that instituted marriage.
And in so instituting it, he had in mind the grave mystery of Christ of the Church. And then he concludes this. This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ in the Church. Nevertheless, not everyone of you in particular so loved his wife out even as himself, because that first life goes apart.
Of her husband, and when he loved her, he loved himself.
And delightful to see that she reverence her husband who are the new translation reads and see that she Peter the husband. And so when the wife fears and respects and reverences her husband and say picture of the assembly in submission to reverence her husband, which is the Christ, and in subject wife is a picture.
Of in subject church and the subject life according to the.
Thoughts of God is a picture of a church which is in subjection to Him. He is her head, out of whom she came, and she was made from Him.
Now let's turn back to the first chapter of Ephesians, where we read again about.
This mystery, it's not called there, a great mystery. It is called here in the 1St chapter, the mystery of His will.
We'll pick up the reading chapter 1 of Ephesians at the end of verse 6. He hath made us accepted in the Beloved, in whom we have redemption to His blood.
The forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace.
Wherein He have abounded towards us in all wisdom and prudence.
Now notice that every time we read about this mystery in Scripture, or most of the times, we read about wisdom and prudence or wisdom and intelligence. But the word wisdom is usually connected with it because the mystery of Christ and His assembly figured by the marriage relationship.
Is God's eternal wisdom and thought we were seeing what raised the wondrous thought or who did it suggest that we the Church of glory brought you with the Son you blessed and then in that fourth verse it says the motives to thy own the plan the council by made for thy Son bone of his bone.
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Glory right the shot, that statement of Ephesians 5.
Well, verse 7. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace, wherein He hath abounded towards us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known unto us the mystery of His will.
According to His good pleasure which He had purposed in Himself, These are His eternal thoughts, His eternal purposes. The secret of His will, The thought of the mystery is His secret. Something not known until it was revealed, a secret hidden God not divulged until there was a man in the glory, and the Spirit was sent down to form the assembly by His baptism alone on the day of Pentecost.
To united in one body of all believers, and to the risen glorified man in heaven.
Then once the church was formed by the coming of baptism of the Spirit, then the truth of it was unfolded through the apostle Paul wasn't that fault that you any other vessel. The only writer in the New Testament that unfolds the truth of the mystery is the apostle quality does it in his epistles to the to the Gentiles.
Not in his epistle to the Jews, to the Hebrews, but to the Gentiles, and we'll see why in a moment. You learn to this.
And what is this mystery of his will, His good pleasure, which he had purposely himself? Verse 10, that in the dispensation of the fullness of times, the fullness of times, the dispensation, there's a we're living in the dispensation of the mystery right now.
And.
All of the previous dispensations and ages will flow into this one end result when Christ and His Church united to Him, will reign supreme over the sea. That's the dispensation of the fullness of times. We call it the Millennium thousand year reign of Christ. That is the dispensation of the fullness of times. He might gather together in one.
Whole expression he might gather together in one is literally get into Mr. Darby's translation to head up to head up. I much prefer that literal rendering because it presents the truth very clearly. To head up all things in the rice, the article ought to be there.
Both which are in heaven and which are on earth even in heaven.
What does this say?
We saw that the greatness strength of Ephesians 5 is for him to have a bridal, a life, and that she would be a member of His body, of His flesh, and of his bones. She would be one with him. They're asking, isn't it, that when the Lord may clung on the cross, a dead Christ, the soldier pierced his side forth with King of blood and fire?
The blood, the expiator guilt, the water to cleanse.
And the Church is based upon that at which flowed from the side of the dead Christ, the blood, the water, the blood, removing our guilty Rock of Ages cleft for sin race that hit us safe within where the water and the blood, but from thy ribbon side which flowed out of sin, the double cure cleansing from its guilt as its life and power.
As the water, the application of his death.
To our pathway we have died with him and the blood has put away all our sins before God and the church now comes from that place they fit for him. God is in the dispensation of the fullness of times. This is the mystery of his will. He's going to head up all things heavenly and earthly old Spears in the Christ be Christ. Why do I emphasize that because I believe it brings before us again Christ in this church because when he.
Not going to reign alone. When Adam was placed over having universal dominion over all God's creation, he had his pride with him. Eve was with him. She shared the reign with him. Let them have dominion over these fields, and let them.
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That his demands and his life. And so when Christ reigns will be with him. Says in Romans 8 that we are children, children of God. And if children heirs of God, the children we are heirs. And then he goes on to say the heirs of God, and then he goes on to say joint heirs with Christ.
All that the Lord Jesus has inherited by virtue of his perfection in manhood.
His place of subjection to the Father down here, He's going to not take it alone, but he's going to share it with us in Christ in the great mystery. Here's the mystery of His will, that God is going to head up all things into Christ, heavenly and earthly, and we're going to have a part of that.
We're going to share it with it. And he's made known to us to his will in Revelation 21.
Says I saw the new Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven, and it's called the habitation of God, the dwelling place of God. That's the church. We all will occupy a unique place throughout all eternity with respect to the Lord Jesus. God will dwell with men. The habitation of God is with men. But what is the habitation of God?
That's where he is.
And that's where that's our portion. We are of all the states.
And above the angels last fly in the Millennium. We will judge angels. Now, that's in the way of administration, not in the way of judicial.
Punishment or anything like that, but in the way of the administration, for he has not subjected the world to come. Or if we speak to angels, but to a man, and we're united to that man. And at the end of Ephesians one, just turn over the page at the end of Ephesians one, it says in verse 22, God has put all things under his feet and gave him to be the head over all things through the church.
Is represented here as being head of the church, but as being head over all things to the church. He's presented to the churches head over all things, which is his body. Here's the church, which is his body. The wholeness of him that Philip Allen all viewed in this way. The Lord Jesus as the glorified man is not complete without his brother.
Without the church, without his body.
And we form part of that. And when he's complete, when we are united to him on high, he will come back with us and reign, and we will share as heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ.
All that he has won well down here below the flesh, united to him, one with him. We're not united to God, though he is God, but we're united to the glorified man can't be united to God.
Will never cease to be creatures, will only only be creatures, but we will be united to the glorified man by the Spirit. Now in the 3rd chapter of Ephesians we have some more about this mystery. And Paul says verse 2. If you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God for the revelation that the mystery is the greatest, most stupendous on holding in all the Scripture the grace of God.
That he can take the likes of us.
Poor, lost, guilty sinners of the Gentiles who deserve nothing but eternal banishment from God's presence. And unite us to that glorified man in heaven. Make us his body and his bride. That's the magnificent grace of God. So we're living in the dispensation of the grace of God, which is given to me, to you. Word. How did my revelation He made known unto me the mystery.
As I wrote a foreign few words whereby when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ, Mystery, the secret, God's hidden secret, which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. I used to puzzle me that says it's now revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.
In chapter 2 it says. In verse 20 in connection with the church it says.
That we are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone.
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We're built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, and this mystery was revealed to them.
It was not disclosed through them. They were not the.
Chosen vessels to bring it out to others, but it was revealed to them so that when Paul brought it out.
They would recognize it as being of God. Peter writes about Paul's writings and he said something's hard to be understood, very hard for a Jew to understand the mystery.
God would bring Gentiles into such a place of nearness and favor, of blessedness, by receiving anything that Israel ever had, even in the heyday of Solomon.
Are exceeding anything they ever had and this body and bride of Christ composed of Jew Gentile, but it's especially directed to the Gentiles who were in the Old Testament totally outside of all the promises of God and covenants and so on. He says that in verse 12 Chapter 2, he says well, let me read verse 11. Wherefore remember that he being in time past Gentiles in the flesh who are called uncircumcision by that which is called the circumcision.
Flesh made by hands that at that time when we were just Gentiles, you were watching without Christ.
Being aliens from the Commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise. Having no hope without God in the world.
We couldn't have been farther up and cling to nothing. Israel had a claim, naturally, by virtue of being the nation of Israel.
Naturally, speaking to the promises and to the covenant that God had made with them, but they forfeited all by unbelievable. When does he go out to say in verse 13, but now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far above.
Are made nigh by the blood of Christ. We've been brought into a place of nearness and favor and privilege and blessing never known before connected with the mystery. Again, verse 5 of chapter 3, which in other ages was not made known under the sons of man as it is now revealed under his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. I'm going to skip verse 6 that describes what the Mystic who the mystery.
Encompasses and what they're brought into and let's just go on with this thought in verse 7. Where have I was made a ministry?
It was revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit that he says I was the one who was made to minister of it, to bring it out according to the gift of the grace of God-given unto me by the effectual working of His power unto me. Who unless than the least of All Saints is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles? Notice how he's emphasizing the Gentiles here, The unsearchable riches of Christ.
Wasn't given to him to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ among the Jews.
But among the Gentiles, other apostles were raised up to that, but then verse 9 and to make all men see what is the and then also read the the dispensation of the mystery instead of fellowship. It's just one letter in Greek between the two words fellowship and dispensation.
To make all men see what is the dispensation or the administration.
Of the mystery which from the beginning of the world has been hidden God, who created all things by Jesus Christ. This is a secret, hidden God Himself. To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers and heavenly places might be made known by the Church, the man of old wisdom of God. I mentioned earlier that whatever the mystery is talked about, or most of the places, the wisdom of God is immediately mentioned.
This is God's hidden wisdom, does not man's wisdom. Why this could never enter the mind of man, this thought of having a bride for Christ. And it's couched in the very first man and the first woman, Adam aid and the way they were created, the unique, distinct way that Eve was building from Adam's rib and was a part of himself is a picture of the assembly that is comes into being right from the very side of Christ.
Which reduces the blood in the water to make it stiff for his presence. And it's to the intent that now, right now unto thee, what the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known, made known by the Church an apple wisdom of God as the angels looked down. They're not part of this mystery. They're not part of the bride of Christ. They're not in the nearness of relationship that you and I are. They can't say I remember his body.
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You can, I can, we can say that tremendous, tremendous truth. We're so closely linked with him, united to him by the Spirit of God.
We're one with him and as the marriage union in the flesh is 1 flesh, that unit is 1 flesh. So the union between the church and Christ is 1 spirit for Scripture and six says that we are one spirit with the Lord. You that is joined to the Lord is 1 spirit. Well, this is an eternal purpose. Verse 11.
According to the eternal purpose which he purpose in Christ Jesus our Lord.
These are eternal thoughts, God, that He's now brought to pass. Now let's turn to Colossians one for a few more verses.
This wonderful subject to start reading in the middle of now rejoice in my sufferings for you and I fill up all says I fill up that which is behind with the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake in the church, whereas I am made a minister. Christ was not only a minister of the gospel, he was a minister of the truth of the assembly, the church.
Where have I made a minister according to the dispensation of God? There you have that word dispensation again. Because God is dispensing His good today in a in a unique way.
The Word has to do with the management of a household, and the one who manages the household affairs is the Spirit of God, and God is managing his household today by bringing out the truth of the mystery Christ in the church.
Notice what he says about it.
Verse 25 Where have I made a minister according to the dispensation of God, which is given to me for you?
To fulfill the word of God, to fulfill the word of God. That's the way I can illustrate that. To complete it, the woman makes the pie, circular pie, and then she cuts out a piece, takes it away from the pie, puts it in a in the refrigerator to be brought forth in a future time, and shows the pie to those that come to the.
To the supper, and they say beautiful pie, but.
There's a piece missing. Well, the pie represents the Word of God, all that God has been pleased to reveal to us in the Word of God. I'll send God here, Truth of redemption.
Dispensational truth, prophetic truth, truth about the family and.
Justification and forgiveness.
Many subjects unfolded in the Word of God, but there's something that was not ever presented in the Old Testament or even in the Gospels, and that's the truth of the mystery.
So the the wife, she goes to the refrigerator, she takes the piece out, she slips it in place, and now you have a complete pot. Now the pie is complete. The pie is still full. The missing piece, that revelation of the mystery which God does not reveal before, has now been set in place. God has no more to tell than the revelation is complete. The word of God is complete. It's still full. That's what he means. It was given to Paul to do.
And without Paul's ministry, you don't have the complete revelation of the mind of God, because the best truth, the highest truth, the choices that God has for us is the truth of the mystery. Christ in the church, his body and his bride, His Knight to Himself, voted his bones, flesh in his flesh, to share all the coming glory with him.
On the throne.
And one with you now.
And.
It's it's said here that this completes or feels full or fulfills the Word of God, verse 26. So there's no question what he's talking about. Even the mystery which has been hid from ages and from generations, the mystery completes God's revelation.
And those who say they're looking for fresh revelations are.
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Absolutely deceived because there's nothing new that's going to come out. God has revealed all that He's going to reveal, and when He, through the apostle Paul, revealed the truth of the mystery, the revelation of God is complete.
Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to His Saints, to whom God would make known. What is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles? That verse that I didn't read in Ephesians 36 says, and I want to quote it as it is in the new translation, because it brings out the course of it, That tile should be joint heirs with the two joint.
And a joint body, you and Gentile 1 Newman in one body, a joint body, and joint partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel. You ask any Jew and say, you'll say, Show me any place in the Old Testament where a Gentile is a joint partaker of Christ's Christ that is not there?
We are joint heirs that you have no advantage over a Gentile today at all. Jew and Gentile one body.
All distinction, all dispensational distinction, is gone.
All earthly distinction is God number one in Christ.
Joy, heirs and a joint body, joint protectors of His promise in Christ by the gospel. And so verse 27 in Colossians, one to whom God would make known. What is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you? The hope of Lord Christ is in US in life and by the Spirit, and that's the hope of glory, where one day soon may be presented thoughtless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, just like him.
With glorified bodies in his presence, the fullness of here that Philip followed all until he has his bribe by his side. He's not complete in that sense. We're going to be the compliment of him. We're going to remain with Him. Christ in you the hope of glory, whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man all wisdom that we may present every man. What perfect.
In Christ Jesus.
You don't understand the truth of the mystery. You're not. Perfect in Christ doesn't mean morally perfect, doesn't mean sinless, but it means one who's entered into all the mind of God. Most Christians, many Christians have the pie with the peace missing. They've never entered into the truth of the mystery.
Christ in the Church united into one body, and the idea that most have who read that truth say that in their minds, most of them.
Say that it can't be carried out in practice. That true?
Coming back here, but in the 4th chapter of Colossians, I want to read you what Epithras prayed, because he prayed right along, right in line with what Paul prayed. Verse 12. Colossians 412 Ephraim, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluted you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.
And if if a believer hasn't understood the truth of the mystery, he's not perfect and complete.
In all the Lord God, it's the choicest revelation, it's the highest truth that God has ever revealed to man. And we're a part of this heavenly company that's united to the glory of heaven and to to this that is to miss the very cardinal truth in this dispensation of the mystery in which we're living.
Verse 28 again, when we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, there he brings the wisdom in again, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.
Wherein do I also labor? Striving according to his working, which worketh in the microwave. Paul suffered from this truth. He says in verse 24 He filled up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in his flesh for his for His body sake, which is the Church.
The Jews heeded this truth, they didn't want him to preach the truth of the mystery that the Gentiles would be blessed in such a supreme way alongside of the Jew. No difference between Jew and Gentile. This brought untold persecution upon the Apostle Paul. Christ did not suffer for that truth because that was left for the Apostle Paul has nothing to do with his atoning sufferings, has to do with his sufferings from the hands of men.
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But Christ didn't suffer from the truth of the Church, because it wasn't presented when He was here on earth. He said, When he was here, I had yet many things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of truth has come, He will thank you to all truth.
So.
Here we have the remaining truth being brought out through this elect vessel, the Apostle Paul. He goes on to say in verse 1 of chapter 2. For I would that she knew what great conflict I have for you and for them to Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh, that their hearts might be comforted being knit together in love.
And unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding. I'm going to read this as it is in the new translation.
To the knowledge of the mystery of God, in which verse three are here, all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in the mystery Christian Church.
That he could take the lives of us gentile dogs who the Jew wouldn't even look upon.
And bring such into such favor, and such nearness, such intimacy, such blessedness.
All the treasures of God's wisdom and knowledge.
Hidden in the mystery. One more passage I'd like to look at in the First Corinthians chapter 2. First Corinthians chapter 2, verse 1. And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with Excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ. The emphasis in that verse ought to be I determined not to know anything among you.
You Corinthians say Jesus Christ and him crucified. Why?
Did you not know more than Christ and Christ crucified? Yes, he knew much more than that. He knew the truth of the mystery. But in the 3rd chapter he says in verse one, I brethren, could not speak unto you as under spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ, I thank you with meal, not with me. The milk was what he proclaimed to them. The meat was the truth of the mystery. Give it to you, were not able to bear it neither. Yet thou art ye able, for ye are yet carnal.
Now let's go back to chapter 2 and he says.
I was with you in weakness and in fear, and in much trembling, and my speech and my preaching was not an enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power. At your face should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
Howbeit, we do speak wisdom among them that are perfect. We just read that verse in Colossians. You wanted to present every man perfect in Christ Jesus, those that have entered into the truth of the mystery. And he says we do speak wisdom, God's wisdom now among them that are perfect, yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the Princess of this world that come to not when we speak the wisdom of God.
In a mystery, even the hidden wisdom.
Which God ordained before the world unto our glory.
Now verse 8, notice the character which none of the Princess of this world knew, or had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. Now the way I heard that verse expounded over and over again I think is a mistake.
It's been expounded that had the Princess of this world only knew who Jesus really was, they wouldn't have crucified him. That's not what it says.
It says that had they known the mystery?
He's talking about the mystery, verse 7. We speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the world unto our glory, which the antecedent of which is the mystery, God's wisdom, God's hidden wisdom, which none of the preachers of this world knew, or had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
If the rulers of this world, energized by Satan, had only known that God was going to turn the most.
Wicked act that man has ever committed in the annals of time, the crucifixion of the Son of God on the cross, and he was going to turn that most heinous and wicked act of sin into the greatest blessing, the accomplishment of His eternal purpose.
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Have a bride for Christ, his Son, If he had only known that what he was doing was accomplishing.
The mystery He wouldn't have crucified Christ.
So man is at such enmity, he so hates God that he would have thought he was frustrated. The purpose of God.
The other view assumes that if the only knew who he was, it would have crucified him, as though there's some good in that there's no good.
In Revelation 19 proves it because they go out when the Lord comes back from heaven to descend from heaven to smite the kings of the earth. They go out to fight against the God.
They know who they're going up against, and yet their hatred is such.
That they don't want.
It says in hell, man is in the state of weeping and gnashing of teeth. What's the gnashing of teeth is that featuring?
No, I'm persuaded that here what he's talking about is the street. If they only known, if they had known the mystery, they wouldn't have crucified.
They would have sought to be frustrated. God machine is eternal.
This is so like God. He takes the worst sin, the greatest sin, the most heinous sin ever. Commitment turns it into the greatest blessing.
Accomplishment of his eternal purpose of Christ.
But as it is written, I have not seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for them that love Him. That confirms that interpretation. Man doesn't enter into it. Man never dreamed that God was going to bring such blessing of out of the death of Christ.
But to us, God has revealed it to us by the Spirit.
God has revealed it unto us by His Spirit, gave the Spirit search of all things, gave the deep things of God the depths of God. The Spirit of God enables us to enter into the depths of God, the deep things of God, the truth of this Christ.
If you're not with young and all, you're part of that.
We've been brought into the greatest blessing that God has ever purposed for any of these creatures, far exceeding God of angels.
Boneless bones.
Touch and display members of His body, His beloved bride.
That's the the pie is complete. The missing truth has been revealed to fall, and it cost him tremendous suffering to bring it to us to evaluate as we should.