“God is Love. Whoever lives in Love lives in God, and God in them.” (1 John 4:16, 8)

Greetings again Friends!

Whoever we are, and wherever we come from, we all observe a basic conduct or etiquette of behavior we would expect from people which governs our relationship with them. From a personal level where we develop friendships to a complex level between people and nations, this custom or conduct is called “protocol.” The dictionary defines the word as a code of correct conduct. You might say, it’s a right of passage to something or someone. On a personal level, it may not be so legalistic, but on a level involving organizations, companies, and nations, protocols are more detailed and procedural.

On a personal relationship level, the basic protocol would be a person’s basis for association with another. That’s to say, the next person regards you as a person with the inviolable right to life, self-determination, the pursuit of happiness, and you are an individual worthy of love, respect, and honor. This is the basis for genuine protocol for person-to-person relationships. You can say they are sacrosanct. If a person does not believe you are unquestionably entitled to these qualities of life, or thinks you do not deserve one or more of them, then your relationship with such a person will be problematic. Every wrongdoing or criminal act committed on a person is a violation against one or more of these human values and rights.   

Many people are not what you may think they are, and you’ll find genuine friends through experience and observation as it relates to these basic personal values (protocol). For Americans, these are values enshrined in the nation’s constitution. That’s not to say the constitution is perfect. There’s more to God’s purpose than what any human hand can pen.

(For example, those who hate and despise others for whatever assumed reasoning or bias, think happiness is reserved only for those who merit such a state of existence. Yet, the abiding principle of ‘golden rule’ applies to all, both to friend and foe alike. If one sows the seeds of unhappiness and discord in others (hatred and division), it is because he already has it first before he can sow it in others – what goes around, comes around! Jesus clarifies this, saying, “Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy.”)

This is no different from our relationship with God. There is a basic protocol to be observed if our relationship with God is to be genuine and true, so the divine can respond to our plea for interfacing with it. There is a vital difference though, in human relationships we are relating with people who are all God’s human creation, whereas with God there is a divine/human, Creator/created, Father/child, relationship.

So what is this protocol which governs our relationship with God? The protocol answers the question of why God made humans in the first place, and to never deviate from His express divine purpose for human existence. What is that purpose? The Genesis account of creation says God made humans to reflect Himself in character and composition: “So God created mankind in His own image, in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them” (Gen1:27). That means man’s destiny is to become Love as “God is Love,” and to inherit immortality and rule the earth forever. (Gen.1:26-27; 1 John 4:8, 16; John 3:16) God Himself is the mold and purpose for human creation. Humans were created to become God’s children. Yes, He deals with each one of us as His own child with whom He can have personal, individual, relationship. 

The protocol calls upon man to respond to His divine purpose in faith, and express a living faith through our actions. First, it requires we look to God as a Father who has begotten us because of His deep, abiding Love for us, and is in the process of bringing us into His eternal reigning family. He expects us to live expressing His Love for all humans. Paul said it like this, “Owe nothing to anyone–except for your obligation to Love one another. If you Love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law (or, to conform to His purpose for human life)” (Rom.13:8, NLT).

It sounds simplistic, but it is not as easy as it seems. It is difficult to “Love neighbor as you Love yourself” (Mark 12:31). And I will share with you why and how it is possible to make His Love a way of life, and how we can know we have eternal life in us.

Let’s begin with immortality. This is what the Bible says about it, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:16, NASB). When you will have taken on immortality, you naturally would have Love as an intrinsic part of your being. In other words, they are one and the same life and can’t be separated.

This passage asks man to believe in simple faith in Jesus who has Himself said, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:26). You see, central to the issue of immortality is the prerequisite of faith… “do you believe this?” we are asked. That’s all… it is quite straight forward and is as simple as a child can know.

Do you think when God made mankind to become His immortal children, He would make it as difficult as possible (as some believers postulate), or as easy as possible, to become His children? Yes, God has said it is as easy as believing in His Son, period! John can’t be more clear and simple when God inspired him to write, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

But we know that simple believing has become just as hard because of confusion. Confusion breeds doubt, the reverse of faith. When you think about it, doubt means you have a choice. And choice means you have to choose between two opposites. This is not altogether a bad thing. Since having an option means you are living freely – you have FREEDOM! Why is this important? Because Love and freedom originate from the same place – God’s very divine Being. You cannot have Love without freedom, nor freedom without Love. In other words, God wants for man to freely choose to Love Him. Love and freedom is an intrinsic part of His nature. “God is Love” (John 3:16). Paul said, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free” (Gal.5:1).

God could well have made us like the other life forms so that we will respond to His purpose instinctively and automatically. But then, we would not be children, we would be like beasts, fowls, marine life, and other kinds of life. So God gave His human children minds, which other life forms don’t have, to freely choose to Love Him.

However, when I said “confusion” it means there is a deliberate force at work which exists to derail God’s purpose in mankind. Why, so man may not reach his destiny of becoming God’s children inheriting His Love and immortality. So, it is not as simplistic as a choice between two opposites, but we are speaking of two “ways of life.” One is based upon Love and freedom, while the other is centered on fear and captivity (slavery).

So, God’s offer to be part of His eternal divine family is open to all mankind regardless of race, nationality, color, language, or whatever barrier we like to conjure. It is as simple as believing in what God has designed to accomplish in us through His own Son.

In my next segment, I will explain Jesus, and why He is central in God’s purpose to bring humans into His divine family.

If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to write to me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing:

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessings of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you always. May the Spirit enliven your spirit and make all things concerning you possible as you live the “Triune Life” as a  Bulamanriver.*  Be strong in the Lord’s joy.

Kiang,  

* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: All information is copy-write. Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

 “But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Cor.1:30)

Greetings Friends!

You may have read me mention this term, victorious life in Jesus, or, living victoriously in Jesus. What does the term mean? I will answer that in this post.

Victorious life in Christ means the righteous, sinless, conquering, life He lived when He was in His human form, which He continues to now live in the life of the believer through the power of the Holy Spirit. But one may say, how is that possible, I live a sinful life. Even when I try my best to live uprightly, I still sin. I sin inadvertently, and the Bible speaks of secret sins I am not even aware I have. (Psa.19:12) How then is it possible for the victorious life of Jesus to become reality in me? Yet, the very contradictory circumstance of Jesus’ perfect life and man’s imperfect existence, is the very rationale for a worthy substitute to stand in our defense – that, gives credence to our argument.

One reason we fail to see the truth of the victorious life of Jesus is because we place Jesus into the mold of our fallen, depraved, and evil existence looking out, instead of the other way round. We are seeing Jesus through the pair of eyes of our human frailties and shortcomings instead of the eyes of the Holy Spirit whose purpose is to sanctify man. We ought to be exchanging His life for ours. And the power of the Holy Spirit makes this happen, Jesus said, “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father–the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father–He will testify about Me. He will glorify Me because it is from Me that He will receive what He will make known to you” (John 15:26; 16:14). The role of the Holy Spirit is to sanctify the believer by realizing the victorious life of Jesus in the believer. Paul said, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal.2:20).

Another reason we cannot see the reality of living the victorious life of Jesus is because we fail to understand the full effect of what the saving role and work of Savior entails in its scope and meaning. It means Jesus not only saves believers from past sins, but from present and future sins as well. In order to do that, Jesus is not a Savior who remains dead on the cross, but was resurrected and ascended to God the Father’s right hand, and lives as man’s High Priest in order to mediate continuously in every second of man’s existence to make His victorious life possible. Paul said, “If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith” (1 Cor.15:14). Jesus’ mediation for sinful man in heaven “completes” man. (Col.2:10)

Yet another reason is we fail to fully grasp the victorious life is because we fail to fully grasp the truth of Jesus existence and Being. When Jesus became human, He was also God in the human flesh. This makes Him the only human qualified to be Savior and Mediator of man. In other words, it has to take God Himself to save man, for man is a fallen being, and cannot save himself. Jesus came forth from His eternal existence in the Triune Godhead – the Trinity, as it is commonly called. He was no ordinary human, yet, He was human in every way, shape, and form, and knew what it was like to be a human. The Bible tells us, “For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet He did not sin” (Heb.4;5). Man cannot say God does not know what it is like to be human. He was human like us, yet sinless. As God, He took our imperfect humanity, warts and all, and sanctified us in Himself, and brought humanity into God’s presence forever.

The Bible gives a unique name to reflect Jesus’ existence as God who took our human form: Immanuel, which means “God with us.” (Matt.1:23: Isa.7:14). This unique name reveals where He came from and that He existed eternally in the Triune Godhead. By taking man’s fallen, sinful, immoral and corrupt humanity into Himself, He effectively cancelled all human failings, sins, and depravity, in Himself through His perfect life and death on the cross. And by His resurrection and ascension, He glorified our humanity and took it into the very Being of God the Father. So, in a genuine vicarious sense, in Jesus man now exists in the perfect life within the divine Godhead in heaven in Christ. He is our elder Brother. It is from this vantage point that the victorious life is lived and experienced by the believer. It is a life of faith which gives us the confidence to live victoriously in Jesus through the divine Spirit.

The final reason I would like to share is we fail to understand the work of the Spirit in bringing about the victorious life of Jesus in the believer. Jesus said, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing” (John 6:63). By “flesh” it means the fallen “condition” of man, not the human body per se. Jesus glorified His, and by extension our human body, in His resurrection from the dead. The Spirit proceeds from Jesus in heaven and brings the victorious life into the life of the believer. Paul said man becomes God’s temple where the Holy Spirit dwells, “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Cor.3:16, NASB).

Imagine this for a moment, if the Spirit dwells in you, while He simultaneously dwells in the Triune Godhead in heaven (for He cannot be separate from but is one substance in the Triune Godhead) then in reality the believer dwells in heaven with God through the Spirit, although bodily he walks the earth. In effect, this means the believer is in a saved “condition” in the Spirit, as opposed to an unsaved condition in his fallen flesh. As we read, the flesh profits nothing, it is the Spirit who saves. If the Spirit lives in man as a temple, then no sin can enter the life of man, for the Spirit is Holy and sinless. The Spirit is applying the eternal sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf through the surrendered life to keep us in the Father’s presence forever. Yes, sometimes we overtly give the body more credence than it deserves, when we ought to afford much more credit to the work of the Spirit in sanctifying us in Christ.

If we were to re-read the above quote of Jesus, it would say, “The Spirit brings the victorious life, the flesh counts for nothing.” What you experience in your fleshly life amounts to nothing, it’s the life we live in the Spirit in heaven that counts, and He now lives on earth in His temple – the life of the believer. Paul’s words sums up the victorious life, “But by His (the Father) doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord” (1 Cor.1:30-31). Effectively it means if we do not have a complete Savior in Jesus, then He is no Savior. That is the essence of the victorious life we have in Christ. (Col.2:10)

When our faith is founded upon the “Triune Life” we will better understand the victorious life of Jesus because all three Persons of the Triune Godhead are involved in human salvation. Hence, this ministry has adamantly advocated the “Triune Life” so we’ll always have our spiritual bearings right. Go to our “Mission Statement” at this link and find out more about the meaning of “Triune Life”: http://bulamanriver.net/?page_id=3381

If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to write to me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing:

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessings of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you always. May the Spirit enliven your spirit and make all things concerning you possible as you live the “Triune Life” as a  Bulamanriver.*  Be strong in the Lord’s joy.

Kiang,  

* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: All information is copy-write. Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

“Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life…Put on your new nature, created to be like God” Eph. 4:22,24

Greetings Friends! What do I mean by “true self” and “false self”? Does the Bible speak about the subject? I hope I can clarify what the terms mean, and show how the Bible speaks about the topic, and help us understand what it teaches.

Statue of Liberty – Depicting Freedom in the New World of the United States (Wiki Commons)

Every person possesses dual personalities. One is true to who he or she is as a person created in God’s image and likeness, I call that personality the “true self.” While the second personality works against and dehumanizes the person based upon self-determination, whom I call the “false self.” One brings joy and true success, while the other brings stress, frustration, and defeat. One empowers a person, while the other incapacitates and weakens. These two personalities can exist side by side, so the person can be in a state of friction and constant tension, depending on the circumstance, hence the person can be compelled to make hard choices to resist the opposing personality. Although every person is gifted differently, yet each of the dual personality expresses itself depending on who decides to show up to confront the issue at hand.

Let me give you the background how these two personalities came to be, and how they affect our relationship with others and the world around us. Hopefully, this explanation will  help us deal with the seeming contradictory life choices we face every day. You are left with a choice between two divergent paths, taking a right one will lead to good, while the other leads to ruin. I hope it will help lead us to a more productive life.

When God created humans, he made man in His own Love-image. (Gen.1:26-25) Because Adam and Eve lived in God’s presence in the Garden of Eden, God’s Love was an intrinsic part of their personality, and this reflected their “true self.” The “true self” made it possible for our first parents to live and commune with God in their Love relationship. Adam and Eve had everything they could ever desired which God supplied and provided them. They lived with absolutely nothing they lack, most of all joy was their reflection of life. They lived and remained faithful to God in Eden.

But Adam’s “true self” was not founded upon God’s Love alone. Love must of necessity be vibrant, revitalizing, and motivating, in order for the Love relationship to flourish. Hence, Love has a dynamic element which engenders goodwill, respect, honor, integrity, patience and humility, so the Love relationship can grow. It is called freedom. Freedom is the lifeblood of God’s Love which flows like a river endlessly with its energizing qualities. In order for Love to have meaning and relevance there must of necessity be freedom. You can say the two elements are the dynamic duo of God’s divine nature. Without freedom there is no Love, and without Love there is no freedom. The Bible says, “God is Love,” and the flipside of Love is freedom. (1 John 4:8) Paul said, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free” (Gal.5:1) Love cannot thrive and be allowed to grow without the freedom of choice to Love.

By its very nature freedom brings the dynamic of choice into the picture. Hence, when God made humans He gave him a mind with the ability to discern and make choices. This means Love is the divine life that’s made to flourish by the exercise of one’s freedom through decision-making. Therefore, freedom by its very definition engages the mind to assess the circumstance at hand, discern and distinguish, and through effort and sometimes struggle, make the right choices based upon Love. It is a choice made by one with the welfare of another in mind, in order that the Love relationship may grow and be magnified between them. That is the dynamism in which Love is nurtured and made to flourish, thus reflecting the “true self.”

Much Like Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde a Person exists with Dual Personalities in His “True Self” and “False Self” (Wiki Commons) 

But freedom is not just an empty word. God Himself gives it the substance it warrants so we can experience freedom for real and authentically. Freedom is something tangible which our God-given minds can understand and make a choice to freely believe and accept or disbelieve and ignore. So, the substance of freedom is the ‘covenant promise’ God offers man. Thus the covenant becomes the lifeblood of God’s Love relationship where man can exercise his freedom about what God is offering him. Man’s part is to freely choose to believe or disbelieve what is offered. God could have made man like the many beasts and creatures He created having preset instincts so humans can automatically choose His covenant. But that would defeat His purpose of creating human children in His likeness. Freedom involves the exercise of the mind and will to voluntarily choose to Love. God wants the believer to freely Love Him – that takes true freedom!

The promise contained in His covenant with man is essentially the heart of what freedom means. We see this covenant spoken and articulated by God through His Prophet in the Old Testament and repeated by His Apostles in the New Testament. (read Jer. 31:33-34; Heb.8:10-12; 10:15-17) The contents of God’s covenant promise is the basis upon which man freely enter the Love relationship with God. So, for Christians the Love relationship with God (“true self”) finds its basis and underpinning upon the New Covenant.

The New Covenant can be encapsulated in the phrase from the Genesis account of man’s creation, “Then God said, “Let Us make mankind in Our image and let them have dominion over the earth and all living things.” (Gen.1:26-27, paraphrased). Therefore, the covenant is the pathway to and reflects the “true self” who exists in God’s likeness. All God’s activity on earth since Adam’s fall has been to fulfill His original mandate for human creation proclaimed in Genesis, period. God’s image is immortality, so the New Covenant promises man to be part of God’s family living eternally with Him. God’s image is Love, so He made man to become Love as He is Love. God’s image is He is Creator and possesses all dominion and power, so He promises man creativity and reign over the earth. Most of all, God promises a life where death does not exist, with unbound joy and fulfillment without lack or suffering. It is a life we were created to experience in His presence.

In addition, there is a vital proviso to the covenant which underpins its miraculous function and value –  it is the provision of a Savior and Mediator. The New Covenant requires the role of a Savior who mediates between God and man in order for the terms of the covenant to be faithfully dispensed. In other words, the covenant is ineffectual without a Mediator, or High Priest. He is the go-between who constantly mediates God’s Love relationship with fallen man. However, at present man is under the rule of the devil who holds him incarcerated so he cannot enter into this covenant relationship with God…enter the Savior.

The Savior and Mediator of the New Covenant is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who existed with the Father and the Spirit in the One Triune Godhead from eternity. He was the prophesied Messiah, the Emmanuel, (God with us), who was promised after Adam’s fall in Eden. (Gen.3:14-15; Matt.1;23; read all of Isaiah 53) The New Covenant was ratified by Jesus’ blood through His death on the cross. (Matt.26:28) I would like to encourage you to go to a previous post on this subject of the New Covenant at this link: http://bulamanriver.net/?p=2993. It explains the Covenant in detail.

“National Covenant.” Believed to be the original from which copies were made for distribution of the fifty-two words long Preamble to the Constitution of the United States (1787) echoes phrases in the National Covenant – “We the People…” Photographed in subdued light. (Wiki Commons)

Recall, God had planted and gave Adam and Eve a garden called Eden where both Love and freedom was the essential part to their existence. We see the dynamic of freedom being introduced to make Love grow and flourish in Eden. God made a covenant with our first parents saying in effect they will live joyfully forever in His presence and have life to the fullest when they exercised their freedom in Love. He told them He planted numerous fruit-bearing trees for food to sustain them. He told them there was a special tree which produced marvelous and exquisite tasteful fruit, called the “tree of life.” He told them they should eat its fruits daily so they can replenish His Love in them. But they are to exercise their freedom and choose to eat from the “tree of life” and they did. The “tree of life” is the metaphor for His Spirit of Love. Also, there was another tree in Eden called the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” God told them they must never go near it, nor touch it, and never eat of its fruit.

So, here we see an environment of Love in Eden where the relationship is made to grow and flourish through the freedom of choice where man makes the deliberate decision to honor each other’s best interest through Love and freedom. One cannot be forced to Love someone. Love can be given only out of one’s freewill and own conscious choice based upon their covenant relationship. Love has to be a genuine free choice. One cannot give Love if he is incarcerated, he must be free. The story of Israel’s slavery and exodus from Egypt was a monumental account about freedom supported by God’s Love in His covenant promise to bring Israel to their own “land flowing with milk and honey” – the Promise Land. It was based upon the covenant God made with Abraham, from whom the Israelites descended. God wanted Israel free so He may Love Israel totally, and vice versa (covenant). Love is contingent upon the free choice of one person for another so Love may grow. Adam and Eve’s relationship with God in Eden comes with the dynamic of freedom which is the lifeblood of Love itself. So, Adam and Eve had life in Eden based upon their “true self” founded upon Love and freedom. 

It is vital to understand that God was not testing Adam through temptations to see if he will be obedient as many believe. God tempts no one. Rather, they were living in the dynamic of God’s Love and how Love is made to grow and flourish through freedom and one’s free will to choose, based upon the covenant God offers man. This is the nature of Love, and how it works. We are to take responsibility for Love with our freedoms because of the impossibility of Love to remain static and passive. “God is Love” and Love must be nurtured to flourish and is eternal which can never fade and die. (1 John 4:8, 16) Yes, Love must grow and increase, and the only element which establishes Love to thrive is freedom through the dynamic of a covenant relationship between two parties.

Man has taken his God-given freedom for granted not knowing why this gift was bestowed, nor realizing it’s purpose and place in life. He has misunderstood and abused the gift of freedom for self-interest (“false self”). He forgets the basis of freedom is so man may freely receive God’s grace and relate with Him in Love and fulfill man’s reason for being (“true self”). Yes, man is free to assess what God offers him, and determine if there is anything better than what He offers. I repeat, freedom is the lifeblood of Love, and the covenant is the lifeblood of freedom – this is the essence of the “true self.”

The Bible says, “When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting (testing) me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed” (Jam.1:13-14). It is much like taking care of the baby’s dirty diaper, which many a person considers a huge test. Yet, you can’t blame the bundle of joy before you. But you can understand why the whole dynamics of babies and diapers has a natural and inherent part in the manifestation of your joy (promise/covenant) which brings freedom – the baby! It is foolish to “throw the baby out with the bath water” simply by reason of dirty diapers. Likewise, when given unavoidable choices (“tests”) to enable Love to grow through freedom, we can inadvertently get into the blame game like Adam and Eve. But I hope the light of His Love, His covenant promise, and the continuing unfolding of our “true self” through freedom, will guide us to see the big picture in a given situation.

In fact, James tells us to “consider it pure joy whenever you face trials of many kinds” (Jam.1:2). Why, because you are not in God’s test tube, you are in the middle of the dynamics of His Love and your Love relationship with God your Father that’s made to flourish with joyous outcome in the discovery of your “true self” which brings freedom. So, it is not so much about God testing you, as much as it is about God’s way of Loving you deeper, which leads to a more profound discovery of the joys of your “true self.” (Heb.12:4-8)

Tomb at St. Chad, England with the Inscription “WHAT WILL SURVIVE ALL OF US IS LOVE” (Wiki Commons)

But here was the turning point for Adam and Eve where their choice became a hard struggle, as they most times do, when the devil enters the scene and tempts them to go in the opposite direction God had taught them. Satan told them to disregard God’s word saying He was lying to them. Unfortunately, they believed the devil and succumbed to his deception and ate the fruit they were forbidden to even touch. In effect, they covenanted with the devil and forsook God’s covenant with them. We know the story. God had no choice but expel them from Eden for their misguided decision. Adam and Eve exercised their freedom and made a choice which banished them from the magical land of Eden. They did not choose the way of God’s Love which reflected their “true self.” Instead, they chose the way of fear and self-determination, and from then on the “false self” was born. 

Here is what happened. In a moment in time, the “true self” disappeared from the life of man, and the “false self” began its reign over Adam and his children. The “true self” needed to be nourished with the fruit of the “tree of life” (Holy Spirit) which was in the Garden of Eden from which they were now banished. Now they have taken ownership of the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” Whereas in Eden they were guided by the Spirit (tree of life) in Love, now they were left to the whims of their own self-determination to decide for themselves what is good and evil, under the influence of the devil. And that is the choice man continues to have today, will man sit under the “tree of life” with the Spirit; or, under the “tree of good and evil” with the devil. 

But God is the embodiment of Love in His Being, and could not forsake His disobedient human children to the enemy. He promised to send a second Adam, His Son Jesus Christ, to correct the colossal blunder of the first Adam, and bring man back to Eden and the “tree of life” and restore man to his first estate in his “true self.” In a period of four thousand years of human history, man lived under the shadow of the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil” and exercised his freedom through his “false self.” The “false self,” motivated by Satan, has brought untold suffering, misery, and death upon humanity. True to God’s indictment upon Adam, “In the day you shall eat it (forbidden fruit) you will certainly die.” (Gen.2:17) The foundation of the “true self” is God’s outgoing Love, whereas the basis of the “false self” is fear and self-centered living.  

So much foul and deathly waters have passed under the bridge of time and history  – 4000 years! When Jesus Christ appeared on the scene to ratify a New Covenant with mankind based upon God’s original mandate at creation, He began His ministry by taking care of the first things by correcting the consequence of Adam’s fall. (Heb.8:10-12; Gen.1:26-27) His mission was to bring back the “true self” which was lost in Eden and return man to his lawful birthright. This was good news (Gospel) for man, at long last Someone worthy has come to take man by the hand and guide him back to the promise land – Eden! (John 3:16) After His baptism at John’s hand in the Jordan, the first order of things was to set the record straight and defeat the arch-enemy, Satan. (Matt.4:1-12) Having defeated Satan in His titanic battle in the Judean wilderness, He spent three and half years raising a ministry to carry on His work and the work of the Father of restoring man back to his “true self.” Jesus’ final act of completing His mission was to die on the cross as a worthy sacrifice for the forgiveness and absolution of all human sin. The work of rehabilitating man is, as Jesus said on the cross before breathing His last, “It is finished!”

A Depiction of the “Tree of Life” – Source of the “True Self” (Wiki Commons)

Now the consciousness of man can enter a door which heretofore was closed to him since Adam. It is the door to finding his “true self” that’s the embodiment of true Love and freedom that was lost from Eden. Remember, since Adam’s fall man was bound to his “false self” as it were a prison, and the prison warden is Satan. Love cannot thrive when man is incarcerated in the devil’s prison. How does man enter this door of discovery of his “true self” and leave behind everything about himself that’s a mask of deception of himself in the “false self”? Man must be unmasked to see himself for who he truly is before His Maker, and freely choose the path to his “true self.”

Jesus answers this human dilemma, “You must be born again,” He said. (John 3:7). This new birth is essentially the heart of the provision of the New Covenant. Man needs to experience an incarnation from the “old self” to the “new self.” Man has to be completely transformed from his “false self” to his “true self.” Jesus explains the process of change further, “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but Spirit gives birth to spirit…everyone must be born of the Spirit” (John 3:6, 8b). Jesus later affirmed this, saying, “It is the Spirit who gives life, the flesh counts for nothing” (John 6:63). Recall, the Spirit was pictured in Eden as the “tree of life” from which Adam and Eve ate of its fruits and was sustained in God’s Love giving life and energy in their “true self.” On the day of Pentecost, which commemorates the day the Spirit (tree of life) was made available again to humanity, Peter stood before the crowd in the town square and announced to the people, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Act.2:38). There we have the mechanics if you like, of how to step out of the “false self” and step into the “true self.” It takes repentance and baptism, and the gift of the Holy Spirit.

It is vital to understand this incarnation is not something we can do on our own, as if by human volition alone. Some have advocated a so-called ‘surrendered life’ as the way to discover the “true self,” even though the surrendered life is necessary within the proper context. Let’s get our orientation right. A perceptive reading of the New Covenant will make us realize one vital aspect; not a single one of the provisions of the covenant can be executed successfully to its desired end without the direct infusion of God’s miraculous act to make the covenant reality. That’s to say, in man’s covenant relationship with God, the believer is constantly living the miraculous life in order to make covenant promise become reality.

Recall, Jesus went into the Jordan and was baptized by John the Baptist. John’s mission was to “preach the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (Mark 1:4). His mission was specifically to baptize Jesus. But the question remains, why was it necessary for John to baptize Jesus “for the forgiveness of sins,” when He had not sin to repent of? The answer to that is the answer to our own “baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” Jesus took upon Him all the sins of mankind and was baptized for our repentance and forgiveness. Remember Jesus words to John after he hesitated baptizing Jesus, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Yes, He was baptized for our righteousness. Paul affirms this, “It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God–that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption” (1 Cor.1:30).

Ultimately, He was crucified as the perfect sacrifice for human sins. But the reason we can repent and be baptized and forgiven is because Christ has already done it for us. Not because we can do it on our own – although we have the freedom to make that choice. But let’s not confuse personal freedom with an act that requires a miraculous intervention from God. Just as we invoke Jesus’ cross for our forgiveness, likewise, we invoke His baptism for our repentance. It takes a miracle from God to bring man to repentance and forgiveness and so experience the incarnation to the “true self” through Jesus in the Spirit’s power.

Origin of the “False Self” the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil” (Wiki Commons)

Recall, when Jesus came out of the waters of Jordan, the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him, and the voice of the Father proclaimed the encouraging words, “You are My Son whom I Love; with You I am well pleased” (Mark :1:11). Here we see Jesus inaugurating the coming of the Spirit into human life. It was later poured out upon man on the day of Pentecost (Joel 2:28; Act.2:1-4). Again, the giving of the Spirit has nothing to do with man’s doing, rather, it is because Jesus ushered the Spirit’s coming that we become privileged recipients. Jesus went on to defeat Satan in the wilderness of Judea and reversed Adam’s mistake and place mankind back on tract in God’s human enterprise. In place of Adam’s fall, we live the victorious life of Christ in the Spirit. These are three monumental things which Jesus did for man in the Jordan setting the stage for man to retake his rightful place upon this earth and in God’s scheme of things: the gift of repentance, the gift of forgiveness, and the gift of the Holy Spirit which brings the victorious life of Jesus – the true self!

Paul speaks eloquently of how this process takes place in a believer, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live (false self), but Christ lives in me (true self). The life I now live, I live by the faith of Jesus who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal.2:20). Further he said, “Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception (“false self”). Put on your new nature, created to be like God–truly righteous and holy (“true self”)” (Eph.4:22-23). This is a fundamental statement which defines the “true self.” Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:16). Jesus is the way who leads man to the truth which leads life, and life brings the “true self.” Then Jesus said, “Very truly I tell you, the one who believes in Me has eternal life” (John 6:47). So, the identity of the “true self” is hardwired to Jesus, who is the immortal Son of God.

Paul said, “Christ Jesus has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality through the gospel” (2 Tim.1:10). The “false self” on the other hand carries this indictment from the Creator, “You were made from the dust, and to dust you shall return” (Gen.3:19). Note, God said this after Adam had discarded his “true self” and taken on the mantle of the “false self” by obeying the devil. But Jesus, the second Adam, came as was promised by the Father, and rescued man by restoring him to his first estate in his “true self” in Christ.

Jesus, the Second Adam, Defeating Satan where the first Adam failed, Making the Victorious Life in the “True Self” Possible (Wiki Commons)

The basic identity of a person existing in his “true self” is manifested by living the “Triune Life.” The “Triune Life” means a person who lives the 3-dimensional life of the Triune God in the Father, Son, and Spirit. It means all three Persons in the Trinity are involved with the salvation of the believer. Then, there is the “solitary life” where man lives the 1-dimensional life in himself under the influence of the devil. Jesus became human fulfilling His prophesied identity as the Emmanuel, a name which means ‘God with us.’ (Matt.1:23) When He was resurrected from His ignominious death on the cross and ascended to the right hand of the Father in heaven, He was raised bodily taking our humanity and glorifying it by inducting man into the very Being of the Triune God, as Christ Himself is One in substance and reality in the Triune Godhead. Therein is the identity of the “true self” living the “Triune Life” in Christ by the power of the Spirit who lives in man as His temple. (1 Cor.6:19) (You may read the “Mission Statement” explaining the “Triune Life” by clicking on the appropriate directory banner above. Or, go to:  http://bulamanriver.net/?page_id=3381)  

As the Triune God exists in their Love for each other eternally, likewise, Love is the underlying motivation of the “Triune Life” we are privileged to live through Christ. God makes this possible by depositing His Spirit in each of us, as Paul said, “God’s Love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us”  (Rom.5:5; also Rom.8:9). When the Spirit enters the life of the believer and lives in him as a temple, He manifests the various shades and color of Love that Paul spoke so eloquently to the Corinthians (read 1 Cor.13).

To be patient, kind, generous, not envious and boastful, to be humble and not proud, to not be greedy or easily angered, to live in faith with hope, etc, are virtues we live by through freedom of choice from the opposite of these attributes. For every divine work of the Spirit (“true self”), there’s a competing work of the flesh that’s from the devil (“false self”). (Ga.5:13-26) The fruits of Love of the Spirit are not legalistic “tools” to make us better people, it comes naturally as a the result of living in the dynamics of God’s Love. It is how God, in His Triune Being, has lived in relational Love from eternity. What a privilege and blessing to be living in our “true self” through the “Triune Life.”   

I hope this post has encouraged you, as much as it has done for me, penning it. I pray that your Love relationship with God your Father may flourish with joyous outcome in the discovery of your “true self” which brings freedom. Yes, true freedom enters the human heart in the discovery of the “true self.” If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to write to me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing:

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessings of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you always. May the Spirit enliven your spirit and make all things concerning you possible as you live the “Triune Life” as a  Bulamanriver.*  Be strong in the Lord’s joy.

Kiang,  

* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: All information is copy-write. Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

“Go and tell the world about this wonderful Gospel, and induct (baptize) them into the name of the Triune God of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit”

Greetings Friends!

The command to not worship other gods apart from the true God, is directly connected to our conception of Him – that He is a “Trinitarian” and not a “solitary” God. By being Triune in nature, He essentially is relational and lives as ONE in Love, for “God is Love” (1 John 4:8). The practical meaning of Love means to be diverse yet unified in ONE. God is three persons, yet ONE God.

Man was created  to live the “Triune Life” because he is a Triune being. What do I mean? It means man was made in the image of the Triune God, who is in substance, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (Gen.1:26-27; Matt.28:18-20) Therefore, man was made to enter the Loving relationship the Triune God and become ONE in substance and reality with the Triune God.

Whenever the name of God is mentioned, it always means He is “Triune” in His Being yet ONE. The name of God never means He is one in a “solitary” sense. Recall Jesus parting words to His disciples: “Go and tell the world about this wonderful Gospel, and unify (baptize) them into the name of the Triune God of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” (Matt.28:19, emphasis mine). In other words, we are commanded to induct believers into the unified “Triune Life” of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The reason is obvious, it is the most natural state of existence man can have because he is made in God’s likeness. 

Rublev’s Icon of the Trinity (Wiki Commons)

Jesus’ final prayer with His disciples to the Father before He was crucified was framed in God’s Trinitarian reality. God inhabits eternity in His Triune Being, and is the Source of the Love which envelopes all of creation, and is expressed to man in His 3-dimensional reality. Man, in his fallen self, exists in his 1-dimensional reality.

“I do not pray for these (disciples) alone, but also those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be ONE, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be ONE in Us, that the world may believe that You have sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be ONE just as We are ONE: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in ONE” (John 17: 20-23, emphasis added). Jesus told His disciples, “On that day you will realize that I am in the Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you” (John 14:20). Every word is uttered in its Trinitarian context of who God is in His Triune nature of Love.

Obviously, His prayer was intended to enlighten both the disciples and His followers about His mission, and to bring to reality the will of the Father in Jesus’ purpose in the Gospel. That is, to do the work of the prophesied Immanuel – “God with us”: to join man to the God who is Triune in His Being. (Isa.7:14; Matt.1:23) So, the name Immanuel is essentially Trinitarian in its meaning. Also notice, God’s manifested glory become man’s when he is unified to God’s Triune Life in Christ. Primarily, His glory is manifested in the miraculous life we are privileged to live in the power of the Spirit, who is given to be with us “forever.” (John 14:16) This is what brings power to the Christian life, but for most, the Christian life is without the miraculous life or glory that comes from the Triune life of God. Are Christians still living the “solitary” life? Is this why they live powerless lives? So, there is always this three-fold involvement of the Father, Son, and Spirit in the life of the believer.

Jesus’ Death Makes the “Triune Life” Possible (Eugene Delacroix, Wiki Commons)

It is entirely feasible for man to take this “unity prayer” of Jesus and apply it to his “solitary” human perspective of life and misses the Trinitarian point of His prayer altogether. It is so easy and natural for man to live the “solitary life” because he exists in his fallen state of being from Adam. It takes a miracle to live the “Triune Life.” Unfortunately, man has been relating with God on his “solitary” footing which is why his life has been powerless. With the “solitary life” man has develop a religion rather than a “relationship” with God. The essence of the “Triune Life” is triune living. Triune living is living in the power of the Spirit. Jesus, by stating, “By Myself I can do nothing” revealed He was indivisibly and inseparably unified to the Father and the Spirit, as ONE Triune Being in substance and reality. (John 5:30) Jesus goes on to say, “Rather, it is the Father living in Me who is doing His work. Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in Me?” (John 14:10). 

God’s promise to man is to give him a new heart to end his suffering from living a ‘solitary life’ through a newborn “unified life” in His Son, who in turn takes man into the “Triune Life” of God (Ezek. 11:19; Heb. 8:10, 10:22; John 3:1-8). He will remove the heart of fear and give him the heart of Love. In becoming a mortal human, Jesus vicariously assumed man’s sinful life in His perfect being. In doing so, He destroyed fear and replaced it with God’s Love. Finally, man can reciprocate with the same Love with which God Loves man. Only One from the Godhead is capable of Loving another God alike and perfectly. Man doesn’t have that Love. Only One from within the Triune Godhead can become the Mediator for all of humanity’s inadequate responses and transform them from fear to Love in Himself (John 3:16; 2 Cor. 5:17; Eph. 2:15). That is why He is called man’s High Priest and Mediator in heaven, who forever intercedes for man. This is what Jesus brought and made possible for man. Hence Paul said, “You are complete in Him (Jesus)” (Heb.7:25-26; Col.2:10).

Living this “Triune Life” with and in God is as natural as He is Love for man was made in God’s Love image. God accepts His Son in our place as our vicarious defense against the law which defines sin and demands our life. Sin is the condition of living the “solitary life” of self-determination under Satan’s influence. So when Christ died as our perfect human atonement, we died in Him (Rom. 7:4-6). When He was resurrected, we were lifted with Him. When He ascended to heaven, we relocated in Him (Eph. 2:4-6). The covenant promise God makes with man in His Son removes the heart-of-stone and replaces it with the heart-of-flesh. This is our new life in Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension (Heb. 8:6-11). The heart of fear dies and reincarnates into a heart of Love (God). This is the miraculous life we have been called to live, for nothing but a miracle can make it happen.

Dove, Symbol of the Holy Spirit (Wiki Commons)

The most basic and pivotal knowledge man can have is to understand God is Trinitarian, and to relate with Him as such. Man was born for this life. If we do not get this right the first time then everything else is based on a false premise. There are only two options: the “Triune Life,” or the “solitary life.” Christ came to open the consciousness of man to a realm unknown to man. From the Trinitarian worldview, the human mind opens vistas of perspectives he would not otherwise comprehend in his fallen “solitary” human worldview. The life of man in his fallen “solitary” human worldview is the lock which prevents him from entering door into the new world Jesus brought to man. You can say the Trinitarian worldview is the gateway to the realm of the Spirit heretofore unfamiliar and undiscovered by man. In fact, the “Triune Life” was unknown to man until Jesus came and reveal the Father and the Spirit to man. This is where God meets man, and man meets God, which is the point of the miraculous never before experienced by man. That is what Jesus brought us. 

The mission statement slogan for this ministry is “Live the Triune Life…Change the World.” You may read the mission statement in the directory banner above to gain more insight of the “Triune Life.”

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to write to me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing:

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessings of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you always. May the Spirit enliven your spirit and make all things concerning you possible as you live the “Triune Life” as a  Bulamanriver.*  Be strong in the Lord’s joy.

Kiang, (Your Servant in Christ) 

* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: All information is copy-write. Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

“And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world. But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died” (1 Corinthians 15:19-20)

Greetings once again Friends!

I hope I can help you to see the inescapability of Jesus in your life. Wherever you are, whether you a king or pauper, beggar or rich man, healthy or unwell, in pain or pain-free, employed or out of a job, married or single, schooled or unschooled, a commoner or royalty, whatever ethnicity in whatever station in life, …we all need Jesus in our lives, it’s just that we lack the capacity to see that yet. We don’t yet know His utter necessity in life. We have not seen nor understood only He can make sense of all our struggles, and to matters for which we don’t have answers, and ultimately to the question of life itself.

I am not pointing you to a Jesus whom you have seen as a religious figure. He is not! For truly, He is your personal Savior – a Savior is in the work of saving, rescuing and restoration. Man has made Jesus into a religion – not God! Religion is man’s way of explaining the deity they believe in with all its appended rules. God is our “Father,” He’s not religion! Jesus is our “Brother,” He’s not religion! Herald (Holy Spirit) is our “Friendly Helper,” He’s not religion! You can relate with the Triune God intimately. You will never relate with religion in the same way. Religion demands you obey and bow to its edict, God values and Loves you as His own child He will never spare any pains to have, hold, and caress in His bosom.

Jesus Defeating Satan in The Temptations for Man (Wiki Commons)

The freedom and courage to believe would be the first place to begin. We must discard our preconceived ideas that God and religion are somehow related. They are not! Religion is the invention of man, not God. If we are going to come to a place where God can have a direct hand in our lives in a practical hands-on way, then it begins with the true concept of God. For some this can be hard because they think they can’t be anything else apart from the set of religious beliefs in which they are raised. They think, if you are Indian, then you have to be a Hindu. If you are Muslim then you are Islamic. If you are Asian, then you are born a Buddhist. If you are a Jew then your religion is Judaism. If you are a Westerner, then you are Christian, and so on. This is absurd! One of the first things we learn about being human is we are creatures with the freedom to make up our own minds. Freedom is a divine attribute given to us by the Creator to help us make good choices in life. God made beasts, fowls, marine life, and life forms to behave in a prescribed fashion through inbuilt instincts, but not so, man! Man is given a mind with the freedom of choice. Religion wants man to behave in a fixed manner they impose. The problem with religion is they hide rather than reveal the true God from our view, let alone understand His true purpose for each of us.

If religion answers to the meaning of humanity’s existence and purpose on earth, then we have to conclude they have been an utter and dismal failure. Why, because we only have to look through history and around the globe today to see religion’s utter ineffectiveness. In fact, history tells us more than anything else that religion has been the groundswell for many human conflicts, suffering, and death. The reason seems obvious – religion has been framed as part and parcel of entrenched nationalism and political aspirations of people and nations. History tells us when man mix the two we will have a recipe for a perfect storm for prejudice, intolerance, and segregation which leads to all kinds of conflict. Religion becomes the plausible and persuasive ‘face’ for people to be politically and deceptively manipulated. Today we openly decry racial segregation, yet religious segregation stands above all forms of discrimination. In the final analysis, we are all one people under God, no matter our ethnicity or nationality and religion. This is the prime reason the framers of the American constitution provides for the separation of church and state. Why? One word, history! The lesson of history proves religion otherwise. The original colonizers came to the new world (America) to escape religious persecution.

Jesus Healing the Centurion Servant and Declares Himself our Savior both Physically and Spiritually (Wiki Commons)

What we must understand as a matter of first importance is: God is in the work of saving mankind individually as persons. If He knows the stars by name, (there are 10 billion galaxies in the observable universe, and 100 billion stars in each galaxy, giving a total of 1 billion trillion stars in our observable universe), He knows each one of us likewise. (Psa.147:4; ) By that I mean He’s not in this world to build a religion or for that matter a nation. He is making children of mankind He can Love individually – person by person!  It is true the Bible speaks of a “church,” but it is not by any stretch of the imagination, a religion. The word church, taken from the word “ekklesia” means people who are “the called-out ones.” It comprises those who have personally responded to God’s call of Love to have a direct relationship with Him. The church is merely the term given to the collection of people who have an intimate personal Father/son-daughter relationship with God. It is like the word family. God is a family with children He loves intimately. The church is a family, not a religion. Much like a soccer or basketball “team” – each member is personally selected to play a specific position in the  family team. God is our Loving and ever-present Father and life-coach. Unfortunately, many “churches” have grown to become religious. It becomes a religion when man forgets God’s covenant and proceeds to become nothing more than a human institution. (Read Jeremiah 23) The Christian “church” is not a religion, period.

Understand this, the beauty of the Christian message about God is He is having a personal hand in your life as a person. He is not speaking to you through the priest or minister (Christian), a pujari (Hindu), a rabbi (Jew), an imam (Muslim), a monk (Buddhist), or any other religious leader. His covenant is clear He speaks and addresses us in person as children, because He Loves each and every one of us individually. We are not objects for manipulation to Him, He Loves us and Love is never self-centered but outgoing.

In Christian belief we use these words of the New Covenant as the basis for this person-to-person activity of God in humans, “AND THEY SHALL NOT TEACH EVERYONE HIS FELLOW CITIZEN, AND EVERYONE HIS BROTHER, SAYING, ‘KNOW THE LORD,’ FOR ALL WILL KNOW ME, FROM THE LEAST TO THE GREATEST OF THEM” (Heb.8:11). In other words, God will be their teacher in Person. Religion, which purports to be the intermediary between God and man, is effectively sidelined. Remember, this is essentially a section of the covenant which God makes with man, and part of the Christian faith. How does God do it in man? His answer is in another passage from the Bible, “But you have received the Holy Spirit, and He lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what He teaches is true–it is not a lie. So, just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ” (1 John 2:27). Yes, each one of us is a temple the Spirit indwells. (1 Cor.6:19) The Holy Spirit is the presence of God in man who teaches us the truth about ourselves in relation to life and God. Our identity as persons which enables us to relate with Him is our gift He confers in us through His  Spirit. (1 Cor. 6:19)

Jesus Dying For Humanity’s Forgiveness (Wiki Commons)

The only way is to come out of the mold of religious tradition we have been conditioned by keeping an open mind free of prejudices and bias. Everyone has the freewill to do that at the least. God, who declares Himself to us as a caring and gracious deity wants more than anything to have a personal relationship with you and me. (John 3:16) That’s hard to comprehend if you are brought up in a religion whose view of God is a Being who is untouchable and unapproachable, and most of all not personable. No, He cares about you – personally!

So, I am going to share an important principle from the Bible which teaches that makes this belief so relevant to your life and those of your loved ones. We all face issues in life that are unique to each of us, yet, we can’t find the answers in the religion we are raised up to believe. If anything, because of religion we have been taught to have this arms-length existence with God. Religious leaders are no more helpful than their own religion. Instead, we find religion demands our support more than it provides answers to the issues that are pressing in life. Even in death the Christian message provides comfort and hope. (John 11:25-26)

There’s an important element about Jesus which answers to the covenant God makes with humans, and reveals all that we aspire Him to be for each of us, Paul said it like this in a brief but weighty declaration, “You are complete in Him” (Col.2:10). By leading with “You” God is emphasizing a personal relationship with you. He is not speaking religion to you through a pastor, priest, monk, rabbi, imam, or pujari. He is speaking to “You” directly and personally! The Greek word for complete (πληθύνω/ pléthunó ) means to fill to individual capacity, i.e. to the extent it is “meet” (appropriate). That is God’s plan for you in His Son. It expresses totality, and implies full quantity (“up to the max”).The idea God is putting across to us is His Son is your answer to life and all that life means and can be to you and your loved ones.

Why is it, that in a modern setting of the Christian faith, for example, and this goes for all religions, do we teach that the church, temple, or mosque, synagogue, is the place one goes to for direction and answers, when it is clear in the Bible that God, through the Spirit, is the guide and power in our lives? The answer is because we have been condition that way through religion. Religion reveals the motive of man – it’s sad but it is for reasons of power and financial and other forms of gain. When man stands in the place of God between man, that is called “religion.” It is a man-made institution without divine sanction. 

So, in a manner of speaking, you can say Jesus is to our innermost spiritual being what air is to our outermost physical being. What am I saying? Quite simply, man has two forms of life expression – one is physical and material, while the other is spiritual and divine. A person denies this basic truth to his or her own detriment. The two are intertwined and cannot be separated. The physical is the outward expression of the spiritual, not vice versa. So, when the Bible speaks of Jesus as the total answer to life, we are speaking of the basic spiritual element which controls the physical and material outcome. Jesus said it this way, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and His righteousness, (inner spiritual life) and He will give you everything you need” (outer physical life) (Matt.6:33). Of course “kingdom” means Jesus’ reign in your life. Or, we can have religion dictate our spiritual life.

Life is like a clock, we try to meddle with the hands, without realizing the pendulum is the only thing that regulates the clock. No matter what you do in life, your inner spiritual gauge is what guides your thoughts, emotions, and actions. When your inner life is in harmony with God’s true purpose for you, your life-clock is giving the correct time. Anything else is a fabrication and deception.  

I sincerely hope you will have an open mind to consider Jesus, or at least give Him a chance to show Himself and prove He is the One you have been seeking all your life and cannot do without. He is the answer for all things good in your life and those of your loved ones.

Blessing:

Until we meet again, may the blessings of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you always. May the Spirit enliven your spirit and make all things concerning you possible as you live the “Triune Life” as a  Bulamanriver.*  Be strong in the Lord’s joy.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to write to me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Kiang, 

* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: All information is copy-write. Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

“He was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid Him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as He was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “Why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven” (Act.1:3-11).

Ascension of Jesus, painting by Uhde, (Wiki Commons)

Greetings Friends!

Mankind’s resurrection and ascension to immortality was inaugurated by Jesus Christ in His own resurrection followed by His ascension to heaven 40 days later. The purpose of Jesus’ resurrection and ascension was to return to His eternal Trinitarian existence He had with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus told the disciples, “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth” (John 14:15). Jesus’ ascension made possible a momentous act never to be repeated – He took our humanity, glorified it in Himself through His bodily resurrection, and forever joined mankind to the life of the Triune Godhead. The Trinity has changed its complexion forever. (Gen.1:26-27) Jesus now sits at the right hand of the Father as mankind’s eternal High Priest. Though our human resurrection and ascension is something we look forward to in a future event, the most important thing Jesus did for man is to bring the “Triune Life”** which believers can live now.

Thereby, it is logical to conclude that by joining our humanity with the Triune God, the Father and the Spirit is forever joined to humanity in a real sense through Jesus, the Immanuel, who is both God who glorified our humanity in Himself. It was for this very reason of uniting our humanity with God that Jesus made this ultimatum, “But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you” (John 16:7). This is undoubtedly the weightiest aspect of Jesus’ mission and ascension – to join humanity to the Triune God and give passage for the Spirit to enter mankind on the day of Pentecost and carry on the work of the Father which Jesus started and commissioned His disciples to continue on earth. So, His departure was a necessary part of mankind’s initiation into the life of the Triune Godhead and the Spirit being made one with mankind.

Most of all, the Scripture is very clear about the most important aspect of the Holy Spirit’s work – it is by the Spirit’s power that humans will be sanctified and eventually resurrected to immortality. (2 Thess.2:13; Rom.8:11,13) Paul affirms this, saying, “If by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of His Spirit who lives in you” (Rom.8:11). Human resurrection to immortality is made possible only through the Spirit’s power and presence. Paul articulates this process further by saying, “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Cor.3:16; also John 7:37-39; 1 John 4:13; 1 Cor.6:19, NLT). While Paul is drawing attention to the issue of church unity in Corinth, he is indirectly confessing the truth about Jesus’ ascension in joining the Spirit to human life. A temple is a place of worship where God and man meet. The Bible says, “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ” (Rom.8:9). And if anyone does not belong to Christ then he cannot be conformed to Jesus’ image and likeness in His resurrection and ascension. (Rom.8:29).

Jesus promised, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you… On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you.” (John 14:8, 20). Here again we see Jesus affirming man’s eternal unity with the Father and the Spirit which He makes possible. Paul said, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me” (Gal.2:20). What we see is Jesus’ life being incarnated into the life of the believer on earth to be followed by a resurrection into immortality. But how is this process of salvation done in reality? Through the Holy Spirit! Jesus tells us the role of the Spirit, “He will glorify Me, for He will take from that which is Mine and will disclose it to you” (John 16:14, Berean LB). So we see the purpose of the Spirit is to live and walk in the life of the believer as a temple and make Jesus’ life become a reality, thus, fulfilling the promise. Jesus said, “He (Spirit) will not speak on His own, He will guide you into all truth. He will glorify Me because it is from Me that He will receive what He will make known to you” (John 16:13,14). Therefore, the ascension brings to reality the promise of Jesus He will personally come and live in the believer through the Holy Spirit’s power. When we think of the life of Christians living the incarnated life of Jesus today it is contingent upon His ascension to make it a reality. It is quite simple, the ascension was necessary for the Holy Spirit to come.

The account of the ascension is recorded as follows in the Book of Acts, “After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.  On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” Then they gathered around Him and asked Him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by His own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” After He said this, He was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid Him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as He was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “Why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven” (Act.1:3-11).

Depiction of the Two Angels of Ascension. “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven” (Pic: Wiki Commons)

What is the work of Jesus that the Spirit will articulate in the world? Jesus Himself answers, “And when He comes, He will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in Me. Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see Me no more. Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged” (John 16:8-11).

Here, Jesus explains sin very simply – it’s a person’s refusal to believe in Him as Savior. “Concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me.” So sin has to do with faith – faith in Jesus! It’s very simple, very plain, sin is more than an individual act of sin, it is our refusal to believe in the Messiah who atones and cleanses us from sin. Sin is the condition of man’s self-determination controlled by the devil, and righteousness is the condition of the Spirit inspired by Christ. In our fallen state of existence we exist in the sin condition, and the only way out is to step out from it into the sinless and righteous condition of Jesus through the Spirit’s presence. Hence, Jesus speaks of being “born again” into a new life in the Spirit. (John 3:1-8)

Why does the passage above says, “concerning righteousness (sinlessness) because I go to the Father?” Because Jesus has ascended to the Father’s right hand and remain as man’s eternal High Priest mediating for man. The Bible says of Jesus, “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek” (Heb. 5:1, 5-7). Paul says, “There is one Mediator between God and man, the Word of God who is Himself a man, Jesus Christ” (1 Tim 2:5). A High Priest stands between sinful man and our holy God mediating on man’s behalf for all his shortcomings. Paul says, “Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died–more than that, who was raised to life–is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us” (as mankind’s High Priest) (Rom.8:36, my emphasis).

Dove, Symbol of Holy Spirit and God’s Love and Power  Descending upon Man on Pentecost. “I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions” (Joel 2:28). (Pic: Wiki Commons)

When Jesus said, “Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged” it means Christ has defeated the instigator of sin, Satan. Judgment came about when Jesus was victorious over the devil in the temptations in the Judean wilderness, and when He died upon Calvary on His cross as the final answer to sin.

So, that is the 3-fold message the Spirit brings to the world – it is about Jesus saving us from sin once for all time; Jesus becoming our righteousness through His High Priestly role in heaven; and Jesus bringing judgment by defeating the enemy the promoter of sin in mankind through the temptations and His death on the cross! This is why the ascension is of utter importance to the whole world.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to write to me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing:

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessings of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you always. May the Spirit enliven your spirit and make all things concerning you possible as you live the “Triune Life” as a  Bulamanriver.*  Be strong in the Lord’s joy.

Kiang,  

* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

** “Triune Life” means a believer is living his/her life in the Triune Being of God. God, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, lives and walks in the Bulamanriver (you and me), and the believer lives in God’s presence. Man’s union with the Triune God is made possible through Jesus, Himself God who took our humanity into the Triune Godhead. Through the Spirit who lives in man as His temple makes the “Triune Life” possible. (1 Cor.3:16)

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: All information is copy-write. Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

“He isn’t here! He has risen from the dead, just as He said would happen. Come, see where His body was lying.” (Matthew 28:6)

Greetings Friends wherever you are in the far-flung corners of the world! May the peace Easter brings be with you and your loved ones.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. Even though Jesus told His disciples of His impending death and resurrection, for them it was too incredulous to be believed. Then when they heard from others that Jesus had indeed risen, it left them speechless. When He miraculously appeared before them, they were left gasping for breath. Jesus told one doubting disciple, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet believed” (John 20:29). Yes, the Christian life is a life of living faith. 

Paul said matter-of-factly, “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins” (1 Cor.15:17). Indeed, powerful words concerning the Christian faith. The cross would be meaningless if Jesus had not risen. We cannot believe the cross and deny the resurrection, they are one and the same expression of His Messiahship. His life and all the prophecies concerning His calling as the Messiah would have all been fiction, a fabrication, if His resurrection from the dead had not happened for real.

Visitors at the Garden Tomb Where Jesus’ Body was Laid to Rest and Resurrected (Wiki Commons)

The unbelieving mind thinks of the idea of the resurrection as preposterous, originating in religious zeal that borders on the fanatical. A 2010 Barna Group poll showed that only 42 percent of Americans said the meaning of Easter was Jesus’ resurrection; just 2 percent identified it as the most important holiday of their faith. “More people have problems with Easter because it requires believing that Jesus rose from the dead,” said James Martin, a Jesuit priest and author. Yet, it is the only hope the Christian faith holds out to its followers. How do we prove to skeptics this cornerstone of Christian belief? Everything about Christianity hangs in the balance on this one focal point of the Christian faith – did Jesus die on His cross upon Calvary and rose from the dead as He and the prophecies said He would? (Psa.22; Isa.53; Psa.16, esp. V.10)

The New Testament account of the resurrection from Matthew’s gospel goes as follows, “After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.² There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.³ His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.⁴ The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. ⁵ The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here; He has risen, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay. ⁷ Then go quickly and tell His disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see Him.’ Now I have told you.” ⁸ So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell His disciples. ⁹ Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” He said. They came to Him, clasped His feet and worshiped Him. ¹⁰ Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see Me” (Matt.28:1-10).

The resurrection responds to the ancient quest for answers to the question of life, death, and the afterlife. Ancient philosophers, theologians, and sages have long sought to unlock the answers to them. There are only two certainties about life that no one can deny: life and death! Every day we experience these two opposite extremes of human reality – to exist (life), or to cease to exist (death)! Our awareness of death arise out of life itself. In other words, we would not know death were it not for life. Life always takes precedence. Humans are given to experience these twin realities not as a matter of choice, but because an external entity superior to man has determined this is how human existence is offered to man. (Heb.9:27) If you and I had a choice, life would be our natural and only option. Death is a curse we would avoid at all cost .

So, everything about human existence cannot be answered within our mortal frame of reference without an external involvement. So we are compelled to look outside ourselves for answers to life and death. Hence, our search for answers ends with an entity we call God. Or we may choose the path of atheism and conjure our own answers to the questions of life and death, like the theory of evolution, or any other hypothesis. Most religions accept the external input of a deity, only their beliefs differentiate them. So, the search for meaning about life, death, and the afterlife leaves us face to face with an entity we call God or Creator. God Himself knew this, or should I say stage-managed it, so humans have no other way but to turn to Him for important answers about life and death. Man is left face-to-face with his Maker.

If we concur on the above discourse about life and death, then we have arrived at the same logical conclusion about answers to them from our Creator. For Christians, His answer is articulated in His Son, Jesus. Jesus’ resurrection answers man’s eternal search to the meaning of life, death, and the afterlife.

God tells us He is the source of life – life originates and exudes from His divine Being. He is the spring of life. (Gen.2:7; 1 Sam.2:6; Act.17:25) If that is so, where did death come from? It cannot come from God for nothing but life proceeds from Him. Death was imposed upon man as a penalty for sin. The Bible says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom.6:23). When Adam and Eve sinned by eating the forbidden fruit, sin entered our human existence, and death followed. God told our first parents, “you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die” (Gen.2:17). God gave us His Son so that through His death on the cross we may not have to face death ourselves. And through His resurrection we will receive immortal life.  

Artist impression of Resurrection of Jesus (Wiki Commons)

So when God created Adam it would have been contrary to His nature and who He is to  subject him to death in any way, shape, and form. The totality of the environment in Eden was wrapped up in one element which defines who God IS: life, life, and life everlasting! Death is the exact antithesis of who God is in His nature. He declared Himself to His enslaved people in Egypt as “I AM that I AM” (Exo.3:14). It means ‘to be,’ which means to exist in everlasting life. Adam had life to its fullest and completest divine expression that a human can experience at the highest physical level possible! Adam existed in God’s presence, the Source of both spiritual and physical life. Adam did not know what death meant, it had no meaning with him, although he was warned of it. (Gen.2:17) It is impossible for God to make death happen because it is synonymous with sin, and God and sin (death) can never coexist. Adam and Eve existed in the ‘circle of life’ because God IS life!  Death was the result of disobedience imposed upon man as a consequence of sin. Death was man’s choice, not God’s! So, we understand the resurrection in relation to who God is in all His manifest Being: the fountain of everlasting life! Hence, man’s destiny will always be about immortality, and death is just a temporary blip until sin and death is removed forever.

Let me share an interesting information from ancient texts. Although not considered canon, these ancient texts are part of the heritage of Judaism and Christianity. In earliest patristic texts it was hypothesized that Adam existed in a state of human immortality in Eden. The premise upon which Adam’s human immortality is inferred comes from God’s own words at the time of man’s creation, “Let us make man in our image after our likeness…” (Gen.1:26-27). God’s image and likeness is not mortal but immortal. Human immortality was Adam’s natural condition of sharing God’s own eternal life (likeness). It was Adam’s only way of communing with God directly in a holy state of existence in Eden. 

The source of Adam’s human immortality came from his daily food he ate from the fruit of the tree of life. These passages from Genesis implies this premise, “The LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground–trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (Gen.2:9). After Adam’s fall, God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever” (Gen.3:22, NLT; also Rev. 22:1-5). So, it is clear Adam “lived forever” in a form of human immortality he possessed which came from eating the fruit of the tree of life. 

It is made abundantly clear from the texts we have seen in Genesis that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil brought human death, and the tree of life was the source of human  immortality. Obviously the two trees are symbolic of the two realities of life we face everyday before God. The tree of life represents the Holy Spirit who imbued Adam with God’s divine Love and immortality; and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil stands for disobedience and sin through self-determination swayed by Satan’s deception which brings death. (Rom.8:11; Jam.1:15; Rom.6:23) Even today we cannot see the Spirit, but we see what He represents in life like Adam saw and ate from the tree of life. Paul dispels any doubt what the Spirit personifies to us in his letter to the Corinthian church teaching them to eat the “fruits of the Spirit”: Love, kindness, patience, self-control, joy, peace, not being envious and arrogant, generosity, hope, faith, etc. (1 Cor.13) “Eating” these fruits is synonymous with eating from the tree of life. 

The moment Adam ate the forbidden fruit and sin entered his life, his human immortality disappeared, and from then on he assumed nothing more than his mortal being that’s now conditioned to sin and death. The metamorphosis was sudden and immediate because light (God) and darkness (sin) cannot cohabit. In basic physics we know this to be obvious – note when you switch a light on in a dark room. Darkness instantaneously flees in front of light, and vice versa. You can say ‘in a twinkling of an eye’ “they realized they were naked” (Gen.3:7). Adam and Eve all of a sudden felt shame before God and hid for the immortal sinless image (Spirit/Love) which enabled them to live and commune with God in Eden had vanished – he was a mere mortal, in the spiritual sense, “naked.” The Bible says, “So they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves” and hid among the trees from God. (Gen.3:7-11)

In the ancient text Adam said to Eve, “Do you not see these figs and their leaves, with which we covered ourselves when we were stripped of our bright nature?” (human immortality). (First Book of Adam & Eve, Chapter XXXVII, v.1) By hiding their nakedness they conceded they were not appropriately clothed or equipped in spirit for the Edenic environment where they dwelt with a holy and sinless God. Sadly, now they were fully mortal and sinful, making it impossible to live in God’s presence. Be that as it may, God’s purpose in humans to be vessels of immortality assuming His likeness (children) was never undone and remains man’s destiny. Note, when God told Adam, “You are made from dust and you’ll return to dust” (fully mortal), it was uttered ‘after’ and not ‘before’ Adam’s fall. (Gen.3:19). Before the fall they existed in God’s immortal “image and likeness.” (Gen.1:26-27) Whereas our first parents was not constrained by time and space due to their human immortality, now they were. 

Adam and mankind no longer had access to the tree of life, “After God drove the man out, He placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life” (Gen.3:24). Outside of Eden mankind had no choice but to be sustained by the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, that’s to say, man will live through self-determination as to what’s right and wrong swayed by Satan’s deceit and falsehood. The dominion they were given over this earth was taken from them for they had effectively handed it to Satan who would rule through sin and death. God promised to send a second Adam in His Son, who would come to defeat the enemy, reclaim the earthly dominion for mankind as King and Lord, and take humanity to his rightful eternal destiny. (1 Cor.15:45; Gen.3:15).

Think about this a moment, when God declared to Adam, “if you eat from it (forbidden fruit) you will certainly die,” it is no different from saying, “as long you do not eat the forbidden fruit you will surely never die.” So, it’s logical to conclude that Adam had existed in a form of human immortality which never tasted death – as long as he remained faithful. But man is given to choose because freedom is the flip-side of Love, and “God is Love” (1 John 4:8). Without freedom there is no Love, nor is there Love without freedom. So, if Adam had chosen not to eat the forbidden fruit, would he have tasted death? No, there was only one road which leads to death – eating the forbidden fruit. Adam had human immortality by feeding himself off from the tree of life. Death is not merely the cessation of physical life, it is a way of life which produced death in all its manifest expression we see around us today. We see death in the sorrows, heart-aches, hatred, unhappiness, greed, treachery and pretense, pain and suffering, sickness and disease. It is the ‘circle of death’ in the devil’s world which is the opposite of the ‘circle of life’ which existed in Eden.

Adam Possessed Human Immortality in the Garden of Eden (Pic: Wiki Commons)

Moreover, since immortality is not limited to nor constrained by time and space, the Bible does not state the “time” frame Adam and Eve remained faithful prior to their fall. For this reason the Genesis account of the fall appears “sudden” as if it occurred immediately after human creation. Not so, since they existed outside of time and space, it’s not possible to quantify “space-time” between Adam’s human immortal existence and his human mortal life (fall). In other words, eternity is not constrained by time and space and always “exists” in the present, there is no past or future, only the present. Hence, the fall appeared like it happened shortly after creation, without realizing that an eternity had “existed” between Adam’s human immortality and human mortality (fall).

If Adam fell directly after creation, then we would have to conclude the devil was more powerful than God. Also, we would be compelled to surmise what the devil offered Adam was far superior than what God offered them. That’s just preposterous, and we know that is not true. What can be far superior than an unending life of abounding joy in Paradise? The Psalmist said, “A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked” (Psa.84:10, NLT). With God a day is reckoned as a thousand years. (Psa.90:4) God’s power and sovereignty is without question, and what God offers man is incontestable. Satan cannot offer man immortality, perish the thought, how can he when he was created like man, except he was made an archangel and chose to become the adversary. Immortality cannot be conferred by the created but by the uncreated – God!

For all we know, our first parents remained faithful and lived in complete and unbound joy in God’s presence for quite some “time” before their fall to Satan’s deception. Remember, it had to take deceitfulness and cunning on Satan’s part to wrest Adam and Eve away from God’s Love and Paradise. But all it took was just one bite of the forbidden fruit, and we can assume Satan may have tried more than once to draw them away but without success. But it happened nonetheless, and that is why Jesus, the second Adam, had to come and die on the cross and be resurrected to restore man to his legitimate birthright to immortality.

Time and space became a reality only after sin and death entered human existence. From then on no mortal human could exist in God’s presence as Adam did before the fall. God told Moses upon Mount Sinai, “you cannot see My face, for no one may see Me and live.” (Exo.33:20; also 1 Tim.6:16). The lost world of Eden was a unique place on earth where God communed with humans in a form of immortal existence which did not exist outside Eden. Eden was and still is God’s plan for mankind. In future, Eden will cover the whole earth and God Himself will dwell among humans. (Rev. 21 & 22) So we see why the resurrection of Jesus to immortality is vital to God’s plan for mankind upon this earth.

Another ancient text states that after Adam’s fall, he was consumed with inconsolable grief for all they had lost. Of course he was, he had just lost all of Paradise for a bite of the forbidden fruit. But more so because Paradise had a lasting impact on their lives, and to lose it was indeed a heart-rending experience. It reminds us of the story of Esau who sold his birthright for a bowl of lentils. Without question, Jacob was at fault for deceiving his brother. Adam wanted desperately to return to Eden but to no avail – can light and darkness cohabit? Adam had lost not only his human immortality, but the glorious life in Paradise he shared with His wife Eve basking in God’s enduring Love. Why is there is a tendency with humans to take the status quo for granted then gradually slide into a subtle form of contempt and folly? (Rom.2:4; Heb.12:15-17, ESV)

I don’t think we could imagine the truly magnificent life they had in Eden with all the power and glorious activities divinely conferred upon them. They communed face to face with God and angelic beings. They had power to control the elements like the weather, and more. Jesus gave us a glimpse of this when he changed water into wine, walked on water, and controlled the storm besides all the miracles He performed. And the grief-stricken episodes Adam suffered many days, weeks, and months, and the remainder of his life, revealed in no small measure to the Paradise that was lost to Adam and mankind. No human have since experienced the life God had originally designed for man apart from Adam and Eve. Only a future resurrection made possible by Jesus who has led the way for humans by His own resurrection, will bring man back to his former estate and God-ordained birthright. (Rom.8:29; 1 Cor.15)

Garden of Eden – Paradise Lost (Wiki Commons)

Today we are experiencing a world of sin and death outside of Eden. We look all around us and  world events seems apocalyptic. Everywhere we see sin written on the script of people’s suffering, pain, and death. God’s heart aches for mankind. The answer is in God’s divine Love. Having lost the divine likeness God created humans to possess, He now calls upon man to seek his true destiny in returning and regaining the glorious life that is his rightful birthright through Jesus and His cross. Paul, by saying, “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Cor.15:22), he was declaring God’s purpose of reversing the effect of Adam’s fall through Jesus His Son, and bring man back to his first estate in Paradise.

When Jesus was resurrected He effectively raised man to his former glory of human immortality in Eden. Only this time, on this side of Eden, we have Jesus in the role of man’s High Priest seated at God’s right hand, performing the ongoing task of Savior and Warrior on man’s behalf. (see my previous post dated March 01 2016, “Easter 101 – Know The Full Story”). This is necessary so Jesus will remove the effect (penalty) of the tree of good and evil (sin/death) forever. Jesus’ parting words to His followers were, “Go, and spread this good news from the Father to the whole world, and make believers of everyone, and I will be with you to the end of time” (Mark:16:15; Matt.28:20, emphasis mine).

The Bible speaks of our own resurrection where the sting of death no longer reigns over us, “Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed – in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? (1 Cor. 15:51-55). We have come full circle and brought back to our Edenic birthright through Christ who is the firstborn of many humans made human immortal. (Rom.8:29)

“Fountain of Eternal Life,” Cleveland, Ohio, Depicting Resurrection to Immortality (Wiki Commons)

As for death, the Bible says this, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor.15:55-57). Yes, that victory is the resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ. His resurrection signals the human triumph of true life over sin and death.

Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me will live, even though they die” (john 11:25). Jesus died the death of all of us on His cross so we may live – yes, even in the grave death’s gripping tentacles has no power over us – death has been defeated in Christ’s death and resurrection.

John was made to see a vision of this future Edenic paradise on earth where God will dwell with His human children, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away…And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants shall serve Him: And they shall see His face; and His name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God gives them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever. The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent His angel to show His servants the things that must soon take place” (Rev.21:3-4; 22:1-6).

The world we read in the above passage of scripture cannot possibly come to pass without the resurrection of God’s people to immortality. This is the new earth transformed into an Eden-like world. The tree of life will be there, but the tree of the knowledge of good and evil will be no more, for Jesus has defeated sin and death once for all time. This is the wonderful and glorious message of Jesus’ own resurrection to bring mankind to a world so staggering and spectacular beyond words. This is what we celebrate during Easter. This is the essence of the Gospel.

Paul ends with these encouraging words of Love from our heavenly Father, “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Cor.15:58).

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com. Thanks for visiting.

Blessing:

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessings of the season of Easter and Passover be with you all and your families, and may God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, help you to receive Jesus as your personal Savior and live the “Triune Life” in the Spirit. May the Spirit enliven you and make all things concerning you possible in Triune Living as a Bulamanriver.*

Kiang,                      

* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

See the BULAMANRIVER Video at: http://youtu.be/8uA0Bq7UoYA

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information

“神爱世人，甚至将他给了他唯一的儿子，谁信他的，不至灭亡，反得永生”（约翰福音3:16）

(“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16))

问候世界各地的朋友。复活节是一年中最重要的基督教季节它是为了纪念救主和救赎，耶稣基督的死亡和复活。

(Greetings friends around the world. Easter is the most important Christian season of the year for it commemorates the death and resurrection of the Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ.)

基督在十字架上，通过德拉克洛瓦 – 沃尔特斯艺术博物馆（维基共享）

(Christ on the Cross, By Eugene Delacroix – Walters Art Museum (Wiki Commons)

上帝的约诺显示神的亲密爱人的人，“因为我要宽恕他们的不义，他们的罪，他们的罪孽，我要记住没有更多的”（Heb.8：12;约翰福音3：16-17）。当然，罪恶将永远有一个价格，耶稣付出了生命代价在十字架上。耶稣不是一个普通的人 – 他是预言以马内利，神人肉。（Isa.7：14; Matt.1：23）由于希伯来书9:14说：“基督的血，谁借着永远的灵，将自己无瑕无疵神，从死作品清除你的良心，以服务永生神。而对于这项事业他是新约的中保，既然受死的方式……他们被称为可能获得永恒的生命的承诺。“他变得一劳永逸，完美的牺牲精神没有罪能打败。

(God’s covenant promise shows God’s intimate Love for man, “For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more” (Heb.8:12; John 3:16-17). Of course sin will always have a price, and Jesus paid the price with His life on the cross. Jesus was no ordinary human – He was the prophesied Immanuel, God in the human flesh. (Isa.7:14; Matt.1:23)  As Hebrews 9:14, says, “The blood of Christ, who through the Eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God. And for this cause He is the Mediator of the New Covenant, that by means of death…they which are called might receive the promise of eternal life.” He became once and for all, the PERFECT SACRIFICE which no sin can defeat.)

罪和圣洁不能并存。神，在他的圣洁，永远灭绝罪，因为罪不能在圣洁的神的存在存在。你见过一个强大的泛光灯照亮漆黑的舞台？当光线进入竞技场，因为黑暗与光明不能共存，就像罪恶和神的圣洁的爱不能并存的黑暗出逃。耶稣说：“我是世界的光。跟从我的，就不在黑暗里走，必要得着生命的光。“（约翰福音8:12）。耶稣通过他的牺牲的光就足以取人从黑暗，让他无罪。如果没有，那么他是一个救世主不足，冒名顶替者。但他却是全足够了，剩下的就是我们相信，悔改，接受他为救主。听先知以赛亚的，“来我们的父亲的鼓励的话给我们，让我们谈谈这些事情。你们的罪虽像朱红，他们可以像雪一样白。虽然你的罪是深红色的，也可以是白如羊毛“（Isa.1：18-19）。

(Sin and holiness cannot co-exist. God, in His holiness, will always exterminate sin, because sin cannot exist in the presence of the Holy God. Have you ever seen a powerful flood lamp light up a pitch dark arena? Darkness flees when light enters the arena, because darkness and light cannot co-exist, just as sin and and God’s holy Love cannot co-exist. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). The light of Jesus through His sacrifice is enough to take man out of darkness and keep him sinless. If not, then He is an inadequate Savior, an imposter. But He is all-sufficient, all that remains is we believe, repent, and receive Him as Savior. Listen to our Father’s encouraging words to us through the prophet Isaiah, “Come, let us talk about these things. Though your sins are as scarlet, they can be as white as snow. Though your sins are deep red, they can be white like wool” (Isa.1:18-19).)

各各他（“骷髅山”），耶稣受难的网站（维基共享）

(Golgotha (“Skull Hill”), Site of Jesus Crucifixion (Wiki Commons)

信徒可能会说，“但我还是人，我犯罪的所有时间。”这是真的。约翰告诉我们，“如果我们宣称自己是没有罪，我们欺骗自己，真理不在我们。如果我们承认我们的罪，他是信实的，并会赦免我们的罪，一切的不义洁净我们“（约翰一书1：8-9）。我们仍然罪，通过人性的弱点，我们无意中罪的大部分时间，我们都无知的罪过 – 罪孽我们还没有看到。（Psa.19：12-13）。然而，我们置身在上帝的怜悯和恩典，对他说：“我要宽恕他们的不义，他们的罪，他们的罪孽，我要记住没有更多的”（Heb.8：12）。换句话说，耶稣牺牲包罗万象的，他不仅需要我们过去的罪孽的关心，但我们的现在和未来的罪孽。保罗说，这样，“上帝使他（耶稣）谁没有罪对我们的罪，让他在我们可能成为神的义”（林后5:21）。是的，这是耶稣的这不再是黑暗​​可以侵入光。

(A believer may say, ‘but I am still human, and I sin all the time.’ That’s true. John tells us, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1John 1:8-9). We still sin, through human weakness, we sin inadvertently most of the time, we all have the sin of ignorance – sins we do not yet see. (Psa.19:12-13). Yet, we place ourselves at God’s mercy and grace, for He says, “I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more” (Heb.8:12). In other words, Jesus sacrifice is all-encompassing that He takes care not only of our past sins, but our present and future sins. Paul said it this way, “God made Him (Jesus) who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21). Yes, it is the light of Jesus which no darkness can invade.)

瞧，这是不能否认的一颗普通的事实，神不能团结自己在与一个人爱的工会，如果他或她是一个罪孽深重的条件（生存状态）。信徒是在圣灵保存的条件。（2 Cor.1：22）太多次信徒看着他或她个人的罪，发音本人“因噎废食。”但我们的过犯，无论是通过无力，无意或无知，是不是问题 – 这是照顾通过耶稣的牺牲，当我们请求宽恕和悔改。我们的注意力必须集中在我们这些将我们团结在一起与神我们慈爱的父亲“保存条件”。（Eph.2：18）

(Look, there is one plain fact which cannot be denied, God cannot unite Himself in Loving union with a human if he or she is in a sinful condition (state of existence). The believer is in a saved condition in the Holy Spirit. (2 Cor.1:22)  Too many times a believer looks at his or her individual sins and pronounce himself or herself “unworthy.” But our trespasses, whether through weakness, unintended, or ignorance, is not the issue – that’s taken care of through Jesus sacrifice when we ask for forgiveness and repent. Our attention must be focused on our “saved condition” which unites us with God our Loving Father. (Eph.2:18) )

墓园耶稣的尸体被特＆复活（维基共享）

(Garden Tomb Where Jesus Body Was Laid & Resurrected (Wiki Commons))

这是什么意思是“保存条件？”这意味着圣灵住在信徒为他的寺庙。保罗说：“你不知道你的身体是圣灵的殿，谁是你的，你从神接受谁的？你是不是自己的;你是有代价的（耶稣）收购。因此，荣耀上帝与你的身体“（1Cor.6：19-20）。耶稣告诉门徒，他被钉十字架前，“我会问父亲，他会给你一个代言人来帮助你，并和你永远在一起 – 真理的圣灵”（约翰福音14：16-17a）。圣灵的出现改变了从被有罪的是基督义人的病情。从黑暗的光线条件。这是它派生该条件许可的活动的条件。那是什么活动？它是什么，但爱我们的父亲和他的人类的小孩之间​​的活动。什么是精神的作用？圣灵的目的是圣信徒让他/她总是能够统一通过耶稣的父亲。（Rom.15：16; 1 Cor.6：11），我们一直生活共鸣我们生活在耶稣在天上通过我们的圣灵的力量歌颂人类，所以我们可以在爱情统一与父 – 永远。我来把这称为“三位一体生活”为所有三个，父，子，灵都参与了我们的救恩。

(What do I mean by “saved condition?” It means the Holy Spirit is living in the believer as His temple. Paul said, “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price (Jesus). Therefore, honor God with your bodies” (1Cor.6:19-20). Jesus told the disciples before He was crucified, “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to help you and be with you forever – the Spirit of truth” (John 14:16-17a). The Spirit’s presence changes man’s condition from being sinful to being righteous in Christ. From the condition of darkness to light. It is the condition which spawns the activities which that condition permits. And what is that activity? It is nothing but the activity of Love between our Father and His human children. What is the role of the Spirit? The Spirit’s purpose is to sanctify the believer so he/she can be always unified to the Father through Jesus. (Rom.15:16; 1 Cor.6:11) We are always living our lives vicariously in Jesus’ glorified humanity in heaven through the power of the Spirit in us, so we can be unified in Love with the Father – always. I have come to call this the “Triune Life” for all three, Father, Son, and Spirit are involved in our salvation.)

然而，我们仍然生活在存在自己的弱点和堕落的人类状态。这确实给我们的生活中不小心放弃许可证？（罗7：18-25）。人的倾向罪是没有任何借口licentiously活着，但开导他需要的人一个永久性的调解员。耶稣在洁净他的灵（字），在美国流动的水清洗我们的心。（约翰福音7：38-39），这是一个过程，需要一辈子，但在相同的过程中，我们生活在我们真实的自我，新的人谁在保存条件（Rom.7住在耶稣的条件：24 -25）。如果耶稣是无罪的，那么我们;就这么简单。约翰告诉我们在这两个条件的差异时，他说，“圣灵所赐的生命;肉算个什么​​“（约翰福音6:63）。

(Yet, we are still living in our weak and fallen human state of existence. Does this give us the license to live in careless abandon? (Rom. 7:18-25). Man’s propensity to sin is no excuse to live licentiously, but to enlighten man of his need for a permanent Mediator. Jesus cleanses our hearts in the washing of the water of His Spirit (Word) that flows in us. (John 7:38-39) It is a process that will take a lifetime, but in the same process we live in the condition of our true self, the new man who lives in Jesus in a saved condition (Rom.7:24-25). If Jesus is sinless, then we are; it’s that simple. John tells us the difference in these two conditions when he says, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing” (John 6:63).)

海洋，启用条件海洋生物，像精神，是神生活的人的有利条件（图片：维基共享）
(The Ocean, Enabling Condition for Marine Life, Like The Spirit Is the Enabling Condition for God-Life in Man (Pic: Wiki Commons) )

精神是人谁的作品，使他更像耶稣成圣。（约翰福音16：12-15; Rom.8：29）所有的人的罪，非法侵入，过去，现在和将来，都判决耶稣的条件为救主和中保，在天上他的大祭司的作用。我们在耶稣的生活条件使我们与神（林前1:30）的权利。

(The Spirit is the sanctifier of man who works to make him more like Jesus. (John 16:12-15; Rom.8:29)  All man’s sins and trespass, past, present, and future, are adjudicated in Jesus’ condition as Savior and Mediator, in His High Priestly role in heaven. The life condition we have in Jesus keeps us right with God (1 Cor. 1:30).)

施洗约翰说，这耶稣，“他会为你们施洗圣灵与火”（Luk.3：16）。施洗手段，就像沉浸覆盖。记住这一点，永远不会忘记：“……爱应包括许多的罪”在上帝面前，我们的生活和沉浸在他的爱，因为“上帝是爱”，而圣经告诉我们，（约翰一书4 ：8; 1 Pet.4：8）爱情是灯，罪是黑暗。是不是很神奇呢？为了统一上帝，我们必须清白，我们是因为耶稣给他的生活和死亡在髑髅地十字架！在耶稣，我们借着圣灵沉浸在他的爱。“上帝的爱已经借着圣灵，谁一直给我们浇在我们心里”（Rom.5：5）。现在就去朋友，住在那种心境下 – 在我们的天父的存在快乐生活。这就是为什么我们庆祝耶稣的生命，死亡，复活，升天，在每年的这个时候我们称之为复活节。

(John the Baptist said this about Jesus, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Luk.3:16). To baptize means to immerse like a covering. Remember this, and never forget it: In the presence of God we live and are immersed in His Love, for “God is Love,” and the Bible tells us, “…Love shall cover a MULTITUDE of sins.” (1 John 4:8; 1 Pet.4:8) Love is light, sin is darkness. Isn’t that amazing? In order to be unified to God, we must be sinless, and we are because Jesus gave His life and died on the cross upon Calvary! In Jesus we are immersed in His Love through the Spirit. “God’s Love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (Rom.5:5). Go now friends, and live in that frame of mind – live joyfully in the presence of our heavenly Father. That’s why we celebrate Jesus life, death, resurrection, and ascension, at this time of year we call Easter.)

德芙，人的圣灵成圣的符号（维基共享）

(Dove, Symbol of the Holy Spirit and Sanctifier of Man (Wiki Commons))

如果你有任何问题，请不要犹豫，我写在下面的空白处，或者给我发电子邮件的bulamanriver@gmail.com。感谢您访问。

(If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com. Thanks for visiting.)

祝福：

直到我们在我的下一个职位再见面，也许上帝的眷顾谁不停地表达自己，他的可靠三位一体爱与你同在这个复活节季节，可能他的祝福您永远。愿灵搞活你，让你就可能在三一的生活作为Bulamanriver所有的东西。*

藏野驴，

(Blessing:)

(Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you this Easter season and may His blessings be with you always. May the Spirit enliven you and make all things concerning you possible in Triune Living as a Bulamanriver.*)

(Kiang,)

* Bulamanriver“是描述人的联合与三一神在人类中流动，使人们有可能的爱情隐喻”三位一体的生活“ – 在人类神奇的生命之源。要阅读Bulamanriver生活的许多方面，去我的网站www.bulamanriver.com在那里你可以订购我的书的副本。

(* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.)

见BULAMANRIVER视频在：http://youtu.be/8uA0Bq7UoYA

所有的经文是从2011年NIV版本拍摄，除非另有说明。

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(All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

(Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.)

注：通过谷歌翻译翻译

(Note: Translation by https://translate.google.com/)

 “I have been crucified with Christ, I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20)

Greetings once more friends everywhere! May the season of Easter replenish your spirit, and rejuvenate your heart to Love and serve God first in your life! As we enter the season of Easter commemorating the passion of Jesus, I would like to share two vital aspects of His life which depicts how He defeated and took care of human sin completely. We are familiar with His death on the cross I shared with you in my last post. The magnitude of Jesus’ work at the cross can never be diminished, yet, it is part of the greater story of Easter and the Christian faith. I would like to share another aspect of Jesus’ work which you may say “completes” the Easter story. 

Jesus on the Cross atop Calvary (Wiki Commons)

True Origin of Sin: The Great Tempter: First, let’s answer how sin entered the human experience – this is vital because Easter is about Jesus redeeming mankind from the human sin condition and its curse – with the ultimate curse of physically and spiritually death, “For the wages of sin is death” (Rom.6:23a). We know it began with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Our first parent was deceived and led away to disobey God’s instruction to not touch or eat the forbidden fruit. (Gen.3:3) The devil had deceived them into believing God lied to them, and eating the forbidden fruit would result in the exact opposite of what God had told them – they would not die but live and “they would be like God” (Gen.3:4-5). It was the very sin which drove him from being an archangel to become Satan. He wanted to usurp God’s authority and power and be God himself. He said, “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High” (Isa.14:12-14, esp. V.14). He effectively said, “I will take over as King of the Universe” (Isa.14:14, The Message). But Satan’s idea all along was to destroy man and God’s awesome plan for humankind who was created in God’s very likeness.(Gen.1:26-27)

It is hard if not puzzling to fathom how Lucifer imagined he could have pulled off such a rebellious act against God whose sovereignty is unquestionable and incontestable. Perhaps jealousy, pride, and rage consumed him because of God’s grand purpose in man. Lucifer and a third of the angels were defeated in their rebellion and thrown out of heaven and Satan was born. God labelled him, “You who weakened the nations” (V.12b). His one purpose is to destroy man and God’s design and enterprise for man. (Gen.1:26-27). So right from the outset we see Satan is the instigator of sin who weakens people. This does not make man guiltless, Adam believed the devil’s word above God’s word. Man sinned, and he has to be atoned for.

The Bible calls Satan, “The accuser of our brothers and sisters” before God (Rev.12:10, also 7-9). He is the great tempter who instigates sin in order to force God’s hand in judging man. But there was something else the devil never saw coming – the immeasurable grace of God. Paul attests to His amazing grace, saying, “So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of His grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all He has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus” (Eph.2:7, NLB; also 1 Thess.3:5) There are no words in any language to articulate the breathtaking and incomparable grace of God for man.

So, there is always three elements to sin: a) the tempter who instigates sin, and b) the sinner whose past sins has to be atoned for, and c) the freedom to no longer live under Satan and sin. The ultimate ramification of sin and its opposite effect is succinctly stated by Paul, “Just as sin reigned through death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord… For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom.5:21; 6:23). 

The Great Tempter – Depiction of Devil Cast out of Heaven in John Milton’s Paradise Lost (Wiki Commons)

We have repetitively heard the message of Easter through the passion of Jesus at the cross. But it is not the complete story of Easter. Is man saved merely as a victim of sin, and not be rescued from the arch-deceiver and instigator of sin? Will man remain a perpetual victim of sin? And will Jesus take the weight of human sin, and the true guilty party goes off scot-free? These two questions gives insight into the missing narratives in the Easter story. We emphasize the cross of Jesus for it cleanses us from past sins, and rightly so, but what about man’s present and future sins? We often say God forgives past, present and future sins, and that’s absolutely right – even sins of ignorance. (Psa.19:12) Yet, out of the abundance of the Father’s Love, God’s idea of salvation is that His children will not suffer and languish away by the ravages of sin – knowingly or unknowingly. (Luk.12:47-48) Jesus taught us to pray daily for forgiveness. (Matt.6:12) So we are always encountering sin in its three-fold reality, past, present, and future.

It’s illogical for Jesus to save man from past sins on His cross, and not take care of the origin, the first cause, the trigger of sin, which began with Adam and mankind continues to face and seen openly in the suffering in the world today and into his future. God’s purpose of defeating sin in man is holistic and complete, so while He is merciful and forgives us of past sins, He promises victory over future sins so we will never remain victims at Satan’s hands. If we persist in sin just to be forgiven we malign the cross. Paul warns us “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left” (Heb.10:26). So the cross can be negated if sin is not defeated entirely. The point being, man cannot defeat present and future sin in his fallen state of existence, but we turn to Christ.

The guilty party must take full responsibility, for only in victory are we placing the burden of guilt on the accountable party. The Spirit, given to dwell with and in man, is called “Holy” Spirit because His purpose is to sanctify man. (1 Pet 1:2; also 1 Cor.6:19-20) So, while the cross takes care of sin, Jesus simultaneously introduces the Spirit to deliver us from the future curse of sin. (John 14:15-17) God says this about the Spirit’s work, “Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good” (Rom.12:21; Rom.5;5). So we cease becoming victims by doing good, and no longer dwell on an incarcerated sinful past, but a liberated sin-free future.

So, God gives us a complete Savior in Jesus, who not only saves us from our past sins, but a future where we are not dominated by the ravages of sin and the ruin it brings. I believe the Easter message is incomplete if we appear at the foot of the cross with our past sins, and the devil remains unimpeded in tempting man to sin. It is incomplete if Jesus carries the load of humanity’s sins, and the true responsible party is not given to account. And we know God has provided for our holistic victory in His Son, and this is our confidence which John attests to, “We know that God’s children do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them” (1 John 5:18). The two go hand-in-hand to free man from sin completely. And we’ll see there are two acts of Jesus which wraps His work from the beginning to the end of His ministry – from the River Jordan to Mount Calvary.

How, when, and where did  Jesus save man from the clutches of the deceiver, so we are saved from the ravages of future sins? It occurred at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry after He was baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist, and the Spirit descended upon Him from the Father. Here we see our Father introducing the Holy Spirit to humanity firstly through His Son. Later, after Jesus’ crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension, the Spirit was poured upon all humanity on Pentecost as foretold by the prophet Joel. (Joel 2:28; Act.2:1-4) With Jesus, this had to be the first act of saving man He must undertake before dying on the cross. He could not have started his ministry without first defeating the arch-deceiver and instigator of sin. He could not have begun His ministry before He corrected Adam’s fall of plunging humankind into sin and held captive in Satan’s prison. The two monumental acts of Jesus wraps His holistic ministry from the beginning to the end – from the Jordan and temptations in the Judean wilderness, to the foot of the cross on Calvary. Both work hand in hand to free man from sin completely, from past, present, and future sins.

The scriptures say that immediately after He was baptized, the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the Judean wilderness to prepare Him for His titanic battle with the devil himself and defeat Satan at his own game of deception, and free man from the grips of sin. He fasted for 40 days and was full of the Spirit in His preparation for this battle. Jesus is ready for battle, He is our Warrior as well as Savior.  (Exo.15:3; John 3:16; Luk.2:11)

Jesus led by the Spirit into the Wilderness to Face Satan in the Temptations (Wiki Commons)

“Four Drivers” There are four main areas in human life the devil deceives, tempts, and instigates future-sin in man. He did it with Adam, he tried it with Jesus, and he continues to deceive and hold mankind in his devious clutches today. I will call them the “4 temptation-drivers” of the devil. Paul says we ought not to be “ignorant of his (devil’s) schemes (temptations)” (2 Cor.2:11). Satan’s temptations of Jesus explains the “4 temptation-drivers” to future-sin which He once for all defeated in man’s place. (Matt.4:1-11)

The  “4 temptation-drivers” to sin are: 1/ Bread or physical sustenance – Matt.4:3-4.  2/ Security and happiness – Matt.4:5-7. 3/ Material gain – Matt.4:8-11. 4/ Worldly power and influence. These are the four areas of life people in every age and time have given 100% of their attention and pursuit, and Satan knows this well. These are God-given benefits the Creator gave man as part of the “dominion mandate” at creation. (Gen.1:26-29) But Satan has manipulated and turned them into temptations or counterfeits of God’s blessings. God offers even more which Satan has no power to confer, like immortality. Let’s now look at these four primary areas of human life the devil uses to deceive man, and see the lessons we can glean from them to help us live a fruitful future where we are never the victims of sin, but live victoriously in Jesus.

1)     Bodily Sustenance: The first temptation has to do with bodily sustenance. With Jesus, Satan used bread, with Adam he used the forbidden fruit. With you and I he will probably use something else. He tempted Jesus, saying, “If You are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread” (Matt.4:3; Gen. 3:1-6). Recall, Jesus had fasted for 40 days and He was famished. For most of us, we would consider it being on the verge of starvation. So, to say that bread was a punishing temptation was an understatement. But Jesus was spiritually strong, He said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes out of the mouth of God.” Jesus was pointing the tempter to the life in the Spirit and not the self-centered life in the flesh. It was by God’s word that the physical universe and our earth came to being. Jesus saw the bigger picture than mere bread and the cries of hunger of His human body. The devil tempted Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit, “you will be like God, knowing good from evil” (Gen.3:5). He managed to convince them that God lied when He said, “you shall not eat it, you must not touch it, or you will die” (V.3). They succumbed to the temptation and sinned.

How does this translate to each of us in our time, as it relates to the “sustenance temptation?” “Bread,” which is made from grain, is known proverbially as the “staff of life.” A ‘staff’ is a support or prop synonymous with human livelihood. We turn to Jesus words, “I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or stow away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not more valuable than they? But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matt.6:25-26, 33). So “bread,” in a broad sense, is metaphor for a person’s basic occupation in which he earns a living. The society in Jesus’ day was mainly agrarian, so sowing and reaping was the main form of work and livelihood for the average citizen. Today, it’s no longer the case.

“Bread” – Staff of Life (Wiki Commons)

Is Jesus saying we are to not work and support our families – not in the least! Just because the devil used bread to tempt Jesus does not mean bread is now bad food – that’s preposterous. In fact, Jesus said, “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35). He means we’re not to turn to the devil and make our work or career into an idol in place of God’s purpose for each of us. It is God who places unique gifts in each of us which defines who we are for His and our glory. So, the devil tempts us to sin through the “sustenance temptation” when we use our gifts for wrongful aspirations. Gifts becomes idols and thereby, we sin. Gifts are for God-communicative, not self-communicative, purpose. So bread is depiction for livelihood, and the devil tried to tempt Jesus by deception to look to him for His livelihood. Jesus looked to the Father’s word for sustenance, and so through Jesus’ victory we can defeat the devil’s temptation in this necessary but vital aspect of life.

2)     Security and Happiness:  The devil tempted Jesus, he made Him stand at the highest point of the temple in Jerusalem, saying, “Since you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, “He will command His angels concerning You, and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.” Jesus answered, “It is written, ‘Do not put the Lord Your God to the test’” (Matt.4:5-7). God gives His children security through angelic protection. Happiness is not possible without security. Without security we live in fear, not joy. Our happiness is secured through the many promises of God, including angelic protection, not Satan’s form of security through his worldly system.

Depiction of Temptation of Jesus on The Pinnacle of The Temple, Brooklyn Museum (Wiki Commons)

What we see in this temptation is the simple truth that the devil believes God’s people are in a special category of protection through God’s angelic hosts. (John 5:18; Psa.91:11-12) But he turned a divine promise into its negative form to appeal to human pride and vanity: “if you are the Son of God…” or “you will be like God knowing everything…” as he did to Adam and Eve. Jesus answered the devil’s temptation, and said in effect, ‘this is not about me or my ego, this is about God’s Love for me, His will be done, not mine.’ It can be tempting to apply human wisdom and pride to God’s sweeping promises for His people. But humility must always be our mantra, where we say, “Your will be done, not mine;”  “by myself I can do nothing” (Luk.22:42b; John 5:30).

We cannot hijack God’s promises for human manipulation. Once people do that, before they know it, they will put their trust in themselves and worldly things to provide for their security. Things like money and wealth, their own human wisdom, their reliance upon others, and devices for self enhancement, in place of God’s promises. Whatever you place your trust in, you worship. We can drift as far from God so that His promises don’t come through for us, and we wonder why. By deceit and manipulation the devil has made this world look to him for security and happiness, and he tried to do the same to Jesus. Thankfully, for man’s sake, Jesus overcame the devil so that we too may do likewise.

3)      Material Prosperity:  In this third temptation, “the devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of this world and their splendor, and said, “All this I will give you.”  Jesus saw and was offered all the splendor of the earth’s kingdoms, material wealth and possessions. But Jesus was not going to be tempted by the material wealth He Himself had created. It is tempting for people to worship the works of their own hands, yet, man’s creativity comes from one source and he forgets to give thanks where it is rightly due. God gives us the power to generate wealth, reminding us, “But remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms His covenant” (Deut.8:18).

God is the source of all wealth and our abilities to produce them, “The gold is Mine, and the silver is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills, the fowls and the wild beasts are mine, the earth and its fullness and all that dwell in it” (Haggai 2:8; Psa.24:1; Psa.50:10-11). The world’s wealth does not belong to the devil to give to anyone. What belongs to the devil is the system he has created to acquire wealth based upon fear, greed, lack, and rebellion, which, if man accepts, will turn God’s loving gifts to reflect his egotistical self. This is the basis of all human sufferings – we worship the created, instead of the Creator. Jesus said, “You can’t serve both God and money” (Luk.16:13). The Bible says clearly, “The one who loves money and wealth will never be satisfied with money” (Eccl.5:10; Isa.55:2; Jer.17:11). In other words, happiness and security is never found in money and material abundance.

Define Your wealth. “Though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that by His poverty He could make you rich.” 2 Corinthians 8:9. (Gold Bars – Wiki Commons)

When we receive material riches legitimately from the true Source of wealth, the Bible tells us, “The blessing of the Lord makes a person rich, and He adds no sorrow (toil) with it” (Prov.10:22; Matt.25:14-15; 1Pet.4:10, 8-9). In other words, His blessings comes with joy, not sorrow. Most of today’s stress-related sickness and disease comes from where people spend most of their lives – earning a living (bread). But God’s riches comes without toil (stress). It has been said when you enjoy what you do, you never have to work another day in your life.

Therein lies our destiny – I will share a beautiful word of wisdom from His Word. The joys of God’s blessing comes to man through a person’s gift bequeathed upon him/her at birth. (Psa.139:13-18)  God does not give us material wealth for its own sake to be consumed in our selfish ambition, for when we do, we will get caught up with the “deceitfulness of riches” (Matt.13:22). Jesus said, “A man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:13-21). Rather, God’s abundance spring from and is the outcome of our primary gift which God gives in order to serve Him and our fellowmen. (Matt.6:33) When man finds and lives his “true self” in Christ, life is a joy. The Bible says of us individually, “Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb… Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you. The days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day…guide me on the road to eternal life” (Psa.139:13-16, 24, The Message). Remember, there’s always a choice to be made, to live your “false self” in the devil’s world; or to exist in your “true self” in Christ by the power of the Spirit.

4)     Power and Influence: When Satan tempted Jesus saying, “If You will bow down and worship me” He was offering Jesus worldly power and reign. Satan wanted Jesus to acknowledge His dependence on him, rather than God His Father. Jesus replied, ‘Away from Me, Satan! For it is written ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’” Then the devil left Him, and the angels came and attended to Him” (Matt. 4:8-11). Note, in each temptation Jesus used God’s Word as a weapon to defeat Satan, just as He had said that man must live by every Word of God. Truly, the pen is mightier than the sword. Jesus was not about to live the ‘solitary’ life of the devil in place of the “Triune Life” He had for eternity with the Father and the Spirit. To have done so Jesus would have extricated Himself from the very source of true power, of true life, and the Love He had with His Father from eternity.

Jesus said, “All power is given to Me in heaven and in earth” (Matt.28:18, KJV; also see Isa.9:6-7). Satan’s power relates to the worldly system he has created which is not true power. It exists in an unholy bubble in this world for a brief period of time as God allows until He brings restitution to His power and Kingdom through His Son. Peter said, “Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept His authority” (1 Pet.3:22, NLT). Man become heirs of God and His Christ, “Heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory” (Rom.8:17).

“God has spoken plainly, and I have heard it many times: Power, O God, belongs to You” – Psa.62:11. (Baby stars forming near rim of the cosmic cloud Perseus – Wiki Commons)

These are the four areas which people give 100% of their attention and effort in their pursuit of life. The devil gave his best shot at tempting Jesus to sin like he did with Adam and Eve and humankind, but he failed. Jesus, mankind’s Warrior and true Hero and Savior, overcame and defeated Satan in that titanic battle in the Judean wilderness. And here is the awesome truth that boggles the mind: God credited Jesus’ epic victory upon humanity, in the same way our Father credited Jesus’ cross upon mankind for remission of all sins. Thereby, the devil’s temptations has no power over man and man’s future. God credited Jesus’ victory in our place which brings the victorious life over temptations, just as Adam’s sin was imputed upon humanity which brought the defeated life under sin and the devil. Jesus victory over sin has brought freedom, true life, joy, and righteous living. John attests to this saying, ”We know that God’s children do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them” (1 John 5:18). Paul speaks of the importance of Jesus’ work of rectifying Adam’s sin, “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Cor.15:22). Jesus went on to live a perfect life and sacrificed Himself on the cross thus completing God’s plan of redemption for His human children.

A word of advice. One might say, ‘But isn’t this the same as the ‘obedient life’ I was taught in Sunday school, in Bible study, or even in seminary?’ There is a subtle and huge difference – like day from night difference. Here, we are living the “Triune Life” by vicariously claiming Jesus’ victory over Satan and his temptations as our very own victory, in the same way we claim the cross for our forgiveness and redemption. Here we see the cause of sin through temptations being effectively neutralized, in the same way the cross defeats all past sins.

This is Christ’s obedience, not man’s effort. Human obedience carries a different mindset – it exist on a ‘solitary’ footing where we say Jesus has died for me, now I must do my part to obey Him. God’s offer of salvation to man is not a 50-50 proposition. The Bible nowhere teaches such a thing, rather it says, “I have been crucified with Christ, I no longer live (dead), but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal.2:20, emphasis added). If the Christian died with Jesus on the cross, then how can a ‘dead’ man obey God? Answer, “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me” – it is life in the living faith of Jesus. Paul says, “We were therefore buried with Him (Jesus) through baptism (beginning in the waters of Jordan) into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life” (Rom.6:4; also Col.2;12). Yes, the new life is a person’s “true self” in Christ.

We will never be able to obey God perfectly and overcome Satan in a million lifetimes – it is just plain impossible. God did not save you by sacrificing His Son, then turns around and leave you to face Satan alone, no! God never turns His back on us by turning us back upon ourselves. He takes full responsibility for our salvation from start to finish. The danger with human obedience is it leads to the burden of legalism, where all kinds of rules and regulations are introduced to ‘manage’ sin, which is an unworkable and unachievable task. Jesus denounced this openly before the hypocritical Jews in His time, saying, “They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden” (Matt.23:4, also Verses 13, 23, 27, NLT) This is an issue many believers today seem to experience in confounded stalemate: the obvious inner contradiction of being forgiven and being a sinner as existing simultaneously, and the burden of guilt it brings. When we carry this guilt Satan is being successful in his work of “accusing the brethren” of sin before God because our conscience accuse us. (Rev.12:10) And the issue revolves around a wrong understanding of obedience.

Even with our best efforts, we will sin, but the Bible says this about God’s grace, “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 1-2). This does not give us license to live with careless abandon, but the conviction to see and turn to Jesus as the final answer to sin because He brought us victory over Satan’s temptations and the cross. (Rom.6:1-7; Rom.7:21-25; 1 Cor.1:18) Salvation is entirely (101%) God’s gift to man. The Bible says, “Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus…let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience” (Heb.10:19,22).

Keep this in mind, it will do us much good and be a great source of peace: Perfect obedience can only be given out of perfect Love. Only the Son can Love the Father perfectly and thereby obey Him perfectly. Likewise, only the Father can Love the Son perfectly. To imagine a human can Love and obey God perfectly is not only impossible, but to live in delusion and shows our lack of insight into the nature of God. And here is how humans can Love and obey God perfectly – we enter into their Love relationship as Jesus explained to the disciples before His crucifixion. This was Jesus’ prayer to the Father, “Jesus said, “That they may be one as We are one. I am in them and You are in Me. May…You Love them as much as You Love Me” (John 17:22-23). Do we see here that Love and obedience are inseparable? Without Love obedience is not possible, because genuine obedience is about Love. Human obedience is about legalism based upon rules and fear of punishment. When we are declared righteous in Christ we do not fear punishment, but we grow in Love. The only way for man to Love and obey God as God would have him is for Jesus to live and walk in the believer through the Spirit’s power. (Gal.2:20) We die with Christ so we may live in His resurrected life in heaven and experience the Love relationship the Father has with the Son from eternity. (John 17:24) This is a spiritual life, but it affects the human heart and mind and our actions as it relates to obedience.

When Jesus was resurrected and ascended to heaven, He glorified our humanity and took it into the presence of God the Father forever. In this manner, mankind is united with God in Love through Christ in the fellowship of the “Triune Life.” It is through Christ’s perfect Love for the Father that we are able to obey God. So it is not so much about  ‘obedience’ as it is about Love being perfected in man. In other words, we can ‘obey’ because we Love God perfectly in Jesus. The Spirit is the personification of God’s divine Love flowing in man, “God’s Love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (Rom.5:5).

Two-Pronged Action of Jesus Defeating Sin: The Complete Easter Story  By defeating the devil who holds humans captive in sin through the “4 temptation-drivers,” Jesus forever freed mankind from the clutches of the great tempter. Paul said “I was afraid that the tempter had gotten the best of you, and that our labors might have been in vain….for we ought not to be “ignorant of his (devil’s) scheme” (1Thess.3:5; 2 Cor.2:11). Yes, the cross can prove to be ineffectual if the tempter is allowed to freely carry out his evil work of deceiving God’s people to sin through the “4 temptation-drivers.” God’s people can be wearied, frustrated, discouraged, and ruined by sin.  

To pursue these four areas of life are not wrong of themselves, for everything, a) sustenance and health, b) happiness and security, c) material wealth, and d) power, and more are all God’s to give, and His gifts to mankind. It has always been an intrinsic part of the “dominion mandate” conferred upon man at creation. (Gen.1:26-28) The devil deviously offers man counterfeits of God’s gifts and blessings to keep man deceived, and tempting man to turn them into idols to bow and serve in place of God and His blessings. (2 Cor.11:14)

Our vision of life ought to be through God’s eternal perspective because man’s destiny is to embrace immortality in His likeness, rather than through the eyes of our passing fallen earth-bound humanity. God blesses His people in these four areas of life and much, much more. For example, the devil does not have the power to impart immortality, but Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25). Jesus holds our humanity in Himself in its glorified and sinless state at the Father’s right hand. (Rom.8:29; Mar.16:19; Matt.1:23) The provision of His Son completes His plan of salvation, there is nothing beyond Jesus for man, He is IT!. (Heb.10:26) His desire is that we live in His Son in order to comprehend His Love for us: “That You Love them as much as You Love Me” (John 17:22-23; Rom.8:29). We no longer remain victims of our past sins (cross), but we stand liberated in a sin-free future in the Love of the Father and the Son. (2 Cor.5:21)

Jesus’ perfect sinless life becomes vicariously our own through the Holy Spirit’s power in us. (Act.10:38; Eph.1:13-14) When we face our personal battles with sin, we do not lie down and become victims, but see it as an opportunity to step into the life of Jesus and invoke His victory in the Spirit’s power to defeat sin. God gave us Jesus so He can be man’s complete Savior. Paul affirms this, saying, “You are complete in Him.” (Col.2:10). Freedom comes for people who are willing to fight for it, as Paul said, “Now if we are children, then we are heirs–heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory” (Rom.8:17). Temptation is overcome with the Spirit’s move in us.

God sees the eternal perspective of man’s future, rather than the temporary human perspective which passes like wind. The Psalmist said, “Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows, and we are gone—as though we had never been here. But the Love of the Lord remains forever with those who fear Him” (Psa.103:15-17, NLT). In their pride, humans sometimes think they are indestructible, but the Bible says, “Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom” (Psa.90:12, NLT). Through Christ we are brought into the Father’s Loving presence and enjoy His sustenance, His promises (security), His abundance, and ultimately eternal reign with His Son.

 ”Away from Me, Satan! For it is written ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him Only.’” (Carl Henrich Bloch, Wiki Commons)

Bear with me for a final word, it is of poignant significance that this two-pronged work of Jesus as man’s complete Savior was foretold in an annual ceremony ancient Israel was commanded to keep. The events of Jesus’ baptism and temptations by Satan and His death on the cross were enacted on the annual high day known to Israel as the Day of Atonement, which the Jews continue to keep today as “Yom Kippur.” (Lev.16) I will attempt to explain this unique ceremony as it parallels Jesus’ own life, for that is what Israel was mirroring as they kept the Day of Atonement.

Day of Atonement: It was a solemn day for Israel full of symbolism and ritual with profound significance. The people was required to fast and stand before their God as a nation to be absolved of their sins. A whole chapter was dedicated to the meaning of this day – it makes for interesting reading in Leviticus 16. The high priest played the chief role on this day. “Atonement is to be made once a year for all the sins of the Israelites” (Lev.16:34). God would appear before Israel in the holy place of the temple to cleanse Israel of all their sins.

What was unique about this ceremony was there were two goats brought before the high priest as part of the annual ritual. The two goats represent the two-pronged work of Jesus which made Him the “complete Savior,” namely, defeating Satan in the temptations as our Warrior, and dying as the perfect Lamb of God on the cross as our Savior.

The goats are brought before the entrance of the tabernacle, “And Aaron shall cast lots over the two goats, one lot for the LORD and the other lot for Azazel” (Lev.16:8). The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia states “the word Azazel has been interpreted by some as referring to a demon of the wilderness. The term is rendered as “one who has separated himself from God,” or “he who has separated himself,” or “he who misleads others.” The word Azazel was by many Jews and also by Christian theologians, such as Origen, regarded as that of Satan himself who had fallen away from God.” The word has given rise to many different views, but the advent of Jesus’ passion and battle with Satan has given more clarity. For indeed, the Day of Atonement was picturing the work of the Messiah to the Israelites.

The goat allotted to the Lord was sacrificed and its blood brought into the holiest chamber before God’s presence in the mercy seat. (Lev.16:15-16) This goat represents Jesus and His death on the cross to redeem mankind from sin. The second goat, the high priest  “will lay both of his hands on the goat’s head and confess over it all the wickedness, rebellion, and sins of the people of Israel. In this way, he will transfer the people’s sins to the head of the goat. Then a fit man specially chosen for the task will drive the goat into the wilderness. As the goat goes into the wilderness, it will carry all the people’s sins upon itself into a desolate land” (Lev.16:21-22). This goat pictures Jesus taking the weight of mankind’s sins upon Himself, and under John’s hand was baptized for the remission of human sins for all times, with His ensuing temptation in the wilderness. (Mak.1:4)

Jesus had no sin to repent of because he was sinless and perfect, but He was baptized for the forgiveness of all mankind’s sins, just as the sins of all Israel was confessed and    transferred upon the second goat. (Heb.4:15) Jesus told John after he hesitated baptizing Him, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness” (Matt.3:15). Yes, He was the prophesied Immanuel, the second Person of the Triune Godhead, sent to rescue humanity from sin and in its place bring divine righteousness. Paul stated poignantly, “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor.5:21).

After His baptism the Spirit (“fit man”) led Jesus into the wilderness, just as the second goat of Atonement was taken into the wilderness by a “fit man” (Spirit) symbolically heavily-laden with Israel’s sins. (Matt.4:1-11)  Jesus, by defeating the devil, placed all Human sins squarely upon the head of the instigator of sin, the great tempter, Satan, the Azazel. God our Father is a just God, and puts the weight of sin upon the one who is the true guilty party responsible for human sins. This is the missing narrative in the Easter story.

 The Two Goats of the Day of Atonement of Leviticus 16, Depicting Christ’s Twin Role Of the Complete Savior of Mankind  (Wiki Commons)

The human high priest in Israel represented Jesus Christ the true High Priest in heaven today. He is Savior symbolized in the first goat sacrificed for our sins, and the Warrior represented in the second goat who took our sins into the Jordan and the wilderness to face and defeat Satan. “The Lord is a Warrior; the Lord is His name.The Lord is my strength and my defense; He has become my salvation” (Exo.15:3,2). As mankind’s High Priest today, He continues to perform His role of mediating all man’s imperfect responses and transgressions. The Bible states, “Because He Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted. For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have One who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet He did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Heb.2:18; 4:15-16). The Bible couldn’t be more unequivocal about Jesus’ work pictured in the second goat of Atonement.

Recall, the second goat was not killed, but the first goat was sacrificed portraying Jesus death on the cross. The work of the second goat continues to this day, representing the life of the resurrected Jesus, our Warrior Prince, who continues to live in us in the Spirit’s power, to bring us the “grace to help us in our time of need,” thus replicating His triumph over Satan in the “4-temptation drivers” and our absolution through His cross. Only a surrendered life can bring this victorious life of Jesus into the believer. (Gal.2:20; Jam.4:7,10; Rom.12:1)

The validation of Jesus’ work of Savior and Warrior seen in the first and second goats is laid out in the New Covenant when He taught followers to pray the Lord’s Prayer daily. In it, we are taught to invoke Jesus’ victorious life over sin and temptation. The prayer goes, “And forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us (cross/past). And never bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one (victorious living/future)” (Matt.6:12-13, ISV). Isn’t that enlightening as much as it is encouraging that the Lord’s Prayer petitions God’s mercy for forgiveness (Savior/first goat), and then invoke His victory over temptations and the devil (Warrior/second goat). The words of the prayer are a cry issuing from a deep sense of our personal human weakness against the powers of evil in Satan’s world. So much so that there is no other way but in moving prayer daily invoke the two-fold work of the Messiah as our own victory so we may live victoriously always in Christ.

God may permit temptation and trial according to His unsearchable grace and wisdom, but He promises, “And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure” (1 Cor.10:13; also Heb.12:4-12). Remember, our Warrior in Jesus never leaves our side, for God has promised, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Heb.13:5).

I have shared the meaning of Easter in the context of Jesus entire Ministry from start to finish, with the crucifixion as its central theme. This two-fold act of Jesus forms the core of His Messiahship as Warrior and Savior, from Jordan to Calvary, His perfect sinless life in between, His subsequent resurrection and ascension, encapsulates the perfect human life God our Father accepts on mankind’s behalf as the final, complete, and unmitigated answer to Satan and sin. This makes possible God’s plan to embrace humanity in His Love. This is the essence of His grace to mankind. This is the complete and finished work of Christ. (Col.2:10) All that remains for you and I is we accept the Father’s Loving embrace He has sacrificed so much to make possible. He wants you to live your life in unbelievable joy which only His Spirit can give. I wish you and your families a blessed Easter!

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com. Thanks for visiting.

Blessing:

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessings of the season of Easter and Passover be with you all and your families, and may God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, help you to receive Jesus as your personal Savior and live the “Triune Life” in the Spirit. May the Spirit enliven you and make all things concerning you possible in Triune Living as a Bulamanriver.*

Kiang,                      

* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

See the BULAMANRIVER Video at: http://youtu.be/8uA0Bq7UoYA

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information

Greetings again Friends! I hope this post find you in good health, success, and in the best of spirit.

Money is important to everyone. Without it we cannot get far in life. But if we have lots of it, we can just about do anything we wish – well, almost anything! So we spend our time trying to acquire more and more of it. Let’s talk money today.

US ONE HUNDRED DOLLAR BILL (WIKI COMMONS)

Definition

What is money? Let’s get a brief definition as we start. The world’s economy revolves around it, without money the world as we know it would come to an abrupt halt. Money is a medium of exchange we all agree to accept for making transactions. Each country has its own money, or currency, that is used as a medium of exchange within that country. Whereas the money system was formerly based upon the gold standard or silver standard or some combination of the two, today’s money system is based on fiat money. That means money derives its value by being declared by a government to be legal tender; that is, it must be accepted as a form of payment within the boundaries of the country, for  all goods and services, all debts, public and private. Its value is based upon many factors like gold and natural resources, the main one being the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP). This legal practice causes fiat money to acquire the value of any of the goods and services that it may be traded for within the nation that issue it. The currency of one country can be exchanged for the currency of another via a currency exchange. The current exchange rate determines how much of one currency must be used to purchase a specified amount of the other currency. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Money; http://www.investopedia.com; (http://economics.about.com)

The reason we want money is because we know other people want money, so we can use money to get goods and services from them in return. Everybody works for money because it is the medium of exchange for making transactions which affects almost every facet of their lives. So in the sense of defining life, one can say that money liberates, protects, rescues, and even regarded as a ‘savior’ for it saves us from just about every imaginable situation and circumstance – well, almost all!  If we believe that money will have a value in the future, we will work towards acquiring it. So, people sell their labor (work) to acquire money now to purchase goods and services they desire both now and in the future.

Market Where Money Is Exchanged For Goods (Wiki Commons)

The Christian & Money

Here is the connection between the Christian believer and money: If money ‘saves,’ and we have seen that it does, and we believe Jesus is man’s Savior, then money and Jesus are synonymous. In other words, they exhibit the identical ‘saving’ quality. You can say they are one and the same. Well, not exactly the same, because there is only one Savior, not two. Money is a savior invented by man. Jesus is the everlasting Savior of mankind sent by God. (John 3:16) People worship money because it has this ‘saving’ quality. The Bible states, “You cannot worship God and money” (Matt.6:24). In other words, a Christian cannot have two “Saviors.”

To worship something means it has a powerful hold over you that you will do whatever it takes to acquire its value and appeal. Money’s magnetism is in its purchasing power. So, the passage presents a choice to the believer as to which power to submit oneself to: God or money? The Bible says this of Jesus, “Salvation (i.e. the power to save) is found in no one else (except Jesus), for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” (Act. 4:12, emphasis added). This Bible speaks of a time when people “will throw their silver into the streets, and their gold will be treated as a thing unclean. Their silver and gold will not be able to deliver (save) them in the day of the LORD’s wrath. It will not satisfy their hunger or fill their stomachs, for it has caused them to stumble into sin” (Ezek.7:19, emphasis added). Money will have lost its power. It’s obvious from this passage that money has its limitations and cannot save us completely, most of all not spiritually. In fact, when money is worshipped, it becomes a curse instead of a blessing. It’s a curse because it pretends to be a savior. Only Jesus is the complete Savior. His name, Jesus, means Savior, and He saves both physically and spiritually.

But here is the interesting side of money we may not have seen, money can ‘genuinely’ save if it becomes the impersonation of Jesus. That means Jesus becomes the personification of money, i.e.not two distinct entities. Once that happens, then Jesus and money are one and the same, and we’re not positioning ourselves to choose one or the other. There’s only one choice – Jesus! When the Bible says, “You cannot worship God and money,” it is not saying money is evil and you should not have any of it. Remember, the source of all riches is God. He owns all the treasurers of the earth, including money. When God finished the earth’s creation He called creation it, “very good.” Eden, the home God planted for Adam and Eve, possessed wealth in gold and precious stones beyond one can imagine. (Ezek.28:13; Gen.2:10-12) God has prior claim to all riches upon the earth, He says, “The gold is mine, and the silver is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills, the fowls and the wild beasts are mine, the earth and its fullness and all that dwell in it” (Hag. 2:8; Ps. 24:1; Ps. 50:10-11). So, money is not evil, nor earthly riches.

As in everything, it always comes down to the right or wrong use of something, in this case money. Man has made the mistake of separating money from God and made it an object of worship. It’s a matter of choice, where we decide if we will turn money into a god in its own right. God does not want His people to worship lifeless objects like money which can’t save them. All inanimate things cannot and will not save us, just as an idol can’t save because it has no life in itself. Listen, “Whoever loves (worships) money never has enough (lacks); whoever loves wealth is never satisfied (or happy) with their income. This too is meaningless (worthless)” (Eccl.5:10, my emphasis). (Read Eccl.5:10-20 in Appendix 1 below)

Those who spend their lives in search of money, thinking money is the answer to everything and bring the fulfillment they seek, will instead discover emptiness to their disappointment. It is the wrong use of money which creates evil and make a false god of money. Since money of itself is not evil, and money’s value it determined by how it is used, how do we make money be a force for good? The only way is for money to be merged with God and not have an identity of its own where it can be worshipped. This is a Trinitarian principle, for nothing exists in isolation, solitarily, but everything is inter-dependent, collaborative, and united like God’s Triune nature. Jesus said, “I can do nothing on my own. I judge as God tells Me” (John 5:30). Jesus lives the “Triune Life” in collaborative union with His Father. It is impossible for Jesus to exist apart from His Father. This is what must happen to money, and for that matter everything else in life.

Money does not save, Jesus does, therefore only Jesus is to be worshiped for He is God, not money. I can’t let money be my master and Jesus too, “for I’ll hate one or the other, and become devoted to one and despise the other” (Matt.6:24). So, when I see money as Jesus Himself, then money becomes a divine attribute. When this happens, what is usually a curse brought about by the money god, now becomes a blessing from Jesus Himself. It is a question of personal leadership in life. (Read article “Money is A Curse” by Sheldon Drobny in Appendix 2 below)

How do we do this? How do we merge the two so that Jesus and money become a single expression and a true blessing in the believer’s life?

To worship Jesus means to take on Jesus’ Person. (Matt.6:24) I live life vicariously in Him. He said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matt.11:29). Paul said, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you?” (2 Cor.13:5). Jesus speaks of the “Triune Life” we are privileged to live in Him by the Spirit’s power. I think of money as a servant of Jesus. Money becomes a blessing coming from and through Him as the offshoot of my relationship with Him, as He is with His Father. Anything that’s a blessing (the good money can do) in my life is the reflection of God’s grace in my life. James says this, “Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens” (Jam.1:17). Grace is the presence of His Spirit in my life. (Heb.10:29) The Spirit’s role is to magnify Jesus in my life by enhancing my Love relationship with Jesus, so I am being conformed into His likeness as the Son of God. (John 16:14; Rom.8:29) Herald (Holy Spirit) is the One who gives me the wisdom and empowers me to make money become an expression of Jesus Himself. God tells us, “But you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore” (Deut.8:18, NASB). The Bible quotes God as saying, “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the LORD of hosts” (Zech. 4:6) Yes, it is not the power of money and what money can do that counts – the Spirit (grace/Love) of God and what He can do in me and for me. (Rom.5:5) So, this merging of Jesus and money begins with God’s grace through the move of His Spirit in my life. It is what I often refer to as the “Triune Life.” That’s to mean, that all of life is interconnected, and nothing exists independently by itself.

The following passage shows clearly that God and money are one and the same: “The blessing (grace/Spirit) of the Lord brings wealth (money and what it can buy), without painful toil for it” (Pro.10:22; also see Psa.24:5). There’s a far-reaching point being made here, i.e. it identifies money in two broad categories. When money is part of, and comes from Jesus, it brings an abundant life with peace, joy, without toil and pain. It produces true life. But when money comes from the money-god then it brings the opposite effect – fear, depression, curses, pain, and ultimately death. When I merge money and it becomes the expression of Jesus’ life in me, I uncover and find genuineness in my humanity because I am able relate with Jesus on a person-to-person relationship. When I worship the money-god I am relating with an idol, and I lose my humanity because I cannot speak to nor relate with an inanimate object, for it’s an idol. Relationships happen only between persons, like what’s taking place between the three Persons of the Trinitarian God. Man, who is made in God’s image, live relational lives because God is relational in His Tri-Personal Being. Many lives have been destroyed because they can’t see this crucial truth about life, and they turn inanimate objects into idols they worship. That’s how vital it is to grasp the Trinitarian doctrine of God as the basis of our understanding of all creation and how we relate with creation. We cannot relate with the money-god. Man in his depraved nature is influenced by the devil who is the author of confusion. Only a living Person, Jesus, saves.

Money – Inanimate Lifeless Article Man Can Never Relate With (Wiki Commons)

By saying money will come to the believer “without painful toil for it (money),” or, as another translation puts it, “and hard work adds nothing to it (money),” it is saying our labor is not what “brings the bacon (money) home,” but rather it is the grace of God in our lives. His blessing, He is the first-cause, the trigger effect, directing our footsteps to His abundance. (Prov.10:22b, emphasis added) His grace is the undergirding safety net we tread upon throughout life. There’s something else this passage conveys to us: the kind of life Jesus brings does not come with all the stress of negative repercussions, heartache, and broken dreams and pain, for it has nothing to do with my toil and performance. The truth of the matter is, this is not “my” work; this is the grace of God in action in my life.

It has to do with God’s unconditional love for me. By freely giving and sacrificing His Son, the Father brought mankind into union with Him to make this abundant life possible for you and me. Does the “living waters” of His Spirit of Love flow in my life because of my effort (toil), or does it flow freely immaterial of my performance? (John 7:37-39) Grace is the free gift of God flowing from the depth of the Father’s Love. Paul asserts, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; (nothing to do with our labor/toil) it is the gift of God” (Eph.2:8). As someone wisely said, of what consequence is my performance, if I am not placed on an assured path which leads to and guarantees my success? If I’m on a path which leads to doom and failure, no amount of effort and performance will save me, no matter how grandiose my actions may appear.

Life is like riding a train. It depends upon which track I take. In life, there are only two tracks, one leads to true life and the other to false life which brings death. If I worship the money-god, then I’m riding a train-track which ends abruptly on an unfinished track, plunging me into a deep ravine to my death. I am the train engine. Everything I have worked for all my life is embodied in the cars I am hauling behind me, and it would all be for nothing. If I believe in Jesus then He puts me on His track with the Spirit leading me to my destination with a glorious future. Here’s God’s promise to me and those who take hold of His Son, “I know what I have planned for you,’ says the LORD. ‘I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you. I have plans to give you a future filled with hope. (Jer. 29:11, NET).

 Life Is Like a Train – It Depends Which Track You Take. The Mountain in the Backdrop is Symbolic of God’s Overarching Sovereignty and Presence, Guiding Us by His All-Embracing Love (Wiki Commons)

It’s About Relationship

As intimated earlier, it is about who we choose to relate with: Jesus or money? The following passage tells us how to merge the two into a single expression of life, “They (God’s people) will receive the Lord’s blessing (money) and have a right relationship with God their Savior” (Psa.24:5). So, it’s all about relationship – my relationship with Jesus brings abundance (money as part of it). That’s how money and Jesus is made One. My Love for Jesus must be the primary focus of my relationship with everything else, including money. I can’t have relationship with inanimate things, like money, jewelry, gold, land, real estate, cars, my job, boats, hobbies, pet projects, etc. But they are filtered through my relationship with Jesus. In fact, when I have relationship with inanimate things, the Bible calls it idol worship. Idols have no life and cannot respond in any form of relationship. Only Jesus alone who is the manifestation of God’s Love is the One with whom we have relationship. When I see all the material riches, including money, I see them as the by-product of my relationship with Jesus, and it is never separate from Him. I am never in love with money and things, my first motivation is to Love Jesus, and everything else become offshoots of my relationship with Him.

It is sad, as much as it is true, but people choose to have relationship with these inanimate things (money and material stuff) which cannot save them, but brings curses instead. If people cannot communicate with these inanimate objects, then who are they relating with? That’s food for thought. People think money will supply and sustain them physically, provide for their security, and furnish the riches they dream of. But it is a fool’s paradise. They don’t realize, let alone understand this ludicrous form of relationship with money which brings curses and pain. The saying “all that glitters is not gold,” rings true. They spend their whole lives in aggressive pursuit of money, building up and bolstering these relationships with inanimate things, when God wants them to have relationships with Him, His Son, and with our fellow humans through His Love. The truth of the matter is, all these created inanimate things are simply the personification of the One who created them – Jesus. When we turn them into idols then they become the characterization of the devil. Yet Jesus is Spirit and does not need to be defined by them to prove His abundance. Jesus is super rich! In the same way, my life does not need to be defined by things. I only need to be defined by One Person with whom I can have personal relationship – Jesus. He is the Personification of all wealth. (1 Cor.3:21-23; Rom.8:17) Abundance can be defined in one word: Love!

The prophet says this, “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare” (Isa.55:1-2). Yes, it speaks of a promise of being sustained physically, materially, and in every other way, without money. The answer is my relationship with Jesus. 

US DOLLAR COIN, SUSAN B ANTHONY DESIGN, MINTED 1979. NOTE PHRASE, “IN GOD WE TRUST.” TRUST GOD, NOT MONEY (WIKI COMMONS)

What Defines You?

Answer the above question as true as your heart can in your spirit: am I defined by things and money, or, am I defined by Jesus who is the Personification of creation and abundance. Listen, when you give something to your children, like a toy, don’t you think it odd if the child thank himself/herself or even the inanimate toy, for bringing him/her happiness, and ignores the source of his joy, you, the parent? Yet, we do this all the time with God when we lack faith. A wise child will realize that to keep his/her joy sustained will depend upon his/her relationship with the source of joy – the parent. Not the child herself, and certainly not the toy!

Learning to Wait

The Spirit which governs my actions defines who I am. One is He gives me power to make me “wait on the Lord.” Many don’t know how, or don’t want to, or lack the patience to, “wait on the Lord.” Again the Psalmist, “Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes” (Ps.37:7). Yes, many times I look at the next person, my neighbors, those I work with, and compare myself with them and what they have in terms of money and material stuff. This is the most misguided way to live, and many have fallen into the money-god’s trap of anxiety, impulsiveness, and undue stress. There is only One with whom I am called to compare myself – Jesus and none other. (Rom.8:29)

Faith

What it comes down to is, faith. I live and act upon what I believe will bring me and my loved ones happiness. Do I have an unwavering faith in Jesus as the source of all true wealth, not false riches acquired by the money-god through selfish means? Jesus warned that everything happening in this world is working against my faith in Him and in the true riches He desires to give me. So, He instructs me to live one day at a time, for each day will bring ample doses of money-god drug called “filthy lucre” which debilitates me with narcissism and self-love. And the aim of money-god is to keep me from reaching my dreams. (Matt. 6:33-34; 1 Tim.3:3) But the truth about my life of faith is I’m not alone, the Spirit is with me to empower me in my relationship with Jesus. Jesus says to me as He did with Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor.12:9). Further, he said, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus” (Phi.4:6-7)

Faith takes me further and brings me to the reality of my calling and God’s purpose for me. Many unbelievers view the Christian faith as a cop-out, an excuse for facing up to the reality of life. Is it, or does faith actually guide me into the reality of life? The Bible says, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a Rewarder of those who seek Him” (Heb.11:6). That’s another way of saying, without faith I don’t have a footing to stand in discovering my relationship with God, and thereby my life’s destiny. Listen, Jesus said, “Life is spiritual, your physical existence doesn’t contribute to that life” (John 6:63). But both lives are intertwined and codependent. What I see in the physical world is affected by what’s happening in the spirit realm. (Eph.6:12) And if a person does not have God in his/her life, then that’s a cop-out and evading the reality of life. To have a calling is a gift from God our Father, and Jesus, and it takes living faith to believe that my gift is activated from the divine source. Here is the crux of the matter: real money which truly blesses comes through my gift and calling, from the spiritual Source in Jesus, not a physical source in me.

Calling & “Life-Gift”

He blesses and gives me rest within the context of my purpose and “life-gift.” (Psa.37:7) That’s the important thing to remember about ‘Jesus and Money.’ A person’s “life-gift” defines the valleys and people he or she has been called to flow through life and where he or she will find abundance. God gives me abundance (money) through His purpose for my life. We do not work for money but for Jesus. Material wealth must be funneled through my gift and dream-life, for God’s blessing comes through each man’s gift to glorify Him. I do not seek money for money’s sake, but wealth comes through the passion for my gift and calling in Christ.

God Use Our Gifts For His Glory and to Bless Us (Wiki Commons)

When you live your God-ordained purpose (Bulamanriver), all your life’s activities are magnetizing to your gift and dream-life, like Joseph of the Bible. God gave him a dream, just He does with us, so we can live purposefully in His designs. Everything Joseph did, his dream was the magnet which attracted all the circumstances to fulfill God’s divine purpose in him. Remember this: for a blessing to be true it must be a holistic blessing comprised both of spiritual and material/physical aspects, or, ‘Jesus and Money.’ You can’t have one without the other. This is what abundance as defined in God’s Love means. It is not just spiritual without the material/physical aspects, neither is it vice-versa. Joseph’s life taught us that. When that happens, miracles become part of your life because the Spirit flows in you to accomplish the divine will. ‘Jesus and Money’ can’t travel in separate  and different direction, they are of one and the same essence and existence. So, we see why it is about relationship because the two are connected – one cannot do without the other.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing:

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessings of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, prosper you and be with you always. May the Spirit enliven your spirit and make all things concerning you possible as you live the Triune Life as a Bulamanriver.*  Be strong in the Lord’s joy.

Kiang,  

* Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bulamanriver, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

See the BULAMANRIVER Video at: http://youtu.be/8uA0Bq7UoYA

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise.

Note: All information is copy-write. Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information

APPENDIX 1:

Riches Are Meaningless – Ecclesiastes 5:10-20

“Whoever loves money never has enough;
whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.
This too is meaningless.

¹¹ As goods increase,
so do those who consume them.
And what benefit are they to the owners
except to feast their eyes on them?

¹² The sleep of a laborer is sweet,
whether they eat little or much,
but as for the rich, their abundance
permits them no sleep.

¹³ I have seen a grievous evil under the sun:

wealth hoarded to the harm of its owners,

¹⁴     or wealth lost through some misfortune,
so that when they have children
there is nothing left for them to inherit.
¹⁵ Everyone comes naked from their mother’s womb,
and as everyone comes, so they depart.
They take nothing from their toil
that they can carry in their hands.

¹⁶ This too is a grievous evil:

As everyone comes, so they depart,
and what do they gain,
since they toil for the wind?
¹⁷ All their days they eat in darkness,
with great frustration, affliction and anger.

¹⁸ This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot.¹⁹ Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God. ²⁰ They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart.”

APPENDIX 2:

“Money is a Curse” By Sheldon Drobny 

Posted: 05/09/2006 12:46 pm EDT Updated: 05/25/2011 11:50 am EDT (an excerpt)

A few days ago Bill Gates was quoted as saying that he wished he were not the richest man in the world. For a society like ours that admires wealth so much, this statement seemed to be strange. Yet in fact, the endless accumulation of money for its own sake is the worst thing that can happen to a person and for the society in general.

I have observed many people who have become extremely wealthy since I am a financial advisor, CPA, and venture capitalist. In most cases, those who become very wealthy lose their psychological motivation to provide the means of support to their families. People who no longer have to earn money to survive unwittingly must turn to other things in order for them to seemingly have a purpose in society. And most of these other purposes are bad. Once anyone has achieved wealth, they usually turn to achieving power and influence in society and they are usually ill prepared to do things in the best interest of humankind. Rather, they turn to family wealth accumulation to create legacies much as the Pharos did in ancient Egypt.

In the musical, Fiddler On The Roof, Tevya is told by his future son-in-law Perchek, that “money is a curse.” Tevya responds by saying that “God should smite him with this curse.” Perchek was an early 20th Century socialist who understood the exploitation of the masses by those who had money and power. Tevya then sings a song called If I Were A Rich Man. One of the great lines of that song is, “…when you’re rich they really think you know.” And that is the trouble we have with rich and powerful leaders. People really think they are wise because they have money and power. My experience is that wisdom and competence are inversely proportional to the desire for wealth accumulation

The qualities of good leadership have nothing to do with money and wealth accumulation. Occasionally wealthy people have qualities of good leadership, but that is only coincidental. There are many factors that make for a good leader. Many people have written about the subject and it is an extremely rare talent. Unfortunately, the choices of leaders are based mostly upon wealth and influence and accordingly we are stuck now with many corporate, community, and political leaders who are incompetent.

Money is essentially a “zero sum game.” Most people do not understand that. The obscene salaries of many corporate executives are not going to the rank and file workers or the shareholders. That is why the middle class in America is struggling so much. And without a strong middle class, the U.S. will be heading towards an eventual insurrection as we almost had during the Great Depression. And the current political situation has exposed the corruption and cronyism involved in wealth accumulation.

A few years ago I visited my daughter in Spain while she was an exchange student. One of our tour guides was politically savvy and asked me why the rich and powerful in America are insensitive to the needs of the masses. He explained to me that after the death of Franco in 1975, the emerging socialist movement gave the wealthy classes two possible choices. Plan A was an insurrection in which they would lose all their property. Plan B was that they pay higher taxes to create the safety net needed by the masses and more fairly redistribute the wealth. Given that choice, the wealthy in Spain chose plan B.

I am afraid that in our country, it may come to the fear of losing everything through an insurrection that will finally convince the wealthy class that it is time to make a change. But, it will take a massive grass roots effort to make that happen. Hopefully the very wealthy will recognize this before they self-destruct.