Monthly Archives: June 2015

BULAMANRIVER, MISSION, VISION, & VALUE, BY KIANG P LEE

Greetings Friends!

In this post I would like to share with you the Mission, Vision, and Values of the BULAMANRIVER Ministry. My purpose is to give our readers in a clear and concise explanation of who we are, what we do, and how and why we do it. Let me first explain what the name of this blog site, BULAMANRIVER, means. As a beneficial side issue, you will find the message relevant to the freedom we celebrate on the upcoming Independence Day on 4th July.

Cover of Book: Bulamanriver – The Miracle of Triune Living”

The etymology of BULAMANRIVER comes from three words: ‘bula,’ ‘man,’ and ‘river.’  Bula is a Fijian word which means “life.” (Fiji is an independent South Pacific Island nation). Man is God’s creation in whom God breathed the “breadth of life” or the spirit of life in man. (Gen. 2:7) River is the metaphor for God’s Love flowing in humans. (John 7: 37-39)

Therefore, Bulamanriver, conveys the meaning that “man has true life walking in God’s Love.” Of course, these three words also have biblical derivative: ‘life’ (bula) is a gift from God to humans (Gen.2:7); ‘man’ was created in God’s image and likeness (Gen.1:26-27), and ‘river’ pictures the flow of God-life in the human-life. (John 7:37-39) So, the Bulamanriver can be summed up from the following passage of scripture:

“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water shall flow from the inmost being of anyone who believes in me.”  He was speaking of the Holy Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him” – John 7:37-39. 

The above passage expounds BULAMANRIVER scripturally as follows: man is the riverbed, who is the receptacle for the “living waters” of the Spirit of God (God-life/Love)which brings true life he    shares with his fellow humans. (Rom.5:5) Therefore, BULAMANRIVER is the depiction of the believer. You, are the BULAMANRIVER. You are the riverbed, God’s receptacle, in which the “living waters” of the Spirit (Love) flow giving true life to your once dead spirit which the devil gave humans through Adam’s fall. (John 3:3,5; Gen.2:17)

Having explained the meaning, and having seen that You are the BULAMANRIVER, let me now spell out its Mission, Vision, and Value statements.

Mission

The Mission of the Bulamanriver Trinitarian Ministry is founded upon the words Jesus commissioned His followers shortly before He was received by angels to return to His Father in heaven, “All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matt.28:18-20)

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The Trinity-Man Called to Enter and Live the “Triune Life” in Christ (Rublev’s Icon of Trinity, Wiki Commons)

The thrust of Jesus’ mission is founded upon what this passage authorizes the disciples and His followers to do: to “baptize humans into the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” It means to immerse or saturate humans into the Life and Being of the Triune God. It means to bring believers into the “Triune Life” of God. The image and Being of the Triune God is hardwired into two basic characters of His divine nature: Love and Freedom. The Bible declares, “God is Love” (1 John 4:8). And, “If the Son sets you Free, you will be Free indeed” (John 8:36). God is not a ‘solitary’ God as many assume, He is a Tri-Personal God. Because God is Tri-Personal in His Being, He is three free Persons living in unified relationship of Love. The human personality is fashioned after the three free Persons of the Tri-Personal Being of God

Man was robbed of this “Triune Life” when Satan deceived Adam, and, introduced his own deathly “solitary life” of Fear and Bondage through sin. From then on, man was living the “solitary life” of the devil in place of the “Triune Life” of God. The “solitary life” means man does what is right in his own eyes, in place of the collaborative “Triune Life.” (Prov.12:15; 30:12; 21:2).

So, the Mission is to enlighten the human mind of the Triune nature of God, and His call to be immersed in the “Triune Life” and so be fashioned and conformed in God’s image of Love and Freedom. (Gen.1:26-27) God’s creation is immersed in His Love we see all around us including man, but unlike everything created, man has to use his mind to reciprocate to His Love; thereby, man has to exercise his God-given Freedom and choose to Love God through Christ.

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Jesus at the Last Supper with His Disciples (Wiki Commons)

Vision 

The Vision explains the why and how of the Mission. The Vision is to bring humans into the nature of Love and Freedom of the “Triune Life” of God by freeing man from the prison of Fear and Bondage, the “solitary life,” Satan has incarcerated man ever since the fall of Adam. How is this done? Through faith!

Paul said, “He (God the Father) is so rich in kindness and grace that He purchased our freedom with the blood of His Son and forgave our sins” (Eph.1:7, NLT). By believing in Jesus Christ as personal Savior, man is immediately and directly freed from the bondage of Satan, and brought into God’s Loving union. In the realm of God, faith produces miracles. (Eph.1:13-14) Faith makes the reality of God happen in the spirit world. Just as faith imprisoned man because Adam and Eve believed the devil’s deceptive word, so we are freed from the devil when we believe in God’s Word (Jesus). This is the way God the Father has pre-arranged to bring man back to Himself – for “it is impossible to please God without faith” (Heb.11:6). Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6) Jesus is the way to Love and Freedom.

So, the Vision of our work is to continue the work of Jesus to Free mankind from Fear and Bondage to the Love and Freedom man can experience in the “Triune Life” of God through faith in Jesus.

The Value

The Value explains how we share and carry out the Vision the Bulamanriver Trinitarian Ministry. Paul said, “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.” (Rom.8:9b) God is a Tri-Personal God, thus, if you receive Jesus you receive the Holy Spirit as well, for both are hypostatically One God with the Father. The Holy Spirit is the core ingredient of BULAMANRIVER’s (man’s) Value.

Again quoting John, we see how the values of the “Triune Life” is inculcated in the believer through the Spirit’s move, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water shall flow from the inmost being of anyone who believes in me.”  He was speaking of the Holy Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him” (John 7:37-39).

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Dove, Symbol of the Holy Spirit (Pic: Wiki Commons)

With the Spirit as the core of the believer’s Value statement, He moves in us to accomplish God the Father’s purpose in His Son, “God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love Him along the same lines as the life of His Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity He restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in Him. After God made that decision of what His children should be like, He followed it up by calling people by name. After He called them by name, He set them on a solid basis with Himself. And then, after getting them established, He stayed with them to the end, gloriously completing what He had begun” (Rom.8:29-30). Paul explains the Value the Spirit brings in the Love chapter of 1 Corinthians 13. This is the heart and essence of the Values we have in Christ which the Spirit makes happen in the believer. (John 16:14)

So man’s intrinsic Value is the act of surrendering to the move of the Spirit in his life, and allow Him to conform the personhood of man to the image of Jesus, God’s Son. (Rom.8:29)

Today, the Spirit moves in believers to make known the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole world – the primary mission and vision of the BULAMANRIVER Ministry. Man uses various forms of media to publish and make the “Triune Life” of Jesus known to the world. The “Triune Life” is the Gospel, for from it we obtain all that’s necessary to make the Gospel work come to fruition. Jesus said this in His prayer to the Father before He was crucified about the “Triune Life” they shared from eternity, which the disciples have now embraced, which will become the cornerstone in their lives to make known the Gospel known, “That all of them may be One, Father, just as You are in Me and I am in You. May they also be in Us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me (Gospel work). I have given them the glory that You gave Me, that they may be One as We are One (“Triune Life”)— I in them and You in Me—so that they may be brought to complete (Triune) unity. Then the world will know that You sent Me (Gospel work) and have Loved them even as You have Loved Me (from eternity)” (John 17:21-23, my emphasis throughout). The Spirit moves in man which makes this unity (“Triune Life”) possible, and demonstrates BULAMANRIVER’s value proposition in the Spirit’s life.

An abbreviated version follows:

Mission: To immerse and saturate humans into the Life and Being of the Triune God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (Matt.28:18-20) Mission reveals the Love of the Father! (John 3:16)

Vision: Jesus is the One who Frees us and makes us live in the Love and Freedom of the “Triune Life” of God, rescuing us from the prison of Fear and Bondage of Satan. (John 14:6; John 3:16. 8:36) Vision brings the Freedom of the Son! (John 8:36)

Value: The value of the Gospel is the message of the “Triune Life” the Spirit brings to man. Man is the riverbed, and the Holy Spirit is the living waters which make us BULAMANRIVER – the personification of the “Triune Life” (“the Spirit of life in man walking in God’s Love”) (John 7:37-39; 1 Cor.13) Value activates the work of sanctification of the Spirit! (1 Pet.1:2)

And so, in all we do, and whatever we teach, in whatever forms fo media, we are commissioned to accomplish this three-fold objective of the Mission, Vision, and Value, of the BULAMANRIVER. 

(Web Site Address:  http//bulamanriver.com)

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, 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

LIFE & DEATH – WHAT IS IT, REALLY? BY KIANG P LEE

Greetings again Friends!

People think of death mainly in a physical sense. We mourn the death of loved ones, family, and close friends. We grieve the demise of our leaders, people we admire and respect, and those we look up to. But there is a death more real than physical death. It is a death that is spiritual and more deadly than physical death. Although spiritual, it is a death we experience physically and its effect is seen and felt all around us today. Most don’t know what this death looks like because they can’t see let alone understand it for what it truly is, and what it is doing to them. Death is not just the end of physical life, for as we shall see, we experience death’s consequence in everyday life. So if death reigns in the human experience, then what must life look like? It must be something out of this world. Indeed, it is!

God revealed to man from the beginning what this death is, what it looks like, and what it truly means. After Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, disbelieving God’s word for them over what Satan the devil said about the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, He summarily told them what the outcome of their decision was: death! (Gen.3) This is where death began, its origin began with Satan and Adam’s decision. Death is not just the mere end of human life, but the negative effects of human experience is part and parcel of death. Jealousy, rage, greed, covetousness, hatred, war, sicknesses, selfishness, etc, etc. Imagine a world where we no longer live in an environment created by these negative triggers.

But it was an evil scheme hatched by Satan to wrest man’s dominion of this earth given him by God. (Gen.1:28, KJV; Matt.11:8-10) It was not a death that was physical, Adam and Eve did not just drop dead, physically speaking. His spirit became in a dead/sinful state. The Bible tells us, “The wages of sin is death,” spiritually speaking. Adam died spiritually – the spirit of life in him died. In that state, Adam did not have the basis upon which to hold his dominion on this earth. How can he, for his dead spirit means he’s disconnected from God who gave him dominion over earth. God is the “God of the living not the dead” (Mark.12:27). Adam will not have legs to stand on to resist the wiles and deception of Satan. In fact, from here on man becomes Satan’s prisoner. Thereby man is deprived of his dominion upon earth, for now Adam lives under the influence of the devil, held in the chains of bondage and death. This is what true death looks like, to be a prisoner of the devil.

Arlington National Cemetery. Death is More Than Physical. There’s Spiritual Death. (Wiki Commons)

God gave Adam and Eve adequate prior warning, listen to the account: “Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 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…The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but 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.2:8-9, 15-17). If God say “certainly” or “surely” then you know absolutely a part of man died. God does not play with words, “Your word, LORD, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens” (Psa.119:89). His word is sure and dependable.

Paul told Timothy, “Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner” (1 Tim.2:14). Recall, the instruction was given to Adam before Eve was created. So she most likely got the instruction about the tree of life and the forbidden fruit from Adam. But Adam took responsibility because God made him leader and in charge. “Adam was formed first, then Eve,” Paul told Timothy. (1 Tim.2:13) Something happened to our first parents when they rebelled against God’s clear instruction, “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves” (Gen. 3:6-7). They were naked from day one of their creation, what made them “see” their nakedness now? Let’s read the dialog between God and mankind’s first parents.

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Garden of Eden (Wiki Commons)

“Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”  He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”  The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”  Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

“So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel” (Gen.3:8-15). God told Satan, and promised man, a second Adam will come to deliver man from the prison of death the devil has incarcerated mankind.

God told Adam directly and unambiguously, “The moment you eat from that tree you’re dead” (Gen.2:17, emphasis added). The question is, what died? Adam and Eve were still alive and well, physically speaking, other than being conscious of their nakedness, and fearing God for their disobedience. What died was Adam’s spirit. In other words, whereas his spirit was alive when he and his wife related with God in the beautiful Garden of Eden, now his spirit became dead because of his decision to disobey God. Adam’s rebellion was sin, and sin brought death. Paul asserts this truth, saying, “The wages of sin id death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom.6:23). They were expelled from Eden and from life which emitted from God’s presence. The ‘spirit of life’ in Adam was given to him by God at creation giving him authority to relate with God through Love (Holy Spirit, Rom.5:5), “Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being (soul)” (Gen.2:7). Through Adam’s disobedience his spirit became in a sinful/dead state, and passed from him to mankind generationally through multiplication to our day – today: “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, ‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion’  (Gen.1:28).

Jesus said something vital about life and death, “Life is spiritual. Your physical existence doesn’t contribute to that life. The words that I have spoken to you are spiritual. They are life.” (John 6:63, God’s Word T). If your physical life doesn’t add a smidgen of spiritual vigor in your life, what does? Answer, the Holy Spirit! Man’s human spirit does not exist independently, it is spawned and bred by and in the Spirit of God. (Gen.2:7) So, Adam’s fleshly (physical) life don’t amount to much if his spirit is dead. How can Adam’s spirit offer life, physical and spiritual, if it is dead? Man’s spirit is either alive through the Holy Spirit’s Love, or dead through Satan’s deception. Hence, man has become the devil’s prisoner, for he is the author of darkness and death. The “death” of the ‘spirit of life’ God gave man simply means man’s physical activity in every sphere of life is now motivated by the devil’s rebellious spirit which leads to ultimate physical death. But God’s promise is immortality by a resurrection. (1 Cor.15:50-57) No amount of good intentions will rescue us from this deathly spiral to spiritual and physical extinction. On the other hand, the spirit of life in man “lives” when he is driven by the Holy Spirit. The wisdom of Solomon makes this plain, “The human spirit is the lamp of the LORD that sheds light on one’s inmost being” (Prov.20:27). From this, we understand the physical activities in man’s world is triggered by the toing and froing taking place in the spiritual realm. (Job 2:1-4) Hence we read, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the power of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph.6:12). The spirit-world is more real because it affects the material world we see around us.

Paul affirms this generational diffusion of man’s spirit in its dead state of existence, “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned… Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous” (Rom.5:12, 18-19). The evil we see all over the world today is proof of man’s state of death (sin) in his spirit under the devil.

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The Earth Given to Man for His Dominion, But Usurped by The Devil. (The Earth Seen From Apollo 17 – Wiki Commons)

When Adam’s spirit died he became spiritually naked, but it manifested physically – they “realized they were naked (physical).”  God is making a point: i.e.our actions resulting from a dead spirit (unseen) has negative physical consequences (seen). Everything we see around us are manifestations of the condition of man’s spirit-life, and what happens in the spirit-world. To kill, steal, and destroy, are physical manifestations of our dead spiritual condition. (Eph.6:12). God says, “Whoever finds Me finds life” (Pro.8:35).

Only in death man is physically laid naked to return to the earth from which he was taken, hence, they “realized they were naked.” Jesus said, “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness” (Rev.3:18). Man’s spirit when it’s alive in the Spirit’s power is not naked. John said of believers, “It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.” (Rev. 19:8) So, we can see from these biblical metaphors that Adam’s spirit was naked and spiritual dead in sin. We have inherited the same dead spirit from Adam. As we read earlier, Jesus said, “Life is spiritual. Your physical existence doesn’t contribute to that life” (John 6:63). Your physical existence is merely a reflection of your spiritual life, be it dead or alive.

As long as Adam and Eve remained faithful to God’s command, their spirit was alive and living under the influenced of His Love. The moment they expressed disbelief in God’s command they disconnected themselves from the Spirit of God which gives life (Love) to their spirit. Once they expressed belief in Satan’s words of deception, their spirit succumbed to the devil’s dark world of wickedness and their spirit died. Metaphorically, man becomes the “walking dead” – alive physically, but dead spiritually. This does not mean God has left mankind to the whims of the enemy, for He promised to rescue man by sending a second Adam, the Messiah, who would come to right what Adam wronged. (Gen.3:14-15; 1 Cor.15:45) God’s sovereignty over all, including His enemies, remains unquestionable. (You may read Ezekiel 36 where the words “Sovereign Lord” is used 7 times in seven verses).

But freedom is part of the Triune God’s nature as much as Love is. Love cannot preside over a relationship where there is no freedom to choose. (Gal. 5:1; Rom.8:2) God wants our hearts, not our legalistic and mechanical obedience. Adam was given freedom even to rebel, if he chose to follow such a path. And he had experienced God’s Love, so he had a choice between life and death, he was given the freedom of choice. But God tells us to choose wisely: “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live” (Deut.30:19). Freedom comes with the responsibility to Love, and we will certainly lie on the bed we choose to make.

As a passing observation, this tells us how important our faith is in life. We act upon what we believe to be true (faith), therefore, it is imperative to guard the door of our faith vigilantly, for John warns us, “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). (Read my installment on “Jesus Faith” posted on 07/26/2014) 

The Second Adam

It was not until Jesus Christ, the second Adam, came on the scene over four thousand years later, that He revived man’s dead spirit back to life by the power of the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor.15:45) He was the Immanuel (God in the flesh) who took our humanity upon Himself to regenerate it and bring new life to our once dead spirits. (Isa.7:14; Matt.1:23) Paul told Titus, “He (Jesus) saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5). When Jesus told Nicodemus, “You must be born again,” it was about bringing back to life man’s spirit that was in a dead state through Adam’s disobedience (sin). He said, “No one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit’ (John 3:7, 5). It is the Spirit who brings the spirit of man back to life as God gave it originally to Adam. Jesus said the Spirit is the “river of living waters springing from our innermost being” giving life to our once dead spirit. (John 7:38-39) (For our reader’s information, the title of this Blog Site is called, Bulamanriver. The word is a metaphor for life and living in the Spirit’s power. The etymology of Bulamanriver comes from three words: ‘bula,’ ‘man,’ and ‘river.’  Bula is a Fijian word which means “life.” (Fiji is an independent South Pacific Island nation). Man is God’s creation in whom God breathed the “breadth of life” or the spirit of life in man. (Gen. 2:7) River is the metaphor for God’s Love flowing in humans through the Spirit. (John 7: 37-39. Rom.5:5) 

Paul wrote, “But God is so rich in mercy, and He loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) For He raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus” (Eph.2:4-6). This is not about the afterlife, it speaks of the believer’s state of existence through the Spirit today. Whereas Jesus came and took our humanity upon Himself to bring us life and retake our dominion of this earth, Satan’s devilish scheme was to put man to death to wrest his dominion and keep it for himself.

So, Jesus came and defeated Satan in the temptations, accomplishing what Adam failed to do (1); He lived a perfect life in the Spirit doing nothing but good (2), and died as the sacrificial lamb for man’s sins (3). He was resurrected an immortal divine/human Son, and ascended to sit on the Father’s throne in heaven as mankind’s High Priest (4). Before He was crucified, He promised the disciples to send the Holy Spirit to be with believers “forever” (5). In other words, what happened to man through the first Adam, Jesus has reversed once and for all and restituted all things to God (6). Satan’s defeated means the end of his reign of death over mankind once for all time (7). Paul comforts us with these words, “What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will He not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Rom.8:31-39). Such is the depth of God’s Love to give us life and save us from death!  

(1) Matt.4:1-11 (2) Acts 10:38; Matt.9:35, 12:15 (3) Rev.13:8; John 3:16 (4) 1 Cor.15:4; Heb.7:16-17, 10:12 (5) John 14:16; Eph.1:13-14 (6) Acts 3:21 (7) Rev.20:2).

Spirit in Man – Dead or Alive? (Wiki Commons)

The work of the Spirit to revive man’s spirit is revealed in God’s ‘covenant promise’ to man as follows, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezek.36:26; Heb.8:10). Yes, the heart of stone is the dead spirit Satan activated through Adam’s rebellion. And yes, the Spirit will bring man’s spirit back to life, and keeping it alive, like a fountain of living waters gushing from our innermost being. It must be by the living human spirit, energized by the Holy Spirit, that the flesh is to be saved from eternal death.(Rom.8:13)

Man’s spirit of life (human spirit) alone, which God breathed into Adam at creation, was given to define his humanity authorizing and enabling him to communicate with God His purpose and man’s destiny. When God said, “My Spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be a hundred and twenty years,” (Gen 6:3) it means as long as God’s Spirit is communicating with man’s spirit, then man remains alive – both spiritually and physically. The moment God ceases to strive or preside over man’s destiny, then man ceases to exist and is dead. By saying “My Spirit shall not always strive with man,” means God is always striving (working out His purpose) with man unless something prevents His purpose occurring. So, soon after uttering the above words, God brought the flood to end all life on the earth with the exception of the eight in Noah’s ark. And God gave His reasons for bringing the flood, “the wickedness of man and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was evil continually” (Gen. 6:3).

God has wrapped all of creation in His Love – Love is His life, for “God is Love” (1 John 4:8). The only place where His life (Love) is missing is in man’s heart because he chose the way of death through Adam. Jesus, the second Adam, has repaired that. The spirit of life in man was given to forever connect us to God’s purpose of making us into His image and likeness of Love. (Gen.1:26-27) And this happens when man’s spirit is alive to the Holy Spirit, not dead to the devil. Jesus said of His Father, “He is not the God of the dead, but of the living” (Mar.12:27). Jesus also said, “But the time is coming–indeed it’s here now–when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship Him that way” (John 4:23). The word ‘worship’ has been couched in so much legalism we have lost its authentic meaning. Worship is not about coming to church once a week every Sunday. It means simply to have an authentic Loving relationship with our heavenly Father through Jesus, which we choose with our free will, that’s energized by the Spirit. We worship what and whom we freely Love. 

Of course the spirit of life in man is not self-sufficient, it needs God’s Spirit to guide and help him, and ultimately to bring him to immortality, for that’s God likeness – He’s immortal and eternal! Only the Holy Spirit can change man from mortal to immortality. (1 Cor.15:12-58) So, man’s spirit plus God’s Spirit, amounts to immortal humans. The prophet Ezekiel quotes God also saying, “You shall surely live” (immortality). Note, “And if I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ (as was said of Adam) but they then turn away from their sin and do what is just and right...they will surely live” (Ezek.33:14,16). No human on his own can turn away from his sin – the only way is to be forgiven of all sin in Jesus’ blood, and then be continuously sanctified, or, “do what is just and right,” through the work of the Spirit. (1 John 1:17; 1 Thess.5:23; 1 Pet.1:2)

Only Jesus is the first human who has attained to this glorious purpose of the Father – the resurrection of humans to immortality. He is the firstborn of immortalized humans of others who will follow in the resurrection of the dead. (Rom.8:29) Paul said this of the Holy Spirit and man’s immortality, “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption (immortality) of those who are God’s possession–to the praise of His glory.” (Eph.1:13-14, my emphasis). Yes, the Holy Spirit is God’s “down-payment” in you guaranteeing your immortality. Again, emphasizing the centrality of faith, “when you believe” – the Spirit is the gift of your faith in Christ, your Messiah. (Rom.8:9)  As for those who died in the faith, Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me will live, even though they die (physically)” (John 11:25). That is God’s final answer to death and sin – immortality!

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The Resurrection to Immortality – God’s Final Answer to Death (Statue of Fountain of Eternal Life, Downtown Cleveland, Ohio, USA – Wiki Commons)

Last Word on Death

The last word on death is revealed in the Bible, and goes as follows, “I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”

“O death, where is your victory? 

“O death, where is your sting?” 

56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor.15:50-57). What comforting words about the final demise and defeat of man’s public enemy #1 – death!

The question is, are you dead or alive in your spirit… is the Spirit energizing your spirit life so death does not reign, and has no place, in your life? God is “the God of the living, not the dead.” If you believe with all your heart that Jesus is God’s One and only Son, that He came as the second Adam to rescue us from Satan’s prison of death; that He defeated the enemy for us in the wilderness of Judea, and was sacrificed on Calvary for our sins; He was resurrected and ascended to heaven, and He sent us the promised Holy Spirit to revive our spirit which was dead and make us alive in Him, then you can live again in your spirit, and through God’s Spirit, live a life that’s truly life, and be guaranteed immortality in the Father’s presence forever. (John 3:16; 1 Tim.6:19) This is the Gospel!

I hope you have been greatly encouraged by these words from our Father and the God of all mankind – “the God of the living, not the dead!”. (Mar.12:27)

If you have any questions, please do not 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 blessing 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 Living 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

ANGELS, BY KIANG P LEE

Very warm greetings from Texas!

In this segment I would like to touch on the topic of angels. It can be fascinating to get to know more about angelic beings and why God created them, and some of their actions, both good and bad. This subject is near to my heart because I have encountered good angels that saved me and my wife and two friends from certain death. Because of space and time limitation, you can read my account of encounter with angels by going to “About Me” in the directory banner at the top of this page.

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Angels Encircled in Bright Light  Saved the Writer from Certain Death (Pic: Wiki Commons)

The word “angel” comes from the Greek word “angelos” which means messenger. The study of angels is called the doctrine of angelology and is a part of many systematic theological works. The tendency, however, has been to neglect it. Perhaps, it is not considered important enough. But as we shall see, different order of the angelic hosts play vital roles in God’s Kingdom, and in the salvation of man.

Angels are created beings. Angels are intelligent beings (Matt.8:29; 2 Cor.11:3; 1 Pet. 1:12) , they are emotional beings (Luk.2:13; Jam.2:19; Rev.12:17), and each has an individual personality and will (Luk.8:28-31; 2 Tim.2:26; Jude 6). Angels are spirit beings (Heb.1:14) and do not have physical bodies. They are much more powerful than human beings and possess greater knowledge.

Order of Angelic Hosts

Seraphim are the highest angelic class and they serve as the caretakers of God’s throne and continuously shout praises: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”  (Isa. 6:1-6) Cherubim guard the way to the tree of life in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:24) and the throne of God (Eze. 28:14–16). Archangels, of which there are seven, are said to be the guardian angels of nations and countries. There are other orders that are defined by their roles: Thrones, Dominions and Lordships, Virtues and Strongholds, Power and Authorities, Principalities and Rulers. Then there are Angels or malakhim, i.e. the “plain” angels (ἄγγελοι, pl. of ἄγγελος, angelos, i.e. messenger or envoy), are the lowest order of the angels, and the most recognized. They are the ones most concerned with the affairs of living things. Within the category of the angels, there are many different kinds, with different functions. The angels are sent as messengers to mankind. (wikipedia.org)

All of the above should tell us that angels of various orders play vital roles in the dispensation of God’s Kingdom in the universe, on this earth, and in the affairs of men. For example, consider that God has assigned angels over nations and their most specified task seems to be influencing the affairs of men so that justice and the purpose of God’s Kingdom is carried out. That should tell us they are vital in the conduct of human affairs. The following passage seem to confirm this,

“When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when he divided all mankind, he set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.” (Deut. 32:8-9).

The Hebrew text for the above passage reads, “When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.” However, in place of “children of Israel” the Greek reads “ἀγγέλων θεοῦ”, “angels of God.”

According to the Greek text, God divided the nations of mankind according to the number of the angels of God. This is said to have occurred when God divided all mankind right after the tower of Babel incident, which was not long after the Flood. (Gen.11:1-9) Every nation had an angel responsible in some capacity, and this was how things were arranged by God. Michael was the angel for Israel, and the nations of Persia and Greece also had angels that they belonged to in some way. We have been taught from childhood that God has assigned guardian angels under the auspices of His divine Kingdom. That ought to give credence to the role of angels in our lives, not only individually, but more so in areas we may not yet fully understand.

Man’s Relationship with Angels

What we read above tells us there is a relationship between mankind and angels, and God. Angels are not to be worshiped by man, only God the Creator is worthy of worship. Angels are created beings, so is man. The created worships the uncreated Creator. The Psalms make a very interesting observation in regard to man and angels, “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is mankind that You are mindful of them, human beings that You care for them?You have made them a little lower than the angelsand crowned themwith glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of Your hands; You put everything under their feet: all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your Name in all the earth!” (Psa.8:4-9).

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Angels in Jacob’s Dream (Gen.28:10-22) (Paul Gustave Doré, 1832-1883, Wiki Commons)

Role of Angels

The passage begins with humility where man observes the mighty hand of God as he sees the wonder of His creation around him, even in the spirit world of angelic hosts, and inquires, ‘why do You take the time to even bother about man?’ The Psalmists asks in effect, why the holy Creator should even spare a thought for sinful, unworthy, and insignificant, man? Yet, here is the nub of the answer, when man was created as the Genesis account show, God gave him a lofty vision and mission of himself. A mission which still baffles man which he grapples into coming to terms with in its magnitude – man was made to take on the very image of God Himself and the likeness of His Son. (Gen.1:26-27; Rom.8:29) Man’s mind seems too small to comprehend it fully to truly appreciate it in its complete scale. It has to take God’s Spirit entering the human mind to open and reveal what fallen man can’t begin to imagine. As Paul said, “However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” — the things God has prepared for those who love him–these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God” (! Cor.2:9-10)  Its enormity is beyond human consciousness were it not for the move of the Spirit who gives us eyes to see what normal human can’t do. But He did not say the same thing of angels. The Bible shows the role angels is to be servants of God’s Kingdom and to ensure the rule and sovereignty of God’s Kingdom remains their prime objective and pursuit. And one of those roles is to help bring about the will of God in reproducing Himself in mankind. (Gen. 1:26-27) God’s Kingdom is a family affair, so His desire is to have more children with whom He can share everything and have a relationship like He does with Jesus His Son from eternity. This Love relationship existed even before the creation of angels and mankind. (John 17:23-24) Thus, the government of God (Kingdom of God) is entrenched in the hearts of angels and humanity forever.

Fallen Angels

Not all angels are good. There are rebellious angels who have turned against God’s Kingdom. They are commonly referred to as “fallen angels.” The term “fallen angels” does not appear in the Bible, but most likely taken from the following passage, “How have you fallen from heaven, O star of the morning,” which refers to Lucifer the archangel who turned against God and became His adversary. (Isa. 14:12). ‘Star’ is symbolic of angels as Job 38:7 show. Fallen angels are those who rebelled against God along with Lucifer who became the devil, Satan. The following verses are often quoted in reference to their rebellion, “How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations! But you said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly; In the recesses of the north; ‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ ” (Isa.14:12-14). Lucifer wanted to be God. His name means “morning star” or “light bringer.” However, he changed from being one who brings light, to become the bringer of darkness. (Eph.6:12; 2 Cor.11:14).

Most commentaries agree that one-third of the angels fell into sin and became “fallen angels,” and the following passage is used to support this, “And another sign appeared in heaven: and behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven diadems.  And his tail swept away a third of the stars of heaven, and threw them to the earth…” (Rev. 12:3-4). In the future, there will be a judgment upon these fallen angels, “And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, who deceives the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” (Rev. 12:9). 

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Lucifer, Now Satan, Cast Out of Heaven by God in John Milton’s Paradise Lost (Wiki Commons)

Fallen Angels and the Flood of Noah

Because angels were created to be the army of God’s Kingdom and support the Kingdom’s purpose in creation, which includes helping mankind become part of His Kingdom, they were created shortly before man to witness creation and go before mankind and reveal the Kingdom’s purpose for each. God asked Job, “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone—while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?(Job 38:4-7).

The fallen angels had wreaked havoc on the earth beginning with Adam, when Lucifer, now Satan the adversary, deceived Adam to turn against God. Adam and his wife Eve were expelled from Eden. (Gen. 3) By the time Noah appeared on the scene as the tenth generation from Adam, people have multiplied on the earth and Satan and his fallen angels had taken every opportunity to turn them against God. (Gen.5) And they had done a thorough job of their evil schemes, so much so that God found there were now only eight upright people of all mankind on the face of the earth. It seems hard to comprehend, but the Bible quotes God as saying, “The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled.  So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them” (Gen 6:5-7).

“Every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time” – it was for this reason that God decided and said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created,” not to mention every living creature. How can this be? How did man deteriorate to such a level of depravity that God saw no other option? God told Noah to build an ark to save the eight in his family and the animals, birds, and creatures, for future posterity. It seems hard to imagine that God has run out of options but to destroy the earth and all living creatures. Unless, unless of course, there is another side other than what we have not been told about story of Noah and the flood.

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Noah’s Ark in the Philippines (Wiki Commons)

Many of us have not been taught the factual story of the flood, or refuse to believe what actually the Bible says happened. The story of Noah from Sunday school has always been presented like a fairy story. But it’s reality is beyond what one could have ever imagine, and stranger than fiction. For God to be left with no other option but to send a worldwide flood to destroy all living things including humans, ought to make us ask what was it that prompted God to go to such a drastic measure. Think of the things you have been told why God had to go to this extreme to exterminate life by a worldwide deluge. You may have been told your version, others have been told theirs, I have been told what I believe. But nothing will prepare you for this version I am about to tell you. And when you think about it, you will understand why God had no other option but to “wipe from the face of the earth the human race.” You may have thought God was cruel and heartless, but nothing could be further from the truth – not anymore when you hear this story. You will agree with God, there was no other option.

I will share this with you in Part 2, titled, “The Fallen Angel’s Role in Noah’s Flood”

If you have any questions, please do not 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 blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you always. May the Spirit enliven you and make all things concerning you possible in Triune Living as a Bulamanriver.*  May you 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