Luke 3:38 tells us the Adam was "the son of God." This is because he was made in the Image of God. It was the divine purpose from the beginning to make men (and women) in His own Image. They were created with a physical body that housed the glory of God.
But when Adam and Eve later sinned, they lost the glory and were left only with the physical body that was made of the dust of the ground. The purpose and goal of history is to restore through Christ what was lost through Adam.
To put it another way, Adam was the son of God, but he lost his "sonship" through sin which separated him from God. And worse yet, he lost it for all of his children, and this had an adverse effect upon all of creation.
If there is one thing God possesses in abundance, it is Time. The divine law, which is the foundational expression of His Mind and Will, says that if a person cannot pay the debt incurred by sin, he must work off his debt for a certain time. Adam's case is expressed perfectly in Jesus' parable of the Debtor in Matthew 18:25, "But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children, AND ALL THAT HE HAD, and repayment to be made."
Thus, Adam, his wife, and his children (including us) were all "sold" in the slavery of sin. Not only mankind, but also "all that he had." Adam had been given dominion over the earth, and so Paul tells us in Rom. 8:22 that "the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now."
Paul calls it "the pains of childbirth" because he was talking about the birthing of the sons of God into the earth. Like a woman's childbirth, the earth itself is in pain to bring forth these sons of God.
The divine law also tells us that a sinner sold into slavery must be released at the end of six years (Ex. 21:2). This is not a permanent release, however. If he still owes more on his debt, he had to return after his Sabbath year to continue working as a slave. Only in the year of Jubilee was this debt fully cancelled, unless he succeeded in paying off the debt earlier.
If we look at the legal case against Adam, we see from Genesis 3:17 that the curse for Adam's sin was placed upon the ground: "cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life."
Legally speaking, this means that that the ground itself redeemed Adam's debt note. This meant that the ground now had authority over Adam and his children, and Adam would have to "eat of it" all the days of his life. In other words, the ground would provide its slave with food and housing. And yet, Adam would have to work and toil on behalf of the earth.
Verse 19: "By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return."
Adam's body was made from the dust of the ground (Gen. 2:7). He had lost the glory which this body had housed prior to his sin. That glory represented the presence of God in him, and this glory factor was what made him a son of God. He was supposed to be under the direct authority of God and led by the inner divine presence--but now, because of his sin, he became enslaved to the ground, including his physical dust-body. Keep in mind that this was by the decree of God.
Adam and his descendants would therefore be enslaved to the ground for "six years." Psalm 90:14 and 2 Peter 3:8 tell us that "with the Lord, one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day." And so, in applying Adam's sentence in a large, cosmic picture, he and his children were sentenced to a 6,000 year time of slavery to the physical body.
We are now near the time of the 6,000 years since Adam's sentence began. The day is approaching when the first major Sabbath will be decreed, wherein the earth will be set free from its bondage to the world-system called by various names including "Babylon."
This is not yet the Jubilee, of course. It is only the first Sabbath land-rest, where the slaves must be given a "year" of rest.
The New Testament clarifies this and adds details. It tells us that this will be the time of the "first resurrection" (Rev. 20:4-6), in which the overcomers will receive immortality. These are the sons of God, who have "the hope of glory." They will receive full freedom from Adam's sentence. The rest of mankind will participate in that freedom, but they will not receive immortality until later.
In my book, "The Purpose of Resurrection," I show that there are two resurrections in the future. The first is for the overcomers only at the end of 6,000 years from Adam. These are the first to come into full Sonship. The second resurrection comes at the end of the 7,000 years. Jesus speaks of this second resurrection in John 5:28, 29,
"Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs shall hear His voice and shall come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment."
At this second resurrection, both good and bad people will be raised, both believers and unbelievers. The Bible says that those who believe in Jesus Christ will receive immortality in that resurrection. Paul says that they will be "saved yet so as through fire" (1 Cor. 3:15). They will receive a certain amount of judgment, as Jesus describes in Luke 12:47-49, but they will then be given immortality.
The rest of mankind, who will all be raised in this second resurrection, will not die from then on, because Rev. 20:14 says that death itself will be cast into the lake of fire at that time. Yet they will be sold to the sons of God and will have to wait until the great Creation Jubilee to be totally set free. During that time, their Debt Note will no longer be held by the ground, because the sons of God will "purchase" their debt note from the ground.
This will prove to be a great advantage for humanity, because at this point they will be enslaved to those who love them, rather than to the ground which is indifferent. The sons of God will be responsible to care for them and to teach them the ways of God, as Isaiah 26:9 says, "For when the earth experiences Thy judgments, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness."
This is how the "fiery law" works (Deut. 33:2). This is the nature of the "lake of fire" in Rev. 20:14, 15. The law does not prescribe torture for sinners. The divine law says they are to be "sold" for their sin (Ex. 22:3). The law restores, and the purpose of God is to restore the creation to what it was before Adam sinned.
This is why the whole creation looks forward to the manifestation of the sons of God (Rom. 8:19). In our next part, I will show how the feast days of Israel set forth the basic blueprint for coming into Sonship.
In early April of 2000 Ron Oja and I had the pleasure of meeting Carlos and Shelli Ricci for the first time. We met through mutual friends who wanted us to share with them the message of the Restoration of All Things from my book, "Creation's Jubilee."
They accepted this teaching with great joy, but a few months later, Shelli was praying, "Lord, you know I believe this message of Restoration, but I'm just one of your stupid children and have been deceived before. Could you give me some confirmation, please?"
About a half hour later, Carlos came up from the basement carrying the early, small version of "Creation's Jubilee." He was white as a sheet, because he had had this book (and never read it) since 1991.
That same evening we went to their home for a meeting, and they told us the story of that book. In 1991 after doing the music for a church in Ilinois, a man walked up to Shelli, handed her the book, saying, "I believe I am supposed to give this to you."
"Oh, I don't want to take your last copy," Shelli replied.
"That's okay, I can get more," he said.
Being in music, Shelli immediately looked in the front to see the copyright date. It read: "Copyright 1991, second printing 1994." Her eyes rolled back in her head. "What kind of a fool is this author? He can't even get the date right!" (This was 1991.) She gave it to Carlos to read. He took it to work, put it on the shelf, and never read it. Then in 1999 they moved to Minneapolis, and the book came with them, packed in a box. He found it in the middle of 2000.
When they told me the story, I asked them when the man gave them the book. It was January of 1991, they knew, because it was winter. The man had given it to Shelli in the cloak room at the back of the church.
Funny thing, though, I finished writing that book on March 18, 1991, about 6 weeks after they received the SECOND EDITION (1994) of the book. The first edition was not even printed until June of 1991.
Who was this stranger? Shelli had never seen him before and never saw him again. She also wondered how the man left so quickly, as he was gone when she looked up. The 1994 copy that she was given was a book before its time.
You know, it would have been much easier for me to write the book if they had sent it to me ahead of time.
Yes, it would--if you could do so. The problem is, you have already broken it, for "all have sinned" (Rom. 3:23). Nothing good that you can do from now on will change the past. So the question is irrelevant. When God gave the law, He set the standard of perfection (righteousness) that God intended man to live by. When Adam fell, man lost the ability to live up to that perfect standard. Hence, the need for a Sacrifice by which we may obtain forgiveness for sin. When we come into the full image of Christ, we will do everything the law says, because we will then be capable of fulfilling it—even as Christ was capable when He walked the earth. If that perfect way of life is our future, should we not be “practicing” even today? Should we not be imitators of Jesus Christ? 1 John 2:6 says, “He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked.” The fact that Jesus Christ—who was without sin—kept the law perfectly shows us that the law prophesied of the life that Jesus would lead, as well as His calling. The law prophesied of Him, “Thou shalt not steal.” Jesus did not steal from any man. The law prophesied of Him, “Thou shalt not murder.” Jesus murdered no man. The law prophesied of Him, “Thou shalt not covet.” Jesus coveted nothing of any man. The law was thus prophetic of Christ. We were incapable of keeping it, but He was fully capable of keeping it—and He did. He did what no one else could do. He made up for our deficiency. Jesus did not use other men’s imperfections as an excuse to be imperfect Himself. He never said, “Well, nobody’s perfect, so I don’t mind indulging in a little covetousness now and then.” Instead, He said, “Man is incapable of living righteously, so I will show them how to do it by personal example. I will come to earth and live among them. I will show them how it is done. And then I will ask them to have faith in My blood as their Sacrifice for sin. I will them impute My righteousness to them—calling what is NOT as though it were (Rom. 4:17), until such time as I finish my work in them to bring them to perfection.” So He gave the law and prophesied in it that He would bring us His righteousness in two stages: first by imputation, making us legally righteous; and secondly by making us actually righteous. Leviticus 14 and 16 speaks of the two birds that would heal man of their “leprosy” (mortality) and the two goats that would cleanse man of his sin. In both cases, it required two animals, not just one, to complete the job. The first goat (Jesus at the Cross) was to COVER our sin. He imputed righteousness to us by covering it with His blood. The purpose of the second goat (Jesus in His second coming) is to REMOVE our sin. The first dove (Jesus at the Cross) was to impute immortality to us, promising life to us. The second dove (Jesus in His second coming) will actually make us immortal, where we will never experience sickness or death again. This is the divine order by which He is perfecting us and giving us immortality. At present, we are imputed righteous, for God is calling what is NOT as though it were. Thus, we are able to go boldly before the throne of grace even now, for our sins are covered. When God looks at us, He sees only Jesus, and He sees us as perfect, even though we are not. Because of this, there is no reason for us to continue wallowing around in guilt. There is no reason for us to fear going before His throne boldly. We need not fear Jesus for being “too holy,” and thus, we have no need to get to Him through the intercession of Mary or any other saint. In His second appearance, Jesus Christ will remove sin from us and transform us fully into His likeness. At that time we will be made actually righteous. According to the law of the two goats and the two doves, this completes the work that He is now doing in us.
This study was written by Stephen Jones of God's Kingdom Ministires. Please see Stephen's books and recording here at BibleStudyStorehouse.com.
This is sort of like giving up ahead of time because it is impossible to be perfect. Should we stop striving for excellence in sports just because we know that we will probably not win the Olympics? All Americans break the law at times, even if it is only driving above the speed limit or jaywalking. I find it impossible to keep America’s laws. Is that, then, an excuse for me to murder, steal, or commit adultery? Shall I throw away ALL the laws just because I find it impossible to keep all of them? Or shall I pick and choose which laws I want to follow (such as the laws against murdering my neighbor or stealing his car), but then toss out the ones I disagree with or simply don’t want to keep? Such an attitude is lawlessness. The implication of this common question is that we should only strive to be obedient to God if our salvation depends upon it. But since our salvation is based upon our faith, rather than upon our obedience, then obedience becomes “unnecessary.” But “unnecessary” for what? Just because something is not a component of justification does not mean it should be discarded. Works are not a component of justification (Passover), but they certainly are a component of sanctification (Pentecost). Paul makes it clear that justification is by faith alone, and not by works (i.e., obedience to the law). However, Paul never tells us to sin that grace may abound. Nor does he ever allow Christians to be lawless. John says, “sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4). However, our ability to be obedient is something is learned over a period of time, as we “grow up” and mature spiritually from being children to full-grown. Obedience is a function of our Sanctification, not our Justification. We are justified by faith (i.e., Passover experience), but our level of obedience is the measure of our Sanctification (i.e., Pentecost). Obedience (works) naturally follow one’s Justification, for they are the fruit of it. What are the good works that God looks for in a Christian? Ah, that is where the law comes in, for “by the law is the knowledge of sin” (Rom. 3:20). The law tells us what sin is, and God tells the Christian, “Do not be enslaved to sin any longer.” I certainly agree that (1) we are incapable of keeping the law—simply because we are not perfect yet, and (2) if our salvation were based upon our ability to keep the law, then no man could be saved—simply because no one is capable of keeping it. However, our inability and imperfection is OUR problem—not a problem with the law itself. The problem we face is that the law is perfect, while we are not. It forms a higher standard of righteousness than we are capable of fulfilling—even as Christians. But that is no excuse to throw out the law as if it were “bad.” I set a standard of righteousness for my children as they were growing up. I taught them that stealing their brother’s toys was bad, and I would discipline them for it. I taught them not to do violence to their brothers or playmates, and I would discipline them for doing such violence. I did this, realizing that while they were yet young, they were incapable of fulfilling these rules. I set these standards, knowing from the beginning that I would have to discipline them for breaking my laws until they learned obedience. The problem was not my rules (laws). The problem was their immaturity and the fact that they were incapable (yet) of fulfilling the law. But what if I had said, “Well, I know my kids cannot keep my law, so therefore, I will have no rules at all. I will let them do what they please, because, after all, they are my children regardless of whether or not they obey me.” Would that solve my problem? Would that make them perfect? Well, without rules to break, they would never be disobedient! If I never told them what to do, never issued them a “commandment,” then they could never violate that commandment (law). As Paul says in Romans 4:14, “Where no law is, there is no transgression.” How would such children turn out? Would they be good citizens and know how to love their neighbor? Or would they turn out as criminals, not knowing the difference between right and wrong? I know the answer by observation. I look at some other people’s children and see how they were never taught properly the difference between right and wrong at an early age. Then parents attempt to “catch up” when the children are older, but the children are not used to such rules. They prefer their freedom to do as they please. So the imposition of rules in later life often results in rebellion and disobedience, because those moral standards are not written on their hearts. If we, then, know that children must have rules in order to learn right from wrong, how is it that we think God would not do the same in raising His children to maturity? Our obedience may not be the basis of our salvation, but it certainly has to do with our relationship with God. God has many rebellious children. Don’t be one of them. This study was written by Stephen Jones of God's Kingdom Ministires. Please see Stephen's books and recording here at BibleStudyStorehouse.com.
