THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD - PART 358

God in Christ came to teach us of Himself. In so doing, God in Christ came to sacrifice His own flesh body so that He could provide men and women with a means of redemption from sin. This means all sin from the moment of man’s original disobedience in the Garden of Eden and even until now.

Indeed, God who is love and mercy took upon Himself man’s sin at no cost whatsoever to sinful man. He who knew no sin became sin for you and I. For God who never sinned offered His sinless body as a sacrifice. A body consisting of sin prone flesh though tempted even as we are but remained sinless. God offered to man redemption as a free gift, thereby permitting man to return to the sinless mindset of Adam and Eve prior to their encounter with the camouflaged, sweet talking, lying lips of the devil - who is the father of all lies.

We, who through God’s redemptive plan can by our choice be brought back to our original innocent minds because we are more advantaged than Adam and Eve because of the sacrifice of Jesus. In the beginning, Adam and Eve had no previous encounter with the devil but we, being their offspring have been exposed to the devil’s enticing ways for generations. Therefore, if we have had enough of the devil’s roller coaster ride called life, it should be relatively easier to embrace Jesus and His offer of redemption which leads to salvation and eternal life.

Then we could return to the original grass-root teachings of Christianity, eliminating the add-on traditions of religions -- teaching that in reality obscure the pathway signs which lead to Calvary. This is why it is important to obtain a copy of the New Testament. So that everyone can read the New Testament teachings and understand how very much the God who created us loved us.

Also, it is important to note that the New Testament is not an add-on to the Old Covenant. Indeed, put the Old Covenant on the shelf. Why? Because as the name implies, it is old. As well, traditional religious institutions ushered in by the so called church fathers of 300/400 AD introduced false teachings that are counteractive to the teachings brought from Heaven to earth by the Lord God Himself.

In this context, there was no one else who could be entrusted with such a mission, which mission caused the Lord JESUS' body to become a curse. This is why God brought to man His glorious gospel -- the same gospel message that shook up the sandy foundations of all religions of the time including Judaism whose very religious temple structure was prophesied by JESUS to be demolished.

Further, as a consequence, the Spirit of the Lord does not live in temples made with man’s hands. God was in Christ and from the very beginning, God had every intention of living within the innermost being of man. Yes, man becoming the temple in which the Lord is pleased to dwell. Temples redeemed and pure purchased from all sin by the outpouring of His own blood!

But men since their expulsion from the Garden of Eden have lost the nature of God turning instead to religion in a vain effort to appease their consciousness of sin. But as the scriptures reveal (which again is indicative of one's need to read the New Testament) Christianity commenced in Acts chapter 2. It is for this reason that me thinks we all should return to God’s prescription for the remission of sin, permitting a return to the nature of God so that we can also receive God’s promised gift of His Holy Spirit. 3000 persons believed initially in the message presented in Acts 2, being then baptized into a watery grave, willingly being buried into JESUS grave, arising a new justified creation!

For more, I suggest that you read Romans chapter 6 which elaborates on this message. Stand in the offering plate.