Pt. 2 – A New Creation in Christ

Life, Light, Glory

I have been dealt with of the Lord in regard to three terms in the scripture. And when these terms really come to find their definition and their fulness and realization in Christ, they define the believer’s relationship with Christ and they define Christ’s relationship with the believer. And in these three terms we have an understanding of what Salvation is. And these three terms are: LIFE, LIGHT and GLORY. And the book of John is the Gospel that is just so full of this; but there is not a book in the Bible in which you will not find these three terms or their type, their shadow, their testimony of these three terms. So these three terms are bound up in the literary context with the theme and subject of Salvation. Salvation has to do with Life; Salvation has to do with Light; Salvation has to do with Glory. That very elementary statement becomes obvious as you search the scriptures. You just keep coming up with these terms – Life, Light, and Glory. They are there in type and shadow in the Tabernacle; they are there in the beginning of the creation of the natural world.

A Testimony of Christ

Right in the beginning of Genesis, God is dividing the light, and that division is a permanent division. God NEVER blends light and darkness. And you see life in the creation, but as you move on, you see this in the Testimony, which is what the Old Covenant is. It is setting forth a Testimony of what God intended to do, and of course, now has done in Christ. The whole thing is a Testimony of Christ. That’s what it is: from Genesis to Malachi is a Testimony. It is given in promise, in prophecy, in type, in shadow. It is a Testimony of God’s intention, of God’s promise, of God’s plan and purpose to be fulfilled in THE ONE TO COME; to be fulfilled in Christ. In Him there is taught a better land, a better world, a better creation, better promises – all of that. My problem with religion today is that it continues to look for the better land, the better promises, the better place: when in fact, to do that you are looking beyond Christ, rather than finding those promises IN CHRIST. And realizing that the better land is NOT a geographical location, but a RELATIONSHIP wherein we live and move and have our being. This is all IN CHRIST. And all of the Testimony, though it is material – types and shadows, speaks of the immaterial; speaks of the incorruptible, speaks of the eternal.

Genesis 1:4 – And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

John 5:39 – Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.

Luke 24:27 – And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.

Ephesians 3:11 – According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Hebrews 8:6 – But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.

2 Corinthians 1:20 – For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.

Acts 17:28 – For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

2 Corinthians 4:18 – While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Temporal – Eternal

So the Old Covenant is temporal; the New Covenant is eternal. And I don’t think most Christians have grasped in their hearts the vast difference between those two things. Most Christians do not understand that we have – BY THE CROSS, by the death, burial and resurrection of Christ – come from a moral creation to an immortal creation; and that NOW IN CHRIST we have immortality. They don’t realize that. Most Christians are still looking for immortality. They are still looking for Eternity. But the point is that we have come from "time" to "Eternity"; we have come from "corruptible" to "incorruptible"; we have come from "mortal" to "immortality". That’s what a New Creation is all about. That’s what Salvation is all about. Now the problem that arises in the minds of most is addressed by Paul when he says "We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us." (2 Corinthians 4:7) You see, most people are yet focused upon the earthen vessel, and they are saying, "If that’s what Jesus looks like…" No, that’s not what Jesus looks like! But friends, if you had lived 2,000 years ago and were one of the disciples that walked with Jesus, I could stand there and tell you then with full authority, pointing to His flesh and blood being, and say that’s not what Jesus looks like.

2 Corinthians 5:17 – Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

1 Corinthians 15:53 – For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

Whom Say Ye That I Am?

That is the body given to Him to die; that is the body prepared of God for the Cross. That is NOT what Jesus looks like. Now I say that on the authority of the scripture, because that is exactly what He told Peter. Matthew 16:13, "When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?" Now that was only a prelude to what He wanted to ask them. "And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?" Now there’s the question. See, the question to you and I, and to the Church, His Body is: who do YOU say that I AM? And this brings us to what I am calling "The I AM Factor". Everything of our Salvation comes to be focused in "I AM" – The I AM Factor: finding everything of our Salvation in the reality of Who He is. That is NOT what He does, what He will do, or could do; but Who He is. Should not His Body know Who He is? Should not His Body, in all that it does, manifest and express Who He is? Should that not be the case? Well, certainly it should be.

Hebrews 2:9,14,16 – But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour: that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

Hebrews 10:5 – Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me.

Ephesians 1:22,23 – And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

An Expression of God

The types and shadows of Israel point explicitly to that. Under the Law their life was so structured to be in the temporal – in the type, the shadow, the figure; an expression of Who God was. They were to be the expression of a nature, a character, of a substance. The sacrifices expressed the nature, the character; the priesthood expressed the substance; and the Tabernacle expressed the orderliness of The Spirit. It’s all there: not so much to show WHAT God did, but THE WHO. And that’s the reason He addresses Himself to Israel not as a name relating to what He has done. No – I AM! He overwhelms Moses with the Truth of His own Person – I AM THAT I AM. And Moses becomes a speechless stutterer! And you see the same thing in Paul when he comes to a view of Christ. "That no flesh should glory in his presence." (1 Corinthians 1:29) God told Moses, "Tell them I AM sent you." And all of this was indicating in type and shadow with Israel what we have in reality come to in Christ. We haven’t come to a type of The I AM; we have come to HIM! We haven’t come to a shadow and a figure of something that is yet to come: we have come to that reality of which the Old Covenant was a type and a shadow and a figure.

1 Corinthians 2:1,3,4 – And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.

Colossians 2:16,17 – Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

Reality of the Words IN A PERSON

New Covenant is not given as a type or a shadow or a figure of something yet to come. It is given as a declaration, an understanding, a revealing of God of all things fulfilled in His Son. All things that were to come – NOW COME! The reality of those types and shadows and what they stood for are fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ. So as we look through the scriptures, we see those words, and we can find the definition of those terms in the Hebrew or Greek, but we can only find the REALITY of those words IN A PERSON. Only when Life finally comes to be defined and revealed in Christ do we understand what Life is; because "what" is transformed in our heart to "who". That’s not semantics. Our Salvation comes from a "what" to a "who" in our hearts! And everything that relates to Salvation comes from the category of "things" – Spiritual things, to the identity of The Person Himself. How can you really understand "Body of Christ" except in the understanding of whose Body it is? Most people say, ‘we are the Body of Christ’; but they understand that in some kind of a mystical way. No – we are the very real, the very literal, and yet the very Eternal Body of Jesus Christ. Yes – Christ does dwell in you! That makes you HIS body, but also dwelling in you as your Salvation, and that is involved in that.

John 14:23 – Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

Colossians 1:27 – To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Spiritual Growth

True Spiritual growth is you and I having all things of Spiritual reality summed up and revealed in the Person of Christ; coming to know Him as the fulness, as the summation. So we have Christians who are on "quests". They say we need ‘the joy of the Lord’; so let’s have sermons on joy, and pray for joy… and on and on. And CHRIST is the joy! You are either going to find it IN HIM, or it isn’t going to be found. Here is something in Acts 26, and here’s my point. Turn to Paul’s explanation on his encounter with Christ on the Damascus Road. You can read Luke’s account of this in chapter 9, but this is Paul’s account. He is before King Agrippa. Acts 26:15, "And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said I AM JESUS whom thou persecutest." I AM Jesus. This term "I AM" is actually best expressed as "Eternal". We saw that in Revelation 1:8, " I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty." Dispensationalists jump on that and take it out into the future, but the actual translation of that whole phrase is just this: I AM THE ETERNAL. But here’s something – when you and I, who are in Christ, face Him in THAT realization, in THAT name: when He reveals Himself in THAT name, what He is doing is bringing us into the Eternal presence where all things are – is – was – will be – ETERNAL – NOW. See, Eternity is NOT a long, long, long time. Eternity is no time; without time. So the only measure of Eternity is The One Who is Eternal – Christ Himself. Eternity can only be measured in the fulness of Him. So, get rid of your calendars and watches when you are talking about Eternity!

2 Peter 1:3 – According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue.

1 John 1:3,4 – That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy might be full.

2 Corinthians 5:1 – For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

2 Timothy 2:10 – Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

Hebrews 5:9 – And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him.

1 Peter 5:10 – But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

Eternity is NOW

We say, ‘when eternity comes’; but if eternity could come – it wouldn’t be eternity! That’s the whole point. But we have this access into this realization, this comprehension of Life by realizing that Life is NOT what He gives, but Who He is! And the Life we have received in Him, which He is – is Eternal. Therefore we, as to our Life, are Eternal. Eternity is NOW. What I am doing today is in Eternity. People say make everything you do count for Eternity. Listen – I’m in Eternity! I am speaking out from Eternity! I’m not trying to make something count for Eternity: I’m speaking out from Eternity, I’m speaking out from the only measure of Eternity there is – CHRIST!

1 Timothy 1:17 - Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

1 Timothy 6:16 – Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.

1 John 3:15 – Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

In Christ

And there’s not a handful of believers who understand this with relation to Salvation, or who even hear it. No, we’re too busy listening to ‘what are you going to do in eternity? When you die, where will you spend eternity?’ Well, I’m glad to tell you that when this flesh, this earth body ceases to function, I will spend Eternity right where I am now – IN CHRIST! See, this is the problem. We look at the earthen vessel of which Paul says is of no significance at all, so "that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us." (2 Corinthians 4:7) He brought this into an earthen vessel so that no flesh could possibly glory in His presence. But we focus on the earthen vessel! And if we’re not focusing upon it according to its race, we’re focusing upon it according to its gender. And for God’s sake, it’s a New Creation, it’s neither male nor female, it’s neither Jew nor Greek. But we focus on it, and we want to tell it how to dress and what to eat, as if that made any difference at all! Because these are bodies we have, but NOT The Body we are! What we are is the Body of Christ. That’s the Body that comes forth in the Resurrection.

1 John 5:11 – And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

Galatians 3:28 – There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 1:19,20,22,23 – And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand, in the heavenly places.

Bodies Serve The Body

These are bodies that we should submit as living sacrifices, thinking it’s only reasonable that we do so. Should not this finger serve this body? In the same way, this body is but a member of The Body that I am. Should not the body I have serve The Body I am? But The Body that I am is The Body that relates to this I AM. We are HIS Body. How can we understand whose Body we are except we see Him? Even in the natural, your body is identified by the face. That’s the reason why when somebody robs a bank they don’t cover up their feet. They put something on their head. The point is, you recognize a person when you look them in the face. And since a New Creation doesn’t have fingerprints, that is certainly the way you know that New Creation. And Paul says that in 2 Corinthians 3 and 4, but it is summed up in 2 Corinthians 4:6, " For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." That’s it. We have as a soul, as a living soul: we have a face to face encounter with Him, and He declares to us at that time – HIS NAME. And sooner or later He’s bringing us to the place where He can say, "I AM". And all you need to know is: I AM.

Romans 12:1 – I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

1 Corinthians 12:12,27 – For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.

A Greater Realization of God

Because there isn’t anything else to know! Everything else is less than that: every other knowledge is less than that! Look in God’s dealing with man: not to Adam did He declare Himself as I AM; not to Noah did He declare Himself as I AM; not to the Patriarchs – Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob did He declare Himself as I AM. He said that in Exodus 6:2,3, " And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the Lord: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them." No, but only to Moses. Why? Was it because Moses was greater than all of these? No, but it was because Moses stood for a greater realization of God than all these others. All of these others have their place in the Testimony of God that is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. They all have their place: it isn’t based on their greatness. They are simply great because they were used of God. They weren’t used of God because they were great. So Moses wasn’t any better, but Moses represented a greater comprehension. Why? Because Moses represented a corporate reality: Moses and Israel – Christ and His Church. There’s the connection.

That They Will Know Me

And so the Testimony of Salvation comes to a place where God is revealing in the Testimony the intention of His heart that will come to be fulfilled in His Son. "I will have a people who will know ME." And "who will come to be known as they are known"; "who will not have to ask here and ask here; but they will know – they will know ME." And so He shows that pattern by the way He reveals Himself under the Old Covenant. And yet it’s all in type and shadow, but nonetheless, the PATTERN is there. So Christ comes as the fulfillment of all of this. And yes, in Him all the names that God used throughout history to reveal Himself are all fulfilled. But finally it comes to " But who do you say that I am?"(Matthew 16:15) Peter made his answer, "And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven." And any Bible scholar will tell you that what He means by that is seeing me in flesh and blood did not show you that. My Father had to reveal that to you. But it was just that: it was a revealing TO Him; NOT IN Him; because The I AM did not yet dwell in him. And Peter yet had a problem, but that kept him.

Exodus 29:46 – And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, that brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them: I am the Lord their God.

Isaiah 49:26 – And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.

Jeremiah 16:21 – Therefore, behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know mine hand and my might; and they shall know that my name is The Lord.

1 Corinthians 13:12 – For now we see through a glass, darkly: but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

Hebrews 8:11 – And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

Matthew 26:69,70 – Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou also was with Jesus of Galilee. But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest.

A Perfect Body

But my point is the Church’s problem is with bodies. And they are looking for perfected bodies, when in fact we have come to a Perfect Body: The BODY OF CHRIST. When you start looking for perfection in bodies, you are going to be really disappointed. And I’m not telling you that you and I can’t be transformed. Yes, that transformation is real so that we become an expression of that nature, that character; but what I’m telling you is you can’t look at a person as a man, as a woman. Because that’s not The Body that we are. At best that’s the bodies we have, and at best we are learning to submit those bodies to The Body we are. And my stumbling, fumbling learning to submit this body to The Body we are does not take away from the reality of that Body at all! Not at all! So we are saying that our attention must be focused upon this greater comprehension of Christ than I can see in flesh and blood. But the fact of the matter is we have come from the corruptible to the incorruptible. Yes we have: we have come from the mortal to the immortal. So Paul says, having come from the mortal to the immortal; having come from the corruptible to the incorruptible; having come from the old to the new – NOW, put on THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. Put off the old man, put on the New Man. Put off the corruptible, put on the incorruptible.

Romans 8:29 – For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Romans 12:2 – And be not conformed to this world: but by ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Romans 6:17-19 – But God be thanked, that ye were servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

2 Corinthians 5:16 – Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.

Colossians 3:9,10 – Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image eof him that created him.

Put Off – Put On

What is he talking about? He’s talking about the nature, the character, the Spirit. Be clothed upon – not without; within. Put off the old – put on the New. Paul says in Ephesians 4:15, " But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ." That’s what it’s about: having come from the dead to the living; having come from the mortal to the immortal. Now, let us put on, let us be clothed upon, let us grow up in Him. Let us not continue to bear the image eof the old, but to bear the image of the New. This is because we have come from the one to the other. How did we come from the one to the other? Well, we come BY THE CROSS. We’ll look at that, but the fact is we have come from the one to the other. That’s the way we’ve come.

John 5:24 – Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

1 Corinthians 15:49 – And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.

I Will Appear

So here we are in Acts 26:15, " And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I AM Jesus whom thou persecutest." So immediately Jesus brought Paul right into The Eternal, The Eternal Present, The Eternity itself. " But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee." That’s the whole point, and that’s what is so misunderstood by so many dispensationalists. They are trying to make the appearing of Christ some singular event, and then another singular event, and then another one. The whole point is: He says I AM. And Jesus didn’t say I want to make you a minister of things…. No, of the things in which I appear unto thee. And so we must see all of the things of The Old Covenant summed up and revealed in Christ: not as things, but as a reality of Him. So again, how do we grow up? Paul said in Ephesians 4:15, " That you may grow up into him in all

things, which is the head, even Christ." How do you grow up in all things? It’s when those things – righteousness, holiness, sanctification: it is when the Spirit of God takes those THINGS and reveals CHRIST IN THEM. All of a sudden those "things" cease to be things, and become Christ. This is talking about you and I coming from Salvation as a "what", to "WHO." And this is what God did with Moses, and wanted to do with Israel. He wanted to bring them out of the world of things, into the world of a Person, because He said, "Israel is my son." (Exodus 4:22) God didn’t say Israel is three million people, Israel is this race or that race. No, Israel is My SON.

1 Corinthians 1:30 – But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.

Growing Up

God was looking to the time when all that is Israel is fulfilled in I AM THAT I AM: Israel is My Son. It was a type and a shadow, of Moses and Israel after the flesh of that which is come to be fulfilled in Christ. But the point is our growing up in Him is this growth, this progression of having Christ to appear in all things. And it’s always the same Jesus; it’s always Christ appearing, but He’s always appearing in another thing; therefore, enlarging our comprehension of Him. At one time Christ was this and that, and I’ve seen Him in that, and I’m secure in that. But no sooner am I secure in that, than He appears in something else, and then in something else. And at one time the Hew Jerusalem with the gates of pearl was a thing to me, and then all of a sudden, I wasn’t reading about the Lamb being the Light; but all of a sudden – Christ – Christ in me appeared in that city, and I saw that city as an expression of Him! See, He appeared in it, and then the question was over with me. Don’t talk to me about Who is the City of God – I’ll tell you!

Revelation 21:21-23 – And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.

Christ Must Appear

But my point is you can not truly know anything until Christ does appear in it; because until He does, you are going to define it by word, word association. And you may know what this word "life" means in Hebrew, and you may know what "zoe" means in Greek, but having defined these terms by language, we still do not understand these terms. Until Christ appears in it, it has no substance. What is it that the Old Covenant did not have? In all that it had, what did it NOT have? It had no substance. It could talk to you about life, but it could not give you life. It could talk to you about glory, but it could not bring you glory. It could talk to you about worship, but it could not bring you into TRUE worship. And we’ve got Churches today, especially "Spirit-filled Pentecostal Churches", and their whole worship is based on what they read in the Bible. ‘Let’s dance like David danced!’ Someone told me that, and I asked them when would that be: when he was carrying the Ark in the wrong way, or in the right way, because he was dancing both times! Now if you want to dance all over the block that’s fine with me, but that is NOT an expression of TRUE worship. You may get excited about Jesus – that’s fine. But worship is a divine nature working in us 24 hours a day! Praise is NOT something we do: it’s who we become.

Hebrews 10:1 – For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.

John 4:23 – But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

1 Chronicles 13:7,8 – and they carried the ark of God in a new cart out of the house of Abinadab: and Uzza and Ahio drave the cart. And David and all Israel played before God with all their might, and with singing, and with harps, and with psalteries, and with timbrels, and with cymbals, and with trumpets.

1 Chronicles 15:13,14,29 – For because ye did it not at the first, the Lord our God made a breach upon us, for that we sought him not after the due order. So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel.

1 Peter 2:9 – But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.

Christ Appearing As Substance

That doesn’t keep me from saying ‘thank you, Jesus’, but is that it? Well, if you say it fifteen times – real fast? No, it doesn’t make any difference how many times you say it. Praise is either something in which the Lord is appearing, and transforming your very soul, or it is just the outward works of men, albeit sincere men. So all of these scriptural terms are not understood, and will never be until their SUBSTANCE is seen. And Christ brings everything into substance. So the Old Covenant speaks of it: Christ is the reality. We find it in Him. We don’t find "how to do it" in Him: we find it IN HIM. We find HIM as the substance of it. The New Covenant doesn’t teach me to worship better. You know people today say we’ll teach you a better dance in the Lord – and they have seminars for that… at $500! But that’s not what it’s all about. The New Covenant is not a better way; it’s the ONLY way! And here’s the point: It is the I AM way; "I am way, I am truth, I am life." (John 14:6) The whole of the New Covenant is revealed in the face of Jesus Christ. And we are walking in a New Covenant only to the degree that we are walking in that relationship, in that understanding of Him.

Basis of New Covenant Relationship

The New Covenant is not about what He can do, will do, has done. All of that is established in the Old Covenant. Will the Lord not do these things? Certainly, but are these things the basis of New Covenant relationship? No, they must not be, because all of these things – miracles, signs, wonders – all of these things are found in the Old Covenant. They were all testifying of a NEW that was to come. Will He not do miracles? Yes, but that’s not the point. He is the everlasting God! But that’s not the relationship; that alone has no relationship bound up with it. He rolled back the Red Sea – you want a miracle? Three days after that all of Israel was wanting to go back to Egypt! There’s no RELATIONSHIP I that. Not then, and not now. All of that Old Covenant exhibition and types and shadows were pointing to what is called "better things to come". Well, what is the better thing to come?

Hebrews 2:4 – God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

Exodus 14:21 – And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.

Exodus 15:22,24 – So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out in the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water. And when they came to Marah, they cold not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah.

Life

John 10:10, " …I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." That is the single thing the Old Covenant was pointing to – He is the substance of Life, because that’s not only "what", but that’s "Who" God is. He Himself is Life, And so Jesus says in declaring His union with the Father, an oneness with the Father, " Even as the Father has power in Himself, so has He given power to the Son, that He may give Life to as many as come to Him." (John 17:2) What’s the connection there? LIFE! John 6:57, " As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me." What did Christ come declaring in the New Covenant? He declared the New Covenant; but what is the New Covenant. It’s not the words written on a page; it’s an understanding given of God about which all these words are written. But these words themselves are not New Covenant. It may be a new language, but it isn’t a New Covenant. The New Covenant is something revealed in the face of Jesus Christ. It is an understanding that takes us beyond the Old Covenant. So what is it? It’s a COVENANT OF LIFE!

Covenant of Life

Yes, a Covenant of Life! Salvation is not to clean us up and get us "ready for life". SALVATION IS LIFE! We have come to Life! So Jesus says, "I am come that they might have life, and that they have it more abundantly." And we have talked about Life and Abundant Life. They are not separate; in that Life is Christ and Christ is Life. Abundant Life then would simply be the greater measure of Christ working in us. We looked at that in Ephesians 3:16-21. Here is Abundant Life – that Christ may be revealed in you; that Christ may be formed in you; that you might be filled. That’s Abundant Life. And we’ve said that the idea of Abundant Life is not what you get: Abundant Life is what you share, what you give. Abundant Life is Life overflowing. But we have in our carnal teaching Christian world today that Christ is Life, and Abundant Life is the accumulation of things. Some will even say the acquisition of "spiritual" things, but they have no concept of what true spiritual things are. No, Abundant Life is experiencing the fulness of Christ. It’s growing up into Him in all things. Abundant Life is when Christ begins to appear in everything – in all things with regard to Spiritual Life; when we are looking for nothing but just the greater appearing, the greater comprehension of Him. Then that’s the Abundant Life, and that’s the Life that we share with each other; what we share to the world, what we share in the market and the job place. Abundant Life is the increase of Christ. And there is no end to that!

John 15:8 – Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

Galatians 5:22,23 – But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

Expectation of The Old Covenant

So what is the expectation of the Old Covenant? It’s a type, a shadow, a promise, a prophecy. What is the expectation? Those who study the Old Covenant and know the Hebraic mindset know that the expectation of the Old Covenant was bound up with the coming of Messiah: The Coming One. It wasn’t bound up with the coming of a city, or the coming of a kingdom, or the coming of all the other things we talk about. No, all of those were incorporated with Messiah. The Kingdom was Messiah’s rule. The City was Messiah’s dwelling place. That’s what we’ve come to! But the whole mindset of modern day Christianity is: where am I going to live forever. That’s not the point! It’s Messiah’s dwelling place! Where does He live forever? Well, He lives forever in the City prepared for Him of God! He lives forever in The Body given to Him of His Father. "For unto every seed God giveth a body of its own." (1 Corinthians 15:38) Certainly to this Seed that fell into the ground and died, God giveth a Body, and sets each member in that Body as it pleases Him – into HIS SON.

Malachi 3:1 – Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts.

Isaiah 9:6,7 – For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

Isaiah 60:1,2 – Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.

Ezekiel 48:35 – It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The Lord is there.

Hebrews 12:22 – But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels.

Isaiah 66:1,2 – Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?

John 12:24 – Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

1 Corinthians 12:18 – But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.

Not About You and I

The question is NOT about you and I. No, The City of God is not about you and I. It’s about The One Who lives in it and gives it substance by His Person; Who gives it light in His appearing, and Who gives it worth in its union with Him – which is glory. It’s about HIM, and that is the TRUE Old Covenant expectation. That’s the true Hebraic mindset – The4 One. Why is it then, that the Jews didn’t just run over themselves to accept Him? There are a lot of reasons, and one of them is that for 400 years they hadn’t had a prophet, and they had instituted the religion of Judaism, which didn’t exist under Moses or Joshua, or anyone else. But it became a religion of traditions loosely based upon Talmud teachings, which also was a statement of the teachings of Judaism. Jesus told them you are so far away, even from Moses, you don’t even know The Word! But by the traditions of your fathers, The Word of God has been made non-effective to you. "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life." (John 5:39,40) See, they had so far removed themselves from the scriptures; and we have to recognize that the religion of Christianity has come to the same place! They have so far removed themselves from the Testimony of the scripture: Old Covenant scripture and New Covenant fulfillment, and have totally replaced it. How many scripture searchers are there nowadays? ‘No, let’s go get so-and-so’s latest book on his life story.’ Have you read "Left Behind?" Oh Lord! Here’s an idea – have you read THE SCRIPTURE lately? Well, the Jews hadn’t! And they didn’t recognize the fulfillment when HE stood before them.

John 1:11 – He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

Acts 13:27 – For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him.

John 5:45,46 – Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me.

Matthew 15:6 – … Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.

The Door

The second reason is because He presented Himself as "THE DOOR." And that goes directly back to Exodus 12, which we will look at. And it has to do with the nature and the character of The Door, and it’s NOT a Door that you want to run and knock down and stampede through. That’s because of its nature: the nature of The Door, the character of The Door. It wasn’t the first time in their history they had refused it. In the first instance The Door was presented with the blood upon it, and they went in. Later on though, the true significance of that Door was presented to them; because that night they thought that Door was the way OUT; and always in God’s heart that Door

was a way IN. And when He presented to them the true significance of that Door standing on the banks of Jordan, they would NOT enter into rest. They would not; they refused. And in doing so, they refused The Door, because you see, The Door was not just the beginning of their journey; The Door was the whole of their journey. They never left The Door! The whole mind and intention of God was not to get them out of anywhere, but rather to get them in! That was God’s mindset; that was God’s idea of DELIVERANCE.

Exodus 12:5-7 – Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.

Exodus 15:17 – Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, in the place, O Lord, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established.

Numbers 14:1,2,22,23 – And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would God we had died in this wilderness!

Hebrews 3:18,19 – And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

Colossians 1:13 – Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son.

Entering In

It was never Israel’s idea, so consequently when they came right up to the very nature that was demanded for the entering in, they turned back, and all died! All died, and had to come back under a NEW administration of Joshua. And then there was an entering in, and then there was an appearing of the heavenly man. There was an appearing of that which was fulfilled in The Lord Jesus Christ. But The Door has a particular nature to it. And in John 10:9 He starts out before He says, "I am come that you might have life"; and He says, " I am The Door." He describes the three fold nature of that Door in John 14:6, " I am the way, the truth and the life." We’ll look at that, because that has to do with why Israel did not receive Him, and why so many believers today will not receive Him. Their whole concept is one of "getting out" – as these fictional books that are published depict. ‘You’re going to be left behind!’ Now, how can a person IN CHRIST be left anywhere? How can a person who lives in the heavenlies be left behind or left out? How can a person who has entered in – be left out? This is ignorance! This is NOT comprehending Salvation. This is what kept Israel out of Canaan, and the Hebrews writer calls it UNBELIEF.

Joshua 1:1,2 – Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying, Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.

Joshua 5:13,15 – And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? And the captain of the Lord’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.

Ephesians 2:6 – And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

Colossians 3:1 – If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.

Because of unbelief they didn’t enter in. And what are you entering into? REST! And Hebrews 4:10 says, " For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his." So we’ll look at that Door.

Life is Exclusively Christ

Now, how do we come from one humanity to an altogether New Creation? Some Bible scholars say "old humanity to new humanity", but I balk at that because to me the New Creation is NOT a humanity. A humanity still implies mortal, corruptible. Paul says in Galatians 2:20, " I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.." And in the New Creation side of the Cross, we have come from the old to the New. We’ve come from being dead in sin to having Christ as our Life. And it is important to understand that we haven’t just come from being dead in sin to being alive in Christ: because Paul says yes, "…but not I, CHRIST liveth in me." Most believers, let alone mankind, do not understand that Life is exclusively Christ. Life is not simply God’s answer for an Adamic creation. It is much more than that. It is a New Creation altogether. This all has to be said so that we can look at The Door. How totally different is this creation, which is living beings, living souls – this is how God created man. He breathed into man, and man became a living soul. And we see that the first man in the scriptures was never spiritual. The one thing Adam did not have, even before he sinned – was LIFE.

2 Corinthians 5:17 – Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Ephesians 2:1 – And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.

Romans 6:2,11 – God forbid. How shall we that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? Likewise, reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Colossians 3:4 – When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

1 Corinthians 15:46 – Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.

Life is God

Now that seems confusing: that Adam was a living soul but didn’t have Life. But that is so because Life is not something given of God: Life is God. The Life I’m talking about, the Life that the New Covenant presents is NOT given of God – it is God! It is God. Adam had life given of God: a created soul, a soul breathed of God, a soul with a capacity for Spiritual Life; but it did NOT have Spiritual Life. The Spirit of Life did not dwell in Adam. God did not live in Adam. Adam was not after God’s own seed, though it is clear that the whole creation story is a trumpeting testimony of a Seed that would come; a man that would come – not created out of the dirt, but a heavenly Man. And Paul picks up on that in 1 Corinthians 15:45 and 47, " And so it is written, the first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit…The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven." How these two are distinguished: not just different in some characteristics, but different in PERSON. Our Salvation has to do with our union with The Lord from heaven. The Lord from heaven has stepped in, and has filled the void!

The Gospel – Christ

The Lord from heaven. He hasn’t shined light: He is The Light! He hasn’t given Life: He lives! See, that isn’t preached, though it is the only Gospel that exists. Most believers think they are pretty much living beings, living souls with their sins forgiven. They have no conception of Christ in them. They have no conception of Life, so their idea of Life is not much different than a sinner’s idea of Life. They think Life is my surrounding environment, which is made up of people, places and things, and in this I find my life. And we think we find our life in people – first in my companion, children, etc. And then there’s lots of trouble when you start trying to find Life in somebody! Lots of trouble, and that’s the reason why with a lot of people their problems start when they "come to the Lord", because at least then their expectations are changed. Preaching will at least get you that far. But who do they look to – to find Life? Well, they look unto people, because they think that’s where they have their Life. And then they look unto people who are Christians, because in them we think we ought to find Life. No – you’re not going to find it in anybody! And you see, we build up all these expectations, but we are looking in the wrong place. We are just like the sinners, just like those who are dead in sin: but we’ve brought God into the picture.

John 8:12 – Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

John 11:9 – Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world.

John 14:19 – Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.

1 John 5:11,12 – And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

Adam is Without Life

We have brought God into the picture so that He can "bless our life", and rearrange our things, and help us to prioritize: determining God – family – country – down the line. And that’s "Life" to most. And the fact of the matter is that while that is human existence: Life is not that. This man, Adam, this creation is without Life – that’s its problem! It has no substance. Genesis 1:26,27, "And God said, Let us make man in our image…So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." The Hebrew words ‘image’ and ‘likeness’ there means a model, a facsimile, having NO substance. This is man – a model, a facsimile, but without substance, because the substance is CHRIST HIMSELF. The substance is The Life. And man fell short of that. Sin separated man from the presence of God, but before he sinned, he still did not have Life. He was intended for Life. Now, when man sinned, God didn’t scrap the program. No, He still intended man for Life. "What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet." (Psalms 8:4-6) What is man? I don’t know why you even considered him. You planned him for this and that, and then… he just fell on his face! But the Hebrews writer says, " But we see Jesus…" (Hebrews 2:9) That’s the whole thing. Adam fell, but the Father was always looking at the Son anyway. So Adam falls, Adam fell short: The Father is looking at The Son! "But we see Jesus…" Bring him to this, because until he comes to this, he has no substance.

Romans 3:23 – For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.

The Wisdom of God

So that’s the whole plan. Adam fell, Adam sinned. If Adam had not sinned, he would still have had to come to Life. Sin did not negate the plan, the purpose of God as it was determined in Christ before the foundation of the world. It didn’t do it at all. Satan figured that it would, but you see, his is NOT the wisdom of God. All Satan did was devise a plan for his own destruction. That’s the same way when the Jews crucified Christ: all they did was facilitate their own destruction. And Paul says that in 1 Corinthians 2:7,8, " But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." Jesus stood there and said, " Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." (John 2:19) And He’s telling them that when you crucify Me, you are destroying this Temple: you are destroying your own Temple." The TRUE Temple of God. They had no idea that when they crucified Him, that brought their own end. See, in the dealings of God, the Adamic man finally came to be summed up and represented in Israel under the Law. And that brings this whole mankind right up to The Cross. And with The Cross this whole mankind ceases, and God brings forth a NEW mankind. And He does that through The Life Giving Spirit.

Ephesians 3:11 – According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Ephesians 1:4 – According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.

Hebrews 2:14 – Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same: that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.

Acts 2:23 – Him, (Christ) being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.

Acts 13:27 – For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him.

2 Corinthians 5:14 – For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead.

New Man Has Life

What is really the difference between the old man and the New Man? The New Man has Life! And the Life is NOT "soul life", but it is The Spirit itself. But there is a necessity of coming from death unto Life: the old man had no Life, never was going to have Life. He separated himself from Life by sin, so now the sin question has to be dealt with as well. Adam was separated from God through the sin of disobedience and Christ comes – "…obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." (Philippians 2:8) providing Himself The Door – The Way, the Truth, the Life. And so here we are looking at His introduction. "I am the door." John 10:7-9, "Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you. I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture." Now the term "go in and out" is not to suggest that we go in and out of Christ. The term in the Greek means ‘out from which all motion proceeds.’ So it’s like we live out from Him: all motion now proceeds out from the sheepfold, all motion now proceeds out from Him. So, I AM THE DOOR.

Confronted Continually By The Door

Matthew 11:25-30, "At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight. All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke (that is The Cross) upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." He is saying the same things here that He is saying in John 10. Then John 14:3, " And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again (anew, or in newness of Spirit), and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." Verse 6, "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." So He broadens the dimensions of The Door by The I AM. I AM way, I AM truth, I AM life. I AM DOOR. He’s speaking of The Door because He’s talking about "coming". And here’s the point: in our text there is a door set before us. Will we enter in through this door with an unveiled heart? This question is set before you and I continually – again and again and again. We think we’ve been through The Door – now that’s it. No, no – He’s ALWAYS The Door! The Door has to do with you entering in, but He’s always The Door. Just like He’s always The Way, He’s always The Truth, He’s always The Life. He always IS. It’s you and I who are confronted with Him again and again, because we are changing. But He’s the same. He is Who He is, and He is bringing us to see that, and so you never get beyond The Door – He’s always The Door. The point I’m making is He is not a bunch of things; but rather, ALL THINGS are fulfilled IN HIM. And there’s a difference in that. It’s like The Body is not a bunch of different members; yet, all members are One Body. That’s a different understanding. I recognize there are many members but it’s the Body that is the issue – not many members. Because you can take some of those members away, and The Body remains. You can add members to The Body: it still remains One Body. It’s The Body that is unchangeable. It’s The Body that we are. The focus is not upon the many, but upon The One.

Hebrews 13:8 – Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

1 John 3:2 – Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Romans 12:5 – So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.

All Things In Christ

It’s the same way in Christ. The focus is not upon things, or even all things; but all things in Christ. And Christ appearing in all things; showing Himself to be the substance of all things. So it is to this Body that He uses the name "I AM". "I AM THAT I AM." What is it you need? I AM! What is it you desire? I AM! This Adamic man was created as a soul – of God, with this Son in full view. This Son was always of God known to be the substance of this man -–always. Given that fact, what is it other than that Son that this man needs to be perfect, to be complete, to be full? Nothing! And when we say there is: what we do is we take away from the fulness of Christ. We are assuming that Christianity needs something else to make it complete; that Salvation needs something else to make it complete. We think, ‘Well, I’m in Christ, but I need an Eternal home.’ It’s IN CHRIST! It’s just that our comprehension of Him is so small that we can’t see that. He hasn’t appeared in that relation yet, and most of the time He hasn’t appeared because we’re looking some place else for that relation! And that’s being compounded by preachers, but only a truly hungry heart will turn to see HIM.

Colossians 2:9,10 – For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.

2 Peter 1:3 – According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue.

THE Door

But at any rate, it is that Door that is set before us. And it is not A Door, or SOME Door. It is THE Door. He is the summation of all doors. Christ defines The Door as being Himself. The article "the" here that is used of Christ can be taken out and in the Hebrew language it would be taken out. When it is taken out, the true meaning is seen. This article distinguishes that Door from all other doors. He’s not just A Door: He is THE Door. But it is actually saying that there are no other doors – He Is The Door. There’s not a choice in this – He is The Door. Remove the article, and it should be read, "I AM Door." Immediately then the idea is there are not doors: there is DOOR. There are not two or three. No, I AM DOOR, I AM WAY, I AM TRUTH. It’s the same thing when you bring "The I AM Factor" into it. He is presenting Himself as the substance of these things, these terms. I AM. He is not simply identifying them with Himself: He is showing that these terms can only find their definition and substance IN HIM. He is saying if you remove Me, then these terms may as well be removed from your language, because they no longer exist. Without Me – there is No Door. Other than Me – there is no way. He says, No man cometh but by ME! You don’t even need to know the grammar, but in the verses He is saying there is simply no other Door, and there is simply no other Way. And He is saying The Way is not other than Him, but that He Himself is those things. He defines The Door as HIMSELF.

Our Way IN

And here’s another point: The Door is not just our way out. More importantly, it is our way IN. That’s what changes the whole configuration of this Door. This is the reason you don’t have hordes of people trying to break The Door down. If it was the way out of destruction simply, then everybody would be running for The Door. But the whole conception of Salvation is not just getting out: but getting IN, and there are few that really desire that.