THE RECOVERING OF CHRIST

PART VI

THE DISRUPTION OF THE WORLD

Bless the Lord. I want to deal with the disruption of the world in light of the recovering of Christ, in light of the New Creation, which we are in Christ Jesus.

No Mixture

Galatians 6 verse 14 - "But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world." Here is the thought, "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature" or New Creation (Gal 6:15). A New Creation here is always premised upon, always following the putting away of the old. Now, earlier, I was dealing with the thought that with God there is to be no mixture. We saw that depicted in the pattern of everything bringing forth after its own kind. God did not mix man with animals, and that had a purpose that is to be fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ where there is NO MIXTURE of any kind. Neither is there nor can there be in our hearts and in our souls.

Transforming the Soul

The heart, the soul, the very seat of the affections is down to the root of things. You can have your brain operated on, and you can have your natural heart organ operated on, but the "heart" that the soul represents can not be operated on. It can not be found. It is breathed of God. And where your treasure is, that is where your heart is also (Mtt 6:21). It is the renewing of the spirit of the MIND - this refers to the soul, the inner man. "…our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day" (2Cor 4:16). The inward man there refers to the soul whereas the "New Man" is always referring to Christ himself - that living Spirit, that second man, that Lord from heaven. There must be this singleness of heart to come about in us. The only way that can take place is that even as we have come from one creation into another through the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, so our hearts must make that transformation from one creation to another. Our souls must be transformed, renewed from one creation to another. This is what Paul is saying here - I WILL GLORY IN THE CROSS, whereby the world is crucified unto me, and I am crucified unto the world (Gal 6:14). For IN CHRIST the only thing that matters is a NEW CREATION. So, whenever the term and the truth of the New Creation are dealt with in the scriptures, we will always see that dealing in this pattern - in the light of the first creation being destroyed and taken out of the way and the second creation coming to remain and be established. "…He taketh away the first that he may establish the second" (Heb 10:9). We just dealt with the destroying of the works of the devil. Well, all of this brings us to the CROSS!

References:

Mtt 6:21

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Lk 6:45

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

Eph 4:23-24

And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Rom 12:2

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

God’s Instrument – The Cross

The cross is the instrument of God. The cross is not an instrument of the Roman Empire. The cross is an instrument of God because the cross is not merely two sticks of wood nailed together. The cross is much more than that. Paul calls the cross the WISDOM AND POWER OF GOD. Here, in this view that I just read (Gal 6:14), the pronoun referring to the cross is W-H-O-M - whom, showing that the cross there is integrally connected to the one who dies upon it. Is it not odd that the two thieves died upon crosses, but they did not die "the death of the cross"? Only Christ did that! Is that not something? Hundreds of thousands died on Roman crosses, but only one died the death of the cross. The cross is something - that death is something designed of God altogether. The death of the cross is THE DISRUPTION OF THE WORLD AND THE FOUNDATION OF THE NEW CREATION. It is true. The foundation that is laid in you both TAKES AWAY AND ESTABLISHES. The foundation that is laid in you, God revealing His Son in you, both destroys and brings forth. It takes away the first, and it is the foundation upon which the second is established.

References:

1Cor 1:18-24

For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

Mtt 27:44

The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.

Mrk 15:27

And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left.

Gal 6:14 (emphasis added)

But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

Phil 2:8

And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

Rev 13:8

And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Acts 8:27-35

And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

Heb 10:9

Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.

Take Away - Establish

It is so with Abraham as he began his journey. The Lord appeared, and Abraham built an altar to the Lord that appeared unto him. That altar represented a new land and a New Creation, but on the other side, it also represented a final, once-and-for-all leaving of all that God had told him to leave. When in his heart Abraham was found to have not really left all of the influences of that - went on down into Egypt, had Lot with him - where did the Lord bring him? He brought Abraham right back to that same place where he built that first altar. Abraham came back there and realized by the Spirit that that altar represented the death of one, and the life of another; the destruction of one, the beginning of another. It was at that time that God told Abraham, "…lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward… walk through the land…for I will give it to thee" (Gen 13:14, 17). God showed Abraham the whole of the New Creation. But you can not come to comprehend the newness of Christ while you are enslaved to the oldness of Adam.

References:

Gen 12:1, 7

Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: …And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.

Gen 13:1, 4

And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south. …Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the LORD.

Gen 13:14, 17-18

And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward. …Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee. Then Abram removed his tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the LORD.

Christ Gives the Cross Significance

There must be a working in our hearts that is associated with the cross of Christ. The cross is not just an object, but the cross indeed is unified with, associated with the very person of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is CHRIST who gives the cross its significance. It is not WHERE he died; it is WHO died. One time, I really upset some when I said that Jesus could have been nailed to a barn door, that it would have been just as real. The suggestion upset the traditions of some, because I went on to suggest wearing a barn door around the neck. Now do not get upset. I was trying to show how silly it is to exalt an emblem. I know that we all have crosses, and that is fine, but how silly it is to exalt an emblem when we have no inward comprehension of the cross - that it is the DEATH THAT WAS ACCOMPLISHED IN CHRIST. It was the death of this man Adam and the exaltation of this man Christ - New Creation. The cross is the disruption of one world and the foundation of another. To just make an emblem out of it is ludicrous.

References:

Rom 6:3

Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

Col 2:23

Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.

Rom 2:28-29

For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Make No Idols

It is also ludicrous to try to make those two sticks of where he died an emblem thinking we need a piece of the cross. People get it, put it in a bottle, place it on a shelf and worship it. Christians do that. Christians pay millions of dollars collectively each year to go and get a grain of sand from the Holy Land, put that in a bottle and set it on a shelf. Christians are really ignorant with regard to creating idols and things. "Walk where Jesus walked" is an advertisement slogan. But, HE IS IN YOU!!! That makes Him closer to you than He was to any of his disciples in the flesh. The cross has significance because of the PERSON. Christ gave the cross significance. The cross is a meaningful thing but not as an object, not as an emblem, not as two sticks of wood, not as a barn door - but as the wisdom and power and functioning of the Holy Spirit because of what took place there - Hallelujah!

References:

2Cor 13:5

Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

Col 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:

Jn 16:7

Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

Increase/Decrease

We have treated the cross like some kind of man-made circumcision. No, it is a spiritual reality that is as real now as it was 2,000 years ago. The cross is ever present. That is the wisdom and power of God whereby He destroyed the work of the devil and brought forth His own work in Christ. That cross is ever present. Every time you come to the face of Jesus, you are going to face the REALITY OF THE CROSS. It is impossible to have a relationship with Him and not at the same time have a relationship with the cross. Relationship with the cross is reckoning this man Adam dead and this man Christ alive. Relationship with the cross is having Adam, the old creation, taken away and having Christ, the New Creation established. It is impossible to have relationship with the Lord and not experience the decrease of one and the increase of the other. It is impossible for the cross is an eternal thing. The cross forever stands between the old man and the New Man, the old creation and the New Creation. THE CROSS is the wisdom and power of God. The death of the Lord Jesus Christ, His burial, His resurrection, all of that is summed up as one work of the cross - not just an emblem of a religion.

References:

2Cor 5:14-15

For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.

Rom 6:11

Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Jn 3:30

He must increase, but I must decrease.

Foundation = Disruption

The point is this: the foundation of this New Creation dates from the disruption of the old creation. From the foundation of the world, the foundation of another world has been laid. We will begin our study in John 17:24. The term "foundation" in this passage, is translated "disruption" (Concordant Literal New Testament). This term "foundation" does NOT mean a securing, but rather a CASTING DOWN. (Now the "foundation" which is laid in Zion is not translated "disruption"; the "foundation" upon which the man built the house, the "foundation" which is called the rock is not translated "disruption". The sure "foundation" of God is not translated "disruption". However, where "foundation" has to do with the world, it is translated "disruption".)

References:

Jn 17:24

Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation <2602> of the world.

Vine’s Expository Dictionary: FOUNDATION (TO LAY), FOUNDED <2602>

2. katabole ^2602^, lit., "a casting down," is used (a) of "conceiving seed," <Heb. 11:11>; (b) of "a foundation," as that which is laid down, or in the sense of founding; metaphorically, of "the foundation of the world"; in this respect two phrases are used, (1) "from the foundation of the world," <Matt. 25:34> (in the most authentic mss. in <13:35> there is no phrase representing "of the world"); <Luke 11:50; Heb. 4:3; 9:26; Rev. 13:8; 17:8>; (2) "before the foundation of the world," <John 17:24; Eph. 1:4; 1 Pet. 1:20>. The latter phrase looks back to the past eternity.#

(from Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words)

Strong’s Greek Lexicon: Jn 17:24, "foundation" <2602>

2602. katabolh katabole kat-ab-ol-ay’; from 2598; a deposition, i.e. founding; figuratively, conception:— conceive, foundation.

2598. kataballw kataballo kat-ab-al’-lo; from 2596 and 906; to throw down:— cast down, lay.

Lk 6:48

He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation <2310> on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded <2311> upon a rock.

God’s Abode

John 17 verse 24, " Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am…" We can better understand what is being spoken by looking back at John 14:2, "In my Father's house..." He is in His Father's house. Rather than being in a structure off somewhere, this house refers to "the Bosom of the Father" (Jn 1:18). "In my Father's house are many mansions..." (Jn 14:2). The term "mansions" in this verse is the same Greek word as "abode" in verse 23 of this same chapter. 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." In our Bibles, the word is translated "abode" in verse 23 and "mansion" in verse 2. We could say, "…we will make our mansion with him." It is our abode with him. Back under the state church and when much of the King James version was translated, they had great liberty with these words and they had some sort of an idea about the state church and all that it represented here. "In my Father's house are many... " abodes, many places of rest.

References:

Jn 1:18

No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

Strong’s Greek Lexicon: Jn 17:2, "mansion" and Jn 17:23, "abode", <3438>

3438. monh mone mon-ay’; from 3306; a staying, i.e. residence (the act or the place):— abode, mansion.

Consider for a minute: who would live in the Father’s house? Who lives in your house? YOU do! Who lives in the Father's house? HE does! Who are you? You are an ABODE FOR HIM TO DWELL IN. And what the Lord is really saying here is that His Father's house is made up of many resting places and that He wants US be part of that. Jesus is saying, in effect, "I would bring you into that, that you may be one of those with whom we, my Father and I, may make our abode. I am bringing you into that mansion, into that household, into that family, into that temple, into that tabernacle." According to Ephesians 2:20-22, "And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit." Hallelujah! This is Paul's comprehension of what the Lord was speaking of here in John 14.

John 14:3, "If I go prepare such a place for you... " (Where is he going to prepare this abode? He is going to the cross.) "…I will come again and receive you unto [someplace? – NO!] myself, that where I am, there ye may be also." "And whither I go, ye know, and the way ye know" (John 14:4). Thomas, not really hearing what was going on, said, "Lord how in the world can we know?" And Jesus replied, "I AM THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE: NO MAN COMETH TO THE FATHER [and He means that no man cometh into relationship with the Father, into the bosom of the Father, into the Spirit of the Father, into the habitation of the Father] BUT BY ME." I am going to bring you into a union with my Father and this narration goes on into verse 20, "At that day ye shall know that I am in My Father, ye in me, and I in you" (Jn 14:20), which is the answer to this statement, "…that where I am, there ye may be also" (Jn 14:3). He is going to bring us to become His body, to become His dwelling place, to become His habitation so that where He is, there we may be also – "…ye in me and I in you" (Jn 14:20) - Glory to God!

Reference:

Jn 14:5

Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?

Our World Comes to an End

Now, we are using this as a reference for verse 24 in the 17th chapter, "Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am..." What is the purpose for us being IN CHRIST? Paul understood this and sought to bring the believer right into the comprehension - you are IN CHRIST and He is IN YOU so that the church is not just an organization but a manifestation in the earth of a heavenly realization - OUR UNION WITH CHRIST. What is the purpose? "…that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world" (Jn 17:24). In most of our comprehension, we think this verse is referring to the time before God created the earth. But that does not even make sense. It ought to be a foregone conclusion that God loved a Son, who is in Him, before He created the earth. The Lord is trying to say something here, "…Thou lovedst me before the foundation [disruption] of the world" (Jn 17:24). He is talking about this New Creation in Christ and that which was settled before this old world was brought to an end.

I am going to show you that this world has come to an end. I do not mean the planet. The term "world" here is in your Bible the term "kosmos". It means the order of things, the beauty, and the word in my Greek definition talks about the order of things as it is established in humanity. It is not talking about the literal destruction of dirt and trees, but bringing one system, one order, one beauty to an end, and bringing forth another order, another system, another beauty, a new heaven, a new earth IN CHRIST JESUS. The word "kosmos" has nothing to do with the "terra firma" which is the dirt. It is speaking of order that ceased to give God Vision, ceased to give God Voice, and ceased to give God Glory. There are places in your Bible where the word "world" is translated "age". Those places are referring to a time of the Lord's dealing. That is a different subject. But here, where it is talking about the foundation of the world, it is talking about an order. I know it is deceiving the way it is printed, but I am telling you how it is in the original translation. I wish it were that way in the King James Version. In some versions it is properly translated from the Greek. But the term "foundation" means "a casting down."

References:

Strong’s Greek Lexicon: Jn 17:24, "world" <2889>

2889. kosmov kosmos kos’-mos; probably from the base of 2865; orderly arrangement, i.e. decoration; by implication, the world (in a wide or narrow sense, including its inhabitants, literally or figuratively [morally]):— adorning, world.

Online Bible Greek Lexicon: Jn 17:24, "world" <2889>

2889 kosmov kosmos kos’-mos

probably from the base of 2865; TDNT-3:868,459; n m

AV-world 186, adorning 1; 187

1) an apt and harmonious arrangement or constitution, order, government

2) ornament, decoration, adornment, i.e. the arrangement of the stars, ‘the heavenly hosts’, as the ornament of the heavens. #1Pe 3:3

3) the world, the universe

4) the circle of the earth, the earth

5) the inhabitants of the earth, men, the human family

6) the ungodly multitude; the whole mass of men alienated from God, and therefore hostile to the cause of Christ

7) world affairs, the aggregate of things earthly

7a) the whole circle of earthly goods, endowments riches, advantages, pleasures, etc, which although hollow and frail and fleeting, stir desire, seduce from God and are obstacles to the cause of Christ

8) any aggregate or general collection of particulars of any sort

8a) the Gentiles as contrasted to the Jews (#Ro 11:12 etc)

8b) of believers only, #John 1:29; 3:16; 3:17; 6:33; 12:47 #1Co 4:9; 2Co 5:19

For Synonyms see entry 5921

Vine’s Expository Dictionary: FOUNDATION (TO LAY), FOUNDED <2602>

(from Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words)

Online Bible Greek Lexicon: Jn 17:24, "Foundation" <2602>

2602 katabolh katabole kat-ab-ol-ay’ from 2598; TDNT-3:620,418; n f

AV-foundation 10, to conceive + 1519 1; 11

1) a throwing or laying down

1a) the injection or depositing of the virile semen in the womb

1b) of the seed of plants and animals

2) a founding (laying down a foundation)

Rev 21:1

And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

Casting Down at the Cross

At the cross, there was a casting down, a destroying, a bringing to nothingness of a corrupt order, corrupt system, corrupt world. God says, in effect, "I am finished with it. I will no longer try to find Myself there. I will not speak with it in this way or that way anymore." We must understand that God never picks up one thing until He is finished with the other. He will not mix things. There is no mixture. That is the reason the Lord says that if you put your hand to the plow and then look back, you are not fit for the kingdom of God, not fit for the kingdom of heaven. He did not say go back; He said look back. That word, "looketh back", is "the gaze of the soul. It is what Israel did when they got out of Egypt. They looked back, continued looking back, and finally died in the wilderness. Why? It was because they refused to look forward. They refused to go by faith.

References:

Jn 12:31

Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.

1Cor 2:6

Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:

Heb 1:2

hath at the end of these days spoken unto us in his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds;

Lk 9:62

And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

Gen 22:14 And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said [to] this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen.BEHOLD, BEHELD

Vine's Expository Dictionary: "Behold, Beheld"

2. blepo ^991^ is also used of (a) bodily and (b) mental vision, (a) "to perceive," e. g., <Matt. 13:13>; (b) "to take heed," e. g., <Mark 13:23,33>; it indicates greater vividness than horao, expressing a more intent, earnest contemplation; in <Luke 6:41>, of "beholding" the mote in a brother's eye; <Luke 24:12>, of "beholding" the linen clothes in the empty tomb; <Acts 1:9>, of the gaze of the disciples when the Lord ascended. The greater earnestness is sometimes brought out by the rendering "regardest," <Matt. 22:16>. See BEWARE, HEED, LIE, LOOK, PERCEIVE, REGARD, SEE, SIGHT.

(from Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words)

Online Bible Greek Lexicon: Lk 9:62, "looking" <991>

991 blepw blepo blep’-o

a primary word; TDNT-5:315,706; v

AV-see 90, take heed 12, behold 10, beware 4, look on 4, look 3, beware of 3, misc 9; 135

1) to see, discern, of the bodily eye

1a) with the bodily eye: to be possessed of sight, have the power of seeing

1b) perceive by the use of the eyes: to see, look descry

1c) to turn the eyes to anything: to look at, look upon, gaze at

1d) to perceive by the senses, to feel

1e) to discover by use, to know by experience

2) metaph. to see with the mind’s eye

2a) to have (the power of) understanding

2b) to discern mentally, observe, perceive, discover, understand

2c) to turn the thoughts or direct the mind to a thing, to consider, contemplate, to look at, to weigh carefully, examine

3) in a geographical sense of places, mountains, buildings, etc. turning towards any quarter, as it were, facing it

For Synonyms see entry 5822

Num 11:5

We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick:

Most believers live a life of running from the devil rather than walking in the Lord. Israel's whole time in the wilderness was one of running, looking back, running from Egypt. Why? It was because they refused to go into Canaan. That is the way it is with a lot of Christians. Their time is spent just trying to stay out of sin and running from the devil rather than possessing the fullness. So many Christians get up each day with the thought in their heart, "I hope I can get through the day and not sin" rather than, "Oh, that this day I may see His fullness." Oh, that we would walk in the fullness of Him with no thought for the other. That is the way it is intended to be.

Father Loved the Son

Notice that in John 17:24 Jesus does not just jump out here and say, "God loves me." What is this "For thou lovest me...?" What is that wrapped up with here in John 17:24? "…that they… be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation [disruption] of the world." What is Jesus saying? Paul got a hold of it in the letter to the Colossians. Colossians 1 verse 13 Paul said, "Who delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love." In the King James Version it says, "into the kingdom of his dear Son", but in the margin notes, as well as other versions, the literal Greek says, "the Son of His love." What the Lord is saying is that the Father has always had His heart set on this New Creation in Christ - this has always been the love of His heart. Jesus is saying, "…thou lovedst me…" - ME in this connection, Lord, ME involved with a people, ME dwelling in a people. Thou didst love - from before the disruption of the world. The disruption of the world did not change anything. Look at it from verse 23, "I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect IN ONE; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, AS THOU LOVED ME" (Jn 17:23, emphasis added). Jesus is saying, "You loved me before the disruption of the world. You have loved them as you have loved me. You loved them before the disruption of the world. Father, this is the thing that thou has loved and set your love upon - before the disruption of the world."

References:

Col 1:13 (KJV with margin notes)

Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: {his…: Gr. the Son of his love}

Col 1:13 (American Standard Version)

Who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love;

Col 1:13 (Young’s Literal Translation)

Who did rescue us out of the authority of the darkness, and did translate us into the reign of the Son of His love,

Cross Brings Disruption and Foundation

There are other verses that deal with this. "Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation [disruption] of the world" (Mtt 25:34). I told you that the disruption of the one is the foundation of the other. Oh Hallelujah! To the old man, the cross speaks nothing but death, but to the New Man, Paul says, essentially, "I will glory in the cross." "What does the cross mean to you, Paul?" "It means neither circumcision nor uncircumcision; it means A NEW CREATION IN CHRIST JESUS. That is what the cross means to me. It means that I am crucified to the one, and it is crucified to me. It means the one is passed out; it means only a New Creation. That is what it means to me."

References:

Gal 6:14

But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

Gal 6:15

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.

The cross brings great disruption right down to the very foundation of it, to the very core of it, which is this man, Adam, and it brings him to the cross. Hallelujah to God! The order, the beauty is all in the word 'kosmos' - associated with a man. It brings the order of man, the beauty of man, the system of man, as far as God's intention is concerned, TO NOTHING! And He brings forth a new beauty, a new order, a new system of things in Christ Jesus. No wonder Paul says, "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth…" (Col 3:1). Set your heart there "for ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God" (Col 3:3). Oh, Hallelujah! We must come to that view of Him - it is a disrupting view. Oh, it will disrupt YOU right down to the core of your soul. But in disrupting the one, it lays the foundation for the other. BLESSED BE THE LAMB OF THE LIVING GOD!

"…Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:" (Mtt 25:34). Matthew 13:35, "That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world." Yes, it is the disruption of the world. That is the reason very few understood the words of the Lord Jesus. He spoke in terms as though things that were going to take place had already taken place. He spoke of a resurrection and said "I AM THAT RESURRECTION". He spoke of life. He spoke of things as though they had already taken place, so He spoke of them in parables and then told his disciples they would understand this when the Spirit of Truth comes. What will they understand? They will understand things that had been kept secret from the disruption of the world. Hallelujah! - the disruption of the world, things that only the Holy Spirit could reveal. Let us look at Paul's version of that in I Corinthians 2:6-7, "Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory." There is the disruption of the world. "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him, But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God" (1Cor 2:9-10).

References:

Jn 11:25

Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

Jn 16:12-13

Mtt 13:13

Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

Lk 8:10

And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.

Things Hidden - Revealed

Things hidden from the disruption of the world can only be revealed by the Holy Spirit because only the Holy Spirit knows the deep things. He "…searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God" (1Cor 2:9). Hallelujah! But these things have been spoken of in type, in shadow, in principles and then by the Lord himself in parables. He spoke of a kingdom as though it had already come. He spoke in parables, fulfilling the mouth of the prophet. He spoke in parables things that are kept secret from the disruption of the world. Unto whom are all things revealed? They are revealed to those who are in Christ Jesus! You are IN HIM from the disruption of the world! Is it before the cross? No, No - you are in Him from the disruption of the world. The foundation of this creation (new creature in Christ) is laid from the disruption of the world. "…Thou lovedst me from before the foundation [disruption] of the world" (Jn 17:24). But this whole New Creation is from the disruption of the world. Oh yes, it was known of God, purposed of God, but it was not brought forth. God does not bring forth one world until he destroys the other. I am using the term "world" here. However, most people when they refer to the destroying of the world are really looking for this ground out here to disappear out from under your feet. The world that was destroyed, was destroyed by the cross through the death of Christ. It was the Old Covenant world, this is the world that is destroyed in every heart that looks to the cross.

References:

1Cor 2:12

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

Eph 1:11

In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

Eph 3:11

According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:

Crucified to the World

You see, we are not part of that. We are in the midst of it, but it is not bothersome to those who have come by way of the cross. That world is crucified unto me - that is not where I find my life, my peace, nor my rest. There are a lot of Spirit-filled Christians still trying to find their peace and rest. This has not yet been disrupted in their hearts and a new realization founded of being IN CHRIST. Because their concept of that is dying and going to heaven one day in the future, they have no peace now. Every time a crisis takes place in the world, a crisis on earth, I yearn for the ministry of Christ to be affected there, but it does not shake my peace. I am a part of a New Creation. This is the reason that in the boat the Lord was the only one who was not excited. He was in the same boat, and He was in the same storm, but He was there comprehending a New Creation. That is a prime example of where one creation manifested itself over another. He stood up. He could not do much with his believers who were faithless, so He just looked at the elements and said, "…be still…" (Mrk 4:39).

References:

Jn 16:33

These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Jn 17:15-16

I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

Mrk 4:37-41

And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

His Peace In You

We need to be able to see something there. We as a New Creation need to be able to walk in the midst of chaos and confusion, and say, "just be still". But too often we get caught up in it. We get a bucket and are going to bail it out. My God - THE PEACE THEY ARE LOOKING FOR IS IN YOU!!! Do not get a bucket like the rest of them. Do not try to save the ship. Bring peace into the situation; manifest a New Creation. Manifest a new reality. That thing that they are trying to save has already come to nothing. We see that in the realization of the cross. It is already pronounced dead. It is already summed up in the cross and done away. If it is ever taken out of our hearts, we will throw our buckets away and begin to bring the true peace of God into the situation because there is no other answer. Lord, help us to see what the Spirit of God is trying to get us to see.

References:

Jn 14:27

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

2Cor 2:14

Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.

In Christ Now

We want it all over in what our songbooks call "Glory Land". It certainly is not written that way in the Bible. We are in Christ NOW. Bring right NOW the reality of a New Creation to bear upon an old one. Our self-centered religion sees salvation as nothing but an escape for me with nothing to do with ministering Christ. We just want out of here. That was very much in my heart the first time I went to India. All I wanted to do was get out of there. I had been on a long trip, several months by myself, and I was finally in the jungles of South India in a small concrete block room about 5 feet by 8 or 10 feet. There was a little cot with a straw mat and no electricity or running water. I was there to build a Bible school and establish a church. It was hot, and I was not used to eating rice off a coconut leaf. The whole thing was just hot and miserable. The humidity was incredible. It rained every fifteen minutes. There was no lightning or thunder. You just heard it coming down through the canopy of the jungles of South India. Everything I had including my ties all grew white fuzzy mildew. I had to shave it with a straight razor. I was there for one month. My crisis occurred in the first three days, and all I wanted to do was get out of there. I just wanted God to get me out of there. I despised Old Brother Joe - T.J. Joseph. I just wanted to hit him in the face for me being there. I had one little window in that room with wooden shutters. If you opened it up, there would be little kids and people sticking their faces in to look at you. If you shut it, you would smother. There was no light, so you had to light a candle, which just heated the whole room up. There was no place to use the bathroom and no toilets that flushed. There was a hole in the ground behind a tree because that is what Indians use. Even their hotels have porcelain holes in the floor.

This was preceded by already being half way around the world two months out. And I just thought, "God, I do not want any of this. I just want to go home. Send a big helicopter for me. Just send something and get me, because I am ready to leave". See, that is the way we are. We just want out. I do not care what happens to the rest of them. Just get me out of it. That sums up our whole theology. We have no concept of having been brought into anything, growing up in Him, and becoming a manifestation of Him. Therefore we have this "get away from it all" mentality. I had at least enough sense to go into that room, shut the doors and shutters, and tell T.J. that I had to get before God and not to bother me for anything. And I laid in there and I wrestled with the Lord. I lighted that little old stubby candle so I could see the scripture, but I was bawling and crying and sweating - just wrestling.

The Lord Appearing

And I remember, the Lord appearing. I remember saying, "God, You get me out of here. I do not care how you do it. I want out of this place. I - want - out - of - here. You get me out of here." Now I was talking to the Lord just like that, and I never felt so forsaken in all of my life. "I can not take it any more; I want out." I just exhausted myself. I just lay there - tears and mucus - stuck there - I just lay there, mad, and then finally just laying there, period. Then, the Spirit of the Lord began to stir. The Lord spoke to me and instead of saying "Yes, you poor thing. You have suffered. I am going to get you out; you can go tomorrow." That was not what He said. The Lord said, "Where are you?" And I wanted to say, "Now You are the God of all creation and You know good and well that I am stuck in the armpit of the world here. You know where I am." That is what you want to say, and until this whole creation has been disrupted and no longer exists to you, that is what you will say. You will say, "You know the situation I am in very well. You probably got me here. Furthermore, I am here on Your account. Now what are You going to do about that?" That had been my attitude.

Here I am at that time Missions Director of an organization founded upon what we call the revelation of Jesus Christ going throughout the world, and I am telling you the thing has to work in you. That thought did come to my mind, but the Spirit of God was in no mood to fool around with me now. He had listened to me long enough. And immediately the simplicity of John 14 and John 17 flooded my soul. THE LORD APPEARED in understanding of Himself, in the Spirit of Himself, and I had to confess, "OH, GOD, I AM IN YOU, LORD JESUS" like a little old whipped child. And I remember the Spirit of the Lord was still in no mood to let up. He said, "Well, would you that I remove you from this place? That was your prayer. Shall I remove you from this place?" And I said "Oh, no - Oh, God - No. Oh, God." I realized that I was in India not to gripe about the conditions but to manifest a new heaven and a new earth. I was there representing the kingdom of God - not a kingdom I was going to when I died, but one I had been translated into when I was born again.

References:

Col 1:9-13

For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

Lk 11:2

And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.

Manifesting the Reality

It became experientially real to me at that time. I could not wait for daylight and to get out of that tiny room and begin loving those people. It was in India that I developed the diagrams I use. I started drawing them in the sand and pointing to them for a group of young people who had gathered there to build the Bible school. Using the diagrams to express the reality coming forth - one world into another - I AM IN CHRIST! AND SO ARE YOU! You are not an Indian. You are a New Creation. Hallelujah! What a change took place. It was just as hot as it was the day before but it no longer made any difference. You sweat just the same but I am not going to try to get God to change something that is not going to change or serve me up a platter of beef steak when the only thing there to eat is rice. That is when you find out that man does not live by bread alone. When I left that place, I bawled and cried because it was time to go on to yet another place, but I did not want to leave. It was not because I had learned to love the jungles. I did not like the jungles any better when I left than when I got there. It was simply that it no longer made any difference.

References:

Mtt 4:4

But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Phil 4:11-13

Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, [therewith] to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Foundation Is Christ

This old world must be disrupted in you. If it is not disrupted in you then it still has a foundation in you. The foundation of this old creation is MAN. The foundation of this New Creation is a New Man - CHRIST HIMSELF. Christ is the foundation. The cross disrupts the one and lays the other. The cross takes away the one and establishes the other. But you will never know the cross by a teaching. You will only know the cross in the appearing of Christ because the cross is only given significance by the One who both died there and was lifted up there. Otherwise it will just be a teaching for you that you will try to quote to yourself. That does not work in a crisis. Crisis is no time to start quoting scripture. The crisis is the time when what is there is going to produce. Hallelujah!

References:

Col 3:3-4

For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, [who is] our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

Mtt 12:34b

"… for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

In Christ

"Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, to the faithful in Christ Jesus. Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual [fulness] blessings in heavenly places, IN Christ" (Eph 1:1-3) He is speaking to us in that relationship - IN CHRIST. And now that He has brought us in Christ where there is all spiritual blessings, he continues, "According as he hath chosen us, in Christ before the foundation [disruption] of the world…" (Eph 1:4). Hallelujah to God! It has nothing to do with the creation of the earth - before the disruption of the world. It is wonderful to me to know that God did not destroy one thing before He already knew another. See, "chosen us in Christ, before..." See, that is the wisdom of God that Satan knew nothing about or he would not have crucified the Lord of Glory. Satan did not know anything about that one. He heard the promise - the seed shall bruise your head, so he just set about trying to destroy the seed, not comprehending when that very seed came to the cross, hanging there, refusing to come down, the thing that was destroyed was the very work of the devil. The thing that was exalted up out of the earth was the work of God - the one triumphing over the other. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God!

References:

1Cor 2:8

Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known [it], they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

Gen 3:15

And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

Mtt 2:16

Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.

Heb 2:14-15

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; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Hidden Wisdom – Made Known

Paul is speaking of "us" in this passage as a creation, as an inclusive creation in Christ Jesus. God knew this creation, knew us and chose us before. This is exactly what we began saying. This whole thing always was; this first creation was where God set the pattern speaking of the new. But Paul says all of that was hidden. It was a hidden wisdom. It is not known and will not be known because it is hidden from the disruption. The Lord says that only after the disruption of the world are these things revealed.

References:

Eph 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:

Mtt 13:34-35

All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.

Jn 16:12-13

I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, [that] shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

The disruption of the "world" in 1 Peter 1:20 is not referring to the foundation of the earth or the foundation relating to the house of God but of the world "kosmos". It says, "But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation [disruption] of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you," (1Ptr 1:19-20). Hallelujah to God! It was determined what He would do before the disruption of the world, but it was only in the last times, the last days, here, this day, that HE is made manifest.

The point is just this: everything of this new, and the reality of it, the establishing of it, dates from the disruption of the old. God destroyed one and brought forth another. The foundation of one is the disruption of the other. Christ brings one to nothingness and the other to fullness - IN HIMSELF!

The Lord Is Present

It is in the learning of Him and in His appearing in His New Creation that the reality of this disruption, the reality of the cross is brought to bear upon us. It is a little disrupting to realize there are no Jews and no Gentiles here. It is a little disrupting, but in view of Christ, it is most glorious because the end of that is not simply that the one is absent. The end of that is that the LORD IS PRESENT. Hallelujah! He does not disrupt one without a plan and a purpose. That is what I want you to see. The plan and purpose has always been this New Creation before the foundation, from the foundation, always that way - before the disruption, from the disruption. He has always done away with one with the other in view and as such bringing the other into view. So, we are that creation, that creation that is set for the appearing of the Lord. I want to deal with the appearing of the Lord. Everything that is lost in this first creation by this first man is brought back into this second creation in this second man. But the second man is greater than the first man, and the second creation is made, by Him, greater than the first creation. He is THE LORD OF GLORY! Hallelujah! It is in the New Creation that He does appear. This whole creation is for His appearing - where He establishes His throne, His kingdom, His rule, and His reign. It is the appearing of the Lord of Glory.

References:

2Cor 5:8

We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.

Rev 21:1-3

And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

1Jn 4:4

Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

Jn 18:36

Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.

The result of that appearing will be then the appearing of the Glory of the Lord. This creation is brought into VISION, VOICE AND GLORY fulfilling the very pleasure and purpose that God intended before the disruption of this world and set in operation from the disruption of this world - In Christ Jesus our Lord.

Father, we thank you for your Spirit. We thank you for hearts that are set upon learning you. My Lord God, if we are your very body, should we not be filled with the knowledge of thee? And should not our very spiritual senses be exercised in the learning of Thee? So just by your Spirit, Lord, deal with us, oh, Hallelujah, that we may finally come to be a creation manifesting the creator - in every situation and in all of the earth. We just thank you for it. In Jesus' precious name.

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