Text: Ephesians (Shows Christ as Our ALL IN ALL)
· Ephesians 1:3: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: vs 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: vs 5: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will: Vs 9: Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: vs 10: That in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth, even in him. Vs 11: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who works all things after the counsel of his own will.
Purpose in verse 9 is the Greek word
protith’emai, meaning to place
before, (for oneself) to exhibit (put on display): (to
oneself) to propose (determine [control; decide;
regulate]): set forth.
Purpose in verse 11,
is the root word proth’esis, which
is a setting forth, in relation to a
proposal (intention); specifically, the showbread [or
face bread] (in the Temple) as exposed (uncovered;
revealed) before God.
God told Moses in the construction of the tabernacle, to make a table of shittim’ wood (incorruptible arcacia wood) [typifying Jesus Christ], and overlay it with pure gold (the divine nature of God Himself), and this was where he was to put the showbread (face bread) [twelve loaves] [typifying the sons of God], that had to be before God continually (Exodus 25:23-30).
These definitions of “purpose” here, show that in relation to
the “showbread” (face
bread), God had already ordained
or purposed in Himself to have sons (male/female), to
not just be before His face,
but that He would eventually expose (uncover;
reveal) Himself in their face! As he
is, so are we, in this world (1st John 4:17).
Therefore, it is expedient (advantageous; beneficial; in one's own interest) that we recognize our purpose and take our position as sons of God!!
Position, is a place where someone or something is located or has been
put.
Recognize, is to be aware of as known before:
to know by some detail, as of appearance: to perceive. God wants us to recognize, know, and understand that before the foundation of the
world, He had already purposed (had motives;
grounds) for us to be here, and had a place prepared for us within Himself, that
He would be glorified through us being positioned in Christ. Especially we as females, we better know our purpose and place in God!
For the most part “women” throughout scripture are a subordinate
figure, especially in the Old Testament.
To some extent a woman was her husband’s property (Genesis 12:18; Exodus
20:17; 21:3), and owed him absolute fidelity, because he was recognized as lord and master. Through her diligence and love she created an
honorable position for herself within family and community circles.
Any notability women attained was
obtained by force of character such as Deborah
(a judge of Israel) (Judges 4:4); Esther
who delivered the Jews from extinction.
Throughout history, man, through
pride, ignorance or moral misrepresentation has treated women as being greatly inferior, and has enslaved and
degraded her accordingly.
In some countries today, women have no rights whatsoever in
relation to equality with men. But God through Jesus Christ has brought “full emancipation” (liberation; freedom; release; deliverance)
to womanhood, and has given us equality
with man in Him:
·
Galatians 3:28: There is neither Jew nor Greek
(Gentile), there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
This is the importance of us recognizing our purpose and taking our position in the body of Christ!
There’s proof of who we are
especially as women and there’s a sacred record of the “female’s special creation”.
Someone may say, “Oh yes, her special creation was when God took the rib
from the man and made woman”. Well if that’s all you know, then that’s why many
women have been grilled and eaten alive through measures of society and especially
with ecclesiastical do’s and don’ts.
Females weren’t put here by God just to
be incubators (barefoot and pregnant); bed warmers; chefs; maids; insubordinates; etc.
Let’s take a look at the record or
the plan
God created for both male and the female.
· Genesis 1:26: And God said, "Let us make man (not just the male species only) in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion (radah’) [to tread down; subjugate; prevail against; reign; (bear, make to) rule (-r; over); take] over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creep upon the earth. Vs 27: So God created man [male/female] in his own image, in the image of God created he him: male and female created he them: Vs 28: And God blessed them, and God said unto them, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth”.
Even then the “female” was classified (categorized)
as “ADAM”, in equality!
·
Genesis 5:1: This is the book of the
generations of Adam, in the day that God created man, in the likeness of God
made he him: (vs 2): Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and
called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
Adam wasn’t just one man. Adam was a group of people composed of both “male and female”. This was a special group of people that God called
Adam that He had taken out
of a people that would show His blood in
their face and manifest Him in flesh form in the earth. They were operating in the wisdom, knowledge and understanding of
God demonstrating His dominion, authority
and power in the earth!
That’s why the question was asked in Psalm
8, which speaks of God’s glory and man’s honor.
·
Psalm 8:3: When I consider thy heavens, the
work of thy fingers (God's power), the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained: vs 4: What is man that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou visit him?
The first word man in this verse is the Hebrew root word enowsh’, meaning a mortal; a man (singly or collect):
people; person. Then it goes to
another root word anash’, meaning to be frail, feeble or melancholy:
desperate (ly wicked); incurable; sick; woeful; (mankind).
Mindful in this verse is the root word zakar’, meaning to mark (so as to be recognized); to
remember; to (make) mention (of); be mindful; recount; record (er); make to be
remembered; bring (call, come, keep, put) to (in) remembrance; think on; well.
God said through the Prophet, Jeremiah
29:11, “I know the thoughts that I think
toward you, said the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give
you an expected end".
Peace, being shalowm’,
meaning for one to be safe, well,
happy, friendly, healthy, prosperous, favored, and restful: to be safe
(in mind, body, or estate): to be
(make) complete; perfect; prospered; restored; rewarded.
God also said through the Prophet, Isaiah 26:3: I will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on me, because
he trusts in me. In 3rd John 2,
it is written, I wish above all
things that thou may prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospers.
Evil in Jeremiah 29:11, is from the root word Ra’ (rah), meaning bad, wicked, mischievous, hurtful, trouble, affliction, adversity, calamity, distress, or grief. These aren't the thoughts God has toward His people. Our Heavenly Father, only wants that which is good, safe, and prosperous for His children (sons) [male/female].
- Psalm
91:1: He that dwells in the secret
place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Vs 2: I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God:
in Him will I trust.
Why “an expected end”? Expected is
the root word tiqvah’,
defined as a cord (as an
attachment); a (measuring) cord (as if for binding); line. End is from the root word achariyth’, meaning,
future; outcome; reward.
Even after the creation fell, God had a cord or a measuring line attached to it, knowing that He (God) still had a future, an outcome, that would bring the creation or mankind back to Himself, with rewards included for mankind (male/female), inclusive of eternal life, divine health, perfect peace, dominion, authority, and power!! These are good thoughts and not evil!
·
2nd Corinthians 5:19: To wit (know), that God was in
Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing (holding
against) their trespasses unto them:
and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
You can find some of those rewards or recompenses [amends to someone
for loss or harm suffered], in Ephesians 1:3: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath
(already) blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in
Christ.
·
Vs 4-11: He has chosen us in him
before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without
blame before him in love;
we’re predestinated to be sons; we’re accepted in Him; we’re redeemed by His blood; forgiven
of sins; He’s made known to us
the mystery of His will, and we
have obtained an eternal inheritance, which is, for us to live and not die, and declare the works of the Lord
(Psalm 118:17).
Back to Psalm 8: The Psalmist said to
God: vs 4: “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the
stars, which thou hast ordained: vs
4: What is man that thou art mindful
of him”?
This word man mentioned here in the first part of Psalm 8:4, is defined a
little different from the word man in
the last part of this verse. The word
“man” in the first part of this verse as I mentioned earlier is enowsh’, meaning, a mortal; a man (singly or collect): people; person. It goes to another definition which is anash’, meaning to be frail, feeble or melancholy:
desperate (ly wicked); incurable; sick; woeful; (mankind). The word “man” in the second part of this verse is defined the same as the “man” in Genesis 1:26, which is Adam’ (aw-dam’), meaning, to show blood in the face; be dyed red;
ruddy.
Why “red”? Because God is ready to “dye” mankind with His own innocent (not guilty) blood that has eternal life in it. In Matthew 27:3-10 [Judas betrays Jesus):
- Vs 3: Judas said, "I have sinned, in that , I have betrayed the innocent (ath'o-os) [not guilty / Alpha] blood".
- Leviticus17:11: The life of the flesh is in the blood!
- John 6:54a: Whoso eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, hath eternal life.
Red is one of the colors in the light spectrum of God’s creation, and one of
the seven Spirits of God mentioned in Revelation 4:5, and it connotes the color
of “understanding”. Letting us know that mankind must come into the understanding that there is no life
outside of Jesus Christ!
·
John 14:6: I am the way, the truth, and the
life!
So the question was
asked, “What
is man (this
mortal) that thou art mindful (remember;
think) of him? Well, the
answer is found in the question. Because
when you define the word “mindful” in Psalm 8:4 and
the word “male” in Genesis 1:27, So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he
him: male and female created he them, they are from the
same root word. This root word is zakar’, which means to mark (so as to be recognized); to remember; to (make) mention (of);
be mindful; recount; record (er); make to be remembered; bring (call, come,
keep, put) to (in) remembrance; think on; well.
God is going to “hold (keep) man in His own remembrance”, because He (God) created and made “the male and the female” in His own image (having God’s mind) and after His likeness (demonstrating God’s power in the earth)!
Man (male/female) was and is the acme or the apex (highest point) of God’s creation!
The other days in creation God said “Let there
be”, and He said it was “good”! But the day man (awdawm’) [male/female] was injected into the mix, God said, “It was very good” (Genesis 1:31).
Female, in Hebrew, is neqebah’, meaning, the female (from the sexual form); woman, or the man with the "womb".
·
Matthew 19:4: And Jesus answered and said unto them
(the Pharisees), “Have you not read, that he that made them at the beginning, made
them male and female”?
“Female” in the Greek is the’le, meaning a breast; to suckle; give suck. In the natural, it’s the “female” that gives suck to the babies. This is a type of the church that feeds the sons (male/female) of God the sincere milk of the Word (1st Peter 2:2), “till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ”, in the earth, that Paul spoke of in Ephesians 4:13.
This is what God wants us to recognize (identify; know again;
acknowledge the existence of), the validity, or legality of who God is in
us and who we are in Him. God wants us to know that we (male/female) were with Him in the beginning and had ruling
authority in and with Him then:
·
St. John 1:1: In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God: vs 2: The same (you and I) was in the beginning with (united; accompanying] God.
That’s why He said: Genesis 1:26: “Let US make man”.
We His chosen are marked (fingerprinted; or branded) by the Holy Ghost and it can’t
be changed!
I’m reminded of how farmers brand their live-stock. A brand is a mark made by burning with a hot iron to attest manufacture or
quality; or to designate ownership. Farmers brand their cattle, denoting
ownership. We are also branded or sealed by God's Spirit, denoting ownership!
·
Ephesians 1:13: In whom you also trusted, after
that you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also, after that you believed, you
were sealed (sphragi’zo) [to stamp (with
a signet or private mark) for security or preservation); to keep secret;
to attest; (set a; set to) seal (up)] with that Holy Spirit of
promise.
Therefore “male & female” must recognize
their purpose (intention; determination; aim; goal) in the earth and
take their position!!
Again in Psalm 8:4 [the question is asked]: What is man (enowshe)
that thou art mindful of him? And
the son of man (adam’) that thou visits him?
First of all, as a “son”, he’s a builder of the family name. It’s the male that carries the seed. Keep in mind, in Christ Jesus, there is neither "male nor female" (Galatians 3:28). The female is a male in Spirit when she's ministering or giving out the Word (seed) of God. The male is female in Spirit, when he receives the Word (seed) of God. I pray you got that revelation.
I’d mentioned earlier that in Psalm
8:4, the second word “man” was defined differently from the first word “MAN” in this verse. This second word “MAN” is the root word Adam’
(aw-dawm’) which is a human being (an
individual or the species mankind): hypocrite; common sort; low (degree); men. It also means to show blood in the face; ruddy; be dyed red. I stated earlier this “man” (aw-dawm’) is different from the first word “man” (enowshe’),
which is a mortal; to be
frail, feeble or melancholy: desperate
(ly wicked); incurable; sick; woeful.
The “man” (Adam-aw-dam’) is a special kind of a man (male/female), after God “visits” him. Before God “visits” him, he’s a hypocrite, a man of low degree, of a common sort or an enoshe man. He has no status (standing; rank; position) in the earth, until God "visits" him with friendly intent.
Visiteth, is the root word paqad’, meaning to visit (with friendly or hostile intent);
to oversee; muster; charge; care for; deposit; appoint; avenge; bestow,
(appoint to have the, give a ) charge; commit; deliver to keep; empty; enjoin;
go see; make; by any means; officer; (make) overseer; have (the) oversight; set
(over).
After God "visits" the "common or mortal man" with friendly intent, and breathes His Spirit [ru’wach in Hebrew; pneu’ma in Greek] into him, he becomes the “man Adam (aw-dawm’)”, with God’s blood in him, created in God's image and after His likeness.
God’s breath, which is His Spirit, contains His blood that gives eternal life to the flesh! God’s Spirit (breath) also contains wisdom, knowledge, dominion and power in it. God is now ready to give the man [Adam] (male/female) charge, oversight over the creation! This is what God did with the “man” (Adam) [male/female] in Genesis chapter one.
·
Genesis 1:28: And God blessed them, and
God said unto them, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth,
and subdue (bring under your control) it: and have dominion (tread down; prevail against; reign; rule) over
the fish of the sea and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing
that moves upon the earth”.
Also, this is what the LORD God did with the man (aw-dawm') when He
formed him, of the dust of the ground,
and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man (male/female) became
a living soul (Genesis 2:7).
The same God that moved in that way
then, is moving for His people today with that same power!! When He sends His Kingdom messengers to us
that exhales the truth of the gospel of God into us and we inhale it through acceptance
by faith, that’s God’s blood giving us eternal
and everlasting life!! Remember what
Jesus said!!
·
St. John 6:53: Except you eat the flesh of the
son of man, and drink his blood, you have no life in you!!
We also receive the power by God’s
Spirit:
·
Luke 10:19: I give unto you power (exousi’a) [ability; competency; capability; liberty;
authority] to tread (trample) on serpents and scorpions, and over all the
power of the enemy: and nothing shall by
any means hurt you!!
·
Acts 1:8: You shall receive power (du’namis)[miracle working ability; power] after
that the Holy Ghost (Spirit) is come upon
you.
This is because the Spirit and the
blood agree in one. 1st
John 5:7: There are three that bear
record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. Vs 8: And there are three that bear witness in earth (our body), the
spirit, and the water (Word), and the blood: and these three agree in one.
Agree is the root word eisi’ (i-see’), meaning, they are, be, is, were. The other root word is eimi (i-mee’), meaning, I
exist: am; have been; it is I; was.
What did Jesus say in Revelation 1:8?
“I am Alpha and Omega, the
beginning and the ending, said the Lord, which is, and which was,
and which is to come, the Almighty”!!
His coming is not out in the sky, but
in His people!! We are ONE with
Him. We
are members (limbs; parts) of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones (Ephesians
5:30). We are Him, bodily (of a physical
nature) in the earth! As he is, so are we, in this world (1st
John 4:17).
This is the agreement in ONE, the homothumadon’
(unanimity; be with one accord or one
mind) with the Father through Christ. “Let
this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who being in the form of God, thought it not
robbery to be equal with God” (Philippians 2:5-6).
Also look at what Jesus said in His
prayer to our Father:
John 17:20: Neither pray I for
these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their
word: vs 21: That they all may be one, as thou,
Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast
sent me. Vs 22: And the glory which thou gave me I have
given them: that they may be one, even
as we are one: vs 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 hast loved me.
This is the “purpose” of us being here in the earth, therefore we must recognize and accept this revelation,
and take our position, as God's representatives and ambassadors, so as to manifest God in flesh form in the
earth as Jesus did. 1st
John 4:17, “As he is, so are we, in
this world”!!
So He gave us these gifts in the
Church: Ephesians 4:11-12: And
he gave some apostles, and some prophets, and some, evangelists, and some
pastors and teachers: for the perfecting
of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of
the body of Christ: vs 13: Till we all come in the unity of
the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man,
unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
Being that we are members (mel'os) [limbs; parts] of his body (so'ma) of his flesh, and of his bones (Ephesians 5:30), that means that we are Him bodily as a sound whole, of a physical nature or in physical form, in the earth!!
So recognize who you are, take
your position as a Son (male/female),
fulfill your purpose, by ruling and
reigning in your Father’s Kingdom with His dominion, authority, and power that He
has given you!
Pastor Gracie Perry
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