In continuation of the last blog concerning the Passover, let us now move three days onward to the Resurrection of our Lord. We serve a living God, not one made by human hands, but the Living God who has always been from eternity past and will always be for eternity future. He is the A and the Ω, ἡ ἀρχὴ καὶ τὸ τέλος, the beginning and the end, Rev 21:6.

Jesus died on the cross, fulfilling the Law in Himself and became the final sacrifice for sin, Matt 5:17, Is 53, Col 1:20, Heb 10:12, 2 Cor 5:21. He went to Hades, proclaimed His victory over death and triumphed over the enemy in it, Col 2:14-15. And on the third day, according to the Scriptures, He was raised from the dead, 1 Cor 15:3-4.
But what happened when Christ was risen? What was the reason that Christ had to be risen? And if Christ wasn’t risen from the dead, could we still have eternal life?

The short answer is no. Christianity would have failed if Christ would not have risen. But thank God He did rise and He is alive forevermore!

But I can’t just leave my answer at that. It is imperative that we see this answer in the Word for ourselves.
Let us turn to the book of Hebrews for this answer. There are many verses in Scripture that can explain this. However, I am led to use Hebrews 5:9–10
9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, 10 called by God as High Priest “according to the order of Melchizedek,”

There are two passive verbs in verses 9 and 10 that are crucial to understanding the context of the passage.
The first verb is τελειωθεὶς, having been perfected, which has the same root as in Heb 2:10, however with some substantial differences. Verse 10 in chapter 2 as well as verse 9 in chapter 5 both use the exact same verbiage to describe the happenings on the cross and our redemption in Christ. This verb is τελειόω, meaning to complete or perfect. In Heb 2:10 this word is conjugated as τελειῶσαι· In this instance it is an aorist active infinitive verb with no gender or number. These verbs do not modify nouns, but instead they act on the previous finite verb in the sentence, which in the case of Heb 2:10 is “the leading of the sons unto glory”. Thus, telling us that it wasn’t Jesus who was perfected but rather the act of leading the sons unto glory was perfected or completed.

We now see this same verb show up in Heb 5:9, again describing the events on the cross, however in this case, this verb is conjugated as τελειωθεὶς, which is an aorist passive participle. Now the verbal participle takes on a unique characteristic in the fact that it also becomes an adjective. Participles are verbal adjectives that take on attributes of both a verb and an adjective. Therefore, a participle possesses the verbal tense and voice, but also declines to reflect gender, number and case as an adjective. Therefore, Greek participles must be able to reflect the Gender, Number, and Case of their Antecedent, the noun to which the participle refers or modifies. In the case of Heb 5:9, the antecedent noun is the word ὑιος, Son in verse 8. So we know from this that the perfecting is happening to the Son, namely Jesus, and we also know the Father is the One doing the perfecting because this verb is in the passive voice. But we also learned from Heb 2:10 that it wasn’t Jesus Himself who was perfected on the cross, but rather the act of leading of the sons to glory; it was the redemption plan of eternal salvation that was completed. Now in Heb 5:10 it again seems the text is saying that Jesus was perfected or completed through the things He suffered. But this is an assumption on the translator’s part that is not accurate. Jesus is and always has been and always will be complete and perfect, so what is it about Jesus that was perfected? The translators refer back to the suffering of obedience and assume it was thru this that He was perfected. But instead I would suggest we look forward at verse 10. For it is here in verse 10 we find our answer, specifically from the other passive verb. We see in verse 10 the Father naming Jesus as our High Priest. We learn from Phil 2:9 that He was given the name above every name. It was the endowment of this Name that completed or perfected the ability for Jesus to be the source of eternal salvation. It was the act of Jesus being risen from the dead and then given the name that is above every name that granted authority and perfected, in Jesus, the completed work of eternal salvation.  Jesus was προσαγορευθεὶς, was charged, accounted first, given the name that is above every name, Phil 2:9, to be the leader or captain of our salvation, Heb 2:10.

This glory that Jesus was given by the Father, namely the gift of the Holy Spirit, Acts 2:33, completed or perfected His authority to be the High Priest of God, to be the Mediator for all men, giving them authority to become sons of God.

Jesus had to go to the cross and suffer the obedience of death in order to grant life to all who believe in Him. It wasn't Jesus Himself who was perfected or completed, but the authority to give life was completed in Him. This authority was given to Him after He had legally taken back the keys to death and hell by paying the price for sin and fulfilling the Law.

Jesus didn't learn obedience by the things He suffered, neither was He perfected by the things He suffered, but rather, it was the plan of redemption perfected in Him that was completed when God raised Him from the dead and gave Him the name that is above all names and set Him on high as our High Priest.

Romans 4:24–25 ... in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.

The Way to eternal life was made perfect and completed in Jesus when He was raised from the dead. Our Salvation and our Glorification in Him hangs on the fact that Jesus did rise from the dead, and the sacrifice of His blood was counted worthy that He might become the author and source of eternal life and salvation to those who believe in Him.

John 11:25  “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.
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The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen
Ἡ χάρις τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων υμῶν. ἀμην.

This Easter is a time to remember the Truth concerning the Passover and how it relates to believers in Christ. The Celebration of the Resurrection is something we have been remembering since 32AD, when our Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins on the cross and rose from the dead unto eternal life on the third day for our justification, Rom 4:25.

Unfortunately, the resurrection of Jesus has been masked and downplayed by the enemy to the point that “Easter”, with its bunnies and eggs, has now taken first place above the remembrance of our Lord and the Truth of His death and resurrection.

But, if we can separate ourselves from the lusts (ἐπιθυμιά) thereof and commit ourselves to His will, 1 Jn 2:17, let us therefore abide in His Word and understand the Truth of the Passover (or as we know it, Easter).

On the 14th of Nissan, 32AD, or by modern day calculations, Thursday April 10th, 32AD, our Lord Jesus Christ was sacrificed on the cross as the Lamb of God on the Day of Preparation, Jn 19:14, in order that He might be the final sacrifice for sin for all those who would believe in Him, Jn 3:16, 1 Jn 4:9-10, Rom 5:8. Notice that this was a Thursday crucifixion and not on Friday. We know that Jesus had to be in the heart of the earth, Hell, for three days and three nights according to Jesus’ very own words, Matt 12:40. You cannot get three days and three nights from Friday, but that is not entirely important in our discussion at the present time.

Jesus died on the 14th of Nissan. He is our Passover, 1 Cor 5:7, the Lamb of God sent to take away the sins of the world, Jn 1:29. But why did Jesus die on the Passover rather than another Jewish holiday? For instance, Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement for Jews. Since Jesus died for our sins, at a quick glance it seems fitting that He might have been the sacrifice on this day instead. So what is special about the 14th of Nissan, Passover?

This answer involves us reading the original account when the Passover commenced. We can read this from Exodus chapter 12 just before the final 10th plague of Egypt. God told Moses that after nine devastating plagues, this 10th plague would be worse by far. He would kill all the first born in the land of Egypt in order for Pharaoh to finally let the Israelites go. God told Moses that only those who would sacrifice a lamb without blemish and cover their door posts and lintels of the house with the blood of the lamb would be safe from this plague. God told Moses that the destroyer, the judgement of God would pass-over those whose house was covered in the blood of the lamb, Ex 12:23, 27.

Does this sound familiar? Of course it does! This is exactly how the blood of Jesus, the Lamb, operates in our lives. All those who choose to cover themselves in the blood of Jesus have been, and will be passed-over by the judgement and wrath of God concerning sin.

Let us take a closer look at the account in Exodus 12. The English translation in the King James is a good translation, but I am using the Greek Septuagint because the Greek language is so rich, it gives us a perfectly clear understanding of the original Hebrew text. I want to point out a couple of verses from Exodus 12. The first is the latter part of verse 11.
Exodus 12:11b (NKJV) … It is the Lord’s Passover.

The Septuagint gives us a little more detail by saying,
Exodus 12:11b (LXX) … πασχα ἐστὶν κυρίῳ.

πασχα is in the nominative case making it the subject of the sentence, however κυρίῳ is in the dative case so we would not translate this as the Lord’s Passover but rather as the Passover by the Lord. In other words, God is giving us the provision for the Passover, thereby giving us the covering so His wrath and judgment concerning sin would pass-over all who are in the house in the blood.

This brings us to the next verse of discussion, Ex 12:13.
Exodus 12:13a (NKJV) Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are.
Exodus 12:13a (LXX) καὶ ἔσται τὸ αἷμα ὑμῖν ἐν σημείῳ ἐπὶ τῶν οἰκιῶν, ἐν αἷς ὑμεῖς ἐστε ἐκεῖ,
And the blood (of the Lamb) will be to you a sign upon the houses in which you are in this one place.

God has appointed one place of refuge from the terrible plague. This is a predetermined place sanctified by God as holy, covered by the blood of the Lamb. Notice the blood is not on the person but on the house, and those who choose to be in the house covered by the blood will be saved. The same is true with us today concerning our eternal salvation. The blood of the Lamb, Jesus, is on the house of God, not on the individual person. God predestined the blood of the Lamb, before the foundation of the world, Rev 3:8, to be on the house and all those who choose to be in the house of God, or more specifically, in Jesus, Jn 15, will be saved. The individual has not been predestined, but rather the place of refuge, the propitiation for sin is that which has been predestined. Paul uses this same terminology in his letter to the Ephesians describing the household of God, Eph 2:19-22. That we are being fitly joined together in Him as one body together with Him for all eternity covered by the blood of Jesus.

Let us continue with our study from Exodus 12.
Exodus 12:13b (NKJV) … And when I see the blood, I will pass-over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you…
Exodus 12:13b (LXX) … καὶ ὄψομαι τὸ αἷμα καὶ σκεπάσω ὑμᾶς, καὶ οὐκ ἔσται ἐν ὑμῖν πληγὴ τοῦ ἐκτριβῆναι …

“When I see the blood” I love this phrase! God looks at us thru the blood of Jesus. He doesn’t see our sin when He sees us, He sees the blood of Jesus and thru this blood we are perfect, righteous and holy in the eyes of our Father!
Now, let’s focus on the word pass-over in verse 13. The Greek word translated pass-over is not πασχα but σκεπάσω, meaning to cover, hide, shelter. Jesus, namely the blood of Jesus, is our shelter, our refuge, just as He covers us with His feathers, and under His wings we take refuge, Ps 91:4, so also are we covered by the precious blood of Jesus from the wrath and destruction of the judgement of sin, 1 Pet 1:18-19.

So now when we read 1 Corinthians 5:7
1 Corinthians 5:7b …For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.

We now have a much better understanding why Jesus is our Passover and why Jesus was sacrificed on Passover and not any other Jewish holiday. In fact, when we look at this verse in the Greek it gives us more Truth.
1 Corinthians 5:7b καὶ γὰρ τὸ πάσχα ἡμῶν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἐθύθη Χριστός·

Paul is making this abundantly clear that our Passover is the sacrifice of Jesus. This is made evident by not only Paul’s words but also the word order he uses. The subject of this sentence is Christ, Χριστός, but notice it is at the very end of the verse. In English, word order is crucial so it must be placed at the front of the sentence, however in Greek, Paul uses the nominative case to tell us Christ is the subject, but by placing Χριστός at the end, Paul is making a point to emphasize the fact that Jesus died as our Passover. Paul also reiterates the fact that it was for us. He doesn’t just say that Christ is our Passover, He continues saying Christ is our Passover on behalf of us, ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν. Jesus died for us that we might live with Him for all eternity. It was for us that He came to this earth, it was for us that He died as our Passover, and it was for us that He rose from the dead that we might be the righteousness of God to all those who believe in Jesus.

How precious is the Blood of the Lamb slain as our Passover on behalf of us so that if we abide in God’s house covered by the Blood of the Lamb, we are cleansed from sin, and the wrath and judgment of God concerning sin is passed-over us for all eternity!

Happy Passover and Resurrection Day!
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The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen
Ἡ χάρις τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων υμῶν. ἀμην.

In John 15:1-2 there is much debate as to what Jesus is actually saying in these verses, namely verse 2. The main questions are: Who is Jesus speaking about, Believers or non-believers and are the non-fruit-bearing branches condemned to hell or are they lifted up and mended so that they are able to start bearing fruit?
These are the main topics under question, but again, a careful study in the original language shines light on the Truth. (φωτισθέντες ἐπί τήν ἀλήθειαν)
Let us read the scriptures as translated in the NKJV.
John 15:1–2 (NKJV)
1 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.
2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.

The answer to the first question, “who is Jesus speaking about” is right in front of us and translated plainly in English so there should be no debate as to who Jesus is addressing. He answers this at the beginning of verse 2, “Every branch in Me”.
These two little words, “in Me”, tell us who Jesus is addressing. He is talking about Christians who are in Him. All through the New Testament we see this explained. A Christian is one that is “in Christ”, 1 Jn 5:11, Eph 1:3-4, 3:6. If you are not in Christ then you are not a Christian, but these, as Jesus plainly says, are “in Him”. They may not be bearing fruit, but they are still Christians. How many of these type of Christians do we see today? Those who believe that Jesus is their Savior, but do nothing with it and thus never bear any fruit. We see this explained in the parable of the sower, Mark 4, and the parable of the talents, Matt 25:14-30. Jesus tells us we are the salt of the earth, but warns us not to lose our saltiness, Matt 5:13. He also admonishes us to store up treasure in heaven rather than the temporal rewards on this earth, Matt 6:19-21. Paul is always telling us to press toward the prize of the high calling, Phil 3:14. These admonitions are not to earn our eternal salvation, but to inherit our eternal and everlasting rewards.
Now that we know Jesus is speaking of Christians, it makes the next question answerable. Many of those who think Jesus is speaking of non-believers, mis-interpret the next phrase. Many assume Jesus was addressing non-believers, therefore they say that any branch not bearing fruit is taken away, as in being removed from God. But this is taken from the wrong context. The Father would never cut off a believer from Jesus, Jn 10:29, 17:11. In fact, it is quite the opposite. The Father is taking away and taking us up, but not away from God, but instead moving us closer to Him. He is mending, lifting us up, taking us up from being trodden under foot, laying on the ground and not bearing any fruit. The Greek word translated “takes away” is αἰρει. In other places of scripture this word has been translated lifted up, taken up, collect, bear. It is never used to cut off. Even in the instances where context interprets the word as taken away, it is in the sense of carrying or bearing up. As in Matt 14:12 it says the disciples came and “took away” the body of Jesus. They didn’t cut off the body of Jesus, but instead carried or bore Him up. And in other instances where it is translated taken from, the “from” is a completely separate word, as in being lifted up and moved away “from something”, Matt 21:43, Lk 8:18. This word on its own does not mean to be taken away from or to cut off, but rather to be taken up, lifted up, taken into the hands of God.
Now that we understand the true meaning of this word αἰρω, and we know Jesus is speaking concerning Christians, a better translation would be:
Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes up…

How does the Father take us up? He does this through His Word,
2 Timothy 3:16–17 (NKJV)
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

God wants everyone who is in Christ to be complete and to bear fruit. Therefore, the first step concerning the branch that is laying on the ground not bearing fruit is to lift it up and mend it, take it into Himself, keeping it safe, and giving it the opportunity to bear fruit.
This leads us to the next discussion, those who are already bearing fruit. These are Christians who are bearing fruit, abiding in the Vine, and governed by the Word of God. This is the next progression in a Christians life. This is called Sanctification. Refer back to our statements previous, the parable of the sower, Mark 4, the parable of the talents, Matt 25:14-30, the salt of the earth, Matt 5:13, storing up treasure in heaven, Matt 6:19-21, and pressing toward the prize of the high calling, Phil 3:14. This is the process of our Sanctification. We are not Christian because we do these things, but we do these things because we are Christian. This is the process of crucifying the flesh and living to God, Gal 5:24-25, Rom 8:13, Col 3:5, Eph 4:22. Picking up our cross daily and following Him, Matt 10:38-39.
This Sanctification process is what the King James translates in verse 2 as “purges” or “prunes”. This word is so much more than just a pruning. It is the process of purging the effects of sin and lust, purging the hold of the flesh on our lives and making us void of evil. The Greek word used in verse 2 is καθαίρει. It the same word at the beginning of this verse, to take up, to lift up or to carry, αίρει, but He adds κατα in front of it. Any time a κατα is added as a prefix to a Greek word, it is intensified immensely usually in the negative sense. For instance, the word “to judge” is κρίμα, but to condemn to hell is κατάκριμα. This intensity is what is happening to believers in the next stage of the Father sanctifying us. He is intensely taking us up and lifting us up, or intensely carrying or bearing. The best English word for this is the KJV translation “to purge”. In the literal since this word actually means to kill. As I said, the κατα in front immensely intensifies it in a negative way. But it is not the Christian He is killing, but rather the lust of the flesh and the filth of this world that contaminates us. He is making us void of evil. This is Sanctification. Completely purging our flesh of its sinful desires. Remember in Galatians Paul says the way to reject the flesh is not to stop fulfilling the flesh, but rather to start walking in the Spirit. It is then the lustful desires of the flesh are purged, καθαίρει, and we can walk and be holy just as He is holy. Do you see the synergy, συνεργος, the working together between us and the Father in Jesus through the Holy Spirit?

In the case of verse 2, to those who are not bearing fruit, but are in Him, the Father begins to take up, αίρει, these Christians. This is phase one of our Christianity and unfortunately some Christians never get past this stage. But to those who are abiding in Him, have received His Word, and have committed their life and their will to the Father, they are bearing fruit and He begins to Sanctify by not just lifting them up, but now He begins purging, καθαίρει, the flesh and lustful desires. We can’t do this to ourselves, it is only through the cleansing of His Word that we are made holy just as He is holy. It is the Father working in us through His Spirit that sanctifies us. However, we have to make the daily decision ourselves to walk in Him and abide in Him. The Father will not sanctify us unless we abide in His word and commit our lives and our will to Him. Remember what Jesus said just a few verses down,
John 15:7–8-7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

John Wesley had what I would consider the best handle on this idea. He not only preached this, but he lived it every day of his life, constantly looking to Jesus, abiding in His Word, and in turn denying his flesh in every circumstance. Below is a section of a sermon he preached on Justification by Faith:
Sanctification is the immediate fruit of Justification and still a distinct gift of God. The one (Justification) implies what God does for us through His Son; the other (Sanctification) is what He works in us by His Spirit (in Christ).

Both Justification and Sanctification are gifts from God and both are activated and apprehended by faith. But we must understand this is a progression of our Christianity that involves our commitment to Him and His will. It is not driven by works but rather it is driven by our heart toward Him. The Father can’t take you to the next level of Christianity, or as Paul says in Hebrews, be carried on to perfection, Heb 6:1, namely Sanctification if we don’t have a heart committed to Him and His will. The Father can’t purge you, καθαίρει, until you commit your life and will toward Him, allowing His Word to govern your life. This is indeed how the Father purges us, by His Word, as Jesus states in verse 3, “You are cleansed by the Word”. The word “cleansed” is an adjective from the same Greek word used in verse 2 meaning to be purged, καθαροί.
If we do not have ears to hear His Word, then we can never be purged of the lusts of our flesh or to be made void of evil, while we exist in this world. There is sin in this fallen world, but God does not want to take us out of the world, but rather He wants us to function purely and holy within it. Separated unto Him while still living in this fallen world. This process of Sanctification is not a requirement to live eternally with the Father. Our eternal salvation was bought and paid for by the blood of Jesus and we only need believe in the name of Jesus and His work on the cross and you will be eternally saved from the pit of hell. However, this is only the beginning of what God has to offer us. He wants us to continue in Him, abide in Him and He in you and it is then you will fulfill the entire will of God for your life.
Listen to the words of Jesus just a few hours after He spoke to His disciples before the cross. This is the prayer of Jesus to the Father concerning believers:
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John 17:6–18-6 “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word…. 8 For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me. 9 “I pray for them. ... 10 And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 … Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are…  13 But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. 18 As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.

​Those who receive the Word of God into their life will be continually purged by the Father and made void of evil as we live in this world. The Father wants to purge, καθαίρει, us, Sanctify us by His Word, so that we will continue to bear more fruit. Because as we bear fruit, the glory of God is pronounced to the world and in turn our joy is made full, Jn 15:11. We begin to be fellow-workers with God in His plan of redemption for all mankind. This is the will of the Father. That He would have an eternal family dedicated to living and abiding in Him, full of never ending happiness and joy forever.

​The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen
Ἡ χάρις τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων υμῶν. ἀμην.

Ephesians 4:7
7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

​In this verse, when read in the original Greek, Paul unnecessarily repeats the word “one”. He could be doing this for emphasis, which is a common Pauline tactic, but I would conjecture that by doubling this word, he is differentiating the Oneness of God and each one of us individually.
Rather than translating this verse as we have normally seen:
7 But to each one of us grace was given…

As you can see below in the Greek text, Paul has used the word for “one” twice.
7 ἑνὶ δὲ ἑκάστῳ ἡμῶν ἐδόθη ἡ χάρις κατὰ τὸ μέτρον τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ Χριστοῦ.

Instead, I believe a better translation would be:
But by the One to each one of us individually is given the grace…
 
Verses 3 thru 6 specifically discuss the Oneness, ἑνότητα, of God and subsequently in verse 7 Paul explains the omnipotence of God concerning this Oneness. It is God’s omnipotence that gives us our special personal relationship to call Him Abba Father.
I have three kids and just these three can be impossible to manage the time between all of them. It seems if I am doing a project with one, another is begging for my attention for something else, not to mention the third waiting in line for their turn. This is not so with our heavenly Father. He is God, and in His omnipotence, we are never starved for His attention or His grace. I believe this is what Paul is saying in verse 7.
But by the One to each one of us individually is given the grace…

Verse 5 and 6 explains the synergy between the Oneness of God and the all of creation. We, all those who believe in His Son, are given the grace of God individually through the One God who is upon all and through all and in all. Giving each one individually the special attention and gift of His grace. By God, we are one body in Him, collectively gathered as a whole, and yet we still can have an individual, personal relationship with Him as if we were the only ones with Him.
What an amazing God we serve!

The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen
Ἡ χάρις τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων υμῶν. ἀμην.

I was recently asked whether the gift mentioned in Ephesians 2:8-9 referred to grace or faith. It was an excellent question, so I decided to post my answer.

Grace is God’s unending mercy and favor abounding in love toward us, that He would send His Son to die for us and take away our sins. This is the plan of redemption established in Christ before the foundation of the world. His grace is universal and is made available to all because Christ died for all. However, not all will inherit this gift of grace because it is contingent upon our choice of faith. God made his promise of eternal life in Christ Jesus available to all, but it is conditional upon whether we choose to believe in Jesus.
God set this up in a manner, not according to works, but according to faith. And it is thru faith that we can access this grace. Think of faith as a portal or the avenue in which we can apprehend God’s abundance of grace. For it is by grace that we are saved, through or “out from” the avenue of faith.
How do we get faith? Is faith a free gift like grace? Let us look at Ephesians 2:8-9 to answer this question.
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
This passage tells us “the gift” is of God. It is not of ourselves, but of God. So what is the gift? Is it grace or faith or both?
To answer this question, it is helpful to read this in the original Greek language.
 
Ephesians 2:8–9-8 τῇ γὰρ χάριτί ἐστε σεσωσμένοι διὰ τῆς πίστεως, καὶ τοῦτο οὐκ ἐξ ὑμῶν· Θεοῦ τὸ δῶρον· 9 οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων, ἵνα μή τις καυχήσηται.
 
A literal translation of this would be:
For by grace you (plural) are being saved (passively) through faith, and this, the gift, not out from us, of God. Not out from works, so that no one might boast.
 
The word τοῦτο is a demonstrative pronoun in the nominative case and its gender is neutral. Pronouns must match in case, number and gender the subject in which they are referring. The only nominative, singular, neutral noun is the word τὸ δῶρον, gift. This is a predicate nominative of the word τοῦτο, this. Therefore, in our literal translation above I have written “the gift” immediately following “this” because it is speaking of the predicate nominative τὸ δῶρον. But this still does not answer exactly what the gift is. It just tells us that the gift is not out from us, but of God. But I would conjecture that the gift is not the faith because faith is the avenue to the gift, not the gift itself. It is that which we are being saved by, namely grace that is the gift. In addition, the word grace, χάρις, in its lemma form means gracious favor or gift. Therefore, the gift is referring to God’s grace and not the faith. It is true that man is apportioned a measure of faith, Rom 12:3, but this is not the same as “the gift” referred to here in Eph 2. We also know that faith comes by hearing and understanding the Word, Rom 10:17. Therefore, faith is apportioned to those who hear and understand the Word of God. It is then through faith that we can apprehend the free gift of grace that comes, not out of us, nor out of works, but of God.
Thus, this explains Rom 4:16, For it is out from faith that it might be by grace. Because if the avenue to our salvation was through works then it could not be by grace, because grace is a free gift not something owed based on works. It must be through faith so that it might be by grace.
Faith requires a choice, to believe or not. Consider John 1:12, But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:
​
Faith requires a free will decision to choose Him. Those who receive Jesus and choose to believe in Him will become children of God and inherit eternal salvation by grace. However, if one believes that faith is a free gift of God like grace, then one might think that there is no choice in faith and only those who were given faith will have access to His grace. This line of thinking contradicts John 1:12, therefore we must be careful to understand the function of faith. Faith is the avenue to apprehend the free gift of grace. It is not the free gift itself. However, I have one more thing to add because I do not want to give the impression that we are saving ourselves by our own power. Instead, we are using faith to access God’s grace, and I would conjecture that it isn’t even our faith we are using, but the faith of God rising up inside of us by hearing and understanding His Word. Eph 2:8 says that the gift is not out from us, ἐξ ὑμῶν, nor is it out from works, ἐξ ἔργων, but of God. This is an interesting concept that the Greek is portraying. Eph 2 is alluding to the fact that the gift is out from something, and more precisely out from God. Therefore, our salvation must come out from God. There is no way we can save ourselves, but at the same time God has devised this process to include us because we must be the ones making the free will decision to receive His grace.
Consider the following verses and pay close attention to the words ἐκ πίστεως, meaning out from faith. For it is not out from ourselves, nor is it out from works, but rather it is out from faith which is of God in which we choose to take hold of so that we are able to apprehend the free gift of grace unto eternal salvation in Christ.
The typical translation of the phrase ἐκ πίστεως is usually "by faith" or "in faith", but the literal meaning of the word ἐκ πίστεως is out from faith. This has a slightly different meaning than just saying "by faith" or "in faith". We learn from this word that the avenue in which we apprehend the gift of grace is "out from faith"
The italicized word is the typical English translation, the words in red and in parenthesis is showing the literal translation, namely out from faith.  
Romans 1:17 “The just shall live by (out from faith).”
Romans 1:17 Ὁ δὲ δίκαιος ἐκ πίστεως ζήσεται.
Romans 3:26-…that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus (is out from the faith) of Jesus
Romans 3:26- εἰς τὸ εἶναι αὐτὸν δίκαιον καὶ δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἐκ πίστεως Ἰησοῦ.
Romans 4:16- Therefore it is of (out from faith) that it might be according to grace,
Romans 4:16- διὰ τοῦτο ἐκ πίστεως, ἵνα κατὰ χάριν,
Romans 5:1- Therefore, having been justified by (out from faith),
Romans 5:1- Δικαιωθέντες οὖν ἐκ πίστεως,
Romans 9:30- …even the righteousness of (out from faith);
Romans 9:30- … δικαιοσύνην δὲ τὴν ἐκ πίστεως·
Romans 10:6- But the righteousness of (out from faith)
Romans 10:6- ἡ δὲ ἐκ πίστεως δικαιοσύνη
Galatians 2:16- …that we might be justified by faith in Christ (out from the faith of Christ) and not by the works of the law;
Galatians 2:16- …ἵνα δικαιωθῶμεν ἐκ πίστεως Χριστοῦ, καὶ οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων νόμου·
Galatians 3:9- So then those who are of (out from faith) are blessed with believing Abraham.
Galatians 3:9- ὥστε οἱ ἐκ πίστεως εὐλογοῦνται σὺν τῷ πιστῷ Ἀβραάμ.
 
Therefore, faith is not the gift, but rather the avenue unto which we are saved by the gift of Grace. For without faith, we would have no way to access the gift of Grace.
Now therefore, it is by the gift of Grace that we are being saved through the avenue of faith and out from the faith of God which comes from hearing and understanding His Word, out from which faith we are able to apprehend this free gift of Grace unto eternal salvation in Christ.

The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen
Ἡ χάρις τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων υμῶν. ἀμην.

 There is a ton packed into these 3 verses of Ephesians 3:9-11, but I want to focus on one word that is used twice in this passage. It is the Greek word αἰών, meaning age. This word has always intrigued me because it is kind of a mysterious word. One of my favorite Bible verses is 1 John 2:17-
​And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who is committed to the will of God abides unto the forever.
The word forever is the same word in our text, αἰών. This word has been translated ages, time, world, eternity, and forever, which is a pretty wide range of meanings for one word, but that is what is so intriguing about it. 

I was reading Ephesians 3 yesterday and saw this word show up twice in these three verses, but yet our English translation, again has two different English words for the same exact Greek word. I started digging in, and like always found a treasure!

The main thrust of verses 9-11, and the first three chapters of Ephesians for that matter, is Paul telling us of the incomprehensible idea that God has given us His Son for the purpose of having an eternal family to live and abide in Him forever! This multifaceted wisdom of God, ἡ πολυποίκιλος σοφία, as we see in verse 10, was hidden in Him from after the ages, but has now been revealed to us in these last times. This wisdom has always been according to His purpose to have a family. 
The text in verse 9 says God hid the wisdom of His plan of redemption from after the ages, ἀπὸ τῶν αἰώνων. The English translation portrays He hid this since the beginning of the ages were created or a better translation is "from after" the ages.  We know the ages were created by the Word of God and committed to Jesus, Heb 11:3, 1:2. Therefore, the ages are part of creation. The Greek text in verse 11 says, "πρόθεσιν τῶν αἰώνων" the purpose of the ages. This is slightly different from verse 9 because the text does not say, "ἀπὸ τῶν αἰώνων", from after the ages, but instead omits the ἀπὸ, from. The English translates this as eternal purpose, changing this noun into an adjective. This would be a correct translation if ἀπὸ was in the text, but it isn't. Therefore, αἰώνων is a noun in the genitive case, not an adjective, and it should be translated "purpose of the ages". I agree that God has an "eternal" purpose, but that is not exactly what is being said here. It is according to the purpose of the ages which He committed to Christ Jesus. In both instances in verses 9 and 11 we see the αἰώνων portrayed as a created being and we also see it having a purpose in the plan of redemption.
I know this may sound a little strange, but we must allow ourselves to think that "the all", τα παντα, of creation is alive. For it says in the Gospels that the stones will cry out, Lk 19:40. In the Psalms it says the creation will praise His Name, Ps 66:4, 148:3-6. In Romans it says the creation is groaning for it's redemption, Rom 8:20. Isaiah says the creation will sing and clap their hands, Is 55:12. In Revelation, all of creation worships Him, Rev 5:13.
So if we follow this line of thinking, what was the purpose of the ages? Ages can most closely be attributed to time. God is outside of time, but the creation is subject to time, and time is probably the most valuable resource there is. Therefore, God, after subordinating His creation to the condition of time, namely the ages, He committed, ἐποίησεν, Eph 3:11, this precious resource to His Son, Jesus Christ, and in this resource of time, God fulfilled His purpose of having a family. For thousands of years, God developed His plan thru the constraints of His creation, namely time and men,  to ultimately fulfill His redemption plan and purpose, and at the appointed time, Gal 4:4, Rom 5:6, He sent His Son into the world as its Savior to redeem mankind from the bondage of sin and death; giving mankind the opportunity to be reconciled to Him for τοῖς αἰῶσι τοῖς ἐπερχομένοις, the ages to come, Eph 2:7.
The ages is one of the fundamental building blocks in God's creation. If God would not have created the αἰῶν, He could not have fulfilled the redemptive act of the cross in which His Son was sent to this world to accomplish. It was through these ages, that God chose to deal with mankind; to deliver His Law, make a remedy for sin, administer His grace on all who would believe, and ultimately live in the τοῖς αἰῶσι τοῖς ἐπερχομένοις, the ages to come with His family forever. God had to create forever for us to live with Him in the forever!!!

​The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen
Ἡ χάρις τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων υμῶν. ἀμην.

In verse 11, Paul continues with the word "for", linking this it to his previous statement in verse 10, "the Leader of our salvation, to make complete the leading of the sons to glory through sufferings." Jesus has completed the Way to salvation on the cross. He has paid the debt of sin, redeemed mankind from the bondage of death, and has ascended on high, seated on the right hand of the Father.
Now he continues, "For He who sanctifies, and those who are being sanctified are out of one."
Let's take a deeper look at the text.

We know that "He who sanctifies" is Jesus. Our Savior, the Captain of our Salvation, is the only one who can make us Holy and set us apart from sin.
"and those who are being sanctified", this is us; all those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God and our Savior. We have been led out of the grasp and bondage of death, He has made us holy, set us apart and made us acceptable to be partakers in the inheritance of the saints in Light, Col 1:12. 
Now this is the key statement Paul is building toward in verse 11. "For both", Jesus and us who believe in Him, "are all of one."
Of one what? you might ask. Well I am glad you did.
It is true we are One with Him in Christ as believers, and this is a natural thought one might have concerning this verse, but that is not exactly what Paul is saying here. For the saying in Ephesians that "we are One with Him in Christ", Eph 1:10,  is absolutely true, but it is not in the same line of thinking that is in this verse. For in order for us to be exalted on high and seated with Him in heavenly places, Eph 2:6, He first had to be made low, Eph 4:9, John 1:14, in fact as Paul says in verse 9, "But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone."
Jesus had to, for a short time, be made lower than the angels and become a man, that He might taste death for everyone. The immortal God had to become a mortal man to taste death for mankind.
This is the "one" that is being spoken of in verse 11. That Jesus, the Creator of the universe, had to become a man taking on Him flesh and blood. This word "one" in verse 11 is speaking of "one type", namely mankind. For Jesus first had to become a man and suffer the penalty of sin and death on the cross before He could lead us to glory, exalting us as One with Him in heavenly places.
Paul then continues again with a connecting statement, διʼ ἣν αἰτίαν, for which reason, He is not ashamed or embarrassed to call us His brethren. 
What an amazing statement! That Jesus would come down from His place of authority in heaven, Phil 2:7-8, be made like one of us, for the purpose that He could then taste death for us and redeem us from our sin and rescue us from the bondage of eternal death, exalting us and seating us on high with Him in heavenly places as children of God! And in this, Jesus was not ashamed to call us His brethren. He was not embarrassed to be made one of us. How unusual is that? Have you ever seen an earthly king or someone in authority give up their right to power and authority to be one of the common folk? And what's more, to be happy and joyful in the process, for it says in a certain place, that "for the joy He endured the cross", Heb 12:2. Jesus was joyful to fulfill the will of the Father, to taste death for every man, to lead the sons unto glory, and unite us as a family with our Father in heaven.

The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen
Ἡ χάρις τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων υμῶν. ἀμην.

In our church Bible study class we are studying the book of Hebrews. And as I was reading chapter 2, I came across something very interesting in verse 10 where it reads "to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings". 
This wording struck me as odd. Why would Jesus need to be made perfect through sufferings? Isn't He already perfect? The answer is yes, He is perfect, and if He wasn't perfect He could not have been the unblemished sacrifice, the Lamb of God sent to take away the sins of the world.
​So why does the Bible say that He was made perfect through sufferings? Or does it? Our English Bible says this, but this is merely a translation. To get the true fruit of the inspired Word we must read this in the original language of Greek to get this answer. 
​Below, on the left, is the Greek text of the true textus receptus and on the right we have the NKJV. 

Hebrews 2:10

As a quick recap of this verse, verses 10 thru 18 explain Jesus, the Creator of the all, who became a man, led captivity out of hell, Eph 4:8, being the leader and chief captain of our salvation, proclaiming the Name of God and singing praise to the Father. 
Jesus did this first at Calvary, specifically in the depths of Hades, and He is still doing this today for His brethren as our High Priest, the Advocate to the Father, 1 Jn 2:1.
So again I ask, "why would Jesus need to be made perfect or complete?" The answer is, "He doesn't". He was perfect, He is perfect, and He will always be perfect.
On the other hand, we are the ones who need to be completed. Jesus was sent to to this world to perfect and complete us, namely thru His blood and the redemptive act on the cross. 
If we take a careful look at the Greek text, we find that this is exactly what the Word is saying. It is not saying that the captain of our salvation is perfected through suffering, but rather that the act of leading the sons of God to glory is what is being perfected and completed through the suffering of Christ on the cross.
If you look above at the English text, you will notice the words "to make" and "perfect" are separated by the phrase "the captain of their salvation". But look at the Greek text. This statement, "to make perfect" is one Greek word, τελειῶσαι. This comes from the same Greek word that Jesus cried out on the cross, Τετέλεσται, it is finished, Jn 19:30. 
Now bear with me as I explain this Greek grammar to you because the treasure is hidden in the text.

τελειῶσαι-is an infinitive verb. These types of verbs are not limited by person, number or gender, and they do not modify nouns. So this is our first clue that it can't be talking about the captain of our salvation because that is a noun.
Instead they have two functions. They can either stand on their own and act as a noun, essentially acting as a direct object, or they can act or complete the meaning of a previous finite verb. Context is the only judge on this.
In the case of Hebrews 2:10, τελειῶσαι is acting upon the  finite verb ἀγαγόντα- which means "leading". So this word "to finish or complete" is acting on the "leading" of sons to glory.
​Therefore, it is the act of salvation and the leading of the sons to glory that is made perfect, not Jesus. Jesus is perfect, He has always been perfect, and will always be perfect. It is us and the plan of salvation for mankind that had to be made perfect and complete, and Jesus accomplished this on the cross,  Τετέλεσται - It is finished!!!

Ah, the magnificent language of Greek!

Exactly two years ago I wrote a book called the History of the Bible.
​This is such a passion of mine. I love the Bible, the Living Word of God, and I love studying the progression of how we got our Bible. However, in all my studies I found there is not one book out there that pulls the entire history together, so I decided to write my own History of the Bible.
https://www.insightoftheking.com/the-history-of-the-bible.html

About one year later, roughly one year ago, I finished what I call the Historical Bible Exhibit on my website. This is a free exhibit that follows the outline of my book in an effort to teach those who want to learn about the heritage of our Christianity and the History of our Bible. Here is the link to the exhibit:
https://www.insightoftheking.com/history_of_the_bible.html

Hope you enjoy!
The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen
Ἡ χάρις τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων υμῶν. ἀμην.

As of December 13th, 2019 I am no longer working at Freelance. I have decided to focus my time to proclaiming the Good News of Jesus and taking care of my family. 
After 26 years of service dedicated to the building of cabinets and architectural millwork, I am hanging it up to pursue a new career with Jesus. I am not exactly sure what He has in store for me, but I am trusting in Him and walking by faith, knowing the future is going to be great.
About a month ago I received a Word from the Lord telling me not to be entangled with the world. We are in the world, but not of the world, Jn 17:16. And we must not entangle ourselves with the affairs of this life. In everything we must keep our focus on Him. Holding fast to Him and His Word and not be distracted by the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches and the lust of other things, Mk 4:19. 
The Lord showed me 2 Tim 2:4 like I have never seen it before:
2 Timothy 2:4
4 No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.
This spoke to my heart and changed my life. After this, all I saw when reading the Scriptures was this phrase- "Do not be entangled with the affairs of this life."
Keep your eye on the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus, Phil 3:14.

I have a lot of great things in the works and am excited to see God moving in my life.

• I am continuing my studies of the Greek New Testament and learning to read the New Testament in the original Greek language as it was given by the Holy Spirit. This has been so rewarding and fruitful. The depth of this language is astounding and I am so grateful to be learning it.
• I have started my own business collecting and selling rare antiquarian Bibles and Bible leaves
  • Through this, I have created a Historical Bible Exhibit of how we got our Bible and wrote a book about it
• By the favor and grace of God, I have also become more active in the church, specifically the Bible study class that my dad teaches every Sunday at Victory Church. I have had the pleasure to teach on a couple of occasions and hope to do so more in the future.
  • this class has introduced me to a fellowship of believers, showing me the true definition of the Biblical term "κοινωνια"

With Jesus we can have the confidence knowing that the future is bright and full of unending joy and happiness in this life and that which is to come!

The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen
Ἡ χάρις τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων υμῶν. ἀμην.