Gen 32:24 And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
There are two forms of wrestling mentioned in the Bible. One is with God and the other is with the devil and his forces. The form of wrestling undertaken in both is different from each other as chalk is to cheese. The wrestling with God is a fight one can never win; whereas, wrestling with the devil is certainly a fight one could win.
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When God opened the heavens and looked down on man, He saw the pitiable state of man. He decided then, He would give man His Spirit on a permanent basis. However, it was to be a process by which man was to attain to this lofty position of becoming a container of the Spirit of God. Added to this, man was due for a fullness of his inheritance in heaven which would come after his natural death. In order for man to attain either two, the deposit of his inheritance and the fullness of his inheritance, he had to die in the flesh. No flesh can exist in the Spirit because never the twain shall mix. This is a mystery because Spirit dwells in flesh but flesh cannot dwell in Spirit.
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Rom 4:6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,
The coming generation is going to be so sinful that it will require the abounding grace of God in us to receive those who come. If God does not impute sin to them (on the basis of His love), we are nobody to reject them. However, in accepting the next generation of sinners, we must learn to walk in a way that Jesus Himself walked amongst sinners. He was untouched by the sin of humanity but gave a solution to mankind in his teaching and ways of power and finally through His own death on the cross. Therefore, we are to emulate Him in all our dealings with sinners because we ourselves were once sinners.
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1Co 12:14 For the body is not one member, but many.
When we have a description of the Church as a body, we must recognise many aspects of such a concept in order to minister to it and through it. The lack of understanding of the body and its parts (members) is the prime reason for criticism of the Church. Anyone who looks at their own body and criticises it is not wise. On the contrary, one must honour the body parts. 1Co_12:23 And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness.
So, what do we know about the spiritual body of Christ?
- The body is both local and worldwide
- A body has many members
- The parts are different to each other in appearance
- Their functions are different
- They all belong in the body
- Some are stronger than the others
- They work together for the good of the body
- No one member is greater than the other as they all belong in one body
- Each body part is held together by their common purpose and reason for existence
- If one suffers, all suffer. If one rejoices, all rejoice.
1Sa 15:2Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. 1Sa 15:3Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. 1Sa 15:10Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying, 1Sa 15:11It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments……. 1Sa 15:28And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.
King Saul paid a huge price for not obeying the precise instructions of God to him through the prophet Samuel. To draw a parallel into modern times, it is evident that submission to authority in Church to follow precise instructions is a big problem today. It seems that it is a bigger problem in the secular world as well. The results are rebellion and idolatry which stems from pride. Rebellion is as witchcraft and stubbornness as iniquity and idolatry. This is what was said to King Saul. It may seem as harsh words and his punishment extreme but what people do not realise is, God is serious. King Saul’s failure to follow God’s instructions to him as his final authority was treated by God as witchcraft. Maybe, King Saul thought that he could do what he liked because it was not God who spoke to him directly but Samuel the prophet. Maybe, he thought he could always talk his way out of it with a man which he tried to do in explaining his error to Samuel. What he did not realise was, the instructions he received through the prophet, though he was a man, was actually from God.
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