Not Alive?

Not Alive?

8/1/18

Many people do not believe that there is any connection between the two Testaments of the Bible, nor do they believe that Jesus fulfills the Old Testament through His life and presence on the earth.  Jesus and His words gave life to many around Him and this life should be evident in our hearts today yet we sit and ponder the meaning of our existence with a worldly vision, then cry when issues arise and tear down another portion of our lives.  It is through this confession that our hearts demonstrate the lack of truth and faith that we can know if we study the Word of God.  It is true repentance and the allowance of God to restore our hearts to His Ways that God seeks today and one of the main focal points of this restoration process comes from the wisdom and the application of God’s Word to our lives and in our lives.

I recently watched a small clip from one of Dr. Ravi Zacharias’ talks where he gave the audience an opportunity to ask questions concerning the topic that he had just completed.  One of the questions asked to him was from a scientist who stated that all of us were predetermined and that all of our actions were programmed in and there was nothing that we could do to change such predestined status.  The young person also claimed that Adam and Eve nor the Garden of Eden ever existed and that there was no foundation for such story or beginning of our existence in that manner; this all supports this young person’s thinking and beliefs.  Scientists like to conclude that if it does not line up exactly with what they have been exposed to that whatever information goes against the grain is not the truth and therefore is false evidence.  But science leaves out an important aspect of life and that is the human mind and the abilities it has to see through what may line up superficially and explain the more in-depth truth of what has occurred.

The argument that this young person had was that free will was not a part of our lives and that the actions of each person is already predetermined, which means basically that all of us are machines pre-wired to act and to think in a certain manner and that no matter how hard we try we cannot change this fact.  This is a dangerous concept because it means that if this is true, there will be people already out there who could be destined to end your life when they come into contact with you or any other type of possibility of demise upon your life.  Now, if one believes that this is a true claim, I can understand how they believe or want to believe that Genesis Chapters 1-3 do not exist and that those texts are a lie for it goes totally against the scientific logic of our existence for these chapters clearly define our freedom of choice and how we at any moment can change our beliefs according to how we feel or think.  Do you understand the difference between these two concepts?  One believes that you are predetermined and you can do nothing to change such outcomes and the other teaches that you have the overall choice of what to believe and how to act.  Now, I ask you, which setting in our lives teaches that you can do anything you want as long as it follows a trend and that there is absolutely nothing wrong with a person when they do such an act, versus the one who teaches that all of us are subject to our consequences yet has an escape plan in place for our redemption?

In a predetermined lifestyle, a person cannot be alive on any level since they are already programmed to live such an existence, in truth they have no choice in any matter.  The Bible teaches us differently for it actually defines our truth as humans and presents us with the evidence that we were created with an independent mind and heart with the ability to think and to choose accordingly.  These two comparisons contrast each other quite significantly and so goes the definition of the two kingdoms that are currently, have been, and will be fighting for your eternity.  We would expect this type of contrast to be presented when two people of opposing beliefs come face to face with each other but for it to exist between two believers is quite extraordinary, or is it.  The question of if the two biblical Testaments are connected is one that many have answers to and just as it has been stated in the previous sentence, many variations as well.  This division all stems and boils down to if one believes that Jesus Christ is the true and holy Son of God or not and if one believes that He came to this earth for a Divine and specific purpose, which is the focus of this article that God wants us to take a hold of today.  We never can forget that eternity is not subject to science but that science is subject to eternity, for it is God and His definition that defines eternity and the holiness and purity that it represents.

In the previous article we learned about Mark 16:12-15 and what it meant for us to go into all of the world and preach the gospel of Christ and how if we are not doing this on a routine and daily basis that we can harbor atheistic tendencies which can lead to our total falling away from God.  We also learned that if we do not study God’s Word more than a book or novel we read that our hearts are no longer in touch and in tune with God and that the atheistic conditions are stronger than previously noted and should be taken accounted for immediately.  Here, we continue with Mark 16:15 but we are going to focus on two words and those two words are the last two of this verse.  Mark 16:15 states as follows: “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”  I love it when God uses a short and simple verse to illustrate and to answer a dynamic question to those who do not understand the connection between what we refer to as the Old Testament and to the New Testament.  This verse alone continues what God commanded Adam and Eve to do in the Garden of Eden, so connected that the command is spoken by Jesus in two words.

The two words that are the focal point is “every creature” and it is these two words that tie Jesus’ command to His Church to that of the command God gave to Adam and Eve in the Garden for it represents the exact same command.  When God told Adam to dress and to keep the Garden of Eden He did so in a manner to which He meant it to be a warning about obedience and how important it was for him to complete this command at all times.  It was the act of disobedience that led to Adam and Eve’s downfall and subsequently humanity from that point onward.  Adam and Eve understood the importance of this command yet over time fell wary of its meaning and importance for we can ascertain this fact by our own methods of dealing with issues and rules today.  Adam and Eve were humans just like us and they had every opportunity to make the choice of whether or not to obey the rule that was before them.  They chose to listen to the ruler of the world and allow sin to enter into their presence and it was through this act of disobedience that has led to the state of affairs that is contained within our innermost portion of our lives, death.

The impact of death was immediately felt in Adam and Eve and this feeling of death continues in our bodies today.  Death is the single most feared word that humans have in the languages we speak.  It is bad enough that our lives have to end at a certain point in time that we have to shorten that lifespan by committing horrific acts of violence and other means of physical destruction against one another.  It was not too much longer after sin entered into the lives of humans that we read about the first murder of another human, a far grasp from the total serenity and holiness type of living experienced in the Garden of Eden.  All fear death and this final physical act that everyone has to deal with actually starts the eternal phase of our existence and it is this existence that represents the most important phase of our lives for once this is the only side of our lives that is present our choices are permanent and cannot be changed.

In Mark 16:15 we have two words that tie the command together and it is through these two words that God once again presents Himself as a constant, pure, and holy Creator.  Every creature represents every aspect of life and it is life that all of us seek to have for as long as possible.  When Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden they did not have to worry about their lives endings for they were created in a perfect manner but when sin entered into their lives their entire world changed as they knew it which should have triggered a thought of the future for all people in their minds.  We cannot forget that the choices we make today will have some type of effect on our children or our societies in the future and whether we like it or not we need to ensure for as long as possible the safety and guarantees of God and not the world.  Mark tells us that Jesus told His disciples to go and preach the gospel to every creature, this means everyone who truly believes in Jesus participates and everyone obeys this command for it is the exact words from His Father in the Garden of Eden to the humans then.

The parallel that exists between these two passages lies within both of the biblical settings in which the places and times of the two commands represent an unwavering and constant command, obedience.  It is easy to become focused on the words that were commanded themselves instead of focusing on the fact that the words given to the humans were of a holy origin and were meant to be fulfilled at all times by all participants.  God does not want a bunch of programmed robots running around saying a rehearsed message to those who need Him, He wants to have an intimate relationship with every person that He has created for it is through this relationship that He will communicate with us to then communicate with others in a specific manner so that they will know Him and His eternal love for them.  If we do not have this inner connection then the words of both settings become superficial and mean nothing which is exactly what Satan wants them to become.  Satan did a masterful work in the Garden of Eden to rob what God had given and today he is working the exact same “magic” on our hearts today to obtain identical results.

God gave Adam and Eve dominion over every tree and plant in the Garden of Eden, and Jesus gave us dominion over every creature to be witnesses to and to tell of the truth about Jesus and His presence on the earth.  Remember that the plants and trees of the Garden of Eden were alive and needed to be kept up which means that if they were not then their presence would not be in the order that God designed them to be.  Jesus gave the same command to His disciples in the same manner for He knew that if we did not do this command as we should that the children who came after Him would be in the same disarray as the failed attempts of Adam and Eve if they did not obey.  Our purpose in life is to ensure that every person is groomed according to the commands and laws of God, not the ways of the world that so many teach, the world cannot produce anything that involves life, only God can do this miracle.  In other words, a part of our dominion that we need to keep up is defined in the command that Jesus gave to His Church and that is for us to go and to preach the gospel to those who need to hear about God no matter where it takes us in the world.

The command of obedience from God to His children is alive and does not represent anything else but life.  The command itself is not based on the words but on the principle of the concept and truth of obedience.  All of God’s definition is important and it is imperative that we understand all of His definition God obeys His Laws in all ways and at all time which means that He expects His children to do the same for if God disobeyed His Laws He would essentially be disobeying Himself which would pose as the eternal damnation of all life as we know it, plus prove Satan to be correct.  When God’s children obey His commands, the future effects of human life are astoundingly healthy on all levels for this obedience counteracts the means of sin that disobedience portrays.  We cannot forget that obedience and disobedience are products of Kingdom and the kingdom or Kingdom in which it presents rests solely on our acts of either process.  Kingdom advancement, no matter which kingdom one refers to, is advanced or declined by either obedience or disobedience which means that this process is alive in our lives and includes our past, present, and future.  Now, place this concept on a national level and you have the explanation as to why our nation and other nations alike are either in trouble or are stable.

We cannot deny the fact that Both Testaments of the Bible are linked and that they represent a common bond which runs in tandem with each other and the definition of God.  The bottom line is that obedience brings life and to be more specifically eternal life and the only way to obtain this eternal status is to obey God and His Ways.  God’s eternal plan for our lives has not changed and it has been in place even before we were created and this means that it is still intact today and easily rendered if we only accept His Son as our Savior.  It is not the idea of God or the Way of God for us to take any other matter into our hands than to keep our dominion pure and holy before His Eyes.  It is not ours to increase the dominion that God gave us, it is His authority alone that secures our perimeters so why is it our belief that we can interject selfish ways into our lives in order to keep our dominion up?  The answer to that question is simple, this occurs when we allow the ruler of the world to overshadow the eternal truth and have a position and then legal say in our lives.

If one wishes to argue the fact concerning the meaning of these two passages, let them for when studies both they will find that the words used in both passages are the same and represents one single meaning and way to the truth concerning obedience and dominion.  Adam and Eve were required to give their all to ensure their all was secure and kept up according to the standards of God.  Jesus gave the exact same command to His disciples, which in turn means He gave this command to us.  The word “us” represents the Church and it is this command that we should be doing not practicing any other practice for our worldly position of popularity condition.  Ultimately, we cannot control what people believe; however, it is our responsibility to put the eternal truth out to everyone so that the ones who are looking for the truth about their existence can hear it.  It is this truth that is alive and is what changes people’s lives an hearts if they wish to understand, obey and then follow.

But the Church has sat on her hands and not delivered this message to the world thus not keeping their dominion from the Garden of Eden and therefore not keeping the command to preach the gospel to every creature either.  This lack of obedience is called sin and the greatest disobedient act occurs when we do not keep what Jesus told us to do and that is to tell others.  If we do not tell them about eternal life and how it is to live free from the bondage of this world and its ruler, what life can we offer to others on any level?  For if we do not tell others about God and His Son we cannot offer anything else but the world and the world can only represent pain, suffering, and ultimate death.  Church, we need to once again burn with the fire of God so that His light may reach those who are in darkness and it is “us” who has this responsibility to shine.  Repent Church, and get off our duffs and hit the world with the love of God and tell those who do not know, that Jesus and eternal life is alive!

DLB