“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
John 3:16 has been called “The Gospel in a nutshell” because it provides a stunningly succinct summary of the doctrine of the Christian faith.”
Whooooah Nellie! This verse provides a stunningly succinct summary of the doctrine of faith in God’s plan for all humanity for all time.
“being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high…he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name / title…
For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.” (Hebrews 1:1-6)
As explained in an article by Dr. Gibbs quoted in a previous post, “Begotten Son” is not an entitlement deriving from physical procreation.
Only Begotten Son is an honor bestowed by the father onto one of his many sons.
Notice also how the New Testament defines Isaac as Abraham’s “only begotten son”, despite the fact that Abraham physically fathered Ishmael as well. The passage explains why – because Isaac was “called”, or proclaimed, or legally pronounced, written in the will AKA covenant, The Legitimate Heir who accurately reflects the Father and does the Father’s will.
“By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called:” (Hebrews 11:17-18)
“And Sarai Abram’s wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife. And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived…(Gen 16:3-4) And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife…I will…give thee a son ALSO of her…And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live [after me as my heir] before thee!
- And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.
- And as for Ishmael, I have heard [endorsed, agreed to] thee: Behold,
- I have blessed him,
- and will make him fruitful [in his endeavors, successful]
- and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget,
- and I will make him a great nation [dynasty, lineage, forever living on in his seed].
- BUT my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.” (Genesis 17:15-21)
Jesus Christ of the New Testament can only be understood as the “only begotten son of God” in the context of the everlasting covenant God made with Adam to restore dominion of creation to him through The Seed of the Woman. Jesus’ unique status as the Seed of the Woman fathered by God is well documented in Old Testament prophecies and New Testament records.
“And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.
- So also Christ glorified not himself to be made [as Micah had] an high priest; but he that said [with authority pronounced as in “I hereby declare you man and wife.”] unto him, Thou art my Son, TODAY have I begotten thee.
- As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest….” (Hebrews 5:4-6)
I propose that we are so focused on the fact that Jesus is the mono-genes, the uniquely begotten Son of God that we are overlooking that, as the example of Abraham proves, there can in fact be other, just genos, begotten offspring sons of God. This is, after all, how biblical salvation is achieved.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,” (I Peter 1:3-4)
If we New Covenant sons of God don’t understand that our predecessor Old Covenant sons of God define the role that we are expected to fill, we won’t be fully functional.
“the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts…Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?
The LORD will cut off the man that doeth this…Ye have wearied the LORD with your words…When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the LORD…or, Where is the God of judgment?” (Malachi 2:7-17)
For example, God’s promise to be a father to David’s son is the guarantee of the joining of identities for the purpose of legitimacy and empowerment. Just like a marriage sacrament in which two become one, God had done the same with David and his predecessors.
“I have found David my servant…With whom my hand shall be established…He shall cry unto me, Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.” (Psalm 89:20-26)
The big deal in the commitment God made with David is not that he would be his father – that is standard practice for theocratic kings – but that David’s house(hold) / dynasty would endure forever.
Those who filter this Old Testament statement through a New Testament lens of the finished work of Christ often interpret “forever” as avoiding hell and living in heaven after we die, with most of Christians going about life on earth as if nothing extraordinary happened when we accepted Jesus as our savior.
But the original Old Testament audience only had their culture and preceding scripture on which to base their understanding, passages like “the seed of the woman will crush the head of the serpent.”
And so did the New Testament writers who claim that we believers in Jesus are empowered by the priest-king Melchizedek of the whole world to defeat death in this lifetime.
“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.” (Ephesians 6:12)
Wherein in time past ye [Ephesian Gentile believers] walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom ALSO [Jews including Paul] WE ALL had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together [now] with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)” (Ephesian 2:1-5)
The us includes Old Covenant Bible believers. Who else did Jesus release from prison?
There is one body, and one Spirit, [by whom] even as ye [also] are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all…Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive…(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?…And hath raised us up together – [not only Jews and Gentiles, but Old Covenant and New Covenant participants], and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:…(Ephesians 4:4-10)
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, [even by Old Covenant participants] lest any man should boast…” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report…By faith Abel… Enoch… Noah… Abraham… Sarah… Isaac… Jacob… Joseph… Moses… Rahab… time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, obtained promises, wrought righteousness, stopped the mouths of lions. Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented…these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not THE promise [of restoration of eternal life]: God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect [complete, whole as a body].”(Hebrews 11)
“Wherefore seeing WE also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let US lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset US, and let US run with patience the race that is set before US…consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye [unlike the preceding list] have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.” (Hebrews 12)
What it means to be priests and kings in the order of Melchizedek is that it is our responsibility to take dominion over the territory granted to us by God. We have to win it back from Satan, who currently has control over much of the earth and its population. He is in fact:
- king of the kings of the world who submit to him – “And the devil, taking him [Jesus] up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me [by his subjects; and to whomsoever I will I give it [he is a liar, does not give in return what he promised in a contract].” (Luke 4:5-6)
- ” the god of this world [who] hath blinded the minds of them which believe not” (II Corinthians 4:4)
Like Hitler, Satan is catapulted to the highest position of government by humans who, lured by his lies promising power and wealth, put themselves under his authority.
“…every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” (James 1:14-15)
These passages are all examples of spiritual law – unalterable consequences – just like the laws of physics. As described in earlier posts, Yahweh’s Appointed Savior, the man Christ Jesus, legally reversed the human action that transferred dominion to Satan, thereby transferring dominion back to himself as a human, and to all humans who identify with him. Adam disobeyed God and submitted to Satan. Christ Jesus obeyed God and refused to submit to Satan. It’s really that simple.
And this is how we mere humans get out from under Satan’s tyranny, experienced in human bondage and misery in drug addiction, emotional disorders, broken families, financial ruin and political chaos. We obey God’s Word. Don’t over-spiritualize the following passage or limit its application to the future. It applies to us now.
“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 [that’s exactly what we do when we make ourselves the authority of our life choices]: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and…humbled himself, and became obedient…Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him…That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth…” (Philippians 2:6-11)
When Yahweh’s Anointed Savior came to earth, he had two separate missions:
“From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand [in earth as it is in heaven.]” (Matthew 4:17)
“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” (Mark 1:14-15)
The kingdom of heaven exists from creation in physical qualities, but the spiritual kingdom of God is within a person in spiritual qualities of righteousness and eternal life.
“…behold, the kingdom of God is within you. (Luke 17:21)
“For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.” (Ro 14:17)
The real estate of heaven and earth is not the most valuable part of dominion. The humans who populate the kingdom are. Humans can escape from the kingdom of darkness and find refuge and new life in the kingdom of God.
“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:” (Colossians 1:12-14)
Granting citizenship in the kingdom to immigrants who flock to the promise of a better life is not the same thing as restoring dominion / rule. Humans must prove themselves worthy to reign with Christ. That’s not all believers. Only those who follow their king into battle qualify to inherit a government post within God’s kingdom.
“This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Gal 5:16-21)
“If we suffer [prove our loyalty and commitment like every fairy tale prince and princess], we shall also reign with him:” (II Tim 2:12)
“And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” (Rev 20:4)
Kingdom Come 