Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | October 19, 2015

Wisdom and Knowledge versus Obedience

A Sad Mystery Revealed in the Bible

For many years now I have, from time to time, pondered the mystery of King Solomon. This was a man who seemed to have anything his heart desired, a man of great wealth, noted for his wisdom and famous in his own time and the ages that would follow; yet he was the one who destroyed the nation of Israel. What a wild contradiction, how could that have possibly happened?

At a critical point in his life, Solomon, made an important decision, he asked God for wisdom and knowledge. In 2 Chronicles 1:7-12 we read:

“7 That night God appeared to Solomon and said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!”

8 Solomon replied to God, “You showed great and faithful love to David, my father, and now you have made me king in his place. 9 O Lord God, please continue to keep your promise to David my father, for you have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth! 10 Give me the wisdom and knowledge to lead them properly, for who could possibly govern this great people of yours?”

11 God said to Solomon, “Because your greatest desire is to help your people, and you did not ask for wealth, riches, fame, or even the death of your enemies or a long life, but rather you asked for wisdom and knowledge to properly govern my people— 12 I will certainly give you the wisdom and knowledge you requested. But I will also give you wealth, riches, and fame such as no other king has had before you or will ever have in the future!”

At first that appears to be a wise choice on Solomon’s part and is certainly a gracious response on God’s part but let’s see how it all played out.

The Mosaic Law

Solomon was subject to the Mosaic Law as was every other Israeli. The Mosaic Law was intended to provide guidance and direction for the Jewish people and to keep them out of trouble. Obedience to the law ensured success while disobedience to the law invited failure and disaster; we see this time after time in the Old Testament.

 How did Solomon do as a follower of  the Mosaic Law, was he faithful or was he unfaithful? Let’s look at his record and see.

In 1 Kings 2:1-4 we read,

1 As the time of King David’s death approached, he gave this charge to his son Solomon:

2 “I am going where everyone on earth must someday go. Take courage and be a man. 3 Observe the requirements of the Lord your God, and follow all his ways. Keep the decrees, commands, regulations, and laws written in the Law of Moses so that you will be successful in all you do and wherever you go. 4 If you do this, then the Lord will keep the promise he made to me. He told me, ‘If your descendants live as they should and follow me faithfully with all their heart and soul, one of them will always sit on the throne of Israel.’

That was very good advice from David to his son but sadly, Solomon would not follow that advice therefore his descendants did not always sit on the throne of Israel. More importantly, the Lord Jesus Christ’s physical genealogy does not include Solomon but comes through his brother, Nathan. In Luke 3:23-38 we find what is believed to be the genealogy of Mary which shows the Messianic line going from David to Nathan, not to Solomon as shown in the Matthew genealogy shown in Matthew 1:1-16 which is believed to be the genealogy through Joseph.

Solomon’s disobedience to the commands of the Mosaic Law resulted in both the division of the nation and the loss of the Messianic line which was given to his brother, Nathan.

Some examples of how King Solomon ignored the Mosaic Law are shown in Deuteronomy 17:16-17 where it is written:

16 “The king must not build up a large stable of horses for himself or send his people to Egypt to buy horses, for the Lord has told you, ‘You must never return to Egypt.’ 17 The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will turn his heart away from the Lord. And he must not accumulate large amounts of wealth in silver and gold for himself.”

Concerning horses and chariots it is written in 1 Kings 4:26:

“26 Solomon had 4,000 stalls for his chariot horses, and he had 12,000 horses.

And then in 1 Kings 10:28 we read:

“28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Cilicia; the king’s traders acquired them from Cilicia at the standard price.”

Regarding many wives in 1 Kings 11:1-9 we read:

“11 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharaoh’s daughter, he married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from among the Hittites. 2 The Lord had clearly instructed the people of Israel, “You must not marry them, because they will turn your hearts to their gods.” Yet Solomon insisted on loving them anyway. 3 He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines.”

4 In Solomon’s old age, they turned his heart to worship other gods instead of being completely faithful to the Lord his God, as his father, David, had been. 5 Solomon worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6 In this way, Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; he refused to follow the Lord completely, as his father, David, had done.

7 On the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, he even built a pagan shrine for Chemosh, the detestable god of Moab, and another for Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites. 8 Solomon built such shrines for all his foreign wives to use for burning incense and sacrificing to their gods.”

Regarding wealth; in 1 Kings 10:14-25 it is written:

“14 Each year Solomon received about 25 tons of gold. 15 This did not include the additional revenue he received from merchants and traders, all the kings of Arabia, and the governors of the land.

16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of hammered gold, each weighing more than fifteen pounds. 17 He also made 300 smaller shields of hammered gold, each weighing nearly four pounds. The king placed these shields in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.

18 Then the king made a huge throne, decorated with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps and a rounded back. There were armrests on both sides of the seat, and the figure of a lion stood on each side of the throne. 20 There were also twelve other lions, one standing on each end of the six steps. No other throne in all the world could be compared with it!

21 All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were solid gold, as were all the utensils in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. They were not made of silver, for silver was considered worthless in Solomon’s day!

22 The king had a fleet of trading ships of Tarshish that sailed with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the ships returned, loaded with gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.

23 So King Solomon became richer and wiser than any other king on earth. 24 People from every nation came to consult him and to hear the wisdom God had given him. 25 Year after year everyone who visited brought him gifts of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.”

In today’s terms King Solomon could have had a net worth in excess of 100 billion dollars.

Next time we will consider the consequences of disobedience.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | October 12, 2015

Your Resplendent Virtue Concluded

The Duality of our Existence

In part 1 of this series we explored the duality of our mortal lives; we have both a positional reality and an experiential reality. Whereas our positional reality has provided us a perfection through the shed blood of Christ, which is undeserved and unearned, our experiential reality finds us in a temporary clay jar, our human bodies, as we fight in the spiritual war as soldiers of the cross. To further complicate matters we share the clay jar with a traitor, our sin nature, which is continuously trying to compromise our ability to wage successful battle in the spiritual war in which we find ourselves.

God, in His matchless grace, has joined forces with us in the clay jar in the person of the Holy Spirit; our clay jar is occupied by us, our sin nature, the Lord Jesus Christ, and God, the Holy Spirit. This occupancy was sequential; you, spiritually dead, and your sin nature have occupied the clay jar since you were conceived. The Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit came into you and brought your dead spirit back to life at the point you received Christ as Savior but the sin nature, although crucified, can still influence your life if you let it.

I like to visualize the sin nature as a zombie from one of the all too many zombie movies. Although it is seductive it is also ugly and repulsive so why would anyone want to follow its lead?

The Earnest of our Inheritance

Positionally we have been guaranteed that our place in heaven is secure and given a down payment on the blessings to come. In Ephesians 1:13b-14 we are told:

“And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14 The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.”

That has to be the most wonderful, remarkable thing that has ever happened to mankind, God, the Holy Spirit, coming to live in each of us forever. As Christians this is one of the blessings we enjoy right now from God.

A Tarnished Temple?

In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 the Apostle Paul poses a question:

19 Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.”

Then in Galatians 2:20 we are told:

“20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

How do we reconcile Christ living in us and our place as a temple of God the Holy Spirit with the fact we continue to sin? The answer to that is given in 1 John 1:8-10 where it is written:

“8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.”

When we confess our sins to God and turn control of our lives over to the Holy Spirit then the Holy Spirit can then manifest the fruit of the Spirit in our lives as described in Galatians 5:22-25 where it is written:

“22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. 25 Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.”

When the Holy Spirit is controlling in our lives we can shine with resplendent virtue. It is true the temple may need occasional polishing when we commit personal sin, but confession of sin quenches the power of the sin nature and restores the Holy Spirit to control in our experiential existence.

The Resplendent Virtue of Christ

Our position in Christ results in the imputation of Christ’s virtuous righteousness to all of us who have been born again by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and God. This virtue is not something we deserve and there was no way we could have ever earned it; it is a free gift from God based on Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

When the Father looks at you He sees the shed blood of Christ and the resplendent virtue of the Lord Jesus Christ. This gift of virtue has been given to you as a free gift because you became a follower of the Lord Jesus and is yours to enjoy for all of time and eternity.

In summary then we always shine with resplendent virtue from a positional perspective and can shine with resplendent virtue when the Holy Spirit leads in our lives here on earth. Our objective then must be to let the Holy Spirit control in our lives all the time. We walk by faith and not by sight.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | October 6, 2015

Your Resplendent Virtue

Do You Shine with a Virtue Resplendent?

I’m a fan of Gilbert and Sullivan and enjoy one of their lesser know works, “Trial by Jury.” This was their first truly successful collaboration and exhibits all of the sparkle and humor that was to characterize their later, better known, works.

The story centers on a trial in a British courtroom concerning a breach of promise of marriage and Gilbert, as was his way, fires literary arrows at the British judicial system as he later would at almost every other major British institution.

In one scene the all male jury, after hearing the defendant’s pleadings, expresses their collective opinion on the merits of his defense as they sing these words:

         Oh, I was like that when a lad!

               A shocking young scamp of a rover,

          I behaved like a regular cad;

               But that sort of thing is all over.

          I’m now a respectable chap

               And shine with a virtue resplendent

          And, therefore, I haven’t a scrap

               Of sympathy with the defendant!

                    He shall treat us with awe,

                    If there isn’t a flaw,

          Singing so merrily–Trial‑la‑law!

          Trial-la-law!  Trial-la-law!

          Singing so merrily–Trial‑la‑law!

In case you’re wondering it all ends well and once the trial is over everyone leaves happily.

Now Back to the Question

Do you shine with a virtue resplendent and if you believe you do then why and if you believe you don’t then why? I think it would be safe to say that all Christians would like to appear virtuous with the glow of the stained glass window falling across their faces, as the expression goes; we see a lot of that in church.

We have a problem though with our experience; we, better than any other person, know the depths of our depravity and the struggle we have with the various forms of personal sin. Generally we may feel rather tarnished and just hope no one notices, hence the piety pose that is so popular among Christians.

The Bible reinforces that concern where in 1 John 1:8-10 it is written:

“8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.”

On the other hand the Bible also offers wonderful reassurance when in Romans 8:1-5 it is written:

“8 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. 2 And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. 3 The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. 4 He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.”

From these verses we see that “God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins.” “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” Although we still commit sins, we are no longer judged for them because of Christ’s death on the cross. It would appear we are both resplendent and tarnished at the same time so how does that work?

The Duality of our Existence

Fortunately the Bible offers the explanation we need to resolve this question. Whereas we are finite creatures of beginnings and endings our creator is the omnipotent timeless God who sees the past, present, and the future with equal clarity.

All who have received Christ as Savior have a positional reality and an experiential reality at the same time. Positionally we are already blessed with eternal blessings that surpass our ability to even imagine. In Ephesians 2:4-7 we read:

“4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) 6 For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. 7 So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.”

We can only know this to be true by faith, not by feeling; God tells us this is our situation therefore we know it to be true! The truth of our positional reality can only be discerned by faith in God’s revelation to us in the Bible. This is something we know to be true even though we cannot feel it experientially.

When we are told to confess our sins to God, this has everything to do with our experiential reality and nothing to do with our positional reality. It is heresy to suggest we can lose our salvation if we commit personal sin; our salvation has been secured by Christ’s death on the cross and is not reversible.

Next time we will consider our experience as a temple of the Holy Spirit.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | October 1, 2015

A New Life in Kenya

The Birth of Joshua Mose

Joshua

On Tuesday morning, September 22, 2015 I received the following email from a Christian Pastor in Kenya, Kennedy Mose, concerning the birth of his son, Joshua.

“Dear brother David,
Great what can i say i as Pastor Kennedy it is beyond human and profession of this world!!!real God turned the impossibility to possibility!!!yes i know you are real very eager to hear,now we have Joshua Mose and the nickname is “Pastor David Junior”
Brother allow me please to let you know briefly how Christ Glorified Himself to the Hospital and,especially the mighty miracle that Happened in the Hospital that made even the Doctors to remain wondering.Briefly, took my wife to the hospital called CANA Located Lunga Lunga Road opposite Mukuru Kwa Reuben where i stay during the morning ours about 8.00A.M and the Doctors there said her condition was so deteriorating and therefore were not in apposition to offer Treatment in the Hospital and they Referred her to PUMWANI MATERNITY HOSPITAL.

Pumwani Maternity HospitalPumwani Maternity Hospital Ambulance

We arrived at the referred Hospital about 3.p.m and due to the many patients she was admitted at 7.00p.m.and the Doctor took here for frequent medical tests where finally the Doctor came out with the result that The Child was big that Could not be delivered normally and therefore suggested that she should undergo surgery.from there they called me to sign down the Documents that i accept at any in outcome that may a rise when she undergoes the exercise.From there i remember my wife telling me”my dear i know now i am on the knives,please have me in prayers for if it is God’s will for me to pass let it be and if not God will take control!!”i also responded that my dear nothing impossible before the Lord and he will not forsake his Chosen”so i left her to be prepared for Theater! i and my church member,a Lady( Millicent Nyanchera married to Duke and blessed two children) who volunteered to accompany us started Shading tears and lied down the floor in the hospital.i real have a very strong believe that due to our common prayer despite our regional difference we contributed towards claiming the lives of two(my wife and Child).i also went outside and i started meditating and praying while crying as Child,silently asking God to do is miracle for my prayer was”i love my wife and the to be born Child.When i finished Praying and returned to the building the Doctor said.All of those that were not sick or ill let them leave the building and go outside to the Ground.so we complied.
my wife was the next person to undergo surgery after the one that she was in Theater.Brother,Believe me!my wife gave birth while she is approaching the gate to theater successively without any help from either Doctors aid but by the grace and the mighty power.now those who witnessed us while praying and Crying there and started choking,were all surprised even the Doctors themselves.Brother since the Night the nation knew that their is God of Elijah who do not depend on man’s conclusion or man’s understanding,He is the Leaving God,Precious God Who will not forsake is People.since the night up to now i am praying to people who are undergoing Labor Process.my wife is doing well and my Blessed son Joshua.The Doctors told me that i have to give her enough time and to themselves to see the health of the Child and will discharge them soon by now there are some expenses i am undergoing and awaiting for discharge fees.
Shalom,
Pastor Kennedy

DSC00008 (2)The Brave and Blessed Mother and Son

DSC00009Peeking into the Ward – Mom is Smiling so all Must be Well

Kennedy Mose from Facebook PhotoPastor Kennedy Mose

Let us join with Pastor Kennedy and his family in praising God for the successful birth of Joshua and the continued safety and health of both mother and child.

This has been a year of both joy and sorrow for Pastor Kennedy and his family; on May 6th of this year Pastor Kennedy’s youngest sister was drowned in the heavy flooding that hit Kisii, Kenya leaving two girls, 5 and 3, behind.

Younger Sister who drowned 2 5-6-15Home with the Lord

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | September 23, 2015

You Are Not Going to Die Again!

A Question for You!

I closed my last essay on “Take up Your Cross and Follow Me” with a question. I was probably going to write on it even if no one responded because I believe it to be such an important part of the total picture.

I had written, “In Hebrews 9:27 we are told, “27 And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment.” Let’s review what has happened to us to this point. Our spirit died in the Garden with Adam, but when we received Christ as Savior, our old sinful nature, which we inherited from Adam, died with Christ on the cross as our spirit was brought back to life by the power of God; so that leaves only our mortal bodies which must experience death or transformation at the Rapture of the Church, whichever comes first.

A simple analogy that works for me is to think of a long car trip home; when you get home you get out of the car and go into the house. Your mortal body is your transportation through life on this earth as you make your way home. The really good news is when we get home we’re getting new transportation; an infinitely improved model with a warranty that lasts forever!

An Important Distinction to Keep in Mind

On a more serious note we should remember that our existence has a dual nature by design. This is explained in Genesis 1:26-27:

26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”

27 So God created human beings in his own image.
    In the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them.

More details are provided in Genesis 2:7:

7 Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person.

Please carefully note the body was formed from the dust of the ground but the life God placed in the body was breathed into the body by God and was in His own image; the implications of being made in the image of God are enormous!

Therefore although our life essence was created in the image of God, it was placed in a body made from the dust of the earth, in a clay jar as Paul would write in 2 Corinthians 4:7:

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

The First Deaths Recorded in Scripture

If you ask many Christians which was the first death recorded in Scripture the answer would be the death of Abel but that is not correct. The first deaths recorded in Scripture were the spiritual deaths of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. I’ve written on this in greater detail in my essay  The End of Edenic Bliss.

God told Adam in Genesis 2:16-17:

16 But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden— 17 except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”

When Adam disobeyed God he died spiritually immediately but was still alive physically; not until many years later would Adam die physically.

Now Let’s Get Back to Us

Spiritually we died in Adam in the Garden of Eden (which makes Adam the most horrific mass murderer in the history of humanity) and were born spiritually dead at the point of our physical birth. We were made spiritually alive when we were born again by the power of the Holy Spirit and no part of our life essence will ever die again. Our mortal bodies are another matter entirely. These clay jars we occupy came into being when we were conceived in our mother’s womb and will live until they too die or are transformed at the Rapture.

In their present form they are truly a very temporary abode; Paul writes of this in 2 Corinthians 5:1-5

5 For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. 2 We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. 3 For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. 4 While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. 5 God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.

How does the idea of trading in your clay jar for an eternal heavenly body made by God sound to you?

 God promises us this cycle of sin and death is coming to an end; in Revelation 20:11-15 it is written:

11 And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from his presence, but they found no place to hide. 12 I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up its dead, and death and the grave gave up their dead. And all were judged according to their deeds. 14 Then death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death. 15 And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.

If the lake of fire is the second death for those rejecting Christ as Savior, then when did their first death happen; their first death was their spiritual death in Adam in the Garden of Eden. They have gone through their entire mortal existence spiritually dead then die their second death in the lake of fire. Hence it is written in Mark 8:36-37:

“36 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? 37 Is anything worth more than your soul?

In Acts 16:30-31 we are given God’s remedy for this horrible fate:

30 Then he brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, along with everyone in your household.”

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | September 18, 2015

Take up Your Cross and Follow Me!

Taking Up Your Cross

A Christian friend in India wrote to me recently asking about the meaning of Matthew 10:38. Having heard so many different interpretations of that verse I decided to offer what I believe to be the Biblical interpretation of its meaning.

In Matthew 10:38 is written:

“38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”

What was Rome’s Point?

Taking up your cross was essentially an admission that you agreed with Rome on your punishment; Rome was right in requiring your death and you demonstrated your agreement by carrying your own cross on which you were to die.

As Christians when we take up our cross we are admitting God is right, we are worthy of death and the only answer to our problem is death on the cross.

We carried our cross when we identified ourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ and demonstrated in our lives that we belong to Christ and were spiritually joined with Him as our old nature was crucified with Christ.

When were you Crucified?

Taking up your cross is one thing but being crucified puts it into another realm entirely; this is getting serious. When were we crucified? Let’s let Paul explain this to us in Romans 6:6-11 where it is written:

“6 Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? 2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? 3 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? 4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.

5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. 9 We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. 10 When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. 11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.”

What Does this Mean?

Taking up our cross was an admission that we agreed with God, we were incorrigible as we were, we were beyond any hope of redemption; there was absolutely nothing we could do on our own that would save us. Our only hope was for our old nature to die so we could be raised again with Christ and be born again by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The baptism Paul is talking about here is the baptism of the Holy Spirit which places us into the eternal assembly, the body of Christ. Paul clarifies this point in 1 Corinthians 12:13b where it is written:

“But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.”

Water baptism is a symbolic, public acknowledgement of what had already happened in our lives at the spiritual level when we were born again by faith.

As those who have already been crucified we no longer take up our cross but must be focused on the work and ministry of our Lord and let Him live His life through us.

My favorite life verse is Galatians 2:20 where it is written:

“20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

So you see, as Christians we have already taken up our cross and followed Christ in death. Our old nature died with Christ on the cross when we received Christ as Savior and the lives we now live is the life of Christ; we live by faith in the Son of God.

I’ll leave you with a question. If we died in Christ then what is this event we call death? In Hebrews 9:27 we are told, “27 And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment” Anyone interested in pursuing that line of inquiry?

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | September 15, 2015

The Golden Door of Opportunity

How Exciting, it’s still Open!

The Feast of Trumpets has passed for 2015 and we’re still here on earth; all this says to me is the incredible opportunity to participate in the eternal assembly, the body of Christ, is still open to all who will enter the golden door of salvation by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

In the ages to come the great advantages of being a part of the church will become very clear to all. Why we have been so blessed is known only to God but we have been very greatly blessed by being a part of the church.

I have addressed this in my essay on “God’s Second Greatest Gift” and encourage you to review some the blessings that God is giving to those who become Christians in this age of grace; you can find it here: God’s Second Greatest Gift

I’m sure we all have friends and perhaps family members we hope will take advantage of this delay; perhaps God’s abundant grace can be extended to them as well.

2 For God says,

“At just the right time, I heard you.
    On the day of salvation, I helped you.”

Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.

2 Corinthians 6:2

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | September 14, 2015

Is there any hope for Salvation after the Rapture of the Church? Concluded

The Gospel Message after the Rapture

The Bible’s focus for the end times is on Israel so the Bible narrative really picks up after Israel signs the covenant agreement with the Antichrist. Starting in Revelation 4 the church is no longer mentioned and Israel has taken center stage.

While it is true God is increasing the pressure on the world we may see this, in effect, as the foxhole conversion scenario; the increasing pressure shows those left behind they are not up to the task of survival on their own.

It is likely the Rapture event itself will serve as a catalyst for many to believe in Jesus Christ as Savior. It is certainly going to produce chaos in the United States and to some lesser degree in other nations around the world.

The 144,000 Apostle Paul’s

In 1 Corinthians 15:8 the Apostle Paul writes, “And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.” I like to think of this in two ways, Paul may have been writing about the lateness of his arrival on the scene but I also like to think of him as a type of the 144,000 Jews who will evangelize the world during the Tribulation.

There will be 144,000 Jewish young men who are walking down the road, so to speak, when suddenly they are called by the Lord Jesus Christ into His service. I am convinced they will proceed with their ministries with the same enthusiasm we see in the Apostle Paul. Revelation 7

The Two Witnesses

In Revelation 11 the ministry of the two witnesses is described; they will be a thorn in the side of the world as they bear testimony to the Lord Jesus Christ. In verses 7 and following the narrative picks up:

7 When they complete their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the bottomless pit will declare war against them, and he will conquer them and kill them. 8 And their bodies will lie in the main street of Jerusalem, the city that is figuratively called “Sodom” and “Egypt,” the city where their Lord was crucified. 9 And for three and a half days, all peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will stare at their bodies. No one will be allowed to bury them. 10 All the people who belong to this world will gloat over them and give presents to each other to celebrate the death of the two prophets who had tormented them.

11 But after three and a half days, God breathed life into them, and they stood up! Terror struck all who were staring at them. 12 Then a loud voice from heaven called to the two prophets, “Come up here!” And they rose to heaven in a cloud as their enemies watched.”

For centuries there was no explanation for verse 9; it was thought to be impossible for something like that to happen, there was no way for “all peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will stare at their bodies.” Now we know it is not only possible but done every day with world-wide television coverage of events being broadcast to a variety of electronic devices.

Can you imagine the terror that is struck into the hearts and minds of the viewers as those two corpses they’ve been watching suddenly come back to life? How many of those viewers do you think will suddenly start reconsidering the testimony they heard from those two witnesses?

Angelic Proclamation of the Gospel

In Revelation 14:8 we read of the testimony of one of God’s angels:

“6 And I saw another angel flying through the sky, carrying the eternal Good News to proclaim to the people who belong to this world—to every nation, tribe, language, and people. 7 “Fear God,” he shouted. “Give glory to him. For the time has come when he will sit as judge. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and all the springs of water.”

Would that get your attention? I know it would certainly get mine! Please notice how widely this message is distributed, “to proclaim to the people who belong to this world—to every nation, tribe, language, and people.” I don’t think that leaves anyone out, do you?

Those three dramatic events, four if we count the Rapture, are certainly enough to fulfill God’s promise in Matthew 24:14 wouldn’t you agree? The results in conversions to Christ by this massive evangelistic effort will be “a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb.” (Revelation 7:9) That vast crowd will just be those who have died for their faith; in addition the entire mortal population at the beginning of the Millennial Kingdom of Christ will have been converted during this terrible period as well and will repopulate the world. Talk about a holocaust survivor!

The end of this era is certain and inevitable; the Lord Jesus Christ will return at the Second Advent and bring the Times of the Gentiles to a close.

20 He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!”

Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!

21 May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s holy people.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | September 4, 2015

Is there any hope for Salvation after the Rapture of the Church?

What about those who are Left Behind?

I got a comment from a dear brother in Christ in Kenya who expressed concern about the lost who have missed the church age and were left behind after the Rapture of the church. I promised this brother to write in some detail on what opportunities might exist after the rapture to receive Christ as Savior.

There is some seriously good news in that regard; there will be many opportunities to receive Christ as Savior after the church is gone but with some big changes. The church has been particularly blessed by God’s grace in that those who receive Christ during the church age are being indwelt by the Holy Spirit who will be in them for all of time and eternity and, in addition, we have a special relationship to the Lord Jesus Christ.

After the church is removed by the Rapture, the church age will be closed and although the Holy Spirit will be with believers the Holy Spirit will not indwell believers as He has done during the church age.

Being with but not in believers was the pattern in the Old Testament and great miracles were performed in the power of the Holy Spirit by God’s anointed in those times. After the church age is closed, that same pattern will be resumed until the Second Advent of our Lord which will bring the seven years of the Tribulation and the Times of the Gentiles to a close.

One point I would like to make is the Rapture of the church is not the starting point for the Tribulation. While the Bible does not specify the amount of time between the Rapture and the beginning of the Tribulation, I believe it could be several years; the starting point for the Tribulation will be the signing of a covenant between Israel and the Antichrist.

God’s Promises and the Rapture

In his comment the subscriber wrote, “we are assured that God is not ready to see anyone missing his kingdom and by now not all people in this world have known God or have been preached to.” I believe in the first reference he is referring to the verse in 2 Peter 3:8-9 where it is written:

“8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

This might suggest the Lord will not return until everyone is saved but we know from other sections of Scripture that will never happen. If we look at the verse in context we will see that section is written to “those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours: 2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” 1 Peter 1:1-2

In other words Peter is talking to Christians and in Chapter 3:8-9 he is saying, in effect, that all those who have been called to membership in the church will come to repentance before the rapture takes place.

The second reference seems to be that section in Matthew 24:14 where it is written: “14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.“

This, I believe, is a reference to the evangelization that will take place during the Tribulation and is the subject we will cover next.

In the next blog we shall cover the evangelization explosion after the Rapture.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | August 26, 2015

Will the Church Age End on September 14, 2015?

The Promises of September, 2015

Several weeks ago I started getting questions about this coming September; much is being written about this month in the light of Bible prophecy and the end times. There seems to be a growing belief this September may be the one for which we’ve been waiting; that there will be significant changes that will affect all of us and most especially the removal of the church from the earth by the Rapture.

The fact of the matter is only the Lord knows for sure what will happen. There seems to be enough evidence accumulating to encourage those of us who eagerly anticipate the return of the Lord that His return just might take place next month. While I hope that is the case I will hasten to say I do not know if that will happen or not. Why do I feel encouraged you may ask; let’s examine some reasons why.

The Feasts and Prophecy, a Short History

The Bible tells us of God’s establishment of a series of feast days that were highly prophetic in their significance. There were three spring feasts, one summer feast and three fall feasts established in the Bible.

All of these feasts were prophetic in nature and referred to the person and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. While being established in the Old Testament their prophetic fulfillment is revealed in the New Testament; the spring and summer feasts were fulfilled at the time of the First Advent of the Lord Jesus Christ while the fulfillment of the last three fall feasts awaits the events surrounding the Second Advent of our Lord and are yet future.

The Spring and Summer Feasts Fulfilled

At the time of our Lord’s First Advent He fulfilled the prophecies associated with the spring and summer feasts.

Passover, fulfilled at the crucifixion of our Lord on April 3, AD 33

Unleavened Bread, fulfilled by the life and death of our Lord on April 4, AD33

First Fruits, fulfilled by the resurrection of our Lord on April 5, AD 33

Pentecost, the Lord sends the Holy Spirit to indwell Christians on May 25, AD 33

These dates are based on the work of Dr.Harold Hoehner in his book, “Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ.”

The Fall Feasts Await Fulfillment

What is of particular interest is the spring and summer feasts were fulfilled on the exact day of the feast; one may make the reasonable assumption the fall feasts will also be fulfilled on the exact day of the feast.

Should that be the case, the fall feasts this year would occur in September and begin on the following dates. May I remind you the Hebrew day begins at sundown.

The Feast of Trumpets, (Rosh Hashana) on September 14

The Feast of Atonement, (Yom Kippur) on  September 23

The Feast of Tabernacles, (Sukkot) on September 28

An interesting note to me is the Feast of Tabernacles is the only feast clearly mentioned as occurring during the Millennial reign of Christ as it signifies the presence of Christ with His people. Other feasts may or may not be observed and have been the topics of considerable discussion, especially Passover.

“16 Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.” Zechariah 14:16

The Feasts and the Four Blood Moons

Blood MoonThe Blood Moon

In Joel 2:30-31 and quoted by Peter in Acts 2:19-20 it is written:

30 I will show wonders in the heavens
    and on the earth,
    blood and fire and billows of smoke.
31 The sun will be turned to darkness
    and the moon to blood

The appearance of four blood moons is called a Lunar Tetrad and while that is an exceptional occurrence, what is of particular interest is how these last three and the coming fourth will occur on Jewish feast days.

The first blood moon in this series occurred on April 15, 2014, Passover

The second blood moon in the series occurred on October 8, 2014, the Feast of Tabernacles

The third blood moon occurred on April 4, 2015, Passover

The fourth and final blood moon of this series is expected to occur on September 28, 2015, the Feast of Tabernacles.

 While none of this is conclusive it is, nevertheless, an interesting part of the total picture adding weight to the argument for the special nature of this particular September.

Israel is the Focus of Everything in the End Times

We are promised in the Bible that Israel will become the focus for the world’s attention as we approach the final days. In Zechariah 12:1-3 it is written:

“1 A prophecy: The word of the Lord concerning Israel. The Lord, who stretches out the heavens, who lays the foundation of the earth, and who forms the human spirit within a person, declares: 2 “I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem. 3 On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves.”

This prophecy will be fulfilled during the Tribulation but even today we can see how Jerusalem is a center of attention and controversy.

The Feast of Trumpets, September 14, 2015

The church age was created on the Feast of Pentecost; will the church age be closed on the Feast of Trumpets? Only the Lord knows the time of His return for the Church but it would seem that this is the best option for this year. If one considers the precision with which the spring and summer feasts were fulfilled at the First Advent then this becomes a very plausible date for the rapture of the church.

Remember the church is a combination of both Jews and Gentiles, a special group called out of humanity by God’s grace to serve in a special manner. Participation as a member of the church started on Pentecost, May 25, AD 33 and may close on the Feast of Trumpets, September 14, 2015; only God knows for sure. One thing we can know is we are living in exciting times!

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