Five Operations of the Holy Spirit Part 26
Sin originated among the host of Heaven, it did not begin in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were deceived by the rebels from Heaven. When we understand this we can begin to grasp the purpose that God has in creating the Body of Christ.
The task of Christ, Head and Body, is to destroy all the works of the devil. The Lake of Fire was not designed for human beings but for the devil and his angels. The only reason any human being will find himself in the Lake of Fire is that he refused to allow Christ to deliver him from the devil.
He chose instead to stay on the devil's side.
If we choose to remain on the devil's side we will receive the devil's eternal reward.
Murder, lying, lust, hatred, backbiting, pride, fear, rebellion against authority, spite, jealousy, envy—all these began in Satan. "The devil sinneth from the beginning." "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." The devil has sinned from that time and from before that time.
Before Adam was created the devil sinned. He always sins. We always sin while we are in the bondage of the devil. Mankind cannot save itself from this bondage. Only the Lord Jesus Christ can save us from being compelled to sin.
. . . For this purpose the Son of God was manifest, that he might destroy the works of the devil. (I John 3:8)
There are many reasons emphasized as to why Christ came to the earth, why He did the things He did. He is the Savior, Lord, Teacher, Healer, Prophet, Priest, and King. The Scripture gives the purpose for His coming as follows: "For this purpose the Son of God was manifest, that he might destroy the works of the devil."
The tendencies toward sin which we exhibit originated with the devil. Paul terms our sins "the works of the flesh." Satan takes advantage of the sinful nature that dwells in our flesh, that came from Satan in the beginning and deceives us so that we commit sin.
The sin that exists in the world today began with the sly voice in the Garden of Eden. The guilt, the bondage, the lust, the evil fruit, the rebellion, the sicknesses, the curse on the earth—even death itself, both spiritual and physical—all flow from the presence and working of Satan.
Christ, Head and Body, is revealed for the purpose of destroying the works of the devil. The ministry of Christ was performed for three years some two thousand years ago. Since that time the destruction of the works of the devil has continued through the Church as Christ has worked in and through the members of His Body.
When Jesus returns, the destruction of the works of the devil will be multiplied a thousand times. The result will be the removal of the presence and works of Satan from the heavens and the earth. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. (I John 3:9)
We Christians possess a dual nature. We carry around a fleshly nature that is prone to sin. If we do not pay close attention to our behaviour at all times, the fleshly nature gains control, and some form of sin is the result. This part of our personality does commit sin and it never has been born of God. It is "sensual, earthly, devilish."
In addition to the fleshly nature, Christ has been born in every true Christian. This is the Divine Seed, the holy Substance of God Himself. The Seed of God cannot sin because it came from God and is of the Nature of God.
Because we possess a dual nature we must decide which side of us will prevail. Each moment of our life we decide to allow Christ to work in us or we allow the fleshly nature to work in us. Either Christ in us is being strengthened or our fleshly nature is being nourished and strengthened. We daily are practicing righteousness or unrighteousness, holiness or sin, the Holy Spirit or our fleshly nature, Christ or Satan.
There is no middle road. Every thought, every imagination, every word, every deed, every attitude, is proceeding either from our old nature or from our new born-again nature in cooperation with the Holy Spirit. Each of the two natures represents universal forces and wisdoms.
A human being is the merest speck of dust when compared with the colossal energies of wickedness and godliness that are in opposition around us and in us.
Although we are mere specks of dust we have the opportunity to give ourselves over to Christ. In so doing we receive the authority to be children of God. We pass from being dust of the ground into the program that leads to our becoming kings and priests of the almighty God. All the resources of Heaven stand ready to pour into us Divine wisdom and energies so we can escape the corruption that is in the world because of lust.
The Divine Nature in us cannot sin, having come from God. If we will sow to the Divine Nature instead of surrendering to the lusts of our flesh, it will not be long before Christ in us gains control of our behaviour and we slowly but surely move up to the place where we can walk on the earth without engaging in the lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. This is the true Christian redemption.
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. (I John 3:10)
The test of whether we are a true Christian is our pattern of behaviour. The Christian churches contain many members who are tightly bound in bitterness and unforgiveness. In the churches there is much competition and striving for status. There is strife, envy, murderous hatred, stealing, lust, backbiting, gossiping, slander, and every other evil work. The Apostle John states that people who practice such wickedness are of the devil.
The mistaken idea that an acceptance of fundamentals of doctrine will save the believer may have arisen from the fact that we are saved by the unmerited favour of God; that the sinner can come to God, and upon receiving the Lamb of God as the atonement for his sins be forgiven every one of his iniquities. This is the basis of the Gospel of Christ and it is not to be changed in any manner.