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Nine Aspects

NINE ASPECTS OF THE DWELLING OF CHRIST IN THE BELIEVER

#(1) The Blood of Christ Protects, Pardons, Purges, and Nourishes the Believer
#The blood protects
#Two aspects of the atonement
#The two birds
#The two goats
#Making an atonement
#The scapegoat
#One sacrifice for sins for ever
#Confessing our sins
#Eating and drinking His body and blood
#The holiness of the Temple of God.


The dwelling of Christ in the believer can be described in nine aspects. It should be kept in mind that these nine aspects are not experienced in order of progression like the grades of an elementary school. Rather, they are nine dimensions of the one plan of redemption in Christ.


The Blood of Christ Protects, Pardons, Purges, and Nourishes the Believer

And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. (Exodus 12:13)

Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; (Romans 3:25)
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. (I John 1:7)

Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. (John 6:54)

The habitation of God is being constructed of people—the believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ Himself is the Cornerstone of the building (I Peter 2:6).

Every one of us has a sinful nature and commits sins of imagination, thought, word, and deed each day of his life. God is holy beyond all our ideas of holiness. His absolute perfection of purity and righteousness makes it impossible for God to be with us or work with us while we are committing sin.

God’s solution to the problem of our sinning is the blood of Christ, the sacrificial Lamb of God.


The blood protects

The blood of Christ works powerfully in the life of each believer. First, the blood covers us during the times that God executes judgment on sin.

God poured misery and destruction on the land of Egypt. When God determined to take the life of the oldest child of each family of the Egyptians, God instructed the Israelites to smear blood on their door posts.

While you are studying the plagues that came upon Egypt (Exodus, Chapters Seven through Twelve), notice that God made a distinction between the Israelites and the Egyptians such that the Israelites were not afflicted by the plagues. The Israelites were the descendants of Abraham, who was the called of God. They were not struck by the plagues that preceded the Passover even though the blood of the lamb had not as yet been smeared on their doorposts. However, the males had been circumcised.

During the greatest plague of all, the slaying of the firstborn of man and beast, it was necessary that a blood-covering be placed over the Israelites. The wrath of God was so fierce and the judgment on the gods of Egypt so devastating that the Israelites would have been swept up in the execution of the sentence of death.

Life was being taken from the earth by the Lord God. The Divine vengeance was falling on the cursed demon-worship of Egypt.

Divine holiness and righteousness were being renewed before the Face of God Almighty and the Israelites were in jeopardy of their own lives. It was necessary that the blood-sign be placed over the dwellings of the Israelites, anticipating in type the atonement made by the Lamb of God who was to be offered over a thousand years later on the cross of Calvary.

When God passes through our land today to strike the gods of lust, of violence, of covetousness, of murder, sorcery, self-indulgence, trust in secular knowledge and wisdom, lying, stealing, perversity, love of pleasure, we must claim the Passover blood of the Lord Jesus Christ as the blood-shield over our household.

Terrible judgment comes upon a nation when its citizens turn away from God and look toward satisfying the lusts of the flesh, and toward the astrologers, witches, fortune tellers, and mediums, in order to fulfill their needs and desires.

When the sword of the Lord begins to renew His way on the earth (and it always is God who directs the judging and destroying—Satan has no authority or power in destruction except as God commands—Isaiah 54:16; Amos 3:6) the only protection available is the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. His blood alone can prevent the destroying angel from coming into our household and executing the Divine sentence on us.

As our characters are in the process of being formed by the Holy Spirit into the image of Christ, the Passover blood continues to protect us from the destruction that is falling all around us (Psalms 91).

The blood of Jesus does more than shield us from God’s judgment. Included in the authority and power of the blood of the Lord Jesus to make an atonement for sin are the following effects: covering, forgiveness, cancellation, mercy, reconciliation, propitiation, annulment, adjustment to differences, justification, restoration, remission, cleansing, purging. The blood covers us until we have been made perfect in Christ.

There may be no one English word that carries the complete meaning of the expression make atonement . The phrase restore completely to Divine favor comes fairly close to the meaning of "make atonement." The reconciliation of man to God is the key thought.

The blood of Christ protects us, covers our sins and shortcomings from God’s sight, is the basis for God’s forgiveness, satisfies the demands of justice when the laws of righteousness are violated, and has the power to purge all unrighteous behavior from us.

In addition, the blood of Christ is our life. Jesus invites every human being to drink His blood so that he or she may live by Him as He lives by the Father.


Two aspects of the atonement.

There are two areas of redemption involved in making an atonement for our sins. The first area is that of forgiveness of our sins, the wiping of the record clean. The second area is that of deliverance from the power of sin so that we do not keep on committing sins while we are serving God is this life and in the life that is to come.

The Temple of God, the Body of Christ, always must be in a state of guiltlessness (justified) by confession and repentance; and also must be morally strong—moving consistently toward righteous, holy, and obedient behavior so that sin no longer has any part in it.

The making of an atonement includes two major actions: (1) the satisfying of justice because of the violation of Divine law; and (2) the removing of the tendencies and consequences of sin from the believer and the repairing of his whole personality.

Forgiveness and cleansing, cancellation and deliverance, freedom from both the guilt and the power of sin, remission and purging, mercy and healing—these are the two effects of the blood of Jesus, the two areas of grace that work together as we humans press on toward the fullness of the indwelling of God and Christ through the Holy Spirit.


The two birds.

One can study the two ideas of cancellation and deliverance, in the fourteenth chapter of Leviticus. Two birds were used for the cleansing of the leper. One bird was slain and its blood was sprinkled on the leper. The other bird was let "loose into the open field." We die with Christ, and then are raised together with Him. 

Then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop: And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water: As for the living bird, he shall take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water: And he shall sprinkle upon him that is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose into the open field. (Leviticus 14:4-7)

We can observe in the above passage the annulling authority of the blood of Jesus, as typified by the bird that was killed over running water (the running water shows that Christ was offered through the Holy Spirit—Hebrews 9:14).

Through the Spirit, Christ was sacrificed on the cross of Calvary in order to satisfy the justice of the Divine law that has been broken by every individual from the time of Adam. The letting of the "living bird loose into the field," after it had been dipped in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water, reveals the authority of the blood of Christ working together with the power of eternal, incorruptible resurrection life.

The forgiveness of sin combined with our resurrection to newness of life provides the groundwork for our release from the bondages of sin. 

For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Romans 8:4)


The two goats.

In the sixteenth chapter of Leviticus the two concepts of cancellation of debt and removal of sin are demonstrated again, this time using two goats instead of two birds. 

And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the Lord, and the other lot for the scapegoat. And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the Lord’s lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness. (Leviticus 16:7-10)

There is full authority and power in the crucifixion and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ to supply all the elements necessary to make an atonement for our sins.

It was not possible for the blood of birds and goats to take away sins (Hebrews 10:4). The ceremonies involving these animals point toward and reveal clearly the Lamb of God, Christ, who satisfies the requirements of Divine justice and also removes the tendencies and repairs the consequences of sin in our life.

Christ has made a full atonement for us and He is in the process of setting us free from the effects of sin.


Making an atonement.

God gave the Israelites seven convocations to observe (Leviticus, Chapter 23). Of these seven, the most solemn was the Day of Atonement. The Day of Atonement is described in the sixteenth chapter of Leviticus. We have seen already that there were two goats used during the ceremony of the Day of Atonement: the goat on which the Lord’s lot fell and that was slain; and the scapegoat that was let go into the wilderness.

The Holy Spirit has stated the following five purposes for the actions of the high priest during the Day of Atonement: 

And he shall make an atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make an atonement for the tabernacle of the congregation, and for the altar, and he shall make an atonement for the priests, and for all the people of the congregation. (Leviticus 16:33)

  • He shall make an atonement for the holy sanctuary.
  • He shall make an atonement for the Tabernacle of the Congregation.
  • He shall make an atonement for the altar.
  • He shall make an atonement for the priests.
  • He shall make an atonement for all the people of the congregation.


The first three elements for which atonement was made annually were parts of the Tabernacle of the Congregation: the Most Holy Place, the whole Tabernacle itself, and the bronze Altar of Burnt Offering.

Bringing the concept down to today, in interpretation of this Old Testament type, we can see that atonement must be made for the dwelling place (tabernacle) of God. The Christian Church, the Body of Christ, is being made into the Temple of God—the eternal habitation of the Father and the Son through the Holy Spirit.

Judgment always must begin at the household of God (I Peter 4:17, Ezekiel 9:6). Therefore the full authority and power of the atonement made by the blood of the righteous Jesus must work first in the hearts and lives of those who are true disciples of the Lord Jesus.

Haven’t we been pardoned by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord?

Yes, we have. But there must be a complete removal from our lives of the practice of sin. The removal is taking place now. It is a judgment on the sin dwelling in us and also on our willingness to obey and serve the Lord (I Corinthians 11:31,32).

Our task is to cooperate with the Holy Spirit as He directs the cleansing and repair of our personalities. Deliverance from the habits of sin and from the love of self are included in the preparation for the full indwelling of the Father and the Son that will be ours as we follow on to know the Lord (John 14:23; 17:23).

Of particular importance during the Day of Atonement was the making of an atonement for the Most Holy Place: 

And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat. (Leviticus 16:2)

Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat: And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness. (Leviticus 16:15,16)

Blood had to be sprinkled upon and before the Mercy Seat in order to make an atonement for the sins of Aaron and his household, to make an atonement for the uncleanness and transgressions of the children of Israel, and to make an atonement for the Most Holy Place itself.

Compare the following: 

And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. (Hebrews 9:22,23)

The absolute holiness and righteousness of our holy God cannot overlook a single sin. The blood of the innocent animals served to appease the wrath of God and to cover the transgressions of the Law of Moses until the Lamb of God, Christ, could make an atonement with His own blood on the cross of Calvary.

So it is that the blood of Jesus is at work daily in the hearts of those who are true disciples of Christ and who are being fashioned into the eternal Temple of God. The Holy Spirit is searching out the inner imaginations and motives of the believers, as well as the more obvious words and deeds, so that all that is not acceptable to God may be repented of and confessed as sin.

Upon confession the guilt is pardoned instantly so that the saint can remain without condemnation in the Presence of God.

We always must be alert to the promptings of the Holy Spirit so that we can keep our personality clean and pure by the blood of Christ, so that we can wash our robes in the blood of the Lamb. In order to obtain and maintain the Presence of God in Christ, the blood of Christ must continually be sprinkled upon and before the mercy seat that is our own heart.


The scapegoat.

Not only are our sins forgiven, in the Divine atonement, but also the tendencies and consequences of our sins are removed from us. We found, in Leviticus, Chapter 16 that there was a scapegoat, or goat of removal. 

But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness. (Leviticus 16:10)

And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness: And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness. (Leviticus 16:21,22)

Here is a clear picture of the removal of our sins from us.

In the case of the bird let loose in the open field we can see the spiritual resurrection and ascension of the believer who has been raised with Christ and now is living in God.

In the letting go of the scapegoat into the wilderness we can understand that our sins are removed from the Presence of the Lord as He dwells in us and we in Him. Here is the complete purging from us of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.

After Lazarus was raised from the dead the graveclothes were removed from him.

The Lord Jesus Christ died for us and rose again so that we may be forgiven completely and that we may be filled to overflowing with resurrection life. In addition, He accomplishes the removal of our sins from us, enabling us to overcome the bondage, destruction, and death that always accompany the rule of the law of sin and death (Romans 7:23, 8:2).

The work of atonement, of forgiving and cleansing, accomplished by the death, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord Jesus, was the means of preparing a place for us in the Father’s House, that is, in Christ. 

In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. (John 14:2)


One sacrifice for sins for ever." 

The pattern of the Levitical ceremonies reveals that the animal sacrifices saved the Israelites in their sins but not from their sins. The fact that the Day of Atonement had to be repeated annually illustrates the inability of animal blood to remove sin from the worshipers.

The worshipers understood that they would sin again and again, and that atonement would be made for them the following year (Hebrews 10:1-3). This was true even of the high priest and his family. 

For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. (Hebrews 10:1)

There was authority in the blood of birds, goats, and bulls to appease the wrath of God and to forgive transgressions of the Law of Moses, provided the transgression was not premeditated and willful disobedience, a flaunting of God’s Word. The authority and power to remove the tendencies and repair the consequences of sin were not available through the blood of animals.

For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. (Hebrews 10:14)

When we accept the blood of the Lord Jesus as an atonement for our sins, a Divine work of terrible finality commences—terrible from the standpoint of those who would have us sin. There is utter, total, dreadful (as seen by the Lord’s enemies) authority and power in the blood of Jesus to make an atonement for sin.

The blood of Christ keeps cleansing us and the Holy Spirit keeps writing the laws of God in our heart and mind day after day, year after year, until the work of redemption has been completed in our personality.

If we keep on following the Spirit of God, remembering we are strangers and pilgrims on the earth, the blood of Christ can work atonement in us. We canovercome the accuser by the blood of the Lamb.
Eventually the Divine redemption will have been brought to the full in our spirit, our soul, and our body.


Confessing our sins.

When the Holy Spirit points out to a Christian that he has sinned and that he has a tendency to do so along a certain line, such as the practice of lust, hate, sorcery, pride, covetousness, for example, there is a simple straightforward procedure for immediately restoring his fellowship with the Lord: 

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (I John 1:9)

The context of I John 1:9 is that of the saint of God who is walking in the light, the disciple of Jesus who is abiding in the Presence of God in Christ and performing the will of God. The blood of Christ cleanses him continually as he walks in the light of God’s Presence each day.

As we are walking in the light, and the blood of Christ is cleansing us from all sin, it may occur that the Holy Spirit will lead us to the fact that we are harboring hatred against some person. The moment we become aware of the Divine pressure on this particular point we must confess to the Lord that we are sinning in that we are maintaining a hateful attitude toward the individual who is displeasing us.

As soon as we confess the sin of hatred, God is faithful and righteous to forgive our sin and to purify us from the sin. The blood of Christ made atonement for that sin on Calvary. We appropriate the benefit of the atonement when the Holy Spirit leads us to confess the particular behavior and to forsake the practice of it (repent). 

My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: (I John 2:1)

God is faithful and righteous to both pardon and cleanse us, upon our confession of a sin and repentance from the practice of it. Sometimes the Holy Spirit will prompt us to act further in the matter, such as to return something we have stolen or to ask a person’s forgiveness for hurting him or her in some manner.

There is resurrection power available to the Christian whom the Holy Spirit has directed to ask another’s forgiveness or to make restitution. If we seek the Face of God in prayer He will grant us grace and joy so we can obey the Holy Spirit’s directive in a poised, cheerful, victorious attitude.

It is not easy to ask the forgiveness of another human being or to make restitution for a wrong we have committed. We must look to God, not only to determine whether He is moving us to do more than confess the sin to Him but also for the wisdom and strength to take necessary steps of restitution.

In most instances of sin committed by a Christian, the matter is settled when he or she confesses the sin to God clearly and specifically. The blood of Christ cancels the debt and also removes the sin from the believer. Then the light of God’s Presence shines in his or her heart without casting a shadow.

Sometimes blessing and release come to us as we confess our sins in the hearing of another Christian and have him or her give us counsel and agree in prayer. The prayers of two or three Christians can be very effective when a believer seems to be caught in a bondage that will not yield to his own confession of, and resistance to, the sin in question. Again, the wisdom and power of the Spirit of God are required at each point of action.

Every Christian is being formed as a part of the Temple of God, which is the Body of Christ. Because God is holy, the Christian in whom God intends to dwell eternally must be holy also.

God has made provision for our holiness by the atonement made by Christ on the cross. We avail ourselves of the full weight of authority and power of the blood of Christ when we confess our sins. As we name our sins, resolving never again to practice them, as God helps us, God is faithful and just to forgive us and to purify us from all sin and rebellion.

We are learning how to walk continually and successfully in the light of God’s Presence. We are gaining wisdom and understanding in dealing with the sins of our nature. The blood of Christ is being sprinkled upon and before the "mercy seat" that is our heart.

Each time we are obliged to deal with a problem of sin in our life, as the Holy Spirit leads and provides the grace and strength, the light of God in us grows brighter leading to the fullness of the Day of the Lord. Every Christian who is being transformed by the continuing process of putting to death the deeds of the body is coming into a true fellowship with the Father and Son (I John 1:1-7). He is gaining eternal life. 

And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. (I John 3:3)

Most of the Bible, the Old Testament and the New Testament alike, has to do with sin and holiness. Throughout the Scriptures God speaks of the consequences of righteousness and unrighteousness. The blood of Christ has made an atonement for the sins of people. The fullness of Divine authority and power is in the atoning blood of the Lord Jesus.

No sin can resist the blood of Christ provided the guilty person comes to God through Christ and confesses he is a sinner, in the case of an unsaved person, or confesses a particular sin he is committing, in the case of a Christian.

We will have more to say about putting to death the deeds of the body when we come to the sixth aspect of the dwelling of Christ in the believer.


Eating and drinking His body and blood.

We eat the sacrifice, Christ, and drink His blood. The communion service is a portrayal of this aspect of the atonement. By eating and drinking Christ’s body and blood we become one with sacrifice. 

The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of [sharing; participation in] the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of [sharing; participation in] the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread. (I Corinthians 10:16,17)

"We being many are one bread." The bread of the communion becomes to us the Body of Christ. By eating the flesh of Christ and drinking His blood we become one with God’s Passover Lamb. 

Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out

from the sheep, or from the goats: (Exodus 12:5)

And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. (Exodus 12:7,8)

Under old covenant law no person, whether of the priests or of the people, was allowed to drink blood. Under specific conditions the priests did eat the flesh of the animals that were offered. Also, the Israelite who offered a peace offering partook of the sheep or goat that he offered. However, every person in Israel ate the flesh of the Passover Lamb.

We Christians eat the Lamb of God, Christ, and drink His blood. We become one with Him in His atoning death and one with Him in His glorious resurrection. All that He is we are because we are in Him and He is in us.

He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. (John 6:56,57)

No matter what we were at one time, in Him we now are reconciled to God. The complete reconciliation is the final result of the atonement made by Christ on the cross of Calvary.


The holiness of the Temple of God

The Temple of God is the holy city, the new Jerusalem. The city is holy. Nothing that is not holy can enter the city—not today, not in the ages to come. We must cleanse ourselves through the grace God has provided. 

For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. (I Corinthians 11:31)

Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (II Corinthians 7:1)

It may be noted, concerning the previous verse (II Corinthians 7:1), that the "promises" to which it refers pertain to the Temple of God (as set forth in II Corinthians 6:16-18).

Again, in I Corinthians 3:17, the emphasis is on the holiness of the Temple of God: 

If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

The context of the above verse is that of building on the foundation, which is Christ. The purpose of the ministries, events, and circumstances of the Christian pilgrimage is that the Temple of God may be constructed from the transformed personalities of the saints.

If we build the Temple of God of silver and precious stones (speaking figuratively of the works of Christ performed in and through us by the Holy Spirit), we then will be ready spiritually to be clothed with our glorified body from Heaven.

If we build God’s tabernacle of wood, hay, and straw (referring to our own fleshly nature and works), when God comes to look it over His fiery Nature will consume it and all our building will be brought to nothing. The Scriptures indicate that we personally will be saved but we will lose our reward (I Corinthians 3:15).

Only the Holy Spirit, working on the basis of the authority and power of the blood of Christ, can make a success of cleansing the Temple of God from sin. 

For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify [put to death] the deeds of the body, ye shall live. (Romans 8:13)

"If ye through the Spirit." If we Christians are to become a part of the eternal Temple of God that is being constructed we must live no longer in the lusts of our flesh, following the inclinations of our mind and soulish nature. Instead, we must come under the daily discipline of the Holy Spirit and cooperate with Him as He leads us into the destruction of the excessive appetites of our body.

The blood of Christ can wash away the spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical effects of sin. Unclean spirits are forced to leave, and personal traits of self-love, stubbornness, and double-mindedness are conquered, as the Holy Spirit (with our cooperation and willingness to learn and to resist the devil) works on the basis of the righteousness of the blood of Christ.

The rule of sin and death is undermined and finally destroyed altogether as the disciple is re-created in harmony with the image of Christ.

Because of the atoning authority and power of the blood of Christ, people no longer have to hide from God’s Presence as did Adam. We can come boldly before the Throne of God and make our needs and desires known (Hebrews 4:16).

The physical body can be healed as part of the atonement. Eventually the last enemy, physical death, will be destroyed (I Corinthians 15:26). Our physical body will be resurrected and clothed with a body from Heaven fashioned from indestructible, resurrection life (Romans 8:11; I Corinthians 15:53; II Corinthians 5:2).

The Body of Christ, the Bride of the Lamb, is to show no mercy to the spiritual enemies of God and man but must follow the Lord Jesus into victory over all the forces of evil. The blood of Christ and the power of His resurrection enable us to overcome the power of sin in our fleshly nature. The God of Heaven is bringing all of Christ’s enemies under His feet.

The blood of Christ protects, pardons, purges, and nourishes the saint. The blood is a garment covering our spiritual nakedness so we can come into the Presence of God Almighty without shame. We wash our robes and make them white in the blood of the Lamb. As we confess our sins and repent of them, God forgives our sins and cleanses us from all unrighteousness.

By confessing our sins, repenting, submitting to God, and resisting the devil, by the authority and power of the blood of Jesus to forgive and to purge, by the wisdom and strength that come to us from the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit, and by eating the flesh of Christ and drinking His blood, a place for us is being prepared in the Father’s House, that is, in Christ.

Through the grace of God we are cleansing and preparing the eternal dwelling place of the Lord God of Heaven so that God and we may dwell together in the Divine rest, in perfect love, perfect joy, and perfect peace.