LEUKOCYTES By Randall Glenn

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INTRODUCTION

This coffee table favor is only for the few. Those who have obeyed the gospel of grace:

who have heard and believed the gospel, repented of their sins, been baptized in the name of

Jesus Christ, and been filled with the baptism of the Holy Ghost, with the initial evidence of

speaking in other tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance. This is the strait gate. This letter is

sent to those who have passed through that gate, and now stand on the narrow way.

Today, the bulk of that church is the U.P.C.I. (United Pentecostal Church International),

and its Spanish affiliates. Many smaller groups share this truth, but choose not to affiliate.

But the U.P.C.I. is the brunt force, of that church which Jesus said the gates of hell would not

prevail against. Does the U.P.C.I. have its own problems? Yes of course. Do I agree with

everything that the U.P.C.I. stands for? Yes, I do. Everything that the U.P.C.I. does? No, I

do not. America herself has problems…but at the end of the day, if you’ve ever traveled the

world, America is still the best thing going. So it is with the U.P.C.I. We have truth, and the

right framework in place, for the perfecting of the saints. We may not be perfect, but our

Articles of faith, our positions adapted to our changing world, and our core doctrines are all

solidly based on rightly divided scripture. If anything, they err on the side of godliness. Quite

frankly, that’s where I choose to be.

Leukocytes are cells found in human blood, and throughout the body. They are part of an

elaborate defense system, meant to protect the body from impure invaders. Their battle

strategy is simple: sacrifice yourself to save the body.

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Chapter 1 A Certain Sound 4

Chapter 2 Born Of Water 8

Chapter 3 The Gift Of Tongues 11

Chapter 4 Emmanuel 15

Chapter 5 God In Christ 22

Chapter 6 To Know Him 30

Chapter 7 The Christ 33

Chapter 8 Mystery Of Godliness 36

Chapter 9 The Rapture 42

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CHAPTER ONE

A CERTAIN SOUND

For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?

Noted Evangelist Tim Green once preached, that the final mountain for the church to climb in

these closing hours, is unity. Truer words were never spoken. Our name proposes that we

reflect such unity. But the truth is, we are not so united as we’d like to think. Yes, we all

share the common salvation…the core doctrines that make us who we are. But just beyond

that, there is an unspoken aloofness…a management / oversight gap between headquarters and

the regional presbytery. This can’t help but carry over between presbytery and the local

minister. After our basic salvation tenets, there is a certain undercurrent of just letting folks

work out their own salvation with fear and trembling. To be sure, such tolerance for local

latitude absolves us from any appearance of micro-managing. But from down here in the

pews, it sure smacks of an uncertain sound.

Most, like myself, are very thankful for our pastor. He feeds his sheep…he binds up our

bruises…he visits us with the fellowship of gladness…he prays for us…he strengthens our

sick and diseased…he seeks out those who have strayed. And, in a perfect world, your first

pastor would always be your only pastor. But the world has changed. People relocate for

employment. Pastors are called to mission fields, or retire. A saint of God today is apt to sit

under 3 or 4 pastors in his lifetime. But each pastor has his own take on everything beyond

Acts 2:38. He is saddled with the slants of the previous pastor. Moreover, his congregation

wants to know why their brethren of like precious faith…scarcely 20 miles away…teach

something different.

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Consider the layman who prays, studies his bible, loves God, loves his pastor, and loves his

local assembly. His light shines brightly in his little circle of influence, and he has a passion

for reaching the lost. He holds firmly to his pastor’s convictions. Yet, as he continues to

disciple his sheaves beyond Acts 2:38, he is pelted with the same questions that his pastor

fields from the laity. Should we, or shouldn’t we, wear our wedding bands? Though not a

duly authorized minister of the gospel, should I, or shouldn’t I, baptize someone in Jesus’

name? Can we, or can’t we, trim the split ends from our hair? Is television OK, or is it not

OK? What about the internet? Just causes for divorce? Ample preparation for marriage?

Platform standards? How about pancake base, lip gloss, clear nail polish, and slit dresses?

Public school activities? Communion? You can visit any 20 churches in our honorable

fellowship today, and come away with at least 10 different convictions from the pastorate on

these and many other issues.

Certainly, we are united in the gate requirements. But from the trenches, where foot soldiers

are trying to train up their charges, it appears that our unity there ends. The tacit position of

headquarters…and the general presbytery…is to let folks work out their own salvation with

fear and trembling, at the local level. In this, the children of this world are in their generation,

wiser than the children of light. After our nation’s soldiers have passed boot camp, we do not

allow them to adopt their own rules of engagement, nor fight as they see fit. Our counsel is

not to work out your own war with fear and trembling. When our school teacher’s have been

certified, and receive their classroom, we do not allow them to teach our children their

interpretation of the curriculum. When my own new employee’s have passed the hiring

scrutiny, I don’t allow them to work as they see fit.

In defense of our corporate leadership, our position on most of these matters is clear enough.

We have spelled them out in our written articles of faith. If all of the presbytery, and in turn,

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all of the ministry, held firm to these, we would indeed be a United Pentecostal Church. But

whether we admit it or not, the presbytery is divided on many issues. And as they fracture, so

also does the local ministry gather into camps. Boundaries are drawn, and cross-fellowship is

discouraged. Kingdom building is born, and the lay members are torn. They are forced to

decide for themselves; for their children, and for their circle of influence, which of many

respected voices is true. Does my pastor have it right? Does pastor X…who holds a different

view 20 miles away, have it right? And what of the man who prays, and studies diligently the

issue, only to discover that pastor X has it right? He still loves and reverences his pastor. Yet

on this issue, he is torn about what to teach his own children. He is no rebel or dissembler.

He still loves the Word and truth and his church. But an uncertain sound now erodes the unity

of his home, his local assembly, and his own soul.

Indeed unity must begin at the top. But lacking any follow through, the pitcher’s toss will

miss the target every time. Where no accountability is, there is no responsibility. Perhaps, my

fathers, we are overdue. The Apostle’s and elders need again, to come together in Jerusalem,

for to consider these matters. But our forefathers weren’t content to simply write down their

now famous decisions: that we abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and

from things strangled, and from blood. Our written articles of faith are certainly an inspired

and godly Jerusalem mandate. But having assembled in one accord and so written these, to

what avail are they, except chosen men be sent, to persuade the upholding of such godly

tenets? We do expect the laity held accountable to their pastor. This works, because there is

monitoring and involvement. But is the local minister held accountable to the regional

presbytery? The regional presbytery to our articles of faith from headquarters? In principle…

and at the hour of licensing, I’m sure it is so. But in truth, somewhere between there and the

trenches, my fathers, we do hear an uncertain sound.

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…let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the

Lord, and see how they do.

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CHAPTER 2

BORN OF WATER

Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Having fielded opinions from several elders on this matter, I find it to be a very sensitive one.

It lies far too close to one of our core doctrines to be otherwise. I strongly believe the Acts

2:38 message. Water baptism, by complete immersion, in the name of Jesus Christ, is clearly

the new covenant truth. Moreover, it was preached by Moses in Exodus 20:24, and is

confirmed throughout the Acts accounts. Yet I believe we do err scripturally, when we teach

water baptism from here in John 3:5. Even the Baptists have figured this out. Many, I’m

sure, will view this as a trivial matter not worth righting. But as ambassadors of the true

gospel, we owe it to a lost and dying world to rightly divide the Word in all of our tenets.

So often I’ve heard one of our ministers misquote this passage to read: Except a man be born

again of water and of the Spirit… Not of any ill intent, but in support of our position on water

baptism. But this tiny error, even with its noble intention, seems to be settling in as a

tradition. Our sanctioned bible study: In My Father’s House, chapter (room) one, page 1-2,

paragraph three, finds the honorable Elder Yonts saying: “when we are baptized in Jesus’

name, we are born of the water.” Apparently Brother Gossan, and the entire General Home

Missions division agree. So also do the marginal notes of a Thompson Chain Reference bible,

next to John 3:5, state: “756-baptism enjoined (1) Acts 2:38.” Again, many would argue that

the point is not only trivial and harmless, but is in fact beneficial. I mean, whatever it takes to

get them to the water, right? The proverbial ends justifying the means.

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The truth is, this discourse between Jesus and Nicodemus has nothing to do with water

baptism. The whole crux of their discussion is new birth. Not death (repentance), not burial

(water baptism), but new birth. Moreover, great plainness of speech is used, to show that this

new birth is entirely spiritual in nature. What I find ironic, is that in every reference to water

baptism, we ourselves concur that the rite is representative of a burial, or a grave. So also

does our popular “Search for Truth” series teach. Only here in John 3:5, do we reverse our

own hermeneutic, to make water baptism part of a birth experience. There are ample

scriptures in the bible to support water baptism in Jesus’ name. But, my fathers, in rightly

divided scripture, John 3:5 is not among them.

Jesus’ first words on the matter state:

verily, verily I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

His final argument closes with this:

The wind bloweth where it listeth and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence

it cometh, and whither it goeth; so is everyone that is born of the Spirit.

No mention of water birth in either the introduction, or the summary of Jesus’ lesson. Nor is

there any mention of death prior to this new birth. He teaches that the new birth…the born

again, or born of the Spirit experience…is a single Spiritual birth, and not a two part birth. Is

it prefaced with a death and a burial? Yes of course, the scriptures bear this out, and thus we

so teach. There simply is no tenable argument against the process of salvation mirroring the

death, the burial, and the resurrection of our Lord. Even Moses prophesied this in the altar of

death, the laver of washing, and the presence of God in the holiest place. But the new birth

itself…the born of the Spirit from John 3:5…is the climax of that process. We need not drag

the laver into the holy place.

Born of water is mentioned a single time in the course of their discussion. It is introduced in

direct response to a befuddled Nicodemus, asking Jesus: how can a man enter a second time

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into his mother’s womb? Concerning that natural birth, Jesus teaches: except a man be born

of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the

flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. The contrast here drawn is between

two births. The fleshly birth from a nine month amniotic sac in your mother’s womb is not

enough Nicodemus. You must be born again. It takes an “again” birth…a Spiritual birth…a

new birth, to make heaven. The fact that you’re sitting here reading this letter, means you’re

half way there. You’ve made it through “born of water”. You out-rassled 300 million other

sperm cells, and qualified for life. But having so done, you now must be born again. Your

water birth gave you this life. Your spiritual birth gives you life everlasting. You must be

born again. It is our Lord making the argument here, that born of water and born of the flesh,

are synonymous terms. Paul further echo’s the same argument in Galatians 4, as does Peter,

in his comparison between corruptible seed, and incorruptible seed.

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CHAPTER THREE

THE GIFT OF TONGUES

For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man

understandeth him; howbeit in the Spirit he speaketh mysteries.

Since the birth of the church nearly 2,000 years ago, this gift from our Lord has been

abused, and often divisive. If it was controversial in Paul’s day, it is much more so today. We

find no discourses written on how to use the gifts of exhortation, knowledge, or ruling. Yet

Paul spends fully two chapters teaching the proper use, and the proper place, for the gift of

tongues. It seems that the untamable tongue of the natural, has some carry over in the

Spiritual as well.

Has today’s church digested Paul’s lesson on the gift of tongues? Sadly, it has not. In fact,

the abuses of his day have grown teeth, becoming entrenched in our Pentecostal traditions and

gatherings. From the conference preacher to the local pastor, speaking in tongues from the

pulpit is a part of nearly every service. When the fervor…the intensity…the emotion of his

message hits a peak point, the minister breaks forth into a short burst in tongues. This is

neither for interpretation or edification of the whole. Nor, in these cases, is it even for self-

edification. It’s more a revving of their engine…a display of what they’re honestly feeling in

the Spirit…and an exclamation point to what they’re preaching. Emboldened by this platform

example, the laity then takes the same liberty. The precious gift of tongues becomes a

spiritual barometer for both the individual, and the congregation as a whole.

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Surely the gift of tongues is a wonderful blessing. When we are deeply in prayer, or deep

in praise, we reach a place where learned words fall miserably short. They just don’t convey

the enormity of that joy and excitement we are feeling inside. The gift of tongues bursts

through this roadblock, giving vent to the new wine welling up in our spirit. It is truly a

release of praise, a release of love, and a release of burden from spirit to Spirit.

We who abuse this blessed gift would have you think that our outbursts are uncontrollable

and spontaneous. We’re simply doing what the Spirit bids us to do. We even muster scripture

to our defense. quench not the Spirit…forbid not to speak with tongues…stir up the gift of

God which is in thee. My fathers, I think you know we’re off base here. Our own abuse of

this gift has led to the very thing that Paul had feared. Strangers not understanding what’s

going on. Laity having self-indulgent, self-edifying sessions during a church service. We’ve

even christened the practice with our own Good Housekeeping Seal of approval. We’ve

coined a term and practice found nowhere in the bible: “praying through”. By this we mean to

continue pressing in praise or worship, until we speak in tongues.

During the course of a service, the beautiful presence of the Holy Ghost begins to sweep

over the congregation. Words fail to describe this awesome atmosphere. Grown, hardened

men, weeping where they sit. Entire families being healed, and inexplicably ministered to by

the finger of God. Teens caught in a momentary spotlight of introspection. And of course,

people all over the building speaking in tongues, dancing in the Spirit, and leaping for joy.

Some approach the altar uncoaxed, desperate for a need to be met in their lives. Before long,

the pray-through-posse arrives. These five well-meaning elders begin praying around the altar

seekers. Hands are laid upon the penitent. The posse begins speaking loudly in tongues.

Somehow, louder is better. At this point, the only successful conclusion will be for you to

speak in tongues…or pray through, as it were. Crying won’t get it honey. We’re gonna hold

your hands up, and shake, rattle, and roll you all night long, until we hear you speak in

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tongues. Short of that, you’re either cold, carnal, or hiding sin in your heart. So you’d better

come up with something. Sound familiar? Happens every Sunday and Wednesday,

throughout the land.

Many brethren, when speaking in tongues, repeat the same rama-lama-bing-bong phrase

every time. In and of itself, there’s nothing wrong with this. It’s no different from repeating

“praise the Lord”, “amen”, or “thank you Jesus” in our own native tongue. But it does present

problems, for both the stranger, and the repetitious speaker. The stranger will see it as

contrived or fake, and not at all of the Spirit. He will deem the speaker as someone either

flaunting his Spirituality, or trying to prove it. Of course, had the warrior heeded Paul’s

admonition to keep silent, we wouldn’t have this problem. But how can he keep silent? The

pastor is speaking in tongues. The posse is speaking in tongues, and heat-scanning the crowd

to see who isn’t. There is an undercurrent of spiritual peer pressure to prove one’s spiritual

health and status.

For the repetitious speaker in tongues, there are a couple of hazards. Primarily, they reflect

a stunted growth in their spiritual gift. It is usually the same in their native tongue. Their

prayers are limited to praise the Lord, thank you Jesus, halleluiah, and a short laundry list of

what they’d like the Lord to do for them. The bible teaches us to expand our natural

vocabulary in our time of prayer and petition:

Take with you words, and turn to the Lord…

Indeed, the flowering of our gift of tongues should be a life-long closet experience.

We should seek to grow in our spiritual gift. Another danger to repeating the same phrase in

tongues, is that over time, it is memorized. While this may prove handy in warding off the

pray-through-posse, it can quickly become an expression of the carnal mind, and not the

unction of the Spirit. It is at this point, that the stranger’s suspicions are confirmed. The

speaker is not being moved by the Spirit, but by peer pressure, and by Spiritual pride. My

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fathers, these things ought not to be. We cannot simply call it a harmless display, or a minor

infraction, just because it is Spiritual in nature. As ministers of the true gospel, we have a call

to rise above our traditions, and heed the tenets of order.

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CHAPTER FOUR

EMMANUEL

Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name

Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

After thirty plus years in the common salvation, I’ve concluded that very few among us

really understand the Godhead as we teach it. Certainly we have our apostolic colleges, our

David Bernard’s’, and our well-worded articles of faith. Our books on the oneness of God are

second to none; and biblically, irrefutable. Still, like Trinitarians, the bulk of our fellowship

remains unlearned on the subject.

When I first embraced the truth, it was life changing. You’d have thought a lightening bolt

hit my spirit when I first saw it. And it wasn’t just me. Thirty years ago, grasping oneness

theology was akin to an initiation revelation. I can’t count the times I threw it all out, and

started from scratch in the bible, to see if this thing were really true. Because if it was true,

the ramifications were simply astounding. If it was true, then the sheer number of folks

who’ve got it all wrong, was staggering. So, time and again, I threw it all out. I’d consult

Hebrew and Greek lexicons, concordances, commentaries, and the counsel of men from both

sides of the argument. But each time I threw it all out, the theology came back stronger…

righter.

Thirty years later, at least in my own life, the blessed glow of that moment burns as

brightly as ever. But from pastors to deacons to the general assemblies, this entrance

revelation grows increasingly dim. To some, we are but the alternate choice. The closer one

looks at the trinity doctrine, the more untenable it becomes. These turn to the oneness

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doctrine, and thank God for it. But as admirable as this is, their testimony lacks the spirit of

Paul’s:

For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus

Christ.

Others are apostolic citizens, either by birth or acquaintance. Somehow they know its right,

but they really don’t know why; nor would they dare think of going anywhere else. Finally

there are those like myself, whom God reels in with an endless assortment of lures and hooks.

Clearly, no finer gate could the Holy Ghost have crafted, than Matthew 28:19 juxtaposed to

Acts 2:38. Like a neon sign, reasonable men clearly see it. But how many there are today

who have stopped here, just inside the gate. Fellowship wide, our general focus seems to have

shifted to getting to heaven…which is good…rather than getting to know Him…which is

better. Surely the latter ensures the former.

And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name

Jesus.

The virgin birth and the naming of Mary’s son are foundational; not only to us, but to all who

claim Christianity. I can think of no denomination who argues these. Historically, much has

been written about the birth and naming of the Master. Yet the gist of this miracle lies entirely

in the conception itself. It is here where I find: knowledge too wonderful for me; it is high, I

cannot attain unto it. Such knowledge cannot be searched out to its very end. But to this last

generation, it is given to breach the mystery. Blessed indeed are that other 98% of humanity

past, who having not seen, yet believed. Before the invention and refinement of the

microscope, only the Holy Ghost knew these mind-boggling details. But today, this final 2%

of all humanity is made privy to the unspeakable miracle of conception. It is a miracle that

takes place in the hidden world of microns and angstroms…unseen by the naked eye.

Human pro-creation begins with two single cells. The female cell is about 100 times larger

than the male cell. Both are microscopic in size; but with the microscope, we now know that

each of these two cells has a nucleus. Inside of each nucleus are 23 chromosomes. Looking

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deeper still, each chromosome holds varying numbers of genes. When the male seed

penetrates the female seed, it sheds its propulsion tail and fuel cell. The nuclei of the two cells

then fuse together, becoming a single cell with 46 chromosomes. This single cell is now

called a zygote. At this moment of fusion, a new life has begun. This is how we all started.

That one original cell…the zygote…then begins dividing, making exact copies of itself. One

fertilized cell divides into two identical cells. The two become four. Four become eight, then

16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, etc. Six days later, when the multi-celled zygote attaches

itself to the uterus wall, it’s called a blastocyst. Rapid cell division continues through the

stages of embryo, fetus, birth, and beyond. A fully grown human is made up of roughly 300

trillion (300,000,000,000,000) exact copies of that original fertilized cell.

The bible suggests that Mary enjoyed a normal nine month pregnancy. Aside from the

miracle conception, it would seem that God chose to bring about the birth of His only begotten

son within the confines of normal human gestation, birth, and growth to adulthood. So says

the Spirit: In all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren. From this I surmise

that Mary, during a normal ovulation cycle, donated one single-celled egg to this miracle.

Some have argued that Mary’s gene pool was entirely too infected…and thus unusable in the

miracle conception. Still others hold an almost phobic position: that the common genetic pool

of all humanity, is so rife with physical defects, that it affects in some degree every infant ever

born. By extension, Mary’s seed could not be used in the miracle.

Certainly there have been cases of hereditary disease and defect, every since sin entered

into the world. But even today…here at the ragged end of humanity…the overall percentage

of such cases is small. As always, most humans are born healthy…testifying to the resilience

of God’s original design.

My own problem with the concept of not using Mary’s seed, is that it alters the spirit of the

scriptures on this miracle. If Mary’s seed wasn’t used, then God spoke a pre-conceived

zygote into Mary’s womb…a male and a female cell already merged into a single-celled

zygote…and Mary’s role is reduced to a warm womb. In such a case, Mary never really

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conceived; but a transplant of sorts took place. This position is at odds with the scriptures,

which say: thou shalt conceive in thy womb. And again to the angel: How shall this be,

seeing I know not a man? The Spirit also testifies, that God could have formed Jesus from

the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. He could have spoken

a completely fertilized, single-celled zygote into existence in the womb of Mary. But instead,

He kept His promise to defeat the enemy through the seed of a woman. God did not short

circuit the created process of pro-creation. He embraced it. He chose to fully and completely

participate in the way of man…being made subject to the same laws of biology, science, and

pro-creation, as all men. Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his

brethren.

Perhaps the clearest testimony in favor of Mary’s involvement, is found in the scriptures

about blood. For indeed, the life of the flesh is in the blood. Not only does the bible so

testify, but creation itself even moreso. The life of the flesh is in the blood. Understanding

blood is essential to understanding life itself. In Eden, there was no such thing as sin and

death. They were not part of the original design. Both were later invaders…death riding in on

the coattails of sin. Neither in the forming of Adam from the dust of the ground; nor in the

making of Eve from bone of his bone, was there such a thing as sin and death. If then, the

scriptures cannot be broken, and the life of the flesh is in the blood, then what coursed through

Adam and Eve’s veins was life eternal. For whether eternal or mortal, the life of the flesh is in

the blood. Adam and Eve were not the products of pro-creation, as the rest of humanity.

What coursed through their veins was the original recipe…pure blood…sinless blood.

When sin entered into the world, animals became vicious, carnivorous, and territorial.

Trees were felled by parasites, and plants began to whither and die. Big fish began eating

little fish, and sin and death subdued the whole of creation. But most relevant to us, and our

study of Emmanuel, is the change that occurred in the veins of Adam and Eve. Life eternal no

longer flowed there. A catastrophic change had taken place in their blood. Yes, the life of the

flesh was still the blood…but it was no longer life eternal. What now flowed there was

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something far less…a severe corruption of the original recipe. It included a process of aging,

a slow evolution of disease, sickness, and degradation…and in the end, death. The blood

supply for all of humanity was now infected with the law of sin and death…the very same law

at work in Paul’s members 4,000 years later…and in our members today.

This infection has survived…uncured…for 6,000 years. It survives by the very laws of

pro-creation, created by God. This final generation now knows that every baby produces his

own blood supply while in his mother’s womb. In the wisdom of God, none of the mother’s

blood is allowed to pass through a cellular membrane, and mingle with the baby’s blood.

Were it not so designed, my Master’s blood would have been corrupted by His mother’s, and

His sacrifice of none effect. Moreover, it is a father’s seed which initiates baby’s independent

blood production. The father’s seed…the carrier of this law of sin and death…infects baby’s

blood production at its very root…in the zygote stage of development. This is why bloodlines

are traced through the male, and why all of us are born with the law of sin in our members.

And so, we know that in Adam, all die.

I’m sure that Mary was a very godly woman, and a chaste virgin. But she was human…

and thus, non-exempt from having the law of sin and death flowing in her veins. These are

God’s laws of pro-creation. But these same created laws forbade Mary’s blood from mingling

with that of her unborn child. The baby produced his own blood, as do all babies. The seed of

the Father, which initiated Jesus’ blood production, was free from the infection common to

every other father’s seed. Hence, the son of Mary, within the laws of pro-creation, produced

the only 13 pints of sinless human blood, in God’s entire universe. The life of the flesh is in

the blood…and this one human amongst all of humanity, had sinless blood…and eternal

life…flowing in His veins.

When Mary donated a single cell to this miracle, it included 23 microscopic chromosomes

that held her DNA fingerprint. As she and her extended family sat beholding the face of her 7

year old son, they could no doubt see Mary’s chin, or her high cheekbones, or her hair color…

or whatever other traits that her son inherited from her. But they could also see something

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else in that face…something that didn’t come from Mary’s genes. If you’ll receive it…what

they saw were faint, genetic glimpses of the invisible God, in the face of His son, Jesus Christ.

And not physical traits alone: but personality, temperament, emotions, intelligence…and

every other trait that a father passes on to his son.

As Mary’s seed left the ovary bank, it encountered this miracle seed…a single cell nearly

100 times smaller than her egg. We may never know if the male cell materialized inside the

ova…causing instant fertilization…or outside the ova, requiring that it penetrate the shell to

fertilize the egg. Either way, God’s intervention was limited to that one cell…a single

microscopic seed. It was inserted at the beginning of a nine month biological process, allowed

to run its full course. God chose to confine this miracle within the very laws of science, and

the very laws of pro-creation, that He had Himself designed. How praiseworthy is such an

incredible miracle! It is something entirely too wonderful to comprehend. Before Him lay an

entire creation: plant and animal kingdoms, humankind, stars without number, a universe

without end; all groaning for deliverance from the ubiquitous law of sin and death. But rather

than a galactic-sized event…in keeping with the galactic size of the problem…God instead

chose a microscopic seed…a single cell…to bring about that universal deliverance. A single

cell, in whose nucleus dwelt 23 chromosomes…each comprised of some 31,185 genes…made

up of billions of base pairs of DNA. A tiny seed, made to obey all of the complex laws of

creation previously set in motion. I find new meaning in the words of the prophet: for who

hath despised the day of small things. Because of this miracle male seed, the very

metabolism of Jesus…the 300 trillion single cells that walked the shores of Galilee…was in

the purest sense, the son of God. A human seed had merged with a divine seed on a

microscopic level…making 300 trillion exact copies of that original, never repeated fusion.

Yet in all of this, the complex biology of conception and birth were never compromised. God

chose to strictly follow the process of normal development.

And the angel answered and said unto her, the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the

power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that Holy thing which shall be

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born of thee shall be called the Son of God. His intervention was at the seed level. His

participation then, includes all stages of flesh development: from zygote to blastocyst to

embryo to fetus to birth to childhood to adult. Every fiber of the Master…His physical body,

His personality, His emotions, His temperament, His intelligence, and everything that defines

us as human…bore the genetic fingerprint of His Father, by virtue of that original cell. Body,

soul, and spirit; Jesus was as uncompromisingly human as you and I. The beautiful exception

was His blood. The latent law of sin which mires the gene pool of all humanity, was not

present in the divine gene pool. And so the biology was strictly followed, yet the infection not

passed. The life of the flesh is in the blood…and truly in Jesus, that life was eternal. The

Word was made flesh…in the same manner that all male seeds are made flesh…a nine month

journey from zygote to birth.

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CHAPTER FIVE

GOD IN CHRIST

To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their

trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

We come now to the heart, the soul, even the Holy Grail, of oneness theology…that God

was in Christ. For me, the trinity doctrine collapses here, on these four words alone. In

harmony with the whole of the bible story…God was in Christ. When we receive the gift…

the baptism of the Holy Ghost…we embark upon this revelation of God in Christ. It is a

gradual and growing revelation; fueled by our trials.

Tantamount to understanding God in Christ, is to first understand the creative force and

power of the Word of God:

Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.

Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that things

which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Let them praise the name of the Lord: for He commanded, and they were created.

God is a Spirit. An invisible Spirit. Life…love…creator…sustainer. And our God has

chosen a single conduit of expression…of revealing Himself…of disclosing His mind, His

will, His emotion, and His creation. That single chosen conduit, is His Word. For when our

God speaks, things are created. From things mighty to things miniscule…from exploding

galaxies and thermo-nuclear suns; to tender, unseen hands, stitching together broken hearts

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and broken lives. When God’s Word goes out of His mouth, He Himself has gone forth…in

transition from spiritual to natural…to accomplish and prosper that which He wills to do.

Which networks are closed to the Almighty God of creation? The very insects are His eyes.

For the greatness of our God is manifest in this, that: In Him we live and move and have our

being. It is the Word of God who formed Adam from the dust of the ground, and breathed

into his nostrils the breath of life. The Word of God formed Eve from a rib bone of Adam.

And in both cases, we had instant adults…fully equipped to be fruitful and multiply. The

Word of God spoke trees into existence…fully grown…and flush with the seeds of tomorrow.

Fauna, flora, animals and man, all instant, full grown creations. God spoke, and they were.

But in Nazareth, a different sort of creation took place. It is here where The word was

made flesh. Not a fully grown creation: but a holy, microscopic seed was created in the

womb of Mary.

fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy

Ghost. And what a mystery this still is today… the tangible results, of a human seed fusing

with a divine seed. It is the Word made flesh, and dwelling among us. It is God speaking a

male seed into being out of nothingness, into the womb of a young Jewish virgin. But it is so

much more. It is the fusion of those two seeds into one seed. It is the nine month

development of that fusion. It is the 33 ½ year life-span of that matured miracle. The Word

made flesh encompasses all of this. Only a blessed few got to see this miracle…those who:

have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands

have handled, of the word of life.

You and I also started life as a zygote. Our father’s seed united with our mother’s seed, and

we each began as a single-celled, fertilized egg. Each parent donated their 23 chromosomes,

which became the traits and characteristics that we are today. It could be no different with

Jesus. His biological development, and His metabolism, were entirely influenced by the seed

of His mother, and the seed of His Father. And it is here where the wonder of wonders

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begins. What influences did the Divine seed contribute to 300 trillion cells walking the shores

of Galilee? What were the visible effects, upon the science and the biology of our Savior?

Did they shorten or lengthen humanity’s nine month gestation period? No. Did those 23

Divine chromosomes alter a normal birth, or growth to adulthood? Again, no. His health and

appetite seem the same as all of humanity. He tires, He sleeps, He weeps and laughs. The

Word was made flesh was in every way identical to our own, save only the point of origin.

But because of that microscopic difference in origin, our Savior alone was born with sinless

human blood. That tiny difference in origin manifested as incredible wisdom at the budding

age of 12 years. That infinitesimal difference of 23 chromosomes, matured into a 30 year

bond of love and trust in God His Father: a love stronger than steel, and hotter than the very

hubs of hell…a love unequalled in human history. This is the Word made flesh, and dwelling

among us. This, and so much more: for we cannot now know what else that difference in

origin grew to become, in the development of my Master.

God was in Christ, is not the same as the Word was made flesh. It stands alone, with its

own distinct starting point. The Word was made flesh began at Mary’s conception. But God

was in Christ has an entirely different starting point. We posit that God was in Christ from

conception…from that pivotal point, when the Word was made flesh. But to do so, is to

ignore the Spirit’s hermeneutic of scripture. The term Christ is in itself a term of ministry and

office; a robe not donned by my Lord Jesus until 30 years of age. I understand that this is holy

ground…that we have long held that God was in Christ from the very beginning. Yet

consider the testimony of the Spirit. The Mighty God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, wanted

His people to build Him a tent. A very detailed tent. It must imitate a unique spiritual tent,

revealed to Moses in the mount. Why a tent? Heaven is His throne, and the earth is His

footstool. Why does the God of eternity desire that a tent be built? Simply this…that I may

dwell among them. That I may tabernacle among them. That I may walk with them, talk with

them, and lead them into a promised land. And when did this Mighty God take up residence

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in His tent? During its preparation? No. At its inauguration…when it was complete; down to

the very last knop and flower. The revelation of this tent grew to regal proportions in the days

of Solomon, hundreds of years later. A massive temple, where once was a tent. A structure

for which Solomon spared no expense. Yet again, when did the Mighty God occupy this

beautiful temple? During construction? No. Not until its ceremonious inauguration, at the

time of completion. Then a third time, the Spirit testifies, saying: sacrifice and offering thou

woulds’t not, but a body hast thou prepared me. And as the temples before, preparation must

be made for the Mighty God’s arrival. He would tarry until the way of the Lord be prepared;

every valley filled, every mountain and hill brought low, the crooked made straight, and the

rough ways made smooth. His residency must wait, until the preparer of the way finish his

work. So says the Spirit:

This is he, of whom it is written, behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall

prepare the way before thee.

And Malachi was bolder still, saying:

Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord,

whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple…

The Mighty God’s son had been born of a virgin. The Word made flesh grew and matured for

30 years. And like all fathers, God’s intervention must be stayed during this time of growth.

For His son must needs be tested and tempted…during the prime years of a young mans life…

in all points like as we. He must experience the fears and the joys…the pain and the love…

that all men feel in life. One can scarce imagine how blurred the lines of time and eternity

became, as the Father of eternity beheld His only begotten son…nursing at His mother’s paps,

as a hushed heaven looked on…crying at His circumcision…marveling at His Father’s

handiwork in the beautiful gardens and forests of Palestine. And how greatly was the Father

constrained! It must needs be, that the Word was made flesh…giving humanity the only 13

pints of sinless human blood ever produced. Still that flesh, made of the Word, could bleed

out and die.

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John the Baptist, having finished his ministry, meets the Word made flesh at the Jordon

river. Jesus’ preparation is now complete. The fullness of time has come. The finished

vessel is perfect in every way: tried and tested, holy and sinless. Mary had given birth to a

human being: the only one to have ever sprang from the fusion of her human seed, and a God-

spoken holy seed. From that instant of conception, until 30 years old and beyond, the Son of

God was indeed the Word made flesh. But this was an act of creation; and the gospel story,

the development of that creation. And while a mystery of biologic metabolism; it remains an

intervention by God in the genesis stage, of a nine month process allowed to run its due

course. Jesus’ 30 years of preparation are a closed book to us. The zeal of His Father’s house

was eating Him up, and of a long time, He desired to be about His Father’s business. Short of

this, we really know nothing about the Son of God.

At the banks of the muddy Jordon, Jesus in now ready, to don the mantle of Christ. The

preparation is complete…down to the golden tongs and snuffdishes. Only one thing

remained: to fulfill all righteousness. Thus, the preparer of the way baptizes Jesus. As He

rises from that watery grave, Jesus is filled with the Holy Ghost. It is here, when the Lord

suddenly comes to His temple. What now walks in Jesus’ sandaled feet…heals with his

carpenter hands…weeps with eyes of compassion, is no less than God in Christ, reconciling

the world unto himself. Here is the inauguration of Moses tent in the wilderness. Here is

God’s visitation at Solomon’s temple feast. Now is God manifest in the flesh. Here, the event

begins…of God in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself. Now does the fullness of the

Godhead dwell in the Son of God. So says the Spirit:

For He whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God, for God giveth not the Spirit by

measure unto Him.

Does this minimize the unsearchable miracle…that the Mighty God has fathered His only

begotten son? Which part of this marvelous gospel is less marvelous, that God’s residency

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would tarry, until the preparation of the temple be completed? On the contrary, the facts

themselves do magnify the miracle. For how else might He be made in all points like unto his

brethren, and yet bless and save creation with the only sinless blood of redemption? How else

might He establish His royal lineage from David, and yet, take on the form of a servant? The

miracle remains intact…the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. And that mystery of

divine fertilization…still a mystery today…is then compounded by the baptism of the Holy

Ghost. As the Mighty God suddenly comes to his prepared temple, we embark upon the whole

purpose of Bethlehem’s mystery…reconciliation. Reaching a lost world…redeeming a fallen

humanity, and returning man to fellowship with his creator. And what of the temple Himself?

What of the man Jesus?

The most beautiful irony of the gospel story, is the one so rarely explored…though it rests in

the very bosom of true Christianity. For the crowning trait of the most famous man in human

history, is in fact, His anonymity. The Son of God that nobody knows. And it is this single

trait, that He hopes his followers might achieve. It is the greatest achievement that any

apostolic life can pursue…simply, to die…to lose our life. For is not anonymity the very meat

of maturity? Such was the testimony of our brother Paul:

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life

which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave

himself for me.

And in another place:

I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

Here is that elusive, pinnacle achievement sought by every apostolic who loves Him; to die

daily…to remain crucified with Christ…to lose our life, that we may find it. And where do

we suppose the apostle learned so radical a theology? At the feet of Gamaliel? I think not.

The way of death, and the way of all humanity, are polar opposites. The Spirit of scripture

testifies that Paul learned this way of death, from the example set by his Lord. Jesus showed

Paul…Jesus showed all men…this new concept of dying daily; long before Paul adopted the

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practice. For I dare say that the Master practiced what He preached. And fully two years

before the world knew how He would die, Jesus did preach:

If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow

me.

From His inauguration at Jordan, until His cruel death at Calvary, my Lord lived a crucified

life. Every day of His ministry, Jesus willingly crawled up on that cross, dying to Himself.

Had He not, we should all be the poorer; hearing only the words of the Son of God, rather than

the words of God in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself. This, Paul understood better

than most. He understood that the successful reconciliation of humanity to God, would

require the Son of God to hide His own life in His Father.

For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.

For His first 30 years on earth, Jesus’ life was obscured by the Holy Ghost. Then came

Jordan, where He willingly died and was buried. At last, He begins a 3 ½ year regimen of

dying on a cross every day. What of Jesus? His life was truly and completely, hidden in God;

such that even today, no man can possibly know who the Son is. And wasn’t that His own

testimony?

All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the son is, but the

Father; and who the Father is, but the son, and he to whom the son will reveal him.

Here is the manifest beauty of the Son of God. For in that He gave His life; He gave it first

at Jordan…and then ultimately, at Calvary. No man knoweth who the Son is, including us…

simply because no man has ever seen him. We have a record of His birth, a visit to the temple

at 12, His brief encounter with John at 30, and His prayers to His Father. We all take our lives

with us, as we leave the burial waters of baptism. Then we embark on a gradual, life-long

process of allowing the Holy Ghost to crucify us. But not so with my Lord. In that one fell

swoop at Jordan…He laid down His life in the burial waters of baptism, for you and for me.

When He was buried by John, that was the last the world would ever see of the man Jesus.

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His 30 years of preparation are complete. The temple is ready, willing, and able. The fullness

of time had come. From here on out:

The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he

doeth the works.

In the form of the dove of peace, the Lord, whom ye seek, has suddenly come to his temple.

After a 2,000 year flight, the dove has at last found a suitable place to rest the soles of her feet.

No man knoweth who the son is, but the Father.

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CHAPTER SIX

TO KNOW HIM

That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings,

being made conformable unto His death; if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection

of the dead…and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark

for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

That I may know Him. Here is the very fiber of the great apostle…his gut-wrenching

prayer and desire. This in spite of the Master’s curious warning, that no man knows who the

son is, but the Father. Yet Paul’s burning passion remains…to know Him. As he stands at

this portal in his life, the pathway behind him is cluttered with loss. His pure-bred heritage as

a son of Benjamin…as a Hebrew of Hebrews…means nothing now. A lifetime of study in the

law of God had earned him the coveted title of Pharisee. He was a man of note, a man of

status and honor. These he counted as dung. In fact, anything that brought a whit of gain into

his life, he gladly counted as a loss. Perhaps he reasoned these the natural steps of ruination,

to bring him at last to this solemn door of desire: that I may know Him. His life has a new,

singular focus now. His sights are set on a prize greater than any other prize. And this is

where the seeming contradiction…of knowing Him who no man can know…is unraveled. For

indeed Paul sums up his desire to know Him in this: The high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

And what higher calling can humankind aspire to? Is there a higher calling for which any

man can reach forth? There is not. It is a calling of brutal submission and death, as the Holy

Ghost eradicates the effects of the law of sin in our members. It is a calling of hiding oneself

in God…of self-crucifixion…of the death and burial, of that guy on your birth certificate. But

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this calling is also glorious emanation from within…it is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is

one of so many gifts from Him…like the unspeakable joy of Christian fellowship over a

restaurant meal after a Holy Ghost inspired service. As with Paul, we too must strive to know

Him; Him who no man can know but the Father. Because the deader we become to

ourselves…while retaining the joy of that Christian fellowship…the brighter He shines from

within. This was Paul’s goal. Our narrow path to knowing Him, is just as His was. We too

must enter into our sufferings. We too must die. We too must slumber, as the dormant power

of our resurrection awaits the sound of a trumpet blast. And so the choleric apostle gives us

an orderly, four semester outline, that we too might know Him.

1.) the power of His resurrection.

2.) the fellowship of His sufferings.

3.) being made conformable unto His death.

4.) if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the

dead.

Now, to even the most casual reader of the scriptures, the order of these four semesters is

out of whack. And this is out of character…for both Paul, and the Spirit. Semesters 2, 3, and

4 are in perfect order. Sufferings, death, and resurrection are the Master’s footprints on our

narrow path. They were experienced in that order, by our Lord Jesus. It is the mark that Paul

pressed for…and the pathway to get there. But number one in this series of semesters, seems

out of sequence. the power of His resurrection is mentioned before the Lord’s death, burial,

and resurrection. It precedes His life of sufferings. So where…chronologically…in the life of

Christ’s 3 ½ year ministry, do we find this first semester…this power of His resurrection?

We find it at Jordan. When Jesus rose from His baptismal grave, and was immediately

empowered by the Holy Ghost, this is the power of His resurrection. Here at the inauguration

of the highest office on earth…the Christ…is the loss of life, that we may find it. From

Jordan forward, His life was safely hidden in God His Father. The Lord, whom you seek, had

suddenly come to His temple. It is a continuation of the son of God’s anonymity….a

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voluntary but essential emptying of Himself, that the world might behold God in Christ,

reconciling the world unto Himself. And so the first semester of the four is not out of place

after all. It is the power and life-blood that we ourselves require, if we are to carry out the

ministry of reconciliation that has been given to us.

And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath

given to us the ministry of reconciliation. Without the power of His resurrection at the

beginning of our journey, we should faint to enter into the fellowship of His sufferings and

His death. It is our sword and our shield…our buckler and our armor-bearer.

While truly no man can know who the son is; it is the quest itself…the following in His

footprints…empowered by His Spirit…that makes our walk a glorious reaching forth.

Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death, that like as Christ was raised up

from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

One day, at the end of that narrow path, we shall know Him. But oh! The joys on that path!

The glories revealed to frail humanity! For is it not on this path, that the second half of Jesus’

revelation occurs?

All things are delivered to me of my Father, and no man knows who the son is, but the Father;

and who the Father is, but the son, and he to whom the son will reveal him.

Throughout our lives, throughout our sufferings…all the way to our death, we are granted

manageable bites of revelation from Jesus, of who his Father is. And as this knowledge and

revelation accumulates and matures, our very mouths are stopped in awe. That I may know

Him. That I may lose myself in that quest. That I may press for the mark of the prize of the

high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Fullness inhabiting emptiness. Royalty living out servant

hood. The power of creation, robed in the meek and lowly in heart. It is the Son of God’s

artisan-perfection of daily cross-bearing, that makes him unknowable. But this alone, is our

path to knowing Him.

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CHAPTER SEVEN

THE CHRIST

But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one

Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.

The new covenant church is built upon our chief cornerstone…the Christ of God. Laid

some 2,000 years ago, he is the Rock, upon whose authority we toil. For these 2,000 years,

every brick, in every wall and parapet…every chamber and closet…in the house of God, has

come from the kiln of this revelation, that: thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. A

revelation born in Haran, and confirmed by all the prophets. A revelation planted at Calvary:

now on the precipice of full term birth into the heavens…into eternity…here in the last days.

This 4,000 year old revelation dates back some 430 years before Moses ascended Sinai:

And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which

was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of

none effect.

This ancient promise made to Abram in Haran, was nothing less than God in Christ. So then

the inauguration of Jesus…into the ministry of Christ…becomes a Rock, upon which eternity

itself pivots. But the bold apostle not only unravels ancient mysteries here; he posits that the

covenant under which we now live…this 2,000 year old dispensation of grace…is that very

God in Christ. The magnificence of this revelation cannot be understated.

As far as the east is from the west, so is God’s holiness from sin. When He visited Sinai,

his silent presence set it a smoke. When he took up residence in the wilderness tent, the

people could not bear, though his glory were shielded in a thick cloud. When he came to the

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temple of Solomon, his glory drave them out, though it were shielded by that same cloud.

Then comes Christ…the purest of love stories. For of the father and the son, it was

prophesied:

thou shalt not build the house, but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build

the house unto my name.

If we believe that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, we can hear the

whisper of the Spirit in creation…as the earth itself, cannot endure the glory of the sun, except

a mediating o-zone shield its glory. Our God’s holiness is so intense…his purity so

extreme…his righteousness so very bright and hot…that were God not in Christ, we should all

be consumed in a moment. And so the chorus of prophecy, of creation, and of the Word,

harmonize with Paul’s understanding of the Christ.

for there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

Our Mediator…the man Christ Jesus…following His ascension at Olivet, was glorified. Who

can imagine the hushed glory of this ceremony? The body, soul, and spirit that is man’s

constitution; was in the case of the man Jesus, glorified. What that means…to the laws of

science and biology…we cannot now know. The heralded event of His glorification is

prophesied, but seldom understood. For having been seen of men 40 days, following 3 days in

the grave, there remained but 7 days to Pentecost, as our Savior ascended from Olivet. Seven

days, until the spiritual fulfillment of God in Christ…to carry on the ministry of

reconciliation. And the hushed glory of that seven days…the order of that ceremony…the

chronology of those events…is foretold in the consecration of the High Priest.

and that son that is priest in his stead shall put them on seven days, when he cometh into the

tabernacle of the congregation to minister in the holy place.

At the end of that seven day consecration, in the fullness of time, the coronation of the ages

takes place. Jesus is glorified. The glory of the Lord explodes out of the Holy place, spills

over the balconies of heaven, and fills 120 believers in Jerusalem’s upper room.

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(but this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy

Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

And while we cannot know the magnificent details… of that seventh day ceremony of

glorification… we can know the results. It is the baptism of the Holy Ghost…Christ in you,

the hope of glory. That apostle that loved him has said:

no man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is

perfected in us.

The Spirit of God who moved upon the face of the waters…who spoke through prophets and

kings, the angel of the Lord, father-in-laws and harlots, and in one case even a donkey…was

now poured out on all flesh. Jesus’ glorification burst the dam, and opened the floodgate to

2,000 years of reconciliation. The dispensation of grace.

When we receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost, it is Christ in you, the hope of glory. And

if God was once in Christ for the shielding of his unspeakable glory…then God is still in

Christ…in you…today. For without that mediation, we would be destroyed from within, by

the brightness of his appearing in us. So then is the prophecy of Jesus fulfilled:

if a man love me, he will keep my words; and my Father will love him, and we will come unto

him, and make our abode with him.

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CHAPTER EIGHT

THE MYSTERY OF GODLINESS

And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh,

justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the gentiles, believed on in the world, and

received up into glory.

Here is one of our core apostolic scriptures. Not one-third of God, but the Almighty God

was manifest in the flesh. This I believe, and so teach. Yet as great a revelation as this is; I

can’t shake the feeling, that Paul is offering up an even larger view. He proposes that the

mystery of godliness begins with: God was manifest in the flesh, and that it finishes with:

received up into glory. We then, have this tendency to attribute the whole verse to different

facets in the life of my Lord. And perhaps it is. But somehow, it just doesn’t fit the context of

1 Timothy.

The third and fourth chapters of 1Timothy have to do entirely with the church.

Specifically, Paul is here addressing church leadership, church structure, and: …how thou

oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God. Then, right in the big middle of this theme,

Paul appears to drop a oneness bomb, closing chapter three with our text verse. Without

missing a beat, he then goes back to exhortations on church behavior through the remainder of

the letter.

If the God was manifest in the flesh, and received up into glory really are the capsule

boundaries of my Lord’s 33 years on earth, it also fails to fit the content of this verse. The

subject is not the mystery of God, but rather, the mystery of godliness. In fact, godliness

seems to be an overriding theme of this letter…Paul mentioning it nine times in six chapters.

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Now godliness (eusebeia) is simply defined as piety; though translated one time as “holiness”

in Acts 3:12. This brings a slightly different texture to our verse…especially if we combine

this content with the context of Paul’s letter. Add to this, the Spirit of this verse of scripture

rightly divided. The apostle’s propensity…nay…his very fiber…was order and chronology.

God was: 1.) Manifest in the flesh.

2.) Justified in the Spirit

3.) Seen of angels.

4.) Preached unto the gentiles.

5.) Believed on in the world.

6.) Received up into glory.

Paul was full of the Holy Ghost; a choleric / melancholy Hebrew scholar, and was very

precise, when he taught this chronologic lesson. He begins with:

God was manifest in the flesh

My Thompson labels the entire verse: “mystery of the incarnation of Christ.” And I think

universally, this is regarded as the birth of Jesus. Going forward from Bethlehem, Paul moves

to:

Justified in the Spirit

To justify one, is to render, show, or regard them as innocent. Opinions are divided here.

Some hold that this refers to my Lord’s baptism at Jordan. Others believe this is a reference to

His resurrection.

Seen of angels

Here, I am unqualified to say. Though He was ministered to by angels following His desert

temptation, one gets the feeling from scripture, that He was seen by angels throughout His life

and ministry.

Preached unto the gentiles

It is here where I find the most difficulty, attributing this portion of scripture to the pilgrimage

of my Lord. Certainly Isaiah prophesied that He would be a light to the gentiles. Simeon

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confirmed this at the temple, following Jesus’ circumcision. Yet, in my Lord’s short life on

earth, the signature of His ministry was decidedly to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Even when He sent forth the twelve, He admonished them: Go not into the way of the

gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not. Of course, there are sporadic cases

of Jesus ministering to both gentile and Samaritan. But by and large, even the most liberal

treatment of the scriptures, do not support that God was preached unto the gentiles during my

Lord’s 3 ½ year ministry.

Believed on in the world

Again, the ministry of my Lord was localized, and focused mostly on the children of Israel.

Believed on in the world, when applied to His ministry, requires us to ignore the common

horse sense of scripture. It just doesn’t fit.

Received up into glory

This is universally applied to His Olivet ascension. In fact, God was manifest in the flesh

and, received up into glory, act as two bookends to the entire verse. They make for a neat

package, and clear landmarks in the short life of Jesus…marking the beginning and the end of

His life and ministry. As apostolics, we tend to focus more on these two bookends, than on

the entire content of the verse.

Personally, I have difficulty confining 1Timothy 3:16, to the 33 blessed years that our God

walked among us. It violates the complete context of Paul’s letter to Timothy…context we

claim to wield in a scholarly manner. Paul’s letter is anointed ecclesiastics 101. It is about an

expanded, resurrected and glorified Savior; who has returned as promised, to dwell in His

followers lives. It is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is about the perfecting of that body of

believers in whom our Lord dwells. It is about the mystery of godliness, in the church age,

post-Pentecost…and not that first blessing…the 33 year mystery of the incarnation. To

confuse that chronology would indeed confine us to those 33 years. But context suggests that

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the mystery of godliness…as defined by Paul’s chronology here in 1 Timothy 3:16, spans

some 2,000 years.

With a view then to context, God was manifest in the flesh. Of course this relates to

Bethlehem. That is the beginning of the Word made flesh. But our Lord was the seed of a

great and mighty tree. Believers are born of the Spirit and grafted in. Bethlehem was the

fleshly requirement, for the blessed victory from Pentecost to today. We are the church…the

body of Christ. That is what Paul’s letter is addressing. And so while God was indeed

manifest in the flesh at Bethlehem, He was only gone for seven days after Olivet. God

continues to be manifest in the flesh today…as He has for the past 2,000 years. God was

manifest in the flesh. My tiny mind cannot wrap itself around this miracle. In previous cases;

the Word spoken became light; the sun, moon and stars, fish, herbs, plants, animals, and the

spirit of life in living things. Yet somehow, I always imagined these as instantaneous acts of

creation. God speaks, and these things appear. The Word makes an instant transition from

spiritual and ethereal, to tangible and visible. So to comprehend a change in the operation of

the Spirit of God is already a challenge. To further comprehend the post-creative science

afoot inside of Mary’s womb for the next nine months, is simply too wonderful for me. The

instant of Mary’s conception was in one instant, the destruction of the enemy, and the birth of

His church, for whom He gave His own blood. And who can grasp a divine seed merging

with a woman’s seed? To what can we compare it? Who can grasp the creative force of the

Word, as He veers from galactic to microscopic? How do we measure and chart created cell

division merging with human cell division: consigning himself and His developing

manifestation to a normal nine-month incubation. Which genes dominated, and which genes

recessed? God was manifest in the flesh is an unprecedented process of development…for

indeed the Word became flesh…from one cell to 300 trillion cells over a nine month period of

human gestation. But as Mary’s conception was spiritual, so also was the conception of the

church…on the day of Pentecost. God was manifest in the flesh, and dwelt among us. A

spiritual seed from heaven, merging with a human seed on earth.

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As justification means to render, show, or regard one as just or innocent, then I have to lean

towards justified in the spirit being the event of Jesus’ Holy Ghost baptism…His new birth…

following His water baptism in Jordan. Here at the inauguration of His ministry stands

humanity’s only glimmer of hope, and perhaps the realization of Isaiah’s faith in our very

small and feeble roots. Following 30 years of being tempted in all points like as we…yet

without sin…God here at Jordan proclaims His son’s innocence, and justifies Him for the

mission ahead. As if grasping the merging of a human cell and a divine cell weren’t baffling

enough; we now introduce the baptism of the Holy Ghost to that mysterious union…after 30

formative years.

Immediately following this event, the Holy Ghost drives Jesus into the wilderness. Here, He

is severely weakened by 40 days of fasting. Having succeeded in 30 years of being tempted in

all points like as we, He is now tempted on a much larger scale. Using the common

temptation vehicle…lust of the flesh…lust of the eye…pride of life…the devil tempts our

Lord in the wilderness. At the conclusion of our Lord’s victory in this battle, angels came and

ministered unto him. It is here where I attribute Paul’s statement seen of angels.

Preached unto the gentiles sweeps us past Pentecost, to the ordained ministry of Paul. Many

have difficulty making this transition…from the man Christ Jesus, to the spiritual body of

Christ. Yet it is a natural progression of the mystery of godliness. Not only the footprints of

my Master, but those of His Spirit-filled apostles, had fulfilled the imperative in Jerusalem,

and in all Judea, and in Samaria…It was now time to move on to the uttermost part of the

earth. Paul was the appointed apostle to the gentiles…who himself testified:

But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained

before the world unto our glory…

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Believed on in the world takes us from the ministry of Paul, to present day.

Received up into glory. Of all the events listed in Paul’s chronology, this final one is the

hardest to dislodge from traditional thought. For indeed we know that Jesus was received up

into glory. But is my Lord’s ascension from Olivet a fitting definition of the mystery of

godliness? 1Timothy 3:16 has methodically taken us from my Lord’s birth, through His

growth to manhood and ministry, and then beyond Pentecost to the church today. Do we now

regress back to Olivet to close this verse? Were this verse about the mystery of God, perhaps

such regression would be in order. But again, Paul’s context speaks to the church. Paul’s

content is regarding the mystery of godliness. And Paul’s chronology puts received up into

glory firmly in the church age of today.

To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the

gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Paul is not revisiting the Olivet ascension.

Rather, we have here a prophetic reference to the rapture of the church…the body of Christ,

received up into glory.

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CHAPTER NINE

THE RAPTURE

Behold, I shew you a mystery, we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment,

in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be

raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

In the last chapter, we closed 1Timothy 3:16 with the mystery of godliness being received

up into glory. Physically, that happened at our Lord’s Olivet ascension. Spiritually, I think

the scriptures bear out, that the church…the spiritual body of Christ…is that mystery of

godliness. It is this body of Christ…the church…that is received up into glory. Here in

1Corinthians, the Spirit grants us an inside look at this amazing miracle. To be received up

into glory, is a real event; yet in the future, who’s arrival is heralded by the last trump. The

duration of this breathless miracle is the twinkling of an eye, or, if you will, but a moment.

Most call it “The Rapture”, a hope exclusive to this last generation of humanity. Every since

the tragedy in Eden, that ruthless bully named “death” has been shoving the collective face of

humanity back into the dust from whence it came. In the rapture, we find our one opportunity

to skirt such a morbid end, and instead, be changed in a moment.

Such a profound, transforming miracle as this should appear somewhere on the Revelation

landscape; colorful as it is. In this final book of the bible, our Lord has etched in stone the end

of the earth; daring every devil in and out of hell to try and change it. The Revelation records

the end of you, the end of me, the end of a dispensation and an age, and the dawn of the

millennium reign of Jesus Christ. Somewhere in that mix, we should be able to find the

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rapture of the church. The end of the 6th day…the end of the 6,000th year…is the closing of

the door to the gentiles. Moreover, it is the re-opening of the door to His brethren Israel…and

the close of the sixth dispensation, the dispensation of grace. It is a moment as monumental as

Pentecost, Sinai, Babel, or Eden. It is Moses returning to lead the people out…Joseph

revealing himself to his brethren…David returning to rule.

The book of Revelation, the Rapture, the Bible, and life itself can be difficult to understand.

The Holy Ghost gives us a key to confront some of these difficulties. It is at once a simple

thing, and yet a profound leap for most. Our lives are lived out in the natural, tangible realm.

We are, after all, humanity on earth. But for every moment we live out in our natural realm,

life continues unabated in an invisible realm…the Spiritual realm in which we are

encapsulated. For in Him we live, and move, and have our being. We are two realms co-

existing on this journey through time, fulfilling the plan of God. Though we cannot see this

other spiritual realm, it is a very real dimension, populated by very real citizens, engaged in

very real events that are affecting the dimension we can see. And every now and then, the

Spirit lifts a corner of the veil, to give us a peek at that unseen world. Moses saw a wilderness

tabernacle, from which he patterned the earthly one. Elijah saw a mountain ringed with horses

and chariots of fire, all awaiting command to rise to the prophets defense. In the year that

King Uzziah died, Isaiah saw the Lord, high and lifted up in His temple. Jesus assures us that

every child’s angel has a standing unequalled in heaven…beholding the face of His Father.

Little peeks behind the veil, letting us know it’s there, and that it affects our lives…and that

we affect their lives. The two dimensions are intimately inter-twined, mirroring one another.

And it is this that makes the book of Revelation so marvelous. In its pages, we see not only

our natural, visible world, but the veil is removed from that other, invisible world. For 22

colorful chapters, both worlds collide, interact… and become at times, indistinguishable. We

must remember when reading its blessed pages, that the book of Revelation is portraying the

story of humanity’s end from both dimensions at the same time.

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I hold no concrete convictions about a pre, mid, or post-tribulation rapture. Indeed, I still have

problems even accepting the rapture. But it’s plainness in 1Corinthians or in 1 Timothy is

compelling. And so by faith, we look for this rapture in the pages of Revelation. We’ll leave

off the timing issue for now. Let the rapture surface where it may, and then construct your

timelines. The apostle Paul…who himself was caught up to the third heaven; seeing things

not lawful to be uttered…gives us anointed insight into the rapture. Oddly, it is found in his

letter to Galatia.

But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh, but he of the freewoman was by

promise. Which things are an allegory; for these are the two covenants; the one from Mount

Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. For this Agar is Mount Sinai in Arabia,

and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. But

Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.

Paul is here expounding the wonderful truths of law and grace. But the Spirit reaches down

through time; including even to this last generation, by calling Jerusalem the mother of us all.

We ourselves are children of that heavenly Jerusalem…the final chapter of us all. And in this

scripture, we again see these two realms co-existing on this journey through time. An earthly

Jerusalem, and a heavenly Jerusalem. Both are mothers: one of free children, and one of

children yet in bondage. One is visible to us, and one is an invisible mirrored image of us.

Not then two Jerusalem’s; but a natural Jerusalem, and a Spiritual Jerusalem. In locating the

rapture, these allegories of Paul’s law-grace foundation extend to today…to the long awaited

birth of the free children into heaven…the dead raised incorruptible, and we changed. The

Holy Ghost bids us look then, in the Revelation, for the birth of this body of believers. The

birth of the dead and the changed…by mother Jerusalem…into heaven. We should look in the

location following the last trump…the 7th of seven trumps, at the close of the 11th chapter of

Revelation.

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Following this last trump, the 12th chapter of Revelation opens with our mother Jerusalem…a

woman clothed with the sun… giving birth to a manchild:

And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon

under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: and she being with child cried,

travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. And there appeared another wonder in

heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns

upon his heads. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to

the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to

devour her child as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule

all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to His throne. And

the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should

feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

This is what follows the last trump. This, I believe, portrays the rapture of the church…the

birth of the body of Christ, into the heavens. Joseph’s dream fulfilled. Mother Jerusalem,

crying…travailing in birth…in the throes and pains of delivery. We ourselves, are doing the

same: For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until

now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we

ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

The woman clothed with the sun, is our mother Jerusalem. This is Pentecost… when the

spiritual seed fused with the natural, and the body of Christ was conceived. And in this 12th

chapter of Revelation, we see in this woman, one of the clearest transitions in scripture, from

the spiritual realm to our own natural realm. The dragon is cast to the earth. And when the

dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the

man child. Here, we are back in the natural realm. The persecuted woman is the natural

Jerusalem in Israel. And mirroring our mother’s rescue at our spiritual birth…our rapture into

the heavens…(And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of

God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.…), we see

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the earthly Jerusalem, who had brought forth the man child Christ Jesus, rescued as well, and

sustained for the same length of time…3 ½ years. And to the woman were given two wings of

a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for

a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. Both realms, co-existing in

the plan of God, at the end of the sixth day. One woman…one mother Jerusalem…but in two

locations…or as it were, two different dimensions. In both realms she has birthed a man

child. In both views she is pursued by the enemy. In both dimensions, she is sheltered by

God for 3 ½ years. But for all the similarities the two mothers share, there is one difference

which stands out. In only one vision…the heavenly Jerusalem…is the birth of the man child

actually recorded. In the earthly vision, the birth of the man (not man child), is cited as

historical fact, rather than a real time event. In the heavenly vision, the man child is caught up

to God, and to His throne. But in the earthly vision, without the birth of the man being a real

time event, no mention is made of a post-natal rescue of Jerusalem’s son. The birth mother is

sheltered in both cases. But only in the spiritual, is the man-child rescued.

So then, who is this heavenly man child…and this earthly man? A lad sought for

devouring by the enemy. A son who’s very birth brings persecution to his mother…by that

same enemy. A boy who is caught up to God, and to His throne, and who will grow to one

day: rule all nations with a rod of iron. A child who becomes a King, of whom Israel’s

greatest king foretold: thou salt break them with a rod of iron, thou shalt dash them in pieces

like a potter’s vessel. Who is this infant born free, by the mother of us all, having this one of

seven promises:

And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the

nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be

broken to shivers; even as I received of my Father?

Both dimensions, co-existing on this journey through time, fulfilling the plan of God. Without

the birth of the man Christ Jesus to earthly Jerusalem, there could be no birth of the man

child…the body of Christ…to heavenly Jerusalem. The heavenly birth…the rapture…is

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recorded here in Revelation 12, following the blowing of the seventh trumpet. Paul had said:

behold, I shew you a mystery. But the Spirit says:

in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God

should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

Following the birth of the man child to mother Jerusalem, the apocalypse shifts its focus to the

earth…and the woman who had brought forth the man. The door to the gentiles has now

closed. Our Lord turns His attention back to the apple of His eye…to Israel’s Jerusalem. So

says the Spirit of God:

Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth;

then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel.

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