Salvation: God alone makes Christians (Part 4)
We continue from Part 3. The fight is always against the things that we cannot see with our physical eyes, but God has equipped every born again believer with the whole armour of God. There is a piece of armour in the whole armour of God that is for defending us against the "fiery darts of the wicked":
Ephesians 6:16 "Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked."
The shield of faith is our defence against the "fiery darts of the wicked". The same word "dart" is also found in:
Proverbs 7:23 "Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life."
The main function of the liver is to protect the body from harmful toxins in the digestive tract. Notice how much the liver is shaped like a shield. The liver is the "shield" that God has put in the body of man to defend him from toxins that may enter into the body from the food and water he consumes. The word of God is food and drink to the soul, but so are lying and corrupt words.
Hebrews 1:7 "And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire."
Therefore the "fiery darts" in Ephesians 6:16 are spirits that attack to undermine the spiritual defense system in a man. Words are the physical substance of a spirit, invisible but discernible. Jesus equates his words to spirit and life in John 6:63. It is by the word of God that the shield of faith is kept effectual. The Devil's weapons against the shield of faith are "fiery darts of the wicked", words (spirits) that work against faith to destroy it.
Job 33:23 "If there be a messenger with him, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to shew unto man his uprightness:"
A messenger is someone who carries a message from the sender. In the Old Testament times, prophets such as Moses, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah or Ezekiel would be examples of such messengers sent from God. They would carry a message from the most High, and their audience would be men. The prophets of God still speaks to us today. The 66 books of the Holy Bible is a message from God given to us in one complete volume.
Luke 4:4 "And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God."
The words of the Old Testament prophets are still relevant to us today, as much truth is eternally relevant and its impact does not diminish with time.
Ecclesiastes 3:14 "I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him."
The reason why we can have eternal life is because "whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever". Likewise, the 66 books of the word of God stands for ever, as much as truth is eternal and does not change with time.
John 17:17 "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth."
The 66 books of the Holy Bible is truth. Every word of God matters because every word is truth.
Matthew 18:16 "But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established."
The word of God is established in the mouth of two or three witnesses, and the two or three witnesses are found in mouth of the holy apostles and prophets, preserved and translated for us in one volume of the word of God. This goes along with:
1 Corinthians 14:27 "If any man speak in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret."
Today, the two or three unknown tongues of the word of God is interpreted for us in one language. For English-speaking people, the threefold cord of truth is interpreted for us in the 1611 King James Bible. I was led to do a search using the pure Bible search software (https://www.purebiblesearch.com/) on the word "language", and I soon discovered that it was found in exactly 22 verses in 16 chapters and 11 books. Notice the pattern of the number 22 and 1611 embedded in this word? 22 is a reference to "the will of God" which is also found 22 times in the King James Bible, and 1611 is the year when the King James Bible was published.
Acts 13:36 "For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption:"
The will of God is the word of God that king David had received, by which he did faithfully serve in his own generation. The 66 books of the Holy Bible is the will of God published in two testaments - the 39 books of the Old Testament, and the 27 books of the New Testament. Is this coincidence? What are the chances? It was God who did it ".. whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever." (Ecclesiastes 3:14) for the preservation and interpretation of his words in one complete volume of 66 books. By the way, this also goes to show that there is a divine order about the arrangement of books, chapters and verses in the Holy Bible, and God was the one who did that so that men should fear before him.
Going back to:
Job 33:23 "If there be a messenger with him, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to shew unto man his uprightness:"
The word "upright" is found in exactly 66 verses in the King James Bible. It is no coincidence. The Holy Bible is both the messenger and the interpreter. Not only that, but born again believers who carry the word of God in their earthen vessels are also included in this verse. Every born again believer is "one among a thousand."
Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 "I applied mine heart to know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and the reason of things, and to know the wickedness of folly, even of foolishness and madness: 26 And I find more bitter than death the woman, whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her. 27 Behold, this have I found, saith the preacher, counting one by one, to find out the account: 28 Which yet my soul seeketh, but I find not: one man among a thousand have I found; but a woman among all those have I not found. 29 Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions."
Wisdom is a woman in the book of Proverbs. There are two women in the book of Proverbs: the virtuous woman and the strange woman. One is the wisdom from above, and the other is the wisdom that is earthy, sensual and devilish. This passage was king Solomon who applied his heart to seek out wisdom, and that was him, "one man among a thousand". Solomon was a born again believer who lived a sinful life, only to find out towards the later part of his life, that it was all vanity and vexation of spirit. That was why he wrote "... a woman among all those have I not found" (verse 28), and then he wrote the passage in:
Proverbs 31:10 "Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies."
Going back to Job 33:23, the ministry of reconciliation was also established in this verse. God has ordained preachers to shew unto men his uprightness in keeping the covenant he has established with man since the beginning.
Genesis 6:18 "But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee."
The ark is Christ, and that was the gospel of grace preached unto all men, whosoever will believe.
2 Corinthians 5:17-19 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 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."
The "word of reconciliation" is the gospel of peace, and the "ministry of reconciliation" is the body of born again believers who themselves have been reconciled unto God by Jesus Christ, and now they are "in Christ". The phrase "in Christ" is found exactly 77 times, the same number of times "church" is found in the King James Bible. Noah and his family (church) were in the ark (in Christ) as the old world passed away, and all things were become new. This goes along with:
Romans 6:4 "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."
The old earth was judged: it was submerged in water. Everything under heaven were buried in water like unto a man baptised in water. That’s how believers are buried with Christ by baptism unto death, and are risen with him so that we should walk in newness of life. Old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Colossians 2:12 "Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead."
This verse is the key verse of this entire series of posts on the "operation of God" in the salvation of a man. It is the operation of God who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. The word "baptism" is found exactly 22 times, the same number of times "mystery" is found in the King James Bible. Mystery is a woman figure in the Bible. There are two mystery woman characters in the book of Proverbs: the virtuous woman, and the strange woman. The virtuous woman is a figure of the church, while the strange woman is a figure of “MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH”.
1 Corinthians 12:13 "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit."
When we are buried with Christ in baptism, we are baptized into the body of Christ (the church). Our trespasses are no longer imputed unto us because Christ has given himself a ransom for us. This goes along with:
Job 33:24 "Then he is gracious unto him, and saith, Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom."
I will expound on this verse in Part 5.