Address—C. Hendricks
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
1St Corinthians 15, verse 45.
And so it is written.
The first man, Adam.
Was made a living soul.
The last atom.
It was made a quickening spirit.
Howbeit, that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural, and afterward that which is spiritual.
The first man is of the earth, earthy.
The second man is the Lord from heaven.
As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy, and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
And as we've borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
Last night we were talking a little bit in the reading.
About the mystery.
And the mystery.
Embraces several thoughts.
And I was thinking of that today, a little bit more, enjoying it.
Adam was set.
Over an earthly creation, He was the head.
And everything was, and everyone, all the animals and all were in subjection to him, to his headship.
He was set in a scene where all was according to God.
As the earthly paradise, the Garden of Eden.
And.
Everything was very good. God pronounced it so.
There was no sin there.
It was indeed paradise, and he had the run of the garden.
And all the animals were subject to him.
He was the head of that earthly creation.
He was the first man.
Well, we know the story well. He fell 3rd chapter Genesis.
And he dragged the entire human race down with him into a state of sin.
Some of the animals became wild.
And the creation itself is in *******.
Waiting for a day when God will deliver it. And that's the day of the.
Wonderful liberty of the glory of the children of God. This awaits this scene.
It's going to be delivered. Well. These verses say that as is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy, and we bear the image of the earthy.
We have bodies just like Adam.
We're going to bear the image of the heavenly and have a glorified body just like Christ.
The truth of the mystery embraces this whole range of truth.
That was never.
Found in the Old Testament.
There was an earthly nation in the Old Testament, an earthly people.
Consistent with that dispensation.
But the truth of the mystery is that God has now exalted a man.
Not just to be over the earth like Adam was, though he's going to be that.
But over all heavenly spheres as well.
Everything being made subject to that man.
And it wasn't just Adam alone that had that headship. But God said it's not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper suitable for him.
And so he formed Eve, not the way he formed the other animals. He formed them of the dust of the ground, just as he had Adam.
But he formed Eve in a unique and special way. He put Adam to sleep and out of his side, out of his rib, he builded a woman.
And brought her to the man so that she was literally the first marriage. Literally she was a member of his body.
And as we look at the truth of the mystery as it's developed in the New Testament, we will see how that the mystery involves that very truth that the church. See, Eve was the complement of Adam. Without Eve, Adam was not complete.
He said I will make him an helper suitable for him. It's not meat that he be alone. He brought Eve to the man, but she wasn't made out of the dust of the ground as Adam was. She came right from his side.
00:05:04
So she was not independent of Adam.
You see, this whole feminist movement is a direct denial of the teachings of the Bible as to the relationship of the man and the woman.
The woman was taken out of the man. She's a part of him, so she's a member of his body. That first woman, Eve, certainly was, and she became his wife. She became his bride. We see how that the truth of the mystery that Christ, the second man, the last Adam, he's also not complete without his bride, and his bride is the assembly.
Truths that were not revealed in the Old Testament. These are all truths that have to do with this wonderful mystery of Christ in the church.
And justice, as Adam in his dominion over all the earthly creation, didn't assume that dominion alone, but he had his wife with him in it.
And they together.
Had dominion over the earthly creation, and so it is in the heavenly sphere. Christ in his Church. She is the complement, the fullness of Him that filleth All in all.
Let's turn back and we're going to read some of the scriptures we read last night, Romans 16.
Just look at these scriptures that touch on the mystery.
It's such a wonderful subject and if one doesn't understand it.
Is not acquainted with it. He really hasn't entered into what Christianity is.
Verse 25 of Romans 16 Now to him that is of power.
To establish you according to my gospel.
And according and the preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery.
Which was kept secret since the world began.
Now here we're told that this mystery that he's talking about, which is the, which is the mystery of Christ and the church.
Was something kept secret since the world began? You won't find it in the Old Testament except in type.
But it's not revealed until the New Testament. Now, once it's revealed in the New, then we can go back and look at the type and read the type and understand the type there. And Adam and Eve. There's a picture of Christ in the church, but it wasn't revealed back then. And you could ask any Jew who knows the Old Testament and knows the story of Adam and Eve and he won't have the vaguest idea of the mystery because that's something that wasn't revealed that then it was kept secret since the world.
But now.
Is made manifest and by the scriptures of the prophets or the prophetic scriptures.
It's not the scriptures of the Old Testament. It's not the Old Testament prophets that are referred to here.
But the New Testament prophets?
Now is made manifest. You see, if it was revealed in the if it was made manifest by the prophets of the Old Testament, he wouldn't have said now is made manifest. He's talking about the prophetic scriptures of the New Testament. And so he says it was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest.
By the prophetic Scriptures, the scriptures of the prophets of the New Testament, according to the commandment of the everlasting God.
Made known to all nations for the obedience of faith that expression.
The obedience of faith is found in the 1St chapter of Romans, and it's in connection with the gospel.
Here it is in connection with the truth of the mystery.
Faith, obedience, submission by faith to the truth.
That we have given to us, whether it be the gospel or whether it be the mystery. Paul had a twofold ministry. He was a minister of the gospel. He was a minister of the mystery.
Now let's turn to 1St Corinthians 2, where we have it mentioned again.
He starts out that chapter and he says, I brethren, when I came to you.
Came not with Excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.
00:10:04
The first two chapters of Corinthians is the setting aside of man's wisdom, the wisdom of this world, the setting aside of man's wisdom. And he talks about God's wisdom and God's wisdom is seen and revealed in the mystery. You'll notice as we go over these passages about the mystery, it's it's almost always connected with wisdom and prudence.
That this is God's wisdom, not man's.
So he says, when I came to you, I came not with excellence of speech or of wisdom. That's the wisdom of this world.
Declaring unto you the testimony of God, for I determine not to know anything among you.
You Saints at Corinth.
Save Jesus Christ and him crucified, Does that mean that he had nothing beyond that?
Christ and Christ crucified. Oh, he knew far more than that, but he determined because of their state.
These Saints at Corinth they were making so much of.
The world's wisdom and man's wisdom, and they were living on the level of the flesh.
The first man.
And so he says, I determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and him crucified. They had they had man being very important to them. There were groups there that said, I'm the Paul, I'm of Apollo's, I'm of Cephas. And then there was another group that said, I am of Christ. And we'll possibly touch on that. I don't know if it will.
But he says what you need to have before you is Jesus Christ the person and Christ crucified, which is the end of the history of the first man. Christ crucified is the judgment of God upon all that we are by nature.
Because we are identified with him in his crucifixion, Paul says in Galatians 220 he says 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.
So here he says, I determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ. They needed to have Christ before their souls as the second man and the last Adam, the one that that replaced the first man who had fallen and failed. And who is God's man? Christ and his his crucifixion puts away all that is of the first man.
And I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling when he came amongst these Saints at Corinth.
Knowing where they were as to their state of soul and how they were living.
He was there with fear and much trembling in weakness.
They were looking for some great display of power.
It's striking, isn't it, that these Corinthians 14 years went by between the time when he was caught up to the 3rd heaven.
He tells us that in Two Corinthians 12. He says I knew a man in Christ above 14 years ago.
Whether in the body or out of the body, I cannot tell. God knoweth.
He had kept from telling them of his being caught up to the 3rd heaven. That would have been the very thing that would have just dazzled these Corinthian minds.
And he he refrained from telling them that truth until.
It was necessary to do so, but that was 14 years ago, he says.
So he says I was with you in weakness and in fear, and in much trembling. He hesitated and refrained from telling them anything that might.
That might appeal to the first man, to the natural man.
In my speech, in my preaching, was not with enticing words of man's wisdom. That is, he wasn't preaching with eloquence.
He wasn't preaching like there's so many today. They're looking for great orators, men that can captivate the audience as they preach to them.
But he that's not he didn't want to establish the faith of the Corinthians in anything that was along that line.
My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom.
But in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.
That your faith.
Should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
The power of God.
If one's faith stands in the wisdom of men, when that fails, then the person is left without an anchor.
00:15:06
He wanted their faith to stand in the power of God. Albeit we do speak wisdom, I've added that word due to get the force of what he's saying. We do speak wisdom among them that are perfect, full grown mature Christians. They were not. They were carnal.
But he says we do speak wisdom among them that are perfect, yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the Princess of this world that come to not.
But we speak the wisdom of God in the mystery. Notice how the word wisdom, wisdom of God, is connected with this mystery.
That he's talking about even the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the world unto our glory.
Hidden wisdom, something that wasn't revealed in the Old Testament.
But is now revealed, now made manifest.
It's God's wisdom.
All that He has purpose to accomplish through the death, resurrection and exaltation of a man, the second man, the last Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ.
And it involves you and me. It involves us. It involves the Gentiles, not just Jews.
The Old Testament was written with the Jew primarily in view.
But here we have this mystery that involves far more than just Israel.
Which none of the Princess of this world? What's the antecedent of which?
The mystery.
We speak the wisdom of God in the mystery which none of the Princess of this world knew.
They didn't know God. They didn't know God's eternal purpose.
With respect to.
Those that he would bring into blessing, not only from amongst the Jews, but also from amongst the Gentiles.
None of the Princess of this world knew.
How that God was going to take the worst act that man had ever committed in the annals of time.
The nailing the Son of God to a cross of ignominy and shame. He was going to take that worst act of man's sin and rebellion against God.
And turn it into the greatest blessing that has ever been bestowed down here in the sea. How like our God, this is the greatest sin.
Becomes the foundation for the greatest blessing.
Heart of God now free to unfold itself.
In bringing poor, guilty, lost sinners of the Gentiles, like you and I were.
Into the most blessed relationship ever known.
For any creature, any creature above that of angels.
Way beyond that of angels.
Far beyond that of Israel's blessing.
None of the Princess of this world knew, for had they known it the mystery?
They would not have crucified.
The Lord of glory, so wicked is the heart of man.
That had they known the blessings that God would bring to pass as a result of that.
Crucifixion of Christ. They wouldn't have done it.
I don't know of a version of all scripture that brings out the evil of man's heart more than that passage.
When rightly understood.
As it is written, I have not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.
What's involved in the truth of the mystery is beyond anything that is ever entered the heart of man or the thoughts of man.
I haven't seen it. The ear hasn't heard it.
But then he says, God has revealed them unto us by his Spirit.
The time for the revelation of this mystery has come, and now that it's come, God has revealed it to us so that we might enjoy it.
For the Spirit searcheth all things ye, the deep things of God, the very depths of God.
And the depths of God are found in the mystery.
Well, let's go to the.
1St chapter of Ephesians.
Verse 3. Blessed be the God and Father.
Of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Who hath blessed us?
With all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.
Israel's blessings were earthly. Our blessings are heavenly.
00:20:03
They're where our head is. They're where that man is.
When Christ entered heaven, He carried humanity into the very presence of God.
And his place on high defines your place in mine. We're there with him.
United with him.
By the Spirit of God sent down, uniting us to Him.
And God says a second time, as he said with Adam, is not good for the man to be alone. And as soon as that man entered the heavenly paradise, as soon as the first man was placed in the earthly paradise, God set him over all that was here, and Adam brought the animals.
And he named them and he viewed them, He surveyed them, but there was not found any. His help made his like none to satisfy his heart. And God put him into a deep sleep. And he builded the woman from his rib, brought her to the man. He said, now this is bone of my bones, flesh of my flesh.
She shall be called woman, for she was taken out of man. The same thing happened as soon as that man entered the glory. He receives the Holy Spirit a second time, this time not for himself, as he received the Spirit at the river Jordan, but this time he receives the Holy Spirit as the glorified man, and sends him down into this world to gather out a bride.
And that bribe would be his very body. These are the two figures that are the most.
Blessed figures that answer to what you have with Eve. She was a member of his body. She was also his bride. And so the church, so God says a second time, it is not good that man should be alone. It's not good, my son, as man should be alone. I'll make him a helper suitable for him.
And that's what we get here in Ephesians 1.
God has blessed us in Christ.
With every spiritual blessing in heavenly places, that's where he is. He's gone into the heavenly paradise.
And now God says it's not good that he is alone. I'll bring him a bride.
According as He hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, the first part of Ephesians 1 is our individual blessings as Christians.
The last part is our collective blessing as being a member of His body, and we'll come to that.
According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world.
Now if he had chosen us in him from the time of Adam, that would be before we were born.
It would still be sovereign choice.
But because He's chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, this brings an added thought, its sovereign choice. But it's also that He's chosen us for heavenly blessings, for a heavenly portion. Before he ever laid this world, the foundations of this earth, He thought of a heavenly people that would spend eternity with his Son as the head of all heavenly Spears.
He's also the head of earthly Spears.
But we're going to share that with him as Eve shared it with Adam.
He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy.
And without blame before him in love. That's according to the.
To the nature.
Of the one who is there, if we're going to be the in his presence, we must be there wholly and we must be without blame and we must be there in love because that's what God is. He is light and he is love. So that verse gives us what is absolutely necessary for us to to be there and to enjoy his presence. And the next verse 5, you might say verse 4.
Is that which flows from the fact that he is God.
In verse 5, that which flows from the fact that He is the Father, notice, having predestinated us unto the adoption of children, or the placing of sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, replace before the Father as sons.
We're not just before God as holy and blameless, which was required of course in love, but we're before the Father as children or sons.
To the praise of the glory of his grace. Now that's the height that you have to go beyond the praise of the glory of His grace. What's the glory of his grace? We have the riches of His grace mentioned in verse 7.
00:25:10
In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of his grace.
God is rich in grace, in meeting us in our sins.
But in verse 6 we have something even higher than that. We have the glory of His grace, which sets us altogether apart from the question of sin, in association with Him in his place of glory on high.
The glory of His grace is giving us a place of acceptance.
And favor before God in the beloved altogether apart from our sins. Sin hasn't even been mentioned yet up to verse 6.
You notice Adam received his bride Eve before sin entered.
It entered the serpent when he attacked. He attacked the woman first. She was deceived and then Adam following his wife. Eight of the forbidden fruit and sin came into the world. God holds the man accountable.
Scripture says by one man sin entered into the world, but before that entered.
God created the woman and brought her to the man with all grace.
And so it is. Verse 6 is to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us, accepted, taken us into favor in the Beloved, made us the objects of his grace in the Beloved.
And then you might say, up to that point you might say, well, who are these people that he's talking about? Chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world, blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies, accepted in the beloved.
The praise of the glory of it. Who are these people?
Must be some angelic beings that have never sinned. No Verse 7 says in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins. He's talking about sinners saved by grace.
He's talking about you and me, not an Angel that never sinned. He's talking about those that needed to be redeemed and forgiven and cleansed by the blood of the Lamb.
7 brings in our state.
Up to that, it's God's grace purposing blessing for us all together apart from our state.
Verse 7 he tells us who these people are that are so blessed.
In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of his grace.
The glory of His grace is bringing us into favor and blessing just because of of His own purpose and because of His Son.
The riches of His grace is to meet us in our knee.
As sinners.
Wherein He hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence. Now there you get wisdom and prudence as soon as you get that put together. Now we can look for the mystery. Now we can look for a mention of the mystery.
He hath abounded towards us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known unto us the mystery.
Of his will.
The secret of his will.
According to his good pleasure, which he had purposed in himself.
This all flows from God. You know, there's so much ministry today that's given in Christian circles.
And it's all centered on man. It's man centered ministry. This isn't centered on man at all. This comes from God. This is the heart of God. This is the heart of God. This tells me what God is like. That's what I want. That's what we need. We need to be delivered from man centered ministry. Even the Saints centered ministry we need to have, we need to know God, the knowledge of God and the knowledge of Christ. Peter says grow in grace.
And in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in Ephesians 4, the gifts are given.
Well, since I mentioned it, I'll turn to it and you just turn over to Ephesians 4. We'll come back here. The gifts are given. Verse 11. He gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the Saints.
That's the main purpose.
That the Saints individually might be perfected, matured in their Christian understanding of the truth, and then for the work of the ministry, they might be able to work together in the ministry. For what end? For the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come in, or arrive at the unity of the faith. Now notice, and of the knowledge of the Son of God.
00:30:20
Unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
The knowledge of the Son of God. That's why these gifts have been given, that we might know more.
Of him.
And what he has brought us into, and we're going to share it all with him. We're going to be there with him.
At first Thessalonians 4 says, When the Lord comes from heaven with a shout, the voice of the Archangel, and the chapter ends, it says, so shall we ever be with the Lord?
Once he calls us to be with himself will never be parted from him again.
Just as Adam and Eve, now going back to Ephesians 1.
Verse 8.
Wherein He hath abounded towards us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known unto us the mystery of his will.
According to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself.
That in the dispensation of the fullness of times, well, that's the time when Christ will reign here for 1000 years. We call it the Millennium. He might gather together in one.
Garbage translation reads that to head up. Literally, that's what it is. To head up all things in Christ or in the Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth, even in Him. Now when he created Adam, he, He, He made him the head of all the earthly creation.
But here we have the second man.
And he's the head of all heavenly and earthly quote.
Are we going to have a part in that? Most assuredly we are verse 11.
And whom also we have obtained an inheritance.
Being predestinated according to the purpose of him, that worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.
That we should be to the praise of His glory, who first trusted in Christ.
I believe he especially has in view there the Jew that believes in this present day. Notice the we we should be to the praise of his glory who first trusted or pre trusted in Christ. That's the Jew who believes today. Now verse 13 is US Gentiles, in whom ye also trusted.
After that you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also after that he believed you were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise.
This is this is just tremendous.
God has exalted that man to the highest place in heaven, and then he has sent down the Holy Spirit.
He's received the Spirit a second time from the glory, and he sent him down to gather out a bride.
To be united to that glorified man.
We're sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, the force of sealing.
Is that we're marked out as his own when a rancher takes his brand and seals his cattle.
Puts the seal on, he marks them as his and all you have to do is look at the mark and you say, well, that's Farmer Jones's.
It's got his seal on it. God has put his seal upon us where his.
The Lord Jesus is spoken of as being sealed.
In John 6, him hath God the Father sealed, marked out.
As his beloved son.
This is my beloved son.
And he sealed us. Is there more than that, just marking us that we belong to Him?
That all this blessedness is ours. Oh yes, which is the earnest. The Spirit of God is the earnest of our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession unto the praise of His glory. The whole universe has been purchased by the death of Christ. The whole world, it's all His purchased possession. It's going to be redeemed back to Himself, brought back into proper relationship to Himself.
And in doing that.
God is going to use us. He's going to do it in the person of the Saints.
The redemption of the purchased possession under the praise of his glory. Then he launches into this beautiful prayer. Let's just quickly look at it. Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love unto all the Saints.
00:35:09
Cease not to give thanks for you. Notice faith in the Lord Jesus produces love to all the Saints.
He says I cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Father of glory hear This prayer is addressed to the God of the Lord. Jesus Prayer in Ephesians 3 is addressed to the Father, but he's called the Father of glory. He's The Fountainhead, the source of glory.
And this is what he's going to develop.
He may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, full knowledge of Him.
The eyes of your understanding being enlightened.
That she may know what is the hope of his calling.
He's called us to eternal glory.
Call this to be the bride of Christ.
His body forever.
To be alongside of him.
Holy and blameless before him in love.
He wants us to know that it's a heavenly calling, not an earthly calling. Holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, Israel had an earthly calling. He wants us to know what Our Calling is. The hope of His calling is heavenly.
And what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the Saints?
When he takes possession of all that he has won as a man down here.
He's earned it. He's going to take possession of it. He's going to do it in the.
In the Saints.
You're not going to do it alone.
We're going to have part in it and all that He is one will be with us to share.
What a portion.
And then the third part of his prayer is to know what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us word who believe according to the working of His mighty power.
Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power, and might and dominion, every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come. So here he, here he was a man who was in death.
And this power?
Was wrought in Christ. He raised him from the dead.
Resurrected man. Then he exalted him to his own right hand.
Set him over all principalities and powers. Just think of it. A man. A man set in the very glory of God, the highest place in heaven, above angels, above all created intelligences. There's a man above it all.
And we're the bride of that man, were members of his body.
There is no blessedness higher than this impossible to exceed it we have been brought into.
Into the highest place in the universe.
The universe.
There's a man there.
Adam was was the head of this earthly creation. Christ is the head.
Of the heavenly.
And you and I are his bride.
In his body.
Hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church. Not hear the head of the church that's spoken of later, but here it's head over all things to the church, and as head over all things He.
Is presented to us. Adam was head over the earthly creation, and she was presented to him and he to her. And when she came to know him, she came to know him as the one who was head, and she was going to share that.
And so it is here, head over all things to the Church, which is his body.
The fullness, the complement, the completeness of him.
That filleth All in all.
As man.
He needs a bride.
And those that compose that bride are also members.
Of his body.
Let's turn to the 5th chapter while we're on that point.
Verse 22 of chapter 5. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.
00:40:02
But the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church. Notice how.
Now here he's talking about marriage. I don't think if you're ever counseling anyone about marriage.
You have to go outside of Ephesians 5. I think you got it here. This is God's.
This is God's beautiful the most beautiful explanation written by a man that was never married.
Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit has nothing to do whether he was married or not. He was writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
The husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church.
And he is the Savior of the body. He takes care of his body, and his body is the church.
Therefore, as the Church is subject unto Christ.
So let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.
So the relationship of the wife to the husband and next now the husband to the wife.
Is built upon the relationship of Christ to the church and the church to Christ.
Husbands, love your wives.
Even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it.
That's past.
That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word that's present. That's what he's doing right now from the glory.
And the future verse 27, that he might present it to himself, a glorious church, a church glorious, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish. Very same expression that we had in the 1St chapter, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.
And he's working now with the assembly he has given himself for her. He's sanctifying her, cleansing her with the washing of water by the Word, and with a view to presenting her to himself, holy and spotless.
Then he makes the application verse 28 back to the.
To the marriage relationship here on earth among Christians. So ought men to love their wives.
As their own bodies.
You see, when Adam loved Eve, he was loving.
His wife, but she was also his own body, built from his side, built from his rib. It was literally so in that case, and this is the, this is the passage Ephesians 5. You can't understand Ephesians 5 without Genesis 2. You really can't understand Genesis 2IN in all that it's Speaking of without Ephesians 5. They explain one another.
Sought men to love their wives as their own bodies.
He that loveth his wife loveth himself. When Adam loved Eve, he was loving. He was loving her who was a part of himself. He was loving himself. And that's the way the husband should look upon his wife.
For no man ever, yet no man ever yet hated his own flesh.
And she is his own flesh.
But nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the.
But nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord, the Church.
For we are members of this body.
Of his flesh.
And not his bones.
Modern Translations.
It's a Greek manuscript problem of his flesh and of his bones is missing.
Definitely should be there, no question about it. The new translation Darby puts it in brackets.
Kelly doesn't.
He leaves it just as we have it here. I'm thoroughly convinced it is taken from Genesis 2.
This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. Adam when he saw Eve.
And so the Church, we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.
For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined to his wife, and they shall too shall be 1 flesh.
This is a great mystery. This is that part of the mystery that is so precious.
Christ and his Church.
But I speak concerning Christ and the Church.
Nevertheless, let everyone of you in particular so love his wife, even as himself.
And the wife see that she reverence.
Her husband.
00:45:02
Now let's turn back to Chapter 3.
Verse 2, he says.
If he have heard of the dispensation.
Of the grace of God. God has been dispensing blessing in grace.
For nearly 2000 years now, so that this period of time that we're living in has been called here the dispensation or the administration of the grace of God, it's all grace. The position that you and I occupy as members of His body, as His bride, and all the blessings that are ours in association with that glorified man in heaven, it's all grace.
It's all grace.
It's God's grace super abounding to bring us.
Into such a place of favor and blessedness, how that by revelation He made known unto me the mystery.
It was revealed specifically to the Apostle Paul.
As I wrote a foreign few words, you see the truth of the mystery didn't come out right after the Church existed.
On the day of Pentecost, the Spirit of God came down and formed the one body, but.
There was a transitional period. God offered repentance to Israel.
All the way up to the 7th chapter of the book of Acts. And Stephen was his final messenger.
And they answered that message by stoning Stephen.
And Stephen saw the Lord standing.
The right hand of God.
Why standing? All other scriptures speak of him as sitting.
Well, I believe he rose to see Israel's response to this final appeal from Stephen.
It was the appeal of the Holy Ghost. Stephen is spoken of as a man full of the Holy Ghost. It was the Holy Ghost speaking through Stephen.
Will you repent, you Jews, of what you did to your Messiah?
And they said, we will not have this man to reign over us. And they plugged their ears and they stopped their mouths and they ran upon Stephen and they they stoned him.
And Saul of Tarsus was there, the very instrument that God was going to use to bring out the truth of the mystery.
He was there consenting unto Stephen's death.
Still a fervent.
You persecuting the Church of God.
Ravaging it.
Leading both men and women children to.
Prison.
Such with Saul of Tarsus. He calls himself the chief of sinners, less than the least of All Saints.
Not fit to be called an apostle.
Because of what he did.
But he was the instrument chosen of God. Again, what could be more? What could more magnify the grace of God?
Than to bring out the highest truth to the man that did the worst.
To oppose Christianity.
What could more magnify the grace of God than that to take a Saul of Tarsus and make him the apostle Paul?
So those of us in this room.
I always think of Brother Clinton's comment. He said it so many times in Oak Park, he said. There's nothing so humbling as grace.
And when you realize, and I realized that we are the trophies of His grace.
That makes absolutely nothing of us. Nothing of us makes everything of God.
Everything else, there's nothing so humbling as grace, because that means I didn't contribute 1 speck to it. Not one bit.
And God picks up the soul of Tarsus.
Filled with Rage Against the Christians.
Consenting to the death of the first Christian martyr.
He says I'm going to make you the channel.
Of the greatest truth, you're going to be the channel of unfolding my very heart of love.
My matchless grace, the dispensation of the grace of God, was given to Paul to proclaim.
He is the God of all grace, God of all grace.
And as we enter into that just a little bit, I often said we speak more about grace and know less about it than any other subject in Scripture. We know so little grace.
00:50:04
And he picked up the likes of me.
Or any of us.
Brought us into such favor and blessing.
How did by revelation He made known unto me the mystery?
As I wrote a foreign few words whereby when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ.
Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.
I used to puzzle over that because it says It says in verse 3 by Revelation He made known unto me the mystery.
But now he says in verse 5, It is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.
That seems to present a little bit of a conflict.
It was only given to the Apostle Paul to reveal it.
To bring it out in his writing, you don't get it in any of the other writings of the New Testament.
None of the other writers bring out the mystery.
But it was revealed by the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets, so that when it was brought out.
They wouldn't brand it as heresy.
And say this is something altogether different. Never heard this before.
Notice how Peter speaks of it. 2 Peter.
Two Peter.
Chapter 3 and verse 15.
An account that the long-suffering of our Lord is salvation.
Even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom.
Given unto him hath written unto you.
That wisdom was the truth of the mystery.
And what does Peter say about it?
As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things in which are some things hard to be understood.
Which they that are unlearned and unstable, rest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
Hard to be understood indeed, when you think of it from the standpoint of a Jew.
Who had the Old Testament scripture? Someone could come to Paul and say you show me what you're teaching and preaching and show me that from the Old Testament.
You said it's not there.
This is new.
This is new truth.
This is a secret that was hidden, God now revealed.
And so God revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit, so that they, when Paul preached it, would submit to it. But they weren't given to preaching.
Like Proud did. At least we don't have it in their writings.
But they recognized it when he preached it.
As the truth, the specific truth that characterizes this present day of grace.
You do away with Paul's ministry, and you do away with the highest truth that God has ever given to man.
Verse 6 that the Gentiles.
Should be fellow heirs? Joint heirs?
And of the same body, a joint body.
And partakers of this promise, joint partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel.
Three things the Gentiles brought into such blessing. Not the Gentiles blessed subordinate to Israel. That's in the Old Testament.
Gentiles blessed in a subordinate position to Israel, when Israel becomes the head.
And the Gentiles will also be blessed in the Millennium. That's that's in the Old Testament, but not this.
Not a, not.
Joint ears, joint ears, Jew and Gentile, joint heirs together.
To all that God has unfolded to us these heavenly truths and a joint body.
And joint partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel. That's not in the Old Testament.
That's the truth of the mystery.
In verse 14 of chapter 2 He says, For He is our peace, our peace, Jew and Gentile. He is the one that has brought about peace between Jew and Gentile, because He's brought them both into this new thing who hath made both Jew and Gentile. 1 and have broken down the middle wall of partition between us, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, the enmity existing between Jew and Gentile.
00:55:00
Characterizing the Old Testament, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances.
Why we're standing in grace. We don't need laws and commandments and ordinances. That's that's altogether gone for Christianity.
And yet in many Christian circles, they brought all these things in. They don't belong.
They don't belong there at all.
Then he says for to make in himself obtain of Jew and Gentile 1.
New man so making peace, that new man, composed of Jew and Gentile, united into one body, and one body united to Christ the head in heaven. 1 New man.
The head in heaven, the body on earth composed of Jew and Gentile, united together and brought into all these wondrous blessings.
Now, just before we close.
I want to just touch on some verses in Colossians 1.
Colossians one.
Verse 23 If you continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel.
Which you have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven. Whereof I, Paul, and may the ministry. He was a minister of the gospel.
Now verse 24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and I fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body sake, which is the Church.
Where have I made a minister? So he was a minister of the gospel. He was also a minister.
Of the assembly, and that required tremendous sufferings.
Paul was looked upon by his fellow Jews as a heretic a a defector.
One that.
That was a traitor to Judaism.
And it brought tremendous persecution. The truth.
Of the Church, Jew and Gentile. You remember in the book of Acts when he was at Jerusalem.
And he spoke to them and he said, God said, Christ said to me, depart.
Far hence I will send you to the Gentiles. And as soon as he said that they cast their.
Dust into the air and they they came upon him and they said it's not fit for such a one to live and could not tolerate the idea of grace to the Gentiles. And so because Paul was the exponent of that truth especially.
He was persecuted. That's what he talks about in verse 24. Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you. Christ never suffered.
Persecution because of the truth of the church, because it hadn't come out yet. Paul was given to fill up those sufferings, that is to to complete the sufferings of Christ, because he was the one who was the exponent of that of those truths, those heavenly truths, bringing Gentiles into blessing.
Where have I made a minister, the minister of his, of the truth of the Church, according to the dispensation of God?
The Apostle Paul, the revelation of God was not completed.
There was just a part of it, just a part of it that still was lacking. And that was that truth of the mystery. And now that that's been given, the word is complete and we don't have to to look for new revelations.
Well.
What a portion is ours.
It's good to read these verses in the end of chapter one in Colossians, the beginning of chapter 2. It speaks of the mystery and it tells us that.
I'll just end with verse 28 of chapter 1, whom we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom. Notice how the word wisdom is connected with this truth, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.
So if one does not know the truth of the mystery, he is not perfect in Christ. He's not.
Fully established in the wondrous truths that characterize this day of grace.
Let's sing in closing 330.
But raise the wondrous thought.
Or who did it suggest that we, the Church to glory, brought?
With the sun blast from God, the thought was thine, thine only it could be. Fruit of the wisdom, love, divine, peculiar unto thee for sure no other mind for thought so bold, so free greatness or strength, could ever find thine, only it could be, and so on. 330.