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Holy Spirit’s Workshop [www.holyspiritsworkshop.com] – Sat 21.04.

2007

Laying the Foundation of Knowledge

On Wednesday, 11 April 2007, we were taught that sin, wickedness and rebellion are three separate
entities. There is forgiveness for sins only under the New Covenant the Father has with Jesus, but there
is no provision for the forgiveness of wickedness and rebellion under that Covenant. Although God
forgives wickedness and rebellion, they are not covered by the blood of Jesus. This is why it is the
Covenant for the Forgiveness of Sins.

Why is this? And what is the difference?

Wickedness, rebellion and sin have their distinctive features. We are not to mix them up, but we must
understand the differences so that we may further understand the Covenant under which we live, preach
and practise. If the Lord did not say, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to
anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness,
rebellion and sin,”1 we would think that the three are the same. As the Lord made such a distinction, we
must seek deeper understanding in this.

We have the authority to forgive sins, and we should exercise this authority correctly. This is done only in
accordance to the Law of Jesus. We should not over-step our authority under the Covenant we participate
in. Jesus, the Son of Man, has the authority on Earth to forgive sins. This is the same authority that
disciples receive when they believe in Jesus and then receive the Holy Spirit. If a disciple misuses the
authority to forgive sins, how can the Lord entrust him or her with the authority to rule and the authority
to judge? These two authorities will not be exercised by believers or disciples. They are exercised by
overcomers who become kings.

1. Wickedness is the deliberate forsaking and rejecting of God by those who profess to believe, know,
understand, worship, serve, obey and follow Him. We forsake the Lord when we turn away from the
Lord and His ways, to pursue our own course. “I have listened attentively, but they do not say what
is right. No one repents of his wickedness, saying, "What have I done?" Each pursues his own course
like a horse charging into battle.”2
2. Rebellion is the deliberate attempt or act to overthrow and openly oppose God by those who profess
to believe, know, understand, worship, serve, obey and follow Him.
3. Sin is disobedience against God’s Law, which are His commands, decrees and regulations. A
command is when God (Father, Son and/or Holy Spirit) tells us to do or say something or refrain
from doing or saying something. A decree is God’s declaration of truth about Himself that applies to
all of mankind and/or creation. A regulation is the Lord’s prescribed way of doing or saying
something.

Remember the Statutes of the three Laws under the Covenant for the Forgiveness of Sins?

1. Law of Grace
a) John 3.16: “For God so loved then world He gave His one and only Son, so that whoever believes in
Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” This is the decree.
b) John 6.53-56: “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood,
you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise
him up at the last day. For My flesh is real food and My blood is real drink. Whoever eats My flesh
and drinks My blood remains in Me and I in him.” This is the decree. And the command is: “Do this in
remembrance of Me.”3
c) 2 Corinthians 12.9: “My Grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” This
is the decree.
d) And the decree under the Law of Grace is: “I tell you the truth, before Abraham was born, I am!”4

2. Law of Forgiveness
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• “Love your enemies.” “Love one another as I have loved you.” These are commands. When Jesus
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taught us how to love our enemies and our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, they are
regulations.

1
Exodus 34.6-7
2
Jeremiah 8.6
3
Luke 22.19
4
John 8.58
5
Matthew 5.43
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John 13.34
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“Pray for those who persecute you; Do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you; Pray
for those who carry you away by force and persecute you.”
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Matthew 18.15

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Holy Spirit’s Workshop [www.holyspiritsworkshop.com] – Sat 21.04.2007

• The decree under the Law of Forgiveness: “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is
perfect.”9 “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”10 “You must be compassionate, just as your
Father is compassionate.”11

3. Law of Repentance
• “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.”12 “The time promised by
God has come at last! … The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good
News!”13 This is the command. The fact that the Kingdoms are near is not a decree. This is the
urgency of the warning. God’s decree always reveals the good character and the sovereignty of God,
because the principle of a decree is this: “How can I let myself be defamed? I will not yield My glory
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to another.” “Then you will know that I am the Sovereign LORD.”
• The decree under the Law of Repentance: “I do not take pleasure in the death of anyone. Repent and
live!”16

Sin is committed by anyone, regardless of whether they believe, know, understand, worship, serve, obey
and follow God. Sin is committed willfully or unintentionally. The apostle Paul wrote this truth: …for all
have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.17

How do we know this is true? Because death came to Adam by God’s word due to Adam’s disobedience,
which was sin. God said to Adam, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat
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from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." The
certainty of the death of all men is the proof that all men have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.
But, Jesus is without sin. He never disobeyed the Father. He loves His Father and always does exactly
what the Father has commanded Him.19 He was God’s sin offering to the world and the Holy Spirit raised
Him back to life after three days. This is proof that He is without sin and that He mastered sin, and He
always does what the Father has commanded Him. Don’t you remember; Jesus said to Martha, “I am the
Resurrection and the Life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and
believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this? … Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see
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the glory of God?" Do you believe that Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life?

To further understand sin, wickedness and rebellion and the judgment thereof, listen to what the Lord
said about Israel:
• “I will pronounce My judgments on My people because of their wickedness in forsaking Me, in burning
incense to other gods and in worshiping what their hands have made.”21
• “I will repay them double for their wickedness and their sin, because they have defiled My land with
the lifeless forms of their vile images and have filled My inheritance with their detestable idols."22
• “Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, each of them
will turn from his wicked way; then I will forgive their wickedness and their sin."23
• “But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways,
he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself.”24
• “Yet in her wickedness she has rebelled against My laws and decrees more than the nations and
countries around her. She has rejected My laws and has not followed My decrees.”25
• “I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against Me and will forgive all their sins of
rebellion against Me.”26
• "Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me;
they and their fathers have been in revolt against Me to this very day.”27

9
Matthew 5.48
10
Luke 6.36
11
Luke 6.36 NLT
12
Matthew 3.2 NLT Footnote [a] Or has come, or is coming soon.
13
Mark 1.15 NLT
14
Isaiah 48.11
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Ezekiel 23.49 and many more in Ezekiel
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Ezekiel 18.32
17
Romans 3.23
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Genesis 2.16-17
19
John 14.31
20
John 11.25-26, 40
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Jeremiah 1.16
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Jeremiah 16.18
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Jeremiah 36.3
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Ezekiel 3.19
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Ezekiel 5.6
26
Jeremiah 33.8
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Ezekiel 2.3

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Holy Spirit’s Workshop [www.holyspiritsworkshop.com] – Sat 21.04.2007

• “But they rebelled against Me and would not listen to Me; they did not get rid of the vile images they
had set their eyes on, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt. So I said I would pour out My wrath on
them and spend My anger against them in Egypt.”28
• “Yet the people of Israel rebelled against Me in the desert. They did not follow My decrees but
rejected My laws—although the man who obeys them will live by them—and they utterly desecrated
My Sabbaths. So I said I would pour out My wrath on them and destroy them in the desert.”29
• “But the children rebelled against Me: They did not follow My decrees, they were not careful to keep
My laws—although the man who obeys them will live by them—and they desecrated My Sabbaths. So
I said I would pour out My wrath on them and spend My anger against them in the desert.”30
• “Put the trumpet to your lips! An eagle is over the House of the Lord because the people have broken
My covenant and rebelled against My law.”31

1. Therefore, Israel’s wickedness was found in forsaking the Lord by:


- burning incense to other gods
- worshiping what their hands had made
- defiling His land with the lifeless forms of their vile images and filling His inheritance with their
detestable idols
- refusal to listen to the Lord; they did not get rid of the vile images they had set their eyes on, nor
did they forsake the idols of Egypt
- not following God’s decrees and rejecting His laws.

3. Israel also rebelled against the Lord when they:


- Rebelled against His laws and decrees
- Rebelled against Him.

Rebellion against Jesus occurs within the church. It is when a “man of God” attempts to overthrow the
Father, the Son and/or the Holy Spirit and Their chosen ones, in order to replace those positions with his
own choice to advance his own purpose and expand his own inheritance. When the Eleven failed to wait
for the Holy Spirit to appoint the replacement of Judas Iscariot, but cast the lot and appointed Matthias,
as Peter proposed, did they rebel against the Holy Spirit’s and the Lord’s appointment? No. It would only
be rebellion if Judas’ replacement was clearly made known to them, yet they still went ahead to appoint
another person. This was not the case. They were merely acting out of zeal and misunderstanding of
Scripture.

Understand that rebellion starts with a murmur in your heart, which comes out as a complaint and
criticism against the Lord. The word “murmur” does not appear in the NIV, but it does in the NLT in
Numbers 17.5, Mark 9.26 and John 6.41. The wicked are ungrateful, yes, but the rebellious in their
ungratefulness seek to displace God. This is treason at its worst form.

Secondly, rebellion against God’s laws and decrees is attempting to annul God’s Law (commands, decrees
and regulations) by setting up new rules for man to follow. These are called man’s traditions and
doctrines, and they are designed to replace the practice and obedience of God’s Law in faithfulness and
with care. That is why Jesus said to the Jews: “In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two
men is valid.”32 Through the accumulative disobedience of the commands, decrees and regulations that
the Lord gave Israel under the Covenant of Deliverance and Healing, the Law of God became
unrecognisable and is a shadow of its former self. It became Israel’s own set of law and was later termed
the Law of Moses.
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For example, the Pharisees and the Jews’ ceremonial washing of hands and cups and pitchers was the
unauthorised modification of the Lord’s command in Exodus 30.17 that Aaron and his sons were to wash
their hands and feet with water from the basin of bronze. Whenever Aaron and his sons entered the Tent
of Meeting, they were to wash with water so that they would not die. Also, when they approached the
altar to minister by presenting an offering made to the Lord by fire, they were to wash their hands and
feet so that they would not die. This was to be a lasting ordinance for Aaron and his descendants for the
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generations to come.

I tell you the truth, one church denomination has even taken this unauthorised modification and applied
it to these words of Jesus: “This cup is the New Covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.”35

28
Ezekiel 20.8
29
Ezekiel 20.13
30
Ezekiel 20.21
31
Hosea 8.1
32
John 8.17
33
Mark 7.3
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Exodus 30.17
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Luke 22.20

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This church group worships the cup and the ceremonial wiping of the cup. The cup even has a name:
“The Common Cup”. They think that in sharing the same cup, therein lays their unity because that is
what Jesus did with His disciples at the supper before His crucifixion. They think and teach that unity is in
the cup rather than the blood of Christ, which was poured out for forgiveness. So truly, which is the
treasure? The unity that comes by loving and forgiving one another as Christ has loved and forgiven us,
or the cup which is made by human hands?

Why then did Jesus say, “This is the cup of the New Covenant”? What was He saying? When Jesus took
the cup and raised it, the cup represented His body that would be lifted up on the cross. The cup
represents the body of Christ, and the common unity is in His blood and the forgiveness of sins we have
and continue to receive by God’s grace. The unity is in our repentance and forgiveness of our enemies
and fellow disciples. The focus is not on the actual cup. So our practice of sharing the bread and wine is
not to remember the cup that Jesus shared with His disciples, but on the forgiveness that was poured out
for the forgiveness of many, and our forgiveness of one another. The churches’ hypocrisy in this has led
to countless forums and discussions about the hygiene of using the same cup. These discussions are a
waste of time and energy, and have nothing to do with the return of Jesus to reign.

“Dear church, listen and understand what the Holy Spirit is saying to you: You are in error because you
do not know the power of God and the Scriptures because you have failed to obey the Father’s command
to listen to Jesus. The words of Jesus that you have selected to practice as an ritual of piety has led to
your hypocrisy of ceremonial washing of a cup, among other hypocrisies. The cup is a non-issue. Cease
your idol worship. It is for you to use the cup and throw it away. You do not need to lock it up. The cup is
not holiness. The practice of sharing a cup is not holiness. Repent and listen to Jesus as if it is your first
time, and I will show you the errors of your ways so that you may cease your detestable practices.”

Amen Holy Spirit.

Another custom of the Jews in the time Jesus was on Earth was releasing a prisoner at Passover Feast.
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This had nothing to do with the Lord’s Law. Rather, the Lord said, “Have nothing to do with a false
charge and do not put an innocent or honest person to death, for I will not acquit the guilty.”37

In relation to tithing, the Lord said, “A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or
fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord.”38 Moses then taught Israel: “But you are
to seek the place the Lord your God will choose from among all your tribes to put His Name there for His
dwelling. To that place you must go; there bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and
special gifts, what you have vowed to give and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and
flocks. There, in the presence of the Lord your God, you and your families shall eat and shall rejoice in
everything you have put your hand to, because the Lord your God has blessed you.”39

In truth, the practice of tithing is a way of remembrance and rejoicing in the Lord because every good
thing we receive comes from the Lord. The Israelites were taught to enjoy their tithes and offerings with
the Lord. This is the important matter of the Law. That is why the Lord was grieved by Israel: “They do
not say to themselves, 'Let us fear the Lord our God, who gives autumn and spring rains in season, who
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assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.'” That is why the Lord looked on Abel with favour when he
brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of His flock – it was the gratitude in his heart. It is not
what you bring to the Lord, it is what is in your heart that the Lord values. That is also why Jesus said
that the teachers of the law and the Pharisees were hypocrites because they practised tithing, but
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neglected justice (double portion), mercy, faithfulness and the love of God. For these are the important
matters of God’s Law.

God’s Law is not made to punish, condemn or control us. It is to teach and show us that the Lord delights
in exercising kindness, justice and righteousness on Earth. When we obey His word, it is our
righteousness. When He rewards us accordingly, that is His kindness. And when He disciplines and
corrects us, that is His justice. So when we repent and He forgives us and remembers our sins no more,
it is also kindness and His righteousness.

Someone who sins may not necessarily be wicked or a rebel, but the wickedness in their heart and desire
to rebel will cause them to sin, that is, to disobey God. It does not mean that they will outwardly do so,
but they have already forsaken and rebelled in their heart. For it is impossible to carry out your own evil
desires and vain imaginations, and obey the Lord at the same time. A bad tree cannot bear good fruit.

36
John 18.39
37
Exodus 23.7
38
Leviticus 27.30
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Deuteronomy 12.5-7
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Jeremiah 5.24
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Matthew 23.23 and Luke 11.42

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Likewise, a person can obey God’s commands outwardly, but then in his heart, plot to rebel against God
at an opportune time. Another person can forsake God by turning his back on Him or by walking away,
but then not have a desire in his heart to overthrow or ascend above God. Maybe he just wants to live his
life the way he wants, and obeying God’s commands does not allow him to do that, so he makes a choice
to walk away. In this, he has sinned and also forsaken God. But we have also seen a man who turned
away from Jesus and now openly opposes God. This is sin, wickedness and rebellion. What we do in these
situations is to forgive their disobedience. We also preach repentance and warn them that they must
return to God because there is only One Truth, One Way and One Life, and that is Jesus.

Unless you know and understand how and when God judges wickedness and rebellion, DO NOT JUDGE
someone’s guilt or innocence, but practise and preach repentance and forgiveness of sins. Jesus said to
His disciples, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be
judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”42 “Do not judge, and you will not be
judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”43

So this brings us to the New Covenant. What are wickedness, rebellion and sin under the Covenant for
the Forgiveness of Sins?

Under the New Covenant, the Father commanded Jesus’ disciples to listen to His Son. Jesus gave these
two commands about love, among other commands, decrees and regulations. The first command is to
love your enemies. The new command is to love one another as He has loved us. He also commanded
the church to listen and understand what the Holy Spirit says to the churches.

1. Under the New Covenant, sin is defined as:


• Sin against the Father is not listening to Jesus
• Sin against Jesus is not listening to the Holy Spirit
• Sin is disobeying all the commands of the Law of Jesus.

2. Under the New Covenant, forsaking the Lord is:


• worshipping idols in the church, including traditions and false doctrines. An idol is something that
cannot give life or save – it cannot give anything good that is everlasting. An idol then become a
false god when we think it can give life or save, because we may experience some short-term
effects of instant gratification.
• worshipping vile images (such as money or fame) and idols of Egypt (represents things that
enslave and distract us)

Remember Jesus never commanded us NOT to worship Money. He just said this truth in the presence of
the Pharisees who love money: "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the
other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”44

Jesus also did not command us NOT to worship idols as the Father did: "You shall not make for yourself
an idol in the form of anything in Heaven above or on the Earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall
not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the
children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me, but showing
love to a thousand [generations] of those who love Me and keep My commandments.”45 Though, Jesus
did rebuke the Pharisees and teachers of the law: So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus,
"Why don't Your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with
'unclean' hands?" He replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
'These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. They worship Me in vain; their
teachings are but rules taught by men.'”46

All Jesus said was, “FOLLOW ME.” Is that not enough?

3. Under the New Covenant, rebellion is as follows:


• Firstly, rebellion against the Law of Jesus is setting up doctrines and teachings that seek to
overthrow the commands of Jesus under the New Covenant. An example of this is James’ letter
to the Gentiles in Acts 15. Jesus commanded us to drink His blood and eat His flesh, but James
said to abstain from blood and the meat of strangled animals. Is this rebellion? Yes it is, because
James sought to displace the New Covenant and re-establish to the disciples of Jesus, not the
Jews, the Law of Moses under the Old Covenant. James said, “It is my judgment, therefore, that
we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write

42
Matthew 7.1-2
43
Luke 6.12
44
Matthew 6.24
45
Exodus 20.4
46
Mark 7.5

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to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the
meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses has been preached in every city from the
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earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath." But who did the Father tell the
disciples of Jesus to listen to? Moses or Jesus? James preached rebellion against the New
Covenant that day. The Kingdom of Israel cannot be expanded by the preaching of the Law of
Moses to the Gentiles, because the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of the World belong to the
Kingdom of Christ. But praise the Father that He forgives sins, wickedness and rebellion. Does
God have the right to do that? Yes. By His word, He said, “I will have mercy on whom I will have
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mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” If you do not agree with
His word or have a problem with God, or cannot accept His sovereign word, then present your
case before God and set forth your arguments with Him. But leave us out of it.
• Secondly, rebellion against the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is the eternal sin of blasphemy against
the Holy Spirit. Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is the testimony of a disciple of Jesus Christ
who displays abundant signs, wonders and miracles, but he testifies that these powers do not
come from the Spirit of God. Re-read Mark 3 & Luke 12.10 together carefully, and note WHEN
and WHY Jesus taught on the eternal sin. Jesus said this when the teachers of the law said Jesus
was driving out demons by the prince of demons, and that Jesus was possessed by Beelzebub. In
response, Jesus spoke to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is
divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house
cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. In
fact, no one can enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up
the strong man. Then he can rob his house. I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of
men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be
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forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin." Jesus revealed this teaching here because when the
teachers of the law called the power of the Holy Spirit, the power of Satan, they came
dangerously close to the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, which will be committed by the false
prophet. Jesus did not speak this parable as an instruction to bind demons. The parable reveals
the power of the Holy Spirit, which overpowers the powers of Satan. The parable reveals the
supremacy of the Kingdom of God over all other kingdoms. Therefore, understand that the
blasphemy of the Holy Spirit by a man trained up by the Holy Spirit is the ultimate rebellion and
it is the eternal sin. The rebellion is this man’s displays of signs, wonders and miracles and must
accompany his testimony that the power does not come from God, but from an equal or greater
source of power outside of the Holy Spirit, thereby deceiving the people to worship the beast and
take on its mark. Understand this about the issue of power to the false prophet: It is to set the
stage for him to blaspheme the Holy Spirit because no one would listen to a man who cannot
back up his talk without a show of grandeur.

This is the main distinction between sin and wickedness and rebellion.

Sin is not a betrayal. It is disobedience. When I do not obey my dad’s wishes, I am not betraying him. I
just don’t want to listen and follow his instructions, which are good for me. I am just being a wayward
child, foolish even. But wickedness and rebellion are betrayal. When you worship a false God, you
have betrayed the only One true God. When you rebel against God, that is, seeking to make God lose His
rightful position so YOU can have it, you have betrayed Him.

Remember, sin in general is our state of “un-oneness” with the Lord, the Lord and the Lord. “Un-
oneness” is the bigger picture. Then the smaller picture is sin, wickedness and rebellion. Although they
are inter-connected, they are separate entities because each stems from a different frame of heart and
mind. Disobedience to God is plain to see. But wickedness and rebellion can be hidden in the heart and
mind, and are visible only when they are voiced and acted upon. That is why Jesus told us not to judge
because unless the Holy Spirit shows you, you cannot be like God in His judgment: “I the Lord search the
heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds
deserve."50 When we judge by our own thoughts and ways, which are lower than the Lord’s thoughts and
ways, it is not justice or righteousness. And we heap judgment on ourselves for being unjust and
unrighteous.

Judgment is, of course, more intricate and complicated than the world gives God credit for, and far more
just and righteous than the church gives God glory for. This is why Jesus said to the Jews at the temple
courts: “Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment.”51 Jesus was NOT referring to
the judgment of other people in this instance. Here, Jesus is not saying, don’t judge each other by mere
appearances. Note the context: the Jews made a wrong judgment about the Law of the Sabbath under

47
Acts 15.19-21
48
Exodus 33.19
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Mark 23.29
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Jeremiah 17.10
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John 7.24

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God’s Covenant with Israel and the command of circumcision under God’s Covenant of Blessing with
Abraham, because they persecuted Jesus for healing a whole man on the Sabbath. Again, they have
neglected the more important matters of the Law, which are justice, mercy, faithfulness and the love of
God.

For don’t we, the church in general, judge the law of salvation by mere appearances and made a wrong
judgment? We say, “Repent and believe in Jesus and go to Heaven. If you don’t, you will go to Hell.” But
is that God’s Law of Judgment in Spirit and in Truth? The Lord’s word to Israel also applies to the
churches: "A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy lies, the
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priests rule by their own authority, and My people love it this way. But what will you do in the end?”

This is what they will do in the end: “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow
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cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”

Jesus’ Authorities
As it is written, Jesus’ authority on Earth is seven-fold and includes the following:
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i Authority on Earth to forgive sins.
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ii Authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
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iii Authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy.
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iv Authority to lay down His life and authority to take it up again.
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v Authority over all people that He might give eternal life to all those the Father has given Him.
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vi Authority to judge because He is the Son of Man.
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vii Authority over the nations to rule them with an iron scepter and dash them to pieces like pottery.

Disciples’ Authorities
Jesus has given His disciples the following authorities:
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i Authority on Earth to forgive sins. This authority He has given to disciples who have received the
Holy Spirit. He said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone their sins, they are forgiven. If
you do not forgive anyone their sins they are not forgiven.”
ii Authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. This authority Jesus gave to
His disciples, and they are also signs that accompany a believer.
iii Authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy - which
Jesus gave to His disciples. Jesus said, “Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the
62
enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you.”

Overcomers’ Authorities
Jesus will give these authorities to overcomers:
iv Authority to judge. Jesus said to His disciples, “I assure you that when the world is made new and
the Son of Man sits upon His glorious throne, you who have been My followers will also sit on twelve
63
thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” Then I saw thrones, and the people sitting on them
had been given the authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their
testimony about Jesus and for proclaiming the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his
statue, nor accepted his mark on their forehead or their hands. They all came to life again, and they
64
reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
65
v Authority over the nations to rule them with an iron scepter and dash them to pieces like pottery.
Jesus said about the overcomers, “To all who are victorious, who obey Me to the very end, to them I
66
will give authority over all the nations.”

So do not be hasty in judging and understand that there are differences between sin, wickedness and
rebellion. As disciples under the Covenant for the Forgiveness of Sins, we have authority to forgive sins.
We were also given authority to drive out demons and heal every disease. This is our testimony with the

52
Jeremiah 5.30
53
Matthew 24.12
54
Matthew 9.6
55
Matthew 10.1
56
Luke 10.19
57
John 10.18
58
John 17.2
59
John 5.27
60
Revelation 2.26. This is a reward given to those who overcome and are victorious and who obey Him to the very end. Jesus said so in
Revelation 2.26 to the church in Thyatira.
61
Matthew 9.6
62
Luke 10.19
63
Matthew 19.27 NLT
64
Revelation 20.4 NLT
65
Revelation 2.26. This is a reward given to those who overcome and are victorious and who obey Him to the very end. Jesus said so in
Revelation 2.26 to the church in Thyatira.
66
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Holy Spirit that the Son of Man, Jesus, has authority on Earth to forgive sins and that the Kingdom of
God has come upon men. And to show that the Holy Spirit is the stronger Man and His power overpowers
the power of Satan, Jesus gave us the authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all
the power of the enemy.

Do not be hasty in judgment just because the Book of Judgment is being opened to us. Do not judge
unless you know, understand and live the Law of Judgment that you are fully immersed in the delight of
it. The Law of Judgment is not “Do not judge or you will be judged” or “Do not judge by mere
appearances.” The heart of judgment is the double portion of justice, because that is the most important
matter of the Law. Judgment is not about sin, condemnation, punishment or reward.

This is the Law of Judgment. He who has ears: hear and understand what the Holy Spirit is saying to the
churches and to the overcomers who are called for His purpose at this time. "For I, the LORD, love
justice.”67

This is a decree. It is not a command or a regulation so that you can obey it. It is a decree and it is for us
to accept it in our hearts, and then live by it in faith and knowledge. When the decree is accepted in your
heart and firmly acknowledged in your mind, this knowledge you have of the Lord becomes the
undertone of what and how you say and act. This is what the Lord means when He said He will put His
68 69
law in our minds and write it on our hearts. God’s justice is the light to all nations and Jesus said we
70
are the light of the world. The elect of the Holy Spirit must be the light of the world to overcome the
darkness of the world in the coming days of distress unequalled since the beginning of the world.

Let us remember that the Law of Judgment is that He is the Lord and He loves justice. Let us fix it in
mind, take it to heart – and the Lord will show us more.

Thank you Lord.

67
Isaiah 61.8
68
READ JEREMIAH 31.32-34 for yourself. Also in the NLT: “But this is the New Covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that
day,” says the Lord. “I will put My instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will
be My people.”
69
Isaiah 51.4
70
Matthew 15.4

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Judgment of Hypocrisy
against the Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees

These are the seven woes Jesus declared to the teachers of the law and the Pharisees in Matthew 23.
Jesus said this because the sins committed by the teachers of the law and the Pharisees under the Old
Covenant had led them into hypocrisy:

1. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the Kingdom of Heaven in
men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.” What does
this mean? What did Jesus say about entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven? He said, “Not everyone
who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only he who does the will of My
1
Father who is in Heaven.” “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you
2
will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” The sin of the teachers of the law and the Pharisees is that
they did not teach people to humble themselves like children (meaning to lose all righteousness of
their own), and to do the will of the Father.

2. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a
single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.”
The sin here is that they taught others to follow their ways, traditions and doctrines. Because such
teachings honour God with their lips only and cause their hearts to be far from God, they made their
followers twice the son of hell as they are.

3. "Woe to you, blind guides! You say, 'If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone
swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.'” The sin here is that they taught their
followers to place their faith in the ornaments of the temple, instead of the One who made the temple
holy. It is an idol worship of man-made creations in the temple, which is based on man’s valuation of
its value. By doing so, they lost their fear and reverence of the Lord, the Creator of the Heavens and
the Earth.

4. "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—
mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy
and faithfulness, [the love of God3]. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the
former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.” The sin here is that they do not
teach the important matters of the law, which are mercy, faithfulness, the love of God and a double
portion of justice. Instead they opted for the easy way out, which is giving of what is from the soil,
rather than what is from the heart.

5. "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and
dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the
cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.” The sin is here is that they care more about
the state of their outer appearance, which is visible to other people, than the state of their hearts and
minds, which is only visible and examined by God alone.

6. "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs,
which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything
unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you
are full of hypocrisy and wickedness (or lawlessness4).” They have masked the forsaking and
disobeying of God in their hearts and minds, with outward acts and appearances. Note that Jesus
differentiated hypocrisy with wickedness or lawlessness, which is sin. So hypocrisy and wickedness
are separate.

7. "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and
decorate the graves of the righteous. And you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we
would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' So you testify against
yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the
measure of the sin of your forefathers!” (Jesus said, “Go ahead and finish what your ancestors
started.”5) The sin here is that they did not repent of the sin of rejecting and killing those who
warned them, nor their desire to kill anyone who opposed them or threatened their so-called
honoured positions before men.

1
Matthew 7.21
2
Matthew 18.4
3
Luke 11:42
4
ESV & NLT
5
Matthew 23.32

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First question: So what is hypocrisy? And since we are being shown the finer details of sin, wickedness
and rebellion, how does hypocrisy differ?

Hypocrisy is not just the failure to practise what you preach. No, the failure to practise what you preach
is the effect or manifestation of hypocrisy. This is the definition of a hypocrite in the eyes of the Lord: A
hypocrite is a man who loves the praise, honour and attention of men more than he treasures the praise,
honour and attention of God. And because of this, he fears men more than he fears God. This love for
fellow man causes him to commit the seven sins that Jesus taught in Matthew 23.

Next question: Is hypocrisy, which is the love of man that replaces the love of God, a sin under the Old
Covenant? On the first level, hypocrisy is not a sin because nowhere is it recorded in the Bible that God
said, “Do not be a hypocrite.”

What did Jesus say when an expert in the religious law tried to trap Him with this question: “Teacher,
which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” Jesus replied, “You must love the Lord
your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest
commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all
6
the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

In this, the NLT gives us further understanding to the NIV. Where the NIV uses the words, “the Law”, the
NLT uses the words “the law of Moses”. What is the law of Moses? It is Moses’ interpretation,
explanations and teachings on the Law of God under the old covenant, purposed to give and encourage
Israel to follow the Lord and obey His Law. Moses’ teachings are not the Law of God, although they are
derived from the Law of God. For us, we are to obey the Law of Jesus, which are the red letter words in
the Bible. Teachings of men help us with the knowledge and understanding, and the wisdom of practice
thereof, under the counseling of the Holy Spirit, but such teachings are not the Law of Jesus. It is
important to know what you are practicing and obeying.

So now, where is written that Israel was to love the Lord their God with all their heart, soul, and mind?
Who said it? Was it God? Or was it Moses? It was Moses in Deuteronomy 6.5. This was Moses’
understanding on the Law of God when he received it directly from the Father on Mount Sinai. Moses was
teaching the Israelites this particular matter of the Law of God, which is the love of God. This is the same
as what Jesus said in Matthew 23.23.

Do you see what I am getting at? The failure to love the God with all your heart, mind and soul is not a
sin, because God never commanded it. It was Moses who taught this. God commanded the Israelites to
worship Him, and He gave them rules and regulations that pertain to worship in the prescribed way. God
did not say, “You are to love Me, and no one else.” But He did say, “You shall have no other god besides
7
Me.” The purpose of the worship and fellowship is that we will grow to love the Lord, the Lord and the
Lord out of our own freewill.

Think about it. Would you ask someone to love you? Would you say, “You are to love me and no one
else”? No, because love comes from freewill and it cannot be forced. You cannot command someone to
love you. Who does that? Only a tyrant dictator or an abusive partner would. Even so, what type of love
would that be? What would be the quality of that love? Would a God who is looking for the perfect pearl
desire love that is forced? There is no such thing as forced love. Even if there was, would forced love be
lasting and inseparable?

So it is with the church, the Father did not say, “Love Jesus.” But the Father commanded us to listen to
Jesus. And it is in the fellowship of listening to Jesus and the Holy Spirit that we have grown to love and
fallen in love with the Lord. That is God’s plan – it is His way, and it is now our testimony. Only after
listening to Jesus and the Holy Spirit and practicing Jesus’ words, did the Lord begin to show us that the
quality of love must include unceasing forgiveness. The quality of love God is after is agape, inseparable
love. At least, it is what He has shown us so far.

However, since God did not directly command us to love Him, where is the righteousness of Jesus in
commanding us to love our enemies and loving your fellow disciples as He has loved us? The
righteousness is firmly founded on the truth that God loved His enemies first, and Jesus loved His
disciples first. So it is your choice to love your enemies and fellow disciples if you want to follow the way
of the Lord.

6
Matthew 22.34-40
7
Exodus 20.3

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Therefore understand that the law of judgment against the hypocrites is not based on whether men of
God practise what they preach, whether they like to sit in places of high honour, or whether they look
good. Hypocrisy is one of the seeds that sprout from pride, which then leads to sin, wickedness and
rebellion. It is pride that makes a man crave and make every effort to obtain praises from men. This love
for men has overshadowed their hearts, souls and minds, and the fear of rejection from men has overrun
them, leaving no room for love of God and the fear of the Lord. This causes them to disobey, forsake and
rebel against God. It is cause and effect. The cause is hypocrisy. The effect is sin, wickedness and
rebellion.

The Holy Spirit is teaching us that hypocrisy is not something we can forgive because it is not a sin.
However, we are authorised to forgive the sins that stem from hypocrisy. In addition, we can pick the
false prophets from the true prophets, and the wolves from the shepherds from our understanding of
hypocrisy. Because hypocrisy is something you can see and hear.

In relation to judgment, Jesus then went on to ask, “You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you
escape being condemned to hell?” “How will you escape the judgment of hell?” “How are you going to
8
escape the sentence of hell?” Jesus said that the judgment of a hypocrite is hell. Now we know that hell
is not a final destination, because after Jesus’ thousand-year reign on Earth, comes the Day of Judgment
before the Great White Throne. On that day, the dead will be judged according to what they have done
as recorded in the books. The sea will give up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades will give up
the dead that were in them, and each person will be judged according to what he has done. Then death
9
and Hades will be thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.

Why did Jesus say that sorrow awaits the hypocritical teachers of the law and the Pharisees, you might
ask? Then I will also ask you one question; if they were sent to Heaven, would they be more likely to
repent on the Day of the Final Judgment? So then, is God merciful or unmerciful in this? You decide.

Amen Holy Spirit. Thank you.

8
Matthew 23.33 NIV, NLT and ESV
9
Revelation 20.12-4

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The Core of the Question

How many times have you heard this irreverent question uttered out of the mouths of ignorant men,
“Who is God to judge me? Who does He think He is?” In saying this, aren’t we questioning God’s wisdom
with ignorant words and darkening His counsel with words without knowledge? For do we have
knowledge of the only true God and Jesus whom He sent, and do we know the Father as Jesus knows the
Father?

We think God’s judgment more complex than it is, when His judgment is simply a pronouncement of the
truth. His judgment is just ‘saying how it is’. God’s judgment is just about telling the truth. And God’s
justice doesn’t get easier to understand than this. God’s judgment of you is His telling you the truth
about yourself. But in our ignorance and disrespect of the Lord, we argue with God and criticise Him,
saying God is cruel and His judgment is sinister. We fail to acknowledge that only He, who knows the
truth, can deliver judgment. Yet we who do not know the truth but judge, judge only by mere
appearances, and we do not made a right judgment. But a judgment that is not right is injustice, and the
person who has no authority or right to judge is unrighteous. Look at the worldly law courts, all the rules
and regulation, doctrines and principles they have created and adopted only help bring them as close to
the truth as possible when they deliver judgment. It is not justice, but they try with their human wisdom
and sense of righteousness.

Listen to Jesus, who said, “For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son
gives life to whom He is pleased to give it. Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all
judgment to the Son, that all may honour the Son just as they honour the Father. He who does not
1
honour the Son does not honour the Father, who sent Him. You judge by human standards; I pass
judgment on no one. But if I do judge, My decisions are right, because I am not alone. I stand with the
Father, who sent me2… For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in
Himself. And He has given Him authority to judge because He is the Son of Man.”3

This is how you defend your Father and Jesus who is the Judge – this is what you say when people ask
this irreverent question: “Who is God to judge me? What right does God have to judge me?” Tell them,
“The Father and Jesus have the right to judge you because you were made in their Image and
Likeness.” Whether they can accept this or not does not deter us – we just tell the truth.

Since God created man, male and female in His Image and Likeness (His Image is what He imagined and
created for Himself and His Likeness is what He is), then only He can pronounce how far each man has
fallen off His mark, or how much each man has exceeded His greatest expectations. Only God knows how
and when a man, male and female, who is of flesh and blood with a heart, mind, soul and spirit, which
dictate and direct his dreams, desires, speech and conduct – a man who is not God but was made in His
Image and Likeness - has taken on the nature of God. Only God knows; yet He has revealed this through
Jesus Christ who is the Son of Man. And Jesus goes on to say, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith
in Me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to
the Father.”4

Think about it and anchor it in your heart. The Father and Jesus have the right to judge all men
because men were made in Their Image and Likeness. God’s judgment is a truthful comparison
between you, and the Image and Likeness of God the Father and the Son. Only an artist or a writer can
judge the quality of his work because he alone knows his personal expectations and vision, and the
quality he aimed to achieve. What other people say is merely criticism and review – therefore it is only an
opinion. Only the creator beholds the truth because it is only from him that such work originates.

So where is it written, or hinted at, that this is the standard by which God will judge? Jesus said, “You
judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one.”5 Here Jesus made a difference between the way
we judge and the way God judges – human standards versus God’s standards. In the NASB, the same
verse translates that Jesus said, “You judge according to the flesh; I am not judging anyone.” We judge
according the flesh – by what we see – this is mere appearance. And we judge by human standards to
justify ourselves, and sometimes, we discredit God’s justice (that is the God’s right judgment) and
condemn Him just to prove we are right. But how and why does God judge? He said, "I the Lord search

1
John 5.21-23
2
John 8.15-17
3
John 5.26-27
4
John 14.12
5
John 8.15

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the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds
deserve."6

Does this sound airy-fairy to you? Am I making this up? Or it is because we have deviated from God’s
purpose for man to such an extent that God’s Image and Likeness is a foreign concept to us? Admit it, we
lack full understanding and knowledge of God. Everything we know and understand about God is merely
the tip of the iceberg. What we have learned and gained from listening to Jesus and the counsel of the
Holy Spirit so far has brought us to a place where we have no choice but to admit shamefully, “We do not
know You, Father.” At least, this is how I feel personally, so I speak for myself in this.

Read Genesis 5.3, “When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image;
and he named him Seth. [NIV] When Adam was 130 years old, he became the father of a son who was
just like him - in his very image. He named his son Seth. [NLT]”7 What if when Adam had Seth in God’s
Image and Likeness, instead of his own likeness and image? When God blessed the male and female and
said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the Earth and subdue it. [NIV] Be fruitful and
multiply. Fill the Earth and govern it [NLT],”8 was it God’s purpose for the male and female to have sons
and daughters in their own image and likeness? No, it was not. It is because Adam and Eve had sons and
daughters in their own image and likeness, that God said that every inclination of our hearts is evil from
childhood; everything we think or imagine is bent toward evil from childhood.9 Jesus said, “For from
within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed,
malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.”10

I used to think, “How can this be?” Now I understand. It is because man begot sons and daughters in his
own image and likeness, instead of learning to do so in the Image and Likeness of the Father and Son,
that we are always ready to disobey, forsake and rebel against God even from childhood. We were
created in the Image and Likeness of God, but we were born in the image and likeness of Adam. That is
why Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless he is born of water and
the Spirit; no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again.”11

And if people should ask, “What right does God have to judge a man? How would He even know what it is
like to be a man - He is far up in the Heavens?” This is your reply, “Jesus is the Son of Man, and He has
the right to judge man because He is a Man.” The writer of the book of Hebrews wrote of God’s
righteousness, “For this reason He (Jesus) had to be made like His brothers in every way, in order that
He might become a merciful and faithful High Priest in service to God, and that He might make
atonement for the sins of the people. Because He Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to
help those who are being tempted.”12

We were asked a few weeks ago, what is the proof of man? So now, what is the proof of a son? How do
we define a “son”? It is simply this: a son is one who is so perfectly like his father, that they are one.
Remember Jesus’ words, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect;” “Be merciful, just as
your Father is merciful;” and “You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate.”13 And
the Father and Jesus testified about the Son of Man, “This is My Son whom I love, with Him I am well
pleased. Listen to Him! 14 … I love the Father and I do exactly what My Father has commanded Me15…
Whatever I say is just what the Father has told Me to say16… Anyone who has seen Me has seen the
Father 17… I and the Father are One.18”

Jesus, the Son of Man, is the Man who is perfectly like His Father should His Father be the form of a Man.
Jesus the Son of Man is the exact representation of God the Father in the flesh. That is why Jesus the
Son of Man was given the authority to judge. The Father has not given the authority to judge man to
someone who has never been a man. This is the Father’s righteousness and justice. God is Justice.

And finally, the elect of the Holy Spirit should ask this question, “If all men will come under judgment,
when will those of the first resurrection be judged? For it would discredit God’s justice if anyone should
escape judgment.” Read Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 11:31-33, “But if we judged ourselves rightly and

6
Jeremiah 17.10
7
Genesis 5.3 NIV and NLT
8
Genesis 1.28 NLT and NIV
9
Genesis 8.21
10
John 7.21-22
11
John 3.3-5
12
Heb 2.17-18
13
Matthew 5.48; Luke 6.36 NIV and NLT
14
Matthew 17.5
15
John 14.31
16
John 12.50
17
John 14.9
18
John 10.30

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examine ourselves, we would not be judged [NASB and NLT] and we would not come under judgment
[NIV]. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along
with the world.”19

So examine and judge yourself in regards to sin, wickedness and rebellion; listen to Jesus and put His
words into practice; respond to the conviction of the Holy Spirit; seek His counsel and repent, repent,
repent, and forgive, forgive, forgive. For the core of the question is still only the tip of the iceberg. Let us
not lose faith and good courage. Amen

19
NASB and NLT

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Holy Spirit’s Workshop [www.holyspiritsworkshop.com] – Sat 23.06.2007

Object of His Judgment

1
These are the words of Him who has the sharp, double-edged sword.
Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the Earth.
I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.2
For judgment I have come into this world.3
A sword, a sword, drawn for the slaughter,
polished to consume and to flash like lightning!4
Now I raise My hand to Heaven and declare, “As surely as I live,
when I sharpen My flashing sword and begin to carry out justice,
when I sharpen My flashing sword
and My hand grasps it in judgment,
I will take vengeance on My adversaries
and repay those who hate Me5
I will take revenge on My enemies and repay those who reject Me.
I will make My arrows drunk with blood, and My sword will devour flesh
- the blood of the slaughtered and the captives, and the heads of the enemy leaders.6
Awake, O sword, against My shepherd, against the man who is close to Me!
Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered,
and I will turn My hand against the little ones.7
They will fall by a sword that is not of man;
a sword, not of mortals, will devour them.
They will flee before the sword and their young men will be put to forced labor.8
I will pronounce My judgments on My people
because of their wickedness in forsaking Me,
in burning incense to other gods and in worshiping what their hands have made.9
They greatly love to wander; they do not restrain their feet.
So the Lord does not accept them;
He will now remember their wickedness and punish them for their sins.10
Therefore I cut you in pieces with My prophets,
I killed you with the words of My mouth;
My judgments flashed like lightning upon you.11
Do not follow other gods to serve and worship them;
do not provoke Me to anger with what your hands have made.
Then I will not harm you.
But you did not listen to Me,
and you have provoked Me with what your hands have made,
and you have brought harm to yourselves.12
In the light of these things, should I relent?13
So that hearts may melt and the fallen be many,
I have stationed the sword for slaughter at all their gates.
Oh! It is made to flash like lightning, it is grasped for slaughter.
O sword, slash to the right, then to the left, wherever your blade is turned.14
See, I am beginning to bring disaster on the house that bears My Name,
and will you indeed go unpunished?
You will not go unpunished,
for I am calling down a sword upon all who live on the Earth.15
I tell you the truth,
it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment.16
The sword of destruction will strike the Babylonians.
It will strike the people of Babylon—

1
Revelation 2:12
2
Matthew 10:34
3
John 9:39
4
Ezekiel 21:28
5
NIV
6
Deuteronomy 32:41-42 NLT
7
Zechariah 13:7
8
Isaiah 31:8
9
Jeremiah 1:16
10
Jeremiah 14.10
11
Hosea 6:5
12
Jeremiah 25.6-7
13
Isaiah 57.6
14
Ezekiel 21:15
15
Jeremiah 25:29
16
Matthew 10:15

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her officials and wise men, too.


The sword will strike her wise counselors, and they will become fools.
The sword will strike her mightiest warriors, and panic will seize them.
The sword will strike her horses and chariots and her allies from other lands,
and they will all become like women.
The sword will strike her treasures, and they all will be plundered.
The sword will even strike her water supply, causing it to dry up.
And why? Because the whole land is filled with idols,
and the people are madly in love with them.17
The prophets are prophesying lies in My Name.
I have not sent them or appointed them or spoken to them.
They are prophesying to you false visions, divinations, idolatries
and the delusions of their own minds.18
Yet in spite of all this you say, 'I am innocent; He is not angry with me.'
But I will pass judgment on you because you say, 'I have not sinned.'19
But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment
for every careless word they have spoken.20
So I will come near to you for judgment.
I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers,
against those who defraud laborers of their wages,
who oppress the widows and the fatherless,
and deprive aliens of justice, but do not fear Me.21
I will expose your righteousness and your works,
and they will not benefit you.22
Therefore wait for Me for the day I will stand up to testify.
I have decided to assemble the nations,
to gather the kingdoms and to pour out My wrath on them
— all My fierce anger.
— The whole world will be consumed by the fire of My jealous anger.23
The tumult will resound to the ends of the Earth,
for the Lord will bring charges against the nations;
He will bring judgment on all mankind and put the wicked to the sword.24
Then all people will know that I the Lord have drawn My sword from its scabbard;
it will not return again.'25
So then, son of man, prophesy and strike your hands together.
Let the sword strike twice, even three times.
It is a sword for slaughter—
a sword for great slaughter, closing in on them from every side.26
Now is the time for judgment on this world;
now the prince of this world will be driven out.27
Repent therefore!
Otherwise, I will soon come to you
and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth.28
Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline.
So be earnest, and repent.29

17
Jeremiah 50:35-38 NLT
18
Jeremiah 14.14-15
19
Jeremiah 2:35
20
Matthew 12:36
21
Malachi 3:5
22
Isaiah 57.12
23
Zephaniah 3:8
24
Jeremiah 25:31
25
Ezekiel 21:5
26
Ezekiel 21:14
27
John 12:31
28
Revelation 2:16
29
Revelation 3:19

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The sword of the Lord is the object of His judgment. The sword of the Lord comes out of His mouth, for
His word is His sword. The word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it
penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the
heart. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.30

How does the word of God judge thoughts and attitudes? How does it expose us? How is His sword – His
word - the object of His judgment?

When the Lord sends His word, He searches your heart and examines your mind to determine how you
received the word. Then He is able to correctly judge you by your words and your conduct. When the
Lord stands up to testify, He is telling you the truth about you. This is God’s judgment. God’s judgment is
simply His testimony about you. And His testimony is truth because His word is truth. So how do you
receive it when His sword strikes? Do you accept the truth and repent? Or do you gnash your teeth and
curse Him? When the Holy Spirit convicts you in regards to sin, righteousness and judgment, do you
respond quickly and correctly, in repentance and forgiveness, or do you rationalise His voice to make it
go away?

It is the Light of the Sword of the Lord, lit by the fire of His word that convicts like flashes of lightning
into the hearts of men, bringing men to repentance. His judgment of men is a call for repentance. Unless
we repent, how can He restore and reward us? When we refuse to repent and have to accept the fate due
to us, who do we have to blame but ourselves?

Understand this about God’s judgment and compare it to worldly judgment. In man’s law, when you are
judged, that is when you are pronounced guilty or innocent, you have no recourse once the verdict is
delivered. You cannot get out of your judgment unless you were misjudged. Unless you can prove that
there was a miscarriage of justice, you must accept the sentence of punishment. You don’t stand a
chance. And there is no second chance.

However, this is not God’s way. When God judges men, He testifies to the truth about them and He
desires them to repent. We still stand a chance. How can this be? It is because our Father is God the
Forgiver.

Remember what the Sovereign Lord said about Israel, “If at any time I announce that a nation or
kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then
I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned31 … For I take no pleasure in the death of
anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live!”32

Listen to the Father’s heart when He said this about Israel: “Why then have these people turned away?
Why does Jerusalem always turn away? They cling to deceit; they refuse to return. I have listened
attentively, but they do not say what is right. No one repents of his wickedness, saying, "What have I
done?" Each pursues his own course like a horse charging into battle.”33 The Father said that He listens
attentively to our words. This is exactly like the father in the parable who waits for his wayward son to
return and sees him from a long way off. The key to understanding the Father when Jesus told the
parable of the lost son is in these words, “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him
and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.”34
It shows us His desire, hope and excitement because He is our Father the Forgiver. This is what Jesus
was showing us: The perfect, merciful, compassionate and righteous Father who cares about the welfare
of His sons and daughters more than fattened cattle and sheep, and His desire to restore them because
of His generosity to prosper them.

Therefore understand this stark difference between God’s judgment and man’s judgment. Man’s
judgment is for punishment. God’s judgment is a call for repentance. The Lord does not judge to
condemn, for we have already condemned ourselves when we sin and refuse to repent or turn from our
wicked ways. For unless the Lord tells you the truth about you, how would you know what to repent of?
Once He has told you the truth about you, He has judged you, and how you respond is your choice. He
testifies about you because He desires that, in His judgment of you, you will repent and receive His
forgiveness. He doesn’t want to condemn you – why should you die? Repent and live!

So if people should ask you, “What right does God have to judge me?” Remember your short reply is,
“Because you were made in the Image and Likeness of God, He has the right to judge you.”

30
Hebrews 4.12 (NIV and NLT)
31
Jeremiah 18.7
32
Ezekiel 18.32
33
Jeremiah 8.5-6
34
Luke 15.20

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And if people should ask you, “Why does God judge me?” Answer them, “Because you have a Father and
a Brother who desire you to repent and not perish, but live and prosper as a son or daughter of God.”

So this is how the final judgment before the Great White Throne, of Revelation 20.11 where all the
dead are judged, fits in with the second chance as we understand it in Zephaniah 3.9. If you cannot
accept that the purpose God judges is to call men to repentance and not for condemnation, then how will
you accept that after the final judgment before the Great White Throne, the Lord will purify the lips of the
people so that all of them will call on the Name of the Lord,35 for everyone who calls on the Name of the
Lord will be saved,36 and they will be saved from the punishment of the Lake of Burning Sulphur and
serve Jesus shoulder to shoulder.37 The final judgment before the Great White Throne is the Father’s
last call for repentance for each person’s place in eternity to be determined.

Therefore, let the cowardly be given good courage to repent. Let the unbelieving be given a heart of flesh
to have faith to believe in Jesus Christ. And let the vile be given the fear of the Lord in their hearts so
that they can no longer say, “There is no God.” Because there is a God, and He is our Father, our Brother
and our Lord, the Forgiver, and They deserve to lose none whom They made in Their Image and
Likeness, except the five doomed to destruction.38

Why should anyone else die the second death? Repent and live the first and second resurrection!

35
Zephaniah 3.9
36
Joel 2.32
37
Zephaniah 3.9
38
False prophet, the beast, Satan, death and Hades – Revelation 19.20; 20.10 & 20.14

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Law of Condemnation

What is condemnation and what is judgment? There is a difference between condemnation and judgment
because the two words are interchanged in John 3.16-19 of the NIV and NLT. The NIV writes, “For God so
loved the world that He gave His One and Only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but
have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the
world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands
condemned already because he has not believed in the Name of God's One and Only Son. This is the
verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds
were evil.”

And the same verses in NLT are written, “For God loved the world so much that He gave His One and
Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent His Son
into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through Him. There is no judgment against
anyone who believes in Him. But anyone who does not believe in Him has already been judged for not
believing in God’s One and Only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the
world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate
the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed.”

We know that God’s judgment is His pronouncing the truth about you, so that you may repent and be
spared. God’s judgment is His testimony about you. So, what is the difference between being judged and
being condemned by God?

God’s condemnation is the consequence due to you when you reject God’s testimony about you.
Condemnation is not about whether you have sinned or how much you have sinned, because all have
sinned and fallen short of His glory. Condemnation is the punishment due to those who declare God to be
a liar by their refusal to accept God’s testimony about them and who man is in God the Father and the
Son.

And this is the Law of Condemnation: “But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of
judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by
1
your words you will be condemned."

What does it mean to give an account for every careless word we have spoken? To give an account
means to answer God for what we have been given and entrusted. I tell you the truth, only servants are
called to give an account to their masters. This is the way in the Parable of the Talents.2 But sons and
daughters whose delight is to humble themselves to serve in their Father’s household and Kingdom
without a price or reward, do not have to settle accounts with the Father, because the attitude of
accountability is already in their heart as everything they speak and put their hands to all belong to the
Kingdom of their Father, and shall be returned to Him in full. It is servants who draw a salary, but sons
and daughters do not because all their needs are taken care of by the Father according to Jesus’ words,
“Your Heavenly Father already knows all your needs, and He will give you all you need from day to day
if you live for Him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern … If you, then, though you are
evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in Heaven give
good gifts to those who ask Him! ”3 Sons and daughters who become servants are those who do not take
anything away from the household and Kingdom for themselves to keep, thereby depleting that of their
Father’s treasury. Not that the Father is not a God of abundance, but I am speaking of the attitude sons
and daughters must have.

So what are the careless words for believers and disciples of Jesus? Careless words are words spoken by
believers and disciples who do not care or regard the honour and sovereignty of God the Father, Son and
Holy Spirit, as they exercise the authority of Jesus to heal the sick and drive out demons, trample on
snakes and scorpions and overcome the power of the enemy, testify about Jesus, forgive sins and make
disciples of all nations. By their words, they have showed the darkness in their hearts and proved they do
not care about the Father and Jesus.

When we read Jesus’ words, “For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be
condemned”, we think He means the words we speak now. This is true. But Jesus also meant the words
you will speak on the Day of Judgment. For God will call an account of the words spoken by believers and
disciples because Jesus gave us His authority together with power to back up the authority, for by such

1
Matthew 12.37
2
Matthew 25:14-30
3
Matthew 6:33 ONLT; 7:11 NIV

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authority, we purport to speak and act in His Name. You only have to give an account when you have
been entrusted with something. Disciples are entrusted with authority and received power, believers are
meant to grow to be disciples, and sinners are meant to repent and believe. That is why men will have to
give an account.

What is this “Day of Judgment” that Jesus spoke of? It is the day of final judgment before the Great
White Throne, written in Revelation 20.11. It is the same day recorded in Zephaniah 3.8, “Therefore wait
for Me, says the Lord, until the day when I rise up to give testimony; for My judgment is at hand, to
gather the nations and to bring the kingdoms near, to pour out My indignation upon them, even all My
fierce anger; for in the fire of My zeal shall all the Earth be devoured. For then I will purify the lips of the
peoples and restore to the people a pure speech, that they may call on the Name of the Lord to serve
Him with one consent and serve Him shoulder to shoulder.”4 The verse in Zephaniah 3.8, “The whole
world will be consumed by the fire of My jealous anger” ties in with Revelation 20.11, Earth and sky fled
from His presence and there was no place for them.” This is how these verses fit together, for they both
speak of Heaven and Earth passing away on the Day of Judgment.

The apostle John saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were
opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as
recorded in the books.5 Note that it is not written that the dead were judged as condemned according to
what they had done. The NIV, NLT, ESV, Peshitta and NASB all use the word “judge” here. And so when
God’s testimony is delivered against men for being cowardly, unbelieving, vile, murderers, sexually
immoral, those who practise magic arts, the idolators, liar or ones who love and practice falsehood –
what they say in response will acquit them or condemn them to the Lake of Burning Sulphur. This is
when the Law of Repentance under the New Covenant will apply, “Repent and live! 6 …. But unless you
repent, you too will all perish.”7 When they refuse to repent, the Law of Condemnation applies, for by
their words they will be condemned. When they repent, the Law of Condemnation also applies, for by
their words they will be acquitted. The Law of Condemnation demonstrates the Father’s mercy and desire
for mercy.

Jesus said that He did not come to judge or condemn. He came to testify about His Father and do the
work of the New Covenant so that all who believe in His Name may have eternal life.8 He said there is no
judgment or condemnation for the one who believes in His Name. This is because the one who believes in
Jesus the Son of God, has accepted the Father’s and Jesus’ testimony that God the Father has a Son
whose name is Jesus Christ, and he has repented for being a sinner. Repentance is your
acknowledgement of the Lord’s truth about you as a sinner, and gratitude of your salvation by grace
through faith in Jesus Christ, and it is followed by a desire and effort to change your ways and leave your
life of sin. That’s why Jesus told His believers to follow Him and the Father commanded disciples to listen
to Jesus.

Jesus said, “As for the person who hears My words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did
not come to judge the world, but to save it. There is a Judge for the one who rejects Me and does not
accept My words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. For I did not speak of
My own accord, but the Father who sent Me commanded Me what to say and how to say it.”9 Therefore,
we must accept Jesus’ testimony about us and about Himself and the Father and the Kingdom, for our
refusal to accept the truth will condemn us on the last day, because God who is Justice will deliver what
is due to us according to what our deeds deserve.

In the book of Hebrews, it is written, “By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear
built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the
righteousness that comes by faith.”10 What does it mean that Noah condemned the world? It is not that
his faith was so much better that it declared everyone else guilty and deserving of God’s punishment. It
is not this way at all. It means that by Noah’s faith, he completed what he was commanded so that what
God had in mind to bring the world and mankind to correction could commence.

In the same way, by our faith our obedience must be made complete, so that what our Father has in
mind to bring Jesus back to reign for the world and mankind to be brought to correction could
commence, for our Father is very jealous for Jesus and all His sons and daughters who are made in Their
Image and Likeness and saved and redeemed in the Name of Jesus.

4
Zephaniah 3.8-9 Peshitta (words in italics NIV)
5
Revelation 20.12 NLT
6
Ezekiel 18.32
7
Luke 13.3
8
John 3.15
9
John 12.47-49
10
Hebrews 11.6-8 NIV and NLT both use the word “condemned”

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So understand that God’s condemnation is not a punishment for sin, for there is a Covenant between
Jesus and His Father that forgives all sins except the eternal sin of the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
God’s condemnation is the due punishment of man’s rejection of the truth of God and Man even after God
testified about him, and man’s refusal to repent of his falling short of God’s glory - God who is the Word,
the Son, the Spirit, the Father and the Original Man who is in Heaven.

So listen to Jesus: “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be
condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed
down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it
will be measured to you.”11

Amen Holy Spirit.

11
Luke 6.37-38

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Family Law

Man’s family law is about division of property and rights to children between a husband and wife. It only
applies when that family has broken down.

But a family was never meant to break down because the male and female are joined together. Jesus
said, “This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are
united into one. Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined
together.”1 Man’s family law is about the breakdown of oneness in a family because of sin and hardness
of heart. But God’s Family Law is about oneness that cannot be destroyed.

This is God’s Family Law according to the Law of Jesus, “My Father, who has given them [My sheep]
to Me is greater and more powerful 2 than all; no one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand.
3
I and the Father are One.” What did the Father give Jesus? The Father gave His Son His glory. Jesus
said, “I have given them [all those who believe] the glory that You gave Me, that they may be one as We
are One: I in them and You in Me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You
sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me. Father, I want those You have given Me to be
with Me where I am, and to see My glory, the glory You have given Me because You loved Me before the
creation of the world.”4

God’s Family Law is about oneness with the Father through the Son, for the Son is the only Way to the
Father; and the Father is the only Way to the Son, for no one can come to Jesus unless the Father
enables him.

Read Matthew 25.31-46: “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will
sit on His throne in Heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the
people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on His
right and the goats on His left. Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed
by My Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I
was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was
a stranger and you invited Me in, I needed clothes and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after
Me, I was in prison and you came to visit Me.' Then the righteous will answer Him, 'Lord, when did we
see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? When did we see You a
stranger and invite You in, or needing clothes and clothe You? When did we see You sick or in prison and
go to visit You?' The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these
brothers of Mine, you did for Me.' Then He will say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, you who are
cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave Me
nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite
Me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe Me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after
Me.' They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes
or sick or in prison, and did not help You?' He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for
one of the least of these, you did not do for Me.' Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the
righteous to eternal life."

I tell you the truth, this is not a parable, even though Jesus spoke this after teaching the parables of the
ten virgins and of the talents. These two parables relate to the time when Jesus will return because He
opened by saying, “At that time, the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and
went out to meet the bridegroom.”5 The time Jesus referred to is the time of the Son of Man’s soon
arrival on Earth to reign as King over the Earth. The parable of the ten virgins is about readiness for His
return, and the parable of the talents is about productivity and faithfulness whilst He is away. Then Jesus
went on to talk about this separating goats and sheep from all people after His return.

At our shallow end of understanding, we took Jesus’ words to mean that people should do good to
Christians so that we could be rewarded. We may even use it to encourage people to be freer with their
purse strings.

But what is at the tip of the sharp double-edged sword? Why is the King performing the function of a
Shepherd here, seemingly such a lowly and non-regal function? It is to show us the issue of ownership.
For a king does not “own” his people, they are his subjects. But a shepherd owns his sheep, the sheep

1
Matthew 19.5-6 NLT
2
NLT
3
John 10.32
4
John 17.22-24
5
Matthew 25.1

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belong to the shepherd. We have a King who is the Good Shepherd, and the sheep belong to the King
because the Father gave them to Him.

And why does the ESV and NLT have a title “The Final Judgment” above Matthew 25? This is why it’s so
important to listen to Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Then we will understand to ignore the headings and the
chaptering because they are artificial breaks and may mislead us into pausing where there is no
disruption in a specific teaching of Jesus. All of Matthew 24 and 25 should be read without any break
because the flow must not be broken. You break the flow, you miss the meaning. Just cross them out of
your Bibles – you don’t need them.

The separation of goats and sheep at the coming of Jesus the Son of Man is the fulfillment of these words
of the apostle Peter: “For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin with God’s household. And
6
if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s Good News?”
This means that the separation between the sheep and the goats is two-fold.

Our King Jesus Christ’s first separation between the sheep and the goats is the judgment that begins
within the house of God. In John 10, Jesus said that the sheep are those who listen to His voice, and He
knows His sheep and His sheep know Him. His sheep do not listen to thieves and robbers who only come
to steal, kill and destroy.

Who are the sheep and who are the goats within the household of God then? Go back to the parables of
the ten virgins and of the talents.

Firstly, the sheep are those who listened to Jesus and who were wise enough to take oil with their jars.
The goats are the foolish virgins who did not take any oil with them and ran out of oil. And the
bridegroom said to them, “I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.” For Jesus said that He knows His
sheep, not the goats. The sheep are those who kept watch for Jesus’ return; the goats are those who did
not.

Again, the sheep are those who were given talents and they earned more for their Master. The goats are
not just those who did not put the talents to work. No, the goats actually thought ill of their Master and
judged Him harshly by saying, “I knew You were a hard Man, harvesting where You have not sown and
gathering where You have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid Your talent in the
ground. See, here is what belongs to You.” This goat did not even consider his Master worthy of his time
to put the talent on deposit with the bankers to gain interest on it.

When Jesus referred to Him being hungry, thirsty, a stranger, sick, naked and imprisoned – it is not only
the literal meaning. He was also referring to the health of the body of Christ. This is our duty of care as
believers and disciples of the state of the house of God. The Holy Spirit asks you, “Why are you living in
7
luxurious houses while My house lies in ruins?” Why are you sleeping in your drowsiness and keeping the
talent Jesus gave you buried in the ground? Why won’t you open your eyes and look at the harvest fields
that are ripe for harvest? Why do you say, “Four months more and then the harvest; 8 will there not be
peace and security in my lifetime”9? Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.

The sheep in Matthew 25 are believers who listened to Jesus and cared for the body of Christ, but they
were not aware of it nor understood it, because they remained as servants of the Son of God, and not
friends who know their Master’s business. But by their faith and deeds, they have attained righteousness
in God’s eyes for the Father is merciful and He desires mercy.

The sheep are not the brothers of Jesus for Jesus clearly said, “'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for
one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.'” This ties in with Jesus’ words in Matthew
10.41-42, “And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is My
disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward."

The apostle Peter also asked, “What terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s Good
News?” This is the separation of the sheep from the goats who have not believed or obeyed the Gospel.
The sheep are those who have attained a righteousness in God’s eyes by helping the brothers of Jesus,
and the goats are those who ignored their needs. This ties in with Jesus’ words, “I have other sheep that
are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to My voice, and there will be one
10
flock and one Shepherd.”

6
1 Peter 4.17
7
Haggai 1.4
8 John 4:35
9 2 Kings 20:19; Isaiah 39:8
10
John 10.15-16

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Holy Spirit’s Workshop [www.holyspiritsworkshop.com] – Sat 28.07.2007

So the fate that awaits the goats is eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life. The eternal life
is their coming to know Jesus and the Father. They have an opportunity to come to know Jesus and the
Father. But the goats are thrown outside into the darkness, given a portion like that of the hypocrites,
where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth – for this is the eternal torment and the punishment.

What is the portion of the hypocrites? Remember the Law of Judgment 2, the judgment of hypocrisy,11
where we understood that hypocrites are those within the house of God whose unrighteous love for their
fellow man overshadows and replaces their love for the Lord, causing them to sin, forsake and rebel as
they crave the attention, praise and rank from men, and they use the Name of the Lord to mask and
advance their selfish purposes.

In Matthew 23, when Jesus was speaking to the teachers of the law and the Pharisees, He said, “You
12
snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?” It means that goats do not
live out the millennium but await final judgment in hell when they die. Would it not be a torment to wait
out final judgment in hell?

And what is the “eternalness” of this torment when the separation of sheep and goats is not the final
judgment before the Great White Throne? The torment or punishment is eternal because it is recorded in
the books that will be opened with the Book of Life on Judgment Day. The shame and disgrace they have
brought on themselves are recorded in the books. But trust in God for His mercy in His Law of
Condemnation, which is your last chance to be acquitted by your word and escape the Lake of Burning
Sulphur if you accept God’s testimony about you and call on the Name of Jesus to be saved.

People say that Jesus Christ is returning to judge. That is not correct, because the separation of the
sheep from the goats upon the return of the Son of Man is not Judgment Day. The separation of the
sheep from the goats is not God testifying about us, but the reason for this separation is two-fold.

The first reason is for reward. Jesus said in Revelation 21.12, “Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is
with Me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.”

The second reason is the principle of Kingdom Rule. “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined,
13
and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.” The Kingdom of the Son of Man will
not be divided against itself, because the different species, that is, the brothers, sisters and mother of
14 15
Jesus, the faithful servants, the wicked and lazy servants, and the friends within the house of God
will be identified by the way a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

It was made known to us that the coming battle is a battle over the right of inheritance and lineage of
Jesus as the true Heir and Ruler of the Earth because He is the Son of Man. It is a battle between the
images: those of the image and likeness of the sons of Adam against those of the Image and Likeness of
God. The rebels do not want Jesus crowned King of the Earth and, like the tenants of the vineyard, want
to kill the Heir and take His inheritance. The rebels are those who want the image and likeness of the
sons of Adam to rule and have dominion over the Earth. They do not acknowledge Ownership of the
Landowner, and they do not respect His Son because they never respected the Landowner. The rebels
want to the fruit of the vineyard and the land kept for themselves. But this will never happen because of
God’s Family Law: “For what My Father has given Me is greater and more powerful than
16 17
anything else; no one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and the Father are One.”

And this is the tip of the sharp double-edged sword of God’s Family Law: “I and the Father are One.”
The tip of the sword is the truth that will pierce the souls of all those who cling onto their image and
likeness of the sons of Adam, a sinner, when the glory is revealed – the glory of Man, the sinless Image
of God, the True Man and His Son. It is the same glory that will be revealed in the brothers and sisters of
Jesus when they have learnt to mourn for the Son of Man as one who mourns for his Only Son because
their lives are bound up in Jesus’ life.

Just like it is said about Jacob and Benjamin, “Our father’s life is bound up in the boy’s life. If he sees
that the boy is not with us, our father will die. We, your servants, will indeed be responsible for sending
18
that grieving, white-haired man to his grave.” So bound up is Jacob’s life that he would die if Benjamin
was not safely with him.

11
http://www.holyspiritsworkshop.com/word2007/12.05.2007_LawOfJudgmentII.pdf
12
Matthew 23.33
13
Matthew 12.24
14
Those who does the will of His Father in Heaven, whoever does God’s will and those who hear God’s words and put it into practice:
Matthew 12.49, Mark 3.34 & Luke 8.21
15
“You are My friends if you do what I command” (John 15.14)
16
Footnote reference in John 10.29 NIV and NLT
17
John 10.32
18
Genesis 40.30

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Holy Spirit’s Workshop [www.holyspiritsworkshop.com] – Sat 28.07.2007

So for the elect of the Holy Spirit, justice for Jesus must burn like fire in their hearts, for He asked His
disciples this question, “And will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day
and night? Will He keep putting them off? I tell you, He will see that they get justice, and quickly.
However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the Earth? … How many will He find on
19
the Earth who have faith?”

Jesus is talking about quantity and quality. Quantity and quality will bring justice for Jesus the Son of
Man. And so the ark, which we are building under the Covenant for the Forgiveness of Sins, also has
different species of clean and unclean animals, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive
throughout the Earth. We keep them alive so that Jesus’ words will be fulfilled and He will separate the
many sheep from the goats, and His many other sheep from another sheep pen.

And this is justice for Jesus – that when He comes back, He will find many who have faith in the Son of
Man and mourn for Him as a man mourns for his Only Son and remained alive to greet Him upon His
arrival as the rightful Heir to God’s throne on Earth - many brothers and sisters whose lives are so
closely bound to His that we would be sent grieving to our graves if we cannot remain alive to greet our
King.

For this is Family – that Jesus and the Father are One, and They have given us the glory so that we may
be one as They are One. AMEN

19
Luke 18.7-9 NIV and NLT

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Holy Spirit’s Workshop [www.holyspiritsworkshop.com] – Sat 11.08.2007

Law of the Spirit of Life

The apostle Paul wrote, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For
the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death… because
through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death … So now
there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to Him, the
power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death… For the law of
Spirit of life which is in Jesus Christ has made you free from the law of sin and death.”1

First of all, what is the law of sin and death that we are set free from?

The law of sin and death is different from the law of sin, which Paul also wrote about in Romans 7.21-
25, “For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my
body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within
my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to
God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the
sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.”

This is the law of sin, which is at work within us and is common to all men: “For what I want to do I do
not do, but what I hate I do… For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to
do—this I keep on doing.”2

However, this is the law of sin and death, which is also common to all men because the command was
given to Adam, our forefather of sin, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not
eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."3 It is not
just the command of God that ushered in death to mankind when Adam sinned by disobeying God. For it
is not only a command, it is also a truth. In fact, the first command God gave Adam was not this one, but
He said to Adam and Eve, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the Earth and subdue it. Rule over the
fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”4

So why do we surely die? Is it because we disobeyed God? Yes, it was. But it is much more than that.

The fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil opened the eyes of Adam and Eve. And the
knowledge of good and evil made them conscious of sin, for as Paul wrote, “before the law was given, sin
was in the world.”5 They felt the shame of sin, which they attributed to their nakedness, so they sewed
leaves to cover up the shame of sin. Yes, their eyes were opened to knowledge, but their hearts were not
opened to understanding that nakedness was not a sin. Their eyes were opened to the knowledge of
good and evil, but their hearts were not earnest to repent. Jesus said that the eye is the lamp of our
body; when our eye is clear, our whole body also is full of light; but when it is bad, our body also is full of
darkness.6 There was no shame in being naked, but they felt the shame of sin within their bodies – they
felt the shame from hearts that did not at once regret what they did, and repent. When Adam and Eve
disobeyed God and did not repent, the law of sin and the law of sin and death began working in their
bodies, and then they had sons and daughters in their own image and likeness. We were born in the
image and likeness of Adam and Eve, with both of these laws working within the members of our body.

For by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, so sin reigned in death7 in the
kingdom of man which was given to Adam as a ruler, for He was commanded to rule over the fish of the
sea and the birds of the air, and over every living creature that moves on the ground.

We, who could not master sin, then became slaves to sin. And as a slave to sin, sin was our master and
our master paid us with death. Man subjected his body to the law of sin and began to use the power of
deception, which is the power of Satan, to cover up the shame of sin. To Satan’s tools of deception,
which are lies, flattery and doubt, we even added blame as our cover-up. For it is inherent in the image
and likeness of Adam to blame God when we make a mistake, just as Adam did. Just as Cain did when he
replied, “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” when God asked him where Abel was. Cain lied and
blamed God for putting on him the burden of being his brother’s keeper.

1
Romans 8.1-2 ESV, NIV and NLT
2
Roman 7.14 & 19
3
Genesis 2.16-17
4
Genesis 1.29
5
Romans 5.13
6
Luke 11.34 NASB
7
Romans 5. 17,21

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Holy Spirit’s Workshop [www.holyspiritsworkshop.com] – Sat 11.08.2007

When we ate from the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, we surely died because the
Lord’s Spirit would not contend with man forever, for man is mortal and corrupt.8 The evolution of the
law of sin working in our bodies saw man living from the average age of 900 years to 120 years, and now
less than a mere 100 years. And we too began thinking and acting like the devil, who knew his time was
short.

So what does it mean that there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, for the law of
the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death?

What is the law of the Spirit of life? And how does it set us free? The law of the Spirit of life sets us
free from death. Which death – the first death or the second death? It is both deaths.

The law of the Spirit of life is the command that enables us to go through the gates of the city; to be a
pillar in the Temple of God in a city that has no temple because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are
its Temple; to live with God as He makes His dwelling with men and to live in the house of our Father,
which has many rooms prepared for us by Jesus, so that we may have a share in the Tree of Life and
the holy city, New Jerusalem, the bride of the Lamb.

It is the command, which this Jesus Law prepared the way in our hearts as we put His truth into practice,
“I tell you the truth, no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again or born from above… I
tell you the truth, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.”9 It is
the command of eternal life so that we may know the Father, the only true God, and Jesus whom He
sent.

He who has an ear let him hear and understand what the Spirit is saying to the churches. This is the
law of the Spirit of life: The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” 10

This is the command that is the goal of our faith, the salvation of our souls, not only because it is the joy
of reunion between the Spirit and His children. No, the law of the Spirit of life is the joy of union
between the Perfect Son and His bride, the New Jerusalem.

For God made the Earth and He saw that all He had made was very good. But New Jerusalem, which will
come down out of Heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her Husband Jesus, is
perfect.

And it is very important that it is the Spirit and the bride who say together, “Come!” because it shows us
where He wants us to be. It is not from the Lake of Sulphur that the Spirit is saying, “Come!” is it? He
does not say, “Come!” with the Lake of Sulphur, does He? The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!”

How does this command set us free from the law of sin and death? The law of the Spirit of life is “Come!”
– because the Spirit is saying to man that He will contend with man forever, that our years will no longer
be limited to 120 years! The law of the Spirit of life is “Come!” – because the Spirit is saying to man that
we are allowed to reach out our hands and take also from the Tree of Life and eat, and live forever! The
law of the Spirit of life is “Come!” – because the Spirit is saying to man that a slave has no permanent
place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever! 11 The law of the Spirit of life is “Come!” – because the
Spirit is saying to man that he who overcomes will inherit all this, and He will be his God and he will be
His son! 12

And so there is now no condemnation for the sons and daughters of God who is Spirit - they who are in
Christ Jesus, for the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in and through Christ Jesus, who is the
Resurrection and the Life. He who believes in Jesus will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and
believes in Him will never die. Do you believe this?13 There is no condemnation for those who believe and
live in the Resurrection and the Life.

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears, say, “Come!” And whoever is thirsty, let
him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.14 But first let us say,
“COME LORD JESUS!”

Thank you Jesus for not leaving us as orphans.

8
Genesis 6.4 and footnote reference 3
9
John 3.3,5
10
Revelation 22.17
11
John 8.35
12
John 8.35
13
John 11.25-26
14
Revelation 22.16

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