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Sermons

Subject 3 : The Gospel of the Water and the Spirit

[3-7] The Changed Priesthood (Hebrews 7:1-28)

The Changed Priesthood
(Hebrews 7:1-28)
“For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated ‘king of righteousness,’ and then also king of Salem, meaning ‘king of peace,’ without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually. Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils. And indeed those who are of the sons of Levi, who receive the priesthood, have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law, that is, from their brethren, though they have come from the loins of Abraham; but he whose genealogy is not derived from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. Now beyond all contradiction the lesser is blessed by the better. Here mortal men receive tithes, but there he receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives. Even Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak, for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him. Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron? For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law. For He of whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which no man has officiated at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood. And it is yet far more evident if, in the likeness of Melchizedek, there arises another priest who has come, not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life. For He testifies: ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’ For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness, for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God. And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an oath (for they have become priests without an oath, but He with an oath by Him who said to Him: “The Lord has sworn and will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek’”), by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant. Also there were many priests, because they were prevented by death from continuing. But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.”
 
 

JESUS MINISTERED THE HEAVENLY PRIESTHOOD

 
Who is superior, the high priest Melchizedek or the earthly high priest of the order of Aaron?
The high priest Melchizedek
 
In the Old Testament, there was a high priest named Melchizedek. In the time of Abraham, Chedorlaomer and the kings allied with him and took away with them all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham armed his trained servants, who were born in his household, and led them into the war against Chedorlaomer and his allies.
There, he defeated Chedorlaomer, the king of Elam, and the kings allied with him and brought back his nephew Lot and his possessions. After Abraham returned from defeating his enemies, Melchizedek, King of Salem and the priest of God Most High, brought out bread and wine and blessed Abraham. And Abraham gave him a tenth of everything (Genesis chapter 14).
In the Bible, the greatness of the high priest Melchizedek and the high priests in his order is illustrated in detail. The high priest Melchizedek was “king of peace,” “king of righteousness,” without father, without mother, without genealogy. Having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, he remains a priest continually.
The Bible tells us to consider carefully the greatness of Jesus Christ, who was the high priest of the order of Melchizedek, by comparing the priesthood of Jesus of the New Testament and that of the high priest Aaron of the Old Testament.
The descendants of Levi became priests and collected a tithe from the people, that is, their brethren, even though they were descended from Abraham. But when Abraham gave tithe to the high priest Melchizedek, Levi was still in the loins of his father.
Were the priests of the Old Testament greater than Jesus? It is explained in the Bible. Is Jesus greater than the earthly high priests? Who should be blessed by whom? The writer of Hebrews talked about this from the beginning. “Now beyond all contradiction the lesser is blessed by the better.” Abraham was blessed through the high priest Melchizedek.
How are we to live in our faith? Should we rely on the commandments of God through the sacrificial system of the holy tabernacle of the Old Testament, or should we rely on Jesus Christ who came to us as the heavenly high priest through His sacrifice of the water and the Spirit?
Depending on which interpretation we choose, we are either blessed or damned. Do we live according to the word of God and offer sacrifices every day, or do we choose to believe in the salvation Jesus has given us by offering Himself once for all with water and blood? We have to choose one out of these two.
In the days of the Old Testament, the people of Israel looked up to the descendants of Aaron and Levi. In the days of the New Testament, if we are asked who is greater, Jesus or the priests of the order of Aaron, then, without question, we can answer that it is Jesus who is greater. But while people know this fact clearly, few follow it in their faith.
The Bible gives us a definite answer to this question. It tells us that Jesus, who was of a different tribe from which no one had ever served at the altar, took over the heavenly priesthood. “For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law.”
God gave the people of Israel commandments and 613 detailed articles of the Law through Moses. Moses told the people to live according to the Law and commandments, and the people agreed to do so.
 
Why did God set aside the first covenant and establish the second?
Because man was too weak to live according to the first covenant.
 
In the Bible, the people of Israel took an oath to live by the commandments of God in the Pentateuch: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. God proclaimed each commandment to them and they said “Yes” to every commandment without hesitation.
However, we can see that after Deuteronomy, from Joshua on, they have never lived according to the commandments of God. From Judges on to 1 Kings and 2 Kings, they began to discredit their leaders, and afterwards, they had decayed as much as to change the sacrificial system of the holy tabernacle.
And finally in Malachi, they brought animals not fit to be offered despite God’s instruction to offer one without blemish. They asked the priests, “Please overlook it. Please accept this one.” Instead of offering sacrifices according to the law of God, they changed it arbitrarily.
The people of Israel never kept the law of God completely even once in the time of the Old Testament. They forgot and simply ignored the salvation revealed in the system. Therefore God had to change the sacrificial system. In Jeremiah, God said, “I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.”
Let’s look at Jeremiah 31:31-34. “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah―not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”
God said that He would make a new covenant. He had already made a covenant with the people of Israel, but they failed to live by the word of God. Thus, He decided to make a new covenant of salvation with His people.
They had taken an oath before God, “We will worship only You and live by Your words and commandments.” God had told them, “You shall have no other gods before Me,” and the people of Israel had said, “Sure, we would never worship any other god. You are the only God to us. There can never be any other god to us.” But they failed to keep their oath.
The core of the Law consists of the Ten Commandments: “Do not have any other gods before Me. Do not make for yourself any carved or graven image, or any likeness of anything and bow down to them nor serve them. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Do not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. Honor your father and your mother. You shall not kill. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house” (Exodus chapter 20).
It is also subdivided into 613 detailed articles which were to be kept throughout their lives. “What not to do to daughters, and what not to do to sons, what to do to stepmothers....” The law of God commanded them to do all good things and not to do any evil things. These are the Ten Commandments and 613 detailed articles.
However, among all of humankind, there has not been even one person who could keep all the articles of His Law. Therefore God had to determine another way for them to be saved from all their sins.
When did the priesthood change? After Jesus came to this world, the priesthood changed. Jesus took over the priesthood from all the priests of the order of Aaron. He set aside the sacrifice of the tabernacles that was the inherent right of the priests of the order of Levi. He alone ministered the heavenly high priesthood.
He came to this world, not as a descendant of Aaron, but as the descendant of Judah, the house of kings. He offered Himself as a sacrifice through His baptism and His blood on the Cross and saved all of humankind from their sins.
By offering Himself, He made it possible for us to resolve the problem of sin. He washed away all the sins of humankind through the sacrifice of His baptism and blood. He offered for all time one eternal sacrifice for all sin.
 
 
ALONGSIDE THE CHANGE IN THE PRIESTHOOD THERE WAS ALSO A CHANGE IN THE LAW
 
What is the changed law of salvation?
The one eternal sacrifice of Jesus Christ
 
Dear friends, the priesthood of the Old Testament was changed in the New Testament. In the days of the Old Testament, the high priest among the descendants of Aaron, of the house of Levi, offered the sacrifice to atone for the Israelites’ sins over the past year. The high priest entered the Most Holy Place. He went before the mercy seat with the blood of the sacrificial animal. Only the high priest could go beyond the veil, which was the Most Holy Place.
But after the coming of Jesus, the priesthood of Aaron was passed on to Him. Jesus took over the eternal priesthood. He ministered the eternal priesthood by offering Himself, so that all of humankind could be saved from all their sins.
In the Old Testament, the high priest also had to atone for his sins by laying his hands on the head of the bull before he could minister for all his people. He passed on his sins by the laying on of hands, saying, “God, I have sinned.” Then he killed the animal and sprinkled its blood on and in front of the mercy seat seven times.
If the high priest Aaron himself was not complete, you can imagine how infirm the people were. A son of Levi, the high priest Aaron himself was a sinner. So he had to offer a bull to atone for his own sins and those of his family.
The Lord said in Jeremiah chapter 31, “I shall break the covenant. I have made the covenant with you, but you have not kept it. Therefore I shall set aside the covenant that could not sanctify you and give you a new covenant of salvation. I shall no longer save you through My commandments, but rather offer you salvation through the gospel of the water and the Spirit.”
God gave us the new covenant. When the time came, Jesus came to this world in the likeness of man, offered Himself to take away the sins of the world and bled on the Cross to save us who believe in Him. He took away the sins of all of humankind through His baptism.
The law of God was set aside and replaced. The people of Israel could have been saved if they had lived according to the law of God, but they failed to do so. “For by the law is the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20).
God wanted the Israelites to realize that they were sinners and that the Law could not save them. He saved them through the law of salvation of the water and the Spirit, not through their works. In His infinite love, God gave us a new covenant by which we could be saved from all the sins of the world through the baptism and the blood of Jesus.
If you believe in Jesus without knowing the meaning of His baptism and blood, all your faith is in vain. When you do that, you are more troubled than when you did not believe in Jesus at all.
God said that He had to make a new covenant to save humankind from their sins. As a result, we are now saved not by the law of our works, but by the righteous law of salvation through the water and the blood.
This was His eternal promise and He fulfilled His promise for us who believe in Jesus. And He told us about the greatness of Jesus. He told us how great He is by comparing Him to the priests of the order of Aaron in the Old Testament.
We become special by believing in salvation through the water and the blood of Jesus. Please consider this carefully. No matter how learned and well spoken your pastor is, how can he be greater than Jesus? There is no way. We can only be saved through the gospel of the water and the blood, never by simply obeying the commandments of God. Because the priesthood was changed, the law of salvation was also changed.
 
 
THE SUPERIORITY OF THE LOVE OF GOD
 
Which one is superior, the love of God or the law of God?
The love of God
 
We can only be saved when we believe in Jesus, knowing how Jesus saved us and how great the love of God is for us. What then, is the difference between faith in the commandments and faith in the greatness of the love of God?
The legalists attach more importance on their own denominational doctrines and personal experiences than on God’s word. However, true and complete spiritual faith in Jesus comes about by believing in the greatness of the salvation fulfilled through the water and the Spirit.
Even today, many people say that original sin is forgiven, but that they have to repent every day for their daily sins. Many people believe this and try to live their lives according to the commandments of the Old Testament. They are still unaware of the superiority of the salvation of Jesus that came by water and the Spirit.
In the Old Testament, the Israelites had to live by the law of God to be saved from their sins, but they couldn’t be saved. Because the Lord knows our weaknesses and the fact that we are incomplete, He set aside His commandments. We can never be saved through our works alone. Jesus said that He would save us through His gospel of the water and the Spirit. He said, “I shall deliver all of you from your sins Myself.” God prophesied thus in Genesis.
“The Seed of woman shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:15). After Adam and Eve sinned and fell, they made garments of fig leaves in a bid to keep their sinfulness from God. But God called them and made garments of skin as a symbol of salvation. Genesis talks about two kinds of garments of salvation. One was made of fig leaves, and the other was made of skins. Which one do you think is better? Of course, garments of skins are better because the life of an animal was offered to protect man.
Garments of fig leaves soon wither away. As you know, a fig leaf looks like a hand with five fingers. So, to put on a garment of fig leaves means to hide one’s sins behind good deeds. If you put on garments of fig leaves and sat down, the leaves would soon be torn to pieces. I used to make armor out of arrowroot leaves to play soldier when I was a child. But no matter how carefully I wore them, they would be torn apart by the end of the day. In the same way, humankind’s fragile flesh makes sanctification impossible.
But the salvation of the water and the blood, the baptism of Jesus and His death on the Cross saved more than enough sinners to testify to the greatness of the love of God. That is how superior the love of God is to the law of God.
 
 
THOSE WHO STILL HAVE FAITH IN THE LAW OF GOD
 
Why do legalists make new garments with their works every day?
Because they don’t know their works cannot make them righteous.
 
Those who make their garments with fig leaves are leading legalistic lives. These misguided believers have to change their garments on a regular basis. They have to make new garments every Sunday when they go to church. “Dear God, I sinned so much last week. But Lord, I believe that You saved me on the Cross. Lord, please wash away my sins with the blood of the Cross!” They sew up a new set of garments right then and there. “Oh, praise the Lord. Hallelujah!”
But they soon have to make another set of garments at home. Why? Because their old ones have worn out. “Dear Lord, I have sinned again over the last three days. Please forgive me.” They make and wear new garments of repentance again and again.
In the beginning, the garments may last several days, but after a while, they need a new set every day. As they can never live by the law of God, they become ashamed of themselves. “Oh, this is so embarrassing. Lord, oh, Lord, I have sinned once again!” And they have to make new garments of repentance. “Oh, Lord, it is so difficult to make garments of fig leaves today.” They work so hard to sew up a new set.
Whenever such people call out to the Lord, it is to confess their sins. They bite their lips and call out to God, “Go~d!” and keep making up new garments every day. Then, what happens when they get tired of it?
Once or twice a year, they go up to the mountains and fast. They try and make stronger and more hard-wearing garments. “Lord, please wash away my sins. Please make me anew. I believe in You, Lord.” They think it is better to pray at night. So, they rest during the daytime and as soon as darkness falls, they hang on to trees with all their might, or go into dark caves and cry out to God. “Lord, I believe!” “♪I repent and fill my heart with a contrite mind♪” They pray loudly and shout, “I believe.” In this way, they make special garments that they hope will last a long time, but they never do.
How invigorating it is to come down after mountain prayers! Like a refreshing breeze, or like a spring rain sprinkling over trees and flowers, their souls are filled with peace and the grace of the Almighty. Feeling purer than the spirit of the mountain, they face the world wearing their special new garments.
But as soon as they get back to their house and church, and start living again, the garments get dirty and begin to wear out.
Their friends ask, “Where have you been?”
“Well, I have been away for a while.”
“You look like you lost some weight!”
“Well, yes, but that’s another story.”
They never divulge that they fasted, they just go to church and pray. “I shall never lust after women. I shall never lie. I shall not covet my neighbor’s house. I shall love all people.”
But the moment they see a beautiful bosomy woman with slim legs, the holiness in their hearts changes instantly into pure lust. “Look how short that skirt is! Skirts are getting shorter and shorter! I’ve got to see those legs again! Oh! No! Oh, Lord! I have sinned again!”
Legalists seem pious, but you should know that they have to make new garments every day. Legalism is the faith in garments of fig leaves, the wrong faith. Many people try so hard to live piously according to the law of God. They bellow at the top of their lungs on the mountains so that their voice begins to sound quite pious.
Legalists cut an impressive figure when they lead prayer meetings at church. “Holy Father in Heaven! We have sinned this past week. Please forgive us...” They break into tears and the rest of the congregation follow suit. They think to themselves, “He must have spent a long time in the mountains praying and fasting. He sounds so pious and faithful.” But because his faith is legalistic, even before the prayer ends, the legalist’s heart begins to fill with arrogance and sin.
When people make up special new garments of fig leaves, they may last as long as two or three months. But sooner or later, the garments become rags and they have to make up a new set and carry on with their hypocritical lives. This is the life of legalists who try to live up to the law in order to be saved. They have to continuously make new garments out of fig leaves.
Legalism is the faith of fig leaves. Legalists tell you, “You have all sinned over the past week, haven’t you? Then, repent.”
They shout at you in a loud voice. “Repent! Pray!”
A legalist knows how to make his voice sound holy. “Lord! I am sorry. I didn’t live by the Law. I didn’t keep Your commandments. Forgive me Lord, forgive me just once more.”
They can never live by the Law even though they try valiantly to do so. In fact they are challenging the law of God and God Himself. They are arrogant before God.
 
 
THE LIKES OF CHUDAL BAE
 
Why did God set aside the Law?
Because it was of no use to save us from sin.
 
There was once a young man named Chudal Bae. In 1950, during the Korean War, the communist soldiers came and ordered him to sweep the yard on the Sabbath day in a bid to rob him of his steadfast religious faith and make him a communist. But this religious young man refused to obey their orders. They insisted, but the young man refused again.
Finally, the soldiers tied him to a tree and pointed rifles at him. “Which do you want, to sweep the yard or to be killed?”
When forced to make a decision, he said, “I would rather die than work on the holy Sabbath day.”
“You made your choice, and we will be glad to oblige you.”
They then promptly shot him dead. Later, the church leaders appointed him a deacon posthumously to commemorate his unshakable religious faith.
Despite his strength of will, his religious faith was misguided. Why couldn’t he have swept the yard and preached the gospel to those soldiers? Why did he have to be so stubborn and die for it? Would God praise him for not working on the Sabbath day? No.
We should lead a spiritual life. Not our deeds but our faith is important in the presence of God. The leaders of the church want to celebrate someone like Chudal Bae because they want to show off the superiority and orthodoxy of their own denomination. It is just like the hypocritical Pharisees who challenged Jesus.
There is nothing we can learn from legalists. We should learn about spiritual faith. We should ponder why Jesus had to be baptized and bleed on the Cross, and inquire into the nature of the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
We should try to find answers to those questions first, and then try to spread the gospel to all the people of the world, so that they may be born again. We should devote our lives to spiritual works.
If a preacher tells you, “Be like this young man Chudal Bae. Keep the Sabbath holy,” he is only trying to get you to come to church on Sundays.
Here is another story which may prove enlightening. There was a woman who had to go through many trials to go to church on Sundays. Her parents-in-law were not Christians, and they tried hard to prevent her from going to church. They told her to work on Sunday. But she went out into the fields on Saturday nights and worked under the moonlight so that the family wouldn’t have any excuse to prevent her from going to church on Sunday.
Of course, it is important to go to church, but is it enough to come to worship every Sunday just to show how faithful we are? The true faithful are born again of water and the Spirit. True faith begins when someone is born again.
Can you be saved from your sins by living up to the law of God? No. I am not telling you to ignore the Law, but we all know that it is humanly impossible to keep all the articles of the Law.
James 2:10 says, “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.” Therefore, think first about how you can be born again of the gospel of water and the Spirit. Then, go to a church where you can hear the gospel. You can lead a faithful life after you are born again. Then, when the Lord calls, you can go before Him with joy.
Do not waste your time going to a false church, do not waste your money making misguided offerings. False priests cannot keep you from going to hell. First hear the gospel of the water and the Spirit and be born again.
Think about the reason Jesus came to this world. If we could enter the kingdom of Heaven by living according to the Law, He wouldn’t have had to come to this world. After He came, the priesthood changed. Legalism became a thing of the past. Before we were saved, we thought we could be saved by living according to the Law. But this is no longer a sign of true faith.
Jesus saved us from all the sins of the world with His love, with the water of His baptism, with His blood and the Spirit. He fulfilled our salvation through His baptism at the Jordan, His blood on the Cross, and His resurrection.
God set aside the former regulations because they were weak and useless. “For the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God. And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an oath” (Hebrews 7:19-20). Jesus made an oath and saved us from all our sins with His baptism and blood. Martyrdom out of legalism is a fruitless death, and the only true faith is to believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
We have to have fruitful faith. Which do you think is good for your soul? Would it be better to attend church regularly and live by the Law, or would it be better to attend the church of God where the gospel of being born again of water and the Spirit is preached, so that you may be born again? Which church and which preacher would be more beneficial to your soul? Think about it and choose the one that would be good for your soul.
God saves your soul through a preacher who has the words of the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Everyone must take responsibility for his own soul. A truly wise believer is one who commits his soul to the word of God.
 
 

JESUS BECAME PRIEST THROUGH AN OATH
 

Were the descendants of the order of Levi made priests through an oath?
No. Only Jesus was made Priest through an oath.
 
Hebrews 7:20-21 says, “And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an oath (for they have become priests without an oath, but He with an oath by Him who said to Him; ‘The Lord has sworn and will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’)”
And Psalms 110:4 says, “The Lord has sworn and will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’” The Lord made a vow. He made a covenant with us and showed it to us through the written Word. “I shall become the eternal High Priest in the order of Melchizedek. Melchizedek is king of righteousness, king of peace and the high priest forever. I shall become the eternal High Priest in the order of Melchizedek for your salvation.”
Jesus came to this world and has become the surety of a better covenant (Hebrews 7:22). Instead of the blood of bulls and goats, He offered Himself up as the sacrifice by being baptized and bleeding on the Cross to wash away all our sins.
In the time of the Old Testament, when a high priest died, his son carried on the priesthood when he became 30. When he got old and his son reached the age of 30, he passed the priesthood on to his son.
There were so many descendants of high priests. So David set up a system by which they all took on the role in turns. As all the descendants of Aaron were appointed as priests, they had the right and obligation to minister the priesthood. Luke says, “Zacharias, of the division of Abijah....So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division....”
Jesus came to this world and took over the ministering of the priesthood forever. He came as Priest of the good things to come. He fulfilled the salvation of being born again of water and the Spirit.
The descendants of Aaron were weak and incomplete in their flesh. What happened when a high priest died? His son took over the high priesthood, but such sacrifices could never be enough to assure the salvation of humankind. Faith through humankind can never be a true and complete faith.
In the time of the New Testament, Jesus came to this world. But He didn’t need to offer sacrifice continually because He lives forever. He took away our sins forever with His baptism. He offered Himself and was crucified to make all who believe in Him completely free of sin.
Now, He is alive and sits at the right hand of God to testify for us. “Dear Father, they may still be incomplete, but they believe in Me. Didn’t I take away all their sins a long time ago?” Jesus is the eternal High Priest of our salvation.
The earthly priests were never complete. When they died, their sons took over the priesthood. Our Lord lives forever. He fulfilled eternal salvation for us by coming to this world, being baptized by John the Baptist, and then bleeding on the Cross for all our sins.
“Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin” (Hebrews 10:18). Jesus testifies to our salvation until the end of time. Have you been born again of water and the Spirit?
“For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens” (Hebrews 7:26). “For the law appoints as high priests men who have weaknesses, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever” (Hebrews 7:28).
What I would like to tell you is that Jesus Christ, without blemish, washed away our sins once and for all through the water of His baptism and His blood on the Cross. He saved us from all our sins not by the law of works, but by taking away all our sins and being judged forever.
Do you believe that He saved us from all our sins through eternal salvation? If you do, you are saved. But if you don’t, you still have much to learn about the eternal salvation of Jesus.
True faith comes from the gospel of the water and the Spirit, strictly based on the Scripture. Jesus Christ, the eternal heavenly High Priest, became our eternal Savior through His baptism and blood on the Cross.
 
 
WE HAVE TO FULLY UNDERSTAND OUR FAITH
 
What does it mean “to believe in Jesus?”
To have faith in the baptism of Jesus and His death on the Cross.
 
We have to think about how we can believe in Jesus in the right way and set our faith straight. How can we believe in Jesus in the proper and correct way? We can do it by believing in the gospel of the baptism of Jesus and His blood on the Cross.
The correct faith is to believe in the work of Jesus, His baptism and blood, without adding our own mistaken notions. Do you believe this to be true? How is your spiritual condition? Do you rely too much upon your own works and efforts?
Not much time has passed since I started believing in Jesus, but I suffered for about ten years because of legalism. Eventually I became tired of that kind of life. I don’t even like to remind myself of that time. My wife is sitting here now. She knows how terrible it was for us.
On Sundays, I would say, “Honey, let’s enjoy ourselves today.”
“But today is Sunday!”
She didn’t even wash clothes on Sunday. One Sunday, my pants were torn. But she told me to wait until Monday. As a matter of fact, I was even more insistent that we observe the Sabbath correctly. But it was so hard. We never rested on Sundays because it was so difficult to keep the Sabbath correctly. I still remember those days.
Dear friends, to truly believe in Jesus, we have to believe in the atonement of our sins through His baptism and blood on the Cross. True faith is to believe in the divinity and humanity of Jesus and all the things He did in this world. The true faithful believe in all His Words.
What does it mean by “to believe in Jesus?” It is to believe in the baptism of Jesus and His blood. There is a profound simplicity to this. All we have to do is to look into the Bible and believe in the gospel. We should all believe in the correct way.
“Thank You, Lord. I see now that it is not done through my efforts! For by the Law is the knowledge of sin (Romans 3:20). I understand it all now. I thought that because the Law was good, because it was the commandment of God, I should try and live by it. I tried so hard until now, but I see now that I was wrong to think that I could live according to the Law. I see now that I can never keep the commandments of God! Therefore, through the law of God, I now realize my heart is filled with evil thoughts and transgressions. I understand now that the Law is given to instill in us the knowledge of sin. Oh, thank You, Lord. I misunderstood Your will and tried so hard to keep the Law. It was really arrogant of me to even try. I repent. I know now that Jesus was baptized and bled for my salvation! I believe!”
You have to believe frankly and purely. You should only believe in the written words in the Bible. It is the only way you can be completely born again.
What is it to believe in Jesus? Is it something we have to complete over a period of time? Is our faith a religion that you have to work for? People have made gods, and they have made religions to fit those gods. Religion is a process that people work through to reach a goal; to aspire to the goodness of man.
Then what is faith? It means to believe in God and to look up to Him. We look up to the salvation of Jesus and thank Him for this blessing. This is true faith. This is the difference between faith and religion. Once you can distinguish between those two, you get 100 points for your understanding of faith.
Theologians who are not born again tell us that we should believe in Jesus and live piously. Can one be faithful just by being pious? Of course we have to be good. Who leads more pious lives than those of us who are born again?
But the point is that they are telling this to sinners. There are 12 kinds of sins inside of the average sinner. How can he live piously? Certainly, his mind may comprehend what has to be done, but his heart cannot carry it out. When a sinner steps outside the church, living piously becomes a mere theory, and his instinct leads him to sin.
Therefore we have to decide in our hearts whether we are going to live by the Law or be saved by believing in the baptism of Jesus and His blood on the Cross, by having faith in the eternal High Priest of the kingdom of Heaven.
Remember that Jesus is the true High Priest for those who believe. Let us all be saved by knowing and believing in true salvation through the baptism of Jesus and His blood on the Cross.
 
 
THE BORN AGAIN ARE NOT AFRAID OF THE END OF THE WORLD
  
Why are the born again unafraid of the end of the world?
Because their faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit makes them free of sin.
 
When you are truly born again, you don’t have to be afraid of the world coming to an end. Many Christians in Korea claimed that the world would come to an end on the 28th of October, 1992. What a tumultuous and dreadful day it would be, they said. But all their claims turned out to be false. The truly born again live piously, spreading the gospel to the last moment. Whenever this world comes to an end, all we have to do is preach the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
When the Bridegroom comes, the brides who are truly born again of water and the Spirit can meet Him with great joy, saying, “Oh, You have finally come! My flesh is still so incomplete, but You loved me and saved me from all my sins. So I have no sin in my heart. Thank You, Lord. You are my Savior!”
Jesus is the spiritual bridegroom to all the righteous. The marriage takes place because the bridegroom loves the bride, not the other way around. I know it sometimes happens that way in this world, but in Heaven, it is the bridegroom who decides whether the marriage is to take place. It is the bridegroom Jesus who chooses to get married based on His love and offer of salvation, regardless of the brides. This is how marriage in Heaven is made.
The Bridegroom knows all about the brides. Because His beloved brides were such sinners, He took pity on them and saved them from all sin by being baptized and bleeding on the Cross.
Our Lord Jesus didn’t come to this world as a descendant of Aaron. He didn’t come to this world to offer an earthly sacrifice. There were plenty of Levites, the descendants of Aaron, to do the work.
In fact, the main character of the sacrifices of the Old Testament was none other than Jesus Himself. Therefore, when the real thing came to this world, what happened to its shadow? The shadow was set aside.
When Jesus came to this world, He never offered sacrifices like Aaron did. He offered Himself for humankind by being baptized and bleeding for the salvation of sinners. He fulfilled salvation on the Cross.
For those who believe in the baptism of Jesus and His blood on the Cross, salvation will come in no uncertain terms. Jesus didn’t atone for our sins in an unclear way. He did it clearly. “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Jesus came to this world and saved us with His baptism, His death, and His resurrection.
 
 
THE OLD TESTAMENT IS THE MODEL OF JESUS
 
What was the reason for establishing another covenant?
Because the first covenant was infirm and useless.
 
The Old Testament is the shadow of the New Testament. Although Jesus never offered sacrifices like the high priests of the Old Testament, He ministered a better priesthood, the eternal heavenly priesthood. Because people in this world are sinful from their birth, they become sinners, and they can never become righteous through the law of God. Therefore God established another covenant.
Our Father in Heaven sent His only begotten Son to this world and asked us in return to have faith in His baptism, His blood, and His resurrection. This is the second covenant of God. The second covenant requires us to believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
The Lord is no longer asking for our good works. He doesn’t tell us how to live to be saved. He only asks us to believe in salvation through His Son. He asks us to believe in His baptism and blood on the Cross above all. And we have to say yes.
In the Bible, the house of Judah maintained royalty. All the kings of Israel were born in the house of Judah until King Solomon. Even after the division of the kingdom, the house of Judah held the throne of the Southern Kingdom until its collapse in 586 B.C. In this way, the people of Judah stand for the Israelites. The tribe of Levi was one of the priests. Each tribe of Israel had its own role. God promised the tribe of Judah that Jesus would emerge from its ranks.
Why did He make this covenant with the tribe of Judah? Making this covenant was the same as making a covenant with all the people of the world because the Israelites stand for the people of the world. Jesus fulfilled the new covenant, which was the salvation of humankind through His baptism, His death on the Cross, and His resurrection.
 
 

THE SINS OF HUMANKIND CANNOT BE WASHED AWAY BY REPENTANCE

 
Are the sins of man washed away with repentance?
No.
 
In Jeremiah 17:1, it is written that the sin of each person is recorded in two places. “The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron; with the point of a diamond it is engraved on the tablet of their heart, and on the horns of your altars.”
Our sins are recorded in our hearts. That is how we know that we are sinners. Before one comes to believe in Jesus, he is not aware that he is a sinner. Why? Because the law of God is absent in his heart. Therefore, once someone believes in Jesus, he realizes that he is a sinner before God.
Some only realize they are sinners ten years after coming to believe in Jesus. “Oh, dear! I am a sinner! I thought I was saved, but somehow I am still a sinner!” The realization comes one day when we finally see ourselves as we truly are. They were so happy for ten years, but suddenly they see the truth. Do you know why? This realization comes because finally their true sins and transgressions are at last made clear through the law of God. Such a person has believed in Jesus for ten years without being born again.
Since the sinner can’t erase his sins from his heart, he remains a sinner before God. Some take five years, and others take ten years to reach this realization. Some come to the realization after thirty years, some after fifty years, and some never realize the truth until the end. “Dear God, I used to be good before I had the commandments in my mind. I was confident that I was keeping the Law well, but now I realize that I have sinned every day. Just like the apostle Paul said, ‘I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died’ (Romans 7:9). I am a sinner even though I believe in Christ.”
It is your own sins that prevent you from living by the word of God. Your sins are recorded in your heart. Because God records your sins there, when you bow your head to pray, all your sins emerge. “Surprise! I am the sin you committed.”
“But I atoned for you two years ago. Why are you showing yourself again all of a sudden? Why haven’t you gone away?”
“Oh, don’t be so nasty! I am recorded in your heart. No matter what you think, you are still a sinner.”
“No! No!”
So, the sinner repents again for the sins committed two years ago. “Please forgive me, Lord. I am still tormented by the sins I committed before. I repented for my sins, but they are still with me. Please forgive me, for I have sinned.”
But do those sins go away with repentance? Because the sins of people are recorded in their hearts, they can never be erased without the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Only through the gospel of the water and the Spirit can true atonement be attained. We can only be saved through our faith in the true gospel of Jesus.
 
 
I SHALL BE YOUR SAVIOR
 
How should we respond to the new covenant?
We have to believe in it in our hearts and preach it all over the world.
  
Our Lord in Heaven made a new covenant with us. “I shall become your Savior. I shall make you completely free of all the sins of the world through the water and the blood. I shall surely bless all those who believe in Me.”
Do you believe in this new covenant with God? We can be saved from all our sins and be born again when we believe in the truth of His covenant and His salvation through the water and the blood.
We don’t trust a doctor if he does not diagnose us correctly. A doctor first has to diagnose his patients correctly and then prescribe the proper medicine. There are all sorts of medicines, but the doctor has to know exactly which one to use. Once a doctor diagnoses their patients correctly, there are many medicines available to heal them. But with the wrong diagnosis, all those good medicines can only make the patient worse.
Likewise, when you believe in Jesus, you have to diagnose the condition of your spirit based on the word of God. When you examine your spirit with the word of God, you can see exactly what the condition of your spirit is. The Doctor of spirits can heal all His patients without exception. They can all be born again.
If you say, “I don’t know whether I was redeemed,” it means that you are not saved. If a pastor is truly a disciple of Jesus, he has to be able to solve the problem of sin for his followers. Then, he can go on to solve the problems of their faith and lead them spiritually. He has to be able to see the exact spiritual conditions of his followers.
Jesus came to this world to take away all the sin of the world. He came and was baptized and died on the Cross. When He atoned for all sin, did He leave your sins out? The word of the water and the Spirit blots out the sins of all believers.
The gospel is like dynamite. It blows up everything from tall buildings to mountains. The work of Jesus is exactly like this. He wipes out the sins of those who believe in Him with His gospel of the water and the Spirit. Let us now look at the gospel of the water and the Spirit as it is expressed in the Bible.
  
 

THE GOSPEL OF THE LAYING ON OF HANDS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

 
What was the purpose of the laying on of hands in the Old Testament?
Its purpose was to pass sins on to the sin offering.
 
Let us look up the truth of the gospel of redemption in Leviticus 1:3-4. “If his offering is a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish; he shall offer it of his own free will at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord. Then he shall put his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on his behalf to make atonement for him.”
This passage tells us that the burnt offering should be offered at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord by laying hands on the head of the offering, and the offering should be a live animal without blemish.
In the Old Testament era, a sinner put his hands on the offering to make atonement for his daily sins. He killed the sin offering before the Lord and the priest took some of the blood and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering. He then poured out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar and the sinner was forgiven for a day’s sin.
For a year’s sin, it is written in Leviticus 16:6-10, “Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house. He shall take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. Then Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats: one lot for the Lord and the other lot for the scapegoat. And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the Lord’s lot fell, and offer it as a sin offering. But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make atonement upon it, and to let it go as the scapegoat into the wilderness.” As explained in the Bible, scapegoat means “to put out.” So a year’s sin was expiated on the tenth day of the seventh month.
In Leviticus 16:29-30, it is written, “This shall be a statute forever for you: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether a native of your own country or a stranger who dwells among you. For on that day the priest shall make atonement for you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the Lord.”
This was the day on which the Israelites atoned for a year’s sin. How could this be done? First, the high priest Aaron had to be present at the sacrifice. Who represented the people of Israel? Aaron. God designated Aaron and his descendants as the high priests.
Aaron offered the bull to atone for himself and for his household. He killed the bull and sprinkled some of its blood on and in front of the mercy seat seven times. He had to atone for himself and his household first of all.
Atonement means to transfer one’s sins to the sin offering and to let the sin offering die in one’s place. The sinner should be the one to die, but can atone for his sins by passing them on to the offering and having it die in his place.
After his sins and those of his household were expiated, he offered one goat before God while sending another goat into the wilderness as a scapegoat in the presence of the people of Israel.
One goat was offered as the sin offering. Aaron laid his hands on the head of the sin offering and confessed, “O God, Your people Israel violated all of the Ten Commandments and the 613 articles of Your Law. The Israelites have become sinners. I now lay my hands on this goat to transfer all our yearly sins.”
He cut the goat’s throat and entered the Most Holy place within the tabernacle with its blood. He then sprinkled some of the blood on and in front of the mercy seat seven times.
Inside the Most Holy place sits the ark of the covenant. Its cover is called the mercy seat, and in it are two stone tablets of the covenant, the golden pot of manna, and Aaron’s rod that had budded.
Aaron’s rod signifies resurrection, the two stone tablets of the covenant His Justice, and the golden pot of manna His word of Life.
There is a cover on the ark of the covenant. The blood was sprinkled before the mercy seat seven times. As there were golden bells hung on the hem of the high priest’s robe they rang out when he sprinkled the blood.
In Leviticus 16:14-15, it is written, “He shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times. Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its blood inside the veil, do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat.”
The bells rang out every time he sprinkled some of the goat’s blood, and all the Israelites who gathered outside would hear the sound. Since atonement for their sins had to be done through the high priest, the sound of the bells meant their sins had been forgiven. It was the sound of blessing for all the people of Israel.
When the bells rang seven times, they said, “Now I am so relieved. I had been worried for the whole year’s sin, and now I feel free.” And the people went back to their lives, feeling free of guilt. The sound of the bells at that time was the same as the good news of being born again of water and the Spirit.
When we hear the gospel of redemption of the water and the Spirit and believe it with our hearts and admit it with our mouths, this is what the gospel of the water and the Spirit is all about. When the bells rang seven times, all the yearly sins of the Israelites were cleansed. Their sins were washed away before God.
After offering a goat for the Israelites, the high priest took the other goat and went to the people waiting outside the tabernacle. While they looked on, the high priest Aaron laid his hands on the other goat’s head.
In Leviticus 16:21-22, “Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man. The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to an uninhabited land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.”
The high priest, Aaron, laid his hands on the head of the other goat (the scapegoat) and confessed all the yearly sins of the Israelites before God. “O God, the Israelites sinned before You. We violated the Ten Commandments and all 613 articles of Your Law. O God, I pass all the yearly sins of the Israelites onto the head of this goat.”
According to Jeremiah 17:1, sins are recorded in two places. One is in the Book of Works, and the other is on the tablets of their hearts.
So if people are to atone for their sins, their sins have to be erased from the Book of Works and from the tablets of their hearts. On the Day of Atonement, one goat was for the sins written in the Book of Judgment and the other was for those engraved on the tablets of their hearts.
 
What did God show the Israelites through the sacrificial system in the Old Testament?
That the Savior would come and blot out their sins once and for all in the most proper way
 
By laying hands on the head of the goat, the high priest showed the people that their yearly sins were transferred to the goat. When the sins were put on the head of the goat, a suitable man led the goat into the wilderness.
Palestine is a land of desert. The goat that took away all the yearly sins of the Israelites was led by a man appointed for the task to the desert where there was neither water nor grass. People stood and watched the scapegoat go into the wilderness.
They said to themselves, “I should have died, but the goat dies instead for my sins. The wages of sin is death, but the goat dies instead of me. Thank you, goat. Your death means that I can live.” The goat was led far into the desert and the Israelites were forgiven for a year’s sin.
When the sin in your heart is passed on to the sin offering, you are cleansed. It is that simple. Truth is always simple once we understand it.
The goat disappeared over the horizon. The man came back alone after releasing it. All the yearly sins of the Israelites were gone. The goat wandered in the desert without water or grass, and eventually died along with a year’s worth of the Israelites’ sins.
The wages of sin is death, and the Justice of God was accomplished. God sacrificed the goat so that the Israelites might live. All the transgressions of the Israelites during the year were washed clean.
As a day’s sin and a year’s sin were forgiven like that in Old Testament times, it was the covenant of God that our sins would be similarly forgiven once and for all. It was His covenant that He would send us the Messiah and deliver us from all our lifelong sins. The covenant was carried out through the baptism of Jesus.
 
 
TO BE BORN AGAIN OF WATER AND THE SPIRIT IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
 
Why was Jesus baptized by John the Baptist?
To fulfill all righteousness by taking away all the sins of the world. The baptism of Jesus in the New Testament was the very laying on of hands of the Old Testament.
 
Let us read Matthew 3:13-15. “Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?’ But Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then he allowed Him.”
Jesus went to the Jordan River and was baptized by John the Baptist and in so doing, He fulfilled all righteousness. He was baptized by John. John was the greatest among those born of women.
Matthew 11:11-12 says “Among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist. … And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence.”
John the Baptist was elected by God to be the representative of humankind and sent 6 months before Christ. He was a descendant of Aaron and the last high priest.
John the Baptist said when Jesus came to him, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”
“Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” His purpose was to free humankind from sin so that they could become children of God. Jesus said to John, “We have to complete the gospel of being born again of water and the Spirit. So baptize Me now.”
John baptized Jesus. It was fitting for Jesus to be baptized to take away all the sins of the world. Because He was baptized in the most fitting manner, we were properly saved from all our sins. Jesus was baptized so that all our sins could be passed onto Him.
Jesus came to this world and was baptized when He was 30. It was His first ministry. Jesus fulfilled all righteousness by blotting out all the sins of the world, thus consecrating all people.
Jesus came to this world and was baptized in the most fitting manner to deliver us from all our sins. “For thus” all righteousness was fulfilled.
God said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17). Jesus Christ knew that He would take away all the sins of humankind and bleed to death on the Cross, but He obeyed His Father’s will, saying, “Not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26:39). The Father’s will was to wash away all the sins of humankind and thus offer salvation to the people of the world.
So Jesus, the obedient Son, obeyed His Father’s will and was baptized by John the Baptist.
In John 1:29, “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!’” Jesus took away all sin and bled on the Cross at Golgotha. “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” witnessed John the Baptist.
Do you have sin or not? Are you a righteous man or a sinner? The truth is that Jesus took away the sin of the world and was crucified on the Cross for all of us.
 
When were the sins of all sinners in this world transferred to Jesus?
Jesus took on our sins when He was baptized by John the Baptist at the Jordan River.
 
After we are born into this world, we sin even between the ages of 1 and 10. Jesus took away those sins. We also sin between the ages of 11 and 20. The sins we commit in our hearts and in our actions, He took them all.
We also sin between the ages of 21 and 45. He took them all as well. He took on all the sins of the world and was crucified on the Cross. We sin from the day of our birth till the day we die. But He took them all away.
“Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” All sin, from those of the first man, Adam, to those of the last man born in this world―whenever that may be―He took them all. He did not pick and choose whose sins He would take.
He did not decide to love only some of us. He came in the flesh and took on all the sins of the world and was crucified on the Cross. He received the judgment for all of us and blotted out the sins of this world forever.
No one was excluded from His salvation. “The sins of the world” includes all our sins. Jesus took them all.
With His baptism and blood, He cleansed all the sins of the world. He took them all away through His baptism and was judged for our sins on the Cross. Before Jesus died on the Cross, He said, “It is finished!” (John 19:30), meaning the salvation of humankind was complete.
Why was Jesus crucified on the Cross? Because the life of the flesh is in the blood, and the blood makes atonement for one’s soul (Leviticus 17:11). Why did Jesus have to be baptized? Because He wanted to take on all the sins of the world.
“After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, ‘I thirst!’” (John 19:28). Jesus died, knowing that all the covenants of God in the Old Testament were accomplished with His baptism at the Jordan River and His death on the Cross.
Jesus knew that redemption was fulfilled through Him and said, “It is finished!” He died on the Cross. He sanctified us, rose again from the dead on the third day and ascended to Heaven, where He now sits at the right hand of God.
The washing away of all sins through the baptism of Jesus and His death on the Cross is the blessed gospel of being born again of water and the Spirit. Believe it, and you will be forgiven for all your sins.
We can’t atone for our sins by praying for repentance every day. Redemption was granted once and for all only through the baptism of Jesus and His death on the Cross. “Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin” (Hebrews 10:18).
Now all we have to do is believe in redemption through the baptism of Jesus and His crucifixion. Believe and you will be saved.
Romans 5:1-2 says, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
There is no other way to be justified but to believe in the blessed gospel of being born again of water and the Spirit.
 
 
THE PURPOSE OF THE LAW OF GOD
 
Can we be sanctified by the Law?
No, we can’t. The Law can only make us aware of our sins.
 
In Hebrews 10:9, it is written, “Then He said, ‘Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.’ He takes away the first that He may establish the second.” We cannot be sanctified through the Law. It only makes us sinners. God did not mean for us to obey the Law.
Romans 3:20 says, “For by the law is the knowledge of sin.” God gave the Israelites the Law through Moses after 430 years had passed since Abraham had received the Covenant. He gave them the Law so that they might know what it meant to sin before God. In the absence of the law of God, humankind would have no knowledge of sin. God gave us His Law so that we might come to an understanding of sin.
So the only purpose of the Law is to let us know that we are all sinners before God. Through this knowledge, we are meant to come back to Jesus by believing in the blessed gospel of being born again of water and the Spirit. This is the purpose of the Law that God gave us.
 
 
THE LORD HAS COME TO DO GOD’S WILL
 
What do we have to do before God?
We have to believe in God’s redemption through Jesus.
 
“‘I have come to do Your will, O God.’ He takes away the first that He may establish the second” (Hebrews 10:9). Because we cannot become sanctified by the Law, God did not deliver us with His Law, but with His complete redemption. God saved us with His love and justice.
“By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God” (Hebrews 10:10-12).
He sat down at the right hand of God because His work of redemption was complete and there was nothing more for Him to do. He will neither be baptized nor sacrifice Himself again to save us.
Now that all the sins of the world have been washed away, all He has to do is to provide eternal life to those who believe in Him. He now seals those who believe in the salvation of the water and the Spirit with the Spirit.
Jesus came down to this world and took away all the sins of the world and died on the Cross, thus completing His work. Now that the Lord’s work is finished, He sits at the right hand of God.
We must believe our Lord Jesus saved us from sin for all eternity. He made us perfect forever with His baptism and blood.
 
 
THOSE WHO BECOME ENEMIES OF GOD
 
Who are the enemies of God?
Those who believe in Jesus but have sin in their hearts
 
In Hebrews 10:12-14, the Lord says, “But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.” He said He would wait until the last judgment to decide their fate.
His enemies still say, “God, please forgive my sins.” Satan and his followers do not believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit and continue to ask for His forgiveness.
Our Lord God will not judge them for now. But on the day of the Second Coming of Jesus, they will be judged and condemned to hell forever. God tolerates them until that day in hopes that they will repent and become righteous through redemption.
Our Lord Jesus took away all our sins and died for us who believe in Him. Jesus will someday appear a second time to deliver all those who believe in Him. “O please come to us soon, Lord.” He will come a second time to take the sinless to live with Him forever in the kingdom of Heaven.
Those who insist that they are sinners when the Lord returns will find no place in Heaven. On the Last Day, they will be judged and thrown into the fires of hell. This punishment awaits those who refuse to believe in being born again of water and the Spirit.
Our Lord Jesus regards those who believe in untruth as His enemies. That is why we have to fight against this untruth. That is why we have to believe in the blessed gospel of being born again of water and the Spirit.
 
 
WE HAVE TO BELIEVE IN THE GOSPEL OF THE WATER AND THE SPIRIT
 
Is there any need to atone for our sins now that all our debts (sins) have been paid in full?
No, none at all.
 
Hebrews 10:15-16 says, “But the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us; for after He had said before, ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them.’”
After He blotted out all our sins, He said, “this is the covenant that I will make with them.” What is this covenant? “I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them.” We first tried to lead a legalistic life according to His Law, but we could not be truly saved by the Law.
Later we came to know that Jesus has already saved those who believe in their hearts the blessed gospel of being born again of water and the Spirit. Whoever believes in the baptism and blood of Jesus is redeemed.
Jesus is the Lord of salvation. “There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Jesus came to the world as our Savior. Because we cannot be saved through our works, Jesus saved us and recorded on the tablets of our hearts that He saved us with His Law of love and salvation.
“‘Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.’ Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin” (Hebrews 10:17-18).
Now He remembers our lawless deeds no more. Now that He has taken away all sins, we believers have no more sins for which to be forgiven. Our debts were paid in full and there is nothing left to repay. People are saved by faith in the ministry of Jesus, who saved us through His baptism and blood on the Cross.
Now all we have to do is believe in the water and the blood of Jesus. “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). Believe in the salvation in Jesus. To obtain redemption is easier than breathing. All you have to do is believe things as they are. Salvation is just believing in the word of God.
Believe that Jesus is our Savior (in the baptism of Jesus and His death on the Cross), and just have faith that salvation is yours. Deny your own thoughts and just believe in the salvation in Jesus. I pray that you really believe in Jesus and are ready to be led into eternal life with Him.
 
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RETURN TO THE GOSPEL OF THE WATER AND THE SPIRIT