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Subject 6 : Heretics
[6-20] You Shall Not Kill the Lives of the Born-Again (Genesis 9:1-7)
“So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man’s brother I will require the life of man.
‘Whoever sheds man’s blood,
By man his blood shall be shed;
For in the image of God
He made man.
And as for you, be fruitful and multiply;
Bring forth abundantly in the earth
And multiply in it.’’”
After Noah’s family got out of the ark, God blessed them even more. He now told them to be fruitful and multiply to fill the earth. Prior to the flood of Noah, people had not eaten any meat, but they had lived just on vegetables. But when Noah and his family emerged out of the ark, God gave them all the livestock of the earth, the fish in the sea, and the birds in the sky to be their food. It’s written, “The fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs.” The people prior to the flood had eaten only vegetables, but now God permitted Noah and his family to eat meat as well.
However, there was one thing God still forbade them: They were told not to eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. This is the first time that the blood of the flesh is mentioned in the Bible.
God said, “You shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.” The reason for this is because blood is the life of man and livestock. It’s written, “You shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man’s brother I will require the life of man. Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed; For in the image of God He made man.” In other words, God told Noah, “Do not kill life. If you do, I will demand your lifeblood.”
At the morning service today, I shared the Word with you to explain that Jesus Christ has given us new life by being baptized by John the Baptist and shedding His blood on the Cross. This evening, I would like to preach about the blood that God has forbidden us to eat in Genesis chapter 9. We should consider this passage in its spiritual context, realize the spiritual meaning manifested here, and believe in it. Only then can we stand spiritually upright.
Since God said that no blood should be had, we should indeed abstain from it. However, God also told Noah and his descendants to eat meat, and we know that when we eat meat, it’s unavoidable to ingest some blood along the way. Even if we try to drain out the blood before eating the meat, it’s nearly impossible to take out all the blood that remains in the meat. To be exact, when you eat a piece of meat, it’s not possible to completely avoid ingesting at least some trace amounts of the blood that’s remaining in the meat.
The Lord said to the disciples when they struggled to understand the spiritual meaning of His Word, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). The Word of God is to manifest spiritual things to us, and if this is the case, then we have to find out the reason why God told us not to eat any blood. Only then can we obey the Lord with a clear understanding of its spiritual significance. God told us not to eat blood because blood is the life of all flesh. Put differently, this commandment means that no one should kill the faith of those who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
Why Did God Tell Noah Not to Eat Any Blood?
We cannot obtain new life by keeping God’s commandments to perfection. It is only by our faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit that we can receive the remission of sin, attain new life, and enjoy everlasting life. That’s because God has given us true life only through the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit. God has made it clear that true life is held by all those who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, which God has given to everyone, and this true life can be found only among these believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
The Word of God here forbidding us from eating blood shows just how important is the gospel of the water and the Spirit. This commandment means that we must keep our faith in the righteousness of God until the end, which has enabled us to receive new life by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. God said this because He has given new life to each of us through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. All those who believe that Jesus Christ is the true Savior, and that He came to this earth by the gospel of the water and the Spirit, have new life. God is saying that He is looking for such faith from each of us in these end times.
God has blessed us with the true remission of sin and new life obtained by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. In these last days, God is demanding us the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit to keep our true faith. You probably know already that God has saved us once and for all from the sins of this world through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. God the Father gave up the body of His Son Jesus Christ in order to give us the remission of sin and new life. By being baptized by John the Baptist and crucified, Jesus has saved our souls that had to die because of sin. Through the gospel of the water and the Spirit that Jesus has given us, He has saved His believers once and for all.
In these end times also, our God is looking for those who truly believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, the Truth of this new life that He has given us. He is asking us if we are indeed keeping our true faith alive. He is saying to us, “Are you cherishing the new life that I’ve given you? Do you have faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit?” In other words, God is demanding from us faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, the gospel that has brought everlasting life to us. God has made it possible for us to be saved from all the sins of this world by believing in His righteousness and receiving the gospel of the water and the Spirit by faith. Now, He wants to see us continue to preserve this life to the end of the world.
Unlike vegetables, there is blood in our bodies. Animals also have blood in their bodies, which constitutes the life of the flesh. Fundamentally, all of us humans had to die because of sin. But after Noah’s flood, our God promised us to give Jesus Christ in whom exists new life for all of us along with the gospel of the water and the Spirit. And in the age of the New Testament, our Lord kept His promise by coming to this earth as the Lamb of sacrifice, being baptized, and shedding His blood to death on the Cross. It’s now been made possible for anyone who believes in the gospel of the water and the Spirit to receive the remission of sin, become righteous, and to live forever. By believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, we have now become new creatures. God has bestowed the spiritual blessings of Heaven on us, so that we the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit would live forever in His presence. I give all my thanks to the Lord.
God Is Looking for True Faith in the Gospel of the Water and the Spirit from Us
God has enabled us to live forever by giving us the gospel of the water and the Spirit and making us believe in it. He has given new life to you and me. By believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, we have received the remission of sin and become righteous people. Thanks to the God-given new life, we have become God’s children for eternity, and we are now able to live by faith forever in His presence. When we stand before God in the future, we must be able to present to Him our faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit that has blessed us so much in this way. God infallibly demands this faith in His gospel of the water and the Spirit from everyone living on this earth. That’s because He has given us new life.
Every life on this earth was given a beginning by God. As such, you and I must realize that we must keep this life God has given us. While everyone may be able to control everything else, he has no control over his life. Every life is a gift from God and it belongs to God. We must preach everywhere that God has enabled us to obtain new life by giving us the gospel of the water and the Spirit. That you and I are now enjoying new life is all because God has given us the gospel of the water and the Spirit that has brought new life to us. We should never forget that it’s because God has given us the gospel of the water and the Spirit that we are now living a new life.
Having received new life by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, we are now living happily in Jesus. In contrast, only spiritual death awaits all those who still have not been born again out of their ignorance of the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Although God has offered new life to everyone equally, some people have received this new life by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, while others have failed to receive the remission of sin and eternal life, for they have rejected the true gospel and refused to believe in it. Those who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit have obtained true life by their faith in the righteousness of God. Even though God has given us new life, there still are some people who haven’t accepted into their hearts this Truth that brings new life, as they do not wholly believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. All of us must believe that the Lord has given us new life through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. That is why our Lord said, “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). No one can become a child of God unless he is born again through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. We must remember this gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit.
God has set forth that everyone should be born on this earth as a sinner, and then be born again by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. As such, those who don’t believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit and therefore have not been born again are spiritually dead already. Physical and spiritual curses are all that await these people who have failed to receive new life by not believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. What else would be left for the sinners? Their way is filled with only thorns and thistles. Although sinners still have opportunities to believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit while they are alive, if they ignore and miss this chance, only eternal curses await them.
Therefore, while still alive, everyone must accept by faith that Jesus Christ, God Himself, has given him the remission of sin and new life through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. God had delivered Noah from the judgment of the flood and allowed him to live in a new world. Just as Noah was saved from sin and judgment by accepting God’s Word, only when you believe that God has given you new life through the gospel of the water and the Spirit, you are able to prosper forever in a new life with God’s blessings. If you don’t accept the God-given gospel of the water and the Spirit into your heart, all that awaits you is eternal death and curses.
If the saints in God’s Church don’t follow its leaders and don’t carry out God’s work together with His Church, then they are in a state similar to a branch that’s broken off from the tree. A branch that’s cut off from the tree is as good as dead. All of us were born as Adam’s descendants, but we have received the remission of sin and new life through the gospel of the water and the Spirit God has given to us. The fact that our Lord took upon Himself all our sins once and for all in the Jordan River, that His body was crucified in our place and bore the condemnation of our sins with His bloodshed, and that He spilled out all His lifeblood on the ground—this is the very evidence proving that Christ has indeed given us new life. Only when we accept this Truth into our hearts can we attain eternal new life.
For Those Who Don’t Accept the Gospel of the Water and the Spirit, There Is Nothing Left but Only Curses, Suffering, Confusion, and Darkness
However, there are so many people who are reluctant to believe in the true gospel. Because these people have not accepted the God-given life, it’s inevitable for Him to judge them according to their sins and cast them into everlasting hell. In contrast, for those who have accepted the God-given life into their hearts through the gospel of the water and the Spirit, only joy, delight, happiness, everlasting life, and blessings await them. We have to realize that to give us the remission of sin, Jesus Christ had to take upon Himself all our sins once and for all in the Jordan River through His baptism, and then had to be crucified to spill His precious blood on the ground. The Bible says that God made man with the dust of the ground. The blood of Jesus fell on the ground, and this implies that the Lord Jesus has given His life for every one of us who believes that Jesus has given us eternal life by being baptized by John the Baptist and shedding His blood on the Cross. However, there can be no work of salvation for those who reject the gospel of the water and the Spirit until the end. The gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit does not enter into the hearts of those who don’t recognize the Word of God.
We must accept into our hearts truthfully that God has given us new life through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Only then can we confess when God comes looking for our souls on the last day, “Lord, You have remitted away all my sins through the gospel of the water and the Spirit.” And only then can we show Him our true faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. How can we show the evidence that He has given us new life? We can show this evidence by testifying as to our faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. If you don’t have such faith, you will be cursed forever on the last day along with the Devil. We can present to the Lord the faith that has truly remitted away our sins only if we know that God has given us new life through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. As God has given us new life through the gospel of the water and the Spirit, we are now living by our faith in this Truth. However, there still are so many people who refuse to accept the gospel of the water and the Spirit until the end, and so we must admonish them all to accept this gospel. It will be inevitable for them to live even more accursed lives in both body and spirit as more time goes by. That’s why we have to preach to such people that they must be born again by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
We have to thank God for giving us the gospel of the water and the Spirit. We had to die for our sins, but to save us from all sins, Jesus bore them all once and for all by being baptized by John the Baptist, and He shed His blood and died on the Cross. We must believe in this Truth, which testifies that the Lord has given us new life through His baptism that He received, and the blood that He shed on the Cross as a result of the condemnation of the sins of this world. We must remember that we can receive the everlasting remission of sin and live forever as the righteous only if we accept into our hearts the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit God has given to us.
My fellow believers, there was a time when we had to lead our lives of faith without realizing that the gospel of the water and the Spirit was the Truth. But now, we have received new life all at once through the gospel of the water and the Spirit given to us. It’s when we accept the gospel of the water and the Spirit into our hearts that we are truly washed from our sins and new life is attained, but for a long time until now, we had been ignorant of this true gospel, even though we believed in Jesus in one way or another.
Everyone standing before God was destined to suffer eternal death, for everyone committed sin against God. However, the Lord, who came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit, came to this earth incarnated in the flesh for the sake of mankind destined to die because of its sins, was baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan River, shed His blood unto death on the Cross, rose from the dead again, and has thereby saved those who believe in this gospel. By giving up His own life for us, the Lord has made it possible for us the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit to truly live forever. All of us, no matter whom or what we are must accept into our heart the fact that God has given us new life through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Whoever accepts into his heart the gospel of the water and the Spirit given by the Lord, new life will indeed spring forth and grow in his heart. Therefore if we accept into our hearts what God has done for us through the gospel of the water and the Spirit, then we will be able to live forever, for we will also have new life in our hearts. We are no longer those who are eternally dead before God, but we are now the blessed ones who can live forever.
My fellow believers, it is by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit that God has given to us that we have attained new life. We will be able to stand before the presence of God only with this new life the Lord has given us. God said that on the Day of Reckoning, He will demand of us to show Him the new life that He has now given us through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. This means that the Lord will verify on the last day whether or not we have this faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Those who have not accepted the gospel of the water and the Spirit do not have the faith that brings truly new life, and therefore they will not be able to present this faith on the last day. If this is the condition of your faith, then your soul is to be forever forsaken by God.
I am so thankful that God has given new life to those of us who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. What about you? Have you also received new life from God? If not, I admonish you to also attain this new life by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit that the Lord is offering you now. Only then can you live forever.
With the life that we were born with from our mothers’ wombs, we cannot live happily in the eternal dominion. So we must accept into our hearts the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit declaring that Jesus Christ has blotted out all our sins and given us new life. It’s only then that our souls that had died of our sins can be revived, and we can also attain eternal life to live forever. God has resurrected us the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit from death, and He has now enabled us to live with everlasting life.
If you want to live happily forever before God, then I admonish you to believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, obtain the washing of your sins, and be born again. Apart from those who have been born again by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit as we do, there is no one else in this world that is able to live happily forever. Anyone who wants to enjoy true happiness must believe in the God-given gospel of the water and the Spirit with his heart, and thus accept the true gift of the remission of sin into his heart.
Some Christians, following the doctrinal stance of their denomination, teach their children not to receive any blood transfusions. But because of such mistaken teachings, there have been tragic incidents where some parents let their children die by refusing to let them have a blood transfusion. In one such case, even though the doctor had told the parents that a blood transfusion and surgery could save their child, these parents rejected it adamantly. Why did they refuse to give a blood transfusion to their child? Citing the Bible, they refused to let their son receive any blood transfusion even while he was under surgery, all because God said that no blood should be eaten. In the end, their child died as a result. These parents were roundly denounced as well by the worldly people. Without a doubt, they shall certainly be rebuked by God in their foolishness.
What Does It Mean When the Bible Says That We Shouldn’t Eat Blood?
This means that we should preach the gospel of the water and the Spirit to everyone and lead all to receive the remission of sin and new life, and it also means that no one should trample on the faith of the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. In other words, everyone should accept the salvation that God has brought to us to give us new, everlasting life—that is, everyone should have the same faith as that of the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
And it also means anyone who doesn’t believe that God has given us the true remission of sin and true life through gospel of the water and the Spirit will lose his own life. If anyone doesn’t believe in the gospel of life, the gospel of the water and the Spirit God has given us, and instead ignores it then he will surely turn into a heretic. Put differently, God is telling us to never lose our faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit that He has given us to give us new life.
Through the gospel of the water and the Spirit, the Lord has given us the everlasting remission of sin and new and eternal life. That’s why God will demand a reckoning on the last day to see if we really have faith in this true gospel of the water and the Spirit. When people wholeheartedly believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit God has given to every mankind, they can all live forever in the presence of God. We the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit are God’s children, and we can live forever with this new life that God has given us. The Bible says that all of us humans were made “in the image of God.” God has given us the gospel of the water and the Spirit, and He has made it possible for all who believe in this gospel to live forever.
Therefore, when God said that no one should eat blood, it means that no one should destroy the faith of those who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit with false doctrines. In other words, no one should take away the eternal life that God has given to mankind—that is, faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
What does it mean when the Lord said in today’s Scripture passage not to take away anyone’s life? Spiritually speaking first, it means that no one should try to destroy the faith of the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, nor preach any false gospel. In fleshly terms, it also means that we should respect the preciousness of human life and never take it away from anyone. This Word that the Lord spoke to us is the Truth that is both physically and spiritually applicable. That no one should kill anyone is only a matter of course, just as it also imperative that no one should destroy the faith of the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
What does it mean to try to destroy human life? It is trying to destroy the faith of the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Obstructing the spreading of the gospel of the water and the Spirit is also an attempt to destroy human life. But some people still stand against this gospel of the water and the Spirit and believe only in their own false doctrines, saying, “How did Jesus take away all the sins of this world when He was baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan River?” In God’s sight, it’s none other than such people who stand against the righteousness of God and try to destroy the God-given life.
God wrote the complete gospel of the water and the Spirit in the Bible for us, and He has enabled us to receive eternal life by believing in this gospel. The Lord has made it possible for us to attain everlasting life by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit He has given us. That Jesus came to this earth, took upon Himself all the sins of the world by being baptized by John the Baptist, shed His blood unto death on the Cross, rose from the dead again, and has thereby lifted all curses and given new life to whoever believes in this Truth. This is the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Yet despite this, if someone still obstructs the gospel of the water and the Spirit from spreading and ignores it, he will surely be destroyed forever.
What about your soul then? Has your soul really received the remission of sin and eternal new life from God, all by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit? Indeed, we have all attained everlasting life by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit God has given us. By believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, you and I have received the eternal remission of sin and we are now able to live forever. That we have received the remission of sin from the Lord by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit means that we have received the new life God has given us. As such, with this new life God has given us, let us all conquer this world in our lives.
God said in today’s Scripture passage, “Be fruitful and multiply; Bring forth abundantly in the earth And multiply in it” (Genesis 9:7). The Lord told us to be fruitful and fill this world. We the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit must indeed be fruitful and multiply to preach this gospel all over the world by trusting in the righteousness of God. Spreading to everyone the God-given true life together with the gospel of the water and the Spirit, we must lead all to be saved from sin. Our faith is this: “God has saved us from sin and death.” In other words, we believe that God has given new life to us the believers in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. We must therefore spread the gospel of the water and the Spirit all over the world by faith.
We praise the Lord always trusting in His righteousness. Thanks to the righteousness of God, you and I have attained new life. We are now living on this earth with this new life that we’ve received from God. As we believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, God has given us new life before everyone else, so that we would multiply even more as we lead all those living on this earth to also receive new life.
This blood mentioned in Genesis chapter nine refers to life. How did the Lord give us new life? He has given us new life by paying off all the wages of our sins with His life. And as we read in today’s Scripture passage, we believe that before Jesus Christ was crucified to shed His precious blood, He had first taken upon Himself all our sins by being baptized by John the Baptist, and we are thankful for this. Every time we confirm the new life God has given us, we cannot help but thank Him with all our hearts for His love.
God has given new life to all of us who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Thanks to this, we have received new life. By giving us the gospel of the water and the Spirit, God has enabled us to attain new life along with the remission of sin to live forever. We are now able to live in God’s presence for eternity.
I praise the God of the righteous forever.
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