Be Renewed in Your Mind

Bring into captivity every thought into the obedience of Christ!

Fred R. Coulter—April 13, 2024

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Let's cover a few news events, and see what's happening in the world. Isn't it amazing that everything always centers around Jerusalem? Think of that in relationship to what happened in the first century when Christ came. Think of it during the days before Christ came. Everything centered there in Jerusalem.

What happened at the time after that? There was a short time when it was centered around Rome, but then Rome and Europe came against all the Islamics. So, we had this fight going on back and forth.

Then we come to the time of Napoleon, and the French came down and invaded Egypt. Then we come to the time of WWI, and the British came down and they occupied Jerusalem and the Palestinian area. They were the ones who then led the way for the establishment later on of what is called Israel today in the Middle East. But that's not really Israel; it's just really Judah!

Look at it today. Same thing, repeat. Everything is centered around Jerusalem. And then you stop and think about this:

Europe is beginning to develop. And if Trump gets in office, he's going to cut ties with NATO. Guess what that's going to do? Europe is right now in the middle of its classic struggle that they had from Napoleon, from Bismarck to Hitler to now Ukraine and Russia. So, you see how history repeats.

Now then, the Jews want to build the temple. So far, the Orthodox rabbis think that the temple should be where the Mosque of Omar is called the Al Aqsa Mosque. That's why the fight is so furious right now, because the Muslims don't want the Jews anywhere near that mosque

Now they (Israelis) have been planning to slaughter the red heifers, and they even built on the Mount of Olives a pretty big altar there. But now they're debating that probably they shouldn't offer that red heifer on Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.

Their discussions are that they'll probably offer it in Shiloh, where the first tabernacle was set. Now then, when the proper times comes, God will reveal to them where to build the temple! At that time, the Muslims will be relieved. They will say, 'Yes, you can build your temple over there.'

So, that day is coming. If they knew where to build it now, they would have built it long ago. If you want to know how much they know about the temple and what they're preparing for, go to templeinstitute.org; it will amaze you what they have done in preparation for the temple.

We know that there has to be a temple because Jesus said, 'When you see the abomination of desolation standing in the Holy Place.'

Now He didn't say 'Holy ground.' A lot of people say that if it's Holy ground, it doesn't have to be that's a Holy place. No, the 'Holy place' is where the Ark of the Covenant was.

Now then, the question comes up: Where is the Ark? Too many don't want to read what it says in the last verse of Rev. 11:

Revelation 11:19[transcriber's correction] "And the Temple of God in heaven was opened, and the Ark of His Covenant was seen in His Temple…"

It's in heaven; God took it away because men want to use it. Even Hitler wanted it so they could have the power to conquer. So, God took it away!

Now they're probably going to find another Ark buried somewhere under the old temple area. But the question is:

• Is it the real thing?

or

• Was it already made and then put in there to be found?

If God says that the Ark of the Covenant is in heaven, that does not mean they're looking at the Throne of God because you have that in Revelation 4 & 5. The Ark of the Covenant was the pattern of things that God wanted in the temple on the earth, and He took it away before the temple was destroyed.

*****

Now let's move ahead for a couple of other things. A.I. is going to be the destruction of the human mind because it will be so fantastic that you won't have to think!

What if, here's a class in college, and they all had to write a thesis on a certain subject, and there are a hundred students in the class. All of them have A.I. They all go to the A.I. independently and ask A.I. to write a thesis on this subject. All 100 of them have the same thesis! They bring it to the professor, and it's perfect. So all of his students graduate, but when they're hired, they're the most stupid people that have ever been hired by the employer, because they didn't have to use their brain at all. They just had to put a thought, type of thought into A.I., and you get whatever it is. Now then, they're also saying that A.I. will replace all working labor people.

I'll show you how bad it's getting: Since people don't want to take the vaccines anymore, guess what they're trying to do just so you get it, even though you don't want it. What do you think they're doing?

They're trying to make genetically the vaccines in vegetables that you buy and that you eat. Think about that; you'll be all vaccinated!

Here's another thing that they can do. They can electronically and magnetically—with trans-cranial stimulation—remove religious thoughts from your brain!

Then here's another one: Enslavement of the Digital World {https://christianstandard.com/2022/07/the-slavery-of-the-digital-world/}

Also: Amazon is expanding its pay by the palm of your hand.

Now then, your body cannot be the mark of the beast, but this is a way of coming to it. What they want is total control of everything. They want to know who you are, where you are, who your friends are, and everything about you, and more importantly, what you believe! And how much money do you earn so 'we can be sure and get every last drop of taxes out of your hide.' That's where it's going!

*****

Now then, we need to focus on what God wants us to do! We need to focus on what we have been doing to provide all the brethren with a whole lot of material. Let me tell you this: in the past  Ambassador College was held up as to be the greatest thing that there ever was, and if you graduated from Ambassador College, which I did, you were looked upon as someone who has so much more knowledge than anybody else. But that turned out to be completely false!

One class they had for one year, two semesters.: Survey of the Epistles of Paul. How many epistles did Paul write? 14!

Is there any way that you can have any knowledge at all of the real things God wants you to know by having a superficial survey of Paul's writings, in one year?

I can tell you this, I've been studying them all my life, and in studying the Bible I can tell you this much: the reason—when the trial came upon Worldwide Church of God—that so many people dropped away was because they were never taught the things of God the way that God wants, other than just a superficial amount of information. So, when the trial came, that was not enough to sustain them.

We have a lot of things that we have published over the years in Christian Biblical Church of God. The things that we have done that no other Church of God has done, but it is absolutely necessary that these things were done, because, every one of them, especially now…

I want to mention this again today, The Christian Passover book. When I traveled to Tyler, Tex.[transcriber's correction] to give one to Ted Armstrong before he died, Ronald Dart was there with him—he had not yet separated from Ted—and Garner Ted Armstrong was busy and couldn't see me. He sent me over to Ron Dart, and I sat there in his office, and I gave him a copy of the Passover book, and he looked at it and he said, "Why does something so simple need 500 pages?"

He was an evangelist, and he was Ted Armstrong's right-hand man. The reason it's 500 pgs. is because Satan attacks everything concerning it; that's why you need 500 pages.

Recently, I got an e-mail from a person saying, 'We have discovered the true calendar, that is the calendar of the Nazarenes, and that is based upon the ripening of the barley harvest.'

Well, God has given the Calculated Hebrew Calendar because the ripening of the barley harvest would vary even between the different sections of the Holy Land. The barley that was used for the Wave Sheaf Offering was planted on the Mount of Olives by the priests, tended to by the priests, to be cut right at the end of the Sabbath, the weekly Sabbath during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Then that sheaf was brought, laid beside the altar all night, and then in the morning, after the morning sacrifice, they would have the Wave Sheaf offering of the firstfruits of the barley harvest.

God gave the Calculated Hebrew Calendar, and that has always been accurate. I've lived through 60 years of different people attacking it and saying that that's not so. Same way with the Passover.

Now then, I just need to cover this again so everybody understands. Some translations of the Bible say that the lamb in Exo. 12 was to be one-year-old. That's not what the Hebrew says. The Hebrew says, 'A lamb of the first year.'

Lambs are born toward the end of February and early March. So, when they're born, they are a lamb of the first year, exactly like it says in Exo. 12, not a year old. A year-old lamb is almost full grown, and this was to be a small lamb.

Now, if it were a year-old lamb, fully grown, then by time of the Passover, it would be in its second year, because they're born in late February, early March, all during March.

When is Passover? End of March and into April! Of the first year, not a year old. Now then, when we come to Mark 14:12, and you can check this out as you have it Interlinear.

I have translated this in a literal translation, because one of the arguments that comes along with the Passover is that you can eat leavened bread on the 14th after you have taken Passover!

That's what was taught in Worldwide, and a lot of people believe it today. A lot of people still say 'it doesn't say eat unleavened bread eight days.' So therefore, if it doesn't say eight days then we can eat leaven on the Passover Day. That's the argument!

Mark 14:12—let's read it carefully. Let's understand what this is telling us and it's exactly the same in Luke 22:7

Mark 14:12: "And on the first day…"

• What does first day mean?
• The second day
• The third day?
• The tenth day?

It means the first day!

"…of the unleaveneds..." (v 12).

Is there any indication in this statement that leaven is acceptable? If it's the first day of the unleaveneds, what does that tell us? They got rid of the leaven! Is that what it says?

Now notice, this is not the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. This is where people get their thinking all mixed up, because they can't understand why the Passover is also an unleavened bread day. So let's read it.

"…when they were killing the Passover lambs…" (v 14).

• When did they kill the Passover lambs?
• When was the time to kill the Passover lambs?

Exo. 12 says 'between the two evenings'—after sunset, before dark—'ben ha arbayim'! So, as soon as the sun had set, they started killing the lambs.

Notice, this was before they had the Passover! When is the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread? After Passover! The 14th is the Passover. The 15th is the Feast of Unleavened Bread. But that doesn't mean that the Passover is not an unleavened bread day in addition. It doesn't have to state 'eight days.' One day for God.

"…His disciples said to Him, 'Where do You desire that we go and prepare, so that You may eat the Passover?'" (v 12).

This could not be the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because Passover would have already been over!

Jesus didn't say, 'Go to the temple and get a sacrificed lamb,' did He? No! Mostly the scribes and Pharisees—some of the Sadducees didn't—had the Passover lambs slain at the temple.

• Where does God say the Passover lamb is to be slain? At your house!
• Is your house the temple? No!

So, they went and prepared. This means the Feast of Unleavened Bread, though it comes right after Passover, is not being discussed here. This is talking about the Passover before they ate it. It is called "The first day of the unleaveneds…".

Someone asked: How can we put out sin before the sacrifice of Christ?

It's not in remembrance of putting out sin because of the sacrifice of Christ, because He didn't die until the 9th hour of the 14th, which was three hours before sunset.

It has nothing to do with us putting out sin. We have the unleavened bread because of what Christ did!

• Did they not eat unleavened bread there at the Passover meal? Yes!  

So, think on this: every Holy Day pictures, even with the Sabbath Day.

• How did the Sabbath come about? Right at creation!
• Was it because Adam and Eve said, 'Oh, here's God, let's have a day to celebrate that we're here with God'? No!
• God did what? He rested!
• What else did He do? He blessed the day!
• What else did He do? He made it Holy!
• What else did He do? He made it a perpetual covenant forever!

That's the Passover Day!

Then Jesus died on the Passover Day, which was the greatest work of God that can be done to redeem humanity—period!

No other religious ceremony anywhere concerning any religion, concerning anything of Christianity that they have perverted today has anything to do with the remembrance of Christ's death.

No priest—all you Catholics out there, listen up; you get so self-righteous and think that you're so right—can command Jesus Christ to put His flesh and His blood in the wine and in the bread for your pagan, satanic communion! He won't do it! Never has done it!

But you think of all the forms that people have concerning the Passover, concerning supper, concerning communion, concerning mass. There's only one day. That's the Passover Day, the day that Jesus died!

That was the greatest act of God! That's why we have it unleavened, because of what He did! That's not us when we get rid of the leaven before Passover, because we're putting away sin. That means we are preparing to keep the Passover, which Jesus said, 'Do this in remembrance of Me' in the night before He was crucified.

Stop and think about this for just a minute. What two things did Jesus say to remember?

• Sabbath; and everybody forgets it
• the Passover, that brings us into covenant with God, which He labeled as the 'New Covenant in My Blood'

Those two things that are supposed to be remembered, what do people do?

• they forget it
• they desecrate it

Sabbath:

• they work on it
• they play on it
• they shop on it
• they do their own pleasure

To remember the death of Jesus, they have communion in the morning called the Lord's Supper. They have the Sacrifice of the Mass.

The Seventh Day Adventists take the Lord's Supper, the first Sabbath of every quarter. Where do they find that in the Bible? And concerning the Seventh Day Adventists and the Sabbath, they just have a little bit of knowledge of the Sabbath left and not much.

• Why? Because they calculate it from midnight Friday to midnight Saturday.
• When does God calculate the day? From sunset to sunset.

So the two things that God says to remember, they desecrate, they change, and are Satan's instrument of attack against it.

So therefore, this book is 500 pages. Let me tell you something: All of our publications are all Biblically rooted in the Truth, nothing else, and true history as it has been recorded so we could know.

Let's understand what God has preserved in His Word. The Bible is the most misunderstood book in the world because the keys to understanding it depend upon:

• believing God
• obeying God
• loving Him

Let's finish off why every Holy Day is a day that pictures something that God has done. First day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread was what God did.

He started to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. That's God's work. He provided the cloud cover by day and the fire by night. He protected them. He gave them energy. All during the seven days that they were leaving and coming down to the Red Sea, what did they carry with them? The dough of unleavened bread!

When they got to the Red Sea the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, there they were trapped. They didn't know what to do.

What does that day picture? The action of God separating the Red Sea for at least 10 miles! Not a little teeny-weeny path like you see in the movie The Ten Commandments.

All of Israel was camped alongside the Red Sea that way. When God said, 'You're going to cross the Red Sea,' He made sure it was dry. They all went across almost all at once. They didn't go in a line, because that would have taken at least three hours or more.

They all went across, got to the other side, and when the Egyptians came, what happened? God killed them!

Then we come all the way to Pentecost. This is an action of God. What did God do on Pentecost?

• He spoke the Ten Commandments to the children of Israel
• giving of the Holy Spirit
• it is the first resurrection

Now then, we come to the Feast of Trumpets. What is the action of God with the Feast of Trumpets?

• that's the beginning point of calculating the Hebrew Calendar
• that's the day that Jesus was born
• Christ made His first entrance into the world

You can see that in our booklet: The Day That Jesus Christ Was Born?

What does it picture when He returns? We come to Trumpets in Revelation, and after the resurrection and everybody on the Sea of Glass, then the wedding supper takes place and everybody is finding out:

• who they are
• where they are
• what their new name is
• what their responsibility is

And we're going to take over the whole world and come back to the earth on the Feast of Trumpets!

Then we have the Day of Atonement. What is God's great action on the Day of Atonement? Nullifying the works of Satan the devil until he's finally put into the prison (Rev. 20.).

What does the Feast of Tabernacles picture? The work of God of bringing the 1,000 year reign of God on the earth!

What is the Last Great Day and why is it called the Last Great Day? Because that's the second resurrection for all of those who never had an opportunity for salvation, which they will get being resurrected to a second physical life.

So, all of the Holy Days of God, which everyone ignores, or even like the Seventh-Day Adventists say, "Those are just rituals.' Same way with the Church of God Seventh-Day. NO! These teach us the things of God that we need to know, and God wants us to know. Now, in response to that, that's why we have the publications that we do.

Here are just some of the publications:

• Holy Spirit of God, the Power of God, a Scriptural perspective
• The Apostle Paul's Teachings on God's Laws

Everyone believes that they can go along without the Laws of God.

• The Seven General Epistles

This is an in-depth, verse-by-verse, word-by-word study into the seven general epistles of James, 1-Peter, 1-John, and Jude. That is an in-depth study in itself.

• A Harmony of the Gospels
• The Holy Bible In Its Original Order, A Faithful Version
• Greek-English Interlinear

There are many other books that we have produced, and the booklets and everything that we have. God has blessed us with more than any other Church of God that is in existence today.

What for? To guard the Truth of God from heresy, false teachers, and those who creep into the Church with false ideas, some of them being in the Church for decades and decades. Then come out with a false doctrine like Wilber Berg did a couple weeks ago. I covered that.

Why? Because, brethren, God has called us to know and to grant us the understanding we need to know that it all comes from God.

That's why the greatest book in the world is the Bible of God. Even all of the most educated people in the world will never understand what is here because:

• they won't believe God
• they won't obey God
• they don't love God

That's why He's called us! Who are we? Well, as far as the world is concerned, the world would be better off without us.

1-Cor, 2:9—here's what we're dealing with, and this is what we need to understand, and this is why we need to realize that being in the Church of God is not a religion, and it is not an organization of men.

If you want numbers, you're not going to find them, because even those in the Church are few. Remember what Jesus said? Many are called, but few are chosen! Why? Because few repent!

I keep tabs on the religious channels, and I was watching Day Star. There was a man there, and I don't know why these Protestant preachers do it, but they wear slacks, they don't dress up, they look like they're poor when they've got millions of dollars in the bank. He was prancing back and forth. Why do they have to walk back and forth? Never could figure it out. He was reading a quote from Matthew:

Jesus said, 'I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall never prevail against it.'

Here's this big audience out there on Sunday, and he said, 'You are the Church. Your family is the Church, and everyone who is attending is a Church.'

NO! Who are the Church? The called, the chosen, because 'many are called and few are chosen,' and IF you were chosen and faithful. Everybody was out there clapping their hands, 'Oh, that's such a good message! Oh, think of it, we're all part of the Church of Jesus Christ!'

You better check with the Jehovah Witnesses, because they wouldn't agree with you.

1-Corintians 2:9: "But according as it is written, 'The eye has not seen, nor the ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.'"

Now, that one verse tells us a lot. You can't do it by going out and all of these archaeological digs that are taking place everywhere in the world, digging up Egypt, digging up in Turkey, digging up in Cambodia, and every place they have an archaeological digging.

What is the one singular thing that all of these civilizations did down through history that caused them to be destroyed by God?

If you watch some of those programs, especially on the Mayans. When these societies, and every single one of them did, come to open Satan worship and acceptance, it is destroyed, every single one!

I don't care what dig they're digging into, I don't care what civilization it was in the past, they all came to the point of open, accepted, Satan worship!

• Where are we today?
• Do we have the temple of Satan?
• Do we have abortion, human sacrifice?
• Are we rejecting everything of God as a nation?
• How close are we to open Satan worship?

The closer we get to it, the more trouble we're going to find, and that's going to be one of the reasons why God is going to shut down America, because they didn't take heed to this.

Verse 10: "But God has revealed them to us by His Spirit…"

The only way we understand anything of God is by:

• His Spirit
• our repentance
• our believing Him
• our obeying Him
• our loving Him

"…for the Spirit searches all things—eventhe deep things of God" (v 10).

Brethren, do you know that we understand more than Daniel, more than the Apostle Paul, more than the apostles?

Not because we're anything, but God gave the promise! At the time of the end the wise shall understand. So, who are the wise? The wise ones are those who:

• believe God
• obey God
• love God

Then what does He do?

IF we put Scripture to Scripture and understand the Word of God—and don't bring in human ideas or human theology into understanding the Bible—God will reveal to us what He wants!

Of the things we don't know, what should we say? We don't know!

"…for the Spirit searches all things—eventhe deep things of God. For who among men understands the things of man except by the spirit of man, which is in him? In the same way also, the things of God no one understands except by the Spirit of God" (vs 10-11).

That's why every single one of us who have the Spirit of God, need to continue to grow in grace and knowledge; continue to study, study, study to put it all together to live our lives the way that God wanted! All of the elders and ministers much moreso!

Otherwise, what's going to happen? Well, all you have to do is go take a look at Pasadena! That'll tell you what'll happen.!

Verse 12: "Now, we have not received the spirit of the world… [Satan the devil] …but the Spirit that is of God, so that we might know… [this is stated as a fact for then, and stated as a prophecy for us now] …the things graciously given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Holy Spirit in order to communicate spiritual things by spiritual means" (vs 12-13).

That's how we understand. That's why we have these books, these Bibles and everything that we have. We know now that one of the most important things that we all need to be busy doing is:

• studying the Word of God
• learning the Word of God
• growing in grace and knowledge
• doing the things that God wants us to do

Because we see that Satan's world is coming and closing in on the whole world. Satan is not going to stop until he can control the thoughts of all human beings. That's his goal! Look how close they are to that!

 (break@48:03)

I need to make an announcement and appreciate your prayers concerning it. I've been invited to speak on the radio on the Salem Network, a program called Caravan to Midnight, and the host there is John B. Wells. I've been invited to be on there April 30th starting at 8.30 p.m. Eastern Time, which is 5:30 p.m. Pacific Time, 7:30 Central Time, and 6:30 Mountain Time. It's in Rumble!

I don't know what it's going to be, but I put in an application because Colonel Mike Rossi is the one who made arrangements for me to go on to this Caravan to Midnight. It will be also on the Salem Radio Network, so there will be about two million people who will be listening to this program.

We'll just have to see what happens there, so appreciate your prayers on that. Remember, that is April 30, the day after the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread; 8:30 p.m. ET.

And also, there's a possibility that I might be able to get onto Coast to Coast, whatever program that would be.

So, we'll have to wait and see what opens up and what takes place.

Now then, let's look at one of the main things that is to take place in our lives, as also highlighted by the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The Feast of Unleavened Bread pictures a number of things.

First of all, we have to be active in searching out our lives, physically, mentally and spiritually, to get sin out of our lives.

In other words, when God says, 'Overcome,' He'll give us the power and the means and the way to overcome. But:

• we must choose to overcome.
• we must choose to grow in grace and knowledge

What is the main thing on how we overcome? We have to maintain this and continue to grow in grace and knowledge! We can't come to a point ever that we say we know everything. Really? No, you don't!

Col. 1:9—we'll see several things as we go through here that can be related to the Feast of Unleavened Bread. What needs to be done:

• related to our overcoming
• related to how God works in us

Colossians 1:9: "For this cause we also, from the day that we heard of it,… [heard of their being faithful to God in everything] …do not cease to pray for you…"

Isn't that interesting? Every one of us who are elders and ministers have to pray for the brethren every single day!

"…and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding" (v 9).

That's what we covered there in 1-Cor. 2. The knowledge of God! Think how precious that is. Think how few that there are who really:

• believe God
• love God
• keep His commandments
• keep His Sabbath
• keep His Holy Days
• keep all the Feast days

• How many?
• How many really do it with knowledge spiritually?

Because it has to be:

• active
• growing
• developing in everything that we do

Verse 10: "That you may walk worthily of the Lord, unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God." Constantly growing, constantly understanding!

Now, just to give you one little thing that came to me here recently, which is this: You go to Isa. 50 and it talks about Christ being taught by the Father: Every morning He awakens Me, and I was not rebellious!

That's how Jesus was taught, that's the first of His life! Then continued through all His whole life, as well. Then right after that, it says that He was given to those who strike Him and tear off the beard, which is His last day on earth—crucifixion!

• What do we have in those two verses? The first and the last!
• What does God say that He is? I'm the First and the Last, the Beginning and the Ending!

That is another example, just a small little one, of how the knowledge of God is layered within His Word that we must learn, know and understand, like Paul says, that you are growing in the knowledge of God.

Verse 11: "Being strengthened with all power according to the might of His glory, unto all endurance and long-suffering with joy."

Again, showing the effort that we need to put into it. This is why the fake Christianity of Protestantism is worthless.

Verse 12: "Giving thanks to the Father, Who has made us qualified for the share of the inheritance of the saints in the Light."

Now think about that, as I have mentioned here recently, and I'll keep mentioning it. Our relationship with God the Father is direct to Him, through Jesus Christ! So, through both of Them, we grow in grace and knowledge!

Verse 12: "Giving thanks to the Father, Who has made us qualified…"

Yes, that's the only way we can have that inheritance. Joint heirs with Christ (Rom. 8).

Verse 13: "Who has personally rescued us from the power of darkness…"

Wherever you see that I translated it personally, that is from the middle voice verb in the Greek, meaning that God the Father is the Originator of it, and the benefit through us comes back to Him. So, He is personally qualifying us! How?

• with His Spirit
• with His Truth
• with His love
• with the renewing of our mind

"…rescued… [delivered] …us from the power of darkness… [which is Satan the devil] …and has transferred us unto the Kingdom of the Son of His love" (v 13).

That doesn't mean into the Kingdom of God. Why? Because flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God!

So, we're "…unto…" meaning we're under the jurisdiction of God the Father and Jesus Christ, which will eventually become the Kingdom of God on the earth.

Verse 14: "In Whom we have redemption through His own blood, even the remission of sins"

That ties right in with keeping the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, who is the image of the invisible God, the Firstborn of all creation.

Now, someone said that I said that Jesus was created because I read this verse. Not so! He was the Firstborn of all creation, that is, of all human beings!

• Why? Firstborn means the Premier One!
• Why? Because God the Father was His Father!

No other human being was conceived that way. So, He is the Firstborn of all the creation of mankind, because His birth, from begettal of birth, was the only One Who was born that way.

So, He is the firstborn of all creation, not that He was first created. Do you understand the difference? Because in order to be born, He had to, as we find tin Phil. 2. He had to divest Himself of His glory to become a pinpoint of life so that He could be begotten in the womb of the Virgin Mary. No other human being came that way! None!

He emphasizes this after His resurrection and actually before He became a human being, because by Him were all things created. We find that in:

John 1:1: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and not even one thing that was created came into being without Him" (vs 1-3).

Colossians 1:16: "Because by Him were all things created, the things in heaven and the things on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether they be thrones, or lordships, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him and for Him.

This tells us that God is active in everything in the world. God just didn't go off and leave it and everybody go on their own. As a result:

Verse 17: "And He is before all, and by Him all things subsist. And He is the Head of the Body, the Church…" (vs 17-18)—the called, the chosen and faithful!

Not because people gather together in an assembly and they are the Church. How many really believe?

• How can that be if they meet on Sunday and all the holidays of this world?

That's not of the true God the Father, but:

• Who is their god? Satan the devil!

"…He's the Head of the Church, Who is the beginning, the Firstborn from among the dead…" (v 18).

Now then, we have two things about being Firstborn:

• Firstborn because no human being was ever conceived by God the Father except Jesus Christ, the Firstborn of all creation of human beings

Now then, after He was dead three days and three nights, the Firstborn of all. There it is, right there.

• Who is the beginning, the firstborn from among the dead?

Now, Paul said we're all going to be resurrected, and Paul wrote that Christ was the Firstfruit of those resurrected from the dead. But all of those who are Christ's that His coming. So, that tells you nobody's ascended to heaven, just like Jesus said.

All the false religions of this world have everything all wrapped up in that how they're going to live forever. Every single one of these false religions, regardless of whether it is from Egypt, India, China, Cambodia, the Norse, the Indians, the South American Indians, whatever the religion: Catholicism, Protestantism, Judaism today.

"…so that in all things He Himself might hold the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell; and having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things to Himself; by Him, whether the things on the earth, or the things in heaven" (vs 18-20).

That's why He came. Now then, this one verse will not have its complete fulfillment until everything is we find in the book of Revelation and everything concerning the Feast of Tabernacles and the second resurrection.

So, you take some of these verses and it's not just stating punctiliously about that one point of time, but it's talking about the whole Plan of God. Then Paul wants to remind them, 'Lest you get lifted up in your own vanity.'

Verse 21: "For you were once alienated and enemies in your minds…"

• Is that something? Enemies!
• How can you be an enemy of God in your mind?

It says that thoughts of man are vanity!

Now think about this for a minute: It doesn't matter how educated you are, IF you don't know about God, what do you really know?

I look at the one man on the news that appears to be one who is pretty humble and understands a lot about what's going on, and that's Victor Davis Hansen. I don't know what he believes about God, but if he doesn't know the Pan of God, all of his genius thinking…

He can understand the problems that are happening, but he can't enunciate it according to the way that things are in the Bible. But we're enemies of God in our mind. Why? Because we don't want to obey God!

That's why God has to do the calling; many are called, few are chosen! That's why we have to choose! Every one of us can look back to that singular one day when that happened in your life that you said, 'Huh! God help me, I don't know what to do.' That's how it all starts; has to be.

"…by wicked works…" (v 21).

Think about what goes on in the human mind, even today! That's still something we have to fight against, because there are many things today that we're exposed to that people down through history have never been exposed to in a way that we have today. What do we have bombarding our minds?

• television
• advertisements almost everywhere
• buy this, buy that
• it's on sale
• your mind is all on the physical things
• you don't care about God
• you don't care about anything that's in the Bible
• you never heard of it
• you don't want anything to do with it

You're an enemy of God!

It's like I went into the bank and I was cashing a check there. Here's this real nice teller, and she's a very kindly spoken woman. So, I said, 'Do you go to church?' She said, 'No.' I didn't press the point anymore.

But the point is, people can be as nice as they can be. But if they don't know God, what do they know?

"…but now He has reconciled you" (v 21).

That means He has brought you to God the Father! Think about that! Think about:

• how important our calling is
• how important being chosen that it is
• how important it is that we stay faithful
• how important that the Word of God is to educate us

"…but now He has reconciled you in the body of His flesh through death…" (vs 21-22)—Passover!

• take eat, this is My body
• take drink, this is My blood

which is given for the remission of sin!

"…to present you Holy and unblamable and unimpeachable before Him" (v 22).

Everything you want in your life! What do we have these programs about? People, be the best you can be. Oh, you can do this, you can do that, you can do the other thing. Can anybody do what it says here?

"…to present you Holy and unblamable and unimpeachable before Him."

Now that's a magnificent thing! Notice a condition"

Verse 23: "If indeed you continue in the faith grounded and steadfast…" That means:

• you know what you're doing
• you understand what the Word of God is
• you know that you love God
• you understand that you personally have to overcome your sins on your part
• you understand God the Father and Jesus Christ on their part will forgive you

and keep you reconciled!

See how much there is right here in this chapter we're covering about the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the Passover. It's all intertwined in here.

"…and are not moved away from the hope of the Gospel" (v 23). Think about that!

• How many have moved away from it?
• How many have left it?
• How many have become disillusioned because men were not what they thought they should be?

That was because men did not stay close to God the way God wanted them to do so!

"…hope of the Gospel, which you have heard, and which was proclaimed in all the creation…" (v 23).

That also is a prophecy. Paul spoke it wherever he went, but God wants it to all the creation. Think about that! That has to involve the second coming of Christ, the setting up the kingdom of God, and bringing people to understanding and repentance all during the Millennium.

These verses have a lot of meaning, not just for what it says right here in print, but in its application with the knowledge of the Bible!

"…proclaimed in all the creation that is under heaven; of which I, Paul, became a servant. Now, I am rejoicing in my sufferings for you, and I am filling up in my flesh that which is behind of the tribulations of Christ, for the sake of His Body, which is the Church" (vs 23-24).

He did suffer! Remember, you go back and see what God told him. 'I'm calling you, Paul, to go to the Gentiles, and the long and short of it is because you oppressed and persecuted the Church, you're going to suffer!' And he did!

Don't think he suffered? Read 2-Cor. 11 and all that he went through and ask yourself: Would I be willing to go through all that the Apostle Paul went through? I mean, we can become out of sorts if some little thing doesn't work out the way we think!

• How about being left in the deep a day and a night clinging to a piece of wood, not knowing if you're going to be swallowed by a shark or you'll ever be found? That's just one!
• How about being beaten three times with rods on the back? I mean, we complain if we stub our little toe or something.!

Verse 25: "Of which I became a servant, according to the administration of God that was given to me for you in order to complete the Word of God; even the mystery that has been hidden from ages and from generations, but has now been revealed to His saints" (vs 25-26).

Think about the knowledge you have. Now, because you understand it, don't get uppity-uppity or self-righteous. It was given! Be thankful!

Verse 27: "To whom God did will to make known…" The only reason we know is because:

• God made it known
• God with His Spirit opened our mind
• we stay close to the Truth

The thing we need to always remember: everything needs to be by the Truth, proved by the Scriptures.

"…make knownwhat are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you…" (v 27).

The Holy Spirit of God the Father and Christ in you.

• What is that to do for us?
• How does that tie in with the coming Feast of Unleavened Bread?

Gal. 4—what spiritually is to be happening in us, which then is the process of conversion. The process of conversion takes place over a period of time, as long as we are alive. That we are putting out the evil, because we have to repent every day. Isn't that what Jesus said? You look at the model prayer (Matt. 6).

After we acknowledge God and pray for His will, then we say, 'Forgive us our debts.' That is, the debt incurred because we sinned. Think about all of the nonsense that we are exposed to! We need to ask God to cleanse our mind!

Galatians 4:19: "My little children, for whom I am again laboring in pain until Christ has been formed in you."

That means the mind of Christ (Phil. 2:5). Think about that! Think about what God wants to do with us. That's why we have the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

• we get rid of sin
• we get rid of self
• we get rid of self-motivation and all of that sort of thing
• we yield to God in love and understanding
• we love His Word
• we live by His Word

There it is! That's what God wants: Christ in us! Let's see how that is accomplished. Let's see what is done. Here's the battle that goes on all the time.:

2-Corintians 6:14: "Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers…."

If you start palling around with the believers all the time, sooner or later you're going to start inculcating what they do.

"…For what do righteousness and lawlessness have in common?…. [that's the way it is in the world, lawlessness] …And what fellowship does light have with darkness?" (v 14).

Every time a church fails is because they try and bring in the philosophies of men! Happens every time.

As one man pointed out, I think it was Keith Slough, an elder back in North Carolina, said that he saw this happening in 1968 in Worldwide Church of God. What was that? That was when they decided to make The Plain Truth magazine more secular.

Remember that? A lot of people don't remember that! They did, and then they said, 'We'll take the things in The Plain Truth and put it into The Good News (also a newspaper for the Church members). 'Now we'll take the things from The Good News and we'll put it into the Correspondence Course.'

So what happened? That removed this from going to the public the way that it should! Subtle! Whose advice was that to do that? Stanley R. Rader, clear back in 1968. That was one year after Loma Armstrong, Herbert's wife, died.

"…what fellowship does light have with darkness? And what union does Christ have with Belial?.… [Belial is all of the fools, so we'll leave it at that] …Or what part does a believer have with an unbeliever? And what agreement is there between a temple of God and idols?.…" (vs 14-16).

Where are the idols we need to get rid of? In the mind!

Go read Ezek. 14; all the elders came before Ezekiel and said, 'Oh, tell us what the Word of the Lord is today.' And God said, 'Well, you tell them, I'm not going to listen to you, because you have idols in your mind.' That's where it is. That's called strongholds!

"…For you are a Temple of the living God…" (v 16). That's what Paul says in 1-Cor. 3.

We're a temple. Why? Because we have the Spirit of God—God the Father and Jesus Christ! This is part of the Passover ceremony.

Jesus said, 'If you love Me and keep My commandments, My Father and We will come to you and make Our dwelling, or Our abode, with you.' Think of that! How great it is to have the Spirit of God!

"…'I will dwell in them and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people'" (v 16).

That's what God wants! Then when the resurrection takes place, everything of the flesh is gone! Now, if you die before then, all your flesh is gone! That's just the way it is.

Kip used to work full-time in a cemetery, so he knows all about the partying of the dead, and he hasn't heard any one of them snore!

That's what this Feast of Unleavened Bread means that we should do. Let's read it:

Verse 17: "'Therefore, come out from the midst of them and be separate,' says the Lord, 'and touch not the unclean, and I will receive you.'"

• How are we cleansed every year? Through the Passover!
• What did Jesus say? You are clean through the words that I have spoken!

That's what Jesus told them on the Passover night. So, we're going to read that on the Passover. I want you to take that Passover Ceremony booklet and study over it, because those are the words of the New Covenant. These are the words of our agreement with God!

When we're in covenant and we make an agreement with God, God is true, He's going to keep His part. We also, through His Spirit, must be true and keep our part! That's why we take the Passover every single year, because we need to be renewed.

Verse 18: "'And I shall be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters,' says the Lord Almighty." What a promise!

2-Corinthians 7:1: "Now then, beloved, since we have these promises, we should purge ourselves from every defilement of the flesh and the spirit…"

• Purge it!
• Get rid of it!
• Say no!
• Strike it out!
• Don't get enticed!

There it is! It's kind of like a Jew made the remark,

Well, I know we're supposed to fast on the Day of Atonement, but if I turn my head while I'm showering and water gets in my mouth, I'm innocent.

No, that was a deliberate thought to get around it! 'Oh, Lord, that was just an accident.' That's not a good example, but anyway…

"…perfecting Holiness in the fear of God" (v 1). Let's see what perfecting Holiness means:

• here's what we are to do
• here's what God is to do

God is working with us to accomplish these things. It's an amazing part of conversion that is so tremendous.

• IF we yield to God, He will bless us
• IF we believe God always, He will be there to help us

Romans 12:1: "I exhort you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice…"

Our whole lives are dedicated to doing the will of God, in all circumstances, everything that we do.

"…Holy and well-pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service. Do not conform yourselves to this world" (vs 1-2).

1-John 2:15: "Do not love the world…"

The hardest thing to do on the Sabbath is to shut out the world. Try that every Sabbath; to be:

• thinking on the Word of God
• thinking on the Way of God
• thinking on the creation of God
• thinking on your calling
• thinking on how you can grow and overcome

And not be thinking of anything in the world!

Verse 15: "Do not love the world, nor the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him… [that tells us a lot] …because everything that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pretentious pride of physical life—is not from the Father, but is from the world" (vs 15-16).

So when it says, "Do not be conformed to the world…"—don't act and behave like the world! Don't think like the world does! Remember, even the good that some people in the world do, that has to be according to the commandments of God.

Remember, remember, never forget this. This was immortalized by Ronald Reagan.

When someone comes to the door and knocks, and you open it up, and he says, 'Hello, I'm from the government; I'm here to help you.'

They get entrapped in the world!

Verse 17: "And the world and its lust is passing away, but the one who does the will of God abides forever."

How is that going to be accomplished? We've been given the begettal of eternal life, and that's going to come to the full at the resurrection! But in the meantime, here's what we have to do:

Romans 12:2: "Do not conform yourselves to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…"

Now transform comes from the Greek 'metamorphosis,' showing that the transformation of the mind is always ongoing, every day a little more, every day a little more!

So that we develop and use the Spirit of God to grow and have the mind of Christ. There it is, "…transformed by the renewing of your mind…" means changing the way that your carnal mind thinks to having a spiritual mind led by the Spirit of God!

"…in order that you may prove what is well-pleasing and good, and the perfect will of God" (v 2).

That's what God wants, that renewing of the mind! Let's see this again.

Ephesians 4:11: "And He gave some asapostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers… [for what? What is the goal that God wants?] …for the perfecting of the saints…" (vs 11-12). That's what Church is all about!

It's not about ministers ruling over brethren. It's about all of us together being perfected:

• through the Spirit of God
• through His love
• through His laws

Verse 12: "For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the Body of Christ; until… [it shows that it takes place over a period of time] …we all come into the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man… (vs 12-13).

That's the goal! But that perfection is not going to be complete until the resurrection! But

We can be perfect in attitude and in mind as we're seeking God!

"…unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (v 13).

Then He gives a warning! There's always a warning, because Satan is there to try and derail us from doing what God wants, and Satan will come with a good sounding temptation!

Verse 14: "So that we no longer be children, tossed and carried about with every wind of doctrine by the sleight of men in cunning craftiness, with a view to the systematizing of the error."

Paul could see that they were already working on systematizing the error.

Verse 15: "But holding the Truth in love…

Remember this: always the Truth, the Truth, the Truth, and nothing but the Truth!

"…may in all things grow up…" (v 15)

• we grow in grace
• we grow in knowledge
• we grow in understanding
• we have our minds renewed

"…grow up into Him Who is the Head, even Christ from Whom all the Body, fitly framed and compacted together by that which every joint supplies, according to its inner working in the measure of each individual part, is making the increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love" (vs 15-16).

Verse 17: "So then, I declare and testify this in the Lord that you are no longer to walk even as the rest of the Gentiles are walking, in the vanity of their minds, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their hearts (vs 17-18). We're not to walk as they are!

2-Cor. 10—this tells us what we are to do, showing that conversion and overcoming is something that is active, something that we do, renews our minds, renews our thought, and those things help us in everything that we do. Here's how Paul explains it:

2-Corintians 10:3: "For although we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh."

Remember what Paul said, 'Fight the good fight of faith!' That's a warfare. There's a spiritual warfare! In casting down these things out of our own minds and bringing every thought into obedience of Christ! That is a conversion, mental, spiritual activity that's always ongoing.

"…we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the overthrowing of strongholds" (vs 3-4).

Now, what are those strongholds? Not the carnal mind! We'll see!

Verse 5: "Casting down vain imaginations…"

• Where do we have imaginations?
• Have you ever had it where you go along and all of a sudden, out of nowhere there's an evil thought come into your mind?
• Where does that come from?

That comes because you're still carnal. That happens! That's why we need to repent every day! Remember, perfection is a process, and perfection is not completed until the resurrection!

Verse 5: "Casting down vain imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity…" 

In other words, controlling your mind spiritually. Bringing into captivity. That's one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit—self-control! Self-control with the Spirit of God right here.

"…and bringing into captivity every thought into the obedience of Christ" (v 5). That's how we renew our minds!

Scriptural References:

• Revelation 11:19
• Mark 14:12
• 1 Corinthians 2:9-13
• Colossians 1:9-14
• John 1:1-3
• Colossians 2:16-27
• Galatians 4:19
• 2 Corinthians 6:14-18
• 2 Corinthians 7:1
• Romans 12:1-2
• 1 John 2:15-16
• Romans 12:2
• Ephesians 4:11-18
• 2 Corinthians 10:3-5

Scriptures referenced, not quoted:

• Revelation 4; 5
• Exodus 12
• Luke 22
• Revelation 20
• Isaiah 50
• Romans 8
• 2 Corinthians 11
• Matthew 6
• Philippians 2:5
• Ezekiel 14
• 1 Corinthians 3

Also referenced:

Books by Fred R. Coulter {truthofGod.org}:

• The Christians Passover
• Holy Spirit of God: The Power of God
• The Apostle Paul's Teachings of God's Law
• A Harmony of the Gospels
• The Holy Bible in Its Original Order, A Faithful Version
• The Seven General Epistles
• Greek-English Interlinear

Booklet: The Day That Jesus Christ Was Born?

FRC:bo/po
Transcribed: 4/18/24

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