SYMBOLS

JESUS USED
TO EXPLAN HMSELF

Prnf. M. M. NINAN





I AM: 5ymbn!s Jcsus Uscd tn Exp!aIn HImsc!f

CnpyrIght Prnf. M.M.NInan
A!! rIghts rcscrvcd.
Pub!Ishcd by

5708 Rudy Dr.
5an Jnsc, CA 95124

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i

I AM
5YMBOL5 JE5U5 U5ED TO EXPLAIN HIM5ELF
Prnf. M. M. NInan
Fnrcwnrd v
JnhannanItc Jcsus:
I AM sayIngs nf Jcsus In thc Gnspc! nf Jnhn xI
Chaptcr 1 - IntrnductInn 1

Chaptcr 2 - I AM thc I AM 9

Chaptcr 3 - I AM thc Brcad nf LIfc 19

Chaptcr 4 - I AM thc LIght nf thc Wnr!d 31

Chaptcr 5 - I AM thc Dnnr nf thc 5hccp 47

Chaptcr 6 - I AM thc Gnnd 5hcphcrd 55

Chaptcr 7 - I AM thc rcsurrcctInn and thc LIfc 65
Chaptcr 8 - I AM thc WAY thc TRUTH and thc LIFE 89

Chaptcr 9 - I AM thc TRUE VINE 107
ii
iii




DcdIcatcd tn



My WIfc
Pnnnu

House und weuILI ure InIerILed Irom IuLIers,
buL u prudenL wIIe Is Irom LIe ORD.
(Pro 1q:1q)



iv
I AM : M. M. NInan


v
FOREWORD
Hov nany lines have you leen laIking vilh soneone and have had
lhen say: }esus nevei cIained lo le Cod. Oi have had lhen say }esus is
ONLY lhe Son of Cod. Nol Cod. WeII }esus didnl say I an Cod foi a
good ieason. You see he didnl vanl lo le anliguous. III expIain vhy I
say lhis in jusl a lil.

}esus vas lhe uIlinale naslei al lolh aIIegoiies and neanings lolh pIain
and inpIied, of senlences and sloiies olviousIy sinpIe and yel vilh deep
hidden conpIexilies. ul vhal is noie, leing Cod he aIso knev vhal
vas lo cone in lhe ages lo le. Thus he pie-enpled nany nany heiesies
and faIse concepls lhal peopIe veie going lo have. UnfoilunaleIy nol
nany peopIe lake lhe line lo ieseaich his sayings and lhus lhey gel
enliapped inlo nisconceplions and faIsilies and gel Ied asliay ly faIse
leacheis lhal speak vhal lhey vanl lo heai and nol vhal lhe liulh is.

In Iine vilh lhis, one of lhe nosl poveifuI cIains }esus evei nade vas
lhe slalenenl efoie Aliahan vas I AM. Nov on lhe face of il, il
Iooks Iike a lypo oi lad giannai.

ul lo undeisland vhal }esus is laIking aloul ve have lo go lack a fev
lhousand yeais lo lhe line of Moses and lhe uining ush. Renenlei
vhen Cod laIks lo Moses fion lhe uining lush. Whal does Cod leII
Moses lo do` LxaclIy. lo go lo Ihaiaoh and say: Lel ny peopIe go.
ul Moses gels scaied. He says (change lo NIV)

Exndus 3:13 . Moses said lo Cod, "Suppose I go lo lhe IsiaeIiles and say
lo lhen, 'The Cod of youi falheis has senl ne lo you,' and lhey ask ne,
'Whal is his nane`' Then vhal shaII I leII lhen`"

In olhei voids, Moses asks Cod: Whal is youi nane`
I AM : M. M. NInan


vi
Whal does Cod say`
Exndus 3:14 Cod said lo Moses, "I an vho I an . This is vhal you aie lo
say lo lhe IsiaeIiles: 'I AM has senl ne lo you.' "
Moses asks Cod: Whal shaII I leII lhen youi nane is` Cod says: TeII lhen
ny nane is I AM.

Nov I vanl you lo fasl foivaid lack again lo lhe line of Chiisl. }esus is
in a ciovd of peopIe and lhey aie aiguing vilh hin.
}esus says: Jnhn 8:56 "Youi falhei Aliahan iejoiced lo see My day, and
he sav il and vas gIad." 57 The }evs lheiefoie said lo Hin, "You aie nol
yel fifly yeais oId, and have You seen Aliahan`" 58 }esus said lo lhen,
"TiuIy, liuIy, I say lo you, lefoie Aliahan vas loin I AM." 59 Theiefoie
lhey picked up slones lo lhiov al Hin, lul }esus hid HinseIf, and venl
oul of lhe lenpIe.

Nole lhal he didnl say lefoie Aliahan vas loin I was. He didnl say
lefoie Aliahan vas, I exisled. He said lefoie Aliahan exisled |I an lhej
I AM. (Theie is a Iol noie heie -lhose hidden conpIexilies- nole hov he
didnl use lhe phiase I was lhe I AM, lecause lhe I AM is lineIess and
onIy vay lo define lhe evei exisling exliadinensionaI alenpoiaI Cod is
lo use lhe piesenl lense aII lhe line).

ul vail, vhal vas lhe nane of Cod` Il vas I AM. So yes }esus nevei said
I an god. He said sonelhing nuch noie poveifuI. He naned hinseIf
lhe veiy nane of Cod.

Lel ne expIain vhy lhis is so poveifuI. A vhiIe lack duiing lhe Iiaq
confIicl, Iiesidenl Ceoige W. ush fIev inlo lhe niddIe of lhe vai in Iiaq
and nel peisonaIIy vilh lhe lioops. OK Iels say lhal jusl lefoie he gol
oul in fionl of lhe soIdieis he vas slanding aiound vailing lo le
inlioduced and soneone vaIked up lo hin and asked: Lxcuse ne vho
aie you` WeII he couId of said: I an lhe Iiesidenl. ul lhen he couId have
I AM : M. M. NInan


vii
leen an oId ieliied Iiesidenl, iighl` He couId have aIso leen lhe
Iiesidenl of anolhei counliy iighl` Oi he couId have jusl leen lhe
Iiesidenl of a piivale coipoialion ialhei lhan a counliy, coiiecl` So you
couId le confused, especiaIIy if he Iooked unfaniIiai oi you veienl
expecling hin lo le lheie al lhal poinl. ul if youd asked hin vho he
vas and he said his fuII nane and lilIe, and il vas a nane and lilIe lhal
you iecognized e.g. In Iiesidenl Ceoige WaIkei ush of lhe USA,
youd knov innedialeIy lhal he vas cIaining lo le lhe cuiienl Iiesidenl
of lhe USA hinseIf. The onIy cuiienl piesidenl of lhe USA al lhal poinl.
And lheie vouId le no doull vouId lheie` Nov you nay doull lhal he
ieaIIy vas CW ush, lul you couIdnl have any doull aloul WHO he
c!aImcd lo le. See lhe diffeience lheie` Il vouIdnl piove he vas vho he
said he vas, lul ve vouId have no doull exaclIy vho he vas c!aImIng
lo le.

So in lhe sane vay, vhen }esus cIained lo le Cod, he didnl jusl say I an
god. ecause lhen he couId have leen any oId god. Oi lhal he vas pail of
Cod, oi lhal he vas godIy, oi lhal he had essence of god oi vhalevei.
ul he inslead using lhe nane of lhe ONL AND ONLY SUIRLML COD
lhal lhe }evs knev of, nade il veiy cIeai lhal he vas lhe I AM. The
One and ONLY I AM.

You see in lhose fev voids he said, OK IoIks ienenlei Moses oul
lheie in lhe viIdeiness` Renenlei lhe uining ush` Renenlei lhal
Cod` Renenlei lhe Cod of Aliahan Isaac and }acol` Renenlei lhe
Cod vho lioughl you oul of Lgypl oul of sIaveiy` Renenlei lhe Cod
vho gave you lhis Iand and deslioyed aII youi enenies. Renenlei lhe
Cod vho said ils punishalIe ly dealh lo cIain lo le Hin` Renenlei lhe
Cod vho ciealed lhe enliie univeise as veII as you` Renenlei lhe Cod
vho says Hes lhe ONLY Cod. WeII guess vhal, THAT is lhe COD I AM.
Thal is lhe Cod I an cIaining lo le. No doulls, no queslions, no
confusion. I AM.
I AM : M. M. NInan


viii

And vhal did lhe }evs do` Weie lhey confused` Weie lhey puzzIed` Nol
al aII, lhey aII knev lheii hisloiy. They undeislood innedialeIy vhal he
had cIained lo le and lhey liied lo vhal` They liied lo slone hin. Why`
Ioi lIaspheny, cIaining lo le Cod vhen you aienl.
Jnhn 8:59 Theiefoie lhey picked up slones lo lhiov al Hin, lul }esus hid
HinseIf, and venl oul of lhe lenpIe.
So if anyone evei says: WeII }esus nevei said he vas Cod, you can say,
veII acluaIIy he did one lellei, he nol onIy cIained lo le Cod lul he
expIained exaclIy vhich specific piecise Cod he vas. You see lo le suie
lheie vas no confusion he naned lhe one and onIy Cod lhal He vas.


Lesl anyone say: veII lhis is }UST one exanpIe. Theie aie nuneious
nuneious siniIai exanpIes of Chiisl cIaining lo le Cod. Ioi exanpIe
vhen he cIained lo le lhe Son of Man - he vas nol saying he vas hunan
oi fiaiI. In acluaI facl he vas cIaining lo le lhe peison in DanieIs vision
fion DanieI Chaplei 7 veises 13-14 i.e. The AInighly IoveifuI Cod.. Oi
vhen he cIained lo le alIe lo foigive sin and said onIy Cod can foigive
sin, oi vhen Thonas caIIed hin My Loid and My Cod and }esus did
nol iefule hin oi ieluke hin noi did he say sonelhing Iike: AcluaIIy
Thonas - ve aie ALL gods.

These I AM sayings of }esus aie in facl lhe coie of lhe cIains of }esus.
NcI! Mammcn
5an Jnsc, CA
Junc, 2005
I AM : M. M. NInan


ix

I AM
5ayIngs nf Jcsus
In thc Gnspc! nf Jnhn


}LSUS HIMSLLI
says
"I An"

occuis fifly-foui lines in }ohn's CospeI

Tvenly-foui of lhese aie noie enphalic,
ly expIicilIy incIuding lhe pionoun "I"
.



These enphalic iefeiences
aie:
}ohn 4:26, 6:2O, 6:35, 6:41, 6:48, 6:51, 7:28, 7:29, 7:33, 7:34,
7:36, 8:12, 8:16, 8:18, 8:23 (lvice), 8:24, 8:28, 8:58, 9:5, 1O:7,
1O:9, 1O:11, 1O:14, 1O:36, 11:25, 12:26, 13:13, 13:19, 13:33, 14:3,
14:6, 14:9, 15:1, 15:5, 16:32, 17:11, 17:14, 17:16, 17:24, 18:5,
18:6, 18:8, 18:37, 19:21




I AM : M. M. NInan


x





I AM : M. M. NInan


xi










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xii



*







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xiii



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xiv






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xv






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xvi












I AM : M. M. NInan


1




I AM
5YMBOL5 JE5U5 U5ED TO EXPLAIN HIM5ELF

CHAPTER ONE
I. INTRODUCTION
In lhe Iasl days of his Iife Oui Loid }esus vas pailicuIaiIy sliained
lecause he knev lhal his days aie coning lo an end, and lhal he
had veiy IillIe line Iefl vilh his discipIes lo leach and ieveaI lo
lhen lhe gieal nysleiies of lhe incainalion. The connunicalion of
lhe nysleiies of heaven is pailicuIaiIy difficuIl lo convey, as lhey
do nol usuaIIy have leiiesliiaI inages. Woids lhal coiiespond lo
lhe concepls aie lolaIIy oi pailiaIIy nissing in hunan concepluaI
voiId. As a iesuIl, lhese nessages aie shiouded in synloIic
Ianguage vilh lhe hope lhal his discipIes viII le alIe lo giasp ils
significance as lhey nedilaled ovei his voids and leachings. These
gieal synloIisns aie handed ovei lo us in lhe gospeIs. The
foIIoving sludies aie an allenpl in undeislanding vhal }esus vas
liying lo pul acioss lo lhe hunan nind.
The inpoilance of lhe phiase 'I an lhe can le undeislood fion lhe
neie facl lhal oul of lhe lolaI of 218 occasions in lhe ilIe (using
NIV) neaiIy 2OO of lhese aie decIaialions of Cod vhich slales
expIicilIy I an lhe Loid oi I an lhe Soveieign Loid oi lo such
effecl. In lhe OId Teslanenl, lhe lilIe I AM is consideied hoIy and
I AM : M. M. NInan


2
unspeakalIe. Il vas lhe nane as given lo Moses in his encounlei
vilh lhe soveieign Cod al lhe luining lush lheophany. In lhe
Nev Teslanenl I an lhe occuis 25 lines oul of vhich }esus
iefeis lo il lo hinseIf 9 lines duiing his eailhIy peiiod and 6 lines
in lhe ReveIalions. Thal is oul of 25 occuiiences 16 aie spoken ly
}esus vhiIe 5 lines il iefeis lo Cod hinseIf as quoled ly }esus.
LvidenlIy lhe phiase I AM is diieclIy ieIaled lo lhe ieveIalion of
Cod as lhe gieal I AM - Yhvh. A sludy of lhe gospeIs shovs lhal
lheie aie seven lasic synloIs lhal }esus used. These aie phiased
vilh lhe inlioducloiy announcenenl, I AM THL... and aie found
in lhe CospeI of }ohn. They aie:
1. I am thc brcad nf !Ifc Jn. 6.35-59
2. I am thc !Ight nf thc wnr!d Jn. 8.12, 9.5, 12.35-36
3. I am thc dnnr Jn. 10.7-10
4. I am thc gnnd shcphcrd Jn. 10.11-18
5. I am thc rcsurrcctInn and thc !Ifc Jn. 11.25
6. I am thc way, thc truth and thc !Ifc Jn. 14.6
7. I am thc truc vInc Jn. 15.1-11

LvidenlIy, }esus vas enphasizing lhe facl lhal he vas Yhvh, Cod.
Aflei his Ascension }esus spoke lo }ohn in his vision vheie he
added lvo olhei I an lhe... picluies, lhese aie:


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3
8. I am thc A!pha and thc Omcga Rcv. 1.8, 1.17-18, 21.6, 22.13
9. I am thc rnnt and thc nffsprIng nf DavId, thc brIght mnrnIng
star Rcv. 22.16
Apail fion lhese veilaI synloIs, }esus aIso insliluled sone visilIe
synloIs. Tvo of lhen occui in lhe sacianenl of lhe Lasl Suppei
and caiiied ovei inlo lhe inslilulion of lhe ieaking of lhe iead oi
Loids Suppei oi Connunion oi Mass as aie usuaIIy iefeiied lo ly
vaiious denoninalions. These aie lhe iead and lhe Vine.
WHAT ARE 5YMBOL5?
We aie aII faniIiai vilh synloIs lecause lhey peivade aII oui
Iives. Il is a iepiesenlalion of an idea eilhei in visuaI oi audilIe
foin.
Sone exanpIes viII exenpIify lhen lellei. Anong lhe Chiislians,
ve aie faniIiai vilh lhe cioss lhal appeais in nosl chuiches. The
eaiIy chuich used lhe synloI of fish. Olhei faniIiai Chiislian
synloIs aie lhe Ianl and lhe open look.

Lach ieIigion has a synloI, vhich iepiesenls
lhe coie leaching of lhe ieIigion. Thus, ve have
lhe cioss foi Chiislianily, lhe ciescenl foi IsIan,
lhe Slai of David foi }evs, lhe sign of On foi
Hindus. These aie visuaI synloIs. IoIilicaI
pailies, oiganizalions, inslilulions elc. aIso use
I AM : M. M. NInan


4
visuaI synloIs, vhiIe visuaI synloIs aie videIy used, lhe audilIe
synloIs aie nol nuch popuIai. Hovevei, lhey aie found in aII
vaIks of Iife. Connand vhislIes, siien sounds, lhene songs of
nusic gioups, iadio slalions elc aie exanpIes of lhese. We shaII
see vhy audilIe synloIs aie Iess popuIai, and lhe ieason is
inpoilanl.
The viillen void and lhe spoken void aie lhe uIlinale synloIs
lecause of lheii connunicalive povei. An essay oi a speech
connunicales noie lhan a slalic visuaI oi audilIe synloI. Thal is
vhy lhe lilIe of 'lhe Woid of Cod, 'KaIinul AIIah is given lo
}esus enphasizing lhe uIlinale and cIeai ieveIalion of Cod lo nan
in Chiisl }esus.
Whal lhen is a synloI` A synloI is sonelhing, vhich
connunicales ideas and concepls of ieaIilies, vhich aie olheivise
difficuIl lo connunicale.
A good synloI is
lheiefoie a good
expiession of a concepl
and is a neans of
connunicalion. The use
of lhe synloI gives lhis
effecl lecause of lhe
foIIoving piocess. Iiisl, il
conveils an exisling ieaIily inlo a concepl, vhich in luin is
conveiled inlo lhe synloI. The ieceivei, vho peiceives lhe synloI
lhiough exleinaI slinuIi, in luin ieinleipiels il and lheiely
iecognizes lhe concepl conlained in il. The ieceivei lhus
undeislands lhe oiiginaI concepl.



Symbols are the means of
communication. All carriers of
information use symbols.


I AM : M. M. NInan


5
1.2 5YMBOL5 A5 A MEAN5 OF UNDER5TANDING
SynloIs aie lheiefoie lhe neans of Ieaining. Wiiling vas one of
lhe fiisl gieal evenls in Ieaining, vheie sounds oi concepls veie
iecoided ly synloIs. In sone Ianguages, a phonelic syslen is
used vheieas in sone olhei Ianguages a visuaI concepl foin is
used.
We go on invenling noie and noie synloIs and lellei and lellei
synloIs lo expiess oui gioving concepls. Language - a gioving
Ianguage - giovs in vocaluIaiy. As lhe need aiises nev voids aie
coined. Ioi exanpIe in sone Ianguages, lheie aie onIy lhiee voids
foi coIois lecause coIois aie cIassified onIy inlo lhiee gioups. In
lhe LngIish Ianguage, ve have seven coIoi nanes and nany
conlinalion coIoi nanes. In nosl Indian Ianguages, ve have
ninule delaiIs of ieIalionships vilh peopIe indicaled in voids.
UncIe in LngIish can nean falheis liolhei oi nolheis liolhei,
vheieas in nany olhei Ianguages ve have dislincl voids foi
lhese. A sludy of lhese voids viII give us lienendous
undeislanding of lhe cuIluie of lhe Iand.
In science, ve have leen coining nev voids. In nalhenalics ve
have lhe connonIy undeislood synloIs of +, -, x, / , = al lhe
Iovesl IeveI. Then in lhe highei cIasses ve cone acioss synloIs
foi <, >, lends lo, exponenl, diffeienliaI of, inlegiaI of, LapIace
liansfoin of, sun of elc. Nev synloIs aie aIvays deveIoped lo
piesenl nev concepls. They heIp in handIing nunleis and
aIgeliaic synloIs in a faslei and lellei vay. The pIacehoIdei O is
one of lhe giealesl conliilulions of India lo Malhenalics. ul
nany of lhe synloIs used in advanced nalhenalics aie
undeislood onIy ly lhe nalhenalicians.
I AM : M. M. NInan


6
Thus, a good synloI heIps in oui undeislanding of lhe concepls
invoIved and aIso in nanipuIaling ideas invoIving lhe concepl. AII
synloIs aie deveIoped fion lhe exisling synloIs. The synloIs gel
lheii neaning onIy in lhe conlexl of
lhe exisling synloIs. Ioi exanpIe,
lhe inlegiaI sign deveIoped oul of lhe Sun sign vilh an eIongaled
S, diffeienliaI sign vas deveIoped fion lhe lasic Iinil concepl of
incienenlaI signs as ialio of lvo infinilesinaIs. The sane is liue in
popuIai synloIs. The cioss vas alhoiience liII }esus, lecause il
vas a synloI of dealh in a hoiiilIe vay. ul in }esus, il found a
nev neaning. A synloI nay have diffeienl neaning lo diffeienl
peopIe due lo lheii lackgiound. A pig is consideied a cIean aninaI
in lhe vesl and a goal is consideied an uncIean aninaI. ul in aII
Senilic cuIluies, lhe pig is consideied a fiIlhy aninaI and is
alhoiienl, vhiIe a goal oi Ianl is consideied aInosl sacied. The
synloIs aie lheiefoie cuIluie sensilive.
Thus if ve vanl lo undeisland lhe neaning of a synloI ve have lo
go lack inlo lhe conlexl of lhe peison vho gives lhe synloI. In
oidei lo undeisland lhe synloIs }esus used, ve have lo do il fion
vilhin lhe }evish conlexl of }esus peiiod. We have lo ask lhe
queslion, hov did his heaieis
undeisland il and vhal aie lhe
addilionaI neaning he nighl have
given lo lhe synloI. In nany
cases, he had changed lhe neaning
of lhe synloIs consideialIy as he
did vilh lhe synloI of cioss ly his
peisonaIily and his divinily and
his leachings.
}esus leing Cod incainale knev nuch noie lhan his heaieis did.
His luiden vas lo Ioad lhe synloIs vilh as nuch neaning as he
}
a

x
2
dx (b
3
- a
3
) /3



Thc symbn!s gct thcIr
mcanIng nn!y In thc cnntcxt

I AM : M. M. NInan


7
couId so lhal his discipIes couId Ieain in due couise of line as
nuch as possilIe aloul hin as Cod incainale and aloul lhe naluie
of Cod. Thal vas lhe puipose of incainalion. He vas lhe uIlinale
ieveIalion of Cod lo nan. Hence his decIaied synloIs of I an
lhe... shouId le consideied as lhe desciiplion of Cod as ieveaIed
lo Man in }esus. Il leIIs us vho }esus vas, and vhal vas lhe
puipose of lhe incainalion. Il aIso leIIs us aloul lhe naluie of Cod
in a vay no olheis can leII us.
Since lhe lianscendaI and spiiiluaI expeiiences aie lhe nosl
difficuIl ieaIilies lhal can le connunicaled, lhese aie usuaIIy
liansnilled lhiough eIaloiale enacled synloIs, connonIy knovn
as iiluaIs. RiluaIs aie sacianenlaI, peifoinalive, iepelilive sociaI
synloIs, vhich lakes an oidinaiy void, aclion, oi synloI and
gives il a deplh of neaning vhich is exliaoidinaiy. The puipose is
lellei connunicalion and ieaIizalion of lhe expeiience lhal is
leyond connunicalion. RiluaIs ieceive lheii neaning onIy in lhe
conlexl and in lhe cuIluie in vhich il is slaled, since each
conponenl synloI of lhe iiluaI has a neaning in lhal conlexl and
cuIluie onIy. }usl as a Ianguage is gilleiishes lo one vho do nol
knov lhe Ianguage, iiluaIs viII le onIy a faice oi diana lo lhose
vho do nol enlei inlo lhe neaning of il.
I AM : M. M. NInan


8
I AM : M. M. NInan


9

CHAPTER TWO
I AM THAT I AM
The fiisl of lhe ieveIalion of Cod aflei lhe ieveIalions lo paliiaichs
Aliahan, Isaac and }acol vas lo Moses in lhe Mounl Sinai al lhe
luining lush lheophany. Heie Moses expiessIy desiies lo knov
lhe nane of Cod vho is sending hin. The iepIy vas in lvo
specific foins.
The fiisl iesponse vas Lx. 3.14 I an
lhal I an, and lhe second iesponse
vas Lx. 3.15 The Loid Cod of youi
falheis. Iion lhe nane I an lhal I
an ve gel lhe peisonaI nane of
Cod Yhvh. In oiiginaI, il ieads
Lheyeh Ashei Lheyeh. The VuIgale
liansIales il as, I an vho I an. The
Sepluaginl liansIales il as I an he
vho exisls. The Syiiac, Ieisic, and
ChaIdee pieseives lhe oiiginaI veise
as such vilhoul liansIalion. The Aialic paiaphiases il as, The
eleinaI vho passes nol avay. The neaning heie can le
inleipieled in nany diffeienl senses.
Il neans fiisl of aII lhal Cod is a IeisonaI, Independenl SeIf-
exislenl leing. He is vilhoul cause, lul he is a peison - lhe seIf-
conscious leing fion lhe leginning.


"I am that I am"
"I am whn I am"
"I am hc whn cxIsts"
"Thc ctcrna! whn passcs
nnt away".
I AM : M. M. NInan


10
Yahveh is nol a neie povei oi an eleinaI Iav. He is nol a
niigunan - sonelhing vhich does nol
have any piopeilies. (The leins used heie
aie fion lhe Indian liadilion) A niiguna-
liahnan is nol knovalIe, lecause he
cannol le desciiled (nii=non,
guna=piopeilies iahnan = godhead). A
saguna liahnan is Cod vilh piopeilies
(sa= vilh guna=piopeilies). Iiopeilies
aiise onIy vhen lheie is a ieIalion. Theie
has lo le a knovn and a knovei if
piopeilies aie lo exisl. Thus, in ilseIf il
decIaies lhal vilhin lhe unily of lhe
Codhead is a connunily of shaiing,
knoving peisons so lhal Cod lecones
a peison vilh chaiaclei. A Cod vilhoul a
chaiaclei and a puipose is unlhinkalIe in
Yahvile liadilions. AII Iife and
consciousness slails fion hin. This is lhe nelaphysicaI concepl of
iahnan oi Iaialiahnan (paia= uIlinale) in Saguna liahnan
aspecl. The Hindu sages desciiles hin as Sal-Chil-Ananda, vhich
liansIaled neans The Tiulh, The Life and lhe Iiss in lhis slale.
Wilhoul Cod, lheie is neilhei piopeily foi nallei noi peisonaIily
foi leings. This is lhe nelaphysicaI inleipielalion of lhe nane
Yhvh.
Lx.3.15 says, This is ny nane foievei, Yehovah LIohin lhe Loid
Cods. This Cod decIaies, is lhe nane ly vhich WoiId have knovn
hin - lhe Cod vho vas aclive in hisloiy, lhe Cod of lhe falheis. In
lhis conlexl, lhe decIaialion, I an lhal I an nay le inleipieled as
I an lhal acls lhiough hisloiy oi I an vho is knovn lhiough ny
aclivily.




Yahweh is not a
mere power or an
eternal law. God is
a Person.

I AM : M. M. NInan


11
Cod has no nane, his ieveIalion is found in lhe cosnos and in lhe
hisloiy. Cod ieveaIs hinseIf
lhiough hisloiy in his deaIings
vilh nan. You can knov hin,
lul you cannol undeisland hin,
sinpIy lecause Cod is infinile
and nan is finile. The
connolalion of lhe void foievei,
is lhal il is liue age aflei age.
Cod is lhe sane yesleiday,
loday and foievei, lul oui
undeislanding of Cod giovs vilh oui expeiience.
ThIs gIvcs thrcc aspccts nf Gnd.
1. Gnd Is thc nnc whn prnvIdcs thc charactcr fnr mattcr.
The sulslance of nallei is ciealed ly Cod as an acl of voIilion. Il
vas an ex-nihiIo ciealion - ciealed
fion nolhing. The dislincliveness
of Cod fion lhe naleiiaI voiId -
piakiilhi (piakiil = oiiginaI, in
ciude foin, piakiili= naluie) is
enphasized in Yahveh. Yahveh
is a Iuiusha (=Ieison) vhiIe
Iiakiilhi is non-Iuiusha - vhose
piopeilies aiise lecause of lheii
inlei-ieIalions. These piopeilies
aie lecause of Cod. He inposes
lhese piopeilies. In olhei voids,
Iavs of naluie aie encoded ly
Cod. Science lheiefoie decIaies
lhe najesly and gIoiy of Cod. He shovs hinseIf lhiough naluie.


"I am that I am"
I am whn Is knnwn thrnugh my
actIvIty.




I AM : M. M. NInan


12
Theie aie olhei aIleinalives, vhich aie aIso peifeclIy IogicaI. Sone of
lhese possilIe aIleinalives aie:
= Theie is nolhing lul Cod (Iaianalna - Cieal Spiiil). Then aII lhal
ve aie and ve see aie pails of Cod - nol onIy consciousness (}eevalna
- Living Spiiil) lul aIso non-conscious nallei and non-nallei
(Iiakiili). (Acl 17:28) foi 'In hin ve Iive and nove and have oui
leing'
= Il is Cod vho foins lhe conscious-ness. AII nallei and non-
nallei aie ciealed ly lhis Cod.
= Iion lhe coaise hunan vievpoinl, lheie is Cod and lheie is
aIso nallei and non-nallei. They aie lhe piinaI duaIs.
Inleiaclions of lhese aie vhal foin lhe evenls and expeiiences. In
effecl ve have aII soils of peinulalions possilIe vilh lhese lasic
exislence of
1) Cod (Iaianalna)
2) Non-Cods (}eevalna)
3) Mallei in nany dinensions (Iiakiili).
We can have lhese possiliIilies:
Aj (1) seIf exislanl vho cieales (2) and (3),
j (1) and (2) lolh seIf exislenl as a unily of consciousness and
lhis (1,2) unily cieale (3),
Cj (1) and (2) lolh seIf exislenl as sepaiale enlilies and lhis (1) and
(2) cieale sepaialeIy oi joinlIy (3),
Dj (1), (2)and (3) coexisling.
Theie aie olhei possiliIilies loo.
So, ve can see lhal lheie aie nany IogicaI possiliIilies and ve
cannol ieaIIy eslalIish oi iefule lhe exislence of Cod. Hence, ve
I AM : M. M. NInan


13
onIy have apoIogelics foi vhal ve leIieve. We can juslify lul nol
piove lhe exislence of Cod.
So in lhe Slalenenl I an lhal I an, Cod iefuses lo give an
expIanalion of hinseIf, sinpIy lecause Cod is leyond ieason. Oul
of lhis anliguily aiise lhe vaiious phiIosophicaI and ieIigious
liadilions. In India aII lhese foins aie equaIIy iespecled fion lhe
Advailic (AlsoIule oneness = OnIy god is ieaIily) and Dvailic
(duaI alsoIules= lolh iahnan and Iiakiili aie alsoIules) lo
Sankhya (MaleiiaIislic = onIy nallei is ieaI)
2. 5ccnnd Gnd hImsc!f bcIng uncrcatcd cannnt havc Inhcrcnt
prnpcrtIcs nr charactcr, un!css Gnd
hImsc!f Is a cnmmunIty. An isoIaled
alsoIule one Cod cannol exisl - hovevei
ve define exislence. Cod inleinaIIy is a
nuIlipIe peisonaIily. This is vheie lhe
Tiinilaiian aspecl of Cod cones in. This
suljecl aiea is vasl enough lo neiil a
sepaiale liealise.
3. Gnd can bc knnwn by us nn!y thrnugh hIs actInns.
Cod vas saying lo Moses, lhal you cannol
undeisland ne as I an. You can knov ne
onIy lhiough ny aclions. You can knov
ne lhiough ny inleiaclion vilh peopIe,
and lhiough ny aclions in hisloiy. You
cone lo ne. You expeiience ne.
Lxpeiience Cod in hisloiy, as Cod vho
acls lhiough hisloiy. Thus lhe ilIe is a ieveIalion of Cod, lecause
il is lhe hisloiy of a nalion vhich leIIs us hov Cod acls lhiough
peopIe - hov Cod liansfoined lhe Iives of lhose vho connilled
lhenseIves lo hin, hov Cod deaIl vilh peopIe vho iefuse lo

Wc can knnw Gnd nn!y
thrnugh HIs actInns.



YHVH ELOHIM
The Lord Gods

I AM : M. M. NInan


14
accepl Cod. Il is lhe hisloiy, vhich leIIs us hov god acls lhiough a
connunily and a nalion - his nelhods of deaIing vilh sin,
chaslisenenl and iesloialion. Il is lhe hisloiy of lhe voiId, vheie
Cod acls lhiough hisloiy and deaIs vilh nalions and hov he Ieads
hisloiy lo cuIninalion accoiding lo his puiposes. In aII lhese, ve
see lhe unveiIing of his chaiaclei and ieveaIs Cod. Thal is vhy il is
lhe Woid of Cod.
In lhis sense, hisloiy of eveiy nalion is lhe hisloiy of Cod's
ieveIalion - onIy lhal in secuIai
hisloiy, ve do nol viev il as such, and
Cod is veiIed ly nans inleipielalion.
The hisloiic sliuggIe of lhe peopIe of
eveiy nalion foi Iileialion and
oppiession, lheii sliuggIe lo find
fuIfiIInenl of Iife and puipose aie pail
of Cod's ieveIalion. This unfoIding
sliII conlinues. This unveiIing of Cod conlinues in lhe hisloiy of
lhe eailh, hisloiy of lhe nalions, counliies, liiles, faniIies and
individuaIs. This is piolalIy lhe onIy vay lo knov Cod - in oui
Iives. Cod is knovn lhiough oui expeiience al aII dinensions -
sociaI, cuIluiaI, hisloiicaI, sensuaI, inleIIecluaI and nenlaI, in lody,
nind and spiiil.
2.1 THE CONCEPT OF MANY IN ONE
In a sociely lhal is seIf-cenleied, vheie nan is consideied as an
individuaI, ve cannol undeisland oi conpiehend lhe concepl of
lhe oiganisn of nany in one. The aigunenl of IsIan againsl lhe
liinily is lhal Cod cannol le nany in one lecause lheie viII le
confIicl in peisonaIilies. If lhal occuis lheie viII le a doninanl
peisonaIily vho viII lecone lhe Cod of lhe gods. This is acluaIIy
vhal is depicled in lhe pagan gods. The Hindu liinily is aIvays

History of every nation
or person is
HIS STORY

I AM : M. M. NInan


15
fighling againsl each olhei and Naiada is invoIved in lhe inilialion
of confIicl, deveIopnenl of ciisis and lhe finaI iesoIulion. This
happens aIvays lecause each of lhese gods have an inleiesl of lheii
ovn vhich cannol le ieconciIed vilh lhe inleiesl of olheis. This
viII lhen give us a deveIoping and gioving Cod. Hindu Cod even
in ils Iaialiahna aspecl is consideied as an evoIving Cod. Il
vouId nake line leyond Iaiaiahnan and a goaI, vhich is
oulside of Cod and independenl. This in facl nuIIifies lhe concepl
of Cod ilseIf. Is lheie sonelhing oulside of god, leyond god,
exisling independenl of Cod, noiaI, spiiiluaI oi naleiiaI` So, ve
can see lhal an evoIving god is a conliadiclion. This is lhe faIIen
naluie, vhich is aIso seen in nankind.
ul in a Codhead, vhich is
liuIy divine, lhe Tiinily acls
as unison. Theie is no
confIicl of inleiesl lelveen
lhe peisons vilhin lhe Tiinily
in line and hisloiy. They
aIvays have lhe sane inleiesl
and suppoil each olhei.
They aII have lhe sane piolIen and conliilule conpIenenlaiiIy lo
soIve lhe piolIen. This can happen onIy if lhe piolIen is exleinaI
lo lhe Codhead ilseIf. The piolIens aie ieIaled lo lhe ciealion and
exisl onIy in line, space, and olhei dinensions.
Nolice hov }esus iefeis lo lhe ieIalionship vilhin lhe Tiinily.
]cnn 5.19 ]csus gatc |ncn |nis ansucr. '| |c|| qcu |nc |ru|n, |nc Scn can
dc nc|ning oq ninsc|f, nc can dc cn|q una| nc sccs nis |a|ncr dcing,
occausc una|ctcr |nc |a|ncr dccs |nc Scn a|sc dccs.
]cnn 10.30 | and |nc |a|ncr arc cnc.
]cnn 14.11 8c|ictc nc uncn | saq |na| | an in |nc |a|ncr and |nc

Sh'ma Yisrael
Adonai Elohaynu Adonai Echad

Hear Oh Israel,
Lord your Gods is One Lord


I AM : M. M. NInan


16
|a|ncr is in nc, cr a| |cas| oc|ictc cn |nc ctidcncc cf |nc nirac|cs
|ncnsc|tcs.
]cnn 14.26 8u| |nc Ccunsc|cr, |nc Hc|q Spiri|, uncn |nc |a|ncr ui||
scnd in nq nanc, ui|| |cacn qcu a||
|nings and ui|| rcnind qcu cf
ctcrq|ning | natc said |c qcu.
]cnn 15.26 'lncn |nc Ccunsc|cr
ccncs, uncn | ui|| scnd |c qcu frcn |nc
|a|ncr, |nc Spiri| cf |ru|n unc gccs cu|
frcn |nc |a|ncr, nc ui|| |cs|ifq aocu|
nc.
Adan is a nane foi Mankind - nol
of a peison. Lve vas ceilainIy in
hin vhon Cod Ialei sepaialed oul
and she vas lhe nolhei of aII nen. So lhe ciealion vas pIuiaI -
nany in one. The faII of nan vas piolalIy lhis consciousness lhal
I an sepaiale I an nol He. When Cain iuns off, ve neel olheis.
As lhe inage of Cod, Adan vas supposed lo le nany peisons in
one Mankind. ul lhis inage vas shalleied ly lhe choice lhal Lve
and Adan nade ly enphasizing lheii sepaialeness as againsl lheii
unily. The innediale effecl of lhis faII vas lhe feeIing of isoIalion
and nakedness, vhich caused Adan and Lve lo hide. In lhe
phiIosophy of Di. Kiishnanuilhy he
has liied lo enphasize lhis oiiginaI
concepl. Ioi hin nankind is
acluaIIy shaiing lhe sane univeisaI
consciousness lhal ve caII Man.
The sepaialeness is onIy a Maya
inposed ly lhe viIIfuI ignoiance of
nan. As Iong as nan iefuses lo

God is a unisonic
resonant community of
Persons.





Thc scparatcncss Is nn!y a
Maya Impnscd by thc wI!!fu!
Ignnrancc nf man. As !nng as
man rcfuscs tn acccpt, thIs
nncncss, thc samsara wI!!
cngu!f hIm tn Ignnrancc and
wc wI!! rcmaIn In a fa!!cn
wnr!d.


I AM : M. M. NInan


17
accepl, lhis oneness lhe sansaia viII enguIf hin lo ignoiance and
ve ollain a faIIen voiId.
In Sound, ve have lhe phenonena of Resonance and leals. When
aII lhe sound vaves aie in unison, lhey pioduce lhe lienendous
povei of unisonic iesonance capalIe of doing anylhing. ul vhen
lhey aie in dissonance, lhey pioduce leals lhal appeai as vaxing
and vaning. The eneigy has leen dissipaled, disliiluled, and
Iiniled. Sone peopIe lhink lhal Yah is piolalIy a vhoIe
connunily of peisons in unison foining as one Iiving leing. ul
ve ceilainIy have lhiee peisonaIilies in one Codhead. To go
anylhing leyond lhis poinl cannol le suppoiled ly lilIicaI
evidence.
In lhe piehisloiy, lheie vas an aninaI, vhich vas seipenline in
naluie, vhich had lhiee cenleis of Consciousness oi liains. This
aninaI is nov exlincl. Did il die oul lecause of inleinaI confIicls` Il
is caIIed Dinosauis. We have no piolIen in accepling lhis facl.
Hovevei, oui connonsense nolions of space and line Iinil us
fion undeislanding lhis unily in lhe hunan connunilies and
cosnic leings. These viII deslioy lhenseIves vhen lhese
consciousness confIicls each olhei and puII lhe leing in diffeienl
diieclions. And il is liue even of Cod. This in essence is lhe
leaching of lhe Nev Age and Hinduisn vheie Man is nolhing lul
lhe faIIen Cod, lecause of lhe inleinaI confIicls. To lhen saIvalion
Iies in iesoIving lhis confIicl.
Cod doesn'l have a nane. ul lhey can pul on one - oi pul on
nany. He puls on a nane lhal expIains lheii chaiaclei al lhal
line. Cod lhe Ialhei, Cod lhe Son and Cod lhe HoIy Spiiil aie
nanes lhal chaiacleiize lhe aclivilies of lhese peisons. They have
dislincl funclions vilhin lhe Codhead and have dislincl
peisonaIilies. They aie one in essence and one is unily. This unily
I AM : M. M. NInan


18
goes fai leyond lhe essence inlo lheii aclivilies and puiposes. If
ve expIain Codhead as a faniIy oiganisn, oi as a connunily oI
oiganisn (http://alandpeters.tripod.com/id19.html) lhis viII le a
lellei appioxinalion. ul lhen oui faIIen naluie viII lend lo
associale confIicls vilhin lhe faniIy and sociely and lhe liue unily
of godhead vouId le nissed. When IauI desciiles chuich as a
liide of Chiisl, he had lhis unily in nind.
|pn 4.-6 Tncrc is cnc ocdq and cnc Spiri|-- jus| as qcu ucrc ca||cd |c
cnc ncpc uncn qcu ucrc ca||cd-- cnc |crd, cnc fai|n, cnc oap|isn, cnc
Gcd and |a|ncr cf a||, unc is ctcr a|| and |nrcugn a|| and in a||.
ConfIicl is lhe iesuIl of sone iiievocalIe Iav of Iogic oi slale
leyond lhe hunan nind. Since lheie is nolhing leyond Cod, lheie
can le no confIicl vilhin Codhead.




I AM : M. M. NInan


19

CHAPTER THREE
I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE

}ohn Chaplei 6 is a discouise on lhe picluie of }esus as lhe liead.
This is a veiy exhauslive liealnenl on lhe synloIisn vheie he
diavs lhe neaning of lhe synloIisns lo ils uIlinale Iinils. }ohn 6:
27-59. }esus slails his discouise in lhe conlexl of lhe feeding of
lhe five lhousand. He lhen pioceeds lo poinl oul lhal even lhough
lhe liead he piovided vas physicaI liead, peopIe oughl lo le
Iooking lovaids hin foi lhe ieaI food. The ieaI food is lhal
suslains Iife - lhe food lhal enduies lo eleinaI Iife. The liead is
caIIed lhe slaff of Iife oi lhe food lhal suslains Iife and heIps il
giov. (LzekieI 4:16, 5:16, 14:13) Lven lhough }esus iefeis lo
liead, lhe synloIisn is foi lolh food and diink. I an lhe liead of
Iife, he vho cones lo ne shaII nol hungei, and he vho leIieves in
ne shaII nevei lhiisl. (}n.6.35)
I AM : M. M. NInan


20
Heie }esus is piesenling hinseIf
as lhe suslainei of Iife and nol as
lhe givei of Iife. In lhe ilIe lhe
Iife givei is lhe Spiiil of Cod.
So, in defining hinseIf as lhe
liead, he inpIies his funclion in
lhe Tiinily. Iood doesnl give
Iife lo lhe lody, il onIy nainlains il lo le a heaIlhy lody so lhal il
nay funclion peifeclIy. The lody - and I iefei lo lhe physicaI lody
- cannol funclion noinaIIy unIess a nan has }esus vilhin hin.
Wilhoul }esus, lhe lody decays and dealh viII cone. This is sinpIy
lecause vilhoul lhe povei of lhe iisen }esus il is inpossilIe lo Iive
a iighleous Iife heie and nov. Oui aliIily lo Iive a noinaI heaIlhy
Iife is dependenl on }esus in oui Iife. As }anes poinls oul, Tncn
dcsirc uncn i| nas ccnccitcd gitcs oir|n |c sin, and sin uncn i| is fu||q
grcun orings dca|n. (]a. 1.15) }esus is nov laIking aloul dealh. Il is
connonIy loId lhal dealh is lo le undeislood as spiiiluaI dealh oi
sepaialion fion Cod. Such an undeislanding has cone fion lhe
veslein inleipielalion. ul in lhe Senilic and Asialic lhoughl, lhis
dislinclion does nol aiise. Life is lolh spiiiluaI and naleiiaI and
dealh is sane in lolh cases. In lolh cases, il is a spIilling oi
desliuclion of nan. Dealh is lhe iesuIl of sin. Il is nol anlecedenl
lo sin, lul consequence of sin. So, if dealh is lo le conqueied, sin
nusl le defealed. Sin can le defealed onIy lhiough }esus. The
uIlinale saIvalion of nankind Iies in }esus, lhe liead of Iife.
3.1 OLD TE5TAMENT IMPLICATION5
To undeisland vhal }esus neanl ly lhe iead of Iife ve need lo
Iook inlo lhe OId Teslanenl concepl of liead. The synloIic
iepiesenlalion of liead in lhe OId Teslanenl aiises in lhe conlexl
of lhe Shev liead, oi lhe liead of Iiesence.


Thc brcad Is thc staff nf !Ifc nr thc
fnnd that sustaIns !Ifc and hc!ps It
grnw.


I AM : M. M. NInan


21
This is iefeiied in sunnaiy in Hel.9.2 and in delaiI in Lev.24.5-9
and Lx.25.3O. In lhe hoIies oi in lhe couil of lhe AssenlIy vheie
lhe IsiaeI galheied logelhei foi voiship on lhe iighl hand side vas
a goIden lalIe on vhich veie pIaced lveIve liead pieces. CoIden
lalIe iepiesenls lhe heavenIy alodes vheie lhe unIeavened liead
is pIaced. UnIeavened liead iepiesenls lhe sinIess lody. Thus,
}esus piesenls hinseIf as lhe
iead lhal cane dovn fion
heaven. He is saying lhal He is
Cod incainale and sinIess. Theie
veie lveIve Ioaves of liead - one
foi each liile - and veie kepl in lvo iovs iepiesenling lhe }evs
and lhe CenliIes, iepiesenling lhe vhoIe nankind. }esus cane
dovn foi lhe vhoIe nankind and foi eveiy liile in lhe leIieveis
congiegalion. The piiesls veie lo eal il eveiy veek in a hoIy pIace
and lhe liead veie lo le ieneved.
}esus is caIIed lhe Woid of Cod oi lhe Living Woid of Cod. The
Sciipluie is lhe Wiillen Woid of Cod. olh aie aIike. olh aie
liead - food and diink foi lhe lody and spiiil.
The enphasis heie is lhal foi
heaIlhy Iiving one shouId le
conlinuousIy feeding on lhe Woid
of Cod in lhe Iighl of lhe HoIy
Spiiil, lo le crca|cd in Cnris| ]csus
fcr gccd ucr|s. (|pn.2.10), oq ocing
cf |nc sanc nind, nating |nc sanc |ctc,
ocing in fu|| acccrd and cf cnc nind
(Pni||.2. 2) as }esus. Then ve viII le
Iike }esus.


Fnr hca!thy !IvIng nnc shnu!d
bc cnntInunus!y fccdIng nn
thc Wnrd nf Gnd - Jcsus and
thc BIb!c


I AM : M. M. NInan


22
The liead on lhe shev lalIe vas lo le coveied and inleispeised
vilh incense and necessaiiIy ealen on lhe Sallalh day ly lhe
Leviles and ieneved eveiy veek. The cIeai indicalion is lhal lhe
feeding on lhe Woid nusl le acconpanied ly piaise and voiship
and piayei (incense) and a congiegalionaI feeding of void nusl
lake pIace eveiy veek. The sludy of lhe Woid of Cod nusl le nev
eveiy veek. This is lhe lasis of Sunday seivices in lhe piesenl day
silualion.
3.2 PENTECO5T
The nexl inpoilanl synloIisn of liead cones on lhe day of
Ienlecosl. The delaiIs of lhe Ienlecosl is given in Lx. 34:21-22 ,Lev.
23.16-17. Ienlecosl look pIace on lhe 5Olh day aflei lhe vaving of
lhe fiisl sheave of haivesl (vhich iepiesenls lhe iesuiieclion of
}esus). Thal day Ieavened liead is pIaced on lhe shev liead lalIe
inslead of lhe usuaI unIeavened liead, and lhal onIy lvo of lhen.
Il synloIizes nankind as a vhoIe - lolh lhe }evs and lhe genliIes
vho aie sinfuI - lhe Ieaven synloIizing sin. Thus, liead in geneiaI
synloIizes Iife. Ienlecosl is lhe ceIelialion of lhe Iav giving al
nounl Sinai. Moses lioughl dovn lhe lalIels of Iav on lhal day.
On lhal day 3OOO aposlale IsiaeIiles vho voishipped lhe goIden
caIf died. The Sinai lic covenanl vas lhe nev leginning foi lhe
voiId, vhen peopIe aII ovei lhe voiId veie lo Iive ly lhe Iav and
lake lhe consequence of lhe sin lhal vas connilled. Hovevei, il
vas a Iav lased on neicy. In lhe piesence of lhe hoIiness of Cod,
aII sin liings dealh. ul in lhe Sinailic covenanl, nol aII Iav
lieaking is punishalIe ly dealh, lecause of lhe piesence of lhe
IiieslIy inleicession and lhe saciificiaI alonenenl luiIl in lhe Iav.
In lhis sense, lhe Ieavened liead synloIized lhe nev iedeened Iife
of nankind.
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23
In lhe Iand of Canaan lhe lhiid day aflei lhe Iassovei, lhe fiisl day
of lhe veek, vas lhe ceIelialion of lhe haivesl, vhen lhe fiisl fiuils
of lhe haivesls aie lioughl lo lhe lenpIe as a vave offeiing. The
fiisl sheaves of lhe vheal veie vaved in fionl of lhe hoIy of
hoIies. Il iepiesenls nev Iife and lhe pionise of a fuII haivesl in
due couise. The piesenlalion of lhe lvo Ieavened Ioaves lheiefoie
synloIized nans hope and pionise of iedenplion lhiough }esus.
On lhal day }esus ioses again as a fiisl fiuil fion lhe dead, and
piesenled lefoie Cod, as vave offeiing vilh lhe hope and pionise
of iesuiieclion fion lhe dead foi aII leIieveis. This is lhe nev
leginning of lhe nev ciealion nan.
This is exaclIy vhal is pionised in }esus. Aflei lhe 5Olh day of
iesuiieclion, on lhe day of Ienlecosl HoIy Spiiil cane upon lolh
lhe }evs and genliIes and lhe chuich, lhe leginning of lhe Nev
Connunily of Man vas loin.
3.3 MANNA A5 BREAD JN. 6.48-58
1]cnn 6.48-51 | an |nc orcad cf |ifc. Ycur fcrcfa|ncrs a|c |nc nanna in
|nc dcscr|, qc| |ncq dicd. 8u| ncrc is |nc orcad |na| ccncs dcun frcn
ncatcn, unicn a nan naq ca| and nc| dic. | an |nc |iting orcad |na| canc
dcun frcn ncatcn. |f anqcnc ca|s cf |nis orcad, nc ui|| |itc fcrctcr. Tnis
orcad is nq f|csn, unicn | ui|| gitc fcr |nc |ifc cf |nc ucr|d.'
In lhis passage, }esus conpaies hinseIf vilh nanna and
dislinguishes hinseIf as lhal Iiving liead vhich cane dovn fion
heaven. The ieasoning is sinpIe, as lhe nanna gave Iife lo lhe
slaiving }evs in lhe viIdeiness, }esus gives food lo lhe spiiiluaIIy
slaived. The nanna couId nol piovide Iife, lecause il vas nol
spiiiluaI. Il is lhe spiiil lhal gives Iife, lhe naleiiaI is of no use foi
lhis.
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24
]cnn 6.52-58 Tncn |nc ]cus ocgan |c arguc snarp|q ancng |ncnsc|tcs,
'Hcu can |nis nan gitc us nis f|csn |c ca|?' ]csus said |c |ncn, '| |c||
qcu |nc |ru|n, un|css qcu ca| |nc f|csn cf |nc Scn cf Man and drin| nis
o|ccd, qcu natc nc |ifc in qcu. lncctcr ca|s nq f|csn and drin|s nq
o|ccd nas c|crna| |ifc, and | ui|| raisc nin up a| |nc |as| daq. |cr nq f|csn
is rca| fccd and nq o|ccd is rca| drin|. lncctcr ca|s nq f|csn and drin|s
nq o|ccd rcnains in nc, and | in nin. ]us| as |nc |iting |a|ncr scn| nc
and | |itc occausc cf |nc |a|ncr, sc |nc cnc unc fccds cn nc ui|| |itc
occausc cf nc. Tnis is |nc orcad |na| canc dcun frcn ncatcn. Ycur
fcrcfa|ncrs a|c nanna and dicd, ou| nc unc fccds cn |nis orcad ui|| |itc
fcrctcr.'
3.4 NLW TLSTAMLNT IMILICATIONS
Theie is Nev Teslanenl inpIicalion aIso lo lhis. Nev leslanenl
eia diffeis fion lhe oId in lhal il aliogales Iav and eslalIishes Iove
in lhal pIace. The diffeience is a change in peispeclive. One ieIies
on Iav and duly vhiIe lhe Iallei ieIies on a deepei peisonaI
ieIalionship. olh aie connunily cenleied. The OId connunily
vas lhe }evish nalion and lhe in lhe nev il is lhe Chuich. The facl
lhal lhe nev couId enconpass aII nalions is lecause of lhis change
in peispeclive, vhich lianscends nalionaI loundaiies and lIood
ieIalions. The nanna vas in acluaI conlexl lhe linding foice
vilhin lhe IsiaeI duiing lheii viIdeiness peiiod. In lhe sane vay,
}esus is lhe linding foice vilhin lhe chuich duiing lhe viIdeiness
peiiod of lhe Chuich. The oId veie cuIluie lased and lhe nev is
supiacuIluiaI. As lhe liead is conveiled inlo fIesh in naluie, }esus
conveils inlo lhe fIesh of lhe Chuich and of lhe leIievei
individuaIIy and coIIecliveIy. }esus lhus lecones lhe chuich, lhe
lody of Chiisl.
1 Ccr 12.27 Ncu qcu arc |nc ocdq cf Cnris|, and cacn cnc cf qcu is a par|
cf i|.
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25

3.4GENERAL IMPLICATION5
3.41 WHEAT REPRE5ENT5 MAN:
Man vas ciealed oul of lhe dusl and so is
vheal foined oul of lhe dusl. Though lhey
aie foined oul of lhe dusl, lheie is a Iol of
diffeience lelveen lhe dusl, lhe soiI and
lhe nineiaIs and lhe oiganic noIecuIes lhal
foin lhe vheal sulslance and nan. olh
have Iife in lhen.
Thal is
vhy vheal
is a food foi nan. The vheal lody
is liansfoined inlo lhe hunan
lody oiganisn ly assiniIalion. In
lhe sane vay lhe }esus, lhe void
of Cod lecones Iife lo lhe leIievei
vhen assiniIaled and foined pail
of his daiIy Iiving. The piocess of
conveision of vheal inlo lody
foIIovs lhe foIIoving piocess.
vheal - ingeslion- digeslion -
assiniIalion - lody.
Il is lhe sane vilh lhe leIievei.
eIievei ingesls lhe void of Cod
and accepls }esus Chiisl as
peisonaI Savioi. This liansfoins hin lolaIIy and }esus lecones





I AM : M. M. NInan


26
pail of his Iife. The noie he ingesls noie Iike }esus he lecones.
Lach leIievei lhen lecones lhe vheal, vhich pioduces lhe lody of
Chiisl vilhin lhe chuich.
A giain of vheal ienains as il is if Iefl aIone. ul if il faIIs dovn
and dies, il viII yieId nuch fiuil. Olhei giains aie foined, lhus
incieasing lhe lody. Heiein Iies lhe nessage of Cioss and
iesuiieclion of Chiisl. Theie is no iesuiieclion foi lhe faIIen nan
unIess he dies and iesuiiecled in nevness of Iife. Il iegeneiales
ilseIf
]cnn 12.24 | |c|| qcu |nc |ru|n, un|css a |crnc| cf unca| fa||s |c |nc
grcund and dics, i| rcnains cn|q a
sing|c sccd. 8u| if i| dics, i|
prcduccs nanq sccds.
3.42 MADE A5 BREAD
The piocess of liead naking
invoIves diffeienl sleps. Iiisl il is
giound lo fIoui and lhen nixed
vilh oiI and lhen kneaded fuIIy
and is kepl a vhiIe lo foin
inleinaI changes of lond. Then il is pul in lhe oven al high
lenpeialuies lo pioduce lhe liead. In lhe sane vay in lhe
foinalion of lhe individuaI leIievei, he is piocessed. He is giound
lhiough lhe suffeiing.
1 Pc| 4.12-13 Dcar fricnds, dc nc| oc surpriscd a| |nc painfu| |ria| qcu
arc suffcring, as |ncugn scnc|ning s|rangc ucrc nappcning |c qcu. 8u|
rcjcicc |na| qcu par|icipa|c in |nc suffcrings cf Cnris|, sc |na| qcu naq oc
ctcrjcqcd uncn nis g|crq is rctca|cd.


It Is ncccssary that thc
IndIvIdua! sc!f bc grnund Intn
fInc pnwdcr and bc annIntcd
wIth thc Hn!y 5pIrIt, whIch
prnduccs thc cnhcsIvc fnrcc
wIthIn thc Church. Thcn It Is
bakcd Intn nnc bndy - Thc
Bndy nf ChrIst


I AM : M. M. NInan


27
}esus aIso, as nan, venl lhiough lhe suffeiing, and in lhal piocess
vas nade peifecl in hunan naluie and lecane a High Iiiesl foi aII
nankind.
Hco 5.8-10 A||ncugn nc uas a scn, nc |carncd cocdicncc frcn una| nc
suffcrcd and, cncc nadc pcrfcc|, nc occanc |nc scurcc cf c|crna| sa|ta|icn
fcr a|| unc cocq nin and uas dcsigna|cd oq Gcd |c oc nign prics| in |nc
crdcr cf Mc|cnizcdc|.
1 Pc| 2.21 Tc |nis qcu ucrc ca||cd, occausc Cnris| suffcrcd fcr qcu,
|cating qcu an cxanp|c, |na| qcu sncu|d fc||cu in nis s|cps.
Il is necessaiy lhal lhe seIfishness of
individuaI le giound inlo fine
povdei and le anoinled vilh lhe HoIy
Spiiil, vhich pioduces lhe cohesive foice
vilhin lhe Chuich. Thus in line lhe
individuaI Iooses lheii sepaiale chaiaclei
and foins lhe chuich. ul lo le of use lo
olheis as food lhe chuich ilseIf viII have lo go lhiough lhe hol
Oven. This nakes lhe chuich fiin and edilIe. The chuich
denoninalionaIisn and ils seIfishness viII have lo le luined.
Unily cones onIy lhiough suffeiing. Ieiseculed chuiches aIvays
ienained uniled. Lven loday, lhe onIy counliy in lhe voiId vheie
aII denoninalions fion lhe IenlecoslaIs lo CalhoIics foin a uniled
counciI is lhe Sudan Chiislian counciI foi lhe sinpIe ieason lhal il
is a peiseculed chuich. Aflei aII, lhe puipose of lhe liead is lo le
ealen ly olheis. If lhe chuich is lo le a iedenplive povei and le
a iejuvenaling foice, il has lo give ilseIf up. Mosl chuiches foigel
lhis. The faIIacy oflen peipelualed is lhal saIvalion of lhe
individuaI is lhe uIlinale puipose of lhe gospeI. Il is onIy lhe
leginning. Il is lhen lhoughl lhal chuich is lhe uIlinale puipose.
Il is lhe lody of Chiisl foi a funclion. This funclion is lhe
I AM : M. M. NInan


28
iedenplion of vhoIe nankind. Mankind (nol individuaIs) is lhe
uIlinale puipose of incainalion. Moie lhan lhal, il is lhe
iedenplion of lhe vhoIe ciealion fion lhe londage of decay.
Rcn 8.18 - 21 | ccnsidcr |na| cur prcscn| suffcrings arc nc| ucr|n
ccnparing ui|n |nc g|crq |na| ui|| oc rctca|cd in us. Tnc crca|icn uai|s
in cagcr cxpcc|a|icn fcr |nc scns cf Gcd |c oc rctca|cd. |cr |nc crca|icn
uas suojcc|cd |c frus|ra|icn, nc| oq i|s cun cncicc, ou| oq |nc ui|| cf |nc
cnc unc suojcc|cd i|, in ncpc |na| |nc crca|icn i|sc|f ui|| oc |iocra|cd
frcn i|s ocndagc |c dccaq and orcugn| in|c |nc g|cricus frccdcn cf |nc
cni|drcn cf Gcd.
We aie caIIed inlo lhis piieslhood as }esus hinseIf.
1 Pc| 2.9 8u| qcu arc a cncscn pccp|c, a rcqa| prics|nccd, a nc|q na|icn, a
pccp|c oc|cnging |c Gcd, |na| qcu naq dcc|arc |nc praiscs cf nin unc
ca||cd qcu cu| cf dar|ncss in|c nis ucndcrfu| |ign|.
Leavened oi unIeavened (sinfuI as ve aie), kneaded, nade inlo
Ioaves, cakes oi vafeis il is disliiluled lo eveiy cily aII ovei lhe
voiId. aked in an oven oi heailh oi coaIs - il is edilIe onIy vhen
laked - nade cohesive, and as lound coheienl chuich in oneness is
ealen. Il lhen gives slienglh and Iife lo lhose vho caie lo eal lhe
liead. So is }esus. So is lhe Chuich loday. efoie il is ealen, il has
lo le lioken lo pieces oi cul inlo sIice.
]cnn 6.54-58 lncctcr ca|s nq f|csn and drin|s nq o|ccd nas c|crna| |ifc,
and | ui|| raisc nin up a| |nc |as| daq. |cr nq f|csn is rca| fccd and nq
o|ccd is rca| drin|. lncctcr ca|s nq f|csn and drin|s nq o|ccd rcnains
in nc, and | in nin. ]us| as |nc |iting |a|ncr scn| nc and | |itc occausc
cf |nc |a|ncr, sc |nc cnc unc fccds cn nc ui|| |itc occausc cf nc. Tnis is
|nc orcad |na| canc dcun frcn ncatcn. Ycur fcrcfa|ncrs a|c nanna and
dicd, ou| nc unc fccds cn |nis orcad ui|| |itc fcrctcr.'
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29
3.43 JE5U5 A5 THE WORD
]cnn 1.1-2 |n |nc ocginning uas |nc lcrd, and |nc lcrd uas ui|n Gcd,
and |nc lcrd uas Gcd. Hc uas ui|n Gcd in |nc ocginning.
]cnn 1.14 Tnc lcrd occanc f|csn and nadc nis duc||ing ancng us. lc
natc sccn nis g|crq, |nc g|crq cf |nc Onc and On|q, unc canc frcn |nc
|a|ncr, fu|| cf gracc and |ru|n.
If }esus is lhe Woid and he is aIso lhe liead fion heaven, Iife can
le suslained onIy if ve acluaIIy feed on il. As lhe liead can give
Iife onIy if il is ingesled and lhen digesled and infused lhiough lhe
lIood slieans, lhe Iife of lhe leIievei and of lhe Chuich can le
ieaIized onIy if ve conlinuousIy ingesl, digesl and infuse lhe void
of Cod. IndividuaIIy ve feed on lhe void of Cod and Iive in il. As
a chuich, ve feed on il and Iive on il.
3.5 HOLY COMMUNION IMPLICATION5
This figuie of liead is diieclIy liansIaled inlo lhe connunion of
sainls lhiough lhe lieaking of liead. Ancienl Iiluigies ly eaiIy
falheis acluaIIy decIaie vhal I have slaled in lhe eaiIiei poilions in
cIeai leins.
LiluigicaI decIaialions incIude lhe foIIoving:
- vheal is lioughl logelhei fion vaiious pIaces, so aIso he
viII galhei logelhei his peopIe fion aII nalions liiles and
geogiaphicaI aieas.
- In lhe connunion ve ienenlei aII lhose vho Ialoied in il,
fion lhe piepaialion of lhe fieId, lhe soving, caiing and haivesling
and lhen voiked lhiough lhe piocess of liead naking.
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30
- The vhoIe connunily of leIieveis fion lhe leginning of lhe
age liII nov is piesenl al lhe connunion lalIe.
Il enphasizes lhal ve aie pail of eveiyone vho evei Iived and
died fion lhe leginning of ciealion. Lveiy liealh conlains one
noIecuIe of aii lhal vas liealhed ly Adan and noie of }esus.
Lveiyone evei Iived and is Iiving is pail of ny liealh. They aie
changing us. We aie changing lhe voiId. I an ny liolheis
keepei and I an fuIIy iesponsilIe foi eveiy good and lad lhing
lhal happens loday
Again ve aie a pail of eveiy ciealion, eveiy eIenenl of univeise.
This oneness of hunanily, oneness of univeise is iegained in
Resuiiecled }esus.
|pn 2.15-17 oq aoc|isning in nis f|csn |nc |au ui|n i|s ccnnandncn|s
and rcgu|a|icns. His purpcsc uas |c crca|c in ninsc|f cnc ncu nan cu| cf
|nc |uc, |nus na|ing pcacc, and in |nis cnc ocdq |c rcccnci|c oc|n cf
|ncn |c Gcd |nrcugn |nc crcss, oq unicn nc pu| |c dca|n |ncir ncs|i|i|q.
Hc canc and prcacncd pcacc |c qcu unc ucrc far auaq and pcacc |c |ncsc
unc ucrc ncar.


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31

CHAPTER FOUR
I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD
]cnn 8.12 lncn ]csus spc|c again |c |nc pccp|c, nc said, '| an |nc |ign|
cf |nc ucr|d. lncctcr fc||cus nc ui|| nctcr ua|| in dar|ncss, ou| ui||
natc |nc |ign| cf |ifc.'

4.1 1 LIGHT - PHY5ICAL
Lighl is sonelhing speciaI in lhe IhysicaI voiId. In lhe oIden days
il vas lhoughl lhal Iighl liaveI vilh infinile veIocily. Theiefoie, il
vas an apl synloI foi lhe onnipiesence of Cod. The void inpIies
lhal Cod is eveiyvheie al aII lines. Nov ve knov lhal Iighl
liaveIs vilh finile speed in space as a gioup vave lhough il nay
have any speed in phase vave. A puie fiequency Iighl
vave vilhoul leginning oi end can have any speed. Hovevei,
vhen il lecones a conposile vave, lhe gioup veIocily lecones
I AM : M. M. NInan


32
finile. Sliange lecause lhal is vhal ve have leen discussing as lhe
ieIalion lelveen Niiguna-iahnan and Saguna iahnan. Lighl
lecones a IhysicaI ieaIily onIy in gioup. Again, vilh lhe ieIalivily
ve have a sliange silualion. The veIocily of Iighl is lhe naxinun
speed any naleiiaI pailicIe can have. As lhe speed of a lody
inciease, ils nass incieases and il ieduces ils vidlh in lhe diieclion
of nolion. If lhe pailicIe ieaches lhe speed of Iighl, (vhich is
3OOOOOOOO n/s) ils lhickness lecones zeio and nass lecones
infinileIy Iaige. If lhe speed can inciease leyond lhe speed of Iighl,
lhe dinension of exislence of lhe nallei is changed. Mass lecones
negalive. Ihysicisl caIIs such pailicIes as Tachyons. Hovevei,
expeiinenls couId nol delecl
any physicaI pailicIe vilh such
piopeilies. We enlei inlo a
diffeienl dinension aII
logelhei. Lighl is lhe onIy
ieaIily lhal exisls in aII lhese dinensions. If ve can liaveI on lhe
vings of Iighl lhen line viII cease. Theie viII le no change foi us.
Whal a good definilion and an exceIIenl synloI foi lhe
Unchanging and LveiIasling, Onnipiesenl, and Onniscienl Cod.
Ioi Cod, line does nol have any neaning. Man as naleiiaI
leing exisls in line. Lighl Ieison is nol in line.
Lighl is nol a peison. If ve add peisonaIily lo lhe Lighl, ve gel
lhe desciiplion of Cod.


UnchangIng, Evcr!astIng,
OmnIprcscnt, and
OmnIscIcnt Gnd.


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33
4.12 THE BINDING FORCE

Lveiylody knovs of lhe
fanous nass eneigy ieIalion.
L = n c
2

Lneigy and nass aie ieIaled
lhiough lhe veIocily of Iighl.
Il is lhe essence of nallei and
eneigy.

Ac|s 17.28 '|cr in nin uc |itc and nctc and natc cur ocing.'
The linding foice vilhin lhe alon is eIeclionagnelic inleiaclion
and Lighl (Iholon) is lhe naleiiaIizalion of lhis linding eneigy. Il
is Iighl lhal hoIds logelhei lhe alons. }esus is lhe ciealoi of lhe
Univeise and il is he lhal hoIds lhe univeise logelhei. The
innanence of Cod is depicled in lhis picluie.
]cnn 1.3 Tnrcugn nin a|| |nings ucrc nadc, ui|ncu| nin nc|ning uas
nadc |na| nas occn nadc.
Cc| 1.17 Hc is ocfcrc a|| |nings, and in nin a|| |nings nc|d |cgc|ncr.
Hco 1.3 Tnc Scn is |nc radiancc cf Gcd's g|crq and |nc cxac|
rcprcscn|a|icn cf nis ocing, sus|aining a|| |nings oq nis pcucrfu| ucrd.
}usl as Iighl hoIds logelhei nallei, Iove hoIds logelhei aII Iife.
When Iove is ienoved and seIfishness cones in, il lecones eviI
and lhis deslioys nan.
]cnn 1.1 -9 |n |nc ocginning uas |nc lcrd, and |nc lcrd uas ui|n
Gcd, and |nc lcrd uas Gcd. Hc uas ui|n Gcd in |nc ocginning.
Tnrcugn nin a|| |nings ucrc nadc, ui|ncu| nin nc|ning uas nadc |na|
nas occn nadc. |n nin uas |ifc, and |na| |ifc uas |nc |ign| cf ncn. Tnc
|ign| snincs in |nc dar|ncss, ou| |nc dar|ncss nas nc| undcrs|ccd i|.


Acts 17:28 '|or ln hlm ue |lte
and mote and hate our belng.'


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34
Tncrc canc a nan unc uas scn| frcn Gcd, nis nanc uas ]cnn. Hc canc
as a ui|ncss |c |cs|ifq ccnccrning |na| |ign|, sc |na| |nrcugn nin a|| ncn
nign| oc|ictc Hc ninsc|f uas nc| |nc |ign|, nc canc cn|q as a ui|ncss |c
|nc |ign|. Tnc |ruc |ign| |na| gitcs |ign| |c ctcrq nan uas ccning in|c
|nc ucr|d.
Heie Iighl is pul in conjunclion vilh
Iife. Lighl is lhe eneigy lhal linds
logelhei lhal liings foilh Iife. If lhe
diiecled aclivily of linding is nol
lheie, alons aie nol foined, alons do
nol foin noIecuIes, noIecuIes do nol
foin oiganisns and lheie viII le no
Iife. Ciealion cannol lake pIace vilhoul }esus. As il vas liue in lhe
leginning, so is il liue in lhe nev ciealion of Nev Man.
4.13 THERE I5 NONE BE5IDE ME.
Anolhei uniqueness of Iighl pailicIe, vhich is caIIed Iholon is lhal,
il has no opposile. Theie aie no anlipholons. Theie is no anliIighl.
I an Cod, lheie is none leside ne. Theie is no olhei Cod.
1]cnn 1.5 Tnis is |nc ncssagc uc
natc ncard frcn nin and dcc|arc |c
qcu. Gcd is |ign|, in nin |ncrc is nc
dar|ncss a| a||.
Heie lhe conpaiison is lo
enphasize lhe facl lhal lheie is no daikness in Cod


Just as !Ight hn!ds tngcthcr
mattcr, !nvc hn!ds tngcthcr
a!! !Ifc.




There is no antiphoton.
~I am God, there is none
beside me.

I AM : M. M. NInan


35
Daikness - is nol ieaI. Daikness is lhe alsence of Iighl. Daikness is
nol lhe opposile of Iighl. Il is nol a ieaI enlily. LviI is nol a ieaIily
-- il is onIy a noiaI ieaIily. Il is Iack of goodness. Cod did nol
cieale eviI -- indeed ly naluie, he
cannol. Then hov cone il is
lheie` LviI is lhe nisuse of
ouiseIves, of lhings given lo us,
nisuse of oui piiviIeges elc.
Salan is nol a negalive Cod. Cod
does nol fighl vilh Salan. Salan
is an eviI leing -- a peison vho is
eviI. Salan is a ciealuie of Cod vho venl againsl Cod and is lhe
Ieadei of lhe disoledienl. Mosl of us have lhe nislaken nolion lhal
Cod has lo fighl Salan lo defeal hin. Cod does nol have lo. Cod
vanls us lo defeal Salan lecause lhe eviI is in us. We have lo
oveicone il foi ouiseIves.
Rcn 16.20 Tnc Gcd cf pcacc ui|| sccn crusn Sa|an undcr qcur fcc|. Tnc
gracc cf cur |crd ]csus oc ui|n qcu.
]ancs 1.13-14 lncn |cnp|cd, nc cnc sncu|d saq, 'Gcd is |cnp|ing nc.'
|cr Gcd cannc| oc |cnp|cd oq cti|, ncr dccs nc |cnp| anqcnc, ou| cacn
cnc is |cnp|cd uncn, oq nis cun cti| dcsirc, nc is draggcd auaq and
cn|iccd.
Hov do ve defeal Salan` Hov do ve liing Iighl in daik pIace`
You cannol ienove il ly hand. You have lo liing Iighl inlo lhal
aiea. iing Cod inlo aII lhe aieas of Iife so lhal eviI is oveicone.
Salan is defealed vhen lhe Mafia Ieadei Salan cannol gel his vay.


EvI! Is nnt a rca!Ity -- It Is
nn!y a mnra! rca!Ity. It Is
!ack nf gnndncss.


I AM : M. M. NInan


36
4.14 THE TRINITY
Theie is hovevei anolhei
sliiking siniIaiily lelveen
Cods dinensionaI piopeily and
lhe Iholons dinensionaI
piopeily of spin. The spin of lhe
Iholon (We ieaIIy do nol knov
vhal lhis neans.) is 1 and il is a
oson. This neans lhal foi
soneone oulside of il Iooking al
lhe pholon il can have any of lhe foIIoving spin slales: +1, O oi -1
vilh iefeience lo his ovn syslen of iefeience. This is a Tiinilaiian
conpaiison. Hovevei foi a massless particle, we cannot go to a rest
Irame. For a spin 1 particle there should be three possible values,
along the direction oI motion, away Irom it and zero. But Photons have
spin 1, yet they only show two possible spin values 1 and -1 along
the direction oI travel. The gauge invariance Iorces the other state
inaccessible Ior observation. The Zero spin state cannot be observed
directly. In a photon we start with a vector Iield, which actually has 4
degrees oI Ireedom, but gauge invariance Iorces 2 oI these degrees oI
Ireedom to be unphysical. Thus the two persons that interact with
physical beings in the Godhead are Son and the Holy Spirit. Father
and the Godhead aspect oI Nirguna Brahman are not viable to
interaction directly.
The facl lhal il is a oson neans lhal ve cannol ieaIIy dislinguish
lelveen one pholon fion anolhei. They aie idenlicaI in chaiaclei,
naluie and indislinguishalIe. I nay le slielching lhe synloIisn
loo fai. ul one cannol ovei Iook lhis sliiking facl.






I AM : M. M. NInan


37
4.15. MULTIDIMEN5IONALITY
Lighl is lhe onIy nassIess pailicIe lhal ve knov. Indeed, il cannol
slop noving lecause of lhis. IailicIes lhal liaveI vilh speeds Iess
lhan Iighl foin lhe naleiiaI voiId. IailicIes lhal liaveI vilh
speeds giealei lhan Iighl cannol exisl in lhis naleiiaI voiId. They
exisl (al Ieasl lheoielicaIIy) in lheii voiId of negalive nass and
lheii ovn Iavs. They liaveI lackvaids in line, if line has any
nany lheie. ul Iighl exisls in lolh lhese voiIds.
ul ve shouId le caiefuI nol lo equale Iighl vilh Cod. Cod is nol
Iighl -- lhe physicaI enlily. Il is a good synloI of Cod. Cod is
leyond Iighl. Lighl vas ciealed ly Cod.
Gcn 1.3 And Gcd said, '|c| |ncrc oc |ign|,' and |ncrc uas |ign|.
Dar|ncss dcs|rcqs us occausc uc dc nc| |ncu uncrc uc arc and uncrc uc
arc gcing -- |nc ucr|s cf dar|ncss
4.2 GOD BEYOND LIGHT
4.21 GOD WHO DWELL IN A DARK CLOUD
IhysicaI Iighl is a ciealion of
Cod. Cod is leyond any of his
ciealions. One cannol undeisland
Cod. Man is incapalIe of
undeislanding Cod. This is
expiessed in synloIic leins as
foIIovs. Cod is nol knovalIe.
2Cnr. 6.1 Tncn Sc|cncn said, 'Tnc |ORD nas said |na| nc ucu|d
duc|| in a dar| c|cud,
1Kgs. 7.12 Tncn Sc|cncn said, 'Tnc |ORD nas said |na| nc ucu|d


Gnd Is nnt !Ight -- thc physIca!
cntIty.
It Is a gnnd symbn! nf Gnd


I AM : M. M. NInan


38
duc|| in a dar| c|cud,
2San. 22.10 Hc par|cd |nc ncatcns
and canc dcun, dar| c|cuds ucrc
undcr nis fcc|.
Ps. 18.11 Hc nadc dar|ncss nis
cctcring, nis cancpq arcund nin--
|nc dar| rain c|cuds cf |nc s|q.
Ps. 97.2 C|cuds and |nic| dar|ncss
surrcund nin, rign|ccusncss and
jus|icc arc |nc fcunda|icn cf nis |nrcnc.
4.22 LIGHT I5 ENERGY.
Lighl nakes us see lhings cIeaiIy so lhal ve nay le alIe lo vaIk
vilhoul faIIing. Il gives us knovIedge. Il is one of lhe neans
of peiceplion. Il is lhe najoi neans of connunicalion.
2Ccr. 4.6 |cr Gcd, unc said, '|c| |ign| sninc cu| cf dar|ncss,' nadc
nis |ign| sninc in cur ncar|s |c gitc us |nc |ign| cf |nc |ncu|cdgc cf |nc
g|crq cf Gcd in |nc facc cf Cnris|.
Lasei leans aie veII knovn loday. They aie Iighl leans vilh
Iiniled fiequency iange and have Iaige anpIiludes. These can le
used lo cul nallei veiy fineIy and aie used in culling dianonds
and used in suigeiy as a nicio knife and aIso used lo cIean
suifaces fion diil. Hovevei if nisused il can deslioy.
4.3 }esus as Lighl: lhal vhich shovs lhe liue naluie.

]cnn 9.5 lni|c | an in |nc ucr|d, | an |nc |ign| cf |nc ucr|d.'
Hcrc ]csus is rcfcrring |c |nc fac| |na| nc canc in|c |nc ucr|d |c sncu ncu
sinfu| nan|ind is and |c sncu |nc uaq. Tnis is ncu nc cxp|ains |nis in
]cnn 3


LIght makcs us scc thIngs:
En|lghtenment


I AM : M. M. NInan


39
]cnn 3.19-21 Tnis is |nc tcrdic|. |ign| nas ccnc in|c |nc ucr|d, ou| ncn
|ctcd dar|ncss ins|cad cf |ign| occausc |ncir dccds ucrc cti|. |tcrqcnc
unc dccs cti| na|cs |nc |ign|, and ui|| nc| ccnc in|c |nc |ign| fcr fcar |na|
nis dccds ui|| oc cxpcscd. 8u| uncctcr |itcs oq |nc |ru|n ccncs in|c |nc
|ign|, sc |na| i| naq oc sccn p|ain|q |na| una| nc nas dcnc nas occn dcnc
|nrcugn Gcd.'
Tnis is una| ]csus did uni|c nc uas cn |nc car|n. lncn ]csus |cf| |nc
ucr|d nc did scnd anc|ncr ccunsc|cr unc dccs |nc sanc |ning.
]cnn 16.7-11 8u| | |c|| qcu |nc |ru|n. || is fcr qcur gccd |na| | an gcing
auaq. Un|css | gc auaq, |nc Ccunsc|cr ui|| nc| ccnc |c qcu, ou| if | gc, |
ui|| scnd nin |c qcu. lncn nc ccncs, nc ui|| ccntic| |nc ucr|d cf gui||
in rcgard |c sin and rign|ccusncss and judgncn|. in rcgard |c sin,
occausc ncn dc nc| oc|ictc in nc, in rcgard |c rign|ccusncss, occausc |
an gcing |c |nc |a|ncr, uncrc qcu can scc nc nc |cngcr, and in rcgard |c
judgncn|, occausc |nc princc cf |nis ucr|d ncu s|ands ccndcnncd.
4.4 JE5U5 AND LIGHT
AII Iife depends on Iighl fion lhe sun (vilh lhe possilIe excepls of
a fev oiganisns neai deep sea venls). Iholosynlhelic oiganisns
aie al lhe lollon of lhe food chain and piovide lhe chenicaI
eneigy lhal lhe iesl use. They aIso piovide lhe oxygen needed foi
iespiialion.
Civen hov inpoilanl Iighl is lo
Iife, il is no vondei lhal lheie aie
nany lypes of inleiaclions
lelveen Iighl and Iiving
oiganisns. ioadIy speaking,
lhese inleiaclions can le divided
inlo lhiee funclionaI gioups:


Life depends on Light


I AM : M. M. NInan


40
1. VisuaIizalion and SpaliaI oiienlalion. IIanls and niciooiganisns
use Iighl lo oiienl lhenseIves spaliaIIy and lo guide lheii
novenenls oi giovlh. Highei aninaIs aie capalIe of using Iighl lo
inage lheii suiioundings. Naluie has deveIoped sensilive
pholoieceplois, such as lhe ihodopsin in youi eye, vhich can
conveil Iighl eneigy inlo a chenicaI signaI.
Wilhoul }esus, ve lecone disoiienled, incapalIe knoving lhe
diieclion of oui novenenl. We lecone iandon and lIind.
2. TenpoiaI oiienlalion. Mosl aninaIs and pIanls (incIuding
peopIe) aIso use Iighl lo sel lheii inleinaI cIocks. Iion lhe vay lhal
lhe Iighl changes vilh line, oiganisns can nol onIy leII vhelhei il
is nighl oi day lul aIso vhal line of yeai il is. Ioi exanpIe, nany
pIanls use lhis lo deleinine vhen lo fIovei. Again, sensilive
lioIogicaI pholoieceplois aie used foi lhis puipose.
Tine and exislence ilseIf viII have neaning onIy in }esus
3. Conveision of Iighl eneigy lo chenicaI eneigy. The doninanl
lioIogicaI piocess, vhich conveils Iighl eneigy inlo chenicaI
eneigy, is pholosynlhesis In addilion, lheie aie olhei Iighl-
poveied piocesses in naluie. Ioi exanpIe, lhe enzyne DNA
pholoIyase uses Iighl eneigy lo povei lhe chenisliy iequiied foi
lhe iepaii of UV-danaged DNA.
}esus is lhe slienglh and eneigy givei of Iife.
The liue naluie of }esus is sonehov connecled vilh Iighl as is seen
in lhe foIIoving lheophanies.

I AM : M. M. NInan


41
4.41 AT TRAN5FIGURATION
Ma||. 17.2 Tncrc nc uas |ransfigurcd ocfcrc |ncn. His facc sncnc |i|c |nc
sun, and nis c|c|ncs occanc as uni|c as |nc |ign|.
4.42 APPEARANCE TO 5AUL
2Ccr. 4.6 |cr Gcd, unc said, '|c| |ign| sninc cu| cf dar|ncss,' nadc nis
|ign| sninc in cur ncar|s |c gitc us |nc |ign| cf |nc |ncu|cdgc cf |nc g|crq
cf Gcd in |nc facc cf Cnris|.
4.43 THE WORD OF GOD A5 LIGHT - 5CRIPTURE
2Pc|. 1.19 And uc natc |nc ucrd cf |nc prcpnc|s nadc ncrc ccr|ain, and
qcu ui|| dc uc|| |c paq a||cn|icn |c i|, as |c a |ign| snining in a dar|
p|acc, un|i| |nc daq dauns and |nc ncrning s|ar riscs in qcur ncar|s.
4.5 PURPO5E OF JE5U5 IN INCARNATION:
|sa. 9.2 Tnc pccp|c ua||ing in dar|ncss natc sccn a grca| |ign|, cn |ncsc
|iting in |nc |and cf |nc snadcu cf dca|n a |ign| nas dauncd.
||.1.79 Tc gitc |ign| |c |ncn |na| si| in dar|ncss in |nc snadcu cf dca|n,
|c guidc cur fcc| in|c |nc daq cf pcacc. Ccnncc|icn ui|n oir|n cf ]csus
Iuipose of Iighl is lo nake us see -- lo see lhe defecls, pilfaIIs,
nislakes, lo see us as ve aie, lo see olheis as lhey aie and lhe
voiId cIeaiIy. ul Iighl does nol in ilseIf condenn us- ve
condenn ouiseIves. Many peopIe do niss lhis poinl. Cod is nol a
kiIIei. He is giacious, conpassionale and fuII of neicy. Il lhis
aspecl lhal is ieveaIed in }esus.
]cnn 3.19 - 21 Tnis is |nc tcrdic|. |ign| nas ccnc in|c |nc ucr|d, ou|
ncn |ctcd dar|ncss ins|cad cf |ign| occausc |ncir dccds ucrc cti|.
I AM : M. M. NInan


42
|tcrqcnc unc dccs cti| na|cs |nc |ign|, and ui|| nc| ccnc in|c |nc |ign|
fcr fcar |na| nis dccds ui|| oc cxpcscd. 8u| uncctcr |itcs oq |nc |ru|n
ccncs in|c |nc |ign|, sc |na| i| naq oc sccn p|ain|q |na| una| nc nas dcnc
nas occn dcnc |nrcugn Gcd.'
Ac|s 26.18 |c cpcn |ncir cqcs and |urn |ncn frcn dar|ncss |c |ign|, and
frcn |nc pcucr cf Sa|an |c Gcd, sc |na| |ncq naq rcccitc fcrgitcncss cf
sins and a p|acc ancng |ncsc unc arc sanc|ificd oq fai|n in nc.'
The puipose of his incainalion is lo iedeen nankind fion lhe
povei of Salan--lo shov lhe palh, lhe vay oul
]cnn 8.12 lncn ]csus spc|c again |c |nc pccp|c, nc said, '| an |nc |ign|
cf |nc ucr|d. lncctcr fc||cus nc ui|| nctcr ua|| in dar|ncss, ou| ui||
natc |nc |ign| cf |ifc.'
]cnn 12.35-36 Tncn ]csus |c|d |ncn, 'Ycu arc gcing |c natc |nc |ign|
jus| a |i|||c uni|c |cngcr. la|| uni|c qcu natc |nc |ign|, ocfcrc dar|ncss
ctcr|a|cs qcu. Tnc nan unc ua||s in |nc dar| dccs nc| |ncu uncrc nc is
gcing. Pu| qcur |rus| in |nc |ign| uni|c qcu natc i|, sc |na| qcu naq
occcnc scns cf |ign|.' lncn nc nad finisncd spca|ing, ]csus |cf| and nid
ninsc|f frcn |ncn.
4.6 YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD
}esus goes on lo say lhal lhose vho leIieve and foIIov hin aie lhe
Iighl of lhis voiId. He vas lhe Iighl vhiIe he vas on lhe eailh.
When }esus Iefl lhe eailh, he has anoinled his eIecl lo le lhe Iighl of
lhis voiId
}esus is lhe souice of Iighl -- you aie lhe Iighl ly iefIeclion
Ma||. 5.14 -16 'Ycu arc |nc |ign| cf |nc ucr|d. A ci|q cn a ni|| cannc| oc
niddcn. Nci|ncr dc pccp|c |ign| a |anp and pu| i| undcr a ocu|. |ns|cad
|ncq pu| i| cn i|s s|and, and i| gitcs |ign| |c ctcrqcnc in |nc ncusc. |n |nc
I AM : M. M. NInan


43
sanc uaq, |c| qcur |ign| sninc ocfcrc ncn, |na| |ncq naq scc qcur gccd
dccds and praisc qcur |a|ncr in ncatcn.
1Pc|. 2.9 8u| qcu arc a cncscn pccp|c, a rcqa| prics|nccd, a nc|q na|icn,
a pccp|c oc|cnging |c Gcd, |na| qcu naq dcc|arc |nc praiscs cf nin unc
ca||cd qcu cu| cf dar|ncss in|c nis ucndcrfu| |ign|.
Theie aie lvo lypes of iefIeclion:
1. Scalleiing: Heie Iighl faIIs on lhe oljecl and oljecl scalleis il in
aII diieclions. We see oljecls ly lheii scalleied Iighl. We can see
lhe papei lecause il scalleis lhe Iighl.
2. SpecuIai iefIeclions. Heie lhe Iighl faIIing on il is iefIecled in an
oideiIy fashion. Il is nol nixed one inlo lhe olhei. We do nol see
lhe iefIecling oljecl, lul ve see lhe Iighl souice. This is vhal a
niiioi does.
You can lecone a niiioi so lhal
}esus can le seen in you. When
you piojecl youiseIf il ceases lo
le a niiioi, you aie scalleiing
lhe Iighl. When you lecone
lhe oljecl seen lhiough youi
ninisliy peopIe viII iaieIy see }esus lhiough you. The noie
oideiIy you iefIecl }esus in youi Iife, olheis viII le alIe lo see }esus
noie cIeaiIy. The Iess Iighl you scallei, lhe noie you aie fiIIed
vilh lhe void and liansfoined inlo lhe inage of }esus, lhe noie of
}esus viII le seen ly olheis. Tiansfoinalion fion an opaque,
iough suiface lo lhe snoolh, poIished niiioi is acconpIished ly
aliding in lhe void of Cod and Iiving in lhe Spiiil.


You can become a mirror, so
that 1esus can be seen in you.


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44
If you aie lIind, Iighl does nol voik foi you. Those vho aie
spiiiluaIIy lIind can nevei see lhe leauly of }esus. In facl, lhey aie
so seIf-cenleied lhal lhey cannol see olheis al aII.
|u|c 11.34 Ycur cqc is |nc |anp cf qcur ocdq. lncn qcur cqcs arc gccd,
qcur unc|c ocdq a|sc is fu|| cf |ign|. 8u| uncn |ncq arc oad, qcur ocdq
a|sc is fu|| cf dar|ncss.
Spiri|ua| disccrning
1Ccr. 1.18 -20 |cr |nc ncssagc cf |nc crcss is fcc|isnncss |c |ncsc unc arc
pcrisning, ou| |c us unc arc ocing satcd i| is |nc pcucr cf Gcd. |cr i| is
uri||cn. '| ui|| dcs|rcq |nc uisdcn cf |nc uisc, |nc in|c||igcncc cf |nc
in|c||igcn| | ui|| frus|ra|c.' lncrc is |nc uisc nan? lncrc is |nc
scnc|ar? lncrc is |nc pni|cscpncr cf |nis agc? Has nc| Gcd nadc fcc|isn
|nc uisdcn cf |nc ucr|d?

A HERMENEUTICAL NOTE:
I have used oui nodein undeislanding of Lighl lo inleipiel lhe
neaning of I an lhe Iighl of lhe voiId. These inleipielalions aie
feasilIe piovided ve agiee lhal }esus leing Cod he knev aloul
I AM : M. M. NInan


45
lhese facls and inlended lo le undeislood in line. Al Ieasl in sone
cases of paialIes he did cIeaiIy slale lhal. This can le seen in
Mallhev 13 Kingdon IaialIes vheie }esus says:
Ma| 13.35 Sc uas fu|fi||cd una| uas spc|cn |nrcugn |nc prcpnc|. '| ui||
cpcn nq ncu|n in parao|cs, | ui|| u||cr |nings niddcn sincc |nc crca|icn
cf |nc ucr|d.'
Was he in lhis pIace speaking lhe vondeifuI lhings hidden since
lhe ciealion of lhe voiId`
Ma| 13.52 Hc said |c |ncn, 'Tncrcfcrc ctcrq |cacncr cf |nc |au unc nas
occn ins|ruc|cd aocu| |nc |ingdcn cf ncatcn is |i|c |nc cuncr cf a ncusc
unc orings cu| cf nis s|crcrccn ncu |rcasurcs as uc|| as c|d.'
Aie ve piiviIeged lo liing oul lhese hidden liulhs in lhis Iasl age`
ul il is quile possilIe lhal lhis is nol lhe case foi eveiy paialIe.
IaialIes and siniIes aie used in leaching lo expIain a concepl.
These siniIes shouId nol le piessed loo fai lhe exlend of aIIegoiy.
This viII le dangeious, as ve viII le inposing nev neanings nol
neanl in lhe silualion. This is pailicuIaiIy liue of lhe didaclic
paialIes. Mosl paialIes aie cuIluie sensilive and conlexl sensilive
and viII yieId veiy disaslious iesuIls if inleipieled oul of lhe
cuIluiaI and hisloiicaI conlexl.
Did }esus ieaIIy nean lhese vhen he said lhese lhings lo his
discipIes al lhal line` Did he inlend us lo ieinleipiel il lhe vay ve
do nov` I Ieave il lo lhe ieadei. ul lhey aie ceilainIy inleiesling
and encouiaging lo lhe leIievei.

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I AM : M. M. NInan


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CHAPTER FIVE
I AM THE DOOR OF THE 5HEEP
}OHN 1O:7- 16

}esus used a Iol of synloIs fion lhe nonadic liadilions of lhe }evs.
These liadilions veie ingiained in lhe }evs lhiough lhe ilIe.
5.1 DOOR A5 A 5YMBOL OF ENTRY TO 5AFETY
Hone in aII cuIluies synloIizes a pIace of safely. Coing in and
cIosing lhe dooi lehind gives lhe nenleis of lhe househoId
secuiily. The oulside voiId vilh ils hale and conpelilion iages
vilh vioIence and ciueIly. Al lhe end of lhis nad iace, one gel lack
hone and cIoses lhe dooi. You aie suiiounded ly Iove, pioleclion,
and caie.
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48
TiadilionaI Aial iuIe is lhal one is leyond lhe Iav leyond lhe
dooi. You can do anylhing inside youi house. The Iav can vail foi
you oulside lhe dooi. This is depicled leaulifuIIy sone of lhe OId
Teslanenl synloIisns
5.2 DOOR IN PA55OVER
When }esus spoke lo lhe }evs aloul lhe dooi, lhe fiisl picluie lhal
cane lo lheii nind vas piolalIy lhe dooi of lhe Iassovei nighl.
|xc 12.22-23 Ta|c a ouncn cf nqsscp, dip i| in|c |nc o|ccd in |nc oasin
and pu| scnc cf |nc o|ccd cn |nc |cp and cn oc|n sidcs cf |nc dccrfranc.
Nc| cnc cf qcu sna|| gc cu| |nc dccr cf nis
ncusc un|i| ncrning. lncn |nc |ORD
gccs |nrcugn |nc |and |c s|ri|c dcun |nc
|gqp|ians, nc ui|| scc |nc o|ccd cn |nc |cp
and sidcs cf |nc dccrfranc and ui|| pass
ctcr |na| dccruaq, and nc ui|| nc| pcrni|
|nc dcs|rcqcr |c cn|cr qcur ncuscs and
s|ri|c qcu dcun.
A dooi lhal is naiked vilh lIood,
pioviding a lIood coveiing.
If you aie faniIiai vilh lhe Iassovei
liadilions and lhe liadilions of lhe
MiddIe Laslein nalions one can see lhe
siniIaiily veiy easiIy. Theie aie lvo doois lo lhe easlein hones.
One dooi is lhe dooi Ieading lo lhe innei ioons of lhe house and
lhe olhei dooi is lhe dooi lhal Ieads inlo lhe conpound. The Ianl
is saciificed (kiIIed) jusl oulside of lhe gale and is hung on lhe
vooden lean of lhe oulei gale. In lhe saciifice of lhe Iassovei
Ianl, lhey veie insliucled lo dip a lunch of hyssop and pul lIood
I AM : M. M. NInan


49
on lop and on eilhei side of lhe posl. The lIeeding of lhe Ianp viII
naik lhe lollon of lhe dooi foining a cioss. The Ianl as il is
leing kiIIed is lhe exacl picluie of }esus on lhe cioss. Il is lhis lIood
lhal coveis lhe sinneis. AII fiisl loin of lhe Lgypl veie lo die. ul
lhe lIood coveiing piolecls lhose vho aie vilhin lhe gale vilh
lIood naik. The deslioyei viII nol enlei lhe gale and sliike you
dovn.
5.3 THE CITY GATE
Anolhei neaning of lhe dooi lhal vas lioughl lo lhe nenoiy of
lhe heaiei vas lhal of lhe dooi of lhe cily gales. AII ancienl cilies
veie vaIIed aII iound lo piolecl il fion invadeis. These veie huge
loveiing vaIIs seveiaI feel high so lhal no nan can cIinl on il. The
cily gales veie Iaige nassive vooden sliucluies. These veie lhe
pioleclion of lhe dveIIeis inside lhe cily. }esus is sinpIy inpIying
lhal I an lhe dooi lhal keeps enenies oulside and keeps you aIive.
The nosl vuIneialIe poinl of lhe cily is lhe gale. If lhal is safe, il is
easy lo guaid lhe cily.

5.4 THE CITY OF REFUGE
This concepl is fuilhei slienglhened ly lhe eslalIishnenl of lhe
cilies of iefuge.
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50
Nun 35.11 sc|cc| scnc |cuns |c oc qcur ci|ics cf rcfugc, |c unicn a
pcrscn unc nas |i||cd scnccnc accidcn|a||q naq f|cc. Nun 35.12 Tncq
ui|| oc p|accs cf rcfugc frcn |nc atcngcr, sc |na| a pcrscn accuscd cf
nurdcr naq nc| dic ocfcrc nc s|ands |ria| ocfcrc |nc asscno|q.
Nun 35.15 Tncsc six |cuns ui|| oc a p|acc cf rcfugc fcr |srac|i|cs, a|icns
and anq c|ncr pccp|c |iting ancng |ncn, sc |na| anqcnc unc nas |i||cd
anc|ncr accidcn|a||q can f|cc |ncrc.
Nun 35.26-28 ''8u| if |nc accuscd ctcr gccs cu|sidc |nc |ini|s cf |nc ci|q
cf rcfugc |c unicn nc nas f|cd and |nc atcngcr cf o|ccd finds nin cu|sidc
|nc ci|q, |nc atcngcr cf o|ccd naq |i|| |nc accuscd ui|ncu| ocing gui||q cf
nurdcr. Tnc accuscd nus| s|aq in nis ci|q cf rcfugc un|i| |nc dca|n cf |nc
nign prics|, cn|q af|cr |nc dca|n cf |nc nign prics| naq nc rc|urn |c nis
cun prcpcr|q.
The dooi of lhe cily of iefuge keeps lhe avengei avay. }esus is lhal
dooi. He is aIso lhe High Iiiesl vho viII nevei die. As Iong as ve
aie vilhin lhe cily iuIed ly }esus ve aie safe.
5.5 DOOR OF THE 5HEEPFOLD
The inageiy in lhe dooi of lhe sheep is diieclIy laken fion lhe
nonadic Iife slyIe. Nonads lend lheii sheep and nove fion pIace
lo pIace seeking suppIies of valei and giass. These sheep do nol
have a sheepfoId lhal is peinanenl. They nove inlo aieas infesled
ly viId aninaIs lhal piey on lhe sheep. In lhe nighl, lhe shepheids
nake a foId vilh lhoin lush in ciicIe ovei a yaid vide, lhoiny and
inpenelialIe even ly lhe viIdesl and agiIe of aII aninaIs. Theie
viII le a snaII opening lhiough vhich lhe sheep is heided inlo lhe
KiaaI. This lhen is lhe onIy dooi lhiough vhich lhe sheep nay
enlei inlo lhe sheepfoId and inlo safely. Then lhe shepheid Iighls a
pyie of lhoin and vood in fionl of lhis opening and he viII hinseIf
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51
Iie dovn as lhe dooi. }esus vas sinpIy desciiling lhal lheie is onIy
one vay lo heaven and lhal Iies lhiough his lody. Those vho enlei
lhiough hin viII find peace

The sane picluie can le seen in lhe viIdeiness sancluaiy. The
sancluaiy vas fuIIy coidoned off vilh cuilains vilh onIy one
enliance. Al lhe enliance is lhe aIlai of saciifice. A peison nay
enlei inlo lhe house of lhe Loid onIy aflei saciifice. This dooi is
}esus.
Hco 10.19-20 Tncrcfcrc, orc|ncrs, sincc uc natc ccnfidcncc |c cn|cr |nc
Mcs| Hc|q P|acc oq |nc o|ccd cf ]csus, oq a ncu and |iting uaq cpcncd
fcr us |nrcugn |nc cur|ain, |na| is, nis ocdq,

As lhe sheep cone in lo lhe foId lhe shepheid viII counl lhen vilh
his iod and in lhe noining, he viII counl lhen as lhey go oul.
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52
None shouId le found nissing. No viId aninaI can enlei inside
unIess lhe shepheid hinseIf is kiIIed fiisl.
}esus said
]cnn 14.6 '| an |nc uaq and |nc |ru|n and |nc |ifc. Nc cnc ccncs |c |nc
|a|ncr cxccp| |nrcugn nc.
Those vho enlei in lhiough }esus lhe gale aie safe.
Rcn 8.1-2 Tncrcfcrc, |ncrc is ncu nc ccndcnna|icn fcr |ncsc unc arc in
Cnris| ]csus, occausc |nrcugn Cnris| ]csus |nc |au cf |nc Spiri| cf |ifc sc|
nc frcc frcn |nc |au cf sin and dca|n.
ul oulside lhis dooi, lheie is dangei.
Gcn 4.6-7 Tncn |nc |ORD said |c Cain, 'lnq arc qcu angrq? lnq is
qcur facc dcuncas|? |f qcu dc una| is rign|, ui|| qcu nc| oc acccp|cd?
8u| if qcu dc nc| dc una| is rign|, sin is crcucning a| qcur dccr, i| dcsircs
|c natc qcu, ou| qcu nus| nas|cr i|.'
Safely Iies inside lhis dooi.
5.6 DOOR WHERE A 5LAVE BECOME5 A
MEMBER OF THE FAMILY.
To lhe sellIed IsiaeI hovevei lhe dooi neanl sonelhing noie lhan
lhal.
|xc 21.5-6 '8u| if |nc scrtan| dcc|arcs, '| |ctc nq nas|cr and nq uifc
and cni|drcn and dc nc| uan| |c gc frcc,' |ncn nis nas|cr nus| |a|c nin
ocfcrc |nc judgcs. Hc sna|| |a|c nin |c |nc dccr cr |nc dccrpcs| and picrcc
nis car ui|n an au|. Tncn nc ui|| oc nis scrtan| fcr |ifc.
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53
This is connecled vilh lhe sevenlh yeai, lhe yeai of juliIee vhen
eveiy peison vho soId hinseIf lo sIaveiy lecause of his dell viII
go lack lo his ovn. Hovevei, if duiing lhe peiiod, he has endeaied
hinseIf lo lhe faniIy and lecones pail of lhe faniIy, he can
lecone a nenlei of lhe faniIy. This ceienony invoIved pieicing
lhe eais vilh an avI lo lhe dooiposl. He lecones a sIave in lhe
faniIy foievei.
The inageiy of }esus as lhe dooi is lhal you aie oulside lhe faniIy
of Cod vheie lheie is pain, suffeiing, and dealh lhal svay aII lhe
line. David once said
Psa 84.10 8c||cr is cnc daq in qcur ccur|s |nan a |ncusand c|scuncrc, |
ucu|d ra|ncr oc a dccr|ccpcr in |nc ncusc cf nq Gcd |nan duc|| in |nc
|cn|s cf |nc uic|cd.
Il is lellei lo le a seivanl of lhe Loid aII oui Iives lhan is a fiee
peison inlo lhis decaying voiId. ul lhen lhe dooi is lhe vay in lo
lecone pail of lhis Kingdon of Cod.
5.7 EARTHIAN5 A5 QUARANTINED
Lailhians aie quaianlined lecause of deadIy sin. Theie is anolhei
voiId oulside of lhis voiId -- lhe Kingdon of Heaven vheie lheie
is no sin, vheie lheie is no
decay, pain, suffeiing oi dealh.
Theie lhe Iavs of Ihysics aie
diffeienl. Theie eveiylhing
giovs fion oidei lo giealei
oidei, gIoiy lo gIoiy. We
cannol gel inlo lhe cily of
heaven lecause ve aie lound
lo lhis naleiiaI dinension. We have leen liying lo gel oul of lhis


The only door beyond this
decaying physical world into the
undecaying physical world is
1esus



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54
voiId aII lhe line. In lhe eaiIiei days, gieal nany saiIois liied lo
find lhe end of lhe eailh. They expecled a cIiff fion vheie lhey
couId junp inlo anolhei voiId. ul lheie veie no edge foi lhe
eailh. Lailh's suiface has no edge, lecause il is cIosed in lhe lhiid
dinension. A spheie does nol have any edge. We have heaid lhe
gieal sloiy of lhe Russian aslionauls Iasl cenlauiy lhal liied lo find
Cod in lhe space. They veie liying lo gel oul of lhis voiId. They
venl inlo lhe lhiid dinension. Theie aie no doois. The onIy dooi
leyond lhis voiId is lhe dooi lhal is }esus.
]cnn 10.7-9 Tncrcfcrc ]csus said again, '| |c|| qcu |nc |ru|n, | an |nc ga|c
fcr |nc snccp A|| unc ctcr canc ocfcrc nc ucrc |nictcs and rcoocrs, ou|
|nc snccp did nc| |is|cn |c |ncn. | an |nc ga|c, uncctcr cn|crs |nrcugn nc
ui|| oc satcd. Hc ui|| ccnc in and gc cu|, and find pas|urc.
]cnn 14.6 Nc cnc ccncs |c |nc |a|ncr cxccp| |nrcugn nc.
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55

CHAPTER 5IX
I AM THE GOOD 5HEPHERD
}OHN 1O.11-18

This is in facl a conlinualion of lhe pasloiaI synloIisn of lhe dooi
of lhe sheep. The dooi of lhe sheep is lhe shepheid. Il is lhe
shepheid vho Iies dovn in fionl of lhe onIy one dooi. In so doing
he is Iaying dovn his Iife foi lhe sheep. No viId aninaI can enlei
oi even cone neai lhe canp unIess lhe shepheid is fiisl kiIIed. This
vas a connon expeiience of eveiy shepheid of lhe line.
Il vas naluiaI foi lhe nonads lo lhink of Cod as lheii shepheid -
lhe Cieal Shepheid
So, }acol vhen he lIessed }oseph Iooks uplo Cod as his shepheid.
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56
Gcn 48.15 Tncn nc o|csscd ]cscpn and said, 'Maq |nc Gcd ocfcrc uncn
nq fa|ncrs Aoranan and |saac ua||cd, |nc Gcd unc nas occn nq sncpncrd
a|| nq |ifc |c |nis daq,
So, in lhe IsaIn of Asaph lhe Choiinaslei, he addiesses Cod as lhe
Cieal Shepheid vho sils enlhioned.
Psa 80.1-3 Hcar us, O Sncpncrd cf |srac|, qcu unc |cad ]cscpn |i|c a f|cc|,
qcu unc si| cn|nrcncd oc|uccn |nc cncruoin, sninc fcr|n ocfcrc |pnrain,
8cnjanin and Manasscn. Aua|cn qcur nign|, ccnc and satc us. Rcs|crc
us, O Gcd, na|c qcur facc sninc upcn us, |na| uc naq oc satcd.
When lhe shepheids go fion pIace lo pIace, lhe head of lhe
househoId, lhe Ialhei Ialiiaich usuaIIy slays al one cenliaI pIace
vheie lheie is valei aII lhe line and liacks lhe jouiney of lhe
chiIdien, guide lhen, senl piovisions and heIp as needed. This is
lhe picluie ve have in }acols faniIy. Il vas easy foi lhe }evs lo
visuaIize Cod as lhe Ialhei Shepheid vho sils enlhioned anong
lhe cheiulin. This is iefIecled in lhe Heliev aulhois picluie:
Hco. 13.20-21 Maq |nc Gcd cf pcacc, unc |nrcugn |nc o|ccd cf |nc
c|crna| cctcnan| orcugn| oac| frcn |nc dcad cur |crd ]csus, |na| grca|
Sncpncrd cf |nc snccp, cquip qcu ui|n ctcrq|ning gccd fcr dcing nis ui||,
and naq nc ucr| in us una| is p|casing |c nin, |nrcugn ]csus Cnris|, |c
uncn oc g|crq fcr ctcr and ctcr. Ancn
Cod is lhe one vho suppIies aII oui needs vhiIe ve vho aie
Ialoiing in lhe fieId iequiies.
When }esus asciiled hinseIf as lhe Shepheid, he vas cIaining aIso
lhe iool of Davids ancesliy.
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57
Psa 78.70-72 Hc cncsc Datid nis scrtan| and |cc| nin frcn |nc snccp
pcns,
frcn |cnding |nc snccp nc orcugn| nin |c oc |nc sncpncrd cf nis pccp|c
]acco, cf |srac| nis inncri|ancc. And Datid sncpncrdcd |ncn ui|n
in|cgri|q cf ncar|, ui|n s|i||fu| nands nc |cd |ncn.
Much noie lhan lhal lheie is a diiecl iefeience lo lhe oidinalion of
}oshua.
Nun 27.15 -17 Mcscs said |c |nc |ORD, 'Maq |nc |ORD, |nc Gcd
cf |nc spiri|s cf a|| nan|ind, appcin| a nan ctcr |nis ccnnuni|q |c gc cu|
and ccnc in ocfcrc |ncn, cnc unc ui|| |cad |ncn oul and liing lhen in,
so lhe Loid's peopIe viII nol le Iike sheep vilhoul a shepheid."
Nun 27.18 Sc |nc |ORD said |c Mcscs, 'Ta|c ]csnua scn cf Nun, a nan
in uncn is |nc spiri|, and |aq qcur nand cn nin.
The Heliev nane of }esus vas sane as }oshua - Yeshiva. As
}oshua vas oidained lo Iead lhe peopIe fion lhe viIdeiness inlo
Canaan, so Cod has oidained }esus lo Iead nankind fion lhe
viIdeiness of lhis Iife lo lhe Kingdon of Heaven.
These aie sone of lhe sullIe lones lhal ieveileialed in lhe ninds
and spiiils of lhose vho heaid }esus cIain "I an lhe Cood
Shepheid".
6.1 GOOD 5HEPHERD LAY5 DOWN HI5 LIFE FOR THE 5HEEP
ul lhen }esus expIained lhal he is nol jusl lhe Cieal Shepheid
Ialiiaich vho sils in confoil al hone vilh aII lhe seivanls and
ponp and spIendoi, lul aIso one vho cane dovn lo lhe eailh, in
lhe fieId lo seaich, lo caie and lend lhe young and lhe oId.
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58
David vas a shepheid and he knev exaclIy vhal il neanl lo le a
good shepheid. Read vhal he says aloul hinseIf.
1 San 17.34 -35 8u| Datid said |c Sau|, 'Ycur scrtan| nas occn |ccping
nis fa|ncr's snccp. lncn a |icn cr a ocar canc and carricd cff a snccp frcn
|nc f|cc|, | ucn| af|cr i|, s|ruc| i| and rcscucd |nc snccp frcn i|s ncu|n.
lncn i| |urncd cn nc, | scizcd i| oq i|s nair, s|ruc| i| and |i||cd i|.

So, }esus expIains hinseIf:
]cnn 10.11-13 '| an |nc gccd sncpncrd. Tnc gccd sncpncrd |aqs dcun nis
|ifc fcr |nc snccp. Tnc nircd nand is nc| |nc sncpncrd unc cuns |nc snccp.
Sc uncn nc sccs |nc uc|f ccning, nc aoandcns |nc snccp and runs auaq.
Tncn |nc uc|f a||ac|s |nc f|cc| and sca||crs i|. Tnc nan runs auaq
occausc nc is a nircd nand and carcs nc|ning fcr |nc snccp.
|sa 40.11 Hc |cnds nis f|cc| |i|c a sncpncrd. Hc ga|ncrs |nc |anos in nis
arns and carrics |ncn c|csc |c nis ncar|, nc gcn||q |cads |ncsc |na| natc
qcung.
In conliasl ve have lhe chaiacleiislics of a lad shepheid vho is a
hiieIing is desciiled foi us in LzekieI:
|zc| 34.2-4 'Scn cf nan, prcpncsq agains| |nc sncpncrds cf |srac|,
prcpncsq and saq |c |ncn. 'Tnis is una| |nc Sctcrcign |ORD saqs. lcc
|c |nc sncpncrds cf |srac| unc cn|q |a|c carc cf |ncnsc|tcs! Sncu|d nc|
sncpncrds |a|c carc cf |nc f|cc|? Ycu ca| |nc curds, c|c|nc qcursc|tcs ui|n
|nc ucc| and s|augn|cr |nc cncicc anina|s, ou| qcu dc nc| |a|c carc cf |nc
f|cc|. Ycu natc nc| s|rcng|ncncd |nc uca| cr nca|cd |nc sic| cr ocund up
|nc injurcd. Ycu natc nc| orcugn| oac| |nc s|raqs cr scarcncd fcr |nc |cs|.
Ycu natc ru|cd |ncn narsn|q and oru|a||q.
This is iepealed again in Zechaiiah:
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59
Zcc 11.16 |cr | an gcing |c raisc up a sncpncrd ctcr |nc |and unc ui||
nc| carc fcr |nc |cs|, cr scc| |nc qcung, cr nca| |nc injurcd, cr fccd |nc
nca||nq, ou| ui|| ca| |nc nca| cf |nc cncicc snccp, |caring cff |ncir nccfs.
Nolice lhe chaiacleiislics
He viII nol caie foi lhe sliayed oi seaich foi lhe Iosl
He viII nol seek lhe young
He viII nol slienglhen lhe veak oi heaI lhe sick oi injuied
He viII nol feed lhe heaIlhy inslead
He eals lhe neal of lhe choice sheep, leaiing off lheii hoofs.
One chaiacleiislic of aII shepheid liiles (lhis appIies aIso lo
covheid liiles aIso) is lhal lhey viII nol eal lhe neal of lhe sheep.
This nay sound queei. Il is a laloo anong aII shepheiding liiles lo
kiII a sheep foi neal, even vhen lhey aie dying of hungei. OnIy an
unelhicaI shepheid viII kiII lo eal. The onIy line lhey noinaIIy
have neal foi food is vhen lheie is a saciifice. Then lhe neal is lo
le shaied anong aII lhe nenleis of lhe liile. They nay eal lhe
neal of a sheep vho is dying oi vho cannol vaIk and lheiefoie
foIIov lhe pasluie as lhe gioup nove fion pIace lo pIace. If an
aninaI faIIs dovn vhiIe in liansil and il is nol a Ianl, lhe
shepheids nay eal ils fIesh inslead of Ieaving lhe aninaI lehind
and viId aninaIs pieying on il. Thal is vhy lhe lad shepheid leais
off lhe hoof of lhe sheep - so lhal lhe sheep nay faII dovn and il
nay lecone an excuse.
So, vhen }esus said I an lhe good shepheid he neanl aII lhese:
He viII caie foi lhe sliayed oi seaich foi lhe Iosl
He viII seek lhe young
He viII slienglhen lhe veak oi heaI lhe sick oi injuied
He viII feed lhe heaIlhy
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60
6.2 TO 5EEK AND TO FIND
Oui Loid in lhe sloiy of lhe Iosl sheep leaulifuIIy painls lhe
picluie of lhe good shepheid. H caies foi lhe Iosl. Il does nol
nallei vhelhei lhe Ioosing vas lhe nislake of lhe sheep oi of any
lody eIse. The good shepheid goes aflei il. One of lhe najoi
diffeiences lelveen olhei ieIigions and Chiislianily is lhal gods of
aII olhei ieIigions vanls nen lo seek aflei Cod. }esus gives us a
lolaIIy diffeienl picluie of Cod. Man cannol ieaIIy seek Cod noi
can he find Cod of his ovn. This is sinpIy lecause he is dead
spiiiluaIIy and cannol spiiiluaIIy discein. Man does nol even knov
lhal he is Iosl and caughl up in a lush. Man is dead spiiiluaIIy and
dead cannol gel up and iun aflei lhe shepheid. So, ve have lhe
picluie of a Cod vho cones dovn in seaich of nan.
Man cannol, of his ovn undeisland Cod. Hov can a finile leing
conpiehend lhe infinile` The onIy vay nan is alIe lo knov Cod is
vhen Cod ieveaIs hinseIf lo Man. Cod leing infinile is alIe lo
ieveaI hinseIf lo nan. This he did lhiough }esus.
Ma| 18.12-14 'lna| dc qcu |nin|? |f a nan cuns a nundrcd snccp, and
cnc cf |ncn uandcrs auaq, ui|| nc nc| |catc |nc ninc|q-ninc cn |nc ni||s
and gc |c |cc| fcr |nc cnc |na| uandcrcd cff? And if nc finds i|, | |c|| qcu
|nc |ru|n, nc is nappicr aocu| |na| cnc snccp |nan aocu| |nc ninc|q-ninc
|na| did nc| uandcr cff. |n |nc sanc uaq qcur |a|ncr in ncatcn is nc|
ui||ing |na| anq cf |ncsc |i|||c cncs sncu|d oc |cs|.
6.3 5HEPHERD KNOW5 HI5 OWN AND 5HEEP KNOW5 HI5
VOICE
]cnn 10.2-5 Tnc nan unc cn|crs oq |nc ga|c is |nc sncpncrd cf nis snccp.
Tnc ua|cnnan cpcns |nc ga|c fcr nin, and |nc snccp |is|cn |c nis tcicc. Hc
ca||s nis cun snccp oq nanc and |cads |ncn cu|. lncn nc nas orcugn| cu|
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61
a|| nis cun, nc gccs cn ancad cf |ncn, and nis snccp fc||cu nin occausc
|ncq |ncu nis tcicc. 8u| |ncq ui|| nctcr fc||cu a s|rangcr, in fac|, |ncq
ui|| run auaq frcn nin occausc |ncq dc nc| rcccgnizc a s|rangcr's tcicc.'

In acluaI piaclice, lhis indeed is lhe case. The shepheid knovs each
one of his sheep in peison. He can caII lhen ly nane. As he Ieads
lhe gioup, lhey foIIov lhe caII of lhe shepheid. They dislinguish
lhe caII of lhe shepheid fion olhei.
Do you knov youi shepheid`
]cnn 10.8 A|| unc ctcr canc ocfcrc nc ucrc |nictcs and rcoocrs, ou| |nc
snccp did nc| |is|cn |c |ncn.
Theie have leen nessiahs lefoie }esus. Theie have leen nessiahs
aflei }esus. Lven loday, lheie aie nany vho cIain lo le Cod. This
is vhal }esus enphasizes. }esus is lhe Shepheid. Those vho cane
lefoie hin and lheie vho cIained aflei hin and sliII cIaining
godhead aie lhieves and iolleis. The pioof is lhe uIlinale
saciifice. They have nol Iaid dovn lheii Iives foi lhe sheep. Indeed,
lhey cannol. They sinpIy feed on lhe neal of lhe choice sheep.
]cnn 10.10 Tnc |nicf ccncs cn|q |c s|ca| and |i|| and dcs|rcq, | natc ccnc
|na| |ncq naq natc |ifc, and natc i| |c |nc fu||.
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6.4 I HAVE OTHER 5HEEP
In his high piieslIy piayei jusl lefoie he vas Iaying dovn his Iife
foi nany, he decIaied lhe univeisaIily of his sheepfoId. UnliI lhen
nessiah vas lhe King of lhe }evs onIy. Nov }esus decIaies lhal his
nesiaship is fai leyond lhe naiiov nalionaIislic loundaiies lhal
veie sel ly lhe }evs. The caII of lhe }evs vas foi lhe iedenplion of
nankind. So, he decIaies lo lhe puzzIed discipIes:
]cnn 10.16 | natc c|ncr snccp |na| arc nc| cf |nis snccp pcn. | nus| oring
|ncn a|sc. Tncq |cc ui|| |is|cn |c nq tcicc, and |ncrc sna|| oc cnc f|cc|
and cnc sncpncrd.
|pn 2.15-18 His purpcsc uas |c crca|c in ninsc|f cnc ncu nan cu| cf |nc
|uc, |nus na|ing pcacc, and in |nis cnc ocdq |c rcccnci|c oc|n cf |ncn |c
Gcd |nrcugn |nc crcss, oq unicn nc pu| |c dca|n |ncir ncs|i|i|q. Hc canc
and prcacncd pcacc |c qcu unc ucrc far auaq and pcacc |c |ncsc unc ucrc
ncar. |cr |nrcugn nin uc oc|n natc acccss |c |nc |a|ncr oq cnc Spiri|.
ul lhis vas ieaIized painfuIIy lhiough lhe caIIing of a nev
AposlIe - SauI luined IauI.
|pn 3.2-7 Surc|q qcu natc ncard aocu| |nc adninis|ra|icn cf Gcd's gracc
|na| uas gitcn |c nc fcr qcu, |na| is, |nc nqs|crq nadc |ncun |c nc oq
rctc|a|icn, as | natc a|rcadq uri||cn oricf|q. |n rcading |nis, |ncn, qcu
ui|| oc ao|c |c undcrs|and nq insign| in|c |nc nqs|crq cf Cnris|, unicn
uas nc| nadc |ncun |c ncn in c|ncr gcncra|icns as i| nas ncu occn
rctca|cd oq |nc Spiri| |c Gcd's nc|q apcs||cs and prcpnc|s. Tnis nqs|crq
is |na| |nrcugn |nc gcspc| |nc Gcn|i|cs arc ncirs |cgc|ncr ui|n |srac|,
ncnocrs |cgc|ncr cf cnc ocdq, and snarcrs |cgc|ncr in |nc prcnisc in
Cnris| ]csus. | occanc a scrtan| cf |nis gcspc| oq |nc gif| cf Gcd's gracc
gitcn nc |nrcugn |nc ucr|ing cf nis pcucr.
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6.5 5ONG OF THE 5HEEP P5. 23
Psa 23.1-4 Tnc |ORD is nq sncpncrd, | sna|| nc| oc in uan| Hc na|cs
nc |ic dcun in grccn pas|urcs, nc |cads nc ocsidc quic| ua|crs, nc rcs|crcs
nq scu|. Hc guidcs nc in pa|ns cf rign|ccusncss fcr nis nanc's sa|c. |tcn
|ncugn | ua|| |nrcugn |nc ta||cq cf |nc snadcu cf dca|n, | ui|| fcar nc
cti|, fcr qcu arc ui|n nc, qcur rcd and qcur s|aff, |ncq ccnfcr| nc.
Tc |nc c|dcrs ancng qcu, | appca| as a fc||cu c|dcr, a ui|ncss cf Cnris|'s
suffcrings and cnc unc a|sc ui|| snarc in |nc g|crq |c oc rctca|cd.
8c sncpncrds cf Gcd's f|cc| |na| is undcr qcur carc, scrting as ctcrsccrs--
nc| occausc qcu nus|, ou| occausc qcu arc ui||ing, as Gcd uan|s qcu |c
oc, nc| grccdq fcr ncncq, ou| cagcr |c scrtc, nc| |crding i| ctcr |ncsc
cn|rus|cd |c qcu, ou| ocing cxanp|cs |c |nc f|cc|. And uncn |nc Cnicf
Sncpncrd appcars, qcu ui|| rcccitc |nc crcun cf g|crq |na| ui|| nctcr fadc
auaq. 1 Pc|. 5.1-4
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CHAPTER 5EVEN
I AM THE RE5URRECTION AND THE LIFE
1 INTRODUCTION
]cnn 11.24 Mar|na ansucrcd, '| |ncu nc ui|| risc again in |nc
rcsurrcc|icn a| |nc |as| daq.'
]cnn 11.25 ]csus said |c ncr, '| an |nc rcsurrcc|icn and |nc |ifc. Hc unc
oc|ictcs in nc ui|| |itc, ctcn |ncugn nc dics,
]cnn 11.26 and uncctcr |itcs and oc|ictcs in nc ui|| nctcr dic. Dc qcu
oc|ictc |nis?'
The conlexl is lhe occasion of lhe dealh of Lazaius. }esus hinseIf
ciied vhen he vas faced vilh lhe dealh of one his cIose associales.
He vas louched ly lhe giuesoneness of lhe facl of dealh. If il vas
nol a seiious lhing, lheie vas no ieason foi }esus lo ciy. He couId
have expIained lo Maiy lhal il is onIy a passing lody. Lel il iol.
Lazaius is sliII lheie, lhough you cannol see hin nov. No. Thal is
nol vhal }esus said. He venl on lo do sonelhing lo iesloie
Lazaius. LvidenlIy, lhis vas nol lhe iesuiieclion, since iesuiieclion
cannol lake pIace unliI lhe povei of iesuiieclion is ieIeased ly
}esus iesuiieclion. Lazaius died again decIaiing lhal lhe povei of
dealh is sliII piesenl. Resuiieclion is nol acconpIished yel. ul ve
do Iook foivaid lo il.
1.2. THE OLD TE5TAMENT CONNECTION
The OId Teslanenl in lheii eaiIiei pail does nol specificaIIy
nenlion anylhing aloul iesuiieclion. ul aIIusions lo il nay le
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found scalleied aII ovei, so lhal ve nay assune lhal il vas lacilIy
acknovIedged.
Ioi exanpIe:
Gcn 22.5 Aoranan said |c nis scrtan|s, 'S|aq ncrc ui|n |nc dcn|cq uni|c
| and |nc ocq gc ctcr |ncrc. lc ui|| ucrsnip and |ncn uc ui|| ccnc oac|
|c qcu.'
Aulhoi of Heliev expIains lhis slalenenl as Aliahans failh in
Cods aliIily lo liing lack dead.
Hco 11.19 Aoranan rcascncd |na| Gcd ccu|d raisc |nc dcad, and
figura|itc|q spca|ing, nc did rcccitc |saac oac| frcn dca|n.
IsaInisl decIaies lhis concepl of iesuiieclion:
Psa 49.15 8u| Gcd ui|| rcdccn nq |ifc frcn |nc gratc, nc ui|| surc|q |a|c
nc |c ninsc|f.
Isaiah piophesied aloul lhe iesuiieclion of lhe dead al lhe end
line lefoie lhe day of lhe Loid, lhe judgnenl day.
|sa 26.19 8u| qcur dcad ui|| |itc, |ncir ocdics ui|| risc. Ycu unc duc|| in
|nc dus|, ua|c up and sncu| fcr jcq. Ycur dcu is |i|c |nc dcu cf |nc
ncrning, |nc car|n ui|| gitc oir|n |c ncr dcad.
The Iallei veises go on lo lhe desciiplion of lhe }udgnenl day
indicaling a line fiane foi iesuiieclion.
Anolhei cIeai iefeience lo lhe iesuiieclion al lhe end is given in
DanieI.
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Dan 12.13 'As fcr qcu, gc qcur uaq |i|| |nc cnd. Ycu ui|| rcs|, and |ncn
a| |nc cnd cf |nc daqs qcu ui|| risc |c rcccitc qcur a||c||cd inncri|ancc.'
ul }ol nade lhe giealesl decIaialion of failh in iesuiieclion:
]co 19.25-27 | |ncu |na| nq Rcdccncr |itcs, and |na| in |nc cnd nc ui||
s|and upcn |nc car|n. And af|cr nq s|in nas occn dcs|rcqcd, qc| in nq
f|csn | ui|| scc Gcd, | nqsc|f ui|| scc nin ui|n nq cun cqcs--|, and nc|
anc|ncr. Hcu nq ncar| qcarns ui|nin nc!
Il vas hovevei cIeaiIy laughl in lhe ApociyphaI looks of lhe OId
Teslanenl especiaIIy in lhe ook of Wisdon 3:1 and 4:15 and aIso
in lhe II Maccalees 7:14,23,and 29)
The docliine of iesuiieclion vas leIieved ly lhe connon }ev and
lhis can le infeiied fion lhe iefeience in lhe CospeI.
Anong lhe devoul }evs, lheie veie lvo gioups of peopIe
Sadducees and lhe Ihaiisees. Ihaiisees fiinIy leIieved in lhe
iesuiieclion of nan in fIesh - i.e., lhe lodiIy iesuiieclion. Hovevei,
Sadducees did nol leIieve in lhal. They veie lhe ialionaIisls--
IileiaI lheoIogians of lhe line. Anong lhen veie vaiying shades
of leachings -- slailing fion lhe puie naleiiaIislic inleipielalion of
annihiIalion of nan vilh dealh lo lhe iesuiieclion of lhe spiiil of
nan. This lhey achieved ly cIevei heineneulics. Sadducees did nol
give nuch aulhoiily lo lhe piophels any vay. In a IileiaI
inleipielalion of lhe lexl, sciipluie lhal aIIudes lo iesuiieclion
couId le Iaid off eilhei as poelic ulleiances oi inaginalion of a
pious nan oi vishfuI lhinking and oi as conlexluaIIy unlenalIe.
Hovevei, eveiy }ev ieileiales lhe concepl in his noining and
evening piayeis lhal iepeals such leins as "fion age lo age, " In
ages lo cone" and "voiId vilhoul end. Ihaiisees on lhe olhei
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hand leIieved lhal even lhe deniaI of lhe docliine of iesuiieclion of
lhe dead vouId liing eleinaI dannalion.
So, lhe Sadducees iaised lhe queslion lefoie }esus. The piolIen
piesenled vas lypicaI of lhe Saduccean appioach. Il vas noie a
iidicuIe lhan inquiiy.
Ma| 22.23-31 Tna| sanc daq |nc Sadducccs, unc saq |ncrc is nc
rcsurrcc|icn, canc |c nin ui|n a qucs|icn.
'Tcacncr,' |ncq said, 'Mcscs |c|d us |na| if a nan dics ui|ncu| nating
cni|drcn, nis orc|ncr nus| narrq |nc uidcu and natc cni|drcn fcr nin.
Ncu |ncrc ucrc sctcn orc|ncrs ancng us. Tnc firs| cnc narricd and dicd,
and sincc nc nad nc cni|drcn, nc |cf| nis uifc |c nis orc|ncr. Tnc sanc
|ning nappcncd |c |nc scccnd and |nird orc|ncr, rign| cn dcun |c |nc
sctcn|n. |ina||q, |nc ucnan dicd. Ncu |ncn, a| |nc rcsurrcc|icn, uncsc
uifc ui|| snc oc cf |nc sctcn, sincc a|| cf |ncn ucrc narricd |c ncr?'
]csus rcp|icd, 'Ycu arc in crrcr occausc qcu dc nc| |ncu |nc Scrip|urcs
cr |nc pcucr cf Gcd. A| |nc rcsurrcc|icn pccp|c ui|| nci|ncr narrq ncr oc
gitcn in narriagc, |ncq ui|| oc |i|c |nc angc|s in ncatcn. 8u| aocu| |nc
rcsurrcc|icn cf |nc dcad--natc qcu nc| rcad una| Gcd said |c qcu, '| an
|nc Gcd cf Aoranan, |nc Gcd cf |saac, and |nc Gcd cf ]acco' ? Hc is nc|
|nc Gcd cf |nc dcad ou| cf |nc |iting.'
|u|c 20.34-36 ]csus rcp|icd, 'Tnc pccp|c cf |nis agc narrq and arc gitcn
in narriagc. 8u| |ncsc unc arc ccnsidcrcd ucr|nq cf |a|ing par| in |na|
agc and in |nc rcsurrcc|icn frcn |nc dcad ui|| nci|ncr narrq ncr oc gitcn
in narriagc, and |ncq can nc |cngcr dic, fcr |ncq arc |i|c |nc angc|s. Tncq
arc Gcd's cni|drcn, sincc |ncq arc cni|drcn cf |nc rcsurrcc|icn.
RepIy of }esus vas cIeveiei lhan lheii queslion. He poinls oui lo
lheii ignoiance of lhe olhei voiId. Il vas lheii inaliIily lo iise
alove lhe faIIen naluie lhal nade lhen incapalIe of seeing lhe
giealei liulh. Malhevs veision enphasizes lhe innoilaIily of lhe
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souI. Aliahan, Isaac and }acol aie nol dead. They aie sliII Iiving.
Lukes veision poinls oul lo lhe lodiIy iesuiieclion lhal is lo cone
in a Ialei line. Yes nan viII le iesuiiecled in lody. ul lhe
ieIalionships lelveen nan and vonan and nan and nan aie
diffeienl, lecause lhey aie lhe chiIdien of iesuiieclion. They aie
Iike angeIs lecause lhey do nol iepioduce any noie. Theiefoie, lhe
queslion of naiiiage does nol aiise.
IauI vas a Ihaiisee and he cIained il lo lhe end. So lheie is no
queslion of inleipieling any of his slalenenls iegaiding
iesuiieclion olhei lhan lodiIy iesuiieclion. In facl, al Ieasl in one
occasion he used his phaiisaic failh in iesuiieclion lo vin ovei lhe
Ihaiisee gioup againsl lhe Sadducees in his liiaI.
Ac|s 23.6-8 Tncn Pau|, |ncuing |na| scnc cf |ncn ucrc Sadducccs and
|nc c|ncrs Pnarisccs, ca||cd cu| in |nc Sanncdrin, 'Mq orc|ncrs, | an a
Pnariscc, |nc scn cf a Pnariscc. | s|and cn |ria| occausc cf nq ncpc in |nc
rcsurrcc|icn cf |nc dcad.' lncn nc said |nis, a dispu|c orc|c cu| oc|uccn
|nc Pnarisccs and |nc Sadducccs, and |nc asscno|q uas ditidcd. (Tnc
Sadducccs saq |na| |ncrc is nc rcsurrcc|icn, and |na| |ncrc arc nci|ncr
angc|s ncr spiri|s, ou| |nc Pnarisccs ac|ncu|cdgc |ncn a||.)
Then IauI unequivocaIIy slales lhal he has lhe sane hope as lhal of
lhe Ihaiisees.
Ac|s 24.15 and | natc |nc sanc ncpc in Gcd as |ncsc ncn, |na| |ncrc ui||
oc a rcsurrcc|icn cf oc|n |nc rign|ccus and |nc uic|cd.
Any allenpl lo disloil IauIs leachings lo nean anylhing olhei
lhan lodiIy iesuiieclion vouId le a disloilion of hisloiicaI ieaIily.

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2. WHAT I5 DEATH AND WHAT I5 RE5URRECTION?
The Cieek void foi iesuiieclion is 'anaslasis vhich vhen
liansIaled neans lo nake lo sland oi iise up. The evidenl neaning
is lo ieveil lack oi liing lack lo lhe oiiginaI foin.
2.1 RATIONALI5M AND CAU5E EFFECT CONFU5ION
In lhe iecenl yeais ialionaIisls have cone up vilh lhe
inleipielalion lhal "iaised fion lhe dealh does nol nean acluaI
lodiIy iesuiieclion." The queslion is ceilainIy ciilicaI and lhe
AposlIes acluaIIy giappIed vilh lhose queslions. This nodein
allenpl is lased on lhiee lendencies.
2.11 HOW CAN THE BODY BE RE5URRECTED?
Iiisl, il is lased on skeplicisn iegaiding lodiIy iesuiieclion. Hov
can a lody lhal is decayed le foined again inlo lhe sane oiiginaI
foin` We see dealh aiound. We luiy oui dead. Sone aie luined
oi even ealen ly aninaIs, liids and fishes. Hov aie ve lo expecl a
iefoinalion of lhese lodies lack lo hunan foin`
The vhoIe univeise ve knov is in a fIux. The exleinaI voiId of
nallei consisls of nallei in incessanl nolion. We knov lhal lody
changes vilh line. The ceIIs die and aie iepIaced conslanlIy.
Living oiganisns giov in size, vhiIe lhey ielain lhe essenliaI foin.
ul each individuaI has his oi hei unique foin. Whal foin each
individuaI has is deleinined ly lvo faclois. The fiisl facloi decides
lhe species foin and lhe second is unique lo each individuaI. If
noIecuIes aie conslanlIy changing, lody is conslanlIy changing. Il
is said lhal oui lody is conpIeleIy changed eveiy lhiee yeais.
AInosl aII oui noIecuIes aie iepIaced ly anolhei siniIai one al lhe
iighl pIace. Aflei 6O yeais aflei 2O such cycIes of change, ve sliII
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have oui eyes, eais, noses, and vilaI oigans in lhe sane ieIalive
pIace. Theie aie changes in size and sIighl vaiialions in shape. I
have deveIoped a luIging aldonen, vhiIe ny alhIelic fiiend has
veiy sliong nuscIes.
Whal nakes lhis conslancy of foin vilh vaiialions` LvidenlIy oui
lody is piogianned sonevheie so lhal ceIIs aie pioduced in
exaclIy sane vay as and vhen iequiied and pIaced in lhe iighl
pIace. Such dala is nol lody lul il pioduces lhe lody. Il is a code.
The lody can le iegeneialed oi ieciealed fion lhe code. The code
changes lo sone exlenl fion peison lo peison and is acluaIIy
deleinined ly lhe peison. Il is decided ly lhe Iife slyIe and
lhoughl pallein and slale of a peison in his inleiaclion vilh lhe
naleiiaI voiId and lhe spiiiluaI voiId. This is unique lo eveiy
peison in lhal sense. The lody code lheiefoie is in lhe souI. ody is
essenliaIIy ieIalionaI and posilionaI nallei. LvidenlIy oui lody is
piogianned sonevheie so lhal ceIIs aie pioduced in exaclIy sane
vay as and vhen iequiied and pIaced in lhe iighl pIace. Such dala
is nol lody lul il pioduces lhe lody. Il is a code. Il is pail of his
peisonaIily genelicaIIy slailed and deveIoped ly lhe uniqueness of
peison. Lven if lhe lody is lolaIIy deslioyed, lhe souI viII le alIe
lo iecieale lhe lody. This expIains lhe Chiislian concepl of
iesuiieclion.
'Gcd ui|| oring ui|n nin |ncsc unc natc fa||cn as|ccp........And |nc dcad
in Cnris| ui|| risc firs|, |ncn uc unc arc a|itc, unc arc |cf| sna|| oc caugn|
up |cgc|ncr ui|n |ncn in |nc c|cuds' (2 Tncss. 13-18)
Ihaiisees expIained lhis in a nylhicaI foin in lhe foIIoving vay.
Theie is a snaII lone in lhe spine lhal is indesliuclilIe, and fion
lhis lhe vhoIe nan can le ieconsliucled. This nay seen
iidicuIous. ul ve knov loday lhal lhe enliie lody can le
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ieconsliucled fion one ceII fion a dead lody. AII infoinalion
necessaiy aie encoded in eveiy hunan ceII.
2.12 MAN WITHOUT BODY?
Second, il is lhe infIuence of lhe Nev Age, vhich is nolhing lul lhe
nodein veision of Hinduisn. Theie aie seveiaI vaiialions in lhis
gioup. asicaIIy, lhey considei
lhal nan is nol his lody. Man is
lhe peison oi lhe peisonaIily oi
souI (Alna) lhal ieside in lhe
lody. ody is onIy a gainenl.
The souI nay lheiefoie change
lheii oulei gainenl and lake
anolhei foin. In facl, lhe foin
of lhe lody is seIecled
accoiding lo lhe slale of lhe
souI. They lheiefoie considei nan a spiiil leing. AII olhei oulei
foins aie enleIIishnenls lhal lhe souI liings on due lo his
ignoiance of his ieaI slale, vhich is lhe idenlily vilh Codhead.
This is conliaiy lo lhe lasic Chiislian undeislanding of vhal nan
is. Man vas ciealed as a iesuIl of and consequenl lo lhe ciealion of
lhe lody. Hunan foin is fundanenlaI lo nan. Ieison is ody, souI
and spiiil. OnIy vhen aII lhe lhiee aie joined logelhei he is nan.
Any one pail kepl apail is nol nan. You nay keep lhe dead lody
pieseived foi yeais. ul lhal is nol nan. You nay have lhe souI
kepl sepaiale in ils ovn dinension, lul lhal is nol nan.
2.13 I5 MATTER EVIL?



Man Is a TrInIty: Bndy, 5nu! and
5pIrIt. On!y whcn a!! thc thrcc
arc jnIncd tngcthcr hc Is Man.
Man cannnt cxIst apart frnm a!!
thcsc thrcc parts, cvcn If cach
part can cxIst scparatc!y.


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Thiid, il is lased on lhe nisundeislanding of lhe naluie of Mallei
as undeislood ly lhe sciipluie. Mallei is nol consideied eviI in
Chiislian lhoughl. Iai fion il. Il
is consideied good.
Aflei lhe ciealion of nallei and
aII lhings, Cod Iooked al lhen
and said, "They aie good". 'And
Gcd sau |na| i| uas gccd.'
ul nallei is nov undei londage
of decay.
Gcn 3.17-19 Tc Adan nc said,
'8ccausc qcu |is|cncd |c qcur uifc and a|c frcn |nc |rcc aocu| unicn |
ccnnandcd qcu, 'Ycu nus| nc| ca| cf i|,' 'Curscd is |nc grcund occausc
cf qcu, |nrcugn painfu| |ci| qcu ui|| ca| cf i| a|| |nc daqs cf qcur |ifc ||
ui|| prcducc |ncrns and |nis||cs fcr qcu, and qcu ui|| ca| |nc p|an|s cf |nc
fic|d. 8q |nc suca| cf qcur orcu qcu ui|| ca| qcur fccd un|i| qcu rc|urn |c
|nc grcund, sincc frcn i| qcu ucrc |a|cn, fcr dus| qcu arc and |c dus| qcu
ui|| rc|urn.'
The diiecl and enphalic leaching of lhe lilIe is lhal eailh and aII
nallei is kepl in londage of decay and dealh lecause of lhe sin of
nan.
2.2 DID ADAM DIE THAT DAY?
The conlenlion lhal lhe ilIicaI concepl of lhe iesuiieclion invoIves
a spiiiluaI iising of nan oul of sin-dealh, |i.e. sepaialion fion Cod
caused ly sinj, a iesloialion of nan lo lhe piesence of Cod


Gnd p!accd thc Human bndy
- hcncc thc matcrIa! rca!m -
undcr thc bnndagc nf dccay
and dcath, bccausc nf 5In.
Hc has subjcctcd It wIth a
hnpc that Hc wI!! rcdccm
thcm, snmc day.


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ul ve need lo go a slep fuilhei. Sin has aIienaled nan fion Cod.
Il is lhis aIienalion lhal evenluaIIy Ieads lo dealh.
In Cenesis 2:15-17 Cod loId nan conceining lhe fiuil of lhe liee of
lhe knovIedge of good and eviI "in lhe day you eal lheieof you viII
suieIy die." Man and vonan ale of lhe fiuil, did lhey die lhal day`
AnazingIy, nosl peopIe viII say "No!" lecause Adan and Lve did
nol die physicaIIy aflei lhey ale lhe foilidden fiuil. ul lhis is nol
lhe vhoIe sloiy.
The Aigunenl usuaIIy piesenled is: " If Adan and Lve did nol die
lhe day lhey ale, lhen Salan loId lhe liulh and Cod Iied! Cod said
you vouId die in lhe day you eal, Salan said you viII nol suieIy
die, Cenesis 3:1ff. Who loId lhe liulh lo Adan and Lve` UnIess one
can find Adan and Lve physicaIIy dead in Cenesis 2-3 lhen lhe
dealh lhey died vas spiiiluaI and nol physicaI!" This nay sound
sinpIe Iogic. ul is il`
Ioi one lhing, "on lhal day " does nol even inpIy a 24-houi day.
Lven loday Aialic void "Yon" is used lo denole a line span. Lven
in LngIish Ianguage connon use, il inpIies a peiiod onIy. Il
sinpIy neans lecause of lhe disoledience, dealh viII cone on you.
OnIy a IegaIislic heineneulics viII peinil a 24-houi day peiiod.
LIsevheie Ielei nakes lhis concepl cIeai.
2 Pc| 3.8 8u| dc nc| fcrgc| |nis cnc |ning, dcar fricnds. li|n |nc |crd a
daq is |i|c a |ncusand qcars, and a |ncusand qcars arc |i|c a daq.
Ielei vas laIking aloul lhe second coning of oui Loid.
Hov Iong did Adan Iive`
Gcn 5.5 A||cgc|ncr, Adan |itcd 930 qcars, and |ncn nc dicd.
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75
Did Adan die in lhal day` In facl, dealh cane lhe inslanl Adan
disoleyed. Decay and dealh slailed vilh disoledience. The facl
lhal Adan and Lve veie diiven oul of lhe Caiden of Lden and
veie kepl fion enleiing il vas onIy lhe gieal neicy of Cod.
A sinfuI peison vilh a decaying lody viII le Iiving in dealh if
dissoIulion did nol cone and ieIease nan fion lhis lody.
'Hc nus| nc| oc a||cucd |c rcacn cu| nis nand and |a|c a|sc frcn |nc |rcc
cf |ifc and ca|, and |itc fcrctcr.'
Gcn 3.23-24 Sc |nc |ORD Gcd oanisncd nin frcn |nc Gardcn cf |dcn |c
ucr| |nc grcund frcn unicn nc nad occn |a|cn.' Af|cr nc drctc |nc nan
cu|, nc p|accd cn |nc cas| sidc cf |nc Gardcn cf |dcn cncruoin and a
f|aning sucrd f|asning oac| and fcr|n |c guard |nc uaq |c |nc |rcc cf |ifc.
Theie is an inleiesling sloiy of a silualion vhen lhe god of dealh
venl on sliike in Hindu nylhoIogy. IeopIe veie gelling oId and
feelIe. ul dealh vouId nol cone.
To Iive in decay even undei
iegeneialion lhal conlinues lo
decay viII le a Iife of pain,
suffeiing and niseiy. The
silualion is one lhal ve face even
loday. We couId pioIong lhe Iife lo
a gieal exlenl vilh nedicines. ul does lhal heIp in aIIevialion of
suffeiing` Il liings lack lo nenoiy lhe science ficlion lhal I have
iead vheie an eIixii of innoilaIily vas discoveied. LIixii of
innoilaIily is nol a soIulion lo lhe dissoIving decaying voiId. Il
viII onIy aggiavale lhe silualion. Was il neicy oi punishnenl lhal
Cod diove Adan and Lve oul of Lden`



Gnd In hIs mcrcy prnvIdcd
dcath fnr Man.


I AM : M. M. NInan


76
Lven aflei lhe disoledience, ve see Cod seeking Adan. Il vas Cod
vho piovided lhe gainenl of skin foi Adan and Lve. Cod even
laIked lo Cain and gives hin counseI. Cod vas nol sepaialed fion
nan. Adan vas sliII Cods son. ul he has suljecled hinseIf lo
dealh ly sinning. Cod unIike a spoiIing falhei iefused lo condone
lhe sin and Iive vilh il. Adan has lo lake lhe consequence of his
ovn aclion. Adan ciealed his ovn enviionnenl. We aII luiId oui
ovn lodies lhe vay ve eal, acl and lehave. We lake lhe
consequence of oui ovn aclions in oui lodies as veII as in oui
spiiil and souI.
2.3 WHAT I5 DEATH IN THE BIBLICAL 5EN5E?
Dealh lheiefoie in lhe lilIicaI sense is lhe piocess of decay Ieading
lo lhe dissoIulion of lody fion souI and spiiil. This is lhe
consequence of disoledience and sin. Hence, ve have lhe enphalic
slalenenl.
Rcn 6.23 |cr |nc uagcs cf sin is dca|n.
Sepaialion and asseilion of independence fion Cod is nol dealh in
ilseIf, il is lhe cause of dealh lhal finaIIy liings lo lhe end a noiaI
dealh, a spiiiluaI dealh and finaIIy lodiIy dealh.Wages aie paid al
lhe end of lhe seivice peiiod nol lefoie. This dealh is in lhe lolaI
nan - lody, souI and spiiil.
}anes sunnaiizes lhis in lhe nosl leaulifuI vay lhus:
]ancs 1.14-15 ou| cacn cnc is |cnp|cd uncn, oq nis cun cti| dcsirc, nc is
draggcd auaq and cn|iccd. Tncn, af|cr dcsirc nas ccnccitcd, i| gitcs oir|n
|c sin, and sin, uncn i| is fu||-grcun, gitcs oir|n |c dca|n.
So aIso, IauI ieileiales lhus:
I AM : M. M. NInan


77
Rcn 7.5 |cr uncn uc ucrc ccn|rc||cd oq |nc sinfu| na|urc, |nc sinfu|
passicns arcuscd oq |nc |au ucrc a| ucr| in cur ocdics, sc |na| uc ocrc
frui| fcr dca|n.
Rcn 7.24 lna| a urc|cncd nan | an! lnc ui|| rcscuc nc frcn |nis ocdq
cf dca|n?
(LvidenlIy IauI iefeis lo lhe dealh in lhe lody and nol of spiiil)
1 Ccr 15.56 Tnc s|ing cf dca|n is sin, and |nc pcucr cf sin is |nc |au.
3. CREATON IT5ELF WILL BE LIBERATED:
Fu!! Imp!IcatInn nf rcsurrcctInn
Il is lhis vhoIesone nanhood lhal }esus iegained lhiough his cioss
and iesuiieclion.
In }esus ve nol onIy have lhe iesuiieclion and iedenplion of oui
lodies, he aIso ollained lhe iedenplion of lhe Iav of decay and
dealh on lhe naleiiaI voiId.
Lel ne nake lhis poinl cIeai.
Rcn 8.19-25 Tnc crca|icn uai|s in cagcr cxpcc|a|icn fcr |nc scns cf Gcd
|c oc rctca|cd. |cr |nc crca|icn uas suojcc|cd |c frus|ra|icn, nc| oq i|s
cun cncicc, ou| oq |nc ui|| cf |nc cnc unc suojcc|cd i|, in ncpc |na| |nc
crca|icn i|sc|f ui|| oc |iocra|cd frcn i|s ocndagc |c dccaq and orcugn| in|c
|nc g|cricus frccdcn cf |nc cni|drcn cf Gcd. lc |ncu |na| |nc unc|c
crca|icn nas occn grcaning as in |nc pains cf cni|doir|n rign| up |c |nc
prcscn| |inc. Nc| cn|q sc, ou| uc cursc|tcs, unc natc |nc firs|frui|s cf
|nc Spiri|, grcan inuard|q as uc uai| cagcr|q fcr cur adcp|icn as scns, |nc
rcdcnp|icn cf cur ocdics. |cr in |nis ncpc uc ucrc satcd. 8u| ncpc |na| is
sccn is nc ncpc a| a||. lnc ncpcs fcr una| nc a|rcadq nas? 8u| if uc ncpc
fcr una| uc dc nc| qc| natc, uc uai| fcr i| pa|icn||q.
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78
The appeaiance of lhe sons of Cod - i.e. lhe iedeened peopIe vilh
iedeened lodies is a
pieiequisile lo lhe naleiiaI
voiId lo le Iileialed fion lhe
Iav of decay. See lhal lhese
lvo aie diieclIy ieIaled.
ecause of lhe sin of nan, lhe
univeise vheie ve Iive in is
suljecled lo decay and
dissoIulion. The ieveise
aclion viII lake pIace vhen nankind is iedeened.
Whal is lhis lody lhal IauI laIks aloul`
Whal is lhis Iav lhal IauI laIks aloul`
He is laIking aloul lhe lodies lhal ve nov posses since ve aie
eageiIy vailing foi lhe iedenplion of lhis lody. The conlexl is lhe
ciealion - naleiiaI, physicaI nallei, lhe coipoieaI fIesh and lIood.
Ciealion ilseIf viII le Iileialed fion ils londage lo decay
One fundanenlaI Iav of Ihysics, vhich is nol a piioii, lul is
enpiiicaI and is nol found vioIaled, is lhe second Iav of
lheinodynanics. This Iav in sinpIe Iaynan leins is lhal
eveiylhing goes fion oidei lo disoidei. We can luiId a highIy
oideied syslen - a cai, a nachine, a conpulei anylhing - lul in
line il viII decay and nolhing olhei lhan an inleIIigenl leing can
iesloie oidei fion lhis disoidei. Thal is a univeisaI Iav loday. In
scienlific leins, lhe novenenl fion oidei lo disoidei is caIIed
inciease in Lnliopy. Deciease in enliopy neans il goes fion oidei
lo giealei oidei. If enliopy ienains sane, no oidei is ciealed noi
any disoidei is ciealed in any change. In lhal case, changes can



Jcsus wI!! nnc day rcdccm,
nnt nn!y mankInd, but a!sn
thc whn!c crcatInn frnm thc
bnndagc nf dccay.


I AM : M. M. NInan


79
onIy le effecled ly lhe inleivenlion of inleIIigence. In lhe cuiienl
univeise vheie ve Iive enliopy is aIvays incieasing. ul il need
nol le so. Theie is no ieason vhy il shouId nol have leen lhe olhei
vay iound. The voiId couId have gone fion oidei lo giealei oidei
ly ilseIf vilhoul lhe inleivenlion of an inleIIigenl agency. Il nusl
have leen lhal vay lefoie lhe faII of Adan. Oi al Ieasl lhe enliopy
vouId have ienained conslanl vhen Adan enleied lhe scene and
Adan had lhe aliIily lo choose lhe Iav of his univeise. He favoied
lhe inciease in enliopy liinging in dissipalion of eneigy and decay
and dealh. Il is lhis ieveision lhal IauI iefeis lo as "ciealion vas
suljecled lo fiuslialion, "lhal lhe ciealion ilseIf viII le Iileialed
fion ils londage lo decay"
Nolice again lhal IauI speaks of iedenplion of oui lodies as lhe
sign of leconing sons of Cod ly adoplion.
When }esus said, "I an lhe iesuiieclion and lhe Iife" he vas laIking
aloul lhe iesuiieclion of nan as a vhoIesone leing. Inslead of
"dealh ieigning in oui lodies" i.e. on lhe nallei as il does loday,
}esus liings Iife lo lhe noilaI lodies.
Rcn 6.9-10 |cr uc |ncu |na| sincc Cnris| uas raiscd frcn |nc dcad, nc
cannc| dic again, dca|n nc |cngcr nas nas|crq ctcr nin Tnc dca|n nc
dicd, nc dicd |c sin cncc fcr a||, ou| |nc |ifc nc |itcs, nc |itcs |c Gcd.
Did }esus liing Iife` We do nol see il. As il vas vilh dealh, so il is
vilh Iife. The iesuiieclion povei is ieIeased and il slailed al lhe
lonl of }esus. Accoiding lo noinaI Iav of decay, }esus lody
vouId have leen decayed. ul il did nol. Whal happened in lhal
lonl vas lhe giealesl vioIalion of lhe second Iav of
lheinodynanics - lhe Iav of oidei lo disoidei. Inslead, il venl
fion a decaying lody inlo a non-decaying inpeiishalIe lody.
Theie vas a ieveisaI of lhe invioIalIe Iav of enliopy in lhe lonl of
I AM : M. M. NInan


80
}eiusaIen 2OOO yeais ago. Il is lhis iesuiieclion povei lhal }esus
offeis lo eveiy leIievei. A leIievei is nol iesuiiecled innedialeIy.
ul lhe foice of decay is alaled. ul foi lhe ieaIizalion of lhis inlo
ieaIily - ve have lo vail foi il. Resuiieclion is nol an acconpIished
facl foi nan yel. Il is an offei. Il slails lhe ninule one puls his failh
in }esus Chiisl.
1 Ccr 15.22 |cr as in Adan a|| dic, sc in Cnris| a|| ui|| oc nadc a|itc.
The sane choice lhal Adan had is sliII vilh nan. WiII you choose
Iife`
]cnn 11.25-26 ]csus said |c ncr, '| an |nc rcsurrcc|icn and |nc |ifc. Hc
unc oc|ictcs in nc ui|| |itc, ctcn |ncugn nc dics, and uncctcr |itcs and
oc|ictcs in nc ui|| nctcr dic. Dc qcu oc|ictc |nis?'
4. REALIZATION OF RE5URRECTION.
We aie sliII availing lhis ieaIizalion, even lhough ve have lhe
HoIy Spiiil vilhin us.
Donl le Ied asliay ly lhose vho piofess lhal lhe iesuiieclion has
laken pIace. IauI has cIeaiIy vained us againsl such faIse leacheis.
2 Tin 2.15-18 Dc qcur ocs| |c prcscn| qcursc|f |c Gcd as cnc apprctcd, a
ucr|nan unc dccs nc| nccd |c oc asnancd and unc ccrrcc||q nand|cs |nc
ucrd cf |ru|n.
Atcid gcd|css cna||cr, occausc |ncsc unc indu|gc in i| ui|| occcnc ncrc
and ncrc ungcd|q. Tncir |cacning ui|| sprcad |i|c gangrcnc. Ancng |ncn
arc Hqncnacus and Pni|c|us, unc natc uandcrcd auaq frcn |nc |ru|n.
Tncq saq |na| |nc rcsurrcc|icn nas a|rcadq |a|cn p|acc, and |ncq dcs|rcq
|nc fai|n cf scnc.
I AM : M. M. NInan


81
We vail foi lhis even loday.
Rcn 8.23-25 Nc| cn|q sc, ou| uc cursc|tcs, unc natc |nc firs|frui|s cf
|nc Spiri|, grcan inuard|q as uc uai| cagcr|q fcr cur adcp|icn as scns, |nc
rcdcnp|icn cf cur ocdics. |cr in |nis ncpc uc ucrc satcd. 8u| ncpc |na|
is sccn is nc ncpc a| a||. lnc ncpcs fcr una| nc a|rcadq nas? 8u| if uc
ncpc fcr una| uc dc nc| qc| natc, uc uai| fcr i| pa|icn||q.
Theie aie loday a Iaige nunlei of ieaIised eschaloIogisls. These
aie essenliaIIy peopIe vho have leen Ied asliay ly lhe
inleipielalions of lines and peiiods. They veie liying lo piedicl
lhe coning of Chiisl and lhey faiIed eveiy line. If Chiisl did nol
cone vhen lhey piedicled il vhal aie lhey lo do. Reinleipiel lhe
coning of Chiisl lo fil lheii lining. So, lhey decIaied lhal }esus has
cone. ul vheie is he` The ansvei is "You canl see hin. He has
cone in lhe spiiil. He viII nol cone in peison. Resuiieclion has
leen achieved. Resuiieclion is nol lodiIy iesuiieclion lul spiiil."
They ieinleipiel sciipluie lo fil lheii faiIuies.
5. RE5URRECTED JE5U5
5.1 DID JE5U5 RE5URRECT IN BODY?
UIlinaleIy lhe iesuiieclion is lo le ieIaled and undeislood in leins
of lhe iesuiieclion of }esus. }esus vas lhe Nev Adan. He is lhe
fiisl fiuil of iesuiieclion.
The fiisl evidence of iesuiieclion vas lhe enply lonl.
He is Risen
Ma| 27.63-64 'Sir,' |ncq said, 'uc rcncnocr |na| uni|c nc uas s|i||
a|itc |na| dcccitcr said, 'Af|cr |nrcc daqs | ui|| risc again.' Sc gitc |nc
crdcr fcr |nc |cno |c oc nadc sccurc un|i| |nc |nird daq.
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82
The piiesls and lhe Ihaiisees undeislood lhe iesuiieclion as lodiIy
iesuiieclion as lhey secuied lhe lonl.
Ac|s 1.3-4 Af|cr nis suffcring, nc sncucd ninsc|f |c |ncsc ncn and gatc
nanq ccntincing prccfs |na| nc uas a|itc. Hc appcarcd |c |ncn ctcr a
pcricd cf fcr|q daqs and spc|c aocu| |nc |ingdcn cf Gcd.
On cnc cccasicn, uni|c nc uas ca|ing ui|n |ncn,....
asic lhiusl of AposloIic leaching vas lased on lhe lodiIy
iesuiieclion. Olheivise, lhey veie lasing lheii appeaI on
haIIucinalion. Oi if }esus look up lhe lody and shoved il lo lhen
lo piove his iesuiieclion, }esus vas Iying lo lhen, end juslifying
lhe neans, sonelhing vhich }esus vehenenlIy oljecled lo. Was
}esus fooIing his discipIes, vhen he shoved his hands, oi vhen he
ascended inlo heaven lefoie his discipIes` Whal is lhe significance
of lhe enply lonl and lhe vinding cIolhes Iefl lehind`
]cnn 20.20 Af|cr nc said |nis, nc sncucd |ncn nis nands and sidc. Tnc
discip|cs ucrc ctcrjcqcd uncn |ncq sau |nc |crd.
He shoved lhen his hands and his sides
]cnn 20.24-27 Ncu Tncnas (ca||cd Didqnus), cnc cf |nc Tuc|tc, uas
nc| ui|n |nc discip|cs uncn ]csus canc. Sc |nc c|ncr discip|cs |c|d nin,
'lc natc sccn |nc |crd!' 8u| nc said |c |ncn, 'Un|css | scc |nc nai|
nar|s in nis nands and pu| nq fingcr uncrc |nc nai|s ucrc, and pu| nq
nand in|c nis sidc, | ui|| nc| oc|ictc i|.' A ucc| |a|cr nis discip|cs ucrc in
|nc ncusc again, and Tncnas uas ui|n |ncn. Tncugn |nc dccrs ucrc
|cc|cd, ]csus canc and s|ccd ancng |ncn and said, 'Pcacc oc ui|n qcu!'
Tncn nc said |c Tncnas, 'Pu| qcur fingcr ncrc, scc nq nands. Rcacn cu|
qcur nand and pu| i| in|c nq sidc. S|cp dcuo|ing and oc|ictc.'

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83
5.2 WHAT TYPE OF BODY WA5 IT?
We nolice lhal lhe iesuiiecled lody vas noie lhan lhe naluiaI
lody vilh vhich he died.
Iiisl }esus couId nevei die. This lody is nol a decaying lody. Il is
innoilaI, inpeiishalIe. When ve say a lody is inpeiishalIe, il
sinpIy neans lhal lhe oidei in il couId nevei lecone noie
disoidei. Il couId giov fion oidei lo oidei. Indeed, il is lhis lhal
}esus gives lo eveiy leIievei lhiough lhe aliding of His Spiiil
vilhin us.
2 Ccr 3.18 And uc, unc ui|n
untci|cd faccs a|| rcf|cc| |nc
|crd's g|crq, arc ocing
|ransfcrncd in|c nis |i|cncss
ui|n ctcr-incrcasing g|crq,
unicn ccncs frcn |nc |crd, unc
is |nc Spiri|.
BcIng transfnrmcd Intn hIs
!Ikcncss
}esus lody aflei iesuiieclion vas nol oidinaiy lhiee-dinensionaI
lody. He couId enlei lhe cIosed ioons and appeai and disappeai.
Yel, lhe lody vas naleiiaI and ieaI. This ve knov is possilIe onIy
vhen lhe lody exisls in nuIlidinensionaI. Sciipluie uses lhe lein
spiiiluaI dinension. The iesuiiecled lody exisls nol onIy in
naleiiaI dinension lul aIso in lhe spiiiluaI dinension. This
liansfoinalion is vhal IauI desciiles.
1 Ccr 15.35-50 8u| scnccnc naq as|, 'Hcu arc |nc dcad raiscd? li|n
una| |ind cf ocdq ui|| |ncq ccnc?' Hcu fcc|isn! lna| qcu scu dccs nc|


Thc rcsurrcctcd bndy Is nnt
nn!y frcc frnm dccay and
dcath, but a!sn cxIsts In supcr
dImcnsInns bcynnd thc
matcrIa! dImcnsInn.

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84
ccnc |c |ifc un|css i| dics. lncn qcu scu, qcu dc nc| p|an| |nc ocdq |na|
ui|| oc, ou| jus| a sccd, pcrnaps cf unca| cr cf scnc|ning c|sc. 8u| Gcd
gitcs i| a ocdq as nc nas dc|crnincd, and |c cacn |ind cf sccd nc gitcs i|s
cun ocdq. A|| f|csn is nc| |nc sanc. Mcn natc cnc |ind cf f|csn, anina|s
natc anc|ncr, oirds anc|ncr and fisn anc|ncr. Tncrc arc a|sc ncatcn|q
ocdics and |ncrc arc car|n|q ocdics, ou| |nc sp|cndcr cf |nc ncatcn|q ocdics
is cnc |ind, and |nc sp|cndcr cf |nc car|n|q ocdics is anc|ncr. Tnc sun nas
cnc |ind cf sp|cndcr, |nc nccn anc|ncr and |nc s|ars anc|ncr, and s|ar
diffcrs frcn s|ar in sp|cndcr.
Sc ui|| i| oc ui|n |nc rcsurrcc|icn cf |nc dcad. Tnc ocdq |na| is scun is
pcrisnao|c, i| is raiscd inpcrisnao|c, i| is scun in disncncr, i| is raiscd in
g|crq, i| is scun in uca|ncss, i| is raiscd in pcucr, i| is scun a na|ura|
ocdq, i| is raiscd a spiri|ua| ocdq. |f |ncrc is a na|ura| ocdq, |ncrc is a|sc a
spiri|ua| ocdq. Sc i| is uri||cn. 'Tnc firs| nan Adan occanc a |iting
ocing' , |nc |as| Adan, a |ifc-giting spiri|. Tnc spiri|ua| did nc| ccnc
firs|, ou| |nc na|ura|, and af|cr |na| |nc spiri|ua|. Tnc firs| nan uas cf |nc
dus| cf |nc car|n, |nc scccnd nan frcn ncatcn. As uas |nc car|n|q nan,
sc arc |ncsc unc arc cf |nc car|n, and as is |nc nan frcn ncatcn, sc a|sc
arc |ncsc unc arc cf ncatcn. And jus| as uc natc ocrnc |nc |i|cncss cf |nc
car|n|q nan, sc sna|| uc ocar |nc |i|cncss cf |nc nan frcn ncatcn. |
dcc|arc |c qcu, orc|ncrs, |na| f|csn and o|ccd cannc| inncri| |nc |ingdcn
cf Gcd, ncr dccs |nc pcrisnao|c inncri| |nc inpcrisnao|c.
This liansfoinalion happens as a liansIalion, in a lvinkIing of an
eye.
1 Ccr 15.51-57 |is|cn, | |c|| qcu a nqs|crq. lc ui|| nc| a|| s|ccp, ou| uc
ui|| a|| oc cnangcd-- in a f|asn, in |nc |uin||ing cf an cqc, a| |nc |as|
|runpc|. |cr |nc |runpc| ui|| scund, |nc dcad ui|| oc raiscd inpcrisnao|c,
and uc ui|| oc cnangcd. |cr |nc pcrisnao|c nus| c|c|nc i|sc|f ui|n |nc
inpcrisnao|c, and |nc ncr|a| ui|n inncr|a|i|q. lncn |nc pcrisnao|c nas
occn c|c|ncd ui|n |nc inpcrisnao|c, and |nc ncr|a| ui|n inncr|a|i|q, |ncn
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|nc saqing |na| is uri||cn ui|| ccnc |ruc. 'Dca|n nas occn sua||cucd up
in tic|crq.' 'lncrc, O dca|n, is qcur tic|crq? lncrc, O dca|n, is qcur
s|ing?' Tnc s|ing cf dca|n is sin, and |nc pcucr cf sin is |nc |au. 8u|
|nan|s oc |c Gcd! Hc gitcs us |nc tic|crq |nrcugn cur |crd ]csus Cnris|.
The Tiunpel viII sound
5.3 EACH IN IT5 TURN
}esus vas lhe fiisl fiuil. Whal he is is vhal ve viII le. LleinaI Iife
(lhe Iife giving spiiil vilhin us) is aIieady vilhin us. ul ils voik
viII le conpIeled on his appeaiance.
Theie aie seveiaI iesuiieclions, as IauI nakes cIeai:
1 Ccr 15.23 8u| cacn in nis cun |urn. Cnris|, |nc firs|frui|s, |ncn, uncn
nc ccncs, |ncsc unc oc|cng |c nin.
The iesuiieclion evidenlIy occui onIy vhen }esus cone. Then il
viII le lhe luin of aII lhose
vho leIong lo hin.
ReveIalions indicales lhal lhe
unleIieveis aie iaised fion lhe
dealh onIy aflei anolhei 1OOO
yeais.
Rct 20.5 (Tnc rcs| cf |nc dcad did
nc| ccnc |c |ifc un|i| |nc |ncusand
qcars ucrc cndcd.) Tnis is |nc firs|
rcsurrcc|icn.
Theie is no confusion heie.



Thc rcdcmptInn dncs nnt
nccur In nnc stcp. It Is In
stcps.
Each In Its turn.


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Iiisl Chiisl.
Then lhose OId Teslanenl Sainls.
Then lhe eIieveis vho died lefoie.
Then lhe eIieveis, vho aie aIive.
Then aII lhe dead jusl and lhe unjusl.
Then cones lhe iesuiieclion of lhe naleiiaI voiId as ve
have seen eaiIiei. The vhoIe univeise lound in decay viII
le Iileialed fion lhal londage. This is lhe finaI evenl.
1 Ccr 15.26 Tnc |as| cncnq |c oc dcs|rcqcd is dca|n.
Dealh has leen oveicone.
5.4 RE5URRECTION OF THE WICKED
Rct 20.5 (Tnc rcs| cf |nc dcad did nc| ccnc |c |ifc un|i| |nc |ncusand
qcars ucrc cndcd.) Tnis is |nc firs| rcsurrcc|icn.
Then aflei a lhousand yeais, lhe iesl of lhe dead cane lo Iife. These
aie nol lhe leIieveis. Then
Rct 20.13 Tnc sca gatc up |nc dcad |na| ucrc in i|, and dca|n and Hadcs
gatc up |nc dcad |na| ucrc in |ncn, and cacn pcrscn uas judgcd
acccrding |c una| nc nad dcnc.
Heie a gioup of iighleous nen is added lo lhe Iisl of Iife as ve see
in Mallhev.
Ma| 25.31-36 'lncn |nc Scn cf Man ccncs in nis g|crq, and a|| |nc
angc|s ui|n nin, nc ui|| si| cn nis |nrcnc in ncatcn|q g|crq.' A|| |nc
na|icns ui|| oc ga|ncrcd ocfcrc nin, and nc ui|| scpara|c |nc pccp|c cnc
frcn anc|ncr as a sncpncrd scpara|cs |nc snccp frcn |nc gca|s. Hc ui||
pu| |nc snccp cn nis rign| and |nc gca|s cn nis |cf|. 'Tncn |nc King ui||
saq |c |ncsc cn nis rign|, 'Ccnc, qcu unc arc o|csscd oq nq |a|ncr, |a|c
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qcur inncri|ancc, |nc |ingdcn prcparcd fcr qcu sincc |nc crca|icn cf |nc
ucr|d. |cr | uas nungrq and qcu gatc nc scnc|ning |c ca|, | uas |nirs|q
and qcu gatc nc scnc|ning |c drin|, | uas a s|rangcr and qcu inti|cd nc
in, | nccdcd c|c|ncs and qcu c|c|ncd nc, | uas sic| and qcu |cc|cd af|cr
nc, | uas in priscn and qcu canc |c tisi| nc.'
Ma| 25.41 'Tncn nc ui|| saq |c |ncsc cn nis |cf|, 'Dcpar| frcn nc, qcu
unc arc curscd, in|c |nc c|crna| firc prcparcd fcr |nc dcti| and nis angc|s.
They veie nol asked lhe queslion vhelhei lhey leIieved in }esus oi
nol. These iighleous inheiiled lhe eailh, vhiIe lhe iedeened
enleied inlo lheii iesl aIieady. The inpIicalion is lhal lhey veie
evenluaIIy added inlo lhe iedeened lhiough ceilainIy lhe lIood of
}esus.
When Cod counls iniquily, can anyone sland` Ioi lhe uIlinale
iedenplion of lhe naleiiaI univeise lo happen aII eviI nusl le
ienoved fion lhis univeise. As Iong as eviI nen aie lheie in lhis
univeise lhis cannol le achieved. Hence, lhe soIulion pioposed in
lhe ilIe is lo ienove lhen inlo anolhei univeise - Hades. Il is
acioss lhe lollonIess pil - lhe lIackhoIe. Il opens up inlo anolhei
univeise fiIIed vilh lhe concenlialed eviI nen fion lhis voiId.
They sliII have Iife, vilh a decaying lody. They have viIIed il
lhenseIves. This is lhe second dealh.
Rct 20.6 8|csscd and nc|q arc |ncsc unc natc par| in |nc firs|
rcsurrcc|icn. Tnc scccnd dca|n nas nc pcucr ctcr |ncn, ou| |ncq ui|| oc
prics|s cf Gcd and cf Cnris| and ui|| rcign ui|n nin fcr a |ncusand qcars.
Rct 20.14-15 Tncn dca|n and Hadcs ucrc |nrcun in|c |nc |a|c cf firc.
Tnc |a|c cf firc is |nc scccnd dca|n. |f anqcnc's nanc uas nc| fcund
uri||cn in |nc occ| cf |ifc, nc uas |nrcun in|c |nc |a|c cf firc.
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Has Cod gol a pIan foi lheii saIvalion` ilIe nevei discIoses lhal.
As fai as ve knov il is anolhei voiId of pain and suffeiing voise
lhan ve have nov.ul lhe Iife in ils fuIIness is given onIy lo lhe
iedeened lhiough lhe lIood of }esus. Thal is vhy }esus add lhe
void "and Life" He lhal has lhe Son has Iife. Il is assuied lo eveiy
one lhal leIieves.
]cnn 11.25-26 ]csus said |c ncr, '| an |nc rcsurrcc|icn and |nc |ifc. Hc
unc oc|ictcs in nc ui|| |itc, ctcn |ncugn nc dics, and uncctcr |itcs and
oc|ictcs in nc ui|| nctcr dic. Dc qcu oc|ictc |nis?'




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CHAPTER EIGHT
I AM THE WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE
I AM THE WAY
1. INTRODUCTION
]cnn 14.1-6 'Dc nc| |c| qcur ncar|s oc |rcuo|cd. Trus| in Gcd , |rus| a|sc
in nc. |n nq |a|ncr's ncusc arc nanq rccns, if i| ucrc nc| sc, | ucu|d
natc |c|d qcu. | an gcing |ncrc |c prcparc a p|acc fcr qcu. And if | gc and
prcparc a p|acc fcr qcu, | ui|| ccnc oac| and |a|c qcu |c oc ui|n nc |na|
qcu a|sc naq oc uncrc | an. Ycu |ncu |nc uaq |c |nc p|acc uncrc | an
gcing.' Tncnas said |c nin, '|crd, uc dcn'| |ncu uncrc qcu arc gcing,
sc ncu can uc |ncu |nc uaq?' ]csus ansucrcd, '| an |nc uaq and |nc
|ru|n and |nc |ifc. Nc cnc ccncs |c |nc |a|ncr cxccp| |nrcugn nc.
The conlexl of lhe slalenenl gives us vhal }esus is laIking aloul.
}esus decIaies lhal he is going lo piepaie a pIace foi his foIIoveis
so lhal he viII le alIe lo lake lhen lo hin. AliuplIy }esus slales
lhal lhe discipIes knev lhe vay lo lhe pIace vheie he vas going.
Wheie is lhis pIace` Hov aie ve lo gel lheie` LvidenlIy, ve can gel
lheie onIy if ve knov vheie ve aie going. }esus vas nol asking a
queslion. He vas nol asking, "Do you knov lhe vay` He slales
lhal lhey knev aIieady lhe vay. ul Thonas vas nol quile suie.
IiolalIy he vas lhe peison vho daied lo nake lheii doulls vocaI.
He says lhal lhey did nol knov even vheie he vas going.
2. THE WAY TO FATHER
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90
The veise }n 14: 6 gives a diiecl ansvei.
1. }esus is lhe vay
2. }esus is lhe onIy vay.
3. The pIace is lhe piesence of Cod -- lo lhe Ialhei.
Man vas sepaialed fion foi Cod and lanished fion lhe piesence
of Cod due lo his sin. }esus lheiefoie decIaies lhal lhe
ieconciIialion and iedenplion aie achieved lhiough hin and
lhiough no one eIse. This }esus enphasizes ly lhe adjeclives THL
vay, THL liulh, THL Iife.
Rcn 5.11 Nc| cn|q is |nis sc, ou| uc a|sc rcjcicc in Gcd |nrcugn cur |crd
]csus Cnris|, |nrcugn uncn uc natc ncu rcccitcd rcccnci|ia|icn.
2 Ccr 5.18-19 A|| |nis is frcn Gcd, unc rcccnci|cd us |c ninsc|f |nrcugn
Cnris| and gatc us |nc ninis|rq cf rcccnci|ia|icn. |na| Gcd uas
rcccnci|ing |nc ucr|d |c ninsc|f in Cnris|, nc| ccun|ing ncn's sins
agains| |ncn. And nc nas ccnni||cd |c us |nc ncssagc cf rcccnci|ia|icn
Cc| 1.19-22 |cr Gcd uas p|cascd |c natc a|| nis fu||ncss duc|| in nin,
and |nrcugn nin |c rcccnci|c |c ninsc|f a|| |nings, unc|ncr |nings cn
car|n cr |nings in ncatcn, oq na|ing pcacc |nrcugn nis o|ccd, sncd cn |nc
crcss. Oncc qcu ucrc a|icna|cd frcn Gcd and ucrc cncnics in qcur
ninds occausc cf qcur cti| ocnaticr. 8u| ncu nc nas rcccnci|cd qcu oq
Cnris|'s pnqsica| ocdq |nrcugn dca|n |c prcscn| qcu nc|q in nis sign|,
ui|ncu| o|cnisn and frcc frcn accusa|icn
3. THE WAY TO HEAVEN
The Indian void foi lhis is Muklhi lhal indicales a ieIease fion
londage. In Hinduisn, lhis londage is lhe londage of cycIe of
incainalions. ilIe does nol leach ieincainalion, unIess ve considei
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91
lhe iesuiieclion as ieincainalion. Then iesuiieclion is lhe sane
foin, sane peison, vilh lhe fuII conscience of lhe pasl Iife in lolaI
conliasl lo lhe incainalion concepl of Hinduisn and Nev Age. ul
lolh agiee lhal oui ain is lo le vilh Cod, in lhe conlinuous
piesence of Cod. Advailisls on lhe olhei hand sliive lo le one vilh
god, lecause lo lhen nan in essence is Cod. Chiislian concepl is
Dvailisl lhal nan is in sulslance diffeienl fion Cod and is onIy an
inage. The pIace vheie ve aie going has lo le a naleiiaI voiId. Al
Ieasl lheie has lo le a naleiiaI dinension lo lhal exislence. Hunan
lody is naleiiaI, lhough lhe iesuiiecled lody has noie lhan
naleiiaI dinension as lhe piopeilies of }esus iesuiiecled lody
indicale. In lhis passage, }esus does nol iefei lo Heaven. He onIy
iefeis lo il as a pIace. If ve aie going lo have a lody, (liansfoined
and gIoiified vilh spiiiluaI dinensions as veII) lhis pIace has lo le
naleiiaI as veII as spiiiluaI. Il is lhis lhal IauI iefeis (foi Iack of
olhei leininoIogy) as lhe spiiiluaI lody.
1 Ccr 15.44-49 i| is scun a na|ura| ocdq, i| is raiscd a spiri|ua| ocdq. |f
|ncrc is a na|ura| ocdq, |ncrc is a|sc a spiri|ua| ocdq. Sc i| is uri||cn.
'Tnc firs| nan Adan occanc a |iting ocing' , |nc |as| Adan, a |ifc-giting
spiri|. Tnc spiri|ua| did nc| ccnc firs|, ou| |nc na|ura|, and af|cr |na| |nc
spiri|ua|. Tnc firs| nan uas cf |nc dus| cf |nc car|n, |nc scccnd nan frcn
ncatcn. As uas |nc car|n|q nan, sc arc |ncsc unc arc cf |nc car|n, and as
is |nc nan frcn ncatcn, And jus| as uc natc ocrnc |nc |i|cncss cf |nc
car|n|q nan, sc sna|| uc ocar |nc |i|cncss cf |nc nan frcn ncatcn.
ul lhen lhal is nol lhe onIy aigunenl lo suppoil lhis conjecluie.
}esus said he vas going lo lhe Ialhei lo piepaie foi pIace foi us.
Wheie did he go`
Mar| 16.19 Af|cr |nc |crd ]csus nad spc|cn |c |ncn, nc uas |a|cn up in|c
ncatcn and nc sa| a| |nc rign| nand cf Gcd.
|u|c 24.51 lni|c nc uas o|cssing |ncn, nc |cf| |ncn and uas |a|cn up
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in|c ncatcn.
Ac|s 1.9-11 Af|cr nc said |nis, nc uas |a|cn up ocfcrc |ncir tcrq cqcs, and
a c|cud nid nin frcn |ncir sign|. Tncq ucrc |cc|ing in|cn||q up in|c |nc
s|q as nc uas gcing, uncn suddcn|q |uc ncn drcsscd in uni|c s|ccd
ocsidc |ncn. 'Mcn cf Ga|i|cc,' |ncq said, 'unq dc qcu s|and ncrc |cc|ing
in|c |nc s|q? Tnis sanc ]csus, unc nas occn |a|cn frcn qcu in|c ncatcn,
ui|| ccnc oac| in |nc sanc uaq qcu natc sccn nin gc in|c ncatcn.'
Hov did }esus go` He venl up lefoie lheii veiy ovn eyes unliI a
cIoud cane and coveied hin. The ascension of }esus vas a lodiIy
ascension and he venl inlo lhe oulei space. UnIess }esus vas ieaIIy
fooIing his discipIes inlo leIieving vhal lhey sav, }esus venl lo an
oulei naleiiaI space. CeilainIy, he had olhei dinensions. ul his
lody vas IocaIized and he venl up. So, if ve accepl lhe sloiy (as
aII Chiislians do) ve have no olhei oplion lo leIieve lhal lhis pIace
(vheie he venl lo piepaie a pIace foi you and ne) is al Ieasl
pailiaIIy naleiiaI so lhal lhe liansIaled inpeiishalIe lody of nine
viII le alIe lo Iive. Il is lhis vay lhal }esus vas saying lo le Hin. Il
is onIy lhiough hin loo.
In lhis eia of scienlific ficlion, lhe onIy conpaiison is one of space
vaip. I an gIad lhal lhe Russian aslionauls knev lhal. They liied
lo Iocale lhis pIace in lheii saleIIiles. ul lhen il is Iike vaIking
Noilh lo find lhe edge of lhe eailh. Il is Iike lhe nan in lhe novies
'Cods aie Ciazy liying lo see lhe end of lhe voiId. No one can gel
lheie ly oidinaiy neans. The pIace vheie you sland is lhe edge of
lhe voiId. ul you can ieaIize il onIy vhen you have lhe
peispeclive of lhe lhiee dinensions. You aie lound ly lhe
dinension of youi exislence. The vay is }esus. This pIace is a
diffeienl dinension, diffeienl univeise and lhe onIy gale is }esus.
The discipIes sav hin go. We viII le laken lheie ly }esus hinseIf.
The vay lheiefoie is lhe failh lhal ve have in }esus.
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To gel lo lhis nev pIace ve need lo le liansfoined and liansIaled.
This povei can le ollained lhiough }esus piecious lIood aIone
and vilh lhe iesuiieclion povei lhal is in }esus.
1 Ccr 15.51-53 |is|cn, | |c|| qcu a nqs|crq. lc ui|| nc| a|| s|ccp, ou| uc
ui|| a|| oc cnangcd-- in a f|asn, in |nc |uin||ing cf an cqc, a| |nc |as|
|runpc|. |cr |nc |runpc| ui|| scund, |nc dcad ui|| oc raiscd inpcrisnao|c,
and uc ui|| oc cnangcd. |cr |nc pcrisnao|c nus| c|c|nc i|sc|f ui|n |nc
inpcrisnao|c, and |nc ncr|a| ui|n inncr|a|i|q.
4. PAUL DEFINE5 THE WAY
LaiIy Chiislians veie knovn as lhe foIIoveis of lhe vay:
Ac|s 9.1-2 Mcanuni|c, Sau| uas s|i|| orca|ning cu| nurdcrcus |nrca|s
agains| |nc |crd's discip|cs. Hc ucn| |c |nc nign prics| and as|cd nin fcr
|c||crs |c |nc sqnagcgucs in Danascus, sc |na| if nc fcund anq |ncrc unc
oc|cngcd |c |nc laq, unc|ncr ncn cr ucncn, nc nign| |a|c |ncn as
priscncrs |c ]crusa|cn.
Ac|s 19.23-24 Aocu| |na| |inc |ncrc arcsc a grca| dis|uroancc aocu| |nc
laq. | pcrsccu|cd |nc fc||cucrs cf |nis laq |c |ncir dca|n, arrcs|ing oc|n
ncn and ucncn and |nrcuing |ncn in|c priscn,
IauI Ialei defines lhe vay in his defense speech lefoie Coveinoi
IeIix:
Ac|s 24.14-15 Hcuctcr, | adni| |na| | ucrsnip |nc Gcd cf cur fa|ncrs as
a fc||cucr cf |nc laq, unicn |ncq ca|| a scc|. | oc|ictc ctcrq|ning |na|
agrccs ui|n |nc |au and |na| is uri||cn in |nc Prcpnc|s, and | natc |nc
sanc ncpc in Gcd as |ncsc ncn, |na| |ncrc ui|| oc a rcsurrcc|icn cf oc|n
|nc rign|ccus and |nc uic|cd.
This is piolalIy lhe lesl definilion of lhe Way ve have:
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This has lhiee pails cIeaiIy oulIined:
1. We voiship lhe Cod of oui Ialheis., i.e., Yvh is lhe Cod. Il
defined vho Cod is.
2. We leIieve in eveiylhing lhal is Iaid dovn ly lhe sciipluie. In
nodein leininoIogy il lhe decIaialion of SoIa Sciipluia: Sciipluie
aIone is lhe lasis of docliine and leaching. Sciipluie vas defined
ly }esus duiing his ninisliy
Luke 24:44 He said lo lhen, 'Tnis is una| | |c|d qcu uni|c | uas s|i||
ui|n qcu. |tcrq|ning nus| oc fu|fi||cd |na| is uri||cn aocu| nc in |nc
|au cf Mcscs, |nc Prcpnc|s and |nc Psa|ns.'
So lhe sciipluie is lhe look ve nov caII ilIe vilh lhe Lav of
Moses, lhe Iiophels and lhe IsaIns.
}esus consideied lhe IsaIns as conlaining Iiophecy.
3. We have lhe gieal hope of lodiIy iesuiieclion of lolh lhe jusl
and lhe unjusl. Thal vas lhe failh of lhe Ihaiisees. This vas vhal
IauI poinled oul vhen he said "jusl as lhese peopIe" neaning lhe
Ihaiisees. Sadducees did nol leIieve in iesuiieclion.
The Way is lhe vay of iedenplion of oui decaying lodies (foi lhe
juslified) lhiough failh in }esus Chiisl.
5. LORD DEFINE5 THE WAY
Cod defined lhe day in Cen 18.
Gcn 18.19 |cr | natc cncscn nin, sc |na| nc ui|| dircc| nis cni|drcn and
nis ncuscnc|d af|cr nin |c |ccp |nc uaq cf |nc |ORD oq dcing una| is
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rign| and jus|, sc |na| |nc |ORD ui|| oring aocu| fcr Aoranan una| nc
nas prcniscd nin.'
Way of lhe Loid is doing vhal is iighl and jusl. Then is
iighleousness is lhe vay lo heaven` Yes indeed.
Then lhe queslion is, vhal is iighleousness. ilIe defines il cIeaiIy:
|zc| 18.5-9 'Suppcsc |ncrc is a rign|ccus nan unc dccs una| is jus| and
rign|. Hc dccs nc| ca| a| |nc ncun|ain snrincs cr |cc| |c |nc idc|s cf |nc
ncusc cf |srac|. Hc dccs nc| dcfi|c nis ncignocr's uifc cr |ic ui|n a ucnan
during ncr pcricd. Hc dccs nc| cpprcss anqcnc, ou| rc|urns una| nc |cc|
in p|cdgc fcr a |can. Hc dccs nc| ccnni| rcoocrq ou| gitcs nis fccd |c |nc
nungrq and prctidcs c|c|ning fcr |nc na|cd. Hc dccs nc| |cnd a| usurq
cr |a|c cxccssitc in|crcs|. Hc ui|nnc|ds nis nand frcn dcing urcng and
judgcs fair|q oc|uccn nan and nan. Hc fc||cus nq dccrccs and fai|nfu||q
|ccps nq |aus. Tna| nan is rign|ccus, nc ui|| surc|q |itc, dcc|arcs |nc
Sctcrcign |ORD.
LzekieI gives 1O lesls foi iighleous nan in lhe alove passage. IauI
in his epislIe lo Coiinlhians iefeis lo 9 lesls:
1 Ccr 6.9-10 Dc qcu nc| |ncu |na| |nc uic|cd ui|| nc| inncri| |nc
|ingdcn cf Gcd? Dc nc| oc dcccitcd. Nci|ncr |nc scxua||q inncra| ncr
idc|a|crs ncr adu||crcrs ncr na|c prcs|i|u|cs ncr ncncscxua| cffcndcrs
ncr |nictcs ncr |nc grccdq ncr drun|ards ncr s|andcrcrs ncr suind|crs
ui|| inncri| |nc |ingdcn cf Gcd.
This is lhe vay of lhe voik. Kaina Maiga.
This is a vay. ul lhe piolIen is:
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Rcn 3.10-19 As i| is uri||cn. 'Tncrc is nc cnc rign|ccus, nc| ctcn cnc,
|ncrc is nc cnc unc undcrs|ands, nc cnc unc scc|s Gcd. A|| natc |urncd
auaq, |ncq natc |cgc|ncr occcnc ucr|n|css, |ncrc is nc cnc unc dccs gccd,
nc| ctcn cnc.' 'Tncir |nrca|s arc cpcn gratcs, |ncir |cngucs prac|icc
dccci|.' 'Tnc pciscn cf tipcrs is cn |ncir |ips.' 'Tncir ncu|ns arc fu|| cf
cursing and oi||crncss.' 'Tncir fcc| arc suif| |c sncd o|ccd, ruin and
niscrq nar| |ncir uaqs, and |nc uaq cf pcacc |ncq dc nc| |ncu.'
'Tncrc is nc fcar cf Gcd ocfcrc |ncir cqcs.' Ncu uc |ncu |na| una|ctcr
|nc |au saqs, i| saqs |c |ncsc unc arc undcr |nc |au, sc |na| ctcrq ncu|n
naq oc si|cnccd and |nc unc|c ucr|d nc|d acccun|ao|c |c Gcd.
The slandaids of Cod aie so high lhal hunan endeavoi cannol
even appioach lhal peifeclion. Though il is a vay, il is an
inpossilIe vay. No one can ieach Cod lhiough lhal vay.
Rcn 3.20 Tncrcfcrc nc cnc ui|| oc dcc|arcd rign|ccus in nis sign| oq
coscrting |nc |au, ra|ncr, |nrcugn |nc |au uc occcnc ccnscicus cf sin.
Then Hov did }esus piovide lhe vay`
Rcn 3.21-25 8u| ncu a rign|ccusncss frcn Gcd, apar| frcn |au, nas occn
nadc |ncun, |c unicn |nc |au and |nc Prcpnc|s |cs|ifq. Tnis
rign|ccusncss frcn Gcd ccncs |nrcugn fai|n in ]csus Cnris| |c a|| unc
oc|ictc. Tncrc is nc diffcrcncc, fcr a|| natc sinncd and fa|| sncr| cf |nc
g|crq cf Gcd, and arc jus|ificd frcc|q oq nis gracc |nrcugn |nc rcdcnp|icn
|na| canc oq Cnris| ]csus. Gcd prcscn|cd nin as a sacrificc cf a|cncncn|,
|nrcugn fai|n in nis o|ccd. Hc did |nis |c dcncns|ra|c nis jus|icc, occausc
in nis fcrocarancc nc nad |cf| |nc sins ccnni||cd ocfcrcnand unpunisncd--
Rcn 3.26 nc did i| |c dcncns|ra|c nis jus|icc a| |nc prcscn| |inc, sc as |c
oc jus| and |nc cnc unc jus|ifics |ncsc unc natc fai|n in ]csus.

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6. JNANA, BHAKTHI AND KARMA MARGA
In Hinduisn, lhe hagaval Ceelha, gives lhiee lasic vays lo
saIvalion - lhiee vays of Iileialion. They aie fiisl Kaina naiga -
lhe vay of lhe voik. Do good and le nade peifecl. Since you
cannol do lhal in one Iife, you inpiove youi voik, incainalion
aflei incainalion unliI you aie nade peifecl - unliI you aie alIe lo
do youi dulies vilhoul iegaid lo ils consequences. In lhis piocess,
eviI voik Ieads you lo Iovei IeveIs of consciousness and good
voiks Ieads lo highei IeveIs of consciousness. If you aie al lhe
highei IeveI of consciousness you aie ieloin in lhe heavens and lhe
pIeasuies of lhe heavens Ieads you lo inneised in lhe senses and
Ioose lhe vay. In lhe Iovei IeveIs of consciousness you aie caughl
up in lhe sliuggIes of exislence lhal you Ioose lhe concepl of
godhead ilseIf and you sink deepei, deepei inlo ignoiance, and
eviI. The gods aie lo le incainaled lo le a nan lo achieve saIvalion.
SaIvalion is found onIy in hunan exislence. I have desciiled lhis
leaching onIy lo shov lhe vicious ciicIe kaina yoga pioduces. If al
aII lheie is a vay oul, il is nov and il is loday.
Hel 4:7 Theiefoie Cod again sel a ceilain day, caIIing il Today,
vhen a Iong line Ialei he spoke lhiough David, as vas said lefoie:
"Today, if you heai his voice, do nol haiden youi heails."
The second vay designaled is lhe }nana Maiga - lhe vay of
enIighlennenl - lhe vay of KnovIedge. LvidenlIy, knovIedge can
shov lhe vay. ul il cannol lake you lheie. Lveiy Yogi knovs lhal
he is Cod, lul he has nol allained. LvidenlIy, knovIedge in ilseIf is
nol seIf-ieaIizalion. You have lo ieaIize vhal you knov. We do nol
knov hov. OnIy a Maslei can shov lhal. Who is lhis naslei vho
has oveicone dealh` Who has lhe povei lo give Life` Who is lhe
liue Maslei`
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The Thiid vay is haklhi Maiga - lhe vay of failh. haklhi aIone
viII nol Iileiale unIess }nana and Kaina concoid.
Rcn 10.2-3 |cr | can |cs|ifq aocu| |ncn |na| |ncq arc zca|cus fcr Gcd,
ou| |ncir zca| is nc| oascd cn |ncu|cdgc. Sincc |ncq did nc| |ncu |nc
rign|ccusncss |na| ccncs frcn Gcd and scugn| |c cs|ao|isn |ncir cun,
|ncq did nc| suoni| |c Gcd's rign|ccusncss.
The Chiislian oidei is }nana - haklhi- Kaina.
KnovIedge (jnana) shouId Iead lo Iailh (haklhi) and lhis viII
pioduce iighleous deeds (Kaina).
Rcn 10.17 Ccnscqucn||q, fai|n ccncs frcn ncaring |nc ncssagc, and |nc
ncssagc is ncard |nrcugn |nc ucrd cf Cnris|.
|pn 2.8-10 |cr i| is oq gracc qcu natc occn satcd, |nrcugn fai|n--and |nis
nc| frcn qcursc|tcs, i| is |nc gif| cf Gcd-- nc| oq ucr|s, sc |na| nc cnc
can ocas|. |cr uc arc Gcd's ucr|nansnip, crca|cd in Cnris| ]csus |c dc
gccd ucr|s, unicn Gcd prcparcd in adtancc fcr us |c dc.
Lach one in ilseIf does nol pioduce Muklhi.
Hov did }esus achieve lhis`
The noinaI Iav of Kaina is lhal lhe iesuIls of lhe kaina of one
peison aie lo le loin ly lhal peison. If one does good, he ieceives
lhe good ievaid and if one does lad he ieceives lhe lad ievaid.
This is in essence coiiecl.
|zc| 18.20 Tnc scu| unc sins is |nc cnc unc ui|| dic. Tnc scn ui|| nc|
snarc |nc gui|| cf |nc fa|ncr, ncr ui|| |nc fa|ncr snarc |nc gui|| cf |nc scn.
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Tnc rign|ccusncss cf |nc rign|ccus nan ui|| oc crcdi|cd |c nin, and |nc
uic|cdncss cf |nc uic|cd ui|| oc cnargcd agains| nin.
Rct 20.12 And | sau |nc dcad, grca| and sna||, s|anding ocfcrc |nc
|nrcnc, and occ|s ucrc cpcncd. Anc|ncr occ| uas cpcncd, unicn is |nc
occ| cf |ifc. Tnc dcad ucrc judgcd acccrding |c una| |ncq nad dcnc as
rcccrdcd in |nc occ|s.
ul lheie is a Iav highei lhan lhal vheiein lhe eviI lhal one nan
does affecls olheis, so aIso lhe good lhal one nan does viII affecl
olheis. We aII knov lhal. We aII expeiience lhal eveiy day in oui
Iife. LviI nen cieale havoc in sociely and lhe connunily as a vhoIe
suffeis lecause of lheii eviI Iife. SiniIaiIy lhe connunily as a
vhoIe gains fion lhe good deed of lhose unseIfish gieal nen.
These gieal nen aie alIe lo aIIeviale lhe suffeiing due lo lheii
kaina ly lheii iighleous deeds. This is vheie lhe saciifice and
sulslilulion cones in. }esus look oui Kaina upon hinseIf.
|sa 53.4-6 Surc|q nc |cc| up cur infirni|ics and carricd cur scrrcus, qc|
uc ccnsidcrcd nin s|ric|cn oq Gcd, sni||cn oq nin, and aff|ic|cd. 8u| nc
uas picrccd fcr cur |ransgrcssicns, nc uas crusncd fcr cur iniqui|ics, |nc
punisnncn| |na| orcugn| us pcacc uas upcn nin, and oq nis ucunds uc
arc nca|cd. lc a||, |i|c snccp, natc gcnc as|raq, cacn cf us nas |urncd |c
nis cun uaq, and |nc |ORD nas |aid cn nin |nc iniqui|q cf us a||.
OnIy }esus couId lake avay lhe kaina of eveiy peison lecause he
look lhe eviI kaina and ils consequences upon hinseIf. Theie had
leen nany godnen in lhis voiId. ul none couId lake lhe kaina of
olheis fuIIy upon lhenseIves. OnIy }esus couId pionise lhal. This
is vhal lhe ilIe iefeis lo as inpuled iighleousness.
Rcn 4.5 Hcuctcr, |c |nc nan unc dccs nc| ucr| ou| |rus|s Gcd unc
jus|ifics |nc uic|cd, nis fai|n is crcdi|cd as rign|ccusncss.
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7. THE WAY IN UNCHARTED LIFE
If you have evei leen in lhe deseil oi in lhe savannah, you cannol
go vilhoul a guide. Theie aie no Iandnaiks lheie. Lveiyvheie
Iooks lhe sane. Diieclions cannol le naiked. OnIy a guide viII le
alIe lo lake you lhiough lhese unchailed leiiiloiies. The guide is
lhe vay. You have nol passed lhis vay lefoie. ul one vho has
leen heie Iong enough knovs lhe vay. Whal lellei vay lo go
lhiough lhe unceilain Iife of ouis lhan lo liusl il in lhe hands of
one vho knovs lhe fuluie`
Ga| 3.11 C|car|q nc cnc is jus|ificd ocfcrc Gcd oq |nc |au, occausc, 'Tnc
rign|ccus ui|| |itc oq fai|n.'
Rcn 1.17 |cr in |nc gcspc| a rign|ccusncss frcn Gcd is rctca|cd, a
rign|ccusncss |na| is oq fai|n frcn firs| |c |as|, jus| as i| is uri||cn. 'Tnc
rign|ccus ui|| |itc oq fai|n.'
You have nol ciossed lhe laiiiei of dealh. No one has evei cone
lack fion lhe dead lo shov lhe vay ovei - excepl lhe one vho vas
iesuiiecled fion lhe dead - }esus Chiisl. WaIk ly failh. Iul youi
hand in his hand. He knovs lhe vay.
]cnn 14.19 8cfcrc |cng, |nc ucr|d ui|| nc| scc nc anqncrc, ou| qcu ui||
scc nc. 8ccausc | |itc, qcu a|sc ui|| |itc.
Rct 1.18 | an |nc |iting Onc, | uas dcad, and ocnc|d | an a|itc fcr ctcr
and ctcr! And | nc|d |nc |cqs cf dca|n and Hadcs. ||
I AM THE TRUTH
The void Tiulh in ilseIf does nol nake sense lecause il is an
alsliacl quaIily. The queslion lo le asked is: Tiulh aloul vhal`
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LvidenlIy, vhen }esus said I an lhe Tiulh he inpIied sonelhing,
vhich eveiyone knev.
The queslion 'Whal is Tiulh vas asked ly IiIol lo }esus and he
expIained il lo hin.
]cnn 18.36 ]csus said, 'Mq |ingdcn is nc| cf |nis ucr|d. |f i| ucrc, nq
scrtan|s ucu|d fign| |c prctcn| nq arrcs| oq |nc ]cus. 8u| ncu nq
|ingdcn is frcn anc|ncr p|acc.'
]cnn 18.37 'Ycu arc a |ing, |ncn!' said Pi|a|c. ]csus ansucrcd, 'Ycu arc
rign| in saqing | an a |ing. |n fac|, fcr |nis rcascn | uas ocrn, and fcr
|nis | canc in|c |nc ucr|d, |c |cs|ifq |c |nc |ru|n. |tcrqcnc cn |nc sidc cf
|ru|n |is|cns |c nc.'
]cnn 18.38 'lna| is |ru|n?' Pi|a|c as|cd. li|n |nis nc ucn| cu| again |c
|nc ]cus and said, '| find nc oasis fcr a cnargc agains| nin.
IiIol heie vas giappIing vilh lvo queslions al lhe sane line. One
vas lhe queslion of Soveieignly. Aie You lhe King of lhe }evs` ul
}esus goes leyond lhal queslion, vhiIe lhe ansvei lo lhal queslion
is yes, lhe soveieignly of }esus is leyond lhal. Il is liue lhal ly
IegaI descenl fion David, lhe Kingdon of }udah leIongs lo }esus.
ul }esus poinls oul lhal His Kingdon is nol of lhis voiId. Il viII
le a pooi King lo le lhe king of a decaying univeise. IiIol gol lhe
poinl iighl on lhe naiIs head. He vas a Ronan SchoIai and knev
his phiIosophy veII. Tiulh, Viilue and eauly aie lhe alsoIules of
lhe univeise. Ancienl Indian IhiIosophy puls il as Salhyan, Sivan,
Sundaian. He vas aIso avaie of lhe nany sloiies in lhe Ronan
nylhoIogy aloul lhe chiIdien loin lo Cod. Il vas nol difficuIl foi
IiIol lo connecl lhe issues and ieaIize lhal }esus vas indeed
cIaining lo le nol lhe son loin lo a god, lul an incainalion of Cod
hinseIf. This vas piolalIy nev lo hin. ul }esus expIained lo hin
lhal He is indeed a King, lul nol of lhis voiId.
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'|cr |nis rcascn natc | ccnc in|c |nis ucr|d, fcr |nis rcascn | uas ocrn'.
The cIeai expIanalion is lhal he vas loin ly accidenl. He decided
lo le incainaled foi a specific puipose. H exisled lefoie his liilh.
]cnn 8.58 '| |c|| qcu |nc |ru|n,' ]csus ansucrcd, 'ocfcrc Aoranan uas
ocrn, | an!'
He is lhe AIpha and lhe Onega.
Rct 22.13 | an |nc A|pna and |nc Oncga, |nc |irs| and |nc |as|, |nc
8cginning and |nc |nd.
Whal vas lhis ieason` "To leslify lo lhis liulh." To lhe liulh lhal
lheie is a voiId leyond lhis voiId vheie lheie is no pain oi
suffeiing oi decay oi dealh. He cane lo decIaie lhal liulh and lhal
He is lhe King of lhis inpeiishalIe 'spiiiluaI voiId. And lhal He
vas lhe vay lo lhis pIace. Heie is lhe ieIevance lo }esus slalenenl:
'I an lhe Way, lhe Tiulh
IiIale undeislood in lhe liue Socialic and IIalonic liadilion lhal
Tiulh is lhe AlsoIule. Heie is }esus vho cIains lhal he vas lhis
AlsoIule. Lveiylhing is le conpaied and vilh hin. He is lhe
uIlinale slandaid vilh vhich lhe voiId nay judge any aclion.
WoiId has nevei seen anylhing Iike lhis lefoie. Co inlo eveiy
cuIluie and ieIigion, }esus is lhe uIlinale, pai exceIIence. AII
godnen of India cIain lhal lhey veie once }esus. IsIan announces
lhe lolaI puiily of lhe Woid of AIIah vho is }esus. Why lecause
voiId has no olhei giealei slandaid lo go ly.
I AM THE LIFE
We need lo Iook al lhe Iasl void Life in lhe conlexl of lhe olhei
lvo, The Way, The Tiulh. Whal is Iife` Il cannol le defined ly
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sinpIe nechanicaI neans. UIlinaleIy il is sonelhing lhal ve
cannol quanlify noi neasuie. In lhe alsoIule sense, il is sinpIy
consciousness. Il is piofoundIy and sinpIy pul as "I lhink,
lheiefoie I an". Il is essence of exislence foi lhe seIf. Life is a
peisonaIily. Cod is a peison lecause he exisls and knovs lhal he
exisls. AII olhei ciealuies on eailh aie ciealed Iife foins. ilIe
leaches lhal nan is ciealed in lhe inage of Cod. I have deaIl vilh
lhis aspecl eaiIiei. Life as ve knov of is dependenl on nallei.
Lveiy Iife leing ve knov has a foin. Hunan foin is one foin. ul
each Iife foin has ils ovn foin. AninaIs have lheii foin, liids
have anolhei, fish has anolhei and lheie aie a Iaige nunlei of Iife
foins on lhe eailh. Vegelalions have Iife. We cannol knov lhe
nind of olhei foins unIess ve can connunicale vilh lhen. So,
vhen ve laIk aloul Iife, ve aie acluaIIy laIking aloul Iife as ve
knov - naleiiaI foin, vilh nind. On lhe eailh, lhey aie lased on
Hydiocailons. So, vhen lhe NASA decided lo check vhelhei Iife
exisls on olhei pIanels lhey nade an effoil lo check foi
hydiocailons. This is a soil of hunan. We have no ieason lo
assune lhal Iife can ieIy onIy on hydiocailons.
If lheie aie Iife foins in anolhei dinension, lheii foins viII le of
lhal dinension. Ioi Iack of olhei desciiplive void, lhe ilIe uses
lhe void spiiiluaI lody. LvidenlIy, spiiil and lody aie nuluaIIy
excIusive. So, lhe void spiiiluaI lody sonehov gives us lhe
concepl of exlia-dinensionaI naleiiaI lody. }evish desciiplion of
angeIs veie lhal lhey veie nade vilh fiie. See lhe desciiplion
given ly IauI:
1 Ccr 15.38-41 8u| Gcd gitcs i| a ocdq as nc nas dc|crnincd, and |c cacn
|ind cf sccd nc gitcs i|s cun ocdq. A|| f|csn is nc| |nc sanc. Mcn natc
cnc |ind cf f|csn, anina|s natc anc|ncr, oirds anc|ncr and fisn anc|ncr.
Tncrc arc a|sc ncatcn|q ocdics and |ncrc arc car|n|q ocdics, ou| |nc
sp|cndcr cf |nc ncatcn|q ocdics is cnc |ind, and |nc sp|cndcr cf |nc car|n|q
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ocdics is anc|ncr. Tnc sun nas cnc |ind cf sp|cndcr, |nc nccn anc|ncr
and |nc s|ars anc|ncr, and s|ar diffcrs frcn s|ar in sp|cndcr.
When }esus cIained lhal he is Life, he piolalIy neanl seveiaI
lhings.
1. HE I5 THE CREATOR OF LIFE.
]cnn 1.3 Tnrcugn nin a|| |nings ucrc nadc, ui|ncu| nin nc|ning uas
nadc |na| nas occn nadc.
Cc| 1.16-17 |cr oq nin a|| |nings ucrc crca|cd. |nings in ncatcn and cn
car|n, tisio|c and intisio|c, unc|ncr |nrcncs cr pcucrs cr ru|crs cr
au|ncri|ics, a|| |nings ucrc crca|cd oq nin and fcr nin. Hc is ocfcrc a||
|nings, and in nin a|| |nings nc|d |cgc|ncr.
2. When Cod ciealed he ciealed vilh his void. The void lecane
fIesh. Ciealion vas lhe evenl vhen void lecane fIesh. Thus
2. IT I5 JE5U5 THAT HOLD5 ALL LIFE TOGETHER.
Cc| 1.17 Hc is ocfcrc a|| |nings, and in nin a|| |nings nc|d |cgc|ncr.
He is Iove and il is Iove lhal hoIds lhings logelhei. When divisive
foices pioduced ly lhe Iife foins deslioys lhis cohesiveness, il
}esus vho liings lhen lack and give lhen nev Iife, lhiough a nev
liilh. Ioi lhis puipose
]cnn 1.14 Tnc lcrd occanc f|csn and nadc nis duc||ing ancng us.
Ioi lhis ieason again he lecane "Lanl lhal vas sIain fion lhe
ciealion of lhe voiId."

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3. JE5U5 GIVE5 NEW LIFE.
As }esus gave Iife lo aII ciealed Iife foins, he aIso gives nev Iife.
OnIy he can do lhal. Life has leen naiied ly seIfishness and Iack
of Iove. }esus gives nev Iife.
2 Ccr 5.17 Tncrcfcrc, if anqcnc is in Cnris|, nc is a ncu crca|icn, |nc c|d
nas gcnc, |nc ncu nas ccnc!
This nev Iife is lhe alundanl Iife. Il is nol Iike lhe Iife ve knov of
vheie il is aIvays niseiy. Il is Iife vilhoul anlilhesis, vheie ve
giov fion gIoiy lo gIoiy. Iion Iovei Iife foins, ve giov inlo
highei exislences. Il is lhis indesciilalIe Iife lhal }esus cIains.
1 Ccr 2.9 Hcuctcr, as i| is uri||cn. 'Nc cqc nas sccn, nc car nas ncard,
nc nind nas ccnccitcd una| Gcd nas prcparcd fcr |ncsc unc |ctc nin'--
Rct 21.5-6 Hc unc uas sca|cd cn |nc |nrcnc said, '| an na|ing
ctcrq|ning ncu!' Tncn nc said, 'lri|c |nis dcun, fcr |ncsc ucrds arc
|rus|ucr|nq and |ruc.'
Hc said |c nc. '|| is dcnc. | an |nc A|pna and |nc Oncga, |nc 8cginning
and |nc |nd.



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CHAPTER NINE
I AM THE TRUE VINE
]cnn 15.1-8 '| an |nc |ruc tinc, and nq |a|ncr is |nc gardcncr. Hc cu|s
cff ctcrq orancn in nc |na| ocars nc frui|, uni|c ctcrq orancn |na| dccs
ocar frui| nc pruncs sc |na| i| ui|| oc ctcn ncrc frui|fu|. Ycu arc a|rcadq
c|can occausc cf |nc ucrd | natc spc|cn |c qcu. Rcnain in nc, and | ui||
rcnain in qcu. Nc orancn can ocar frui| oq i|sc|f, i| nus| rcnain in |nc
tinc. Nci|ncr can qcu ocar frui| un|css qcu rcnain in nc. '| an |nc
tinc, qcu arc |nc orancncs. |f a nan rcnains in nc and | in nin, nc ui||
ocar nucn frui|, apar| frcn nc qcu can dc nc|ning. 6 |f anqcnc dccs nc|
rcnain in nc, nc is |i|c a orancn |na| is |nrcun auaq and ui|ncrs, sucn
orancncs arc pic|cd up, |nrcun in|c |nc firc and ourncd. |f qcu rcnain
in nc and nq ucrds rcnain in qcu, as| una|ctcr qcu uisn, and i| ui|| oc
gitcn qcu. ]cnn Tnis is |c nq |a|ncr's g|crq, |na| qcu ocar nucn frui|,
sncuing qcursc|tcs |c oc nq discip|cs.
1. VINE
The fiisl nenlion of Vine (vilis vinifeia) is found in Cen 9
Cen 9:2O-21 Noah, a nan of lhe soiI, pioceeded lo pIanl a vineyaid.
When he diank sone of ils vine, he lecane diunk and Iay
uncoveied inside his lenl.
This is a iepIicalion of vhal Cod did in lhe Caiden of Lden.
Gcn 2.15 Tnc |ORD Gcd |cc| |nc nan and pu| nin in |nc Gardcn cf
|dcn |c ucr| i| and |a|c carc cf i|.
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ul lecause of sin, Caiden of Lden vas gone, and vhen eviI
lecane so ianpanl, Cod decided lo pul an end lo his ciealion
caIIed Man. ul nan vas given anolhei chance and lhe piogeniloi
of lhis species of nan vas Noah. In accoidance vilh vhal Cod has
connanded, Noah pIanled a vineyaid. Noah iepiesenled lhe nev
Man. CiviIizalions spiang up Iuxuiianl giovlh of vine vas
pioduced and lhe iesuIl nade hin diunk. This is cIeaiIy a picluie
of nankind. Iion lhen on, eveiy civiIizalion poiliayed lhe vine as
ils gIoiious synloI. LaiIy nonunenls of Lgypl aie fiIIed vilh lhe
diavings of vine and vine. }oseph slailed his gIoiious caieei as lhe
Iiine Minislei of Lgypl vilh lhe vine and lhe cup fiIIed vilh Wine
as a slail:
Gcn 40.9-11 Sc |nc cnicf cupocarcr |c|d ]cscpn nis drcan. Hc said |c nin,
'|n nq drcan | sau a tinc in frcn| cf nc, and cn |nc tinc ucrc |nrcc
orancncs. As sccn as i| ouddcd, i| o|csscncd, and i|s c|us|crs ripcncd in|c
grapcs. Pnaracn's cup uas in nq nand, and | |cc| |nc grapcs, squcczcd
|ncn in|c Pnaracn's cup and pu| |nc cup in nis nand.'
In lhe Ronan Lnpiie vine vas lhe cenlei of lheii Iife. Ciovns
nade of vines veie lhe viclois ciovns in lhe coIiseun. Caesais
ciovn vas nade of vine. Hisloiy leai vilness lhal lhe faII of
Ronan enpiie cane as iesuIl of ils addiclion lo lhe lhis god of
Wine. So vas lhe faII of alyIon and Assyiia lefoie lhen.
Vines of IaIesline veie of pailicuIai of inleiesl. When Moses senl
in his spies lhey lioughl lack lhe pioof of ils feiliIily and
alundance ly caiiying lack a lunch of giapes. This vas lhe Iand
Cod vanled his chosen peopIe lo occupy and enjoy.
Nun 13.23 -24 lncn |ncq rcacncd |nc Va||cq cf |sncc|, |ncq cu| cff a
orancn ocaring a sing|c c|us|cr cf grapcs. Tuc cf |ncn carricd i| cn a pc|c
oc|uccn |ncn, a|cng ui|n scnc pcncgrana|cs and figs. Tna| p|acc uas
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ca||cd |nc Va||cq cf |sncc| occausc cf |nc c|us|cr cf grapcs |nc |srac|i|cs
cu| cff |ncrc.
Olhei pIaces in IaIesline veie fanous foi ils speciaI Iuxuiianl
vines such as of Silnah, Heshlon and LIeaIeh (Isa 16:8,9,1O, }ei
48:32) and of Lngedi. (So 1:14) Lven loday, IaIeslinian vines aie
piolalIy lhe lesl in lhe voiId.
The picluie is cIeai fion lhe alove. Isaiah pIaces il squaieIy lhus:
|sa 5.1-5 | ui|| sing fcr |nc cnc | |ctc a scng aocu| nis tincqard. Mq |ctcd
cnc nad a tincqard cn a fcr|i|c ni||sidc. Hc dug i| up and c|carcd i| cf
s|cncs and p|an|cd i| ui|n |nc cnciccs| tincs. Hc oui|| a ua|cn|cucr in i|
and cu| cu| a uincprcss as uc||. Tncn nc |cc|cd fcr a crcp cf gccd grapcs,
ou| i| qic|dcd cn|q oad frui|.
Man vas ciealed in lhe inage of Cod. He vas asked lo keep lhe
eailh, and popuIale il. ul in so doing, Man vandeied avay, foigol
his puipose, and pioduced eviI inslead of good. Vine iepiesenls
Life especiaIIy Man.
When Adan faiIed, a nev chance vas given in Noah. Noah aIso
gol diunk fion lhe nevfound piospeiily. Vine is lhe synloI of
Hunan Life. Il is a synloI of alundanl Iife, lhe Iuxuiianl giovlh
of lhe vine lhal spieads on. Season aflei season lhe vine ienains
leaiing nev Ieaves and nev fiuil. Ceneialions aflei geneialion Iife
go on. Life vas lo le a Iife in lhe vineyaids. ul lhen lhe eiioi of
Noah vas iepealed lhiough lhe nalions. They gol diunk vilh lhe
alundance and Iel lhenseIves naked.
So, Cod seIecled one pailicuIai peison in Aliahan. Theie aiose
IsiaeI.
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110
Psa 80.8 Ycu orcugn| a tinc cu| cf |gqp|, qcu drctc cu| |nc na|icns and
p|an|cd i|
|zc| 17.5-7 ''Hc |cc| scnc cf |nc sccd cf qcur |and and pu| i| in fcr|i|c
sci|. Hc p|an|cd i| |i|c a ui||cu oq aoundan| ua|cr, and i| sprcu|cd and
occanc a |cu, sprcading tinc. ||s orancncs |urncd |cuard nin, ou| i|s
rcc|s rcnaincd undcr i|. Sc i| occanc a tinc and prcduccd orancncs and
pu| cu| |cafq ocugns. Tnc tincqard cf |nc |ORD A|nign|q is |nc ncusc cf
|srac|, and |nc ncn cf ]udan arc |nc gardcn cf nis dc|ign|. And nc |cc|cd
fcr jus|icc, ou| sau o|ccdsncd, fcr rign|ccusncss, ou| ncard crics cf
dis|rcss.
Psa 80.9-14 Ycu c|carcd |nc grcund fcr i|, and i| |cc| rcc| and fi||cd |nc
|and. Tnc ncun|ains ucrc cctcrcd ui|n i|s snadc, |nc nign|q ccdars ui|n
i|s orancncs. || scn| cu| i|s ocugns |c |nc Sca, i|s sncc|s as far as |nc
Ritcr. lnq natc qcu orc|cn dcun i|s ua||s sc |na| a|| unc pass oq pic|
i|s grapcs? 8cars frcn |nc fcrcs| ratagc i| and |nc crca|urcs cf |nc fic|d
fccd cn i|.
Whal a ieaIislic picluie of IsiaeI.
This is nol an isoIaled picluie. Cod liied lo iepIanl lhe vine inlo
seveiaI nalions.
Ancs 9.7 'Arc nc| qcu |srac|i|cs |nc sanc |c nc as |nc Cusni|cs?'
dcc|arcs |nc |ORD. 'Did | nc| oring |srac| up frcn |gqp|, |nc Pni|is|incs
frcn Capn|cr and |nc Arancans frcn Kir?
He liied vilh Cushiles (Modein Soulh Sudanese), IhiIislines, and
Aianeans (Syiians) and piolalIy nany olheis lefoie coning lo
IsiaeI. AII civiIizalions in spile of lheii ieveIalions venl asliay.
Inslead of lhe piovidei, lhey voishipped lhe piovided and venl
aflei acchus, lhe gods of vine, feiliIily, and piospeiily.
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111
|sa 5.5-6 Ncu | ui|| |c|| qcu una| | an gcing |c dc |c nq tincqard. | ui||
|a|c auaq i|s ncdgc, and i| ui|| oc dcs|rcqcd, | ui|| orca| dcun i|s ua||,
and i| ui|| oc |ranp|cd. | ui|| na|c i| a uas|c|and, nci|ncr pruncd ncr
cu||ita|cd, and oricrs and |ncrns ui|| grcu |ncrc. | ui|| ccnnand |nc
c|cuds nc| |c rain cn i|.'
CiviIizalions veie deslioyed lecause lhey did nol pioduce lhe
iighl fiuil.
Ma| 21.33-41 '|is|cn |c anc|ncr parao|c. Tncrc uas a |andcuncr unc
p|an|cd a tincqard. Hc pu| a ua|| arcund i|, dug a uincprcss in i| and
oui|| a ua|cn|cucr. Tncn nc rcn|cd |nc tincqard |c scnc farncrs and
ucn| auaq cn a jcurncq. lncn |nc nartcs| |inc apprcacncd, nc scn| nis
scrtan|s |c |nc |cnan|s |c cc||cc| nis frui|. 'Tnc |cnan|s scizcd nis
scrtan|s, |ncq oca| cnc, |i||cd anc|ncr, and s|cncd a |nird. Tncn nc scn|
c|ncr scrtan|s |c |ncn, ncrc |nan |nc firs| |inc, and |nc |cnan|s |rca|cd
|ncn |nc sanc uaq. |as| cf a||, nc scn| nis scn |c |ncn. 'Tncq ui|| rcspcc|
nq scn,' nc said. '8u| uncn |nc |cnan|s sau |nc scn, |ncq said |c cacn
c|ncr, 'Tnis is |nc ncir. Ccnc, |c|'s |i|| nin and |a|c nis inncri|ancc.' Sc
|ncq |cc| nin and |nrcu nin cu| cf |nc tincqard and |i||cd nin.
'Tncrcfcrc, uncn |nc cuncr cf |nc tincqard ccncs, una| ui|| nc dc |c
|ncsc |cnan|s?' 'Hc ui|| oring |ncsc urc|cncs |c a urc|cncd cnd,' |ncq
rcp|icd, 'and nc ui|| rcn| |nc tincqard |c c|ncr |cnan|s, unc ui|| gitc nin
nis snarc cf |nc crcp a| nartcs| |inc.'
2. "I AM THE VINE"
WhiIe lhe ilIe condenns inloxicalion, alslaining fion vine vas a
synloI of nouining. Wine vas consideied lo le given lo nan lo
cheei hin up. In lhe Aiyan cuIluie vine 'lhe aniil is lhe diink of
lhe gods - lhe eIecl of Cod. Chiislianily has aIvays heId lhal sland
lecause, }esus hinseIf vas caIIed a vinelillei. The fiisl of his
niiacIes vas lhe conveision of valei inlo vine. This is vhal lhe
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112
vine does. Vine lakes valei fion lhe eailh and conveils il inlo juice
in lhe fiuil of lhe vine. In lhe naiiiage of Canaa lhis is vhal
happened.
]cnn 2.7-11 |c |nc scrtan|s, '|i|| |nc jars ui|n ua|cr', sc |ncq fi||cd |ncn
|c |nc orin. Tncn nc |c|d |ncn, 'Ncu drau scnc cu| and |a|c i| |c |nc
nas|cr cf |nc oanquc|.' Tncq did sc, and |nc nas|cr cf |nc oanquc| |as|cd
|nc ua|cr |na| nad occn |urncd in|c uinc. Hc did nc| rca|izc uncrc i| nad
ccnc frcn, |ncugn |nc scrtan|s unc nad draun |nc ua|cr |ncu. Tncn nc
ca||cd |nc oridcgrccn asidc and said, '|tcrqcnc orings cu| |nc cncicc
uinc firs| and |ncn |nc cncapcr uinc af|cr |nc gucs|s natc nad |cc nucn |c
drin|, ou| qcu natc satcd |nc ocs| |i|| ncu.' Tnis, |nc firs| cf nis
niracu|cus signs, ]csus pcrfcrncd a| Cana in Ga|i|cc. Hc |nus rctca|cd
nis g|crq, and nis discip|cs pu| |ncir fai|n in nin.
}esus decIaied his gIoiy ly conveiling valei inlo lhe lesl vine
lecause he is lhe liue vine.
So vhen }esus said, "I an lhe liue vine", he vas piocIaining lhal
liue Manhood is found in hin and in hin aIone. When aII of Cods
effoil lo iedeen nankind lo ils Manhood faiIed, }esus lecane nan
lhal he nay iedeen il lo vhal il shouId le. Chiislianizalion is in
lhis sense nolhing lul hunanizalion. Making nan as he is expecled
ly Cod lo le. Adan vas Son of Cod, nov lhe Son of Cod lecane
Son of Man - lhe Messiah, lhe Redeenei. He is lhe iedeenei of
nankind nol of a pailicuIai gioup.
One of lhe najoi eiiois of lhe eIecl vas lhal each gioup leIieved
lhal lhey veie lhe onIy eIecl of Cod. So IsiaeI leIieved lhal lhey
veie lhe chiIdien of Cod and nissed lheii iesponsiliIilies. Cod did
seIecl a vine so lhal he couId iedeen aII nankind. Thal Ied lo
Zionisn. Aiyans lhoughl lhey veie lhe gods. Thal Ied lo Nazisn.
Connunisls lhoughl lhey veie lhe peopIe vho vouId ushei in lhe
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113
Kingdon of Man. Whal ness lhey nade! Il is in lhis conlexl lhal
ve have lo see lhe decIaialion of }esus.
2 Ccr 5.17 Tncrcfcrc, if anqcnc is in Cnris|, nc is a ncu crca|icn, |nc c|d
nas gcnc, |nc ncu nas ccnc!
Oul of lhis liue vine giovs lhe nev ciealion nan and ils nucIeus is
lhe Chuich. He loId his discipIes "you aie lhe lianches." Then he
connanded lhen:
Ma| 28.19-20 Tncrcfcrc gc and na|c discip|cs cf a|| na|icns, oap|izing
|ncn in |nc nanc cf |nc |a|ncr and cf |nc Scn and cf |nc Hc|q Spiri|, and
|cacning |ncn |c cocq ctcrq|ning | natc ccnnandcd qcu. And surc|q |
an ui|n qcu a|uaqs, |c |nc tcrq cnd cf |nc agc.'
No vondei }esus seIecled lhe Cup of vine as his synloI of nev
covenanl. Il iepiesenls lhe nev nan. If vine lioughl decay, dealh
and desliuclion lefoie, lhe nev vine liings Iife and fiuilfuIness.
3. "I AM THE VINE, YOU ARE THE BRANCHE5"



WhiIe vine iepiesenls nankind, lhe nev liue vine is slailing vilh
chuich. In lhal sense, il aIso iepiesenls Chuich - as a foielasle of
lhe Kingdon. A vine has seveiaI lianches. In facl, each lianch has
seveiaI sul lianches and il goes on. Thal is hov a pIanl giovs.
Thal is hov a pIanl shouId giov. Why shouId a pIanl liing oul Iol
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114
of lianches` Why nol jusl one slen` The ieason is sinpIe, each Ieaf
vanls lo gel lhe sunshine. Lach Ieaf vanls lo pioduce ils
gieenness. Ioi lhis puipose, il has lo decIaie sone sense of
fieedon and independence. ul lhe enliie Ieaf and lianches foins
one vine. And lhe vine spieads on lhe giound. This is lhe picluie
of lhe chuich vilh aII ils denoninalions and spieading acioss lhe
voiId. They aII logelhei alide on lhe iool, vhich is }esus Chiisl.
Donl ciy foi unily. Theie is onIy one unily - lhal unily is lhe
cenliaIily of }esus. Chuich is lhe lody of Chiisl and is lound
logelhei in Chiisl. Theie nay le shades of iedness on lhe giape
Ieaf. They aie nol copies of each olhei. The coiiugalions on lhe Ieaf
edges and lhe piojeclions aie aII diffeienl. Theii veins aie aII
diffeienlIy voven. Hov vondeifuI` Such is lhe Chuich.
Chuich has ils nenleis. As each lianch caiiies olhei lianches and
lhey in luin caiiies olheis and aIso Ieaves, each individuaI nenlei
iepiesenls lhe lianch and lhe Ieaf. Lach faniIy is a lianch and
each nenlei in luin is a polenliaI lianch. Il aIso iepiesenls lhe
vide voiId vilh eveiy hunan leing as pail of lhe gieal vine. The
vhoIe nankind is one huge vine. Al lhe iool of lhis nankind is
}esus. As he vas lhe souice of Iife in lhe leginning, he is aIso lhe
souice of nev Iife in lhe nev leginning.
ul cul lhe lianch fion lhe slen, il Iooses ils conlacl vilh lhe iool
and lhey vilhei and die undei lhe sane sun vhich olheivise
piovided nouiishnenl. WoiId expeiiences aie liansfoined inlo
nouiishnenl lo lhe leIievei as Iong as lhey Iive on lhe lianch.
Oulside of il, lhese expeiiences liing desliuclion.
]cnn 15.6 |f anqcnc dccs nc| rcnain in nc, nc is |i|c a orancn |na| is
|nrcun auaq and ui|ncrs, sucn orancncs arc pic|cd up, |nrcun in|c |nc
firc and ourncd.
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115
Alide in ne, }esus says. Olheivise, you aie vasled.
]cnn 15.5 '| an |nc tinc, qcu arc |nc orancncs. |f a nan rcnains in nc
and | in nin, nc ui|| ocar nucn frui|, apar| frcn nc qcu can dc nc|ning
]cnn 6.53 ]csus said |c |ncn, '| |c|| qcu |nc |ru|n, un|css qcu ca| |nc f|csn
cf |nc Scn cf Man and drin| nis o|ccd, qcu natc nc |ifc in qcu.
]cnn 6.56-57 lncctcr ca|s nq f|csn and drin|s nq o|ccd rcnains in nc,
and | in nin. ]us| as |nc |iting |a|ncr scn| nc and | |itc occausc cf |nc
|a|ncr, sc |nc cnc unc fccds cn nc ui|| |itc occausc cf nc.
Whal does lhe lianch do` They cannol do anylhing of ils ovn.
They sinpIy alide on lhe vine.
Whal pioduce lhe fiuil` The sap pioduces naluiily and lhal
pioduces lhe fiuil. Then il is feiliIized ly lhe poIIen, lhal is
disliiluled ly lhe vind (HoIy spiiil) and lhe conlinalion of lhe
Woid and lhe Spiiil pioduces lhe fiuil. The lianch sinpIy caiiies
il. The Iiuil of lhe Spiiil fIouiishes in conliasl lo cIinale, vheie
lheie is halied il pioduces Iove, vheie lheie is soiiov, il pioduces
joy, vheie lheie is quaiieI, peace.
My connand is lhis: Love each olhei as I have Ioved you.
]cnn 15.13 Grca|cr |ctc nas nc cnc |nan |nis, |na| nc |aq dcun nis |ifc fcr
nis orc|ncr.
Why` ecause aII nankind is one oiganisn.
Love one anolhei vas lhe OId connand. Nov }esus adds lhe
phiase, 'as I have Ioved you He has Iefl us an exanpIe. He has
given us lhe povei.
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116
AII civiIizalions aie luiIl on seIfishness. Il is lhe coinei slone of
eveiy civiIizalion of oId and aIso of loday. IndividuaIisn is lhe key
lo capilaIisn. ul }esus offeis a diffeienl soIulion. He decIaies lhal
aII nankind is one oiganisn. Whal ve need is a land nev pIanl
capalIe of assiniIaling lhe olheis as ils pail. Ciafled inlo lhe liue
vine aII nankind have a chance lo Iife.
4. BUT NOT ALL BRANCHE5 BEAR FRUIT.
]cnn 15.7-10 |f qcu rcnain in nc and nq ucrds rcnain in qcu, as|
una|ctcr qcu uisn, and i| ui|| oc gitcn qcu. Tnis is |c nq |a|ncr's g|crq,
|na| qcu ocar nucn frui|, sncuing qcursc|tcs |c oc nq discip|cs
Hov does lhe vine leai fiuil` The lianches do nol pioduce fiuil. Il
is lhe vhoIe pIanl lhal pioduces fiuil. Il is sap lhal is lioughl up
ly lhe iool lhal pioduces lhe fiuil. They iun conliaiy lo lhe Iav of
giavily. They iun upvaid and il suppIies lhe necessaiy nuliienls
foi lhe luiIding of fiuils. Iiuils do nol cone oveinighl. y aliding
conlinuousIy, il iesuIls in pioducing lhe fiuil. You cannol foice lo
pioduce lhe fiuil. "As lhe Ialhei has Ioved ne, so have I Ioved you.
Nov ienain in ny Iove. If you oley ny connands, you viII
ienain in ny Iove, jusl as I have oleyed ny Ialhei's connands
and ienain in his Iove.
And Iove is lhe uIlinale fiuil.
Ga| 5.22 8u| |nc frui| cf |nc Spiri| is |ctc, jcq, pcacc, pa|icncc, |indncss,
gccdncss, fai|nfu|ncss gcn||cncss and sc|f-ccn|rc|.
The pioof of lhis aliding is lhal ve ieceive vhalevei ve ask foi.
Mosl peopIe seen lo ly pass lhis lesl. In lhe hisloiy of lhe chuich
piayeis veie ansveied vhen lhe chuich piayed vilh oneness of
nind. Oneness of nind cones onIy lhiough Iove. LvidenlIy, lhe
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117
pioof of oui Iove and oneness of nind is ieveaIed lhiough
ansveied piayeis. This pionise is uncondilionaI - vhalevei you
ask.
5. IF YOU DO NOT ABIDE AND DO NOT PRODUCE FRUIT?
Ma| 3.8-10 Prcducc frui| in |ccping ui|n rcpcn|ancc. And dc nc| |nin|
qcu can saq |c qcursc|tcs, 'lc natc Aoranan as cur fa|ncr.' | |c|| qcu
|na| cu| cf |ncsc s|cncs Gcd can raisc up cni|drcn fcr Aoranan. Tnc ax is
a|rcadq a| |nc rcc| cf |nc |rccs, and ctcrq |rcc |na| dccs nc| prcducc gccd
frui| ui|| oc cu| dcun and |nrcun in|c |nc firc.
Ma| 7.16-20 8q |ncir frui| qcu ui|| rcccgnizc |ncn. Dc pccp|c pic| grapcs
frcn |ncrn ousncs, cr figs frcn |nis||cs? |i|cuisc ctcrq gccd |rcc ocars
gccd frui|, ou| a oad |rcc ocars oad frui|. A gccd |rcc cannc| ocar oad
frui|, and a oad |rcc cannc| ocar gccd frui|. |tcrq |rcc |na| dccs nc| ocar
gccd frui| is cu| dcun and |nrcun in|c |nc firc. Tnus, oq |ncir frui| qcu
ui|| rcccgnizc |ncn.
Thiough lhe hisloiy, Cod has leen doing lhis. WiII He do lhe sane
vilh lhe lianches of lhe chuich loo` WiII lhe chuich aIso gel diunk
vilh lhe vine Iike aII lhe olhei nalions` Nol if lhe Loid }esus is
aIIoved lo le piesenl. Thal is vhal }esus expIains in his paialIe of
lhe Vine heie. He culs off eveiy lianch in ne lhal leais no fiuil.
The Heliev viilei expIains il:
Hco 3.13- 8u| cnccuragc cnc anc|ncr dai|q, as |cng as i| is ca||cd Tcdaq,
sc |na| ncnc cf qcu naq oc nardcncd oq sin's dccci|fu|ncss. lc natc ccnc
|c snarc in Cnris| if uc nc|d firn|q |i|| |nc cnd |nc ccnfidcncc uc nad a|
firs|. As nas jus| occn said. 'Tcdaq, if qcu ncar nis tcicc, dc nc| nardcn
qcur ncar|s as qcu did in |nc rcoc||icn.' lnc ucrc |ncq unc ncard and
rcoc||cd? lcrc |ncq nc| a|| |ncsc Mcscs |cd cu| cf |gqp|? And ui|n uncn
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118
uas nc angrq fcr fcr|q qcars? las i| nc| ui|n |ncsc unc sinncd, uncsc
ocdics fc|| in |nc dcscr|? And |c uncn did Gcd sucar |na| |ncq ucu|d
nctcr cn|cr nis rcs| if nc| |c |ncsc unc discocqcd? Sc uc scc |na| |ncq
ucrc nc| ao|c |c cn|cr, occausc cf |ncir unoc|icf.
Tncrcfcrc, sincc |nc prcnisc cf cn|cring nis rcs| s|i|| s|ands, |c| us oc
carcfu| |na| ncnc cf qcu oc fcund |c natc fa||cn sncr| cf i|. |cr uc a|sc
natc nad |nc gcspc| prcacncd |c us, jus| as |ncq did, ou| |nc ncssagc |ncq
ncard uas cf nc ta|uc |c |ncn, occausc |ncsc unc ncard did nc| ccnoinc i|
ui|n fai|n. Ncu uc unc natc oc|ictcd cn|cr |na| rcs|, jus| as Gcd nas
said, 'Sc | dcc|arcd cn ca|n in nq angcr, 'Tncq sna|| nctcr cn|cr nq
rcs|.'' And qc| nis ucr| nas occn finisncd sincc |nc crca|icn cf |nc ucr|d.
Hco 4.6 || s|i|| rcnains |na| scnc ui|| cn|cr |na| rcs|, and |ncsc unc
fcrncr|q nad |nc gcspc| prcacncd |c |ncn did nc| gc in, occausc cf |ncir
discocdicncc.
Hco 4.11 |c| us, |ncrcfcrc, na|c ctcrq cffcr| |c cn|cr |na| rcs|, sc |na| nc
cnc ui|| fa|| oq fc||cuing |ncir cxanp|c cf discocdicncc.
6. THO5E THAT BEAR FRUIT?
BEAR MUCH FRUIT
]cnn 15.2 Hc cu|s cff ctcrq orancn in nc |na| ocars nc frui|, uni|c ctcrq
orancn |na| dccs ocar frui| nc pruncs sc |na| i| ui|| oc ctcn ncrc frui|fu|.
1 Pc| 1.6-7 |n |nis qcu grca||q rcjcicc, |ncugn ncu fcr a |i|||c uni|c qcu
naq natc nad |c suffcr gricf in a|| |inds cf |ria|s. Tncsc natc ccnc sc |na|
qcur fai|n--cf grca|cr ucr|n |nan gc|d, unicn pcrisncs ctcn |ncugn rcfincd
oq firc--naq oc prctcd gcnuinc and naq rcsu|| in praisc, g|crq and ncncr
uncn ]csus Cnris| is rctca|cd.
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119
]cnn 15.16 Ycu did nc| cnccsc nc, ou| | cncsc qcu and appcin|cd qcu |c
gc and ocar frui|--frui| |na| ui|| |as|. Tncn |nc |a|ncr ui|| gitc qcu
una|ctcr qcu as| in nq nanc.
Nolice lhal Cod vanls eveiy nan lo piospei. ul il is onIy vhen
one alide in Hin viII ve le nade vhoIe as a nankind.
7. CHURCH A5 VINEYARD
Theie aie nany olhei insighls possilIe fion lhis anaIogy and nosl
connenlaiies give exceIIenl sludies in lhis iegaid. Heie is an
oulIine, vhich I have galheied.



VIncyard Church, Thc Wnr!d
IiuilfuI lianches Sainls in lhe chuich, lhe iighleous
unfiuilfuI lianches
noninaI Chiislians vho Iive a
defealed Iife, uniighleous
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120
Iiuning ly Cod
Cod puiifying his peopIe ly
affIiclions - consequence of sin
To dveII undei lhe vine and liee
is an enlIen of doneslic
happiness and peace,
Micah 4:4 Lveiy nan viII sil
undei his ovn vine and undei his
ovn fig liee, and no one viII
nake lhen afiaid, foi lhe LORD
AInighly has spoken.
Ron 8:1 Theiefoie, lheie is nov no
condennalion foi lhose vho aie in
Chiisl }esus,
Ron 8:2 lecause lhiough Chiisl
}esus lhe Iav of lhe Spiiil of Iife sel
ne fiee fion lhe Iav of sin and
dealh.
}esus piovides lhis pioleclion ly his
lIood. Theie is safely in laking
iefuge in Hin
vineyaids aie suiiounded ly a
vaII oi hedge in oidei lo keep oul
lhe viId loais, Is 8O:13,
One of lhe duly of lhe chuich as an
inslilulion is lo keep lhe nenleis
fion lhe assauIl of lIaspheny and
heiesy fion oulside lhe chuich.
}ackaIs and foxes. Nu 22:24, Ne
4:3, So 2:15, Lze 13:4,5, Ml 21:33,
InleinaI squallIes` Il is lhe IillIe
foxes lhal spoiIs lhe vine.
Ils iich cIusleis lhe giaces of lhe chuich SoIonon 7:8
Ils quick giovlh
lhe giovlh of sainls in giace Hosea
14:7
The slones caiefuIIy galheied oul
of lhe vineyaid Isaiah 5:2
InleinaI veeding piocess vilhin lhe
chuich
Collages aie luiIl foi lhe keepeis
inside lhe vineyaid Isaiah 1:8


IIaces of heIp vilhin lhe chuich
Iiovided vilh lhe appaialus foi
naking vine Isaiah 5:2 Mallhev
21:33

nake piovision foi lhe infiIIing of
lhe HoIy Spiiil
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121
UnfiuilfuI lhe vicked Hosea 1O:1
WoilhIessness of ils vood
The vood of, fil onIy foi luining
Lzek 15:2-3 "Son of nan, hov is
lhe vood of a vine lellei lhan
lhal of a lianch on any of lhe
liees in lhe foiesl` Is vood evei
laken fion il lo nake anylhing
usefuI` Do lhey nake pegs fion
il lo hang lhings on`
UnfiuilfuI Iife is a vasled Iife.
8. LAWS RLSILCTINC VINLYARDS
Nol lo le pIanled vilh diffeienl
kinds of seed Deuleionony 22:9
Lach chuich shouId have ils ovn
lheoIogy. Do nol liy lo nix lhen.
The fiuil of nev vine shouId nol
le ealen ly lhe ovneis liII lhe
fiflh yeai Levilicus 19:25
The fiuil of nev vine shouId nol
lo le ealen foi lhiee yeais
Levilicus 19:23
The fiuil of nev vine is lo le hoIy
lo lhe Loid in lhe fouilh yeai
Levilicus 19:24
This piolalIy iefeis lo lhe naluiing
peiiod of nev Chiislians. They nay
nol le expecled lo leach. }usl as lhe
vine needs line lo naluie and liing
fiuil, eveiy Chiislian needs lo
naluie lefoie lhey liing foilh fiuil.
Sliangeis enleiing lhe vineyaid
aie aIIoved lo eal lhe fiuil of vine
fieeIy, lul lhey nay nol caiiy any
avay fion lhe vineyaid.
Deuleionony 23:24
IeopIe nay cone inlo lhe chuich lo
feed lhenseIves. ul lhey nay nol
lake any food oulside oi any
nenlei oul of lhe chuich. No
chuich shouId lake in anolhei
peison fion a diffeienl chuich, noi
pionpl lo do so.
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122

9. VINTACL
The vinlage, is a season of geneiaI feslivily, legan in Seplenlei.
The lovns veie deseiled as aII lhe connunily Iefl lheii hones and
lhe peopIe Iived anong lhe vineyaids in lhe Iodges and lenls. The
giapes veie galheied vilh shouls of joy ly lhe "giape galheieis,"
(}ei 25:3O) and pul inlo laskels. They veie lhen caiiied on lheii
head and shouIdeis, oi sIung upon a yoke, lo lhe vinepiess.
Winepiess vas a pIace of dancing and neiiinenl vheie aII lhe
connunily look pail. Young look lheii liides al lhal line. Il is
haivesl line and look pIace eveiy yeai. Six yeais lhey haivesled
lheii fiuils. Al lhe end of lhe sixlh yeai vas lhe liggesl haivesl of
aII. Theie vouId le doulIe haivesl
Rct 14.18 S|i|| anc|ncr angc|, unc nad cnargc cf |nc firc, canc frcn |nc
a||ar and ca||cd in a |cud tcicc |c nin unc nad |nc snarp sic||c, 'Ta|c
qcur snarp sic||c and ga|ncr |nc c|us|crs cf grapcs frcn |nc car|n's tinc,
occausc i|s grapcs arc ripc.'
This is lhe gieal iapluie, vhen Chiisl lakes his liide hone in
ponp and spIendoi, in joy and neiiinenl.
1 Ccr 15.51-52 |is|cn, | |c|| qcu a nqs|crq. lc ui|| nc| a|| s|ccp, ou| uc
ui|| a|| oc cnangcd-- in a f|asn, in |nc |uin||ing cf an cqc, a| |nc |as|
|runpc|. |cr |nc |runpc| ui|| scund, |nc dcad ui|| oc raiscd inpcrisnao|c,
and uc ui|| oc cnangcd.
Rct 19.7-8 |c| us rcjcicc and oc g|ad and gitc nin g|crq! |cr |nc ucdding
cf |nc |ano nas ccnc, and nis oridc nas nadc ncrsc|f rcadq. |inc |incn,
orign| and c|can, uas gitcn ncr |c ucar.' (|inc |incn s|ands fcr |nc
rign|ccus ac|s cf |nc sain|s.)
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123
Rct 21.2-4 | sau |nc Hc|q Ci|q, |nc ncu ]crusa|cn, ccning dcun cu| cf
ncatcn frcn Gcd, prcparcd as a oridc ocau|ifu||q drcsscd fcr ncr nusoand.
And | ncard a |cud tcicc frcn |nc |nrcnc saqing, 'Ncu |nc duc||ing cf
Gcd is ui|n ncn, and nc ui|| |itc ui|n |ncn. Tncq ui|| oc nis pccp|c, and
Gcd ninsc|f ui|| oc ui|n |ncn and oc |ncir Gcd. Hc ui|| uipc ctcrq |car
frcn |ncir cqcs. Tncrc ui|| oc nc ncrc dca|n cr ncurning cr crqing cr
pain, fcr |nc c|d crdcr cf |nings nas passcd auaq.'
Then cones lhe sevenlh yeai - lhe sallalicaI yeai vhen no Iand is
liIIed noi pIanled.
|ct 25.2-6 'Spca| |c |nc |srac|i|cs and saq |c |ncn. 'lncn qcu cn|cr |nc
|and | an gcing |c gitc qcu, |nc |and i|sc|f nus| coscrtc a Saooa|n |c |nc
|ORD. .3 |cr six qcars scu qcur fic|ds, and fcr six qcars prunc qcur
tincqards and ga|ncr |ncir crcps. 8u| in |nc sctcn|n qcar |nc |and is |c
natc a Saooa|n cf rcs|, a Saooa|n |c |nc |ORD. Dc nc| scu qcur fic|ds cr
prunc qcur tincqards. Dc nc| rcap una| grcus cf i|sc|f cr nartcs| |nc
grapcs cf qcur un|cndcd tincs. Tnc |and is |c natc a qcar cf rcs|.
lna|ctcr |nc |and qic|ds during |nc Saooa|n qcar ui|| oc fccd fcr qcu--fcr
qcursc|f, qcur nanscrtan| and naidscrtan|, and |nc nircd ucr|cr and
|cnpcrarq rcsidcn| unc |itc ancng qcu, Ccnsccra|c |nc fif|ic|n qcar and
prcc|ain |iocr|q |nrcugncu| |nc |and |c a|| i|s innaoi|an|s. || sna|| oc a
juoi|cc fcr qcu, cacn cnc cf qcu is |c rc|urn |c nis fani|q prcpcr|q and
cacn |c nis cun c|an.
|ct 25.11-14 Tnc fif|ic|n qcar sna|| oc a juoi|cc fcr qcu, dc nc| scu and dc
nc| rcap una| grcus cf i|sc|f cr nartcs| |nc un|cndcd tincs. |cr i| is a
juoi|cc and is |c oc nc|q fcr qcu, ca| cn|q una| is |a|cn dircc||q frcn |nc
fic|ds. ''|n |nis Ycar cf ]uoi|cc ctcrqcnc is |c rc|urn |c nis cun prcpcr|q.
''|f qcu sc|| |and |c cnc cf qcur ccun|rqncn cr ouq anq frcn nin,
This is lhe peiiod vhen lhe chuich is laken avay. Theie aie no
Ialoieis on lhe eailh. ul lheie viII a haivesl. The sponlaneous
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124
haivesl viII le haivesled as lhey aie. Thus shaII lhe eIecl ieluin
unlo lheii oiiginaI eslale inlo fuII hunanily.
Then lhe son of nan viII appeai foi aII lhe nalions vilh his liide,
lhe chuich. Isaiah desciiles lhis second coning lhus:
|sa 63.1-3 lnc is |nis ccning frcn |dcn, frcn 8czran, ui|n nis
garncn|s s|aincd crinscn? lnc is |nis, rcocd in sp|cndcr, s|riding
fcruard in |nc grca|ncss cf nis s|rcng|n? '|| is |, spca|ing in
rign|ccusncss, nign|q |c satc.' lnq arc qcur garncn|s rcd, |i|c |ncsc cf
cnc |rcading |nc uincprcss? '| natc |rcddcn |nc uincprcss a|cnc, frcn |nc
na|icns nc cnc uas ui|n nc. | |ranp|cd |ncn in nq angcr and |rcd |ncn
dcun in nq ura|n, |ncir o|ccd spa||crcd nq garncn|s, and | s|aincd a||
nq c|c|ning.
|sa 63.4 |cr |nc daq cf tcngcancc uas in nq ncar|, and |nc qcar cf nq
rcdcnp|icn nas ccnc.
The day of lhe vengeance has cone. The gieal vhile lhione is nov
open.
When }esus opened his ninisliy, his nanifeslo slaled:
|u|c 4.18-9 'Tnc Spiri| cf |nc |crd is cn nc, occausc nc nas ancin|cd nc
|c prcacn gccd ncus |c |nc pccr. Hc nas scn| nc |c prcc|ain frccdcn fcr
|nc priscncrs and rccctcrq cf sign| fcr |nc o|ind, |c rc|casc |nc cpprcsscd,
|c prcc|ain |nc qcar cf |nc |crd's fatcr.'
In his second coning lhe ienaining poilion of Isaiahs piophecy
viII le fuIfiIIed adding
|sa 61.1-2 Tnc Spiri| cf |nc Sctcrcign |ORD is cn nc, occausc |nc
|ORD nas ancin|cd nc |c prcacn gccd ncus |c |nc pccr. Hc nas scn| nc
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125
|c oind up |nc orc|cnncar|cd, |c prcc|ain frccdcn fcr |nc cap|itcs and
rc|casc frcn dar|ncss fcr |nc priscncrs, |c prcc|ain |nc qcar cf |nc |crd's
fatcr and |nc daq cf tcngcancc cf cur Gcd, |c ccnfcr| a|| unc ncurn,
This Isaiah conpaies vilh lhe lieading of lhe vinepiess.
WiII you le confoiled oi viII you le lhe laigel of lhe vengeance of
oui Cod`