NT Framework - A Slow Victorious March

It's a slow dispossessing. The Adversary has lost and yet the battle wages on; and as we look about we feel as if he is winning. Yet we know that every person who believes in Christ weakens the adversaries kingdom. And so we see a slow conquering taking place even though victory is assured. 

More information about Beyond the Walls, including additional resources can be found at www.beyondthewalls-ministry.com 

This series included graphics to illustrate what is being taught, if you would like to watch the teachings you can do so on Rumble (https://rumble.com/user/SpokaneBibleChurch) or on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLtV_KhFVZ_waBcnuywiRKIyEcDkiujRqP).

Jeremy Thomas is the pastor at Spokane Bible Church in Spokane, Washington and a professor at Chafer Theological Seminary. He has been teaching the Bible for over 20 years, always seeking to present its truths in a clear and understandable manner. 

Transcript

Welcome And Series Context

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Welcome to Beyond the Walls with Jeremy Thomas and our series on the New Testament framework. Today, a smaller, bite-sized piece from the larger lesson. We hope you enjoy it.

Why Fallen Angels Still Exist

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If Satan and his evil horde of angels have been defeated at the cross, why? There are several things that are happening here that are a setup for the church and for the Christian way of life. Like a new way of living before God that's distinct from Old Testament saints. Okay, in other words, the New Testament Christian way of life or the church, church's way of Christian way of life, is distinct from Israel Old Testament, the way they were to live there. Let's just call it Christian life. Okay. This is going to point out a distinction between what we call Israel and the church. And this is a major one. And so we need to back away and try to understand how the angelic fallen angels still being here are related in some way to the Christian way of life now that we are experiencing.

The New Race And Adam’s Mandate

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First of all, then Christ is forming a new race of men, beginning with the church. This new race of men is to rule with him in the future kingdom. What was God's purpose for Adam? When God created Adam, what did he tell him to do? When he made, let us make man in our own image to do what? To rule, okay, to rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, you know, and so forth. It was to rule over the earth, right? And to cultivate and keep the garden and spread it over the face of the whole earth for the glory of God. Now, Adam failed in that, right? So what is happening beginning on the day of Pentecost when we get into the church is a new race of men are being formed that will fulfill what Adam failed to fulfill along with our Savior Christ. This new race of men is generated through faith so that they are in Christ. In Christ. 39 times in the book of Ephesians, it says those who believe in the church are in Christ. And we have the indwelling spirit permanently, right, as a basis for Christ's life being produced through us. This is a new way of spiritual life, distinct from Old Testament saints. So a new race created, being created to fulfill what Adam fulfilled. In other words, in the Messianic kingdom, we're going to do what he failed to do. We're going to rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, we're going to fulfill that mandate. The new race, of course, is generated through faith alone in Christ alone, right? So that we're in Christ and we have the indwelling spirit. Now, um, we can't go to all these, but 1 John 3.10, for example, says there's the children of God and there's the children of the devil. The children of God and the children of the devil. In other words, there's two types of children, or two races. I'm just using the term race to refer to these two people groups. There's the children of God, and there's the children of the devil. And there's everybody is a member of one of these two, let's say, races, right? So if you're a child of God, right, you believed in him, in Christ, then you are a part of this new humanity, this new race that is being prepared to ultimately rule in the kingdom with Christ. We also have the indwelling spirit, and he permanently indwells us, meaning he's taken up residence in us. Why has he done this? Well, it's to enable us to have a basis for Christ's life being produced through us.

Living By Faith As Christ In Us

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Let's turn to Galatians. Galatians 2.20. When we live, as Christians, when we live by faith, there's a manifestation of Christ's life through us. This is what Paul is saying here in Galatians 2.20. He says, I have been crucified with Christ. That's my old man that was in Adam. He's been crucified with Christ. So that's he's a part of a new humanity now, not the old one. He says, it's no longer I who live. You know, I'm not producing this anymore. He says, but Christ lives in me. Okay, so see, we're in Christ. The moment you believe you're in Christ, but as you live by faith, Christ lives in you. So you're in Christ, I'm in Christ, we're all in Christ. But then as we live by faith, guess what? Christ lives in us. And his life, his perfect, impeccable life, is produced through us. It says, so I no longer live. Christ lives in me. The life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me. So the way that we're supposed to live, of course, of course, is by faith. And when we do, then Christ's life is reproduced through us. Now we learn more about this in chapter 5, Galatians 5.22, when he talks about the fruit of the Spirit, because it's Christ's life that's being produced through us by the Spirit who dwells in us. Right? It's Christ's life that's being produced through us by the Spirit. He says the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. In other words, that is what Christ's life looks like when it is poured out through us. Because the Spirit produces his life through us, of course, as we live by faith. So that's uh what's going on with those of us in the church. We're a new race with the indwelling spirit designed to produce the life of Christ through us as we live by faith. Ultimately, one day we will

The Ongoing Angelic Conflict And Training

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uh reign with Christ. Now, so it appears that Christ wants to unseat Satan gradually by including those who defect from Satan's kingdom in the angelic conflict. In other words, um at the cross, when he judged Satan, he could have just that could have been it. He could have cast him in the lake of fire. I mean, that would have been it, right? No more Satan roaming about. But he didn't do it that way. He decided to allow him to persist and for this angelic conflict to continue between the new race of men that he's creating in Christ and the angelic, uh fallen angelic beings. Okay. Part of this is our training. Uh we're being put through training in the angelic conflict because one day we're actually going to judge angels. First Corinthians 6, verse 3. So part of our training is so we'll be in a position to judge angels, judge the fallen angels. And also, of course, some of the training is there to equip us to rule with Christ and his future kingdom.

Where To Find Visuals And Rate

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Thank you for joining us on Beyond the Walls with Jeremy Thomas. If you would like to see the visuals that went along with today's sermon, you can find those on Rumble and on YouTube under Spokane Bible Church. That is where Jeremy is the pastor and teacher. We hope you found today's lesson productive and useful in growing closer to God and walking more obediently with Him. If you found this podcast to be useful and helpful, then please consider rating us in your favorite podcast app. And until next time, we hope you have a blessed and wonderful day.