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think they are "converted" who
never have been- who never have
been CONQUERED into SURRENDER
and SUBMISSION to God. The natu–
ral carnal mind can comprehend,
grasp, understand a certain mea–
sure of biblical truth and doctrine.
Sorne, in their vain self-righteous–
ness, are so GOOD that they do
accept what truth a natural mind
can grasp.
Yet the natural mind is hostile
against God (Rom. 8:7, J er. 17:9).
lt
has not unconditionally surren–
dered.
How about one person having a
relationsh ip with another human
person? Neither mus t be con–
quered by the other. But Satan has
injected into ALL humans (except
Christ) his attitude of vanity and
covetousness- to a greater or lesser
degree.
The human mind is essentially
SELF-CENTERED. But the human
mind is an "EMPIRE-ICAL" mind.
SELF inclu.des whatever one thinks
is his or hers- his clothes, his
home, his property, his child or
even parent, his team, his .country.
SELF expands to include what
belongs to SELF,
as long as
he feels
he selfishly GETS FROM whomever
or whatever it is.
One human spirit can be compati–
ble with another human spiri t–
especially when it is to one's selfish
or pleasing advantage. Thus, an
unconverted husband can get along
with an unconverted wife- so long
as there is no att itude of hostility,
competition, displeasure, incompati–
bility, annoyance or dislike. But the
carnal SELF, actuated by the human
spirit, is essentially SELF-CENTERED
and !oves primarily itself. lt !oves
another when it gains, receives plea–
sure or satisfaction from, andfor
feels the other is part of his or her
"empire-ical" SELF.
That explains WHY sorne mar–
riages succeed, even when both are
unconverted . When one is con–
verted, the other not, it still
may
succeed, as long as it is satisfying
and seems advan tageous to the
unconverted.
But the mind
led by
the Holy
Spirit will have an attitude of LOVE
toward another
so long as
he is
truly being
led by
the Spirit of
God. IF one has not the Holy Spirit
of God and is not being motivated
May 1982
and led by God's Spirit, he or she
may still live compatibly with a
mate in marriage so long as such
person is selfishly pleased with the
relationship.
Yet the natural, carnal, uncon–
verted mind is "enmity"-hos–
tile- toward God (and fellowman
except for selfish pleasure o r
advantage) and "is not subject to
the law of God, neither indeed can
be" (Rom. 8:7).
The people of the ancient nation
Israel were of course carnalminded .
God had closed and sealed off the
"tree of life"- the Holy Spirit–
from mankind upon Adam's dis–
obedience and wrong choice, UNTIL
Christ, the second Adam, should
come and pay the penalty for
human sin. Jt was thereupon–
upon Adam's sin--<iecreed that "it
is appointed unto men once to die,
but after this [by resu rrection) the
judgment" (Heb. 9:27) and "as in
Adam ALL die, even so in Christ
shall [the same]
ALL
be made
a live" by resurrection (1 Cor.
15:22).
And God gave the prophecy
through Joel that "it shall come to
pass afterward, that 1 will pour out
my spirit upon all ftesh ... " (Joel
2:28). So even ancient lsraelites
shall be resurrected (Ezek. 37)
mortal. In that judgment they shall
come to realize their sins, shall
loathe themselves (Ezek. 20:42-44)
and so all Israel (as a whole, not
every individual) SHALL BE SAVEO
(Rom. ll :26).
This present world is NOT God's
world.
It
is a world s tarted by
Adam as swayed and led by the evil
Satan, after Adam rejected the tree
of LIFE-symbolic of God's Holy
Spirit.
lt
is a world built on the way of
"GET"-not God's way of love-or
of "GIVE"! In this world God
formed one nation- ancient l s–
rael- made up of carnalminded
Hebrews during the time when
God's Holy Spir it was wi thheld
from mankind (except for th e
prophets for the writing of God's
Word). Ancient Is rael, one of this
world's nations, in the Bible is com–
pared to a woman married to
Israel 's God, who later was human–
ly born as Jesus Christ.
Wi th nations symbo li zed as
women, God proposed to make
her his FIRST LADY-but she
despised that honor, and he
divorced her. But he still loved
her, and will yet MARRY HER at
his glorified Second Coming in
s upreme POWER to rule all
nations. His wife was UNCON–
VERTED, selfish, carnal. She shall
be converted, unselfish, spiritual.
The God of the Old Testament
was boro as the human Jesus
Christ-God in human ftesh . Jesus
said, " 1 will build my Church." His
Church is composed of called out
ones (11 Cor. 6: 17) . They have been
called out of the world to become
the nation or Kingdom of God-to
rule the whole world in the wonder–
ful WORLD TOMORROW! Today,
"he is a Jew who is one inwardly
[having God's Spirit]" (Rom. 2:29,
RSV). Today the CHURCH is the
affianced bride, to marry Christ at
his soon coming!
The old covenant was a MAR–
RIAGE COVENANT. The NEW COVE–
NANT will be a marriage covenant,
a marriage to an lsrael who has
PROVEO OBEDIENCE in God's
Church, baving repented-turned
FROM sin, having overcome, having
grown in grace and spiritual knowl–
edge (11 Pet. 3: 18), and endured to
the end (Matt. 24: 13).
This marriage will be one ofTRUE
LOVE- the "wife" having the love of
God shed abroad in her beart by the
Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5). And there
shall be no divorce or occasion for
divorce. This time the wife shall
have REPENTED, and turned from her
adulteries and sins!
There has been a false teaching
that the old covenant was made
with Israel, but the new sball be
made with gentiles. But tbe apostle
Paul says, " For finding fault with
them [not with God or his law], he
saith, Behold, the days come, saith
the Lord, when l will make a new
covenant with the house of Israel
and with the house of Judah"
( Heb. 8:8). I t will be a LOVE mar–
riage, and C hrist's wife will be
pleased to dwell with him in !ove
and AGREEMENT and obedience FOR
EVER and EVER!
O
EDITOR'S NOTE
A photo credit was inadverlently omit–
ted on page 5 in some ofthe early issues
of the April
Plain T ruth.
The photo was
taken in San Salvador by Alain Keler
forSygma.
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