Herbert W. Armstrong Audio Sermon Transcripts
The Church of God Faithful Flock brings you transcripts of sermons given by Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong.
ROMANS 13 & 8
12 January 1980
Let me say, then, that we have been going through a series, some months ago — the book of Galatians; and now we've been going through the book of Romans and we have finished the first seven chapters. Today I want to get a little out of line and into something special, and go over the thirteenth chapter of Romans, because there are those that are trying to tell the members of the Church of God, that when the State of California brought the lawsuit against the Worldwide Church of God, that we should have just caved in and said, “Yes we will stop preaching the gospel then and we will just have our local ecclesiastical services” — because that was their idea.
They said they would not interfere with the ecclesiastical phase of our work, only the business phase. Now they considered the preaching of the gospel to the world, the business phase (or the commercial phase) and that was not the ecclesiastical phase and therefore doesn't belong in the church. That was their idea.
And you see the commission of Jesus Christ was not just hold local prayer meetings and services. It was “go ye into all the world and preach this gospel,” which means good news of the kingdom of God. And that is what we have been doing; and the State tried to shut us off from that.
Now, another thing, the State brought no charges. We were not accused of anything. We were not charged with anything. We did not go on trial for any crime or any offense of any kind at all, and I think we need to realize that first.
What they did was to come and say that they had fired me, that I could have nothing to do with the Church of God any more. They fired God's Apostle. They fired, what we have come to call the Pastor General of the Church of God. And that is an entirely different thing than what the Bible is talking about when it says that we should obey the governments of man.
Now I want to go into that because they always cite this thirteenth chapter of Romans. We had broken no law. The State did break a law. The State broke the Constitution of the United States, the supreme law of the land. But we had done no wrong whatsoever. We were not even accused of doing any wrong.
Now they put a lot of things in the newspaper. Newspaper headlines said that we had been accused of siphoning off millions of dollars. But you won't find that in anything legal. They didn't dare accuse us of anything like that because it's so absolutely absurd. Actually I have since come to find out that they accused Mr. Rader and me, just two men, of stealing and siphoning off from the work of the Living God, I think it was thirty-some million dollars.
Now we had not been going out for thirty years on these trips, and of course, the whole thing is they construe that when Jesus said, “Go ye into all the world,” and an apostle is “one sent forth” and I was sent forth into the world with the gospel — that I should not have done that.
Their contention is that we should just have some, maybe prayer services and ecclesiastical services , whatever — I don't know what the politicians have in mind because they don't know anything about religion, or they don't know anything about God. They don't know who or what God is, and they don't know anything about the gospel. They don't know anything about the Church of God, but yet they wanted to take over and run the Church of God.
Now it was not an accusation, it was merely a lawsuit for the government to take over and run and operate the Church. Now what they wanted was eighty-some million dollars worth of property we have — the most beautiful campus in all the United States that has been built in Pasadena. They wanted to take that over and perhaps sell it and get the money or put it to State Government political use. That is all that they wanted.
Now one or two ministers (who are no longer in the church) have cited the thirteenth chapter of Romans and said that we should have obeyed this. Well let me tell you, we do obey this. Now if you will look at it:
Romans 13:1 ...every soul [now you might translate that “every individual” because that's what it means when it says “every soul”] Let every soul be subject to the higher powers...
Now I will grant with them, that's what they would contend, I will grant that, the higher powers in this case. There are two higher powers mentioned in the Bible — those of the civil government of man, and those of the devil and wicked spirits in high places that are mentioned over in the sixth chapter of Ephesians I believe it is.
But this is undoubtedly referring to....it certainly is not Satan, but the powers of man. Now let me read that in the Revised Standard edition in chapter thirteen.
Romans 13:1 (RSV) Let every person...
Now that's their translation which is perhaps more accurate because people think of a soul as some spirit, or something immortal, and that is not what is meant by the word “soul.” It comes from a Hebrew word “Nephesh” as it started, which means “a breathing animal” A person or an animal is a soul. Animals are souls and it's composed of the dust of the ground. But this is really speaking of people
Romans 13:1 (RSV) Let every person be subject to the [government] authorities. [Now there is no question about it, it means the government of man] For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.
Now let me go back and explain that. God did not ordain the Government of the State of California. God did not ordain the Constitution of the United States or the Government of the United States. What God did was ordain a government on the face of this earth and He put an archangel on the throne to administer that government. It was the government of God and its laws were based on the spiritual law of God, which is simply stated in one word — love.
But love is an out flowing concern toward others and the Archangel Lucifer, instead of administering that government of God, turned traitor against God's law. God's law is the way of give, of out-flowing love away from self, toward others.
Satan had the way of everything coming towards self — selfishness (extreme selfishness). And there was the government of God, and this archangel turned to the very opposite. Instead of out-flowing love, he turned to extreme in-coming, in-flowing selfishness, and greed, and vanity, and lust, exalting himself and coveting what God had. And he became jealous and envious of God and he turned bitter and resentful. And he turned into a spirit of competition, of strife against God and to try to go up and to take the Kingdom of the whole Universe away from God.
Now, that Lucifer became Satan. He was here when God created Adam and Adam could have qualified to succeed him and administer the government of God on the earth, but instead, Adam followed Satan. Satan got to Adam through Adam's wife and when she went the way — disbelieved what God said, that they “would surely die,” and took of the forbidden fruit, Adam went right along with her and took of it and rebelled against God.
Now, at that time, God said, “I have pronounced a sentence upon you. You have rebelled against me and my government. You have obeyed the government of Satan. And Satan, originally, I put there to administer my government but he turned away from it, and turned in the opposite direction.”
“You have chosen to go in that direction, and I am sentencing you to six thousand years, and all of the children that will be born from you that will become this world until...” (well what we now know is the time of the second coming of Christ). “...to be cut off from me.” Now except such as God said He would specially call, to prepare for the Kingdom of God which will restore the government of God to this earth.
Now then, God did call certain ones. He called Noah, for example, because God was going to destroy all flesh on this earth, they had become so corrupt and they were getting into interracial marriage and wrong things that way. They were getting into extreme crime and everything that was going the way of Satan and not the way of God.
But God determined to save enough people to start the earth populating again. So he called Noah, who alone in his generations, physical generations, was of the original white strain, and there were no intermarriage anywhere in his ancestry. And he was the only man on earth like that. Everybody else had been a result of interracial marriage.
But he was also a righteous man before God. And God called Noah to build an ark and save him and his three sons and their wives and Noah's wife. So all humanity since has come from Noah. Now later, God called Abraham, and Isaac and Jacob and Joseph.
Then sometime after that, about four hundred and thirty years, He called Moses. Moses wasn't looking for God but God called him, and God said, “I want you to lead the descendants of Abraham which have become slaves here in Egypt, and I'm going to deliver them from that slavery. And I'm going to make them a nation — my nation on earth and you are to lead them, and I will give them my law and my government through you.”
So Moses at first protested, but agreed, because God wasn't going to let him go away from the calling. And when he had delivered the Children of Israel, and through the miracles of God, they were at last free from the Egyptians, and they were over at Mount Sinai. God gave them a proposition, that if they would obey His laws, He would make them His government on earth.
Now, God made a covenant with them. That was a marriage covenant, but it also was a covenant to set them up as a government — as a people on the earth. And as a government, they were the only government of God. However God still had the Holy Spirit cut off from them.
Now God revealed Himself. God revealed and gave them the knowledge — the revelation of knowledge of Him and of His way of life. He gave them His law, the spiritual law, which Satan first had gone contrary to, and then which Adam also had disobeyed. And that is the Spiritual Law of love again. He also gave them Statutes and Judgments based on that Spiritual Law, as their Civil Law. And God has ordained that man should go and form his own government. And here God called for them to have a government that would be God's government.
Other nations were told to just form their own kind of government. Now they could not have a government except by God's consent. Satan could not exist except by God's consent. For example, in the book of Job, Satan could not do anything against Job unless God allowed it and God says; “Alright, I will allow you to take away from him everything he has, but you must not touch the man himself.” So Satan did it. And Job still did not turn against God.
So Satan came again and he argued now that “If you strike him - you didn't let me strike him, let me just strike the man himself, he'll do anything for his own life.” And God says; “Alright I'll let you strike him but you must not take his life. He must still be alive.” And so Satan smote him with boils from head to foot, probably the most painful thing that you can imagine that could happen to any man. And Job still maintained his own righteousness.
Now, the governments of this world; God told man “Go form your own.” And they're formed under Satan and they could not exist except that God had allowed it. That's why you read here that there is “no power but of God” and “the powers that be are ordained of God.” Satan is here, and that's in the same sense ordained of God. Satan could not exist if God did not allow it.
Now let's get this background and get this straight. And I need to write an article on this and get it out so our people understand it. Now man has made laws that were really influenced and promulgated by Satan. Some of the laws of man are good. Man has a law against murder. Well, that's one of the Ten Commandments, and man is enforcing that.
There is a law against stealing and man's government will enforce that, and that is another one of God's Ten Commandments. But you will find that - well bearing false witness under certain conditions. If you bear false witness under oath, and taking an oath is not God's way, God forbids that, but men do it anyway. And if you swear under false oath before a Judge in court, then you will be gotten — I don't know whether it's contempt of court or what the punishment is, but they will punish you.
However, the government of man does not legislate against having other gods before the true God. They don't punish people that worship some other kind of god, or some god of their own imagination. They don't punish people that have a picture and claim that's god, which is only an idol and is idol worship.
They don't punish people because they take God's name in vain, like I saw here — they were showing after...what is it, George Meany? This man Meany, a head of the labor movement who died the other night, and they showed him on television. They showed him just taking God's name in vain with the word “damn” and, oh I hate to hear that. I shudder inside every time I hear anyone do that. But there's no law against it, that even got on television. And, if you break the Sabbath, why the government of man isn't going to hurt you.
Now the government of man back under the so-called Holy Roman Empire, if you didn't keep their day of Sunday, which is not God's day, they would punish you and even put you to death. So you see the laws of man are not always in line with the laws of God AT ALL. Adultery? There are certain laws against adultery but they are pretty lenient about that, and so it goes. Now coveting, if coveting doesn't go into actual stealing, then the laws of man are not against it.
Now that is the only way that God ordained these governments. God didn't set them up and say that, “I have given you my Law.” This is not the Law or the way of God at all but God allows it and that is what Paul is trying to say here. There can be no power but that God ALLOWS. “the powers that be are ordained of God.”
In that way it was God said to Adam, “Go form your own kind of governments, and form your own kind of religions, and form your own kind of knowledge and education. Now verse two:
Romans 13:2 Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and... [Now, “whosoever” again, is what “person.” It's talking about the individual person in your private, or your family life.]
I see that they are now suing the Ford Motor Company. Somebody in court, of course that's some private Company, it's not the law of the land, but they are bringing it to the law of the land, to sue the Ford Motor Company for... what is it? I think it is one and a half billion dollars or two or three billion dollars. It's a tremendous amount of money and the first time that a corporation has ever been sued. You see Government only go after the individual ordinarily.
Now I might read those second and third verses in the Revised Standard, which will say the same thing but it may change the wording just slightly.
Romans 13:2-3 (RSV) Therefore he who resists the authorities resists what God has appointed [Well God has appointed it in the sense that He appointed Adam to go form your own laws, but it is not a law of God and it is not a government of God] and those who resist will incur judgment. (3) For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad...
Now is that talking about the good conduct of about the way a church operates? They are not a terror to the good conduct of the Worldwide Church of God in carrying the gospel to the world. They are not a terror to our good conduct of holding our services and having prayer meetings and Bible studies and preaching services. It isn't referring to that. It is referring to the conduct of the individual in the world. It might be in your own home or out on the street. That's what it is referring to. It's not referring to a matter of the church.
Now what I am going to show you is, here was the government of man trying to do away with the Government of God, and all we are doing is trying to protect the Government of God. And I'm going to show you that they always protected the Government of God, and that that is what God had done. Now let me see; “rulers are not a terror to good works but to evil.” (verse 3)
Now we have not been accused of any evil. They haven't brought us to court under a charge that carries a certain penalty. But a Judge, illegally, and without any warning and in the privacy of his own chambers, appointed a RECEIVER to take over and TAKE CHARGE OF and MANAGE the GOVERNMENT OF GOD and the CHURCH OF GOD.
THAT IS SOMETHING ALTOGETHER DIFFERENT than it is talking about here in the thirteenth chapter of Romans. ...“and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation,” or the punishment of the government of man, for this is to the individual, whereas we are in a case of an assault against the church.
Now I'm going to show you that we are not fighting against the Government. I have a letter regarding a conference with one of our ministers, that he says that we are fighting against the State. We are not fighting against the State, we are merely doing what the Apostle Paul did, we are appealing to a Higher Court.
The Apostle Paul said, “I am going to appeal to Caesar” — right up to the head. Caesar was ruling over Palestine in those days, and he had local rulers. And Paul was having trouble in order to get the gospel out. They were trying to stop the gospel. And it is the government of man that has ALWAYS fought the gospel of Christ and the work of God.
Every bit of the persecution that has happened, has come, directly or indirectly, right from the civil governments of man. And the government of man is one of the worst things on the face of this earth. Now God ALLOWS it. That's why it says that there is no power but of God. God allows it.
Romans 13:4 For he is [a] minister of God to thee for good...
In other words, you have to have some kind of regulation of man against his neighbor. It's talking about the individual man against... John Smith against Jim Jones of next door, or over on the other side of town or wherever it is. And that's why we have laws against assault and battery; against murder; against rape; against stealing and so on.
“For he, (the law of man) is a minister of God ...for good.” And in that organized sense they are and you've got to admit that we don't believe in the government in Russia. But the government in Russia regulates things between man and man, and they do regulate against such things as stealing and murder and crimes of that kind that man calls crimes, and that God would call sin.
Romans 13:4-5 ...”But if thou do that which is evil,” [We have done nothing that is evil] — “but if thou do that which is evil be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: [in other words he has the power of force] for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him [the individual] that doeth evil. (5) Wherefore ye must needs be subject...
Now we are being subject but we're not obeying. For example, we are to be subject to the law, and what about when the country is at war, and they try to draft you? Well our people try to be subject but we say “We will not obey.” And that has always been upheld. That's alright. But then they turn around, the opponents of God's Church, and it's only ministers that are opposed to God's Church that say this; That God's Church must give in when they try to destroy the government of God and the good of the gospel.
Now I'm down to about verse five, let's go back and get it down to that point in the Revised Standard.
Romans 13:2 (RSV) Therefore he who resists the authorities resists what God has appointed...
And what God allows. It isn't that God Himself gave them their laws, many of their laws are contrary to the ways of God, we know that. And they're trying to be a terror to us. That is not what a ruler is supposed to do.
Romans 13:3 (RSV) ...but to bad. Would you have no fear of him who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval...
Well I'm afraid that, that is not all of mortal man obeying that. We're doing what is good but they misconstrue that. They don't believe that doing what God says to do is good. That's all we're doing and that's all we're being blamed for.
What about the martyrs all through the ages? It was the government of man that did it, and man was a terror to them. “Do what is good and you will receive his approval.” Well we're doing what is good and we're not receiving his approval. So you see, in this case, it is the government that is wrong.
Romans 13:4 (RSV) for he is God's servant for your good...
What I'm getting at is that it is talking here altogether about the individual life that avoids what man calls crime — the things that man is against. And as I say, what God calls sin, they don't always call a crime. Some of the things, yes, like stealing or murder, and in some cases, adultery. And in other cases they are very lenient about adultery.
Romans 13:5 (RSV) Therefore [you] must be subject...
You can be subject, that is you will submit to the penalty if you have to. But in this case we are appealing. We have submitted to the penalty. We haven't resisted it. Of course we didn't let them come in and take over. However, we did give them the books and the reports. When we didn't let them in and our people were sitting in there in the Administration Building, they finally made a deal.
Mr. Tkach went to the door and Stan Rader came in and they made a deal that if we would let them work on records — they could have the records, we would give them that, if they would go over and use some of our other properties over across the freeway but not in the building on the Campus. So our own men got all those records that they wanted, they went up to the fourth floor and they got the records, and we even moved the big crates of papers and things for them.
Now another thing we did, we immediately employed the biggest firm, and highest rated firm of Certified Public Accountants in the United States to go over our books, although they had already been gone over by our own Certified Public Accountants. But they were a smaller firm and could have said; “Well they are at least members of the Church and that there is a connection.” So we got some people that were not members of the Church at all and they took months in going over all of the records.
Now we've turned all of the information and the records over to them, and there is nothing there for them to condemn. Nothing there that we have broken any law in any manner whatsoever. If we break a law we'll pay the penalty. We HAVE NOT BROKEN A LAW, that's all. Now;
Romans 13:4 ...he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is [a] minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.
Now then, when you get down to it, what evil is it talking about? The evils that government considers evil and that they do execute their wrath against. And, as I said, that is things like, in some cases, lying or false witness in court, and murder, and stealing and, in some cases, adultery. But you can break other Commandments at will and that's perfectly alright with them. So they are not going according to God's Law in any way at all.
Romans 13:6 For this cause pay ye tribute also; [we pay tribute. Now we do pay taxes. We pay heavy taxes. The government has provided that non-profit Corporations. The Church is not a Corporation, but those of us at the top of it have incorporated, but the Church members are merely members of the Church, they are not members of the Corporation. Only those who signed the articles of Incorporation are members of the Corporation.
And that's another thing, they say “Well you're a member of the Corporation.” No, our Church members are members of the Church of God, they're not members of the Corporation at all and it's time they got some of those things made a little bit straight.
Romans 13:5-6 Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but (also) for conscience sake.
[Now being subject means, that if necessary, you take the penalty but that you don't obey] (6) For this cause pay you tribute also: for they are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing.
In other words, they are ministering to, as far as they go, as I say, in things like theft and murder and breaking into your neighbor's house, and a lot of the laws that MAN has made. Now they've made so many laws that no policeman could memorize one tenth, or probably even a hundredth of all the laws he is supposed to be enforcing. He can't even know them.
We have a Legislator up in Sacramento making new State Laws all of the time. We have a Congress in Washington making more and more laws EVERY session — law upon law upon law. God made laws in the days of Moses and He hasn't changed them. He doesn't keep making new laws and changing them all the time.
Romans 13:7 Render therefore to all their dues: [That's what we do do. We render to them the dues that are due them] tribute to whom tribute ...custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour.[and we do] (8) Owe no man any thing [and that should be you do owe no man anything] but to love one another:
Well that's the end of that part of it, but that is what these men are stomach aching about.
Now what about Paul when he was on trial? He defended himself. He was in front of this man Festus and they didn't believe in Christianity, and, let's see, which one was it that said, “Paul thou makest me almost a Christian.” (Acts 26:28) And Paul said, well he would that he could make him a real Christian.
But Paul was on trial, and was Paul resisting? Why didn't he just cave in? No, he says, “I'm going to appeal this thing. I'm going to a higher court” and he went clear to Rome.
That is what we are doing; we are appealing it to a higher court. We are doing what the Bible says.
Now then, I have two Evangelists here in the room. Is there anything in what I have read in the thirteenth chapter of Romans that says we did wrong? (One of the Evangelists in the audience then says;)
“No Sir, matter of fact I have a good footnote here in my Bible I'd like to read.”
Good.
“It says here, the Apostle points out that the orderly government is a part of God's provision, even in a wicked world. No Ruler exercises control except as God permits, or allows.”
They couldn't exercise it if God didn't permit it or allow it.
“It goes on to say, under normal circumstances, the Christian is to be obedient to the laws of the land under normal circumstances. This, however, does not mean that he is to obey regulations that are immoral or anti-Christian. In such cases.....”
That's right, man makes thousands, hundreds of thousands and millions of laws, and if he makes anti-christian laws it does not mean we're to obey them. We may have to be subject to them.
“In such cases it is the Christian's duty to obey God rather than men.”
That's it. Now Peter and John were commanded not to continue on with the work of God and preaching any more. That's what they commanded me. I wanted to send out a letter to our people and they stopped it at the Post Office. I've had to come to another State and do it from here. And I am only doing precisely what God teaches in the Bible. And we've got some people that misconstrue the Bible and would have the whole work of God stopped by Satan the Devil.
Now Satan is the one who is guiding man and his government and God is allowing it. But even Satan knows that in a society which he is over, if he doesn't keep them from certain things, like murder and theft and assault and battery, and certain things like that, and then he knows he has to protect himself in his own kind of courts and supervision. So if they bear false witness before one of his Judges, they'll punish him.
Of course, if I bear false witness against my next door neighbor John Smith, and lie about him, the law doesn't even know I am doing it and isn't going to pay any attention. They only carry that 'bearing false witness' a short distance, as far as it protects them from their selfish point of view. I tell you, it's time we get understanding of this kind of thing.
Now I can... this man that we're referring to, I can invite him here and if I go through this with him, do you think he will accept it? No, because he wants to believe that way. And a man will refuse to accept any truth that he doesn't want to believe. If he doesn't want to believe it, he won't accept it. It's just a waste of time — just a waste of time.
Well now, maybe we'd better turn back to where we were in our regular study to the eighth chapter of Romans.
Now in the seventh chapter of Romans Paul was explaining that because of the nature that Satan has managed to simply inject into us ever since we were little children, contrary to the way of God — the way that I call the way of get instead of give; or the way of vanity and selfishness, and the way of lust and greed and coveting. The way of competition and strife. The way of jealousy and envy; of destruction instead of construction, and of resisting and resenting authority over one.
Now we don't resent authority over us, we try to cooperate with it. But when they try to stop the work of God, then we appeal, and that's precisely what the Apostle Paul did. I'll tell you in the article I write, I'll go to that exact scripture and quote it. I don't need to today, you all know it's there, and I wouldn't have time to get to the eighth chapter if I did.
Now in the seventh chapter, Paul was mentioning the struggle that we have. Because, before we were converted, Satan had gotten to us and many of the wrong ways had become habit. Paul, with his mind loved and wanted to obey the law of God, which is holy and just and good and he said, “the law is spiritual.” But he was not spiritual — that is, except as a converted man having received the Holy Spirit, but as he had been born and was naturally, he was carnal, not spiritual.
And he found that these things had become so habitual that it was like a law within him to do that which is wrong, when he wanted to do what is right. And finally he came to the point he said, “Oh wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from this [bond]?” And then he thanked God that Jesus Christ was the only one who could.
Now then, we come immediately into the eighth chapter:
Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation [now we are not condemned for all these evils that we find we have had in the past] to them [that] are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Well I know now, sometimes I go to bed and I begin to think and pray as I try to get to sleep, and I can look back over my life, and I can think of wrongs that I have done. And I could just feel terribly condemned. And then I have to remember what it says here, that there is “no condemnation to them [that] are in Christ Jesus, who walk not [now] after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”
And Christ died to pay the penalty of all that and it's all paid for. I don't have to worry about that any more. Now I could get to worrying about it because Paul said once that he was the chief of sinners. Well sometimes I feel I've been the chief of sinners. However, I can think of some of the commandments of God’s Law that I don't think I have ever done.
If I have ever taken God's name in vain, in profanity, I don't remember of it. I might have when I was eleven years old and under the influence of some wrong gang of boys that I had just the slightest contact with. But I don't think I did, I'm not sure, I don't remember exactly. But to my knowledge, I have never taken God's name in vain, and I hope I never shall. I'm quite sure I never shall.
Now I might have seen pictures of Jesus with a beard and long hair and thought that's the way Christ looked, before I knew better, but not now, and at least I never worshipped idols. Having other Gods before Him? Well if you get that down to its final analysis, or what it means, I'm afraid I have and I'm afraid all of us have.
And the Sabbath I sure did break, and I haven't kept it a hundred percent since I've learned the truth, always. So I have to ask God to help me still to keep the Sabbath more perfectly.
Romans 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Now he talked about this doing things that were wrong when he didn't mean to and didn't want to, but Christ now — or the law of the Spirit of God will make us free from that and will, through the power of the Holy Spirit, is the power that will deliver us from doing that. And we don't need to do that which is going to condemn us any further.
Romans 2:3-4 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, [and I think he might refer there to the ceremonial law, because he wouldn't say that the Ten Commandments were weak. And anyway even the Ten Commandments alone only point out what sin is, they don't make you righteous. They point the way that is righteous] ...and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: (4) That the righteousness of the law [that is the right doing of the law which shows us the way to do that is right] might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
In other words, we have got to, in our lives, live according to what the Spirit of God shows us is the way of God and the law of God. Now the law, as I have said before, is summed up in the one word 'Love,' which is an out-flowing concern away from self — the opposite of vanity and selfishness and of an antagonistic feeling towards others. But one of love towards others and wanting to help and serve and cooperate and so that that way — the right doing of God's law, may be fulfilled in us who are not walking after the flesh. We're walking now, and our whole desire is, to live now according to the way of the law of God.
Romans 8:6-8 For to be carnally minded [now that is where your whole mind, your affections and your desires and what you're interested in, is the ways of this world, physical material ways. “To be carnally minded”] is death; but to be spiritually minded [where you are pointed in your mind towards the way of God's Spirit] is life and peace. (7) Because the carnal mind is enmity against God [that is it is hostile against God] ...it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. (8) So then they that are in the [world] cannot please God.
The carnal mind is not subject to the law of God. Now that ties in with Jeremiah seventeen and, see what is it, about verse ten is it? That “the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked” as it is in Jeremiah seventeen.
“So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.” They that are just still living according to the flesh and their whole interests and affections and the things that they delight in and get enjoyment out of, are all the physical things.
Now, let me give you an example: I think that there is a basketball game on. I think I saw in the news last evening that there will be a basketball game on this afternoon, and probably is there. Now I could tune in. I could let myself get interested in it, but I would be in a, like in an entirely different world. And it really, it just seems like that is coming down to a very cloudy, unhappy world. Whereas what we are doing here, in studying the Word of God, is way up above and something that is joyful and leading to something that is happy and joyful.
But the people that are in the world and are worldly minded and their minds are on things like that, they can't stand it. They're not interested, and they won't come in here if we have any visiting in the house. They're not going to come in here for these studies because they would be miserable and their minds are on other things. And those things are — they just don't realize that their minds could be on something that would make them so much happier. And they “cannot please God.”
Well of course people like that don't care whether they please God, and they say, “What do I care whether I please God or not, I just want to please me.” That's their attitude. It's all self.
Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.
Now he explains that a little further as we go along. The Spirit must not only dwell in us, it will not continue to dwell in us unless it is active in us.
One of the first things that the Spirit of God in us will do is to open our minds to understand the Bible and to get the happiness and peace of mind out of it, instead of getting all that happiness out of the worldly things of this world — its pleasures and its amusements, its games, its sports and all that sort of thing. So later we will find that it is those who are led by the Spirit of God that are the sons of God.
Now the Spirit dwelling in you will open your mind to the way of God in the Bible. That's the way of living. So if the Spirit of God is dwelling in you, you are being led by the Spirit. Now we'll come to that in just a minute. We haven't come to it but I have mentioned it ahead of time here.
The Holy Spirit of God will not get a hold of you and pull you. You've got to willingly follow on your own. The Spirit of God will not get behind you and push you and make you go the way of God. It will show you the way, it will lead the way, it'll start going. Now if you, on your own power will go with it — fine. If you on your own power, that isn't enough and you need help, then the Spirit is the power of God that will give you extra power to do it. But as far as you can go it on your own power, why God expects us, I think, to do that. God does for us what we cannot do for ourselves
Romans 8:10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
Now I think a lot of people don't get that, “the body is dead” and Paul says “I died” when the truth came, and so on. Well now, I have said, in trying to explain my own experience of conversion, that the self in me had to die. In other words, I had to give it up just as if it was dead. It didn't actually cease to live. My body still kept on breathing air into the lungs, and my heart kept pumping, but it didn't live as it had before. And the expression, “It died to those things” - in other words it didn't do those things, it didn't have enjoyment and pleasure in those things any more. But you have the Spirit of life because of righteousness.
Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you...
In other words if the Holy Spirit is in you, and, as I say, the Holy Spirit will not stay in you if you are not being led by it. Now another thing, the Holy Spirit in you is the love of God that fulfills the law of God. And if that love is not flowing out from you, fulfilling God's Ten Commandments and God's way of life, then the Holy Spirit will not stay within you.
Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit [remains, is] in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead [in other words, God the Father] shall also quicken your mortal bodies [and quicken means “enliven” or “make alive” and in this case it really means in a resurrection immortal life] by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
In other words the Spirit of God is the impregnation of eternal life. An ovum travels through that fallopian tube into the uterus, or the womb. Now, if along that line of travel, and by the time it gets into the uterus, a male sperm cell from the father-to-be, meets it and enters it and joins with it, then it gives life to it, and that starts a new life.
Now that could be the life of a cow or a horse, or a dog or a human. But it takes the life from a male to impart the life to the egg cell, as it is called in simple language as they teach children in some schools. Now the egg cell has a possibility of life, but that life has to be imparted to it by the male sperm cell. If that life is not imparted, then it will die. Then, going through the fallopian tube it will go into the uterus and it dies.
Now we, each one of us, is an egg cell. Each one of us is an ovum, and from a divine point of view you might say. And in this divine point of view God is the Father. And if the Spirit comes from the Father, who is God — now it is not a ghost, it is something that emanates right from the very person of God the Father, and if that Spirit enters into us it is like the infinitesimal male sperm cell entering into and impregnating (or giving life to) an ovum within a female body.
Otherwise there would be no life there. What that means is, otherwise we die and that's it. But God has ordained that all who die are to be raised again in a resurrection. If they have not been called in this life they will be resurrected in the Great White Throne Judgment at the end of the Millennium, and then they will be called and given a chance of salvation. And then they'll have a chance to receive the male spiritual sperm, or the Spirit of God. And it's an exact comparison.
God is reproducing Himself and He started reproduction. And I really, verily believe that the first reproduction that has ever happened, was when plant life began to reproduce itself on this earth, because God started the plant life first didn't He before — and then next came the fish and birds of the air and finally the land animals. And they all reproduce.
Trees reproduce. Plants reproduce. Animals and insects, they all reproduce. And God reproduces and salvation is merely God reproducing Himself. We are to receive God's Spirit. God's Spirit imparts to us an intellect — a spiritual comprehension, or intellect. And it is here and we have it in writing, in print, so we can understand the spiritual truth of God and we have to begin to absorb it. That is the spiritual food that we must be fed, and we gradually grow into a different kind of a being, just like an unborn fetus in a mother's womb.
It is growing into a spirit form and it is fed on spiritual food. But we are in the mother who is the church, Jerusalem above is the mother of us all, and Jerusalem above is the church. And so the church has its ministers and local congregations all over who feed the flock and they feed them on the Word of God out of the Bible.
And we are fed and nourished on the way of God and the things of God's Spirit, so that, gradually, we become less and less, just like mortal humans with our minds on physical things of this world, and games and play, and things of no account you might say. And we begin to find the true values in the things that really count and have our minds on those things.
Romans 8:12-13 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, [so we owe something, but] not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. (13) For if ye live after the flesh, ye will die...
And, as I say, it is just like the egg cell, the ovum, if it doesn't have life added to us by a male sperm, it will die and that's the end of it. Now, the only thing is that in the human life... that's true of all animals, everything but humans and humans though, God has arranged there will be a resurrection in the Great White Throne Judgment when most of them have not been called at this time.
And that's not the fault of the people, that is the responsibility of God and so God will see to that and take care of it. And they will be resurrected then and then their minds can be opened, and if they will receive God's Holy Spirit, then they could be made immortal at that time and there won't be any devil around that they have to contend with. But they won't get the position of sitting on the very throne with Christ that we do, and we have to overcome Satan to acquire that.
Now verse fourteen:
Romans 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God...
That's what I said before; the Holy Spirit won't push you and shove you. It won't drag you and pull you. It will show you the way it will start on, you might say, but if you will follow, alright. Now there is a little more to that I would like to add that I have thought that isn't explained right here, but this leads to it.
I pictured it this way — you're out in, say, the Black Forest in Germany. The trees are so thick you can't see ten feet away and it's in the darkness of night. Now, someone comes along with a lamp that is lit. Now that you can see and that's all you can see, and that lamp starts leading you out to safety. You are in trouble, and the trouble is the Black Forest, and if you don't get out of it you will die if you stay in there long enough, and don't ever get out because there is no food and no water, and so on.
So here is a light and it starts going in the way that will lead you out. Now if you follow that light you will find the way out. But if you start going a different way, you're just lost again and then there is not going to be another light. Now that light comes from a lamp and the lamp is the Bible and the light is the Holy Spirit that illuminates and opens up the Bible and lights it up, you might say, so that you can understand it. And it shows you the way to go.
Now then, here is someone who has come to see the truth, and that's why I am so concerned. That's why I say that I will give a certain man a chance to come and see me, even though it probably will do no good. I want to do everything I can. I don't want to see anyone cast into the final Lake of Fire. If he's having his choice right now, he won't be in the Great White Throne Judgment.
He will die. He will lose any of the Holy Spirit, if he ever had it in the first place, which I am inclined to doubt, and he will never receive the Holy Spirit. But he has been called and he has rejected, and he will come up in the last resurrection, and when the earth burns up, he will burn up with it. And that will be the end.
And that is like the ovum that never is met by and given life to by a male sperm. It just dies and that's the end of it. At least God has given us that blessing that will be total extinction if we are bound we are going to go the wrong way, if we won't go the right way. We have to do one of two things, either go the way of God and live eternally in joy and happiness in useful production and accomplishment, and great joy and satisfaction over it, or else we will finally perish in the Lake of Fire, which will be the whole earth burning up.
But here is a man — I don't know whether he has received the Spirit of God in the first place, but he's gotten into a wrong attitude. When God says David was a man after his own heart, he's talking about the attitude David had. That's what we mean by the heart. Now “the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.” That is the natural attitude of man its talking about. And here's a man in a wrong attitude.
I asked people that have seen him and talked with him, if I have... let him come and see me. Is it going to do any good? They shake their head, “nope don't think so.” Why? He's in a wrong attitude, and when a man is in a wrong attitude he's set, he's not willing to see anything else. Well I tell you, that is a terrible thing. It is a terrible condemnation and a terrible end that they come to and that's why I would want to do anything I can to save such a man.
You see “the Bible is a lamp unto our feet” as you'll read in one of the Psalms, but the lamp has to be lit, and the Bible is the lamp that is not lit for the average person. They don't understand it, it's still darkness. It only lights up by and through the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is the light. Now:
Romans 8:14-15 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.[and I gave that experience of being in a forest and being led out of it.] (15) For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear...
You see some people think that you are in bondage if you live according to the Bible and live a Christian life. It's just the other way. The people that are living in this world are in bondage, because sin always, it is what is wrong that is bringing punishment and suffering. That's WHY it is wrong. WHY is it wrong? Because it's going to hurt somebody.
Now sometimes, if I sin, maybe it doesn't hurt me and I'll say, “It's no skin off my nose.” Well it hurts somebody else maybe. Well God's law doesn't want me to hurt myself. He doesn't want me to hurt anybody else. And the way of God is the way that avoids hurting anybody.
The thing is, people have been getting their pleasure out of things that are ultimately going to destroy them, that are not good and they don't realize it. So you don't receive the Holy Spirit as a bondage to bring fear, but you receive the Spirit of — it should be “sonship.” Now “adoption” is not the right word.
I tell you, when the King James people translated this, they saw that the Greek word meant “sonship,” but they were afraid to translate it that in English, because they couldn't believe we could ever be real sons of God. Oh we couldn't... to be that means that we become God. “Well we can't become God!”
I SAW THAT IN THE BIBLE. I saw it here, I saw it there, I saw it in another place, and in place after place in the Bible, but I couldn't believe it. I said, “Well surely WE can't become God. God is too GREAT. We can't ever become that!”
It was after Ambassador College was two or three years old, before I ever could come to just say the evidence is there, it's conclusive. The Bible says God is reproducing Himself. We are going to be actually GOD ourselves. But we have to let the way of God, the character of God — IT'S ALL RIGHT HERE IN THE BOOK. And we let that character of God come into us.
I have been writing the last few days again on my book, “Who and What is God.” I've made two chapters out of that, it's too long for one chapter. And I devoted a large part of one chapter, well at least half of it, to the character of God. I devoted part of it to 'What is God Like?' Does He have form and shape? And what form and shape does He have? And all of that. Then, finally, I devote part of it to the Trinity doctrine to show how that limits God and absolutely just destroys the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Kingdom of God.
And I have finished it now, except little pieces here and there in the first writing that I had that I didn't get in re-writing it. Now I have got to go back and find the place to add just a few little things here and there, and then that part of it is finished. And this morning, that is one reason I was a little late getting in here, I was writing in my office a while this morning, and I had it in my mind I had to get it on paper. Starting out on the next chapter which will actually be chapter five, 'What and Why is Man?'
And there again, they teach so many things about man in the Universities. Let's see, Anthropology, isn't that the study of the derivation of man? But they don't know what a man is and they don't know why he is or why he is here. Did he just come as an accident by unintelligent resident forces with no mind or intelligence, no planning of any kind?
Well that's what they believe. They believe that the marvelous human body came without any designing, without any thinking, or any thinking or planning. You know, I can't understand such dim brains. I had this all written and, as a matter of fact, the whole thing has already run in the Plain Truth. But I am writing it in a totally different way now, and it will come out in the book as something altogether different. Anyway, we receive the spirit of sonship because the Holy Spirit impregnates us with GOD LIFE.
That is the germ of the Father. We are the ovum, we are the egg cell. That is the sperm cell that gives eternal life to us. But that eternal life is only in us now to feed and nourish us as long as we are in the church, which is our mother. We are in the womb of the church so to speak, being fed on the spiritual food of growing in character of the Bible. And it's all in the Bible.
And then, at the time of the resurrection, we'll be made very God — just the same as God Himself. Well, are you going to limit God? Is God able to make us into that if we are willing to do our part? I can't do it, but God is going to make ME into VERY GOD. GOD IS ABLE. I'm not but God IS, and I'm relying on HIM to do it, because I want it done. And I am willing and I'm trying. I'm trying to do my part and where I fall short, God will take over.
So it is the spirit of sonship, so that we say “Abba” — “Father,” and call God “Father.” Now in I John the third chapter, I believe it is the first or second verse; “Behold, now are we already the children of God but it doesn't yet appear what we shall be.” In other words, what we shall be when we're resurrected immortal — it doesn't appear, you don't see it. It hasn't happened yet so you can see it.
But we are, even now. Now then, use the comparison. What about this thing that has become quite a question today, about abortion? Well the life is already there, and it is taking a life. Now if one has received the Holy Spirit and is on the way, there is an immortal life and it can be snuffed out right here and now.
Now that's why, here is a certain minister, he's in a wrong attitude, and I don't know whether he's ever had the Holy Spirit or not. But reports that I have received, some little portions of it, seem to indicate to me that he has, and others that he hasn't — or that he doesn't have now and he's in a wrong attitude. But I've got to give him a chance. I have to admit I frankly think it probably isn't going to do any good because I don't think he himself is willing.
Now I can be made very God if I'm willing, but I've got to be willing, and I've got to do my part. And what I do is only a little part, really the big part, God Himself does. And the thing is, not am I able to make myself God — is God Himself able to do that? Yes He is. I'm not going to limit God — you bet He is able. Now:
Romans 8:16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, [There again it shows we have a spirit in us] that we are the children of God:
And that spirit in us is the nucleus. In every... I've been talking about an ovum, or an egg cell. Alright, it's like an egg, but there is a little tiny part in that egg that is the nucleus. And when the sperm cell enters that egg, it goes and joins itself to that nucleus.
Well what is the nucleus in...? I am an egg. You are an egg — an egg cell — an ovum. Where is the nucleus? Right up here in the brain, in the mind, and there is the spirit. The Spirit of God is in your whole body because the Holy Spirit will be and so the spirit of man is too. The spirit of man is, because the spirit of man is the only thing remaining after you die.
The body goes in loss and will never come back again. But that spirit is the mold that retains the form and shape, the finger prints and the footprints, every identifying sign. And it will bring you back in another life. There will be either spirit added to make you a spirit being in the first resurrection or in the Great White Throne resurrection. Matter will come and be put together, but the form and shape will come from that spirit, and it's in the whole body.
Now that's why the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. It doesn't say the brain is the temple of the Holy Spirit. You notice that in the Bible? It's the whole body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. That's why we are not to defile other parts of the body besides the brain — any part of the body. Now:
Romans 8:16-17 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, [you see that is the nucleus, and it comes to that nucleus] that we are the children of God: (17) And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ;
Now Christ is now very God and we're not...an heir, is not yet an inheritor. We don't inherit until the time of the resurrection. We are only an heir now, but we'll become an inheritor at the time of the resurrection. But we are not only heirs, we are joint-heirs with Christ, and God has turned everything over to Christ.
Jesus said, “All power in heaven and earth is given unto me,” but before He went to heaven. “Go ye therefore,” He said in sending out the disciples, and He gave them the Great Commission.
Romans 8:17 ...if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
Jesus is glorified. We will be. When we're glorified our faces are going to shine just like the sun, full strength. Our eyes will be like flames of fire. We'll be the same form and shape we are now, but there certainly will be a difference in appearance because we'll radiate in a way we don't now. “If children then heirs ...joint-heirs with Christ” to finally come into possessing everything that Christ has now. And He's upholding and sustaining the whole universe with the word of His power now. “If so be that we suffer,” while we are now in this world “with him” as He did suffer, “that we may be also glorified together.”
Now, he comes into something very important.
Romans 8:18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
The glory that is going to be revealed in us is something that we just can't even imagine, it's so great. How great is God? What about that song, “How Great Thou Art?” Back in the fortieth chapter of Isaiah we see a little bit about how great God is. We're to be that great. We're to be in the same family.
Now God will always be supreme in authority over us, and Christ over us too, and always under God the Father as He is now. And yet their minds are the same and they believe exactly alike, and that's the way we will be we will believe alike and our minds will be the same.
Romans 8:17 For the earnest expectation of...
Now here I've got to go to the other translation. It says “creature” and should be “creation”so that's another reason that I brought the Revised Standard along today. Well I'll begin with verse eighteen which begins another paragraph the way it is here.
Romans 8:18-19 (RSV) For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not [worthy to be compared] with the glory that [shall ] be revealed [in] us. (19) For the creation [not creature, the creation] waits with eager longing for the [revelation] of the sons of God;
Revelation is revealing. Now, when we will appear — we are now the sons of God but it does not yet appear what we shall be. First John three, verses one and two, and so on. We will be like Him. His face shines like the sun, as I say, and His eyes like flames of fire. Well that's the way we will be.
Now, the whole creation, meaning the planets that we see, and they all have their suns to light them, in all the universe, is waiting for the time when we will be... in other words, manifested and made real and visible. “The revealing of the sons of God.” (RSV)
Romans 8:20 (RSV) For the creation was subjected to futility...
Now then, God did not create this earth in a state of confusion and chaos and decay. Decay is something that has taken a long time to come to, and it is deterioration, and God does not deteriorate. Since man is going — and it is right here — that man is going to go and complete the creation of those planets.
I know that God intended the angels to do that because they were here first, and they had the chance to qualify and they did not do it, and as a result, God had created those planets, perfect as far as they went, but I compare it to this unfinished furniture. Now we don't have any of it here in this house, but I do at Pasadena, and we finished it.
That's the way God created the earth. It was perfect as far as it went, but it was not yet wholly complete. Now He has made us, and we are an unfinished piece of His workmanship. You take back in Job, where Job says, “Thou will have a desire to the work of thy hands.” We are now an unfinished piece of God's workmanship. He is the master potter, we are the clay and He is making something out of us. He is the potter molding us, the clay, and we have to let Him mold us in His way and give in to His way the way He wants us to be.
Romans 8:20 (RSV) For the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of him who subjected it in hope;
The angels didn't make it and so it decayed instead of... if they had made good on the earth, they would have been sent there to finish the creation of these other planets, but it was never finished. So now its gone into a state of decay and futility. Now:
Romans 8:21 (RSV) Because the creation itself will be set free from [the]bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Because, when men are resurrected, ultimately, we are to go to these other planets and finish the creating on them, and I think that there may be beings like humans that could even be superior to humans that we will be creating there that we haven't even come to yet. Marvelous things are ahead.
Romans 8:22-24 (RSV) We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail [like a woman travailing before her child is delivered, travailing] together until now; (23) and not only the creation but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the spirit [we're the first to be converted now] groan inwardly as we wait for [now again they've got adoption here, but the — in other words the resurrection] as sons, the redemption of our bodies. [speaking of the time of the resurrection] (24) For in this hope we [are] saved. For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope [I wouldn't say “I hope that we can have this house here some day, because we do have it. You don't hope for what you already have or what you see] for what a man sees, why doth he yet hope for?
Romans 8:25-28 But if we hope for [and hope means “expect, and desire with expectation”] for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it (26) Likewise the Spirit also [helps] our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. (26) And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. (28) And we know that all things worth together for good to them that love God.
How often do we quote that, and find that everything does work that way?
Now, actually, in a sense this invasion of the State of California is working to our good. It has brought us together and it is turning the whole church around and we are beginning to realize we don't have much more time. And what if they did take all of our property away from us? We'd go on just the same. Of course I think that we should protect and save it if we can, but if we can't we're not going to give up and quit, we'll go ahead anyway. God will give us other properties.
Romans 8:28-29 ...We know all things work together for good to them that love God, to them [that] are the called according to his purpose.[you see not all are called] (29) For whom he did foreknow, [now you see the calling, he's getting into predestination; “did foreknow”] he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Christ is the first to be resurrected and made immortal — very God! Now Christ was God and man, He was “God With Us — Emmanuel,” but He became completely God by the resurrection and He is the firstborn of many brethren.
Romans 8:30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: [you see, the ones predestinated are those that God has called] and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
That shows that predestination has nothing to do with whether you are saved or lost, or anything of the kind. It only has to do with whether you are called. Now in other words, the reason people have never understood it, they don't understand that all humanity has been cut off from God except the few that God calls. And they have been predestinated to be called now. And predestination has only to do with the time of your calling.
Romans 8:32-35 He that spared not his own Son [and I've had to be in that position, haven't I?] but delivered him up for (us) all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? [That's by and through Christ] (33) Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. (34) Who is he that condemns? It is Christ that died yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. [the right hand of God making intercession to God the Father for us] (35) Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Now did the invasion of the State of California separate us from Christ? No, it drew us closer to Him.
Romans 8:36-39 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. (37) Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. (38) For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, (39) Nor height, not depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
And that's a wonderful thing that nothing is going to separate us from God, and nothing — no matter what happens on this earth, it cannot separate us from that resurrection and the glory that is coming. And I tell you, we haven't... I wrote something that I ran across just the other day in a Plain Truth, I believe it was, or a Good News, of the realization will exceed the anticipation.
We may anticipate the Kingdom of God, but when we are in it, we will find it is so much more than anything we dream of now, that there is no comparison. It'll be so much more interesting, we'll just be overcharged with interest and with things to do and things to accomplish, and things that are of such interest that we'll just wonder, how could we ever have been interested in things in this world.
Well, we will learn that in due time.