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The Abba of Jesus Unveiled in Sodom and Gomorrah Thank you father for the beauty of your heart for all people. Thank you father that your heart for people is unchanging and is that which has been from the beginning. Thank you Father that beauty of what your heart has always been for the whole world can be made manifest here today! Proverbs 25:2 it is the glory of God to conceal a matter but it is the honor of kings to search a matter out. Much of the reason why we struggle to see the God Jesus revealed when he came to the earth in the OT is because we read the OT according to the letter instead of reading it according to the Spirit. We haven't seen that there is a truth concealed/hidden in the letter of what is written there that can only be found out by reading what is written there through the Spirit. And as the apostle Paul said the Lord Jesus is that Spirit by which we can see the truth that is concealed/hidden in the letter of the scriptures. Jesus did not have a hard time seeing a loving Father in the OT. He didn't have a hard time seeing a Father who was a friend to sinners. He didn't have a hard time seeing the God He revealed to the world in the OT. Jesus said he does nothing unless he sees the Father do it. The reason Jesus could love sinners, and come to save sinners, and come to give life to sinners is because he first saw the Father doing it in the OT. The reason he could love and pray for the people who were crucifying him was because he saw the Father doing it in the OT. Everything Jesus did to make manifest the Father he saw in the OT. Everything he did he first saw the father doing it in the OT. If you look at the account of the woman caught in the act of adultery and you read the OT according to the letter you would see it as God would come to put that woman to death and to destroy her. That's how the Pharisees read what was written in the OT. But, Jesus saw something else in the OT that told him the Father would not come to condemn her to death but the Father would come to save her from death. And so because of what Jesus saw about the Father in the OT he did not come to condemn the woman to death but he came to save the woman from death. It is the glory of God to conceal a matter in Sodom and Gomorrah and today it will be to our honor to search that matter out. Last week we talked about Sodom and Gomorrah and what happened there. We talked about how we interpret verses that say God killed or God destroyed. We saw it was not God that destroyed the people in the sense we have always thought of it. But that God just appeared with an unveiled face in all His glory in the midst of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the iniquity and death that was already present in the people there manifested. It's not that God took their life but their own hearts condemned them in His presence and produced fear and death in them because when they saw God in all His glory they did not see themselves clothed in that same glory. Today we are going to look at the reason God went to Sodom and Gomorrah in the first place. We want to look at the heart of God in going to Sodom and Gomorrah. We can look at the fact that death manifested when God came to Sodom Gomorrah, and even if we can see the death that manifested there was not caused by God. We can still see that people perished and think that defines the heart of God in coming to Sodom and Gomorrah. As if His desire was for the people there to perish. As if His heart in going to Sodom and Gomorrah was to destroy people. But the bible says God does not desire that any should perish but that all might come to Him and have life. And that God takes no pleasure in the destruction of the wicked. Listen if God's heart in coming to Sodom and Gomorrah was to destroy people then He would get some pleasure out of them being destroyed. God desires for people to have life and he gets some pleasure each time one of His children come home. *****I think sometimes we don't see that we have beliefs in our hearts that stand opposed to each other. We can't say God doesn't desire that any should perish and at the same time say He came with the intent to destroy people and that he came and took their life from them. I mean imagine I say to you I don't desire for you to perish but then I come and take your life. It wouldn't make any sense to you. You would say clearly you did desire that I perish.****** What was in God's heart in coming to Sodom and Gomorrah? Luk 9:51 And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, Luk 9:52 And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him. Luk 9:53 And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. Luk 9:54 And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? Luk 9:55 But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. Luk 9:56 For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village. In these verses the Samaritans rejected Jesus much in the same way that Sodom and Gomorrah rejected the grace of God and trusted in the strength of the flesh. And James and John ask Jesus if he wants them to call down fire from heaven to destroy the Samaritans in the same way we have thought of what happened at Sodom and Gomorrah in the past. But, Jesus defies the logic of man in this situation. He rebukes the disciples and tells them they don't know what Spirit they are of. He tears down the belief that the Spirit of God would come to destroy people's lives. Jesus didn't say well hold on now guys that isn't what the spirit is doing in this season or under this covenant. He doesn't say well that's what God used to do because there was a different covenant and this is what God does now. He says there is a certain way about the Spirit of God. There are certain characteristics about the Spirit of God, and the Spirit of God is not the kind of Spirit that ever comes to destroy people's lives. How could Jesus tell the disciples they didn't know what Spirit they are of when they wanted to call down fire to destroy the samaritans if the Spirit that destroyed and killed the people at Sodom and Gomorrah was the Spirit of God? I mean if it was the Spirit of God that came with the purpose to destroy the people in Sodom and Gomorrah, then wouldn't the disciples have had it right when they wanted to call down fire to destroy the samaritans? And then Jesus says something that tears down most all Christian thought concerning God when He says the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. Hebrews 1 says Jesus is the express image of the Father & Johns gospel says that no man had seen the Father for who He really is and Jesus came to declare Him for who He is, and to bring Him out of the shadows of our hearts where He could be clearly seen for who is. We couldnt see God for who He really is. We couldn't see His heart towards us for what it really was because our understanding about Him was darkened by the carnal mind, and the death that was reigning over us. Jesus came as the light that could bring the Father out of the shadows of our hearts so we could see Him for the truth about who He is and what His heart has always been towards all people.***variation for Mo*** Jesus said if you have seen me you have seen the Father. He also said he doesn't do or say anything unless he has seen or heard it from the Father. When Jesus said he does not come to destroy men's lives but to save them he was not just saying it about himself. He was saying the Father does not come to destroy men's lives but to save them. He was describing what he had seen and heard the Father do. Jesus is saying the heart of the Father is never to destroy people's lives but to save them. He is saying the Father's desire is never to destroy people's lives but to save them. He is saying that when the Father comes He does not come to destroy people's lives but to save them. So anytime we think of the Father coming to deal with people we cannot think of it from the foundation that He comes to destroy their lives, but we must think of it from the foundation that He comes to save their lives. Even those who have rejected Him. Now where it gets hairy in our human understanding is that even though the Father's hearts is always to love and save this doesn't mean that some will not still bring destruction upon themselves. But, God doesn't destroy anyone in the sense we have defined it in the past. Nor does He come with the intent to destroy people. In light of this let's go back and look at Sodom and Gomorrah. Gen 18:20 And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; Gen 18:21 I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know. These verses tell us why God came to Sodom and Gomorrah. The word cry speaks of an outcry or a cry of help from someone who is in distress. It speaks of someone crying out for help because they are in distress. The word for sin here speaks of the punishment or the suffering the wisdom of the serpent punishes people with. The word for grievous speaks of a person carrying a heavy weight of sorrow or burden of sorrow in their souls because of sin and death. We see an example of this same thing in Matthew 11:28 when Jesus says come unto me all that are heavy laden & I will give you rest. Jesus saw a people that were carrying a heaven burden of sorrow in their souls because of the weight of the law system and the burden of the law of sin and death they were carrying. Those people were also crying out for help because of the great distress they were experiencing at the hands of the law of sin and death. Something interesting is that if you look a couple verses before Matthew 11:28 Jesus mentions Sodom. When it says because their sin was grievous it is talking about their souls being burdened and heavy laden with sorrows because of the sin and the death that was afflicting them. In the same way Jesus came to give us joy for our sorrows by removing the heavy burden we were carrying because of the law of sin and death we were under. God is saying He came to Sodom and Gomorrah to give them rest from the weight of the sorrows they were suffering at the hands of sin and death. So these verses say that God came to Sodom and Gomorrah because of the great suffering of the people at the hands of sin and death and because their cry for help was great. *** gomorrah: of iniquity comes from root that means to deal with tyrannically; to treat as a slave; to make merchandise of. Gomorrah speaks of iniquity enslaving people and dealing with them tyrannically to make merchandise of them. Sodom: to scorch. Speaks of iniquity scorching us and causing us to return to the dust of the ground***** You know the Bible doesn't say Gods purpose in going to Sodom and Gomorrah was to destroy people. It says His purpose was to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. The city of Sodom and Gomorrah is a type and a shadow of the system of sin and death. So when the scripture says God was coming to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah it is a shadow of God coming to destroy the system of sin and death that is tormenting people. We can see this same thing in Jesus. Jesus came to destroy the system of sin and death. He came to destroy the power the law of sin and death had over mankind. He did not come to destroy the people or sinners. When sinners crucified him on the cross he prayed for them. If you've seen Jesus you've seen the Father. So God hears the cry of the people suffering at the hands of sin and death. And He comes as the lover of their souls. He comes because of how much He loves them. He comes because even when He saw them dead in their sin He lost His breath. He comes to save and give life. He comes to destroy that which is destroying people. He comes in the same Spirit we saw Him come in through the person of Jesus. The Bible says that the wickedness of Jerusalem at the time Jesus came far exceeded that of Sodom and Gomorrah and yet Jesus came to Jerusalem with open arms to gather them to Himself. In the same way Jesus said He came to Jerusalem to gather them unto himself but they would not. In the same way God came in Jesus to save from sin and death and give life. God came to the people of Sodom and Gomorrah with open arms to gather them to Himself but they would not; they cowered away from Him in fear unto destruction. Gen 19:15 And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. Gen 19:26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt. The angels tell Lot to leave the city so he isn't consumed by the iniquity of the city. Iniquity is not talking about the works of the flesh. It is talking about the wisdom that says I will be justified and have life through my own ability. Cain tried to be justified and exalted before God by the good fruit he could produce. His heart was filled with iniquity. It is important to see that even these guys whom the scriptures said were told to leave the city would have been consumed by iniquity if they were to see the glory of God that manifested in Sodom and Gomorrah. The reason it is significant is because it speaks to the desire of God's heart in coming to Sodom and Gomorrah. We tend to think the reason people will perish is because God's heart is filled with retributive anger towards them and that is the cause of their death. Or that God has a desire in His heart to destroy some people and that is why they perish. But, we cant say the heart of God was to go and destroy people and thats why they died when we can see that even those who were going to leave would perish should they look upon the glory of God manifesting in Sodom and Gomorrah. I mean we can maybe try to argue and say that God desired to destroy the people in Sodom and Gomorrah even though it contradicts scripture saying that God does not desire that any should perish. But, it is clear that God's heart was not for Lot's wife to perish and she perished anyway. When the angels told them not to look back? He wasn't giving them some law to follow that if they could obey it Then God would be happy with them and not destroy them. The angels knew of the dynamic involved & that any human who saw the face of God in the fullness of His glory without being baptized in the same glory would die from their own heart condemning them and being filled with fear. Explain what happened to Lots wife Salt: mâlach maw-lakh' Comes from root word ; properly to rub to pieces or pulverize; intransitively to disappear as dust; also (as denominative from H4417) to saltwhether internally (to season with salt) or externally (to rub with salt): X at all, salt, season, temper together, vanish away. "Return to dust" The root word salt here in the Hebrew means to disappear as dust, or to vanish away. It speaks of the result of iniquity dwelling in a person's heart being the decaying of their flesh. It speaks of the result of iniquity being the death of the physical body and the physical body being consumed and returning to the dust of the ground. We see the same thing in Genesis when God tells Adam because he has eaten from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil he will return to the dust of the ground. We see the same thing in Acts with Herod where it says his body was consumed and turned to dust because gangrenous worms consumed his flesh when he saw the angel clothed in the glory of God. There is also an Arabic translation that explains turning to a pillar of salt as a figure of speech that meant when Lots wife looked back she was petrified. Which literally means to be turned to stone, but as a figure of speech would mean to be scared to death and that she died of fright. What happened to Lots wife speaks of the fact that iniquity punishes people with death by filling their hearts with fear in the presence of God and causing their bodies to be consumed and return to the ground as dust. It is a sign & a wonder testifying to what iniquity serves people with, and that iniquity can never give immortality, and eternal life. Lots wife wasn't turned into a pillar of salt by a lighting bolt hitting her. She was turned into a pillar of salt by seeing the fullness of the glory of God that manifested in Sodom and Gomorrah. Lots wife died and turned into a pillar of salt because she looked upon the face of God in all His glory and since she did not see herself clothed in that same glory she was scared to death & her body returned to the dust of the ground. God can only ever come to love and to save from sin and death. But, that doesn't mean that all will experience His love and come to Him for life when He appears to save them from sin and death because He loves them. We have this idea that God comes to destroy some and He comes to love some. We look at the fact that some will experience destruction and that some will experience love and we think that means what people experience is the result of God's heart for them instead of what they experience being the result of what is in their own hearts. Its the same loving God that appears to all people. Its the same loving God that appears to the just and the wicked. But the just find life when God appears because they have a heart of faith that causes them to come to Him instead of having a heart of iniquity that causes them to cower away from Him in fear unto destruction. Example of Father in the parable of prodigal son: Father came to love both Sons the same but both did not experience Him loving them. example of the wicked and the just here, and how the Father has the same heart for both, and the Father manifests Himself the same way to both Sons. But, only one was clothed. In the parable of the prodigal Son there are two Sons and one Father. One Son accepts the Father's life and all that He has to offer as a free gift. And one Son wants to have the Father's life and all that He has to offer by His works. It is the same Father dealing with both Sons. The Father has the same heart to be good to both Sons. It is the same good Father that appears to both Sons to give them His life and all that He has. But, both Sons do not experience what the Father has come to give them. The Younger Son experiences the Father's life and goodness. But, upon the older Son we can say comes a snare and a horrible tempest. Now it could be said that the Father rained down a snare and a horrible tempest upon the older Son because the older Son was tormented in His heart by what the Father did. But, is the Father responsible for what the older brother experienced or is the belief that is in the older brother's heart responsible for what he experienced. You know all the Father did was appear in all His glory in this situation. And the glory of the Father was a snare and a tempest to the older son but it was glory and life to the younger son. But, it was the same loving Father that appeared to both to give both all that He had. The difference is one came to Him and one did not. In Daniel 3 Shadrach, Meshac, and Abednego were thrown into a burning fiery furnace by the might men of valour in Babylon. The fire was so intense that the mighty men of valor died and were consumed by the fire just by having to come close to the fire to throw Shadrach, Meshac, and Abednego in the fire. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were unharmed by the fire even as they stood in the midst of the fire. It was the same fire the mighty men of valour and Shadrach, meshac, abednego encountered. But, one group died and was consumed and the other group was not harmed at all by the fire. But, it was the same fire. It was not a different fire. As Shadrach and those guys stood in the midst of the fire there was someone else in the midst of the fire with them. Nebuchadnezzar said there was one like the Son of Man in there with them. The one like the Son of man is referring to Jesus. The reason Shadrach and those guys were not harmed by the fire was because they were clothed in Christ. They were clothed in the glory of God through Christ; they were baptized with fire through Christ. This is why God predestined that we would be in Christ. He predestined us to be baptized in His glory. He predestined us to be baptized and clothed upon in His fire through belief in Christ. So that when we can stand in His presence and look upon His face in all it's glory. Our hearts do not condemn us and work death in us and our flesh be not consumed and return to the dust of the ground. And we can live with Him eternally in love having the face to face intimacy He has always desired to have with us. Example of only thing a fire cannot consume is another fire: Something interesting about a fire is that the only thing a fire cannot consume is another fire. When a forest fire really gets going and the water they drop on it isnt doing anything and none of the other measures they are using is doing anything. What they do is set up a perimeter fire to keep it in check because they know a fire cannot consume another fire. In the day God comes with an unveiled face in the full manifestation of all His glory to love the world with all His heart; with all His soul; and with all His strength by removing every remnant of sin and death once and for all from all creation, and by making manifest the fullness of His glory in our physical bodies and all of creation. Because His glory is as a consuming fire. The only way anyone will be able to stand in His presence and not be consumed by iniquity is if they are baptized in His same glory. The only way anyone will be able to see His face and not be consumed and return to the dust of the ground like Lot's wife is if their heart is circumcised from iniquity and they are baptized in His same fire by the Holy Spirit. God can only come to love and save from sin and death and to give life. The same Jesus that came the first time to love all people and to save all people from sin and death is the same Jesus that will return to love all people and to save all people from sin and death. He is going to come with open arms and full of love for all people but not all people will experience love. It's not like God will come full of love for some people and full of hate for other people. He will come to love and save all. But, not all people will experience Him loving them. Not, all people will come to Him that they might have life. Its like in Matthew 23 when Jesus says Jerusalem Jerusalem I came to gather you unto myself but you would not. Jesus came to love the children of Israel and to gather them unto Himself and to save them from sin and death. He came to conquer their sin and their death. He did not come to destroy them. But they would not come to Him that they might be saved from the destruction that sin brings upon itself. It is the Spirit in a person's heart that determines whether they experience Gods loving embrace and life or fear and shame and their heart condemning them to death. It is the Spirit that is in a person's hearts that dictates what they experience when God comes in the fullness of His glory to manifest His life and completely remove every remnant of sin and death. 1Jn 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. 1Jn 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. John is not teaching that all people will experience love in the presence of God whether they have believed or not because God is love. He is describing the manner in which love is made perfect in people. He is describing the dynamic by which the fear and shame that was in our hearts through the Spirit of iniquity; through the spirit of error can be replaced with love and boldness in the day God comes to judge against sin and death once and for all, and to glorify mankind and creation with His life. ****Love is made perfect in us when it replaces the fear that was in our hearts through the spirit of iniquity. And John says love can not be made perfect in us unless we have the anointing that is of Christ dwelling in us. John says the fear we once had in our hearts through the spirit of iniquity dwelling in us is replaced with love through the anointing that is of Christ; even the Spirit of truth dwelling in the hearts of all those who believe on The Word made flesh in Jesus***** He is saying that if the anointing that is from Christ, which is the Spirit of Truth, dwells in us we will know ourselves even as we have always been known by God. And we will be filled with boldness in the day Christ returns in all His glory to manifest his life in all of creation & to swallow up sin and death once for all time because our hearts will be filled with love instead of fear. Explain what it mean to be filled with boldness Having boldness in our hearts speaks of our speech being bold. It means that in the day of judgment when God comes in the fullness of His glory to completely remove every remnant of sin and death from all of creation. And to glorify mankind and creation with His life. Those who have the Spirit of the Son in them will find boldness of speech in His presence in that their mouths will cry out Abba Abba! Paul said in Romans 8 we have not been given a spirit that will once again produce fear in us unto bondage in the same way that the spirit of the antichrist produces fear in the presence of God. But, we have been given a different Spirit, even the Spirit of God. And the Spirit that comes from God produces love in our hearts in the presence of God because we see ourselves in Him and our hearts cry out Abba! We can even see a sign and a wonder testifying of this now. Its just like when we were in legalism and that spirit produced fear in our hearts at the thought of being in the presence of God because our conscience was stained by our works. But, now we have seen the Spirit of Truth for what it is and this Spirit is producing love in our hearts at the thought of being in the presence of God because our conscience is no longer filled with our works but it is filled with what God has said and done in Christ. Herein was love made perfect in us. Explain God comes to consume that which is killing His people. God is coming to glorify all of creation with His life and to remove sin and death once for all time where it can no longer be seen anywhere in our bodies or in creation. He does not desire for any to perish with the perishing of sin and death but that all would come to Him when He shows up and have life. God has heard the cry of help from mankind because of the sin and death that is in the world. And He wants to come and destroy sin and death from all of creation. But, He knows in the day He comes to destroy sin and death anyone not baptized in the Spirit of His glory and His life, but is joined to the Spirit of iniquity will perish with sin and death. He knows that in the day He comes with an unveiled face in all His glory to destroy the sin and death that is plaguing His people. Anyone that does not see themselves clothed in the same glory He is clothed in will not experience Him coming full of love for them to give them life and save them from sin and death. But they will experience fear at the sight of Him and this fear will work death in them and their bodies will be consumed by iniquity and return to the dust of the ground. Now because He doesn't desire that any should perish when He comes but that all would come to Him and have life instead of cowering away from Him in fear unto death. He has first come in Jesus so that all those who want eternal life as a free gift apart from their works can be baptized by His Holy Spirit into His life and His glory. And their consciences can be washed clean from condemnation and fear in His presence and they can be filled with love and boldness in the day of His coming. John 3:16 says God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. We can say it this way. God so loves the world that He is coming to give all those who want it eternal life as a free gift and to remove every remnant of sin and death from all creation. He is coming with open arms to gather the world unto Himself and to wipe away their tears and to give them joy for their sadness. But, in the same way that Jesus came to gather Jerusalem to himself that they might have eternal life. And they would not. When God comes to gather the world to Himself that they might have life there will be some that will not. And the Father will echo the same grief in His heart that Jesus had in His heart when he said Jerusalem, Jerusalem I came to gather you to myself but you would not. *********************************************************************** Violence part: we know death not result of God taking life by violence because Leviticus 20 says their blood is on their own hands. After explain sodom & Gomorrah go to this is why God baptizes us in fire. Example of only thing a fire can't consume is another fire. It's not that God wants to consume. Use example in exodus at mt. Sinai, lest I break forth upon them. God is love & He always comes to love. But, the Spirit a person is of is what determines if they are able to stand in presence of God & whether they experience love or fear when He comes to love. Use as example shadrach, meshsch, abednego. Same fire but they weren't consumed & soldiers who put them in the fire were consumed. Two - there is an Arabic version of the Bible that explains this as a figure of speech. Much in the same way as we would say, 'she looked back and was petrified', which literally means 'turned to stone'. So she may have died of fright but the expression was translated literally. I think the first explantion is more common - don't know if this helps. Can't remember where I read the seond one. I mean why did the angel tell them not to look back? He wasn't giving them some crazy law to follow in order to qualify to be saved. He knew of the dynamic involved & that any human who saw the glory of God without being baptized in the same glory would die from their heart feeling condemned & being filled with fear & their flesh would be consumed. I mean God is a consuming fire. Unless a person be baptized in the glory of God through the Holy Spirit their flesh cannot stand in the presence of God. It will be consumed and return to the dust of the ground. (Use this as an example when go into what God had to do in baptizing us with fire through the Holy Spirit. Example of a chemical reaction: Why does He say look not back lest you be consumed? Consumed by what the punishment that is coming upon them from iniquity. Iniquity brings the punishment. If God moved out of the way iniquity would punish the people with death. Salt: mâlach maw-lakh' A primitive root; properly to rub to pieces or pulverize; intransitively to disappear as dust; also (as denominative from H4417) to saltwhether internally (to season with salt) or externally (to rub with salt): X at all, salt, season, temper together, vanish away. "Return to dust" General 3:19; Eccles 3:20; Eccles 12:7. Brimstone and fire speaks of the presence of God coming down to Sodom & Gomorrah. Much in the same way the Shechinah glory of God would appear in the holiest place in the tabernacle. Iniquity consumed the people not God. All God did was show up. It was not because of the sexual sin they were consumed. It is because of iniquity they were consumed. And the sexual sin was the fruit of the iniquity that was dwelling in their hearts. As a testimony of iniquity consuming the flesh. Iniquity results in the destruction, decay, corruption, perishing of the physical body. Unless the flesh of a human being be clothed upon in the glory of God. The flesh of a human being when standing in the presence of God will be consumed, or return unto dust. Iniquity consumed the flesh of people and causes it to return to the ground as dust. The iniquity of Sodom & Gomorrah was consuming them. Lot's wife looked back, and w Brimstone and fire coming down to Sodom & Gomorrah speaks of the presence of God or the Shechinah glory of God appearing in Sodom & Gomorrah. If iniquity is dwelling in the heart of a human being when standing in the presence of God that iniquity will bring death to the heart of a person through fear, and it will also cause the flesh of that person to be consumed or return to dust. The angel told Lot & His family not to turn back & look at Sodom & Gomorrah lest they also be filled with fear & their flesh also be consumed & return to dust. Lot's life looked back her heart was filled with fear, and her flesh was consumed by iniquity. This is a sign and a wonder testifying that iniquity dwelling in the heart of a person will bring fear and death to their hearts, and will also consume their flesh to the degree it returns to the earth as dust. We can even see God telling Adam because he ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil he would return to the ground as dust. If a person has faith dwelling in their heart, and that same fire shows up it will not re There is unending explanation that goes along with all these things. There was a covenant of circumcision made through Abraham, and His seed. Meaning Abrahams seed which is Jesus would come with a circumcision not made with hands. In order to circumcise the hearts of people from iniquity in order that they can feel love in their hearts unto a glorified immortal human body and eternal life in His return It speaks of so many things. But prophetically it speaks of how people will be saved from their hearts condemning them to the second death in the return of Jesus. There was a covenant/promise of circumcision made through Abraham, and His seed. Meaning Abrahams seed which is Jesus would come with a circumcision not made with hands. In order to circumcise the hearts of people from iniquity in order that they can feel love in their hearts unto a glorified immortal human body and eternal life in His return. Instead of feeling fear in their hearts unto death, and the destruction of their body in the return of Jesus. For, me it speaks of how people will be saved from the death that iniquity that iniquity Jesus interceding in the hearts of people The word salt in the Hebrew means to disappear as dust, or to vanish away. For me it speaks to the fact that iniquity causes us to return to the ground as dust. Meaning iniquity causes us to perish. It is a sign & a wonder that iniquity can never give immortality, and eternal life. 2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming Psalm 11 about holy spirit as Fire & brimstone. The Lord trieth the righteous. When this same fire that is the shechinah glory of God shows up those who have the Spirit in their hearts will withstand the fire & their hearts will be proved of any belief that is not of faith. Thou hast proved my heart. Deuteronomy 29:23-? Gen 18:20 And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; Luk 9:51 And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, Luk 9:52 And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him. Luk 9:53 And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. Luk 9:54 And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? Luk 9:55 But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. Luk 9:56 For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village. How could Jesus tell the disciples they didn't know what Spirit they are of if the Spirit that destroyed and killed the people at Sodom and Gomorrah was the Spirit of God? I mean if it was the Spirit of God that killed those people, then wouldn't the disciples have had it right when they wanted to call down fire to kill those people. ****Psalm 11:6 Psa 11:6 Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup. When we think of this we automatically think of God having a sword in His hand and coming and smiling people with violence. We see it as God doing something to them against their will. Instead of seeing it as the belief in their heart bringing these things upon them. Need to understand when interpreting these things that many of these things are figures of speech used to describe what a person would experience. Not necessarily how they would experience. Or what would cause them to experience. For example if we look at the parable of the prodigal son the older son was cast into outer darkness and he experienced gnashing of teeth because of what he felt about the goodness of the Father towards his younger brother who had wasted his inheritance. Now it could be said that a snare and a horrible tempest came upon the older brother because of the Father and what He did to be good to the younger brother. But, is the Father responsible for what the older brother experienced or is the belief that is in the older brother's heart responsible for what He experienced at the manifestation of the Father and His glory. You know all the Father did was appear in all His glory in this situation. And the glory of the Father and how it manifested itself was a snare and a tempest to the older brother.***** ***Example: You know in Leviticus 20 when it talks about people being stoned to death because of iniquity; rejecting Spirit of grace and believing on Spirit of works for life. It says there blood is on their own hands. It says this death they are experiencing is not on your hands. It is not on God's hands. This death is the result of their hardened hearts.******* ****So if God didn't come to destroy the people but He came to destroy that which was destroying the people why were they consumed? Act 13:46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. In Acts 13:46 Paul talked about people judging themselves unworthy of eternal life. Rom 2:5 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; Paul speaks of a coming day of wrath. The coming day of wrath is not against people it is against iniquity and the death it brings. The coming day of wrath is against the Spirit of iniquity and the death it brings. The coming day of wrath is the once for all time destruction of sin and death where every remnant of sin and death is completely removed from mankind and all of creation. The day of wrath is when Jesus will return in all His glory to gather people to Himself and manifest the fullness of the glory of God in all the earth The wrath of God is not against people. It has never been against people. It has always been against that which destroys people. The wrath of God is actually for people. It is on the side of people. It comes to destroy that which destroys people. But, Paul said that people can make themselves partakers of the wrath that is coming against sin and death by joining themselves to sin and death by rejecting the Spirit of grace that came in Jesus for life, and instead believing on the Spirit of iniquity; the Spirit of works for life. Mat 25:41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: God never intended for people to be consumed in the lake of fire. He always only ever intended for the serpent and his wisdom and the death his wisdom brings and the angels that followed the devil to be consumed in the lake of fire. And the lake of fire is not some like mythical place. God is a consuming fire. So when it talks about the serpent and sin and death being consumed in the lake of fire. It speaks of the glory of God manifesting and being so full of light and life that anything that is not of that same light and life but that is death and darkness will be consumed and cease to exist. There is a whole lot of mouthfuls I could say about that.... Its like in Matthew 23 when Jesus says Jerusalem Jerusalem I came to gather you unto myself but you would not. Jesus came to love the children of Israel and to gather them unto Himself and to save them from sin and death. He came to conquer their sin and their death. But they would not come to Him that they might be saved from the destruction that sin brings upon itself. So Jesus doesn't come to destroy people He comes to save people from that which destroys them and to give them life.***** We have this idea that God comes to destroy some and He comes to love some. We look at the fact that some will experience destruction and that some will experience love and we think that is an indication that what people experience is the result of God's heart for them instead of what they experience being the result of what is in their own hearts. Its the same loving God that appears to all people. Its the same loving God that appears to the just and the wicked.****But the just find life when God appears because they have a heart of faith that ....***** In Daniel 3 there is an account where Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refuse to worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar set up of himself, which represented worshipping the arm of man or the works of man's hands to be justified and have life. And because they refused to worship the golden statue Nebuchadnezzar has them thrown in a burning fiery furnace by the mighty men of valour. The fire was so hot that the mighty men of valour died and were consumed by the fire just by getting close to the fire when they threw Shadrach, Meshach, and abednego in the fire. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were unharmed by the fire even as they stood in the midst of the fire. It was the same fire they both encountered but one group died and was consumed and the other group was not harmed at all by the fire. The Bible says God is a consuming fire. Throughout the entirety of the bible God appears as a fire. The glory of God appears throughout the bible in the appearance of a fire. The fire is a type and shadow of the glory of God; or the presence of God. As Shadrach and those guys stood in the midst of the fire there was someone else in there with them. Nebuchadnezzar said there was one like the Son of Man in there with them. The one like the Son of man is referring to Jesus. The reason Shadrach and those guys were not harmed by the fire was because they were clothed in Christ. They were clothed in the glory of God through Christ; they were baptized in fire through Christ. ****God can only come to love and save from sin and death. The same Jesus that came the first time to love all people and to save all people from sin and death is the same Jesus that will return to love all people and to save all people from sin and death. It's not like God will come full of love for some people and full of hate for other people. He will come to love and save all. But, not all people will come to Him that they might have life. Not all people will experience Him loving them. After part about Shadrach, meshach, and abednego.......???? It will be the same Jesus that comes back to the earth that came the first time. And He is going to come with open arms and full of love for all people but not all people will experience love(explain what is in the heart determines whether a person experiences his loving embrace or fear & shame unto their heart condemning them to death). Use Jesus saying Jerusalem; Jerusalem I came to gather you into myself & you would not. The scriptures talk about the wickedness of Jerusalem far exceeding the wickedness of Sodom and Gomorrah. And yet we see the heart of God for Jerusalem even in the midst of their wickedness when Jesus says Jerusalem, Jerusalem I came to gather you unto myself but you would not. In the same way that Jesus came to gather Jerusalem to himself by they would not. This same Jesus is coming again but this time to gather the world to himself, but in the same way that not all of Jerusalem would come to him that they might have life there will be people in the world that will not come to Him that they might be saved from sin and death and have life. Example of Father in the parable of prodigal Son: Example of prodigal Son & older brother being the wicked. The Father had the same heart for them both. But, only one was clothed........ same father different reaction In the parable of the prodigal Son there are two Sons and one Father. One Son accepts the Father's life and all that He has to offer as a free gift. And one Son wants to have the Father's life and all that He has to offer by His works. It is the same Father dealing with both Sons. The Father has the same heart to be good to both Sons. It is the same good Father that appears to both Sons to give them His life and all that He has. But, both Sons do not experience what the Father has come to give them. One Son experiences the Father's life and goodness. But, upon the older Son we can say comes a snare and a horrible tempest. Now it could be said that the Father rained down a snare and horrible tempest upon the older Son because the older Son was cut at the heart by what the Father did towards the younger brother. But, is the Father responsible for what the older brother experienced or is the belief that is in the older brother's heart responsible for what He experienced at the manifestation of the Father and His glory. You know all the Father did was appear in all His glory in this situation. And the glory of the Father and how it manifested itself was a snare and a tempest to the older brother but it was glory and life to the prodigal Son. Revelation says that when people attribute the punishment In Daniel 3 Shadrach, Meshac, and Abednego were thrown into a burning fiery furnace by the might men of valour. The fire was so intense that the mighty men of valor died and were consumed by the fire just by having to come close to the fire to throw Shadrach, Meshac, and Abednego in the fire. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were unharmed by the fire even as they stood in the midst of the fire. In Daniel 3 there is an account where Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refuse to worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar set up of himself, which represented believing on iniquity for life. It represented worshipping the arm of man or the works of man's hands to be justified and have life. And because they refused to worship the golden statue, Nebuchadnezzar has them thrown in a burning fiery furnace by the mighty men of valour. The fire was so hot that the mighty men of valour died and were consumed by the fire just by getting close to the fire when they threw Shadrach, Meshach, and abednego in the fire. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were unharmed by the fire even as they stood in the midst of the fire. The Bible says God is a consuming fire. Throughout the entirety of the bible God appears as a fire. The glory of God appears throughout the bible in the appearance of a fire. The fire is a type and shadow of the glory of God; the presence of God; the unveiled face of God. The Spirit of God. It was the same fire the mighty men of valour and Shadrach, meshac, abednego encountered. But, one group died and was consumed and the other group was not harmed at all by the fire. But, it was the same fire. It was not a different fire.