| Chapter #24 |
|
As read by Kenneth B Visscher |
The Amethyst Stone - Cleansing By The Blood Of Jesus
BENJAMIN.... Son of the father's right hand.... His mother named him BENONI, meaning son of my sorrow. But his father called him Benjamin, son of my right hand, SON of my blessing. He who rests in Me.
There are two SAULS in the Bible that were Benjamites. King SAUL who forgot to rest in God and began to consort with familiar spirits. And SAUL who became the APOSTLE PAUL.... Who was so self-righteous, doing the "will of God" as he saw it....But came to a place of humbling where he rested in GOD and not in his own wisdom and knowledge.
AMETHYST.... Having powers of cure from intoxication. That is, to relieve from the influence of spirits and personal iniquity {self will}.
JEHOVAH SHALOM....The LORD our PEACE....OUR RESTING PLACE....To be whole or complete is another translation of this word SHALOM....It also is used when VOWING a VOW unto the LORD (JEHOVAH-SHALOM). When we vow a vow, we expect peace, but it is only found in our abiding trust in the Father to fulfill HIS WILL in us. Deuteronomy 23:21, Psalm 16:8
There is a promise given to us of a RESTING PLACE. It is still open to us today....Those who believe in and trust in GOD and not their own wisdom or knowledge, those who realize that they are in Him and their WEAKNESS is the place of His STRENGTH, these have entered into HIS REST at the right hand of GOD.
Now we have come to the last Stone on the 3rd Row of The Royal Ephod, The Amethyst
Stone. In the study of the Liguire and the Agate Stones of this row we saw our
relationship to the Lord as being judged by the inworking of God’s Spirit in discerning
our hearts. I also demonstrated the dangers during this time of demonic influence and
doctrines that are based on mixture. The study of the Amethyst Stone however is
amazing to understand. For by it we finally get a picture of what the Blood of Jesus
really does when we are cleansed from contamination because of sin.
This Stone is not a covering Stone on Lucifer, the fallen Adamic nature in mankind. That
is because there is no atonement for Lucifer. Jesus never shed His precious blood to
redeem this son of perdition in any way, a further guarantee of eternal joy that is ours as
soon as we can appropriate these truths by faith. Jesus guarantees to us that by His own
shed blood, we will be set free of the fall in such a way as to never have to partake of
such a malady ever again. This gives us the force of “muscle” we need to walk forward as
Overcomers in this age that is dawning, even the Kingdom of God in the earth, seen
through a group of people who have overcome because of the Blood of the Lamb and the
Word of their Testimony. “ And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the
word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.” Revelation 12:11
“Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.” John 20:17
"When I was being with them, I, Myself, was continually watching over, caring for, observing, keeping and guarding them within Your Name – which You have given to Me – and I protected [them], and not one from out of them lost himself (or: destroyed himself), except the son of loss (the son of the dissolution, or, destruction; = the person having the qualities and characteristics of loss and dissolution or destruction), so that the Scripture could be fulfilled.” John 17:12 - Jonathan Mitchell Translation
“While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.” John 17:12 King James Version
It is during the appropriation of the Lord over our lives through the Blood of Jesus that we begin to know JEHOVAH SHALOM - The Lord Our Peace. We begin to have “peace” in our faith, religious works that become righteous, and in our relationship as denotes one fellowship face to face with another of the same faith and body. This Stone represents now the “coming away” from seclusion while God worked on our inward parts so that we can begin to have communion on a horizontal level, one with the other, who also holds to the same like precious faith. It is during the journey of coming together now as a company of Sons that JEHOVAH SHALOM begins to work in us by the Blood of Jesus to cleanse us from intoxication left because of the influence of evil spirits and the fall of Adam, thus giving us this dual nature.
It is in the revelation of the Amethyst Stone that we see the beginning of the next Mysteries, the Fellowship of the Mystery and The Fellowship of His Sufferings. Because we not only appropriate the reason for the immense joy of fellowship with our fellow man in truth, but also the pain of our personal crosses becomes prominent as we share in the crucifixion of Our Lord. We share His crucifixion here with the anticipation of coming into that place where crucifixion is NO MORE. That our hope of living only in the resurrection life of Christ is our final and eternal outcome. Gone from us is the death of this fallen creation when that cross is finally completely appropriated in our faith.
“And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:” Ephesians 3: 9-11
“That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.” Philippians 3:10,11.
{Two Visions}
{1st Vision}
“I saw close up the “left” hand and wrist of Jesus impaled upon the wooden crossbeam. The nail was driven through his flesh and I saw His blood dripping quickly from the wound and falling to the ground.”
{2nd Vision}
“As I stood beside the Angel which showed me these things and I saw the Lord Jesus upon the White Horse I noticed the strength of His arm and I saw His wrist and hand. I saw His “left” wrist and his “left” hand. This was brought up before my eyes. I saw it as it had been wounded for us with the mark of the nail still through it. And His Hand and His Wrist held firmly the reigns of this Glorious White Horse as Jesus did ride this steed according to His perfect will and according to the Plan of God for this Army”.
It is interesting to note that the visions I had were of the “left” wrist and hand. However, the Amethyst Stone represents to us Benjamin, Son of My “Right” Hand. So why the “left” wrist and hand? It has been noted that the Lord became “sin” for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.
“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” 2nd Corinthians 5:21
The left hand of Jesus represents JUDGEMENT. And that is what Christ endured. Judgement for OUR fall. Our sin. The reigns of the Horse were held by the Lord IN JUDGEMENT. But in this stone we become SONS OF HIS RIGHT HAND. The Hand that extends to us ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD. Note this. We are going to inherit EVERYTHING THAT IS GOD AS GOD until we are full OF GOD and God becomes ALL IN ALL IN US. That includes all the 12 names of God, but for this portion of the Ephod, we see JEHOVAH SHALOM, the PEACE OF GOD by THE RIGHT HAND.
Note this also. God has taken the responsibility of this Judgement of the left hand UPON HIMSELF - as JESUS - so that we can know the fellowship of His RIGHT HAND. He is bringing us to peace. For the course of our lives we have known fellowship with the Lord as relates to SUFFERING. But this Stone, the Amethyst will now show forth fellowship with the Lord AS PEACE and with our SUFFERING ENDED.
For peace to come to our lives, there must be a cleansing of intoxication left by the influence of evil spirits and our personal iniquity. This peace and this cleansing is typified in the Amethyst Stone.
1} EVIL SPIRITS. Just what exactly are evil spirits? They are demonic powers from the heigharchy of Principalities and Powers in the Heavenly places. We have been taught that Jesus, by His crucifixion defeated the power of the enemy. Did He? What exactly did Jesus do on the cross with the powers of darkness? HE OVERCAME THEIR ABILITY TO TEMPT HIM. By His death, He conquered everything in His own life that related to FALLEN ADAM. That the Son of Perdition Christ spoke of found nothing in Jesus because Christ had defeated Him. Who was the Son of Perdition? Was it the devil, was it demons? NO! The Son of Perdition was THE ADAMIC NATURE. CHRIST DEFEATED THE ABILITY OF THE POWERS OF DARKNESS AND OF THIS SON OF PERDITION TO HAVE ANY EFFECT ON HIS CHURCH.
For a fact about Evil Spirits, let me explain that they are “tools” in the hands of the Lord to do a specific work. What work? The work of EXPOSING LUCIFER IN MAN. The power of demonic spirits can only work in two realms. They work only in that which relates to “flesh” or the fallen nature in man, and in the spirit of man when it is contaminated by flesh! And in both of these areas God said: “ And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: “ Genesis 3:14. This “dust” is our flesh, the Son of Perdition, the fallen adamic nature in mankind, LUCIFER! That’s YOU AND ME in our unregenerate, unrepentant state.
The Apostle Paul said of Principalities and Powers: “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: “ Colossians 1:16
Now some have argued that the dominions and the principalities of this verse relate to man and the kingdoms of man, but they also relate to fallen spirits! And the Lord Jesus is Lord OVER THEM. And the Lord Jesus uses them to EXPOSE FLESH. They are enemies, they are demonic, but when we submit our lives to the Lord He uses them to reveal our fallen condition if need be! And then they can deceive in spirit those who allow themselves to be tainted by the iniquitous flesh by disobedience to God’s Word! Thus the realm of deception. They are still enemies, still an affront to the gospel, they still twist and conspire against the doctrines of the Church of Christ and create “another gospel” wherein we think we are perfected by that which is born and maintained by Spirit when in fact it is born and maintained by flesh and disobedience to God’s Word.
2} PERSONAL INIQUITY. This is the realm of OUR WILL. Adam, in his willful disobedience in the Garden of Eden fell. That personal will of Adam then became corrupt! Thus the definition of Personal Iniquity - SELF WILL. Will that is not generated and empowered by the Will of God. This is the ground upon which evil spirits and the Son of Perdition stand to prevent the Overcomer from pressing on in to obtain their full inheritance. Also, personal iniquity is so much a purpose of God that God even created a Mystery to house it! This is called “The Mystery of Iniquity”. It is the mystery of flesh growing to full maturity even though Christ defeated flesh on the cross. That the self will in the world will grow and grow until that mystery is completed. The Mystery of Iniquity - Personal Iniquity - will work until it has come to full maturity in the life of the Overcomer, thus giving the Overcomer the substance they need to OVERCOME.
This Mystery of Iniquity is the revelation of that which looks like Christ, acts like Christ, is revealed like the living Christ, comes forth in power and glory like Christ, but IS NOT CHRIST. This is that which sits upon the throne of the heart as God saying “I Am God”, when in fact it is not God but personal iniquity, in the form of “Lucifer, the son of the morning, the first of God’s creation” but is instead corrupt and away from the life of God. “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” 2 Thessalonians 2:3,4.
This was what Jesus conquered by His death. That perdition that would grow in this world but which found no place in Jesus. And that perdition finds NO PLACE IN THE OVERCOMER if the Overcomer IS WALKING BY THE SPIRIT. “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfi the lust of the flesh.” Galatians 5:16
So now we see Jesus in His suffering thus defeating the powers of darkness, thus making them subject to His will, and thus ending the power of iniquity in the life of an obedient Overcomer. His blood fell from His body to fulfill those necessary requirements for THE NEW NATURE TO BE REVEALED. Christ ended the flesh for the Overcomer, and that end is now worked out day by day in our walk, line upon line, precept upon precept. As we become ones in fellowship with His sufferings and in time partakers of His Holiness in a NEW NATURE that was manifested when Christ was raised from the dead.
Coursing down from Emmanuel’s veins flowed this life in His Blood. This life that conquers all that is of the disobedience of Adam. Gone from us is the final victory of flesh over spirit, nigh to us is the total victory of that which has been made a BRAND NEW CREATION. He who was perfect and without sin was made a sacrifice for sin that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. By His death upon the cross our Old Nature was crucified, by his Resurrection our New Nature is fully revealed. All that happens to us happened to Him in person, He is the complete fulfillment of all that God has promised and He completely destroyed the 1st Adam that the 2nd Adam might be triumphant as a NEW CREATION. The blood that Jesus spilt upon Calvary courses down through the pages of History to our time, and back through the pages of History to the very fall and corruption of Adam right from the beginning of the Eden of God. So much so was the success of the creation anew that God even declared it at the end of the pages of scripture, right in Revelation 13:8 during the description of the beasts. “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” Christ, the lamb slain FROM THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD. Right from the very beginning of time, God slew a lamb. Before there was any fall, before there was any man created, God slew a lamb! Christ was slain from the very beginning - TO ENSURE SALVATION FOR ALL.
Now begins another Mystery. The Mystery of His Will. {See Ephesians 1:9} So much is done in the life of a child of God to seek out and to know the Will of God. For the Will of God to be discovered a child of the King must go through a processing. This is where the Mystery of God’s Will begins to do a work that only His Spirit can accomplish in us. And that work is that God brings EVIL SPIRITS and PERSONAL INIQUITY {Parts #1 and #2 above} to conflict in the believer’s very own soul. A war is engaged. Not so much a war of our will over God’s Will, but a war wherein the power of EVIL SPIRITS begins to grind upon and adhere to our very own PERSONAL INIQUITY. God permits the powers of darkness to join to Personal Iniquity in such a way as to corrupt our walk. Believe it or not, this is the beginning of the path to KNOWING and DOING the Will of God. It is OPPOSITE of JEHOVAH SHALOM - THE LORD OUR PEACE because the child of the Lord ends up with a fierce warfare inside themselves. They end up having their sinful self will combined with the powers of the enemy for one purpose - TO OPPOSE THE WILL OF GOD. The effects of this is seen in the life of the child of God by deceptions and maladies of every kind which works iniquity, not righteousness. All this grows and grows in the child of God until they come to a place where their iniquity is heightened and their walk is completely contaminated. All this in the heart of a child of the King who desired to know and to do the Will of God! Instead they end up in a revolt! The wresting and the defamation of what they want and what they actually become is an area of great confusion by the powers of darkness that have contaminated this child who seeks God’s will. It all comes to a head inside themselves, then the Spirit of the Lord OPENS THEIR EYES TO THEIR PERSONAL INIQUITY. Right at that moment, their eyes are opened to their own need to Overcome all this, and the result is GENUINE REPENTANCE.
This is in fact the pathway to knowing the true Will of God in their lives. That they must HUMBLE THEMSELVES and allow the Spirit of Burning to remove this Mystery of Iniquity - now temporarily empowered by the powers of darkness - from them. The very thing they originally desired of God is now being answered in them, to KNOW and TO DO the WILL OF GOD. They are set FREE. They overcome through repentance their personal iniquity and they know intelligently what it is they are repenting of!
Not just this, but now the child of God learns what it means to don the full armor of God and to have a sharpened Sword. They now learn that they, through obedience to God from a cleansed standpoint, have power over all the powers of darkness and evil minions that would corrupt their walk by joining to their personal iniquity. They learn what it means to have “the patience of the Saints”. They patiently allow God to work out in their lives HIS PERFECT WILL and TOTAL PEACE in every area over time. This is the enjoyment now of the child of the King who once knew of the wrestling of personal iniquity with demonic forces. And the best part of all this is that they know THE VICTORY OF JESUS IN HIS CROSS AND IN HIS DEATH, THEN LATER IN HIS RESURRECTION. THEY RISE WITH JESUS FROM THE DEAD TO WALK IN NEWNESS OF LIFE, IN THE NEW CREATION. What they prayed for, they now receive and what they wanted is now fulfilled in them.
To Be Continued......... Kenneth B Visscher