Resurrection From the Dead, Part 7
Reprint April 14, 2023
We wrapped up last week with my comments concerning the
medical profession. Guess I need to
clarify a bit. Two of our daughters work
in health care. Our oldest son was born
under the care of one of my cousins, who was a medical doctor. A number of our relatives work in the medical
profession in one way or another. That
said, when doctors and nurses rely on what the pharmaceutical society -- “Big
Pharma” – decrees instead of desiring to see people made whole and complete,
they work against us and against what Jesus has paid for on our behalf.
A number of years ago, I was doing a project for Home
Savings and Loan in California. One of
the board members stopped by to visit me, see what progress I was making, and
invited me out to lunch. He was a medical
doctor whose personal philosophy differed greatly from the traditional “Big
Pharma” thinking.
I told him that I was on the 19th day of a fast
and asked if we could take a rain check on lunch. He grinned and said, “You know, I tell my
patients that if they will fast at least once a year for three weeks, they will
walk in complete health, and they will put me out of business. They don’t listen, of course, but it is
true. I’d just as soon work myself out
of a job!”
OK! Enough of all
that. Let’s get back to where we left
off last week.
Let’s
go back to something that Paul wrote to the Ekklesia in Corinth. Perhaps we are taking things in reverse
order, but this is where he lays out, in good legal fashion, the foundational
basis for our understanding of Resurrection.
I Corinthians 15:12-19: Now
if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that
there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be no
resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: And if Christ be not risen,
then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.
Yea,
and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that
he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise
not, then is not Christ raised: And if Christ be not
raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which
are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If in this life only
we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
You
see how he begins to lay things out in the most logical fashion. Paul was educated as a Pharisee and a legal
expert in the Mosaic Law prior to his conversion on the road to Damascus. He uses that same legal mind to help us in
understanding just how significant Jesus’ resurrection was, and how it plays
into our walk in Christ. Watch how he
lays it out now.
I Corinthians 15:20-34: But
now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them
that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the
resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all
die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his
own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his
coming.
Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the
kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all
authority and power. For
he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that
shall be destroyed is death.
For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all
things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did
put all things under him. And when all things
shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him
that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.
Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the
dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead? And why stand we in
jeopardy every hour? I
protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.
If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus,
what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? let us
eat and drink; for to morrow we die. Be not deceived: evil
communications corrupt good manners.
Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the
knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame.
Some
of this needs amplification and clarification, and we will try to do that
shortly. We will come back to I
Corinthians 15 momentarily, but let me return to something we shared a few
weeks back from Romans 6.
“Therefore, and as a consequence thereof, we are buried and put
into the grave through baptism so that our old man sees death. It follows, therefore, that in the same way
Christ was raised up from the dead by the visible Glory of the Father, we also
should walk and live renewed and refreshed (with His breath) of life.”
“For if we have been planted together, germinating as seeds in
the likeness and form of His death, we shall also spring forth in (and with
His) resurrection: Knowing
this, that our old man and corrupted DNA is crucified with him, that the body
(of law) of sin might be annulled and destroyed in order to free us from having
to serve and be under the Law of Sin and Death.
“For he who has died is freed from sin (and the laws which
determine that which is sin). Now if we are truly
dead with Christ, we believe and know that we shall also live with Him:
“Knowing that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die
again; death has no more authority, dominion, control or power over Him. For when He died, He
died killing off sin and death once and for all: and by virtue of the fact that
He lives, He lives in and for the destiny and purposes of God.” (Romans 6:4-10, RAC Translation and Amplification)
Is
any of this beginning to sink in yet?
Are you seeing clearly what Jesus has done for us? Are you seeing the life He has regenerated on
our behalf so that we can live and walk in power and authority?
Consider
what becomes available to us once we are delivered from the power of
death. No threat of the Enemy can
dissuade us in any way. If the Holy
Spirit sends us into a situation where the threat of death hangs heavily, it
matters not to us. Death does not
intimidate us and we have complete authority over it.
I
remind you of the incident that took place when we were in Atlin, British
Columbia several years ago and our friend Marsha was killed while walking with
Della. They were walking on a boardwalk
where some 2 X 10 planks had not been fastened down. Marsha stepped on one edge of a particular
plank and it flipped up and struck her on the side of her face. Della saw her stumble and one leg was about
to be pinched as the plank came back down.
She hollered, “NO,” at the top of her voice. Marsha withdrew her leg but then set it down
a second time over the edge causing the plank to come up again and strike her
on the temple.
She
dropped into Della’s arms. As she went
down, she looked at Della and said, “Don’t leave me.” Della caught her as she let out her last
breath with the “death rattle” that accompanies one expiring.
In
that moment, Della felt the Spirit of the Lord merge into her being. She then saw with her natural eyes, the
Spirit of Death as a dark being coming for Marsha. That same Spirit of the Lord rose up in her
and she pointed to the Spirit of Death with a loud exclamation, “No, you will
not!”
That
spirit continued to come towards Marsha and Della again spoke
authoritatively. “I said, NO, YOU WILL
NOT!” Then she simply looked down at
Marsha and spoke her name, “MARSHA!”
Instantly, she drew breath and sat up, saying, “Where am I?”
You’ve
all heard me share this before, but we all went into the log cabin where we
were staying and spent the next hour or so in worship. That’s when Holy Spirit gave me the second
version of the song we sing frequently, “Blessing and Honor.”
Forty-five
minutes later, we were all out hiking in the woods and on a hillside, enjoying
the presence of the Lord and the abundant beauty of the wilderness.
One of the most striking and revelatory verses
is found in Revelation. We sing various
versions of this Scripture quite often.
Revelation 12:11: 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.
The
“overcomers” that Jesus is returning for are those who’ve been able to rise
above and overcome all the threats of death.
This is not some kind of fantasy.
This is not theoretical. Jesus
made it possible, probable and practical for us to walk and live this kind of
lifestyle. Think about the consequences
of living Resurrection life for a minute!
It
matters not what kind of situation you get called to. It matters not what kind of need for healing,
deliverance or ministry of any kind that may open up in front of you.
You’ve
been empowered by that Resurrection Life to minister to whatever need
exists. You have power over death. You have the authority of the Lord resident
in your being to operate wherever and however He so directs. Are you seeing the picture?
Here
is the crux of the issue. YOU have to
embrace that! YOU have to act on
it. None of this happens automatically. We don’t get there just because Jesus paid
for it. We get there because we
absolutely believe and commit ourselves to walking in that truth. This is a two-part covenant! Jesus enacted the first part of this for
us. But we have to act in response to
what He did.
One
more thing! Because we’ve been so
programmed mentally, emotionally and spiritually with a death mindset, when we
first begin to act in response to what Jesus paid for on our behalf, we may not
see the immediate results. I can’t tell
you how many times I’ve acted without seeing the results. But I wouldn’t let go. Neither should you. There comes a day and a time when the results
begin to show – and when they do, Katy, bar the door! Then things begin to be fun!
We
absolutely MUST fill our minds, our thoughts and our spirits with what Jesus
has said and is saying! Nothing else
counts. It matters not what the world
around says. It matters not what your
friends or fellow Christians may think, or how they react. Shut off everything that contradicts the
Word!
Doubt
cannot cloud your thoughts. Fear cannot
interfere in any way. Unbelief has been
banished from the very core of your being.
I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: we are being prepared for
the transition from mortality to immortality.
Let’s not forget that when Jesus appears, we will see Him as He is
because we will be just like Him!
Let’s
wrap up today’s discussion with a bit more from I Corinthians 15.
I Corinthians 15:35-50: But some man
will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? Thou
fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except
it die: And
that which thou sowest, thou sowest
not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some
other grain:
But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every
seed his own body. All
flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of
flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of
birds. There
are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of
the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is
another.
There is one glory of the sun, and
another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star
differeth from another star in glory. So also is the
resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in
incorruption: It
is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is
raised in power: It
is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body.
There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. And so it is written,
The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a
quickening spirit. Howbeit
that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and
afterward that which is spiritual.
The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is
the Lord from heaven. As is the
earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the
heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the earthy,
we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. Now this I say, brethren, that
flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption
inherit incorruption.
That’s
a mouthful to leave you with for today.
We will get into these Scriptures in greater depth next week.
In case you are missing out on real fellowship in an environment
of Ekklesia, our Sunday worship gatherings are available by conference call –
usually at about 10:45AM Pacific. That
conference number is (712)
770-4160, and the access code
is 308640#. We are
now making these gatherings available by Skype.
If you wish to participate by video on Skype, my Skype ID is regner.capener. If
you miss the live voice call, you can dial (712) 770-4169, enter the same access code and listen in
later. The video call, of course, is not
recorded – not yet, anyway.
Blessings
on you!
Regner A. Capener
CAPENER MINISTRIES
RIVER WORSHIP CENTER
Temple, Texas 76504
Email Contact: CapenerMinistries@protonmail.com
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