(in short: The Mystery Doctrine of the Church Age). Part 49.
The Portfolio of Invisible Assets. Part 9.
The provision of Logistical Grace Support and Blessing.
PLEASE READ FIRST
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Prepare yourself for learning the Word of God!
Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to learn God's Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge (confess) your sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father).
1 John 1:9 says: "If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (known sins) and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [unknown or forgotten sins]." NKJV (New King James Version) [italics added]
If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is to have faith alone in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life:
John 6:47 says: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." NKJV [italics added]
Notice again what Jesus said in John 6:47: "…he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." It doesn't say, "will have"; it says, "has." Therefore, the very moment you believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life, you have it (it's really just that simple; nothing more and nothing less), and it can never be taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift (Ephesians 2:8c) of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.
John 3:14-18 says: "14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." NKJV
Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God's Word. If there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:
Study to show yourself approved to God!
Grace Bible Church
Robert R. McLaughlin Bible Ministries
The Tree of Life is a weekly teaching summary:
God’s Word is Wednesday, Friday and Sunday mornings
God’s Word is Wednesday, Friday and Sunday mornings
STUDY TITLE:
What it means to be initiated into the secret of the mystery
(in short: The Mystery Doctrine of the Church Age). Part 49.
The Portfolio of Invisible Assets. Part 9.
The provision of Logistical Grace Support and Blessing.
OPTION: If you would prefer to go directly to the Grace Bible Church website to read this study message, all verse reference links are active there (but not hover active) and Enlarged Text is also an available option – right click the above link then left click “Open Link in New Window” or “New Tab”
Terms & Abbreviations used:
PPOG = Predesigned Plan of God
Human Good = Evil + Good Deeds while not in fellowship with God
OSN = Old Sin Nature
TLJC = The Lord Jesus Christ
SSE = Spiritual Self Esteem
PVTD = Positive Volition Towards Doctrine
+H - The Happiness of God
NVTD = Negative Volition Towards Doctrine
Doctrine = Bible Truth
Human Good = Evil + Good Deeds while not in fellowship with God
OSN = Old Sin Nature
TLJC = The Lord Jesus Christ
SSE = Spiritual Self Esteem
PVTD = Positive Volition Towards Doctrine
+H - The Happiness of God
NVTD = Negative Volition Towards Doctrine
Doctrine = Bible Truth
BEGIN BIBLE STUDY
Unless otherwise noted, all scripture quotes and references
are from the NASB – New American Standard Bible
There are two Unique Royal Commissions for every Church-age Believer: Our Royal Priesthood, which we have noted, and our Royal Ambassadorship, which includes the Divine Provision of Logistical Grace Support and Blessing.
Let’s begin with the principle of logistical grace. Logistics is a military word which refers to the military science of supply, provision, and planning of troop movement. Logistics is the provision, movement, and maintenance of all resources and services necessary to sustain military forces. Logistics is also defined as the military science of planning, handling, and implementation of personnel under every possible military condition. From this military term comes a Bible doctrine based on this analogy. Logistics always plays a very important part in warfare, but logistics plays an even greater part in your life as a believer. Every believer is alive today because of logistical grace.
The word logistics comes from two Greek words: Logistes - an inspector of accounts, an auditor, a calculator, and Logismos - a thinker. So, logistical grace is defined as divine planning, divine support, divine provision, and divine blessing for the execution of the PPOG by the Royal Family for the fulfillment of God's will, purpose, and plan for your life. Logistical grace includes three factors of divine provision: 1) Life support which is provided for every Church-age believer, PSA 31:15 “My times are in Thy hand;” Or as Paul said in ROM 14:7-8 “For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.” We do not earn or deserve this logistical grace. 2) This blessing is provided for every Church-age believer, both winners and losers. This dramatizes the justice of God, in that the justice of God sends life support and blessing to the indwelling righteousness of God in all believers. At the moment of salvation, the righteousness of God is imputed to the believer by the justice of God. The righteousness of God demands blessing from the justice of God whether we fail or succeed as Christians. The indwelling righteousness of God is the recipient of all life support and all blessing from God. Winners utilize this logistical grace, while losers simply coast on it and never utilize it. 3) Under logistical grace, there is the divine provision for every Church-age believer to execute the PPOG. All doctrine is provided by God through a prepared pastor-teacher, and if you have persistent positive volition toward doctrine, you will find it, and your right pastor-teacher.
The Biblical definition of logistical grace is found in 2CO 9:8 “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, [logistical grace support], you may have an abundance for every good deed or good of intrinsic value production.” The context for this verse is giving; if your attitude is right, God will provide so that you can give. God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you're ready for anything and everything. Note that this sufficiency is not only in prosperous times, you have a sufficiency in all circumstances, including maximum historical disaster. This is why you do not have to live in fear or worry regarding the future. Remember ROM 14:23b and whatever is not from faith is sin. PHI 4:18-19 also applies here, “But I have received everything in full, and have an abundance; I am amply supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you have sent, a fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
David gives the testimony of old age to logistical grace. PSA 37:25 “I have been young but now I am old; yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken [logistical grace given to imputed righteousness] nor His seed begging bread.” This means that logistical grace blessing to you can extend as far as the third generation.
The testimony of the shepherd is found in PSA 23:1-6 “The Lord is the One shepherding me; therefore, I cannot lack for anything. He causes me to lie down in green pastures of choice food [life support]; He leads me to waters of refreshment [life support]. He restores my soul [rebound]; He guides me in paths of righteousness [problem-solving devices] because of His reputation. Also, when I walk through the valley of the shadow of death [dying grace], I cannot fear evil because You are with me. Your rod [divine discipline] and your staff [divine deliverance], they comfort me. You have prepared before me a table in the presence of my enemies [logistical grace]; you have anointed my head with oil [promotion]; My cup [escrow blessings for time] is overflowing. Only the good [prosperity of escrow blessings] and grace [logistical grace] shall pursue me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” It is impossible for anyone who has imputed divine righteousness to lack anything because the justice of God sends life support and blessing to all believers, both winners and losers. Grace depends on God's reputation, not ours. Both discipline and deliverance are a comfort to believers who know doctrine. As long as you live, logistical grace will pursue you.
The testimony from our Lord is addressed to the apostle Paul in 2CO 12:9 “Then He assured me, ‘My grace [logistical grace] has been and still is sufficient for you. For the power is achieved with weakness.’ Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses in order that the power of Christ may reside in me.’”
Here, weakness refers to grace orientation as a problem-solving device. It refers to humility, lack of arrogance, and to suffering for blessing in providential preventative suffering, momentum testing, and evidence testing. In the grace policy we rely on God's strength to us; we boast in the sense of cognition of Bible doctrine, not in the sense of arrogance. The phrase “that the power of Christ may reside in me” is a reference to the indwelling of Christ and occupation with Christ as the ultimate problem-solving device. It is also a reference to our spiritual growth, following the pattern of the humanity of Christ in the previous dispensation of the Hypostatic Union.
The testimony of the prophet Jeremiah is found in LAM 3:20-25, written as the fifth cycle of discipline was being administered. “Surely my soul remembers and is humbled within me [Jeremiah's grace orientation]. This I recall to mind; therefore I have hope [faith under pressure]. The Lord's gracious functions never cease [perpetuation of logistical grace even to enslaved believers]; His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. ‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul [logistical grace rations]; therefore, I have faith under pressure [in Him]. The Lord is good to those who trust in Him, to the soul who seeks Him.”’ Even as they marched to Babylon, enslaved under the fifth cycle of discipline, the Jews are reminded every morning that God is giving logistical grace to them. Since they are still alive, God has a purpose for their lives. The faithfulness of God never changes, for His grace continues to provide for them in disaster. The verb for trust in verse 25 is qal active participle of QAWAH, referring to a rabbit finding refuge in the cleft of a rock. This connotes the use of the problem-solving devices. The Lord becomes very important to many believers in times of disaster, whereas in times of prosperity, the Lord isn't nearly as important to many casual believers. But these casual attitudes toward the Lord disappear when disaster comes. For those who do seek the Lord and trust in Him through the use of the ten problem-solving devices, they will have a fantastic and magnificent life.
Logistical grace is the basis for the perpetuation of the believer's life in time no matter what disasters may come. God sustains the life of every believer on earth in spite of Satanic opposition, the policy of evil, opposition from others, and our tendencies for self-destruction. TLJC controls history. HEB 1:3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. We have a propensity for self-destruction; yet God keeps us alive in spite of ourselves and in spite of others.
Logistical grace includes six categories of support.
1. Life-sustaining support is provided by God. No believer can depart from life apart from God's will. Therefore all the forces of hell cannot remove one believer apart from God's permission. God also provides all that it takes to support life. PSA 48:14 This God is our God forever and ever; He will be our guide even unto death.
2. Temporal needs such as food, shelter, clothing, transportation, environment, time, a job, etc. are provided by God (MAT 6:33; PHI 4:19).
3. Security provision is taught in the doctrine of eternal security. Your security is from God. This includes the assignment of guardian angels and the provision of the laws of divine establishment for freedom to advance to maturity. If positive toward Bible doctrine, God provides the security for you to make that advance, as in the wall of fire. 1PE 1:5 “We are kept by the power of God.”
4. Spiritual riches are provided by God, such as our portfolio of invisible assets, the ten problem-solving devices, and the unique factors of the Church-age. It also includes the provision of doctrinal teaching from your right pastor, privacy and security necessary to maintain positive volition, the royal family honor code, and discernment to see distractions and set them aside. Spiritual provision of an evangelist, a pastor, the privacy of your priesthood, the Canon, and a local church are all provided for you. EPH 1:3 “Who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing.”
5. Blessings are given to every believer, both winners and losers. These are not to be confused with escrow blessings which are far greater.
6. God preserves us from death.
The Logistical Grace Rationale is found in MAT 6:25-34, the not to worry passage. MAT 6:25-34 “For this reason I say to you, do not be anxious [stop worrying] about or your life, {as to} what you shall eat, or what you shall drink; nor for your body, {as to} what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, and {yet} your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And which of you by being anxious or worrying can add a {single} cubit to his life's span? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory did not clothe himself like one of these. But if God so arrays the common grass of the field, which is {alive} today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, {will He} not much more {do so for} you, O believers of little faith? Do not be anxious or worried then, saying or thinking, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘With what shall we clothe ourselves?’ For all these things the Gentiles eagerly seek; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness [basis for logistical grace is possessing the righteousness of God], and all these things [logistical grace support] shall be provided for you. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will take care of itself [under logistical grace]. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
We are commanded not to worry because God, in logistical grace, will provide for us, regardless of our spiritual status. Remember that logistical grace is for winners and losers. The principle from the first command is that there is no meter on God's grace. Fear, worry, anxiety, apprehension is a rejection of, or ignorance of God's logistical grace provision, yet God continues to support even those who worry. The extent to which you surrender to fear and worry, is the extent of the increase of the power of these things in your life, yet God still keeps you alive. The more things that acquire the power of fear and worry in your life, the greater your capacity for arrogance and becoming a loser, yet God still supports you. The application of verse 34 is that you can so live in the past that you do not live in the present and you worry about the future. Grace gives you the ability to live one day at a time, not handicapped by the past and not distracted by the future.
The A Fortiori of Logistical Grace, ROM 8:31-32 “Therefore to what conclusion are we forced? If God is for us, who is against us? The God who did not even spare His own Son, but on behalf of us all He delivered Him over to judgment, how shall He not also with Him in grace give to us the all things?”
Logistical grace is the basis for stability in time. 1PE 5:12 “I have written you briefly exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it.”
Logistical grace is designed for momentum in the plan of God. HEB 12:28, “Therefore, because we have received to ourselves an unshakable kingdom, let us keep holding grace, through which we might render acceptable service to God with reverence toward Christ and respect toward doctrine.”
Logistical grace continues even in reversionism. 2CO 6:1 “Do not receive the grace of God in vain.” GAL 5:8, “You have drifted off course from grace.” HEB 12:15 “See that no one falls back from the grace of God.”
Understanding logistical grace sets the foundation for the second Unique Royal Commission for every Church-age Believer, our Royal ambassadorship.
An ambassador is a high ranking minister of state or of royalty sent to another state to represent his country. By analogy we are spiritual aristocracy as members of the Royal Family of God, and Christ is the king who has sent us into a foreign country, the cosmic world (PHI 3:20-21). JOH 15:18-19 “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before {it hated} you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” An ambassador does not live in a foreign country for his own personal interest; we are more concerned about the interests of our Lord than our own interests. However, there are different services. Differences of function depend on differences of spiritual gifts, stages of spiritual growth, historical circumstances, and environment at any given moment. Common functions and services are all commanded by scripture, so there is no confusion between what your spiritual gift demands and those functions which are common to all believers, such as witnessing, prayer, and perception of doctrine. In addition to the mandates of scripture, there are many avenues of expressing your ambassadorship, such as utilizing the faith-rest drill and virtue-love as a problem-solving device with emphasis on spiritual self-esteem.
The profile of the ambassador.
- An ambassador does not appoint himself. We are appointed by God Himself at the moment we believe in Jesus Christ. God also gives us the power and ability to handle the job (JOH 15:16).
- The ambassador does not support himself. The Church-age believer, as an ambassador for Christ, is provided by logistical grace.
- The ambassador's instructions are always in written form, so he has no doubt as to what he should do. We have the policies, problem-solving devices, instructions, principles, doctrines, and concepts in written form in the scripture.
- The ambassador does not belong to the country to which he is sent. Our citizenship and home is in heaven. We are also citizens of a client nation to God.
- The ambassador does not live in the foreign country for his own personal interest. We live here on earth solely to serve in the interest of our Lord. Therefore, we subordinate all personal interest to the function of our ambassadorship, which includes the attainment and function of the spiritual skills, filling of the Spirit, cognition of Bible doctrine, and execution of the PPOG. Our production skills, which include our ambassadorship, are in place as of the moment of salvation, but are not effective until we develop spiritual skills.
- The ambassador does not treat any insult to himself as personal. This is the royal ambassador's function in both spiritual self-esteem and impersonal love for all mankind. We tolerate others and hold no grudges. 1PE 2:18-23 “Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable. For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a man bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly. For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God. For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;” When you are insulted, treated unfairly, or ridiculed, you have tremendous problem-solving devices. If you lived on the world's terms, the world would love you as one of its own, but since you live on God's terms and no longer on the world's terms, the world is going to hate you. JOH 15:16-21, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and {that} your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask of the Father in My name, He may give to you. This I command you, that you love one another. If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before {it hated} you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me.”’ You have to have the spiritual strength to use these problem-solving devices to leave the matter in the Lord's hands.
- When an ambassador is recalled, his recall is tantamount to a declaration of war. This is analogous to the Rapture of the church. The tribulation is analogous to the period of war.
- As those with communication gifts, ambassadors are authorized to communicate the great affairs of the kingdom from which they are sent. Pastors and evangelists are authorized and empowered by TLJC to reveal the greatness of His glory. Remember the principle of LUK 12:48 to whom much is given much is required. This is why you will discover that the measure of discipline and punishment on a believer who has heard the truth of Bible doctrine and then has rejected it, is much worse than the believer who has never heard it. This is especially true for those pastors and evangelists, JAM 3:1 Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment. The discipline on leaders with communication gifts (pastors and evangelists) is much worse than the discipline on the followers. An illustration of this of course was Moses, the greatest man in the Old Testament. He was not allowed to go into the promise land, not because he sinned, but because he misrepresented the character and nature of God. In fact, the Lord is much harder on those who misrepresent His character and nature than He is on those who sin. The congregation of Israel sinned over and over again against the Lord and the Lord gave them 10 tests to respond and recover. Moses misrepresented the character and nature of God one time, and he was not permitted to go into the promise land. Again, the principle of LUK 12:48 to whom much is given much is required. If a Royal ambassador communicator, delegated to teach others, misrepresents who God is, two things will happen. First, he will be under a greater judgment (JAM 3:1; LUK 12:48). Secondly, those who listen to him will be totally affected by his false views, even though they think that they are strong enough not to, LUK 6:40 “A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.” This is what the apostle Paul referred to in PHI 3:18-19, “For many keep walking, concerning whom I have warned you many times, and now continue to affirm, even weeping, the enemies of the cross of Christ, whose termination is destruction, whose god is their emotion, and whose time of glory will be a momentary time of shame, who keep thinking about earthly things.” They concentrate on earthly things, because all the metabolized doctrine that these believers had gained is now gone.
- Ambassadors usually are individuals of great distinction and superiority. As an ambassador for Christ, through the grace of God, we have been made individuals of great distinction and superiority because we are members of the Royal Family of God.
- The dignity of the ambassador appears in the greatness of their king who sent them. They usually have respect according to the rank and quality of their master.
The following link is to a good news message describing how one can receive eternal life: Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.
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