Weekly Bible Study – July 28, 2014

The new things that have come;
The Royal Ambassadorship and the Royal Priesthood. Part 4

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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

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STUDY TITLE:

The new things that have come;
The Royal Ambassadorship and the Royal Priesthood. Part 4



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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

To look up other “terms”, go to:

Alphabetical Listing

BEGIN BIBLE STUDY
Unless otherwise noted, all scripture quotes and references
are from the NASB – New American Standard Bible

The new things that have come;
the principle of equality in election and predestination. Part 4

Under the doctrine of new things have come, we have been noting the two unique Royal Commissions: The Royal priesthood and the Royal ambassadorship. We have looked at the Royal priesthood, and now are noting the second Royal commission which is our Royal ambassadorship. We began with the principle of the divine principle of logistical grace support

First of all, logistics is a military word which refers to the military science of supply, provision, and planning of troop movement. This has to do with the fact that we are all enlisted in the army of God.

You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier. (2TI 2:1-4)

Logistics is also the provision, movement, and maintenance of all resources and services necessary to sustain military forces. As ambassadors of Christ we have the responsibility to be soldiers for the Lord Jesus Christ.

Logistics is also defined as the military science of planning, handling, and implementation of personnel under every possible military condition. From this military nomenclature comes this Bible doctrine based on analogy. Logistics always plays a very important and dramatic part in warfare, but logistics plays an even greater part in your life as a believer. MAT 6:33-7:26 gives us a look at this principle of logistical grace.

The word logistics comes from two Greek words:

1) Logistes - an inspector of accounts, an auditor, a calculator.

2) Logismos - a thinker.

Hence, 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:

a. Life support is provided for every Church-age believer. “My times are in Thy hand.” (PSA 31:15).

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. (Rom14:7-8)

This explains how and why we are alive every moment. The only reason we are alive is because of logistical grace. We do not earn or deserve it; there’s no work we can accomplish to keep ourselves alive.

b. 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 both winners and losers. 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. This is why God provides logistical grace to both winners and losers. You are alive only because of the grace of God, not because of anything you do. The indwelling righteousness of God is the recipient of all life support and all blessing from God. This is the grace pipeline and it excludes human merit and ability from all blessing. Winners utilize logistical grace, losers coast on it, but never utilize it.

c. Under logistical grace, there is the divine provision for every Church-age believer to execute the PPOG. All doctrine comes from a prepared pastor-teacher. If you have persistent positive volition, you will find doctrine and your right pastor-teacher.

Throughout the Bible, there are testimonies of logistical grace. The anthropomorphic testimony is found in passages like DEU 33:27. An anthropopomorphisms ascribes to God human physical characteristics that He does not actually possess. This is used as a teaching device in order for man to understand God's divine policy, character and function on man’s own finite level of understanding.

The eternal God is a dwelling place, And underneath are the everlasting arms; (DEU 33:27).

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 [essential value] production. The context for this verse is giving. If your attitude is right, God will provide the means for you to give. God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you’re ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done.

How is God able to make all grace abound in giving us things? Logistical grace is the answer. This sufficiency is not qualified by occurring only during 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. There is no historical situation or circumstance to which this does not apply.

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. (PHI 4:18-19)

You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, His generosity exceeds even yours in the glory that pours from the Lord Jesus Christ. David gives the testimony of old age to logistical grace in PSA 37:25. The testimony of the shepherd is found in PSA 23:1-6.

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. You do not fear anything under dying grace. Both discipline and deliverance are a comfort to the believer who knows doctrine. As long as you live, logistical grace will pursue you.

The testimony from our Lord is given by 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.

Weakness refers to grace orientation as a problem solving device. It refers to humility, lack of arrogance, and to suffering for blessing in the three categories: providential preventative suffering, momentum testing, and evidence testing.

Weakness is our part; 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. That the power of Christ may reside in me is a reference to the fact that Jesus Christ indwells His body 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 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. 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 planet earth in spite of Satanic opposition, the policy of evil, opposition from others, and our tendencies for self-destruction. The Lord Jesus Christ controls history.

We have a propensity for self-destruction; yet God keeps us alive in spite of ourselves and in spite of others.

Authority is your friend, not your enemy. Authority is also an accepted source of information, as in the case of the authority of the pastor-teacher to provide doctrinal or theological information from the scriptures. Therefore authority can also be defined in terms of an expert on a particular subject. When it comes to the Royal ambassadorship, it’s important to note that there must be the implementation of divine authority for all the royal ambassadors to work together. This is why Satan and the kingdom of darkness love to break down the unity that needs to exists in the local assembly.

For our study concerning the principle of our Royal ambassadorship, unity is defined in different ways:

- The status of being combined with others to form a greater whole. We have been combined with other believers through the baptism of the Spirit at the moment of salvation. We are not here to only serve God, but to serve and help one another.

“This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends, if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. 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.” (JOH 15:12-17)

We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. (1JO 3:16)

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you, and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. (EPH 5:1-2)

- As members of the Royal Family and Royal Ambassadors we also need to note that unity is defined as the status of being harmonious with other members of the royal family of God.

Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Do all things without grumbling or disputing; (PHI 2:1-14)

We are all enlisted in the army of God. That enlistment begins with you understanding the principle of authority, which includes enforced and genuine humility, not critical and judgmental presumptuousness. If you are at a point where you disrespect the authority you are a part of, you should do one of two things: 1) Leave the organization. 2) Humble yourself, rebound, and become a part of the solution, not the problem. Authority is your friend, not your enemy. Authority is also an accepted source of information, as in the case of the authority of the pastor-teacher to provide doctrinal or theological information from the scriptures. Therefore authority can also be defined in terms of an expert on a particular subject. When it comes to the Royal ambassadorship, it’s important to note that there must be the implementation of divine authority for all the royal ambassadors to work together. This is why Satan and the kingdom of darkness love to break down the unity that needs to exists in the local assembly.

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.