Luke 1:13-17
1:13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
1:14 "And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.
1:15 "For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.
1:16 "And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.
1:17 "He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, `to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,' and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
John the Baptist has borne witness to the truth like the burning and shining lamp as follows:
ad. 4. He became a Nazirite of God.
Numbers 6:1-5
6:1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
6:2 "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: `When either a man or woman consecrates an offering to take the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the LORD,
6:3 `he shall separate himself from wine and [similar] drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from [similar] drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins.
6:4 `All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, from seed to skin.
6:5 `All the days of the vow of his separation no razor shall come upon his head; until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the LORD, he shall be holy. [Then] he shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
Becoming a Nazirite of God = becoming a sanctified life, a life that is devoted by God.
A sanctified life means not living in sins up to the peak of sins (eating-drinking sins and marrying and being given in marriage sins) anymore.
The processes of being a person who is devoted by God are as follow:
God blesses us.
1:13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
1:14 "And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.
1:15 "For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.
1:16 "And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.
1:17 "He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, `to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,' and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
John the Baptist has borne witness to the truth like the burning and shining lamp as follows:
- Luke 1:13, He got his name from God
- Luke 1:14, He brought joy and gladness from Heaven
- Luke 1:15a, He was great in the sight of Lord
- Luke 1:15b, He became a Nazirite of God
- Luke 1:15c, He lived in the anointing of Holy Spirit
- Luke 1:16, He made people repent
- Luke 1:17, He became a pioneer/precursor.
ad. 4. He became a Nazirite of God.
Numbers 6:1-5
6:1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
6:2 "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: `When either a man or woman consecrates an offering to take the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the LORD,
6:3 `he shall separate himself from wine and [similar] drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from [similar] drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins.
6:4 `All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, from seed to skin.
6:5 `All the days of the vow of his separation no razor shall come upon his head; until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the LORD, he shall be holy. [Then] he shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
Becoming a Nazirite of God = becoming a sanctified life, a life that is devoted by God.
A sanctified life means not living in sins up to the peak of sins (eating-drinking sins and marrying and being given in marriage sins) anymore.
The processes of being a person who is devoted by God are as follow:
- Being called by God.
I Peter 2:9
2:9 But you [are] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
Being called by God means being called out of the darkness into His marvelous light = being salvaged.
Living in the darkness means being perished forever.
Acts 2:36-38, 40
2:36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
2:37 Now when they heard [this], they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men [and] brethren, what shall we do?"
2:38 Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
2:40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation."
The signs of accepting God’s calling are as follow:- To know assuredly, there is a faith (to believe) in Jesus Christ who has already died on the cross.
Acts 2:36-38
2:36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
2:37 Now when they heard [this], they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men [and] brethren, what shall we do?"
2:38 Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
By knowing assuredly that Jesus has already died on the cross, our heart can be moved that is realizing, confessing, and regretting all our sins to God and neighbor. So we can receive forgiveness. - To repent or to stop doing sin to return to God.
- Water baptism and Holy Spirit baptism = new born life.
I John 3:9
3:9 Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
Being new born life means having new life that is Heavenly life.
The practices are as follow:- Not doing sin anymore, experiencing freedom from sin even when there are threats, disturbance, temptations, profits = living in RIGHTEOUSNESS.
- Not being able to do sins = being righteous like Jesus who is righteous.
I John 3:7
3:7 Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.
This is a salvation that cannot be contested by anything.
- Not doing sin anymore, experiencing freedom from sin even when there are threats, disturbance, temptations, profits = living in RIGHTEOUSNESS.
- To know assuredly, there is a faith (to believe) in Jesus Christ who has already died on the cross.
- Being chosen by God.
I Peter 2:9
2:9 But you [are] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
Exodus 28:1
28:1 ""Now take Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may minister to Me as priest, Aaron [and] Aaron's sons: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
Exodus 29:1
29:1 "And this is what you shall do to them to hallow them for ministering to Me as priests: Take one young bull and two rams without blemish,
Being chosen means being taken one of many people to be purified and sanctified in order to become priests and kings.
Priests and kings are lives who hold ministry and serve God.
With what are we sanctified?
John 15:3
15:3 "You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.
We are sanctified by The True Teaching Word; the Word that is sharper than a two-edged sword, verse is explained by another verse, the Word of God himself.
Hebrews 4:12-13
4:12 For the word of God [is] living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
4:13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things [are] naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we [must give] account.
Matthew 5:27-29
5:27 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, `You shall not commit adultery.'
5:28 "But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
5:29 "If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast [it] from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.
What should be purified?- The heart that is purified from evil desires and adulterous desires.
- The eyes (sight) that is purified in order that we can see Jesus as the High Priest at the right side of the throne of God the Father (there is a spiritual sight), so we can be faithful.
- The deed that is purified to produce righteous and good deeds, meaning the deeds that please Jesus.
Matthew 5:30
5:30 "And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast [it] from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. - The purification of character from hardness of heart/self-truth (sinful people cover their sins by blaming the others)
Matthew 5:31-32
5:31 "Furthermore it has been said, `Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.'
5:32 "But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery. - The mouth that is purified means mouth that stops lying until does not stumble in word, being perfect.
Matthew 5:33-37
5:33 "Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, `You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.'
5:34 "But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne;
5:35 "nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
5:36 "Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black.
5:37 "But let your `Yes' be `Yes,' and your `No,' `No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.
James 3:2
3:2 For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.
4:11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
4:12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
If we want to be purified by the sword that is sharper than a two-edged sword, we will be equipped with the tunic of ministry. When we are willing to become priests that are the servant of God, God will make everything beautiful in His time.We often already become priests but our life is still not beautiful, that’s because of our own fault such as being unfaithful, often removing the tunic, not living in righteousness, not living in holiness, socializing in false society, and often hiding something.
By having the priest’s ministry, our lives will be employed in the ministry of building the perfect body of Christ. Being in the ministry of building the body of Christ means we are not tortured but God is adorning our lives and making everything beautiful in His time. - The heart that is purified from evil desires and adulterous desires.
- Being devoted by God.
Leviticus 21:12
21:12 `nor shall he go out of the sanctuary, nor profane the sanctuary of his God; for the consecration of the anointing oil of his God [is] upon him: I am the LORD.
Being devoted = being shepherded. The priests must persevere in doing 3 main services (the Holy Place):- The Golden Candlestick: perseverance in doing General Service, Youth Service and Fellowship.
- Table of Showbread: perseverance in doing Bible Study Service and Holy Communion.
- Golden Altar of Incense : perseverance in doing Prayer Service.
- To firm our righteousness, holiness, up to perfection.
- In order to maintain the Holy Spirit ointment over our heads = the hair of a Nazirite that should not be shaved = not being dry spirituality
If the hair is shaved and the head become bald, one is tossed by Satan as a ball, the spiritual is dry.
- To bring unity.
Psalm 133:1-2
133:1 A Song of Ascents. Of David.Behold, how good and how pleasant [it is] For brethren to dwell together in unity!
133:2 [It is] like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments.
Being in unity/ being harmonious means as follow:- In peace, there is no animosity, no bitter heart.
- One heart, one voice.
Romans 15:5
15:5 Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be likeminded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus,
- In peace, there is no animosity, no bitter heart.
- Being the crown of the bride to welcome the second coming of the Lord.
James 1:12
1:12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
The crown = the Holy Spirit ointment to change our lives, spiritual miracle happens, from carnal man to spiritual man as follow:- We become endurable (not being disappointed, not being proud of anything, and only giving thanks to God). We can also hold fast to the true teaching Word.
- We can obey and be obedient to God; we love God more than anything. If we are able to experience the spiritual miracle, the physical miracles will happen.
- We become endurable (not being disappointed, not being proud of anything, and only giving thanks to God). We can also hold fast to the true teaching Word.
- The Golden Candlestick: perseverance in doing General Service, Youth Service and Fellowship.
God blesses us.