The Throne of God

"Then He who sat on the throne said, 'Behold, I make all things new" (Revelation 21:5). We saw the throne of God in Revelation 4:2-4. There was a rainbow around the throne, as a sign of God's mercy. Never again would He destroy the earth with a flood. Again, we saw the throne of God in Revelation 20:11-12. It is the great white throne of judgment. Now, we see the throne of God in Revelation 21. No emphasis is on its appearance. The focus is upon God's voice.

The throne of heaven is a symbol of God's sovereign dominion over all. When He speaks, it shall be done. He decrees what shall come to pass. His word is with absolute sovereign authority. God said to John, "Write, for these words are true and faithful" (Revelation 21:5). God cannot lie (Titus 1:2). He is the God of all truth. He is faithful to His word to perform it.

From the throne of heaven, God's voice declared our salvation. God said, "He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be my son" (Revelation 21:7). And, how do we overcome? The Bible is clear. "Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" (1 John 5:5). Salvation is believing on the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:30-31).

From the throne of heaven, God's voice declared judgment and condemnation for all who are unbelieving (Revelation 21:8). They shall experience the second death in the lake of fire. The word death (Grk: thanatos) does not mean annihilation but separation. That is separation from God forever in the lake of fire. "He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him" (John 3:36).

Christ Is All Theology

Charles Spurgeon wrote, "Jesus Christ, who is the sum and the substance of the gospel, who is in himself all theology, the incarnation of every precious truth, the all glorious embodiment of the way, the truth and the life." Theology is defined as the study of God. Spurgeon knew that God was incarnate in Christ (John 1:14). God is expressly revealed to us in Christ (Hebrews 1:1-3). 

Theologians have different views and opinions on many subjects concerning God. That can be confusing to many believers. What should we do? Spurgeon had the answer. He taught that Jesus Christ is in himself all theology, the incarnation of every precious truth. Interpreting the Bible must be done in the light of our Lord Jesus Christ. He has the final word in understanding the Bible.

Jesus Christ is in himself all theology, because he is the full, total, and final revelation of God. Jesus is the express image or likeness of God (Hebrews 1:1-3). Jesus said, He who has seen me has seen the Father (John 14:9). Jesus is the revelation of God the Father.

Spurgeon knew that Jesus is the incarnation of God. He is God in flesh, fully God and fully man. All theology is summarized in the first chapter of John's Gospel. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (John 1:1). And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (John 1:14). That's God revealed to us in Christ.

How Prayer Receives

Prayer receives according to the promises of God in the Bible. The promises of God are sure to you as a believer. Your faith is strengthened, when you ask according to God's promises. There are thousands of promises in the Bible. He hears and answers."Yet you do not have because you do not ask" (James 4:2).

Prayer receives according to God's word of promise. That's asking according to the will of God. That means we are certain of God's will. "Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us" (1 John 5:14).

We believe God can do anything, but will He do what we are asking? It's certain He will, if it's according to His word of promise. The word of God is the will of God. "For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us" (2 Corinthians 1:20). Prayer is asking and receiving based upon God's promises in Jesus name.

Prayer receives according to God's word and will in the Bible. His answer will be Yes and Amen in Christ. We may be reluctant to ask God for anything, because we think God's answer may be no. However, it is Yes in the Bible, so ask in Jesus name. Jesus Christ is the Amen to our requests. Amen means "so be it." Prayer receives based upon God's word and will in Jesus name.

Your Spiritual Growth

Your spiritual growth is through a personal relationship with God in Christ. Don't be satisfied to remain where you are without growing in Christ. "But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). That statement summarizes your spiritual growth in Christ. 

Your spiritual growth is through the word of God in the Bible. A proper diet is necessary to maintain good health. Likewise, feeding upon God's word in the Bible is necessary for your growth in Christ. Knowledge should lead to growing in the grace of Christ, which is the unmerited favor of God. 

Your spiritual growth strengthens your faith in Christ. So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17). We believe what we know is true. Increased knowledge of Christ should lead to increased faith and assurance in Christ. That is growth in grace. It's growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Your spiritual growth is through life situations. God allows us to be in situations beyond our ability, that we may not trust in ourselves but in Him. Our impossibilities are always His possibilities. With God all things are possible. Jesus said, "For without me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). That lesson leads us to spiritual growth in the grace of Christ, as we trust Him in all of life's situations. Oh for grace to trust Him more!

The Holy Spirit Resisted

God's grace is resisted by those who reject the gospel. They have "insulted the Spirit of grace" (Hebrews 10:29). The Bible teaches that people resist the Holy Spirit, because their hearts have not been changed by the grace of God. Those who are lost face condemnation by rejecting the gospel of Christ.

"You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you" (Acts 7:51). Only the Spirit of God can change our hearts, which means the mind, will, and emotions. By resisting the Spirit of grace, those who are lost insult the only one who can apply the gospel of Christ to their hearts.

The Spirit of grace, who changes our corrupt hearts, is the same Spirit who convicts those who are lost of unbelief. Conviction is grace that precedes new birth (John 16:7-11). When conviction is resisted, grace is resisted. Conviction deals specifically with the sin of unbelief, in essence, rejecting the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Those who are lost reject the light of Christ. Jesus said, "And this is condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil" (John 3:19). Therefore, those who are lost resist the Spirit of grace and have no one to blame but themselves for their own just condemnation.

How Salvation Is Applied

Salvation is applied through the Holy Spirit. He is known also as the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:29). The Holy Spirit works in your heart to have a personal relationship with Christ. Your mind is enlightened. The Spirit of grace enables us to confess Jesus is Lord (1 Corinthians 12:3).

The Spirit of grace applies salvation in Christ. It is "the grace of God that brings salvation" (Titus 2:11). Grace is the goodness of God leading us to repentance (Romans 2:4). Grace is the gift of God in Christ received by faith (Ephesians 2:8-9).

The Spirit of grace does not force us to believe in Christ. God's grace works in and through our will, but never to do violence to our will. Without this work of God's grace, your will is in bondage to sin and unable to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Spirit of grace applies salvation, not our works. "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you both to will and do for His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:12-13). We don't work for our salvation. We work out what God has worked in us. That is the grace of God in Christ.

The Spirit of grace brings us to repentance and faith in Christ. It is all of grace (Ephesians 2:5, 8-10). Grace is the way God initiates our salvation. We are enabled by the Spirit of grace to respond to the gospel of Christ (John 16:7-11; Acts 15:11).

Bride-Elect of Christ

In Bible days a father chose the bride-elect for his son. God the Father has chosen the bride-elect for His Son (Ephesians 1:4-6). The bride of Christ is the church. The custom of Bible days was for the fathers of the bride and groom to enter a covenant, a binding agreement, concerning the future marriage.

For Christ and the church, the binding agreement is the new covenant or testament. God the Father has entered into an everlasting covenant with His Son (Hebrews 13:20-21). The church is the bride-elect, including all who are born of the Spirit through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. 

In Bible days, the groom paid a price for his bride-elect. Christ loved the church and purchased her with the blood of His cross (Ephesians 5:25). These words from a hymn describes the love of Christ for the church: "From heaven He came and sought her to be His holy bride. With His own blood He bought her and for her life He died."

The groom gave gifts to his bride-elect. Christ sends the Holy Spirit with gifts to the church. They are the three abiding gifts of faith, hope, and love (1 Corinthians 13:13). The greatest gift of all is love. "We love Him because He first loved us" (1 John 4:19). The church is the bride-elect. The elect includes all who are chosen by grace through faith in Christ.