The Testament

“How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through an eternal spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify your conscience from dead works to serve the living God. Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred which redeems them from the transgressions under the first covenant. For where there is a testament, the death of the testator must of necessity be established.” Hebrews 9:14-16.

A testament documents what a person has left behind at his death, and who shall inherit the same. What then does the testament contain that Jesus has given us? It contains all that He had gained in His body. By His testament, all of this has become available to all those who believe. So what exactly did the testament contain? “He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent. For in him all the of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.” Colossians 1:18-20.

“. . . that their hearts may be encouraged as they are knit together in love, to have all the riches of assured understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery of Christ, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Colossians 2:2-3. “For in him the whole of the Godhead dwells bodily, and you have come to Him, who is the head of all power and authority.” Verses 9-10.

What is it then that has been given to us in Jesus’ testament? No less than the fullness of the Godhead and, “all the riches of assured understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, of Christ, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” This is no meager inheritance! No wonder Jesus said, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” John 16:7. He says further: “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” Verses 12-15.

We read that Jesus offered Himself up in the power of an eternal spirit; so this Spirit became familiar with everything that was in Christ Jesus, as well as the way to obtain it. It was also part of the testament that He would send us this Spirit to guide us on the new and living way through the veil, which was His flesh, and to show us the glory that was willed to us. Without this Spirit we would not be able to keep our bearings on “the new and living way,” and would thus be unable to take possession of everything that has been willed to us. Therefore, Jesus said that the disciples were to remain in Jerusalem until they received what He had spoken of—that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them; and then they were to be His witnesses. Acts 1.

In 2 Peter, chapter 1, we read about the fulfillment of what Jesus spoke about, and of what He left us in His testament, in His will: “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to is own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, that through these you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of passion, and become partakers of the divine nature.” Then come those glorious exhortations to partake of the virtues of Christ for which we have received all things in order to take possession of them and grow in them, and which are promised to us through the knowledge of Christ.

After Paul had heard of the Ephesians’ faith in the Lord Jesus and their love for all the saints, he understood that they still lacked something. They had a foundation for receiving it, however, and so he writes, “I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power in us who believe, according to the working of his great might which he accomplished in Christ when he raised him from the dead and made him sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come; and he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the of him who fills all in all.” Ephesians 1:16-23.

Who, indeed, can comprehend and contain all that Paul writes about here? And who, indeed, has received this knowledge? We need the Holy Spirit to enlighten our hearts so that we can take possession of our inheritance. When Paul had called together the elders of Ephesus, he said to them, “Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all of you, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of god.” Acts 20:26-27.

What, then, was this “whole counsel of God”? It was that the entire fullness of the Godhead was to dwell in a body that was of the seed of David. And that took place in Jesus. His resurrection was evidence that He “did not see corruption.” By the knowledge of the new and living way, which Jesus consecrated, the way into the whole counsel of God is now open to us. Our inheritance is that we have received the Holy Spirit to guide us, just as Jesus had the Father to guide Him; and no limit has been set: “In him you also, who have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, which is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” Ephesians 1:13-14.

When Paul preached the gospel, he preached the whole counsel of God: “. . . and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:19. And he adds, “Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think . . . .” Verse 20. The power at work within us is the love of Christ. The only thing that can hinder us in this development is a failure on our part to hold fast to the Head, “from whom the whole body nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.” Colossians 2:19.

There is no doubt whatsoever that Paul means that this is a growth we should partake of while we are in the body—just as Jesus partook of growth and development in the days of His flesh; and he says: “But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter.” 2 Thessalonians 2:13-15.

Paul wrote concerning himself, “. . . that if possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” Philippians 3:11. “I press on that I might apprehend that for which Christ Jesus has apprehended me.” Verses 12-14. The way to it was open, and the possibility was there; and one thing he did, straining forward to it and proclaiming it, for his gospel came to them “not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord.” 1 Thessalonians 1:5-6.

“Yes, but,” you say, “don’t we receive all this as a gift when we receive the inheritance?” Then we must say, like Paul, “I want you to know, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea . . . .” 1 Corinthians 10:1-12. In these verses you can read how most of them acted. They only wanted to eat and drink and play. They were not worthy to receive the inheritance.

They had all received the Promised Land, which flowed with milk and honey, as an inheritance from their forefathers—Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and their seed. They went up to take possession of it, and we know what happened. They drew near, but they did not have faith to take up the battle against the enemy in the land. They became opposers of Joshua and Caleb, who had faith. This teaches us how receptive people are to the voice of unbelief and how difficult it is to lead them to faith. They are not willing to suffer; they are not willing to fight the good fight of faith and lay hold of eternal life. 1 Timothy 6:12. And that is just how it is today with the religious masses. Read Numbers 13:16-33 and chapter 14. These passages of Scripture are very instructive.

If God had sent a pestilence into the land beforehand, so that all the giants were lying dead when the Israelites came, they would then have said the same thing we normally hear preached today: “God has fought for us; He has done everything, and we shall do nothing.” Then there would have been rejoicing in the camp. But what sort of education would they have received? They would not have come to know God—the God who caused the sun to stand still and gave the people victory.

The Israelites believed only in their own strength—so of course they weren’t able to take the land. But Joshua and Caleb believed God, which is why they had God’s good pleasure over them and could take the enemy like a peace of bread. During the years spent in the wilderness, Joshua and Caleb had come to know God through all the miracles they had witnessed. This was not true of the others, who had to turn back to the wilderness again. Moses had prayed that God might forgive them, and God did; but they did not enter the Promised Land.

There in the wilderness God gave them the brass serpent that they could look upon and thus save their lives when bitten by snakes. And so it is with the religious masses today. They speak about Jesus as if He were a brass serpent, as One they can look upon and so receive forgiveness of sins. John 3:14-16. We do preach the forgiveness of sin through Jesus, but we preach the gospel as well—that which the law could not led us to. Acts 13:38-39.

By the blood of Jesus we draw near, just as Israel drew near. “[And you] he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him, provided that you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel which you heard . . . .” Colossians 1:22-23. For this to continue to take place, sin in the flesh must be put to death, as we read in Ephesians 2:13-18. “. . . even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him . . . .” Ephesians 1:4-6.

Here it is not a question of being irreproachable according to the law, for then we are standing before man. Paul had attained to that before Jesus met him. Now it is a matter of being irreproachable and blameless before God’s face. For this to be true, the enemy must be put to death in the body. We cannot merely receive Jesus as a brass serpent—a sin offering; we must also receive Him as Lord and High Priest. In so doing we experience a far greater salvation: being conformed to the image of God’s Son, that we may become His brothers. Romans 5:10, 14:9; Colossians 2:6.

“. . . and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from that spiritual Rock which followed them, and that Rock was Christ.” 1 Corinthians 10:4. This is an instructive lesson and an example for us. “Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, that the people may drink.’ And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel.” Exodus 17:6. Jesus was stricken; He had to die, the Just for the unjust, so that we could receive the forgiveness of sins. But we read further how Moses was to inspire them to become conquerors:

“And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Take the rod, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water; so you shall bring water out of the rock; so you shall give drink to the congregation and their cattle.’ And Moses took the rod from before the Lord, as he commanded him. And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, ‘Hear now, you rebels; shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock?’ And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his rod twice; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their cattle. And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ‘Because you did not believe in me, to sanctify me in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.’” Numbers 20:7-12.

We learn from this that we are not always to “strike the rock”—which is to have Jesus as a sin offering. Jesus rose from the dead as Lord. We must receive Him as Lord and High Priest. Then “. . . much more now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.” Romans 5:10. So, after we have been reconciled to god by the forgiveness of sins, we must come into such a relationship with Him that we can speak to Him as Hid disciples. Romans 4:24-25; 5:10. Then we come into a relationship of obedience. Hebrews 5:9-14. We receive grace to enter the promised land—putting sin in the flesh to death—and to take possession of our inheritance.

However, we must not let ourselves be moved from the hope of the gospel, like Israel did when they had drawn near and beheld the enemy in the land. Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.” Hebrews 4:14. This was the spirit that Joshua and Caleb had received, and the entered the land.

When people hear the gospel about salvation in the body and about the inheritance, they say, “Impossible!” They have not come to faith in Jesus as their surety, their High Priest and lord. They only reckon with their own strength, like Israel did, and they end up wandering in the wilderness, with no growth and development and no possibility of obtaining the inheritance.

We are called to partake of a tried faith through the “obedience of faith.” “In this you rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1:6-7. By this faith we take possession of the inheritance.