This is a subject that most Christians avoid like the plague! Snobbishness, ‘better-than thou’ scenario, aloof groups who call themselves ‘Holiest-of-all’ groups and keep to themselves, people who claim to be ‘manifested sons’ who show the fullness of Christ in every area right now, attendees of elite conferences . . . and on it goes. A subject very much avoided or ignored completely hoping that it will just go away! Let us search out the matter and see what God says about these ones He refers to in such a way.
The Greek language, which we must go back to for
accurate renderings of truth, has a number of different words with different
meanings that the KJV quite often ignores by mistranslation. Whilst there are
many Greek words depicting growth such as BREPHOS (=First breath) to NEPIOS
(=not yet speaking) to PAIDIA (=beastly ... early childhood) to NEANISKOS (=full
of energy ... teenagers), we shall major on the two main contrasting words for
CHILDREN and SONS.
The first is TEKNON which means child and is translated child ... one who has not matured into adulthood and the other is HUIOS which means mature son and is many times rendered as child and children in the KJV.
Most bibles in English do not distinguish between these names even though the Author does.
Romans 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature is waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God. The word ‘Creature’ should really read ‘creation’ which is all-inclusive . . . (20) For the creature (creation) was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of Him who has subjected the same in hope. Creator-God knew all along where creation would deteriorate to. He planned that out from the Calvary provision, there would be release from the effect of man’s degeneration and corruption through a first-fruits/overcomer group of mature sons who would be called to set creation free.
The SONS of this verse are mature sons (HUIOS) . . . they are not babes and they are not immature children!
John 14:11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake.
(12) Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believes on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
To fulfil this calling, one needs to experience the full nature of Father-God that Jesus had, the full authority that He declared and have access to the miraculous supply of Father resources. It is obvious that without all that Jesus was, we cannot hope to fulfil this command. God does not ease us, so it is in His plan to have some who will mature to a place where they can be 100% effectively used by Him.
Matthew 13:8 But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. From the same ground comes three distinct harvests of the seed sown therein. 30-fold, 60-fold and 100-fold. This parable of the sower should be renamed the parable of the soil. Maturity in the bringing forth of the Life that is in the Seed, Christ Jesus, planted in the earth of our hearts, certainly varies and it is dependent upon the degree of surrender of our thinking (soil/ground) to His roots of the seed sown. 100-fold increase of what was sown is the desire of our heavenly- Farmer.
He is bringing many sons to glory (Heb.2:14). Note that ‘many’ is not ‘all’! There is a principle with God and His people . . . He chooses a people from within His people. It parallels the ‘first-fruits’ of the harvest of Himself in us that He might be the first-born among many brethren.
Romans 8:29 For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren. Again the ‘many’ is not ‘all’! These ‘sons’ will be changed . . . not to remain ‘saved-sinners’ in their Church but to mature to ‘saints’ in the Kingdom of God equipped to rule and reign with Christ.
CONDITIONAL
Read the following accounts and others which show that God selects out of His people, some who meet His conditions. Gideon had 300 overcomers out of his complete army of 32,000: David obtained a victory using 400 out of his total army of 600: the pattern of the ‘Tent’ within the Outer Court of Moses Tabernacle: Jesus took Peter, James and John out of ‘the twelve’ up the mountain of transfiguration while the remainder of the disciples stayed at the foot of the mountain having a ‘service’!
Matthew 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Conditional again!
CONTRAST
Romans 8:16 The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children (TEKNON) of God: The Spirit within will certainly witness with each born-again believer that they are God’s children.
Romans 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons (HUIOS) of God. Here we see the first distinction between TEKNON-CHILDREN and the HUIOS-SONS for the latter are led by the Spirit in their daily walk . . . and that covers all areas of their lives. This is not usually understood by God’s ‘teknons’.
THE PATHWAY TO SONSHIP
Sons of God are mature because they have learned to overcome the many obstacles to their believing, to their decisions to their walk in Him. They have been true to the Lord having agreed with His diagnoses and dealings that they might be changed from glory to glory into the image of His son as by the Spirit (2 Cor.3:17-18). God, by His Spirit, apprehends those He has called and challenges them to become overcomers so that they can receive and display the rewards. There are many and varied pressures from tradition and Church leadership such as manipulation, domination and intimidation. Some overcome and receive the promises (Revelation chapters 2 & 3) while others do not overcome and therefore do not receive anything extra.
Phil 3:14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. (15) Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you. ‘Perfect’ means complete and mature and these ones have a mind-set that expects to achieve the high calling. ‘Pressing’ requires discipline and effort knowing that the ‘flesh’ will press almost as hard against one’s progress.
God started out with Israel being known as God’s son (man-membered even back there!) for God told Moses to tell Pharaoh, ‘Israel is My Son, My First-born ... Let my son go’ . . . over two million of them! Later after Moses received God’s law for His people. Those people under High Priest Aaron rebelled and ignored their calling to wholly follow the Lord. Moses then stood apart and spoke, ‘All those who will stand by God, come and stand by me’. Opportunity for all the people of God to repent, but no, only the tribe of Levi came to Moses. In Numbers 8 God now declares that He would have these priests as His First-born Son. From then on the priesthood deteriorated until Jesus came and was made a priest and He restored the priesthood but under an entirely new format — that of the Melchisedec order. §
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