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Indeed, why would anyone seek the living among the dead? The cemetery is not the place where heart-beating bodies are generally found. You might find the gravedigger, the groundskeeper, a preacher or two, or perhaps people in a funeral procession; but all in all, the graveyard is not the best place to look. Life does not abide therein. Any place but among the tombs would be where life is generally found. Even so, people of the world scout every avenue and back alley of death, looking for some form of life, hoping to stave off the hunger pangs of their empty souls. Eating husks along with the pigs is not a good diet for anyone, and this concerns us greatly. We are pained until they are all delivered from those dead places of futility. It is obvious to anyone with any insight at all that the worldly masses are looking in fruitless places for life, and such vain attempts are expected of them. But we would not expect our brothers and sisters also to look for the living among the dead, but they do. Christians of all faiths spend much of their time exploring catacombs, digging in graveyards, musing through lifeless tombs, and admiring whited sepulchers. They are like the archeologists who scour the earth for evidence of the dead past, who search and dig with much interest and vigor. It is their life and livelihood. For some reason, death fascinates them. However, should that be the lot for those called by the name of Christ? We should say not! For there is no value in death, not one breath. Only with the living is there truly anything of worth. Therefore, if you are looking for life, it won't be found among the dead. The only time the living should go there is when they are sent into hell to free those held captive by death. We see an example of this with the four Lepers of Samaria (See Lepers of Samaria, 3 part series. Free upon request). After securing the goods and treasures the enemy had possessed, they went back to the gates of the starving city and announced the good news. Once the people heard that victory had been won, the gatekeeper could not hold them in. They stormed those gates of hell and trampled him to death. There are times when it is profitable to enter death and hell; but although explorations of that realm may interest the natural mind -- it will prove fruitless. CATACOMBS OF FAITH In what manner do believers seek the living among the dead? There are really too many to count; but we can begin by noticing the Catacombs of Faith, or the Great Hall of Faith as it is generally called. Hebrews 11 speaks of all the patriarchs who died in faith, not having received the promise. Seeking the living among those who received not the promise (of Christ's life) would certainly be groping among the dead with flickering candles in endless caverns of darkness. Moreover, the writer admonished the Hebrews, saying to lay aside their faith in all those dead men and women. Otherwise, they would be so easily beset by having their attention drawn to them. Seeking life from those who died, those who had not received the promise, would be as much a sin (missing the mark) as it would to look to any dead man for their source of life. It was not to be done then, and neither should it be done today. If you fail to remember what the writer said about this in particular, we will refresh your mind: "And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect. Wherefore seeing we also are compassed (compassed: "perikeimai, to lie all around, i.e. enclose, encircle, hamper" (Strong's) about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus (Not the patriarchs) the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Heb 11:39--12:2) The witness and testimonies of the patriarchs can encourage and give directions; but only in Jesus is life found. Again, we note the words: "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..." (Heb 12:2). We can be told about faith, as the writer of Hebrews made clear, but only in and by Jesus can faith be initiated, which will eventually be swallowed up of life's reality, bringing an end to faith. When I read how those giants of faith lived and died for the blaze of life they saw afar off, my spirit races and my soul soars with excitement. It speeds through the catacombs of yesteryear's vanguards. But there is not one name on that honorable list wherein I have ever found life. I've always had to look to Jesus, the Captain of my salvation. I can see Him and hear His voice in the words of those great men; but they are not the focal point of my life. Jesus is! CEMETERIES What would you say to a friend who invited you to go with him to the cemetery to dig up a couple of bodies in hopes of finding some life? If you didn't have the inspiration from on high to raise the dead, you would tell him to get a life, or he had lost his mind. For no one would seek the living in such a place. Even those seeking Jesus were expecting to find a corpse, not life. Why then, are so many flocking to ceremonial and scholarly cemeteries with hopes of finding life? Perhaps the dead are of more interest to them than the living. We could classify various areas as to where the dead are buried. A couple of good examples would be the seminaries and Bible colleges around the world. It has been said that this is where they kill the prophets and bury the Word. You see, if one has a spark of revelation when he enters the unhallowed halls of those training centers, by the time they leave they will have been killed spiritually, and the anointed word of Christ they once had will have been buried deep in the earthen tenets and dogmas of their religious persuasions. Another example hits closer to home. Many who embrace Kingdom truths, and nominal faiths alike, look for life in the cemeteries of teachings. They bury themselves in the libraries galore of religious books and tapes. There is nothing wrong with books and tapes when the content has worth, and there are many containing priceless gems of the Kingdom. If I thought it wrong to read books, this pen would cease from flowing, and The Pathfinder would be nothing more than dusty archives of years past. If they contain genuine truths, the problem is not in books and tapes themselves. The problem is due to one's clouded focus. If it is not clear, and they are poring over the letter of the word alone searching for life, they have missed it. If, however, they are looking for the letter to help direct them to the life, and they are seeing and hearing the Spirit of the word, then all is well and good. And if they are swept into the heavens by the quickened word while reading or listening to tapes, this is wonderful. They are then receiving and entering into the word by the Spirit. Focusing merely on the letter for life will only heap more dirt upon their entombed souls. I am reminded of a time when the Lord gave me a dream that revealed a stark contrast between the letter of the Word, and the Word Himself: I was an observer in a large room. On one side was Jesus sitting alone at a table. On the other were shelves filled with books, ancient volumes, and scholarly works of all types. There were religious men with hooded robes poring over the books, and with the utmost scrutiny they were riveted to every word. Meticulously, they examined every jot and tittle with hopes of unraveling the secrets of God. I knew their thoughts, that if they could understand the mysteries of the ages, they believed they would hold the keys of God's power and lay hold of eternal life. They, however, were so intent on the books that they never saw Jesus, the answer to their quest, who was so very near. My attention was diverted from those learned men of profound knowledge when a small child of four or five years old walked through the door. The first thing he saw was Jesus, and he headed straight for Him. Without hesitation, he ran over and jumped upon His cozy lap. Jesus wrapped His arms around the child and gave him a big hug. They sat there talking about nothing in particular, just enjoying each other's company. As long as the scene lasted, the elders never noticed Jesus or the child; for they were too busy searching through the graveyards of death in hopes of unraveling the mysteries of life. How sad. Ah, as a little child, of which Jesus often spoke. "Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Mat 18:4). You see, the little boy had his focus upon Life itself -- Jesus. Rather than being engrossed with those epitaphs about Jesus, he found his heart's desire while the scholars were busy digging up bones. Jesus also said, "Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein" (Luke 18:17) I am persuaded that Jesus is not so interested in how much we know, but Who we know. His desire is fellowship. We are certainly not to be void of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding of spiritual matters; but He sure loves children, and if we want His ear and heart, then let us humble ourselves as children. Learn if we want, for it's good to learn. Read books and listen to tapes that exalt our Lord, and if heard by the Spirit, it will help to open the heavens to Him. Rightly divide the word of truth; but always, above all things, let us have the heart of a child. Love and not hate. Make peace and not war. Heal and not hurt. Mend and not rend. Forgive and not begrudge. "Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men" (1 Cor 14:20). In so doing, you will enter into the abode of Christ. And if you are already as a little child, you must presently be in the Kingdom of God. Righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost is resident in you, which is your rite of passage. We must make sure we do not remain children in our understanding or way of thinking; for there is a time for growing up. In your spirit, always -- be ye as a child. In all your comings and goings, in all your mature doings, let your heart be as a child. In this, you shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, saith the LORD (Isa 65:25). We are troubled when men and women of tremendous revelation and knowledge of Kingdom truths are swept into the sea of pride. Our hearts ache as we see them cast aside their childlike love and begin to beat their brethren with words of "corrections" and condemnation. Backbiting and belittling of others move in like a dark cloud. It casts a foreboding shadow over the word they have. They are often void of receiving counsel from others, and therefore, they walk farther and deeper into the foam of their own self-destruction. Pride has certainly been the demise of more than a few, and it is a sure thing: "Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud" (Prov 16:18-19). WHITED SEPULCHERS "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness" (Mat 23:27). There was a sepulcher in the garden wherein Jesus was buried, and if there was a white one to be found, I am sure His would have been the one. But regardless of the color, that was not where He was found; for life is not found in cold tombs, not even in whited ones. When Mary Magdalene went to His grave, she found no life therein. She didn't even find a body. If there was no life to be found in the tomb of He who is life, much less will it be unearthed and found in others. Again, "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness" (Mat 23:27). Those words must have cut past the quick and to the very bone, and on to the core of every nerve-fiber of their carnal being. Oh dear, and to think I am sometimes berated for even hinting at men's hypocrisy today. Nevertheless, I will bring it to the forefront again. Who can count the innumerable church sepulchers that are filled with dead bones? Church sepulchers, you say? Why would I suggest such a thing? And if it is true, what is the worth of even mentioning it? First, it is a cold fact. Second, I mention it not for the sake of those who already know it, but for those whose eyes are beginning to see the light of day breaking over their once darkened horizons. I draw attention to it in order to confirm what is already stirring in the spirit of their inmost being so it can be opened to their understanding. Otherwise, there would be no purpose at all in speaking of graveyards, bones, tombs, and the likes. Let me ask another question. Do we suppose people are any different today than they were in the days of Jesus? The answer is a firm no! As long as there is a carnal breath in them, they will be the same, being receptacles of death. You can dress Pharisaical people in the finest of ceremonial linen, you can whitewash them with self-righteousness, you can parade them around in religious robes, wrap men's throats with whited collars; but when it is all added up, the sum of the matter is the same -- they are WHITED SEPULCHERS! Tombs full of dead men's bones! Those sepulchers of religion have tried for 2000 years to perfect flesh by their laws, while crucifying the Lord of glory who could perfect them. Even so, people still flock in droves to those open tombs, hoping to find some partial of life therein. My God! When will they see that You are not there? When will they cease from seeking the living among the dead? I sometimes wonder if there are any who are well in the church system. Surely, some pastors have words of encouragement. I cannot imagine that they all beat their congregations with threats of eternal damnation. We pray there are those who have laid down their lives for others, and it must be so; for we see them at times dressing wounds and helping the hurting along the way. They minister to those in prisons and visit the sick and dying. They do many things which help those who are crying in pain. But for the life of the ages -- it is a rarity to most. There is much form of godliness; but the power thereof is not often seen. Although the name of Jesus is spoken, the spirit of the world commonly reigns. I do not bear these words with malice, it is merely a fact. There is little difference between the church and the world. They both look for life among the dead. If you look with an unbiased eye, you will see they are closely related, and if not sisters, first cousins. However, due to many having made some sort of commitment to either Christ, a religious figure, or their church, and with the Biblical laws continually being levied upon them, the general populace of the church seem to be more moral, outwardly, than those of the world. Immorality is just more obvious with the world which makes no pretense as to where they look. Lust of the eye, lust of the flesh, and the pride of life are openly sought after by the world, while the church attempts to hide those aspects of their looking. The places where those of the church system are open in their searching are in the tombs of religion. Even so, death is still death no matter how you melt it down or what you call it. Regardless of whether it is avarice or legalism, it is death. Death by any other name is still death. THE LAW OF BIOGENESIS Let me illustrate by noting the law of biogenesis, and how impossible it is for death to bring forth life: The law of biogenesis, in the simplest terms, is this: That which is dead cannot live unless something already alive steps forth and gives it life. We can see this law in action when a living plant reaches forth to the dead minerals of the earth and draws them into itself. Once the static minerals are consumed of the living organism a biochemical, live-giving process takes place. The dead matter merges to become one with the living plant. The same process is involved with any other host of life. The dead minerals of themselves cannot choose to live. The initiation must come from the thing that is already alive, else there will be no volition present by which to live. Jesus spoke of this law when He said, "No man can come to Me, except the Father which hath sent Me DRAW him" (John 6:44). It is the Spirit which entices, persuades, pulls, and even drags all into the Life-giving Source. It is there that everything will find life, rest, and deliverance from all sin, death, hell, and the grave. And it is Jesus Christ, the very essence and substance of God that all this is accomplished. For He said, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, WILL DRAW ALL MEN UNTO ME. This He said, signifying what death He should die." (John 12:32-33). We will also note another verse, "For by grace are ye save through faith; and that NOT OF YOURSELVES, IT IS A GIFT OF GOD." (Eph 2:8). Thus, THE LAW OF BIOGENESIS. Jesus is drawing ALL MEN INTO HIMSELF and is transforming their lives into His own glorious image. This drawing is no different than the living plant that draws the dead minerals into itself. He is the living Plant whose roots will eventually find its way to the furthermost reaches of the earth and will fill the whole world with the riches of His fruit. Praise God! Please know that the DRAWING of all men unto Himself is not a weak invitation of yesteryear's tradition. But rather, the drawing is by the very essence and power of God, it is the Living Word -- the Word who will not return void! He has the power to accomplish what He was sent to do, and He will do it. No dead mineral (man) can stop it. Incidently, the word DRAW that is used in the above verse (John 12:32) has a much stronger meaning than a mere invitation. It comes from the Greek word elkuo which means TO DRAG (literally or figuratively) and is akin to aireomai (TO TAKE FOR ONESELF) (Strong's Exh. Concordance). This same Greek word is used in John 18:10 when "Simon Peter having a sword DREW it, and smote the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear." If this word, draw, only carried the meaning of an invitation, can you imagine Peter standing before the throng that day who came for Jesus and "inviting" his sword into his hand? We can hear him now, "Please, sword, I invite you into my hand." The sword, of course, doesn't move an inch. He then with much more urgency cries out -- "I implore you, I beg of you, for your own sake as well as all the others; come quickly before it is eternally too late. Don't you see the urgency of the hour? An angry mob is here to take our Master. Come now, sword, this is your last chance to be something and to be part of saving our Lord from great bodily harm!" But still, the sword sets dead in its resting place, completely oblivious to the situation. Since the invitation failed to move it, and no amount of pleading produced any better results, his last resort would be threats. "If you don't come out of that sheath and into my hand, I'll melt you down to a puddle of formless nothing, but that's not all, I'll keep you in that fiery furnace of affliction forever...and ever ...and ever." And of course, his desperate threats move his sword about the same distance the threats of eternal hell have moved humanity toward God -- not one inch! The sword would still be comfortably nestled in its sheath to this day, regardless of whether Peter had invited it, pleaded with it, or had threatened it with eternal torment; for with it being dead, the thing was incapable of moving on its own. There was no internal, self-motivated volition of its own. Obviously, it was not until Peter had placed his hand firmly upon the sword and gave it a forceful jerk did the sword move. It was then that it was drawn (dragged) from its resting place. In like manner, as Peter drew his sword and brought it into service -- Jesus is and will be drawing, pulling, dragging all into Himself. When He was lifted up from the earth He bought with His own blood all of mankind. Each and everyone was reconciled by His death. However, as wonderful and assuring as those two aspects are, that was not enough. The hardest of hearts melt at the revelation of having been purchase by such a benevolent Master, and peace between man and God goes beyond imagination; but that is not the end. He is dragging them into Himself and saving them by His life (Rom 5:10). This one life for all mankind is referred to in the parable Jesus related in Matthew 13:44. He found a treasure (His elect) in the field (the world) but could not legally claim the treasure without owning the field. Therefore, He laid down His life, spilled His precious blood, and bought it all. He paid the full price, and now the world belongs to Him. The whole lump and sum is His responsibility. He is committed to it, and His directive is to inject His life into it all and make the world fit for His own and the King that He is. With the understanding of being bought and then delivered from bondage we can note another analogy and see what Jesus is doing: Let's say you decide to buy one hundred sheep and there is a man who has one hundred percent of what you want -- exactly one hundred sheep -- and one thousand dollars is the price for the one hundred sheep. You go to the pen where they are kept and make the necessary transactions to seal the deal. The money is paid in full, the papers are signed, and by right the sheep are yours. Now, all that is left for up to do is to take your new purchase home with you. However, there seems to be a snag. It wasn't in the contract, not even in fine print, but the man who sold you the sheep commences to give you a song and dance, telling you something that's simply absurd. He says, "The only way you can have the flock is if you stand outside the pen and invite them to come to you; for you see, to do anything other than paying for and calling to them would be infringing upon their 'free will.' Not only that, you should be willing for the waters of all the seas of the world to dry up before you would think about transgressing the sheep's free will. If they want to go with you that's fine," he continues, "but they will have to do it of their own accord, and they must be the ones who decide what their future is to be, not you, even though you now own them. Sing sad songs to them if you want, telling them compelling stories; but no one should ever be allowed to interfere with a sheep's freedom choice, whether it is good for them or not. To ultimately have your way about it would be like making robots out of them. If they want to rot in these stinking pens the rest of their lives, rather than being brought into your peaceful liberty, you must honor their decision. It is their choice to make, not yours. And besides, they will deserve it for getting their wool dirty in the first place. Therefore, don't worry about; for their miserable existence won't be on your hands. You see, by letting them choose, even if it is an unconscionable hell, their destiny will be of their own making, and you are off the hook." Would you put up with such nonsense? Of course not! Without hesitation, you would promptly tell the man, "Step aside you serpent. Your head is full of notions and all kinds of subtle, unreal and fanciful imaginations which are nothing more than a smoke screen of lies. You don't make the eternal laws, God does. "The sheep are paid for, I own them, they are now my responsibility, and I am taking them all, to see to it that they get the proper care and nourishment they need! Not one, no not one, will be left in your charge." You would then simply open the gate ("Thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemy and the gates of hell shall not prevail against My church" -- Gen 22:17 & Matt 16:18), and from their captivity, you would herd them all out of the pen. If need be, you would draw, drive and drag each and every sheep into your own captivity and dominion. Nobody could stop you. For you had paid the full price for them all! The scenario sounds ridiculous, and it is; yet this is a very accurate picture the church has painted about Jesus, Satan, mankind, and his supposed sacred free will. Dispensing with fabricated fables, we can be assured Jesus has been drawing his purchased possession for 2000 years, and He is still doing it! Moreover, and He will continue doing it, dragging men throughout the ages until there remains not one man left behind the gates of hell, which will not prevail against His church. Not one will be let in the quagmire of sin, or in any realm of death! Yes indeed, as He said: "If I be lifted up from the earth, "I WILL DRAG ALL MEN UNTO ME!" He has Life within Himself! Without Him there would be no man who could live! All have sinned, and they are dead. Outside of Him, there is no man living. It is impossible for anyone to make himself alive; but Jesus can, He has, and He will. The dead, all the dead, will hear the Voice of the Son of God, and they will live. Jesus said it, and He will perform it. Praise God for the law of biogenesis, which keeps the responsibility of life from the dead! To be continued... Elwin R. Roach Part 2 To receive these monthly studies in
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