Hidden in Churchianity's Christianese

“The principalities and powers in the heavenly places recognize the ‘mystery of Christ’ for what it is. They realize the ‘manifold wisdom of God’ in what He has done in ‘taking them in their own craftiness.’ They realize God has triumphed over them in the Cross. They understand what God has done in providing for their removal from their positions and the reconciliation of their positions back to God through the instrumentality of a ‘new creation.’ They, much to their own grief, see the genius of God in ‘the mystery.’ Unfortunately, though, far too many Christians do not.”

—Author Keith Blades in Satan & His Plan of Evil.

At a Bible conference last month in Ohio, Columbus preacher David Reid examined the reality of why ‘the mystery given to Paul’ is lost on the vast majority of Christians. Here is an outtake:

“The whole reason Paul is ‘persecuting the church unto strange cities’ in the early part of the Book of Acts is he knows exactly what they teach and he views it as heresy and wants to stamp it out. My point is this, if Paul came along and all he did was preach the same doctrine that Peter did, he doesn’t need a revelation from God to do that. He already knows what it is!

“But he had to have a mystery REVEALED to him if God was doing something different. Paul says in Ephesians 3 ‘that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery . . . which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.’

“Now, I know what happens. People say, ‘Well, today we’re saved looking backward to the Cross just as everyone in time past was saved looking forward to the Cross and it’s always been the same gospel.’

“That’s one of those things that’s just 'Christianese.' It may sound good and it tickles the ears but, biblically it’s just nonsense. Nonetheless, the vast majority of ‘Churchianity’ just goes along in their own ‘programming’ oblivious to what God has purposed.

“I mean, what Paul’s saying is that, ‘In other ages the doctrine that I’m teaching wasn’t even made known!’ It wasn’t that they didn’t teach it; it wasn’t even revealed!

“He goes in in Ephesians 3, [7] Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
[8] Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.

*****

“In John 5, the Lord is dealing with some folks who are unbelievers. Christ says in John 5:39-40, [39] Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.
[40] And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

“He’s dealing with some folks who don’t believe in Him but they claim to believe the Old Testament. What He says to them is, ‘Look, you claim to believe the Old Testament, so if you really do, search it and what does it unmistakable tells you?’ He’s saying, ‘The truth about me is going to be demonstrated from the Scriptures; all you have to do is search it.’

“Paul, in Ephesians 3:8, said he ‘preached the UNsearchable riches of Christ,’ meaning you could take your Old Testament and flip through it and scour the whole thing, and guess what, it’s not there.

Verse 9 says, [9] And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:

“I don’t know what people do with that verse. How can you say that Peter was doing the same thing when, from the beginning of the world, God didn’t hide it in the Scriptures, He hid it in HIMSELF! Was God so inept at hiding things that man has figured it out because man is such a genius?! That’s just nonsense.

“Verse 10 says, [10] To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

“The intent of us making all men see, it’s not simply to make all men see, although that’s a good thing. It is to demonstrate unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places. That’s including the guys on the wrong team.

*****

“I would suggest to you the prophecy program is all about power. In Genesis 3, when Adam rebels, God says unto the serpent that He’s going to destroy the serpent with the seed of the woman. He tells Satan exactly how He’s going to do it.

“The easiest way to understand Genesis 6, when the sons of God leave their first estate and cohabit with human women, is it’s an attempt to corrupt the human seed line through which the seed of the woman will destroy Satan. That’s what that is.

“The Old Testament and the prophecy program was about power because God says to the serpent, ‘This is exactly how I’m going to destroy you.’ No subtlety, no subterfuge, it’s just, ‘I’m going to come over and smash you and you can do nothing about it.’

“The mystery program is all about the manifold wisdom of God. I Corinthians 2 talks about ‘the mystery, the hidden wisdom.’ The mystery is all about God’s wisdom.

*****

“Paul says in Colossians 2:15, [15] And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

“To spoil something or someone, is to defeat it militarily and plunder it; attack it, rob it, and dispossess it. Notice this: ‘He made a shew of them openly.’

“One of the dumbest arguments you get about dispensationalism is, ‘It can’t be true because who else believes this?’ Just to see how silly that is, remember what happened when Noah was alive? He’s built the Ark for 120 years. Do you think he had some neighbors who thought we was wacky?

“He’s called a preacher of righteousness, so he’s preaching. He’s telling people this is what God’s preparing to do and they mock him; you know they do. ‘Noah, you’ve been saying that for 119 years.’ And of course, the moment after the Flood starts, it’s too late, but just the day before it was like 12 million people to eight.

“If you look at verse 15, it really gives you a clue about something. What the Cross demonstrated by ‘the mystery’ is God’s manifold wisdom. What He did is He kept one little secret from Satan.”

(to be continued tomorrow)