As joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, God’s Very Elect is guaranteed joint-rulership with Him over the entire universe in the eternity to come.  Who are His Very Elect?  They are the few (Mat. 7:13,14; 20:16) who, during their lifetimes, answered His call to live in obedience to His Word from their conversion until the end of their lives (Mat. 10:21,22).  These are they who QUALIFIED for the inheritance, who, having counted the cost of discipleship (Lk. 14:28), chose to follow His example of strict obedience to the Lord by entering His strait (difficult) gate and walking His narrow (restrictive) way throughout their converted lives.  THESE ARE THE PEOPLE WHO COMPRISE THE CHURCH OF GOD, WHO OBEY THEIR HEAD WHO IS JESUS CHRIST.

Jesus built His church so that His work would continue following His death.  He–the light if the world–commissioned His apostles, who became the light of the world after His death–to carry to completion the work of the Father He had come to do.  He had done His part of the work, now the mantle had been passed to them.  At the beginning of His earthly ministry Jesus stated that He had come to earth to do His Father’s will and to finish His work (Jn. 4:34).  The Father’s work was to offer salvation to the world.  The Son’s job was to set the example for doing that work, then to build a church that, by emulating Him, would carry on that work until His return.  Simply put, THE JOB OF THE MESSIAH WAS TO FINISH WHAT HAD BEGUN WITH ABRAHAM.  THE JOB OF THE APOSTLES WAS TO EXTABLISH HIS CHURCH.  THE JOB OF THE CHURCH WAS TO CARRY ON THE WORK UNTIL HIS RETURN IS TO CARRY ON UNTIL HIS RETURN BY FOLLOWING HIS EXAMPLE AND HIS TEACHINGS.

Beginning with Abraham, the Lord raised up a nation, called Israel, which was to serve as “the light of the Gentiles” (heathen nations) in order to offer to them the same eternal life He had reserved for His chosen people.  Israel is God’s chosen people because He chose them to be His herald, His proclaimers of Truth to the world.  For this reason Jesus sent, first the original apostles throughout the known world.  Their ministerial descendants would pick up where they left off and preach the Truth throughout the entire world where their disciples would live and teach His Truth to anyone and everyone having eyes to see and ears to hear that Truth–the Holy Bible.  That work, though rejected by the Institutional Church, continues today.  Read Who and Where is Israel Today?  Key word–Who.

Through the work of the original apostles (sent ones) churches were established wherever they found people who believed what they were preaching.  From those tiny home churches the Light of the Lord shined out into the surrounding communities.  For the first time the globally scattered Israelites and their Gentile neighbors began to hear the Gospel preached and see it lived out in the lives of true believers.  For the first time the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, which Jesus had preached to the Jews and had taught His apostles (Mk. 1:14), was made available to both scattered Israelites and Gentiles.  Some Israelites believed and became part of spiritual Israel–God’s church.  As predicted, some Gentiles also “came to the light” and were converted.

Jesus conquered Satan and will therefore inherit the earth upon His return from the “far country” where (following death) He went to receive His inheritance (Lk. 19:12).  He will remain there until God releases Him to return to claim His inheritance (the earth).  But He will not arrive on earth by Himself.  Upon His return He will call His church to where He will await in the clouds (1 Thes. 4:13-18).  This first resurrection will include all those who, beginning with “righteous Abel,” will have waited in their graves for His return.  Next to join Jesus in the air   Next will be those who are alive at the time of His return.  All these Christ will “bring with Him” (vs 14) as He descends to the Mount of Olives where He and His Very Elect will enter Jerusalem where He will establish the Kingdom of God from which He and His saints will rule for one thousand years.  Then, following two more resurrections, they will rule the universe.  Read God’s Very Elect: Future Caretakers of the Universe and The Kingdom of God.  Key words–Caretakers and Kingdom respectively.

Christ built His church (ecclesia–“called out ones”) for the purpose of fellowshipping with His friends/spiritual brethren.  He chose one day out of every seven for convening of the weekly meeting–His “day of rest” (His “Sabbath”).  He labeled this special 24 hour period “My holy day” which He “sanctified” (set aside for holy use) and “blessed” (Isa. 58:13/Gen. 2:2,3).  But the church was created for more than fellowshipping.  There was work to be done.  That work, though rejected by the religious establishment, continues to this day.

Job one for the church is to overcome Satan as Jesus overcame him–by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Jesus qualified for His Savior role in man’s conversion-salvation process by overcoming him.  Now the converted church must quality for salvation by overcoming the devil as did her Head.  Where the Head leads, His true disciples follow.  By overcoming Satan’s temptations to sin, the church will be allowed to join Jesus in the future Kingdom on earth.  To overcome Satan the church must “walk as He (Jesus) walked” (live as He lived) while on earth (1 Jn. 2:6).  In order to do this the true saint must continually “… purify himself even as He is pure” (1 Jn. 3:3) by “the washing by the water of the Word” (Eph. 5:26).  To qualify for eternal life in the Kingdom of God one must learn, believe and obey the Word of God.  In this way one is continually “washed” and sanctified by that precious Truth (Jn. 17:17)..

This process is strictly controlled by the Lord Who provides the leadership needed in every step along the way from conversion to salvation which will be awarded upon His return (Mat. 10:22).  We find this leadership referred to in Ephesians 4:11-13 where we learn that He establishes apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers within the church “… FOR THE PERFECTING OF THE SAINTS, FOR THE WORK OF THE MINISTRY AND FOR THE EDIFYING OF THE BODY OF CHRIST UNTIL WE ALL COME TO THE UNITY OF THE FAITH AND OF THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE SON OF GOD, UNTIL WE REACH PERFECTION, UNTIL WE ATTAIN THE MEASURE OF THE STATURE OF THE FULLNESS OF CHRIST.”

The Church of God proclaims the Gospel of Jesus Christ–the “good news” that Jesus preached during His short ministry on earth.  This good news is His Gospel concerning His Father’s coming kingdom on earth.  The Gospel of Christ is not about Christ Himself, but about the coming kingdom and how to enter it.  Read What is the True Gospel.  Key word–Gospel.  As this website proves, there is much more to the Christian walk (lifestyle) than simply believing.  As the Apostle James tells us repeatedly, faith without WORKS is dead faith (Jam. 2:10,14,17,18,20,24, 26).  Faith is taking God at His Word (Rom. 10:19), without editing, altering, interpreting, etc.  Faith is a spiritual entity.  Believers “live by faith” in “… every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”  In that we will be judged by those Words (Jn, 12:48), we will live or die eternally according to our faith.  Faith without works is dead faith.  Dead faith identifies a (spiritually) dead believer.  The “works of faith” commanded for salvation are manifested by obeying that in which one has faith–the Word of God.  Any variation from that Standard is sin, which separates the deviant from God (Isa. 59:2).  The sinner, being separated from Him, cannot “walk together and in agreement with Him” (Amos 3:3).

The true saint of God knows that Satan has highjacked the true Gospel and deceived those who seek eternal life.  Read Bait and Switch.  Key word–Bait.  In that series one will learn how the devil has lured billions of believers off of God’s track and onto his (Satan’s) track by offering a “perverted Gospel” (Gal. 1:6-9) about another Jesus (2 Cor. 11:4).  The church masses have taken both baits.  They follow a false Jesus and believe a false gospel.

Jesus of Nazareth created His church for a specific purpose–finish the Father’s work, work which continues to this day.    L.J.