Robert McLaughlin Bible Ministries |
The New Testament analogy of the Old Testament Fish Gate, Part 6.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
The correlations of the spiritual life of the Jews in the OT found in the gates and walls in the book of Nehemiah as they relate to the spiritual life and the mystery doctrine of the Church-age.
There are similarities between the two but it is important to note that the Old Testament is called a shadow of the New Testament substance which speaks of Jesus Christ,
COL 2:17.
JOH 1:17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.” HEB 10:1 For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things,
There are also greater differences of the privileges and the benefits bestowed upon the believers of the New Testament over the believers of the Old Testament.
Ordinarily, a wall symbolizes strength and protection.
The walls of the city of Babylon were over 380 feet thick and over 100 feet high – they were massive, tremendous walls.
Nehemiah is the account of the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and Jerusalem is a symbol of the city of God, God’s dwelling place and the center of life for the world.
1CO 3:16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 2CO 6:16b For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, “I will dwell in them and walk among them; And I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”
O.T. Shadow [Sheep Gate] points to N.T. substance [Salvation in Christ alone]
O.T. Shadow [Fish Gate] points to the N.T. Substance [Ministry of God the H.S.]
The Fish Gate substance of the spiritual life for the Jews and Gentiles has to do with the seven-fold ministry of God the Holy Spirit.
For the Fish Gate in the Old Testament as a shadow refers to the substance of the Seven-fold Ministry of God the Holy Spirit.
1. Regeneration which means the Holy Spirit creates a human spirit for the imputation of eternal life, TIT 3:5.
2. The baptism of the Spirit which enters us into union with Christ, ACT 1:5; 1CO 12:13.
3. The indwelling of the Spirit which means God the H.S. indwells our body in order to create a temple for the indwelling of Jesus Christ as the Shekinah Glory, 1CO 6:19-20.
4. The sealing of the Spirit which is our security as royal family in time as well as eternity, and a guarantee of the existence of our escrow blessing, EPH 1:13; EPH 4:30.
5. The distribution of at least one spiritual gift, 1CO 12:11.
6. Efficacious grace; EPH 2:8.
7. The filling of the Holy Spirit, EPH 5:18.
It refers to a second birth or being born again, as Jesus said in;
JOH 3:3, “Jesus said `Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a person is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
JOH 3:7, “Do not marvel that I said to you, `You must be born again.’
The Sanhedrin was comprised of Scribes, Sadducees and Pharisees.
The Sadducees were the highly educated rationalists who denied the supernatural, such as the resurrection and eternal life.
The Pharisees were very religious and filled with legalism.
The scribes were members of a learned class in ancient Israel through New Testament times studying the Scriptures and serving as copyists, editors, teachers, and jurists. The Pharisees prayed seven times a day.
They went to the temple three times a day. They worked overtime at being good and doing good, however, what does the Bible says about the righteousness of man?
ISA 64:6 For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;
When there were functions in the Temple, they were first in line shouting the loudest.
The religious person has no concept of the doctrine of total depravity.
The sins of religious people are much worse than the sins of those in the gutter, PRO 6:16-19.
1CO 1:22 For indeed Jews ask for signs, and Greeks search for wisdom;
MAT 12:39 “An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and {yet} no sign shall be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet;”
The true purpose of miracles was to gain and focus attention on the message not the man.
He was and is interested in the eternal safety of the soul more than the physical healing of the body. Nicodemus had been born physically, but not spiritually.
Man’s problem is basically his birth, this is why Romans 3:23 says for all have sinned and comes short of the glory of God.
ROM 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.
ROM 5:18-19, So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.
This is why when man is born physically alive at the same time he is born spiritually dead. Spiritual death means he is separated from God without any chance of fellowship.
You were born spiritually dead, Psalm 51:5, 58:3.
PSA 51:5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.
PSA 58:3 The wicked are estranged from the womb; These who speak lies go astray from birth.
No matter how good man may be, his human righteousness is still lacking. His problem is his birth, his position in Adam.
1CO 15:21-22, For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. 1CO 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive.
Nicodemus had been born physically, he possessed a body and a soul but no human spirit.
Without a human spirit, our friends, family and relations are incapable of understanding spiritual phenomena. The exception to this when God the Holy Spirit acts as a human spirit and makes gospel information known to the unbeliever.
Jesus used a frame of reference which would be meaningful to a Jewish religious leader, – He used WATER. Water occasionally means water, but literal water is not indicated in this passage because Jesus was not discussing a literal physical birth.
ISA 55:1 Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; And you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk Without money and without cost.
REV 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.
Water also represents the Bible or the word of God in EZE 16:9; EPH 5:26.
EZE 16:9 “Then I bathed you with water, washed off your blood from you, and anointed you with oil.” EPH 5:26that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
Thirdly, water also represents the Holy Spirit, ISA 44:3; JOH 7:37-39.
ISA 44:3 ‘For I will pour out water on the thirsty {land} And streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring, And My blessing on your descendants;”
In John 3:5, we can eliminate water meaning salvation because water and the Spirit is a reference to salvation in this passage.
We can also eliminate water referring to the Spirit because the Spirit is mentioned with water.
We must therefore conclude that water refers to the water of the word of God.
In JOH 3:5 the Spirit refers to God the Holy Spirit as the agent of regeneration, Titus 3:5.
Once a person believes in Christ, he receives a human spirit, 1TH 5:23, and the Holy Spirit takes up His residence in the body of the believer, 1CO 6:19.
1TH 5:23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1CO 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?
One of the things we are being taught here is to beware of the danger of trying to go on with a personal relationship with God before we have started.
His great problem was that of justification, he thought it was sanctification.
A contract was put out on his life and after months of living in fear and hiding for his life, he finally got sick of the whole thing and wrote that very famous hymn.
You can’t give birth to yourself.
This is something that happens to you.
You see the effects and the results but you don’t understand it.
So is everyone who is born of the Spirit, it’s the action of God in the souls of men.
You can’t build a building without a foundation, it will collapse.
You can’t grow until you are born.
You can’t run the race until you enter the race.
In order to enter into the family of God we need to be born of the Spirit, that which is born of the flesh is flesh.
One which is carnal (of the flesh) and one which is spiritual (of the Spirit).
These two natures are contrary to one another, Galatians 5:17-18 says.
Religion needs a spirit birth. Religion is Satanic!
Religion has false doctrine, doctrine of demons, 1TI 4:1.
Religion has a devil’s communion table, 1CO 10:19-20.
Religion has another gospel, GAL 1:6.
Religion has another Jesus, 2CO 11:4
Religion has another Spirit, 2CO 11:4.
When you were born again you didn’t see it! God the Holy Spirit entered you into union with Christ. The Holy Spirit came to dwell inside of you, you didn’t see that either.
The wind cannot be seen, only the effects are visible.
In order for a new creation to begin the old creation must be destroyed.
Now, our Lord referred to His sacrificial death as a lifting up because the Jews were looking for a Messiah who should be lifted up.