God's Secret: The Mystery - Neil's House - It's Christ in you, the hope of glory.

God’s Secret: The Mystery

It reads like an epic plot: Massive forces of evil bent on enslaving the human race; juxtaposed against a valiant hero that leads the faltering resistance. Treachery, treason, and murder: The perfect recipe for a mystery, intrigue and drama. (Continued below)

For more information on God's Secret: The Mystery
please see the e-book by Neil Tolman at
http://www.neilshouse.com/docs/mystery_e_book.pdf

It's Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Col 1:27

After setting the stage, the plot narrows to the hero’s exploits and apparent defeat. The hero’s faithful followers are in disarray and despair. But wait! The hero reemerges transformed, stronger and reenergized. The tide turns, the hero gathers his forces and comes thundering to victory in a final battle to put down the evil enemy.

Sound familiar? It should because this story line has been repeated over and over again in every culture and every category of storytelling. The plot line has been used since before there was writing. It appears in verbal traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation for thousands of years. The oldest Greek manuscripts which are attributed to the wandering poet Homer follow this formula. God says there is nothing new under the sun.

The human mind and emotions eagerly accept this story line wherever we find it. It is hard wired into us as we are actual players in God’s great epic of the ages. The original plot, and basis for all other plots, the bible chronicles the epic account of the pride and fall of Satan. In his rebellious rage the devil instigated a failed coup. In his plunge from holiness to putridness the devil corrupted a portion of the heavenly forces and lured mankind into captivity and treason against God.

The Bible is the epic record of God’s plan to redeem mankind and restore the state of paradise that we were created for. The story begins with mankind in the paradise of the Garden of Eden and it ends with God’s people in the paradise of the new heaven and earth. The whole plot turns on the one hero, savior and king: Jesus.

The Bible tells the story of creation and the origin of all things and then sets the stage for the epic tail. From the moment Adam and Eve were escorted out of the protective presence of God the devil's intent was to destroy them. The bulk of the Bible story recounts the struggles of the bloodline that Jesus would come from. The devil tried to kill the bloodline but the people of promise were preserved over and over again by God’s miraculous intervention. Through prophets God corrected, guided and gave hope to these struggling people.

And finally at the time appointed, the long awaited king arrived. He was able to cast out devils, heal the sick and even the wind and the waves obeyed him. He proclaimed the new kingdom but much to the dismay of his followers the devil was able to capture and kill the hero king Jesus.

His followers retreated and all seemed lost. But then hero Jesus reemerged transformed, stronger and reenergized. All expected him to draw his sword, call down legions of angels and establish the new kingdom with his small band of followers at his right and left. But the plot takes an unexpected twist. He left. The followers waited, hiding in fear of their angry religious neighbors.

But God had a secret weapon. The secret was hidden so deep that not even the angels suspected it. No one knew. The devil would not have killed Jesus if he would have known. We are always second guessing God and think He is going to be late to the rescue. But when the time was perfectly ripe, God plucked the person he had chosen to deliver his secret to from the stony and dusty road to Damascus.

As in most of the copy-cat sagas, the one selected was the very last person anyone would guess would be chosen. Saul of Tarsus, a radical religious nut was out on a jihad killing followers of Jesus. Sanctioned and certified by the leadership, he was zealously fulfilling his religious and civic duties. He was good at it. But God had better plans for him. Who better to demonstrate the depth and breadth of God's grace and forgiveness. To this unlikely man, who later became known as Paul, was given the secret that God had kept for so long and so carefully.

The secret is this: Jesus (our hero) who was crucified, died and was placed in a tomb got up from the dead, walked and talked to his followers and was seen by many others, and was taken to heaven and glorified and exalted as the king of kings and became the life giving spirit: Christ Jesus. That in of itself is a phenomenal turn of events but it gets even better: Christ, the life giving Spirit takes up residence in all who God has called into his family. The Bible specifically states in Colossians 1:27 that the secret (or mystery) is Christ in you, our only hope of glory.

This secret time period that we live in was not known before Paul received it by revelation. This time period is when Christ is gathering his body. The body of Christ, holy children of God with Christ in them walking and manifesting the love and power of Christ in this evil world. The devil killed the man Jesus but in doing so, millions of us have the power and authority of Christ living in us.

The secret of Christ in us is the first bold step toward reestablishing mankind to a paradise state. Although we still walk in this flesh and blood body that moulders and dies we are also now citizens of heaven in the spiritual realm. Our eternal life began the moment we were filled with the life giving Spirit: Christ in us.

In “Christ in us” we have received all spiritual blessings. Not a single one was left out. Everything that God can give has been given to us in Christ. Christ is our sufficiency, our supply, our forgiveness, our justification, our righteousness, our mercy, our love, our healing, our hope. In this fleeting flesh, we moulder away but Christ desires to shine and flow out of us. He is the treasure in this earthen vessel: The mystery, God's secret: Christ in You.

As Christ Jesus gathers his body, the devil is still at work stealing killing and destroying. From the moment the secret was revealed, the devil has worked over time to hide it. Paul wrote that if the gospel (the secret) was hidden to someone it was because the devil had blinded their minds. A sobering thought since almost all so called Christian religions deny the mystery Gospel of Christ in you. Few have even heard of it, let alone understand the tremendous ramifications of God's love, mercy and peace.

Proclaiming God's secret was the driving purpose of Paul. His letters in the Bible shout the mystery Gospel. For our time period the mystery is the only true gospel. Old Testament laws and taboos do not apply to us nor do the future prophecies of destruction. We are living in the secret. We are the body of Christ. Our hope is not based on our religious performance. We have been set free from religion. Our one and only hope is Christ in us which was Gods secret.

Neil

Your email is welcome: neilrn@maine.rr.com.

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