The waitress was tap, tap, tapping on the order ticket with her pencil. The others at the table were all staring at me with anticipation. I just couldn’t decide. There were so many choices on the menu, and everything looked so good. What was I to do? Did I want the special or something from the regular menu? A decision had to be made. I said, “I’ll take the broiled fish with a baked potato and a tossed salad, please.” As it turned out, the meal was delicious, and the fellowship around the table edifying and enjoyable.
You too have probably been in a similar situation—when you have lots of options and you need to make a choice now. Oftentimes in the world, there appear to be many options which look so much alike that it can be hard to choose.
As followers of the way, the Lord Jesus Christ, we choose to focus our believing and act now on truths and principles from God’s Word. In this article, we will look at the riches that God has made available to us in the Grace Administration and some of the ways we can walk in the now of the Word.
Let us examine some of the occurrences of “now” in the Bible as well as some verses in which the verbs are in the present tense, indicating action in the here and now. As we search these scriptures, we will see what we have now—because God has already given it to us—and how we can best utilize it.
What Is Available Now—
The Riches of the Glory of the Mystery
Before we can believe to receive anything from God, we first have to know what is available. It is the seven Church Epistles, which are addressed to us, that show us what is available to us now. The great day of Pentecost ushered in the Administration of Grace in which we live and in which the Mystery has been made available.
Ephesians 3:4-6:
Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand [fully grasp] my knowledge in the mystery of [pertaining to] Christ)
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 [the gift in manifestation];
That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel.
The Mystery, which previously had not been made known, is now revealed.
Colossians 1:26 and 27:
Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
The Mystery, which had been hidden in other ages, is now in this present time revealed to those of the Church of Grace. Now, the called-out of both Judean and Gentile are one new man, the one Body, of which Christ is the head. And individually, it’s “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
Now we live in the Age of Grace, which began on the day of Pentecost and terminates with the gathering together of the Body of Christ. We have the “all truth” (John 16:13) of the seven Church Epistles declaring what we have and who we are in Christ. Even though all Scripture is God-breathed, not all of it is addressed to us. Some of it is for our learning.
Romans 15:4:
For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning….
Our spiritual focus now is to frame our doings according to the scriptures written directly to us—the seven Church Epistles, Romans through II Thessalonians. When we satisfy our spiritual appetite for truth by feeding on the seven Church Epistles, we are strengthened to walk with power and might in light of the great mystery. Living the great mystery in this wonderful household is a part of living the now of the Word.
Sons of God Now
In the Age of Grace, we are sons of God now. Let’s search the Scriptures and see some of the occurrences of the word “now” in relation to what we have in Christ.
I John 3:1 and 2:
Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
Beloved, now are we the sons of God….
Right now, because of God’s great love for us, we are His beloved sons with all the rights and privileges pertaining thereto. This is a wonderful present-tense reality. As His born-again sons, we are partakers of His divine nature (II Peter 1:4) and have been given the gift of holy spirit. Galatians, one of the seven Church Epistles, tells us more about our rights as sons.
Galatians 4:6 and 7:
And because ye are [present tense] sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
Living in this world now, we are not servants as the Old Testament believers were, but God’s sons and heirs of God through Christ. Wow! How proud we can be of our heavenly Father, Who through Jesus Christ has legally set us in such a solid and secure position! The adversary has no legal rights over us, and our heavenly Father is able and willing to supply all our need according to His riches in glory (Philippians 4:19)….
This is an excerpt from the September/October 2003 issue of The Way Magazine.
Copyright© 2003 by The Way International. All rights reserved.
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