Transfusion of Life

Colo 1:15  Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

Notice the words describing how Jesus was prophesied to have his visage marred and to be stricken with severe uncomeliness, though He was the IMAGE OF GOD.

Isai 52:14 – 53:12  As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for [that] which had not been told them shall they see; and [that] which they had not heard shall they consider. Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, [there is] no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were [our] faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.  Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.  He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither [was any] deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put [him] to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see [his] seed, he shall prolong [his] days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, [and] shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him [a portion] with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

First, let me comment upon the thoughts going around about the mark of the beast and the image of the beast.

It will not be as is popularly thought it will be.

It is not a computer chip.

Jesus said that the false prophets of the world perform signs and wonders insomuch that if it were possible they shall deceive the very elect.

• The term “if it were possible” implies the tone that one will have to be very close to the Lord to not be fooled.
• If the elect alone will be spared, then the common person who serves not Christ, but desires to remain free of the mark of the beast, will be fooled and deceived.

Compare:

Matt 24:24  For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if [it were] possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

Reve 13:13  And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by [the means of] those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

This second beast John saw rise from the land is said to perform wonders and miracles, just as Jesus said false prophets would perform in order to deceive, if it were possible, the very elect.

• In fact, he will deceive all those who dwell on the earth.
• But believers have not made earth their home.
• They cannot be deceived.
• And this second beast does this also..

Reve 13:16-17  And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

We know this is the FALSE PROPHET, because we read THIS SAME SECOND BEAST WHO PERFORMED MIRACLES AND MADE PEOPLE WEAR THE MARK IS CALLED THE FALSE PROPHET ELSEWHERE, PERFORMING MIRACLES:

Reve 16:13-14  And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs [come] out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, [which] go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

Unclean spirits in the false prophet cause him to work these miracles.

We also read:

Reve 19:20  And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image.

The false prophet performed these sign and wonders to deceive, just as Jesus said the false prophets do these things to deceive.

• And this same false prophet that worked miracles and demanded all wear the mark of the beast, is said by Jesus to do these things insomuch that if it were possible they should deceive the very elect.
• So the mark of the beast is going to be a very subtle thing, not easily recognized by a normal person.
• If it is a computer chip on the right hand or forehead, then a sinner could interpret Rev 13:18 to point to that, but Jesus said only the elect would not be deceived.
• In fact, Rev 13 says that one must have wisdom to count the number of the beast.
• And this cannot be the wisdom of mathematics nor fancy tricks with alphabets and computers, as too many promote, because James 1:4 said that if any lack wisdom let him ask of God.

But the devil has an image, and a seal or mark.

• So does God.

God’s seal and image is our message tonight.

You cannot buy nor sell in the devil’s world of sin unless you bear his seal or mark.

• This is not literal buying and selling, but is buying in the same sense that this other reference to buying implies in the same book of revelation.

Reve 3:18  I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and [that] the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

WE DO NOT LITERALLY BUY FROM JESUS WITH ACTUAL MONEY.

• NEITHER IS THAT THE ISSUE IN THE MARK OF THE BEAST’S GRANT TO BUY AND SELL.
• In Satan’s kingdom, you must have his seal in order to buy what he offers.
• You must worship his image.

We also read of a seal on the foreheads of the 144,000.

• This protected them from being hurt of the “four winds” (or the four horsemen and their powers – see Zech. 6:5).

A seal depicts power and influence of a Kingdom’s leader.

• When Caesar put his seal on the tomb of Christ it was as though Caesar stood there himself saying, “Do not enter.”
• On that seal was Caesar’s image.
• But Jesus’ kingdom and influence was greater than Caesar’s and He rolled the stone away, breaking Caesar’s seal.

We must let the seal or image of God be stamped into our lives.

• It is as though God, Himself, is there, when we have his image, for He said that if two or three of us gather in His name, He is there.
• His name and His image indicate the same thing.

What is God’s seal?

Ephe 1:13  In whom ye also [trusted], after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

This Spirit of God is the seal.

• And this Spirit does not come simply by saying you believe so it must be on you.
• It comes AFTER YOU BELIEVE.
• NOT AS YOU BELIEVE.
• Paul asked the Ephesians…

Acts 19:2  He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? …

If having the Spirit occurred simultaneously with exertion of belief, then Paul would not have asked if they received it separately from belief after they believed.

• Some believe that one must have the Spirit of God if one believes.
• Not true.

God’s Spirit is the seal.

• And the Spirit is put in us so that it can stamp God’s image upon our lives.

2Cor 3:18  But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, [even] as by the Spirit of the Lord.

We are changed into His image BY THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD.

• We have the seal in order to have ourselves changed into the image.
• He is pressing His seal into our lives by the SPIRIT ministering to us.
• The Spirit is like the IMPRESSIONABLE seal or signet of a king.

Money can only purchase that which is in the kingdom of the ruler whose image is on the money.

• You cannot take a German coin and buy a chocolate bar in Canada.
• You need a Canadian coin to buy anything in this country.
• The image and seal indicates where that money has value.

All of the resources of the Kingdom of Heaven are only available to those who have the IMAGE OF GOD.

• On the other hand, all antichrist’s world is available for purchase by those who have the beast’s mark or seal.

God’s Kingdom offers liberty.

2Cor 3:17  Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord [is], there [is] liberty.

The Spirit/Seal of God offers you liberty.

All of Heaven’s commodities are yours if you have the SPIRIT.

I cannot encourage a sinner who struggles with trials to go to God and enjoy the strength He offers by His Spirit, because sinners are not in the kingdom and do not even Have God’s Spirit.

• God sealed His people who serve Him and gave their lives to Him.
• We have blessings they do not have.
• They must first repent and obey Acts 2:38 before they can enjoy God’s blessings.

You must be born of water and Spirit to enter the Kingdom and enjoy its wealth.

God’s image was put on Adam.

• Adam had chance to eat fruit of Life.
• But he didn’t.
• He ate the forbidden fruit and sinned.
• Life was not put into Adam.
• Sin was in him instead.
• Like an infectious disease, sin ran uncontrollably in Adam.

Paul said that sin was in his flesh.

• It made him do evil when he willed to do good.
• (Ro. 7:19).

He asked who would deliver him from the body of death(7:24).

And he found that God would do that, through Jesus Christ (7:25).

You see, when Adam failed to get life into himself by eating the fruit of life, God sought to get Life into man nevertheless.

• Another means was available in time to come.

Life had to be TRANSFUSED into man.

• Man had sin in himself, so he could not receive Life.
• Therefore, God cast him from the garden.
• Who would deliver Paul from the body of death that housed this disease of sin?
• God would.
• Through Jesus Christ.

Man was in God’s image, but the sin disease marred that image and distorted and twisted it.

• So Jesus came in the image of God to give man Life.

The Spirit is God’s seal.

• It changes you into God’s image.

Roma 8:29  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate [to be] conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Adam put sin into himself in the Garden.

• So did Jesus.
• Jesus drank the bitter cup of all mankind’s sins while in the garden of Gethsemane.
• The disease of sin entered into the one who was in God’s image.
• And Isaiah 52 and 53 tells us that HIS IMAGE AND VISAGE WAS MARRED.
• As sin marred Adam’s visage of God’s image, sin marred the visage of Jesus Christ.
• But Jesus was marred more than any man.
• We saw no beauty in Him for sin marred him after he drank it in the garden.

He would not live 24 hours after that.

• We die slowly, but if all the sin in the world were concentrated and put into us we too would not last 24 hours.

He not only became like us buy being a man, but he became like us by housing sin in his body.

• Jesus, God’s image, was filed with sin and that sin marred him.

But he did not sin, but merely TOOK OUR SIN.

• He took upon himself all the damage that sin would do to us.
• Sin leads to death.
• He received a TRANSFUSION OF OUR SINS.
• It was removed from us and put into Him.
• So we could receive  a TRANSFUSION OF LIFE.

The only way LIFE could back into us after sin was put there, was to TRANSFUSE SIN OUT AND THEN TRANSFUSE LIFE IN.

Isaiah said HE BORE OUR INIQUITIES.

• Immediately after he said Jesus was marred and found with no beauty and comeliness, we read that he bore our griefs and sorrows.
• He was wounded for the reason of OUR TRANSGRESSIONS.
• He was bruised FOR OUR iniquities.
• All of US have gone away, but God laid on HIM the iniquity of US all.

He took a transfusion of OUR sins, and that was the reason  he was marred and turned into ugliness.

• The disease ate him until he died as it was doing to us.
• It was OUR disease.

Satan put a fire in us that would burn us into extinction when he convinced Adam to sin.

• Had Satan had his way without God’s interference by Jesus, this world would be burned up and life all killed, leaving the world a lifeless MOON.

Matt 24:22  And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.

That is what sin does.

• Leads to death.
• First Jesus took the poison from within you transfused into himself.
• Then he was able to transfuse His Spirit into you so that LIFE would transfused into you.
• And God’s goal of Eden was fulfilled.

2Cor 3:6  …but the spirit giveth life.

God wanted Adam to have LIFE in him.

• But Adam failed.
• So God gave His Spirit, for the Spirit gives LIFE.

Life was in a fruit in Eden.

• But with sin in us, we could not simply receive life from a fruit.
• Life had to come after sin was transfused out of us.
• In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus received a transfusion of sin.
• And the SPIRIT came on the day of Pentecost.

Sin in you corrupts, and brings closer to death.

But LIFE in you changes you from glory to glory into God’s image.

… by the Spirit of the Lord.

We have access buy one Spirit to the Father.

• The seal imprints His image on us.
• His words are SPIRIT (John 6:63).
• And Paul ministered Spirit when He preached Christ.
• He ministered JESUS.
• He did not merely preach ABOUT Jesus, but his words were actually JESUS.
• He ministered SPIRIT.
• And the LORD is that Spirit.
• He said that he preached not himself, but preached Christ.

He became like us…

• images of God marred out of shape and twisted by sin.
• ..so that we could become like Him… images of God.

Isai 53:4-5  Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.