The book of Hebrews was certainly meant for a target audience (perhaps the messianic church). But, like all the letters of the new testament it is of educational use to the whole church. There are truths found there that are not easily seen or included in other letters. There is a covenant with the physical Israel and there is a covenant with the spiritual Israel. Each will have their fulfillment at different times. Hebrews is trying to deal with the cross over effect between the two.
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In these answers there is an essential piece of the puzzle missing. Foreknowledge. Those whom he foreknew… he predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ. It is the Father seeing the bride of Christ from the beginning. It is the bride of Christ that God has predestined to be conformed and made fit for his Son as a helpmate.
There were ten virgins waiting for the groom… five went in, five did not… yet I believe all ten are saved, but all ten were not the bride, just five… the predestined.
Others heard the gospel as well and some fell on the path, the stony ground, the ground choked with weeds and the fertile ground. Those on the fertile ground are the bride, the predestined. The others? Some or all are saved but like the five foolish virgins not part of the bride.
How about Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Moses? The guests of the groom and the bride, they are saved but not the bride.
It is not a matter of salvation but making the bride ready for Christ.
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In the beginning God knew who would be the ones to accept him. (foreknowledge)
Because in the beginning God chose them to be in Christ. (elected by grace)
God intervened at points in history, according to his plan, for his purposes.
His message went out. People made a choice.(the parable of the sower)
Many are called, few are chosen. (the predestined)
Those chosen few (the ordained) have/are being conformed to the likeness in mind and spirit to that of Christ.
These are the faithful who will be resurrected and have the same body as the risen Christ. (our destination)
These are the fruitful in the sower parable.
These are the five wise virgins that went in with the Lord.
These are Christ’s at his coming.
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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.
The question is when are we to be conformed to the image of Christ so that we reflect his image? In our lives today we, who seem to be or are, the called undergo some transformation of character. Yet elsewhere in scripture there is a picture of being perfected when we meet the Lord in the air at our resurrection. If this is the case then it is something that will only be revealed in the future. Add to this that “many are called but few are chosen?” It is enough material to get the best conversations and the worst arguments going.
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The church is made up of those people who have accepted Jesus as Saviour and Lord of their life. The body of Christ is this church and the church is the body of Christ. It is a spiritual institution.
Believers have organized themselves into various expressions of the church. They can be highly organized or loosely affiliated. They are as small as two or three coming together in his name or as great as a billion+ people. These are the places (groups) where the saved and the unsaved gather together for fellowship. The saved and the unsaved have positions of authority within these organizations.
Not all who belong to a church organization are saved. There are saved in every church organization. There are those who are saved outside of any church organization. There are even false church organizations that have zero believers in the body of Christ.
It is the body of Christ that needs to come together and be as one with God. The organizations are not only made up of the body of Christ but also those who have no place in the body of Christ.
RCC, OC or any other manifestation of “church” have these things in common.
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I lay my hands on the sick and sometimes they recover. Others I know do the same and it is a hit or miss exercise. HisGirl, talking about Mark, is correct in that laying of hands on the sick and they recovering is a sign of those who follow Jesus. That does not mean we are free to interpret James 5:14 to mean anyone can do it (anoint with oil). God imbues his authority into various people for ministry, government, etc… It is the ministry of the elders of the church to go and anoint the sick with oil and pray for their healing. They carry a special anointing given by God for this purpose. Can all pray and lay hands on the sick, yes. Can all anoint with oil and pray for healing, no. Will some who are not elders do it, yes. Is this God’s way, no. Thankfully the grace of God is great enough to overlook for a time our misuse of the word.
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Someone wrote about his troubles regarding anger towards the person who recently stabbed two Illinois girls to death.
There is a righteous anger. When the people of God hear or see something that is an affront to God it is difficult not to become angry. Jesus was angry when he saw the money changers defiling the temple with their trade. He acted. That you get angry at the person who killed the girls is a natural response of the soul. The challenge isn’t to avoid being angry but to channel that anger into an activity that will bring about a positive change. Examples are: the mothers who got together and started MADD, Mothers Against Drunk Drivers, another example the people who got together and brought forth the Amber Alert system. There are many positive things that were brought forth because of anger.
What needs to change is not the anger in the soul but the hate in the spirit (heart). If you do not hate, that is good. Channel the anger and bring something good from it. Do not let your anger burn from day to day.
Be angry and sin not.
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Misnomers… the bane of the debater.
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