ASK Monthly Newsletters
August 1999 

Dear Associates, Students and Friends:

There is nothing easier to understand than the most sophisticated and complicated doctrines of the Holy Scriptures. That statement is not contradictory. That’s right. All Scripture is easy to know if a certain principle is applied. The truth is, any ordinary person who is capable of reading the whole Bible can fathom the meaning of the most difficult passages and to perceive precisely what they signify in regard to God’s plan for each member of the human race. One would think that God intended it to be that way. Indeed, the Holy Scriptures contain the easiest teachings to comprehend and to recognize, but (as I said) one must apply a prime principle of interpretation that God has adequately supplied within the literary boundaries of His final teaching to mankind found in His Holy Writ. Once you know the principle, you should be able to answer all the questions you have concerning Christianity, the purpose of life, and how we are to obey and to please God the Father and Christ Jesus. What is that principle?

Every one of you reading this Communicator can know (and most of you do know) that particular principle. As a consequence, most of you reading this article comprehend more about the central teachings of the Scriptures than all of the theologians and scholars of the various universities. But, to absorb the essential facts of the Scriptures you must apply that simple (yet profound) principle of interpretation. That principle concerns the teaching and the application of "the Mystery" (the great Secret) that God gave to the apostle Paul and to others in the year A.D.63. Before that year, there was NOT a person in the world who understood the fullness of the plan of God (and that includes all the apostles and Christian laity both in Jerusalem and throughout the Gentile worlds). But, when "the Mystery" was finally disclosed, everything becomes (and became) plain and simple. You must recognize what that new doctrine is all about (that was only revealed in the year A.D.63 called "the Mystery"). That new doctrine superseded all other biblical doctrines. In fact, it interprets all the other doctrines.

That biblical doctrine of "the Mystery" is given full coverage in my new book "The Essentials of New Testament Doctrine." You will find all its details in that book. With the teaching of "the Mystery," the apostles finally became aware of what the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ really meant to the entire human race. What God did with "the Mystery" was to place in written form what "God’s Manifesto for Human Rights and Privileges" actually entailed. The principle can be defined in one sentence: "We who are now "in Christ" are reckoned by God the Father to be already deified by sitting on the same throne as Christ Jesus (right now, at this moment) on the right hand of the Father in heaven (Ephesians 2:6)." This means you and I are defined as being members of the Family of God and nothing (or no one) can take that awesome position and credentials away from us. God will not allow any of us to be lost. The Godhead is "God the Father, God the Son, and God the Us [redeemed humans]."

We, my dear brethren, are now sitting with God the Father ("in Christ") in the Holy of Holies in heaven. Whereas, when there was a Temple on earth, only the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies to petition God the Father on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), what we find revealed in "the Mystery" is the fact that each of us (I mean YOU now reading this Communicator) is now sitting "in Christ" (in the eyes of God) within the Holy of Holies in heaven (Colossians 3:1).

This teaching is the final doctrine of God to mankind. OK, but what has this to do with the interpretation of the various doctrines written in the Old as well as the New Testaments and whether those doctrines refer to you and whether you need to obey them? Here is the principle that you need to keep in mind. Always view each doctrine (in relation to yourself and that of your family and friends) as if you are sitting on the right hand of God in heaven (within the divine Holy of Holies of this universe). God the Father no longer views you as a simple human. He sees you as His Son or Daughter and you are as divine as are the other Sons and Daughters of God. In fact, you are the highest because you sit on the same identical throne as Christ Jesus (you are now "in Christ"). With this fact of "the Mystery" now in your mind, you can ask yourself the question: "Will God punish me or chastise me with sickness or infirmities because of sins that I commit on earth?" After all, God now reckons you as sinless as is Christ. Recall, we are now "in Christ." Does God still punish Christ or us with sickness because of sins?

Let us be clear (and biblical) about this matter. In former times God used to punish Israelites with sickness or infirmities in particular ways if they sinned, but with the revelation of "the Mystery" in A.D.63, God no longer punishes Christ Jesus (nor us who are "in Him") with such afflictions to chastise us. Still, since we are now humans, God allows the laws of nature (the same physical laws that govern the animals and vegetable realms) to cause us to get sick, and even to die. But God no longer deliberately punishes us for the sins we commit (note my Doctrinal Report for last month). True, there is Scripture to show that before the revelation of "the Mystery," God did respond to sin or wrongdoing (even with Christians) with sickness or infirmities (see First Corinthians 11:29-32; James 5:14-16), but after "the Mystery" was revealed in A.D.63, the whole way that God deals with His children changed. In no way will God the Father or Christ Jesus afflict you (God’s divine children) to punishment for such things. God does allow things to happen to us that we may not like (Philippians 2:13), but this does not include specific sicknesses and illnesses. We are now in a very different relationship with God since we are now "in Christ Jesus" and sitting on the right hand throne of God in the celestial Holy of Holies.

One person did ask me to detail things a little more. He asked in essence: "Can God truly heal us? – and heal us completely if we ask Him? Should the elders anoint us whenever we get sick (either major or minor) or even if we feel a cold coming on? Just how should we pray for each other? Should we always pray for the sick that God will always heal them? Should we pray once, twice, daily or continually? If God does not heal immediately, should we pray harder, longer and with more intensity and with fasting and humiliation? I would still love to know the answers to these questions." I told this brother that my answer is given in principle in my book on the "Essentials." But, if one wants a simple and direct answer, then here it is. "NO, you do not need to call the elders of the church nor do you have to intensify your prayers by fasting and humiliation. It is NOT up to your prayers or those of another human (or any group of humans) that will secure your healing, or that of your loved one. God will heal you when and if He wants you healed. Read Philippians 2:13 for God's answer to ALL such queries."

In short, you now know you are sitting on the right hand of God within the heavenly Holy of Holies. You do not need to ask any man or woman on earth to intercede with you for healing or anything else (I Timothy 2:5). Simply put, "turn your head to the left" and mention "in God’s right ear" your requests concerning all your problems and sicknesses and place them in God’s hands. Remember, YOU are now legally "sitting on His right hand in Christ." He will respond to you just as He does to Christ who now literally sits at His right hand in heaven. Other humans are not needed as intercessors in securing any blessing from God. It is quite proper to pray for one another (but this "praying for one another" is designed to bring all of us into a "love-relationship" and a "deep concern" for one another), but the intercession of human beings or even angels is no longer needful for us who understand "the Mystery." Simply mention the matter of your concern (and desperate need) to the Father through Christ and they will handle it in their perfect manner. Continually "begging" God to do something is not proper.

Since we who recognize that we are now allotted a divine station by being members of the very Family of God (and sitting on the right hand of God – Ephesians 2:6), we are not accounted any longer in God’s eyes as sinners (see my new book on the "Essentials" for the scriptural details). But what if we commit the sin against the Holy Spirit? Does that sin in God’s eyes merit an exception, and will He punish anyone who commits such a sin? You need to get next month’s Communicator and Doctrinal Report. It will contain the article: "What is the Sin Against the Holy Spirit?" Thank you from my heart for your continued support of the work of ASK. We need your help more than ever. Until next month,

Ernest L. Martin

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