or thyself approved unto God a workman that needeth not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. The Bible is the most important book that we could possibly study. It's the most important book in the world, in all of creation, and anyone who calls himself a Christian should be on a quest to master the word. As we continue to learn, how to master the master's word, we should remember that the central theme of the Bible is the kingdom of God. As Jesus said, this kingdom of God, this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached through and to all the earth. The creation accounts, the stories of Cain and Abel, Seth, Methuselah, Noah, and all the Old Testament characters, the life of Christ and his churches are best understood in the context of the Bible's theme, the kingdom of God. And when you grasp the theme, you will remember it and understand the word of God, the role of Christ and his central figure and role in history and with greater clarity comprehend what is it that God is trying to communicate through his word. And that will equip us better to share his message because we have a better grasp of it when we master the master's word. We'll also recognize the relevance of God's word to share it with other people. Because it's not a book that's antiquated with old obsolete messages. No, these are messages that have been current events and relevant to anybody at any time of life. From Genesis to Revelation, God's promise to establish his kingdom is proclaimed persistently by all the prophets. From the foundation of the world to the creation of the new heavens and new earth, this promise has been and will continue to be proclaimed and announced. The kingdom of God is the overall theme of the Bible. In the Old and the New Testaments, when you look at your Bibles, you say, hey, there's an Old Testament and a New Testament. And we've talked about that some already. But the Old and the New Testaments portray the same message, the same theme in two different ways. Like a coin, one coin with two different sides, the Old Testament emphasizes the problem that is preventing us from entering the kingdom of God. I'm saying it emphasizes. It covers the promises of God and the message of salvation, but its emphasis is on law and the impossibility of entering into the kingdom of God by law. And the New Testament emphasizes God's solution to our problem, because the problem is all about sin. And that's why the law is not the way to be saved. There's two testaments in the Bible. But one message, two testaments, one message. It's the same message, always been the same message since before the foundation of the world. And this is clearly understood when we understand the theme of the Bible. Having presented the Old Testament in the previous lesson, and talked about the theme. This lesson tonight, what I want to do is cover the message of the New Testament and show its emphasis. As I already mentioned, the New Testament reveals the fulfillment of God's promise to establish his kingdom. As the culmination of the law through Christ, the New Testament emphasizes God's grace, God's mercy, It is God's promise, God's love, which is distinct from the Old Testament, which has the emphasis of the law, which exposes sin, which leads to failure, condemnation, and death. Now, the message of the New Testament is that Christ came to fulfill the law, to accomplish what we could not do through the law, And because we're sinners, it's impossible for us to fulfill the law. But being God, Jesus Christ was able to do that which we could not do, and he came and did that which came naturally to him as God, being God. I pause here because I say, what comes naturally to him in the supernatural? Living supernatural comes natural to God. That's supernatural to us. But he could do that which we couldn't do. He can do right. We can't. As Romans 3, 10 points out, there's none righteous, no, not one. We can't do what's right. In fact, as God, he can't sin. It's impossible for a God with a righteous nature to sin. It's not what he does by willpower, overcoming temptations and influences. No, it comes from within. He is righteous by nature. He does that which is controlled and dictated and determined by who and what he is. And when he changes us, through the new birth experience, being born again, imputed with the righteousness of what? The righteousness of God, right, Brother Aaron? When we are imputed with the righteousness of God, now we possess the rightness of God, which is why John wrote in 1 John 3, 9, that whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin. For his seed, new birth, makes it impossible, not able to sin. And you say, well, I sin. I'm always fighting temptation. That's your flesh. What part of you has the seed of God in you? What part of you is born again? Is it the flesh? No. That's why Paul said in Romans 7, 21, after the inward man, I myself serve the law of God. Apart from God, there is no ability to serve the law of God. And that's why Paul said, In Romans 7.20, when I do good, evil is always present with me. Why? Because we're schizophrenic. That is, when you are born again, you've been imputed with the righteousness of God within, but the old man is still old, still has the old nature. And so we're in a tug-of-war between two opposing natures, both wanting to go two different directions. But when you die and go to heaven, what part of you goes to heaven? The new born again inward man that conforms to the law of God. The old man's going to the dust of the ground. Dust of dust, ashes to ashes. Why? Because it's not qualified. It was not born again. But we will receive a new glorified body possessing the same righteousness of God. And that's the basis for eternal security, isn't it? Because if you have the righteousness of God, you can't sin. If you can't sin, you can't die. That is why we are eternally secure. That's what God does. So that the moment you're saved, he imputes his righteousness, makes it impossible for you to sin and impossible for you to ever lose your salvation. And people think, well, now wait. What if I decide I don't wanna believe anymore? Yeah, where's that coming from? The inward man or the outward man? The old man or the new man? Well, it can't be coming from the new man because the new man has the righteousness of God. It can't sin. If it can't sin, it can't die. Now, 2 Corinthians chapter five, 21 builds on this theme of what comes naturally to God, naturally to Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 5, 21 declares, for He hath made Him, now that He and Him, the Father, God the Father hath made God the Son, Jesus Christ, to be sin for us. Who knew no sin? He was made sin, but he didn't know sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God. There that is again, the righteousness of who? Hey, this wasn't the righteousness of the best person in the world. This was the righteousness of God himself. You can't get better than that. that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. Think about that. He was made sin so we could be made righteous. That's like swapping places. He was made sin, but he knew no sin. Unlike us, we are made sin, but we sin. But he was made sin and did not sin. Fantastic. Hebrews chapter two, verse 16 sheds light on this mystery. It says, for verily he took not on him the nature of angels. Nope, Jesus did not take on the nature of angels. But he took on him the seed of Abraham. The seed, the very nature, all that. made up what was Abraham. By taking on the seed of Abraham, he took on the nature of Abraham, or in other words, the nature of humanity itself, rather than that of angels. Christ fully identified with humanity in the body of flesh, human flesh, making himself the bearer of our sin, made sin for us. And for this reason, Hebrews chapter two, 17 through 18 continue saying, wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren. You know who his brethren are, it's us. He's made like us that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself has suffered being what? Tempted. He was tempted. He is able to succor them that are tempted. You know why he was tempted? Because he took on human flesh and experienced our temptations. Hebrews 4.15 tells us that. It adds this further insight into the implications of having a human body with a human nature and made sin for us. For we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but was in all points, all points, how many points? Some. all points, tempted like who? As we are. Not someone else, not the angels. Tempted like we are. Why? It only happens because he was fully, 100%, as they would say, 100% beef, all beef. 100% all humanity. wrapped up in a body prepared for Christ. He took that body and did what we couldn't do with it. It sins. We yield the temptation. He being God and embodied in that human flesh, took it and said, no way, you're not going to sin. I'm going to keep you perfect. And he demonstrated his dominance over human nature and flesh. Jesus endured every form of human temptation because he was fully human, in a fully human body, with a human nature, yet remained sinless. Unlike us, Jesus being God, indwelling a human body, never yielded to temptation. He was holy. He was blameless. He was perfect. The spotless lamb of God. He was the sinless sacrifice necessary to pay for our sins, and he alone could pay for it, because he alone could offer the human body in perfection, untainted by sin. Only he could do this because he was and is God. Hebrews 10, verses four and five explain that his body was divinely prepared for this purpose. It says, for it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Wherefore, when he cometh into the world, he sayeth, sacrifice an offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared for me. God did all of this because it was the only way to redeem us and grant us citizenship into his kingdom. And this is love manifested. What Jesus endured for us is love in its purest infinite form, as John 3.16 says, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Why is it everlasting life? Because of what he's done. When he imputes his righteousness to us, if you can't sin, you can't die. Everlasting life. To fully appreciate the message of God's solution emphasized in the New Testament, we must first understand the origin of His promise. The New Testament message begins with the life of Jesus Christ, who was God's solution to our problem. He was the fulfillment of God's promise. And since Jesus came to fulfill the promise, the promise itself had to come before his incarnation. In Hebrews chapter two, verse 16, we're told that Jesus came from the seed of Abraham. Why not say the seed of Adam? After all, Adam was the father of all humanity, including Abraham. Why not say the seed of Abraham? If Jesus took on human nature rather than that of the beast, angelic or the angel's nature, why not reference Adam? It's because Abraham represents not only humanity's sin nature, but also God's promise of an inheritance, the kingdom of God. And so by mentioning the seed of Abraham, he gets two, like two birds with one stone. This promise is recorded in Genesis chapter 12 verses 1 through 3. This promise of God to Abraham. God told Abram, now the Lord had said unto Abram, get thee out of thy country from thy kindred and from thy father's house unto a land that I will show thee. And I will Key word, just stick that away in your memory for a little bit. I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee and make thy name great, and thou shalt be a blessing. And I will bless them that bless thee and curse him that curses thee, and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. This promise of God to Abraham includes land, descendants, and a global blessing for all the families on earth. This verse is worth memorizing. It's the first verse that highlights Abraham's importance to humanity, especially to the Jews. And if you recall, the Jews, the Jewish leaders were always referring to Abraham be our father. He holds high esteem and great significance. referring back to a promise, an early promise, in Abraham. And that's why everybody refers back to Abraham. Because they want to have a part of that promise that God gave to Abraham. In Genesis chapter 17, verses 4 through 8, God expands on this covenant, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name anymore be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham. For a father of many nations have I made thee, and I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee, and thy seed after thee and their generations for an everlasting covenant. And I prolonged, that word, seed, File that in the memory too. To be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee and to thy seed after thee the land wherein thou art a stranger. All the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession. And I will be their God. This passage right here shows the promise was for an everlasting possession. But as we know, the only way to enjoy an everlasting anything, everlasting possession is to be born again in Christ. The promise could only be fulfilled and made possible because of him. In Genesis chapter 22 verses 17 through 18, God once again reaffirms his promise to Abraham saying, in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed. But wait, that can only be fulfilled in everlasting possession and inheritance through Jesus Christ. Oh, that gives us a clue here. The seed. He didn't say seeds, but said seed. And this recurring promise that God would establish his kingdom, would establish his kingdom, and give it as an everlasting possession to Abraham and his seed is what ties the Old and the New Testaments together. The promise God made to Abraham is what makes him significant. not only to the Jews, but to all believers, all families on earth. In debating with men in the synagogue and giving an answer to the high priest, the martyr Stephen faithful deacon in the church, early church, recounted this promise of God to Abraham in his final words of life, saying in Acts chapter seven, verses two through five, and he said, men and brethren and fathers hearken, the God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia before he dwelled in Charon and said unto him, get thee out of thy country and from thy kindred and come into the land which I shall show thee. Then came he out of the land of the Chaldeans and dwelt in Sharon. And from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land wherein ye now dwell." Referring to Israel. And he gave him none inheritance in it. No, not so much as to set his foot on. Now wait, I thought Abraham was in the land. Yet he promised. that he would give it to him for a possession and to his seed after him when as yet he had no child. Being a descendant of Abraham carried great weight because it gave the Jews divine claim to the land promised to Abraham. that the promise was given to Abraham, Abraham didn't even have a child to give an inheritance of the land which he had not even, he didn't even possess yet. Well, we can fill this out and begin to understand better when we see what Zacharias, the high priest at the time, the father of John the Baptist, had to say, recounting the message of God's promise from the angel who spoke to him in the temple, saying in Luke chapter 1, verses 73 through 75, the oath which he swore to our father Abraham, that he would grant unto us that we, being delivered out of the hands of our enemy, enemies might serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life. The oath was the promise God made to Abraham. This is the promise recorded in Genesis chapter 12. The promise to Abraham is all important to the Jews as heirs to Abraham. The land is secured and theirs guaranteed by divine promise. But having read the New Testament, we know more of the story because we know this promise has yet to be fulfilled as an everlasting promise. The land of Israel that exists right now is not going to last forever. How do we know that? Because we know this old heaven and earth is gonna be obliterated according to 2 Peter 3. And then there will be a new heaven and a new earth brought together. Hebrews 11, 13 says of Abraham and many others, these all died in faith, not having received the promises. Oh, they were on the march through the land looking for, where is this land of milk and honey and no sorrows and no pain? They never saw it. but having seen them afar and were persuaded of them and embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. When will this promise be fulfilled? It will be fulfilled when the seventh and the last trumpet of God sounds. Satan's kingdom is brought to an end at Armageddon, and the millennial reign begins with the announcement recorded in Revelation 11, 15, which says, and the seventh angel sounded, and there were great voices in heaven saying, the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever. And from that point on, It shall never go back to evil. We live in Satan's kingdom right now. This isn't God's kingdom. He doesn't want to be blamed for the suffering and evil going on in this wicked world. This is Satan's kingdom, the kingdom of pride, the kingdom of self-will rather than God's will. No, his kingdom is yet to come and when it does, Revelation 11, 15, when it does, that's when he will establish his kingdom during the millennial reign, kick it off, and then after a thousand years, Satan is destroyed with the destruction of all evil. See, Armageddon is the destruction of Satan's kingdom. But the battle of Gog at the end of the millennial reign is the destruction of all evil in the world, and it will never raise its ugly head again. And we go into the new heaven and the new earth, forever and ever under the reign of Christ, which begins right after Armageddon. That's his conquest. The kingdom of Christ will be established and it is he who makes it possible for us to hope for citizenship there. For this reason, Paul draws attention to the word seed in the promises given to Abraham. Remember God's promise in Genesis 17, seven, which says, and I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed, thy seed, that's why I say file away in your memory, after thee and their generations for an everlasting covenant to be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee. And in Genesis 22, 18, the promise was, and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed. Now, Paul writes about this in Galatians chapter three, verses 16 through 18, where he says, now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. Oh, there, it ties it all together for us now. He sayeth not, and to seeds as of many, but as of one, and to thy seed, which is Christ. And this I say, that the covenant that was confirmed before of God in Christ the law, which was 430 years after, that's Moses' time, cannot disannul. In other words, though the law came, the law given to Moses came after the promise given to Abraham, the promise of Abraham could not be disannulled. Rather, the promise God made to Abraham superseded the law. We'll talk about that at another time. It cannot disannul that it should make the promise of none effect. Hallelujah. The promise God made to Abraham rather than law, but promise trumps law. For if the inheritance be of the law, it's no more promise, but God gave it to Abraham by promise. These are important things to understand when mastering the word of God, because we need to understand that what God's testimony in the word of God is, what his testimony is to us, is based on his promise, his word, his oath. It's not conditioned on what we can do, and that's why Jesus Christ came. If there was any other way, as Jesus said in the Garden of Gethsemane during his prayer, Lord, let this cup pass. Nevertheless, not my will, but thy will be done. That shows us there was no other way. salvation and experiencing the promise of God to be qualified as citizens to enter into his kingdom had to come through the work that God and God alone could do because there's nothing we could do. And that was the point of the Old Testament to show us you don't want a relationship with God based on law. It won't work. The New Testament shows us this is the kind of relationship you want to have, a relationship with God based on grace and promise. And that is how you will be blessed. Amen. We're glad you joined us for our services here at Mission Boulevard Baptist Church. If this program has helped you and you would like to have more information about trusting Christ as your Lord and Savior, or if you would like to have resources to help you in your spiritual walk and growth, please email us at the address on your screen. We look forward to having you join us again online, but you are always welcome to personally attend any of our services at the Mission Boulevard Baptist Church here in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Hi, this is Dr. Patrick Briney. I hope and pray this important lesson has improved your life. For more life-changing lessons, and to get your free book that I've written for you, visit my website at patrickbriney.com. And please share this valuable lesson with at least three of your friends, to enrich their lives in our Lord Jesus Christ. I'll upload my next lesson for you soon. God Bless.