FAITHFULNESS

"For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Messiah." 2 Corinthians 11:2

Paul is constrained by the love of Messiah - motivated by the jealousy of the Lord To present the 'Church' as a chaste virgin - one who is faithful to the Lord

The word 'to espouse' means to fit together as a piece of joinery work (carpentry) i.e. to be perfectly fitted or joined together, made to complement, to harmonise doesn't allow for an independent spirit. (abiding in Him John Ch.15)

The Lord is jealous for His Bride-to-be and regards her as His rightful possession (purchased with His blood 1 Corinthians 6:19,20). Our salvation is a contract, a covenant, made at conversion and yet to be fulfilled, a betrothal contract of a future marriage (Ephesians 1:11-14; Revelation 21:2).

We received a measure, a deposit of the Spirit when we believed, we fulfil our obligation to the contract by going on in our relationship with the Lord, He fulfils His by proportionately increasing the measure of the Spirit in our lives. (Revelation 19:7,8 - she made herself ready, - He clothes her in His righteousness)

Breach or violation of the contract merits lawful action from Him .....i.e. judgement.

"I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury." Zechariah 8:2 His anger was stirred against Israel's unfaithfulness.

"Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Messiah? shall I then take the members of Messiah, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh."

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 1 Corinthians 6:15,16; 19,20 He has the right of ownership. We have the choice of honouring the union which we have with Him or being a spiritual harlot. We are bonded by fellowship - that which we partake of.

PARTAKERS OF MESSIAH - OR IDOLS? 1 Corinthians 10:14-22

"For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread" (v.17) we are all members of the Body of Messiah, Who is the Bread of Life. we are all partakers of Messiah through fellowship - we partake of His life.

"Behold Israel after the flesh: are not they which eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar?" (v.18) partaking of what has been offered is partaking of the altar i.e. participating in what the altar represents.

"What do I say then? that the idol is any thing, or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is anything? But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that you should have fellowship with devils. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table and the table of devils. Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? ....." (vs.19-22a)

The idol is nothing (the earth and all therein is the Lord's), it is the involvement. Offering of sacrifices are a token of submission to, and high estimation of the object. A bowing down of heart and a bonding to that thing. Love & worship of it.

("With their idols they have committed adultery" Ezekiel 23:27) Idolatry is spiritual adultery - love of people/things or the lifestyle of this world

"Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry." (v.14)

JUDGEMENT UPON IDOLATRY

"Take heed to yourselves. lest ye forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of anything, which the Lord God hath forbidden you. (Lev.26:1) For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God."

"I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall utterly perish from off the land whereunto you go to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed." Deuteronomy 4:23,23,26 (Death, destruction & loss)

"Turn ye not to idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I am Yahweh your God." Lev.19:4 Idols are anything which we worship or love, that our heart is set upon.

BUT

"They provoked him to jealousy with strange gods, with abominations provoked they him to anger."

"Of the Rock that begot you you art unmindful, and hast forgotten the God that formed you. And when Yahweh saw it, he abhorred them, because of the provoking of his sons and daughters. And he said, I WILL HIDE MY FACE FROM THEM, I will see what their end shall be; for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith. They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities:" (specific judgement stated upon Israel in v.26)

"O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end! How one should chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock HAD SOLD THEM, and Yahweh HAD SHUT THEM UP." Deuteronomy 32:16,18-21,29

ABHORRED THEM - No blessing

HID HIS FACE - withdrawal of His presence from them. Hosea 5:15

SOLD THEM - reversal of the original contract, 'sold' to the enemy.

SHUT THEM UP - no liberty, slavery and bondage to the flesh.

"Therefore thou hast forsaken the house of Jacob, because (they were filled with unclean worship and reasonings of their own mind) and they please themselves in the children of strangers," "Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made:" Isaiah 2:6,8

"They served their idols which were a snare unto them." ( v.36) Psalm 106:36-43 R.V. "They became unclean by their acts, and played the harlot in their doings." v.39

HE BECAME ANGRY AND ABHORRED THEM v.40

GAVE THEM OVER TO THE UNSAVED TO BE RULED BY THOSE THAT HATED THEM v.41

OPPRESSED BY THE ENEMY AND DOMINATED BY HIS POWER v.42

"Many times he delivered them, but they were rebellious in their purposes, and they were brought low through their iniquity." v.43

Also Ezekiel 23:30 - :I will do these things unto thee, because thou hast gone a-whoring after the heathen, and because thou art polluted with their idols." " ... scorn (v.32), drunkenness and sorrow, astonishment and desolation (v.33) "Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behind thy back, therefore bear thou also thy lewdness and thy whoredoms." (v.35)

Blinded by their own reasonings they walked in self-will and stubbornness.

AND

"Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry." (Idolatry hardens the heart to God, become stubborn & self-willed) 1 Samuel 15:23

Israel then is our example, the pattern of spiritual principles 1 Corinthians 10 What Yahweh did with Israel in the natural. He does in the new covenant in the spiritual.

" ... defiled with your idols" (Ezekiel 22:4) "If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy" (1 Corinthians 3:17) (destroy means defile, make unclean) i.e.given over to spiritual uncleanness. Spiritual destruction will come on those who defile or corrupt His spiritual House.

"And such were some of you. (idolators etc.) But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Y'shua Messiah and in the Spirit of our God." We annul the covenant by returning to old sins - forgotten you were cleansed (1 Corinthians 6:11)

"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap. He that sows to the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; ...." Galatians 6:7,8a

The Book of Ezekiel is prophetic of N.T. Age and Millenium " ...and you shall bear the sins of your idols." Ezekiel 23:49 "which went astray from me after their idols; they shall even bear their iniquity." Ezekiel 44:10

You come under the power of what you worship, it is your god, and you are dominated by it.

NEW COVENANT PRINCIPLES

The same principle of judgement is in the new Covenant! "Y'shua the Messiah, the same yesterday, today, and forever." (Hebrews 13:8) "flee from idolatry" (1 Corinthians 10:14)

" ....... covetousness (desire for things), which is idolatry" Colossians 3:5

"idolatry" Gal.6:20 (listed as an work of the flesh)

"Let the time that is past suffice for doing what the Gentiles like to do, living in ...................... lawless idolatry." 1 Peter 4:3

"Neither be ye idolators, as some of them were ....." (the Israelites) 1 Corinthians 10:7

BECAUSE

it breaks fellowship with Yahweh Ezekiel 6:9

"And we know that the Son of God is come, and has given us an understanding, that we may KNOW him that is true, even in His Son Y'shua the Messiah. This is the true God and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols. " 1 John 5:20,21

Keeping yourselves from idols is the key to knowing Him and having His life.

"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous (i.e. hard)" 1 John 5:3 "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral, nor idolators ......" 1 Corinthians 6:9,10

NO INHERITANCE - You disqualify your spiritual inheritance (Romans 14:17), by being severed from the Life-source. Joined in harlotry to the object of your affections. (Colossians 3:1-3)

"But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolator, ............." 1 Corinthians 5:11

"Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person." 1 Corinthians 5:13b

BROKEN FELLOWSHIP - Dis-fellowshiping is the enactment of the broken fellowship from the Lord. They are " .... estranged from me through their idols" (Ezekiel 14:5)

Judgement by the Body necessary to separate the leaven from within itself 1 Corinthians 5:6,7

ULTIMATE JUDGEMENT

" ...idolators, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." Rev.21:8

" For without (the city of God) are ........... idolators ....." Rev.22:15

This is exclusion from the presence of Yahweh, the judgement of eternal death.