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[saint701]

Hello All,


Blessings!

The Doctrines of The New Covenant (Preface)

We begin a new study now on the doctrines of the New Covenant in the Blood of Jesus. The purpose of this study is to examine portions of scripture that our Lord would like to teach us about His work of grace through the New Covenant our Father has made with us in the Blood of His Son. Such is His work and His light will direct us.

My original intent here was only to examine the writings of the Apostle Paul and the doctrines he illuminated in His writings, but on my way to this desk the Lord changed that as He has much more to say to us. For a reference I highly recommend that you read Andrew Murray's Book, "The Two Covenants." While as I recall the work had somewhat of a different focus than what we are to undertake here as the Lord leads, as his break down of the differences that exist in the Old Covenant of the Law with Israel and the New Covenant of Grace to His church was second to none. And I am certain that some of what He taught I will teach also as is the same Spirit of Grace that teaches us all.

Tonight I will begin with a story, not just any story, but a grace story. In 1975 I enlisted in the U.S. Navy. After boot camp I was stationed at NASNI in San Diego, CA. (Naval Air Station, North Island). However, rather than a Naval Base was more like a pipe line for drug running and usage in that day. I quickly found myself surrounded by clouds of marijuana smoke on a nightly basis as that is just the way it was.

One of the workers in my office was as much devoted to the pursuit of a hedonistic lifestyle as anyone I have ever met, and he loved to stretch the limits of his lust to ever increasing doses of heavier and more dangerous drugs. When he introduced heroine to the gang, I quit associating with him and using for the most part.

Before I diminished my association with him we often had discussions on ethereal things and he would brag to me about the wonders of black magic he had witnessed performed in San Francisco. I wasn't impressed as I told Him I was a firm believer in God even though at that time obviously I wasn't living for Him but for me.

One day while he was at my apartment he noticed I had a book on the occult in my bookcase. (I didn't know such blocked the presence of the Lord at the time). The guy liked to read so I offered to loan it to him. He said, "I'll go you one better. I have a book by some minister by the name of Andrew Murray at my apartment. I will give you it in exchange for this book on the occult. I agreed.

Of course the book happened to be "The Two Covenants" by Andrew Murray. I happily placed the treasured work in my bookcase and promptly forgot about it. I didn't know then, but that forgotten book was to play a huge role of feeding this baby milk a couple of years on down the road. I wasn't born again at the time that I received the book, but I had been healed. (I will explain the difference if the Lord permit at a later time).

About a year and a half passed after that. I was aboard the USS Enterprise bound for the Philippines still attached to the same Naval Air Squadron, Air Anti-submarine Squadron, VS-38 based out of NASNI. It was something like mid-April when the Lord began dealing with me through dreams. The dreams were scary because I really didn't know anything about spiritual things, spiritual life, just Him crucified. To me life in Christ was an experiment that I thought had failed in my life. I didn't know anything more about being Christian than going to church.

I had serious reservations about the dreams being from the Lord even though in one I was caused to observe a multiple choice exam written in light where a "light" pencil circled the word "chosen." Then there was the voice not long after that accused me of being a pessimist and challenged me to have faith and return to St. Louis after my enlistment. I was one of the first ones to the bar after the ship docked.

My enlistment was up the following August and I returned to St. Louis. Things didn't go well. (To be continued.)

Day 2 of the story

Being the willful and stubborn cuss that I was I focused on the worldly pursuit of getting a Masters Degree in English. I intended to use my GI Bill to pay for it . By this time I had a daughter, a seed I had planted before going overseas. Her mother stayed at home with her while I went to school. Her mother didn't like that.

She was extremely bright and felt motherhood not a fitting task for her at that time. I might add she was also money hungry and greedy. It was a loveless marriage from the moment our honey moon ended. Small wonder as she had become a witch while in college, a thing which was unknown to me until after I was born again.

With me at school and her at home, when I came home things didn't work well between us. She moaned and groaned about having to take care of our daughter. I quit school. She got a job, and I took care of our daughter. I didn't know but such was the Lord's will as he had plans to lead me into His second work of grace in my life.

I was channel surfing one day when I found the 700 Club on the tube. It wasn't long before I made them a stop each day along with reading the Bible. I did this while my baby girl napped. Of course it wasn't long before that Spirit of repentance always sent out from Pat Robertson's ministry found me and began dealing with me.

I came under such conviction I thought it would be impossible for me ever to really be saved. I felt I was lost beyond hope. But I had been reading on the faith of Abraham and decided that no matter what I thought of myself, no matter how wretched a man I thought I was, I would pray anyway. I had a book from Watchman Nee on how to say the sinner's prayer that spoke of going to the cross and asking to be baptized into the Lord's death and resurrection, so I prayed Watchman Nee's prayer.

Shock! I felt light enter my body!

It was Winter time and gloomy days began to wear on me or so I thought. I didn't become depressed, just sad. I decided to call the 700 club for prayer. Back then they had local counselors. I still remember the number. 997-3838. I had no idea what to expect as I dialed the number, but man o' man how I was about to be connected!

The most beautiful, sweet, loving, gentle, Holy Ghost anointed lady came on the line. To this day I would swear she was an angel, but then again just abiding in the vine, who knows. I told her about how down I was feeling. She said, "oh, that's the Holy Spirit making you feel that way. Have you been born again?"

I told her that I had been.

"Have you been filled with the Holy Spirit?" She asked.

I didn't know I hadn't as I still was just plain ol' dumb about spiritual things, so I answered yes.

"Well then," she said, "do you speak in tongues?"

I said no.

"Would you like to speak in tongues?" She asked.

I said sure. I had no idea what speaking in tongues was.

She said, "now everyone I pray for receives the gift of speaking in tongues within the hour."

I said, "I don't want just the gift of speaking in tongues. I want them all."

She said, "oh, you can't have them all at this time as such would just be too much for you to handle."

I understood. She proceeded then to pray for me and hung up. Nothing happened. I called her back.

She asked, "do you have any occult books in your house?"

I asked if she would mind staying on the line while I checked. She agreed.

I found a couple tucked away on the bottom shelf of my little book case I didn't know were in the house. I returned to the phone and told I had a couple. She advised me to remove them from the house as such was blocking the receiving of the gift.

She hung up and I removed the books. I took them out back and threw them in the trash. I returned to the living room and waited. Still nothing. It wasn't long though before I began to feel a stirring on the inside to begin saying, I will speak in tongues. I will speak in tongues. I will speak in tongues. I walked around that living room for 15 minutes repeating I will speak speak in tongues, I will speak in tongues.

Suddenly my voice changed to a different confession. My spirit had become involved. I began saying I will get it all out. I will get it all out. I repeated that over and over for about 5 minutes. I didn't know what was happening. My knees buckled and I hit the floor. Kablam!

The washing of the Holy Spirit came all over me and this beautiful heavenly language came flowing out of mouth like a river of life. As it is written, out of the mouths of babes thou has perfected praise. I was in Heaven just crying and praising God! It wasn't long before I knew I was praying for Israel in that Heavenly language. It was just awesome!

I didn't tell my wife what had happened when she came home. But the next morning those occult books were back in the bookcase. It still hadn't dawned on me that she was a witch and that she kept those books to protect herself from the Holy Spirit! It still hadn't dawned on me at the time that she obeyed wicked spirits for favor in her life. I still didn't know at the time she had sold her soul to the devil as a price she was willing to pay to get herself a college education! She was a daughter of Satan and I still didn't know it!

I shredded the books. They wouldn't be coming back in the house again. We never discussed what I done with the books, but it wasn't long before late one night she suddenly began to beg me to pray for her. She was in real terror! I led her in the sinner's prayer and she calmed down. However, to this day I still don't know if she got saved or not as wasn't long after that we began to go round and round about what church to attend.

I was still greener than a gourd in spiritual things. For all I know she pretended to want to be saved so I wouldn't recognize her as the witch she still was. She had some experience and skill in being a witch. I had virtually no experience in understanding spiritual things beyond tongues. She had gained some of the skill from a college roommate, some of it from a friend in San Diego, and the rest from a coven she was born into near St. Louis.

As I look back I do see that as a coven member she had been assigned to the church of her choice and I now realize why at the time she insisted I go with her instead of she with me. As I said, I didn't understand spiritual things, so when that ol' check in the spirit hit me about not going with her, I didn't understand it. To keep peace in the house I went.

It was round Easter time. I had been feeding my spirit lots from the Bible and keeping up with The 700 Club each day, but I was eager for more food. That is when I remembered Andrew Murray's book from the exchange with my Navy friend. I was excited. I didn't know why.

Now before most of what I read of the Bible was in the Old Testament or the gospels because what Paul talked about in the gospels, or John, or James, or Peter, didn't make any sense to me at all. I was still dimly lit so to speak. But reading Andrew Murray's Book, "The Two Covenants," brought things to light I never dreamed of were in there. The Holy Spirit was using Andrew Murray's Book to explain His work of grace in us and what our high calling really is. My spirit was eating it up!

And while reading the very passage in Mr. Murray's book where he was explaining our adoption as sons of God my spirit cried out "daddy!" I had cried abba, Father, just as Paul described! God? Daddy? I had never heard such wonderful news! My Heavenly Father was my Father! How cool!

Not quite as cool but still cool was the fact He had planted that anointed book by Andrew Murray in my life through an unsaved hedonist I would become acquainted with while in the military.

There is more to the story, although not with Andrew Murray. The next part has me landed by the Lord working near a coven of witches, the same coven of witches that wife of mine was a part of. Just don't forget we are our Lord's workmanship as I continue the story as some of it makes me look pretty bad even though it isn't.

I will continue the story here as the Lord wills. I hope you will continue reading as will astound you the grace of our Lord He has poured out on my life so I could tell it.


Blessings!
L, ICJ, Saint701.

End of Preface Part I