The Feast of Tabernacles is a collection of teachings by Richard Mikelson.

 

These teachings explore spiritual depths of influential texts of scripture,  and of the human condition.

Purge your Conscience

God is righteous and He is responsible for all that has happened to mankind. We do not easily comprehend what is right about things that have happened. God’s ways are “past finding out”, Incomprehensible to the natural mind of man are the things God is doing and has done. Man’s thinking retains little understanding or connection with the Almighty.

The majority of Christian people, the crowds, have limited comprehensions filled with buckets of old religious teachings that makes them think as LITTLE children, “babes.” Most are not understanding God’s mind nor clearly understanding the Word of God, nor His MOTIVES, ATTITUDES, AND PURPOSES. Children only understand their own surroundings. They know only of their own ACTS and of THEMSELVES. Yet children do quickly grow, coming to know what they were told by their father or mother. Children refrain from what they were told is wrong by developing pleasing obedience.

In same manner, Christians have mentors, church leaders, that have mentored instruction they practice WITHOUT KNOWING THE WHY AND WHEREFORE in many cases. Any debate is discouraged as to why they must do thus and so and not otherwise. God dealt with the nation of Israel as His children and we Christ followers are also His children. God chose to adopt Abraham’s descendants, to make of them a nation, the Israelites. These are Jacob’s family ,who first and foremost were taught to be unconditionally obedient to His instruction. He gave them very clear and definite commandments and precepts to control their OUTWARD behavior. These the laws of the nation of Israel required accurate observation.

Many hidden things of the spiritual nature of God are revealed in Old Testament scripture. A relationship was formed when He establishing Israel, whom He made a particular people. After centuries the spiritual truths of the New Covenant, He has also made a peculiar people zealous of good works. Some are kings and priests of the highest order. They reveal more clearly God’s deep inner intents, receiving hidden knowledge of God by His Spirit. These reveal mysterious accomplishments of great and high realities that originate in the mind of a loving Father.

God is the FATHER of our inner spiritual person. Christ is being formed within men and women to bring spiritual knowledge, so that people everywhere can know God personally. All scripture is inspired of God, and His Spirit can use it to reveal to us His true MEANING, PURPOSE, and Godly INTENT. This truth free sus from man’s dark thinking. Man’s inner comprehensions must be so benefited by His Spirit to have the evidence of correcting guidance in leading to righteousness.

A man of God is spiritually quickened of mind, thoroughly equipped to teach, reproof, and correct because he is being trained in righteousness. Many in the unseen and in the seen realms of the earth now trust in the Father's righteous purposes. They are motivated from within to do His will. Jesus is a High Priest of BETTER THINGS than what happened with the nation of Israel. He has assembled a great host that has been purged from the fleshly elements that do not, are not ABLE to serve God.

The Spirit God put in Jesus is sent to us! It has come to our inner spiritual person to work within us in a marvelous way:

“The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way into the holy place has not yet been disclosed while the outer tabernacle is still standing, which is a symbol for the present time. Accordingly both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience, since they relate only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation.

But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance." Hebrews 9:8-15 NAS

Jesus mediates a new consciousness by purging our being, our inner thought life. HIS viewpoints must become what we are conscience of and focused upon. An inner purging is first required in order to be found serving the living God. We are now focused on Christ, who is spiritually working within us to purge us from our own knowledge and awareness. His work raises us to the realm of Jesus’s consciousness.

Now seeing with His eyes how dead religious “works” are a prison house, rather than bringing about a change. Christ frees us from misconceptions that have worked within us. His Spirit is helping us so we are “growing up” to know Christ’s leading. God the Father truly bestows DEVINE qualities that are formed and working within us even now! We are truly receing a lasting inheritance, a spiritual faith just like Jesus. He mediates, by His Spirit, and daily comes within our hearts to show us what is “the good, the acceptable, and perfect will of God”.

It is a most remarkable thing! It is the way into the holiest place that is not open to us if we are still under the old laws and practices of the holy place consciously working in our minds. The law was given to His children, and that standard is still standing within the Jewish “conscience” of today. Christians who observe the New Testament, however, are not to make laws out of scripture stemming from man’s religious strength. These efforts keep us out of the perfect realm where God frees us from dead works.

The perfect realm is opened by Christ. We must be cleansed, purged from our own thinking, for today His own people, “Christians” are confused about WORKS that are truly DEAD in God’s eyes. It is an important that some part ways with the old holy places to form a more perfect understanding. A maturity in Christ comes to cleanse our consciousness. We become those who refuse any legalistic “keep the law” church mentality that rules the old church heavens.

The Day that the Lord promised has come for some. Christ is working within us to purge our consciousness. We have taken off the “old shoes from our feet” (our understanding) to be spiritually minded. The spiritual minded brother has allowed Christ to guide them to mysterious higher ground. An inner working is unfolding new dimensions holding out promise of life, with a complete deliverance from death. This process begins first in the carnal mind being purged from man’s blindness, stupidity, and death. Thank God, Christ formed within us makes us new marvelous people that are transformed into the perfection of Jesus Christ! I is available because God does intend it to be so.

The word "conscience" is translated from the Greek word "suneidesis," meaning CO-PERCEPTION or WHAT IS KNOWN WITHIN ONESELF. The root comes to mean "to understand, to be aware of, or what one can comprehend”:

"Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; but we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; but just as it is written, “things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered into the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.’ For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him?

Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.” I Corinthians 2:6 - 3:1 NAS

This text points out that the Spirit of God is to be received in our conscious thoughts, so we can know what God can give to man. It points out that we can be made alive, that we being aware within are able to monitor the thoughts of our souls. Christ working within us forms a practice of reigning within us that brings “every thought into captivity” to Christ. Christ comes to DWELL within us as the reigning king!

Those given to His order have peace as our understanding is quickened to know what God knows. We know secret things! We know what is right about the smallest of matters as well as what is truthful in the large important issues surrounding our life. We have a wonderful new source of life, so that we can apply God’s intent to the small details of keeping our lives in the love of God. The peace of God truly “keeps our hearts and minds” from the troubling turmoil in this world.

Apply honesty to the large things that matter because the spirit of truth is now working to quicken things that are pure, lovely and good. Our own spirit and mind is now being made virtuous. Our inner thought process has been changed, focused now to acknowledge the Lord’s truth. No false imaginations stand before the Lord’s work within us asChrist “purges our conscience of dead works”.

We are not harboring false ideas, but believe Christ is revealing the mysteries of a very particular godly faith. We are washed and sanctified, given a good clean, clear consciousness that is not weighted down with past mistakes and former problems. Our sin consciousness is removed so that we now receive the inner joy indicating spiritual maturity.

In a people drawn to Zion, a more perfect perception of God is completed or perfected. Perfect perception of what is right reveals the God life in Jesus Christ within us. He has a perfect production of God’s intent for all men. We will all be released from what is wrong about each of us. To rise now, to come to Zion delivers us from the common knowledge of what is good and what is evil. Corruption is not found functioning within those given Christ conscience. Nothing is more important to our life that having a fuller manifestation of sonship unto God.

None of us escape the judgment of God. He judges each of us correctly, knowing that His goodness is leading us to repentance, to change what we have known about what is “good and evil”, instead eating of the “Tree of Life in the midst of the garden”. Today the righteous judgment of God is being revealed within a people. Accepting His judgment releases us from contentiousness, tribulation, and anguish.

The word "conscience" is used 30 times in the New Testament but does not appear once in the Old Testament. This does not mean that the Old Testament has nothing to say about the conscience of man, merely that it is spoken of in other words. Those terms describe man's conscience as fallen to a state of death. Death in the carnal mind is clearly one of the things that has been active in the descendants of Adam:

"… they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed...and the woman said unto the serpent, ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat of it, lest you die.’ And the serpent said unto the woman, ‘You shall not surely die: for God does know that in the day you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.’

And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons." Genesis 2:25; 3:2-7

The serpent’s bold assertions included this false statement, a lie:

"And the serpent said to the woman, you surely shall not die!” Genesis 3:4

God knows that in the day you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." Genesis 3:7

Adam’s clear inner awareness of God dissipated and he and Eve soon realized the serpent's promise of not dying was a lie. False news had taken them captive and the important point of knowing God’s truth was stolen. Now Adam’s descendants are EATING FROM THAT CERTAIN TREE, A TREE OF KNOWLEDGE. Knowledge of men FELL INTO THE DEATH AND DISEASE that shallows up every man’s life TODAY. Adam’s descendants are void of the PREVIOUS GLORY of being God’s son, Now he is only aware of his mistakes, his guilt, as mistakes pile up and lead to deathly consequences.

Adam was innocent, ignorant of disease and death, free of a guilty conscious.Those consequences cannot be breached without being reborn with Christ to face now the judgments of God. His judgments are working to cleanse our inner being. Our life to too short to accomplish all that needs to be done, yet with Christ working, purging, pulling down strongholds within us, conviction leads us to what is really good in God. He delivers us from what is really evil in man. God’s goodness toward Adam was originally in a state of sonship.

American Christians are aware of certain scriptural concepts. They have more accurate perception of freedom, truth, and justice. God’s thinking influenced the minds of those people who formed this nation. We are aware that God has clearcut intentions about the nations of the earth. God sees and understands current events. He is using further shaking among the nations. Yet American Christians still require a washing of His Word that will help them stand in the SINCERITY OF CHRIST. THE INNOCENCE OF CHRIST needs to be working within our inner being to dispense spiritual life that FREES us to so no longer be held to the darkness.

"…the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked...and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden." Genesis 3:7-8

What bitter sorrow in this scene! Two naked people for the first time conscience-stricken, overwhelmed with a sense of guilt and shame. They are now aware of their mistake, slyly slinking away into the shadows, hiding from God. They gained a knowledge about temporal life in a SEPARATED spirit. Fearful and greedy of mind, they now live in a dying beastly body because their connection with God was severed. This immediately and painfully began working consequences that made them aware of their naked condition.

Inside, we all are painfully aware of our own lack, knowing of potential evil consequences that could cause shocking events and chilling discoveries. Yet it is harder to see these experiences are not working to bring about God’s perfect appearance but a “a good work” that ends up with sewing fig leaves together to cover up their dying bodily parts.

Christ works within us to deliver us from every attempt to cover ourselves with these dying conditions. Simple earthly survival requires a certain amount of toil, that’s the truth about human consciousness today. We are aware today the heavens and the earth are being shaken. THIS IS CAUSING THE NATURAL MINDED MAN TO BE FEARFULLY AWARE OF THE MANY PROBLEMS in the depths of this earth. It is as boiling lava.

Most eastern philosophy teaches one to “know yourself”, yet being aware of yourself will not bring you to Christ’s enlightenment. Knowing Jesus, however, will operate in our heart to free us from all the guilty cases in the descendants of Adam and Eve! Assuredly Adam fell into “ knowing himself “ as now naked. The first thing he did was make effort to hide what he was from God. We put up a false front — speaking a lie to clothe ourselves with a fig apron, evidence of a guilty conscience held in self-works!

Nevertheless, every man and woman in the whole universe will come to know God! Knowing Him, things will change about our fallen condition as God’s nature is written within us a release of our guilty conscience and carnal minded efforts. The natural minded man has strongholds of selfishness that must be brought down. Proud religious men are boasting lies that ALWAYS form false religions. Religious men are full of lawful dictates. They legislate that more efforts should be made, they must TRY HARDER, DO BETTER, commanding some more “fig leaves be sewn”. Some sort of good work is always ministered to be sewn together, some new program weaved into an outward display of religious activity or worldly good. In this, there is no rest or freedom.

Christ Jesus is coming to our spirit, delivering us from every sense of shame so that we freed within ourselves. Only Christ has the key we each need. He does purge us from dead works, even though millions of good Christian believers are loaded down with dead works. We are called to escape to find the convicting power of His Spirit working within us, teaching us of His Word and spiritually guiding us to follow Him.

We allow Christ to be formed within until He reigns within us. He will come to constantly purge us from dead works, freeing us from death itself. All of our the former states of consciousness will be washed away as God frees us from our own judgments as well as from the judgments of carnal men. We are raised to to consciously serve God ACCEPTABLY! Now we can have the mind of Christ to know what God KNOWS. We are now accompanied by a portion of what HE IS!

Serve the LIVING God

What Authority!