“Then the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon him,” Judges 14:6
In Genesis 4:1 it says, “Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain”. Now, for the sake of propriety, so that I don’t have to keep tossing uncomfortable things into your lap, let’s come to an understanding. I propose to you a concept that may be a bit foreign at first, but I can attest to the Truth of this from my very own personal experience. Jesus is the second Adam, we, His bride are the second Eve. Jesus wants to have an intimate relationship with us; He wants to “know” us like Adam knew Eve. (Whispered aside: You get what I’m meaning there right? He wants to have spiritual sex and spiritual babies with you.) But, being the gentleman that Jesus is, He will not force Himself on you. However, know this, He longs for you with a longing that is absolutely unparalleled with anything we can understand here on this planet at this time.
In Genesis we see God creating Eve from Adam, the symbol of what was happening and what was to come; Jesus and His Bride – you. “So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.’ Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.” (2:21-25)
Oh there is so much here I want to point out to you!!! The first three chapters of Genesis are so rich they simply drip honey! Let’s take this a little nibble at a time and really savor it shall we?
“The LORD caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man”, did Jesus fall into a “deep sleep”? You betcha He did! One that lasted three days in a tomb!!! Go ahead, take a breath and scream Hallelujah for a few minutes before you move onto the next nibble, it’s Ok, I can wait. He is worthy of the praise, give it to Him.
“And while he slept took one of His ribs” – for this nibble I take you to John 19:31-37, “Since it was the day of Preparation, and so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked pilate that their legs might be broken and that they might be taken away. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been cruicified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead [or in a “deep sleep”], they did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. He who saw it has borne witness his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth- that you also may believe. For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled; ‘Not one of his bones will be broken.’ And again another Scripture says, ‘They will look on Him whom they have pierced’.”
My friend, where are the rib bones located? The side right? And right here we have two prophecies of the Christ that detail his death referring to bones and His side that was pierced. Did God pierce Adam’s side to remove a rib bone while he was sleeping? You bethca! Oh mama this is getting good!
“and closed up its place with flesh.” – Beloved, what are we made of? What was it that Adam exclaimed when he saw Eve for the first time? That she was “bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh”. That hole that was created in Adam, in Jesus, with the removal of the rib – it was closed up with flesh, you. You complete Him. A relationship with Him closes up the wound in His side.
There is another mention of a man whom God placed into a deep sleep; I’d like to take a side glace at him and his story for a moment if you will indulge me that pleasure. We’ll flip over a few pages to Genesis 15 where we find the story of God cutting a covenant with Abram. God promises Abram that he will be the father of many nations, that his very own son shall be his heir, and that the land they are standing in will someday belong to his children. Abram asks for something, some way for him to know that God will fulfill this huge promise to him. So God tells him to go get a bunch of sacrificial animals and cut them in half placing the halves on the ground with space between them enough to walk through. This is what is known as cutting a covenant, where the two parties walk through the trail of blood as a symbol or a guarantee that they will fulfill their promise and do what they said they would do. In verse 12 we find that, “As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram.” Then God says “Know for certain…” and then proclaims the prophecy of Abram’s children and their future. “When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram,” (15:17-18) Oh sweet Jesus help me convey this message and may it be received with clarity! My friends know for certain that the God of Abram keeps His promises! He is a fire, a flaming torch in our souls to which sinners are drawn to like moths to a flame. In the parable of the ten virgins, some manuscripts translate their lamps, to be flaming torches!
This little light of mine, I’m going to hold it high!
Back to our nibbles of Truth, “She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” Let’s recap quickly here, we the Church are the Bride, Eve, Woman; Jesus, our husband the second Adam is Man. You were knit together in your mother’s womb, fearfully and wonderfully made in HIS image. God formed flesh around Christ’s bone and presented you to Jesus as His bride.
“Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” In 1 Corinthians 6:16&17 we read, “For, as it is written, ‘The two will become one flesh.’ But he who is joined to the LORD becomes one spirit with him.” Flip to Romans 5 verse 5&6 and you’ll find, “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” Then take a look at 2 Corinthians 1:18-22, “As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. For all the promises of God find their yes in him. That is why it is through Him that we utter our Amen to God for His glory. And it is god who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put His seal on us and given us His Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee [or down payment].” Ephesians 1:13-14 reads, “In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.”
My Beloved friend, through Adam you were destined to a virgin death, but through Christ and the cross you have been redeemed and are offered Jesus as your husband for all eternity! And His Holy Spirit seals the deal just like an engagement ring seals a betrothal. And while we must wait for the wedding day to know Him face to face and live in His house forever, we don’t have to wait a second longer to know His Spirit! His Spirit came down on the day of Pentecost in divided, or individual, tongues of fire that rested over each individual’s head, a visual sign for future generations of what was happening spiritually; a filling of the Holy Spirit. And when onlookers, attracted by the great sound that this made, came and asked what was going on Peter said to them, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to Himself.” (Acts 2:36-39) Mmmm… now while some may argue that the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues and prophecy was for that generation alone I hold up Peter’s statement. Who was the promise for? Yes, the people he was talking to, and their children (still in their bodies) but who else was it for? ALL who are far off, EVERYONE whom the Lord our God calls to Himself.
Are you a lost coin? Are you far off from the Lord? Are you questioning if you might be part of “everyone” whom the Lord calls to Himself? Are you reading this? Then you ARE part of everyone, you are part of the “all” who were far off. For over thirty years I walked this earth wishing that God still did miracles like the day of Pentecost. And in one day, a few short hours I learned the truth, He still does. For all those years I thought the gift of tongues through the Holy Spirit was just for the sacred few that were privileged to walk the streets with Jesus side by side. I didn’t know, I’d never been told that really is that real. I’d never been taught that He really does make the impossible possible; not just then, but NOW! Here! In me! In the last few years my eyes have only barely been opened to the true power of the Holy Spirit and His workings. I’ve only barely dipped my toes into how He works and lives through us and in us, but I can tell you that even just barely dipping my toes in has changed my life forever!!! I will never be the same in Jesus’ name! His love through the gift of His Spirit has transformed me into a new creation. By inviting Jesus into my life I became saved from eternal condemnation and judgment for my sins for all time. But by digging deeper and inviting His Holy Spirit into, not only my life but my flesh I have become one flesh with Him! The two became one! And in that union of Spirit and flesh I have just begun to experience the truly abundant life that Jesus speaks of. And it’s so much less about an abundance of prosperity and material possessions, as it is about an abundance of His PRESENCE! Because of His Spirit indwelling within my flesh I can know for certain that I have everything that He has promised me. I can know for certain that His love is for me, individually, personally.
This reading has been an excerpt from Tamar’s book Waiting…, if you would like to read more it is available HERE in multiple formats.
Tamar Knochel 