Throughout the years of ministering this great Truth of the full salvation that Christ has purchased and acted out in Himself in His death, burial and resurrection, there have been certain words in the scriptures that have become “buzz words”, words that we use over and over again to differentiate our present state and condition in this age, from the state and condition of prior ages. As we now know, since our age has actually materialized, prior ages were locked into a certain period of this change of the spirit, soul and body of mankind. Prior ages were “shut up unto the faith” that we are presently accessing in Christ. Although they had the knowledge and understanding that such a change was available in Christ Jesus, they had to live out of an “earnest” of their inheritance, a down payment of greater things to come, and hence they were locked into a dispensation of God’s eonian plan, experiencing only a stage of the change, but not the full experience of that transformation.

Gal 3:23-4:7

But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.  (KJV)

            Since all believers have been made subject to their generations and the times of their earthly life, we must understand that no generation has an advantage over another generation in regards of an eventual participation of the complete change, regardless of whether we are speaking about the generation that was in Christ’s time, or the generations of the early church, or any of the coming generations. God is no respecter of persons, or generations. What is happening today in our generation has been made possible by reason of what God has done in all prior generations. This element of truth is wonderfully captured in the momentous occasion of Mary visiting Elizabeth and the giving forth of salutations to each other, orchestrated by the spirit of God. In the belly of these two chosen vessels of God dwelt two of the most important figures of our redemption story, John the Baptist and Jesus, the Christ. Just listen to the words that come forth from these young mothers, as they come to terms with their purpose in God’s plan.

Luke 1:39-55

And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda ; And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.

(Notice that Elizabeth understands the significance of the purpose of her own babe, whose birth was also full of wonder and strange happenings. John’s father, Zacharias was a priest of the division of Abijah. His wife, Elizabeth, was one "of the daughters of Aaron" <Luke 1:5>, meaning she also was of priestly descent. Zacharias was visited by an angel of the Lord while ministering in the temple and was informed that their prayer for a child had been answered and even in their old age they would have a son that would be called John, who would be great in God’s sight and would be filled with the Holy Ghost in his mother’s womb. So, for Elizabeth , this was a great confirmation to what kind of babe was in the womb of Mary.)

And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,          And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. He hath holpen his servant Israel , in remembrance of his mercy; As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.  (KJV)

The apostle Paul also gives witness to how God has ordered the order of the generations and how the dispensations of God correspond to such periods of time.

Col 1:25-29

Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God; Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.  (KJV)

Peter also witnesses to such a plan for all generations and how we are to know our own generation and how it has been purposed by God to fulfill it’s dispensational purpose.

1 Pet 2:9-10

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.  (KJV)

            As you can see, it is very important for us to understand our role in the eonian plan of God, and not to think too much of ourselves, as though we have displayed more faith, or more honor, or more worthiness to receive this transformation at hand than the prior generations. We are only playing out our role, fulfilling our generation in Christ, which happens to be positioned in the final stages of the relay race to the prize in Christ Jesus that has been set before all men. As we continue on into the full experience of the salvation of God, let us stay humble before the Lord and give honor where honor is due. I give honor today to all of those that have gone before me, who have gone hungry, made destitute, put to death, tortured and imprisoned, made outcasts for the sake of the gospel, all so that the Good News could continue on to other generations, until this message of God’s Glad Tidings would be hand delivered to men and women of great valor in the faith of Christ. We hold in our hands today a truth that has outlived kings and kingdoms, that stood great persecution and empirical hatred, only to be found untouched and unpolluted in a generation that stood afar off from that generation that God had placed in Elizabeth and Mary long ago. Time could not kill it’s message of hope and glory, men could not silence it, death could not quench it’s fiery substance, but through the power of the spirit of God it has continued throughout all generations, and if this is not the generation of which we write, it will not end with us either, but will continue to shine forth in darkness until that which has been promised is performed in a chosen generation.

            As we study about this great metamorphosis, we do not do so with some erroneous self serving motive of it being relevant only if it happens to us personally. In other words, this word is true whether I myself partake of it’s fullness in this life or not. To be sure, we are all living candidates for this to be accomplished in our life time, as no one knows the exact hour or day of this change. But, we do not minister this truth in a desperate spirit of fleshly labor, or out of a spirit of fear of the grave or a dreadful view of the future, but our hope is in Christ, and whether in this body or out of this body, we will all be changed. Those that have gone before us, having made their transition from this life into the other life, will not have any advantage nor disadvantage separate from us, but they will be made whole with us as we are all made whole in Christ. The metamorphosis that takes place in this dimension will have a reciprocal effect upon all other dimensions, as nothing happens in heaven or earth without affecting the other. What is bound in one dimension is bound in the other dimension, and what is loosed in one dimension is loosed in the other. Heaven and earth are intrinsically connected in God and are mirror images of each other. Surely this is why the whole creation is groaning for this change.

Rom 8:20-23

For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.  (KJV)

            Having established therefore that we have nothing to glory in concerning ourselves, but being made mindful that there is a mighty working of the spirit of God taking place in our being, we continue to seek out the hidden mystery of God’s will concerning this great event of death being swallowed up into life. In so doing, we lay aside all of our own devices of doctrine and conceived perceptions, for we know that we are entering into the holy of holies of God’s presence and we cannot handle these instruments of truth with our own carnal understanding, but they must be handled with the pure sincerity of the nature of our Lord Jesus Christ. Dealing with the subject of metamorphosis, we should be aware that we will eventually be speaking of things that we have no fit language to express certain elements of this great process. We will have to come to terms with the integration of things natural and things spiritual. This will not doubt be a difficult task for some. We have been taught throughout our Christian walk that the natural and the spiritual were to never meet, that those two states were in constant battle and had nothing to do with each other. I find it impossible to discuss the transformation that is based upon the scriptures in light of such assumptions. To be sure, God’s intention is to change what is natural into something else, and if we are to stay true in our search for truth, we must come to realize that what is spiritual must also be changed into something else! What that is, only God knows, for it is beyond our earthly experience and nothing in this physical dimension would compare with that finished form of the New Man.

            This New Man that is being formed in and throughout our being will be without parallel. Only the form of the risen Christ would be comparable, since that is the pattern out of which the New Man is made. The problem is, the scripture does not give much detail about that arisen state and condition made evident to the disciples before the ascension of Jesus Christ. We know that after His resurrection, Jesus was no longer bound by natural laws of state and condition. We read how He appeared in the locked room to the disciples without asking someone to open the door, and we know that He was able to change His appearance, whereas He appeared as a stranger to some and to others He was known as Himself immediately. We know He was not limited to space and time, as He was able to appear and disappear at will, but we also know that He was able to touch and be touched, and that His glorified body had form and mass to it. We should keep in mind that even before His resurrection, Jesus was able to do many of these same feats, while yet in His physical body. In fact, there was a true transfiguration prior to the Resurrection Morning, which took place in the Mount and entailed a brilliant illumination and visitation from the presence of the Father and His messengers.

Matt 17:1-3

And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.  (KJV)

The point is that Jesus had access to that transfiguring power that resided in Him before His death, burial and resurrection and I believe we can legitimately declare that we do also! We have many witnesses throughout the generations of believers that give witness to the fact that at certain times that which is within us can and will allow us to function in a supernatural way, momentarily allowing us to be freed from physical laws that would otherwise limit us to this physical dimension. Even in this present generation, we have many witnesses to the fact that God is still opening up a portal of another dimension that presents itself to those that are willing to be made partakers of that heavenly dimension, which is not of this earthly, physical world but is a preview of things to come for those that press on into the transformation that is at hand. Should we not expect this to be the case, seeing as to how we are the offspring of such glories that have manifested throughout the past ages? Indeed, I believe we need to ready ourselves for a further display of such supernatural experiences as we draw near the time of full manifestation of the spirit of God in the hearts of mankind. Surely this is to be expected, that the Temple of the Holy Spirit, which you are, will be filled with the glory of God’s presence and that this physical tabernacle would be caught up into a realm of life and glory that would be transfiguring for you and I.

The religious church systems of today are asleep at the wheel concerning this kind of manifestation, having settled long ago for a form of godliness but denying the actual power of manifestation that such a substance of God would bring to our walk in Him. To think that we actually contain the fullness of Christ in us should cause us all to be on tiptoes, stretching our neck to peer into this realm of spirit life. A door is opened to us that has been shut to former generations and we must not neglect this opportunity to come to KNOW the Lord, not as a figure or a religious icon, but to KNOW His ways and to walk in His corridors of abiding life. If we pray in the spirit and if we sing in the spirit, then let us learn how to WALK in the spirit of the Lord, is the admonition of the Apostle Paul. Let us transcend this physical dimension by walking in the Life of our Lord Jesus Christ. I think Enoch is our example, as one that the scriptures describe as a “walker” that took a walk one day and never came back. That is, Enoch walked in the spirit of his God and walked into a place where God “took him”, being translated from a physical, limited dimension of temporal life into a spiritual, unlimited dimension of eonian life. Many scholars cast doubt upon this event as simply an allegory, a story that points to a more cerebral truth in God, but I truly believe that such an event took place, and that the other miraculous accounts in the scripture were actual events that took place, not because I have any proof of such events, but because of my own experiences in my own life that defy natural laws and physical limitations. It is to our detriment that we have become so knowledgeable of the limitations of our natural existence that we have allowed that knowledge to blind us to another world that is in our midst, but cannot be discerned by the natural mind or senses. As a result, academically speaking, we have become messengers of God that are blind, deaf and dumb concerning those actual realities and principles of the other world where our Lord dwells and lives, but the spirit of the Lord is at work to open our eyes to what lies within us, and how it is actually one reality in Christ, not two split worlds, but one world with 2 elements within it, the seen and the unseen. It is the purpose of this great truth of transformation to reveal to mankind the coming together of all things in Christ, until there is only one true reality, HIM.

Eph 1:9-14

Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.  (KJV)

            We have thus far been living on the earnest of such an inheritance, just using the interest of such a vast treasure, but we are now being made ready to take possession of the full purchase of the gift of salvation, that reaches far beyond just the saving of the soul, but brings all things under the dominion and power of Christ Jesus, our Lord. It is not enough for there to be the disannulment of our separation from the presence of our true Father, which Christ performed through the wondrous act of reconciliation. Death has been made of no effect by Jesus Christ, having stripped that enemy of any power over us. This took place in Christ, in God.

2 Cor 5:17-21

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.  (KJV)

             There is simply no greater truth than the truth that we have been reconciled by Christ to God, our Father. Not going to be reconciled, we ARE reconciled, and so is every person born of a woman. Not someday, not after they go through a religious ceremony of confession and repentance, not after they repent and give up their sinful ways, ALL HAVE BEEN RECONCILED! This is an immutable, unarguable truth. The reconciliation in Christ from before the disruption of the ages was accomplished before the first man was even made! The problem is that not all men know of this great gift, so they continue to live in a relationship with God that is dysfunctional and paranoid, due to the misguided doctrines of a powerless system of dead, religious dogmas. Thus, we bring glad tidings to all that we meet, spreading the Good News of the wondrous gift of reconciliation to all those that have been oppressed under a load of guilt and shame, loosening them from their own failing efforts of earning their salvation, into a knowledge of what an enormous salvation has been already purchased for them by the Lover of their soul. Every man will come to know of this gift, in this age and in the ages to come God will continue to reveal this free gift to one and all. But, this is not all there is for us to experience! Many that have come into this great truth of the world being reconciled to God by Jesus Christ have settled for this knowledge and have accepted the gift of reconciliation without going on to the further stages of KNOWING THE LORD. Reconciliation opens the door for us to walk through and go on into the sacred presence of the Father Himself. Christ has become our Righteousness and we approach the Father in that Righteousness, without which we would be cut off and separated from His fellowship, which is death. It is now vital that we all know that Christ has healed that breach and we can now go on to the fullness of our inheritance in Him, which entails more than a clean conscience and a new mind, but embodies a New Creature, which will manifest by us being turned INSIDE OUT.

            In our next segment of this study, we want to start to look at the actual definitions of the terms that the scriptures use concerning this great transformation. We will look into the scriptures contextually and break them down to bring out the rich complexity of this metamorphosis that is at hand. It is time for us to walk a path of understanding that is not well traveled, but has been reserved for this generation of sons to traverse. In doing so, we will leave the common and well covered elements of God’s plan for the ages and we will hear THE REST OF THE STORY! Glory!