"CROSSING THE SEA OF DEATH"

March 26, 2000 am
MF BLUME

2 Chronicles 4:2-5 Also he made a molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in compass, and five cubits the height thereof; and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about. And under it was the similitude of oxen, which did compass it round about: ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about. Two rows of oxen were cast, when it was cast. It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward. And the thickness of it was an handbreadth, and the brim of it like the work of the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies; and it received and held three thousand baths.

Last Sunday night we looked at Revelation 4 and contrasted it with Ezekiel 1 and saw that Ezekiel 1 shows HEAVEN MADE MOBILE.
• John and Ezekiel both saw God on His throne with cherubims or beasts and living creatures around the throne.
• But Ezekiel saw all of these elements of the scenery of Heaven as mobile.
• He saw a wheel within a wheel by each of the four cherubims.

And we spoke of how we see God’s Kingdom COME.
• All of Heaven itself is able to COME.
• The spiritual realm is not physical.
• Just as one man possessed by demons had at least 2,000 demons in him, we can see the entire KINGDOM OF GOD come.
• God sitting on His throne, and all His angels.

Revelation 4:1-2 After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.
Revelation 4:6-7 And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind. And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.
Ezekiel 1:5-6 Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man. And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings.
Ezekiel 1:10 As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle.
Ezekiel 1:26 And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.

Notice what Ezekiel saw.

Ezekiel 1:15 Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold one wheel upon the earth by the living creatures, with his four faces. The appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the colour of a beryl: and they four had one likeness: and their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel.
Ezekiel 1:19 And when the living creatures went, the wheels went by them: and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up. Whithersoever the spirit was to go, they went, thither was their spirit to go; and the wheels were lifted up over against them: for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.

Ezekiel saw HEAVEN MADE MOBILE.

There is one aspect of revelation that is not in the vision of Ezekiel and another aspect of Ezekiel that is not in the vision of John.

John saw 24 seats with 24 elders.
Ezekiel saw wheels with wheels.

They both saw a crystal sea type of picture.

Revelation 4:6 And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal:
Ezekiel 1:22 And the likeness of the firmament upon the heads of the living creature was as the colour of the terrible crystal, stretched forth over their heads above.

Now, wheels made heaven mobile.
Ezekiel saw what John saw, only Ezekiel saw it moving upon wheels.

The sea that was before the Throne of God was crystal.

Ezekiel saw this CRYSTAL SEA MOBILE with the Chariot of CHERUBIM.

CHARIOT OF CHERUBIMS

Notice that Ezekiel saw a CHARIOT-type object.

Cherubims were with wheels within wheels and transported that chariot.

The Bible speaks of something in t he temple made like the chariot of cherubims.

1Chronicles 28:18 And for the altar of incense refined gold by weight; and gold for the pattern of the chariot of the cherubims, that spread out their wings, and covered the ark of the covenant of the LORD.

It was a pattern.

That meant the physical object was a pattern of the spiritual reality.
This was in the TEMPLE.

THE SEA OF THE TEMPLE

There is a picture of a "sea" that was in the temple.

Remember that Moses built a tabernacle after the PATTERN God showed Him.
That meant there was a spiritual Tabernacle in the spiritual realm, or in Heaven.
What Moses made was a pattern of that.
The physical Tabernacle was a pattern of the spiritual tabernacle.

We know there is a spiritual tabernacle for we read:

Hebrews 9:11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

And there is also a physical Temple and there is a spiritual TEMPLE of God.

1 Corinthians 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

What we see in Revelation 4 is the SPIRITUAL TEMPLE OF GOD.

It is the KINGDOM OF GOD.
THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.

There is a SEA in the Heaven that John saw -- crystal sea of glass -- and a sea in the temple.

2 Chronicles 4:2-5 Also he made a molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in compass, and five cubits the height thereof; and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about. And under it was the similitude of oxen, which did compass it round about: ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about. Two rows of oxen were cast, when it was cast. It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward. And the thickness of it was an handbreadth, and the brim of it like the work of the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies; and it received and held three thousand baths.

It was like a huge CUP.

And it was filled with a measurement of water that held 3,000 baths.
It was placed upon a pedestal of the images of 12 oxen.
Four sets of three oxens, with each set facing one of the four compass points, North, West, South and East.

Now, In John's vision, this sea was before the throne.

And John was watching all of this from a door in Heaven.
And if you read chapter 5 closely, you will see that someone was asked to come in and approach the throne, and nobody, including John, could go in.
They could not get to the throne.
And the sea of glass stood between John and the throne.

And the pattern of this Heavenly scene was the Temple with a sea of water, on the backs of 12 oxen.

Shaped like a huge CUP.

There is a scripture that links all of this together to our lives in Micah 7:19.

Micah 7:18-19 Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.

There is a sea that God foretold would be the place in which He would cast all of our sins.

He will subdue our iniquities and cast our sins into the sea.

There is one element that the Apostles referred to again and again in the Bible, called water baptism in Jesus' name.

And in being baptized, by faith we are actually being baptized into the death of Jesus Christ (Romans 6:3).
This is said to make Jesus' death our own deaths.

Paul spoke these words concerning water baptism.

Acts 22:16 And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

This sounds much like the idea of Micah 7:19.

He will cast our sins in the depths of the sea.
Paul said the washing away of sins occurs as a person believes and is baptized in Jesus' name.

God is trying to explain to us that there is a spiritual sea that separates us between ourselves and God.

John saw it in revelation 4.
It is not a physical sea of water.
But the best way God could relate it to us was by showing a literal sea like crystal.
And in the Temple the same sea was shown.
IN order to get to God our sins must be washed away.
That is why a sea of glass is laid out before the throne of God.
You are not going to get to God unless you die.

Water Baptism is baptism into JESUS' DEATH.

The truth is that everyone who sins must die.
And what good is death if you cannot come back from it to enjoy life AGAIN.
Well, enjoying LIFE AGAIN after death is called RESURRECTION.
And that is the very thing that we can say is our's when we are baptized into JESUS' DEATH.
For, after Jesus died, He resurrected.
He resurrected of His own accord.

John 2:19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.

John 2:21 But he spake of the temple of his body.

Nobody else ever raised themselves up from the dead.

Galatians 1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)

How could Jesus say that He would raise up his own body from the dead, and then Paul say that God the Father raised Jesus from the dead?

Jesus is both FATHER AND SON.
The FATHER JESUS was speaking in that Body in John 2:19.

And then we read:

Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you,

Here we read the SPIRIT raised Jesus from the dead.

Jesus is also the HOLY SPIRIT.
Not three persons but ONE PERSON.
And JESUS is His name.

So if I can connect with JESUS" death, then there is a resurrection that I can also connect with.

And that is why we are baptized into HIS DEATH.

Romans 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

We get buried with HIM so that we RESURRECT WITH HIM.

This message of CO-CRUCIFIXION with Jesus Christ is so important!

The sea of glass stands between every soul and God's throne.
And it is waters you cannot swim over.

The only picture we see of going into waters and coming out again on the other side is the watery grave of baptism in Jesus' name.

And baptism causes sins to be washed away.
Not the physical waters washing sins.
But somehow we connect with the floods of death in the spiritual.
Flooding waters always indicated death in the Bible.

Psalm 18:4-6 The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me. In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.

Out of HIS TEMPLE HE HEARD ME.

Notice the language here.
FLOODS of DEATH compassed and prevented David.
So he called on the Lord in the midst of it.
God heard from HIS TEMPLE.
Like a sea of glass before the THRONE in the TEMPLE OF HEAVEN.
And when David called on the LORD we see a parallel to Paul's words in Acts.

Acts 22:16 And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

Calling on the NAME OF THE LORD!!!

My sins were cast into the SEA when I was baptized into Jesus' death.
Somehow that water baptism by my faith connected me with the sea before the throne.
I could not get to the throne without going through the sea of glass.
But when I went in, what would have normally left me there drowned in death, was not where I would stay forever.
When I was baptized, the name of the Lord was called upon me, and GOD DELIVERED ME.

Psalm 18:6-10 In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears. Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth. There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also, and came down: and darkness was under his feet. And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind.

God came riding upon a CHERUB.

Ezekiel saw the CHARIOT OF GOD'S GLORY with a throne over the heads of CHERUBIMS.

And David said God rides upon a CHERUB to the DELIVERANCE FROM DEATH of a soul who was in the flood-waters of death.
This means that we are baptized into Jesus' death, by calling upon the name of the Lord and RESURRECTION comes forth.

Picture it.

David is flooded with flood waters of death.
He calls upon God's name.

Psalm 18:16-19 He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me: for they were too strong for me. They prevented me in the day of my calamity: but the LORD was my stay. He brought me forth also into a large place; he delivered me, because he delighted in me.

Coming out of a flood water by God's hand of deliverance, from my strong enemy that was too strong for me, is a perfect poetic description of being Baptized in Jesus' name and coming out INTO RESURRECTION FROM DEATH.

Death is the enemy that was too strong for me.
I could not conquer death.

Look how Solomon described coming to the doors of death:

Ecclesiastes 12:1 Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain: In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened, And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of musick shall be brought low; Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets: Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern. Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

It is too strong for even the strong men.

The strong men will bow themselves.
But death is not greater than RESURRECTION LIFE!

All must go into the flood waters of death one day, because the Bible teaches that the soul that sins shall die.

However, Jesus died and His death led to resurrection, for it was a sinless death.
Only sinners should die.
And that is why that a sinless Jesus died and resurrected again.
He is stronger than death.
And we get the chance to UNITE TO HIS DEATH and say we already went through the pending flood waters of death judgment when we DIED WITH JESUS.
And union to His death awarded me HIS RESURRECTION also.

We have to carry this message to everyone everywhere we go.

He casts us and our sins into the sea, and we come forth from the sea with our sins left there behind us to stay buried.

Israel was bound in Egypt and the soldiers whipped their backs in mud pits.

But like David said, He brought them out of the miry clay.
God set israel free.
And the soldiers, like the sins of people today, were drowned in the RED "SEA" after Israel passed through and came forth on the other side.
RESURRECTION FROM DEATH, so to speak.

Jesus went to His eleven disciples, for Judas, the twelfth had betrayed Jesus and hung himself.

Luke 24:33 And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them,

He told His 11 disciples to preach the following message.

Luke 24:47-49 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And ye are witnesses of these things. And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

They replaced the twelfth disciple. in Acts 1.

Acts 1:16-17 Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus. For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.
Acts 1:21-22 Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.
Acts 1:26 And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

Then Peter preached just what Jesus directed them to preach as follows:

There were 12 APOSTLES THERE THAT DAY.
They each had the same mission.
PREACH WHAT JESUS TOLD THEM TO PREACH.

Acts 2:38-39 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

It has to be preached to every nation.

It began in Jerusalem in Acts 2.
Jesus' TWELVE APOSTLES
And it is still being preached by Apostolic preachers.

Let us read our opening passage again.

2 Chronicles 4:2-5 Also he made a molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in compass, and five cubits the height thereof; and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about. And under it was the similitude of oxen, which did compass it round about: ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about. Two rows of oxen were cast, when it was cast. It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward. And the thickness of it was an handbreadth, and the brim of it like the work of the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies; and it received and held three thousand baths.

There is a SEA upon the BACKS of 12 OXEN.

And these oxen all faced the four corners of the Earth.
North, West, South and East.

This message of baptism into JESUS' death was preached by the TWELVE APOSTLES to go to all four corners of the Earth.

That SEA upon the backs of 12 OXEN pointed towards all directions speaks of the MESSAGE BAPTISM INTO HIS DEATH as first preached by the APOSTLES.
Church, we have to BE APOSTOLIC to be what God intended there to be in this world.
Being APOSTOLIC is not being a denomination.
It is simply PREACHING WHAT JESUS TOLD THE 12 APOSTLES to preach.
The sea on the backs of the 12 oxen perfectly portrays the picture of baptism into Jesus' death so as to have the SINS of our lives cast into the sea, and for us to resurrect from the FLOOD WATERS OF DEATH and walk in NEWNESS OF LIFE.
Its APOSTOLIC (of the Apostles) to preach about that sea of death.
You have to face the sea of death.

Or else we will never GET TO THE THRONE.

And people who have GONE THROUGH THE WATERS of Christ's death, and have resurrected on the other side, can say they have found VICTORY IN JESUS OVER THE FLOOD WATERS OF DEATH.
And that is the reason we read:

Revelation 7:9-10 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.

They stand BEFORE THE THRONE.

And Revelation 4 said there was a sea of glass BEFORE THE THRONE.
So these folks must have been STANDING ON THE SEA OF GLASS.
They found VICTORY OVER IT!
And they cry out the reason for their victory!
SALVATION TO OUR GOD WHICH SITTEH UPON THE THRONE.

Who are they?

Revelation 7:13-17 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

Why are they before the throne?

Why are they standing on a sea of glass?
We read, they... "have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God"

You talk about HEAVEN MADE MOBILE!!!

That sea on the backs of the 12 oxen speak of the APOSTOLIC DOCTRINE carried to all four corners of the Earth.
He told the ELEVEN, who soon took another for the twelfth, and told them to preach:

Luke 24:47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

Want to know why there are TWELVE gates of one solid pearl?

Revelation 21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.

The pearl is JESUS CHRIST, the pearl of great price of Matthew 13:46.

And the APOSTOLIC DOCTRINE WAS THE 12 DOORS.
12 APOSTLES.

Revelation 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

Notice the same chapter speaks of GOD'S THRONE.

HE MAKES ALL THINGS NEW.

Be baptized in JESUS' name -- in other words, calling upon the name of the Lord -- and God will come riding upon a CHERUB.

As you go into those watery floods of death, your sins will wash away from you, and His name moves God to come and deliver you out!
That is RESURRECTION WITH JESUS CHRIST.

The SEA looked like a HUGE CUP.

Matthew 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

Jesus drank the CUP that held all of our SINS.

Spiritually, God reached way ahead into the future and took everyone who would ever be baptized in His death and put their sins in that huge CUP.
Jesus drank all of it.
So it doesn't matter what sin you committed.

And the Sea held 3,000 BATHS.

Acts 2:41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.

Could it be that God had the day of Pentecost in mind, and said "3,000 souls will hear the Apostles preach believe it and kick this great Dispensation off, being baptized in Jesus' name, so make the Sea 3,000 baths full"?

Baptism is connected with 3,000 souls ADDED.