What comes to mind when you see the word “manual”?
So, did you think of ‘manual labor’, or even perhaps a ‘user-manual’ for installing or step-by-step instruction for something to assemble? Either way, if you’re like me, we tend to avoid such a book; it just sounds hard and complicated, doesn’t. I’d rather just call the factory and talk to a live person, which could give me some simple instructions and get my project completed and move on soon as possible.
Dreams that brought Part 7 into Manifestation
As we go into the last section of this lesson series of What is the Holy Bible, I wanted to share my personal ‘spiritual educational experience’ (SEE) that brought light to this understanding.
The understanding came by two dreams that were about six weeks apart in this year in the months of June and July, 2018.
The first dream revealed what was missing in the first lesson of What is the Holy Bible (for those of you that have been watching and following us, you probably noticed that we have posted up to six parts of this series and had ended the series at part six).
1st dream:
The dream opened up by showing me a moving line in a tube…like we see with our YouTube videos, so as the video plays we can watch the timeline bar as it measures the time of play. However, in the first quarter area, it skipped a small area, going blank for a bit, then it picked back up and kept going as it heads toward the end (So I knew some content was missing but didn’t know the reference of where the content was missing).
Now, I am looking at the first page of my own bible that I used and carried when I was a youth. The top center of the cover page stated ‘Holy Bible’, but as I scanned down the page a strange word was there as well. It was near the bottom center and it was the word…’ Manual’.
So, now I understood the missing content was in our ‘What is the Holy Bible’ series, and it had to do with being a Manual. However, I still didn’t know what the bible as being a manual actually meant, so I couldn’t apply this to the writings until the next dream came.
2nd dream:
I’m in my former house (where I used to live), and I’m standing in the dining area, looking towards the family area and seeing the fireplace. But I saw my own mother, seemly doing some remodeling work near and around the fireplace. Since I wasn’t close enough to tell what she was doing, I took some steps toward her to get a closer look.
I could not see at first, that she was trying to re-create the image of the Lord’s Supper, like a painting that was hanging above the fireplace. It looked like the Lords Supper picture that opens this part seven on page one. Except, in the dream, the table was not complete, just the top half was shown and the bottom was like cut off and blocked out.
This painting was reflecting itself on the popcorn ceiling. My mother had a partial puzzle completed of this same image on the floor and was putting in each piece of the puzzle, so carefully and one piece at a time. Thankfully, the puzzle pieces were quite large and easy to handle. However, she couldn’t see the real picture that was hanging over the fireplace. She had discovered, however, that its image was reflecting is full picture image on the ceiling, so she was using the ceiling image to help her duplicate that image with the scattered puzzle pieces that had been created from the original Lords supper.
Her frustration was in three parts:
First, the real image was hidden to her.
Secondly, she is seeing the reflected image as a mirror reflecting from the wall unto the ceiling; so it was upside down to her.
Thirdly, she had to scrape the popcorn ceiling away to see the image of the Lords Supper. It was only reflecting on the non-popcorn area of the ceiling, where she was able to scrape off the popcorn. So, if she wanted to see another area of this reflected painting to find and match the correct puzzle piece, she had to apply manual labor to scrape off the popcorn.
Why do you think our imagination post the word “Manual” on the front cover of our Bibles? Is it perhaps for the same reason of a product manual, which we’d rather “figure out on our own” how to build or install an electronic device?
Perhaps you were instructed to start reading after you became a believer, by a loved one or by someone in ministry or church authority.
Good advice, truly. However, doesn’t it just seem that instruction is like telling a 12-year-old how to build a house or to assemble a motor vehicle, or fly a plane?
Apostle Philip Provides Instruction to a Eunuch
The book of Acts reports an example story of a eunuch that was in his ‘manual’. This manual is his state of mind of the scriptures, which is called and known as being earthly and a natural image. He was reading in Isaiah (now known as chapter 53 verse 7), when the Spirit said to Philip to go to him and walk by his side (join and meet him where his motive and understanding is).
Let’s pick up the story in verse 26 of Acts chapter 8:
Acts chapter 8: verses 26 – 39
26. And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert.
27. And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship,
28. Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias (Isaiah) the prophet.
29. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.
30. And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?
31. And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him.
32. The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:
33. In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.
He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
~ Isaiah 53: 7, 8 ~34. And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?
35. Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.
36. And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?
37. And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
38. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.
39. And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he (the eunuch) went on his way rejoicing.
Notice that even though there were many scripture verses ahead of where this Eunuch was reading, the apostle started at the same scripture verse where the Eunuch was thinking upon. So, note here that Philip didn’t begin where Eunuch was not, but began where he was.
Apostle Works by Visitation:
Observe Philip, after that he had joined with Eunuch that he waited until he was invited to set down beside him. The ministry of the word, from one person to another, works by invitation to one that has understanding, one who had already been brought into an apostleship send.
Apostle Engages by an Inquiry:
We also have another example of an apostle sent to a believer. It’s the testimony of Cornelius. His scriptures were only still a Manual to him. But because of his searching the truth and right answers, by an *honesty of heart, God heard his prayer and answered by sending apostle Peter.
*Honesty is considered an attribute of the good ground
But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
~ Luke 8:15 ~
Apostle Peter and Cornelius (a believer that lacked understanding)
Acts chapter 10
1. There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,
2. A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.
3. He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.
4. And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.
5. And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:
6. He lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea side: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do.
7. And when the angel which spake unto Cornelius was departed, he called two of his household servants, and a devout soldier of them that waited on him continually;
8. And when he had declared all these things unto them, he sent them to Joppa.
The angel of the Lord gives Cornelius instruction to whom to seek for. So Cornelius goes after the apostle to inquire of him at his house in obedience as the angel instructed.
Apostle Paul – Macedonia Call
The apostle Paul was sent to a man, but first, he witnessed seeing this man in a vision appearing to him and inviting him to come and see him.
And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them.
~ Acts 16:9, 10 ~
When a person calls out to God for help and it comes from an honesty of heart, then one who works in apostleship will witness of seeing (by dream or vision) this persons prayer and will be sent to that individual (or those in the same body of a belief system) to help bring the soul from the earthly to heavenly understanding. Is it possible and reasonable that we first perceive the scriptures as a Manual, a natural understanding? And if this is true, then wouldn’t also be true for the need of an apostle for God to be sent to us?
Natural and Spiritual Understanding
I Corinthians chapter 15: (vs 44-49)
44. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
45. And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
46. Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
47. The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
48. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
49. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
Notice how apostle Paul compares the first Adam to a natural body (living soul), an earthly understanding to the second Adam as a spiritual body, a quickening spirit, a heavenly image (understanding).
Is our Bible understanding, upside down or right side up?
A Manual understanding; wouldn’t that be, seeing upside down, as the dream showed how that my own understanding (my mother) as seeing the Lord’s Supper upside down, and needed to be turned right side up? Indeed and truly, truly.
But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
~ I Corinthians 2:14 ~
But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory.
~ I Corinthians 2:7 ~
Would this bring some light of why men without spiritual understanding say, accusingly when the apostles speak the truth that their message is upside down?
And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These (Paul and Silas) that have turned the world upside down are come hither also; whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus.
~ Acts 17:6,7 ~
Once our consciousness knows that the scriptures are spoken in a hidden mystery, because what we have learned by experience, that our natural and earthly man cannot understand the things of the Spirit (being in the first Adam). It’s only then that we have begun in our repentance from ‘dead works’.
The ones who come to honesty towards God, are the same ones that ask for God’s help and power (the spirit of wisdom), to open our eyes to see and open our ears to ear.
Summarization – What is the Holy Bible
As an overview, the Holy Bible is a compilation of many books consisting of prophets and apostles’ spiritual educational experiences as they wrote down what they received by the works of the Holy Spirit. Going into the books of the Bible we have discovered the writers tell us what the writings consist of.
The scriptures of the prophets were written in a mystery given the reason why the writings of the Bible are hard to understand. The stories told in the Bible are mysteries because they are told with allegory images, metaphors, proverbs and in parables, so the meanings and interpretation are hidden.
The writings have taught us that the Spirit gave the scriptures to the writers by prophecy, the voice of the LORD from heaven, and by dreams and visions. The LORD reveals himself to the prophets in visions and he speaks to the prophets in dreams.
The language of the Spirit is proverbs and parables. The parables are also called dark sayings and hard sentences. Parables and proverbs are spoken to the multitudes, but interpretations are given to the disciples of Christ. This is God’s way of opening his mouth, in the parables and dark saying of old.
For the application of interpretation, samples were taken from Daniel, Isaiah, Moses, and Jesus. Interpretation is needed to understand what the meaning of a parable is. The interpretation was broken out from the parable of the sower of the seed which was spoken by Jesus. Jesus gives his disciples the interpretation of what the ‘seed fell’ means, which teaches them it is when the heart hears the word of God. Interpretation becomes the application of the proverb, the knowledge of what to do, or what to believe in or not to believe in. Interpretation reveals what thought or perception one is in so that the heart can call out to God for help and guidance.
The Bible also demonstrates the relationship of the spirit of wisdom to being the principal thing of the written scriptures. In addition, the spirit of wisdom knows the interpretation of prophetic dreams and visions, as shown in the example of the prophet Daniel. Wisdom is the application of spiritual interpretation, the discerning of thoughts and intentions of the heart.
In closing, we trust that this report of What is the Holy Bible, has given you some insight in answering the question, “What is the Holy Bible?” More information on this subject matter is available in a seminar series providing more in-depth understanding. We look forward to meeting your acquaintance at one of our upcoming seminars, webinars or fellowship group meetings. Schedules will post on our web site: truthbydreams.org. Please feel free to “Subscribe” as this way you will be immediately notified of any and all updates.
2 Timothy 3: verses 15 – 17
15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
17. That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
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[Note: Credit for the Lords Supper image comes from the Spirit of Hope Lutheran Church of Mesa Arizona. Photo of the quilted frame of the Lords Supper, as it was hanging in the Narthex at the time the picture was taken].