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Christ’s Liberation of the Seed of Abraham: Freedom from Slavery to the Fear of Death

Christ’s Liberation of the Seed of Abraham: Freedom from Slavery to the Fear of Death and the Written Code

Introduction

The claim that Jesus came to liberate the seed of Abraham from bondage—specifically not from the slavery of men, but from the slavery to the fear of death—touches deeply on the heart of New Testament theology. Hebrews 2:14–15 declares that Jesus partook of flesh and blood “that through death he might destroy him who holds the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” This liberation motif intertwines several core biblical threads: the Mosaic Law and its ministry of death, the existential fear that shadowed Israel under the Law, the newness of life in the Spirit, and the identity of the seed of Abraham.

This study will explore, in structured theological fashion, the approach and vocabulary of Hebrews 2:14–15, the broader New Testament’s witness to slavery to the fear of death, how the Mosaic Law contributed to this fear, why the Law cannot mature believers into Christ’s likeness, and how the new covenant establishes a radically different dynamic. At each juncture, we shall attend carefully to key Greek terms from the Mounce Interlinear, draw on Lovefulfilled.org for perspectives and quotations, and expound major Pauline contrasts between “written code” and Spirit.

I. Hebrews 2:14–15 – Exegesis and Greek Analysis

1. Text and Translation

Hebrews 2:14–15

“Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.” (ESV)

Mounce Interlinear Greek Key Terms:

  • κεκοινώνηκεν (kekoinōnēken): perfect tense of koinoneō, “to share in,” indicating a settled, ongoing condition—children being entirely human.
  • παραπλησίως (paraplēsios): “likewise” or “in like manner.”
  • μετέσχεν (meteschen): aorist of metechō, “to partake,” here denoting Christ’s decisive historic incarnation.
  • διὰ τοῦ θανάτου (dia tou thanatou): “through death”—Christ’s death is the means of liberation.
  • καταργήσῃ (katargēsē): aorist subjunctive of katargeō, “to render powerless,” “to abolish,” or “to make ineffective.”
  • κράτος (kratos): “power, dominion”—referring to the devil’s oppressive authority.
  • ἀπαλλάξῃ (apallaxē): “to free,” “to deliver.”
  • φόβῳ θανάτου (phobō thanatou): “fear of death.”
  • δουλείας (douleias): “slavery,” “bondage.”

Attention to the Greek, according to the Mounce Interlinear and lexical dictionaries, underscores that the “fear of death” is not a trivial phobia but a condition of continuous bondage, rooted in existential dread and the legal consequences of sin later exposed by the Law.

2. The Hammer and Import of the Passage

The author of Hebrews situates Jesus’ mission as fundamentally incarnational—by becoming human (μετέσχεν τῶν αὐτῶν), Jesus fully enters the realm of those held captive by death. The driving purpose is liberation: “that through death he might destroy (καταργήσῃ) the one having the power (κράτος) of death” and “might free (ἀπαλλάξῃ) those who through…the fear of death…were slaves”.

"now, at the present making known through the appearing of our savior, Christ Jesus, on one hand to abolish death, and on the other to bring to light life and incorruptibility through the gospel" (2 Timothy 1:10) 

The term katargeō indicates not mere rivalry or competition with the devil, but a decisive nullification or abrogation of his dominion. In Pauline usage, the same verb is applied to Christ’s work in abolishing death and bringing life (2 Timothy 1:10) and making inoperative the power of sin (Romans 6:6; 1 Corinthians 15:26). The victory is thus both forensic (breaking legal condemnation) and existential (delivering from dread). Supporting is the idea of being rescued and transferred into the kingdom of God (Colossians 1:13) which is a kingdom of light, and that which is a light to men is life (John 1:4).

The phrase “lifelong slavery” (διὰ παντὸς τοῦ ζῆν ἔνοχοι ἦσαν δουλείας) presents a condition of persistent bondage. The vocabulary of ἔνοχοι suggests “liable to” or “held fast,” while δουλεία roots the imagery in economic and legal enslavement, extending into the spiritual domain.

When Jesus told them they must abide in his words to know the truth and be set free, in John 8:32-33, the people replied "we are descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves to anyone, how can you say we will become free?" Clearly Jesus is not speaking of earthly slavery.

3. Support and Commentary from Lovefulfilled.org

“Jesus came to destroy the one who had the power of death—the devil—and to free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. This fear was perpetuated by the Law, which condemned and brought death. But Christ, by partaking in flesh and blood, entered into death to abolish its power and liberate the seed of Abraham.”

“The fear of death is a tool the devil uses to keep us enslaved to sin through the Law." But Jesus came to render useless this power over death. The scriptures tell us the earthly Jew was held under a guardian until the appointed time. In Galatians Paul relates slavery to the Law, when he say do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. "We are no longer under the written code that condemns, but under the Spirit who gives life.”

These insights make explicit the linkage between “the fear of death,” the condemnation of the Mosaic Law, and the spiritual liberation accomplished in Christ.

II. Slavery to the Fear of Death in the Biblical Canon

A. Shadow in the Old Testament: Death, Law, and Dread

1. The Law and the Valley of Death

The Old Testament repeatedly confronts humanity with mortality and the threat of divine judgment for transgression. Genesis 2:17 frames God’s warning to Adam: “In the day you eat of it you shall surely die.” This death, as observed in the scholarly assessment of the Reformed theology, is both physical and spiritual—a curse of alienation from God’s presence.

The Mosaic Law formalizes this threat: death is the penalty for a broad array of transgressions, from idolatry to sexual sins, with the intention to create a holy people set apart for YHWH (Exodus 19:5–6, 21:12–17; Leviticus 20:2–13; Numbers 15:32–36). There was a system put in place which was a temporary way to deal with man's sinful nature. 

The writer of Hebrews tells us the Law nor Service in the Temple did not mature of perfect men (Hebrews 8:2; Hebrews 7:19). But a better hope has been introduced so that we can draw close to God. Maturity or perfection into the image of Christ is suppose to be the work of ministry to build up the church within the church but is often deceptively overlooked in the name of Jesus, in outreach and evangelism.

The death penalty was not always implemented physcially; it symbolized the severity of disloyalty to the covenant and foreshadowed God’s ultimate work in Christ. The “holiness structure” of Israel, centered on the temple and animal sacrifices, pointed to the need for a true and better Substitute who would bear the curse.

2. Psalms and Prophets: The Shadow of Death and Hope of Deliverance

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me…” (Psalm 23:4). Here the psalmist acknowledges the presence of death’s shadow, but locates confidence in God’s nearness. This text, widely commented upon, expresses the idea of the "fear of death" and becomes a metaphor for enduring mortal danger while having assurance (which exists faith) in God’s steadfast love.

Isaiah 25:8 signals a prophetic hope: “He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces…” The expectation is of a Messianic deliverance—the removal not merely of physical enemies, but of the very curse of death.

3. Fear and Judgment: Hebrew Scriptures on Afterlife Anxiety

Under the Law, the fate of the sinner is dire (“The one who sins shall die,” Ezekiel 18:4). The Law, with its curse (Deuteronomy 27:26; Galatians 3:10), instilled dread of divine retribution, making death not only a biological terminus but entrance into a realm of accountability—“the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men” (2 Peter 3:7).

B. New Testament Expansion: Fear of Death and Liberation in Christ

1. Central Testimony: Hebrews 2:14–15

Already covered above, this passage constitutes the clearest New Testament assertion that Christ delivers the seed of Abraham from slavery to the fear of death.

2. Pauline and General Epistles

  • Romans 8:15: “You did not receive the spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you received the Spirit of adoption…” This extends the liberation theme to the relational sense—God’s children are not haunted by dread, but by filial intimacy. In fact, this verse goes on to speak of a Spirit of adoption 

  • 1 Corinthians 15:54–57: “Death is swallowed up in victory… The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Here Paul directly links death’s sting to sin, and amplifies that the Law is what gives sin its power to terrify and condemn.

  • 2 Timothy 1:10: “Christ Jesus…abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”

  • 1 John 4:18: “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear, because fear has punishment; the one who fears is not made perfect in love.” John clarifies the distinction between “filial” (reverential) and “servile” (punitive) fear; the latter is expelled in the perfecting love of Christ.

3. Gospels and Apocalyptic Writings

  • John 8:34–36: “Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. … So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

  • Revelation 1:18; 21:8: Christ holds “the keys of death and Hades;” the fate of the cowardly (δειλοῖς—those afraid to trust God) and the unbelieving is the “second death”—so fear is not only psychological, but a condition that marks exclusion from life.

The New Testament, then, regards the “fear of death” as both existential (deep human anxiety regarding mortality and divine judgment) and juridical (the Law’s condemnation). Liberation in Christ is the definitive answer to both aspects.

1 Corinthians 15:56, "… The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law" highlights the concept Paul brings to us in Romans 6:14, that we will not rule over sin under the Law but under grace. 

It also pus emphasis on the importance of the Spirit of adoption, now available in the new covenant, where we are born again of the Spirit into the kingdom of God, and the Spirit leads us not to slavery again, to the Law (Galatians 5:18; Roans 8:15). 

A. The Law and Its Ministry of Death

1. Death Penalty, Sin, and the Curse

Under the Mosaic Law, sin was treated with utmost severity, often warranting the death penalty for various transgressions to preserve the sanctity and uphold God's righteous requitements. The Mosaic Law exposes sin by defining it, thereby making people conscious and holding them accountable for transgressions against God's standards (Romans 5:13; Romans 3:20). 

This revelation of sin should have shown humanity's inability to be righteous through their own efforts and highlighted their need for a Savior, ultimately pointing toward Christ. But the Law was weak as it was spiritual and man was carnal. 

One particular statute—known as the "curse of the tree"—was invoked when a person guilty of a capital offense was executed by hanging. Such individuals had to be buried promptly to prevent the land from being desecrated. This regulation was understood as an expression of divine justice, and in Christian theology, it later came to symbolize Jesus' crucifixion as a redemptive act that bore this curse on behalf of believers.

Under the religious system of Jesus's day the leaders were hypocrites, knowing God and his precepts, righteous requitements, they became vain in their own imaginations, and worshiped creation instead of the creator, judging others to standards that they themselves could not uphold (Romans 1-2). They added more and more laws to control and manipulate the people.

2. Law’s Role in Perpetuating Fear

The Law was not a “schoolmaster” but a “guardian” (παιδαγωγός, paidagōgos) until Christ, as Paul explains in Galatians 3:23–25. The Law taught holiness by negative instruction—by making transgression visible, and attaching to it an array of curses and, often, mortal consequences (Deuteronomy 28; Leviticus 26; Galatians 3:10–13). 

Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 15:56 explain this further, "… the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law." The Law exposed sin and gave an account for sin but what many do not understand is that sin increased under the Law (Romans 5:30). 

Paul’s language in Romans 7 is especially stark: “I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death …” (Romans 7:10). The Law thus was good, but it could not deliver from sin—it only intensified the consciousness of sin, resulting in heightened dread of judgment because the wage of sin is death. Thus men were enslaved under a "fear of death"

Lovefulfilled.org sharpens this in The New Living Way and speaks of the great mystery in how God solves the issue, not under the Law but under Grace whereby he makes us a new spiritual being thus we can fulfill, not some written code of laws, but God's righteous requirements, which was spiritual. 

The Law, then, though holy and just (Romans 7:12), became a source of fear because of human inability to keep it, and its relentless pronouncements of punishment.

3. “The Letter Kills”: The Ministry of Condemnation

Paul declares: “The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:6). The ministry of Moses, “carved in letters on stone,” is called “the ministry of death” (2 Corinthians 3:7–11). The Law’s statutes worked externally, pressing on the conscience, killing hope, and multiplying guilt—but were “powerless” to give life (Romans 8:3–4; Hebrews 7:19).

As summarized by Paul, “the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law” (1 Corinthians 15:56): the Law gives death its “bite” by providing sin the opportunity to condemn. Therefore we will not rule over sin under the laws and principles of do not touch, taste, handle... as Paul states these have no power to overcome the passions and desires of the flesh.

B. Mosaic Law and the Seed of Abraham – Who Are the Liberated?

1. Israel’s Unique Standing—and Its Limits

The Law was given to fleshly Israel, the physical seed of Abraham. Yet, as Hebrews 2:16–17 emphasizes, Jesus did not “help” angels, but “the seed of Abraham.” The term “seed” (σπέρμα, sperma) is multivalent—sometimes singular (pointing to Christ), sometimes collective (referring to the people of God).

Paul pints tot he promise given to Abraham in that God would make him the father of many nations and that this promise was given before circumcision and the Mosaic Law so that it would be through faith according to grace so to come to those under the Law and people of the other nations; gentiles. See The Gospel Preached Beforehand.

2. New Testament Fulfillment: Seed Redefined in Christ

Paul in Galatians 3 insists: “The promises were made to Abraham and to his seed…which is Christ. … And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Gal 3:16, 29). The sons of Abraham are through faith, Children of the Promise, thus the true Jew is no longer of earthly circumcision, Romans 2:29, but born of God inwardly.

This means the liberation Jesus achieves is not for Abraham’s physical lineage only, but for all who are “in Christ” by faith. The blessing of Abraham, which is the reception of the Spirit (Galatians 3:14), is universal; the curse of the Law is ended for all those who belong to Christ.

IV. Paul: Dead to the Law, Alive to the Spirit

A. The Written Code vs. Spirit – Key Pauline Contrasts

1. Romans 7:1–6 – Analogy of Death and Marriage

Paul uses the analogy of marriage to describe the believer’s relationship to the Law:

“Thus a married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; if her husband dies, she is released from the law … Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another…in order that we may bear fruit for God” (Romans 7:2, 4).

Mounce Interlinear Key Terms:

  • κατηργήθημεν (katērgēthēmen): “we have been rendered inoperative, released” from the Law.
  • γράμματος (grammatos): “written code,” “letter”—the Mosaic Law, in its literal form.
  • πνεύματος (pneumatos): “Spirit”—the Holy Spirit, source of true life.
Paul’s Conclusion:

“But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.” (v. 6)

2. 2 Corinthians 3:3–11 – Tablets of Stone vs. Hearts of Flesh

Paul says that God, “has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Cor 3:6). This fundamental difference leads to opposing outcomes: the letter brings judgment and death, while the spirit brings life and righteousness.

3. Galatians: The Law a Guardian Until Christ

  • Galatians 3:24–25: “The law was our guardian [παιδαγωγός, paidagōgos] until Christ came … but now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian”.
    • The role of the Law was thus temporary—to expose sin and point beyond itself to Christ. 
    • The idea that evangelism is to put people under the Law to bring them under condemnation and fear of death so that they come to Christ, is debatable and left as a topic for another time. 

B. Why the Law Cannot Mature Us or Make Us Like God

1. Purpose and Limits of the Law

  • The Law can convict, define, and restrain, but it lacks power to produce holiness or maturity (Romans 7:10–24; Hebrews 7:19). “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son … condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3).

  • The Law is a “ministry of condemnation” (2 Cor 3:9), designed to show the need for the Gospel.

2. Christian Maturity as Likeness to Christ

Per Ephesians 4:11–13, the goal is that we all “reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature [τέλειος, teleios], attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ”. Maturity involves transformation into Christ’s image (2 Corinthians 3:18, Romans 8:29).

Lovefulfilled.org asserts:

“The written code kills, but the Spirit gives life. The Law was holy, but it could not make us holy. Only by dying to the Law and living by the Spirit can we become like God.”

“Without Grace we will never reach this fullness. The weakness in the Law was it attempted to do it in the flesh, and people failed over and over. … To learn obedience we must first build on a foundation of grace. Trust is a foundation which allows one to accept discipline, for the right reason.”

  • True maturity is a result of inward transformation by the Holy Spirit, not conformity to external rules. The Law can produce outward compliance but not inner renewal.

C. Slavery and Freedom: Paul’s Metaphors

1. Slavery to Sin or to Righteousness

Paul frequently uses δοῦλος (doulos)—“slave”—to describe both the unconverted (slaves to sin) and the redeemed (slaves to righteousness/God).

  • Romans 6:16: “You are slaves of the one whom you obey”
  • Romans 6:17–18: “You were slaves of sin, but have become obedient from the heart…Having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness”

Paul speaks to reasons with human understanding. Transformation brings about a newewed mind that willfully "approves" of God's will as good, perfect, acceptable. This si quite a contrast to a mind of slavery under fear of punishment. 

The freedom Christ achieves is not aimless autonomy but transfer of allegiance—from the mastery of sin (ending in death) to the mastery of righteousness (leading to holiness and life). 

2. Freedom from the “Yoke of Bondage”

  • Galatians 5:1: “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.” The “yoke of bondage” refers to the Law as a system whereby it is a ministry of fear and condemnation, thus slavery.

    • "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision strengthens, rather faith energized through love" (Galatians 5:6).

  • Lovefulfilled.org: “We will conquer…through this love [of God], not fear, guilt, or some misguided concept of obedience. … Agape Love, the missing ingredient from the church that seemed alive, but was dead. Agape love produces love for others and duplication, it produces discipleship”.

3. The Spirit of Adoption

  • Romans 8:15: “The Spirit you received does not make you slaves so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship…”

Again, this directly subverts the structure of law-fear-punishment and grounds the Christian’s boldness in the love of God.

D. The New Way of the Spirit: Not Lawlessness, but Life

1. Living by the Spirit

Paul is at pains to rebut the accusation that grace and freedom from the Law lead to antinomianism:

  • Romans 7:6: “…so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.”
  • Romans 8:2: “…the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.”
  • Galatians 5:16–18: “Walk by the Spirit … If you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”.

The new way is not externally imposed law, but internal empowerment; not checking boxes but growth bearing fruit (see Galatians 5:22–23; Romans 7:4). The Spirit inwardly writes God’s law on our hearts (Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 8:10).

2. Letter Kills, Spirit Gives Life: Historical and Ethical Perspective

The historical church has often misunderstood or perverted this dichotomy. Lovefulfilled.org:

“Our heavenly Father builds a foundation with us on love and mercy, forgiveness, peace, unity, gentleness…To learn obedience we must first build on a foundation of grace. … If we take away the heart issue of love and trust, discipline becomes poisonous.”

Discipleship (and growing into maturity after the likeness of God) must start from a foundation of grace and love, never from coercive fear or legalistic exactitude.

V. Summary Table: Law, Fear of Death, and Christ’s Liberation

Concept Mosaic Law (Old Covenant) New Covenant in Christ
Nature of Law Written code (γράμματος), external rules, condemns transgression Law written on hearts, Spirit-enabled life
Penalty for Transgression Death (spiritual and physical), curse, exclusion No condemnation for those in Christ (Rom 8:1)
Role of Fear Instrumental—fear of death, curse, separation Replaced by love, assurance, adoption
Ability to Produce Maturity Cannot—external conformity only, no power to transform The Spirit matures us into likeness of Christ
Who is “the seed of Abraham” Physical descendants / outwardly circumcised All who are in Christ—by faith (Gal 3:16, 29)
Slavery Slavery to sin and death through Law’s power Liberty/slavery to righteousness, empowered by Spirit
Fulfillment Shadow, type, pointing to Christ Reality, substance, Christ as fulfillment

Table Analysis:
This structural comparison demonstrates how the Law, while good and holy, systematized the fear of judgment and death, reinforced by the death penalty for sin, ritual condemnation, and the ministry of the written code. 

In contrast, the new covenant inaugurates life in the Spirit, replaces fearful slavery with filial love, reconstitutes the people of God as those “in Christ” (the true seed of Abraham), and, rather than abolishing obedience, brings forth voluntary, joyful, and transformed lives.

VI. Concluding Theology: Liberation and Christian Maturity

A. The Reality and the Prospect

According to Hebrews, Jesus “had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest... and make atonement for the sins of the people” (Hebrews 2:17). By his death, he “destroyed the one who has the power of death … and freed those who were held in slavery by their fear of death” (Hebrews 2:14–15).

Lovefulfilled.org further underscores:

“Jesus shared in our flesh and blood to destroy the devil and free us from lifelong slavery to the fear of death. This liberation is not from men, but from the Law’s condemnation and the terror of dying under judgment.”

B. Living in the Age of the Spirit

Paul writes that “the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did, by which we draw near to God” (Hebrews 7:19). The Spirit’s transforming presence is both the means and the goal of Christian maturity: “We all … beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Cor 3:18; see also Romans 8:29).

The Law did bring anyone into a genuine likeness to God; only grace, received by faith, and the power of the Spirit can accomplish this.

VII. Synthesis and Final Takeaways

Jesus’ liberation of the seed of Abraham is thus more than emancipation from human oppressors. It is:

  • Deliverance from the slavish fear of death—the existential terror produced by fallen mankind's unrighteous state which the Law exposed, condemned with the certainty of judgment.
  • Defeat of the devil’s power—the accuser is rendered powerless by Christ’s atoning work.
  • Release from under the Law—not to enter anarchic autonomy, but to become alive to God by the Spirit, bearing fruit in righteousness and Christlikeness.
  • Redefinition of the family of Abraham—now comprised of all those who are “in Christ,” Abraham’s true Seed.

Only by dying to the Law—and the ministry of fear and condemnation—do believers come into the liberty and love that the Spirit supplies. The Law, wielded from without, can never mature or make us like God; but the Spirit, granted from within, accomplishes what the Law could only foreshadow.


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Word Of Life

"That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life. " 1 Jesus is the Word, He was in the beginning with God. 2  All things were made through Him. He is the Word and Light of men, the way, the path, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." 4  Thus we can say as the Psalmist, Jesus, the Word, is a Lamp unto my feet, and a Light unto my path. 5  "In him was life, and the life was the light of men." 6  Concerning the Word of Life, " the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life ," Proclaimed, that our joy may be complete, a glory like that in the beginning, fellowship with the Father, with one another, and with his Son Jesus Christ, the Word of Life. "You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot...
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I Will Awake Like Him and Be Satisfied

  I Will Awake Like Him and Be Satisfied Psalm 17:15 frames the believer’s hope as both present communion and future consummation: “ As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness .” This essay develops Charles Spurgeon’s reflection by adding the biblical emphases that we are being conformed to Christ now, that the Spirit gives life to our mortal bodies, and that our final awakening will reveal the full redemption of those bodies in Christ’s likeness. Present beholding and present transformation We already “behold the face of the Lord in righteousness” because Christ’s righteousness has reconciled us and opened intimate access to God. That beholding is not passive sight but an active, formative encounter: “We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18). Faith fixes our gaze ...
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Divine Persuasion

" I say to you there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner repenting. " 2 This word for repent is metanoéō (from metá, "changed after being with" and noiéō, "think.") Oh many have misused this word. We are changed after being with Jesus. The woman at the well was changed after being with Jesus. The Bible says repentance is of the will of God, without regret. This word for " without regret " means not to be repented of, about which no change of mind can take place. Repentance like faith, a Divine Persuasion. Repentance is a change of mind that we do not change our minds about, or repent of. We know that the mind regulates the heart and the word of God discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart thus it is through the mind the power of God is manifested in our hearts. Through the mind we are divinely persuaded or convinced of God. " Indeed, according to God the heart-sorrow repentance  without regret produces  salvation,...
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