In the end of the world, when Jesus appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself, the instrument of that sacrifice included being delivered into the hands of men, that they should examine him, decide what should be done with him, and do it. This, it is written, was done according to the determinate council and foreknowledge of the Father.

As a groundwork in writing, I bring to mind, the account of Gideon, who is Jerubaal. Gideon was raised up among the judges of Israel to deliver them from the hand of the Midianites, their enemies. This is greatly summarized, but Gideon did under the hand of God, deliver them from Midian. And in the course of events, became a house of many sons. And in the moment of deliverance, the men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us, both you, and your son, and your son’s son also, for you have delivered us from the hand of Midian”. And Gideon said, “I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you; the LORD shall rule over you”.

This remarkable declaration speaks to the fact that, though the LORD delivers by the hand of some man, he, the LORD, nevertheless is supreme in the world. And eventually when Gideon had died, the people conspired to kill seventy of Gideon’s sons born to wives, and make one of his sons, a son of a bondwoman, their king. Upon conducting this act of treachery, one escaped son of Gideon stood to rebuke the people with a parable.

And when they told [it] to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said unto them, Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may hearken unto you.
The trees went forth [on a time] to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us.
But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, [and] reign over us.
But the fig tree said unto them, Should I forsake my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees?
Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, [and] reign over us.
And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
Then said all the trees unto the bramble, Come thou, [and] reign over us.
And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, [then] come [and] put your trust in my shadow: and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon.
Now therefore, if ye have done truly and sincerely, in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done unto him according to the deserving of his hands;
(For my father fought for you, and adventured his life far, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian:
And ye are risen up against my father’s house this day, and have slain his sons, threescore and ten persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he [is] your brother;)
If ye then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, [then] rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you:
But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.

The Olive, the Fig and the Vine. The fullness of God, Spirit, Father and Son, dwelling bodily in a man, a man who was born to be a King. This King would reign for a time, as no king of flesh will. He reigns through the fatness of a gentle teacher of easy yoke and light burden. He reigns through the sweet revelations from the Father, of Christ in you. He reigns in the cheerful fellowship we have with God, as partakers of the new wine in the Kingdom of the dear Son. But there are those who will not have him to reign over them, preferring the flesh rending, punishing cruel bondage of the authority of God rejecting men of flesh and blood. Them to whom, through the determinate council and foreknowledge of God, the blessed King would be delivered.

This King, when they took and mocked, they placed upon his head, a crown of thorns. Inside that blessed head, and all that was processing in it, was the mind which the scriptures testify we, who are made believers, have. We have the mind of Christ. We have the mind that is the great threshing floor, where the chaff is separated from the wheat, the wheat delivered to the garner, the chaff to unquenchable fire. What He, the great King determines, will most certainly come to pass. For the Father has delivered all things into His hands. And the world will be judged, not by Moses, nor by flesh rending authoritarians, but by Jesus Christ, according to our gospel.

Now He, Christ, is passed into the heavens, where no crown of thorns touches His mind. But we who are alive and remain unto His coming, still bear this crown. We bear our God given authority in the Word of God, and do not yield it to the flesh rending demand of authoritarian and Godless flesh, that we exchange our thinking for theirs. Their authority may presently seem to fill the world. But it ends at the border and boundary of the mind of Christ in us. It is no marvel, if the world hate you, because it hated Him first, and that without a cause. Hold fast to Him and you will never be moved nor disappointed. The Spirit of Life from God is in you, if so be that that same Spirit which raised Christ from be in you.