“Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and he did not do what was right in the sight of the LORD his God, as his father David had done. But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel; indeed he made his son pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel. And he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree.” — ‭‭II Kings‬ ‭16:2-4‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Is this not what the oldest religion in the world practices? Which is to walk on coals (pass through the fire)? Which is to reject God’s purifying fire for man’s purifying fire. Being what it says is an abomination to God. Which is to reject Jesus’ stripes for man’s stripes. For do they not take one son from each family (representing the one Son of God’s family) and pierce their bodies with sharp objects through their tongue - which is to say MAN shall purify their tongue, not God.

And do they not burn incense? Where burning incense for their own nostrils is to say that their prayers for salvation are unto the god of self. For do our prayers unto the God of our salvation not present themselves in cups “of gold” as a “sweet smelling aroma” before His nostrils, just like incense? For did the three wise men not bring the gift of “gold, frankincense and myrrh” unto the newborn Child Jesus born of the Holy Spirit? And is the gold, frankincense and myrrh not so that as a newborn child born of the Holy Spirit, we may once more wear both the gold of “the glory” of God, as well as be unto His nostrils a “sweet smelling fragrance”, having been washed from the stench of death (fallen nature and its sin) with the gift of frankincense and myrrh (the gift of life and its righteousness of His divine nature through the seed of Christ)?

Where purifying themselves by walking through fire, piercing their own bodies, just as Jesus’ body was pierced (hands, feet, side and head), burning their “own incense”, and not the incense which is the sweet smell of frankincense and myrrh brought by “the three wise men” representing the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is to reject God’s tree of life, just like Adam, and choose the tree of their own knowledge of good and evil, and make themselves as a god who can save themselves. And by making themselves “as a god who can save themselves” is to ultimately reject Jesus. Which is to make self “the high place”, being making themselves their own god.

Which, like their spiritual father Satan, is to exalt themselves “above their station” to the high place of “the idol of self”. And does God not say we are to tear down EVERY high thought that exalts itself above the knowledge of God? Which is why, throughout the word of God, you read of God hating every high place of Israel (His people). Because, while Israel may have taken down their false gods of wood and bronze and silver and gold (representing to accept the salvation of Christ), the word says but they didn’t remove their high places (plural). Which refers to the many of all the people not removing the high places of self. Which is the high place of the “idol of self”. That God may be the head. For does the head not sit in the high place above the body? And is God not the head, and we the body?

For we also see that before walking on the coals, do they not first wash “their own feet”as a cleansing ceremony? Did Jesus Himself not wash the feet of His disciples? Did He not say that if you do not let ME wash your feet, that you will have nothing to do with Me? The cleansing ceremony of washing the disciples feet “by Jesus” represents the requirement of washing our feet from the stench and remembrance of walking in “our own ways”. By them washing “their own feet”, they say they do not need Jesus to wash their feet. And did Jesus not say that no one comes to the Father except through Him? But like Adam who chose his own way, they too choose “their own way”. Was Jesus then not challenging every religion that chooses “their own way” of washing themselves? Which is man’s dirty rags of righteousness (Isaiah 64:6) effort at saving himself. Rather than receiving the true way of salvation that we may not all “shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away“. For every religion is about reaching UP to God (in their own way), but Christianity is about God reaching DOWN to man (in His way). For it is “He” who does it (1 Thessalonians 5:24). So to answer the often asked question of “why Matthew 16:24”, Matthew 16:24 is the very heart of His way. Which is the way of righteousness (cleaning ceremony) and what discipleship “as a way” is all about. Which is about removing every high place. To walk in the way of discipleship is about removing every high place.

Of which one such high place is man thinking he can save himself. Which is the high place of man as “saviour”.

The other is the high place of the idol of the god of self. Being the high place of man as “lord”.

For does the word of God not declare Jesus as both Saviour AND Lord? “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” (Acts 2:36). And unless Jesus IS both Saviour AND Lord, we are not a disciple. For many are content with Jesus being their Saviour (many are called), but only a few are comfortable with Jesus being Lord (but few are chosen).

For whilst Israel may have removed every false god (representing the salvation of Christ), being to relate to Jesus as “Saviour”, however, by Israel still keeping their high places, being the practice of keeping the idol of self as lord, they did not relate to Jesus in His capacity as “Lord”. Discipleship is to show the heart of man the way of relating to Jesus also as “Lord”. Which is by tearing down the high place of relating to “ourselves” as lord (by denying self, and dying to self). Which is to make HIM the high place instead. Which is the Head.

For God shows just how important it is to Him for man to relate to His Son as both Saviour and Lord. “And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah had done, EXCEPT that the high places WERE NOT REMOVED; the people STILL sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. Then the LORD STRUCK the king, so that he was a leper until the day of his death; so he dwelt in an ISOLATED house. And Jotham the king’s son was over the royal house, judging the people of the land.” — II Kings‬ ‭15:3-5‬. Is the plight of a leper not an outcast? By not accepting or relating to Jesus “as Lord”, which is to place Jesus in the high place of our lives, not self, God made him a leper, which is to be an outcast or one who is cast out. For he dwelt in an isolated house.

So the gift that was given to Jesus of the “gold, frankincense and myrrh”, which was in advance acknowledgment of what Jesus would later do, since the frankincense and myrrh were for embalming Him, which means these gifts were for AFTER He died, the “Gold” represents the gift God has in store for those who follow Jesus of restoring to man’s body the “shekhinah glory” of God, being the garment Adam wore before he fell, because the word shows he suddenly became “naked before his God. Which is the gift reserved for all those who follow Jesus by denying themselves and dying to self (Matthew 16:24). Which is the gift Jesus received for denying Himself and dying to self after He died, when He was raised to life. Which is the gift of “the gold” of the glorified body of “the radiance of God” (a body is what we wear on the OUTSIDE). And “the frankincense and myrrh” represent the gift of the sweet smelling fragrance of “the divine nature” (a nature is what we wear on the INSIDE). Which is the gift of representing “the exact being of God”. Being the gift of the glorified spirit of God’s divine nature. Which is to have both the light on the outside and the life on then inside of the “light of life” of following Jesus (John 8:12). Which is the gift of the eternal LIGHT of “the body”, and the gift of the eternal LIFE of “the spirit”. For whilst the soul is ours (free will), the spirit and the body are His.

This requirement we see in Hebrews 1:3, which tells us that we need to be “the exact representation of his being”, which is to have His “divine nature” (or likeness), and the “radiance of His glory”, which is to have His “eternal power” (or image). Which is to (1) wear Jesus on the INSIDE (being the seed of the divine nature received on the inside). For Jesus is “the Word” which we need to write on our hearts and minds (being on the INSIDE). And just as the written word of God places His “divine nature” on public record and display, we need to place it on public record and display too. Which is also why the Word became flesh. For whilst it is written to be on public record, it became flesh to put it on public display. And to (2) wear the Holy Spirit on the OUTSIDE. For the written word of God puts His “eternal power” (His glory) on public record and display. Which is the glory of God we all need to put on public record and display. For when God says we were made in His image and likeness, He is referring to BEFORE Adam fell. Fallen man has fallen from that image and likeness. And only through following His Son can we receive the gift of the light and the life of being restored back to that image and likeness.

And of putting these two attributes of God on public record and display, Romans 1:20 tells us that everything that is made “shows” the invisible attributes of God. Which are the “divine nature” (Jesus on the inside) and the “eternal power” (the glory of the Holy Spirit on the outside). For the two bare witness together that we are sons of God. For does the word of God not say that it’s by the witness of two? Which is why He sent BOTH the Son and the Holy Spirit. In the same way, the frankincense and myrrh where used to embalm Jesus body, representing washing away of the stench of “the fallen nature” and replacing it with the sweet smelling fragrance of “the divine nature”. So together with the gold of the glory, and the frankincense and myrrh of the divine nature, we have received BOTH Jesus AND the Holy Spirit. That just like the written word puts both the divine nature and eternal power on public display, by us becoming “the word made flesh”, we too may put the exact representation of God’s being and the radiance of His glory on public record and display.

Which is what it means to be a son.