Category Archives: Areopagus Corner

Absent from the body but present with The Lord?

by fact-s.net

In the 2 Cor. 5:6-8, it says, “Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.”

There is no doubt that “being absent in the body” refers to our death. At which time, the “breath of life”(spirit of man”) leaves the body and goes back to the Creator (Eccl. 12:7; 3:20-21); this is “being present with The Lord”. The body is then buried (goes to hades/hell) where it decays and rots, as in,””For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption;” (ACTS 13:36,NKJV). Also, read:

ECCLESIASTES 9:5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten. (NIV)

ECCLESIASTES 9:10 …., for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom. (NIV)

PSALM 146:4 His spirit departs, he returns to the earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. (NASU)y and

PSALM 115:17 The dead do not praise the LORD, nor do any who go down into silence; (NASU)

Notice that the “spirit of man/ breath of life” that goes back to the Creator is not a conscious component of man. It carries all the memory, education, character, distinctiveness, uniqueness of that particular person. But apart from the body, it is not alive and not functional.

As an analogy to a computer, the body is like the hardware with all components but not a “living person” until the “breath of life” was “breathe into his nostrils”. Body/dust of the ground/flesh + breath of life/spirit of man= living soul/person ( Gen.2:7). When these 2 components of man separate, life ends and the body is not functional, dead. Much like a computer, the memory and identity of that particular person can be stored in a “thumb drive” which we can put in our pocket. But, when inserted into another computer, it can manifest itself will all that it has stored in memory. Similarly, when our “breath of life/spirit of man that goes at death to the Creator, is given another body, albeit spiritual , both these components make up the person to become alive again.

But, to extend the original question, “do all breath of life (of the righteous and the wicked) follow the same route to go to the Creator”?.

Notice,”For all this I considered in my heart even to declare all this, that the righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God: no man knoweth either love or hatred by all that is before them. All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the unclean; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: as is the good, so is the sinner; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath. This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead”. (Eccl. 9:1-3). Again, “there is one event unto all, righteous or wicked”suggesting that all go to the same process at death, that the “breath of life” goes back to the Creator.Yes, it appears from Ecclesiastes that the “breath of life”, whether from good or evil person, goes back to the Creator at death.

But, the “breath of life” of the “firstfruits” at Jesus’ return will be given an “immortal body” and will live with him forever (Rev.20:4; I Cor.15:52). On the other hand, the “breath of life” of others who died and not part of the “firstfruits”, will be resurrected after the Millenium, as in, “The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection.(Rev.20:5).
The “second resurrection” will be a fulfillment of the prophecy regarding the “dry bones”, as in: “This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’’ (Ezek. 37:5-6 and read also 1-17).
Surprisingly, even Job will have a flesh-body as other Israelites (and Gentiles), as in “As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, And at the last He will take His stand on the earth. Even after my skin is destroyed, Yet from my flesh I shall see God; Whom I myself shall behold, And whom my eyes will see and not another. My heart faints within me!(Job 19:25-27).
Of these people, some will go towards resurrection to life and others to judgment (John 5:29) of eternal death, after they were given their only and last chance to choose.
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Why pray when God already knows and “changeth not”?

by fact-s.net

Yes, why pray, is a very important question. For any difficult question like this one is, it is always helpful to recollect about the life of man-Jesus (anthropos-Jesus).

No question that many verses in the Bible proved that Jesus, the Creator God in Genesis and the Logos in the gospel according to John, prayed. In fact, he even prayed the whole night, as in, “And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.” (Luke 6:12).

Still, it begs the question, why pray?

This brings me to how you and I communicate. We use our physical senses of sight, hearing, feeling, gesturing, etc…albeit “material methods” of communicating. Without communication, how else can we understand each other? How can we learn or be guided by each other? Yet, this is a way to communicate with the “material world”.

How about the “spiritual realm”? Can we communicate with the “spirit” using “material or physical tools” like eyes, ears, etc? How could we be “on line” in a physical sense as in World Wide Web, unless we access the internet to learn, email, etc.? Similarly, the spirit-God, cannot be accessed except through spiritual means or venue. This is why we need to “pray”. It is a vehicle to communicate spiritually to a “Spirit-Being”.

Regarding, why pray when we “cannot change God’s mind”? Actually, God can “change or modify” his will, but within his limits of perfect judgment. Didn’t he delay the destruction of Nineveh, “haggled” with Abraham as to how many “just people” needed to save Sodom & Gomorrah? How about Adam in the garden of Eden? He did not like Adam to eat the fruit of knowledge of good and evil and he could have “forced” Adam to follow. Yet, He did not because His perfect judgment allows Adam to “freely choose”.

Remember, God said, “…not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more”(Jer. 31:32-34; Heb. 8:10)

Yes, the promised Holy Spirit by the Father to the Son, who sacrificed his life for remission of sins and subsequently for us to receive the Holy Spirit (John 16:7), is now available for in-dwelling and writing the “laws into our fleshly tables of our heart and mind” to empower us. The Holy Spirit working with the “spirit of man”(the “breath of life”), to nurture, guide, teach, direct, suggest, empower, seal us. Ultimately, prayer helps us develop the character through the Holy Spirit to be “one” with God in “wisdom”.

Jesus, the Firstborn?

by fact-s.net

This question extends itself to the very essence of the gospel of the “kingdom of God”.

To begin with, where does “firstborn” (prototokos) start? From “all creation” in Genesis at Logos time or specifically “from the dead”, man-Jesus time ?

Undoubtedly, according to the understanding of Paul, “firstborn of all creation” means, Jesus is “the firstborn (prototokos) from the dead; so that He Himself might come to have first place in everything.”(Col. 1:18). Jesus is the Creator in Genesis and the Logos in the gospel according to John. Obviously, the Creator pre-existed before any that was created and therefore this quote does not address the question as to whether the Creator himself was created before he created others. The context in Colossians does not refer to the beginning of creation in Genesis at Logos/Creator time, but specifically relates only to being “firstborn from the dead”, during the early Christian era.

How then could a Creator be “firstborn from the dead”? This means that the Creator/Logos has to die first before becoming “firstborn from creation”; how could the spirit-composed Creator die? Also, this has similarity to the question of Nicodemus regarding humans being “born again”, as in:

“Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”(John 3:4-6).

Likewise, notice the similarity of the dilemma in the narrative about the rich young man in Matt. 19:23-25. “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?”

Being firstborn from the dead, born again and for a rich man to be in the “kingdom of heaven”, any other way, appear impossible. But, notice how Jesus responded,”And looking at them Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”(Matt. 19:26).

As proof that Creator God will die, Jesus said, “And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven”,John 3:13) confirming that the Creator was in heaven and has come down from heaven as man-Jesus, by incarnation.

Notice the requisites of being the code word “firstborn”:
1. Has to die
2. Has to be a spirit

As of now, only Jesus completed these requisites. Being spirit-composed as Creator/Logos, , he could not die. As prophesied , he incarnated into man-Jesus and being flesh, he was killed as “Passover Lamb” on Nisan 14. Subsequently, he resurrected “in three days and three nights”, and as spirit-composed, went to “tartaros” (hell) to proclaim his resurrection to the evil angels(I Pet.3:18-20; Jude 6-7; 2 Pet 2:4-5). He was then seen by many humans (as spirit-beings can show themselves as humasn, Genesis 18) before he finally went back to the Father and “seated at the right hand”. Indeed, Jesus is the “firstborn” from the dead, to “have first place in everything”.

For us, we are prophesied to follow Jesus the “the first of the firstfruits” at “his coming” ( I Cor. 15:20-23) to “meet him in the air” (I Thes.4:17) and set foot on the Mt. Olives (Zech. 14:1-4;Acts 1:7).

There should be no second-guessing about what the Father and Jesus planned to do from before the beginning of Genesis’ creation. The Potter will re-shape his clay (Jer. 18) and God will be “mindful” of us (Ps. 8:4-6; Heb. 2:6-18). A “new creation” is in the process where the Holy Spirit dwells in us to guide and nurture us to be “one” with Jesus and by extension “one” with the Father. “Old things have passed away (2 Cor. 5:17), our old self will be regenerated into a new creature. We will then become “sons of God”, higher than spirit-angels, spirit-composed like Jesus, the head of the body/church, the first of the firstfruits, the wave-sheaf offering, the “firstborn from the dead”. All in the “kingdom of God”, not in angelic species, not a human kingdom, animal-kingdom nor plant-kingdom. This is the destiny of humans given as a gift by the grace of God.

The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil put by God in the midst of the garden of Eden, together with the Tree of Life…but

by fact-s.net

Gen. 2:16-17 “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

This certainly gave Adam/Eve a choice: to have eternal life by eating the fruit of the “tree of life” or die by eating the fruit of “tree of knowledge of good and evil. And, they acted on their personal choice having “free will” to do so. 

Notice that Adam & Eve chose and preferred to “be like him”, the Creator, with knowledge of “good and evil”, instead of “immortality” like the angels by eating the fruit of the “tree of life”. They chose and preferred wisdom over immortality. But, while their choice of “being like him” and risking eternal “second death” was correct, their method of achieving that goal by disobeying God was wrong and sinful. What was wrong with what they did was not so much as their choice of having wisdom over immortality since God wanted us to know “good and evil” by the Ten Commandments through the aegis of the Holy Spirit. Their mistake was their method to achieve that goal to “be like him” on their “own works”, i.e. by themselves “eating the fruit”. But, let us backtrack so that we can fully understand what happened in the “garden of Eden”. 


Jesus “was slain from the foundation” (Rev. 13:8), even way before the garden of Eden and certainly before the tree of knowledge of good and evil. God is omniscient and knew that, when given a choice to “die or be like him”(the Creator YHVH ELOHIM), Adam/Eve would choose the latter, even at the risk of “eternal death”. This was not a test on Adam, as God also knew that, while man was made “perfect and good”, he was “flesh”, “weak”.(Matt. 26:41; Mk. 14:38) and would choose the wrong path. This was well-planned from the beginning and executed perfectly.


But, God wanted to be on record, through the narrative in Genesis, that to “be like him” would not be through the “works of Adam”. It would not be through man “reaching out and eating the fruit of the forbidden tree”. Adam/Eve did not know the way to be “like him”, and subsequently sinned against God. God was giving an indication that the way was not through “man-Adam” but through “another man”, man-Jesus . This is the essence of the “gospel of the kingdom of God”.


To be like YHVH ELOHIM, would be by “grace through faith” of this specific Creator in Genesis, the Logos in John 1, the same one that incarnated into man-Jesus. The “faith of Jesus” in whom? In the Father, that what He promised, He would fulfill. What was this covenantal promise of the Father to the Son? 


It is a continuum of these promises:

That if this YHVH ELOHIM CREATOR, the LOGOS would “strip himself of or give up his divine privileges”(Phil. 2:5-11), thus incarnate and die, then his death would be reckoned as payment in full for the sins of mankind to be reconciled to the Father. Having thus reconciled by Jesus’ death, the Father would then resurrect him, “in a twinkling of an eye” as an immortal body, “firstborn from the dead” (Col.1:18) as “Son of God”, the first of “firstfruits”, the “wavesheaf offering. We will then be saved by his life (Rom. 5:10) and the Holy Spirit would be sent (Jn 16:7). This HS would then “in-dwell” in us, the temple not made by hands (Acts 7:48; 17:24), so God the Potter can re-do what is best for us, the “marred clay” (Jer. 18:4). This promise of the Holy Spirit in us will seal, guide, teach, help us overcome temptation and direct us to develop the “wisdom” of God, the “mind of Christ” 


Therefore, let us not “grieve” but instead follow willingly this Holy Spirit in us, as man-Jesus did (Lu.22:42) to express the “fruits of the Spirit” (Gal. 5:22-23). While our faith in God and our good works are important, what matters most and ultimately the only ones that God recognized by grace were the “faith of Jesus and the works of the Holy Spirit”.


With the Spirit in us, this promise will be fulfilled: “To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, (immortal bodies) which is in the midst of the paradise of God”( Rev. 2:7). Overcoming is with using the “tool of power” coming from the Holy Spirit in us, and therefore not entirely “our” works but the ” fruits of the HS” given by grace through the faith of Jesus, the “righteousness” that matters. God the Father wanted us from the beginning to have “first”, the wisdom and mind of Christ, and then change from mortal to immortal ” in a twinkling of an eye” to live eternally(immortality) but only through His strategic plan. 


This is the ” kingdom of God” made up of spirit beings in the likeness of Jesus, the Son of God, the Head of the Church and Body of Christ, “one” with him and by extension “one” with the Father.

Can the Spirit of God really dwell in man and work with the “spirit of man”?

by fact-s.net

Indeed, it is far-fetched to understand that there will be an in-dwelling of the Spirit of God in us. However, this Spirit of God, is so vital to our future that Jesus died and resurrected to get this gift from the Father , subsequently to be given to us. Read the following:
John 16:7″Nevertheless I (Jesus) tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away(die and resurrect): for if I go not away, the Comforter (Holy Spirit) will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.”
John 14:26: “But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative–that is, the Holy Spirit–he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you”( New Living Translation).
“Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” (John 14:17).
“I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.” (John 14:18)
Also, in I John 4:1-3 show that Jesus is come in the flesh; and confirmed by I John 4:12 “that God dwells in us and his love is perfected in us”
Moreover, this Spirit of God dwelt fully in man-Jesus at baptism in river Jordan (Matthew 3:16) as a dove

I cannot envision a “kingdom of God ” not managed by humans, can you?

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Currently, while we see human governments controlled by humans, strictly speaking, our present world (like it or not) is controlled or subject to “angelic powers”, the “god of this world” as in, 2 Corinthians 4:4, “Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.”(Living Translation).
But in Hebrews 2:5, the future world’s “executive powers” will not be with angelic being like Satan, as in “And furthermore, it is not angels ( even Satan) who will control the future world we are talking about.”(New Living Translation).

The truth is, and one can bank on this, that the future world will not be subjected (again) to angels. This is why “humans” need to change into “sons of God” by adoption into the “God-kingdom”. Sons of God are immortal and of higher category than angelic spirit-beings. This is the destiny of humans to be “sons of God”

Does the Death of Christ atone for those who lived before and after him?

by fact-s.net

Yes, his death did atone for every human before and even after his human life on earth.  Jesus is the Logos Creator of all creation, including all humans. Adam sinned and the consequence of “second death” has been imputed to one man and this particular sin of Adam, i.e., not any other’s sin. Because of Adam’s sin, “second death” (which is future) came to all, so therefore to atone for that sin of Adam(and all), only one person needs to die as a PASSOVER LAMB, the Messiah Jesus.  See 2 Corinthians 5:14, 21;1 Corinthians 15:3; Romans 5:6, 12,17-19; Rom 6:23 And, this is a mechanism of atonement that has been planned prior to creation. Subsequently, this plan was activated and implemented at the death of Christ. From then on, humanity can claim this imputation of Jesus’ death for everyone’s sin.   And, if, according to some scientists, there may have been humans before Adam, even those humans ( all sins imputed to Adam and death of Christ imputed to all) are “covered by the blood of the Passover Lamb.

What is God?

by fact-s.net

This is a very important question as it relates to who we are in the hierarchy of creation. As the Bible says, “the only accurate way to understand ourselves is by what God is…” Rom. 12:3(The Message, Colorado Springs, Navpress, 1993).
Knowing the different meanings of the original word translated to English “God” will illuminate our understanding. Where are we destined to be? Any concordance will describe what constitutes the generic word in Hebrew “Elohim” and “Theos” in Greek.
When the generic Elohim Creator is referred to, the specific name used is YHVH Elohim, El Shaddai, I AM. Otherwise, the generic name “elohim”and “theos” can also refer to angels including Lucifer the “god of this world”, judges or any human being.
Jesus confirmed that humans are also classified as “god”. As in, John 10:34 Jesus answered, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods’? Also in Ps. 82:6.

Yes, humans are classified by Jesus, the Creator/Logos himself, as “gods” in the hierarchy of living creation and higher than plants and animals. Currently, we are lower than angels. But, in the future, humans will be higher than them as the “world to come” will not be subjected again to angels but to us, being “sons of God” when we are changed in a twinkling of an eye from mortal to immortal, and being in the “body of Christ”( Heb 2:5-18; Ps.8:4; I Cor. 15:52; I Cor. 12:27). We are currently “an image of God” but eventually will be changed not only “after his likeness or image(mortal, as in Genesis)” but be immortal. And, while similar in “immortal composition”, we are unique among each other and not the same. Yet, we will be “one” with Jesus the Son as well as “one” with God the Father in mindset, plan, direction and love for the Ten Commandments.  Overall, we  in the “God Kingdom”, will continue to be under Jesus (the Head of the body/church) and eventually “all under the Father”(ICor.15:24-28), a functional subordination.
This is our destiny, after the Spirit of God dwells in this “temple” to guide, nurture us to have the “mind of Christ”(I Cor. 2:16).
Please access for expanded version: http://fact-s.net/2014/06/29/what-is-god-2/

What is the Kingdom of God?

by fact-s.net

What is the Kingdom of God?

Basic Christian doctrine teaches that the “kingdom of God” is not of this world, it is still future when Jesus returns, it is a kingdom where God rules.

But, to a student of Botany and Zoology, one is taught about the plant kingdom and animal kingdom. Consider therefore that when God created living things, he created angelic-kingdom, plant-kingdom, and animal-kingdom.

But, when it came to “man“, he started in Genesis with “an image of him and after his likeness”(Genesis 1:26-27). Adam was composed of matter (dust of the ground) and “breath of life“(spirit of man) and was created perfectly but “weak”There was a missing component that man needed that convinced Jesus the “third time” (Matthew 26:40-46). that he had to die and go back to the Father to get this gift to in-dwell in us (John 16:7;14:16-26). The Holy Spirit is key to finishing the work the “Potter” has planned for man (Jeremiah 18:1-6).

While God started with a human in the garden of Eden, he was not creating a “kingdom of humans” or merely after an “image/ likeness” of him, not just “dust of the ground” (body). In fact, the dust-body will rot and we will be replaced with another but at that time an “spirit-composed body“, eternal and immortal.

Instead, God was creating a kingdom composed of “spirit beings like him“, a “Kingdom of God” above angelic kingdom. The kingdom of God is more than just a “government of God” and a place. It is a “new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:16-17) composed of immortal spirit-beings higher than angelic beings (Hebrews 2:5) and unique to one another, yet “one” with the Son and the Father, all in the “God-Kingdom“, with the Father above all and the Son, our Elder Brother (For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren” (Hebrews 2:11).

Original post: July 20, 2015

Hyperlink version: February 8, 2019

Do Christians have to follow the Decalogue?

by fact-s.net

The short answer is a resounding Yes! But why we have to, for what and how?
It was established by Paul that even those who are not Jews follow the Law (Rom 2:14). Even now, there are non-Christians who believe and love their own God and their neighbors. Their “righteousness” however, is not the “righteousness of God” which are reflected through the Holy Spirit as “fruits of the Spirit”. These are the same people who will be rejected by Christ for their “own good works” (Matt 7:21-23) because they were not “works of the Holy Spirit” that God acknowledges. It is God who chooses what he likes and requires, what is acceptable to him, in spite of how good the works are. 

Remember Abel and Cain? God chose Abel’s offering because it was “by faith”(Gen 4:3-5; Heb 11:4) not Cain’s. The rest of the Bible shows examples of the precept that God alone chooses what is to his liking, no matter what we think.
To start with, everything about our salvation, i.e. becoming a “new creation” members/body of the “kingdom of God”, was done not by you or me but by Jesus, the Messiah, the Logos of John 1 and the Creator Elohim in Genesis 1 & 2. It was all a gift by grace and out of love of the Father as in John 3:16. He is the “righteousness of the Law fulfilled in us” (Rom.8:4).
The death of man-Jesus (the Creator God) was substitutionary to pay the penalty of human’s sin, for mankind to be reconciled to the Father. The goal of his death is reconciliation, nothing more. Had he not been resurrected by the Father, Jesus could have died eternally and we are still “dead in sin” (I Cor 15:17). But, because of the Father’s promise of resurrection and the “faith of Jesus” in him, he was made alive. Having been resurrected to life, we “shall be saved by his life”(Rom 5:10).
Notice, the phrase “shall be saved”, meaning future, not yet, or in the process of salvation. But, how are we going to “be saved by his life”, his resurrected life? Remember Jn 16:7; 15:26; 14:16? He was resurrected for this very purpose, i.e., for the promised Holy Spirit to be sent and dwell in us, for us to “be endowed”, starting at Pentecost (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4; Gal 3:14). We received this HS not by (our) works of the law but by “faith of Jesus” (Gal 3:2).
Why do we need the Holy Spirit? As circumcision is a “sign”, the HS serves as a “seal” to identify us being in the “body of Christ” (Jn 6:7; 2Cor.1:21-22; 5:5; EpEph 1:13-14; 4:30 Aside from that, we need “spirit-power” as the “flesh is weak”, (Matt 26:41). We need the Holy Spirit of power to be used by us to express the “fruits of the Spirit” (Gal.5:22-23). The HS gives us “cognition” as to which way to go or do, “conviction” to follow Jesus'(YHVH ELOHIM’s) Law, and “affection” for him and whatever is “good”, giving us the “mind of Christ” (I Cor 2:16).
That said, according to Paul, “the Law is holy” (Rom 7:12, v-14,v-23); nothing wrong with the Law and the Covenant. What was wrong was us, the flesh-nature that we have, that is “weak”. Remember that in Genesis, YHVH made “man (from dust) after his image”, and in the future to be “like him’. But that “clay” was flesh and “weak” so Adam could not be “like him” by his “own works”. It has to be by the “faith of Jesus”.
Adam, not knowing his “weakness”, did not “listen and follow” God, so he sinned and was banished from the “garden of Eden”. Adam was separated from God and needs to be “reconciled”. Having been reconciled by Christ’s death, we are now “being saved by his life through the function and power of the Holy Spirit” given to us as promised, to (bring many sons to glory” (Heb 2:10).
Therefore, with the power of the Holy Spirit, follow the Ten Commandments as part of our process of “sanctification” (I Cor 6:11; Rom 8:9-11; 15:15-16; 2 Cor 1:21-22; Eph 1:13-14; 2 Thes 2:13; itus 3:4-7; I Pet 1:1-2; 2:9-12; John 17:17; Rom 6:19-22; 8:5-14; Gal 5:16-24; I Pet 2:11; Rom 2:6-7). 
With “eyes to see, let him see; ears to hear, let him hear” the truth.