Righteousness: Keep Receiving God's Never-Ending River

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17)

I have been studying righteousness in the Bible for the last week.

It's such an important topic, since man's greatest need is righteousness, or what  the modern psychiatric would call "Acceptance."

Man does not want to face shame or loss. He does not want to be put to shame.

Man is bound, burdened with sin and shame, condemnation which entraps man all the more, the more that he tries to be good, to overcome a sinful nature.

Man needs righteousness, and He needs life.

"I have come that you might have life, and that more abundantly" (John 10:10)

We cannot have eternal life in us with sin, so the sin problem must be paid for, taken care of.

Jesus signaled that the sin problem and sins would be put away, and the Holy Spirit would then come to us:

"And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9Of sin, because they believe not on me; 10Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; 11Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged." (John 16: 8-11)

The Holy Spirit convicts the believer of righteousness, even when we fail:

"A Psalm of David, Maschil. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered." (Psalm 32:1)

Here is the Gospel in clear form preached for all out of the mouth of Paul the Apostle:

"Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: 39And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses." (Acts 13:38-39)

Righteousness gives us life!

"In the way of righteousness is life; and in the pathway thereof there is no death." (Proverbs 12:28)

I have noticed throughout Scripture that righteousness is referenced, represented as running water.

A very powerful image of how powerful and all encompassing God's gift of righteousness is for us, the running of water indicates how we are to receive and keep receiving God's gift of righteousness for all of us.

Check out the following verses:

"Drop down, ye heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness: let the earth open, and let them bring forth salvation, and let righteousness spring up together; I the LORD have created it." (Isaiah 45:8)

"O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea:" (Isaiah 48:18)

"Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you." (Hosea 10:12)

"But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream." (Amos 5:24)

We need to see God's gift of righteousness as ever-flowing, never-ending, a mighty stream which affirms us and justifies us at all times.

Jesus' death and resurrection accomplished this much for us and more.

Keep receiving!

Notes, Joseph Prince Ministries February 27, 2018

Grace empowers when we understand that it is undeserved and merited favor

Faith righteousness is not about keeping the law, but believing that we are made righteous by faith.

Romans 4 verse 1. What did Abraham find after the flesh?

Church people still haven't found what Abraham found. We can act an immoral fashion outside but nobody sees the inside.

What does the scripture say about Abraham? Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Jesus showed Abraham the gospels in the Zodiac. Genesis 15:6

Abraham believed in Jesus, the Serpent Slayer who would redeem us from sin and us too eternal life in his Sun.

Why does God hate sin? Because he loves us.

Galatians 3 verse 8 God preached the gospel first. Romans 4 4

Grace, unearned unmerited favor. That's the definition in the Bible. God is not a debtor to any man. Romans 4:5 God justifies the ungodly. We don't work to be right with God, but rather we rest.

Take communion just like medicine. Communion is something that we receive.

God justifies the ungodly so stop trying to be Godly.

What is the righteous foundation for God to justify the ungodly? His son Jesus, who shed his blood on the cross.

They don't really believe that he justifies the ungodly. Yes it's the cross. Romans 4:20, 2nd Corinthians 5:21.

logizomai Reckoning oneself to be righteous. It has nothing to do with opinions, but fact.

logizomai means to put something in someone else's account

Romans 4:6, Roman

There is nothing figurative about the consequences of hell.

God reckons s righteous by a pure and just account. The holy God cannot allow a sinner to enter his premise with sin.

God loves me on even though he hates sin. Forgot so loved the world he gave his only begotten son. God so loves us that he gets that for us.

Loving our children mean sacrificing for them for what they need not just giving him stuff. Jesus was treated as Sin the worst, so that we would receive his best. There's still so much that I have to learn. Only at the cross did Jesus call his father my God. Eli Eli.

Under the New Covenant, We Have More Than the Victory

"Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." (Romans 8:37)

We need to see that Jesus is taking care of us in every challenge.

Whatever comes our way, we need to rest assured that God has granted us consummatte victory thorugh His Son.

Look at how David faced Goliath.

First, he spoke very confidently:

"And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine." (1 Samuel 17:32)

The word "fight" is not strong enough. David actually said: " I will devour this Philistine."

David didn't go against this evil with the hopes of sparring. He intended to win!

And win big.

See how Goliath taunted David:

"And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field." (1 Samuel 17:44)

David went further:

"45Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 46This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel." (1 Samuel 17:45-46)

Notice that David declared that he stood before Goliath in the name of the LORD.

When you have the Creator and Redeemer on your side, who can be against you? (Romans 8:31)

Notice also that David calls on God as LORD, referencing the Covenant name.

Today, we live under the New Covenant, in which our Daddy God declares that He will be our God, watching out for us, protecting us, ensuring our victory in every way (Hebrews 8:10-12)

David then claimed the following:

1. He would beat down Goliath
2. He would behead him
3. Using Goliath's own words, David affirmed that he would not only feed Goliath's body to the birds, but the entire Philistine army!

David was thinking big and expecting a massive victory in the name of the LORD!

Consider also that he had gathered five stones before he confronted Goliath:

"40And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine." (1 Samuel 17:40)

The five stones were not in case David missed his target.

David was planning on taking down Goliath's four brothers, too!

Today, our champion is Christ Jesus, the Beloved Son of God, and we are beloved in Him!

"To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved." (Ephesians 1:6)

and then:

"Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world." (1 John 4:4)

and finally:

"Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4:17)

Rest in the knowledge that you are God's Beloved. See the challenges ahead of you as something to devour, and think big, because God has given your more than the victory.

Under Grace, Righteousness Finds Us and Blesses Us Through Christ Jesus

"He that followeth after righteousness and mercy findeth life, righteousness, and honour." (Proverbs 21:21)

The word "follow" also means pursue or hunt down.

David uses the same Hebrew word when he writes "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life." (Psalm 23:6)

So, what's going on? We are called to follow righteousness and mercy, which also pursues David in Psalm 23.

There has been a change, and it all happened at the Cross, when God' Son died for our sins, and was raised from the dead for our justification.

"For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.." (Matthew 26:28)

Today, we are not supposed to rush after righteousness.

Righteousness has found us!

Christ Jesus is our righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30), and He came to us because we could never come to Him:

"For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." (John 1:17)

and

"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

So that today, we receive and keep receiving God's grace and His gift of righteousness:

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive [lit. are receiving] abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." (Romans 517)

Psalm 27: What David Wanted, We Have Today in Christ Jesus

"4One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple." (Psalm 27:4)

I used to read this passage and think: "How am I going to get to His temple?"

I later learned that it is essential to read everything in the Bible through the Cross, to recognize that there is an Old Covenant (Hence the first part of the Bible is called the Old Testament), and then the New Covenant, i.e. the New Testament.

Today, we are no longer under the blood of bulls and goats, but cleansed by the blood of Jesus, the blood which keeps on cleansing (1 John 1:9).

First, David says that He wants to dwell in the House of the Lord forever.

Today, because of Jesus, we ARE the Temple of God, because His Holy Spirit dwells in us:

"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (1 Corinthians 3:16)

and

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?" (1 Corinthians 6:19)

and also

"And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people." (2 Corinthians 6:16)

We don't seek Him out anymore. He has sought us and brought us to Himself!

Then David says that he wants to behold God's beauty. That word in Hebrew is "naom", which also means favor and pleasantness, as well as beauty.

Today, we have all of those things, because we are in Christ, and Christ is in us!

"3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 4According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 5Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved." (Ephesians 1:3-6)

We have His Son's beauty:

3Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth." (Psal, 110:3)

Today, God sees us as His own Son!

"Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4:17)

We do not have to go to the temple of the Lord to enquire of Him, either.

We have Jesus, our Great High Priest, ministering on our behalf at the right hand of God the Father all the time now!

"14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

"15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

"16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:14-16)

and

"Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec." (Hebrews 6:20)

Reading God's Word has become a real treasure for me, especially because when I read the Old Testament, I see Jesus, and I see how the wants, desires, and fears in the Old Testament have been fulfilled or removed in the New.

What Solomon Called Vanity Is Grace for Us Today

"All things have I seen in the days of my vanity: there is a just man that perisheth in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness."

How strange indeed that Solomon writes about a righteous man perishing in his righteousness.

Later he writes that there is not one man on the earth who walks in righteousness:

"20For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not." (Ecclesiastes 7:20).

Now, Solomon wrote these sobering words at the end of his life, long before God sent His Son to be our Savior.

But Jesus fit the profile of the man whom Solomon longed for but could not find.

He was the righteous man who died in His righteousness--to give it to all of us!

"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Now, we as sons of Adam were all wicked, dead in our trespasses.

But today, we are made sons of God in Christ Jesus:

"5Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:" (Ephesians 2:5-6)

Thank God that He sent His Son to die for us, to live for us. When Jesus was raised from the dead, His resurrection signalled that we were fully justified in Him (Romans 4:20; Acts 13:38-39).

We Give God a Tenth ... Because He Gave Us Everything

Melchizedek blesses Abram

"And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all." (Genesis 14:20)

Why do many people struggle with tithing?

I have learned tithing is a strong-meat teaching. It's not for the young Christian or the immature believer. Giving a tenth of all that we have is connected to the advanced revelation of Melchizedek, the priest of God Most High:

"Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 9And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; 10Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec.

"11Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing. 12For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat." (Hebrews 5:8-12)

Learning about Melchizedek, and thus the tithing principled associated with him, is not for uninitiated, those who do not understand and keep receiving the gift of righteousness (Romans 5:17, Hebrews 5:13)

Today, Jesus is our High Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek!

"4The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek." (Psalm 110:4; cf Hebrews 5:10)

What do we need to see within this relevation about tithing?

Notice what Melchizedek did for Abram first:

"And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.

"19And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:

"20And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all." (Genesis 14:18-20)

Check this out! Melchizedek is recognized as the priest for God Most High! This is the first mention of this specific name for our God El Alyion in Hebrew, but this name also appears in the Psalm of consummate protection:

"He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty." (Psalm 1:1)

Notice that God Most High speaks of conssumate protection and provision.

Consider the full blessing from Melchizedek:

"Blessed be Abram of God Most High possessor of heaven and earth.

Our Daddy God owns the cattle on a thousand hills (Psalm 50:10)

Everything that we can give Him, He already gave to us:

"But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee." (1 Chronicles 29:14)

Let's never forget that God came to Abram and called Him to enter a country that He would give Him. There is no better deal than God initiating His offer.

And God had blessed Abram already:

"16And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels." (Genesis 12:16)

Keep in mind that God blessed Abrah through Pharoah, even though God never intended for Abram and his wife Sarai to go there, and Abram lied about his wife to preserve himself!

So, God had not only provided for Abram immensely, but ensured his protection:

" ... And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand." (Genesis 14:20)

God blessed Abram already, and He had protected him and delivered all his enemies in Abram's hand.

When we recognize how much God has already blessed us, then we have a spirit tithe. 

"We love because he first loved us." (1 John 4:19, NIV)

Let's not forget that there is no greater love shown to us than in Jesus, God's own Son, delivered for us (John 3:16). Jesus conquered every enemy that we may face:

"Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." (Romans 8:37)

And

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:" (Ephesians 1:3)

and then

"To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved." (Ephesians 1:6)

I submit to all of you today that many people struggle with tithing because they do not see that our Daddy God has provided us everything, and they also do not believe that Jesus accomplished a perfect work at the Cross, defeating all our enemies:

"For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. 10And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: 11In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: 12Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. 13And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; 14Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; 15And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it." (Colossians 2:9-15)

Notice that all fullness dwells in Jesus, and that our sins have been put away from us forever. The ordinances against us--the Old Covenant, the Law of Moses--have been fulfilled and thus rendered obsolete against us. Notice also that Jesus "spoiled principalities and powers."

He disarmed them! Satan, Death, Hell, the Grave-every enemy has been defeated. Today, we reign in His life!

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17)

The more we understand Jesus as our High Priest Forever, and that He has done all things for us, that He accomplished a perfect against our sin and shame, that He has accorded to us and continue to bless us with His grace and righteousness, then we in turn have no problem releasing a tenth of all that we have.

Joseph Prince Sermon Notes, February 21, 2018

These signs shall follow those who believe, laying hands.

Tithing is not for everyone. Genesis 14:18, Melchizedek the king of Salem. In this verse is the first time that God most high appears.

Jesus is in the priesthood of Melchizedek, he is not like his attack. Psalm 110.

Abraham gave Melchizedek at tithes

There is tithing under grace.

Jesus is our Melchizedek today. Hebrews 5 tithing is an advanced principal. Teaching of Melchizedek is solid food.

Chapter 7 Hebrews. Communion is basic. Do not insist on everyone receiving the Revelation. Hebrew 7 verse 1 Melchizedek was the king of Jerusalem.

King of righteousness, king of peace. Notice in Hebrew 7 that there is no focus on the communion, but rather the tithing.

William Colgate was a major tither.

How to honor God in his business.

Jacob fled from Esau with just a staff and the clothes on his back.

Genesis 28:22. Bethel, tithing. God's house.

"Surely give" in the original Hebrew is give give.

James Kraft the cheese manufacturer tithed a great deal, too.

mem

ayin

shin  

resh

remove mem and it means rich.

Genesis 14:23, the first mention of rich.

When Abraham came out of Egypt, he was heavy with gold and silver.

It's one thing to be loaded with money, but it's something else to be rich and everything. 3rd John 2. Check out Ecclesiastes to see how money can load people down with burdens.

el aloin Psalm 91, another mention of God most high.

That possesses Heaven and Earth and he can move circumstances on your behalf. Yes

Hebrew 7, he is the priest of the most high God.

King Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel and the King had a dream which only Daniel could answer. God is going to teach the king that he rules over all the nations of the Earth.

Daniel chapter 4 and the King went crazy for 7 years. The most high rules, the most home runs. Daniel chapter 4 verses 29 and 30.

Melchizedek communion and tithing.

Animals don't look up to heaven, but men look up the heaven, and seek God. Our understanding returns to us and I blessed the most high. Our reason returns will you look on him who has been on the beginning.

People who are proud have no reason. When we worship God, we start using more parts of our brain. Give the 1/10 of the brain that you use, and God can use the rest of it. God added something to Nebuchadnezzar reign.

All the nations of the world are a drop in the bucket to God.

We Live from Rest to Rest, From Faith to Faith

"And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year." (Joshua 5:12)

The word "ceased" in Hebrew is "Sabbath".

How about that?

The cease, the end of manna descending from heaven signalled that God had finished providing the bread from heaven.

The Israelites had arrived in the Promised Land at the right time.

God's Work is perfect. He began raining down manna when needed, to show Himself as the first and final provision for all of us.

When the Israelites arrived in the Promised Land, when they ate the corn which they had gathered and stored from the Land of Canaan, the manna stopped falling.

It ceased. It rested. The work was done.

The Israelites did not have to toil for the manna, but God brought it to them. All they had to do was pick it up and harvest it.

Then God gave them the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey.

Notice that God guided the Israelites to grow in trust, to place their faith in Him in greater measure.

That is what we are called to!

"For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith." (Romans 1:17)

In his letter to the Romans, Paul quoted Habakkuk, who had received a revelation of the Gospel of Grace:

"Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith." (Habakkuk 2:4)

Today, Jesus is our Sabbath Rest (Hebrews 4:9), and He invites us to cease from our works and allow Him to work in us!

"For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." (Philippians 2:13)

and also

"But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." (1 Corinthians 15:10)

God Will Surely Save You

"And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark." (Genesis 7:23)

God our Creater demonstrated considerable patience with the fallen world of Noah's day.

He made it very clear to Noah and his family that He could no longer abide the evil that had consumed mankind. In fact, because fallen angels were cohabiting with the women of the earth, the entire human stock had become corrupted:

"12And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth." (Genesis 6:12)

God informed Noah of His plan:

"13And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. 14Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch." (Genesis 6: 13-14)

"Cover" comes from the Hebrew word "kaphar", which means "atonement." Today, we are covered by the blood of Jesus, and we are safe in Him.

Finally, the rains came upon the earth, but God shut in Noah and his family to save them.

The passage above features the term "Noah only" was saved, and his family.

Yet that word in Hebrew "ak" also means "surely", an intensive affirming the rest of the passage.

Rest in the truth that because you are in the Ark, that you are in Christ Jesus, you are saved from the wiles of the enemy and the judgment of God's wrath against all sin:

"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

and also

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1, NIV).

God made a promise to Noah, formed a covenant with him:

"18But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee." (Genesis 6:18)

Today, we are under the New Covenant, which Jesus our High Priest Forever has cut for us!

"22But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, … And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel." (Hebrews 12: 22,24)

In this new covenant, we have the sure promise that He will be our God, and we will be His people!

Whatever you are facing today, whatever challenges have menaced you now, know that God will surely save you!

God Provides for Us, Especially in Our Transitions

"And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year." (Joshua 5:12)

Change is not easy, but it does happen, and God gets us through the transitions in our lives. He wants us to have life and that more abundantly (John 10:10), and that means embracing the dynamic and going into newer, better places.

He wants us to prosper and be in health (3 John 2), which means that we are going to see our lives grow. Sometimes, that means getting rid of dependence on things from the past that no longer can help us in the present or prepare us for the future.

Consider the Israelites. God promised to Abraham and his descendants the land of Canaan, a land flowing with milk and honey:

"Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee." (Genesis 13:17)

and

"And he hath brought us into this place, and hath given us this land, even a land that floweth with milk and honey." (Deuteronomy 26:9)

Now, the first generation of Israelites, those 20 and older, rejected God's promise because they did not believe Him, but instead heeded the evil report of the Timid Ten Spies (Numbers 13:31-33):

"1And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. 2And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!" (Numbers 14:1-2)

Wandering forty years in the wilderness, God still provided for the new generation of Israelites, that they would depend on Him and realize that He was worthy of our trust.

The manna and then the quails came down:

"Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no." (Exodus 16:4)

He also provided quails for them, too:

"And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host." (Exodus 16:13)

The Israelites endured a number of transitions in their redemption from Egypt to the Promised Land.

Notice, though, that when Joshua brought them finally into Canaan, that all the food was made ready for them. They produce from the ground was ready to be harvested. They first partook of the food in the new country, and then the next day the manna ceased from falling.

God does not take away our current provision. He gives us something better first, then removes from us what we had depended on before.

In the larger revelation, God sent us His own Son, the Bread of Life (John 6: 35) while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8), living in ourselves and for ourselves, dead in our trespasses.

God did not take away what we were, but gave us something better: Jesus!

"Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?" (Romans 2:4)

and also

"11For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 13Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 14Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works." (Titus 2:11-14)

When God wants us to shift from one facet of life to another, God does not shut off the provision, but brings into newer and better. When He recognizes that we are resting and receiving His new provisions, He will remove what we had depended on before!

All God's Promises are Yes and Amen

"For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us." (2 Corinthians 1:20)

Many people think God's promises in the Old Testament are only for Israel.

That is not true.

We see that through Jesus, all the promises are Yes!

We are beneficiaries of these promises because we have been adopted into the family!

"15For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. 16The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 17And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together." (Romans 8:15-17)

We are heirs because we are in Christ Jesus, and just as promises were made to Abraham and his seed--Jesus--so those promises pertain to us, too!

"7Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. 8And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. 9So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham." (Galatians 3:7-9)

Let's rest in the truth that God's Promises to Israel in the Old Covenant are not only fulfilled but expanded to all of us who believe in Jesus! Let no one deter you from believing and receiving all that God is achieving for you!

What It Means to Be Established in Righteousness--And How He Gets Us There

"In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee." (Isaiah 54:14)

This journey has been incredible.

I never thought that I would be facing down police officers, mobsters, left-wing thugs, Antifa, internicine fights, unemployment, over-employment, media attacks, media scares.

Yet in the midst of all of this, I have both known and believed that God is love.

I have been without a car for a while, too.

My goodness, just when I thought everything was falling apart around me, and it seemed to have gotten worse.

And yet ...

I sensed within me frequently that I needed to double down on the unshakable truth of God's gift to me, through His Son Jesus:

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17)

Through Jesus, we are now receiving the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness!

Do I really believe that? Is it true that I am established in His righteousness?

For that reason, the trials will come into our lives. Do we rest assured in the truth that Jesus' Work at the Cross has accomplished all things, or not?

Peter would write to his fellow Jewish Christian believers during their trial:

"Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: 7That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:" (1 Peter 1:6-7)

Notice that our faith is worth more to God than gold--and gold is often used throughout the Bible as  a type of righteousness and divinity.

The gold which never perishes--that is our righteousness, granted to us through the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus:

"Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

During the final days of last year, a sense of heaviness did overcome me. I faced so many challenges, and worried about what I was going to do or how I was going to get through all of it.

How did I respond to these challenges? I began to read more of God's Word and listen to more of His Word. I asked for answers, and I asked God to show me more of what I needed to know or whatever I had believed that was wrong.

What has been resonating in my spirit all comes back to the Gift of Righteousness!

I realized that I had spent so much time ruminating on what was wrong, rather than seeing Him who has been from the beginning.

Then this passage came to my mind, from one of Paul's letter to the Philippians (a letter which he was writing in jail):

"Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content." (Philippians 4:11)

Let's not forget Paul's exhortation to rest our minds in good things (Philippians 4:8)

That's a choice that I had to start making in my life. It was still too easy for me to retreat into troubles and hardships, and for my mind to drift then settled into imagining the worst case scenarios. Every one of these fears and tumults must be met with God's Word, not our wonderings:

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)

My Daddy God has been cleaning a lot of wrong thinking and habits in my mind. That's what spiritual growth in Him is all about!

"1I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." (Romans 12:1-2)

It's good for me to reflect on how often my mind revert to worst-case scenarios. Many times in the morning, I would begin ruminating on bad outcomes. This is a faithless, bad habit and there is no excuse for it.

Oftentimes, I was struggling to effect some kid of solution, some kind of outcome, as though my standing or my well-being was wrapped up in any kind of outcome. Such thinking is simply untrue and unbiblical.

We have a promise, for God has called us to be "established in righteousness"(Isaiah 54:14)

When meditating on Romans 5:17, I recall that God invites us to keep receiving the gift of righteousness and the abundance of grace. This promise fulfilled today for us reminded me of Amos 5:24, in which the prophet moved by the Spirit declared:

"But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream." (Amos 5:24)

That mighty stream is flowing over me!

Sometimes, the only way that we can know and believe is that we stay rested in the truth of our status as righteous. There is no way we can be sure if we did not endure hard trials. I have seen myself going through some unprecedented difficulties recently. Instead of wandering into fears, worries, tumults, and a lingering sense of condemnation, I stay focused on the truth:

I have been made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21). This revelation was so often absent from me. When I had faced trying times before, I would immediately start asking myself what I had done wrong or right. I looked at myself. Now that I know about the New Covenant, now that I know that Daddy God is indeed a God to me, I rest in the part of the clause which enacts and enforces God's New Covenant in my life:

"10For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

"11And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

"12For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more." (Hebrews 8:10-12)

All of my unrighteousness has been paid for, and before God I never need worry about being condemned for my sins--past, present, and future--ever again:

"For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee." (Isaiah 54:9)

and

"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin." (1 John 1:7)

and

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)

Cleansed from all unrighteousness!

Let's be established in this promise, in this confirmation! God gave His best, and the least we can do is honor what He has done for us.