How Do We Serve God? We Receive His Righteousness

"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 54:17)

This passage is one that I most often meditate on.

The second part of the verse caught me attention in a different way:

"This is the heritage [inheritance] of the servants of the Lord."

Doesn't it seem strange that servants inherit something?

What kind of service do we render to the LORD?

David writes:

"What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me?

I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD." (Psalm 116:12-13)

We are His servants we receive from Him!

The rest of Isaiah 54:17 outlines specifically what we receive from Him, which causes us to serve Him:

"Their righteousness is of me."

God does not want us to lean on our righteousness, but His.

Consider the first mention of "righteous" or "righteousness" in the Bible.

The first mention of "righteous" as an adjective appears here:

"These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God." (Genesis 6:9)

The first mention of righteousness, the noun, occurs here:

"And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness." (Genesis 15:6)

Noah, which means "rest", found grace in God's eyes because He believed in Him, and received from Him. That's what made Noah righteous.

Righteousness is all about believing Him, and we receive His righteousness by faith!

In fact, since Jesus' death and resurrection, for those who believe on Him, we are made the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21)

God our Father invites us to receive--and keep receiving--this gift of righteousness from Him!

"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)

What makes us God's servants? When we receive His gift of righteousness! It's a hard labor for many, since so many Christians, even after they get saved and begin walking with the Lord, or determined to try to earn God's blessings, hoping that if they continue to behave and do the right things, then God will bless them.

But no! That is all wrong! We are called to receive, and to keep receiving, His gift of righteousness!

Noah Was Perfect and Protected; Job Was Perfect, Yet Persecuted -- Why?

"These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God." (Genesis 6:9)

"1There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil." (Job 1:1)

I have placed these two verses next to each other for a reason.

We have two clear figures, men of God, who are revered in the Old Testament and even mentioned in the New.

Noah was spared the great suffering of the world, and God used him to build an ark, save mankind and the animal kingdom.

Job, on the other hand, suffered greatly. God allowed Satan to trouble Job. He lost everything, everyone, until the very end.

What's going on? Why was Noah protected and Job persecuted?

They were both "perfect", or "tamim" in God's eyes, were they not?

"Noah was perfect ..." This does not speak to moral perfection, but physical perfection, in that he was fully human, not adulterated with the genetics of the "sons of God" aka "Bene Elohim" (Genesis 6:1-4)

That same word "perfect" describes Job. He was fully human, too. God could interact with them as His creation.

But then differences clearly emerge.

Noah was "just", righteous.

He had found grace in God's eyes:

"But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD." (Genesis 6:8)

In contrast, what do we read about Job?

"He was upright."

In the original Hebrew, "upright" translates the word "yashar", which speaks of good conduct on the outside. In fact, Job even feared God and avoided evil.

And yet ...

Job did not find favor in God's eyes. He was not righteous.

Job had not found grace. Noah did. Noah depended on God, believed in Him, i.e. "walked with God."

Noah was righteous. He believed in God.

Job was merely upright. He trusted in his own efforts, and spent much of his efforts covering for his children:

"5And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually." (Job 1:5)

Good works do not save us. Good behavior does not protect us.

Only God's grace protects us, His goodness secures us.

God does not want us depending on our efforts, but resting in His word.

That was God's plan from the beginning:

"And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it."(Genesis 2:15)

God provided everything. He wanted to bless man, and allow man to just receive His goodness:

"The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD'S: but the earth hath he given to the children of men." (Psalm 115:16)

God wants us to believe on Him and receive from Him, not achieve on our own, grieving His heart. In fact, we cannot live apart from Him, for God Himself brought us to life with His own breath!

Noah walked with God, believed on Him, depended on Him.

Because Noah believed, He was righteous!

And because Noah believed, God formed a covenant with him, a covenant of peace and protection.

"But 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)

and also

"And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you;" (Genesis 9:9)

God did not establish a covenant with Job,, and He could not because Job did not believe in Him. He was afraid of God, sure, but Job did not trust in Him, did not see Him as a good God from whom he could draw all things. 

In fact, Job did not start walking by faith until the very end, after he had suffered greatly, reduced to the end of himself, where he could do nothing more but ... believe and receive:

"1Then Job answered the LORD, and said,

2I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee.

3Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not.

4Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.

5I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.

6Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes." (John 42:1-6)

And let's not forget that when Job "repented", or rather rested, felt sorry for his wrong beliefs, but more importantly he "rested", he stopped striving, and started believing in Him!

And with that, God turned Job's captivity!

"10And the LORD turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before." (Job 42:10)

So, what does it all come down to? Why was Noah perfect and spared, while Job was perfect yet persecuted?

Noah believed in the LORD, that He is good, and he received God's grace (cf. Genesis 15:6)

And with that, Noah was righteous!

And righteousness opens up manifold blessings to us!

"Blessings are upon the head of the just: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked." (Proverbs 10:6)

and

"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)

Note that in Isaiah 54:10, God speaks of "my covenant of peace", which will not be removed from us--a covenant just like the one which God made with Noah, with Abraham (Genesis 15, 17). This covenant is enacted because of righteousness!

And this righteousness is not our righteousness, but His!

"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 54:17)

No tyranny, no terror can afflict us because we are established in His righteousness

In fact, today, we can rest in God's favor, in God's grace, because we have been made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus! (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Beloved, you do not have to fear or wonder why Noah was protected and Job was persecuted. Today, when you believe in Christ Jesus, you receive His righteousness--and keep receiving it! (Romans 5:17), which in turn causes you to reign in Life and be freed from sin, destruction, and death!

You need not fear enduring the troubles of Job, but can rest in the gracious protection and favor of Noah--because of His righteousness!

The Door is Shut, No Man Can Open It -- Your Salvation is Secured Forever

"And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in." (Genesis 7:16)

Just as Noah and his family, along with all the types of animals, entered the Ark to be spared from God's wrath has He rained on the earth, it is crucial to note that it was the LORD who shut the door of the Ark.

It was not Noah's job to close the door.

In a sense, the LORD was the last one in, in that He puts the safety and security of His beloved first!

Now, many preachers rightly point out that this door is a type of Christ Jesus.

He Himself declared that He is the Door (John 10:9-10).

Many preachers rightly declare also that because God is the one who closed the door of the Ark, the LORD assured complete, utter, unchanging safety and security for Noah and his family.

This shutting of the door is a type to depict that once we believe in Jesus, once we declare Him our Lord and Savior, we are saved once, for all, forever!

Yet there are some who take expection to this. They believe that people can lose their salvation.

There are a number of clear responses to this error.

But let's focus on the type and shadow found in the shutting of the door.

Look at Revelation, and see how Jesus describes Himself to the church at Philadelphia in the Book of Revelation:

"These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;" (Revelation 3: 7)

Notice that Jesus closes doors that no man can open.

God the Father and Jesus are one (John 10:30). Because of this revelation, and within Revelation, we can rest assured that the same Loving God who shut the door to safeguard Noah and his family is the same God who spoke to the Church of Philadelphia.

When God shuts doors, no one can open them. When He opens doors, no one can shut them. That is His power.

Our Salvation is fully appreciated in the same fashion. When He takes us from death to life, it is eternal life (John 3:16). Nothing can separate us from His love.

The door that shuts us into Jesus, our heavenly, never-ending Ark, can never be opened again!

The door is shut, no man can open it: your salavation is secured forever in Christ Jesus!

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!