He is the LORD our God. His justice is seen throughout the land. He always stands by his covenant—the commitment he made to a thousand generations. This is the covenant he made with Abraham and the oath he swore to Isaac. He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, and to the people of Israel as a never-ending covenant: “I will give you the land of Canaan as your special possession.” [Psalm 105.7-11]
God always stands by His covenant.
There is something here for us today if we can see and receive it.
First, Jesus said that the Law was fulfilled in Himself. But, Jesus did not say the Law was passed away. This is important!
“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. [Matthew 5.17-19]
Jesus did not fulfill the Law by being perfect! Remember, Jesus worked on the Sabbath in open violation of one of the Ten Commandments! Jesus fulfilled the Law by the perfection of selflessness - everything Jesus did was for the Kingdom of God. In this way, the New Covenant, sealed by Jesus' life, testimony and blood, transcended the Old Covenant (the Law).
But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises. [Hebrews 8.6]
Jesus was an example to us if He was anything. His example was for us to follow in His steps - His life - His example.
If however, we choose not to follow in His steps, by not walking by faith in Him, then we are left to the Old Covenant. This is why Jesus appeared so "hard" in His directions to follow Him - He knew the point had to be made that everything depended upon Him and, that we would only transcend the Old Covenant by believing in, and following, Him. That is why Jesus used stern words about His followers laying down their own lives, about seeking God's Kingdom first, and about living by faith. That is why Jesus scorned His disciples when their faith was insufficient.
If our faith fails, then the Law is there to govern our lives - God's Covenant is permanent - He always stands by it (Psalm 105.7)! Satan is there to enforce every curse of the Law for disobedience! But Grace comes by faith. Grace allows us to walk free of the curse - but only if we exercise faith! It is not automatic!!!!! Again, this is why Jesus was so adamant about FAITH!
So, if we do not walk in faith (which is sin according to the writer of Hebrews (Hebrews 11.6) and the Apostle Paul (Romans 14.23)) then we are walking in the Law. If we are living by the Law, there is no possible way to keep the Law in fullness and therefore no possible way to walk in continual blessings.
The lesson here is that if we experience sickness, disease, suffering and loss, we are experiencing well-defined curses of the Law (Deuteronomy 28). Now I know people don't want to hear this - they want to leave some wiggle room for "unexplained" difficulties in their lives. So, they have to play the "God tests His own" card. First they claim grace, but then immediately embrace suffering which is part of the curse of the Law - the very thing grace redeems us from! Let's get consistent, shall we!
For the record, today's OYCB reading defines God testing one of His own, Joseph (Psalm 105.19). Okay, I concede, Joseph did some prison time. But do we not see that Joseph's prison time was temporary? Why would we say cancer or diabetes are tests from God when they are permanent and often end in premature death?
To overcome the curses of the Law, we are faced with two options: one, completely and thoroughly obey the Law, or two, completely believe Jesus. Failure in either of these results in the curse remaining in force. Failure in either of these is sin.
No one has to agree with me on this subject. However, we all have to deal with Jesus! I am just writing what I am believing in my own relationship with God. Do we dare risk dealing incorrectly with Jesus and His life and ministry and teachings? Do we dare risk assessing faith incorrectly?
Father, it is so exciting that Your Word is "exploding" in my daily consumption of it! Please continue to give me my daily bread from Your Word - I know it is safe and there is no poison in it! I know it will nourish and grow my soul. I know it will challenge and build my faith! Thank You!
“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. [Matthew 5.17-19]
Jesus did not fulfill the Law by being perfect! Remember, Jesus worked on the Sabbath in open violation of one of the Ten Commandments! Jesus fulfilled the Law by the perfection of selflessness - everything Jesus did was for the Kingdom of God. In this way, the New Covenant, sealed by Jesus' life, testimony and blood, transcended the Old Covenant (the Law).
But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises. [Hebrews 8.6]
Jesus was an example to us if He was anything. His example was for us to follow in His steps - His life - His example.
If however, we choose not to follow in His steps, by not walking by faith in Him, then we are left to the Old Covenant. This is why Jesus appeared so "hard" in His directions to follow Him - He knew the point had to be made that everything depended upon Him and, that we would only transcend the Old Covenant by believing in, and following, Him. That is why Jesus used stern words about His followers laying down their own lives, about seeking God's Kingdom first, and about living by faith. That is why Jesus scorned His disciples when their faith was insufficient.
If our faith fails, then the Law is there to govern our lives - God's Covenant is permanent - He always stands by it (Psalm 105.7)! Satan is there to enforce every curse of the Law for disobedience! But Grace comes by faith. Grace allows us to walk free of the curse - but only if we exercise faith! It is not automatic!!!!! Again, this is why Jesus was so adamant about FAITH!
So, if we do not walk in faith (which is sin according to the writer of Hebrews (Hebrews 11.6) and the Apostle Paul (Romans 14.23)) then we are walking in the Law. If we are living by the Law, there is no possible way to keep the Law in fullness and therefore no possible way to walk in continual blessings.
The lesson here is that if we experience sickness, disease, suffering and loss, we are experiencing well-defined curses of the Law (Deuteronomy 28). Now I know people don't want to hear this - they want to leave some wiggle room for "unexplained" difficulties in their lives. So, they have to play the "God tests His own" card. First they claim grace, but then immediately embrace suffering which is part of the curse of the Law - the very thing grace redeems us from! Let's get consistent, shall we!
For the record, today's OYCB reading defines God testing one of His own, Joseph (Psalm 105.19). Okay, I concede, Joseph did some prison time. But do we not see that Joseph's prison time was temporary? Why would we say cancer or diabetes are tests from God when they are permanent and often end in premature death?
To overcome the curses of the Law, we are faced with two options: one, completely and thoroughly obey the Law, or two, completely believe Jesus. Failure in either of these results in the curse remaining in force. Failure in either of these is sin.
No one has to agree with me on this subject. However, we all have to deal with Jesus! I am just writing what I am believing in my own relationship with God. Do we dare risk dealing incorrectly with Jesus and His life and ministry and teachings? Do we dare risk assessing faith incorrectly?
Father, it is so exciting that Your Word is "exploding" in my daily consumption of it! Please continue to give me my daily bread from Your Word - I know it is safe and there is no poison in it! I know it will nourish and grow my soul. I know it will challenge and build my faith! Thank You!
No comments:
Post a Comment