Romans 3:19-31
The above scripture explains how unprofitable the law is. The emphasis is to take our attention away from what worked to what is working.
The scripture made us understand that if it is by law, no flesh can be justified before God. The operation of the law is to render the world guilty before God. Even with the blood and provisions God made available then, men were still not justified before God.
So God had to take away the first in order to establish the second.
The second consists solely of the redemption plan, program, and agenda. John the Baptist’s declaration of Jesus as the Lamb represented a shift in understanding and focus. His actions were prophetic, deliberate, and instructive. What he did was to divert our attention from animal blood, but he used animal-like language: “Behold the Lamb of God”.
The people didn’t fully understand what he meant. That was the beginning of the administration of the second.
The words of John the Baptist were well crafted by the Holy Ghost. Even John didn’t have a full understanding of what he was saying.
They used to have faith in the blood of the birds, lamb, and turtle doves, and it worked. It was God who enacted it, but a change was declared. The first must be removed for the second to be established. This is the second.
John pointed us to the Lamb of God. Verse 23 of the above chapter, reveals that your faith is no longer in the blood of the animals but the blood of his son because once you put your faith in the blood of his son Jesus, it’s a declaration of his righteousness for you.
Before then, no one could stand justified before God because the blood of the animal could not take away sin, so they could not be justified. The one that died for you is the just and the justifier. This is why you can now stand boldly before God because the blood of the son has replaced the blood of the animal. God set Jesus as propitiation.
Propitiation means something that can appease a deity. God is the deity here and the son appeased God, so the wrath of God is turned away, your sins were dealt with, and sin was nailed to the cross.
Only the Lamb of God could accomplish this, not animal blood. Jesus became your substitution, your ransom. Just the way the people laid their sins on the animal, so your sin was laid on Jesus. Your confidence and assurance are in his blood. He is your new testament, the new covenant. Even while Jesus was alive teaching he never preached the New Testament, he didn’t preach the gospel because he had not died yet.
Jesus did not preach the gospel. He only preached the Kingdom.
Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand (KJV).
The Bible says the testament cannot be enacted when the testator is still alive.
Hebrews 9:16-17 For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.
For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise, it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth (KJV).
He could not preach the gospel. He preached about the kingdom of God.
Jesus preached about the kingdom of God. That is why you are precious. The Holy Ghost and angels were unable to preach it, so it was left to men to preach. That is why He needed men.
Ephesians 4:7-12 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men.
(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?
He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.
And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ (KJV).
What it means is the emphasis concerning the burial, death, resurrection and ascension of Christ. He could not preach it. It was not given to Him to preach the gospel because He had not died.
The Hebrews writer stated that the first is abolished, and the second is established. In the second you have been justified. You have received grace upon grace. You have received redemption. You have attained redemption. Redemption is forgiveness.
Not just your sins were punished. Sin died in Him. He carried sin to the cross and sin died in Him. From that point men who believed were discharged and acquitted. Men can stand before God, boldly and justified.
This was what did not happen in the first place. Sins were appealed for. Sins were not taken away. They were only covered.
However, in the second, He took away sin. He abolished and punished sin. The requirement of sin was satisfied. God was pleased in His Son.
The scripture says, “When I see the travail of his soul, I shall be satisfied.”
Isaiah 53:11 He shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. (KJV).
Nothing again can satisfy and appease God anymore. Your fasting cannot appease God. It is about time you need to redefine things and put a balance to our practice of Christianity to know what you are doing.
Despite the fact that it’s good to fast, you must also know the reason why you fast. You must understand the basis for fasting. We do not fast to bribe God in doing something for us.
However, in a scene where Jesus’ disciples were trying to cast out devils, He told them the devils cannot come out unless they pray and fast. He had not been crucified at this time.
Matthew 17:19-21 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?
And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove, and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
However this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting (KJV).
However, now the Father has given us a name upon His resurrection.
Therefore, before His death and resurrection, there was no name being given. It would be an aberration for us to believe that fasting can please God.
When He sent His disciples out to cast out devils, He did not give them a name. They were not using Jesus’ name to pray while He was still alive.
God made Him both Lord and Christ. What made Him Lord was that He rose. At the time He said this kind cannot go out but by prayer and fasting.
At the time, He also stated that the bridegroom had not been taken away from his bride. So when He left He gave you the Holy Ghost. He is the power of God. This is why you pray in Jesus’ name. He gave you the Holy Ghost.
Acts 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him (KJV).
The Holy Spirit is present in you. You will be shooting yourselves in the leg if you put your faith in your Pastors. You would similarly be shooting yourselves in the foot if you declared a fast in order to receive answers in prayer.
However, it is not meant to be despised and should not be elevated above the Lord’s name. He did not ask them not to fast. This is because fasting was what was available to them.
In the aforementioned scripture, the disciples must have seen greater manifestation of the power of God in handling complex issues.
This is why you must understand the role of the name and why the name was given to you. Fasting does not help God. It helps you. It humbles you. It brings down the works of the flesh in you. It keeps you focused on hearing what God is saying.
Fasting has also been likened to tears. You must never be found believing that when we cry in the place of prayer we will be heard. There is no evidence in the Bible where God answered prayers with tears. It was by faith. You cannot satisfy God with tears.
The patriarchs spoken of in Hebrews 11 were not reckoned with their tears. It was by their faith they were referenced.
Your tears do not move God, but your faith does. It is acceptable to cry when praying; however, after you are finished, rise and pray with faith. You don’t have to put off your clothes before you pray, you pray in Faith, you stand in Faith, and you ask in faith. The prayer of faith, that’s what the Bible highlights.
Now that you have your faith in Christ, faith in the blood of the lamb, the first is taken away, and now the second is established. And the second that is established is the lamb of God.
If you don’t put your faith in the lamb of God, and the blood of Jesus, then you will set up your propitiation yourself, set up what you think will appease and satisfy God.
As far as God is concerned, he has set forth before you Jesus as a propitiation for your sin. What you need to do now is to put your faith in the blood of Jesus because it is in putting your faith in the blood of Jesus you are declared righteous. Rom 3:25. That is the only way you can stand before God
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Only the justified can boldly stand faultless before the throne. You get justified when you assume faultlessness. And faultlessness is not sinlessness.
The only premise you can stand faultless is the premise that Jesus has become your propitiation and on that ground, he has declared you righteous.
Righteousness is not primarily what you do, it is what you are given. It is a gift from God given to you in Christ Jesus. So unless you have the gift of righteousness, the work of righteousness will be meaningless.
By the appropriation of the gift of righteousness in a believer’s life, as you keep learning faith, learning Christ, the gift of righteousness which is a person begins to condition you such that your actions and deeds begin to align with the gift you have received. If you have the act without the gift, it will result in what the Bible refers to as a filthy rag.
And since you have received the gift of the righteousness of God, you begin to appropriate that into your life. If you have received the gift of righteousness because of growth, learning and yielding to that gift of righteousness in you, then you will constantly produce in you the act of righteousness.
Rom 10:1-3
Many people are ignorant about God’s righteousness, what they know is the righteousness of men. When you come to Christ, you submit to God’s righteousness by accepting the gift of righteousness through faith.
You submit ourselves to the righteousness of God. How do you do so?
As you put your faith in the blood of Jesus who is the propitiation for your sins. The propitiation is once and for all. His sacrifice is once and for all. Once your faith is in what the Father has done in Christ, your account will be credited with the gift of righteousness.
Whether we use it or not, righteousness is available.
No one will stand justified before the Father on the account of his righteousness.
The question that arises is, where does growth and consecration happen? The dynamics around it is that you are sure that you have received the gift of righteousness.
What is required of you is to yield your members as an instrument of his righteousness.
The issue now is yieldedness. When you exercise ourselves and yield to grace, we produce the fruits and acts of righteousness.
The act doesn’t precede the gift but vice versa.
The men in Romans 10 wanted to get it right but they did not believe he died for their sins.
The Israelites couldn’t understand how Jesus, whom they had known as a child, had become the Messiah
This prevented them from submitting to God’s righteousness.
Acts 2:36
The Lordship of Jesus is the reason we have answered prayers. He became Christ for us. His mission was to be Christ.
He is the Lord and our Christ. We have received this gift of righteousness and submitted to it.
To this end, we can stand justified even before we can perfect our acts.
Your attention is now on him. We keep beholding the lamb of God.