John 1:16-17 (Amplified) says, "For out of His fullness (abundance), we have all received, all had a share and were all supplied with, one Grace after another and Spiritual Blessings upon Spiritual Blessing and even favor upon favor and Gift heaped upon Gift. For while the Law was given through Moses, Grace (unearned, undeserved favor) and Spiritual Blessing and Truth came through Jesus Christ."
The Church has never truly understood the unearned, undeserved favor and Spiritual Blessing which came through Jesus. Under the Law given to Moses, the people needed to observe certain rules and offer sacrifices, in order to obtain certain Graces. Jesus Himself came to fulfill the Law and qualify all of us for every Grace and Spiritual Blessing. The Law couldn't qualify the saints of the old covenant for these.
In John 4:23-24 (Amplified), Jesus said, "A time will come, however, indeed is already here, when the true, genuine worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and in Truth (reality); for the Father is seeking just such people for these as His worshipers. God is a Spirit (a Spiritual Being), and those who worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth (reality)."
We are God's Own children and must understand the reality of His Presence. We must understand the reality of God's invitation to come into His Throne Room of Grace at any time, for anything, where we'll not only be received, but welcomed and expected. We've never seemed to be aware of the fact and Truth, that Jesus has made this possible and gives an open invitation for us to enter into God's Throne Room of Grace. We've been restored to the privilege that until now, that only Jesus and Adam (before the fall) had a right to do. The righteousness or right standing with God that comes by faith, has restored to us the right to stand before Him complete in Jesus.
This isn't by Law or something we worked to earn or deserve, but only comes by faith in what Jesus has done for us. This right or privilege has been so completely misunderstood by the Church and few have ever truly entered in, by simple faith. Most of us "feel unworthy and unrighteous" and feel like we have no place in the Presence of a Good and Holy God. When we don't have faith in the Finished Work of Jesus, we can't enter into, because the only way in is "The Door," according to John 10:9 (Amplified) where Jesus says, "I Am the Door; anyone who enters in through Me will be saved (will live); H will come in and he will go out freely and will find pasture."
We've been taught and raised in the old sin consciousness, which has left us without understanding Truth in Jesus. In John 16:8-11 (Amplified) Jesus says this just prior to ascending to Heaven, "And when He (the Holy Spirit) comes, He will convict and convince the world and bring demonstration to it about sin and about righteousness (uprightness of heart and right standing with God), and about judgment, about sin; because they do not believe in Me (trust in, rely on, and adhere to Me). About righteousness, uprightness of heart and right standing with God, because I go to My Father and you will see Me no longer. About judgment, because the ruler (evil genius, prince) of this world (satan) is judged and condemned and sentence already is passed on him."
The judgment passed on satan, is the judgment of those who will not accept the Door to right standing, Who is Jesus. The sin that the Holy Spirit convicts the world of and the righteousness He convince the world of, comes from their not believing and trusting in the One Who has made it possible for us to be in right standing, cleansed and God's eyes. This is why we must worship Him in Spirit and Truth (reality). Any other way, is trusting in ourselves and is rejecting the Only Way into God's Presence.
This has led to unanswered prayers and broken fellowship with the Father. We want to be saved by Grace, but live by Law. We can't mix them. We must live and conduct our lives on earth, by faith in the Finished Work of Jesus. The moment we try doing things by the flesh, we step out of Grace and resort back to Law.
It's nearly impossible for the natural man and his carnal mind, to receive even the words I'm writing here. Only a mind that's been renewed by God's Word and the Truth of Grace, can comprehend the Grace and Truth that Jesus brought to us. The Church has been taught about the family relationship we share with the Father, using natural understanding from carnal minds.
The natural mind can never trust God's Word and believe we have a right to stand in God's Presence, like Jesus does. We hear about the things Jesus did and His walk with God on this planet, but believe "God only heard Jesus, because of Who He was." We seemingly forget Jesus' Words in John 15:7 (Amplified), where He said, "If you live in Me (abide, vitally united to Me) and My Words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you."
Isn't this the Grace, favor, Spiritual Blessings and Truth, that Jesus came to deliver to us? Jesus tells His followers that He will send them the Spirit of Truth, in John 15:26 (Amplified) saying, "But when the Comforter, Counselor, Helper, Advocate, Intercessor, Strengthener, Stand-by, comes, Whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth Who comes (proceeds) from the Father, He Himself will testify regarding Me."
The Truth that Jesus brought to us in His coming, is the same Truth the Holy Spirit will testify to us regarding Him. This Truth will testify to us regarding Him. It proceeds from the Father, through the Holy Spirit, by the Grace in and from Jesus. Righteousness, forgiveness, justification, consecration, son ship rights, sanctification and unbroken fellowship with God, along with entrance into God's full Presence, have all come to God's children by faith in His Love, Jesus.
When we dare to believe and receive by faith, in the fullness of God's Grace, we will enter in and receive what the Father has for us now. When we don't trust in, rely on, adhere to and enter in by faith, then we are pulled away from Grace. We somehow believe only part of what Jesus did is "real," while other parts aren't "real." Perhaps, this is why Jesus said, "Those who worship Him, must worship in Spirit and in Truth (reality)." We can't seem to differentiate between Spiritual reality and natural reality. In the natural, our five sense guide and teach us what is "reality." In the Spirit, Truth is reality.
Paul writes in Galatians 2:20-21 (Amplified), "I have been crucified with Christ (in Him I have shared His crucifixion); it is no longer I who live, but Christ (the Messiah) lives in me: and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in (by adherence to and reliance on and complete trust in), the Son of God, Who Loved me and gave Himself up for me. There, I do not treat God's Gracious Gift as something of minor importance and defeat its very purpose; I do not set aside and invalidate and frustrate and nullify the Grace (unmerited favor of God). For if justification, righteousness, acquittal from guilt, comes through observing the ritual of the Law, then Christ (the Messiah) died groundlessly and to no purpose and in vain (His death was then wholly superfluous)."
It wasn't just our sin that Jesus bore, but everything else the Word spoke concerning Him has become Truth and Spirit, Spiritual Blessing and Grace, to those who will worship and place their faith in Him. Don't set aside your trust, just because someone else has done so.
John 1:14 (Amplified) says, "And the Word (Christ) became flesh (human, incarnate), and tabernacled (fixed His tent of flesh), lived awhile among us: and we actually saw His Glory, His Honor, His Majesty, such glory as an only begotten Son receives from His Father, full of Grace, favor, Loving Kindness and Truth." Have you ever wondered about "the Word being made flesh?" What "Word" is the Holy Spirit speaking about when He says, "The Word became flesh?"
God spoke about the Coming Messiah, Jesus from Genesis 3:15, about the cross, healing and salvation in Isaiah 9, 52-55, and about our separation and reunification with the Father throughout The Old Testament. When God spoke these things about Jesus' coming, He was building Jesus in fullness, one Word at a time and we can now partake of these things. God spoke the complete Man of redemption, salvation, righteousness, justification and restoration into completion and "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us." Nothing that was needed to completely restore God's family back to Himself, was left out of "The Word." When Jesus had been "formed" by God;s Word, the Word became flesh and we could (and can) actually see the Completion of God's Word.
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