God,
We come to you in complete surrender, today. You say that you desire obedience over sacrifice. We confess that we have chosen sacrifice over obedience time and time again. We ask you to remove any and all competing voices that would point out the cost as we follow you in desire for a place in identity where the only voice we heed and follow is yours, our Shepherd. Holy Spirit, do a work in our hearts and our minds that allows you to work in our lives rather than fall on our works. We desire to live this life on this side of the veil WITH you. Reveal to us and demonstrate through us the degree to which Heaven on Earth now is possible in you Jesus.
Amen.
Galatians 3:19-22
Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary. Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one.
Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
Transgression as defined by the dictionary is, "an act that goes against a law, rule or code of conduct. An offense"
According to The Bible Project, "The biblical authors explore more of the relational consequences of sin with the Hebrew word pesha, often translated as “transgression.” Pesha refers to ways that people violate the trust of others, like the betrayal of a relationship."
The law, then, was introduced by God in response to the actions of His people and the violation of their relationship. The way that they had lived their lives, treated one another and chosen not to follow God consequently led to the Lord giving a governing system to expose their sin while also showing them their need for a Savior. The impossibility of achieving righteousness through the law pointed directly to the need for the promise- Jesus. This is why the law is not contrary to the promise- it wasn't about one or the other, it was about from WHICH righteousness was available through. Where one was a guardian UNTIL the promise was made complete- the other became the conduit to which we would receive righteousness BY FAITH.
So, what about this part about the intermediary? It is a little hard to understand...
Remember the last blog when we discussed how God put Abraham in a deep sleep so as to walk through the covenantal ceremony on behalf of Abraham? This is why the intermediary is only ONE. Where an intermediary is used to connect two parties, God sent His son to redeem mankind and, therefore, became the representation for the offending party (fully man) while also being fully God.
That is why We were cruicifed IN Jesus and raised to life IN Jesus....our RIGHTEOUSNESS is IN Jesus.
God did it all.
It's on God.
It's not on you.
You CAN'T do anything, achieve anything, become something or someone that will ever be enough for God. It's impossible. Even on our best day, we aren't good enough for God. There is no set of rules, expectations or qualifications you can ever meet in order to please or come into the presence of God.
But there is Good News.
Jesus.
What was once a promise---became manifest in a person. Fully God, fully man.
The promise guaranteed by God, in and of Himself.
And, you know what?
We get to live in the reality of the promise.
And how do we receive the promise????
By Faith.
All God asks you to do in order to receive this gift is simply to believe Him.
That's it. Choose to believe that God really did love the world and you so much that He gave His only son in order to restore, reconcile and redeem His relationship WITH YOU and all of creation.
What do you have to lose choosing to believe?
I believe that there is an opportunity right now for you. Maybe you've never responded to the invitation from God to believe that what Jesus did and who He is- is real. Maybe you've never known that being a good person, following all the rules and doing all the "Christian" things wasn't actually ever enough- maybe you've never been given the invitation to say "Jesus, I want to get to know you- I choose you."
He will NEVER force Himself into your life, that is not love. Love is patient, kind, gentle, etc. He will wait on you to recognize that He is there and allow you to open the doorway of your heart before coming in.
There is no kinder person. There is no more loving person. There is no one else that you can know God through. There is no other way, because this was the ONLY way that we can have relationship with God.
What are you waiting for?
Invite Him into your life.
If you've just met Jesus today- I encourage you to reach out and share this news with another follower of Jesus! They will be thrilled to welcome you into the family!
If you don't know another Jesus-follower, feel free to reach out to me through our contact page to receive information on connecting with fellow believers.
Now unto Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly more that we can ask or imagine {MORE!!!} according to the power at work within us (my emphasis) Eph 3:20
Lyns
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