A Closer Look @ The Man In Christ – Part 15

… A Brief Finding On Man’s Deficiency In God’s Righteousness And A Biblical Remedy For This

Dearly Beloved,

Once upon a time, sin dressed in a cloak that looked righteous and visited John in the prison, but due to lack of righteous judgment, John couldn’t undress that thought and as such entertained it (Lk. 7:19)! He then took offense at the inaction of Jesus to “do something about his imprisonment” – though that inaction was righteousness in the sight of the Father and Jesus (Jn. 5:19/30).

What a legitimate looking reaction! What a like-minded argument we still present to God in our pleas and prayers that we buttress with “the letters” of the scriptures (2Cor. 3:6). What a proof that the absence of God’s righteousness had limited generations of men from overcoming sin and entering the kingdom! What a confirmation of the need for the Holy Spirit who would shew man things to come (Jn. 16:13), truths from the world to come wherein righteousness dwells (Eph. 1:3/2Pet. 3:13)!

So only the thoughts OF God (Rom. 1:17) can handle and overcome every other thought that is morally sound, intellectually appealing and religiously correct but yet spiritually infirm. Thoughts FROM God visited men all through the Old Testament and raised many (from Abraham to John) from an estate of flesh/carnality to one where they could live by the faith of a living soul (Heb. 11:4-39a), but it took the thoughts OF God to raise man (Jesus) to a place he lived like God does – with power!

By this class of thought, Jesus was framed and raised above angelic wisdom. He so treasured righteousness that he used the opportunity of encouraging John to baptize him, to acquire more righteousness and to complete a season of being justified in the Spirit (Matt. 3:15-17/Rom. 5:1/1Tim. 3:16c), which was needed to confront the world; i.e. the devil (Matt. 4).

He acquired the mind of Christ in the place of serving and preferring others (Phil 2:3-5), and it was with this same heart posture that the mind of His Apostles were empowered to serve God and to write epistles, and only with such heart disposition can we understand what they wrote and live like they lived – with divine power!

A wise man once said, “our sins are our things”! Why? Because most of man’s thoughts (knowledge) can be traceable to man’s fall – to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Man’s thoughts are of the present and are mostly revelations of flesh and blood, not of the Father (1Cor. 15:50/Matt. 16:17). Man’s thoughts are fetched from the air (Eph. 2:2) – not from above (Jn. 3:31/8:23).

Righteousness remains an abundant commodity of the throne though scarce in the church and on earth, because we are yet to place the right premium on it – we don’t seek it like we seek things that have commercial value! Righteousness is such a treasure that it had to be kept in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, and God looks forward to the day when His Righteousness would find its way into much more churches and hearts

Most of man’s thoughts are vain! Most of man’s brain waves can’t stand sin and needs to visit the cross of Christ – which is His Faith/Power. So our souls needs to be subjected to a process called the sufferings of Christ (Heb. 11:8-26/1Pet. 1:11) which is the leading of the Spirit against sin and self, and the end product of those who endure this process (Matt. 10:22/1Pet. 1:6-9) is that their souls would be born again (1Pet. 1:23/Jam. 1:21)

Here, God according to the wisdom of salvation (2Tim. 3:15) watches out for any opportunity to chasten us of our ways and of our thoughts (Heb. 12:5-9), and the temptation of the devil serves as a very useful tool here. So be it delay in childbearing, job, pressing financial need, or lingering health issue, persecution – just name it, God can figure out how it would cause us to appreciate in our soul state (Job 23:10/Isa. 13:12), and sovereignly approves of such on many occasions so He can teach us His ways (Ps. 25:8-12/103:7) and disarm us of ours

This is where we go through the fire, afflictions or mighty waters (Isa. 43:2) and realize God isn’t quick to rescue us from it, but gives us the opportunity to add patience to our faith (Jam. 1:2-4/2Pet. 1:5-6) so we can spiritually grow through it. If we despise such dealings meant to make us future sons (Heb. 12:5-9), we would remain carnal. If we endure such dealings, our souls would appreciate in salvation and we would be blessed with more hunger for righteousness; for more of God and less of self – and would end up being comforted with fresh revelations of Christ (1Pet. 1:13/2Cor. 1:3-6)

As we acquire more of such thoughts (righteousness) that the lord would comfort us with as such hour, known and unknown sins would lose its value; and as this cycle continues, the strength of Sin which is the law or the knowledge of Sin (1Cor. 15:56) gets weakened and abolished in us.

Then would we become free enough to live by God’s Power and be instrumental to setting free other captives of Sin (Obad. 1:21/Isa. 61:3-4/Acts 26:17-18), because we are no more grasses (i.e. carnal) but trees of righteousness, bearing the precious fruit of the kingdom; even eternal life (Isa. 4:2/Jn. 15:2/Rev. 14:1-5). Then can we say that by the state of our souls (not just our recreated human spirit) we have been made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (2Cor. 5:21). Amen.

Blessings!

Tayo Fasan

 

….. Searching Out Concealed Matters Concerning Christ & Reasoning With Truth Concerning The Word Of Righteousness

(Prov. 25:2/Isa 1:18/Heb. 5:13-14)