Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Why you can have bold Faith even when you fail.


Praise the Lord, all you nations! Exalt Him, all you peoples! For His merciful kindness is great toward us and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord! Psalm 117 MEV    

 Have you ever had a need but were hesitant to pray for it to be met? Have you had a crisis situation arise suddenly but lacked the confidence to call out to God in the midst of it? Has someone ever asked you to pray with them or for them but felt your prayers would be hindered and ineffective?

 In these times, times that I dare say all believers have experienced, what was the cause of the lack of confidence? What was the root of the feelings of inadequacy? Why the hesitancy to pray? Why the sense that our prayers would be hindered and ineffective?

 The reason for all the uncertainty is the thinking that we weren't qualified at that moment to receive from God. We believed that God would not hear us or that our Faith would falter. Why?

 The reason is there is a teaching in many many Christian circles that has caused us to disqualify ourselves from receiving from God. This teaching is pervasive throughout the many quarters of the Body of Christ. The teaching that our sins and shortcomings and failures will cause God to break fellowship with us and not hear or answer our prayers.

 This teaching is rooted in two passages of Scripture.

Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withheld good things from you. Jeremiah 5:25 MEV 

 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me; Psalm 66:18 MEV

 Take note these passages were written during the Old Covenant. A Covenant that was rooted in man's ability to keep the commandments and observe the Mosaic Law. These passages are in direct contrast with the entire premise of the New Covenant.

 The New Covenant is rooted in Christ's performance not our own. The New Covenant is founded upon the Finished Work of the Lord Jesus Christ. The New Covenant is based upon the Father fully accepting the substitutionary work of His only Son. God affirmed that to all those who believed He would be God to them and they would be a people to Him. Because of Jesus we are accepted and approved by God our Father.

 He made the New Covenant superior to the Old when He also decreed as a result of the Work of His Son He would not remember our sins any longer. This aspect of the New Covenant is seemingly dismissed or neglected by so many believers. How can I say this? Because the teaching that God will not hear or answer prayer because of our sins is so pervasive throughout the Church.

 This Old Covenant teaching about sin and the corresponding unanswered prayer is why so many struggle in Faith. They look so often at their own works, their own performance, and their own behavior. They see failure, shortcomings, and sinful deeds and conclude surely God would not respond to any request to answer prayer, to bless, to heal, to deliver, or to provide. 

 This is natural reasoning based on Old Covenant thinking. Many Bible teachers use these passages to disqualify God's people from receiving from Him. It's not that they are malicious or trying to harm people. They are just repeating what they were taught. These beliefs are strongholds that can only be pulled down by a fresh understanding of the New Covenant and the Finished Work of Christ.

 David's words recorded reveal something that leads us to the correct understanding concerning this New Covenant. He stated if he regards iniquity in his heart God won't hear him. David reveals that his sin consciousness caused him to shrink back believing that God wouldn't hear him. God didn't tell David this, he just believed this. Many today, are doing the same, disqualifying themselves. 

 The answer to disqualification is to remember who we are now in Christ. Jesus gave us His Righteousness. He made us Righteous in this new creation. What does it mean to be Righteous?

 Righteousness is God's gift of no condemnation. Righteousness is that gift whereby we can stand before God without any sense of condemnation, guilt, shame, insecurity, or inferiority. Righteousness is that gift where we who believed are in perpetual right standing with God. Righteousness is that gift that grants us perfect acceptance and approval from our Heavenly Father. Righteousness is that blessing David spoke of, the person who God no longer imputes sin or uncleanness. This is the Gift of Righteousness.

 Here is the good news, we can have bold Faith even when we fail. Why? Because Jesus has made us Righteous. Because God is no longer imputing sin to us. 

 Faith is having a good opinion of God. That God loves us so much He gave us His Son. If He gave us His best, there is nothing He will withhold from us. Faith is being fully persuaded that what God said He will do, He will do. Faith is unwavering confident trust in His Word. 

  Even David describes the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness without works: “Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.” Romans 4:6-8 MEV

 Why can we have bold Faith even when we fail? We have bold Faith because He remembers our sins and iniquities no more. Because we have been forgiven of all our sins, past present, and future. Because He is not imputing sin to us. We have a good opinion of God because of Jesus!

 In summation, no longer accept anything disqualifying you. No longer accept the concept that your sin is a barrier to your Faith. No longer shrink back seeing yourself as not good enough or worthy to receive. Come boldly before the throne of Grace and freely petition the Father because Jesus made a new and living way for us to come to the Father.

 This New Covenant is rooted in Jesus' work and the Father has accepted that work. You can have confident Faith that God hears and answers your prayers because you're declared Righteous. You can stand before God without any sense of guilt or inferiority or condemnation. You can ask boldly and be fully persuaded you will receive, all because of the Finished Work of Christ, and the Gift of Righteousness.   

 pastor Joseph Prince has a whole message he taught on this, highly encourage you to listen. 

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net