Seeking the Kingdom: The Gift of Righteousness

Let us first understand what the Kingdom of God actually is. We have heard Matthew 6:33 many times over:

"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."

We often focus on the "things" (food, shelter, and clothing) being added. But do you know what the Kingdom of God itself is made of? It is not found in meat and drink, but in righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17).

Put these two verses together, and you will quickly see that the central theme of the Kingdom is His righteousness.

A Gift, Not a Reward

It is expedient for me to say that this righteousness is not cultivated by social upbringing, nor is it attained by doing the "right things" (the works of the law). It is simply received as a gift.

"Even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe." — Romans 3:22

"Those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ." — Romans 5:17

Once we have believed in Jesus, we have the right to receive this free gift as children of God. Why? Because Jesus is our High Priest.

Our High Priest Forever

Beloved, this is the very foundation of New Covenant living. Hebrews 8:1 says that this is the main point of everything stated in the previous seven chapters: We have such a High Priest.

He became sin, died, ascended to the Father, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of Majesty. As we reach out to receive what our High Priest offers, we literally become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.

God has sworn and will not relent. Jesus is our High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek (not the order of Levi, which relied on human perfection). The author of Hebrews says this gives us a double confirmation:

1. It is impossible for God to lie.

2. He has sworn with an oath.

Therefore, Jesus Himself has become the surety—the absolute guarantee—of a better covenant and our righteousness (Hebrews 7:20-22, 1 Corinthians 1:30-31).

The Threefold Work of the Holy Spirit

Remember when Jesus spoke of His ascension and the coming of the Holy Spirit in John 16:8-11? In this passage, Jesus mentions three distinct categories: the unbelieving world, the believers, and the ruler of this world (the devil).

Notice how the work of the Holy Spirit is completely different for each group:

1. To the World: He convicts them of sin (specifically, the sin of unbelief in Jesus).

2. To the Believer: He convinces us of our righteousness in Christ (because Jesus goes to the Father).

3. To the Devil: He judges the ruler of this world.

Jesus is our righteousness. That is literally His name: "THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS" (Jeremiah 23:6). It is unchanging and sure because He is undefiled, harmless, and holy. This is exactly why the New Covenant is infinitely better than the Old Covenant. The Old was based on our works, and it is now obsolete and passing away.

The Double Confirmation

Hold on to His righteousness. That is the Kingdom of God for you—and I haven't even touched on the "peace and joy" part of the Kingdom yet!

But let me leave you with this in closing: If the swearing of God is a double confirmation, go ahead and find out for yourself what else God has sworn to us in the New Covenant. Read Isaiah 54:9-10 for instance, where God swears He will never be angry with you again.

Stay blessed in Jesus. Amen.

David and Goliath

The Real Hero of the Valley of Elah

We all know the story. There was a massive giant from Gath named Goliath, a trained Philistine warrior who stood in the Valley of Elah to terrify Israel. And there was a shepherd boy named David, who withstood this giant and brought him down (1 Sam. 17).

Oh, how we love this "story" (which was actually a real-life historical event) right from our Sunday-school days!

We picture David, the youngest of eight brothers, a ruddy, good-looking boy whose name literally means "Beloved." His father, Jesse, sends him to the battlefield to check on his three oldest brothers, carrying ten loaves of bread, some roasted grain, and cheese. But when he arrives, his own brothers ridicule him, calling him proud and arrogant. Strange, isn't it? This is the very David of whom God testifies, "He is a man after My own heart."

But I have come to know that there is much more to this battle than meets the eye.

If you look closely, Jesus is revealed throughout the entire event.

The Shadows of Christ

Look at how beautifully this Old Testament history points directly to the finished work of Jesus:

• The Beloved Son Sent with Bread: Just as David was the "Beloved" sent by his father with bread, God declared from heaven, "This is My Beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased." Jesus is the Bread of Life, sent by the Father from heaven. He came to His own brethren, but they rejected Him (John 1:11).

• The Forty Days: For forty days, the Philistine giant defied the armies of Israel, leaving the people terrified and hiding. This mirrors the forty days of the wilderness temptation, or the forty days of Lent before the glorious victory of Resurrection Sunday.

• Just One Man: Goliath shouted, "Give me a man, that we may fight together!" (1 Sam. 17:10). He asked for one man, and that is exactly what he got. As the Apostle Paul writes, "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's [Jesus'] obedience many will be made righteous." (Romans 5:19).

• Coming in the Name of the Lord: David told the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword... but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts" (1 Sam. 17:45). While all of Israel was terrified asking "Who will save us?", David calmly took his position. Similarly, Jesus entered Jerusalem on a lowly donkey to shouts of "Hosanna!" ("Save us!") and "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord." And in the Garden of Gethsemane, facing His captors, Jesus calmly asked, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?" (Luke 22:52).

• The Five Wounds: David took five smooth stones from the brook; Jesus took five deep wounds on the cross. It only took one stone to fell the giant. It only took one word on the cross—"Finished!"—and the giant enemy with the power of death fell instantly.

Defeating Death with Death

Notice that David did not bring a sword to slay the giant. He ran over, took Goliath's own sword out of its sheath, and cut off the giant's head (1 Sam. 17:51). He used the enemy's own weapon to destroy him.

The exact same thing is written about Jesus!

"Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage." — Hebrews 2:14-15

Jesus used death to defeat death! And on the third day, He rose again.

Because sin is taken away and the written laws have been fulfilled, there is no more fear of death for those who believe in Jesus. Both the sting and the strength of death are gone. "The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law" (1 Cor. 15:56).

We can now look at Jesus, who gloriously announces: "Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death." (Rev. 1:17-18).

Our Weapon: The Testimony

David prevailed with a sling and a stone. If the sling symbolizes the blood of the Lamb, the stone is the word of testimony.

"And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony..." — Revelation 12:11

This is the heritage of believers. We don't have to fight the giant ourselves. Jesus (our David) already fought and won the battle. Our only job is to point to the defeated giant and testify to what Jesus has already done! We overcome by resting in the blood of the Lamb and simply declaring the truth of His victory.

One Last Thought... Another thing that struck me in this passage is that Goliath was decked out in BRONZE—from head to toe, right down to his shield and spear. In biblical typology, bronze often symbolizes self-righteousness and the judgment of the law. Even the giant of self-righteousness must be slain by grace!

But that is a topic for another blog post. Cheers!

Be blessed in Jesus. Amen.

About Grace and Hyper-Grace

Why Are We So Scared of "Hyper-Grace"?

Almost every epistle in the New Testament starts and ends with wishes of grace to believers in Christ Jesus. Is it not a habit among us Christians to gather around the table during every meal and say "Grace"? God bless it!—for that is exactly how it is translated. The food we eat becomes a blessing to us!

Yet, why does the modern church often frown upon this very word?

The Multipliers of Grace

When we look at scripture, grace is not just a singular event; it multiplies to meet the obstacle.

• Grace x2 (Overcoming Mountains): In Zechariah 4:6-7, the Lord says to Zerubbabel, "Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit... And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of 'Grace, grace to it!'" Shouts of double-grace bring down the mountain!

• Grace x3 (Fueling our Works): Look at Paul’s argument in 1 Corinthians 15:10: "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." Grace appears three times in one verse!

If given grace made Paul hyper-active (working more than all the other apostles), should we or should we not call grace "hyper-grace"?

The "Quick Brown Fox" of Theology

I had thought for quite some time about writing on "hyper-grace." I initially believed the term was coined by a critic to crack the whip on those who preach grace. I later realized this term was popularized by a certain Dr. Brown (or is it the quick brown fox?) who seemed ready to jump over the lazy dog of anonymity to critique the grace movement.

But before I could even put pen to paper, the "brown fox" jumped over and cozied up to a prominent grace preacher from Singapore, admitting that they actually agreed on much more than they disagreed.

Aww! Welcome, brother! Grace be to you in the name of Jesus. (Thankfully, there are several others, like Dr. Paul Ellis and Jeremy White, who know grace surpasses any adjectives one may propose to use).

The Apostles' Vocabulary of Grace

The Apostles of Christ—Peter, John, and Paul—were unapologetically effusive when describing grace. Look at the words they chose:

• Manifold grace: "As good stewards of the manifold grace of God." (1 Peter 4:10)

• Exceeding grace: "Because of the exceeding grace of God in you." (2 Cor. 9:14)

• Exceeding riches of grace: "He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us." (Eph. 2:7)

• Abundant grace: "How much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace... reign in life!" (Rom. 5:17)

• Exceedingly abundant grace: "And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant..." (1 Tim. 1:14)

• Fullness of grace: "Out of His fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given." (John 1:16)

Notice a theme? Amazing grace. Grace that is greater than all my sin. How can we demean it? How can we neglect the greatest part of our salvation?

The "Gyper-Market" of God

I remember a time when I was in Moscow, and we were taken to a massive shopping center called Äashaan. In Russian, it was called a "gyper-market"—literally, a Hyper-market. It was way bigger than the Walmart super-store I had seen in Pittsburgh, US.

It made me think: if man can devise something "hyper" to describe an overwhelming abundance, why can't God? Think about it! :)

May the hyper-grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

Holiness In the New Covenant

What is Holiness? (And Why It’s Not About What You "Do")

What is holiness? I know many pulpit preachers equate holiness to a life of not "committing" sins—and they usually have a ready list of sins to prove their point. But really, does holiness (which essentially means being "set-apart") have anything to do with the things we... ahem, "do"? Can one become holy by simply doing good works? Is holiness equal to sinless-ness?

No wonder people—especially young people—are left in total confusion as to what constitutes holiness. After all, the scripture clearly says:

"There is none righteous, no, not one" (Romans 3:10)

"All our righteousnesses are like filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6)

Who is holy, then?

There is an impression given out by a certain section of people in church gatherings who sing "Holy, holy, holy" with a religious fervor that borders on a Pharisaic, "Holier than Thou" attitude (Isaiah 65:5). They look down on the so-called laity with disdain, thundering with emotion: "Thus says the LORD God: 'Be holy, for I am holy.'" Their message? You have to do something more to become holy.

But it does not take a great revelation to see that God is Holy. Anything that has to do with holiness must start from God Himself. In fact, not even the seraphim—the four living creatures who cry out day and night without ceasing, "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty"—are counted as holy, even though they are doubtless sinless!

The Six Pillars of True Holiness

Let me show you what is given to us—those who believe in Jesus Christ under the New Covenant. It is a gift more precious than gold, and a status the angels can only dream about. Hebrews Chapter 1 compares the Son with the angels of heaven, concluding that the Son is greater. Because of Him, our holiness is secured in six ways:

1. The Caller is Holy

"...but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy.'" — 1 Peter 1:15-16

If your conduct is not founded on the Caller and His calling, all your "good works" amount to nothing. But if it is founded in Him, then our conduct is holy, too.

2. The Calling is Holy

"...who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began." — 2 Timothy 1:9

It is clearly not of our works, but of His purpose and grace.

3. The Called are Holy

"But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people..." — 1 Peter 2:9

4. The Cost is Holy (and so is the purchase)

"And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." — Hebrews 10:10

5. The Cause is Holy (and so is the effect)

"For if the first-fruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches." — Romans 11:16

Jesus has become the first-fruit, and He is holy. Jesus is the vine, we are the branches. Therefore, we, the branches, are holy.

6. The Community of Holy Brethren

"Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus." — Hebrews 3:1

Fulfilling the Mandate

That still leaves us with a question: How do we fulfill the mandate of God's calling to "Be holy, for I am holy"? The answer is given by Peter himself, just a few verses earlier:

"Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." — 1 Peter 1:13

The more you depend on His grace—fully depending on it—the more you will have a revelation of who Jesus is and who we are in Him: holy, precious, and beloved.

This is the final straw that breaks our mind-blocks about holiness. If God started it, and God is in the process of completing it, who are we to judge the believers in the congregation? Haven't they all passed from condemnation into new life? Why does the church continue preaching "Repent, Repent, and Repent" to believers, when we should be preaching, "You have been made holy by the work of Jesus Christ!"?

What God Has Cleansed

It requires a real revelation to look at the brother or sister sitting next to us in the church pews and say to ourselves, "Ah! That is my dear, holy brother!"

Peter had this revelation right at the beginning of his ministry. As a Jew, he was unsure about preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, whom he considered unclean and "common." But God set him straight:

"And a voice spoke to him again the second time, 'What God has cleansed you must not call common.'" — Acts 10:15

That is a warning to us when we are quick to judge others—especially other believers! What God has cleansed, we must not call common. Peter held on to this revelation and boldly declared that we are a chosen generation and a holy nation.

How wonderful! How marvelous! And my song shall ever be...

Salut! Holy brother.

Hello, Holy sister.

Praise Jesus.

"Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!" — 1 John 3:1

The Unnamed Relative: Why the Law Can Never Redeem You

Here is the enhanced version of your post. I applied the formatting checklist: using blockquotes for the scriptures, breaking the text into readable sections with clear subheadings, and using bold text instead of all-caps to emphasize your powerful points about the Law and Grace.

"Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin." — Romans 3:19-20

Jesus in the Center

As we study the Old Testament and divide it into two main portions—the Law and the Prophets—we find three books sandwiched between them: Judges, Joshua, and Ruth.

Now, we know that Joshua in Hebrew means "God is Salvation"—the exact same meaning as Jesus in Greek. So we see Jesus perfectly in the center of even the Old Testament! Just as He is the center of all creation, and the center of time itself, dividing B.C. from A.D. (Anno Domini—Years of Grace... chapter over, close the book! 😊 But we will come back to that later).

On the side of the Law is the book of Judges. If you take Joshua to be the central book of the Old Testament, it shows us a profound truth: if we try to come to Jesus through the Law, we will enter into Judgement. As Paul wrote, by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight (Romans 3:20, Galatians 2:16).

The Foreigner and the Closer Relative

But thank God, you can approach the heavenly Joshua from the other side—through what the Prophets foretold, and through the beautiful book of Ruth.

Ruth was a Moabite—a foreigner, a Gentile. She was disqualified in every way according to the Law of Moses. But by coming back to the place of bread (Bethlehem literally means "house of bread") along with Naomi, Ruth finds the Kinsman-Redeemer who is willing to redeem and marry her!

But hark! There is a problem. There is a still closer relative who must be consulted first (Ruth 3:12) to see if he can perform the dutiful redemption. Will he be able to perform the duty of a close relative? Can he redeem her and take her?

Who does this unnamed close relative typify?

My friends, it is the Law.

"I Cannot Redeem"

The Law demands perfection. It calls for excellence in performance, tolerates no failures, and is quick to judge every error. The Law says, "Do this, don't do that!" And when it comes to true redemption, do you want to know what this close relative says?

"I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I ruin my own inheritance." — Ruth 4:6

The Law takes off its sandals, saying, "I cannot walk that path of redemption for you." The Law boasts of not missing even the dots and crosses of the letter, yet it is utterly unable to justify even one person who tries to keep it. The Law shows how wrong you are, with all the right reasons, but it is entirely unable to make the wrong right!

It subjects everyone under it to a life of bondage—bringing up the Ishmael generation and the old covenant on Mount Sinai, while persecuting the children of promise (the Isaac generation) who hold the promises of the new and everlasting covenant on Mount Zion (Galatians 4:24-28).

Grace Finds Us

Thank God for grace. Grace that is greater than all my sin. Grace that pardons and cleanses within. Grace that pours until waters flow in deserts, and the scorching heat of summer turns to a springtime glow.

There is a true Kinsman-Redeemer: Jesus, God's own Son. The precious Lamb of God, the Messiah, slain for sinners. Just as Boaz redeemed Ruth and married her—turning a barren, foreign widow into the great-grandmother of Israel's sweet psalmist, King David—Jesus redeems us.

How do we find grace? Or does grace find us? It is a bit like asking, "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" Yes, grace found me. And yes, I found grace.

"So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free." — Galatians 4:31

Hallelujah! What a Savior! Hallelujah! What a friend!

Stay blessed in Jesus. Amen.

There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother - JESUS MESSIAH.

Christ the Rock

As I read Exodus 12:13, I understand that God passes by us and yet we are free from His righteous JUDGMENT (that would have otherwise killed us because of sin), if ONLY He sees the blood of the Lamb on the door-post. What a picture of safety and security in the life of the people Israel, as one by one of their Egyptian masters faced one of their most terrible nights when all their first-born (even first-born animals) lay dead.

There was another first-born bearing the iniquity for all the people of Israel in the symbolic blood of the Lamb - the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. And none of the children of Israel perished.

In the old covenant, the Egyptians had no choice to believe in the blood of the Lamb. But now, in the New Covenant, EVERYONE who believes in JESUS are saved from the righteous judgment of God with regard to their sins. Yes, Everyone who BELIEVES. This is the gospel of salvation, where you don't need to go up for a penance in the forest, or take a dip in some river or compensate with "good" works for the sins committed - because all these CANNOT wash away your sins. Simply believe in JESUS, and His finished work on the cross will take care of your rest (pun intended).

When we compare Jer. 9:24 and 1 Cor. 1:30, 31 we see the picture of God and Christ clearly.

"But let him who glories glory in this: that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, exercising loving kindness (GRACE), JUDGMENT, and RIGHTEOUSNESS in the earth, for in these I delight," says the LORD. - Jer. 9:24

"But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God-and righteousness and sanctification and redemption- that, as it is written, "He who glories, let him glory in the LORD." - 1 Cor. 1:30, 31

If we compare these two verses and strike out the common "righteousness" what is left is GRACE - that can be equated to sanctification and redemption in Jesus Christ. Now what is left of the verse in Jeremiah is only JUDGMENT - which has DISAPPEARED under the New for those "...in Christ Jesus".

Yes, sister.

Those who are in Christ Jesus is SAVED from the righteous JUDGMENT of God on account of sins. The blood of the Lamb is on the door-posts ,,, and death (wages of sin) has no power to penetrate through.

That is why Moses had to placed in the cleft of the Rock, before God could pass by Him. (Exodus 33: 22, 23). THAT is a picture of Jesus - the Rock of Ages cleft for Moses. Else, Moses would have died the moment God (and His judgment) passed by him. As it is written, "...For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ." - 1 Cor. 10: 4

Hallelujah! What a Saviour. Hallelujah, what a friend!

For those in Christ... these are some of the benefits (and I particularly like the word "therefore" (that's for meditation some other day)):

1. Now, therefore there is no condemnation... (Rom. 8:1)
2. Therefore, ... he is a NEW CREATION. Old things have passed away, behold all things have become new. (2 Cor. 5:17)

Rock of Ages, cleft for me
Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood
From Thy riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the DOUBLE cure -
Saved from WRATH and make me PURE.

You are saved from God's wrath (judgment) because YOU ARE IN CHRIST JESUS.

Amen.