For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,

1 Corinthians 15:3 NASB

Now, we have seen, Christ came to satisfy the righteous requirement of the law for us, and, in completely fulfilling it in His own flesh, we, in our belief in His work, are baptized into His work, His death, burial, and resurrection.

There is, however, a working out of the process of our faith.  As Paul called those who were new to the faith “babes”, and “carnal”  (1 Corinthians 3:1), he also wrote to the Galatians, who were yet learning, of how he was in great labor of prayer until Christ was formed within them.

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In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell in safety; and this is the name by which she will be called: the LORD is our righteousness.

Jeremiah 33:16

The message of holiness must flow out of the place of the Holy Spirit, or not at all.  The message may be preached from other places, but there is no life of righteousness outside of the flow of the Holy Spirit.  Only in the depths of Him is the message complete, is is whole, and is it pure.

There is a ditch, you see, on either side of the road.  There is a an error in not going far enough as well as going too far.  The difference between being “religious” in a controlling and hypocritical sense and that of being right is the Holy Spirit.

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While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

Genesis 8:22

The concept of the seed offering has widely been promoted by many, including the late Oral Roberts).  In fact, it is said that he has considered it as one of the greatest revelations of his life and ministry.  As with a natural harvest, what is sown in finances, time, or any other resource will always produce a harvest, a yield, some thirty, sixty, and a hundred fold, so long as it is sown in “good ground”.

For sure, this revelation has run through the church, and helped to encourage the body of Christ to give, knowing that they are more blessed in the giving, and that, quite plainly, we will surely reap whatever we sow, for good or ill (Galatians 6:7).

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Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Matthew 11:11

He prophesied of Jesus’ coming, saying,

Truly, I give baptism with water to those of you whose hearts are changed; but he who comes after me is greater than I, whose shoes I am not good enough to take up: he will give you baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire:

John 3:11

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The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.

John 7:7

The world hates followers of Jesus.  The verdict against humanity is this, that men, even though confronted with their own sin in the light, prefer to kill those who show them they are wrong, rather than coming with humility before an Almighty, merciful God (John 3:19).  Rather than feeling with their heart, they justify, set up road blocks, walls, and excuses that they cannot tell right from wrong any more.

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Isaiah 5:20

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Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.

Matthew 13:44

The selling of everything can be perceived painful at times, it really can.  That is, in pursuit of this treasure of the Kingdom, which we have seen, while we are attempting to make it completely ours, there is that which is difficult and even hurtful, nearly to the point of death it can seem at times.  But, it is the nature of the Kingdom, however, that it is always worth the effort.

For the children of Israel in the desert, they complained that their trials were hard (Numbers 11:1).  Yet, what they couldn’t see was who the Lord was in their midst, and the wonderfulness of all of His great promises towards them (Hebrews 4:2).

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Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men!
Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues.

Psalm 31:19-20

Hidden, locked away from the world, from the strife of man.  Protected in the shadow of the Almighty.  The Lord shalt hide me in His Secret place.

In His presence, in His joy and belonging, I am covered and hid.  Though I dwell among the Earth, I am protected from it.  For, the Lord knows how to preserve His saints, and He will hide His beloved in the cleft of the rock.

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And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way.

Exodus 33:2-3

When Moses carried up the people of Israel from Egypt, and they came to the Jordan river, the company of men all chose to disobey God and not enter, rather than to continue on into their promise.  God was angry, and would no longer go forward with them, and told Moses that He Himself would not go with them, but that He would send his angel instead to defeat the enemies.

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And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.

John 1:16

But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Matthew 7:14

We understand that it is by God’s grace that we are saved.  It is not our own efforts, but is His efforts.  It is only by coming with no merit of our own, but as sinners who sin, with no excuse or righteousness of our own merit, and by coming to the bloody cross with our own souls, that we enter into Christ’s life within.  It is only in the fullness of that finished work that we have any life whatsoever.  Paul called any efforts besides simple faith in the cross to be “dead works” (Hebrews 6:1).

On the other side of this is Jesus’ Words, saying, that unless our righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and Sadducees, we will in no way ever enter the Kingdom.  He said that the gate was small, and the the road to life was hard and narrow.  Only a few find it.

Between these two places on either side, which we could call ditches, we find the road.  Narrow as it is, it is still the road, and it must be traveled.

When we learn to preach the fullness of His Grace hand in hand with the narrowness of the road, we will have begun to understand the finished works of the cross.

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But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.

Matthew 15:18-20

I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

John 14:12

Paul writes to Timothy, “But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”  (1 Timothy 1:5).  This is the end final product of our instruction.

Consider, for a moment, the working of miracles.  Many have had miracle ministries in the church.  Many have finished well, and many have not.  Many have demonstrated the true heart and character of Jesus, while many have brought shame and disrepute, not intentionally but effectively, upon the body.  But, let us remember, the end of our instruction, the goal, was never miracles or the demonstration of power, but was God’s love in our hearts, a good conscience with faith.

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