How Did We Miss This!

Before I start, I want to say that EVERYTHING that Jesus did and said is of the utmost importance! He did everything that the Father told Him to do. He was obedient even unto death for the remission of our sins. What He accomplished on the Cross reconciled us unto our Father God and made us His children. So why isn’t Jesus’ dying on the Cross of Calvary our source of Faith? Why isn’t our faith in that which took our sin away and set us free? Now, I can hear you saying “My faith is in the Word of God. Jesus is God and in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word is God”. In the beginning before the foundation of the world, The Plan to redeem mankind was formulated; that plan is Jesus dying on the Cross of Calvary. God put in place the Sacrificial System as His way, but the sacrifices of bulls, lambs and/or rams only covered sin so that man could commune with God. All the “types and shadows” were examples of He who would come and TAKE AWAY sin once and for all! They all pointed to that which would take place at the Cross. Jesus is the source of EVERYTHING we could ever need, and the Cross is the means, the only way, we receive anything from God. No man comes unto the Father unless he goes through the Son. Well, how do we get to the Son, Jesus? We gotta go to the Cross! I have heard that some people think that Jesus dying on the Cross was a great defeat. What I don’t understand is how any Christian can think that Jesus dying on the Cross was a defeat. Just think about it… As a Christian, if you think that the Cross was a place of defeat, then how are you saved? If the Cross of Calvary was a loss, how can you ever have the victory?! If this is the truth, and it is not, we are all doomed to burn in Hell for all of eternity. How else were you saved? How was your sin debt, and we all were born into this debt; how was this debt paid for you? The wages of sin is death! This scripture in Romans 6:23 goes on to say but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. The gift that God gave in John 3:16 is the giving of His Son Jesus selfless sacrifice on the Cross of Calvary; and whosoever believes shall not perish but have eternal life. What death did you put forward that was acceptable to God? Who died, in your place, so that you can be free and free from sin and death? Who would want to serve a loser? My Jesus, My Lord and Savior – ALL VICTORIES BELONG TO HIM! Whatever is His is mine. If all victories belong to Him, then I have the victory in all things through Him and what He accomplished at the Cross of Calvary which reconciled me to the Father who has everything! The Cross of Christ was the GREATEST VICTORY OF ALL TIME! Why? Because at the Cross, sin was defeated! At the Cross, Satan loss ALL authority to hold you in bondage! At the Cross, the veil was rent from top to bottom where we now have access to the Father – being able to enter into the Holy Place into the Holies of Holies. At the Cross, we became joint heirs with Jesus where we can now call God Abba Father (Father Dear Father). At the Cross, where all things Jesus has in the Father are now ours! At the Cross, where ALL of God’s Word is now “Yes and Amen”! IT ALL HAPPENED AT THE CROSS! The Resurrection was a part of the process. The Resurrection HAD to happen but was dependent on the Cross. The Resurrection, after we placed ourselves in Christ Jesus, dying on the Cross, buried in Him, we were resurrected in Him into newness of life! This had to happen and is very, very important! But there could be no Resurrection if the Cross never happened! Jesus said, ON THE CROSS, “IT IS FINISHED!” That which God had sent His only Son into the world to do had been completed! Mission Accomplished! SIN IS DEFEATED! The Cross of Christ is so important that the Apostle Paul said, “We preach Christ Crucified” (1 Corinthians 1:23). Be honest, outside of Easter, when does your pastor/teacher ever mention the Cross of Calvary? Or rather, when has the topic of the sermon circled back to the Cross – All because of what Jesus did on the Cross? When was the last time you heard a sermon/teaching that reference the Cross of Calvary or that your faith should be in Jesus and Him crucified? Paul also said “The preaching/the message of the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing (perishing in their sins – spiritually dead), but to US who are saved, it is the Power of God! (1 Corinthians 1:18). The Apostle Paul went on to say “Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the good news – not with clever words and eloquent speech, so the Cross of Christ would not be made ineffective (deprived of its saving power) (1 Corinthians 1:17). The Cross – God’s Plan of Redemption! Everything that Jesus did and said is of the utmost importance; everything happened as God planned it to happen, but it was at the Cross where Jesus accomplished that which God had sent Him into to the world to do – Defeating Sin! Understand that sin is so bad that God Himself had to come down to Earth to defeat it. None of us could do it, as a matter of fact, none of us was holy and righteous enough to atone for any sin, even our own. Only Jesus dying on the Cross - paying the wage of sin (death) - for EVERYONE, accomplished the plan of God! Defeating sin! ***Just my opinion. I believe Jesus died in that horrible way – in a criminal way (Criminals were hung on the cross) – because He, Jesus, died for the criminal too. He died for all the people who would commit heinous crimes; they too can be led by the Spirit of God to become a child of God. When we place our Faith in that which Jesus and Him Crucified – The Cross – having the Cross as our ONLY place of Faith, everything in God’s Word is “Yes and Amen”. Think of it like this. Because of what Jesus did on the Cross, all my needs are supplied according to His riches in glory. Because of what Jesus did on the Cross, everything I set my hands to do prospers! Because of what Jesus did on the Cross, I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me. When we accept God’s Plan to redeem our life, Jesus and Him Crucified, all of God’s Word is now ours. If Jesus never died on the Cross, none of what God has in His Word could be ours aka manifested in our lives. Why? Because of sin. If Jesus never died, the sin problem is still here. God cannot look upon sin nor will He abide sin. Sin is man’s problem. Jesus dying on the Cross dealt with the problem (sin) for you and me because we chose to believe! Believe what? That God loved us so much that He gave His only Son, Jesus, to die and pay the price of the wages of sin – Death! How did we miss placing our Faith in the Cross of Christ? That which got us into the Kingdom of God is the only thing that will keep us in the Kingdom of God – The Cross of Christ! If your Faith is in anything else other than the Cross – your good deeds, your church, your pastor/priest, your prayer life, your husband or your whatever… If you don’t have Jesus as the Source and the Cross as the means, then are your truly in God’s Will? To have your Faith in anything that is not Jesus and Him Crucified (The Cross), God’s Plan, is a rejection of that Plan and everything He has in His Word for us. That’s a scary thought! You’re, in a sense, saying that that which Jesus accomplished on the Cross wasn’t enough, that more needs to be done. God forbid… IT IS FINISHED! It was at the Cross that it was all done for US! The Cross of Christ is our justification (righteousness – right standing), salvation (redemption, forgiveness of all sin), and the one we forget or never knew – sanctification. The Cross of Christ is for our sanctification – how we live our lives before God daily. When we ever “Keep our Eyes of that Prize We Have in Jesus and Him Crucified” we can live daily before God in holiness and victoriously! All because of what Jesus accomplished on the Cross – where our Faith should be firmly place! How did we miss this?!

Everything from God Comes to Us Because of the Cross

I know the title is long—it reminds me of some of those long anime titles—but it’s true: everything we receive from God comes to us because of the Cross of Christ. It doesn’t come because we attend church every time the doors are open. It doesn’t come because we read our Bibles and pray every day. That’s not why we receive anything from God.

The reason we, as Christians and true children of God, receive anything is because of the Cross. I want to look at this truth from a couple of scriptures: Hebrews 13:20–21 and Ephesians 2:13–18. These two, among many other scriptures in the Bible, tell us this very thing—everything we receive from God comes to us because of the Cross, because of Jesus’ great sacrifice on Calvary.

Hebrews 13:20–21

20 Now may the God of peace [the source of serenity and spiritual well-being] who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood that sealed and ratified the eternal covenant, 21 equip you with every good thing to carry out His will and strengthen you [making you complete and perfect as you ought to be], accomplishing in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

God, who raised our Lord and Savior from the dead, has equipped us with every good thing to live by His Word and has strengthened us to do so by the shedding of the Blood of Christ, which sealed and ratified the Eternal Covenant. The shedding of the Blood of Christ our Lord happened at the Cross of Calvary. The Eternal Covenant we have in Jesus and Him Crucified is everlasting! God has provided us everything we need to live for Him victoriously through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Ephesians 2:13–18

13 But now [at this very moment] in Christ Jesus you who once were [so very] far away [from God] have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For He Himself is our peace and our bond of unity. He who made both groups—[Jews and Gentiles]—into one body and broke down the barrier, the dividing wall [of spiritual antagonism between us], 15 by abolishing in His [own crucified] flesh the hostility caused by the Law with its commandments contained in ordinances [which He satisfied]; so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thereby establishing peace. 16 And [that He] might reconcile them both [Jew and Gentile, united] in one body to God through the cross, thereby putting to death the hostility. 17 And He came and preached the good news of peace to you [Gentiles] who were far away, and peace to those [Jews] who were near. 18 For it is through Him that we both have a [direct] way of approach in one Spirit to the Father.

There is a lot to unpack here:

• This is talking about the Jews (God’s Chosen People) and the Gentiles (everyone else).
• The Gentiles, who were far away from God, have now been brought near by the Blood of Christ—shed on the Cross of Calvary.
• Due to Jesus’ great sacrifice on the Cross, Jews and Gentiles are now one body spiritually.
• Jesus abolished, in His crucified flesh, the hostility caused by the Law (anything other than the Cross of Christ that we try to live for God), because He satisfied the Law perfectly.
• Jesus’ sacrifice reconciled both Jews and Gentiles in one body to God through the Cross, putting away the hostility (the continuous conviction of not always keeping the Law of God).
• Through Him (Jesus and Him Crucified—the Cross) we both have a direct line in one Spirit (the Holy Spirit—who works through the Cross and no other way) to the Father.

Faith in the Cross of Christ

Since everything we receive from God—everything in His Word and every blessing He gives—comes to us because of the Cross of Christ, why isn’t our belief, hope, trust… our faith… in the Cross of Christ?

We don’t need to put our faith in a “healing scripture” when we need healing. When we need a financial blessing, we don’t have to shift our faith to a “prosperity scripture.” And when we need peace, we don’t need to suddenly focus our faith on peace scriptures. We’ve been working too hard, and in the wrong way.

When we put our faith in its proper place—the Cross of Christ, by which everything comes from our Father God—then the Holy Spirit can work, in His full power, whatever we need from the Word of God in our lives. We’ve tied the hands of the Holy Spirit because our faith has been improperly placed. He works solely through the Cross, so our faith should be there.

I am so very grateful that God has graced, covered, and blessed me even in my ignorance of this truth. We’ve had our faith improperly placed. It’s not in our going to church. It’s not in our reading and praying. It’s not in our confessions. It’s not in our good deeds. All these things are good, and God wants us to do them, but our faith cannot be in those things—no matter how good they are. These things are a byproduct of our understanding of the great love our Father God has for us, unworthy as we are, in sending His Son to die on the Cross of Calvary.

It’s that simple! All of the above is self—faith in what you do: I go to church. I pray. I feed the hungry. I! I! I! SELF! I was guilty of this too. I love the correction of my Father in my life. It shows me just how much He loves me. Ever grateful!

We must make sure that our faith is in what is clearly written in the Word of God—His words, not mine. Everything we receive from our Father God comes to us because of Jesus’ precious sacrifice on the Cross of Calvary.

Be blessed.

The Cross of Christ and Sanctification

I promised to share my thoughts on the Cross of Christ and Sanctification, so I want to address that now. As believers, if we do not understand the Message of the Cross—our faith should be in the Cross of Christ—then we will not be able to live sanctified and holy lives as God intended.

Let me explain: if we do not grasp the significance of the Cross of Christ concerning sanctification, we will revert back to living under the law. What do I mean by that? If our faith is not rooted in what Jesus accomplished on the Cross at Calvary for us, we will attempt to live our lives before God by adhering to laws.

A law is anything we put in place to live holy and sanctified before God. It can be the Law of Moses, the moral Laws of Moses, or any self-imposed regulations we believe keep us holy and aligned with God's will. These laws might be created by churches or ourselves to keep us in check and live holy before God.

Sanctification is about living our daily lives before God, and if our faith is not properly placed in the Cross of Christ, we will revert to relying on the law, which is not what we should be doing.

Now, I want to clarify that the law of Moses, God's law, is inherently good. Even the laws we put in place are good within themselves, but they deceive us because we rely on them to make us holy instead of what Jesus did on the Cross to make us holy.

If we keep our eyes on Jesus and Him crucified, we will be constantly reminded of what He has done for us, allowing the Holy Spirit to work God's perfect Will and Word in our lives daily. This is what we should be focusing on, but when we try to live by these laws, we are not living by what Jesus did on the Cross for us. Law, any law(s), cannot make you holy or righteous.

Sidebar #1: The Laws of Moses (God's Law) is GOOD!

Because of sin (the sin nature) in us, we could never keep the Law all the time. The law brings condemnation as it should, and this can lead to a miserable Christian life—being under constant condemnation. Oh, but the Cross of Christ! I believe God created the Laws of Moses to do the following:

• To define sin: Sin wasn't defined until the Law. Now, lying and other acts are clearly labeled as sin.
• The Law allowed us to see sin in ourselves: It’s defined and can be judged, which brings condemnation.
• The Law leads us to God’s mercy: Realizing we have sinned should lead us to ask for forgiveness.

Sidebar #2: Jesus Fulfilled the Law

In Matthew 5:17 Jesus said, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law; I have not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have come to FULFILL THEM."

Jesus fulfilled the Laws of Moses perfectly so that we who believe—have Faith—in what He accomplished on the Cross of Calvary allow the Holy Spirit to help us keep the Law. This is why we don’t have to keep the law: Jesus already fulfilled it.

If our Faith remains in the Cross of Christ, the Grace of God is there to undergird us. So, there is no condemnation for we who are in Christ Jesus (Jesus and Him Crucified)!

In Galatians 2:21, Paul said that if Righteousness comes by the law, then Christ died in vain. If we try to live by the law, what Jesus did on the Cross becomes meaningless. Although the law itself is good, if we attempt to live by it to make us righteous and holy, then why did Jesus need to come and die? We could have just kept the Law.

We need to live our daily lives sanctified under Grace, which was provided for us on a continuous basis by the Holy Spirit, through the Cross of Calvary. Grace has always been extended to us by God, but under the old covenant, sin was only covered. However, when Jesus died on the Cross, He took sin away once and for all.

When we fall and make mistakes, God's Grace—God’s Goodness towards us—is there to catch us. Under Grace, we are to repent of our sins because God is faithful and just to forgive us. This is not a license to sin. 1 John 3:6 states: "No one who abides in Him [who remains united in fellowship with Him—deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] practices sin. No one who habitually sins has seen Him or known Him."

We live under Grace. Sin no longer has dominion over us, and there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. The Law condemns; Grace does not. Through what Jesus did on the Cross, Grace flows continuously via the Cross by the Holy Spirit in our lives, helping us live sanctified and holy lives daily before God.

This is where the Cross comes into play concerning Sanctification. If we do not understand the Cross of Christ and have our faith firmly rooted exclusively in the Cross, spiritual failure is the result (I’ll do a separate blog on that). We will revert to the law, which is not where God wants us to be. He wants us to be under Grace and live a sanctified life; our Faith must be firmly placed in Christ Jesus and what He accomplished on the Cross at Calvary.

As Paul said again in Galatians 2:21: if righteousness could be achieved by the law, then Jesus' death on the Cross would be in vain. He died for our justification, salvation, and sanctification so that God's Grace—God's Goodness—can be extended to us continuously through the Holy Spirit via the Cross of Christ. This is the purpose of having our Faith in the Cross of Christ for our Sanctification.

The Plan!

The Plan – John 3:16

It’s been some years since I’ve posted to this blog. God was dealing with me on some things. I am grateful to Him for chastening me which shows His love for me.

I want to speak a little on God’s Plan – Redemption. Redemption is a gift; it cannot be earned, and it involves our turning away from sin and towards God. God made this task simple for us—the offering of His Son, Jesus.

I want to come from the verse of John 3:16. I know, I know… We all know this verse; we could probably recite it in our sleep. This verse is one of the first scriptures we all learned in Bible School/Children’s Church. I think that was by God’s design, but not fully realized.

In this, I want to bring to full fruition of God’s Plan by breaking down this scripture. It is so simple, but sometimes things can seem too simple… “Surely, it can’t be this simple?!” It is just that – simple. By having our Faith ONLY in God’s Plan, Jesus and the Cross, our justification, salvation and sanctification are assured. What got you into the Kingdom of God will keep you in the Kingdom of God! Jesus and the Cross got you into the Kingdom of God, and it will keep you in the Kingdom of God. It’s just that simple.

So, let’s break this down…

For God so loved the world:

• God not only loved all the people of the world, but the world itself.
• Due to the Fall of Man, not only mankind fell, but so did the world and everything in it.
• God loves the world – all His creation.

That He gave:

It’s a gift. You can’t pay anything, barter, perform good deeds or work hard to obtain it. IT’S FREE!

His only Son:

• Gave – The Plan set in motion!
• Who is His Son? Jesus
• Why did God give His Son? To die on the Cross of Calvary for the remission of sins—aka Jesus & Him Crucified. THIS IS THE PLAN!
• Everything Jesus did was of the utmost importance, but His main mission was the Cross of Calvary.

That whosoever (I AM a Whosoever!) believes in Him shall not perish:

• Whosoever believes – Everyone has the opportunity to become a “Whosoever that believes God’s Plan (Jesus and Him Crucified).”
• Believes what? That God loves you and gave His Son Jesus to die on the Cross of Calvary for you! THE PLAN! You must trust that what Jesus accomplished on the Cross of Calvary worked for you! It’s a personal decision.
• What is another word for believes? Faith!
• So, whosoever has Faith in The Plan (the gift of Jesus dying on the Cross for your sins) shall not perish.

Shall not perish…

Perish in your sins. What Jesus accomplished on the Cross of Calvary, for you and me, took away all sin once and for all! The sacrifices of animals only covered sin so that we could commune with God. During the Sacrificial System, the blood of animals could only cover sin, but not take it away.

2 Peter 3:9 (Amplified): The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

Sin ruins everything it touches. Sin is so bad that God Himself had to come down to defeat sin once and for all. Jesus sacrificed as the Lamb of God was the last sacrifice.

But have everlasting life:

This is what we all want when we stand before the Lord—to dwell in His Presence with Him forever and ever. Having Faith in God’s Plan, Jesus and Him Crucified, is the ONLY way to have everlasting life!

Proverbs 4:7: In all your getting, get understanding.

Once you understand what God’s Plan for Redemption is for you—which is Jesus and Him Crucified—and have Faith in The Plan (having the Cross of Christ as your ONLY source of Faith), you’ll be able to understand and live that victorious life His Word says that we can have here on this Earth.

We all know this scripture very well and can recite it easily. We accepted Jesus and the Cross for our initial Salvation/Redemption, but we left the Cross behind where our Sanctification is concerned—how we live our daily lives before God. I’ll do a separate blog on this.

You cannot separate Christ from the Cross. When we read phrases like “in Christ Jesus” or “through Christ Jesus” in the Bible, it is not only talking about Jesus the person, but what He accomplished on the Cross for us.

Everything in God’s Word is “Yes & Amen” for us due to Jesus dying on the Cross of Calvary for us! If Jesus had not died on the Cross for us, none of us would be saved and NONE of God’s Word would apply nor be manifested in our lives.

It is ALL due to the Cross of Calvary – God’s Plan!

It is the GREATEST VICTORY OF ALL TIME!

John 19:30: Jesus said, “It is Finished!”

God’s Plan was completed! Mission Accomplished! Sin was and is DEFEATED!