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How can a Christian man find God's Favor? I went to a friends fellowship where he is the pastor last weekend. It left me thinking and thinking and thinking. He talked about God's favor. He used a lot of scriptures regarding people and favor. But they were all old covenant scriptures. God's favor is great, but the aftermath made me wonder what about this presentation bothered me. The first part was the old covenant scriptures. Yes I believe that all scripture has a purpose. But in no way does it all pertain to my life today, or any born again believers lives. The easiest way to get people's attention is mention animal sacrifices and they will say...yeah get what you mean on that one. For a long time It has been my heart to share with people our New Covenant. Most people still seem to mix the old and new when it is convienient. For me, being one who was always taught this mixture, it took me like anyone else, time to see truth. Here is the issue with God's Favor. In the old covenant law, which was only for the Jews to begin with, it was always the set up.....You do something and God rewards You. Obey and he does this. You want something? You do this in this area and he does that. Performance Religion. Not much real Love relationship and pretty impersonal for the most point. Now lets think about things a few days after the cross. What has changed? The first thing that changed was that now in this new covenant it is for all mankind. Jews and Gentiles. Behold the lamb of God (Jesus) who takes away the sin of the whole world. Everyone is now included. That should get anyone's attention. Secondly, the veil in the holy of holies is torn that seperated man and God. We not only now can boldly come before him in prayer individually, but the word also now proclaims all born again believers as priests and prophets in our own rights. Thats big. The deferal and pecking order is over. Here is the issue of God's favor. The Jews had it if they did certain things. It is not about doing to get anymore. The New Covenant as believers humbly tells us that we now all as born again believers bow and point to the Lord Jesus and state, I have God's favor because of what Jesus did for me. It was purchased in his blood. I cant do anything to obtain it, it is part of my heritage. The word states that we are righteous in God's eyes because of....what Jesus did on that cross and God's viewing of us as righteous is because of what Jesus did and not by any actions we can do or say. We humbly point to that cross and say thank you Jesus for making me righteous before the Father. I have God's favor because of who Jesus is and what HE DID, not what I would like to think I could do. The Old Covenant is represented in the Prodigal 's parable by the Brother who had done everything in his mind properly with his father and was upset when his father rejoiced when his shamed brother returned. His relationship with his dad was rules kept and felt that was a relationship. The fact of the matter is that rules do not run a real relationship. A real relationship would have allowed him to see the pain in his fathers heart and he would have, despite his anamosity towards his brother, went and returned him just because of relieving his fathers pain. Thats why God got rid of the law and replaced it with moral law, not to justify you but to allow you to know right and wrong to walk properly in Grace. The banquet table of Christ is here and now. We as believers are asked to sit at it and partake in its blessings. This table, prepared for us is God's blessings of the New Covenant relationship with mankind. We have traded unrighteousness for righteousness in Jesus. We have traded favor from works and obedience for the banquet table prepared by Jesus for us. It is important to know the difference. His Grace will always be a mortal enemy of the law. Grace affords us the peace because our toiling will not give us something that we want from him. Our pointing to Jesus as our all in all allows us to enter into the banquet table where all things we will ever need will be waiting for us. Its all about Jesus with Grace. Its alot about us with the law, laws we could never fully keep to begin with. So now we have the opportunity to have the relationship with God that he always desired. Personal and ongoing that he empowers us to live when we allow him to live through us. Its simple until we start adding an old dead covenant to the new one. If you truly believe the Truth sets a person free, what bondages do you forsee with Half Truth added to dead law does? I can only see Bondage in half truths. Dont you want to be free? Its not about Favor.....its about Jesus |
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