If the recent Ris Low saga is anything to go by, then it reveals that
Singaporeans have a long way to go in being a gracious country.
Netizens have by and large -- almost in knee jerk fashion --
turned into an ugly mob.
Mean spiritedness, small heartedness and judgementalism is the order of
the day. Even a minister of parliament has been quick to weigh-in on the
saga, calling everyone's attention to the fact that Ris Low's crimes
are serious and that she should not represent Singapore internationally.
It looks like the Ministry of Home Affairs campaign at giving ex-offenders
a second chance did not make an impression on the minister in question.
'Using another person's credit card is a very
serious offence. Honesty and integrity are very important.'
Yes, that's true.
So is this:
Through the Yellow Ribbon Project, we hope to promote a more accepting society,one that is willing to give ex-offenders a second chance at making good. It is important that we help unlock the second prison for our inmates, even as we let them out of the physical one.
Something even more disturbing than the mob mentality that seems to
have taken ahold, is a deeper question. What are are our values? Have
we placed appearances above kindness? Is this really about integrity
or is it more about 'saving face'?
I suppose it may well be that the strongest proponents of stripping
the title away from Ris based on her poor spoken English are those
who see good spoken English as more of a status symbol than as a
means of communication. I see many Netizens even correcting each
others grammar on forum sites! I think that there is a deeper need shown
here within the psyche of many. It does appear that we're compensating for our national inferiority by taking it out on someone who seems to display traits we are all ashamed of.
Then what about her criminal record? Bear in mind that the
crime took place 2 years ago. And we are talking about a very young person here who suffers from bipolar disorder. I wonder if those who have judged her measure themselves by the same yardstick? It would appear not. Even if integrity is a principle that we swear by, not tempering it with kindness turns one into an onerous oaf!
So at the end of the day, what is beauty? Is it more than skin deep?
It has been synoymous with graciousness, poise, kindess. If there
was a beauty contest for countries, how do you think Singapore would fare
on the world stage?
We seem to have the aesthetic qualifications. But with a very ugly
personality. It's ironic, because these are the very same things
we're accusing Ris of. It's time we took a look at ourselves.
What have we become?
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Don't Limit God
He was betrayed by his brothers. They had actually intended to kill him. But instead he was thrown into a pit.
Wouldn't you agree with me that he was at rock bottom? No not quite yet.
He was then sold away as a slave to a foreign land.
A slave has nothing. No money. No freedom. No nothing. Everything he is belongs to someone else.
Wouldn't you agree with me that he was now at rock bottom? No not quite yet.
He was eventually bought by a tough military man. Then he was framed for a crime he did not commit and sent away to prison as a sexual predator.
Betrayed, then destitute, then enslaved, then framed, now incaserated.
Surely he was now at rock bottom? No not quite yet.
He found favour in the eyes of the warden of the prison, who committed the other prisoners to his charge. Soon afterward two men of position in government, having offended the ruler of the land, were thrown into the prison. One morning both officers told him their dreams of the previous night, which they were unable to interpret, and he told them that one would be reinstated within three days but that the other would be hanged. He requested the one who would be freed to mention him to the ruler and secure his release from prison, but that man, reinstalled in office, forgot him.
Betrayed, then destitute, then enslaved, then framed, then incaserated . . .now forgotten.
If you were him, you wouldn't be blamed for feeling jaded and bitter. Any hopes for a good life were finished. It appeared that experience had shown that he was cursed—any good in his life seemed to be destroyed by subsequent disaster. He was trapped in a cycle of failure. Doomed
to a life of dissapointment and suffering.
No not quite!
Yes, I have been describing the life of Joseph in the Bible. We know how his life turned out after that.
Two years later the same man who had been freed and reinstated to the court of Pharoh remembered Joseph's gift at a time when Pharoh had a dream he could not interpret, neither could he find an interpretation from the diviners in the land. Joseph eventually interpreted Pharoh's dream and was made into the Prime Minister of all Egypt -- the second most powerful man in the land!
Gen 41: 38 - 46 (NIV)
38 So Pharaoh asked them, Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?
39 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, Since God has made all this known to you, there is no-one so discerning and wise as you.
40 You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.
41 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.
42 Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph's finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck.
43 He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command, and men shouted before him, Make way! Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt.
44 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, I am Pharaoh, but without your word no-one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.
45 Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-Paneah and gave him Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. And Joseph went throughout the land of Egypt.
46 Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from Pharaoh's presence and travelled throughout Egypt.
In the natural, if we were with Joseph up to the point he was made Prime Minister, we would have had no points of reference to predict the incredible final outcome of his life.
It's the same for our lives today. The point of reference for God's promises in our lives should be the person of Jesus himself and His ability.
Not our experiences.
Hebrews 11:11 (NIV)
11 By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise.
12 And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
It may look like your darkest hour. But that is irrelevant to whether God is able to deliver you.
He who has spoken is faithful and able to perform His word in your life!
Look beyond the natural.
Look beyond past experiences.
Look beyond your own goodness.
Look beyond how bad the situation is.
Look at Him who is faithful who had made the promise and don't limit God.
Wouldn't you agree with me that he was at rock bottom? No not quite yet.
He was then sold away as a slave to a foreign land.
A slave has nothing. No money. No freedom. No nothing. Everything he is belongs to someone else.
Wouldn't you agree with me that he was now at rock bottom? No not quite yet.
He was eventually bought by a tough military man. Then he was framed for a crime he did not commit and sent away to prison as a sexual predator.
Betrayed, then destitute, then enslaved, then framed, now incaserated.
Surely he was now at rock bottom? No not quite yet.
He found favour in the eyes of the warden of the prison, who committed the other prisoners to his charge. Soon afterward two men of position in government, having offended the ruler of the land, were thrown into the prison. One morning both officers told him their dreams of the previous night, which they were unable to interpret, and he told them that one would be reinstated within three days but that the other would be hanged. He requested the one who would be freed to mention him to the ruler and secure his release from prison, but that man, reinstalled in office, forgot him.
Betrayed, then destitute, then enslaved, then framed, then incaserated . . .now forgotten.
If you were him, you wouldn't be blamed for feeling jaded and bitter. Any hopes for a good life were finished. It appeared that experience had shown that he was cursed—any good in his life seemed to be destroyed by subsequent disaster. He was trapped in a cycle of failure. Doomed
to a life of dissapointment and suffering.
No not quite!
Yes, I have been describing the life of Joseph in the Bible. We know how his life turned out after that.
Two years later the same man who had been freed and reinstated to the court of Pharoh remembered Joseph's gift at a time when Pharoh had a dream he could not interpret, neither could he find an interpretation from the diviners in the land. Joseph eventually interpreted Pharoh's dream and was made into the Prime Minister of all Egypt -- the second most powerful man in the land!
Gen 41: 38 - 46 (NIV)
38 So Pharaoh asked them, Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?
39 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, Since God has made all this known to you, there is no-one so discerning and wise as you.
40 You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.
41 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.
42 Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph's finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck.
43 He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command, and men shouted before him, Make way! Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt.
44 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, I am Pharaoh, but without your word no-one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.
45 Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-Paneah and gave him Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. And Joseph went throughout the land of Egypt.
46 Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from Pharaoh's presence and travelled throughout Egypt.
In the natural, if we were with Joseph up to the point he was made Prime Minister, we would have had no points of reference to predict the incredible final outcome of his life.
It's the same for our lives today. The point of reference for God's promises in our lives should be the person of Jesus himself and His ability.
Not our experiences.
Hebrews 11:11 (NIV)
11 By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise.
12 And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
It may look like your darkest hour. But that is irrelevant to whether God is able to deliver you.
He who has spoken is faithful and able to perform His word in your life!
Look beyond the natural.
Look beyond past experiences.
Look beyond your own goodness.
Look beyond how bad the situation is.
Look at Him who is faithful who had made the promise and don't limit God.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
He Rejoices Over Us with Joy
For the last week or so I had tried in my own strength to read my Bible. And I got absolutely nothing out of it! In fact, like I mentioned in my last posting, all I got was confused and condemned. It was an arduous journey that involved reading commentary after commentary on a certain topic. I discovered that the topic was actually listed under what one author described as 'The Hard Sayings of the Bible'.
I read guidelines on Hermeneutics, I read up on the historical background of the book in the Bible, I even read up on the Apostle Paul's life! What I found out from all that research is that there is a body of scholarly work out there that is based on absolute. . . uncertainty. That's because the approach these scholars have taken in their studies is study based on sense knowledge and rationalization. So much so that there is nothing definitive in their interpretations, just educated guesses. For example, to this day, it is debated whether 1st and 2nd Corinthians is actually a series of letters or just two letters. It is also debated what Paul meant when he referred to the 'destruction of the flesh' in 1 Cor 5:5, as well as what the phrase 'handed over to Satan' exactly means. I also came across many scholarly debates on whether the believer is actually still a sinner or is he justified. In the whole morass of confusion, someone actually postulated that we are still sinners now but we'll only be justified in the future on judgement day. Some also postulated when commenting on 1 Cor 5:5 that God in His infinite wisdom hands people over to Satan to try them! Saying that He handed Jesus, Job and Paul over to Satan! I even came across an article entitled 'Satan, God's Servant'! Some wondered how a person could be saved after his flesh got destroyed. . .you get the picture.
In hindsight I can see why so many in the Body of Christ are confused, sick and in dispair. That's because we have attempted to understand God with our intellect. But God is a spirit. In fact, if you are born again, the Holy Spirit lives in your spirit. He dosen't live in your mind -- although what he shows you in your spirit will eventually show up in your mind.
So there I was, dazed and confused (maybe that's how Led Zepplin got the title to their song). And to top it all off, the tenants renting my common room began to mess up my house over the weekend -- they actually started making dumplings in my house! I was really in dispair!
But like it always is in our lives, when we are completely helpless, our Helper the Holy Spirit comes on the scene!
This morning as I awoke, I heard that old song I used to sing years ago sung in my heart, "Oh Lord, your tenderness, melting all my bitterness, O Lord I recieve your love, Oh Lord I recieve your love".
Then I began to worship the Lord. "I will rejoice, I will rejoice, I will rejoice for I made my choice to rejoice in the Lord. . .It dosen't depend on my circumctance, the strength of my arm or my voice, it dosen't depend on the way I feel, I made up my mind that I'm gonna rejoice!" "You have made me glad, you have made me glad, I will rejoice for you have made me glad".
Then I had an inner vision. I actually saw the Lord rejoicing over me as a bridegroom rejoiced over his bride!
But the great surprise only came later when I checked up in the Bible what I saw in my spirit. I googled 'He rejoices over us with joy' and got directed to Zephaniah 3:17:
NKJV
the Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet (you) with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.
NASB
the Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.
I realized that he had quieted me with His love. . .remember the song He sang in my heart -- Oh Lord your tenderness. . .I recieve Your love? Then I saw him rejoicing over me with joy! And what a promise! He not only rejoices over us, He is actually rejoicing in His power to deliver us from our troubles!
What a difference when we are hooked up to the God of the Word who lives in our hearts, as opposed to trying to understand the Word of God with our brains.
One brings Life. The other brings Death. Thank God for the Tree of Life. Thank God for Jesus in our hearts.
I read guidelines on Hermeneutics, I read up on the historical background of the book in the Bible, I even read up on the Apostle Paul's life! What I found out from all that research is that there is a body of scholarly work out there that is based on absolute. . . uncertainty. That's because the approach these scholars have taken in their studies is study based on sense knowledge and rationalization. So much so that there is nothing definitive in their interpretations, just educated guesses. For example, to this day, it is debated whether 1st and 2nd Corinthians is actually a series of letters or just two letters. It is also debated what Paul meant when he referred to the 'destruction of the flesh' in 1 Cor 5:5, as well as what the phrase 'handed over to Satan' exactly means. I also came across many scholarly debates on whether the believer is actually still a sinner or is he justified. In the whole morass of confusion, someone actually postulated that we are still sinners now but we'll only be justified in the future on judgement day. Some also postulated when commenting on 1 Cor 5:5 that God in His infinite wisdom hands people over to Satan to try them! Saying that He handed Jesus, Job and Paul over to Satan! I even came across an article entitled 'Satan, God's Servant'! Some wondered how a person could be saved after his flesh got destroyed. . .you get the picture.
In hindsight I can see why so many in the Body of Christ are confused, sick and in dispair. That's because we have attempted to understand God with our intellect. But God is a spirit. In fact, if you are born again, the Holy Spirit lives in your spirit. He dosen't live in your mind -- although what he shows you in your spirit will eventually show up in your mind.
So there I was, dazed and confused (maybe that's how Led Zepplin got the title to their song). And to top it all off, the tenants renting my common room began to mess up my house over the weekend -- they actually started making dumplings in my house! I was really in dispair!
But like it always is in our lives, when we are completely helpless, our Helper the Holy Spirit comes on the scene!
This morning as I awoke, I heard that old song I used to sing years ago sung in my heart, "Oh Lord, your tenderness, melting all my bitterness, O Lord I recieve your love, Oh Lord I recieve your love".
Then I began to worship the Lord. "I will rejoice, I will rejoice, I will rejoice for I made my choice to rejoice in the Lord. . .It dosen't depend on my circumctance, the strength of my arm or my voice, it dosen't depend on the way I feel, I made up my mind that I'm gonna rejoice!" "You have made me glad, you have made me glad, I will rejoice for you have made me glad".
Then I had an inner vision. I actually saw the Lord rejoicing over me as a bridegroom rejoiced over his bride!
But the great surprise only came later when I checked up in the Bible what I saw in my spirit. I googled 'He rejoices over us with joy' and got directed to Zephaniah 3:17:
NKJV
the Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet (you) with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.
NASB
the Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.
I realized that he had quieted me with His love. . .remember the song He sang in my heart -- Oh Lord your tenderness. . .I recieve Your love? Then I saw him rejoicing over me with joy! And what a promise! He not only rejoices over us, He is actually rejoicing in His power to deliver us from our troubles!
What a difference when we are hooked up to the God of the Word who lives in our hearts, as opposed to trying to understand the Word of God with our brains.
One brings Life. The other brings Death. Thank God for the Tree of Life. Thank God for Jesus in our hearts.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
The Word of Christ
Did you realize that one of the first things Jesus did when He rose again was to teach the disciples about HIMSELF from the old testament?
25He said to them, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
26Did not the Christ[b] have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?"
27And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. Luke 24:25 NIV
I was reminded yesterday evening of something Pastor Prince mentioned in a sermon I heard some time ago. He said that Faith comes by hearing the word of CHRIST. The more we see Jesus in the Bible, the more our faith rises.
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. Romans 10:17 NAS
Interestingly enough, the word 'word' in the verse is actually 'Rhema'. That means a spoken word. It's when the Holy Spirit speaks into your heart. It's the 'now' word for your life. And did you realize that when Paul wrote these words under inspiration from the Holy Spirit, the Bible as in its present form didn't yet exist?
That means God wants us to live by faith, by the reality of the 'now' word the Holy Spirit is speaking in our hearts -- revealing to us Jesus.
When the Holy Spirit opens the Bible to us, He always points us to Jesus. But when we try to understand God's word with our own understanding, more often than not, we get confused, condemened and become legalistic.
4Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God.
5Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God.
6He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
7Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was,
8will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?
9If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness!
10For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory.
11And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!
12Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold.
13We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away.
14But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. 15Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts.
16But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect[a] the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Cor 3:4-18 NIV
So an accurate understanding of His Word does not come by reasoning with our minds. An accurate understanding of His Word comes when the Holy Spirit opens our hearts to see Jesus in the word! Jesus is the Tree of Life! He is not the Tree of the knowledge of good and evil!
The book of John tells us, that the Law came through Moses, but Grace and Truth comes through Jesus! The law condemns but Jesus is truth and life! Lets see Jesus!
Is it any wonder then that Paul's constant prayer for believers was:
17That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
18The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, Eph 1:17-18 KJV
Notice that it is the Spirit of Revelation and Wisdom flooding the eyes of our spirits (or your heart -- the core of your being) that causes us to really 'know'. Verse 18 says '. . .THAT you may know'.
Pray that prayer for youself continually. It will change your life.
25He said to them, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
26Did not the Christ[b] have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?"
27And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. Luke 24:25 NIV
I was reminded yesterday evening of something Pastor Prince mentioned in a sermon I heard some time ago. He said that Faith comes by hearing the word of CHRIST. The more we see Jesus in the Bible, the more our faith rises.
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. Romans 10:17 NAS
Interestingly enough, the word 'word' in the verse is actually 'Rhema'. That means a spoken word. It's when the Holy Spirit speaks into your heart. It's the 'now' word for your life. And did you realize that when Paul wrote these words under inspiration from the Holy Spirit, the Bible as in its present form didn't yet exist?
That means God wants us to live by faith, by the reality of the 'now' word the Holy Spirit is speaking in our hearts -- revealing to us Jesus.
When the Holy Spirit opens the Bible to us, He always points us to Jesus. But when we try to understand God's word with our own understanding, more often than not, we get confused, condemened and become legalistic.
4Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God.
5Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God.
6He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
7Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was,
8will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?
9If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness!
10For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory.
11And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!
12Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold.
13We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away.
14But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. 15Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts.
16But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect[a] the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Cor 3:4-18 NIV
So an accurate understanding of His Word does not come by reasoning with our minds. An accurate understanding of His Word comes when the Holy Spirit opens our hearts to see Jesus in the word! Jesus is the Tree of Life! He is not the Tree of the knowledge of good and evil!
The book of John tells us, that the Law came through Moses, but Grace and Truth comes through Jesus! The law condemns but Jesus is truth and life! Lets see Jesus!
Is it any wonder then that Paul's constant prayer for believers was:
17That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
18The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, Eph 1:17-18 KJV
Notice that it is the Spirit of Revelation and Wisdom flooding the eyes of our spirits (or your heart -- the core of your being) that causes us to really 'know'. Verse 18 says '. . .THAT you may know'.
Pray that prayer for youself continually. It will change your life.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
The Blood of Jesus Speaks
22But rather, you have come to Mount Zion, even to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless multitudes of angels in festal gathering,
23And to the church (assembly) of the Firstborn who are registered [as citizens] in heaven, and to the God Who is Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous (the redeemed in heaven) who have been made perfect,
24And to Jesus, the Mediator (Go-between, Agent) of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood which speaks [of mercy], a better and nobler and more gracious message than the blood of Abel [which cried out for vengeance].(I)
Hebrews 12:22-24 Amplified Bible
The blood of Jesus speaks better things than the blood of Abel. When Cain slew Abel in jealousy, Abel's blood cried out for vengence from the ground. When Jesus brought his blood to heaven and sprinkled it on the mercy seat, He transformed the mercy seat into the Throne of Grace!
The blood of Jesus today cries out 'It is Finished!' Instead of crying out for vengence, it cries out that our complete redemption has been utterly paid for.
In heaven's legislation, there is a new covenant in place. And that legislated covenant has been rattified (sealed and put into effect) by the blood of Jesus!
The blood cries out'you're healed', 'you're provided for', 'you're justified', 'you're a citizen of heaven', you're delivered'.
So when the Father answers your prayer, He's not 'doing you a favor'. He is being just. It's because of the blood of Jesus. The blood has qualified you.
Halelujah!
23And to the church (assembly) of the Firstborn who are registered [as citizens] in heaven, and to the God Who is Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous (the redeemed in heaven) who have been made perfect,
24And to Jesus, the Mediator (Go-between, Agent) of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood which speaks [of mercy], a better and nobler and more gracious message than the blood of Abel [which cried out for vengeance].(I)
Hebrews 12:22-24 Amplified Bible
The blood of Jesus speaks better things than the blood of Abel. When Cain slew Abel in jealousy, Abel's blood cried out for vengence from the ground. When Jesus brought his blood to heaven and sprinkled it on the mercy seat, He transformed the mercy seat into the Throne of Grace!
The blood of Jesus today cries out 'It is Finished!' Instead of crying out for vengence, it cries out that our complete redemption has been utterly paid for.
In heaven's legislation, there is a new covenant in place. And that legislated covenant has been rattified (sealed and put into effect) by the blood of Jesus!
The blood cries out'you're healed', 'you're provided for', 'you're justified', 'you're a citizen of heaven', you're delivered'.
So when the Father answers your prayer, He's not 'doing you a favor'. He is being just. It's because of the blood of Jesus. The blood has qualified you.
Halelujah!
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