Ephesians 5:27 That He might present it to Himself a Glorious Church not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be Holy and without blemish.
The Lord is coming back, and as the above passage of Scripture tells us, He is NOT coming back for a weak, apathetic, dirty Church. We are the Church. As citizens of the Kingdom of God, we are all part of the Body of Christ, His Bride. He is the Bridegroom, and He loves His Bride. He is coming back to take His Bride.
The spiritual battle is raging against the Church. Satan is doing everything he can to deceive unbelievers and believers alike. The spirit of deception is one of his greatest weapons. Satan is the father of lies. He is a liar, and he NEVER tells the truth. The Word of God is the only source of Truth.
The apathetic condition of the Church today is all due to the attack of Satan and his deception. He has infiltrated the minds of Christians with incredible deception, causing them to believe half-truths and false teaching. The preachers and teachers who have bought into Satan’s lies have preached and taught this false gospel for a long time, and the result is what we see now: A weak, apathetic Body of Christ.
God is calling His people into righteousness. Jesus loves the Church, His Bride. He wants His Bride to be beautiful and without spot or wrinkle; Holy, without blemish. When we read this, we know that on our own, in the flesh, we can never be totally without spot or wrinkle. So, what’s the remedy?
The Great Apostle Paul spells it out very plainly in Romans 3:22 Even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ, unto all and upon all them who believe.
The righteousness of God is ONLY by faith in Jesus. Every person on earth CAN be the righteousness of God. All they have to do is believe and have faith in Jesus and His Work on the Cross. We can not EARN righteousness or BUY righteousness. It is the Gift of God for believing in His Son.
Righteousness means to be just and right in the Eyes of God. Jesus talked a lot about righteousness. Matthew 5:6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled. Matthew 5:10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus spoke against worrying and being anxious, and concludes the passage with righteousness. I love this Passage of Scripture because it brings with it the Peace of God and the contentment in knowing God loves us and will provide for our every need. Take the time to read this Passage and know that you can rest in the Lord. You don’t have to worry about anything. He spends eight verses telling us to stop worrying about things. Then in Verse 33 He tells us to just seek Him and His Righteousness first, and when we do, everything else will be given to us. Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.
Actually, worry and anxiety is fear of what may happen. Fear is an evil spirit of Satan. If he can attack our thoughts and cause us to be worried or anxious, we lose faith. You cannot live totally by faith and be worried and anxious at the same time. Faith is a choice. We CHOOSE to believe or not. We CHOOSE to walk in fear, or we choose to walk in the power, love, and sound mind Jesus died for us to have.
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7)
Jesus is coming back for His Church. He is looking for a Righteous Church, clean, without spot or wrinkle. Our Righteousness comes through our Faith in Him. No worry. No fear. No anxiety. Just faith in the One who said, Come unto me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.
The Son of God will……….turn the tide
Choosing to believe and resting in Him, Doreen
www.bettsministries.org
