271-Don't Let Condemnation Block the Flow of Grace#
271-Don't Let Condemnation Block the Flow of Grace
(JP Text Group - Organized by the Little Prince of Heaven)
The topic we are sharing is called, Don't Let Condemnation Block the Flow of Grace.
Acts 13:36-41,
36 "For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption; 37 but He whom God raised up saw no corruption. 38 Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins;
39 and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses. 40 Beware therefore, lest what has been spoken in the prophets come upon you: 41 'Behold, you despisers, marvel and perish! For I work a work in your days, a work which you will by no means believe, though one were to declare it to you.'"
Let us pray together.
Heavenly Father! Thank You and praise You! Thank You for preparing this time for us to share Your words together. As a new week begins, You lead us with new grace, for You are the God who does new things. You provide us with the best and freshest every day. You know the needs of every brother and sister's heart, and You will supply us in due time. Through today's words, renew our thoughts and intentions. We completely entrust the following time to the Holy Spirit to help every brother and sister who comes to seek You. We pray in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen!
Why can condemnation block God's grace? Many times we say that God's grace cannot be blocked by anyone or anything, but there is indeed one thing that can hinder God's grace, and that is condemnation. The scripture we just read mentions that David followed God's will and served the people of his time. Please listen carefully: David did not serve according to his own will, but according to God's will, serving the people of that era.
Was David living under the law or under grace? David was a person living under the law. When he went to serve, was there condemnation inside him? Yes, but every time he had this problem, he would come before God to repent and confess his sins. This is one of David's wise points. Without this, David would have been very distressed.
If you carefully read 1 and 2 Kings, you will find that David's life was very tumultuous. He was not favored at home as a child, later he came under Saul's command and finally made a name for himself, but then King Saul began to pursue him. After finally becoming king, his sons went against him.
His life was often very difficult, but in God's eyes, David followed God's will while he was alive (the original meaning is that David served the people of his time according to God's will and fell asleep), so David's service relied on God, and such service is remembered by God and is effective. Nevertheless, David still lived under the law and often condemned himself. We do not believe in David now, but in Jesus Christ, because David is dead.
The Bible says he went to his ancestors and has seen corruption. Only God raised him up, and he has not seen corruption; this refers to our Lord Jesus Christ. Every brother and sister has hope because we believe not in a dead person, but in Jesus Christ, who has risen from the dead and has not seen corruption. From this, we can see that Jesus' resurrection brings us the way of forgiveness. If you do not understand God's forgiveness, it is easy to live in condemnation.
As mentioned earlier, David lived under the law, so David said, "Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute sin." David particularly envied those of us who are under grace today, under the New Covenant, because he could easily live in condemnation. Many of us often live in self-blame and condemnation because we do not understand God's forgiveness. Generally, such people will bear bad fruit, and it is hard to tell whether it is caused by condemnation; just look at the results.
Many Christians often ask, "Why does this happen to me? Why hasn't God protected me?" They always ask God why. Such people are actually living in condemnation, and they will always have these problems in their lives, which may be depression, fear, or anger, various diseases, disharmony in relationships, broken marriages...
These are just the visible fruits. A person who is always angry and doubtful actually has condemnation inside, and this is the fruit produced by condemnation. The cause of these is that God has already told us, which is condemnation. We accept the condemnation of others; let's not talk about the right or wrong of the matter. As long as we accept the condemnation of others, it may be someone else's fault, but you have accepted the wrong words.
For example, when someone calls you a pig or a dog, are you very angry? You are neither a pig nor a dog, so why be angry? Especially if someone at home often provokes you in this way, you will be very angry. You know very well that what they said is a lie and cannot be true. Why would you be angry? For instance, if someone maliciously says, "Your child is nothing..."
You know this cannot happen, yet you still get very angry. The reason is that you accepted their condemnation. Even if it is a lie, once you accept it, you will be very angry. Anger is just a fruit of condemnation.
Another thing is falling into fear, with various issues constantly arising. When a person often lives in fear or anger, how can they bear God's grace? How can God's peace and joy be with you when you are angry? You say one second you are very angry, the next second you are very joyful, then you are angry again, and then you are peaceful again. What kind of existence is this? Therefore, if God's grace flows within you, you must be filled with peace and joy. If you accept condemnation, the fruits produced will be those of the flesh, seeing no one as pleasing, feeling wronged by everyone. In reality, this is condemnation, and this condemnation can block the flow of God's grace.
When a person falls into condemnation, they will constantly look at their own problems and the problems of others; their focus is on people. When others insult you, you see their expressions and actions, and your eyes are always on them, believing that what they say will come true, which is why you get angry.
So your focus is either on yourself or on others, in short, on people. Please remember: if your focus is on people, you will surely become discouraged and disappointed. God's grace is not for us to focus on ourselves but to focus on what Jesus has done for you on the cross. At that time, peace and joy will be supplied. Amen!
When others use filthy words to call you a pig or a dog, do not listen to what that person is saying. Compare their words before God; whose words are correct? In God's eyes, you are His beloved child, the apple of His eye. Therefore, the person who insults you is certainly speaking lies. As long as you remember what God has said about you, that your life has been redeemed by Jesus with His precious blood and His life, as long as you remember your identity in God's eyes, you will not care about what others say. This is a matter of focus.
Once you shift your focus from God to people, it is easy to fall into condemnation. What others say about you may be correct, for example, "What have you gained by believing in Jesus? Aren't you still empty?" Such words can be very hurtful, but you think, "I may have nothing, but that does not mean my God will not give me anything."
At any time, as long as you shift your focus from people to God, what you see is God's provision. This is the flow of God's grace. You look at God's provision for you, not the problems. Therefore, if you can eliminate the consciousness of condemnation and turn your focus to Jesus, always looking up to Jesus for provision, you can prosper in everything in life.
What I mean by prospering in everything is similar to Joseph in Genesis, that is, when you face any problems or difficulties, you do not take them seriously because you know your Lord is with you. He will help you, and all things will work together for your good. You are not denying the existence of these problems; they are facts. However, you know that God will change them, turning curses into blessings, and you will enjoy the freedom, peace, and joy that comes from God.
We will share through two people how terrifying this condemnation can be. In the history of Israel in the Old Testament, they once made a great mistake. They did not listen to God's words and were mostly rebellious against God. Therefore, their history was also very tumultuous. Many times they suffered calamities and liked to worship foreign idols, unwilling to listen to God's words and live according to the ways of the Gentiles.
Some may say, "You Christians are dictatorial; look at other religions, they do not exclude you, but you always exclude others." Why does our God say these things? Many people think, "Isn't it just worshiping an idol? What's the big deal?" Today I want to tell you, once a person leaves God and focuses on anything else, it is easy to fall into self-centeredness.
Those who worship idols truly believe in those idols? In fact, they are just using that idol. If this god does not work, they will switch to another one. If this one can bring me benefits, they will offer some incense. If they are in a bad mood one day, they will not care about it anymore. They do not treat that as a god; they are just using it, and they are still self-centered.
Once a person leaves God, they will certainly live in a self-centered way, which will lead to two results: if they succeed, they will be very proud; if they fail, they will easily fall into condemnation and self-blame. Those who fail will say, "This is my fate! I am useless and cannot do anything." They easily condemn themselves. God does not want them to live this way because they have God, not because they are a group of people without God.
So God repeatedly sent prophets to tell them not to worship idols. In the past, they committed many sins, but through sacrifices, they could obtain forgiveness. But worshiping idols is worshiping other gods, which is actually replacing God with their own ideas. When they worship those idols, they will not offer sacrifices to the true God.
In the Old Testament, once they did not offer sin offerings to God, their sins would be revealed. How did God act? God sent one prophet after another to tell them, "Repent." If you read the prophetic books, you will find these things mentioned. What is the purpose of mentioning these things? Why does God want to tell them to repent? Is it because God cannot do without these people? To be practical, do you come to worship God because God cannot do without you? The reason is that you cannot do without God; that is the fact.
God sent prophets to tell them to repent because this group of people could not do without God. But how did the people think? A self-centered person would think, "You want me to go back and worship God? I hate that God. Look how good this false god is! I can make him do whatever I want. I want to worship him, and I can worship him, but when I worship Jehovah, I have to do it His way." Then they are no longer self-centered, right?
People are unwilling to be constrained by this. They killed many prophets. God told them to repent, but they did not listen. Until finally, God said, "You will be taken captive and will live like the world." God let go, and as a result, this group of people was taken captive to Babylon, where they lived as slaves for seventy years until the first year of King Cyrus of Persia.
Cyrus was a king who feared God. After he came to power, because the original temple was destroyed, he said to this group of Israelites, "You can return to your homeland and rebuild your temple." In fact, at that time, most people were unwilling to return and preferred to continue being slaves, which shows that this group of people no longer knew what was good or bad. Only a small number of people were willing to return and rebuild the temple.
There were two leading figures, one named Joshua, the high priest, and the other named Zerubbabel, who was the governor at the time. In the second year after they returned, they began to rebuild the temple. These two understood what God meant: they needed to return and build the temple and have a life of faith, which was a good thought.
Brothers and sisters, when your thoughts are correct, there will definitely be obstacles. If they stayed in Babylon, there would be no obstacles. But when you resolve to live centered on God, the devil will definitely obstruct you. While they were building the temple, some Samaritans, whose faith had become confused, did not want to live according to God's ways and were a group of idol worshipers. These people began to threaten Zerubbabel and Joshua, saying, "If you build this temple, we will report you as a group of rebellious people." The Samaritans really went to the king and reported them, which delayed the project.
In fact, Joshua and the others understood that this was God's will, and they should not accept the condemnation of these people. However, they accepted it, became afraid, and retreated. Both leaders felt fear. The project to rebuild the temple stopped. Originally, the temple could have been built in four or five years, but they delayed it for a full fifteen years because the Samaritans wrote a letter to the king, and the Persian king thought this group of people would rebel against them after returning, so he ordered them to stop.
Under pressure from all sides, they stopped. The entire situation was very unfavorable for Joshua and Zerubbabel. There was no provision, and it seemed that they could not see God's grace. They felt fear and depression, and the people stopped building the temple and returned to their homes to start rebuilding their own houses. If you read the book of Nehemiah, you will find that Nehemiah said, "Your houses are fine, but the temple is desolate. You cannot live only for yourselves." Why did the prophet say such words? Because the people were no longer building the temple, and the king did not allow them to build. The project had already been delayed for fifteen years. Now let us see what happened spiritually.
Zechariah 3:1-5,
1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him. 2 And the Lord said to Satan, "The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?"
3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel. 4 Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, "Take away the filthy garments from him." And to him He said, "See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes." 5 And I said, "Let them put a clean turban on his head." So they put a clean turban on his head and they put the clothes on him. The Angel of the Lord stood by.
Isn't this an internal matter for Joshua? In fact, the visible result was that the project stopped, and everyone went home. But in the spiritual realm, God, through Zechariah, revealed the true situation inside Joshua. The angel showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the Lord, and Satan was also standing at Joshua's right hand to oppose him.
Brothers and sisters, if you know that God is standing beside you and Satan is also standing beside you, do you believe in God or Satan? Joshua believed Satan. Do not forget that Satan is the accuser. He stands beside Joshua to oppose him. When you want to build the temple, he will destroy it.
The Lord said to Satan, "The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?"
In fact, those who oppose the high priest Joshua are revealed through a prophetic vision. Zechariah saw that Joshua was condemned, and Satan was opposing him. However, he did not see that God's messenger was also standing beside him; he only saw Satan's work and all the negative things, which made him weak and feel filthy, believing he could not accomplish anything. Joshua stood before the messenger in filthy garments, feeling that he was filthy and guilty. The messenger commanded those standing before him, "Take away the filthy garments from him." And to Joshua, he said, "I will remove your iniquity from you and clothe you with rich robes."
Brothers and sisters, if you cannot see these things spiritually, you will continue to be depressed. For fifteen years, he always thought that the Persian kingdom brought them great obstacles. He always thought that this group of detestable Samaritans hindered God's work. If only they were not there, he blamed all the problems on external forces, all the enemies being too detestable.
Have you ever heard some Christians say such things? "It's all the devil disturbing me. Otherwise, I could definitely believe in the Lord well. It's all the devil ruling my house; otherwise, my house would not be in such chaos." They blame everything on the enemy, Satan. This is Joshua's problem and also the problem of many believers today.
They fail and accomplish nothing, often feeling fear and anger, which manifests as cynicism, feeling wronged by everyone, blaming their failures on the surrounding environment and people, saying, "The environment is bad, the people around me are bad, they are all bad to me, the people in this church are bad, the pastor is bad, my colleagues in the company have problems; it is all their fault."
Isn't this a form of complaint? Where is the problem? They are condemned inside, so all they see is negative. If you encounter such problems, see how God acts. God says, "Take away the filthy garments from him. I will remove your iniquity from you and clothe you with rich robes. I will put a clean turban on your head." They put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with rich robes, and the Angel of the Lord stood by. In the end, why is there no mention of Satan? Because the condemnation was removed, and Satan had nothing to do with it.
Brothers and sisters, once the sin and sense of condemnation in your heart are removed, you will no longer see the devil's work. "My God has clothed me with rich robes and put a clean turban on my head," and you will have strength. In fact, God's intention is that Joshua was condemned. If you feel condemned, grace cannot flow in your life. It must be remembered: living under condemnation is not living under grace. So where does condemnation come from?
Under the law, the purpose of the law is to make people aware of sin. Without the law, we would not know we are sinners. Therefore, the law makes people aware of sin, which leads to condemnation, and you cannot solve your sin. However, our situation is different now. You cannot keep all the law; you know the law will condemn you, but you must also realize another thing: Jesus has fulfilled the law for you. You must focus on Jesus; otherwise, you will fall into condemnation.
When Joshua constantly focused on his failures, what happened? He shrank back. He is the high priest; why mention this? The high priest directly affects the relationship of the entire nation. Just like our saying, "A bear leads a bear's den," if this leader is useless, no matter how capable the soldiers below are, it does not matter.
What does God mean here? If the high priest feels condemned, his nation and people will not be well; if the high priest is good, filled with God's words, and capable, recognizing himself correctly before God, God sees the high priest as good, and the entire nation and people will be blessed. If the high priest is bad, the entire people will not be blessed by God.
There was a bad priest named Eli. The Bible says he was blind and the Philistines came to battle. They were always defeated. He heard that their ancestors had taken the Ark of the Covenant to the battlefield, and the enemies would fail. So he did the same and commanded people to take the Ark to the battlefield, but even the Ark was captured by the enemy.
Is our God powerless? No, this high priest was too bad. He was blind and casually condemned his people, lacking power. So even if the people took the Ark to the battlefield, they would still fail. Do you know who your high priest is? Is Jesus pleasing to God? Is He a capable high priest? Does Jesus have condemnation in His heart? No, so today we are accepted by God. If the high priest is fearful, he will hesitate.
Joshua always thought that it was the Persian king who was too bad and the Samaritans who were too bad. In fact, it was his problem.
Brothers and sisters, in our families and workplaces, if you feel that there is not a single good person around you, that is your problem. You need to work hard to elevate yourself to know God and expand your horizons; these people will not matter. Live according to God's ways, define yourself by God's words, and you will not be condemned. At that time, you will see everyone as good. Otherwise, if you were to take Jesus' place and save Israel, you would want to beat them all to death: "The twelve disciples did not take me seriously, and after three years, they all ran away." You certainly could not stand it. But why could Jesus still accept them? Because His realm is infinitely expansive. He knows what His identity is, and He also knows how the Father sees Him. Therefore, He knows He can rely on the Father's power to overcome the enemy behind.
Because Joshua did not think about his own problems and always felt it was an external issue, he became weak, and his mouth was sealed. Let us not discuss whether he was guilty; the problem is that for fifteen years, he never sought help from God, nor did he let God deal with this problem. He did not come out of condemnation to cry out to God but blamed the problems on others. What should we do when we encounter problems? Pray to God and ask Him to give us wisdom to overcome this problem.
Remember the metaphor I shared with you before: You are sitting in a boat, and a big rock blocks your way. You will pray, "Lord, please move this rock." This is how many people pray. After a while, another rock appears in front of you, and you pray, "Lord, please move this rock." If God does not move it for you, you start crying, "Lord, why do You not listen to my prayers? Why is this happening? Have You abandoned me?" Immediately, condemnation will arise.
There is a permanent solution to the problem: God sends rain, and the river water rises above all the rocks, and you can pass through, right? God's way is to increase our capacity so that these problems and people do not matter. Joshua did not come out of condemnation to cry out to God; he always blamed the problems on others. If you do not change yourself, even if you change companies, the problem will reappear. If you do not get along with people in this church, changing to another church will still be the same. What needs to be dealt with is the problem of condemnation inside you.
Satan constantly whispers in Joshua's ear, "Look how filthy you are; you are really useless..." The more he says, the angrier you become, right? The angrier you get, the more you condemn yourself, wanting to conquer the Samaritans by force, only to find it does not work. They always report you, and you cannot even win against the Persian king at that time. What to do? The surrounding enemies are increasing, and God does not want you to look at these. The devil wants you to focus on yourself. He will make you feel that you have accomplished nothing, that your dreams will be shattered, and that you still want to build the temple? No way. This condemnation is very destructive.
The other one, Zerubbabel, was actually not in a much better situation. So how did God help these two leaders stand up again? It was through the prophecy of the prophet Zechariah that they re-recognized themselves.
Zechariah 4:6-7,
6 So he answered and said to me: "This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the Lord of hosts. 7 'Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of 'Grace, grace to it!''"
This is what the prophet said to Zerubbabel. Now Zerubbabel is still in weakness. God begins to speak to him through prophecy: "Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit." Many people particularly like this verse. The underlying issue is that Zerubbabel had been depressed for fifteen years, just like the high priest, constantly condemning himself, feeling that the external environment was bad and that people were bad.
At this time, God said to him, "Not by might." Were the Samaritans relying on might? "Not by power." Was the Persian king relying on power? "You will accomplish this by My Spirit, the Holy Spirit." Look at your husband at home, the angry boss at work, the disobedient children... These are actually the forces behind them. You need to overcome them: "In the name of the Lord Jesus, I command the spirit disturbing my husband to leave him." Once the force behind is broken, he will turn back immediately. You must know that it is by the Lord's Spirit that you can accomplish things.
Then it tells him, "Who are you, O great mountain?" What is before the high priest and Zerubbabel? It seems like a great mountain. How can the temple be built? The people have all gone home to do their own work. There are heavy obstacles ahead; what should I do? But God's word is, "Who are you, O great mountain?"
Everyone has their own great mountain, which is a huge obstacle. You can also say: any obstacle that makes you feel like there is no way to solve the problem, perhaps your illness, your family, your work, your fear of the future, but what are these? What is a great mountain? Before Zerubbabel, it will become a plain. This proves that God's Spirit will remove the obstacles in front of you and help you overcome this problem. Hallelujah!
Remember when John the Baptist testified about Jesus, how did he say it? "Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill brought low." Jesus came to do this. In front of you, there are either high mountains or deep valleys. Sometimes we are particularly high, and when we are high, we start to become proud, forgetting who we are. Suddenly, we fall down into a deep valley and cannot get up. What God wants to do is to cut away your pride and pull you up from the bottom of the valley, filling your valleys so that you walk on level ground. Thank and praise the Lord!
So what are these? You should say to yourself, "What is this illness? In my Lord, in the Holy Spirit, it is nothing." No matter what it is, whether it is a great mountain or any obstacle, you can declare to it, "Before Zerubbabel, you shall become a plain."
Today you should make a declaration to yourself. Now let us use this phrase and declare together, replacing Zerubbabel's name with your own: "O great mountain, who are you? Before _______ you shall become a plain. Amen!"
Will you declare like this when you encounter problems in the future? Because I do not rely on my own might, nor on my own power; I rely on God's Spirit, the Holy Spirit, who dwells within me. Hallelujah! Once you learn this, problems will not be problems anymore.
In the New Testament, how did Jesus say? "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move." Isn't it invisible then? This is actually what Jesus knows in His heart: "O great mountain, who are you? Before Jesus Christ, you shall become a plain."
This is why when Jesus healed the sick, He was different from us. Many people, when they have faith, will say, "Let's pray and see." When they have this mindset, they are already prepared for two outcomes: one with effect and one without effect. When Jesus healed people, was there any possibility of these two outcomes? What was He thinking? "O great mountain, who are you? Before Jesus, you shall become a plain." So He would say to diseases, "Leave," and to demons, "Come out." He relied on the Holy Spirit within Him. Now do you all understand? Remember that? When you go back, replace Zerubbabel's name with your own, and start declaring against your illness and your problems. It may seem like you are declaring to the air, but in reality, you are declaring against the evil forces behind it, commanding them to leave in the name of Jesus Christ.
This great mountain shall become a plain before Zerubbabel. It goes on to say, "He shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of 'Grace, grace to it!'" Do you know what this means? This represents the completion of the temple, saying that Zerubbabel will place the last stone on top, proving that the project is finished.
When we have a project that is topped off, we will celebrate with firecrackers. When the last brick is placed, the project is completed. The meaning here is the same. Zerubbabel will take a stone and place it on the top of the temple, which is the last stone placed on the building. There are two important stones: the cornerstone and the last stone. The cornerstone is the standard for all buildings. If you do not rely on that stone as the standard, the middle may be crooked, and you will not know. That stone cannot be shifted; it is our permanent standard.
Jesus Christ is that cornerstone, the permanent standard of our faith. When the last stone is placed, there is still one stone to be placed, and that project is considered complete. The last stone is also Jesus Christ; He is the beginning and the end. Amen!
What does it finally say? "And the people shouted with a loud voice, 'Grace, grace to this temple!'" Amen! When the project is completed, the people shout that God's grace has come upon this temple. Is it not still giving glory to God? Brothers and sisters, starting with Jesus Christ as the foundation and ending with acknowledging that this is God's work, this matter will be accomplished. After a full fifteen years of hesitation, God has already clarified this to them through the prophet. Let us look at what is clearly stated in the book of Ezra.
Ezra 6:14-15,
14 And the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built and finished it according to the commandment of the God of Israel and according to the decree of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, king of Persia. 15 Now the temple was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
If they had acted this way from the beginning, believing in God's will and God's command, this temple would have been built long ago. What is feared is that the leaders are filled with fear and condemnation, which will cause all subsequent projects to stop. If your heart is filled with condemnation, God's grace cannot flow in your life, nor can it flow in your family. Therefore, condemnation must be removed.
Fifteen years later, they went to rebuild the unfinished temple. The prophet Haggai had already told us about this matter; you have heard the correct message. Did we not just read the encouraging words of the prophet to the two of them? They correctly recognized themselves. First, the high priest Joshua knew he was wearing a clean crown and rich robes; he remembered his identity, and then he had strength. The prophet told Zerubbabel that any great mountain would be leveled before him, and he would place the last stone on the temple. When Zerubbabel heard this, did he also gain strength? After hearing such encouraging words, the two of them began to build the temple.
What is the last phrase? They prospered in everything. Why did they become prosperous in everything at this time? Why were they always afraid of various problems fifteen years ago? Because they were spiritually condemned. Satan told them, "You have accomplished nothing; you cannot do it; how big your problems are; do not do it."
He believed it, and as a result, he became weak. But God told him another message: "You wear the clean crown I have given you; you wear the rich robes I have given you; you are pleasing to me." Wasn't the condemnation removed? Then they had strength, and the two of them began to lead the people to rebuild the temple, and those obstacles disappeared. It seems that the problem lies with this person, but when we look at ourselves correctly through God's way, once the condemnation inside you is removed, you will have strength.
Once you have strength, your environment will also begin to change. Some people say, "It seems that the more faith I have, the greater my faith becomes; the less faith I have, the less faith I have." In fact, it is like this: the more you rely on God, the more willing you are to rely on God; those who do not rely on God will become less willing to rely on God because they feel it does not work.
So, as we just read in Zechariah, God's messenger told him, "I have removed your filthy garments; I have removed your iniquity." Do you know what kind of identity you have? You have believed in the Lord Jesus and accepted Jesus as your Lord. You are also standing before God in rich robes, wearing a clean crown.
The Father is pleased with you because the crown you wear is not yours; it is Jesus'; the rich robes you wear are not yours; they are Jesus' righteousness. Every day, remember this identity. No matter what others say about you, what does it matter? If others say you are incapable, you say, "Yes, I am incapable, but I do not rely on my ability; I rely on Jesus' ability."
If others say, "You still believe in Jesus; look at how you are living," you respond, "You do not know me; the peace and joy in my heart, the blessings God has given me, are things you will never know." Therefore, you should never accept these wrong condemnations. Hallelujah!
Hebrews 10:19-23,
19 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and having a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
Now you know one thing: the reason you can wear this clean crown and put on these rich robes is because of the blood of Jesus. Today, you can stand before God boldly and without fear because Jesus has opened a new and living way for you. So who is your current priest?
The Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, whether you are blessed is not related to your efforts but to Jesus. If Jesus is accepted by God, what you do will be blessed. Although there are obstacles, you can command like Zerubbabel, and the situation will change. You need to remove the sense of indebtedness to God in your heart. You are now relying on the blood of Jesus and are no longer indebted to God.
When we interact with others, Paul said you should often feel indebted to each other, meaning "I do not love you enough; I do not do enough." This is in front of people, but before God, you cannot think this way. If you think this way, condemnation will arise immediately. You must hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering. You must believe that you are pleasing to God in His presence and firmly remember this hope without wavering.
Acts 13:38-39,
38 Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; 39 and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Why has your condemnation been removed? Because you have believed in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is different from the law of Moses. In the past, they relied on the law of Moses and were always condemned because the law of Moses could not be kept, so they were often condemned. But now that you believe in Jesus, you should not live in condemnation; you should live in the grace of forgiveness.
You should know that the way of forgiveness is preached to you by this Man, and this Man is Jesus. The way of forgiveness is preached to you by Jesus. The gospel begins with Jesus. Therefore, since you preach the gospel, what you bring to others is the way of forgiveness. You must tell others what the Father has done for them, sending Jesus to die on the cross for their sins. This is the message we need to convey, telling them, "Your sins are forgiven." Once a person knows their sins are forgiven, they will be released inside, and God's grace can flow. Hallelujah!
In the four gospels, you can see many times Jesus said to someone, "Your sins are forgiven; take up your bed and go home." Why does He not say, "Take up your bed and go home; your sins are forgiven"? Why does He say, "Your sins are forgiven" first? Once this person accepts, "God no longer condemns me," it means God will heal me.
Think about it: when you pray, you are uncertain whether God will listen, uncertain whether God will heal you, because you feel you are not good enough, that you are far from God, because your behavior is not good enough. Aren't these all things of condemnation? Once these are removed, you believe that through Jesus, knowing that you receive the way of forgiveness, you can receive God's healing, receive God's prosperity, and receive God's peace and joy. These are freely given to you.
So all of this relies on this Man, and you will be justified. As we continually receive God's forgiveness, God's grace will flow upon you, good things will happen continuously. This is why in the church under the New Covenant of grace, good things always happen, healing from diseases, life changes, family transformations, and many people are willing to trust the Lord. The reason these things happen is that they have received God's way of forgiveness.
Finally, let us look at a passage of scripture that you can meditate on.
Luke 4:18-19,
18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."
This is a statement made by Jesus. He is our high priest. What Jesus said can also be fulfilled in us today. The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me refers to the Holy Spirit. You now have the Holy Spirit upon you; this cannot be doubted. Even if you are weak, you cannot doubt that if I sin today, the Holy Spirit has left me. This is under the Old Covenant, not under the New Covenant.
At the moment you accepted Jesus as your Savior, the Holy Spirit dwelt within you. Therefore, you can also say, "The Holy Spirit is upon me because He has anointed me." He anointed Jesus; can He not anoint you? Do you want to experience God's healing power? Go preach the gospel. "He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor." Many people always like to see miracles, so they go preach the gospel. You can only see this happening in the ministry.
If you just want to sit at home waiting for a pie to fall from the sky, hoping God will send a raven to bring you some meat, you will know that God will not do this. When you are in the ministry, helping others, God will work through you. Amen!
"He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent me to proclaim." What does proclaim mean? When you do financial reports at the end of the month in your company, it proves that this matter has already happened, that it has already been completed. You are just submitting the report to let them see that the report is already accomplished. We tell others what Jesus has accomplished for them.
"Liberty to the captives" does not mean, "You are now captive; first pray and see if God can release you." It means telling them, "The Spirit of God has entered you, and you will be released. Do not be enslaved by condemnation; you should live in the grace of forgiveness and be released."
"The blind receive sight." In the past, we could not see God, thinking we were the greatest, fearing nothing. But now, when you see God's grace, you will humble yourself and be released.
"To set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." Is this not the content of the gospel? I have mentioned before that every year is a year of jubilee. Do not envy the Israelites under the Old Covenant; that is nothing. They had to wait fifty years for a year of jubilee. Do you know what jubilee means?
It means that debts owed in the past are completely forgiven at the year of jubilee. Those who were slaves are set free at the year of jubilee. When Jesus came, He had already accomplished this. Simply put, from the year when Jesus Christ was crucified for us and accomplished the grace of forgiveness, every year afterward is a year of jubilee. Amen!
Last week, someone asked me a question: Is it Saturday or Sunday that we gather? What do you think? Sunday gathering? Then what is Saturday gathering? Is it not remembered by God? Many people's concepts have not shifted. They think gathering must be on Sunday, and gatherings at other times do not count. That is a Jewish way of thinking. They believe the Sabbath is the time for gathering, and at other times, they cannot gather; at other times, they are just doing their own work. Only that day is set apart for God. But they forget that we gather on Sunday because Jesus rose on that day. We celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ and also commemorate what Jesus has accomplished for us, so we designate this day as the Lord's Day. Can we gather on other days? Yes.
Please remember: Every year is a year of jubilee; every day is a day of release, a day of freedom. You cannot say, "This illness can only be dealt with by praying at church on Sunday; it does not work on Monday." Anytime you pray, God listens because now is the time of release. We need to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, in the year of jubilee, they can all be released and set free. Therefore, every day is a day blessed by God.
Let us pray together:
Heavenly Father! We thank and praise You! Thank You for this time today, allowing us to receive Your grace and through Your words, removing the condemnation in our hearts. Jesus came to bring us the grace of forgiveness. We live under the grace of forgiveness, for it is the blood of Jesus that has opened a new and living way for us. Because Jesus shed His precious blood, all my sins are forgiven. I wear a clean crown on my head and am clothed in God's beautiful garments. Relying on Jesus' armor, I can withstand all the attacks of the enemy.
I do not accept the condemnation they say about me; I accept God's definition of me. At the same time, I do not condemn others. When I condemn others, it is because I am filled with self. I am willing to be filled with Your Holy Spirit, filled with Your words, filled with Your grace of forgiveness. What I give to others is also forgiveness.
Lord! You give me strength to forgive others because it is You who gives me strength. In this new week, I am willing to live with Your words, no matter what great mountain is before me. The issue to resolve is the condemnation in my heart. I receive the grace of forgiveness from God, and I receive this strength, so I can level the great mountain that hinders me. Thank and praise You!
Heavenly Father, thank You for giving me such words today, allowing me to live with Your words and bear witness to glorify Your name in life. All glory belongs to You, and I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen!