The sacrifice has been made; Abraham’s faith had been tested and found perfect; “And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, and said, By Myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply * thy seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea-shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of His enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice.” Genesis 22:15-18.
* “Blessing I will bless,” and “multiplying I will multiply,” is the literal translation of a very common Hebrew idiom. Emphasis in the Hebrew is denoted by repetition. Put into ordinary English, the text would read, “I will surely bless thee, and I will surely multiply thy seed.” Similar instances may be seen in the margin of Genesis 2:16, 17, “eating thou mayest eat,” and “dying thou shalt die,” for “thou mayest freely eat,” and “thou shalt surely die.” In Exodus 3:7, “I have surely seen,” the same idiom occurs, “Seeing I have seen.” In Acts 7:34 this emphatic repetition is preserved in “I have seen, I have seen.”
In the Epistle to the Hebrews we learn the significance of the fact that God swore by Himself. The reader will at once see that the following Scripture has direct reference to that which has just been quoted: —
“When God made promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no greater, He sware by Himself, saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For men verily swear by the greater; and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife. Wherein God, willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath; that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us; which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.” Hebrews 6:13-20.
The oath was not for Abraham’s sake. His belief in God was complete without the oath to back the promise. His faith had been shown to be perfect, before the oath was given. Moreover, if it had been given for his sake, there would have been no necessity of putting it on record, since he was dead long before the record was written. But God was willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, and so He confirmed the promise by an oath.
And who are heirs of the promise? — The next clause tells us. The oath was in order that “we might have a strong consolation.” The oath was given for our sakes. This shows that the covenant with Abraham concerns us. Those who are Christ’s are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise; and this oath was given to be an encouragement to us when we flee for refuge to Christ.
How plainly this last reference shows us that the whole of the covenant with Abraham, with all of its included promises, is purely Gospel. The oath backs the promise; but the oath gives consolation to us when fleeing for refuge to Christ; therefore the promise has reference to that which is to be gained in Christ. This is also shown in the text which has so often been repeated, “If ye are Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” The promise had nothing else in view but Christ and the blessings which are bestowed through His cross. Thus it was that the Apostle Paul, whose determination was to know nothing but “Jesus Christ and Him crucified,” could also say that he stood and was judged “for the hope of the promise made of God unto the fathers.” Acts 26:6. The “hope of the promise made of God unto the fathers,” is “the hope set before us” in Christ and which is made “more abundantly” sure by the oath of God to Abraham.
The oath of God confirmed the covenant. The oath by which the promise was confirmed gives us strong consolation when we flee for refuge to the sanctuary where Christ is priest in our behalf, after the order of Melchizedek. Therefore that oath was the same as the oath that made Christ priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. This is clearly set forth in the statement that Christ was made priest “with an oath by Him that said unto Him, The Lord sware, and will not repent, Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 7:21), and that He is able therefore to save them to the uttermost that come to God by Him.
Still further, The oath by which Christ was made priest after the order of Melchizedek was the oath by which He is made surety of a “better covenant” (verse 22), even the new covenant. But the oath by which Jesus was made priest after the order of Melchizedek was the same as the oath by which the covenant with Abraham was confirmed. Therefore the covenant with Abraham is identical in its scope with the new covenant. There is nothing in the new covenant that is not in the covenant with Abraham; and no one will ever be included in the new covenant, who is not a child of Abraham through the covenant made with him.
What wonderful consolation is lost by those who fail to see the Gospel and the Gospel only in the promise of God to Abraham. The “strong consolation” which the oath of God gives us, is in Christ’s work as “a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.” As a priest He presents His blood, through which we have redemption, even the forgiveness of sins. As a priest He not only provides mercy for us, but “grace to help in time of need.” This is assured to us “without respect of persons,” by the oath of God.
Here is a poor, timid, trembling soul, cast down and despondent by a sense of sins committed, and of general weakness and unworthiness. He is afraid that God will not accept him. He thinks that he is too insignificant for God to notice, and that it would make no difference to anybody, not even to God, if he were lost. To such the Lord says, “Look unto Me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the Lord; look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged. Look unto Abraham your father, and to Sarah that bare you; for I called him alone [when he was but one, R.V.], and blessed him, and increased him. For the Lord shall comfort Zion; He will comfort all her waste places; He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving and the voice of melody.” Isaiah 51:1-3.
Look to Abraham, brought up a heathen, and see what God did for him, and what He promised to him, confirming it with an oath by Himself, for your sake. You think that it would make no difference with the Lord if you were lost, because you are so obscure and insignificant. Why, your worthiness or unworthiness has nothing whatever to do with the matter. The Lord says, “I, even I, am He that blotteth out thy transgressions for Mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.” Isaiah 43:25. For His own sake? Yes, certainly; because of His great love wherewith He loved us, He has placed Himself under bonds to do it. He swore by Himself to save all that come to Him through Jesus Christ, and “He abideth faithful; He cannot deny Himself.” 2 Timothy 2:13.
That is, He pledged Himself, and His own existence, to our salvation in Jesus Christ. He put Himself in pawn. His life for ours, if we are lost while trusting Him. His honor is at stake. It is not a question of whether or not you are insignificant and of little or no worth. He Himself says that we are “less than nothing.” Isaiah 40:17. He says that we have sold ourselves for naught (Isaiah 52:3), which shows our true value; but we are to be redeemed without money, even by the precious blood of Christ. The blood of Christ is the life of Christ; and the life of Christ bestowed upon us makes us partakers of His worth. The only question is, Can God afford to break or forget His oath? And the answer is that we have “two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie.”
Think of what would be involved in the breaking of that promise and that oath. The word of God, which brings the promise, is the word which created the heavens and the earth, and which upholds them. “Lift up your eyes on high, and see who hath created these, that bringeth out their host by number; He calleth them all by name; by the greatness of His might, and for that He is strong in power, not one is lacking. Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, my way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed away from my God?” Isaiah 40:25-27. The preceding part of this same chapter speaks of the word of God, which has created all things, and that it shall stand forever, and the words are quoted by the Apostle Peter, with the additional statement, “And this is the word which by the Gospel is preached unto you.” 1 Peter 1:25.
It is the word of God in Christ that upholds the universe, and keeps the innumerable stars in their places. “In Him all things consist.” If He should fail, the universe would collapse. But God is no more sure than His word, for His word is backed by His oath. He has pledged His own existence to the performance of His word. If His word should be broken to the humblest soul in the world, He Himself would be disgraced, dishonored, and dethroned. The universe would go to chaos and annihilation.
Thus the entire universe is in the balance to insure the salvation of every soul that seeks it in Christ. The power manifested in it is the power pledged to the help of the weak. So long as matter exists, so long will the word of God be sure. “Forever, O Lord, Thy word is settled in heaven.” Psalms 119:89. It would be a sad loss to you if you should fail of salvation; but it would be a far greater loss to the Lord if you should fail through any fault of His. Then let the aforetime doubting soul sing: —
“His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.”
By E. J. Waggoner — The Present Truth, July 9, 1896
Blog Edited by John Foll.
By E. J. Waggoner articles, from The Present Truth magazine from May 7, 1896 to May 27, 1897
01 The Gospel Message - The Everlasting Gospel
03 The Call of Abraham - The Promise to Abraham
06 The Flesh Against the Spirit
07 The Covenant Sealed (Part 1)
08 The Covenant Sealed (Part 2)
09 The Test of Faith Editor's Notes
10 The Promise and the Oath
11 The Promise of Victory
12 The Promise to Israel – A General View
13 Israel - A Prince of God
14 Israel in Egypt
15 The Time of the Promise
16 “The Reproach of Christ”
17 Giving the Commission
18 Preaching the Gospel in Egypt
19 How Pharaoh’s Heart Was Hardened
20 Saved by the Life
21 The Final Deliverance
22 The Song of Deliverance
23 Bread From Heaven
24 Life From God
25 Life From the Word
26 Water From the Rock—Living Water
27 Object Teaching
28 The Entering of the Law (Part 1)
29 The Entering of the Law (Part 2)
30 Sinai and Calvary
31 Mount Sinai and Mount Zion
32 The Covenants of Promise
33 The Veil and the Shadow
34 Two Laws
35 Entering the Promised Land
36 Vainglory and Defeat
37 Israel a Missionary People
38 The Promised Rest (Part 1)
39 The Promised Rest (Part 2)
40 “Another Day” (Part 1)
41 “Another Day” (Part 2)
42 Again in Captivity (Part 1)
43 Again in Captivity (Part 2)
44 Again in Captivity (Part 3)
45 The Time of the Promise at Hand
46 The Lost Tribes of Israel
47 The Gathering of Israel
From the Editor: “The Everlasting Covenant” has had a very great impact on my life! These articles, with its stories from the Bible, led me to fall in love with God, there is no other way of putting it. The thing I was needing the most in my life was given to me after I learned how much He loved me in “The Everlasting Covenant” by E. J. Waggoner.
It is my prayer, dear reader, that God will richly bless you, as you learn more and more about His great love for you as presented by E. J. Waggoner in “The Everlasting Covenant”, as we continue to present more articles from it.
Listen to these articles at: www.WhiteRaimentEvangelism.org/recommended.
The sacrifice has been made; Abraham’s faith had been tested and found perfect; “And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, and said, By Myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That […]
The Kingdom of God consists not in words but in Power! Listen to what the apostle Paul says here: “But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I shall find out, not the words of those who are arrogant, but their power. For the kingdom of God does not consist in words, but in power.” 1 Corinthians 4:19-20 NASB. Paul here was addressing a class of people among the Corinthian believers who were arrogant. 1 Corinthians 4:18. Evidently some people were causing problems in the Church, who were living without the power of God in their lives. Sound familiar? This problem and the solution addressed by Paul here is largely the same problem that we have today, and his solution is the same that is needed today. Yes, his counsel is for our day too, not just for the Corinthian church of his day. Do you want God’s power in your life to help you be good and His gifts to serve Him with? Do you want the assurance of your salvation? Then get His power in your life.
If you want to receive a blessing, why not come to our Fourth Angel’s Movement Camp Meeting? Are you ready to receive the rich blessings of the Latter Rain? If you long for a closer walk with God, and hunger for Christian fellowship with others who love Him too, come to this camp meeting! We will give some inspirational messages here on Justification by Faith or the Righteousness of Christ - which is the 3rd Angel’s Message in verity, to help you get the Latter Rain! There will be practical breakout sessions on the Medical Missionary work, Evangelism, Media Ministry, Country Living, Health Food Stores, and more!
How to Get Answers to Prayer?
“Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” James 5:14-16 NASB.
Do you believe it?
Why are we bringing up this text about healing the sick? We are using this text because it’s startling. We're bringing this up because we need to start right where people seem to have the problem: With faith. So why start with a most difficult promise? Because we want you to know with God the impossible is possible, that there is nothing too hard for God. Genesis 18:14.
Why do you need faith?
If it’s something you can do for yourself or mankind can provide, why do you need God for it? Faith is all about making your needs and petitions known to God that you cannot provide for yourself or for things you can do too! (We need God for everything!) When you have faith in God, then there is nothing that you need that He cannot provide if it’s for your best. So let’s start with discussing prayers that seem impossible as a place to start our talk on faith! That's why this Seminar is entitled the Prayer of Faith. Without faith it is impossible to please God! Hebrews 11:6. You need to believe the promises of God, as in James 5:14-16. You need to believe the Bible as it reads, because God says what He means, and means what he says and can be trusted because He loves you!
The title for tonight’s session is the Prayer of Faith Part 1 Conditions for answered prayer. We won’t be able to cover everything here. But the main thing is to understand [that there are conditions to answered prayer.] – How many people here want God [to] hear their prayers? How many people here want their prayers to be answered? (Audience: Yea.) There’s a science behind it – we don’t always know every prayer, but there’s some prayers that you can know that God is going to answer them. Did you know that? (Audience: Yes.) Did you know that there are some prayers that God isn’t going to hear? And some of it has to do with our attitudes. We’re not going to go into all that tonight. But there’s a protocol for dealing with God, and if we want answers to our prayers we need to understand. We are not going to go through all of them tonight. But the biggest one of them all is Faith! I mean I had known this for awhile – but it didn’t really sink in. You know I was thinking [about] other things. But when I did this study I realized that the prayer of faith is like the number one condition!
An inspiring message on how to get answers to prayer and get closer to God and get all the happiness and love and joy you were meant to have! The title for tonight’s session is the Prayer of Faith Part 1 Conditions for answered prayer. We won’t be able to cover everything here but, the main thing is to understand – How many people here want to have God hear their prayers? How many people here want their prayers to be answered? There’s a science behind it – we don’t always know every prayer, but there’s some prayers that you can know that God is going to answer them. Did you know that? Did you know that there are some prayers that God isn’t going to hear? And some of it has to do with our attitudes. We’re not going to go into all that tonight. But there’s a protocol for dealing with God, and if we want to answers to our prayers we need to understand. And – we are not going to go through all of them tonight. But the biggest one of them all is Faith! I mean I had known this for awhile – but it didn’t really sink in. You know I was thinking of other things. But when I did this study I realized that the prayer of faith is like the number one condition!
What does it mean to be justified? Are good works bad? We think it will be clear once we break it down. Some people want to insist that works are bad because works are done by those who are trying to save themselves. But is it true that works are bad? That depends on whether someone is trying to do good works in their own strength to save themselves or not. Paul doesn't contradict himself here. There's another way that good works can be done – they can be done by the Spirit of God. All this text is saying is that people who try to keep the law and their own strength will not be justified. We believe that since all our righteousnesses are filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6 KJV), then the attempt to save oneself by their works is actually sin. This is because those who do this make themselves to be their own god, little “g”. It is God’s job to save us, not ourselves – we have no ability of saving ourselves. For someone to be justified - that's an act of grace by God alone, which is Paul's point. Those who are trying to save themselves cannot have the Holy Spirit, or enjoy what it means to really live – which is to be filled with wonderful peace, great love and joy inexpressible! Nor can they ever be truly righteous – it is a hollow shell. Paul’s point is not that we won't be doing good works, his point is that those who seek to try to work out their own salvation by themselves will not be justified. We think this is clear! Jesus said, “And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.” Luke 18:13-14 KJV. The danger for those who trust in themselves, the self-righteous, is that they do not see their need clearly and may fail to confess their sins and humble themselves before God before it’s too late, because they may think that they are good and do not need to repent. So those who try to keep the law in their own strength will not be justified, until they ask for mercy, this is what Jesus and Paul taught. If they feel that they are keeping the law, they may have failed to confess the sin of breaking it. Self-righteousness is a form of Spiritual blindness. Therefore Galatians 2:16 does not contradict our passage in Romans 2:13: 'For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.' They are both in perfect harmony with each other, but they're talking about two different things. “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” Proverbs 28:13 KJV.
Are “good works” really bad? The belief that good works are bad is contradicted by Paul who declared that we were created in Christ Jesus for good works: "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2:10 NASB. If God is working in you to will and to do His good pleasure, then these good works are acceptable to Him. Philippians 2:13. Notice that Paul said that ‘God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.’ What is he talking about here? God has prepared ahead of time that we should walk in good works. This really goes against what many people are teaching nowadays! How can it be that all good works are bad, if God prepared ahead of time that we should walk in them? This contradicts what many believe doesn’t it? God prepared beforehand a way that you and I can have good works! How did God prepare ahead of time? By Jesus’ death on the cross for our sins – to make atonement for them, and by providing the Holy Spirit to write His Law of love in our heart and help us obey Him. John 3:3,5,16-17; 2 Corinthians 5:14-15; Romans 5:8-11; 1 John 2:1-2; 4:10; Jeremiah 31:31-34, Ezekiel 11:18-20; 36:25-30; Deuteronomy Acts 2; and Joel 2; Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4-5, 8; 2:37-39; John 7:37-39; Matthew 22:35-40.
Play Article Audio “So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these?’ He saith unto him, ‘Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee.’ He saith unto him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ He saith to him again the second time, ‘Simon, son of Jonas, lovest […]
Propositions:
For not the hearers of the Law are just before God, but the doers of the law will be justified.
The just man is the one who does the law.
To be just means to be righteous.
The just or righteous person does the law.
Therefore to justify someone is to make them a doer of the law.
To justify someone is to make them righteous.
The term justification by faith is used many places in the Bible, so we need to understand what it really means. It is important since it is used so many times. True faith takes the Bible as it reads and accepts it as the truth, because it is the word of God. Those with true faith believe and trust God and take Him at His word. Therefore the first step in order to get righteousness by faith is to believe the word of God, the Bible. Without the belief that the Bible is the word of God, no one can have the faith that is needed, which Abraham had, to be made righteous by God and be saved. The condition of salvation is to believe – to believe that Jesus and His Father can save you. John 3:16-17. You must also believe their word, the Bible. God doesn’t make mistakes, and you can trust His word, the Bible. This is what we are doing here, taking the Bible as it reads.
