1.
Humility
The second
pre-condition of assuring that God will hear us from heaven, and will forgive
us of our sins and heal our land is if we humble ourselves which is the
recognition of one’s true position before God and this factor involves at least
five things:
a.
One’s
sinfulness
In approaching
God’s throne of grace one must acknowledge his/her sins because, God does not
co-exist with sin, light have absolutely no fellowship with darkness: Now,
since if we say that
we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. And if we say
that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us, it is
imperative therefore, that we acknowledge our sinful nature when appearing
before the sovereign Lord.
A typical example
is found in a parable Jesus spoke to some who trusted in themselves that they
were righteous, and despised others, He said; "Two men went up to the
temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee
stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other
men --- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast
twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.'
And the tax
collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven,
but beat 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 everyone
who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted"
Luke
18:9-14).
b.
One’s
unworthiness
In approaching the
throne of grace one needs to acknowledge his/her unworthiness just like the
example of the prodigal son who, when he came to his senses said, “'How many of
my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with
hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I
have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be
called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants. And he arose and came
to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and
had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said
to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no
longer worthy to be called your son” (Luke 15:17-21).
c.
One’s
limitations
In the case of our
limitations we should imitate the example of David of whom it is stated; “And
Solomon said: "You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father,
because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of
heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have
given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. Now, O LORD my God,
You have made Your servant king instead of my father David, but I am a little
child; I do not know how to go out or come in.
And Your servant
is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too
numerous to be numbered or counted. Therefore give to Your servant an
understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and
evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?"
The speech pleased
the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. Then God said to him:
"Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked long life for
yourself, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your
enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice, behold,
I have done according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and
understanding heart, so that there has not been anyone like you before you, nor
shall any like you arise after you. And I have also given you what you have not
asked: both riches and honor, so that there shall not be anyone like you among
the kings all your days. So if you walk in My ways, to keep My statutes and My
commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days"
(1King
3:6-14).
d.
God’s
holiness
One very important
prerequisite in approaching the throne of grace is that of holiness, for this
is what the LORD spoke, saying: ' By those who come near Me I must be regarded
as holy; and before all the people I must be glorified” (Leviticus 10:3).
This has also been
supported by the prophet Isaiah who wrote; “In the year that King Uzziah died,
I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His
robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with
two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And
one cried to another and said: " Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;
the whole earth is full of His glory!"
And the posts of
the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was
filled with smoke. So I said: “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man
of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my
eyes have seen the King, The LORD of hosts." Then one of the seraphim flew
to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from
the altar. And he touched my mouth with it, and said: “Behold, this has touched
your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged." Also I heard
the voice of the Lord, saying: "Whom shall I send, and who will go for
Us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me" (Isaiah 6:1-8).
In our new
dispensation there is a different method by which our iniquities are taken away
and our sins purged but the rationale remains the same, it is to cleanse us
before appearing before the Lord.
e.
God’s
righteousness
When approaching
the throne of grace we are to consider the fact that it is through the
righteous act of Christ that we are able to have access to the throne of grace,
as it is written; “For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the
one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of
righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) Therefore, as
through one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation,
even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men,
resulting in justification of life” (Romans 5:17-18).
https://www.amazon.com/author/luciusjoseph
To be continued , stay tuned
With brotherly love
Lucius Joseph
No comments:
Post a Comment