BE ESTABLISHED IN RIGHTEOUSNESS (Part 4)

Dearly Beloved,

BE ESTABLISHED IN RIGHTEOUSNESS (Part 4)

“‘This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and this is their vindication from me,’ declares the LORD” (Isaiah 54:17b NIV).

“And that I may [actually] be found and known as in Him, not having any [self-achieved] righteousness that can be called my own, based on my obedience to the Law's demands (ritualistic uprightness and supposed right standing with God thus acquired), but possessing that [genuine righteousness] which comes through faith in Christ (the Anointed One), the [truly] right standing with God, which comes from God by [saving] faith” (Philippians 3:9 AMP).

This is the last part of this message. Since the beginning of the year, a closer look has been taken on the prophecy found in Isaiah 54:14-17 that has become one of the most popular quoted positive promises of God in the Holy Bible. The prophecy ends with the affirmation that it is the heritage of the servants of the LORD. Who are these people? The “servant of the LORD” is a theological concept in the Book of Isaiah that points forward to Jesus Christ. (Passages in the book that express this idea are Isaiah 42:1-4; 49:1-6; 50:4-9; and 52:13-53:12.) However, even before Isaiah’s time, the concept of God’s servant was deeply rooted in the history of the nation of Israel. The term servant was frequently applied to those who performed some service, task, or mission for the Lord. For instance, the term servant was applied to Abraham (Genesis 26:24), Isaac (Genesis 24:14), Jacob (Ezekiel 28:25), Moses (Deuteronomy 34:5), Joshua (Joshua 24:29), and many of the prophets of the Old Testament. The term is related to the term saint: a person eminent for piety or virtue or simply a consecrated or sanctified person.

The servants of the Lord that this comforting prophecy applies to are the people that have dedicated their lives for God to be used by Him as instruments of honor in His vineyard (see 2 Timothy 2:21). These are people that are living consecrated or sanctified lives to the glory of God. It has to be noted that they are not people that are living self-achieved righteous lives, but people that have been sanctified by the blood of Jesus Christ and have the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ through faith in Him (see Romans 1:17; 3:21-22; 5:17; 10:4; Philippians 3:9).

The promises in Isaiah 54:14-17 and many other comforting promises of God in the Bible are not for all and sundry. They are for people that are ready to dedicate their lives to God and allow Him to sanctify them and make them His instruments for noble purposes. Are you one of those people?

In His service,

Bayo Afolaranmi (Pastor).

NB

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