Concerning Jesus as our Sabbath’s Rest… (Hebrews 4)

We rest in Jesus from pursuit of self-righteousness through the works of the law that could never save but only condemned through the defining of our culpability before the Father void atonement (Romans 3:20; Galatians 2:16); therefore, Jesus offers us a “rest” by faith that the law could never provide (Luke 4:18; Matthew 11:28-20) as the law enslaved and killed by the letter but the Spirit gives life through faith in Jesus as our Lord (2 Corinthians 3:6).

All that the Sabbath edict foreshadowed is fulfilled in Messiah by faith (Colossians 2:16); therefore, we don’t pursue righteousness through days, edicts, dietary restrictions i.e. law-keeping but by faith in Jesus who is the fulfillment of the Law for all who believe and receive the imputation of Jesus’ righteousness by faith (Romans 6:14; Romans 8; Colossians 2:16; Galatians 2:16; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

To the Jew-Israelite who reject Christianity as representative of Yeshua’s teachings…

The Jews, Jacob’s children, were to be proselytized by Messiah as per Genesis 12:3b and anointed by the Holy Spirit (Ezekiel 36:27) to go into all the World as per the Great Commission (a blessing to every family of the Earth) and proclaim the Father’s grace through faith in the Son, Yeshua, concerning imputed righteousness and covenant relationship with the Father, forever; unfortunately, Jacob’s children rejected the New Covenant of Grace and insisted that Law observance was the path to righteousness through self-righteousness; Jacob’s children blasphemed their Messiah and the Holy Spirit; Jacob’s children falsely accused their Messiah of blasphemy as Jesus proclaimed His deity; Jacob’s children conspired with the Roman authorities to unmercifully flog-torture their Messiah and ultimately murdered Him upon a tree via suffocation while demanding that Messiah’s blood be upon them and their children; hence, the Jewish blood curse that is relevant to this very day resulting in a veil of unbelief and a hardened heart that wars against the Gospel of Freedom and Peace in Messiah; therefore, the words of the prophet Hosea have been realized through the transference of the Gospel message from Jacob’s children to the Gentiles in the first-Century via the Great Commission (Matthew 28; Romans 11:25)…

1 John 1:9…The Christian, sin, forgiveness, the conscience…

“9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 (NASB)

For the Christian; that is, those who have entered into covenant relationship with the Father by faith in Jesus as their Lord and have received the indwelling Holy Spirit as their Guarantor of covenant relationship (John 3; Ephesians 1:13-14), this person redeemed, forgiven, reconciled to the Father by faith in the Son has been forgiven of past-present-future sin by covenant promise (Hebrews 8:12); therefore, the Father chooses via His sovereign will to not see our sin but only sees the perfection, the righteousness, of His dear Son in us through faith in Jesus as Lord (2 Corinthians 5:21).

With that said, in John’s first-epistle (1 John 1:9) he is writing to the faithful in Jesus and assuring them that when they fall short of what the Spirit is guiding them to do via the conscience via sanctification, they can find solace and peace and restoration of intimacy with the Father by acknowledging their failure, their sin; in essence, they apologize to the Father for their failure and they do this NOT to reaffirm their salvation or covenant relationship that is secure forever by promise through the Spirit (Ephesians 1:13-14; John 10:28-30) but the Christian apologizes to the Father for their OWN conscience’ sake so that intimacy and peace with the Father can flow uninterrupted by a guilty conscience, a beleaguered spirit, absent the joy and peace our Lord desires we have (Romans 5:1).

1 John 1:9, provided by John through the Holy Spirit, is written for the faithful in Jesus as a method to clear our conscience and restore joy and intimacy much like we would our best friend if we offended them in some way; after all, a sincere apology goes a long way to reestablishing intimacy and trust and peace…so it is with our relationship with the Father. If the Father were to respond to us verbally, He would ask, “what sin?”

Jesus advises to enter through the “narrow gate” leading to life; therefore, you must acknowledge the “Gate Keeper”….

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.” Matthew 7:13 (NASB)

If one desires to enter the “narrow gate,” they must do the Father’s will and the Father’s will comes with no exception, no addendums or self-righteousness…

Fasting and works and obedience and Sabbaths and Temples and Rabbis and self-righteousness in law-keeping will NOT earn you passage through the “narrow gate” nor will these works of self-righteousness earn you the Father’s forgiveness or even His attention; in fact, until you have done the Father’s will through the Son, the Father does not listen to your prayers nor is your self-righteousness anything but filthy rags (John 9:31; Isaiah 64:6); for all intent and purposes, you are a dead-man walking as far as the Father is concerned (Ephesians 2:1).

If you desire the Father’s forgiveness and promises of life relevant to the New Covenant you must first enter into Covenant Relationship with Him through the Son, Jesus Christ, and become “family” by faith in the Father’s will as there is no other Way through the “narrow gate” (John 14:6).

Law v. Faith, the Father, Eternal Life, your choice…

If you desire to “live by the Commandments” and please the Father you must keep them in absolute perfection; otherwise, you are cursed and condemned (Deuteronomy 27:26; Galatians 3:10); unfortunately for you, you’ve already violated the Law, the Commandments, as you’re a sinner by nature (Romans 3:23; Romans 5:12); therefore, you are guilty of violating the entire Law (James 2:10); therefore, your only hope for life in the Kingdom of God is acknowledging your sin before the Father, acknowledging your need for a Redeemer and confessing-believing-trusting with a sincere heart Jesus Christ as your Lord-Messiah-Redeemer who died for you to pay your sin-debt owed the Father and thereby receive His righteousness and perfection through perfect obedience to the Law imputed into your life by grace (unmerited favor) through faith and enter into covenant relationship with the Father (John 3; 1 John 2:23) and receive the indwelling Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1;13-14) who will guide you daily in God’s will through sanctification (Galatians 5:16); this eternal relationship elicits righteous behavior through the Spirit via the conscience that actually pleases the Father as you’re now His child and you are His family by covenant promise (Hebrews 8:12; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

The Legalist-Jew-Israelite-Religionist…a burden to the Kingdom of God…

Why do you people obfuscate and not “think” and reason? … Because you’re not born of the Spirit but of self-righteousness.

Christianity, those born again by faith in Jesus as Lord, is controlled by the Holy Spirit and not the condemnation and hopelessness of law (Romans 8; Romans 3:20-23; Galatians 3:10; Galatians 2:16).

The Spirit who indwells the faithful in Messiah Jesus controls the heart and administers the will of the Father in the lives of the redeemed through the conscience…this is NOT enslavement to laws, edicts, customs, days, food, temples, traditions (Romans 6:14)…this is intimacy with our Creator through faith having established covenant relationship that endures forever (Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 8:12; John 3).

The New Covenant established in Messiah Jesus’ blood (Matthew 26:28) is forgiveness and peace with our God through relationship not enslavement (Romans 5:1). Your law is for the lawless (1 Timothy 1:9), not those who have received the imputed righteousness of Jesus by faith (Romans 6:14). You weary me, significantly. You are a burden to the Kingdom.

Commandment Keeping in the New Covenant. Revelation 12:17; 14:12; 22:14

The Jew, Israelite, Hebrew Roots disciple, SDA, legalist, quote Greek Scripture denoting Commandment Keeping by “saints” as mandatory in the New Covenant and beyond…what is Truth?

Only those who are “saints” (holy ones) by faith via the imputed righteousness of Jesus as their Lord; these, having received the anointing of the Holy Spirit as Guarantor of covenant relationship with the Father by faith in Jesus will endure to the end and obey God’s will and LIVE (Ephesians 1:13-14; John 3; Matthew 24:13).

Moral Law, the foundation for the Law Covenant (Romans 2:14-15), is for the “lawless” by necessity as an arbiter of free will (1 Timothy 1:9); the Spirit’s leadership through sanctification in the New Covenant is spiritual law for the faithful who are led by the Spirit via the conscience in sanctification, those who have been set-apart by faith in Jesus from the lawless for life in Time and Eternity (Galatians 5:16).

Only those who possess the Holy Spirit possess the anointing to “obey” God’s will and receive God’s favorable acknowledgment for same. If you’re a Jew or an Israelite or a legalist who interpret Commandment Keeping Scripture from an unredeemed perspective i.e. you’re absent the Spirit by faith in Yeshua, your theology, your exegesis, your eschatology, is skewed and it is in error and impotent and you condemn yourself to a lifeless existence in Time and in Eternity in unbelief (John 8:24).

It’s your “choice,” life in the Spirit or death in a facade of Law Keeping void the Holy Spirit’s anointing (2 Corinthians 3:6; Romans 3:20; Galatians 3:10; Galatians 2:16).

What are “works of righteousness” – “good works” that honor the Father?

“Good works” are only possible through the Holy Spirit as our works are only interpreted by the Father from the vantage point of “relationship.” If you are not born again by faith in Jesus as Lord having established covenant relationship with the Father and you’re therefore absent the Holy Spirit, your works of self-righteousness are NOTHING to the Father – your works done in the flesh void the Holy Spirit are filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6); It’s NOT until such time you have become the Father’s child by faith in His Son that you become “family” and the works done by the anointing of the Spirit given the redeemed in Jesus become profitable; otherwise, you are an enemy of God irrespective of heritage, race, creed, color.

Works of condemnation…

Those who reject Jesus as Lord, rejecting the suffering and death of Messiah Jesus as blood atonement for their sin, are absent the Spirit and are therefore enemies of the Father; these will stand in the resurrection and Judgment of the Condemned and face adjudication in accordance with their “works” done in the body while constrained by Time…these will be adjudicated “guilty” and lose both body and soul in the “second death” in Hell as one’s “works” do not equate to “righteousness” with God (John 5:29; Revelation 20:11-15; John 3:18; Ephesians 2:8-9).

Works of righteousness…

Those who have trusted in Messiah Jesus as their Redeemer and LORD believing that Jesus died to pay their sin-debt owed the Father and have subsequently received the Holy Spirit as Guarantor of covenant relationship (John 3; Ephesians 1:13-14), these are declared “not guilty” by covenant promise (Hebrews 8:12) and they will NOT stand in the Judgment of the Condemned for sin but their “good works” of righteousness performed in the Spirit SUBSEQUENT to redemption will be judged at the BEMA Seat Judgment of Jesus Christ and these works will be tested for authenticity, rewards given for selfless works done in the Spirit and an absence of rewards for works done via selfishness and self-righteousness but they themself will be saved by covenant promise through their faith in Jesus as Lord.

The Accuser of the Brethren seeks Condemnation through legalism…a response,

Loyalty to the Father is love for the Son…the Father is NOT interested in Temples-Laws-Rules-Regulations-Days-Food…the Father is interested in your heart and your faithfulness and intimacy with Him in a loving and enduring relationship, forever.

The Father is not interested in Rome or Sunday or the Sabbath and He does not appreciate legalism and condemnation where it’s not warranted.

Jesus came to destroy the works of the Devil, the Accuser of the brethren (1 John 3:8b) and when you suggest that others must worship as you or align with what you consider to be holiness and righteousness, you err as the Father wants your heart and He knows that when your heart belongs to Him, your will and desires will follow. You chase after the irrelevant peripherals while missing the weightier will of the Father…love, intimacy, peace.

Why did Jesus reject the individuals and their “good works” done in Jesus’ Name?

21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ Matthew 7 (NKJV)

Jesus is speaking to those who sought the Kingdom through works not faith. Jesus’ audience, the multitudes, were most likely overwhelmingly Jewish, those in attendance at the Sermon on the Mount, The Beatitudes, beginning in Chapter 5 of Matthew’s Gospel. This lesson immediately followed Jesus’ admonition that you would know His true followers by their fruit (v. 20).

What are the “works of righteousness” that honor the Father?

When works of righteousness are done in the flesh apart from having first established covenant relationship with the Father by faith in the Son and receiving the indwelling Holy Spirit as the anointing to perform those works…works done apart from the Father void relationship are equated to a bloody, smelly, menstrual cloth in God’s nose as they are works of unrighteousness as far as the Father is concerned.

Self-righteousness seeking God’s approval by works insults the Father and insults the suffering of His Son, Jesus Christ for our sin. These people in Messiah’s lesson sought the Kingdom by self-righteousness as they cited their works done in the Name of Jesus as sufficient for passage to the Kingdom but they were denied access because they never established covenant relationship by faith; therefore, Jesus said “I never knew you!”

So it will be with every soul of man who rejects the sole-sufficiency of Jesus Christ to save the soul by grace (unmerited favor) through faith (trust-belief) in Jesus as Lord apart from self-righteousness through human effort, good works, law-keeping.

Until such time an individual establishes covenant relationship with the Father through faith in the Son (John 3; 1 John 2:23), receives the indwelling Holy Spirit as Guarantor of that covenant (Ephesians 1:13-14), their works of self-righteousness offend the Father and upon death of the body in Time, Jesus will declare, I never knew you, away from Me you who work lawlessness (Ephesians 2:8-9)!