Questions and Answers #23
Brian Kocourek, Pastor
October 14, 2007
ROMANS 1:17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith
to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
ROMANS 3:20
Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh
be justified in his sight: for by the law [is] the knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is
manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; 22 Even the righteousness of God [which is] by faith of Jesus
Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of
God;
Last week we
spoke on the subject of righteousness and unrighteousness, and showed that the
righteousness of God comes by faith which is a revelation and not by works.
Now, in that it is a revelation then there is nothing you can do about it. But
that does not mean that there will not be a physical manifestation of that work of Grace in your life.
ROMANS 4:1 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as
pertaining to the flesh, hath found? 2 For if
Abraham were justified by works, he hath [whereof] to glory; but not before God.
3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God,
and it was counted unto him for righteousness. 4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace,
but of debt. 5 But to him that worketh not, but
believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for
righteousness. 6 Even as David also describeth
the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,
7 [Saying], Blessed [are] they whose iniquities are
forgiven, and whose sins are covered. 8 Blessed
[is] the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin. 9 [Cometh] this blessedness then upon the circumcision [only],
or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham
for righteousness. 10 How was it then reckoned?
when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in
uncircumcision. 11 And he received the sign of
circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which [he had yet] being
uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though
they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also:
12 And the father of circumcision to them who are not
of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our
father Abraham, which [he had] being [yet] uncircumcised. 13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world,
[was] not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the
righteousness of faith. 14 For if they which
are of the law [be] heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none
effect:15 Because the law worketh wrath: for
where no law is, [there is] no transgression. 16 Therefore [it is] of faith, that [it might be] by grace; to
the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of
the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father
of us all, 17 (As it is written, I have made
thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, [even] God, who
quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were. 18 Who against hope
believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to
that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. 19 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body
now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of
Sara's womb: 20 He staggered not at the promise
of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had
promised, he was able also to perform. 22 And
therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
Now, I do not say that it comes b revelations, but by revelation period.
Paul said it comes by Faith singular, revelation singular, and here is only one
Faith that matters two bits with God and that is the revelation of Jesus
Christ.
In Ephesians chapter 4 Paul tells
us there is only
One Lord, and One Faith, and that Faith is the Faith of that One
Lord. It’s God’s Faith, period. Now, he did not say it is faith in that One
Lord, but there is only one faith period. Not, your faith in that one Lord, but
the Faith of that One Lord.
Be not
afraid it is I 61-0123 P:41 There's
only one faith; that's the faith of God (That's right.), God's faith. Your human faith don't go
very far. But God's faith in you, makes you love everybody, makes me love
everybody. That's right. That's what God's faith does to you: makes you have
the same feeling that Jesus did, because the Spirit of Christ is in you.
Look, we are told in scripture that God framed the world by faith.
Hebrews 11: 3 Through
faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that
things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
God Himself had Faith
in His word, and that is the faith we are looking at this morning. Not your
faith in god, nor your ability to believe that He is. The devil believes that
God is and he trembles. But we are looking at God’s Faith. There is One faith
that God is interested in, and that is His Faith in His Word. And if you have
that Faith, then you won’t be distracted by any circumstances, or any thing
that is contrary to that Faith.
If you hear my sermon
on “the Faith of Jesus from
When he recognized the
plan of God was for Him to be that Lamb that was slain from the foundations of
the world, then nothing could deter Him from fulfilling all that God had for
him to do.
Super
sense 59-1227E P:72 It was that sixth sense that raised Jesus
Christ from the dead after He had laid in the ground, because He believed the Word of God. Said, "Destroy this body,
and I'll raise it up again on the third day. For David said, "'I'll not
leave My Holy One to see corruption, neither will I leave His soul in
hell.'" It was that super sense. Cast down the reasoning’s of these
senses. Believe the super sense, the sense of faith, that Jesus Christ gives. By that same sense, God spoke when there was nothing. What
is that sense? That super sense is God,
the faith of God in you, the part of God that comes into you, gives you the
super sense. By that same super
sense, God framed the world together with things which was not and did not
appear. He spoke His Word and
believed His Word, and a world shook into existence. Glory.
And we to can tap into
that Faith of God and live a life that is the Life God wants for us to live. In
fact that is the only way we can live a victorious life in Christ is to Live by
His Faith.
The Apostle Paul said in,
Galatians 2: 20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I
live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the
flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for
me.
Notice it is not our
faith by which we live, but that same faith that the Son of God had? And where
did He get His Faith? He got it from God His Father, for he said, the Son can
do nothing but what the Father shows Him, (reveals to Him), for Faith is a
Revelation, (something that is revealed).
Brother Branham said
in his sermon, Works is faith expressed 65-1126 P:138 If you can't
believe it, it just won't happen. Now, I can't make you believe; neither can you
make yourself believe. God's got to give it to you. It's a gift of God to
believe. Not your faith, God's faith. Your intellectual faith
might believe it fine, but unless the
faith of God is down in your heart... See, your intellectual faith can
accept it; do that and just keep believing it with all your heart until God
does reveal it to you.
So therefore if you have the Faith of God, then your faith will only say
what God has already said before the foundations of the world. Your testimony
can only be what God has said about you, and you receive it and believe it and
then manifest it because you have tapped into His faith, the Faith of God.
Just because you do
not believe what God has said will not stop what God has said from coming to
pass. So you faith is nothing. It is only what you believe. What God has
declared will come to pass, and nothing will stop it.
Paul said in Romans 3: 3 For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make
the faith of God without effect?
So the problem we have
today as in all days has been that men are taught a creed or a dogma and they
are taught that what they believe is their Faith.
Door to
the heart 59-1128 P:33 Oh, there's just a lot of those doors.
Let's find the door of faith over here on the side. "Now, I have faith.
But don't you go fooling with my faith." There's only one faith, and that's the faith of God. That's right.
The door's all closed up, because that you don't want to fool around that door,
or let Jesus around there; because as soon as He stands in that door, He will
scream out, "I'm the same yesterday, today, and forever." And your
creeds will bar that door. But He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
You'll come to a church and watch the signs and wonders of God be performed;
you won't pay attention to that, because
the creeds has locked that door of faith in you and made you think that that is
a faith. And there is only one
faith, that's the faith of God. And the
only One can bring The faith of God is Jesus Christ, His Son, that comes into
your heart. He's knocked at you heart through signs, wonders, and miracles.
But you keep that all penned up. "I don't want nothing to do with
that." Oh, if He could only stand, and you'd open up that door, it
wouldn't be two minutes till you believed every Word the Bible wrote, and say
"Amen" to every bit of It; if you'd just open up the door and let
Jesus come in, give you the faith that
He has to give you. You've took the faith that some creed has give you. You locked the doors upon Christ's faith.
When you take Christ's faith, then you
can recognize Him.
But that is the reason
why man has drifted off into his own ism’s, and denominational thinking. And
Paul told us this is the reasons why man has drifted away from God’s Faith and
substituted his own reasoning for faith in …
ROMANS 10:3. 3 For they being
ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness,
have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. 4 For Christ [is] the end of the law for righteousness to
every one that believeth. 5 For Moses
describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth
those things shall live by them. 6 But the
righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart,
Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down [from above]:) 7
Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to
bring up Christ again from the dead.) 8 But
what saith it? The word is nigh thee, [even] in thy mouth, and in thy heart:
that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9 That
if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine
heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and
with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall
not be ashamed. 12 For there is no difference
between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that
call upon him. 13 For whosoever shall call upon
the name of the Lord shall be saved. 14 How
then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they
believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a
preacher? 15 And how shall they preach, except
they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach
the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith,
Lord, who hath believed our report? 17 So then
faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Brother Branham said in his sermon, Seed of
discrepancy 65-0118 P:19 And we know that Jesus was the Word;
So what we are looking at is God’s Faith period. Either it was in His
mind to begin with or it isn’t faith, and it isn’t revealed by God to us. Then
if it wasn’t in His mind to begin with, then it isn’t real. For those things
which can be seen are not what is real, but those things that can not be seen
are what is actually real.
Hebrews
11: 1 Now faith is the substance of
things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. And then in verse 3 we
read, Through
faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that
things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
So God had faith in His own word to bring about those things which were
not into existence. And that is what Abraham tapped into and that is the
testimony we have of Abraham and that is why he is called the father of Faith. Romans 4: 17 (As
it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he
believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be
not as though they were. Romans 18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he
might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So
shall thy seed be.
Super
sense 59-1227E P:31 And the super Sense is the Holy Spirit, the faith of God that dwells in you.
And if you'll let the five senses be yielded to the sixth sense, it'll guide
you and bring all the other five senses under control of that super sense. For
it's so far above the natural sense, as the spiritual man is above the natural;
it's as far as high as the heavens is above the natural man and his five
senses. It makes you believe things that
you cannot see. It makes you act where you do not think the five senses
would ever think about it. The devil can get into these five senses and lie to
you, but he cannot touch that super
sense. That's far beyond his reach. That
come from God. It's called faith. Faith is that great thing.
Queen of
Wisdom verses faith 62-0401 P:42 Now,
we find that these two factions or sources is: one, wisdom and the other one
faith. And they've versed one another since creation in the
Door to
the heart 60-0312 P:24 There is another little door just around
the corner. It's the door of faith. Oh, there's many of them. Let's talk of
faith just a moment." Now, I'll let you in, Jesus, but I've got my own
faith." Well, He can't do much for you. If you've got your own faith, I
don't want no faith. I want His faith.
My faith is no good. The faith of God is
what we need: God's faith in us.
My faith is no good; your faith is no
good; it takes Christ to come in and stand in that door of faith and be
Lord, Lord over your faith. When you read in the Bible, "Jesus Christ, the
same yesterday, today, and forever," your faith will say, "That's
impossible." But His faith will say, "Amen, I am." If the critic
says the days of miracles is past, the faith of God will say, "He doesn't
know what he's talking about." If the critic says Jesus doesn't heal, the
Holy Spirit standing in the door of your faith will say, "I'm the Lord that
healeth all of thy diseases." If just makes such a difference to let Him
have that door of faith. You know, the Scripture we was reading awhile ago said
that you are naked, and you are miserable; you are poor, wretched and blind,
and don't know it. That the condition that the church will come to, naked...
Why are
we not a denomination? 58-0927 P:6 And then when you let your faith run out to its end, till you begin to
believe, then let your subconscious go to acting, then the faith of God will
back it up; then you'll go right on out. See? 'Cause your faith won't do too much; your subconscious has to move
in the direction that your faith is moving, and then God's faith moves in
behind and confirms it all. See? But if it's your faith, "Oh, yes, I
got it right now"; and even your subconscious rolling back here, saying,
"I wonder if it'll work on me." It won't do it right then. See?
Hear ye
Him 56-1215 P:56 The world's looking tonight for someone to
display the real genuine faith of God, no matter what people say, what
circumstance is in, how I feel, what it looks like. How I heard the call of
God. He's my Father, and I stand to accept His Word, regardless. May God help
us tonight to see that as we bow our heads just a moment.
Law or
grace 54-1006 P:20 And we have faith in our heart, the faith of God in our heart, and can
see it clear. It becomes a faith, and
then we speak it, and it comes into existence, the same thing, 'cause the mind
of Christ is in the man. That's what makes healings and so forth. When you
get that perfect revelation, just what you're doing, then you know how to walk.
Inner
man 53-1212 P:27 Like that light. You take the one wire off,
negative or positive. It certainly won't work. That's all. It's got to have the
ground. It's got to be grounded good, and it's got to have the right type of
wire and everything and it'll pack the current; that's all it needs. Well, if
we're really grounded in Christ (See?), with the Holy Ghost in us, and rooted
and grounded in the faith of God, it'll certainly pack the Light of the Gospel
to the world. That's right. It'll heal the sick; it'll do great works.
ROMANS 1:17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to
faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
Now, who are
these just ones that shall live by Faith. I would think the same one who told
us that the just shall live by faith should be the same one to tell us who they
are.
ROMANS 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them
that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose. 29
For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate [to
be] conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among
many brethren.
4
Now the only way you could ever conform to the image of His Son is if you have
the same attributes and characteristics. And in order to have that you would
have to have the same seed Life in you as His Son did. Because the Law of
reproduction that God set forth in Genesis 1:11 tells us that every Seed shall
bring forth after it's kind or nature.
Let's
read on 30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and
whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also
glorified.(It's already a done deal, it is finished). 31 What shall we then say to these things? If God [be] for us,
who [can be] against us? 32 He that spared not
his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also
freely give us all things? 33 Who shall lay any
thing to the charge of God's elect? [It is] God that justifieth. 34 Who [is] he that condemneth? [It is] Christ that died, yea
rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also
maketh intercession for us. 35 Who shall
separate us from the love of Christ? [shall] tribulation, or distress, or
persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day
long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through
him that loved us. 38 For I am persuaded, that
neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things
present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor
depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of
God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Now, Paul said,
it is God that Justifies, and who does He justify? Those He foreknew. And He
also said we are justified by Faith, so God uses his Faith to justify us. Then
unless we have the faith of God we are not yet justified.
Galatians 3: 24 Wherefore the law was our
schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Romans 5:
1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through
our Lord Jesus Christ:
Romans 3:
28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith
without the deeds of the law.
Galatians
2: 16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law,
but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that
we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law:
for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
So we see it is God
that Justifies, and who does He justify? Those He foreknew. And He also said we are justified by Faith, so God uses
His Faith to justify us. Then unless we have the faith of God, his Faith, we
are not yet justified.
But those that He
foreknew He also did predestinate. We are talking about the Elect
Seed of God. And in ROMANS 1:17 Paul
said, the
righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: from Revelation to
Revelation, for The just shall live by faith, by what? By
Revelation. Now, I am going to show you in a few minutes how important this
statement is when it comes to righteousness, for that is what we are looking at
today. Righteousness and unrighteousness. And this is one of the biggest
misunderstandings we have in this message. Most people are still living in a
bondage to their own perceived idea's of what righteousness is. And they are
trying to establish their own righteousness by what they can produce in
themselves.
ROMANS 3:20 Therefore
by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: we have already shown you that it is God that
justifies, and what Paul is telling us here is that no deeds can bring forth
our justification. by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in
his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. (what he is telling us here
is that the Law, the rule book, the moral code, the conduct and order can only
point you to what is sin, or what is unbelief, but it can not make you
righteous.
ROMANS 3:21 But now the
righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law
and the prophets; 22 Even the righteousness of
God which is by faith of Jesus Christ ( and what is Faith? It is a
revelation) 22 Even the
righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all
them that believe: ( and who
is it that believes? Or might I put it this way, Who is it that can believe?
Here Paul is telling us that True Righteousness comes only from God by
receiving the Revelation of Jesus Christ. And the only ones who can believe are
those who have been ordained to believe.
ACTS
13:48 And when
the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord:
and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.
ROMANS 4:1 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as
pertaining to the flesh, hath found? 2 For if
Abraham were justified by works, he hath [whereof] to glory; but not before
God. 3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham
believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. 4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace,
but of debt. 5 But to him that worketh not, but
believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for
righteousness.
That is why
Jesus said that, "God is Spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him
in Spirit and Truth." You can't separate the Two. Spirit and Truth,
because Jesus also said, "My Words are Spirit and they are Truth."
And worship outside of the vindicated revealed Word will not be acceptable to
God, it never has been.
Now, religion
tends to feed the flesh, because it is sensate, or based on the senses. And any
worship that is not based on Spirit and Truth, will always lean toward the
outward 5 senses of the flesh or the 5 inward senses.
We cannot
worship with eyes, nor with our noses by smelling incense, nor can we worship
with our ears by listening to music; for the flesh profiteth nothing. And yet
we have churches today of all denominations, even among the Message professors,
there are some that have choirs and orchestra's with more members than there
are sitting in the pews of many a church today. And the churches with the most
music seem to be the largest of all. If you do not have a music program in your
church you will never attract the people, they say. And yet what are they being
attracted to? The new "Gospel of Song". We are living in a time when
the "flesh" seems to lead the worship and yet is it not in vain?
JOHN 4:23
But the hour
cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in
spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
24 God [is] a Spirit: and they that worship him must
worship [him] in spirit and in truth.
If the flesh of
itself "profiteth nothing", then it is clear that we cannot worship
God with any of our five senses (which all pertain to the flesh). To worship
with our eyes profiteth nothing, and yet the majority of the world religions do
just that. They use the eyes to attract people to worship. They build big
monuments of beauty, big cathedrals, big churches, big altars just for the
purpose of worship and yet it profits nothing. We cannot worship with our eyes,
nor our nose, like the Catholic and the hindu that would burn incense before
the altars to create a form of worship through aroma. The only aroma that is
pleasing to God is the prayers of His saints. We cannot worship with eyes, nor
with our noses by smelling incense, nor can we worship with our ears by
listening to music; for the flesh profiteth nothing.
And yet we have
churches today of all denominations, even among the Message professors, there
are some that have choirs and orchestra's with more members than there are
sitting in the pews of many a church today. And the churches with the most
music seem to be the largest of all. If you do not have a music program in your
church you will never attract the people, they say. And yet what are they being
attracted to? The new "Gospel of Song". We are living in a time when
the "flesh" seems to lead the worship and yet is it not in vain?
Paul said, it
"profiteth nothing". And isn't it interesting that this thirst for
music has increased with the same velocity as the cry for the Charismatic,
Pentecostal cry to "Be filled with the Spirit." But they do not want
the Word of Truth, and what Word they do have has been wrongly divided. They do
not take all of the Word, for Jesus said, in
JOHN 4:23 the true worshippers shall
worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to
worship him. He never said in spirit only, but in Spirit and Truth.
6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the
man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, 7 Saying, Blessed [are] they whose iniquities are forgiven,
and whose sins are covered. 8 Blessed is the
man to whom the Lord will not impute sin. 9 [Cometh]
this blessedness then upon the circumcision [only], or upon the uncircumcision
also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.
10 How was it then reckoned? when he was in
circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in
un-circumcision. 11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the
righteousness of the faith which [he had yet] being uncircumcised: that he
might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised;
that righteousness might be imputed unto them also...
Now here's the
key right here in this verse, Paul said, that righteousness might be imputed
unto them also...
13 For the promise, that
he should be the heir of the world, [was] not to Abraham, or to his seed,
through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if they
which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none
effect:
So we see the
importance of our tapping into the very mind of God and receiving as a finished
work what God has already declared by his word is so important. Because it has
to do with receiving our inheritance..
Ands why was it
imputed to him, because of his works? NO! because he simply took God at his
word. He said the money is in the bank, therefore it is. He said, I have
already been justified, therefore, I am. Not me making everything right that I
ever did wrong. Not me living a perfectly upright life without offending anyone
my entire life. No, Not that! But to Confess what God has already said about
you, that's it, that's the key.
21 And being fully
persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
ROMANS 5:18 Therefore as by the offence of one [judgment came] upon all
men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one (the Faith of One, the revelation
of One) the free
gift came upon all men unto justification of life.