The Prophetic Word - Day 31: We ALL fall short.

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭23‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ.”

‭‭Galatians‬ ‭3‬:‭22‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In our preparatory scriptures (Day 29) we looked at Job’s desire for an intercessor:

“O earth, do not conceal my blood. Let it cry out on my behalf. Even now my witness is in heaven. My advocate is there on high. My friends scorn me, but I pour out my tears to God. I need someone to mediate between God and me, as a person mediates between friends. For soon I must go down that road from which I will never return.”

‭‭Job‬ ‭16‬:‭18‬-‭22‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Job’s friends had tormented him with their speeches as they accused him of having sin in his life (in terms of his behavior). Job knew that he, indeed, had not—to the best of his understanding—been committing open sin.

Basically, when Job was asking for an intercessor, his point was that he needed someone to tell God that he was not deserving of this punishment because he was righteous.

Now, as righteous as Job was (even by the Lord’s estimation of him), he did not realize that the righteousness of man can never be compared with that of God. He did not appreciate the chasm (we discussed yesterday) separating man from his Maker.

Indeed, when Job realized the error in his reasoning, it triggered his recovery.

“Then Job replied to the Lord: “I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. You asked, ‘Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?’ It is I—and I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me. You said, ‘Listen and I will speak! I have some questions for you, and you must answer them.’ I had only heard about you before, but now I have seen you with my own eyes. I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.””

‭‭Job‬ ‭42‬:‭1‬-‭6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Job, having “seen” the holiness and perfection of the Lord, repented for having compared his righteousness to God’s righteousness.

In our opening scriptures Paul is explaining the reason for our inability to meet God’s standards: We all—no matter how righteous—fall short of God’s standard. Without grasping this indisputable fact, you will never be able to know why you need the Intercessor. And, as the Lord once told me, “You must know you need a Savior, to have One.”

Peace to you.

Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!

#ThePropheticWord