The Word of Faith—Romans 10:6-8
"But the righteousness that is by faith says: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?' (that is, to bring Christ down) "or 'Who will descend into the deep?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,"that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming" (Romans 10:6-8)
What an amazing thing to know in your inner most being that you are saved. Through faith in Jesus you inner man is 100% sealed, sanctified and redeemed. This transformation into a new creation in Christ happened in your born again spirit. There was a change on the inside of you when you put your trust into Jesus as your savior. Unlike relying on the Law to bring you into right relationship with God, you trusted in Him to provide for you the righteousness that comes by faith alone. This righteousness changes the way we look at the world. No longer do we have to look to heaven or acsend into the deep to find God, because the word of faith proclaims that He is in our mouths, in our hearts and very near all the time.
In our carnal nature it is impossible to live in fellowship with the Lord. This is why trying to be good enough on our own merit will never work. We set ourselves up for failure if we try to live this way. God understood this and this is why he never intended for us to work for our salvation. Sin had destroyed us and the Law helped us to recognize it. Isaiah said, "The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene; so his own arm worked salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him" ( Isaiah 59:15-16 ). Even God looked around for one that could represent mankind on his behalf to save the world from themselves but there was no one because sin has destroyed us. So Isaiah said, his own right arm (Jesus) worked salvation for us and it was His righteousness that sustained him so he could defeat sin once for all. In the same way He broke the power of sin over us. Through faith in Jesus we have been translated from the kingdom of darkness, held under the power of sin and death, into the kingdom of his dear son ( Colossians 1:13 ). We are free from the bondage that sin held us in and born again with a new spirit inside us. We are a completely different being than we once were ( II Corinthians 5:17 ). That is why we do not have to look for God, instead we simply know that his presence is with us, His word in is our mouths, and His righteousness and precepts are written on our hearts.
It makes quite a difference in how we live when we understand this truth. This becomes a reality when we get a revelation of who we are in the spirit. When we see ourselves as God sees us, we live like who we are instead of living by what we see. This is why God gave us the Holy Spirit, so he could lead us into all truth ( John 14:26, John 16:13 ). He didn't want us to have to rely on the physical aspect of life to interpret these things. Instead he wanted us to know and experience him in a personal way. Jesus told the women at the well in John 4, that "God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth" ( John 4:24 ). God gave us His Spirit so that we could commune with him spirit to spirit bypassing the natural realm. We do not have to have someone teach us these things because God has made them real inside us.
An amazing thing was what the prophets foretold concerning the New Covenant through Christ Jesus, Jeremiah said, "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest," declares the LORD. "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." ( Jeremiah 31:33-34, Hebrews 8:10-12 ). This is the word of faith. God is written himself on our hearts; we don't need to look anywhere else for him. He dwells inside us, so close that he is in our minds, our hearts and overflowing from our lips.
Paul was quoting from Deuteronomy 30 in today's passage. This passage immediately follows the law, but this chapter shows that it is man's heart that God wants, this was always His intent. The chapter ends with an amazing call to his children that still applies to us today, "This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob" ( Deuteronomy 30:19-20 ). God said, choose life and you will live. We know that life only comes through Jesus. He is the way to the Father. Through him, he gives us the capability to love the Lord, listen to his voice and hold fast to him. He is our life and he incredibly blesses us as we walk with him.
Today, I encourage you to choose life so that you may also live. I am so thankful that God has provided a way for us to remain in fellowship with him at all times. I am blessed to know that his love and his word flows out of me and that I am never without him. This is the word of faith that I proclaim today, may you be blessed by this revelation of God's wonderful plan for you, amen!