You Are The Progress Of His Finished Work

“Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God;’ for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone” (James 1:13).

The preceding verses in James 1 explored the topic of temptation and the advantages of persevering through it. This often leads us to believe that God intentionally places these trials on us for His redemptive purposes. However, this verse clearly states that God is not the cause of these trials. Trials are inevitable, and there are significant benefits to be gained from enduring them in a godly manner. Nevertheless, they are not God’s doing. Labeling God as the source of our problems can lead us to submit to them instead of resisting them, which will hinder our progress (James 4:7).

You might question the accuracy of this statement in light of Genesis 22:1, which states that God tempted Abraham. However, if you examine James 1:13 closely, you will notice that this verse doesn’t imply that God doesn’t tempt us at all. Instead, it asserts that the Lord doesn’t tempt us with evil. While the Lord does test us, as He tested Abraham, these tests are intended to lead us to a better place. He never subjects us to evil to cause us harm. Imagine an employer contemplating a promotion for an employee and administering a test to assess their capacity to manage increased responsibility. This test isn’t conducted by an evil employer who intends to fire the employee if they fail. Rather, it’s administered by a good employer who genuinely wishes the employee’s success.

We are tempted and tested by evil in this life. A sinful world tests us, and hard circumstances and heart-wrenching situations test us further. However, to suggest that God tempts and tests us with evil implies a contradictory nature of God. On the one hand, God desires that we have an abundant life, full of His grace and far beyond our imagination or ability to comprehend. This abundant life is meant to help us escape the corruption of this world. On the other hand, some believe that God permits or even causes issues like sickness, loss, or hardships to test us. God is constant and unchanging, manifesting the redeeming love that He desires for us. While we face harsh circumstances, loss, sin, and evil, the God who wants us to have an abundant life never tests or tempts His own creation with evil.

Until the born-again believer sees themselves as God sees them in Christ, they will always be living from the unfinished side of the cross. We must understand that we are complete in Him (Colossians 2:10), seated with Him (Ephesians 2:6), a new creation in Him (2 Corinthians 5:17), the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21), one spirit with Him (1 Corinthians 6:17), washed, sanctified, and justified in Him (1 Corinthians 6:11), and glorified in Him (Romans 8:30).

This understanding of our identity in Christ should serve as the starting point for discipleship. When we are born-again, salvation is fully realized and completed in Him. The remaining task is to renew our minds to these truths until they are manifested in our daily lives (Romans 12:2).

In the story of the two men, two houses, two foundations, and one storm (Matthew 7:24-27), God didn’t send the storm. Instead, He sent the Word, and the doer of the Word was spared the consequences that the lazy believer suffered. Many Christians mistakenly believe that storms are sent by God to teach them a lesson. Even though lessons can be learned, these storms are not divine interventions. Instead, the Word and the Spirit are from God to prepare us to overcome the challenges and trials that life throws our way.

Many Christians are striving for what God has already given them through Christ. Those who comprehend the new life they have received in Christ can find peace in His finished work and live their lives from a place of victory. We are not a born-again spiritual work in progress, but rather our lives are the “progress of His finished work.” As we submit to the Lordship of Christ, the expression of His life in us progresses and matures.

You are not like Job—fearful, ignorant, and without a covenant. You are under the New Covenant of God’s grace. You are a new creation and complete in Jesus Christ. You have been blessed with all of God’s blessings.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3).

God sees the identity of Jesus when He looks at you. You must renew your mind until you see yourself as God sees you and the truths of His Son’s identity are manifested in your life. 

God never tempts or tests you with evil. He wants His best to be manifested in you. You are the "progress of His finished work."

Now Walk By Faith In Him

As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him.

—Colossians 2:6 

 

 

If we genuinely followed this verse, we would avoid many mistakes in our lives. Paul mentions that we ought to live our lives in the same manner we accepted Jesus as our Savior.

 

We received Jesus Christ by fully placing our faith in His grace. We had no holiness to offer Him. We had not fasted, prayed, or read the Word. We came just as we were—sinners in need of His forgiveness and grace.

 

Some believers, after accepting Christ by faith, feel that God's response to them is based on what they do. They believe He loves them, depending on how well they adhere to His standards. Instead of trusting in the faith and righteousness  Jesus provides, they find themselves striving to prove their worthiness to receive God's love. This kind of mindset can lead them away from the assurance of their right relationship with Him.

 

We have nothing to prove about our worthiness. Our worth comes solely from Christ. Attempting to demonstrate our worthiness to God is self-righteous and does not exhibit the righteousness we have received through Christ. Just as we received Christ by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8), we should continue to live our lives in the same way. This is the central message Paul communicated to the Galatians when they began to stray from the grace they had discovered in Christ.

 

"O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh" (Galatians 3:1-3)?

 

We can never achieve perfection through what we do in this life. We did not receive Christ through our works. Having begun our journey through faith in Jesus, why do some believe that the value of their love for God lies in what they do for Him? The truth is, it is Christ's perfect love that makes us worthy in God's eyes. However, faith without works is not true faith at all. We do good works for God because of what Christ has done for us, not to feel good about ourselves, trying to find a sense of peace and joy. We walk by faith in His gift of righteousness, knowing that we do not need to prove ourselves to God; Jesus has already demonstrated our worthiness, and He is our peace and joy. Understanding our righteousness in Him empowers us, and His grace fuels our walk. We love because He first loved us.

 

When you came to Christ for salvation, you did not earn it; instead, you placed your faith in what Jesus accomplished and received it as a gift. Colossians 2:6 states that we continue to receive from God in the same way. By putting our faith in Jesus, we continually receive His grace through that same faith.

 

If we came to Christ for salvation through faith, why do we sometimes hesitate to approach Him for our other needs? Perhaps it's because we don't feel worthy of His love. Maybe we think that if we beg God enough, fast enough, give enough, and do enough, God will respond to us.

 

We cannot do anything "enough" to move God to action! He has already addressed all of our needs through Jesus! We receive from Him through faith when we pray according to His will, knowing we will have what we have asked of Him (1 John 5:14-15). Jesus earned the salvation that we cannot achieve on our own, and this salvation includes the healing, deliverance, and provision that we are unable to obtain. We cannot earn what Christ has already accomplished for us. Instead, we receive from God when we know that in Christ alone is our worthiness. Our faith should rest on what He has done, not on anything we do.

 

Why would we ever turn the grace we receive through faith into works to earn God's love? Our attempts may make us feel good about ourselves for a while, but eventually, they will make us feel empty. Only Jesus fills the void. It is the Holy Spirit who produces good works within us. When we have nothing to prove because we know in our hearts that Jesus has made us righteous and that we are worthy in God's eyes, we surrender, trusting in the grace of Jesus. The change within us will be manifested in our lives.

 

Just as you have received Jesus Christ, my brother and sister, now walk by faith in Him.

 

 

The Holy Spirit Waits To Help Me

And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever.

—John 14:16

The Holy Spirit comes alongside us in our problems, interceding for us and helping us overcome weaknesses in our lives. He is our Helper who remains close at all times and abides with us forever. Our relationship with Him doesn’t have to be a distant one. We don’t have to plead for Him to come because He is already with us. The more time we spend with Him, the more His ways, traits, and ideas become ours, and the more He has an impact on us. When we come alongside Him, and He prays with us, we draw upon the reality of our new life we have received in Jesus Christ. 

The very moment we are saved, the Holy Spirit comes to reside inside us as a guarantee of our salvation (2 Corinthians 1:22). Yet, He also comes alongside us to assist us and to bring the truth of Jesus Christ into our lives. From the moment the Holy Spirit comes to live in our hearts, we can continuously rely on His assistance to help us overcome any handicap, problem, or challenge we face. He is with us in our circumstances and in our weaknesses. He dwells in us as our most dependable ally who empowers and leads us through every step of life. As we draw closer to Him, He draws closer to us. 

How do I treat the Holy Spirit? Is He an unseen and hidden guest in my life? Do I often miss Him as the Helper the Father has sent me? How often have I ignored this third person of the Trinity who resides within me and is primed to help me? Why wouldn’t I want to rely on Him who searches my heart and knows me so intimately? Why wouldn’t I allow Him who lives in me to intercede for me? He prays the mysteries of God’s will for me (1 Corinthians 14:2). He prays what my mind and heart limit.

“Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:27).

He’s been waiting so long to assist me. I open my heart, mind, and soul to His ministry. I’ll do my utmost to discern His voice and surrender to His leading. With all my mind and heart, I will pursue His help to navigate this life. His supernatural power will help me to overcome my weaknesses. His prayers will be my manna from heaven, rejoicing my heart and giving life to what was never quite enough.

The Holy Spirits Helps In Your Weakness

Likewise, the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

—Romans 8:26

Have you ever found yourself in a difficult situation and didn’t know how to get out of it? Have you had trouble praying? It’s the Holy Spirit’s responsibility to help us, but some Christians go through life without receiving His help.

Let’s look at the first part of Romans 8:26: “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses: for we don't know how what we should pray for as we ought….” The Greek word from which “helps” is translated presents a picture of two people working together to get a task done. When faced with an overwhelming difficulty, we don’t have the strength to remove that difficulty alone. We need the power of the Holy Spirit working with us. In our weaknesses, prayer becomes a partnership between the Holy Spirit and us. When you truly believe that your prayers cannot be prayed without the help of the Holy Spirit, your prayer life changes.

The Holy Spirit comes to assist us because we are too helpless mentally, physically, and spiritually to confront our weaknesses. Since we cannot remove any weakness without His help, we need all His power to eliminate them from our lives. That’s the reason He comes to bear this responsibility for us. He assists us in removing anything in our lives that weakens us.

“Likewise, the Spirit also helps us in our weaknesses: for we do not know what we should pray….” We simply don’t know how to correctly assess or pray about a difficult situation. This verse also says we know not “what” we should pray. That word “what” is a Greek word that depicts something very small. This reveals that we don’t know the little details and the hidden problems in that situation. Without the Holy Spirit, we cannot perceive the entire picture. We don’t have the know-how to deal with possible challenges that might come up in that situation.

Verse 26 continues, “For we know not what we should pray for as we ought….” The Holy Spirit has the best way to pray regarding each issue. Not knowing what we ought to pray means that on our own, we can’t pray so that need will be met. Without the Holy Spirit’s cooperation, we don’t know how to pray as each need requires. But God’s Spirit comes to remove our weaknesses and to help us in our inadequacies to know what to pray. He partners with us in prayer to remove any demonic oppression that holds us captive in our weaknesses.

The very end of verse 26 reveals that it’s the Holy Spirit’s responsibility to carry the weight of prayer for us: “But the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”  The word “intercession” is the Greek word “huperentugchano,” which means to fall in with. When we “fall” into a dilemma, the Holy Spirit “falls in” with us, helping us overcome the obstacle we face. This Greek word also presents the idea of coming together with someone in their experience. He is with us in our circumstances. He supplicates intensely for us “with groaning that cannot be uttered.” The Holy Spirit is always interceding for us. When we are joined with Him in intercession, He rescues us from our weaknesses.

When the enemy creates a pit for you to fall into, and you, being unaware of his scheme, fall right into it, you can do one of two things. You can feel sorry for yourself, complain, and stay trapped there, or you can ask the Holy Spirit to help you. When you invite Him, He begins to supplicate and intercede for you, and to move on your behalf. Right there at the bottom of that pit, the Holy Spirit comes together with you in prayer against the problems that are preventing your deliverance. He meets you right where you are in your trouble and begins to help you in your weaknesses. He says, “I’m going to grab onto this problem with you, and together we’re going to push against it until it is gone.”

Now you experience a surge of renewed strength coursing through you, propelling you to pray! You seize the spiritual weapons God has given you to overcome the enemy! The Holy Spirit takes hold of your weaknesses, and He keeps pushing with you against that problem until it is removed from your life for good.

If you’ve fallen into a deep pit and don’t know how to get out, never forget that the Holy Spirit is right there with you, and He’s prepared to help you. Just begin to pray, knowing that in your weakness, He is strong. He will empower you and remove every obstacle that stands in the way of your deliverance.

Blessed Are Those Who Have Believed

When Jesus was on this earth, healing all who came to Him, the people were in His physical presence. They could physically see, hear, and touch Him. In most of Jesus’ healings in the Word, people believed they were healed when they sensed it. Only the Centurion (Matthew 8:10) and the Canaanite woman (Matthew 15:18) exhibited a level of faith that went beyond what could be seen or felt. 

 

“Because you have seen Me, you have believed,” Jesus told Thomas after he had seen and touched his scars. “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).

 

We don’t have a physical Jesus we can see and touch, but we do have the Holy Spirit to reveal Him to us. Our faith cannot relate to what we sense, but it can relate to the Word. We must approach the Word just as the Centurion and Canaanite woman approached Jesus—with a faith that believed beyond their senses. 

 

One of the most difficult aspects of our Christian life can be trusting God’s Word rather than our senses. If we truly believe that His words are Spirit and life (John 6:63), then we must come to the place where we honor His Word over what we physically sense.

 

Faith is real. It is the substance and evidence of things that can’t be seen but do exist (Hebrews 11:1). They exist in God’s spiritual realm, which we cannot perceive with our five senses. True faith believes more in the substance of spiritual things in God’s realm than in things that are sensed in the natural realm. 

 

It is illogical to think that something doesn’t really exist because we can’t see it. I have a wireless modem. I can’t see the wireless signal, but it exists. All I have to do to prove it is real is turn on my cell phone, smart TV, or laptop. And then I have proof that something exists beyond what I see. It just exists in a realm that I can’t perceive with my five senses.

 

In the same way, everything Jesus provided through His finished work of grace exists in a spiritual realm that we can’t perceive with our five senses. We must believe the things of God are just as real as what we experience in our natural lives. Faith takes what is already true in the spiritual realm and receives it in the natural.

 

“But these are written, that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you might have life through his name” (John 20:31)

 

That which is written in the Word carries the same life and power as Jesus in the flesh. When we choose to believe what is written, we have the same life and power through His name. Trusting in our senses to prove God’s truth profits us nothing (John 6:63). Waiting for the flesh to feel good before deciding if God’s Word is true is walking by sight and not by faith. 

 

Faith sees the unseen. If you have to see or feel something to believe it is true, then that is not faith. Those who have not seen but have believed are blessed with His promises.

 

Choose to believe what is written in the Word for you and about you. Don’t allow what you sense in this life to become a monument. Believe in the substance of the spiritual truths of God. His Word is His assurance, vow, and guaranty that His promises are true. He has sent the Word to save, heal, deliver, and manifest in us. Let what you envision in your heart agree with Jesus, and not the feelings and circumstances of the moment you are in right now. 

 

“While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18).

 

Believe And Rest In Jesus

“My soul, wait only upon God and silently submit to Him; for my hope and expectation are from Him” (Psalms 62:5, AMPC).

 

Unlike the Hebrew word used for “wait” in other verses in the Bible, the Hebrew word for “wait” in this verse means “to be astonished and to stop.” 

 

How many of us are truly astonished by the Lord? Do we stop our anxious thoughts and wait only on Him? This verse says that our hopes or expectations are from the Lord. When we don’t expectantly wait on the Lord, we rely on ourselves. We yearn so desperately for someone or our circumstances to change that we often make hurried efforts to rectify them. And God just wants us to exercise our faith in the waiting that will bring His promise to astonish us.

 

^“He only is my Rock and my Salvation; He is my Defense and my Fortress, I shall not be moved” (Psalms 62:6, AMPC).

 

Victory comes when the Lord Jesus is our only defense and our only salvation. Jesus told Jairus to only believe when others rushed to quickly tell him of his daughter’s death (Mark 5:36). When we trust in what someone says or something other than what God reveals, we weaken our faith. 

 

We can trust the Lord without question. Do we stand strong in His Word, not allowing ourselves to be moved from what it promises? Do we believe what He says about our circumstances, health, or needs, regardless of how we feel or what anyone, learned or unlearned, says?

 

Psalms 61:3 says, “For You have been a shelter and a refuge for me, a strong tower against the adversary” (NKJV).

 

We have a powerful defensive position in Jesus. We must never be lured out of it. Never forget how the Lord has been your strength against the enemy. Pay attention to what God says in His Word. Don’t ever forget His promises. Don’t ever let His words depart from your heart. Guard those words when you find them. They are life to you and healing to all your flesh (Proverbs 4:20-23).

 

^“With God rests my salvation and my glory; He is my Rock of unyielding strength and impenetrable hardness, and my refuge is in God” (Psalms 62:7, AMPC).

 

Many people say nothing will lure them away from God’s powerful defense, but when it comes down to it, few people practice it. Most people trust man’s words and wisdom as their defense instead of relying on the Lord.

When we rest in Jesus’ finished work on our behalf, instead of letting anyone or anything steal His Word from our hearts, He becomes our unwavering and impenetrable source of strength. Nothing can tear us away from His protection. We are at peace in the storm. He is our refuge, sanctuary, haven, anchor, shelter, and unending protection in this world where the enemy tries to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10).

 

The New Testament equivalent to Psalms 62:7 is 1 Peter 5:7. This verse speaks of casting all our care upon the Lord. When we truly rest in the Lord, we don’t worry. We allow Him to capture any fearful thought. Because we trust in the Lord, we keep our thoughts upon Him, and His perfect peace guards our minds (Isaiah 26:3). We can sleep at night without obsessing about our problems. We can sleep because we know we are safe in His victory (Psalm 4:8). 

Nothing has the power to stand against His Word. His Word is Truth. Your God is completely reliable, and He doesn’t lie. Just believe Him, and rest in His promise.

 

“The Lord, your God, is He who fights for you, as He promised you” (Joshua 23:10, NKJV).

 

Just as promised, Jesus has fought for you and won. His victory is your victory. You can rest in His perfect work and life-giving power. 

 

“I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken” (Psalms 16:8, NKJV). 

Jesus has sat down at the right hand of God. His work is finished. There is no need for you to be shaken. When you rely on the wisdom of men and are told death and destruction should be what you expect, Jesus says, “Only believe.” Rely upon Him. Trust Him. Put your faith only in Him, and rest in Him. Allow nothing to lure you from His victory. Your faith in Him overcomes (I John 5:4).