Courtroom of Heaven

Revelation 12:10 KJV — And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

No matter what we have done wrong, even the tiniest of sins, the enemy brings it to the courtroom of Almighty God, day and night.

If we default on a payment with a creditor and the penalty is beyond our means, that creditor will take the matter before a judge to obtain legal right to collect, regardless of our personal circumstances. Our non-payment might be due to a loss of income, an extended hospital stay, maybe we had to replace the furnace in our house, or our paycheck might have bounced. No matter the reason, that creditor wants their money and they have no mercy.

When the court date comes, and we decide we are too embarrassed to show up to court, what happens?

The creditor will be granted their legal judgment against us. Now they can garnish from the small amount we receive to keep our family fed. We know they are not suffering because of our little debt but they will show no mercy as to our struggle. They have legal right and that’s all there is to it.

The creditor will not bet on us to take their legally obtained judgment seriously either. No, we already defaulted so instead, they go to our income source and tell them they must pay them directly under penalty of law. Even if our employer wanted to help, their hands are tied. Until the debt is paid in full, we have no choice but to suffer the burden of garnishment.

Had we, despite the embarrassment, went to court that day, we would have been able to plead with the judge. We could have reasoned with the judge, telling him the circumstances that kept us from fulfilling our obligation to pay and ask for the mercy of the court in working out a fair deal.

Chances are the judge would empathize with us and rule more in our favor due to the circumstances we had no control over. The creditor may not show us mercy but the judge is likely to be fair, just and rule with mercy.

Our enemy, the Devil or Satan, is counting on us to not show up in court. Like that creditor, the enemy goes after any and all legal ways to throw the book at us for every sin we commit, even those we didn’t consider to be sins. The judge has little choice but to allow him judgement against us unless we go to court and plead our case.

The enemy fills our minds and hearts with unworthiness, shame or a downright rebellious attitude knowing we are unlikely to approach the courts of heaven full of anger or guilt. The enemy is well aware that the atonement for our sin is found in that courtroom. He knows God’s mercy and grace, and He is very well aware of who our advocate, our lawyer is. It Is in the enemy’s best interest to make sure we do not show our faces in court.

Sadly, most of us fall for his deception, lies and tricks. We then live lives’ less than we were created to live. Our purpose is stolen or taken, our joy, comfort, peace, our health, all our blessings, our sanity, sometimes even our will to live. We may have been just barely surviving and still the enemy showing us not a shred of mercy will debit from us again and again.

When a trust has been set up for someone under the age of 18, or in some cases age of 25, we can’t use the money in the trust even in an emergency, without going before the courts and producing convincing evidence of a need to make a withdrawal. Although it’s our money, the way it’s set up is to protect us from squandering it all away in our young, naïve understanding.

The court then is our advocate and will decide if what we present is a true need or not. Chances are, if we have taken time to go before the courts to ask, we have already thought about it long and hard and we are convinced of our need, and we certainly don’t wait until our need is met to go ask the courts to meet the need.

This is the main reason our enemy goes to any length making sure we never show up in the courts of heaven. What we ask for is already there and it’s already ours, we just need to ask for it. The enemy deceives us into believing we can’t go into heaven’s courts dirty, sinful, unworthy or ashamed. He convinces us that somehow we must meet the need first. Truth is, we must wear the need into the courtroom and plead for said need to be met by what has already been deposited for us. The blood of Jesus!

Romans 5:8 KJV — But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Jesus didn’t wait for us to stop sinning, He didn’t even wait for us to agree we needed saving. No, even while we were yet sinners, He died for us. We have a trust already set up for us, all we need to do is go to court and show we realize and understand our need and with Jesus as our Advocate, our Judge, full of mercy and grace waits ready to grant us our request.

Romans 8:33-39 KJV — Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. 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. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 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.

Let’s not allow the enemy to bully us out of going before the courts of heaven where we can’t lose. We call the Judge Abba, Father and Jesus already paid the debt. Let us go boldly into the courts with thanksgiving and praise, laughing at our adversaries loss.

Until next time, may God bless you and keep you as you seek Him with your whole heart.

God needs no apology

Daily repentance is not because God needs an apology. No, He is not vain or puffed up. He, came down as Jesus, to my level, made himself less, to save me, to show me how much He truly loves me. His love requires no apology to make Him any more right, any more holy, or anymore big. His love covers a multitude of wrongs.
1 Peter 4:8 NKJV — And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.
Daily repentance is required not for Him, but for me.
The enemy is less likely to beat me up, than he is to puff me up. If he were to beat me up, he knows, I’m way more likely to go to my Father in heaven when I’m down.
But now, if he can puff me up, making sure I feel good about who I am and confident that I am on the right track, I’m less likely to ask my Father in heaven for help. Why ask for what I don’t need? Right?
Oh so patiently the enemy waits, lurking in the shadow’s. Watching, waiting for that right moment, that precise moment he believes to be most impactful, detrimental, and sure to shatter both my heart and soul.
The enemy showing no semblance of mercy, goes to work setting the stage…
Everything is going so good. My heart is filling up as people are noticing Jesus living in and working through me. Even those that persecuted and hated on me are confronted with how much Jesus shown in my life. There’s no doubt lives are touched even changed. There might be a few things come up that question the validity of my walk and my heart, but I’m not perfect yet, I reason. I’m still growing and learning, God’s not finished with me yet. I can’t be Jesus, no one can, but I can be His vessel.
2 Corinthians 4:7 KJV — But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
Life is moving in the right direction finally, and even though there are ups and downs, I’m not crushed or alone anymore. I’m feeling purpose, like maybe I do matter after all, maybe I have something to contribute in this world.
Stage is set, just one more final touch.
Life gets busy, so busy helping others, being there for others, ministering to others, I have less time to spend in Father God’s presence. I’ll pray throughout the day, read devotionals, talk and fellowship with like minded believers, I’ll think on a verse or two while I’m going from one place to another, yet, time on my knees, crying out to Him, in surrender, with my ego, pride, and heart laying in pieces before Him, has depleted to basically never.
And then, the fall…
Now the enemy makes his move, his kill shot, final blow. He knew this whole time what would irritate me. He knew this whole time what would bring out the ugly still hiding within me. He watched and waited, holding back, until now. Then all at once Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
Daily repentance is not about God wanting an apology. It’s to keep me in a place of true humility and therefore protect me from the enemy setting the stage for my fall. It’s also to keep my perspective about others, even those who prove to be my enemies, in check with the Truth only He knows. My only hope against the deception and dividing tactics of the enemy being able to use me, is knowing and understanding that no matter what I think I know, God and God alone knows the truth. I must trust Him and follow His directions for my own safety and wellbeing.
Therefore, I must repent with truth in my heart. Not from a place of fear and a mindset of not having a choice. No, be truly sorry for falling short, not wanting to disappoint God. Not wanting to hurt God. If my heart is not sorry because I live in a world that sees what I’ve done as normal, no big deal, or just expressing myself, then my heart is not truly repentant and I won’t change those ways in me. Before going before the Lord to repent, first I must go before Him and ask for Him to “right” my heart. I need to ask Him to open my eyes, my mind, and my heart to His ways. Then ask for Him to speak His Truth, the only Truth into my rebellious heart, so I may see. Also ask Him to show me His love, grace and mercy, so I can fall in love with Him and insomuch truly desire to want to please Him.
Sometimes a person isn’t sorry about certain sins because their lives have been lived in a fallen, rebellious, broken world and it’s hard to think of a normal, no big deal, thought or action as a sin. Other times the difficulty in seeing the truth about sin is in the fact our flesh enjoys the very thing being called sin. We really don’t want to let it go. We can’t see life without it. And still another reason can be because we have come to believe it’s who we are and being sorry for it means we are ashamed of who we are and of our true self. All these are strongholds.
2 Corinthians 10:4-5 NKJV — For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.
The truth is, simple, it’s Jesus.
John 14:6 NKJV — Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
No matter the stronghold that may be blinding me, the Truth, aka reality is, Jesus.
First I need to come into agreement with Jesus, The Truth. Then because I know and agree with Him, I ask Him to change my heart to reflect His. Finally, I make a daily habit of coming before Him, asking Him if there is any offensive ways still in me, while repenting for those offenses I already know I’ve committed.
I do this not for God’s benefit, but for my own.
Until next time, may God bless you and keep you, as you seek Him, with your whole heart.