Doctrine of the Angelic Conflict, part 34 – The essence of God – Justice. 1Co 2:9; Col 3:25.

Title: Doctrine of the Angelic Conflict, part 34 - The essence of God - Justice. 1CO 2:9; COL 3:25.

 

G. Justice: The execution of what +R demands. In the trillions of decisions God has rendered, not one has ever been unfair or incorrect.

 

The laws of volitional responsibility and divine discipline are eternal, unchangeable laws whose execution is a direct result of God’s +R.

 

God set these laws for His creatures by means of His Justice long before He created anything, way back in eternity past. To think that I can subvert them and somehow escape justice is ludicrous. Whatever we reap we sow and God is not a respecter of persons. God must do what His character must do, for His person and His attributes are one and the same. He is not like man as if He changes or compromises, for He cannot.

 

When the believer or unbeliever is in violation of these laws he suffers the misery of that environment. God is not changing in response to his actions.

 

And that brings us to blessing.

 

All believers were blessed in eternity past with the maximum amount of blessing, EPH 1:3-4.

The believer can forfeit these blessings by rejecting God's provisions of BD, FHS, PPOG.

 

Because of the work of Christ and the foreknowledge of God to be able to see who would believe in Him, blessing the believer with a maximum amount of blessing does not compromise God’s perfect integrity.

 

These include the blessing of undeserved suffering.

 

Logistical grace - natural blessings. God’s highest and best - natural and supernatural blessings.

 

Saying no to the doctrine, the ministry of the Spirit, and the predesigned plan is the same as saying no to the supernatural blessings of God and so, the justice of God withholds them.

 

Wanting a whole bunch of awesome stuff in time and not wanting God’s transformation through doctrine, the Spirit, and the plan in order to be righteous, just, loving, wise, powerful, and know the one absolute truth, is incompatible. It is like a young man wanting to take over his father’s very successful business, but refusing to learn how the business works and how to run it successfully. He just wants riches and power and recognition and doesn’t care that he will most likely run it into the ground and destroy decades of his father’s long nights and hard work.

 

Imagine God possessing everything, having all power, but not being just or righteous or love. It would be a disaster.

 

The indwelling +R is all that is needed for the natural blessings of God, which we term logistical grace blessings, but growing up spiritually is what is needed for the supernatural blessings from God. God honors the decision of the believer who says no to the supernatural things and settles for the natural or earthly only. 

 

There is a certain capacity of the heart (right lobe of the soul) that is needed to have the capacity for the supernatural blessings, the things which:

 

1CO 2:9 but just as it is written,

"Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard,

And which have not entered the heart of man,

All that God has prepared for those who love Him."

 

This is quoted from:

ISA 64:4

For from of old they have not heard nor perceived by ear,

Neither has the eye seen a God besides Thee,

Who acts in behalf of the one who waits for Him.

 

It did not escape me that Paul substituted love Him for waits for Him under the direct inspiration of God the HS. That is because the one who loves Him will wait for Him because he knows that God’s timing, under His perfect JusticeGrace is perfect.

 

“I will wait for the One that I love.” (1CO 2:9 cf. ISA 64:4)

 

1CO 2:10 For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.

 

Loving God is one such capacity of the heart for supernatural blessing as is patience in waiting on His perfect timing, as well as coming to know the deep things of God, or what God has shared of His omniscience. All of these prepare me for what I cannot even imagine. The one who loves God wouldn’t want these supernatural things early since when they are right on time they are enjoyed to the maximum and God is glorified to the maximum.

 

The heart must also have the fruit of the Spirit:

GAL 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

 

GAL 5:23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

 

These are all effects of the heart of the positive believer.

 

I can’t enjoy the fullness of right man right woman or friendship without agape love. I can’t endure undeserved suffering without God’s perfect happiness in my soul. I can’t handle great amounts of prosperity if I don’t possess peace. I can’t be content with what I have now or with personal attacks without having patience on the timing of God. I can’t love my neighbor without kindness. I can’t be gracious without goodness. I can’t sustain relationships or sufferings without faithfulness. I can’t maintain peace around others without gentleness. I can’t have power over my enemies without self-control.

 

If I do not possess these fruit then there is no point in receiving the supernatural blessings, in fact, I won’t even see them as supernatural and they would with time only destroy me. If I do not possess these fruit the solution is always - more Bible doctrine.

 

Justice has determined that the believer in Christ will always be under grace and in grace the believer can say no or yes to the supernatural things of God.

 

So again, even in blessing the believer can never say that because I did this or that God blessed me supernaturally. This would be like a young man who had an expensive sports car and bragged that he had it because his father bought for him before he was born and that he lived to be 16 years old and learned how to drive.

 

The justice of God, guided by the +R of God, determined the parameters of condemnation, deserved suffering, and blessing (includes undeserved suffering).

 

Paul shows his desire for God’s justice on the blessing side of the cross in PHI 3:8-11.

 

PHI 3:8 More than that, I count all things [cosmic blessings] to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ,

 

PHI 3:9 and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith,

 

PHI 3:10 that I may know Him [wisdom], and the power of His resurrection [power = OP] and the fellowship of His sufferings [undeserved], being conformed to His death [complete surrender to God’s will];

 

PHI 3:11 in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead [supernatural blessings].

 

This is important for the believer to understand since if he assumes that God is under the law of cause and effect then the believer will conclude that he can do something to merit God’s favor.

 

God is wise, incorruptible, perfect, and a fair judge of mankind. He is the one judge who has never rendered a wrong decision.

 

And so we focus on the law instituted by divine justice that we find ourselves under all of the time and from which most of our suffering and misery flows.

 

Divine Justice instituted the law of volitional responsibility: Every creature is responsible for his own decisions, good and bad, under divine law.

 

Since divine justice is unchangeable, as are all the attributes of God, nothing the creature does gives him a loop-hole or special privilege as we see often in our own legal system.

 

COL 3:18 Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.

 

COL 3:19 Husbands, love your wives, and do not be embittered against them.

 

COL 3:20 Children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing to the Lord.

 

COL 3:21 Fathers, do not exasperate your children, that they may not lose heart.

 

Exasperate = to provoke, to make resentful, to make bitter, and in context it is to the point that they get discouraged or lose heart.

 

COL 3:22 Slaves, in all things obey those who are your masters on earth, not with external service, as those who merely please men, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord.

 

COL 3:23 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men;

 

COL 3:24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.

 

COL 3:25 For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.

 

The false assumption, promoted by the cosmos, is that the wife is justified in doing wrong because her husband does wrong, or vice versa. The children can disobey because their parents exasperate them or that the parents may exasperate because the children are unruly. The slave may do wrong because he has no freedom or the worker may do wrong because the boss is unfair. The boss or master may abuse his power because his workers do wrong. It doesn’t matter how many other people you get to agree with you in the practice of wrong, for from God, the unchangeable, and eternal Judge, will convey the consequences of your wrong, and that without partiality.

 

Sin, evil, human good, as well as the violation of divine institutions; marriage, family, nationalism, and individual freedom all result in misery.

 

Without partiality means that God is not a respecter of persons and if you or I are in violation of any of His laws then we will suffer the consequences. This is why quick rebound is so important, for whatever suffering remains after confession is a blessing in the form of instruction in righteousness.

 

The justice of God allows sin and evil to exist in His universe, but the +R of God dictates that it must be judged. Those who reject the substitutionary spiritual judgment of Christ face God’s justice by themselves.

 

Satan has successfully worked in his cosmos system to convince the world that certain behaviors are not the fault of the individual and that he is the victim of his genetics, environment, culture, education, and all other forms of victimization. It is obvious that this appeals to the arrogance of man who would rather blame others then take responsibility for his own decisions. That’s what we did at our fall.

 

But not matter what the human race is convinced of and no matter whom they blame for their misery the justice of God must judge the sinner who refuses the judicial judgment of Christ and he will be judged based on his own work towards righteousness.

 

REV 20:12

and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.

 

Human volition is the cause of all of these problems, as well as all neurosis, psychosis, criminality, and sociopathic behavior.

 

While it is true that the OSN tempts the believer to sin, it is volition that acquiesces to the temptation and so volitional responsibility stands as the cause.

 

JAM 1:14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.

 

JAM 1:15 Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.

 

Story of Colonel and soap maker:

 

Good decisions in these areas create the environment of blessing in the life of the creature, even for the unbeliever under the laws of divine establishment.