These are notes on the sermon, The Key To Live Blessed, preached by Pastor Joseph Prince on Sunday, 28 April 2019, at The Star Performing Arts Centre, Singapore. We hope these sermon notes will be an encouragement to you!
Be sure to sign up to get updates on the latest sermon notes by Team JP.
Ps Prince encourages those who received Jesus at any of the church’s Resurrection Sunday services last week that they are in for a lifetime of adventure with the Lord!
Whether you’re a young believer who just came to know the Lord last week or you’re a mature believer who received the Lord decades ago, what you need to know and believe beyond anything else is the unadulterated truth of the gospel.
We never grow beyond needing the gospel!
The key verse for today:
“For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.”
—Romans 4:13 NKJV
“Abraham or to his seed” — Abraham’s seed refers to us, those who believe in Christ (see Gal 3:29).
“the promise that he would be the heir of the world” — This is God’s promise to us today: that we would be the heirs of the world.
As believers, the Bible tells us to look at the blessings of Abraham. Not the blessings of David, Daniel, Isaiah, etc. Why? Because Abraham received God’s blessings through the righteousness of faith—just like we do today.
God called Abraham “My friend” (Isa. 41:8).
“not … through the law, but through the righteousness of faith” — We receive this promise of being heirs of the world through the righteousness of faith. Just like Abraham, who believed the Lord and it was accounted to him for righteousness (see Gen. 15:6)
Back in Abraham’s time, the law had not yet been given. God gave the Ten Commandments to Israel on Mount Sinai, after they came out of Egypt.
Many people think that Christianity is about getting saved, then doing your best to keep the Ten Commandments.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The law is holy, but it cannot make you holy. The very perfection of the law brings out man’s sin.
“For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”
— Romans 6:14 NKJV
Sin is the mother of all pain and suffering. The wages of sin is death.
God hates sin because God loves you.
Sin = coming short of the glory of God. This can refer to coming short in your body (e.g. sickness), in your mind (e.g. depression), or any area of your life that causes suffering. All suffering is caused by sin.
Why does sin have dominion?
Romans 6:14 tells us that sin has dominion over you if you are under law. But when you are under grace, sin will no more have dominion over you!
Abraham was not conscious of the Ten Commandments because it did not exist back then.
We are to look at Abraham because his blessings are our blessings (see Gal. 3:14). Abraham was never punished by God. He was righteous not because of what he did, but because of what he believed. He was righteous by faith.
“For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.”
—Romans 4:13 NKJV
Let’s look at this promise: “heir of the world”
You can’t be the heir of the world if you are weak, sick, broke, depressed, flat on your back.
This tells us that this blessing of being the heir of the world is a great blessing that encompasses many smaller blessings like provision, health, peace of mind, etc.
This promise to Abraham and his seed (you and me) is not through the law but through “the righteousness of faith.”
The righteousness of faith is a gift. It is not earned by good performance or conduct.
Performance and conduct are important. But they are the fruits, not the root.
Many believers focus on holiness (the fruit) instead of grace (the root).
If you are righteous by faith, you will produce righteous acts.
The Bible talks about the fruits of the spirit versus the works of the flesh (see Gal. 5:16–26).
Pastors and leaders, if you want to see love, joy, peace, self-control in your people, preach grace. The fruits of grace are all the good things you want to see.
1 Corinthians 15:56 tells us that “the strength of sin is the law.”
The more you try to keep the law, the more you fall into sin.
When you let go, Jesus takes over.
Living a holy life, the life of an overcomer, is not possible through our efforts. It is not possible by trying to keep the law, no matter how good our intentions are.
The reason we don’t see believers experiencing the blessing of being the heir of the world is that they are trying to get it by their own effort.
The more you believe you are righteous by faith, the more you’ll see the blessing of being the heir of the world in your life.
“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
—Matthew 6:33 NKJV
Don’t go about trying to establish your own righteousness. Submit to the gift of righteousness.
“For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.”
—Romans 5:19 NKJV
“For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners” — People are not sinners because they sin. It’s the other way around: They sin because they’re sinners. We were all born sinners because of the first man’s, Adam’s, sin. Sin was passed down in Adam’s blood to all mankind.
“so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous” — By the same token that Adam’s sin made us sinners, Jesus’ obedience made us righteous.
The more we believe this, the more we will see the fruit of the Spirit in our lives.
Don’t worry about holiness. Focus on the fact that you are righteous by faith.
What does it mean to be righteous by faith?
It does not mean that you will not see any more manifestations of sin in your life, in your body, in your flesh.
Being righteous by faith means that even though you can still see sin manifest in your life at times, you believe that in spite of that, God has made you righteous.
The more you believe this truth, the more you will walk in the blessings of Abraham—the promise that you are the heir of the world.
Being the heir of the world includes health, provision, emotional well-being, poise, and confidence in the Lord.
—
Pastor Prince prays for people with:
Grace is all about supply. Law is all about demand.
The law demands perfect righteousness from man. But under Grace, God supplies to us perfect righteousness through Christ. Jesus’ righteousness is to be received as a gift.
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus”
—Romans 3:23–24 NKJV
“justified freely” — The word “freely” is the Greek word “dōrean,” which means “without a cause” or “without a reason.”
This means that God did not justify you (make you righteous) because of any cause or reason in you. God justified you because of Christ.
So stop trying to find a reason in yourself!
“For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.”
—Romans 5:19 NKJV
Adam’s sin made us sinners. Before we were saved, nothing we did could make us righteous. Likewise, now that we are saved and Jesus’ obedience has made us righteous, nothing we do can make us sinners.
Some people think, “I am righteous until my next sin.” If this were true, it would mean that what Adam did was more powerful than what Jesus did. This cannot be true!
By Jesus’ obedience, we have been made righteous permanently.
Pastor Prince shares how he used to use his faith for many things—provision, healing, etc. Until one day, God showed him Matthew 6:33: “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
Use your faith for this one thing: believe that you have received His righteousness.
“For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.”
—Romans 4:13 NKJV
The promise of being the heir of the world is through the righteousness of faith.
In the New Testament, faith is mentioned 20 times in direct relation to righteousness.
In contrast, faith is mentioned only 4 times in direct relation to salvation.
This tells us what to use our faith for every day.
Every day, there will be reasons to feel unclean, to feel as if God is far away, to feel as if you don’t deserve His blessings, to feel as if you’re not good enough.
These are the moments we need to declare, “I am the righteousness of God in Christ!”
Many times, we try to change our spouse and our children to improve our family situation. But many times, our attempts to change our loved ones become law-based.
Law is demand. Grace is supply.
God says, “Don’t worry about making someone else change. Let’s talk about you.”
This is the faith picture that God has for you and your family:
“When you eat the labor of your hands,
You shall be happy, and it shall be well with you.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
In the very heart of your house,
Your children like olive plants
All around your table.
Behold, thus shall the man be blessed
Who fears the LORD.”
—Psalms 128:2–4 NKJV
These are the family blessings God wants you to have:
The key to these family blessings is found in verse 4: “Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the LORD.”
This means that if you are blessed, your whole house will be blessed.
Focus on the fact that because you are righteous in Christ, you are blessed of the Lord. When this is your focus, there is going to be an effect on your wife and your children.
“All your children shall be taught by the LORD,
And great shall be the peace of your children.”
—Isaiah 54:13 NKJV
“All your children shall be taught by the LORD” — This verse does not say that your children shall be taught about the Lord. It says that they shall be taught by the Lord.
Pastor Prince shares about a recent time when the Lord taught Justin a powerful truth about the Passover.
The result of the Lord teaching your children personally is that they shall experience great peace. The word “peace” here in Hebrew is “shalom,” and it encompasses well-being, health, wholeness, and peace of mind.
What does God require for your children to have great shalom? The answer is in the next verse:
“All your children shall be taught by the LORD,
And great shall be the peace of your children.
In righteousness you shall be established;
You shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;
And from terror, for it shall not come near you.”
—Isaiah 54:13–14 NKJV
“In righteousness you shall be established” — When you are established in righteousness, the Lord will teach your children and they will experience great peace.
As the leader of your house, when you are blessed, your whole house is blessed.
When you are settled in your heart that your righteousness is in Christ, there comes a peace on you that can be felt and even seen on your face. It affects the atmosphere of the home.
That sense of rest in your heart will leave a divine impression on your children.
When you are established in righteousness, your family will be blessed (see Ps. 128:2–4, Isa. 54:13), you will be far from oppression, fear, and terror (see Isa. 54:14), you will inherit the blessings of Abraham (see Gal. 3:14), you will be the heir of the world (see Rom. 4:13)!
Pastor Prince encourages us to say this after him:
“God has justified me without any cause in me. Without any reason in me. He has justified me freely by His grace, through the redemption in Christ. Amen.”
It’s not enough to hear this truth. Declare it.
“But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
—Romans 10:8–10 NKJV
“confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus” — This confession is that Jesus is your righteousness.
“with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” — The word “salvation” in Greek is “sōtēria,” which includes welfare, healing, and wholeness. In Hebrew, the word “salvation” is “Yeshua,” which is the name of Jesus. When you confess our Lord Jesus, you are confessing healing, health, wholeness, provision.
It’s not enough to know that Jesus is your righteousness in your mind. You need to say it.
The prophet Isaiah saw us believers like this:
“I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear. Surely, shall one say, in the Lord have I righteousness and strength: even to him shall men come; and all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed. In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.”
—Isaiah 45:23–25 KJV
“Surely, shall one say, in the Lord have I righteousness and strength” — In other words, Isaiah saw believers declaring, “I am the righteousness of God in Christ.”
“all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed” — It doesn’t matter who says negative, angry things about you. God’s Word says that if you declare, “I am the righteousness of God in Christ,” all that are incensed against you shall be ashamed.
“In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory” — After justification always comes glory.
But why are we not seeing these blessings today? What is lacking? Our confession.
The only thing Jesus as our High Priest wants from us today is this:
“Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus,”
—Hebrews 3:1 NKJV
“High Priest of our confession” — Jesus is the High Priest of our confession. Not the High Priest of our thoughts or our emotions but our confession.
This is not the confession of sin.
“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
—Hebrews 4:14–16 NKJV
“let us hold fast our confession” — You cannot hold fast to a confession of sin. This is referring to a confession of faith. A confession of hope. Today, Jesus is listening out for your confession: “I am the righteousness of God in Christ.”
When He hears you say it, He is reminded that everything He did for you was not in vain.
But when you go around saying, “I feel lousy, I feel bad, I don’t feel worthy, I don’t know whether God hears my prayers,” the Lord is not pleased. Because it means that you are seeing yourself in yourself, not in Him.
—
Misconception: “The law that we are no longer under is ceremonial law—the killing of sacrificial animals. But we are still under the Ten Commandments.”
This is not true.
“who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. But if the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away, how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? For if the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry of righteousness exceeds much more in glory.”
—2 Corinthians 3:6–9 NKJV
“the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” — On the day the law was given, 3000 people died (see Exod. 32:28). On the day the Spirit was given, 3000 people were saved (see Acts 2:41).
“the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones” — The only part of the law written and engraved on stones is the Ten Commandments. The killing of sacrifices was never on stones; those laws were written on parchments. So it is clear that when Romans 6:14 says that we are not under law, it is referring to the Ten Commandments.
Does this mean that we go should go out and commit adultery and murder? Of course not.
In fact, under grace, not only will you not commit adultery, you will love your spouse. Not only will you not commit murder or hate someone, you will be a blessing to that person.
How to be blessed the new covenant way: It is not to try to keep the law, but to be under grace. The way to be blessed is to say: “God has justified me without any reason in me. He has justified me by His grace. I am the righteousness of God in Christ.”
Pastor Prince closes the service by sharing a testimony of a brother who was delivered from a long-standing addiction to pornography. This brother confessed, “I am the righteousness of God in Christ,” in the middle of watching pornography (Pastor Prince highlights how this is a good example of righteousness by faith). After 3 days of confessing his righteousness in Christ, this man was delivered from his addiction and has been free of it for 27 months!
Pastor Prince encourages us to confess, “I am the righteousness of God in Christ,” because this confession breaks bondages. Not just addictions, but also sickness, depression, oppression, and every bad thing in your life.
In the Old Testament, when there was no cross of Jesus Christ, God had to punish sin as Judge. But in the New Testament, after the cross, God is now our Justifier.
“In the name of the Lord Jesus, the Lord bless you and your loved ones. The Lord bless you with the blessings of Abraham, the blessings of Deuteronomy 28. May they manifest in your life this week. May the Lord keep you, preserve you, and protect you and your loved ones from all harm, from every danger, from every infection, from every disease, from terror, from evil people and from all the powers of darkness through the blood of His Son. The Lord smile on you, favor you, lift up His countenance upon you, and grant to you and your families His great shalom-peace, health, and well-being. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and all the people say, Amen.”
We hope these sermon notes blessed you! If they did, we encourage you to get the sermon and allow the Lord to speak to you personally as you watch or listen to it.
© Copyright JosephPrince.com 2019
These sermon notes were taken by volunteers during the service. They are not a verbatim representation of the sermon.
Sign Up for Latest Sermon Notes Updates
SubscribeTo complete the subscription process, please click on the confirmation link in the email we just sent you.
You're already in our mailing list. Thank You!
