Joseph Prince - Your Failure Isn't Final (Excerpt)
FULL message: Joseph Prince - Your Failure Isn't Final
You don't have to look far to realize your failures, right? Every day, sometimes brings fresh reminders, that we are so weak in and of ourselves. But friend, listen carefully. The flesh is still in us. And I think that God leaves us with the flesh, even after we are born again to humble us, to always remind us of our need for Him. Or else we are people that always feel like after one victory: "We are strong now and we're not going to fall". No, friend. The flesh is the flesh and the flesh is always there. Right? So before you see the freedom from the addiction, from the sinful habit, before you can have that transformation that you so desire, you need to believe there is now no condemnation. Now in Romans 8:1, it says clearly. "Therefore there is now no condemnation at all for those who are in Christ Jesus".
I like the New American Standard Bible (NASB) because it brings out the word: "No. No condemnation at all". The word "no" there. There are a number of Greek words for "no" or "negative" or "negation" but this word "no" is a powerful, negative conjunction. And the word in the Greek is "oudeis". "Oudeis". "Oudeis" is used when you are describing something where it leaves no exception. It shuts the door completely. There is no one or nothing, nothing at all. It shuts the door, leaving no exceptions. "Therefore there is now no condemnation at all for those who are in Christ Jesus". A lot of people receive condemnation in themselves and I'm reminded of something the Lord told me as I was searching. And like I said just now.
Last year, especially, I was going into the area of: "A lot of people have heard this truth (of condemnation) and those who have heard this truth, I see many people have had many testimonies, they have been transformed". But some are not transformed. And I really want to see 100% results. Of course, I know that human will comes in and all that, but I'm someone who's really hungry for all that God has for us. How about you? Amen. So I asked the Lord. And He didn't answer me immediately, but one day I was praying, I remember praying and then I heard these words, very simple words. One line after another, it came into my spirit as I was praying. I had to get up from my prayer, grab a pen, and go to my notebook and write down verbatim what I heard in my spirit, what the Lord was saying to me, I want to read to you because this is the same notebook that I wrote, jotted down what the Lord said to me during prayer and this is what He said to me last year. When it came to me so strong, one after another, and I'll say this. At first you will say: "Well, Pastor Prince, that is nothing profound. It sounds so simple". But isn't it like God to share with you simple things and yet life-transforming? Amen. It can be a pivotal point in your life when you hear it. Okay?
And this is what He said to me: "Jesus cannot bear guilt while you are bearing guilt. Guilt cannot be in two places. Either it's on Him or it's on you. If it's on you, and you bear it, it cannot be on Him. If it's on Him, then it's not on you. Pastor, this is so simple". Listen. "Where guilt is, there can be no restoration. If guilt is on Him, then restoration is on you". If He took your guilt, then restoration is coming your way. And when He shared this with me, straight away, I'm reminded of the five offerings. All the five offerings in the book of Leviticus typify that one offering of Christ at the cross. It takes five Levitical offerings to show us what happened to Jesus at the cross. Of course, one of them, the meal offering, actually refers to His entire life. Okay? But the rest refers to that one act of Christ on the cross. I'm going to focus on the guilt offering. The guilt offering. There's a guilt offering. First of all, there's a burnt offering. And then there is a meal offering. There is a peace offering. There is a sin offering, and then there is a guilt offering.
Now it says it like this in Leviticus 6. It says here talking about the "asham", which is the guilt offering: "If you have sinned in any of these ways, you are guilty. You must give back whatever you stole, or the money you took by extortion, or the security deposit or the lost property you found, or anything obtained by swearing falsely. You must make restitution or restoration by paying the full price". Paying what? "The full price plus an additional 20% to the person you have harmed". So in other words, 100%. The full price is a 100% plus 20%. So it's 120%. To the person you have harmed. "On the same day, you must present a guilt offering". So this is actually the procedure for the guilt offering Or the "asham". In our King James, it says the trespass offering. Actually the word there is "guilt offering". Very interesting, because we have a sin offering already, right? We have a sin offering or trespass offering. We already have a sin offering, the fourth one in Leviticus.
Why should there be a guilt offering? Because many a times, we feel guilty. Not just that, because it's a real guilt that happens when you know that you've done something wrong. The Bible says the only way to get rid of guilt, back in the Old Testament, is to pay back someone that you have stolen from, extorted, deceived, or whatever. You need to pay back and repair the damage with a 100% value of the thing that you have stolen or robbed him of. And not only that, it says: "You must add 20% to it". So in other words, you must give 120%. Amen. Now did God talk about this just for during that time? But look at what happened at the cross. Jesus took the place of the one who has trespassed, who has sinned, right? Jesus took the place as the one who has done wrong, who extorted. All in the list that's mentioned here in Leviticus 6. Jesus took the place. He took your place and my place. Instead of us being there on that cross, He took our place! We did the wrong, we did the extorting, we did everything.
So He took our place. By the same token, He becomes liable for all the wrong things that we have done. In other words, He will be the one to restore 120%. And God designed all this, my friend, to be so. Hallelujah. You see, because the Bible actually tells us this: Jesus said in one of the messianic Psalms. It says in Psalms 69: "They that hate me without a cause, are more than the hairs of my head". Now, this first part here is in reference to Jesus. How do we know that Psalm 69 is referring to Jesus? Because this verse was quoted by Jesus Himself in the upper room. At the Last Supper in John 15, Jesus says: "But this happened that the word might be fulfilled, which is written in their law, ‘They hated Me without a cause.’ They hated Me without a cause". Where was this taken from? From Psalm 69. "They that hate me without a cause". Notice the last part. "Then I restored that which I took not away". Jesus says: "I restored that which I took not away. I took the place of the guilty one. I became liable for their sins. Therefore I have to be the One to restore".
So my friend, how that works out, what the Lord said to me. And because I understand about the guilt offering. I'm going to repeat this again. He said: "Jesus can't bear guilt while you are bearing guilt. Guilt cannot be in two places. Either it's on Him or it's on you". If it's on you and you bear it, you experience it, You justify yourself, why you feel guilty. I don't care whether you believe in the gospel of grace or whether you heard the teachings about the righteousness of God, but if you bear it, if you are feeling guilty, friend, then it's not on Him. As far as you're concerned, it's on you. So if it's on you and you bear it, it can't be on Him. If it's on Him, then it's not on you. In other words, guilt cannot be in two places. That's what the Lord said to me. Where guilt is, there can be no restoration.
As you can see in the guilt offering, there is restoration. So what happens, friend, when you fall into sin? Do you hold yourself to it and say: "Oh man, I shouldn’t have done that. Oh God, please forgive me. Lord. Oh God, please forgive me". And you're feeling guilty all the time. Now the words are okay. "Forgive me". I'm not knocking the words, but the feeling. What are you feeling? You're feeling guilt. You're feeling condemnation. Instead of declaring: "There is therefore now no condemnation". And listen, my friend. This will not produce licentiousness. Some people think: "Well, if you tell people when you sin, confess there's no condemnation, confess you are the righteousness of God in Christ…" Yes, friend. Because Jesus told the woman caught in adultery: "Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more".
Look at the order! It is only when you receive no condemnation that you are empowered to go and sin no more. But the church has it backwards: "Go and sin no more first. Let me see your life, then we won't condemn you". That is not Jesus’ way. Jesus told the woman who was caught in the act of adultery hours ago: "Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more". Now when you receive the gift of no condemnation, while you are still in your sin, it will empower you. This truth must be preached in such a way that people will sense the no condemnation, that they will realize how much God loves them, how perfect the work of Jesus at the cross is, to remove all their sins, that it will empower them to reign in life! Hallelujah. Amen.
And that applies, also, to the area of health and healing, provision. When you fail in certain areas and a voice comes and says: "You know what? Now you can expect bad things to happen to you. Even your car will not function as well. Things will go wrong in your workplace. There'll be no promotion for you. There is a disfavor on you now because you have failed. You know what you did yesterday, you know what you did last night". Instead of turning to Jesus, you wallow in guilt. Now guilt is on you, right? Guilt cannot be in two places. No, you got to look to Jesus. Say: "Lord, You took this guilt. You became my guilt offering". And all the while, you're falling in love with Him more and more, the more you see this. Amen. And then you receive it. "Because of this, I receive 120% restoration". Now you are entitled to that. Praise God! "I receive that in Jesus’ name. I receive 120% restoration in the area of work". Yes, believe God for that! Because whatever area that has been robbed, that's the area that the restoration will happen.