Our Father's Heart
These podcasts are intended to nurture, instruct, and help you understand what the Lord has said in His Word that you may walk in the manner worthy of your calling in Him. We pray that you are blessed, not merely in the hearing, but more so in the doing. Simply put, our utmost desire is to be in the Father's heart, to know the Father's heart, and express the Father's heart to you.
Our Father's Heart
The Heart of the Righteous | Ep. 145
Unlock the secrets of a heart that truly trusts in God as we journey through scripture, revealing what it means to possess the heart of the righteous. How does one maintain faith and patience amidst life's trials? Our episode explores this profound question by drawing inspiration from Psalm 25 and other biblical texts, illustrating the spiritual significance of consistently seeking God's presence for renewal and strength. We reflect on the humble and teachable nature of the righteous, emphasizing the blessings of prioritizing God's wisdom over worldly pursuits.
Through the inspiring stories of David and Job, we share how the righteous navigate life's challenges by placing unwavering trust in God's justice and deliverance. Discover how waiting on the Lord and embracing His correction can lead to spiritual growth and fulfillment. Our podcast delves into the importance of drawing near to God, much like the Levites who cherished God as their ultimate inheritance, even against the backdrop of life's distractions and desires for worldly greatness.
Concluding with a focus on seeking a heavenly homeland, we discuss the transformative power of prioritizing spiritual fulfillment over earthly concerns. By referencing teachings from Matthew, Hebrews, and James, we highlight how true righteousness is rooted in seeking God's kingdom first. This episode invites you to reflect on your own spiritual journey, encouraging you to open your heart to divine guidance and correction, trusting in the eternal hope promised to those who maintain their faith. Join us as we align our hearts with the characteristics of the righteous, embracing the joy and satisfaction found in God’s presence.
"Message Our Father's Heart a Question or Response"
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The vision received was that of blood cells traveling throughout the body, supplying the much needed oxygen and other nutrients to the differing members of the body to fulfill their purpose. Once the blood cells are spent, they must return back to the heart to be refilled before being sent out again and fulfill their purpose.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It's good to be with you again today. It's always a pleasure. It's always a privilege to be in the midst of you and in front of you and that God would choose me and allow me to minister to you. I consider it an honor, and so I pray that your hearts are open, not to the things, particularly that I say, but basically the word of God. I want you to be open to the word of God. I want you to even hear the Lord as I speak, when he's speaking to you directly and it's not through my voice. That's the most important thing that we need to have as these latter days come to an end is that we can hear his voice, that we can clearly discern what it is that he is saying for our particular season in life, for the people that are around us. So today's focus is the heart of the righteous. I don't want to feel like I'm just going to machine gun through this and I kind of feel like it might, but I'm going to have a lot to say in the midst of it. But I want to read through the scriptures and treat it like it is a mirror. I want it to see. Does it reflect us when we read through these scriptures when we focus on this aspect of what is the heart of the righteous, and if we, and if it does reflect what is in our lives, then praise God, we are on the right track. But if it does not, then let's ask the Lord to deal with us in these areas, to strengthen and fortify us, because it is the heart of the righteous that the Lord is after.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:And so I'm going to start in a Psalm of David. It's going to be chapter 25. And, like I said, we're going to read through a lot of scriptures and I might skip over some, and I'm not trying to minimize the importance of other scriptures, but I'm trying to stay focused. It's almost like a word study the righteous. I want to see what does the Lord say the righteous is, or who the righteous are, what are their characteristics, what are their attributes, what makes them righteous in God's sight? And so I start with David, who said in Psalm 25, to you, o Lord, I lift up my soul, oh, my God. And I think these next four words is the foundation of the righteous. I trust in you. Within the heart of the righteous there is a foundation. Most assuredly it is Jesus Christ, but it is because you trust in Jesus that it makes you and your heart righteous in his sight. It's a very basic element of the righteous. I trust in you. He goes on to say let me not be ashamed, let my enemies triumph over me, let no one who waits on you be ashamed. I'm pulling out, I'm trying to pull out attributes to you.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The righteous have a heart that trusts in him. The righteous have a heart to wait. Yes, the enemy is around me. Yes, the enemy is persecuting me, but they have a heart to wait, not to retaliate, not to take vengeance, but to wait on the Lord, because they know deep down inside that those who wait on the Lord will never be ashamed. Let those who be ashamed to deal treacherously without cause. This is another aspect.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Right here is the next heart of the righteous. In verse 4, show me your ways, o Lord. Teach me your path, lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation. The heart of the righteous has a heart to be taught. It has a heart to be led. It's not one who has a heart initially to want to teach everybody what they need to do or want to lead everybody where they need to go. The initial heart of the righteous is to be taught of the Lord, is to be led of the Lord in truth. So it is a heart that is ready to be taught, to be corrected, to be led. And again he says on you, I wait all the day. That's a humble heart. The heart of the righteous is humble, wanting to be taught, wanting to learn, wanting to be led. These are the things that the heart of the righteous desires.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Another thing that the righteous seem to do is that they remember the things that God has done for them. Not only do they remember the things that God has done for them, they remember the things that God has done for others in the faith, their ancestors in the faith, not just in the word, but also in their families. It says remember, o Lord, your tender mercies, your loving kindness, for they are from old. It is a description of a righteous man who remembers all of the things from even the old times that the Lord has done in mercy and in loving kindness. He doesn't forget those things because, remember, even the Israelites in the wilderness forgot all of the mighty works that their God did them. Forgot how he opened the Red Sea, forgot how there was a pillar of fire separating the enemy for them. Forgot all the 10 plagues that did not touch one of them. They forgot these things. But the righteous don't.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The righteous remember, and they want the Lord to remember all of the righteous deeds and ask for them, and they trust that he will do so again. He says very clearly don't remember the sins of my youth, forget him, forget him. He wants the Lord to forget the sins of his youth. Don't remember my transgressions. But he relies and he trusts on the Lord's mercies. According to your mercy, remember me. Mercies According to your mercy, remember me For your goodness sake. He's depending upon the Lord's goodness to judge him. He's depending upon the Lord's goodness to take care of him, and so he trusts. You see, these elements, these aspects of I trust in you, good and upright, is of the Lord. Therefore, he teaches sinners in the way and here's where I said the humble he guides in justice.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The heart of the righteous is a humble heart and the Lord is throughout the earth, to and fro seeking the righteous, He's seeking those of a humble heart. He's seeking those of a broken and contrite heart. He will not despise, no, he seeks after them. And the humble He teaches His way. Why? Because the humble have a heart to be taught. They have a heart to be led. They have a heart that they're not speaking all the time. They're actually quietly listening, waiting silently.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Lord, what does the Lord say? What is the Lord leading me? All of the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth. He recognizes that the Lord's way is the only way. It is the only way of righteousness, it is the only way of truth, it is the only way of godliness, of holiness. It is the only acceptable way. And he remembers that. He keeps his covenant and he keeps his testimony to the righteous. Again, he's always remembering, he does not forget the goodness of the Lord. He goes on to say to pardon my iniquity. But in verse 12 he says who is the man that fears the Lord? Him shall he teach in the way he chooses?
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The heart of the righteous are those that fear the Lord. And those that fear the Lord is whom God teaches. Because the heart of the righteous is to be taught, is to be led, it says. It goes on to say that those who fear the Lord shall dwell in prosperity. Their descendants shall inherit the earth. The secret, the secrets, the nuggets of truth, the mysteries are with those that fear him and he will show them his covenant. Those that fear him are the heart of the righteous, it says in verse 15,. This is another aspect of the heart of the righteous. My eyes are ever toward the Lord, no matter what is going on in life. And we've sung of so many songs directing our hearts, directing our minds, directing our thoughts unto the Lord. And some of us come here with a lot of baggage and in the midst of it, the heart of the righteous. Their eyes are ever toward the Lord, their eyes are ever looking up to their salvation. It says in verse 20, for I put my trust in you. He says in verse 21,. I wait for you. Redeem me, o Israel, out of all of their troubles. So he's waiting on God to deliver, on God to rescue.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:In verse 32, another Psalm of David saying Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Yes, blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity and whose spirit there is no deceit. This is whom the Lord blesses. When I kept silent. My bones grew old through my groaning all the day long, for day and night. Your hand was heavy upon me. My vitality was turned into the drought of summer. Why would David be talking like this? David had the heart of the righteous, but if you know David's life, he fell. And in the midst of his despair he's saying that, lord, your hand was heavy upon me, there was a weight on me. I know that the man is blessed if his sins are forgiven, but see, in that moment David was dealing with his sins and the weight became unbearable. He was guilty and he knew it.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:And in the midst of that, this is what the heart of the righteous does. He doesn't wallow in self-pity. He doesn't make excuses. He doesn't blame anybody else for the guilt of his own sins. He turns to the Lord and he says I acknowledge my sin to you and my iniquity I hide no more. And my iniquity I hide no more. I said I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:This is what the heart of the righteous do. They don't run away from God when they sin, but they turn to him in brokenness, in contriteness of heart, and they confess and acknowledge that what they've done is wrong in his sight. And what does God do when the heart of the righteous turns to him? When they fall in, God forgives the iniquity, God forgives the sin. Continuing in verse six everyone who is godly, it says, shall pray Another aspect of the heart of the righteous they pray. They continue to pray, they continue to seek after him, because their eyes are ever toward the Lord, no matter whether they're blessed with wealth and riches, no matter whether they've been stripped all from him, their eyes are ever toward the Lord. It is as if they have an internal radar that is beeping, beeping, beeping, beeping. For where is the Lord? Where is the Lord? I continue to seek after him.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The righteous says you, not wealth, not riches, not this roof, not my car, not my employment. He says you are my hiding place. You shall preserve me from trouble. Not the money I need to get out of my financial fix, Not the employment, not my prowess, not my warrior-like capabilities. But you, oh Lord, deliver me out of my trouble and you surround me with songs of deliverance. I continually sing unto you, because what is the basis? I trust in you, and so I continue to sing songs of deliverance. Yes, oh Lord, you will deliver me from my situation, from my calamity.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Whether it be my doing, or you've brought it upon me. You will deliver me. And what does the Lord say in response to all that that David is just crying out to him about? He says I will instruct you, I will teach you in the way that you should go. I will guide you with my eye. This is what I will do for the righteous heart.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:But he says don't be like the horse, don't be like the mule. They don't have understanding. They have to be harnessed with a bitten bridle. Don't be like that. But he who trusts in the Lord, my mercy shall blanket him, shall surround him. He will not be touched. Any weapon formed against him, I will not be touched. Any weapon formed against him. I will not allow to prosper. So be glad in him, rejoice in him. You righteous, shout for joy. All you, upright in heart.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The righteous says in this, in the heart, in Psalm 73, verse 25. Who have I in heaven but you? There is none upon the earth that I desire besides you. Deep in the heart of the righteous is a longing, a yearning, an intense desire that can only be satisfied by the Lord. And they direct all of their efforts after him, recognizing that there's nothing he can have on this earth that will satisfy Him. It is only the Lord. Who am I in heaven, but you? There's nothing on this earth that I desire, not the academics, not the knowledge, not the wisdom, not the fame, not the wealth, not the material things, nothing on this earth that I desire, you. My flesh, my heart. They fail, but God, you are the strength of my inner man, you are the strength of my heart, you are my inheritance, my portion forever, because anything I have in this world is temporal. But if I have you, I have you forever. You are my inheritance forever. The Levites didn't know how good they had it when all they had to do was serve him. He was their inheritance forever. But it is good for me to draw near to God.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The heart of the righteous constantly desires to draw near to God, and I know it's hard in this day and age, but it was just as hard in their day and age. They had enough things in this world to distract them, to dissuade them. I want to be the best. What's that thing called Slingshot? And I'm sure they battled with each other on who be the best. And I'm sure when the archers came around, they battled for who's the best, who's the best swordsman, who's the best fighter, who's the best runner. And they fought for all of these things.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:But the righteous, when they considered all of the things of this world, they come to realize that only the Lord satisfies me. There's always somebody better. You just haven't run into him yet. They say Michael Jordan was the best. There's always somebody better, maybe not in his life, but there's always somebody better to come.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:So the heart of the righteous draws near to God, because again I have put my trust in the Lord. God, it says in Psalm 140, the righteous shall give thanks to your name. In verse 13, the upright shall dwell to your name and verse 13, the upright shall dwell in your presence. In Psalm 141, david says Lord, I cry out to you Make haste to give me or make haste to me. I'm crying out to you. This is how I draw near to you, because if I don't cry out to you, what am I doing? I'm neglecting you, I'm ignoring you. I cry out to you because I'm drawing to you. Now, make haste, come to me. Come to me, give ear to my voice, give ear to my cry, let my prayer, even my prayer. The heart of the righteous is praying and he desires that his prayer be a fragrant incense, an aroma, lifted up into the throne room of God, lifting up his hands as an evening sacrifice.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Now, these are just some general descriptions and attributes of the heart of the righteous. I've given several. Maybe you're writing them down. If you'd like, I'll send you all the scriptures. You can find them yourself. Figure out what are the attributes that make the heart of the righteous righteous and then ask yourself do I have this in my life? Is this working in my life right now? Am I constantly seeking after him? Am I constantly crying out to him? Do I draw near to him when things start creating a turmoil around me? Is he the first that I turn to, or do I immediately try to go fix the situations on my own? Do I immediately go, try to help from a friend, or am I turning to him, asking him lead me, teach me, guide me? What do I do? Where do I go? How do I take care of this? Because I know that, in the end, you are the one that delivers me out of my troubles. I come to find out, as I do this study, that the righteous go willingly. That's the key. They go willingly through the gate. What gate do I refer to?
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:In Psalm 118, verses 18? It says the Lord chastened me severely, but he has not given me over to death. If you didn't know. The righteous are chastened. The righteous are corrected. They have a heart to be corrected. And then look what it says the heart of the righteous responds to the chastening, responds to the correction, with open to me the gates of righteousness, I will go through them. It is a heart to do what's right. He has a heart to walk in the ways of righteousness, asking open up the gates. Where is it? Where is it? Where is the righteousness? Show me the way and I will go through it. And then it says this is the gate of the Lord. The way of righteousness is the gate of the Lord, and the righteous shall enter. He goes on to say I will praise you, for you have answered me and have become my salvation. There, if you haven't noticed, there seems to be a dialogue going on between the righteous and their God. They're crying out, they're asking for things and God is answering. I will do this. I will teach you the way. I will show you the way. I will open up the gates. I will show you salvation. I am your salvation.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:I come to find out also that the righteous, they wait for God alone. They're not waiting for their next paycheck. They're not waiting for the next increase in pay. They're not waiting for the next better job. They're not waiting for the next thing that they can bring into their house the better TV, the better cable, the better internet. They're not waiting for any of that. They wait for God alone.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says in Psalm 62, verse 5, my soul waits silently for God alone. My expectation is from Him. Everything that I expect, everything that I desire, I expect to get it from him, not from anything else, because my eyes are ever toward the Lord. There's nothing in this world that satisfies me. There's nothing in this world that I desire, but you. I'm showing you the parallel thoughts of these verses in different places in the scriptures.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The righteous confess he alone is my rock. The righteous say he alone is my salvation, he alone is my defense. I shall not be moved. I will not move from this place. I will not move from my faith in him. I will trust in you. I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation, in God is my glory, in God is the rock of my strength, my refuge. Everything that I need is in God alone. And it says in verse 8, I trust in him at all times, come what may I lose my job, I lose my house, I lose my children, I lose my friends, I lose my position, I lose my car, I lose family. I trust in him at all times. It doesn't matter what happens. I will not be moved, says the righteous. So pour out your heart before him. God is a refuge for us.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says in Psalm 37, the Lord loves justice. He does not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever. The descendants of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever. But what comes out of the mouth of the righteous is wisdom. The mouth of the righteous speak wisdom and his tongue talks of justice. Why? Because he said from the very beginning. I said he wants to be taught, he wants to be led in truth, he wants to be guided by him. And so what happens in verse 31.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The law of God is in his heart. It is the law of God that is a bedrock in his heart, and the law of God is none other than his word. The law of God, the word of God is in his heart. None of his steps shall slide. The wicked may seek to slay the righteous, but the Lord will not leave him in his hand. He will not condemn him, he will not judge him. And it says again, to reiterate wait on the Lord and keep his way. Wait on him and don't move. If you're walking in righteousness, don't move. I'm coming to deliver you. I'm coming to take care of your situation. Don't move from it. Stay in the way of righteousness. I opened the gate of righteousness to you. You willingly walked in. Now don't leave, don't move from there. I'm coming, I'm coming, says the Lord.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says in Psalm 123 that the psalmist lifts up his eyes Again. His eyes are ever toward the Lord. He lifts up his eyes. He looks to the one who dwells in the heavens Like a servant looks up at his master's hand like a maid looks up at the hand of his mistress, to receive what Direction? Blessing, honor, instruction. This is the way that our eyes need to look up to the Lord, our God, and you continue to look up to the Lord, your God. And you continue to look up to the Lord, your God, until he bestows his mercy on you, the mercy of deliverance, the mercy of provision, the mercy of blessing.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Because you realize, the heart of righteous realizes that he must so trust in the Lord and his mercy and his goodness and his loving kindness, because he realizes I am not worthy. There's nothing I could do to say to the Lord. I deserve this. Look at what happened to Job. All through the 30, some odd chapters of Job, I want to sit down with the Lord and I want to have a conversation with him, because I think he made a mistake. I haven't done anything wrong. Why did I lose my children? Why did I lose my belongings? Why am I suffering boils off from head to toe? Why, why, why, Lord, you made a mistake. No, the heart of the righteous realizes and Job got this later on he realizes I'm not worthy. And so the heart of the righteous just buries his nose, his mouth, his face into the dust of the earth and says Lord, have mercy on me.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Because, no matter what I do, I'm not worthy of your blessings. So I rely upon you, my God, upon your mercies and your loving kindness, to extend your mercy to me. So our eyes look to the Lord, our God, until he has mercy on us. In verse 3, have mercy on us, o Lord, have mercy on us. It says again Another thing that the righteous does they seek his face. They seek his face, his glory. They seek him, Not what he can do for them. They seek Him.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:In Psalm 27, verse 4,. One thing I have desired of the Lord, that one thing I will seek that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. To what? To behold? His beauty.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:There's something in the heart of the righteous that is satisfying in beholding the beauty of his God. To inquire where, in his temple, in his presence, in the midst of his assembly For in the time of trouble, he shall hide me. In his pavilion, in the secret place of his tabernacle, he shall hide me, he shall set me high upon the rock and my head shall be lifted up above mine enemies all around me. Therefore, I will offer sacrifices of joy. Where, in His tabernacle, in His presence, I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord. He is worthy, I recognize it, I realize it. These are the things that I will do. The heart of the righteous says Hear, o Lord. Like David said, hear, hear, hear when I cry with my voice. Have mercy also upon me and answer me. Even God answering him, he realizes, is through his mercy, because the Lord is not obligated to answer anyone.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:So he relies, he trusts in him and his mercy to be extended to him. And God says in verse 8, and God says in verse 8, seek my face. And how does the righteous respond? Your face, o Lord, will I seek. The heart of the righteous is ready and willing to do whatever God says. Show me the way, lead me, teach me. And when he speaks, he does Seek my face. Lord, I will seek your face. Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger. You have been my help. Do not leave me. Do not forsake me, o God, in my salvation, because you know what, when my mother and my father forsook me, then the Lord took care of me, and so many of us have had one or the other forsake us through divorce, through abandonment, through neglect, through ignorance. And it was the Lord that was with us all the while, taking care of us and preserving us, that we could be here today to have a healthy relationship with him, amongst the midst of the assembly, and praise him and give him thanks for all that he has done, because it could have been a lot worse.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:I could have been out in the streets, I could have been dealing in drugs. I could have been killing people. I could have been in a fornication relationship. I could have had a bunch of kids. Think about where your family came from and all the bad things they did. That was your destiny too, if the devil had his way. But God had mercy on you. God rescued you from that destiny because he had a plan for you. He had a plan to harm you I'm speaking of the devil and if your family relatives all went through that plan there was a generational curse on the family to bring you there too. I could have been on section eight. I could have been living in the projects, like much of my family still is Dibbling and dabbling in drugs. Yeah, it's in my family too. I may not look like it right now to you, but it was there, just like I know it's been in a lot of your families.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The heart of the righteous says teach me your way, o Lord, and lead me in the smooth path, in verse 11. Don't deliver me to my adversaries, don't put me in their hands, oh Lord, because there are many false witnesses that rise up against me. I would have lost heart unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord. There is that underlying principle. I trust in you. I trust in you. 14, wait on the Lord. There it is again. Wait on the Lord. Be of good courage. He sees building up his faith. Be of good courage and he shall strengthen your heart. Wait, I say, on the Lord. We sing that song in this fellowship.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Psalm 105 again, it's about seeking him. In verse four it says Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face evermore. Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face evermore. Here's that remembrance again, remembering his marvelous works which he has done. The righteous remember the things that he has done. How marvelous he was, his wonders, his judgments out of his mouth. The righteous are the chosen ones. The righteous remember his covenant forever. They remember that his word is forever. They remember that the covenant that he made with Israel is an everlasting covenant and they remember that it applies to them as well, because the covenant was made with Abraham and to his seed, and his seed was Jesus Christ. And if we have become born again in Christ, then those promises are for us. So we would do well, if we are righteous, to find out what was his covenant, what were the things that he agreed to with Israel. What are the promises that he made with them, israel? What are the promises that he made with them, because they are yours Now?
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:remember them.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:You see, the righteous seek after him, his face, forever. But if you contrast that with some ideas that were brought out in the new covenant, you would see that it's in direct conflict with what the world seeks after. And the world, I'll say, is divided into two types the Jews and the Gentiles. It says in 1 Corinthians 1.22,. The Jews seek after a sign, not his face, a sign. You know what the Greeks or the Gentiles seek after Wisdom, philosophy, science. These are the things that they seek after. But the righteous seek after his face, his glory.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The Pharisees came to Jesus and they were seeking from him a sign from heaven Prove yourself unto us. God is not here to prove himself to anybody. Above and beyond whatever he was called to do, he came, he healed the sick, he delivered people from demons, he blessed and he provided food, and that's what he was required to do. And the Pharisees, after seeing all that, Jesus, we seek a sign. No, Jesus said no, no sign shall be given to you, no sign shall be given to this generation. No, I say. But you see, after, in Matthew 12, they came back to him again and they said teacher, we want to see a sign from you again, and he, an adulterous generation, seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it, except the sign of the prophet Jonah. Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights, and so I will be in the belly of the earth three days and three nights, and then you will know. But even then many of them still did not receive, and there were some that actually sought after him. Puts a little twist to it in John 6, verse 25. It says there's someone seeking after him. It says when they found him on the other side of the sea, sounds like a good thing that we're seeking him. They said, rabbi, when did you come here? And Jesus answered them and said most assuredly I say to you, you seek me. They were seeking him, but now remember that the word is sharper than any two-edged sword dividing between the soul and the spirit, the joints and the marrow, and Jesus, being the word, judges the intent of their heart. He says you seek me. Outwardly, it looks good, you seek me. But what are you seeking me for? Because I fed you the other day. So the motivation of your seeking him is critical. Are you seeking him to be your sugar daddy? Are you seeking him for what he can be for you or what he can get you or give you? Or are you seeking him just because you realize who he is? To realize who God is, to just seek him. He's that valuable, he is that important, he is that worthy.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The Gentiles seek after wisdom. Yes, but it also says that the Gentiles worry. They worry about what they're going to eat, they worry about what they're going to drink, they worry about what they're going to wear. And it says in Matthew 66, verse 31, after these things, all the Gentiles seek, always worried about where they're going to get the things that they supposedly need or want and desire. But you know what your heavenly father already knows the things that you need. So seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. The heart of the righteous is ready and willing to say Lord, open up to me the gates of righteousness, I will go through them and the rest will be added unto you when you do that.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Paul says to the Colossians righteous people, if you were raised with Christ, seek the things which are above, seek the things that are spiritual. Remember the righteous in the old covenant. Their eyes are ever toward the Lord. Above, not carnal, not earthly, above, that's all that satisfies them. Christ is seated at the right hand of God, above all. Principality powers, rulers of the darkness, wicked spirits in high places. Their eyes are not on the earth, their eyes are above. That's what Jesus is. Set your mind on things above. Is that what we're doing? That's the mirror. Is that what we're doing? Or are we constantly worried about things on the earth?
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:You see, in Hebrews it describes the righteous, it says those of the faith, hebrews 11, right, they all died in the faith, it says, and they didn't receive the promises of God. But you know what? They saw the promises afar off on the horizon, in the distance, and they were assured that what God said was true. They embraced it in faith because they never grabbed hold onto the promise in the days of their flesh and they recognized this earthly plane in existence is a throughway, it's a pit stop. I'm nothing but a pilgrim, I'm nothing but a sojourner, I'm just passing through. I'm not worried about the things of this world or obtaining the things of this world. No, no, no, no, no, no. For those things who say such things declare plainly that they're seeking a homeland, they're seeking something else, and it's not here, it's not on earth what they seek, because if it was, they would have turned around and gone back to their country. Everyone just would have turned around and said no, no, no, I don't know I'm going back, but he didn't.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:And he realized that at the end of his life, even though he had been given a promise and all of these beautiful things, he realized oh, my promise is not found here. It says that all those that died in faith desire something better than what's here. It says they desire something heavenly, in other words, something above, something not seen in the earth, only seen through the eyes of faith, only seen from a distance. Distance. Then, god, when they responded that way and just said I don't care about the things of the world, I'll forsake them. I want what your word said I see it from a distance. My God, he turns to the righteous and he smiles, and he is not ashamed to be called their God. That's awesome. You so forsook the world for me that I am not ashamed to be called your God. I am not ashamed to rise up in defense for you. I am not ashamed to preserve you in the midst of all of your enemies. I am not ashamed to be your God. Oh, yes, I am not ashamed. And so he prepared a city for them, and so he maintains his faithfulness to the word that he gave them. Yes, I have a city for you.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says in Hebrews 13 that the righteous, the faithful. They realize they don't have a continuing city. They don't have a city in the earth that just continues to exist and to perpetuate. And this is where our pride and nationalistic pride is. But the world does, sectioned off. Americans have their American pride, russians have their Russian pride, germans have their German pride, and they're all prideful about something that's in the earth, but the righteous. That's not their deal. They forsake it Because they know that there's no continuing city here. They realize that they're waiting for the city, which has a foundation whose builder and maker is God, and God did not do it in the earth, although he called it in the earth First, from heaven.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:But that new Jerusalem, that new city, is coming from heaven. It's something that he is doing in the spirit above, in the heavenly. It's just being manifested in the earth, but it's not in the earth. In the heavenly is just being manifested in the earth, but it's not in the earth. The righteous have a heart to submit to God. It says in James 4 that he gives more grace. It says God resists the proud, but he gives grace to who? The humble. That's an attribute of the righteous and we've described it in different words. I've said humble maybe once or twice. But all these descriptions and attributes that are given you are attributes of the humble and therefore they submit to God, they surrender and ready, like we read in the Old Testament scripture teach me your way, o Lord, lead me in the path, show me the truth and I will walk in it. And it says resist the devil and he will flee from you. But they draw near to God, and when they draw near to God, god draws near to them. He's not ashamed to be called their God, and when they draw near to God, god draws near to them. He's not ashamed to be called their God. He's not ashamed to be close to them.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. I skip to verse 10. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and God responds. He will lift you up. He will lift you up. It is in God that you find your deliverance. It is in God that you find righteousness righteousness not of your own, but you find his righteousness, and nothing can compare to his righteousness. It says in Job the righteous hold to his way.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:We saw that in another scripture. They shall not be moved from the way that the Lord has taught them to go. It says in Proverbs 10, the wise in heart will receive commandments. In other words, they're teachable. They hear it and receive it. They don't argue with it, they don't wrestle with it. They simply receive the commandments as it's spoken in. Following line and following suit, it says in 1 John 2, 1 and 3, regarding the children of Jesus Christ, the righteous, who was the propitiation for their sins we know him because we keep his commandments. That's the heart of the righteous. The righteous have a heart to be corrected In Ezekiel 3, verse 21,.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says to the prophet if you warn the righteous man so that he doesn't sin. And he then? He doesn't sin, he shall surely live because he was warned. So, righteous men, when they're warned about something that may befall them because maybe they're walking in a certain way, listen. They listen to the warning and they end up not sinning and they end up living. But that's the attribute of the righteous, that's what they do.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says it in another way in Psalm 141, verse three through five. Set a guard, lord, over my mouth. Keep watch over the door of my lips. Do not incline my heart to do any evil thing, to practice wicked works with men who work iniquity, and do not let me eat of their delicacies, verse 5. He so has a heart for correction that he would rather the righteous strike him. Let the righteous strike me, it shall be kindness. Let the righteous rebuke me. Don't do that. Be careful where you're going. He wants that. He'd rather be smitten in the cheek. He'd rather be rebuked publicly for what he may go through if he doesn't listen to the Lord. He says, it'll be as excellent oil upon me. Let not my head refuse it. That's how far the righteous will go so that they remain right in his sight. Do we have that heart that, no matter what Lord. Correct me, let my elder smack me across the head, knock some sense into me. I'll receive it as oil Glad. I'll be glad to receive it. Is that our heart, or do we bow up? How are you going to say that to me? Look at all this good stuff I've done here. Look at how faithful I am here.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:God tests the righteous. It says in Psalm 7, verse 9, for the righteous. God tests the hearts and the minds. He says in Psalm 11, verse 5, the Lord tests the righteous. He says in verse 7 of the same chapter, 11, for the Lord is righteous, he loves righteousness, his countenance beholds the upright.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:I didn't quite understand why. I mean, I could make up stuff, make it sound biblical, but this is what the Lord showed me, what these kind of verses meant. He said think of it like this, son, when you were a father and you were teaching Lydia John Daniel or Deborah how to walk, they weren't supposed to be walking and crawling on all fours. They're supposed to walk upright. But they didn't know that. They didn't realize that. So what did you do? You propped them up and you stood them up and you tested them, didn't you? Not for your sake, because you wanted to show them what they're able to do. You wanted to show them how they're able to walk upright. And what happened? When they started taking their first steps and falling, you helped them back up to help them realize you have no idea what you're capable of. Get up. And then they did it again. And they did it again. And what happened?
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:With your joy? You joyed over them, didn't you? Yes, you were clapping oh, yay, you're walking, yay. And everybody got excited. That's how I am with you. I'm propping you up. I'm propping you up so you can see what I've called for you. You do not know what you're capable of, and so I'm propping you up. I'm so joyous over you being righteous. I have more for you. My countenance shines upon you. I be with exceeding joy when you walk upright. You have no idea. You have no idea. But there's a glimpse when you were father helping him to walk, or maybe helping him to rollerblade, or maybe helping him to ride a bike, and they didn't realize, and they were so fearful and they were gonna fall to the left or the right. No, no, don't worry, I got you. I got you.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:And you're there holding them in the back and running around with them and then they realize they can do it. And that's the joy that he has over you. When you walk in righteousness, you have no idea what you're capable of. That's what he showed me. That's how I understood these scriptures. That's why he tests you. He's not testing you to cause you to fail. He's testing you to help you realize what you're capable of.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The Lord's eyes. The Lord eyes the righteous. The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, in Psalm 34, verse 15. His eyes are on the righteous, his In Psalm 34, verse 15,. His eyes are on the righteous. His ears are open to their cry. The righteous cry out, they cry out. They're constantly crying out.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Because the righteous understand they're weak and feeble and without God's help helping me up, I might never walk. I may end up crawling all the time the Lord hears. He delivers out of all of their troubles. The Lord is near to who? The broken heart, verse 18. The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart. Who else is he near? The contrite spirit, and he saves those such as have a contrite spirit, and many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers them out of them all. It is the Lord that brings deliverance. It says in verse 22, the Lord redeems the souls, or the soul of his servants and none of those who trust in him. Again, it's that foundation block. Trust in you Shall not be condemned. None of those who trust in them shall be condemned.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:In Psalm 1, 6, it says for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, why he taught them. If the righteous have a heart to be taught, to be led, to be corrected, then their ways are righteous, and so the Lord knows their ways. He taught it to them. It says in 1 Peter, in the New Testament, the New Covenant, quoting from the Old turn away from evil and do good. Let him seek peace and pursue it. In 1 Peter 3, verse 11, for the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, his ears are open to their prayers. Again, the righteous is constantly crying out, constantly praying, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. It says in verse 15, this is another aspect of the heart of the righteous that we need to consider. But sanctify the Lord, god, in your hearts. Some of us don't understand the word sanctify. We've got to go in our little dictionary and say well, what exactly does that mean Set apart? But set apart the Lord, god in your hearts.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:I was teaching with our kids some devotional recently and this is the way I explained it. Like you have a bunch of pictures in your living room or we have a bunch of pictures on our fireplace and they're all there and none of them really stands out. You know, there's just a bunch of pictures and stuff. But what if I took this one and I placed it higher, placed it at the top? Now it's set apart. Now, when anybody walks in our living room, they're not just going to see a bunch of pictures, what are they going to be drawn to? The one that's set apart, the one that stands out, the one that's highlighted? Well, when you set apart the Lord in your heart, you put him in a preeminent position above all other things, because there are other things, but you place him apart. He's special, he's beyond special, he's set apart in a preeminent position and then everything else falls in line under it and all the other pictures fall in line under that one picture that you set apart, which is him. And we're always ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you with meekness and in fear.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:I see another aspect of the righteous they are generous. The righteous are generous. It says in Proverbs 21, 26,. The righteous giveth and spareth not. They just give and spare not. And what gets me is that they're ignorant. When they do this, they don't realize their generosity. It's very mysterious, but I'm going to show this to you and I'm going to say it in a minute.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:In Matthew 25, you remember the parable of the goats and the sheeps? And he said the goats on the left and the sheeps on the right. Do you remember that? It was really the great white throne judgment? It says the king set them on the right. He said come, you, blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom I've prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Jesus said.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:For I was hungered in Matthew 25, 35,. And you gave me meat. I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you took me in naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came unto me and the righteous answered him and said Lord, when did I do that? They're ignorant to their generosity. They had no idea. When they did that to their generosity. They had no idea when they did that. And then he explains it to them and the king answered and said when you've done it to the least of these, my brethren, you did it to me. So every kind remark you make to your brethren, every time you do something small, maybe something big, maybe give them a ride, maybe help them out financially, maybe give them a ride, maybe help them out financially, maybe give them some clothes, maybe give them some food, maybe do whatever. That's the kindness and the generosity of the righteous. Develop that Because that should be in the righteous. They give and spare, not when there's a need.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:In the Proverbs, just going to go through some scriptures here, the Proverbs just describes some elements of the righteous. Proverbs 10, 11, the mouth of a righteous man is a well of life. In Proverbs 10, 16, and 17, the work of the righteous, the labor of the righteous, tendeth to life. He is in the way of life. That keepeth instruction. Again, the righteous walk in the way because they're instructed and they receive that instruction.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says in chapter 10, verse 32, the lips of the righteous know what is acceptable. It says in chapter 11, verse 23,. The desire of the righteous remember it's only God alone. There's nothing in this world that I desire but you. The desire of the righteous is only good. 1130. The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life. The righteous bear forth fruit and it should be a tree of life to the world. It should be a tree of life to others.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:In Proverbs 12 5. The thoughts of the righteous are right. In 12 12. The thoughts of the righteous are right In 12, 12,. The root of the righteous yields fruit. It's deep down in the heart of the righteous that causes it to bring forth good fruit, because it's got a good, solid foundation of trust in him. Because it's got a good, solid foundation of trust in him. In Proverbs 14, 32,.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says the righteous don't fear death. Why they have hope. He resurrected from the dead and his word says he will also resurrect me. So they, in contrast to others, they have hope. In Proverbs 15, 28,. The heart of the righteous I love this one the heart of the righteous, studieth to answer. It's not so quick to answer. No, let me go be a Berean. Let me go back and study this. Let me go find out if the things that are being told to me are true. Let me go back right into the word. I'm going to study to have an answer when somebody asked me for the hope that I have in him. In verse 29, he heareth the prayer of the righteous In Proverbs 18, 10,.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The name of the Lord is a strong tower and what do the righteous do? Run into it. They don't walk, they don't lollygag. They run Because that's who they desire. Do you understand? It's such an intense desire to know and have God. Proverbs 21, 12.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:The righteous man wisely considers the house of the wicked. It's not that he doesn't know what's going on in the house of the wicked, it's not that he doesn't know what's going on in the wicked in the world. He just considered and said that's not worth it. My God is so much more worth than that. I know what they do, I know how they get there. That's not for me. So let me summarize here in closing Psalm 92, 12 through 15. Let's just let the scriptures speak for themselves.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:I think these scriptures will highlight many, if not all, of the elements that I tried to highlight with you now regarding the righteous Psalm 92, 12. The righteous shall flourish. They will be blessed. They will be producing fruit. They will be multiplying Like a palm tree, he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those who are planted where? In the house of the Lord. That's where the righteous is found. In the house of the Lord, they shall flourish in the courts of our God. That's where you'll find them. In the courts of our God. They shall bear fruit in old age, in their latter days, they will be bearing fruit and they shall be fresh. They shall be flourishing so that they can declare, even in their latter days, that the Lord, after all of their experiences, after all of his testimonies, after all the judgments and the wonders and the miracles that he's done in all their existence, at the end of their days they want to declare he is upright, he is truth, he is the rock and there is no unrighteousness in him. To all the youngins that don't know him.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:In Hebrews 13, 15 through 17, I believe that the righteous continually offer the sacrifice of praise that is the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to his name. The righteous do not forget to do good, they don't forget to share. These are the sacrifice that God is pleased with and they want to please God. That is the heart of the righteous, and it says that they will obey those that rule over them and they will be submissive Because that's their heart, that is the heart of the righteous. I know it's talking about elders, but the elders are the righteous. In Psalm 112, one through nine, praise the Lord. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in his commandments.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:I remember when the Lord was shaking my world and grabbing a hold of me. My mother passed away when I was 20. And for about a year, year and a half, I was searching for the faith that I thought I had. And this scripture reminds me that in those early days I remember just delighting in getting in his word and I believe that that really set a foundation in me. That even continued years after when I met my wife, which happened to be three or four years down the line. It was a continued delighting in his word and all that I delighted and became the real foundation, because I've been this Christian schools all my life.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:I had known the word by recognition, by some memorization, but I had not known the word intimately, I had not known Jesus, and those years were spent just digging and getting into the word and getting things out of my life that didn't need to be, and it was that very reason why I stand where I am today, not because of what I did. It's because God got such a hold of me and I fell so in love with him that I just delighted in his word. It was not a chore for me to get in his word, I just loved it, even though I didn't understand it. I remember just reading through I don't understand what that is, I don't understand what that is, I don't understand this. And now I just keep on going and I would read, you know, two chapters in the new and three chapters in the old, and somewhere around the day I would read Psalms and that was my thing and I did it. I can't remember how long. I know it was just a continual getting in his word even though I didn't understand it, and I would just get it, and that became the bedrock of my faith.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:So the question is and it's something that was brought up, it's kind of where this whole teaching was coming from, something that was brought up in the men's fellowship how do you impart the importance of that very thing to young people that you actually delight in his word? I don't know, because no one taught it to me. It's almost like you falling in love with someone. You can't help but want to be with them. I mean that's what you desire. No one taught you to love that person so that you would have this longing and this yearning and desire. No one taught you to long and yearn and desire for the person that you were interested in. I don't know what it was, but there was something deep down in your heart that made you do that, that motivated you to do that, and so you sought him. I don't know if that's happened to you. That's what happened to me and I can guarantee you, because I stand here today, that was the best thing I ever did in my life. The best thing I ever did in my life.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says the generation of the upright will be blessed. His righteousness endures forever. In verse 3. Verse 5, a good man deals graciously and lends. He will guide his affairs with discretion. He will never be shaken, and for some of us here, I think that's how we feel. Oh, I'm never going to be shaken from this, no way. I am leaving God. The righteous will be an everlasting remembrance. I will always remember what the Lord has done for me. He will not be afraid of evil tidings. The righteous heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord, his heart is established. He will not be moved, he is not shaken, he will not be afraid, because he knows that his righteousness endures forever. And so I end with this.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:I could have started with this and this could have been the whole lesson, but I wanted to go through those scriptures to sort of highlight it to you.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:But I believe Proverbs 2, 1 through 11 describes the righteous man. God says my son, if you receive my words and treasure my commands within you, there has to be something in the heart that, when they hear the word, they treasure it and they hide it within themselves, not because they don't want anybody else to have it, but because it's just so precious, it's just so valuable that they would trade it for nothing in the world. It says if you incline your ear to wisdom, if you apply your heart to understand, if you cry out for discernment and you lift your voice for understanding, if you seek her as silver and search for her as a hidden treasure, all of these ifs have got to be there. This is something that only you can do, and you can ask the Lord to bite me with the love bug so that I love you like nothing else in this world. In verse 5 it says then you will understand the fear of the Lord.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:Then you will find the knowledge of God, because God is storing up wisdom for you. He's storing up wisdom for the righteous, the upright, and he's a shield to the upright. He defends for you, he protects you, he guards the path of justice, he preserves the way of his saints. Then you will understand righteousness, justice and equity and every good path. When, when you receive my words, when, when you treasure my commands within you, when, when you incline your ear to wisdom, when, when you apply your heart to understanding, when, when you cry out for discernment, when, when you lift up your voice for understanding, when, when you seek her as silver, as a treasure, that's when these things will happen, not any other way. This is the way, this is the way of righteousness.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:It says in verse 10, when wisdom enters your heart and knowledge is pleasant to your soul. That means when God speaks, whether it's in his word, whether it's audible, whether it's through the instructions of others. That are the saints, and you treasure the words of God and you want it all and you can't even be satiated. You just want more and more and more. It's at this point that discretion will preserve you and understanding will keep you.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:These are the attributes of the heart of the righteous that I pray that, as you read these, you will allow the word to move you, to treasure the precious richness that is found when he speaks to you, when he commands you. To treasure the precious richness that is found when he speaks to you, when he commands you, when he teaches you, when he leads you, and you desire him above nothing else. Nothing else can be compared to him. Now, I know that and I can teach it to you, but you won't get that until you have a revelation of him. That's know that and I can teach it to you, but you won't get that until you have a revelation of him. That's all I can say. And that revelation comes by you seeking him. You must seek him with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, with all your strength, and love him, and that is the heart of the righteous Amen.
j - Jesus M. Ruiz:If you were blessed and appreciate listening to this podcast and you would like to support us in our efforts, consider lifting us up in prayer first. Then remember these four social media buzzwords Share, like, subscribe or follow. Share this podcast link with someone else by text, email or word of mouth in the hopes that they might be uplifted, as you were Like by leaving a positive rating or review with whomever you listen to our podcast. With Subscribe to support the show monetarily with the link in our podcast description, Follow us on all our social media platforms. May God bless you and make you prosperous in Him as you listen and obey His voice.
