taoists... anything you want to talk about. it...they acknowledge that there is some... some concept of god. even the muslims acknowledge the god of abraham. the jews acknowledge the god of abraham. did you know that abraham was the father of the muslims, the jews and the christians? they all acknowledge many of these same things, but every other religion on the face of the earth puts the burden of salvation upon you. you have to earn salvation by adhering to their laws and to their principles. but true christianity... now sad to say, a lot of christianity basically has that same mentality and they...they say you got to be good and do all of these things to be accepted by god. but true christianity preaches no, we have a savior... that we could never save ourselves. we could never be holy enough, and so god sent his son. he paid the debt that we couldn't pay.

you couldn't ever pay enough to atone for all of your sins, so jesus atoned for it. jesus paid, and all you got to do is make him your savior and if he is your savior then you get into heaven. you get into right relationship with god based on what jesus did and not what you do. we are the only religion on the planet that has that concept. no other religion has this. what a huge distinction between christianity and any other religion and it is the distinguishing characteristic. it's what makes life awesome. as it says in romans, chapter 5 being justified by faith in what jesus did for us is how we have peace with god. the only way that you can have peace is to have a savior. that it's his goodness that makes you accepted with god. if the burden is on your back... if you have to earn salvation, there is no peace, because even if you did good yesterday and do good today,

tomorrow is a brand new day and you could blow the whole thing and there is no way for you to relax and just rest. the only way that you can rest and have peace with god is when you have a savior. so these are people who were zealous for god but they were going about to earn god's blessing through submitting to their own righteousness. that's what it says in verse 3, they being ignorant of god's righteousness, that comes by a gift and going about to establish their own righteousness, which comes through their performance have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of god. you cannot be submitted to faith righteousness and law righteousness at the same time. you cannot be trying to accept part of it by grace and part of it by law, and then look at this in verse 4... this is such a strong statement. i wonder how do people miss this for christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one

that believeth. that's just a clear statement! you cannot be righteous... in right standing with god through your observance of law... rules... regulations... it's the end of it. in the old testament the... anyway, i hadn't got time. i've already talked on some of these things. i'm not going to go back. i'm going to refrain myself and not go back and do that because i know that there are some of you that don't watch the program everyday but for the sake of those who do and who've watched, i've already covered this, that the old testament law had a purpose but that purpose wasn't for justification. it was to show you your sin and so the law still has a purpose and if you want to use the law to show people that you think you're righteous... you think you're so holy that god has to accept you... let me show you god's standard of holiness, and it is beyond human ability to attain unto. the purpose of the law was to shut your mouth... to make you guilty...

make you stand condemned before god, so that you would recognize that it's impossible for you to ever obtain salvation based on your own and it would drive you to your knees to cry out to god for mercy and the moment you cry out for mercy and put your faith in jesus who died for your sins then you're accepted and you get a faith righteousness not based on performance. this is what this is saying. christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth, and then he begins to start quoting from moses. i believe that this is from leviticus, chapter 18, verse 5 and moses it says described the righteousness which is of the law, that the man which doeth those things shall live by them. in other words, if you want to start trying to earn right standing with god it's an all or nothing thing. you can't just do the best you can and say well god, i did the best i can. will you accept me? you either have to make 100

on this test, or if you make 99.9, you failed. you...you missed. you go to hell. i've used this verse many times... james 2:10. if you keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, you become guilty of all. if you are going to submit to the law, moses described what it took under the law. you had to do it perfectly and of course nobody could, so the law, even though it dangled salvation and said if you will do this and this and this and this and this, god will accept you. it...it was impossible for anybody to ever fulfill that so the law really wasn't for you to fulfill. it was to show you how incapable of fulfilling the law you ever were, so that it would make you turn from self-righteousness and turn to this faith righteousness and moses made that point even over in the book of leviticus. in verse 6 it says, "but the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, say not in thine heart, who shall ascend into heaven?

(that is, to bring christ down from above:) or, who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up christ again from the dead.)" now, these are quotations again from moses. now, it added a little part here in parenthesis in both of these but it's showing that even under the old testament law it was prophesied that nobody could ever keep the law. moses said, what does it take to be right with god? he said, say not in thine heart, who shall ascend into heaven? that's talking about, do you have to be so holy that you could get to heaven through your own good works... that you could ascend there? no, if you...if you think that, well then in a sense, you are canceling out the fact that god sent jesus to us. we don't have to reach him. he reached us. he came to us knowing that we were totally incapable of ever earning relationship with him. so if you are trying to earn your way to heaven, then you are canceling out what jesus did, because jesus came to give

salvation as a gift, not as a payment and then the next verse it says, who shall ascend into the deep? and it says in parenthesis, (that is, to bring up christ again from the dead.) in other words, there's some people that don't think you can ever be good enough to reach god, but they believe that they can repent. they can humble themself. they can punish themself enough that god will finally accept them, and by doing that... that in a sense is bringing up christ again from the dead. they are denying the fact that jesus died and suffered your punishment. you don't have to earn your way to heaven, nor do you have to spend your entire time repenting and groveling in the dirt and somehow or another punishing yourself to appease an angry god. jesus came down from heaven so you don't have to ascend up there. jesus went to hell... paid for your sins, so that you do not have to pay for sins and you just accept it. and see even moses said this.

these are quotations from the old testament. you know, i literally met a man one time who rolled up his pants' legs and then rolled up his sleeves on his shirt and showed me scars on his knees and on his elbows and told me that he... he was a mexican guy and he came from mexico and in mexico during lent season they do things in the catholic church. i'm not against catholics. there is christians who are catholics, but the catholic system... there are things wrong. in the u.s. it's not quite this extreme but in mexico they literally crucify themselves. they do these things as penance and there are some people who die in crucifixion thinking that somehow or another, this will atone for their sins. that's a slap in the face of jesus saying that what he did dying for them wasn't enough. they've got to add their suffering to it. there is other people who get crucified but then they take them down before they die and they're able to recover. this man that i was talking about literally crawled three miles

on his hands and knees over broken pieces of glass to do penance for his sins, and some people think well, that's extreme! you don't have to do that. but there's groups right here in the united states who during lent season have to afflict themselves... have to give up something... have to punish themself in some way. now, if you were to deny yourself like through fasting for the purpose of discipline and say, i'm out of control, and man i need to rein myself in so i'm going to fast and i'm going to give up something. i'm going to quit coffee, or quit desserts, or you know, you're going to do something to deny your flesh and let it know that you are in control and it is not going to dominate you. if you do it as discipline, that is okay. but i can guarantee you, the vast majority of people who give up something and do these things, they do it because they feel like that they are appeasing god. see my sacrifice? now will you accept me?

and i'm telling you, that is an insult against jesus! you're saying that his sacrifice isn't enough. it's like you are saying that you have to suffer. you have to be punished. you have to in a sense go to hell and pay for your own sins. it honors god for you just to humble yourself and say, father, i receive it as a gift. there are people watching this program right now that you think that in order to be anointed by god you've got to fast and pray and you got to lock yourself up in a room and do all of these of things. again, if you want to do that for discipline because you say man, i need to be focused on god. this will change my heart towards him. if you want to go on a fast because your body has been dominating you and you say, i am going to bring under my body and not let it control me as paul talked about. if you want to do it as discipline that is one thing. but i can guarantee, i've been there myself and i know many, many, many people who thought that you had to earn god's anointing and power

by giving up something... by doing all of these things to make yourself worthy. i actually at one time back in the very beginning when god called me to preach, i...i was so introverted that i couldn't look at a person in the face and talk to them and so it was a huge, huge step for me to start standing in front of people and talking. it just went against everything that was in me and i knew that unless god anointed me, i was dead, because man, in myself i cannot do what i'm doing. and so i made a deal with god that i would fast and that i would pray. i made a...i made a commitment to god that i would fast a minimum of two weeks before i ever stood up to preach and some people think well, that's a good desire. that's stupid! that's saying that jesus didn't already provide this... that jesus doesn't anoint me by grace, but i have to earn it

and i have to make myself holy. now, if i want to fast just for discipline, so that i could keep my mind stayed on the lord, that's a different thing. but you know that was a foolish commitment. now i minister... i minister an average probably of 25 to 30 times a week. if i was to keep this commitment that i'm going to fast two weeks before every time i preached, i would be plumb gone by now. i would be dead. it's totally un...undoable, plus the whole mentality behind it. i thought that somehow or another this was going to make me worthy in the sight of god and all it did was make me hungry and all it did i was not submitted unto the righteousness that came by god. i was trying to earn his blessing and anointing. now i've come to realize like it says over in 2 corinthians, chapter 1 that he that hath anointed us and sealed us is god. when god called me to preach, he anointed me. he would be unjust to call me to do something and then expect me to do it on my own power.

anytime god says "come" like he did to peter, then there is enough power in that one word to fulfill what god called you to do. there is an anointing. there is an ability and god has already anointed me. as jesus said when he stood in the synagogue in nazareth, in luke, chapter 4, verse 18, he says, "the spirit of the lord god is upon me, because he has anointed me... past tense... to preach the gospel to the poor, et cetera, and that's the way that a minister should minister. instead of getting in the back room before the service and saying oh god, please anoint me! you need to believe that when god called you that he anointed you. he has anointed you and you need to put faith in what he has said about you. that he has qualified you... that he counted you faithful putting you into the ministry... 1 timothy, chapter 1. you need to put faith in that and just appropriate these things by faith, not by your works

and by your bartering with god that i'll fast if you will give me this. that's wrong and this is what he is talking about. you don't have to ascend into heaven through your own good works. jesus has already come down for you. you don't have to pay for your own sins. you don't have to grovel in the dirt. just humble yourself and accept that even though you don't deserve the blessings of god, he's already given it to you. he commended his love toward you in that while you were yet a sinner, he died for you... romans 5:8. just accept it and receive it based on what jesus did and then live holy as a byproduct of relationship with god not as a stepping stone to relationship with god. boy, those are huge! and he goes on to say in verse 8... this is romans 10:8, but what saith it? the word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thine heart. now, in the old testament quotation it just ends right there. this is what moses said.

he says you don't have to ascend into heaven. you don't have to go down to hell and pay for your own sins, but in the new testament... moses ended by saying the word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart, but paul added to it in this romans, chapter 10, verse 8 that is, the word of faith, which we preach. in other words, he expanded on this and says what was moses saying? that it's just faith! it's believing on jesus that grants you right standing with god not your performance, not your conformity to some standard. you know, this is just so plain. if words mean anything, which they do, these verses right here should totally unravel your religious traditions and doctrines of men that have made us performance-oriented and it ought to make us dependent upon jesus and only faith in him. but you know, i hate to say it but there are so many people

that they just don't let the bible get in the way of what they believe. they're going to... well this is not what i've been taught. this is not what i think and so they just cherry-pick and choose the parts that they like and reject this. i'm telling you, this is the word of god. if the word of god has any authority in your life... any dominance over you, then you ought to humble yourself and you ought to say god, forgive me! forgive me for sitting there and trying to earn what you've already given. forgive me for trying to pay for what has already been paid for. help me to humble myself. help me to receive this revelation of the grace of god. that is the appropriate response to all of this message, and even the old testament law... moses, who was the law giver and the one who wrote down all of these laws and commandments... moses right here in these verses that were quoted from, moses prophesied the end of the law

that he put into effect. just like it says right here christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. moses prophesied that. moses realized... it says over in peter that these people prophesied and they earnestly sought and diligently looked for the day that they were prophesying about. they didn't live in it. they didn't have the grace of god revealed under the old covenant and these people knew that there was something better and they longed for our day is what it says over there in peter and sad to say, many christians today are looking back and longing for the law and longing to have the things work the way they did in the old testament. the new covenant that we have is infinitely better. man, there is no way that we ought to want to go back to it. it just is...it's because people don't understand. it's because religion... they have just swallowed the lie. they have just believed the things that have been told them without consulting the word.

if you study the book of romans, i guarantee you, it's going to draw you out of this performance-based relationship with god and it will make you throw yourself on the mercy of god and receive right standing... righteousness with god by faith and not by your performance. boy, that's big and i tell you, there is people all over the world right now that you're watching this program and you're saying this is just nearly too-good-to-be-true! this isn't what i've taught and you have questions. well again, the bible's got answers and if you were just listening to this one program... you know, you may have heard just a snippet here and you're thinking well, this can't be true. what about this and what about that? i believe that we have dealt with all of those things in this teaching as we went through the book of romans. i really believe that. i believe that paul just answered every conceivable thing that he...he took away all of objections to the true gospel

and we have gone through and studied these things here in the book of romans. >> meet world changer linda hughes, charis bible college graduate, class of 2012. as a student she volunteered in elderly care centers while completing crossroads ministries chaplaincy program. in 2013 she lounged a new training program that engaged 22 charis bible college students in one on one visits, bible studies and sunday services in care centers across colorado springs. charis bible college students are making the world a better place in which to grow old. check out charis bible college on the web at charisbiblecollege.org or visit awmi.net and click on the bible college tab. change your life, >> change the world. if you are a full time minister,

i would like to invite you to join me on september the 30th through october the 4th as we have our ministers' conference right here in colorado springs. this is always a highlight of the year. we have bob nichols pastor of calvary cathedral in fort worth, also bob yandian from tulsa, oklahoma, are always with me and we minister. i tell you, it's going to be a great time. it's just a special time for ministers, plus our building is nearly going to be complete. you'll be able to go visit that up at the sanctuary in woodland park. remember that the dates are september the 30th through october the 4th, monday through friday at noon. our ministers' conference 2013, right here in colorado springs. >> andrew's teaching on romans is available on either cd or dvd as seen on tv in the series titled the gospel: the power of god. or you can get this teaching in the book titled grace: the power of the gospel

in either english or spanish. each is available for a gift of any amount. in addition, this teaching is available in a companion study guide. not only is the entire teaching included in the study guide, you can also print off as many copies as you like when you download the pdf files from the included data cd. this valuable resource is available for a gift of $35 or more. also, if you would like a verse-by-verse commentary on romans, consider andrew's life for today study bible: romans edition . it includes 470 footnotes that will help you understand god's unconditional love and grace. it's available for a gift of $20 or more when you contact us. or if you prefer, all of these resources are available as part of the romans collection. it includes your choice of either the cd or dvd, the book, the study guide, and the life for today study bible: romans edition .

this collection has a catalog value of $99, but today you can receive it for a gift of $50 or more. go to awmi.net and click on today's tv offer to see all the ways you can get this teaching. you can use your credit card to order resources through our web site at awmi.net. while you're there, you can discover more product details and download additional free resources. or you can order through our helpline monday through friday from 4:30am to 9:30pm mountain time. our helpline number is 719-635-1111. if the lines are busy, remember - you can order ministry materials 24-hours a day, 7 days a week at awmi.net. to write us, use the address on your screen. we appreciate your generosity and hope to hear from you today. we would like to point out andrew's upcoming

speaking schedule. mark your calendars to come meet andrew at one of these events. in the month of september he'll be in charlotte, north carolina, johnson city, tennessee, and in colorado springs, colorado, and in october he'll be in walsall, england, victor harbor, south australia, melbourne, victoria, australia, and in carrara, gold coast, queensland, australia. for more details on andrew's next meeting in your area visit our web site >> at awmi.net. >> the ministry training program is designed to help charis bible college graduates identify and be equipped in their calling of either business, media, ministry, missions or worship. the business school gives students the opportunity to learn from entrepreneurs about planning, implementing

and running successful >> businesses. >> everything they teach is just so practical. it really is easy >> to understand. >> the business school believes that sound biblically based business practices translate in the furtherance of the gospel and the kingdom. to learn more about this program available to charis bible college graduates visit our web site >> at charisbiblecollege.org

>> announcer: the following program is paid for by the friends and partners of joyce meyer ministries. >> joyce: we need to live ready. we need to live full up with the power of god. full up on the word of god. our faith needs to be sharp and we need to have up that shield of faith. be ready all the time. if you thought jesus was coming back next friday...

man, would you be busy and active in this next week. [music] >> joyce: matthew 25 is one of the best chapters in the bible, i think, to read if you get a lazy spell and you want to get jolted out of it. now you know, some of you don't have a problem at all with laziness, but you'll just have to bear with me, because many other people do. and you know, you might be a hard worker, physically a hard worker and think, "well, i'm not lazy," but i'm asking you, are you spiritually lazy? there's a difference in being lazy about doing your work and lazy about exercising your faith, or lazy about the things of god that you need to attend to. waiting on god is not a fleshly activity, but you're spiritually

active when you're waiting on god. "i'm trusting you, god. i'm waiting on you. i'm exercising my faith. i don't want to move in the flesh here. i trust you." matthew 25:1, "then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who take their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. five were foolish and five were wise. when the foolish took their lamps, they did not take any [extra] oil with them." the lazy christian won't do anything extra. come on, now. those of you laying in bed right now watching me, you know, >> [applauding] >> joyce: you know, you didn't even get out of bed. you already had it set on the right station and you, with sleepies still in your eyes you got that remote and went... "sure hope joyce has got a good word for me today."

come on. i know. well, i am happy, happy, happy, so happy to do it if it will finally get you out of bed and motivated to start exercising your faith to be the kind of person that god wants you to be, so you can make a difference in somebody else's life. "somebody help me so i can help you, and i want to help you so you can help somebody else." we're not supposed to just take everything in and do nothing. we gotta war against laziness. do the extra. might be a little harder to find the scripture yourself than to call a friend and ask 'em where it's at...