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FILING A CLAIM
We become partakers of the “divine nature” by believing and receiving the “great and precious promises” of God. In other words, “we must lay claim to the promises of God” in order for the “divine nature” to dwell habitually and consistently within us.
A “claim” is defined as a “demand or request for something considered as one’s due.” Laying claim to the promises of God insures us we will posses all we need to fulfill the plan and purpose of God for our lives. All the promises of God are “Yes and in Him Amen.” (2 Corinthians 1:20). In other words, we can be confident that God will watch over His Word to fulfill the promises He has made to us. God is glorified when we believe and receive His “great and precious promises.”
The heart of the prudent acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge. Proverbs, ch. 18, vs. 16.
A “prudent man” is one who prepares for the future. He makes sure all his “bases are covered.” If any problems do arise, he will be able to handle any unforeseen challenges which may come. Because he has anticipated and made provision for problems beforehand, he will always be prepared for trouble.
When a miner found gold, he would “file a claim” as evidence the property which he found the gold on belonged to him. He followed what is called the “Prudent Man Rule.” The “rule” required the miner to demonstrate his ability to invest his efforts and time to work his “valuable mining claim.” He also had to prove he had the “legal rights” to file the claim in the first place.
There were many claim jumpers around during the California Gold Rush days. The ownership of mines had to be recorded and claims to mines could only be proven by “title deeds” to gold mining properties. This was known as “proprietorship rights.” A miner was considered a “prudent man” when he proved his ability to work the mine or property and that he was the one who held proprietorship rights to the property. Without a “title deed” to a gold mining operation, it would be impossible for a miner to prove that the property belonged to him and that he had the rights of proprietorship.
As “Prudent Christians” we have been given “proprietorship rights” to all the “promises of God.” We hold the “title deed” to these promises through faith in the shed Blood of Jesus Christ. We are joint heirs with Christ. As joint heirs with Christ we have been given access to everything Christ owns and everything He is. We have access to all the virtues of His “divine nature” because His Spirit dwells within us. (Romans 8:16-17).
In Christ we have been given dominion over Satan and ALL the works of darkness. We are heavenly and hegemonically empowered to destroy the works of the enemy by and through the power of the Holy Spirit. We have “proprietorship rights” in the Kingdom of God and “rule and reign” with Christ Jesus “in this life.” (Romans 5:17).
If we are “Prudent Christians” we will be prepared when the enemy comes in like a flood to destroy and devour our spiritual houses. The “Prudent Man Rule” guarantees we are strong in the Lord, and the power of His might rests upon us wherever and whenever we are in need. We have filed a claim on the “promises of God” and are FREE to search the “gold mine” of His Word for the greatest treasures which exist.
Our claims as joint heirs with Jesus Christ have been filed with the Courts in Heaven. We are free to go prospecting anywhere in the Kingdom of God for the “golden treasures” found in the “divine nature of Christ.” Our desire for the “true riches” will lead us to the place where we can and will be FILLED with the fullness of the “divine nature of Christ.” We have the “rights” to the divine nature because we possess the Spirit of Christ and He is dwelling richly within us by faith.
Buy the truth, and do not sell it, also wisdom and instruction and understanding. Proverbs, ch. 23, vs. 23
We saw in Chapter 6 that Jesus admonished the Laodiceans to “buy gold” which had been refined (tried and tested) in the fire. Solomon admonishes us in the above scripture to “buy truth, wisdom, instruction and understanding.” Both Jesus and Solomon were speaking of the “divine nature.” Truth, wisdom, godly instruction and understanding are virtues which are found only in the “divine nature of Christ.”
The “New Gold Rush” is a “Rush for Truth.” What can be more important than the TRUTH. Jesus is the TRUTH. Jesus is the Truth, the Life and the Way. Jesus is the WAY to Truth AND the WAY to LIFE. Without TRUTH (Jesus), eternal life does not exist for mankind. If people do not possess the “divine nature of Christ,” they are bound for eternal darkness, death and destruction.
Jesus is our WISDOM. (1 Corinthians 1:30). With the impartation of the “divine nature” we are able to receive “divine wisdom, instruction and understanding.” The “divine nature of Christ” gives us personal access to the “grace of God” as well as all things which pertain to “life and godliness.” When we have found Christ we will have found “Wisdom.” When we have found Christ we will have found “the Truth.” When we have found Christ we have found the “Way” to “ETERNAL LIFE.”
When we are buying or “purchasing something,” we are making an exchange. We are trading something we have for something we need or desire. Jesus comes to exchange “His beauty” for our ashes, and the “oil of joy” for our mourning so we may be called “trees of righteousness.” (Isaiah 61:3).
Once we have purchased the truth, we should never desire to sell or exchange it for anything else. If we desire to exchange truth for anything else in existence, we are not being wise or prudent. If we desire anything other than the truth, we will find ourselves languishing in a life filled with disappointment, delusion and denial.
We cannot be filled with righteousness if we do not “know the truth.” It is truth which sets us free. It is “truth” which sets us apart from the rest of the world. It is the “truth” which sanctifies us so we can become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. When we buy the “truth,” we have bought the greatest treasure anyone can find. If we have not been to the cross and exchanged our sins for the beauty of His Holiness, we have not found the “Pathway of Life.”