One of the most important issues in Christian doctrines is
restitution. it's what determines our eternity, what determines our
relationship with Jesus after we are saved. Restitution is so important after
Salvation that it has to be done immediately a person is genuinely saved. Salvation without restitution is half
freedom and unconfirmed salvation.
Leviticus 6:4, “then it shall
be, because he has sinned and is guilty, that he shall restore what he has
stolen, or the thing which he has extorted, or what was delivered to him for
safekeeping, or the lost thing which he found” The center of restitution
is confession to men as the bible commands us to confess to one another, but in
a larger and clearer sense, restitution
is restoring things wrongly acquired in old life of sin, returning what was
wrongly taken or borrowed in the past.
Restitution is an act of revealing lies, faked, falsified,
fraudulent information and documents of past; reconciling with people we offended
by apologizing and people who offended us by forgiving them. Lastly it is also
repaying debts we owed in the past which we refused to pay or forgot to pay. By reality, every child of God has at least
one or two matter of restitution.
When you are truly
saved and the Lord has forgiven and cleansed you from all your sins; the Spirit
of God enters into your life, and immediately he begins to point to you what
you need to amend and restitute. The First and Greatest Teacher of restitution
after salvation is the HOLY SPIRIT, speaking to our mind, our conscience what
to restore, reveal, and return and who to reconcile with.
It’s spiritually
natural after genuine salvation. If you are truly saved and nothing is
ministered to your spirit to correct or confess to people, it means there is
need for second touch to see clearly or you are blocking the speaking of the
Spirit into your heart. Everybody of us was born a sinner, grew in sin to a
particular level before we become born again. Since nobody is sinless before
salvation, everybody has one or two restitution to do. Sin is offending God and
man, when we come to Jesus, confess our sins to Him and ask Him to forgive us,
He does just that. After God has forgiven and cleansed, then we reconcile with
fellow men.
The most and first important thing is to settle and
reconcile with God, every sinner is fighting with God, but when we come to God
through Jesus, when we repent from all our sins, confess them and accept Jesus
into our lives, we reconcile with God and that made us to be children of God
Almighty instead of His enemies. Paul said, “Men
and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.”
Acts 23:1.
When we repent from our sins and confess them, we have good
conscience before God, and that is the beginning of everything in our Christian
lives. The salvation of our souls is the basic and foundation of Christian
living, Christians without genuine salvation are religious Christians, not
reckoned with God, and they are the majority in Christianity.
After our genuine salvation that gives good conscience
before God, we move on to having same good conscience with men as a
confirmation and evidence people will see. Apostle Paul furthered in Acts 24:16, “This being so, I myself always strive to
have a conscience without offense toward God and men” If truly we have a
conscience without offense towards God, it will be also go towards men
likewise. If God knows, men also will know.
It is just like somebody saying “I love God” but he hates fellow men; how can he loves God he doesn’t
see and at the same time hates fellow men he sees? Bible says such love is
fake. The same is applicable with
confession, when you confess to God you find it hard to confess to fellow men
that you can see, how genuine is that confession?
If you are afraid of what people will say or do if you
confess, it means you fear men than God.
You were not afraid to confess to Almighty God, Awesome God, All knowing God,
who can kill and make alive; if you are not afraid to confess to that God
fearful in praises, then why are you afraid to confess to fellow men? Here is
what Jesus Christ says,
“And do not fear those who kill the body but
cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and
body in hell.” Matthew 10:28. The worst men can do to you after
restitution is to kill your “temporal”
body but only God has the power to destroy that body and soul, only Him you
should fear. Fear brings snares; fear ensnares people, even after they
are saved, not to claim their total freedom in Christ through restitution. Why will you be afraid to confess the sin
to creatures after you have confessed and settled with the CREATOR?
THE BLESSINGS OF
RESTITUTION
Judges 17:1-2 “Now there was a
man from the mountains of Ephraim, whose name was Micah, And he said to his
mother, “The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from you, and on
which you put a curse, even saying it in my ears—here is the silver with me; I
took it.” And his mother said, “May you be blessed by the Lord, my son”
There are many blessings that follow after restitution is done, here are few of
them.
Peace With Men
In our past old life, we wronged God and men, when we are
saved, we make peace with God and so we must complete the process of peace by
making peace with people. People we fought, we offended, or harmed before we
were saved must be contacted and apologized to. People we had bitterness,
malice and hatred with must be settled with, even if we think they wronged us,
even if we have decided not to greet them again.
Yet, we must make peace with them for the sake of peace and
to remove the bitterness, malice and others so that we don’t give room to the
devil in our new lives in Christ. “If it is
possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men” Romans 12:18.
People you are living with, working with, schooling with; family members,
friends and neighbors, every one we had issues with, as much as we can, we
should settle peacefully with them.
When we make peace with all men, both right and wrong, it
confirms our peace with God, it gives us peace and it’s the only way to see
God, to enter heaven. “Pursue peace with all
people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” Hebrews 12:14.
When we settle with people peacefully, it shows we are truly children of God,
the King of Peace; Jesus the Prince of Peace and we, the children of peace. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called
sons of God.” Matthew 5:9.
It Settles Old
Accounts
Restitution is to settle our old accounts and close them. If
you are saved and you have not made some past wrongs right by restitution, it
simply means you keep your old account open which may stand against you here on
earth and eventually disallow you to enter heaven.
Undone restitution has the capacity to block God’s blessing
in your life here on earth and block you from entering Heaven. The old records
which stand against you can only be settled and closed by restitution. “Some men’s sins are clearly evident, preceding them to
judgment, but those of some men follow later.” 1 Timothy 5:24.
It Confirms Your
New Life In Jesus Christ
In different online and phone transaction, after you have
sent your desired transaction, you will be asked to confirm your transaction.
If you fail to “just” confirm,
thinking since you have filled all the forms, supplied all the needed
information and it has been sent and accepted, you think to confirm again is of
no use, your transaction will be invalid and will not be processed.
The same is in reality with restitution. After you have
repented and confessed your sin to God and he has forgiven, cleansed and
accepted you, you need to respond back to confirm your salvation by
restitution. Think about it, if I were
your neighbor and I stole your stuffs in past and using them. You knew and just
kept quiet, then later I got saved and come to preach to you and still using
what I stole from you, how will you feel? Restitution is a certainty for
every regenerated child of God.
It Turns Curses To
Blessings
Many curses in life are caused by wrong things that was done
in past, and many problems facing children of God after they have been saved
are not because the enemies are powerful over their lives in Christ but because
they allow the old curses to have access to their new lives because of ignoring
necessary restitution they need to do. Undone
restitution allows the unsettled wrong of your past to haunt your present life
even though you are now a child of God.
You give access to Satan, enemies, generational curses and
many attacks when you refuse to do needed restitution. This can also block the
free flow of God’s blessing, progress and God’s promises for your life. Undone restitution gives Satan to accuse
you and oppose you in the present of God. Most of the problems making us to do fasting, special prayers,
deliverance and attend several programs and the problems remain the same; those
problems can be solved if we do simple acts of apologizing, forgiving or any
necessary restitution as the case may be.
That will end the mountainous problems, and that begins the
progress and prosperity in your life, marriage and ministry. “And he said to his mother, “The eleven hundred shekels
of silver that were taken from you, and on which you put a curse, even saying
it in my ears—here is the silver with me; I took it.” And his mother said, “May
you be blessed by the Lord, my son!” Judges 17:2. Obedience is better than sacrifice.
It Gives Blessed
Assurance
When restitution is settled, you have peace, you have more
confidence in the Lord and you have assurance of heaven. Satan will not have
anything to hold against you and you will have that strong boldness in your
prayer. Here is what the Word of God says, “And by
this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him. For
if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.
Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God. And
whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do
those things that are pleasing in His sight.” 1 John 3:19-22. Therefore, it very important you enact all necessary restitution you ought to make while the grace of life still abide because tomorrow is never promised.
