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Heavenly Perspective – Part 4

January 25, 2012

Now we will continue where we left off the last lesson. Remember Colossians 3:14-17 says,

“14But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. 15And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body, and be thankful. 16Let the Word of Christ, dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms and hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts, to the Lord. 17And whatsoever you do in word and deed do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

Now we have talked about putting on love and singing with grace in our heart. We talked about being beautified with salvation and now Romans 13:14 says, “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ.” We discussed this in length in the last lesson, but did you know that when you are put on the Lord Jesus Christ, you are wearing Jesus? And when people see you, they see Jesus in you, on you and through you. Now whether or not they know it is Him or not is irrelevant. How many of you that if the Lord Jesus came and started walking in this city today and dressed normal, that most people would not know it is Jesus? So don’t expect them to recognize the Jesus in you when they see you. They are not going to say, “Wow! I see Jesus in you.” No, they are going to say, “I can see something different about you” and that something is going to draw them to ask you about what it is they see. What you have done is – you have put on the Lord Jesus Christ and He is shining through you. You have chosen to identify with the Lord Jesus by walking out His Word in your life. So what happens? When people see you, they see Jesus. It’s important though that you remember that you and Jesus are not separate entities anymore. You have been made one with Him. Through His death, He has killed the old nature in you so that He can raise the new nature in you. Now when you put Him on, you are causing His life to live through you, and your life and His has now become energized by the victory of Calvary.

Romans 13:14 says, “Make no provision for the flesh.” Why is that? If the devil can get you to associate yourself with who you used to be, you will begin to operate under the curse of the fall and reap the benefits of that curse. The devil wants equal time in your life. He will try to convince you that it is “balance”. No! You cannot mix the Word of God and the report of the Lord with man’s report and come out with balance. If you do, you will come out with error. True accuracy is believing God. The issues of life do not come from God. God has got Himself it together? No, we are the problem, and He is going to straighten us out and so we “make no provision for the flesh” or the old nature. That is why the Bible tells us to “Give no place to the devil.” (Eph 4:27) I don’t know about you, but that tells me that there is something I must do to ensure the devil gets no foothold in my life? So what do I do when I am tempted to go back to my old way of doing things? I tell the devil with boldness, “No, that’s the old man. That is not me!” Now people will say, “Wait a minute! That is too you!” You answer, “No, it isn’t, that is the old man. That person is dead in Jesus!” What are you telling this person? You are saying, “Look, I have completely annihilated satan’s foothold any place in my life because I believe that Jesus through His death on the cross, killed the old nature I used to have.” That’s right! Through His sacrifice on the cross, Jesus annihilated the devil’s foothold over every area of the life of the every believer. That’s why the devil works overtime to try to convince you that you are not who God said you are because if you believe you are who God says you are, he has no place in you and no ability to influence your life.

John 14:30 says, “The devil comes and has nothing in me!” Why is this important to know? If you can say this with conviction, the devil is in trouble because He will have no place in you. He cannot touch you. That is why the Bible tells you to not give equal time to the flesh. Do not give the new man some time and the old man some time. Do not be to the many viewpoints of the world. Just be open to the Word of God only. GIVE NO PLACE TO THE DEVIL! GIVE NO PLACE TO THE FLESH! PUT ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST! Do not get caught up the traditions of man and religion. Do not put walk one foot in the Word of God and the other in the world, and call it balance. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and His extremely zealous, Godly Word-based conduct. You let Jesus live on the inside of you. Remember, do not let yourself see you and He as separate entities. You are both joined as one, therefore His victories are yours now through faith. Your failures in the past were already judged in Him on the cross. You are one in nature. Through His death, He has broken the old man in Him so that He could raise a new man in Him.

“So put on the Lord Jesus Christ in your mind, in your thought life, in your awareness, and in your meditations. Realize your identity is eternally linked in Him.”

Now when God created Adam, the Genesis 1:26-27 said,

“Then God said, “Let Us make man in our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”

Here the Bible calls mankind “man” and if you read closely, you will see that man is distinguished apart from the rest of creation. By doing so, the earth and the children of men are recognized as a breed, a species, all to itself. Now every species of living things has a certain way of acting and there are those who will tell try to convince us through so called science, which is nothing in the world but religion of evolution, that man evolved, but you can look at breeds such as the cat and dog, and see that there is nothing evolving. A cat is a cat and a dog is a dog. Two different species each acting like the species it belongs to. Well by the same token, a human belongs to the human family and will have common ground with those within the human family. So when God said mankind, He was talking about a species of creation that He made after His image and His likeness. When Jesus became a new man, He became the last Adam. Through Him, a new species, a new breed, a new race of men and women created in the image of holiness now live. This new breed godly men/women will bear the characteristics of the Head or the Procreator, Jesus, but it is enough to just know that fact. You have to be changed, but to be changed and owe nothing to the flesh, and give no place to the flesh, you have got to allow the new Procreator, Jesus, to change your mind and your confidence, and transform or lead you far away from the old man, so as to bring you closer to the new man you were intended to be.

So we are not only going to find out who we are in Him, we are going to put that knowledge to work. As we do, we will begin to see the result of what we believe. See the problem is many of us fall into a trap. As we are studying and learning faith, we try to put faith to work in the natural by seeing if it will produce a tangible something outside of us, and in so doing, we miss God. Then we will say, “It doesn’t work. I tried to believe God for a car and it didn’t happen.” That is kind of backwards isn’t it? You should first believe God for a change in your spirit and a change in your mind because faith is there to primarily make you a different person. Now when you get that revelation of that different person and you find out that he is already blessed, everything in the natural realm will comply with that. Faith begins with change, a change that takes us out of the old and takes us into the new. So a man’s life does not measured by the abundance of the things he possesses. Faith is measured by who the man has become. Now once he has become and is becoming what God has made him to be, he will have possessions. He will have victory and success in life, but it will not be because God did something for him, it will be because God did something in Him. That means that in order for God to create in you a change that produces faith, you have to hear the Word. You have to explore the Word. You have to meditate on and draw strength out of the Word itself.

Now let’s turn to John 1:12-13. It reads,

“12But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

The Bible tells us how the Word became flesh (John 1:14). The invisible, nontangible, spiritual Word of God became a physical, tangible, flesh, bone and blood person. The Word, Himself, became incarnated and became human. When you saw Him, He was thinking, but it was the Word. He was living, but it was the Word. He was speaking, but it was the living Word. When He sat down, it was the Word sitting with you. When He walked around, it was the Word walking around with you. That Word took not only a human form, not only a human identity, but that Word through an act of faith took your old identity in Him, and when He broke His body, He literally was breaking the natural manifestation in the earth realm that God had pre-ordained to be your substitute in order to deliver you from eternal hell.

The Bible says He took the bread and broke it, saying, “This is my body which is broken for you. Take, Eat …” (1 Corinthians 11:24-30) So it is not enough to know the Bible, you got to eat the Bible. How many of you said, “No thank you! I ate about a month ago. I know how that tastes.” No one right! Yet people come to church all the time and they sit there and say, “I don’t hear anything new. I ate that before.” Isn’t that interesting because it is not what you know. Are you eating the thing because when you eat, life flows in you? You feel good. How many of you know you get grouchy when you are hungry? Then somebody says, “What is wrong with you? Did you eat today?” You see the Bible is not just something you know, it is something you continue to partake of because it does not matter how many times you have eaten that Word before, if you are hungry, it will taste each time you hear it. As a matter of fact, partaking of the Word is God’s way to allow His power to continue to flow in you. Now when you are partaking of that Word, what is it doing? It is giving you new life that can only reach you and benefit you if you can relate to it. That means you have to have something in common between you and the Word of God, otherwise it is irrelevant to you. The Bible said, “If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship (koinonia) or communion with one another, that is, we have things in common. (1 John 1:7) What do you think you have in common with Jesus?

Let me tell you some things.

• You are human. He became human.
• You used to be a sinner. He was made sin for you although He didn’t know any (2 Cor 5:21)
• You are tempted. He was tempted in all points like you are yet without sin. (Heb 4:12)
• You were worthy of death. He died for you
• You should have went to hell. He went down to hell for you.

As you can see, you have a lot in common with Jesus. As you walk in the light the Word becomes relevant to you. What does that mean? It means you have something in common with the Word. The Word connects to you in a personal way. Have you ever sat with people and they said, “No, I don’t eat that! Do you have anything else?” What are they doing? They are refusing to eat. They are refusing to be partakers of the meal because they have nothing in common it. What is the meal spiritually speaking? It is the Word. Now that is a bad place to be for when the Lord begins to talk to you about something, if you cannot partake of it or relate to it, it will not benefit you.

Have you ever heard someone say, “But I know that already, preach to me something I haven’t heard. I heard that before”? I hear it all the time, but what you must realize is the Word doesn’t do you any good if you just know it, you have to have something in common with it. Now let me tell you how common ground comes. You see somebody that failed God in the Bible will and you say, “If it was not for the grace of salvation, I would be there.” You see somebody please God in the Bible and you say, “That’s me through the power of the Holy Ghost.” You see Jesus winning and overcoming and you say, “Through Him I have that same authority.” You are finding common ground. Do you know what you are doing? You are eating or partaking of the Word. What does that do? It allows the life of the Word to become your life. How? You are assimilating that thing.

Let me ask you something. How many of you lie awake at night worrying how you are going to digest the food you ate in order to cause it to give your body strength? No! Your job is to just eat the thing. As a matter of fact, you do not even give it a second thought. We walk around as if it is normal. Now the Word of God is like that. Your spirit man will detect the good news and go out after it. Listen, the rational mind will talk him out of that – It will say, “Don’t eat that! Make sure…” But your spirit man will know the good news. You spirit man will go after it. Your job is to just eat the Word. Once you eat the Word, it is the job of the Holy Ghost to cause that Word to live and give strength to portions of your being causing the new man to live and to be strong. As you begin to eat the Word, you are partaking of revelation knowledge through the power of the Spirit because of the common ground and things with which Jesus has made available to you. So what happens is – what is His, becomes yours. His nature is given to you. How are we given this nature? The Bible tells us that His divine power has given to us exceeding great and precious promises that through these we become a partaker or an associate with God and His divine nature. (2 Pet 1:4) Now how come many people know the promises, but don’t have the divine nature? It is not enough to know it the promises, you got to eat it. You have to anchor your faith to these promises.

Now it is a sad day when food sits before you and you refuse to eat. I tell you, you can be starving to death and roll around in plates full of food and still die of starvation. You know how it feels. You know how it smells and yet you die anyway. Don’t roll in it, eat it! There are people who have perfected the art of just analytically evaluating the Word of God and not allowing it to feed their spirit. If the Word is irrelevant to you, if you haven’t identified that it is food, if you don’t know you are hungry, then you are not going to eat and go about with little change in your life. You have got to recognize two things –

1) Recognize your hunger
2) Recognize food and begin to assimilate it or eat it, that you might receive the strength you
need from it.

Now the Word became flesh for a reason. He became flesh so that He could provide the food of heaven so that our spirit can continue to live and to be strong.

Let’s look at Elijah, the prophet, during the time he was running away from Jezebel because she said, “I’m going to kill you.” He sits down under the Juniper tree. He had been anointed. He had outran a chariot for over twenty miles, but when the anointing lifted, all of a sudden his life was in danger. He said, “God kill me”. Suddenly, an angel shows up and makes him some food and feeds him. The Bible said, “He was able to walk in the strength of that for many days.” That is what the Bible is saying, “Get around the Word of God and get heavenly food in your spirit so that your spirit man can once again relate to who he is”. Now you can be an athlete who has never been defeated, but if you haven’t eaten for a month, guess what happens? It doesn’t matter who you are. By the same token, it doesn’t matter if you have a new nature, you have to feed that new nature. You have to let that new nature live on a new heavenly diet. You have to let that Word go on the inside of you and fill you. Some people say, “I just don’t have that time to spend to study in the Bible”. Jesus is coming soon. You are going to live by what you eat.

The Word of God is food. It is life to those who find it (Prov 4:20). It is health to all their flesh (Pro 4:21-22). You got to feed the spirit man so that the spirit man can live. Do you know what happens in him? He rises up and he becomes strong. The Word helps your spirit man live out his identity. So in light of that, the Bibles said, “As many as received Him, to them gave the power”. The Word “power” here is the word “Exousia”. This is not like dunamis, a power that generates himself like the one He gave us on the day of Pentacost. This is a different word for “power”. It means a sense of ability. He gave them the ability, privilege, force, capacity, competency, a freedom, a mastery, a delegated influence, a jurisdiction, a liberty, a power, a right and a strength to become sons of God. Now that Word “become” is the word “ginomai” in the Greek. It means “came into being”. Webster’s Dictionary said, “To grow up to be” or “change” or “develop into by growth.

Are you sincere about changing into or developing? If you, then it is not enough to know how to change, you have to make a decision to diligently pursue that change. Now watch what he said, “To as many as received, to them gave He an ability, a delegated authority, a competence, a privilege, a force to be able to grow up to be and become a son of God.” He said, “that delegated authority secures and ensures your ability to become a son of God” and yet there are still people living their life as a child spiritually. As a result, they die as a child, and go to heaven saying, “How come you didn’t do this Lord?” And God will say, “Listen, I gave you the job, the job description, the privilege, the delegated authority to grow up and become a son.” That means you won’t be able to blame God for not raising the dead through you. You are not going to be able to blame Him for not healing the sick through you. You are not going to be able to blame Him for not prospering your life or causing it to radiate with the glory of Calvary. The only blame is going to be on you for not putting to work the “Exousia” or power given to you. If however, you do, then something will happen. Whether you know it or not, you are working hard to remain where you are.

Tags: Bible, Word of God, Jesus, Love, Holy SPirit, Faith, Communion, hunger, Peace, Adam, strength, Promises, Revelation, Grace, Wisdom, Devil, image of God, power, temptation, dominion, Holy Ghost, 2 Corinthians 5:21, failures, Colossians 3:14-17, Exousia, dunamis, privilege, koinonia, 1 Corinthians 11:24-30, Genesis 1:26-27, Ephesians 4;27, perfection, pslams, spititual osngs, Lord Jesus, salavation, Romans 13:14, identity, victory at Calvary, Provision, beliefs, John 14:30, Conviction, Mankind, John 1:12-13, Children of God, Elihah, Competency, Mastery, Webster's Dictionary, Mediation, Science, Dog, Cat, Procreator, RIghts, Proverbes 4:20-22, Freedom, Ability, Miracle Working POwer
Posted in Uncategorized, Christianity, Religion, God, Faith, Bread of Life, Fountain of Life, Jesus, Biblical Teaching, God's Word, prayer | Leave a Comment »

Heavenly Perspective – Part 4

December 19, 2011

Now we will continue where we left off the last lesson.

Remember Colossians 3:14-17 says, “14But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. 15And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body, and be thankful. 16Let the Word of Christ, dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms and hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts, to the Lord. 17And whatsoever you do in word and deed do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

Now we have talked about putting on love and singing with grace in our heart. We talked about being beautified with salvation and now Romans 13:14 says, “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ.” We discussed this in length in the last lesson, but did you know that when you are put on the Lord Jesus Christ, you are wearing Jesus? And when people see you, they see Jesus in you, on you and through you. Now whether or not they know it is Him or not is irrelevant. How many of you that if the Lord Jesus came and started walking in this city today and dressed normal, that most people would not know it is Jesus? So don’t expect them to recognize the Jesus in you when they see you. They are not going to say, “Wow! I see Jesus in you.” No, they are going to say, “I can see something different about you” and that something is going to draw them to ask you about what it is they see. What you have done is – you have put on the Lord Jesus Christ and He is shining through you. You have chosen to identify with the Lord Jesus by walking out His Word in your life. So what happens? When people see you, they see Jesus. It’s important though that you remember that you and Jesus are not separate entities anymore. You have not been made one with Him. Through His death, He has killed the old nature in you so that He can raise the new nature in you. Now when you put Him on, you are causing His life to live through you, and your life and His has now become energized by the victory of Calvary.

Now when God created Adam, the Genesis 1:26-27 said, “Then God said, “Let Us make man in our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”

Now let’s turn to John 1:12-13. It reads, “12But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

Let me tell you some things.

• You are human. He became human.

• You used to be a sinner. He was made sin for you although He didn’t know any (2 Cor 5:21)

• You are tempted. He was tempted in all points like you are yet without sin. (Heb 4:12)

• You were worthy of death. He died for you

• You should have went to hell. He went down to hell for you.

You have got to recognize two things –

1) Recognize your hunger

2) Recognize food and begin to assimilate it or eat it, that you might receive the strength you need from it.

Now the Word became flesh for a reason. He became flesh so that He could provide the food of heaven so that our spirit can continue to live and to be strong.

Tags: 1 Corinthians 11:24-30, 1 John 1:7, 1 Peter 1:4, Adam, admonishing, Athlete, Authority, Bible, bond of perfection, Communion, delegated authority, Devil, dunamis, Elijah, Ephesians 4;27, evolution, Exousia, food of heaven, Genesis 1:26-27, ginomai, glory of Calvary, God, Grace, Hearts, Heaven, hunger, hymns, Jesus, John 1:12-14, koinonia, Love, Pentacost, privilege, Procrator, promises of GOd, Proverbs 4, Psalms, Romans 13:12-14, son of God, spiriitual songs, Spirit, teaching, Wisdom, Word, Word became flesh
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, prayer, Religion, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Heavenly Perspective – Part 3

December 16, 2011

Let’s look at Colossians 3:14, “But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.

How do you put on something? How many of you know that you don’t just get up without thinking and get dressed? If you do, you will be embarrassed when you go out. You’ll say, “What a mess!” When you look at yourself may find you got buttons buttoned wrong, you got two different colored shoes and two different colored socks. When people meet you they will say, “What’s wrong with you? Did the lights go out at your house?” See, you don’t just get up and put on anything without thinking about it. By the same token, you do not just become something without thinking about it. To become something different than you are, you are going to have to think about it. Now with that being said, that means if you are acting in fear, doubt and unbelief, you have given it thought.

Let’s stop for a moment and think about what we just said, “If you are acting in fear, doubt, and unbelief, you have given it thought.” No one can fear unless they are thinking about something that provokes you to be afraid. No one doubts unless you happen to be presented with something that sound far-fetched and hokey. When situations present themselves in your life, it causes every person to think and analyze what they are experiencing which creates an emotional response deep inside you. You have consciously or subconsciously gotten up, walked to your closet, got out the helmet of damnation and started putting on doubt, fear and unbelief. So the Bible says, “Above all put on love”. Spiritually speaking, you walk to your spiritual closet and look around. Seeing what you are looking for, you say, “Oh, love, there it is. I’m going to put that on.” That is a decision you make. That means you have to meditate on the Word of God and find out what the love of God in the Word is, and as you do, that love will live on the inside of you.

Now Paul is talking to Christians telling that the Bible says, “the love of God has been shed in their hearts by the Holy Ghost (Rom 5:5).” If God has shed His love in our hearts by the Holy Ghost and we receive the Holy Ghost upon receiving salvation, that means the love Paul is referring to has always been in our hearts, but it is not enough for love to be in our hearts, we have to put it on. The Bible says that “the Lord will beautify the meek with salvation. (Ps 149:4)”, yet all of can attest that we have seen some really mean Christians. Yes, they are saved, but they just haven’t made the decision to put on God’s love. Now what does it mean when it says the Lord will beautify the meek with salvation? It means that the things you have experienced through God will become the predominant influence in your life. Why? Because you have been thinking about them, meditating on them until you know that you know that you are saved. Your words will show it. Your actions will show it. Everything about you will show it because you have been beautified by it. Everyone who meets you will say, “There is something different about you” and they will ask what it is. Tell them, “I put on the love of God.”

Colossians 3:15, “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body, and be thankful.”

Now how many of you know that in order for the peace of God to rule in your heart, the thoughts of God have to be in your mind. You cannot have anxiety while you are meditating on God’s Word and God’s goodness. You only have anxiety, lack of peace and turmoil in your heart when you have been thinking the wrong way. Now what did you do? You stopped mortifying the deeds of the old man on the earth. You stepped out of who your heavenly identity/position in your thought life and came right down to the earth realm by allowing your old nature to rise. You became double-minded and unstable in all your ways (Jms 1:8).

Colossians 3:16-17, “Let the Word of Christ, dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms and hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts, to the Lord. ¹⁷And whatsoever you do in word and deed do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

Isn’t this awesome!!! He said, “put on love”, “let peace rule in your heart and be thankful”, and then “let the Word of God dwell in you richly” and this can go beyond that. When there is peace in your heart and love is being worn by you, people will see it over you both inside and outside, and you will have thanksgiving in your heart. Now what do you thank God for? You thank God for what He has promised. If you wait to thank God for it when it happens, you will see very little results happen in your life. Thanksgiving looses the hand of God to perform what you already believe. Remember, you cannot thank God effectively unless you remember you were seated with Him in Christ spiritually. You have to know where you are and when you know where you are, you will know that what you have been promised is done. Now that is reason to be thankful to God.

Have you ever had something happen in your life that was so good you couldn’t contain yourself? Well, in those times you were so full of joy that you shouted and hollered. You may have been so overjoyed that psalms, hymns and spiritual songs rose up inside you. Next thing you know, you are talking and admonishing one another, and people say, “there’s grace in your heart.” See, it all came about by a decision to meditate, think upon, dwell amidst, and make the things of the Spirit of reality. You are so consumed by them that they become the very thoughts you think, but the very feelings you feel. Now there is not only grace in your heart, but hymns, psalms and spiritual songs in your life. But the Bible doesn’t stop there. It says, “whatsoever you do in word and deed do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.” Do you know what that means? It means do all on behalf of Jesus.

Have you ever listened to someone pray? You hear them asking God to do things on their behalf, but God is saying, “I gave you power, you do it?” They will say, “Lord heal them, because I can’t” and God will say, “You heal them, I gave you the power.” Why do they think they can’t? Because they still see themselves as the old man they used to be. That old person they were before Christ didn’t have the power to do, but you are not that old man. That old man died with Christ and you are now a new man seated in Christ. You are a new man that has Christ’s name, Christ’s power and has been sent by Christ to do on His behalf and what can that man do? He can do all things (Phil 4:13). You are risen, you are not going to rise in the rapture, you are risen already. In the rapture, you are just going to catch up to what Jesus did for you already. Your identity in Christ is right now. It is in Christ. When you get into that holy place in prayer, you walk right into the Holy Place of God and “with boldness, you obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Heb 4:16). Wait! Did you catch that? That means you don’t even pray in an earthly realm, you pray in the spiritual realm, in a dimension that gives you immediate access into the presence of God where you get out of God the strength you need to minister in the power of the Spirit.

So Paul tells us, “whatever you do, do on behalf of Christ, do in the name of Jesus, do with an absolute knowledge that you have been made a recipient of the full power of attorney.” What is a power of attorney? It is a legal and binding contract or agreement that permits the holder to do all things on behalf of the person giving the agreement. With that, we can now read Colossians 3:16, “whatever you do, do knowing that Jesus gave you a letter, His will, His living testament, His authority/permission to do all things on His behalf.” Simply said, Jesus is telling you, “Go, you can sign on my behalf. You got all my power behind you. Go out and conduct biblical business as if I was there doing the work myself. Whatever you do, do it as a representative of Me, so everybody will know that you are doing it in My name. Whatever you do, do it in My name!” Now when Christians and the body of Christ gets a hold of that revelation, they are going to see changes happen before their eyes. Remember, we are not talking about getting this revelation in our minds, we are talking about getting this revelation into our very spirit, so that we diligently pursue this thing. Things just don’t happen, we have to diligently pursue them. We have to go after them and get a hold of it. Whenever you get a hold it, your life will begin to resemble Christ’s life. You will begin to see people prospering. You will begin to see people ruling over circumstances. You are going to see people that nothing can defeat because they got a revelation of this very fact.

“And whatsoever you do, do in the name of Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father by Him”. How do you give thanks to God by Jesus? How do I give thanks to God? You first identify who you are in Jesus and then you identify Christ is your life. When you do that, you identify you have the Spirit of Christ and you identify that “as He is so are you in this present world (1 John 4:17).” So when you identify that, you lift your heart and hands to God without doubt and fear, and say, “Abba, Father. It is by Jesus…” Guess what happens at that moment? Your praise goes right out of your heart into Jesus who is sitting at the right hand of God and right out of Jesus’ heart to the throne of God. That power of praise hits God. So how do you give praise by Jesus. You give God total praise by giving the old man absolutely no access to your thought life whatsoever. You do not identify with the old man you used to be, remembering that man is dead. You remember, you owe nothing to the flesh. You are free and you choose to follow God and do what He says. Now when you give praise like that, what happens? When you give the Lord total praise, the praise goes right through the spiritual realm into your life that is hidden with Christ in God. Only your new life in Christ can gain access to God.

When we pray through the new nature, life goes right into the life that is in Jesus Christ and praise is made unto God by Jesus. When God turns around, He is excited because praise is emanating right out of Jesus to the throne of God. Remember God is omniscient (all knowing). He can identify every individual’s praise in the body of Jesus. He is not going to mistake my praise for your praise. It is all coming out of Jesus, hitting the throne and God knows whose praise is whose. Did you know that every praise that has made its way to the throne, has already qualified for an answer? Once the thanksgiving says “it’s done”, it is put into motion and all things begin to work for your good (Rom 8:28). So the only way to give Him praise, is to make the throne and the only way to make the throne is to sever yourself from the old person and identify yourself with the new person. Now once you allow this new nature to operate in you, that new person is living. He is linked in good with Jesus. He’s tied to Jesus. He’s hooked up to Jesus and has the boldness and access to God. As a result, God hears him, identifying both his petition and his praise.

Romans 13:11-12, 14; “And do this, knowing that now it is high time to awake out of sleep, for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. ¹²The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. ¹⁴But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”

Now the Wuest translation of the Bible says,

“and this, knowing the strategic season, that it is an hour now for you to awake out of sleep, for now our salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. ¹²The night has been on its way, and the day has arrived. Therefore, let us at once and once for all put off the works of darkness and let us once and once for all clothe ourselves with the weapons of the light. ¹⁴But clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ and stop making provision for the sinful nature with a view to a passionate craving.”

You are in a strategic time! Now the Bible is clear about your heavenly identity. So clear that we have to really misappropriate biblical warfare to step out of the authority that He paid for us. Here it tells us that the time we are living in is a strategic time. There is an opportunity to rise out of sleep. How many of you know that sleep and slumber spiritually speaking is a byproduct of a lack of knowledge of the Word of God or a lack of willingness to act upon what we know is in the Word. So when it is talking high time to awake, it is saying, “it is time to get a revelation of the Word of God and do the Word.” And then it says, “to put on the armor of light”. How many of you know what the armor of light is?

The Bible talks about putting on the whole armor of God (Eph 6:10-19). It talks about the helmet of salvation. How do you put on the helmet? You put it on by thinking and meditating on the salvation He gave you, Scripture relating to that salvation and what that salvation provides. All of a sudden, your mind is guarded by a weaponry or piece of armor that God provided for you. Now how many of you know that the devil attacks the mind? That is why you need the helmet of salvation. You put on the helmet of salvation by making a conscious decision to wear it. So the armor of light is the armor of God and every piece of that armor you put on is put on by consciously deciding it is available and wearing it. When you put it on, you are protected. When you know the Word and you have it in your mind, your mind is protected by the Word so that when lies and doubt come, you will say, “No!” to them because you know the Word. When you got the belt of truth on, then you are prepared to run, you are prepared to fight, you are prepared to move, you are prepared for every activity in life because you know the truth. When you are prepared to spread the gospel, it is like you have shoes on that can lead you to the battlefield. When you know the Word of God, it is like you got the sword of the Spirit. The point I am trying to make is that you can consciously meditate on who you are in Christ, your heavenly position through Him and by getting that revelation out of the Word of God, you can be dressed for and be protected in the middle of any battle.

So it is high time to wake up and you wake up through revelation of the Word of God. It is high time to put on the armor of light, but it also high time to put away from you once for all the works of darkness. God said, “Make a decision to peel off, to take away, to put away from you the old nature.” That tells me that God is telling born again Christians to remember that they were born again and to make a decision to once and for all say “I will no longer struggle with my old nature. I will never again doubt whether or not I am what the Bible says I am.” How many of you know that it doesn’t mean you will not be tempted? You can never just make a decision to put away the works of darkness and never have to deal with them again. No, you can make a decision to put them away from you, by disassociating them and disclaiming them. You say, “No!, that ‘s not me!” Now they will keep trying to come around but because you made a decision that they are not you, you can have authority over them every time they try to come around by saying, “that’s not me! I put that away from me. I am a new person. I am wearing the armor of light.”

Now watch what it said here and this is the key verse, “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.” The Wuest translation says, “clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ and stop making provision for the sinful nature.” Simply said, Wear the Word. The Word is alive (Heb 4:12). Put it on. Put it in your heart. Put it in your mouth. Put it in your mind and put it on your body. Put on the Lord Jesus. That means when you put the Word on, you remember that you are everything that the Word says you are in Christ.

Tags: 1 John 4:17, anxiety, armor of light, Bible, Christ, christians, Colossians 3:14-17, Doubt, Fear, God, God the Father, God's goodness, Grace, heavenly authority, Heavenly identity, Heavenly Perspective, Heavenly Position, Hebrews 4:12, Hebrews 4:16, Helmet of Salvation, Holy Ghost, Holy place, Holy SPirit, hymns, illumination, Jesus, Knowledge, Love, meditation, mercy, Peace, Philippians 4:13, Power of Attorney, Praise, prayer, Psalm 149:4, Psalms, Revelation, Romans 13:11-12, Romans 5:5, Salvation, scripture, Sinful Nature, spiritual songs, Sword of the Spirit, Thanksgiving, the Word of God, unbelief, WHole armor of God, works of darkness, Worry
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, prayer, Religion, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

A Christmas Message from Peshitta

December 15, 2011

I’d like to welcome you to this special time of the year, a time of celebration and meditation, for it a time that marks the birth of a Savior. It is a time of strategic significance to the body of Christ. It is a time that began long before the birth of our Savior that started with creation of man.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, but during this period of creation God created the most precious of all things – man. The Bible tells us that God created man from the dust of the earth and breathed the breath of life into Him and they became a living soul. The man was created perfect in every way, sinless as our Savior. This man was made into the image and likeness of our Creator. He had intelligence. He had purity. He had health without sickness and disease. He had resources without lack. He was rich and cared for by our Creator. He was given stewardship over all the earth to rule and reign, and to subdue the earth and all that crept upon it. This same man who walked in the coolness of the day with our Heavenly Father, with free will bowed his knee to God’s arch enemy, Satan. That day marked the fall of man and the change of life as we know it. From this time forward, the world would feel the effects of sin brought about by the rebellion of this first couple. Through this couple all creation was cursed.

Yet, no matter how bleak life may have appeared, God in His love, prepared the way to restore man back to Himself. Through millenniums of rebellion and sin, the day had finally arrived and God sent an angelic messenger to proclaim the coming of a Savior. A special child was to be born, anointed by God to be the Savior of the World.

So let’s journey together through time to the day of the birth of this great King.

²⁶Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee name Nazareth, ²⁷to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.

Thousands of years after the fall of man, God sends His angel Gabriel, to Nazareth. There he appears to a young woman named Mary, who was promised in marriage to a man named Joseph. In these times, to be promised in marriage was a serious event as it was as binding as the marriage itself. How so? Among the Hebrews, the betrothal was the only legal part of marriage which could not be broken off except by a bill of divorce. During the time between the betrothal and marriage day, the woman was to remain pure and untouched, yet on this very night, Gabriel comes to Mary to tell her she is to conceive a child.

²⁸And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

There standing before her was this most magnificent angel. Her eyes could hardly believe what she saw, much less grasp the words that came out of his mouth. What did he call her? Highly favored one!! Did she hear right? Yet in her ears rang the words, “the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” How could that be? What did she do that deserved such a great honor? She was no different than any other woman, so she thought. Enraptured by the angel before her, she continues to listen, yet feeling trouble in her heart about all she had heard.

²⁹But when she saw him, “she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. ³⁰Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid Mary, for you have found favor with God.

As Mary listened to this angelic messenger, a peace began to overtake her. Though her mind had not yet fully grasped the seriousness of his words, she received great peace in her heart as these words rang in her heart “you have found favor with God.” That seemed to calm her a bit, but a curiosity also began to rumble around inside her too. Why was this angel here? What did he want with her? Why was she receiving such a greeting? As she tossed around her thoughts, she heard Gabriel say,

³¹”And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.

Hold up! What did he just say? Conceive??? How could that be? She wasn’t even married yet and to this moment, still a virgin. Wait a minute? Conceive!!!

³⁴Then Mary said to the angel, “How can that be, since I do not know a man?”

Better yet, when would this happen? How was she going to explain this to her soon to be husband, Joseph, not to mention the rest of the family and neighbors? To be found with child now would be a sure death sentence. How long could she hide she was with child? Sooner or later she would begin to show and everything that would follow would be set in motion. Lost in the moment, Gabriel’s Words gain her attention once again and again she listened as he continued to convey this message from God,

³²”He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. ³³And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.

“Oh, my”, she thought. She wasn’t conceiving an ordinary child. This child was to be great. In amazement, she realized that who she was to conceive was not just human, but he was divine in nature. He was the Child of the Almighty God, but how could that be? How could she, a human woman, conceive this great Son the angel described? She was all ears now, she just had to know.

³⁵And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.

As the shock of his words began to settle, she knew that she was chosen for this time. Resolved in her heart and with solid resolution, Mary answered,

³⁸… “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. (Luke 1:26-38)

But hold up, what about Joseph? God wasn’t going to let Joseph figure this whole thing out on his own was he? How would Mary explain it to him? Who in their right mind would believe her? Yet, she knew in her heart that God had a plan. Settled, she need only prepare for the days that lay ahead, and so she did. Meanwhile, God in His love paves the way for Mary and sends His messenger to Joseph.

¹⁸Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.

What!! Mary, pregnant? How could that be? He had not lain with her. So how then could she be pregnant? Could he have been wrong about her? He loved her, but could he still love her? Could he look into the eyes of this woman, he was betrothed to and see her the same? Yet as much as he wanted to be angry, his love for her raged inside him and yet, he couldn’t bring himself to be with her. He could not keep to his agreement of marriage. She had broken the covenant. She had lain with another, shattering the trust he held in his heart for her. Still yet, his love for her still raged and that was enough for him to divorce her quietly. She would have to deal with her deceit alone, but at least she would be alive to do it.

His love for Mary, his wife, was deep. In those days, an unfaithful woman was stoned to death. Even though he could not bear to be with her, he could bear less the guilt of her death.

¹⁹Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.

Wrestling with what he felt in his heart, he goes to bed only to be visited by the angel of the Lord, who revealed to him what had happened. In this dream, Joseph was told that the child his wife conceived was of the Holy Spirit and divine in nature.

²⁰But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.

Relieved, that his trust had not been broken, Joseph continues to listen and so hears,

²¹And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins. ²²So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: ²³”Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God be with us.”

What!!! He was to be the human father of the Son of God. With his mind racing, he is aroused from sleep ready and willing to do all that had been revealed to him in this dream. Oh, how relieved he felt. This woman that he loved was true to him and yet honored among women to have been chosen to carry such an anointed child. His heart felt no regret. He loved her and he knew that. Freely yielding to the message, he prepares to take her hand in marriage and prepare for the coming of the King.

²⁴Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to his wife, ²⁵and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS. (Matthew 1:18-25)

That day was a joyous one. This woman he loved with all his heart, was now his and already, in excitement, the thought of being a father, not just any father, but the father of the Son of God, was raging around inside. He could hardly contain himself. He was so honored and proud. He had heard the stories told of this coming child, but who would have thought that he would be the one this child would be born to?

As the days and months came and went, Mary began to show. Her time was drawing near and now to add to all that needed to be done, Caesar, calls all to a census. It couldn’t be the worse time. She was due to deliver the child soon, and travel was not easy. Many would be heading for their home towns to register their families, but what could he do? Relenting to the arduous task, he packs what he can carry on a donkey, and prepares Mary for the journey.

⁴Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, ⁵to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child.

The journey is long and the road is rough and bumpy, but Mary was holding doing well. As they travel, he can only stare at the beauty of his wife. Oh how he loved her. Every day with her was a memory he would treasure. Traveling with her made the trip seem to pass by with a quickness. Before he knew it, they had reached Bethlehem. He knew he had to find shelter quickly, as the child was soon to be born, but sadly, all the places were full. What was he to do? After a long day, he finally finds a place, but it was not what he had expected. No matter, though, it was warm and there was plenty of straw to make their stay a comfortable one. All that mattered was they were together. As they settled in for the stay, Mary goes into labor and after a time, she brings forth the long awaited child,

⁷And she brought forth her first born Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

It’s finally over, and there the child lies, quiet and full of innocence. As the peace rushes through every fiber of your body, you begin to take inventory of this little bundle of joy. Two eyes and a button nose, ten fingers and ten toes, yes! They are all there. You grab for a swaddling cloth and carefully wrap this new life in it. Picking up the bundle, you cuddle him in your bosom, smiling at the thought of the days, months and even the many years that lie ahead. Your mind rushes to the frequent feedings and the supplying of his every need. You smile at the thought of watching him grow before your eyes and imagine as you see the newness of things peak his curiosity. As you glance down at the beauty in his eyes, you begin to wonder what he will be like, but you don’t hesitate to worry because you are prepared to take each day as it comes. For now, let’s just enjoy the feel of this tiny nugget of life that rests in your arms. Meanwhile as you enjoy this nugget of joy in your arms, the Bible says, that the angels were at work.

⁸Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. ¹⁰Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. ¹¹For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹²And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” ¹⁵So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord made known to us.”

Oh, how you wanted to shout from the mountaintops the joy you felt. Oh, how you wanted to proclaim this joyous occasion. People just had to know, but how? Suddenly you look up and there before you stood the shepherds with smiles on their face. They could hardly believe their eyes. You could see by their faces that they knew who the child was and that thought brought joy to your heart. As they marveled at the tiny bundle that laid in your arms, the thought of heavenly rejoicing filled the air, as these words flooded the atmosphere,

¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: ¹⁴”Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward all men!”

Christmas is a time of celebration for it is the birthday of our Savior. It was a time that God came in the flesh to earth to dwell among us. It was a time of fulfillment of promise that what lay ahead was now a reality, and through this child, man would be reconciled back to God. It is a time to celebrate and rejoice for through the promises of this child, heaven had come to earth to set everything right. We now had the promise of an eternal future and what lay ahead as we wait for His second coming is so much greater than we can ever imagine. As you meditate on this special time of year, rejoice, for the King was born and through His sacrifice, man was restored to fellowship with the Father. Through Him, we were given access to God and to a chance of eternal life. Choose today life… Choose today the King….

Choose this day who you will serve…

Tags: ANgel of the Lord, Bethlehem, Betrothal, Census, Christmas, Gabriel, God with Us, Immanuel, Jesus, Joseph, Love, Manger, Marriage, Mary, Pregnancy, Prophecy, Savior, Shepherds, son of God, Stoning, Virgin Birth
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, prayer, Religion, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Heavenly Perspective – Part 2

December 14, 2011

Now we are going to take what I taught you from the first half of lesson 1 and build upon what you have learned so far. If you recall, we are told, “Constantly set you mind on things which are above”. What does that do? That causes you to become the recipient of everything you are thinking about. Simply said, you are the byproduct of your thoughts. So let’s talk about your thoughts. Did you know that your thoughts come by a spiritual influence? That’s right. Every thought you have comes from one of two spiritual sources – those from God and those from the devil. Those that are contrary to the word of God, come from the devil, the spiritual influence of evil. That means there has never been an evil thought until the devil thought it and projected it to man. Through that thought, he caused man to fall. When man fell from God’s grace, the devil caused man embrace his fallen nature. Now I bet you have never thought about it much, but did you know your thoughts are not your own? Did you know that every thought you have comes from either God or the devil. That’s right; no one is thinking their own thoughts. Every evil person is just thinking the thoughts of the devil. How do we know? Jesus said, “You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father, you will do (John 8:44)”. Where did those thoughts come from? The spirit being that is influencing that person. Well by the same token, good thoughts are not generated by man either, they only come to and flow through man, but they are generated by God.

So that is why God wants you to set your mind on good thoughts. Good thoughts are those that are according to the will of God. As you think according to the Word of God, the Spirit of God will cause you to be transformed and changed into the very thing you are thinking on – for as he thinks in his heart, so is he (Proverbs 23:7). It is for this reason, you must set your affections, set everything about you toward your new nature. As you give way to your new nature, as you meditate on it, you will begin to be exactly what that nature says you are. Now Colossians 3:3, tells us we “died, and our life is hidden with Christ in God.” Our old nature died with Christ and our new person we have become has risen up with Christ. Now most of us know very little about this new person we have become. That is a good thing from the enemy’s viewpoint, for the more ignorant we are of who we become, the less chance we will operate in the power this new person possesses in the Spirit. It is for this reason, that we now learn and it is for this reason, we now take the time to find out what the Word of God says about him.

Now, I bet you think you know all about him, but do you really? If you knew what you needed to know, you would be what the Bible says you are. Now I won’t dispute you may have a rational awareness of them, you may even have an informative knowledge of him, but until you have an experiential revelation, you will not know how to yield to this new nature. Before you can rule and reign in life by Christ, your mind has to be transformed though the Word of God. The Bible says, “You died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” That means that when Jesus was buried, your old life was hid in that burial. When Jesus rose, your new life was hid in His resurrection. So when you set your affection on that fact, you begin to see that and your spirit begins to be illuminated to that. How to you receive illumination? You meditate and think about your new nature. The more you do, the more you find out. The more you find out, the more you are changed from glory to glory. (2 Corinthians 3:18). The Bible says, that you are changed because you are beholding as in the mirror the glory of the Lord. Now why is that important?

The glory of the Lord will change you. As you begin to get revelation of your new identity in Christ, you will realize that the God’s glory is your glory. As change takes place you will begin to associate yourself with Christ in such a way, that you will look at Him with an open face, boldly declaring that very fact. You will see yourself joined with Christ, one in nature with Him, knowing that when He rose from the dead, you rose with Him. When He ascended into heaven, you ascended with Him. When He sat down at the right hand of God, you sat down with Him. Now somebody with a closed veil will not see this revelation clearly. They will not see themselves one with Christ. They will say to themselves, “Yes, I believe that is Christ, but this is me down here.” They are not going to be changed by His glory because they do not believe that what He did for them provided them with the privilege of receiving the very provisions He paid for. For those who get the revelation and come with an open face, they will say, “Wow! That’s me in Christ. I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21). Did you get that? You are not “a” righteousness of God; you are “THE” righteousness of God.

Now meditating should be an easy thing, if all we had was God’s influence in our life, but there lurking in the invisible realm is an enemy. While you are trying to focus your affections on the things which are above, he is injecting thoughts in your mind, saying, “but you are a sinner!” Yes, that’s right; he will speak into your thought life lies that will get your mind to lose focus on the things of God. To prevent that from happening, you must monitor your thoughts. When thoughts contrary to the Word of God enter your mind, you must tell the devil, “No! No! That sinner is dead in Christ. That is not me. I am a new creation, with a new way of thinking.” Then you have to meditate on that fact. You have to see in your mind’s eye that old nature dying with Christ. You have to see him dead in your mind’s eye. You have to see that old nature buried. Then as you do, you find out a new person rose with a new identity and with a new authority. When you see yourself in Christ, when you realize that He is in you, you will always look at the adversary from your heavenly perspective and see yourself seated with Christ. You will see Christ’s glory as your glory. Now if you will be diligent in the things of God, if you will study the Word of God, if you will do what you ought to do and pray in the Spirit, you will graduate from one level of glory to another. Remember, God does not put limits on your spiritual growth.

So how do you find out who you are in Christ? You get in Christ with your thought life. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “if anyone be in Christ, he is a new creation.” The moment you make Jesus the Lord of your life, your spirit man will experience a new birth, become a new creation and now abides in Christ. The moment you make Jesus the Lord of your life your new identity, your heavenly perspective, your heavenly authority, the glory He gave you, and everything He gave you pertaining to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3) are hidden in God. So how do you get in Christ in your thought life? You meditate on the Word of God continually. Now in order for you to claim the benefits of that new nature, you have to find out about him. Let me explain. From the time your mother gave birth to you until this very moment in life, you grew and matured into the person you are now. Your life is a continuous cycle of learning through your past experiences, failures, successes and personal relationships. Every day of your life, you have been on a venture to find yourself and with each day, you learned more about who you are – your likes/dislikes, your strengths/weaknesses, your desires and more. In the same way, you now have to invest time in learning who you are as a new creation in Christ and how to live in the realm of the supernatural. How do we find out about our new nature? We study the manual of life – the Bible. Within the pages of this book, you will find everything you need to know about your new nature in Christ, and through diligent study and meditation, you will be transformed into the image of Him.

Now let’s look at Colossians 3:4, “When Christ who is our life appears, then we also will appear with Him in glory.” You are going to appear with Him in glory because He is your life, so that means if you want the new life of Christ to be active, visible, effective and flowing through you, you have to go to Christ in your thought life. You have to go to Christ in your meditations. You have to receive from Christ through an act of faith everything He already gave you in your new identity. Now how do you do that? How do you go into Christ? You go into the Word of God. You go beyond the ink. You have to pray in your heavenly language, meditate on the Word of God until the living Spirit takes your spirit into a revelation and dimension in God where the Word lives. As a result, you will receive from Christ that portion of yourself that He resurrected when He rose from the grave 2000 years ago. When you get a revelation of that fact you will say, “I am a person who never quits. I am a person who never fails. I am a person who never falters. That’s me! I am consistent. I am abounding. I am unmovable.” Before you know it, the joy of the Lord begins to rise inside you. What has happened? You looked to Christ and began to change from glory to glory.

Let me give you an example. Have you ever known a person who was diagnosed with a disease? As he continues to see doctors, they tell him he is going to die, that the disease is incurable. That person comes home and every day they pray to God for a healing. He reads the Word of God looking for food to feed his spirit. As he begins to continually feed upon the promises of God, the Word of God begins to live in him. The Scriptures he has read a thousand times in the past begin to take on a life in him. Suddenly, a supernatural injection of revelatory knowledge goes right out of the Spirit of Christ into his being and he shouts, “I going to live. I am not going to die.” What has he done? He has begun to cash in on something that was available to him all the time. Now you don’t get that through thinking with your intellectual mind. You have to go beyond the rational mind and get into a realm where the rational is not your authority. You have to get into the realm of the Spirit, where the Spirit of God causes the Word of God to live inside you because faith comes by hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17). It is at the moment of revelation, that the Word becomes rhema and your spirit man says, “I got it, that’s it!”

Suddenly the Spirit of the Lord begins to show you His healing power. This Word that you had read so many times and didn’t do anything, all of a sudden rises out of your spirit and becomes God’s method, God’s living ability to get the power of that revelatory Word into your spirit. Now why is God trying to do that? Because He wants you to become what He has paid the price for you to be. Christ died not just so you can go to heaven, but so you can be changed internally in order that you might live a changed person in heaven. Did you know that if Jesus died for it – a new identity, a new perspective, and then we ought to invest in the thing and pursue it. God loves you too much to keep you where you are. You need to change.

Let’s look at Colossians 3:5, “Mortify your members which are upon the earth…”

Look at the key word “members”. Members where? That’s right. On the earth. Some people think that means the body, but it is not talking about the Bible. It is talking about the old nature that will continually come back to your remembrance not because it is not dead, but because the devil knows that if he can only get you to think on it, the old nature will experience a resurrection in your life. That means that those members that used to walk around in doubt and unbelief are not you. No, that’s the dead man who died when you believed in Jesus Christ, but the devil is the accuser (Revelation 12:10). He will come back and try to remind you in order to get you to meditate upon it, for as long as you think, you will be. When you meditate on it, then the resurrection of the old nature will rise up and dominate your life. Now the Bible says, “Mortify those members which are where?” Upon the earth. Now where is the man writing from? He is writing from the earth, but you can be on the earth and not talk of the earth realm, not write out of the earth realm. You can be on the earth and live from heaven. You can be on the earth and see from heaven. Why? Because you are not relating yourself with the person who you used to be on the earth. You are relating yourself with the person you are in Christ in heaven.

So you tell the enemy, “that’s not me! This is who I am” and although you re here, subject to the laws of the natural realm, you are actually in the spirit realm. You are above the circumstance. You are above the principalities and powers. That is why you must seek those things which are above because you are risen, because your old man is dead, because your life is hid with Christ in God. You got a new life. You are not on the earth in your position. You are not on the earth in your identity. You are not on the earth in your viewpoint. You are not on the earth in your ministry level. You are not on the earth in your conduct. You are a heavenly creature born again in the Spirit of the Lord to live miraculously and to think supernaturally. So every time an old thing tries to creep up, you have to look at it from a heavenly perspective.

This is where the enemy gets people. This is the key point of failure in many people’s faith walk. It is when they begin to think their hands are tied because they are subject to something they cannot overcome. Look at problems people face – unhappiness, financial problems. What are they doing? They are coming down from the position and identity, and they are operating on such a low level realm that the thing Jesus died for, the curse of the law of poverty is now dominating their thought life. Why is that? They have been meditating on it from the wrong perspective. See you can look at finances, but if you look at them from the heavenly viewpoint, they look small. The key is to look at these things from a heavenly perspective and position of authority in God. You are not subject to the circumstance. You must know that you have the authority through Jesus and that authority will exemplify and manifest itself strong in your life if it is a byproduct of an experiential revelation of where you are in God. When you spend time in a heavenly place, you will deal with life from a heavenly perspective.

The Bible tells us in Colossians 3:9-10, that the deeds of the old man belong to the old man. Why is that important? The devil will try to get you to claim the deeds of the old man, the one who died and say they are yours. The Bible tells us that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), so we must remember that the deeds of the old man belong to the old man. That old man is dead. By nature, the old man is the child of the devil. He acts like the devil. He talks like the devil and he receives retribution of being like the devil. He lives under the curse. He can’t be blessed. That’s why the devil knows all he has to do is get you to identify with him and he’s got you operating under the curse. You can’t be blessed if the old man is living. You cannot put the old man to death unless you take him out of your thought life. Every time he tries to rise up in you, say, “that is not me! The deeds of the old man belong to the old man. He fails. He doubts. He gets sick. He’s the one that lies! I am a new man. He thinks right. He acts right. He is blessed in his going and in his coming. He is blessed in his thought life.” When you do that, you put off the old man. Now this doesn’t happen automatically. It is a process and happens over time.

Remember, you must strip him off. You must put him away from yourself. As you do, you will gain things. Colossians 3:10 tells us to put on the new man, the person you are after you are saved, the person who is constantly renewed with an advanced and perfect experiential knowledge and which is in the image of the One who created him. You put him on. You remember you got him at the resurrection. You remember you are changing into the image of God.

Tags: God, Word of God, Holy SPirit, Heaven, Hell, death, Christ, Fear, Doubt, Revelation, supernatural, Proverbs 23:7, Devil, Thoughts, Poverty, resurrection, Jesus Christ, Transformation, God's glory, illumination, Spirit of God, unbelief, heavenly authority, overcoming the world, Holy Ghost, Heavenly Perspective, Heavenly Position, Colossians 3:1-5, burial, meditation, experiential revelation, John 8:44, new creation, 2 Corinthians 5:17, spiritual influence, heavenly idenity, 2 Corinthians 3:18, new identity, dying to the old nature, 2 Corinthians 5:21, 2 Peter 1:3, cycle of learning, failures, successes, personal relationships, heavenly language, tongues, disease, ROmans 10:17, healing power, a need for change, Revelation 12:10, natural realm, unhappiness, financial problems, circumstance, Colossians 3:9-10, Romans 6:23
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Heavenly Perspective – Part 1

December 12, 2011

We are going to talk about a heavenly perspective because of our heavenly identity. To do this, we must know what heavenly perspective and heavenly identity is. A heavenly perspective is seeing things through the eyes of God. This is how God would perceive and see particular persons, places and things. Heavenly Identity is who you are in Christ.

We must understand that when we got saved, we experienced a new birth and became a new person. This new person is different than the person we used to be before we got saved. This person has a different way of looking at things and thinks differently than the person we used to be. If you begin to allow that new person to dominate your life, you will begin to see the results that God intends for you to have and you will begin to experience them as you live for the Lord.

Because we believe in the gifts of the Spirit, the anointing of the Holy Ghost, healings, miracles, deliverance, authority over devils, it is important that we build a foundation and teach every believer their identity, position, and God given rights so that they are not engaged in a battle that they find themselves struggling to win.

But did you know that when you fight, you have to learn both the offensive methods and the defensive methods of fighting. You have to know how to defend when the enemy attacks. A good biblical foundation regarding your heavenly identity and being able to look at things from a heavenly perspective gives you the ability to defend when the enemy attacks you because you know your rights and you don’t allow him to get away with something that he has no right to get away with.

When someone is going to do warfare, they got to know first of all, that they cannot be defeated in warfare. They have to know that the enemy has no ability to overcome them and the only way to know that is to find out your identity according to the Word of God. That way you know how to live consistently and be instant in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:2). That way you realize that everything you face on the battlefield of life has been answered and has been provided for in the Word of God.

Let’s turn to Colossians 3:1-5 (Memory Verses) 1 If then you are raised with Christ, seek those things which are above where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. 5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desires, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

I want to draw your attention to some things here. The Bible says, “we ought to seek the things which are above.” Another tranlation of the Bible says, “the things above be constantly seeking”. That means in order for you to seek the things which are above constantly and set your mind on them, we have to first of all, know what the things above are. The Bible said, “if then you are raised with Christ…” Do you believe that when Jesus rose from the dead, you rose with Him? That’s right! When you rose, you rose a different person then when you died. Now most people look to the cross as the end, but the cross is not the end, it is the beginning. Thank God for the cross, for without it, there is no beginning. Praise God for the burial because without it, there is no death to your old nature. Glory be to God for the resurrection because without it there is no new identity that can live on the inside of you. Most of us are so mindful of the death of Christ that we fail to cash in on the resurrection of Christ. Now Colossians says, “if then you were raised with Christ…”

That means you rose again victorious over death, hell, grave, sickness, sin and disease. So that means that God expects you to do something with with the information. He said “this is what you ought to do, constantly be seeking the things which are above.” Now Jesus said, “Seek ye first” what? that’s right! The Kingdom (Matthew 6:33)

There is no better place to depict or project a revelation of the kingdom of God then heaven itself. Heaven is the perfect place to see the kingdom in action. Why? because heaven is a place where God’s Word is settled. There’s absolutely no turbulence, turmoil, contradiction or doubt regarding the rulership or the kingship or the dominion of the Lord. Jesus Christ in heaven is Lord of all. There’s no one arguing, no one trying to overthrow His authority in the third heaven. He is King of Kings. Now the Bible says, “we are seated with Him in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6), so if we want to bring the kingdom of God and the power of God into the earth realm, we have got to have a heavenly perspective. We have got to come at warfare, at the enemy, the world and life from a superior position of authority. We dont fight to overcome, we fight because we have already overcome. We dont fight to get the victory, we fight because we already have the victory. We are already risen with Vhrist. We are already seated with Christ and the Bible says “if then you are raised with Christ, then constantly be seeking the things which are above and constantly set your mind on things which are above.

Christians seem to think that spirituality has nothing to do with what they believe, what they meditate upon or what they invest in. They want God to just show up and do it, but it is not like that. “If then you are raised with Christ, set your mind on those things which are above.” That means you have to meditate upon your position, your identity and your new nature in God. Remember, man did nto invent creativity. Man did not impart to himself the power to imagine. It was God who made man. All men, regardless of their salvation have God-given abilities to go places in their mind. If you think, you will find out you are thinking in pictures. You will find out that you are relating to something. Man has the ability to follow his thoughts. Try it one day. Just think about someone in anger and think about them in disappointment and think about them in resentment, and then run into that person. You will have a very hard time being nice to that person. You will have a very hard time communicating with that person. What they have set their mind upon has set them up to become a slave to the thing that they have chosen to meditate upon.

Well by the same token, you cannot think good about God, His Word or your position in Christ before you begin to draw near to Him and you being to actively experience the reality of the thing that He has provided for you. So the Bible says, “if you meditate upon the Word of God day and night and let not the Book of the Law depart out of your heart and mouth, but learn to do everything that is written in it, you will make your way prosperous and you will have good success (Joshua 1:8)

Most of us know that, but you see knowing it is not enough. Knowing it does not ensure a short cut to receiving that thing. When you get a revelation of the finished work, it’s going to take meditation, thinking upon, analyzing, evaluating, studying, digging into the Word of God until you receive the reality and the power of those things. Until the experiential power is flowing through you, you haven’t arrived and even when the power is flowing, you still haven’t arrived. So what do you do?

You seek those things. We constantly set our minds on those things which are above. Now the things I am talking about are related to your position in Christ, your authority through Christ and your identity through Christ. You are not who you used to be so in order for you to really experience that, you have got to start thinking on who you are. You have got to start speaking in relationship to who you are. In order to operate as a person of authority you have to see yourself from a biblical perspective, find out where you are seated in God and find out what Jesus has paid for you to have.

People go around for many years and then the power of the thing they are seeking begins to flow through them. Understand this! Every man will eventually yield to one power or the other. He will either yield to demonic spirits or the Spirit of God. He will either have demonic supernatural power or Godly supernatural power.

The Bible said we have been given the Holy Spirit (1 Thes 4:8). The Holy Spirit of God gives us the ability to open every dimension of ourselves to the supernatural embodiment, incarnation, residence of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now He’s inside us, but the more you pray in your heavenly language, the more you will get out of the natural, rational realm. The more you let the power of the Spirit live in you, the greater the sphere of influence that God gives you will be in your life. So He said, “Constantly be setting your mind on the things which are above.” So what happens is – those things which are above are the real provisions that jesus has for you – your identity in Christ, your new nature through Christ, your authority through Christ, your victory through Him, and your heavenly perspective through His Word are realities that will never become real to you unless you constantly set your mind upon them. That means both conscious and unconscious effort.

Tags: 1 Timothy 4:2, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Anointing, burial, Christ, Colossians 3:1-5, Deliverance, Devil, Ephesians 2:6, experiential revelation, gifts of the Spirit, God, Heaven, heavenly authority, Heavenly identity, Heavenly Perspective, Heavenly Position, Holy Ghost, John 8:44, Joshua 1:8, Kingdom of GOd, Matthew 6:33, meditation, Miracles, new creation, resurrection, Revelation, spiritual warfare, Thoughts, Transformation
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Christ’s Prayer Mandate – Learning to Pray – Part 4

August 29, 2011

Seems like all hell is breaking loose around us. The world seems to be at its worse state since the beginning of time. There is no place in the world where evil, war and disaster doesn’t run rampant. There is no place in the world where we can feel safe. No nation has been left untouched, no government unaffected, no school left unturned. Our streets are full of crime and the hand of evil has reached into our homes. The world is in total turmoil.

Remember the marks of a true intercessor: a sense of human need, a Christlike love in the heart, a consciousness of personal impotence, faith in the power of prayer, courage to persevere in spite of refusal and the assurance of an abundant reward (A. Murray)

God sees what is happening in the world and His heart grieves. Why? Because He sent Jesus upon the cross to beat the hand of evil down in order to bless His people with the best. He has and always will be willing to release all His Word says He has provided. Christ destroyed the power of sin in our life. He destroyed the power of sickness and disease. Through His death we were given delegated authority to spiritually rule this earth, yet we fail to take control over the power of Satan. We have been given UNLIMITED divine access to the Father, but through ignorance we fail to use it. God is calling for His people to return to Him in prayer and intercession, the channel by which His power is released into the lives of His people in the world. Prayer changes things, but it is the most misunderstood and underused weapon in the Christian arsenal. God is calling and looking for those who are willing to learn how to pray in SPIRIT and TRUTH. He is looking for those who will lay aside what they thought they knew in terms of prayer and learn true, unadulterated, pure and powerful prayer. Are you one of those people? Are you ready to change the world, the cities, your life and more?

“God does nothing but in answer to prayer. (J. Wesley)”

“God has limited His work on earth and made it dependent upon the prayers of His people. The measure of His power and blessing on earth is determined by the measure of intercession arising before the Throne Room. Through intercession, we pray into being God’s will on earth as it is in heaven (Cerullo)”. Listen all people of God, listen to the cry and urging of God’s Spirit to return to Him in prayer. The Bible is firm when it says,

“You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that you should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in My Name, He may give it to you. (John 15:16)”

Intercession is the most powerful form of prayer in that it is the prayer that Christ prays on His throne. Through His prayers, He is waging war in the heavenlies, tearing down and destroying strongholds of the enemy that hold the world’s people bound. He has given you His power and authority. All of heaven is at our disposal. He has PROMISED to give us whatever we ask in His name. The Bible tells us His will for us. It outlines His promises clearly, but to access these answers we must pray prayers emanating from the throne room of God into the world. We cannot pray powerless prayers from our soulish man and expect God to answer.

How many know what intercession is? Intercession is standing in the gap on behalf of people, cities, and nations; It is exercising our delegated authority, pleading the promises of God in faith. It is bringing God’s kingdom down upon the earth so that His will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Intercession goes beyond prayer petitioning God to meet your own needs. It is praying on behalf of others. It is not a five-minute prayer listing names of people that need to be saved and delivered. It is getting into the face of God mourning, weeping, travailing and waiting before Him to answer, not letting go until the work is complete. It involves willingness to stand in the gap for someone other than ourselves. An intercessor is important because they are able to effectively plead on behalf of another because they are willing to give their life for another. They are wiling to lay aside their own interests and as much as possible take their place. It is not substitution for sin. That was Christs stand. To intercede on behalf of another, we must be willing to sit where those we intercede for are sitting. We must identify with their needs adn feel their infirmities so that we can gain a position of prayer to effectively intercede.

“He Who did not withhold or spare even His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all things? Who is there to condemn us? Will Christ Jesus, Who died or rather Who was raised from the dead, Who is at the right hand of God actually pleading as He intercedes for us? (Romans 8:32, 34)

Christ is giving unceasing intercession for us, so to understand the depths of intercession, we must look to Him. He is calling us to join Him in this work where our intercession will also flow from the Throne to the world. Christ gave us the responsibility to continue on the work He started. He equipped us with His power through the Spirit who is a spirit of supplication, to release His intercession through them. He gave us the authority to do so in His name. Too many of us pray ineffective prayer using our natural minds. Your natural mind cannot know the mind and will of God. In the natural mind, you are limited in ability and do not know how to pray. You must recognize that fact and develop total dependence on the Holy Spirit to help.

“Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And He that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because He maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God (Romans 8:26-27)”

Do not worry. God knows your natural mind does not know how to pray. That is why He sent His Spirit for you to rely on. Through His Spirit you will receive a divine capability to pray.

“The life of Christ flowing through us and the words of Christ living in us, these give power to prayer. They breathe the spirit of prayer, and make the body, blood and bones of prayer (Bounds)”

There are over six billion people in the world and only one half of those have heard the Name of Jesus. There is something definitely wrong with that. The problems of the world go beyond the surface of issues such as homosexuality, pornography, drugs, abortion and others plaguing our society. The root of the issues goes well beneath the symptoms. It is time for us all to rise up in powerful prayer and go to the root to eliminate the strongholds that exist below the surface. Treating the symptoms does not destroy the issue, it only covers the problem temporarily. It’s time to destroy these strongholds permanently and to do that we must rise above the ordinary prayer and intercede with power.

To do that, it starts with you. You must change, becoming so spiritually dissatisfied that you refuse to stay where you are. You must enter into an experience where you know that you have the power through prayer that Christ promised. God didn’t not intend for the church to be what it is today. Evil Spirits recognize the power and authority of God operating through us, that is, if we are walking the life of Christ in faith. The only way we will see entire nations and cities transformed and a great harvest of souls is for something supernatural to occur in the church. We need God to breath His Spirit upon us once again and raise up intercessors who have the power, who know what it means to pray and intercede before God with delegated authority (Cerullo). We have this same delegated authority that Jesus had 2000 years ago in us. It is greater than any power and authority known to man and Christ wants to activate it through your prayers.

There are three major phases of intercession: Identification, self-sacrifice, power and authority.

Phase 1: Identification: To understand this phase of intercession, we have to take a look at Christ, our High Priest-Intercessor. How so? Christ identified with us by taking upon Himself the form of flesh and blood. He left the glories of heaven and became one of us so that He would feel our infirmities and be qualified to intercede on our behalf. In the same way, we must also be will to identify with those for whom we are interceding, at the point of their need. We must so identify with them that we take their burdens upon ourselves, feel their pain and sorrow and present their needs before the Father as if they were our own. As an intercessor, you are able to plead effectively because you give your life for another, you have laid aside your own self-interest and as much as possible, you have taken their place. This is true intercession. True intercessors must be willing to sit where those they pray are sitting.

Phase 2: Self-Sacrifice: Christ paid the ultimate price by laying His life down for us. In the same way, we must come to the place where we are willing to lay down our own lives sacrificially on behalf of those for whom we are praying. Self must be crucified! We must be willing to lay aside our own desires and give ourselves sacrificially through prayer and fasting on behalf of the needs of others. Remember, it is the Holy Spirit who lays a burden upon our hearts for others and calls us to intercede. During intercession, as we fully yield ourselves to the Holy Spirit, He will pray through us. As we begin to pray in the Spirit in unknown tongues, the Spirit begins to travail and make intercession “with groanings which cannot be uttered”. When we pray in the Spirit, we build ourselves up in the most holy faith. When we face circumstances that seem overwhelming or impossible in the natural realm, and we begin to pray in the Holy Spirit in tongues, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us. He comes to our aid and releases His power within us to overcome every obstacle and trial we face.

Phase 3: Power and Authority: As self begins to die and we allow the Holy Spirit to have full control to pray through us with groanings and gushing of the Spirit, we then enter into that realm of power and authority that is ours in Jesus’ name. We have gained a powerful spiritual position through intercession where we are about to speak a word of “deliverance”. We are clothed with authority by the Holy Spirit and it is from this position of strength the “greater works” of Jesus are done in His name. This is true intercession. The place of power and authority is not something we can obtain in our own strength. It is a place that the Holy Spirit will bring us into as we yield ourselves to Him.

The role of an intercessor is a high and holy calling. God wants you to become an intercessor, but it involves consecrating and setting yourself apart for fasting and prayer, waiting before Him and not letting go until the work has been done. Christ has given His body a prayer mandate. He has given us the awesome privilege and responsibility of joining Him in intercession and fulfilling His will in the nations through our prayers. He has also given us the delegated power and authority, through the Holy Spirit to demolish Satan’s strongholds, heal the sick, cast out demons and do even greater works than He did, in His name.

He has chosen you and ordained you to bring forth fruit that will remain. Allow the Spirit to have full control to pray through you. Through prayer we can move the hand of God, break through all natural limitations and tap into His unlimited power.

Pray this prayer:

Father, thank You for the awesome privilege and responsibility you have given us to come before Your throne and intercede on behalf of lost souls in our cities and nations. Give us Your heartbeat for souls! Open our eyes to see the lost through Your eyes of compassion. Bring us to a new level of strategic intercession where the Holy Spirit is praying through us, travailing and interceding for souls to be won into Your Kingdom. Anoint us by Your Spirit to pray with the delegated authority You have given us. Remove every limitation and hindrance that will prevent us from fulfilling our Holy calling of intercession before Your throne. Lord Jesus we accept Your prayer mandate and the call to pray prayers from Your Throne in the power and authority of Your Name, to heal the sick, cast out demons and minister to the desperate needs around us with signs, wonders and miracles following.

Tags: Authority, casting out demons, Christ, Christ's greater works, Deliverance, disaster, evil, Faith, Father, God, government, great intercessor, healing the sick, Hell, high priest, Holy Calling, Holy Ghost, Holy SPirit, How to Pray, Identification, Intercede, Intercession, intercessor, Intercessory Prayer, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Kingdom of Heaven, natural mind, petitions, power, Power and Authority, prayer, Romans 8, Satan's Strongholds, self sacrifice, Spirit, supernatural power, supplications, throne room, true intercession, Truth, Unlimited power, war, world
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Break Open Your Alabaster Box – Learning to Pray – Part 3

August 27, 2011

“Praise is the Christian’s heavy artillery; praise is more effective in spiritual warfare than is an atom bomb in military battle (Duewel)”

“While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came to Him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on His head as He was reclining at the table. When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.” Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this perfume on My body, she did it to prepare me for burial. (Matthew 26:6-13)”

[This story perfectly illustrates the meaning of true worship. Can you see it in your mind's eye. This woman rushes to her room and runs to her chest of drawers. Ruffling through its contents, she finds a carefully wrapped alabaster bottle filled with the most precious of perfumes. As she looks down at it, she remembers it worth, but inside her heart she bursts to share it with the Master. What would He say? What would He think if she poured it upon Him out of the love she felt in her heart? Would He be angry or would He see into the depths of her soul and see how deep her love was for Him? As her thoughts imagine that moment, she can hardly contain herself and rushes to the object of her adoration. This woman gave her most valuable possession to show her heart felt love for the Master. Now that is some kind of worship!

Yet, worship is a important key to answered prayers. In fact, most fail to realise that worship is a powerful form of prayer that brings Gods glory down and puts the enemy to flight. Sadly, most Christians are ignorant to this fact. Yet still, God is looking for true worshippers.

Worshipping God is critical and vital for true worship in the Spirit as it ushers you into the Holy of Holies, that is, into the very presence of the Father. It is a divine encounter with God. For this reason, it is important to understand what worship is, so lets begin by looking at its meaning. The Greek word for worship is "proskyneo" meaning to prostrate oneself, give reverence to. Did you catch that? It is an act of adoration and reverence, a rendering of divine honor, esteem and love towards God and Christ. That's right, it is an outward display that brings us in direct contact with God. Through worship we give value and worth to the object of our worship. While worshipping the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, we are pouring out our love for Who They are rather than what They have done for us because worship centers on Who God is, while praise and thanksgiving involves giving to God and thanking Him for what He has done. The Bible tells us,

"He who brings as offering of praise and thanksgiving honors and glorifies Me" (Ps 50:23)

Thanksgiving is an aspect of prayer whereby we recognize and give thanks to God for all His blessings. Like praise, it is a type of prayer that draws the heart away from self and centers it upon God. This is why when we come before God we need to begin by worshipping, thanking and praising Him before we present our needs. Jesus said that true worshippers would worship in spirit and in truth. In a world of idolatry, man has turned his back on God to worship power, money, sex and the world's pleasures. God is searching for true worshippers. He desires those who will build a living memorial to Him through worship, like Mary, who poured out lavish worship on the Lord Jesus.

Many Christians in the church are holding onto idols in their hearts. Many have placed their families, careers and pursuit of worldly pleasures first place in their lives instead of the Lord and their worship for Him. These things have become their idols. There are others who have put the work of the Lord and ministry, above the Lord. Ministry has become their god. They have exalted the work of the Lord above the Lord Himself. They have become so busy in their work for the Lord that they neglect to spend time in His Presence worshipping Him. This is spiritual idolatry. The Father is looking and yearning for those who will worship Him wholeheartedly, who will not just honor Him with their lips and say they love Him, but will truly worship Him.

To gain a clearer understanding of what true worship really is, lets look at the life and example of Abraham. God wanted to know Abraham's heart and whether or not he loved Him above everything else. He directed Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son, Isaac. Abraham obeyed God. When he reached the place of sacrifice, where God had directed him to go, he left his servants saying, "Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back (Gen 22:5)". Abraham, in obedience to God, was on the way to offer Isaac on the altar as a sacrifice to God. Yet, he said, "we will worship". He believed God, who had given him the promise that through Isaac and his seed he would become a father of many nations. He was willing to offer his son in worship on the altar knowing that God would be able to raise him from the dead. Abraham's worship involved his willingness to give God the thing of greatest value and that was dearest to his heart - his son, Isaac, for whom he had prayed and believed God for. It involved more than just words. He didn't just tell God how much he loved Him. He worshipped God and poured out love through his act of obedience and faith.

True worship involves our verbal expression of adoration and praise as well as our actions. As you give yourself as a living sacrifice to God and come before Him, pouring out your love and worshipping Him for Who He is, He receives your worship and in turn, gives Himself to you. His glory comes down and His Presence is manifested. The Father is not withholding Himself from us. He is just waiting for us to break through all man-made traditions and formalities and come into His Presence and worship.

Ignite the powerful weapons of worship, praise and thanksgiving to defeat the enemy. We are to face our circumstances and things coming upon the earth before the Lord's return, not with fear, but with the "High Praise" of God in our mouths and the two-edged sword of His Word in our hands. This is an hour when God's people must declare His praises among the nations. God has made us to be a "royal priesthood" to proclaim His praises to the end of the earth. Something happens in the spirit realm when God's people begin to truly praise, sing and worship Him. There is a release of new freedom that comes forth.

Begin your time alone with the Father by first worshipping Him for Who He is: The Great I AM; Jehovah Jireh, Abba Father; Jehovah Shalom; Jehovah Nissi; Jehovah Rapha; All powerful; Ancient of Days; King of Kings; Lord of Lords; Savior; Redeemer; Deliverer; Lamb of God; Lion of Judah and soon coming King. One of the first things to do during worship is to recognize the awesome glory, majesty and holiness of God. He alone is holy. As you come into His Presence, honor and praise Him for His holiness. He is perfect in all His ways. Praise Him for His mercy, His loving kindness and His faithfulness. Begin to thank Him for what He has done for you. Throughout your day, wherever you go, praise Him and tell Him how much you love Him. During your worship time, shut away with Him, God wants you to abandon yourself in worshipping Him. Worship and praise God with a passion, forgetting everything, losing sight of what anyone will say and totally losing yourself in Him. The key to experiencing God in His fullness is to humble ourselves before Him, lay aside all pre-conceived ideas and cry out to Him with all our hearts. Cast off your robe of pride and self-sufficiency and begin to sing, shout, and dance before Him.

Pray this prayer:

Father, my heart rejoices to know that You love me with an everlasting love and that You desire my worship and praise. You alone are worthy of all praise, honor, glory and blessing! I am hungry for You! My spirit cry out to know You in a greater capacity. My love you and desire You above everything else. You are the only true and living God. You are high and holy and I lift You up and exalt Your holy name. I praise and worship you because You are full of mercy, grace and truth. I desire to know You in Your fullness. With all my heart I want to worship You in Spirit and in Truth. Teach me to open my alabaster box of true worship and worship You in Spirit and truth. (Cerullo)]

Tags: Abba, Abba Father, Abraham, adoration, alabaster box, All powerful, altar, Ancient of Days, Christ, Faith, Faithfulness, Father, Father of nations, glory, God, GOd's Presence, Grace, High Praise, Holy SPirit, honor, Isaac, Jehovah Jireh, Jehovah Nissi, Jehovah Rapha, Jehovah Shalom, King of Kings, Lamb of God, Learning to Pray, Lion of Judah, living sacrifice, Lord of Lords, Love, loving kindness, Master, mercy, obedience, passion, perfume, Praise, prayer, Presence, pride, Redeemer, royal priesthood, Savation, self-sufficiency, Spirit, Spirit realm, The Great I AM, Truth, Worship
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A Holy Summons – Learning to Pray – Part 2

August 27, 2011

“What is prayer? Prayer is a spiritual force through which God releases His immeasurable, supernatural power to meet the needs of His people and establish His will and Kingdom upon the earth.

For all those out there crying out to God – Know, there is absolutely no limitation or circumstance that can hinder God’s power from being released in answer to your cry. How do we know?

“Call unto me and I will answer thee and show thee great and mighty things which you know not (Jer 33:3)”

If you are reading this, God is calling you to a life of prayer and intimacy with Him. Shake yourself from complacency. Commit yourself to God in prayer. Every relationship requires time spent alone with your partner getting to know them. During that time with them, dialog takes place and through that dialog, you gain insight into the inner most part of your partner. God is your partner. Ask yourself, do you spend enough time with Him to truly know who He is? Do you listen to His heart as much as He listens to yours? Is your attention fully on Him during those times or is your mind divided on other things, giving Him what is left over after a busy day? Do you reach out to Him before your day starts and seek His advice before beginning anything major? Do you trust His advice by acting upon it or does it toss around in your mind and get shelved? Do you come to Him to tell Him how much you love and adore Him, or is most of your time vetting your needs? Do you pray for others as much as you pray for yourself? Do you see Him as your partner or your place of supply and demand? Where are you with respect to your partner, God? Do you reverence Him and fight for time with Him as you would a human mate? Where does He fit into your daily life? What’s the first and last thing you think about each day?

These questions will gauge where your heart is in God. It’s time to wake up for the day is coming where people will be so consumed with the world and its pleasures, that His coming will come upon them unaware. Are you so preoccupied with making a living, taking care of family and enjoying life that God gets the leftovers? Are you spiritually disabled as a result, too busy to pray? Have your spiritual eyes and ears grown dim to his call. God is specific in saying, “Watch and pray always”. This is not an option, it is a command, a command that will save our lives as the enemy searches for whom he may devour.

Shake yourselves! Rise up out of your sleep! The hour is late and there is no time to sleep or to become careless. This is a time to become vigilant in prayer. It is time to seek God’s face, to receive His direction, His anointing, and His power to equip and prepare you for this hour! Rise up! Come and wait before Him. As you remain in His Presence He will reveal Himself to you. He will speak to you. He will release all that you need to walk in His power and might to accomplish His will. Now is not the time to get spiritually lazy. It not the time to get consumed with life’s circumstances and activities, giving God what remains of your day, if you give God anything at all. It is time to go beyond the “bless me” state in your prayers where you focus only on yourself and your needs and pray for the needs of others.

Prayer is a powerful force in the earth and most Christians have no idea how to tap into that power. Jesus said,

“And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do,that the Father may be glorified in the Son (John 14:13-14)”

Jesus pulls no punches when He makes this statement. He will do whatever you ask in His name, but there is a condition attached to this promise concerning how we ask. Christ’s intention is that through prayer we would reach up into heaven and bring down His Kingdom on earth. He intended that we would use this power and authority in His name to reach the very throne room of God and to bring heaven’s resources on earth so as to fulfill His will. So what’s the problem? Christians either fail to pray or lack prevailing prayer. The church has become so spiritually impotent that when Christians face challenges, they are powerless to overcome, powerless to manifest the power of the Spirit that is in them. They lack the faith to produce the results that the Word so strongly promises for them.

The needs of the world are ever-increasing and the only hope is for the church to learn to prevail in prayer at the feet of Jesus. Ask yourself, are you willing to dedicate yourself to rising up to a new level of prayer? Do you want a fresh revelation and experience in prayer that demolishes the strongholds of Satan? The world needs answers to prayers. People need their lives and situations changed. They need to see the Spirit demonstrate His power in their life, so they can see that God is concerned. God is true to His Word and His desires are to be involved in the activities of this world. We are the tools by which He uses, but what if that tool places itself upon a shelf only to collect dust or only uses itself when convenient? What if the tasks it sets itself to do are only focused around its own needs? What if the tool is dull or broken? It is time to shake the people of God out of their slumber so that the Spirit can empower them through the anointing to pray energized prayers that will shake the gates of Hell, loose those bound in chains of darkness and bring God’s Kingdom on earth. Heaven is not only for the future, when we die. Heaven is here and now.

Prayer is a life style. The Bible tells us, “Pray always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.” Do you see it? God commands us to pray always, at all times, on all occasions using all kinds of prayers and supplications, but did you catch the second part? PRAY IN THE SPIRIT. WATCH IN PRAYER. PERSEVERE IN PRAYER. Prayer is no joke, it is a must, a life saving devotion to God. The call to prayer is first and foremost a call to a living, vibrant relationship with God and Christ. It is a call to know His heart, to come into His Presence and to commune/fellowship with Him continually. It isn’t a 15 minute, microwaveable hurry up and give God thanks prayer. It isn’t a fit me in before I go to sleep or work prayer. It isn’t a venting session. God created us to fellowship with Him, but how many of us pass up that opportunity? Our very success in life depends upon our relationship with the Father, yet we have time to do everything but that, fitting God in the openings or when convenient. Yet, if it is really something we want to do, we will find time. Is prayer something you really want to do?

When we pray, we are standing in the King’s reception room (Spurgeon). There we are at a vantage point because there we are in the Almighty’s Presence. What a beautiful place to be! In His presence we can commune or talk, but how many of us give God a chance to talk back? Do you listen to see what He has to say? Prayer is a dialog, that is, it is a two-way conversation, yet most of us pray a one-sided prayer, never really sitting still long enough to hear God’s answers and thoughts on the matter. During prayer, we are to minister to God, showering Him with our love and then wait silently in worship and adoration for Who He is. God longs for our love and ministry to Him, yet our prayers are normally filled with requests for things or favors that need to be granted. Our Father is interested in a love relationship. He is looking for those who will worship Him in spirit and truth. This relationship involves more than a 5 minute devotional or a short prayer before you fall asleep. It involves communing with God through the entire day. Wherever you are, God is there so there is always opportunity for conversation, though God is looking for those quiet moments together also. God wants a relationship with us that is not only us giving ourselves to Him, but Him giving Himself to us.

The number one priority in prayer is getting into God’s Presence, that is, establishing a personal relationship with Him. Are you hungry for God’s Presence? Are you crying out to know Him more intimately? Communion with God involves passionate desire from your innermost being. There must arise in you an insatiable desire to know Him and to live in continual communion with Him. That process takes time alone with Him waiting on Him, getting to know Him, and allowing His words to take root in your heart. When you do, your prayers will rise to a new level. Become consumed with a passionate desire for God. Set your priority in prayer to first and foremost spend time communing with the Father and Christ. Set aside time in prayer to seek His face and not just His hand in blessing. As you come into His presence, acknowledge Him for who He is. Take time to be silent before Him listening to hear His voice. In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart. (Bunyan). Communion is a dialog. True communion is listening for God’s voice to know His will and direction. The more you develop intimacy with Him, the more you will be able to hear and discern His voice. There in His Presence, you will receive a divine life flow of His anointing and He will pour out His love upon you. Draw from His strength. Allow Him to reveal Himself to you. The call of the Spirit is your call to return to a personal, intimate relationship with our Creator.

Pray this prayer:
Holy Spirit, teach me to pray. Father, Thank you for paying the ultimate price giving me divine access into the Holy of Holies, into your Presence. I have heard the wooing of Your Spirit to draw near to You in a more intimate relationship and am hungry for Your Presence. I long to hear Your voice, to know Your heart, to fellowship with You. Jesus, Thank you for the blood You shed making it possible for me to come boldly into our Father’s Presence. I desire You more than life itself. You are everything I need and all that I desire. Draw me to Yourself in a deeper dimension of intimacy, greater than anything I have ever known. Reveal Yourself to me. Open my eyes to see and know You in all Your power and glory. I give myself wholly to You.

Tags: Anointing, awe, Christ, commitment, Communion, Ephesians 6:18, God, God's power, Holy Ghos, Holy SPirit, intercessory, Intimacy, Jeremiah 29:13, Jesus, Learning to Pray, Perseverance, prayer, relationship, reverence, strength, supernatural power, supplications, true communion
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Beyond Ordinary Prayer – Learning to Pray – Part 1

August 26, 2011

There are many of us out there aggressively seeking a more intimate relationship with God, but where do we begin that pursuit? How do we get there? I am so hungry for God, hungry to know him experientially, hungry to get beyond just Him being words on a page of a Bible. I bet there are many who are looking for their burning bush or their “on the Road to Damascus” experience, but I must ask you a question. Would you open your heart’s secrets and desires to just anyone? What would it take for you to open yourself up and share those most cherished dreams and heartfelt desires?
Yet, many of us enter into God presence whether that be in a sanctuary or in the privacy of our own home carelessly. We come to Him with our minds preoccupied with our daily activities, our circumstances and while we sit, God fights for our attention in the midst of the tangled ball of thoughts. Let’s take this point home, have you ever sat in church and while the pastor speaks, your mind wonders to what you will do when church lets out or what you will eat because you are hungry or even looked at your watch to see how much longer before church is over? The answer to these questions will give you an indication of the true spirit of your worship. How do you approach God? Do you see Him for Who He is are for what He can do for you? Do you reverence and awe Him or treat Him like one of your best buds? Your attitude toward Him determines your level of intimacy as no one in their right mind will open up their heart to someone who really truly doesnt care. Just as you guard your heart from hurt and disappointment, sharing it with only those who earn your trust, so too, does our Father in heaven.

God has always desired for us to draw close to Him, as evidenced by His creating Adam at the very beginning of time. This is the only time that any man walked with God as He truly intended and though Adam fell, God never stopped yearning for our intimacy with Him. How do we know? He sent Jesus so that we would be restored. Through Jesus’ sacrifice we were given access to God’s throne room where we can present our prayers and petitions before Him. God cries out from the depths of His being for us to come to Him in true worship and praise. Prayer is one vehicle in which God made available to do that, but so many who pray really do not pray as they should so we are going to take a journey to learn how to pray in the same powerful, unlimited dimension as Jesus, that place where nothing is impossible to us. Now whether you get there is determined by you and the attitude you take. Ask yourself, are you satisfied with living as you are or are you ready to experience the full potential of the true power of prayer that Christ intended for His people?

Now it doesn’t matter where your prayer life is now. Christ is calling you to rise above your current state and join Him at His side where your prayers will change cities, nations and groups by His power. To do that you must set aside all traditions and preconceived ideas of what you thought prayer is and be willing to move into a new realm and experience in prayer. True prayer is more than reading prefabricated prayers from a book or repeating eloquent words to impress those who are listening around you. Prayer is a means to move God’s hands to produce His will here on earth. Our natural minds can not get us there. We must move from the natural into the realm of the supernatural where there exist no limits and where all things are made possible. To get there, we need the power of the Holy Spirit for prayer is born of the Spirit.

It is only through God’s Spirit we can truly learn to pray for He is the giver of all prayer. Though there are many books that can teach us the prayer, there is no better teacher then Jesus, our Great Intercessor. Through His Spirit we will be enabled to pray prayers that are motivated, directed and divinely energized by Him. Remember, we are not alone in our quest to learn. Even Jesus’ disciples (Luke 11:1) sought out Jesus, asking, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.” I am sure these disciples were much like us, praying traditional prayers learned from their worship in their synagogues through the priests. One of the greatest experiences of the disciples was witnessing the prayer life of Jesus who lived in unbroken communion and fellowship with the Father. Any Bible reader knows that He would rise early in the morning long before others and slip away to pray. Before every major event in His life, He would spend time alone with the Father.

“The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do: for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son
likewise.” (John 5:19)

The great victories Jesus experienced during his ministry on earth all began in prayer. Prayer is the key that unlocks the storehouses of God’s infinite grace and power (R.A. Torrey). Jesus was no different from us. He could not win these victories by His own strength no more than we could. He came to earth as a man stripped of His divine abilities. He walked as we did and toiled as we toil, but through it all, He never depended upon Himself. He did absolutely nothing independent of the Father. Everything was a result of what the Father revealed to Him while He was in His presence during prayer. Jesus sacrificed time to be in the presence of God. It was there that God would reveal His will to Him. It was there that He penetrated enemy lines. It was there He fought the battle and won. Can you imagine what was running through the minds of His disciples as they listened to Him pray? I am sure they hungered to pray just like Him. In answer to their heart’s cry, Jesus began to teach them the Lord’s prayer. This prayer set forth a pattern for us to follow, breaking the traditions set forth by the religious leaders of that time and even today.

True prayer must come from our hearts, not our heads. It is not just words and phrases we repeat as a routine or formality. It involves us coming before the Father with our hearts, in total admiration and submission. God does not desire for us to give Him only a portion of our heart, He wants it all. That’s right! God wants our whole heart. How do we know?

“And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your hearts” (Jeremiah 29:13)

It is said to say that many Christians pray what they learn, their words empty and hollow because they are spoken through the ability of their mind and do not pour out of the depths of their hearts. To go beyond ordinary prayer, we must get beyond the head knowledge and traditions and cry out from the midst of our heart “Lord, break through the dead, dry traditions and teach us to pray!” God is not a God removed some where in heaven, far from our reach. He is not a God that is unapproachable or inaccessible. He is a loving God who desires to be intimate with us. There is no place in the Bible where He did not reveal Himself to His people looking for intimacy and fellowship. How do we know? Before we were ever even created, God already had a plan to redeem man. He gave the ultimate sacrifice so that we could be restore to Him in intimacy and communion. Through Jesus, we were given another chance to have a new intimate relationship with God.

To get beyond an ordinary prayer, we must have a fresh revelation of God. We must know Him, not just talk about Him. We must know that He desires to p0ur out good things in our life. We must know that He has provided everything we need and is just waiting for us to ask. We must know that He is looking for opportunities to manifest His power on our behalf.

”For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew Himself strong on behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him.” (2 Chronicles 16:9)

When we live in the place of intimacy with our Father, the prayer of faith and its answers will be the natural result.. To go beyond ordinary prayer, we must know that we must come before the Father with our whole heart, knowing Him intimately as our Father. True prayer is much more than asking our God for things. It is a vital, living relationship with a childlike simplicity, in faith, trusting and knowing He desires to pour out into our lives.

Now we must understand that it is through Christ that we have divine access to the Father by the Spirit.

“For through Him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father” (Ephesians 2:18)

True prayer begins in our spirit. We are commanded to pray in the Spirit.

“But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost” (Jude 20)

God is a Spirit and is not bound by time and space. The only way we can know Him is by the Spirit dwelling inside us. It is our Spirit who ushers us into God’s presence. It is our Spirit that prompts us to pray. It is our Spirit who teaches us to pray. It is our Spirit who guides us in our prayers, giving us a faith and strength. To become a great prayer warrior, we must be willing to go beyond ordinary prayer to a place beyond the natural mind. We must develop a total dependence on the Holy Spirit because only He can enable you to know the heartbeat of God, only He knows God’s priorities and will.

“True prayer is the Holy Spirit releasing the mind and will of the Father in us, and then giving the divine unction and utterance to speak the word of faith to accomplish it. (Cerullo)”

To go beyond an ordinary prayer, we must break through the natural barrier so that the Spirit inside us can pray, that is, we must stop trying to pray according to our natural understanding. When the Spirit prays, the will of God goes forth. His prayers never go unanswered. We must seek to be filled and under the full control of the Holy Spirit. The more we surrender our life to Christ and die to self, the more we allow the Holy Spirit room to work in us to release His power through us. True prayer is a way of life. It is the highest and holiest work to which man can do. The extent of the abiding is the exact measure of the power of prayer.

Pray this prayer:

Father, thank you for placing Your Spirit within us giving us divine access to Your throne room. We submit ourselves fully into Your hands. Holy Spirit, have full control in our lives! Teach us to pray! Reveal to us the Father’s heart, His will, and His vision for our lives, families, cities and nations. Father, impart to us divine ability to pray prayers that will release Your power and anointing to bring salvation, healing and deliverance. Anoint us to pray prayers that will result in Satan’s strongholds being destroyed and Your Kingdom and will being established in every nation.

Tags: Adam, awe, battle, Bible, burning bush, Christ, Communion, dimension, disappointment, disciples, divine ability, dreams, experiential relationship, Father, fellowhship, God, GOd's Presence, God's throne, great intercessor, Hearts, hearts secrets, Heaven, Holy Ghost, Holy SPirit, hungry, impartation, intercessor, Intimacy, intimate relationship, Jeremiah 29, Jesus, Jesus Christ, learning, Lord, Luke 11, luke 11:1, natural mind, natural minds, petitions, power, Praise, Pray, prayer, prayer warrior, Priest, Priests, realm, relationship, Religion, reverence, road to Damascus, Sacrifice, Spirit, strength, submission, synagogues, teaching, throne room, tradtions, true worship, Victory, Worship
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The Road Not Taken (John 18-19)

October 30, 2010

Jesus entered the world in controversy and lived much of His life under the shadow of doubt. His mother received an angelic visit informing her that she would be the mother of the Messiah and that His birth would be in literal fulfillment of an ancient prophecy: “Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel” (Isa :14). In other words, her baby would be conceived without a human father. Unfortunately, her wonderful secret would soon become a neighborhood scandal. Her betrothed was prevented from filing a quiet divorce by another angelic vision, but we have no indication the Lord supernaturally revealed the truth regarding the conception to anyone other than Joseph. No one else in Nazareth received an angelic visit telling them the truth.

From the very beginning and throughout His public ministry, belief in the Christ would be a matter of choice. Which evidence would people trust? Scripture or their own prejudices and presuppositions? Which authority would people accept? The Word of God or their own desires?

As Jesus proclaimed divine truth, His critics relished every opportunity to question His origins, taking great care to avoid the overwhelming prophetic evidence of His divine identity. As we have observed, most people miraculously performed, ironically while demanding He prove Himself by performing miraculous signs. Nevertheless, many others were attracted to His obvious divine power. Ultimately, “His own” moved beyond the need for miraculous signs to accept the MAN as the Word of God, their Messiah, the Son of God.

By the end of His public ministry, Jesus had polarized the nation. On one side stood the unbelieving temple authorities in all their religious finery, on the other, a ragtag collection of a few hundred committed believers. Between them stood a vast multitude, whose souls hung in the balance and each side, the minions of evil and the followers of Jesus, had been tasked to claim them.

As the sunset one evening before Passover, each side retreated to prepare for the first real battle of an invisible war, a cosmic campaign for the souls of humanity. Both claimed to be the sole guardian of divine truth, but the religious leaders hoped to settle the matter quickly. Before the end of the passover festival, they intended to prove their case by killing Jesus. They would put Him on trial for openly opposing the temple authorities, and God by extension, and then crucify Him as a blasphemer. By sundown on “the day of preparation”, they hoped to bury His body and with it, any notion that He was the promised Messiah, the Son of God, the Word incarnate, the Savior of humanity. With the good news, salvation by grace alone, by faith alone, in Christ alone, lying cold in a tomb, their proud religion of works could again reign supreme, with the temple authorities back in control.

Our journey through life brings us to forks in the road. The choice we face is not between convention and curiosity as much as between truth and power, riches on earth or treasure in heaven, earthly success or spiritual purity, short-term comfort or eternal reward. The urge to preserve our comfort in the here and now can powerfully override our decision to obey God. Let’s face it – His rewards are often intangible and almost always delayed, which makes obedience a matter of trust.

Pontius Pilate stood at a critical juncture – for Him, a choice having eternal impact. He had to decide which kingdom he would serve. To render a “not guilty” verdict and release Jesus would certainly have destroyed his political career and might have invited severe punishment by Rome. So, instead of submitting to the kingdom of God, Pilate set truth aside for the sake of power, earthly success and short term comfort.

Before we pass judgment and count ourselves righteous, let me challenge your ethics with a test. What if you were a clerk in a German army, busily typing out orders and the command to round up Jews and dissenters crossed your desk? In a totalitarian regime, disobedience will almost certainly result in severe punishment, if not death. And what for? You will not likely be remembered for your stand. Another nameless, faceless clerk will be pressed into service after your removal, anyway. What would be gained? Certainly the satisfaction that you did what was right, but that will likely come at the expense of great suffering.

How about a situation not so clear-cut? The highest ranking member of your employer’s office – the person with the most power and least accountability asks you to do something your conscious clearly tells you is wrong. What do you do? No lives are at stake. It’s unlikely anything tragic will result. Besides, what would be gained? When you are fired, would the satisfaction of doing what is right taste as sweet? Or, as you tell the story to your coworkers and share their outrage, will you shrug off your responsibility with the words, “A command is a command; I’m only following orders”?

The road we travel forks more than once. Our initial decision to trust in Jesus is the most crucial choice we will make, but it is the first of many. Each day, we must choose which kingdom we will serve. Will you submit to truth or succumb to power?

Tags: angelic visit, Christ, controversy, divine Power, Doubt, God, God;s Kingdom, Heaven, humanity, Jesus, Judgment, Kingdom of GOd, Messiah, Ministry, Miracles, Nazareth, obedience, Passover, Pilate, power, Prophecy, prophetic, Religion, Rome, satisfaction, Savior, scandal, scripture, son of God, Spiritual purity, Trust, Truth, virgin, Word of God
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Meditate on the Word of God

October 30, 2010

There is a four part formula to help develop your spirit lives but with anything spiritual, we must first based everything on God’s Word. Jesus said, “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). God’s Word is spirit food and will build up your spirits.

God is Spirit. Man, who is made in the likeness of God also is a spirit creature, in the same class of being as God. Note, I did not say man is divine, however man is able to commune with God because He is a spirit being. Man is a spirit who possesses a soul and lives in a body.

At the creation of man, God placed within him a yearning, a heart hunger, for fellowship with Him, but Adam sinned in the Garden of Eden and his spirit became estranged from God. Because of this yearning and heart hunger for fellowship with his Creator, man’s spirit never is satisfied apart from God. This is what drives him out into the world seeking pleasure and material things. Man is trying to find satisfaction for the heart hunger inside him.

This hunger has driven many in ignorance into false religions and cults, but the hunger can never be satisfied until we become acquainted with the Lord Jesus Christ and receive eternal life. When we become born again, we become a child of God and we are restored to fellowship with Him.

The spirit is the part of man which contacts God. In the new birth, the spirit of man is made a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17). We are not the same old self we used to be; there is a new self. This new man we have become in Christ Jesus should dominate our thinking process and our body, yet many who are born again and even filled with the Holy Spirit still are baby Christians who have not developed spiritually. The Corinthian church was like that. They had received the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit. Paul said, “…ye come behind in no gift” (1 Corinthians 1:7) yet reproved them for being baby Christians. Believers are baby Christians as long as their salvation experience and their experience of being baptized in the Holy Spirit have not yet affected their bodies and their souls. The Bible tells us that we ourselves must do something with our bodies and our minds, “…PRESENT YOUR BODIES A LIVING SACRIFICE, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world, but BE YE TRANSFORMED BY THE RENEWING OF YOUR MIND, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:12).

When we are born of God and have the life of God in us, the Holy Spirit comes in to fill us and to help us. He is our helper and will help us present our bodies to God as a living sacrifice. The Word of God was given to us by the Holy Spirit to develop our spirit nature, the new man on the inside. If we want to educate and train our spirit, the first step in our four part formula is to “meditate in the Word of God”.

To make clear what we mean by “meditate”, lets look in the Book of Joshua. When God appointed Joshua to be Moses’ successor to lead the children of Israel, He told Joshua, “this book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but THOU SHALT MEDITATE THEREIN day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success” (Joshua 1:8).

Do you want to be prosperous? God tells us how in this verse. He say if His Word fills our hearts to the extent that we “meditate therein day and night”, we will find prosperity. It goes without saying that a man filled with God’s Word will prosper spiritually. Often we pray, “God, prosper us”, but praying this prayer without following God’s formula won’t work. God’s formula is through His Word. God promised success in this life.

Another translation of this verse reads, “…For then you shall be able to deal wisely in the affairs of this life.” Most of us have made some mistakes in our life. We have erred in business matters, perhaps losing money, or we have spent beyond our means. We haven’t dealt wisely in the affairs of this life, however, if we follow God’s plan, His instructions for a successful life, we needn’t make these mistakes. We can deal wisely in the affairs of life and become successful and prosperous. If we don’t, we have no one to blame but ourselves, for God provided the way by which we can succeed.

God does it, but we have our part to play. Too often we think we can ignore God’s Word and accomplish the job by simply praying. We think if we can pray loud enough or long enough or get enough people praying, it will work, but it won’t. Prayer has a place, but if we are not doing what God’s Word says to do, we can pray forever for God to prosper us, and we all are finished praying, we will be no better off than we were when we started.

Jesus said, “the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). He also said, “heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Matthew 24:35). The Bible tells us that God has magnified His Word above His Name (Psalms 138:2). Therefore the first step in developing our spirit is to take time to meditate on God’s Word. The New Testament contains outstanding teaching regarding development of the spirit life.

Living in this dispensation of grace, we are at an advantage because we have a better covenant based upon better promises. If believers living in the Old Testament times could make their way prosperous and have good success, what can we expect with a better covenant based on better promises. We should have super prosperity and super success!

Jesus said, “And I will pray the Father, He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him; but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you” (John 14:16-17)

What is the Holy Spirit going to do when He dwells in you? John wrote, “Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come. He shall glorify Me: for He shall receive of Mine, and shall shew it unto you” (John 16:13-14)

Most spirit filled people don’t realize what they have and thus are not walking in the light of their rights and privileges in Christ. Why has the spiritual development they should have had as a result of the indwelling Holy Spirit slipped by them? The devil will keep us from getting the truth if he can. He will try to sidetrack us and get us into some other realm.

I have heard people testify that they are filled with the Holy Spirit, then five minutes later they are down at the altar praying, “Lord, give me power”. If you have the Holy Spirit, you have the Powerhouse within you! Just learn to cooperate with Him, know what He is going to do in you, and learn to listen to Him, He is in there and He will guide you into all truth.

You also need to realize that the Holy Spirit is a gentleman. He will not come in if we don’t want or ask Him to. He will not take over. He can help us only as we respond to Him. The power of God is passive until faith is exercised.

So let us take time to meditate in the Word; especially in the New Covenant, or New Testament. It will help develop our Spirit nature.

Tags: Christ, christians, Comforter, develop our spirit, Developing, exercise, Faith, Father, Helper, Holy SPirit, Life, meditate, New Covenant, New Testament, Old Testament, privileges, Promises, Prosperity, prosperous, Psalm 138, Sacrifice, Spirit, Spirit filled, success, teaching, Truth, Word, Word of God
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Enduring Injustice with Grace

October 30, 2010

I can think of a few situations more personally challenging than enduring injustice alone and unnoticed. Because we bear the image of God, justice satisfies a deep seated, God given need because we are polluted with sin, however, or desire for justice becomes a supremely selfish pursuit. Outrage demands satisfaction. Bitterness demands revenge. A self-centered hopelessness begs heaven for relief. Desperate isolation longs for an advocate, while an uncertain world idly watches our suffering. In that lonely crucible of unfairness, the silence of heaven can be deafening.

Perhaps you are currently suffering in obscurity. Slander has sullied your reputation. Gossip has isolated you from those you respect. A false accusation has turned the course of your life. Persecution has fallen on you instead of those who are genuinely guilty, perhaps even perpetrated by evil people. Let me assure you, the Lord does hear your cries for help and hope, and He has not ignored you. Justice will be served, although not as you might want or when you want.

Jesus promised neither to take us out of the world nor to prevent the world’s oppression. Instead, He prayed that we would be preserved through trials and persecutions. Therefore, He will not preserve us from injustice, rather, He has promised to preserve us through injustice. Moreover, He promised glory on the other side of our suffering. The agony you suffer though it feels overwhelming, will not go to waste. If you allow it, this experience can be the means by which God brings you His greatest blessings.

How do we know? As the great ones of the past what has been the spot of their prosperity, they will say, “It was the cold ground on which I once was lying”. As Abraham, he will point you to the sacrifice on Moriah. Ask Joseph, he will direct you to his dungeon. Ask Moses, he will date his fortune from his danger in the Nile. Ask Ruth, she will bid you build her monument in the field of her toil. Ask David, he will tell yo that his songs came from the night. Ask Job, and he will remind you that God answered him in the whirlwind. Ask Peter, he will extol his submersion in the sea. Ask John, he will give the palm to Patmos. Ask Paul, he will attribute his inspiration to the light which struck him blind. Ask one more – the Son of Man. Ask Him where has His rule over the world. He will answer, “From the cold ground on which I was lying, the Gethsemane ground; I received My scepter there. The hour of loneliness will crown you. It is your desert that will break forth your praise.

Shortly after His prayer on our behalf, Jesus endured the worst injustice any human can experience. No one was ever more innocent than He. Few were ever more hypocritical and corrupt than Annas, Caiaphas, the temple elite, or Herod. Perhaps reflecting on how Jesus conducted Himself during that awful time, Peter wrote to persecuted Christians, “What credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it, yo patiently endure it, this finds favor with God.”

One day, the Lord will return and He will restore justice. In the last day, truth will reign supreme and all who have suffered injustice will be vindicated, just as Jesus was vindicated by His resurrection. In the meantime, submit your need to be heard to the sovereign plan of God. Stop striving for vindication. Speak the truth in love and without apology to the appropriate parties. Take comfort in the fact that your Savior understands your struggle.

Tags: 1 Peter 2:20, Abraham, advocate, bitterness, blessings, Caiaphas, christians, comfort, crucible, Depression, desire, endurance, experience, fallen, false accusations, Gethsamane, glory, God, God given, Grace, guilt, Heaven, help, Hope, hopelessness, hypocrit, injustice, isolation, Jesus, Job, John, Joseph, justice, Life, loneliness, Lord, Love, Moses, oppressions, patience, Patmos, Paul, Persecution, Peter, plan of God, prayed, prayer, preserve, reputation, respect, resurection, revenge, Ruth, satisfaction, Savior, selfsh, Son of Man, sovereign, Struggles, suffering, Temple, temple elite, treasure, trials, Truth, unfairness, vindicate, whirlwind
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How to Develop Your Spirit

October 15, 2010

Have you ever asked yourself why it is that after you are saved it still appears that there is no change to your behavior? Have you ever wondered what you are doing wrong or what steps you need to take to get to the place in God you want to be? Are your struggles in life controlling and overwhelming you? Have you ever asked yourself or said to yourself – “Show me Lord what I need to do to walk more intimately with you?”

You are not alone. In my quest to have a closer walk with God, I found that my flesh was so in control of my actions and thoughts that I couldn’t hear the voice of God, much less recognize even if He was talking to me. Are you there? Would you like to know the voice of God? Do you seek a change that will move you into a new realm spiritually? Well, take a trip with me in this study and I unfold all I have learned. As you read, you will see the “HOW TO” steps before you. Then it is just a matter of putting the steps into action and watching the process of change unfold before you.

Millions have been spent worldwide to develop the physical body and intellectual (soul) processes of man. Have you noticed though little has been to develop the spirit of man? Just as one’s body and mind can be educated, developed and improved, a man’s spirit can be educated and improved. How you might wonder? Through the study of God’s Word.

Without the Spirit of God’s Word within us, we cannot understand spiritual things with our natural minds. Our minds have to be changed, that is, renewed through God’s power, in order that we might fully understand the Word of God. The Apostle Paul said, “But the natural man receiveth not [does not understand] the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned [understood]” (1 Corinthians 2:14).

We are blessed for the Word of God was given by the Spirit of God because “…holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost” (2 Peter 1:21). This is the main reason why the natural mind cannot understand God’s Word. It is only with the heart, the place where our spirit resided that the Bible can be understood. It is there that we must receive revelation. Keep in mind, once a man is born again and becomes a child of God, he can understand the Bible and can learn spiritual things. As Paul said, he has become a new creature in Christ Jesus: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

The process of training and transformation is not an overnight or instantaneous thing. It is a process that is a daily task: “…though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16). The “inward man” is the real man, the real you for when the body dies, the inward man still lives. Paul, writing to the Philippians said, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). This does away with the theory that when a man is dead that is the end of him. There certainly wouldn’t be any gain to dying if man perishes and death is the end of everything.

Why did Paul say that to die is gain? It surely is no gain to those of us who have lost loved ones, but it is gain for them. Paul went on to say, “For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better; Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you” (Philippians 1:23-24). The reason Paul said it was gain to die was because he would be with Christ.

It is interesting to listen to the people around us. Have you ever just sat somewhere as people passed by and just listened to them talk? Do you believe that some people actually think that eternal life comes when they go to heaven? There are so many blinded to this falsity, for eternal life is something we have right now! It is a God kind of life. It is the nature of God within us which comes into our spirit to recreate us and make us a new creature; changing our very nature. When we have been born again and have the nature of God abiding within us, we can develop our spirit to higher levels of worship and service to God.

Man’s threefold nature is (1) spirit – the part of man that deals with the spiritual realm; (2) soul – the part of man which deals with the mental realm: his reasoning and intellectual powers; (3) body – the part of man which deals with the physical realm.

In order to understand the process of development, we must differentiate between these three parts. What better place to look then in the very Word of God. Turning to the Book of Thessalonians, we find that Paul makes a distinction between them. 1 Thessalonians 5:23, “…I pray God your whole SPIRIT and SOUL and BODY be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” There is no mistake, man’s spirit and soul are not the same thing for the Bible says, “For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of SOUL and SPIRIT…” (Hebrews 4:12). If the spirit and the soul were the same, they could not be divided. Man is a spirit. He possesses a soul and he lives in a body. Death is not the end for man because he is an eternal spirit.

The Epistle of James gives some more insight into this differentiation. Here, James discusses the soul of the believer.

Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth [therein], he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion [is] vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, [and] to keep himself unspotted from the world.

In his discussion, he tells believers that if they want to get their soul (mind) saved, they must be a doer of the Word, not just a hearer only. Paul, also writing to believers said, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the RENEWING of your MIND, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:1-2). Both of these men said the same thing. Paul said to be “transformed by the renewing of your mind,” and James said to “receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.” Both apostles were talking about renewing, restoring, and saving the mind or soul.

But it doesn’t stop there. Psalm 23:3 also says, “He restoreth my soul…”. It doesn’t say, “He restores my spirit”. What is restoration? Restoration is taking what we already have and redoing it. Now don’t get confused. Restoring and renewing mean the same. That’s right, the Hebrew word translated “restore” means identically the same thing as the Greek word for “renew”. As believers who have become new creatures in Christ Jesus, we are spiritually saved, thereby receiving eternal life. As we receive the engrafted Word, our spirits will renew, restore, and save our mind or soul. This is not something God does for us, but something believers must do for themselves. How? Through the Word.

Why is it so essential that the mind be renewed? If our spirits are not renewed, than it does not possess the power to transform the part of us that does the thinking and ultimately the acting or bringing about of a think because we have allowed the mind to be educated through the body and the physical senses, instead of through the influence of God’s Holy Spirit. By doing so, our mind will side with the body against the spirit thereby keeping us a baby Christian. What does it mean to be a baby Christian? Baby or Immature Christians are carnal or body ruled. Paul told the Corinthians, “for ye are yet carnal…” (1 Corinthians 3:3). Another word, their bodies through their unrenewed minds were ruling their spirits, even though they were saved and became new creatures in Christ. They never allowed themselves to be developed spiritually.

The worse part of this whole thing is many Christians live and die as spiritual babies. The faith life is always obscure to them. They never understand faith and therefore cannot fully walk in the promises and blessings of God. Have you ever seen a Christian who lives in the flesh? Have you watched them ride the roller coaster of life, living in unbelief and always engaging in warfare. Everyday is a battle for them because their minds never have been renewed with the Word of God. Though they understand the Words they read, they never truly experience the victory of Jesus, they never fully understand to know they have won the battle. They really don’t know the devil is a defeated foe. They still are trying to fight him in their own power, fighting until they are totally exhausted and depleted.

When your mind has been renewed with the Word of God, the spirit through the renewed mind can control the body. The soul (mind) will then take sides with the spirit because it knows the Word. Through that knowledge, man’s mind (soul) is renewed. Renewing our minds allows God’s Spirit to influence our spirit, we are forever changed spiritually.

Tags: 1 Corinthians 2:14, 1 Thessalonians 5:23, 2 Corinthians 4:16, 2 Peter 1:21, acceptable, baby Christians, body, carnal, carnality, Christ, Christ Jesus, conformed, Developing, engrafted wORD, Epistle, eternal life, Faith, fighting, God, God's Word, Hebrews, Holy, Holy Ghost, Holy SPirit, How to, James, Jesus Christ, Knowledge, Life, living sacrifice, man, mental, mental realm, mind, nature, Paul, perfect, perfect will, perfect will of God, Philippians, Philippians 1:21, Psalms, Psalms 23:3, renewed, Restoration, Romans, Romans 12:1-2, Sacrifice, soul, Spirit, spiritually, Struggles, transformed, unbelief, warfare
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Being Led by the Spirit of God in Prayer

October 15, 2010

While searching for a way to get closer to God, I read this piece on being led by the Spirit of God in Prayer, I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.

Praying always with all prayer and supplication

In the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all

Perseverance and supplication for all saints…

Ephesians 6:18

“In teaching on the subject of prayer, I always use two texts: John 5:17 and Ephesians 6:18. There are no better texts than these for teaching on the subject of prayer because they are all inclusive. Anything you want to know about prayer is found in these two verses.

Notice what Jesus said in John 5:17, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you”. That’s a marvelous text, isn’t it? It tells you how to get your prayers answered every time: “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you…” You see, if you pray according to the Word, your prayers will work. So many times, we’re not praying according to the Word. We’re in the dark if we don’t know what the Word says. But the entrance of God’s Word gives light (Psalm 119:30), so take time to meditate on the Word until it gets in you. Then, you’ll ask what you will, and it shall be done for you.

The other verse I like to use when I teach on prayer is Ephesians 6:18. Paul wrote this letter to Spirit-filled Christians at the church of Ephesus.

Praying always with all prayer and supplication

In the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all

Perseverance and supplication for all saints…

Ephesians 6:18

The Amplified Bible translates the first part of the verse this way:

“Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty.” What does it mean to pray in the Spirit?

In 1 Corinthians 14, we have instructions on this subject.

1 Corinthians 4:2

For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh

Not unto men, but unto God: for no man

Understandeth Him; howbeit in the Spirit He speaketh

Mysteries.

“He that speaketh in an unknown tongue” is talking to God. Well, that’s prayer, isn’t it? One definition of prayer is fellowshipping with the Father. Therefore, Paul is talking about prayer here. The second part of the verse says, “For no man understandeth Him; howbeit in the Spirit He speaketh mysteries.” Paul is talking about praying in tongues.

The last part of the verse tells us that a person prays in the Spirit “speaketh mysteries”. What does that mean? Well, the mystery isn’t with God because God knows everything. The mystery is with us. We don’t know everything. Often we don’t know how to pray for a situation unless the Lord shows us or gives us revelation. We don’t know what to pray for as we ought, but thanks to God, the Holy Ghost knows. He will help us pray if we allow Him.

Many of us haven’t taken advantage of being led by the Spirit in prayer. Sometimes we run out of things to pray in English. After a while, we’ve said everything we know to say. If we stop at that point, our prayer life will be limited by what we know. But remember, God knows everything. He knows what we don’t know. He wants to help us pray and praying in the Spirit will get the job done when nothing else will. Let’s look at what 1 Corinthians 14 tells us about praying in the Spirit.

1 Corinthians 14:14

For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my

My understanding is unfruitful.

In this verse Paul says that if we pray in an unknown tongue, our spirit prays. The Amplified Bible says, “My spirit [by the Holy Spirit within me] prays.] In other words, it’s the Holy Ghost who gives utterance to my spirit, but it’s my spirit that actually does the praying.

You see, it isn’t all my spirit and it isn’t all the Holy Spirit. It’s both of them working together. The Holy Spirit gives our spirit utterance, so we can pray out of our spirit, not out of our head. That’s what it means to be led by the Spirit in prayer.

We need to learn to be led by the Spirit and praying in other tongues provides a way for you to pray for things that you wouldn’t otherwise know needed prayer. Look again at Ephesians 6:18.

PRAYING ALWAYS WITH ALL PRAYER AND

SUPPLICATION IN THE SPIRIT, and watching

Thereunto with all perseverance and supplications for all saints…

Greek scholars tell us that according to the original Greek manuscripts, the first part of this verse literally says, “praying, being led by the spirit.” Of course, that phrase includes the idea of praying in tongues, but it also means the Holy Ghost will lead you in how to pray. He may lead you differently at different times. Although two situations may look the same, the Holy Spirit may lead you to pray one way one time and another way another time. We may not always know why He’s leading us to pray a certain way. The important thing is to follow the leading of the Spirit. He’ll show you the best way to pray concerning your situation. Look to Him to lead you in how to pray in every instance. He’ll lead you in the right direction.

Some people ask why we need to pray. They may be thinking, “God already knows everything. Doesn’t God already know what we need?” Yes, He does know, but you still need to pray. Let me explain why.

At the time of creation, God made the world and the fullness thereof, the silver, the gold, the cattle on a thousand hills, and everything that’s here on earth. Then He made Adam and God said, “Adam, I give you dominion over all the work of My hands.” Adam had dominion over the whole world (Genesis 1:26-28), but Adam committed high treason. He sold out to Satan and the Word of God tells us in 2 Corinthians 4:4 that Satan is the god of this world. How did he get to be the god of this world?

When Adam committed high treason, he gave his dominion to Satan. Satan is dominating in this world because Adam sold out. Thank God, Jesus came and restored us to dominion. Why, then, do we need to pray? I’ll give you three references that at least imply our need to pray.

In Matthew 6:5-15, Jesus is teaching on the subject of prayer. Look at what He said in verse 8, “…your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask Him”. Well, if your Heavenly Father knows what you need, why doesn’t He just send it? Why would you have to ask? Verse 8 makes it clear that Jesus expects us to ask the Father for what we need. This Scripture implies that God will send what you need unless you do ask Him. Now look at Matthew 9. Here, again, Jesus is giving instructions on the subject of prayer.

Matthew 9:25-28

And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching

In their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom,

And healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion

On them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep

Having no shepherd. Then saith He unto His disciples,

The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few;

Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth

Laborers into His harvest.

I want to ask you a question. Who does the harvest belong to? Is it God’s harvest? Yes! Is He the Lord of harvest? Yes! Does He want laborers? Yes! If He wants laborers, why doesn’t He send them? What need would there be for us to ask Him if He wants to send them anyway? Yet Jesus clearly tells us that we are to pray to the Father to send laborers. This Scripture implies that God will not send them unless we ask Him. Now, look at these verses from Matthew 10:18-19.

Verily I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall bind ON EARTH

Shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose ON EARTH

Shall be loosed in heaven.

Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree ON EARTH as

Touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done

For them of my Father which is in heaven.

Notice that Jesus is telling us to do something here on earth. He is telling us to pray. You see, something has to happen on earth before Heaven moves. Verse 19 tells us what has to happen on earth: “if two of you on earth shall agree as touching anything they ASK”. They have to ask! They have to pray!

There must be action on the earth before Heaven moves. So you can see that the Holy Ghost is looking for people who have dedicated themselves to prayer. We sometimes call these people “prayer warriors”. People who give themselves to prayer often sense the Spirit of God moving throughout the earth as He tries to find somebody He can use to pray things out! Why? Because someone has got to pray about it. Someone has to pray it out! Do you know what I mean by “praying something out”?

The old time Pentecostals called this practice “praying through.” When you have what some people call a leading – when you have an urge or burden to pray – what do you do? You pray! And when you don’t know what you are praying for, you pray in tongues, speaking mysteries, speaking divine secrets as 1 Corinthians 14 tells us.

“Praying through” simply means that you keep praying until you have a note of victory. What do I mean by a note of victory? Well, after you’ve prayed for a while, you’ll begin to laugh or sing to yourself in tongues. You see, a while ago, you had this burden. You felt this heaviness. Then you prayed and suddenly, you feel as though the burden is gone. You have a sense of gladness. Those signs tell you that you have prayed the situation through and have the victory!

When you have a burden or leading to pray, it’s important to yield to that leading and pray until you’ve prayed through. When you do, you’ll experience victory. During my studies, I read a testimony of a missionary named Brother Boley in a full gospel magazine. Brother Boley and his wife went out as missionaries to Africa in the early 1920’s. They went inland into the heart of Africa and built a mission there for a native tribe. One day, a neighboring tribe kidnapped a six year old girl from the tribe he was ministering to. Brother Boley knew the customs of the local tribes.

He said, “We knew that if we didn’t get the little girl back before sundown, we would never recover her. I got a native man who was saved and could speak the dialect of that tribe and went over there. Before we got there, we could smell this awful smell. They had a custom of taking an animal and killing it. Four or five women of the tribe had to prepare it. Then, they’d hang this animal on a pole at the entrance to the tribe’s land. Everyone who came in had to take a knife, cut a piece off that meat and eat it. If you didn’t eat, the women who had prepare the meat would be killed.”

In that hot, humid climate the meat putrefied. Brother Boley told the interpreter,“We’ll have to eat a bite of that. We don’t want those women to be killed. Jesus said, ‘One of the signs that’ll follow believers is that if they drink any deadly thing, it’ll not hurt them’. I suppose that we could also eat any deadly thing, and it would not hurt us. So we said, ‘In the name of Jesus. Then cut a chunk off that rotten, putrefied meat. We ate a bite, and it never affected us in any way. We made a deal with the chief of that tribe,” Brother Boley said. We traded him a bunch of trinkets and beads and things for the girl, but then night overtook us.” Because it was dangerous to travel the jungle at night, Brother Boley and his interpreter stayed overnight in the tribe’s guest hut. At midnight, they were awakened by the sound of drums. The interpreter told Brother Boley, ‘that means we’re dead. That’s the death knell. It has dawned on the chief that they don’t have to give up the girl. They can just kill us and take her back?

The two men heard the tribe members moving around outside the hut. Knowing they were about to die, they committed themselves into God’s hands and then stepped outside. Brother Boley said, “I shut my eyes and waited. I know it was just a few seconds, but it seemed like a long time. Nothing happened. “I heard strange sounds, and when I opened my eyes and looked, the warriors were on the ground and they were bowing up and down, their knives laying on the ground! Brother Boley asked his interpreter what the warriors were saying, “They’re worshipping you. They think you’re a god. They say that when you stepped out of the hut, two giant men in white apparel with a giant sword in either hand stepped out right beside you.”

Thank God for His deliverance, but that’s not the end of the story. There’s more to it. Soon after his miraculous deliverance, Brother Boley went to check on the lady who was manning a missions station for another local tribe. When he arrived, the woman asked him, “Brother Boley, did something happen to you last Monday night about midnight?” He said, “Why do you ask?” “Well,” she said, “I always work 14 to 16 hours a day and I was very tired that Monday, so I got to bed and went to sleep. I was awakened with a burden to pray. I lay there in bed and began to pray, but I was so sleepy, I fell back to sleep. I was awakened again and I had the same burden to pray! So I prayed, but I was so weary that I fell back to sleep. I was awakened the third time about 10:30 that night and I decided to get up because I knew if I lay there, I’d go back to sleep”.

The woman got out of the bed, got on her knees and said, “Lord, I don’t know what it is you’ve awakened me to pray for. I don’t know who it is who needs prayer. I just trust the Holy Ghost to give me utterance.” And she began to pray in other tongues. She prayed for an hour and a half in other tongues.

“While I was praying,” she told Brother Boley, “your face kept flashing before me. I don’t know whether I was praying for you or not. At midnight, I knew I had prayed through. I began to laugh. I began to laugh in the Spirit and sing! The burden lifted. Instead of a spirit of heaviness, I felt a spirit of lightness.”

The night she prayed was the same night Brother Boley was delivered from death. It was a mystery to her why she was awakened to pray, but it wasn’t a mystery to God! What if she hadn’t prayed? Thank God, she did!

You can see the necessity of following that leading to pray, even though we don’t know what it is we’re praying for. Afterward, we sometimes find out what we were praying for. Sometimes, we’ll never know until we get to heaven, but how important is it that we respond to the Holy Spirit when He leads us to pray. Learning to pray when the Holy Spirit leads us would avert many dangers. If Spirit-filled believers would follow His promptings and become conscious, man problems wouldn’t happen. Many terrible things would never happen if folks were really led by the Spirit.

Being led by the Spirit does more than avert trouble in our lives, it also helps us usher in wonderful moves of God. Great and mighty things have happened in the past as God’s people have prayed and great and mighty things are going to happen more and more, but they are not going to come just because God decides. No, they will come as a result of praying! If we would just stay in prayer until we have a victory.

Praying always with all prayer and supplication

In the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all

Perseverance and supplication for all saints…

Ephesians 6:18

What is perseverance? I heard one fellow call it “stickability”. Just stay with it. Stay with praying until you’ve prayed through. I think that many times, if something doesn’t happen fast enough, we give up too soon and if we give up, we won’t see the results God intends for us to have. Pray with a little more perseverance, pray with a bit more determination and watch the manifestations of the gifts of the Spirit! Watch great and mighty things happen!”

Tags: 1 Corinthians 14:14, 1 Corinthians 4:2, Africa, amplified bible, Brother Boley, English, entrance of God's Word, Ephesians 6:18, Father, fellowshipping, Genesis 1:26-28, God, God's Word, Harvest, healing, Holy Ghost, Jesus, John 5:17, laborers, Led by the Spirit, light, Matthew (;25-28, Matthew 6:5-15, missionary, mysteries, Pentacostal, Perseverance, practice, prayer, praying, Psalm 119:30, saints, Spirit, Spirit filled, supplication, synagogues, talking to God, understading, unknown tongues, utterance, Victory
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, prayer, Religion | Leave a Comment »

Know the Truth about Being Debt Free – Part 1

February 20, 2010

Like you, I have had my battles with overcoming my debt. It is frustrating to want to go and do something, and you can’t because your finances prevent you from doing so. It seems that no matter how hard you try, you never seem to get ahead, so you find yourself walking a life not fully satisfied where you are. That’s where my testimony begins. I heard this teaching that has already began to change my circumstances of debt in only a few short months. I was so inspired that I decided to share what I learned in hopes that you would be doers of God’s principles, and too would enjoy the fruits of financial freedom. Now it won’t happen overnight, but it will happen. So if you are gamed, come back over the weeks to come and read more, as I take you step by step through the principles of receiving your debt free guarantee.

We will begin in the Book of 1 Samuel 17:25. It is here that our journey begins. We are all familiar with this story, though most of us have not heard it from the direction I am about to go. So buckle your seat belt as we take a ride down the path to being debt free.

1 Samuel 17:25 reads, “All the men of Israel said, “Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to defy Israel is he come up: and it shall be, that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father’s house free in Israel”

In this verse we are told that the person who killed the giant would receive three rewards. First, the king would give the overcomer great financial riches. Secondly, he would allow him to marry his daughter and lastly, he would make his father’s house free in Israel. Can you imagine it? This person would live like a king, connected to the king’s family in such a way that it would change even the very condition of his father’s house. That’s right, the entire family of the giant slayer would live the rest of their lives totally free from the bondage of debt. Did you hear that?

This is the part of the promise that I am going to focus our attention on today and over the next number of weeks show you step by step how to lay hold on God’s debt free guarantee so that you can put it to work in your life. Most of us have never heard this before as it is seldom taught from this perspective. It is important to know that God has given you a debt free guarantee. It is your lack of knowledge of knowing what God wants you to have that stops you from having it. Are you with me?

Let me draw your attention to another piece of information that this portion of Scripture gives us and that is, the literal meaning of the name “Goliath”. There is much more to this name than meets the eye because upon very close examination, you will find that Goliath is not a Philistine name. Instead, it is a name that the Hebrews gave to the giant. Goliath comes from the root word which in the Hebrew dictionary means “denude” or “to make it plain”, that is, ”to make nude or naked”. That definition is very significant because Goliath is descriptive of the way that the Hebrew’ people saw him. They saw him as one that takes the people captive and strips them naked. It explains how the Hebrews found themselves after they had come under his control. He had taken them captive. He had stripped them naked and if you will just stop and think about that for a moment, you will have to agree with me and come to the conclusion that the name Goliath perfectly describes how the spirit of debt affects its victims. I mean, here you are working very hard for your money only to find that the federal government takes withholding taxes, stripping away somewhere between 25-35% of your hard earned pay. How does that make you feel? Anyone feel like you are a little stripped? The feeling doesn’t get any better when you realize the taxes you pay are a direct result of free spending of a debt hungry legislature that has overspent and borrowed. Now if your taxes aren’t enough to make you feel stripped, then comes the added discouragement of seeing your house payment, your car payment, your credit card debt, your second mortgages and your other bills which systematically strip away the remainder of your pay check, so when it comes to any given month most of us have very little ,if any excess left over for anything else.

And if any of you have been in debt long enough, you know how it feels. It’ i as though you have been taken captive and stripped, and the pressure is unbearable. The feeling is one that never stops tearing away at your hopes, at your dreams, and at your goals. So if you are in debt, you better pay very close attention to what I am going to say to you. What I am going to teach you is simple , but most christians don’t know it from the Word of God. Because of this, they are unable to totally defeat their Goliath of debt that comes to feed on their dreams, their hopes, and their goals in life.

The Bible says, “My people perish for lack of knowledge”. If you don’t know the truth, then you cannot be set free by it. Let’s start by saying that debt is a spirit. It is kin to the spirit “Mammon”. It is a ruling spirit whose only purpose is to turn you into his servant. That is a truth that comes straight from the Word of God because the Word of God says, “if you are a borrower you become a servant” (Prov 27:7) as the borrower is servant to the lender. Now I can tell you, most everyone is a servant. How do I know? If you borrowed to buy anything and are making payments to a creditor, then you are a servant, a slave to your debt.

The Word of God tells us that when David stepped on the battlefield to face Goliath, he did something very special to defeat Goliath. His actions were not just to get rich. In facing this Goliath, David is going to get himself into being totally debt free for the remainder of his life. And so when he faces Goliath, David brings something with him that he is going to use as ammunition against Goliath - five smooth stones taken out of the brook. Let’s read.

1 Samuel 17:40 says “And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand; and he drew near to the Philistine.”

How many understand that water in the Scripture is often a type of the Word of God and is a type of Holy Scripture? Ephesians 5:26 says “that He might sanctify and cleanse it with a washing of the water of the Word.” So you don’t have to use a lot of imagination to easily picture this brook as representing the Word of God. I want you to notice something important about the stones David took from the brook. The stones were smooth indicating that they had been in the brook for a very long time. The continuous flow of water over them had worn away all the rough edges, much the same way the truth of God’s Word does with us. God’s Word has been tried and proven, and it rings truth throughout. It has withstood the test of time.

Now I want to take from this illustration because illustrations many times work very well to inspire people throughout the ages to understand biblical truths so that it can begin to work for them. Through David’s story, the Bible tells us how to win the battle over our Goliath of debt. One of the stones alone has enough power by itself to kill your debt forever, but if you don’t know what that stone is, you don’t have that stone in your arsenal to use. Now if one stone can kill Goliath by itself, how much more impact all five of the stones have when put them in your arsenal?

Over the next few weeks, I will introduce to you five powerful concepts that have to do with the biblical account of David’s victory over this giant called Goliath. In it we will receive special insight and truth that will cause us to lay a hold of the Word of God and see that God has a debt free guarantee. As I discuss and unfold the significance of each stone, I pray that it will bring you that much closer to receiving your debt free guarantee and living a live of debt free.

If you will apply these truths, you will get out of debt. You need to get these principles in your heart. You need to hear it, rehearse it, preach it to someone, teach it to someone until you get it in your brain. I am not going to say it is going to happen in one day or a one week, but it will take you out as you see the Word of God work in your life. Please don’t make the mistake of thinking that just because you are faithfully making payments on your bills each month from the money that you make means you are going to get out of debt. It doesn’t work like that. If it worked that way, then we would constantly hear about people getting out of debt and who become debt free. I say that because the vast majority of people who are in debt faithfully pay their bills each month, however, very few of them ever get out of debt and the reason is very simple – there is a spirit to debt that keeps dragging them deeper and deeper into their indebtedness. Debt is a spirit. Its purpose is to control you, to make you a servant, to take you captive and to strip you. If you ever hope to overcome the spirit of debt, you must have a plan and it better be a very powerful plan, one that just doesn’t use your wisdom, but one that actually uses the very force of God to guarantee you the victory. Your plan is not strong enough. You’ve got to use God’s plan with God’s forces and God’s power to drag you out because when it comes down to power, there’s no one stronger than God. Scripture itself acknowledges that the god of Mammon is a stong spirit. After you study the Word of God on debt, I can honestly tell you from my own studies, that the truth that I am going to give you is powerful enough that they can set you free as you implement them in your plan.

How many know that truth in and of itself does not set you free? It is only truth of God’s Word that you know that you can walk in. It is only truth that you know that can set you free.

John 8:22 says, “You shall know the truth and the truth you know shall set you free.”

The very fact that you don’t know that the Word of God gives you a debt free guarantee means that you can’t walk in it. I don’t care how powerful the Goliath of debt is in your life, you can defeat that Goliath through the Word of God that gives you a guarantee. Through the Word, God tells us how to overcome anything and everything the devil can possible throw at us. Remember, “Greater is He who is in us, then he who is in the world.” We must be more than conquerors through Christ Jesus. I dont care how long debt has beat you up and has taken you captive, you can win this battle.

Tags: 1 Samuel 17, Adversity, Christ Jesus, Conquerors, David, David and Goliath, David's victory, debt, Debt free guarantee, Ephesians, federal goverment, five smooth stones, God's power, Goliath, Hebrew, indebtedness, Knowledge, Mammon, principles, sanctify, slave, spirits, Truth of God, Word of God
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, Religion | 3 Comments »

Allowing Faith to Work in Your Life

January 4, 2009

What is faith? Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen”. Simply said, faith is the substance in the now of the things you do not have as of yet. Faith is a living force that without, we can not please God, but with it, all things are possible. So how do we get this kind of faith?

First, you must recognize and believe God’s promises. Then we must receive the faith He promises and act upon them, “for faith without works is dead”. Romans 12:3 says, “that God gave all of us a measure of faith”. Why? God wanted to ensure that each of us was given the ability to say ‘yes’ to accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior. For those of us who accept, a new nature becomes active in our life, giving us the ability to believe everything God promises in His Word. These promises are the very foundation and strength of our faith. Romans 12:2 says “be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind”. The foundation of our walk is the Word of God. It is the ultimate authority in our life, and the anchor or rock that keeps us living within the privileges and rights given us by God.

In Romans 1:17, we find out that God does not only reveal Jesus through the Word, but He reveals us, the believer, to ourselves. It is only through this faith that we can comprehend what the Word has said about us. It is only through this faith that we are transformed into a new nature that is in line with the righteousness of God. The Bible says that if we behold the glory of the Lord with eyes of faith and appreciation for what He did on Calvary, then we are going to be changed from glory to glory, that is, not only is our identity going to change, but the level of our faith will also change.

This faith will not work however, unless we have a revelation of it. That means that as we grow in the Word, we grow in the faith of the Son of God, thus allowing a greater measure of faith to be applied in our life. As we invest in our spirit man, putting into motion the divine truths of God, feeding on the Word and partaking of its divine substance, our minds will be transformed. As He lives in us, it will be us living by His faith. Our identity will be His life. Our labor will be His power.

Romans 10:17 says that “…faith comes by hearing and hearing the Word of God.” Hearing the Word does not just come by studying, for when you study you are only sowing the seed. Faith is also imparted to us through prayer, for it is when you pray you water the seed of your studies. Romans 10:8 says that “the Word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart, that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming”. Paul tells us that the Word dwells in our heart and mouth. It is the Spirit of faith, the very power of God calling us to speak what we believe. The Bible tells us that “with the heart, men believe unto righteousness and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation”. In order to overcome the world and have the faith that prevails, we must guard the dwelling place of this God given faith – the heart. Remember that in the heart of a man, the mind, will and emotions are found.

Our enemy, the devil, knows these very things. He knows when you do not have confidence in God. He attempts to trouble our hearts because if he can trouble the heart, he can affect our thoughts. Have you ever heard that an idle mind is the devil’s playground? Ever wonder why that is? It is our thoughts that directly affect our heart and whatever fills the heart, will ultimately affect the very words of our mouth. What does the mouth have to do with faith? The Bible says that life and death are in the power of the tongue. When you speak against God’s Word, you are putting limits on God and stopping His ability to work in your life. The Bible tells us that we know a tree by its fruit. Proverb 13:3-4 says we should guard our mouth in order to keep our life. Why is that? When we allow our mouth to produce the fruits of our heart, we break the hedge of protection God gave us, providing the enemy access to us.

So how do we deal with the devil? Don’t give the devil a place. Only talk of the things of God. Stand upon the foundation of God’s promises. Confess them with your mouth. As you walk in harmony and unity with God, your faith will grow. When that kind of divine faith is in motion, things happen, allowing faith to work in your life.

Tags: Devil, divine truth, Faith, faith without works, glory to glory, God, God's glory, Heaven, Hebrew 11, measure of faith, overcoming the world, Righteousness, Romans 12, Salvation, spirit man, Spirit of faith, Word of God
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, Religion | 2 Comments »

The Importance of Renewing Your Mind

December 26, 2008

One of the greatest challenges for Christians today is knowing who they are in Christ. We are told how to become saved, but more often than not, we seldom are given the tools needed to become who God truly called us to be. As a result, we walk through life never reaching our fullest potential in Christ. Hope is not lost though, as we possess the key to walking a life with Christ in the renewing of our minds. So why is renewing our mind vital to our walk?

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. On the sixth day, God created mankind in his image and after His likeness. Made in all perfection, the first man, Adam, was given dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air and over the cattle, and over all the wild beasts that move upon the earth. Mankind and God enjoyed perfect communion together. So what happened? Man fell from God’s grace as a result of rebellion against God’s command and there life as we know it truly begins.

God made Adam as a triune being consisting of a Spirit, a soul and a body. When Adam sinned against God, he died in the spiritual sense. The Spirit, the soul and the body were no longer aligned with God’s Word. That’s important as the three parts must be in agreement with each other in order to walk in the fullness of God’s power and authority. The Bible says that a house divided against itself will never stand (Matthew 12:25). Adam’s choice to sin against God divided the triune against itself. No longer was Adam alive in God, as His spirit died. No longer was his soul (mind, will and emotions) pure in thought. The god of this world had blinded him and in so doing contaminated the whole human race that was to come. The good news however, is God had a plan. So what was God’s plan?

The Bible tells us that God sent His Son, Jesus to earth. How do we know? John 1:14 says that the “Word became flesh and dwelt among us”. That’s right! Jesus, the Living Word, was among us shedding “the true light which lighted every man who came into the world” (John 1:9). So why was His presence a key to our future? Jesus walked the earth for a time spreading the good news. As He did so, he drew many to him through His teachings, signs and wonders, but His message was not received by all, in fact, many rejected Him and all He came to offer them. No matter what ran through the minds of the people however, God had a plan and Jesus would be the key to the very future that lay ahead for all mankind. Knowing no sin Himself, Jesus was sacrificed upon the cross, taking upon Himself the very sins of the world.

Let’s not stop here, for it is real easy to underplay the tone that His death served. The shedding of Jesus’ blood played a significant role in our salvation. Leviticus 17:11 says, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood”. Jesus’ blood became the key to our life. In what way? When Jesus was nailed to the cross, He took upon Himself our sins. Immediately, His spirit was separated from God. Jesus sacrificed His Spirit and soul for our spirit and soul, but His sacrifice didn’t stop there. Jesus also died a physical death, thus sacrificing His body for our body. As He hung upon the cross and died, we hung upon the cross with Him dying to our old nature. When He was buried, our old nature was buried with Him and when He rose to the right hand of God, we were raised along with Him. That’s right! We are no longer slaves to our old nature, but have now donned upon us the new nature – His nature, His mind and His life.

It’s important to understand that when we accept Christ, the Spirit part of our being is instantaneously born again. What’s so important about our spirit man? It is the part of us that communicates with the spiritual realm of God and is instantly changed. Keep in mind that though our spirit instantly changes, our soul does not. Our souls must grow to spiritual maturity. So how do we get to that place of spiritual maturity? God’s Word must reach beyond our spirit. It must go beyond the initial hearing that comes when we receive Christ. Spiritual maturity is a gradual process of growth that comes about through the receiving and adhering to, the obeying of and the agreeing with the Word of God. In order for understanding to benefit us rationally, the Word must make it out of the Spirit and be welcomed into our mind, will and emotions which is contained within the confines of our soul.

Remember, our soul is a living person (Ephesians 4:23) and belongs to God (Ezekiel 18:4). In order to renew ourselves, the Holy Spirit must shine conviction upon our unsaved spirit so that the unsaved soul, where the thoughts, words, light, nature, and fruit of the Spirit abide, can be convicted and renewed. The Bible tells us that the natural man (Romans 12:2) must die daily. By making a willful choice to remember that he has to be changed, he chooses to change of his thoughts and bring them in line with the Word of God. By doing so, he allows the power of the Spirit and the Word of God to reach his mind. It is God’s desire that our soul yield to His Word so that it can go into man’s spirit and soul and fill it with rational, spiritual, godly reasoning. The Word is living and possesses power to change. God wants His Word to enter into our spirit so that it will move into our mind, senses and understanding to cause the divine wisdom to become rational understanding.

If our mind is not renewed, we can’t walk in the authority (2 Corinthians 4:3-7) as we will lack the power required to uproot the presumptuous thoughts that enter into it. It is important that what runs through our soul is pure and in line with God’s Word (Matthew 12:33-37) as each soul God created was created with a sovereignty and with an ability to determine its destiny (Ezekiel 18:4). I choose to walk in my destiny, serving God to the fullest and the first step to that path is renewing my mind. Will you walk with me? The choice is yours.

Tags: 2 Corinthians 4, Adam, Challenges, Christ, christians, Ezekial 18, God, Jesus, Matthew 12, New Nature, Power and Authority, Renewing your mind, Spirit, The Body, The Soul, The spirit, Walking in your destiny
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, Religion | Leave a Comment »

Walk Your Way Out of Your Wilderness

December 18, 2008

Deuteronomy is a book written to instruct the new generation of Israelites emerging from the wilderness. In Deuteronomy 1:6, God tells His people, “you have dwelt long enough on this mountain:. The children of Israel had wandered around for almost 38 years searching for the promised land. Now encamped on Mount Horeb, they receive this message. What does it mean? Why is it significant? For 38 years, the blessing of the promised land never manifested. Day after day, month after month, year after year, nothing but endless wandering came about. Each day ended like the one before it. Have you ever felt that all your efforts in life were in vain? Have you ever felt like you were spinning your wheels and getting nowhere fast? Though the Bible never actually describes what the children of Israel were thinking and experiencing during this 38 year journey, we can probably guess with accuracy as we could imagine ourselves in their shoes. It’s not too hard to reenact what was going through their mind. What we need to do though is look at the “why” of this whole thing. Why were they experiencing all this? To answer that question, we would have to turn back the hands of time, to the place this whole story began.

Close your eyes and paint a picture on the canvas of your mind. The place is Egypt. The circumstance is slavery. At this time, the children of Israel are slaves. They are treated inhumanely and cruelty. Life is hard. Each day, life is more miserable than the day before. Like a child screaming for the attention of their mother. God’s children cry out to Him. Their cries reach His ears. His heart feels the pain and agony of His children. Unbeknownst to His children, God already had a plan and it was about to unfold. On the scene comes His man, Moses. With God’s guidance and care, Moses leads the children out of bondage. God show His power and mighty hand at work, and His children are eyewitnesses as the plot and plan unfolds before their very eyes. The children are released into the able hand of their leader, Moses. This is where the plight begins.

As the children make their way out of Egypt, they find that life has dealt them a number of challenges. They that held them in bondage are now in hot pursuit for their return. Without hesitation, the children forget all that happen and fear. God moves, parts the sea, ensures their safe crossing, ensures their enemies’ death and provides for their needs. They rejoice, but even that is short lived. Every challenge that arose only brought about fear, doubt, unbelief, discontent and more. Where was their faith in the God who brought them through the impossible? Where were the memories? Had they forgotten already? Over and over God made a way. Over and over the children responded the same. But when is enough, enough? How many times did God have to prove Himself before the children believed, trusted, and had confidence in Him? God draws the ine and their journey begins.

By the time Moses delivers God message to the second generation, the unbelievers have all died off, that is all but Caleb and Joshua. Moses must teach this new generation God’s commands. He must show these people how the previous generation erred in their behavior and thinking. How does He do that? Moses reenacts the journey; he plays the movie in their minds and as they watch he points out where they went wrong. Ok, what that have to do with us?

Have you ever felt that you have been stuck at a point in your life for too long? Do you feel that life is racing by you and still your situation hasn’t changed much? Well, that’s where the children of Israel were. They encamped on a mountain waiting for God to take them to the next place, just as we are. Our mountain is our challenges we face. Just as God led them from the mountain to the promised land, He has to lead us from our situations into our solutions. Just as the children of Israel had to travel through the great and terrible wilderness, so we have to travel through some very trying times, tests and trials. How long we stay depends on us. for the children of Israel, their attitudes determined the outcome. Ten times trials came. Ten times, they forgot. Ten times they complained, mumbled, grumbled, moaned, groaned, and provoked God to anger. Finally God drew the line and withheld the promised land from the unbelieving generation. God in His mercy, allowed the new generation, Joshua and Caleb to receive the covenant promise. We are no different than the children of Israel. How many times has God brought us through trying times? How many times has God made a way out of no way? How many times has God provided, healed, taught, protected, guided, comforted, loved and forgiven us? Yet at the first sign of trouble we panic, worry, lose faith and more. We mumble, grumble, complain, moan and groan. We question and even at times refuse to see past what our human minds can control and rationalize through. Where is our faith? Where is our trust?

We control our minds – what enters and what stays. As long as we rest upon our human side, we have no hope of seeing anything but despair and failure. We stay in our wilderness place, roaming from place to place in search of the promised land. We allow the enemy to feed our mind with lies and deception, and we believe. We allow these lies to take root and ultimately we choose to remain where we are instead of allowing ourselves to walk through the storm to the promise. Are you wandering in the wilderness of life bogged down with fear, doubt, and unbelief? Has your way of thinking kept you from being led into the promised land? Every man has a choice of what to feed their mind. Will your choice be to walk out of your wilderness? Take the chance. Allow God to lead you into all He promised, that is, your promised land.

Tags: Attitudes, Bible, bondage, Caleb, confidence, Deuteronomy, Egypt, God, God's mercy, Israelites, Joshua, Mount Horeb, promised land, Trust, trust in God, wilderness
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What You See Isn’t What You Get (Nbrs 14:5-24)

December 16, 2008

How many times have we let our eyes gauge our situations? How many times have we allowed our human mind to reason through our trials? When we walked in the world without the knowledge of God, we often face challenges in our lives too overwhelming for us to handle. As a result, we’d worry and stress over the possible outcomes and how we would fair. We never knew what would happen from one moment to the next. Our lives would be overcome with fear, doubt, negative thoughts and the like. Then one day, God reveals Himself to us. We accept His invitation to be Lord over our life. Over time, He proves Himself to us, bringing us out of our trials, providing four our every need, performing miracles and more. Things seem to be going well in the early stages our our relationship, but how many of you know that as we grow and mature in God, He expects us to exercise our faith more? The trials increase. From our perspective, our life takes a turn for the worse. Here is where we should look back upon our past and remember all God has done. Here is where we should trust and believe. Her is where we should stand confidently and firmly in the midst of our storms, yet, for most, here is where life falls apart. We allow our human nature to take over our reasoning of our human hearts and minds. Trust and faith take a leap out the proverbial window. Struggles take hold. We forget all we experience, all we witnessed, and all we learned and reach back into our nature and react accordingly. Many of us give up long before the trials end, forgetting the truth of God’s promises and losing sight of the important fact of Who’s in control.

This is where our studies begin. In Numbers 14, the children of Israel are right in this exact spot. They had experienced miracle after miracle, received promise after promise, and lived with God like no other people, yet after all this, they still reverted back to unbelief and every situation arose. Though God had brought them out of bondage, saved them from death and destruction, and provided for their every need, they still weren’t satisfied. In Chapter 14, the people of Israel are responding to the news reports they had just received from the scouts. It is said, that the initial response of a person is usually the most accurate indication of that person’s heart.

All but the last two of the scouts returned with a negative report. As the people listened intent, they began to fear all that lay ahead. Instinctively and immediately, they respond with complaints and accusations of their leaders. Their reaction indicated that they had no memory of their freedom from Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, the events of the Egyptian pursuit, the provisions of water, manna and meat or anything else God had done for them. Seeing their response and knowing God’s mind, Moses and Aaron fall on their faces on their behalf, interceding before God for their lives. While they are doing this, Caleb and Joshua stand to be recognized. They top participated in scouting this land, but their report differed drastically from that of the scouting party. They see the land through their eyes of faith and trust in God’s promises and past performances. They remind the people of that very thing, though their report was disregarded. Displeased, God’s wrath is about to be loosed upon this unbelieving race. Fortunately, Moses comes to the rescue. With humility and reverence, He intercedes before the Creator on behalf of the people, pointing out how God’s plan of destruction would be perceived to the surrounding nations who had already heard of His might. As a result, God spares the people, but rescinds His promise to those in unbelief. Only Joshua and Caleb would inherit the land.

What you see isn’t what you get! When we look through our human eyes we can only see failure, defeat, death, hopelessness and the like. Without the Spirit of faith, without the provision of God, we can only reap the fruit of despair and all it brings. What you see isn’t what you get when God is involved. With God, we are given spiritual eyes to see our situations in a different light. What was once impossible now becomes possible. Our spiritual eyes accept that we are nothing apart from God. The worst situations with no solutions, now become situations with possibles. What you see isn’t what you get!

Instead of complaining, begin praying. Humbling yourself, cast your problems upon the Lord, then look at the situation through your spiritual eyes as the result come about. Had the people looked at the land through their spiritual eyes, they would have seen a land without the obstacles. God would have done as before and opened up the door of opportunities and rained down blessings and provisions.

Tags: Aaron, blessings and provision, bondage, Caleb, Creator, death, destruction, Doubt, Egyptian, Faith, Fear, God's promises, God's truth, God's wrath, Human, humility and reverence, Israel, Joshua, Knowledge of God, Lord, manna, Miracles, Moses, negative thoughts, Numbers 14, Obstacles, Red Sea, Spirit of faith, stress, Struggles, trials, unbelief, Worry
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Pregnant with a Purpose

December 15, 2008

As I read and reread these verses, I notice that not much was said about Abraham prior to God telling him to go from the land, yet verse one says, “the Lord said to Abram”. That one statement started speaking to me almost immediately. Why? Well, as I look back at my life with God, I realized that I didn’t recognize God’s voice, much less understand what He was telling me, yet Abraham was spoken to and obeyed, that is, he recognized and understood God’s voice. This alone tells me that though he came from a pagan land, he had a relationship with God. Abraham had to have reached a deeper and fuller level of maturity and knowledge with God than most. He was no longer a baby in God. To receive a blessing of this magnitude, to be initially mentioned at this point in his life indicates that self sacrifice, obedience, submission, spiritual transformation had to take place some time over the previous 75 years of his life. Though God doesn’t reveal to us the life of Abraham prior to now, it isn’t too hard to see that a process had taken place and Abraham was now ready to fulfill God’s purpose for his life. This point was the start of that purpose and a test of his training.

There is alot said in these seven verses. God commanded, Abraham exercised in faith and chose. God promised, Abraham exercised faith and believed. God waited, Abraham exercised faith and obedience, and went. God appeared and promised, Abraham in faith responded with heart felt worship. As you can see, at no time did God reveal the entire plan to Abraham. It was a step-by-step revelation, with each step being the trigger point for the next, each step serving as the mechanism for growth in faith.

These verses also show me something about God. God told Abraham to move away from his relatives, yet he took his nephew, Lot, with him. Though Scripture tells us of all the challenges that arise as a result of this disobedience, God still speaks blessings upon Abraham. This shows the deep love God has for us. Even though God is a just and righteous God, He blessed Abraham in the midst of disobedience. He did not take away the repercussions or events that resulted from that disobedience. The seed that was sown in disobedience was the seed that was reaped in the challenges arising from his wrong choice. Abraham received the blessing God promised. Unselfishly and out of love, the first response showed Abraham’s true character and heart’s condition. Abraham humbled himself by recognizing God first and foremost in all he received. He put God first before anything and anyone. A true disciple recognizes his master before himself.

Let’s go back to Genesis 6:1-7 and see a similar trend by looking at the Lord’s call to Noah.

Again we another of God’s chosen brought to the forefront. Before Noah is approached to build the ark, nothing is mentioned about him except his brief genealogy. We don’t know anything about him prior to that time, however, the same thing can be said about Noah as was said about Abraham previously. For God to have commissioned Noah to accomplish the great task of building an ark, he would have had to reach some level in the maturity in faith and intimacy in God. Every Christian must be prepared for the task he has been called for. Preparation takes time. Over time, trials come to make us spiritually strong. As we grow spiritually, we eventually reach a point where we are deemed ready to assume our position. This is where Noah is.

From the time of the fall of Adam, the human race continued its downward spiral. Every heart had reached the very pit of depravity, except that of Noah. Evil has a tendency to contaminate and spread rapidly. Spreading in epidemic proportions, all mankind became infected except one, Noah. To be identified as righteous at this point was a feat that Noah reached. From the Scriptures, I can see that life began with distinction. This is shown by the Words, “the Sons of God” and “the daughters of man”. This distinction is important in gaining insight to the condition of man’s heart and motives, and the condition of the world at that particular point in time. It also shows us the effects that people can have upon one another. The use of “the sons of God” and “the daughters of man” tells us that there were two kinds of hearts – those serving God and those serving Satan. Alone, one group brought hope, that is, in its purest form they focused on One. Like a deadly infectious disease, the complacent minds of the holy one subtly allowed themselves to be infected by the things of the world. Like a lion on the prowl, their minds became prey and the purity of heart they had once possessed became polluted with the evil tendency of satan’s servants, attitudes and ways. What once distinguished these groups from each other, now became the thing that identified them as one entity. Evil had now taken root in the hearts of all except one, Noah. Hope for the future lay in the heart of this man and through that one man, life was preserved.

As a christian, we must keep guard over our hearts. Our environment has a way of polluting all it touches, hence, your warning – keep guard, be alert. As we grow in God, God will ask us to go away from this land, that is, go away from those of evil influence. Now I can see why God removed us like He did, only exposing us to what He knew we could handle without becoming contaminated, without becoming infected.

Abraham and Noah were pregnant with a purpose. Just as a fetus grows in the womb of a woman, developing into a distinct unique individual, so also does a Christian. The fetus begins with a single egg merging with a sperm. The joining of the two bring about creation. With each minute of time that passes, development and growth take place. The organism begins to take on a life of its own. The essential elements of development form. The organism now becomes an individual. Development continues up to the point where the fetus can survive outside the protected environment. All the vital elements required to survive have basically developed. At this point, the mother gives birth and the process of maturity begins.

We Christians develop much the same way. We are the egg, God is the sperm. We were released into society and through the unction of the spirit, we were joined or united with God. As God merges His DNA with ours, spiritual development occurs. God’s DNA determines or sets our purpose. As development takes place, our vital organs are brought to maturity – our hearts and minds accept in faith, our eyes spiritually see, our ears spiritually hear, the Spirit of God within us begins to beat harmoniously with ours. We begin to take on a life, that is, we begin to walk in the image of our Creator. When we have reached full term, we are birthed into our purpose, that is, the purpose we were predestined to by God.

Tags: Abraham, Abram, Adam, daughters of men, disciples, disobedience, evil, Faith, Genesis 12:1-7, Genesis 6:1-9, God, growth in faith, heart felt worship, Holy, Hope, Lot, Noah, obedience, pregnant with a purpose, recognizing God's voice, Revelation, Satan, self sacrifice, Sons of God, spiritual transformation, submission, the Master, true character
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Heavenly Identity

December 8, 2008

It has always been God’s intent for man to have an intimate relationship with Him. This relationship began with Adam and Eve. Though the Bible does not tell us how long Adam communed with God before Satan slithered his way into the lives of God’s first man and woman, we know that they spiritually died to God resulting in all men sharing that same separation. Hope wasn’t lost however. God sent, Jesus, the second Adam who knew no sin. 2 Corinthians 5:18, says that through Him we were given the opportunity to be reconciled to God, who knew that He was not only going to give Jesus for us, but knew He was going to be able to reach and change us through this reconciliation.

2 Corinthians 5:17 tells is that if we be risen in Christ Jesus, we rose as a different person then when we died, that is, different in quality. We are not who we use to be. Through an act of faith, we were saved by grace, putting to death the old nature in order that we might allow Jesus to live within us. To reap the full benefits of our salvation however, we must put on our new nature, allowing our minds to be transformed by the Word of God (Romans 12:2). How do we do that? We find out who we are in Christ by studying and meditating on God’s Word and then changing the way we think and speak in relationship to who we are. The more we allow the Spirit of the Word to manifest in our lives, the more we become the byproduct of our thoughts, words and actions. This however, is not a one time process, it is a daily commitment. By transforming our minds daily, we are enabled to walk in our heavenly authority. As our hearts are illuminated by God’s Word, we will learn what kind of access we have to Him.

When we died and were raised with Jesus, we became a new man. That new man took on the image of Jesus in every way. The old person we were died to Him. That means we have the same power and authority Jesus has, but most of us fail to realize that because the enemy has made it his mission to ensure we never fully understand or receive that point. He blinds us with thoughts of inadequacy, fills our minds with lies, condemnation, fear and doubt, tells us what we can’t do. In this state, our faith is weakened. In this weakened state of faith, we struggle to keep the enemy at bay. We must learn to silence the enemy the minute the onslaught of negative thoughts arise in our mind. Speak the promises of God out loud. As we do, we become what we speak, “for our mouth speaks out of the abundance of the heart”.

2 Corinthians 5:20 tells us “we are therefore Christ’s ambassadors”. For this reason, it is important for us to have the new qualities and nature living in us so as to bring us to spiritual maturity, the place where only the Word of God exists in us. To do this, we must rid ourselves of views contrary to God’s Word. In taking on the new nature, we must recognize that we are no longer sinners. 2 Peter 1:3-4 tells us that God’s divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness. It adds that God gives us the precious promise to pardon our sin. Sin is alive and was given right to enter the world by Adam, but the same sin was broken and defeated by Jesus. Jesus is the Word. By always walking in agreement with God’s Word, in faith, we open our heart up to Jesus (Ephesians 3:17), allowing the power of God to flow through us while giving us the ability to enforce his every Word.

It is this faith that gives us confidence that we are the righteous and holy ones of God. As we earnestly seek Him, He promises to reward us as we walk into the purpose to which He has called us. As we grow in mind and soul with Jesus, we will begin to see the awesome power of God manifest right before our eyes and the eyes of the world. God has called each of us to go into all the world and preach the good new to all creation (Mark 16:15). As we serve and grow, God will entrust us with more, taking us to new dimensions.

Tags: 2 Corinthian 5, 2 Corinthians 5, 2 Peter 1, Adam and Eve, authority of Jesus, Bible, Christ's ambassador, confidence, Ephesians 3, Faith, God, God's abundance, God's divine power, godliness, Hearts, heavenly authority, image of Jesus, intimate relationship, Jesus, mind and soul, Reconciliation, Salvation, Satan, sinners, Transformed minds, Word of God
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Knowing Your Enemy

December 8, 2008

Any soldier knows that to be successful in any battle, they must know their enemy in and out. What we as Christians fail to see, is that we are all soldiers for God. It is important to know who our enemy is, for without that knowledge how can we fight against him? The Bible tells us that the devil is prowling like a lion seeking who he may devour. I don’t know about you, but everyday is a challenge and those challenges take on many forms. For this reason, I decided it’s high time to get to know our enemy and his fallen angels.

Let’s turn to 1 Timothy 4:1, “Now the Spirit says expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, following after misleading spirits and doctrines of devils.”

We live in the latter times where devils and demons are battling for control of our souls. What most of fail to realize is what position we have in Christ, making it easier for us to be misled by the enemy.

We all know the story of Adam, but there is so much to his story that we overlook. God created Adam in his image, after His own likeness. The Bible says, that God is Spirit and we must worship Him in Spirit and in truth. So that means we are Spirit also. Deep within us we have a spirit man that Christ occupies when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior. Have you ever wondered why it is that we have so many struggles to walk like Him? The Bible tells us that upon man’s creation, God gave him dominion over the earth, the fish of the sea, the fowl of the air, the cattle, and the wild beasts that move upon it. That means that God gave a man made of flesh to have dominion. When Adam sinned against God by eating the forbidden fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil, he became spiritually separated from God, impacting mankind forever. That, however, wasn’t the only impact Adam’s sin had upon man. When the enemy lured God’s first creation to sin, he wrested man dominion over all that God had ordained. Through one man’s sin, all mankind was condemned and through one man’s obedience, all were made righteous. This is important to our study, as this one point is the key to fighting the devil and his fallen angels.

When man was created by God, he was created in a physical body. Man is made up of three parts: the body, the soul and the spirit. That physical body contains the spirit man and soul. The Spirit and the Soul are housed within our hearts. When we accept Christ, God’s Spirit immediately inhabits the Spirit of our bodies. There we are the image of Christ. So what’s the problem? We are made up of more than a Spirit, we are also made up of a soul which possesses the mind, will and emotions. This soul is the rational thinking man within us, the part the devil seeks to destroy. This part is not instantly holy and righteous, as it has to be allowed to be influenced by the Spirit man inside us.

Most of us don’t fully relinquish our minds to the Spirit of the Word of God. We hold on to its every thought, not knowing or being aware that many of the thoughts we hold on to are implanted there by the enemy. If the enemy can get us to dwell upon those thoughts, he is able to direct our word and actions. If we dwell upon those thoughts long enough, we become what we think as evidenced by the words that come from our mouth. Now the mouth has power to create, so what we speak out, is what we reap in our life. When we speak out our negative thoughts, we unknowingly invite the enemy into our lives to wreak havoc. The key to our overcoming the enemy is allow the spirit man within us to align our thoughts up with the Word of God. Our thoughts will then carry over to our words. When we speak the words of God, they will affect our soul and reach through us to the outside and affect our surroundings. Let me say this one more time – the spirit and the soul must be aligned for us to reap the benefits of our Salvation to the fullest and to be empowered to overcome the enemy seeking to kill, steal and destroy.

So what significance did Jesus have for us? When Jesus died upon the cross, we died with him. Just as Adam experience a spiritual separation from God, so Jesus experienced the same separation as God turned his face from Him. When Jesus was buried in the grave, we also were buried in the grave. Just as Adam experienced a physical death, Jesus also experienced the same kind of death. When Jesus went to hell for three days, He took upon Himself the penalty we would pay in the day of judgment. The good news though, is Jesus didn’t stay down for long. In three days, He was raised to the right hand of the throne, where the Bible says we also were raised and now sit.

So what does that mean to us? When we died and were raised with Jesus, we became a new man. That new man took on the image of Jesus in every way. The old person we were died to Him. That means we have the same power and authority Jesus has, but most of us fail to realize that because the enemy has made it his mission to ensure we never fully understand or receive that point. He blinds us with thoughts of inadequacy, fills our minds with lies, tells us what we can’t do, fills our minds with condemnation, fear, doubt and more. In this state, our faith is weakened. In the weakened state, we struggle to keep the enemy at bay. We must learn to silence the enemy the minute the onslaught of negative thoughts arise in our mind. Speak the promises of God out loud. As we do, we become what we speak, “for the mouth speaks out of the abundance of the heart”. Remember the heart is where the spirit and soul dwell.

This means that we are going to come into a confrontation; we are going to run into opposition of the devil when we live for God. The Bible tells us to fight the good fight of faith. We are living in the last days and the devil has intensified his power. As a result of seducing spirits, men are departing from the faith. God gave the faith of the gospel to be kept by us. He gave the doctrines of the gospel to be guarded by us. It’s easy to identify evil when it’s coming from a mosque, but it’s not so easy to identify the doctrine of devils when it is taught from a pulpit in the church.

The key point to remember is that the enemy has no power, except that which we give Him. He doesn’t want us to know that and as long as we stay blinded, he is empowered to bring havoc upon our lives. We are duped to believe that he has a god given right to operate the way he is operating.

So who is this enemy, where did he come from?

Let’s read Ezekial 28:13-19 and find out who it is we are fighting against and what the devil gains by lying? To get to the root of the answers to these questions, we must build our doctrines and thoughts upon the Word of God. So let’s see what God’s Word has to say…

“You have been in Eden, the garden of God; you were decked with every precious stone, the sardius, the topaz, and the emerald, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire and the pearls; and you have filled your treasuries with gold and your chests with precious stones; you had all of these things from the day you were created. You were with the anointed cherub that shelters; and I have set you on the holy mountain of God; and you were safe in the midst of the stones of fire. You were perfect in your ways, from the day that you were created till iniquity was found in you. By the multitude of your merchandise you have filled the land with iniquity and you have sinned; therefore I will cast you from this mountain of God; and I will destroy you, O sheltering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Since your heart was lifted up because of your beauty, now your wisdom and your beauty are corrupted; I will cast you to the ground before kings, that you may be a spectacle before them. By the multitude of your frauds, by the iniquity of your traffic, you have defiled your sanctuary; therfore I will bring forth a fire from the midst of you, and it shall devour you, and I will reduce you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all those who see you.”

Though the opinions of man vary as to who created the devil, the Bible is quite clear. GOD DID NOT CREATE SATAN!! God creates only that which is good. These verses tell us that God created a high, beautiful, brilliant, powerful, angelic being full of holiness, full of the nature that belongs to the people of God. The book of Job tells us that when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, Satan also came. It is pretty clear that Satan was not classified as a “son of God”, indicating that he had fallen from God’s grace. It is also clear in these verses, that God is putting the blame on the devil for being what the devil has become and done. God is exempt from and takes no responsibility for what His enemy has become.

Ezekial 28:14 tells us this cherub was perfect in all his ways. John 8:44 says that the devil did not continue to dwell in the truth. In the beginning, Lucifer was an angel of truth, but he did not continue in truth; he fell from the truth. That is why he so good at lying. He was perfect until iniquity was found in him. The next verse tells us that the devil was filled with violence and sinned. God has nothing to do with sin! In this holy place and in the holy angels, something happened to Lucifer to cause him to be filled with violence and to sin, for iniquity to be found in him. This verse tells us that it was because of the multitude of his merchandise. Evidently the enemy before he was the enemy had a high ranking place in the heavenly realm and was involved in some kind of trade/order giving. He was one of the three archangels of God. He had angelic hosts under his rulership and dominion (Rev 12:4). He’s an orator. Because of the abundance that he had, the Bible says he was filled with violence. He plotted to take spiritual, violent action against God and his angels for this reason. Obviously he was not satisfied with what he had and felt that what God had belonged to Him (Isaiah 14).

When Lucifer lifted his heart up and corrupted his wisdom, many things happened. Iniquity was found in him. He was filled with violence, and his heart was corrupted. The Bible further tells us that Lucifer defiled his own sanctuaries indicating there were many sanctuaries. For this to be, had had to be high ranking. How did he defile it? “By the multitudes of his iniquities of thy traffic”. Obviously, angels were going in and out of his sanctuaries, meetings were being held, sermons were probably being preached to get these angels to get involved with him and follow him to overthrow God. Up to now, God is not involved, but believe me judgment is justified. The fall of Lucifer did not come when God cast him out of heaven, it came when Satan’s heart went astray and became rebellious. When he fell, he fell from the purpose God created him for.

Knowing your enemy is a key to your successful walk with God. Changing your thought patterns by saturating your mind with the Word of God is your weapon. Be a doer and a hearer of the Word, and faithfully stand upon the promises of God, knowing you have the power and authority to overcome the wiles of the devil when your spirit, body and soul are aligned in the Word of God.

Tags: 1 Timothy 4, Adam, angel of truth, angels, battling for control of our souls, Bible, body, cherub, Christ, christians, Condemnation, corrupted wisdom, Devil, doctrines of devils, dominion, Doubt, Ezekial 28, fallen angels, Fear, fight of faith, God's grace, Gospel, Holy SPirit, iniquity, Isaiah 14, Lucifer, misleading spirits, orator, resurrection, Revelation 12, Satan, seducing spirits, Sin, soldier. battle, Soldiers for God, soul, Spirit, spiritual death, spiritual separation of God, the enemy the devil, Thoughts, unbelief, Word of God
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David and the Dwarf – A Study of David – Part 4

November 28, 2008

The most famous battle in the Old Testament was not fought between two armies, but between two people. It was the battle in the Valley of Elah between David and Goliath. Before however, we look at this battle, let’s look at something that occurred prior to that battle (1 Samuel 16:7) when the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as a man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

We are just like Samuel, looking at the surface appearance of a person when making judgment to what kind of person one is. If God’s statement ever applied, it applied in the story of this battle, as Goliath had all the things that would normally impress and intimidate. But don’t underestimate David. In this instance, David had been given the ability to see as God always sees, and was neither impressed or intimidated by the mountain of a man standing before him.

Now let’s take a look at the battleground (1 Samuel 17:1-3). The valley of Elah was not a narrow ravine, but more like a vast canyon. The area was probably about a mile wide, opening wider toward the mouth of the canyon. At the bottom of the ravine between the slopes, was the streambed where David found the stones for his sling. To one side there was a great slope a half mile or more in size, Opposite was another vast slope of another half mile, stretching a full mile across. Camped on one slope was the army of Israel and on the other, the army of the Philistines.

Now let’s consider the major players of this story. First, there was Goliath, whose size and appearance were so impressive that the Bible describes him in detail as (1 Samuel 17:4), “then a champion came out from the armies of the Philistines named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.” Goliath was somewhere near 9′ 9″ tall…an enormous man. But is wasn’t just his size.

1 Samuel 17:5-7 says that Goliath was wearing a coat of mail. Underneath was a heavy canvaslike undergarment interlaced with overlapping ringlets of bronze. This coat of mail went from shoulder to kneww, covering and protecting against the enemy’s weapons. Body armor of such material and size weighed five thousand shekels of bronze or between 175-200 pounds. That was the armor alone, but Goliath also wore a bronze helmet and leggings (greaves) to protect his shins, not to mention, he carrieda bronze javelin slung between his shoulders. The head of his spear alone weighed six hundred shekels of iron or about 20-25 pounds. The written account also says that he had a “shield carrier” who walked before him. This shield carrier was designed to protect his body from the enemy’s arrows and was the size of a full grown man. So in addition to the body armor, Goliath had a man running in front of him, carrying a man-size shield as double protection. Pause a moment and allow your mind to picture such an imposing sight. Imagine how frightening it would be to take on a giant of this size protected by this amount of armor. Clearly, the odds are stacked against anyone foolish enough to face him in battle.

Notice what this mountain of a giant did. 1 Samuel 17:8-9, “He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel and said to them, “Why do you come out to draw up in battle array? Am I not the Philistine and you servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves and let him come down to me. If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will become your servants but if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall become our servants and serve us.” What Goliath did was common in those days, that is, a representative battle, one-on-one fight. He would represent the Philistines and whoever Israel chose would represent the Israelite army. Whoever won, his army won. Goliath didnt issue the challenge one time, his challenge went on for forty days, both morning and evening. Each time, he flaunted his size and strength, spewing challenges to anyone who would take him on. Isn’t that how the giants of our circumstances and emotions attack us. They don’t just come once, they attack repeatedly and consistently day after day, relentlessly trying to intimidate. They come in all forms – people, pressures, worry, fear and more. Some hammer on your heart, some yelling across the ravine in your own personal valley. What are you to do? The story of David will set a pattern for us to follow, so let’s go back to where we left off and see what happened as the battle unfolds before our very eyes.

About 10-15 miles away, David is out keeping sheep. He’s too young to fight in the army. What did he know? David’s father, concerned about his three oldest sons who now fought in Saul’s army. Unable to make the trip for himself, Jesse sends David to check on them (1 Samuel 17:17-18). David arises early and sets out to do as his father had asked. Try to imagine what must have been going through David’s mind as he came over the top of the last rise and saw the enemy spread out below him. Then as he gets to the edge of the Israelite camp, he sees the troops heading out for battle and hears the war cry. You can tell he is excited and wants to watch, wouldn’t anyone?

(1 Samuel 17:22-23) Picture this for a moment… David is standing there talking to his three brothers, when all of a sudden he hears this loud cry from across the ravine. Suddenly everyone around him is rushing to the rear and climbing into their tents (1 Samuel 17:24)”. As he looks across the ravine, he sees Goliath fully girded in armor, cursing the God of Israel. He must have been livid. Can you imagine the thoughts running through his mind?

Unlike any other, David saw the present through seeing the hindsight and he wasn’t impressed or intimidated. 1 Samuel 17:26-27 tells us that David asks the men standing by him, what will be done for the man who kills Goliath and takes away the reproach of Israel? Remember, Saul had given the men an incentive for killing Goliath, but the problem was no one, but himself, was qualified to fight. Can you see Saul now? Standing head and shoulder above everybody else, he, their leader, cowers away, but not without a plan for someone else to do his dirty work.

The incentives were more than any one man could imagine, but I want you to notice something – Goliath’s position on this particular day. The Bible tells us that he stood shouting to the ranks of Israel, but look at what is said on the day David arrives, (1 Samuel 17:25), “have you seen this man who is coming up?” That’s right, Goliath has now crossed the ravine at the base of the vally and is coming up Israel’s side. You see, if you tolerate a Goliath, he’ll take over your territory. He’ll move into your camp. He’ll take over your thoughts that normally ought to be on God. That’s why you can’t affort to tolerate giants, you kill them.

Now let’s look at what happens next. It’s what Christians often go through during a time of standing by faith, they get flak and it often comes from members of their own family, in this case, David’s brother, Eliab (1 Samuel 27:28). Don’t forget who Eliab is – he is the son of Jesse who first walked into the house and Samuel thought was king. Eliab couldn’t have been too happy to see his younger brother chosen to be king, much less be blessed above him, the oldest. Taken that, he attacks David’s motives and proceeds to humiliate David. Now an average person probably would have punched his brother’s lights out, but instead David ignores him and continues his line of questioning. David knew who to fight and who to leave alone. Like David we need to choose our battles wisely. Know who your real enemy is.

When Saul hears about the questions David is asking and the comments he is making, he sends for David (1 Samuel 17:32-33). Now remember, King Saul is the guy who doesn’t want to fight, but he won’t admit it. Looking at this small puny child standing before him, he proceeds to tell David that he had bit off more than he could chew, but how many of you know that when God is on your side, size and experience play no role in successfully bringing down any giant.

David is not phased by Saul’s doubt. Before him, he sees no situation to huge for the Lord to deliver him from. David didn’t focus on the defeats and failures of his life, he looked at the successes that God had brought him through. Saul finally accepts David’s request and proceeds to prepare him for battle. Must have been a funny site to see Saul dressing little David in his armor. David, however is unable to handle the weapons made for Saul. What may have worked for Saul, in this case, wouldn’t have worked for David. Have you ever noticed how we always try to put our armor on someone else or put someone else’s armor on ourselves? That’s not the way to do battle. God provides each of us our own unique armor to overcome the battles of life.

So here’s David, stripped down to his own simple garments and armed with his own simple shepherd weapons – his sling and his staff – ready to do battle. The beautiful thing about this story is that it’s a perfect example of how God operates. He magnifies His name when we are weak. We don’t have to be eloquent, strong or handsome. We don’t have to be brilliant or have all the answers to be blessed of God. He honors our faith. All He asks is that we trust Him, stand before Him in integrity and faith, and He’ll win the battles. God is just waiting for his moment.

The odds were against David. After picking up the stones, he approaches the giant Philistine warrior with a smile (1 Samuel 17:41-46). Just imagine it – David stood before this mountain size rock of a man, unintimidated!

Intimidation is one of our major battles in life when we face the giants before us. We get tongue tied, confused and even forget to pray. We focus on the odds against us, forgetting who we represent, standing there with our knees knocking. David’s eyes weren’t on the giant. Intimidation played no part in his life, His eyes were on God. With invincible confidence, he turns the battle over to God. David lived by a very simple rule – “nothing to prove, nothing to lose”. He didn’t try to impress anyone, he just ran to meet Goliath. In the final moments, he readies his sling and with a whoosh, it’s all over. The stone flies through the air and lodges in the skull of the giant, and there he falls to his death. The Philistines didn’t wait around after that, their champion was dead. Out of this battle, the real truth emerged, evident to the troops on both sides of the valley – Goliath was the dwarf and David was the giant.

Winning victories is extremely significant. Remember them! God doesn’t waste victories. When He pulls something off that only He can do, He tells us to not forget them. Four lessons emerge from this battle between David and Goliath.

1) Facing giants is an intimidating experience. We can look at David’s bravery and victory with perfect hindsight, knowing that God is greater than any giant we face.

2) Doing battle is a lonely experience. No one can fight for you. It is on the lonely battlefield that you learn to trust God.

3) Trusting God is a stabilizing experience. David brought down Goliath with the first stone. His aim was true and didn’t miss the mark. He was stabilized by his trust in God. If you try to tackle your giants in the flesh, you cannot get it done; you’ll lose.

4) Winning victories is a memorable experience.

I dont know what your intimidating giant is today, but God is saying to you right now, “All I ask of you is five small stones and a sling of faith. I’ll take it from there. You don’t have to wear somebody else’s armor. You just trust Me and I’ll strip you down to nothing but faith, accomplishing a victory where I’ll get the glory. But as for you…trust Me.” It is God’s love for us that causes Him to bring us to an end of our own strength. He sees our need to trust Him and His love is so great that He will not let us live another day without turning over our arms to Him, our fears, our worries, even our confusion, so that nothing becomes more significant to us than our Father. Never, ever forget it: THE BATTLE IS THE LORDS!!!

Tags: 1 Samuel 16, 1 Samuel 17, Battleground, battling our giants, christians, David and Goliath, Eliab, Fear, giants, Intimidation, Israel, killing our giants, Old Testament, overcoming our giants, Philistines, Saul, The Battle is the Lords, Trust, Valley of Elah, Worry
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, prayer, Religion, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Soft Music for a Hard Heart – A Study of David – Part 3

November 26, 2008

Regardless of who we are, music seems to be the very thing that soothes the soul. Music dates back to the times of Jubal (Genesis 4:21) and is spoken of throughout the book of Psalms.

The Bible says that “the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and an evil spirit from the Lord terrorized him (1 Samuel 16:14-15)”. The Bible doesn’t tell us why God allowed the evil spirit to terrorize Saul, but we can assume that God wasn’t too pleased that he had walked against His will. Can you imagine Saul’s struggle? Saul only struggled with an inward feeling of depression at the rejection announced to him, but he felt melancholy, insane and without peace. The evil spirit stirred up feelings, ideas, imaginations, and thoughts within his soul that drove him to the point of madness. No one around Saul knew what was happening within Saul’s soul, but they realized he needed help and boldly suggested that to him (1 Samuel 16:16-17).

In Biblical times, music was thought to soothe passions, heal mental diseases and even hold riots in check. It is interesting how God used these beliefs to set the stage for David. Someone happens to hear that Saul is looking for a musician and the door now opens for David to come on scene (1 Samuel 16:18). Wow! what a resume! This verse describes David as a skillful musician, a mighty man of valor, a warrior, prudent at speech, handsome and the Lord was with him.

David didn’t know it, but he was getting ready to enter boot camp on the road to becoming a king. David had to be all God said he was as he never once pulled rank on Saul, never one became jealous or envious of the king’s position, he was truly anointed to let the Lord open all the doors to his future. David was a man after God’s own heart. When David walked into the king’s presence, Saul had no idea that he would someday replace him on the throne. David did what God had called him to do. With a servant’s heart, he tended to Saul, becoming his armor bearer. The Bible tells us that Saul came to love David because “it came about whenever the evil spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the harp and play it with his hands; and Saul would be refreshed and be well, and the evil spirit would depart from him (1 Samuel 16:23)”. Can you picture Saul lying on his bed or pacing like a caged animal, writhing from the madness raging within him and there in the corner David sits playing his harp, maybe even singing?

God was definitely with David whose music would not only soothe the soul of a king, but would someday fill the pages of Scripture in the written Word. The king not only found relief from his torment, but he found love in his heart for the young shepherd boy whose music touched his soul.

Like David, a spirit filled saint is a song-filled saint. God’s antenna is always attuned to the praises of his saints. Never mind how beautiful or pitiful you may sound. Sing out! Sing Loud!, making melodies with your heart to the King of Kings, the Lord your God. If you listen closely, you may even hear the angelic hosts answering back.

Soft music for a hard heart is what David provided Saul. That’s the soul music that Christ provides and that’s the place we must begin. He died, was buried, rose from the dead and was resurrected that we may have life and a desire to live a positive, fulfilling life free from depression and despair. He is our Shepherd and we are his sheep, needing the music of His Voice. We can rejoice and exult in God together.

Tags: 1 Samuel 16, a man after God's own heart, Angelic hosts, David, Depression, insanity, King, King David, mental disease, Music soothes the soul, musician, Praise, Psalms, rejoicing in God, Saul, Shepherd boy, spirit filled saints, Spirit of the Lord
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A Nobody, Nobody Noticed – A Study of David – Part 2

November 25, 2008

Who was this man Saul? What did the people see in him? This Saul was a real piece of work. Shortly after becoming king, the people would see the real person Saul was inside. His actions and decisions soon revealed that he was a selfish, angry, hateful, mean-spirited man. Later in his rule, something snapped in his mind. He lost touch with reality, proving himself unqualified for the throne. So what happened?

Not long after Saul began his reign, Samuel caught him in three serious acts of disobedience: first Saul made a terrible decision (1 Samuel 13); then he made a rash vow against his own son (1 Samuel 14); and finally, he openly disobeyed God (1 Samuel 15). Samuel confronts Saul and much to his dismay, Saul tries to rationalize his actions, later pleading his guilt. Saul in attempts to maintain his image before the people, begs Samuel to return with him to worship the Lord. Samuel not buying it for a minute, delivers a straight-from-the-shoulder jab that Saul would never forget (1 Samuel 15:26-30). Though Samuel finally agreed to return with Saul, he never saw him again after this (1 Samuel 15:35). The tragedy is Saul never, ever fully repented of his sin.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though. Samuel is beginning to feel the pressure. The people have elected Saul, but he is no longer qualified for the throne. What were the people to do? Israel was surrounded by enemies, so they needed someone to lead the nation, but who? No one knew but God. How many of you know that long before the problem arises, God is already behind the scenes working it out. Just because man fails, changes, or dies, does not mean that God fails, changes or dies. Isaiah 65:24 tells us that before we call, He will answer, and while we are speaking, He will hear. Nothing is a surprise to God. He knows exactly what He’s going to do and nothing we do can restrain His bringing it to pass.

In 1 Samuel 16:1, God tells Samuel to go to Bethlehem to find the man He had chosen to replace Saul. Unfortunately, Samuel in his shaken state, had taken his eyes off God and now appears to be panic-stricken as he realizes he is to return to the very place where the murderous Saul lived. Without answering Samuel’s question, God tells Samuel what to do (1 Samuel 16:2-3). What of David? David knows nothing of God’s plan. For him, it was just like any other morning. Little did he know that his life would never be the same again, but the beautiful thing about this adventure called faith is that we can count on Him never to lead us astray. God knows exactly where He is taking us. Our only job is to obey, to live in close fellowship with God as we walk our earthly path. In the process of that simple arrangement, God engages us in His eternal plan. So what happens next?

1 Samuel 16:4 tells us Samuel did what the Lord said. Samuel takes the sacrifice to the house of Jesse. The elders of the city see the prophet approaching and go to greet him in fear, their minds wondering why he has come. In preparation of what was to come, Jesse and his sons are instructed to consecrate themselves in preparation of the sacrifice. Unaware of why Samuel was there, Jesse and his sons gather together before the prophet, each of them looking at him and he looking at them. As he looked upon them, he must have wondered which of the sons would be chosen, as each looked fit for the throne. The Lord tells Samuel to not judge the appearance of these men from the outside as mere mortal do, for all these before him were rejected. God tells him that it is the heart of the man that He uses to judge each man’s worthiness. Unfortunately, we do not have the ability to see into a man’s heart and know what is there, so we have to look to Him to give us, with our limited focus, that kind of discernment.

Isn’t it ironic that Jesse didn’t even have his youngest son in the room. Why not? Like most parents, Jesse reveals two very common mistakes parents make. First, Jesse didn’t have an equal appreciation for all his children and second, he failed to cultivate a mutual self respect among them. Jesse saw his youngest as nothing more than the one who tended the sheep. Man forgets…God remembers. You see, Samuel, with God’s help, now has the proper perspective and instructs Jesse to bring his youngest son to him. Oh, how important it is to see beyond the obvious. That’s the kind of vision that Samuel, with God’s help, finally demonstrates at this point. Now, remember David is out tending his father’s sheep when he is called to come before the prophet. Can you imagine how he looked and smelled as the prophet hobbles to him and pours the oil upon his head? What did David do afterwards? Humbly, David returns to his flock.

When you have a heart like David’s, that’s what you do. It made no difference that Samuel had anointed his head with oil. He made no big to do about it. He expected no special treatment. He had a job and he was going to faithfully do it, always keeping his ear sensitive to the whisper of God’s voice.

There are three lessons to learn from this study.

First, God’s solutions are often strange and simple, so be open. God is not complexed or complicated. Stay open to His strange yet simple solutions.

Second, God’s promotions are usually sudden and surprising, so be ready. When you least expect it, it will come. God watches you as you faithfully carry out your tasks and will call you at a moment to carry out a job.

Third, God’s selections are always sovereign and sure, so be sensitive.

If you and I had been Jews living in the year 1020 BC, the same could have happened. All of our attention would have been focused upon a man named Saul, the first king of Israel. He was the focal point of the Jewish world at that time. He was taking the country by storm. Meanwhile, a “nobody” was keeping the sheep for his father on the Judean hillsides near the hamlet of Bethlehem. A little boy named David whom nobody noticed..except God.

Tags: 1 Samuel, anger, David, disobedience, God, hate, Isaiah 65, Jesse, King David, meanspirited, Samuel, Saul, Selfishness
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, prayer, Religion, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

God’s Heart, God’s Man, God’s Ways – The Study of David – Part 1

November 24, 2008

David is the only one in all of Scripture to be called “a man after God’s own heart”. His name is mentioned more than any other Old Testament character in the pages of the New Testament. As a poet, musician, courageous warrior, and national statesment, David distinguished himself as one of God’s greatest men. In battle, he modeled invincible confidence. In decisions, he judged with wisdom and equity. In loneliness, he wrote with transparent vulnerability and quiet trust. In friendship, he was loyal to the end. Whether a humble shepherd boy or an obscure musician before King Saul, he remained faithful and trustworthy. Even in his promotion to the highest position in the land, David modeled integrity and humility. What a man of God! But, as we shall see, David (like us) was anything but perfect. Having earned the public’s trust and respect, he forfeits it all a brief season of sensual pleasure. Then, as the consequences kick in, we discover another side of the man’s makeup – lustfulness as a husband, weakness as a father, and partiality as a leader. It’s all there, written for all to learn, preserved for all to remember. A great man, though far from perfect, nevertheless lived a life with strength worth emulating. Since our world is desperately in need of models worth following, here is one deserving of our time and attention: David, a man of passion and destiny.

Over the next few weeks, we will study David’s life within the pages of God’s Word. There the true man will be revealed. Let’s begin.

On the surface there seemed to be nothing about David that would have impressed. David looked like any other Jewish boy. Though the Bible describes David in 1 Samuel 16:12 as ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features, nothing about his outward appearance seemed to set him apart in any way. How many of you know that the Lord did not look at the things men looked at, when choosing His man, David? To man, David was but a mere shepherd and young at that. Not even his Father, Jesse, thought of David as the Bible tells us that even after seven of Jesse’s sons had passed before Samuel, he still asked, “Are these all the sons you have?” Can you picture this scene, as Jesse stood scratching his head when he suddenly remembers that there is still one sons remaining? With that being said, Samuel requests David’s presence and suddenly a young nobody becomes a somebody, but before we get to David the king of Israel, we need to go back about forty years and get a sense of history and background, so we can appreciate the world he which he lived.

David lived during a time when the people’s hearts had drifted far from God. Eli and his wicked were gone. Eli’s chosen successor, Samuel, the last of God’s judges, old in years, appoints his sons as judges over Israel. What a mistake! The Bible tells us in 1 Samuel 8:1-3 that his sons did not walk as their father, turning aside after dishonest gain, taking bribes and perversing justice. Disillusioned, desperate and wanting to be like their neighbors, the people demand a king (1 Samuel 8:5-8). How many of your know that wanting to be like everyone else isn’t always the best thing.

Grieved by the people’s demand, Samuel takes it God in prayer and He gives them exactly what they wanted, but not without a warning. Stubbornly they listen and against God’s desires they select a king. The man they chose was Saul. The Bible describes him as tall, dark, and handsome man. He comes on the scene mightily, sweeping the people off their feet. In the beginning stages of his reign, Saul was a humble man, with the ability to rally the people around any cause. But guess what happened? Before long, Saul became thin skinned, hot tempered and given to seasons of depression. So much for the man who was suppose to be the people’s choice.

David was born ten years after Saul became king. Wow, what a time to be born! The people’s hearts had drifted away from God and to make matters worse, they were now disillusioned with the leader they had chosen. What were they to do with the king they had chosen now that he wasn’t walking with God? Can you imagine what they were feeling? Yet, God in love, doesn’t abandon them. Through Samuel, He intervenes. The Bible tells us (1 Samuel 13:13-14) that Samuel confronts Saul about it and tells him that God has appointed a new king who is a man after His own heart.

Have you ever asked yourself what kind of people does God choose to use? To determine that we need to look first at 1 Corinthians 1. This passage tells us that God also has chosen the world’s insignificant and despised people and nobodies in order to bring to nothing those who amount to something, so that nobody may boast in the presence of God (1 Corinthians 1:28-29). That’s a principle we tend to forget. When we look for people to admire, we usually choose them because of the they do to dazzle us. We want the best and the brightest, but that’s not the way God makes His choices. When God scans the earth for potential leaders, He is searching for men and women like you and me, and like David. So what did He see in David, what qualities did this mere man have that caught God’s eye?

The first quality God saw in David was spirituality. The Bible says that the sought our a man after His own heart. What does that mean? It seems to me that this is telling us that God wanted someone whose life was in harmony with God. When you are deeply spiritual, your heart is sensitive to the things of God (2 Chronicles 16:9). What is God looking for? He is looking for a person whose heart is completely His, meaning there are no lock doors, nothing swept under the rug.

The second quality God saw in David was humility. God saw David’s heart and knew that it completely belonged to Him. David had a servant’s heart, the very thing God was looking for. God didn’t want a person with a slick public image. He wanted a man with character, humble and willing enough to assume His divine character. He didn’t need a man with charisma, size or even an impressive track record. He wanted a person whose heart was spiritually walking with him in humility. When you have a servant’s heart, you’re humble. You do what you are told. You don’t rebel, respecting those appointed over you. A servant doesn’t care who gets the glory. Their goal is to make the person he serves look better, ensuring they don’t fail. Isnt that exactly how David was?

The third quality David had was integrity (Psalm 78:71-72). God is not looking for magnificent specimens of humanity. He is looking for deeply spiritual, genuinely humble and honest to the core servants who have integrity. Integrity is what you are when nobody’s looking. It means bone deep honest.

How did God train David for the leadership role? His training ground was lonely, obscure, monotonous, and real. First God trained David in solitude. He needed to learn life’s major lessons alone before he could be trusted with responsibilities and rewards before the public. Solitude has nurturing qualities all its own. Second, David grew up in obscurity. Men and women of God, servant leaders in the making are first unknown, unseen, unappreciated and unapplauded. In the relentless demands of obscurity, character is built. Those who first accept the silence of obscurity are best qualified to handle the applause of popularity. The third training ground is monotony. That’s being faithful in the menial, insignificant, routine, regular, unexciting, uneventful, daily tasks of life. Life without a break…without the wine and roses, just dull and plain. The fourth training ground is reality. Up until now you might have the feeling that despite the solitude, obscurity and monotony, David was just sitting out on some hilltop in a mystical haze, composing a great piece of music or relaxing in the pastures. That is the farthest thing from the truth. In 1 Samuel 17:34-35, David is standing by Saul, as the great giant Goliath spews his challenges to the Israel Army. Remember Saul, that great big, tall guy? Here he stands shaking in his boots and hiding from Goliath. Without a moment of hesitation, David responds to Goliath’s threat. Where did he get the courage? He learned it during the times he was all alone with God. From David’s perspective, if he overcame the strength of a bear and lion, Goliath would be of no greater challenge as long as God was with Him.

There are so many things we can learn from David’s life. First, it’s in the little things and in the lonely places that we prove ourselves capable of the big things. To become a person with a large vision, you must cultivate the habit of doing the small things well. The test of your life is how well you do when there’s nobody to check on you, when nobody is looking. Second, when God develops our inner qualities, He’s never in a hurry. The conversion of a soul is the miracle of a moment, the manufacture of a saint is the task of a lifetime. When God develops character, He works on it throughout a life time. He’s never in a hurry.

Tags: 1 Corinthians, 1 Samuel 13, 1 Samuel 16:12, 1 Samuel 17, 1 Samuel 8, a man after God's own heart, Bible, courageous warrior, David, Depression, Eli, equity, Faithful, friendship, Goliath, hot tempered, humility, integrity, invicible confidence. quiet trust, Jesse's son, King of Israel, King Saul, loneliness, Lord, loyal, musician, New Testament, obscurity, Old Testament, poet, prayer, Psalm 78, public trust, reality, Samuel, Saul, scripture, Spirituality, trustworthy, Wisdom
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6 Ways to Pray

November 23, 2008

1. Aspirations. A strong aspiration and desire to pray will create the proper climate for effective intercession. (2 Corithians 7:7, Matthew 5:6)

2. Fervency. Fervency changed Elijah’s situation, suspended natural laws, and brought about supernatural miracles through prayer. (James 5:16-18)

3. Perseverance. On some items, there will be instant results as we pray, while answers for other requests might take time. However, Scripture talks about persevering and enduring until the answer comes, learning to add patience to our faith. (Ephesians 6:18, Hebrews 6:12)

4. Intercession. Addresses the pray-er needs, assists in intercession for other. True pray-ers know the importance of standing in the gap between God and others until the result comes.

5. Praying in tongues. (Jude 20 Amp, Ephesians 6:18)

6. Choose a comfortable posture: Kneeling, sitting, standing, prostrating

Tags: aspiration, Elijah, enduring, Faith, fervency, Intercession, Miracles, patience, Perseverance, prayer posture, praying in tongues, scripture
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, prayer, Religion, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Six Kinds of Prayer

November 22, 2008

1) Intercession is standing in the gap to reconcile a supplier with the needy. It is learning to bear up people, places, or situations in prayer. (Isaiah 59:16)

2) Faith. The prayer of faith is asking God to intervene in a situation. It is urgent and therefore comes up when an immediate result is desired (James 5:15)

3) Consecration. The prayer of consecration is offered when the believer needs to know or do the will of God. At such times, the expressions “if it be thy will” or “let they will be done” become appropriate (Matthew 26:39)

4) Petition. The prayer of petition is often called supplication in Scripture. It gives the believer the opportunity to petition God until the answer comes. While the prayer of faith is prayed once and requires immediate response, the prayer of petition may be presented several times, either an oral or written request (1 Timothy 2:1-4)

5) Praise. Praise if a form of prayer. It is praising the supplier without focusing on the need (Jeremiah 32:17)

6) Agreement. When at least two or three people band together in the name of Jesus to request a thing from God, God promises to grant it. The power of this prayer is in the quality of agreement and the strength of unity among those who are praying (Matthew 18:19-20)

Tags: Agreement, consecration, Faith, God, Intercession, power of prayer, Praise, prayer, prayer of faith, Prayer of petition, praying, scripture, strength of unity, supplication
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Eternal Communion – The Ark of the Covenant – Prayer – Conclusion

November 21, 2008

Let’s look more closely at the ark. Instead of focusing on its construction, I would like to talk about what it symbolizes in being a third dimension intercessor. I believe, the ark represents the human heart – the deepest, most intimate part of who you are, and the place where the glory of God can take up residence and transform everything around you.

As with all the other elements in the tabernacle and its furniture, God gave specific instructions to Moses for the construction of the ark of the covenant. Exodus 25:10-16 says, “They shall make an ark of acacia wood: two and half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. You shall overlay the ark with pure gold, inside and out, and make a gold crown, a rim or border, around its top. You shall cast four golden rings and attach them to the four corners of it, two rings on either side. You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. And put the poles through the rings on the ark’s sides, by which to carry it. The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be removed from it [that the ark be not touched]. And you shall put inside the ark the Testimony [the Ten Commandments] which I will give you”

Foreknowing that a believer’s body would ultimately house the Holy Spirit, God demonstrated that He didn’t need to create something to house an enormous seat of power. Remember, the human heart is so powerful that it forms, develops, and starts beating in a fetus before the brain develops. It’s the organ in your body that doesn’t have to obey the brain. In fact, the heart keeps beating long after the brain is dead. Interesting thing, the measurements of the cherubim on the mercy seat are similar to the measurements of the human chest cavity. Your heart – the head of your temple – can hold tremendous power, which is imparted directly from heaven in third dimensional, threshing floor prayer.

The ark was overlaid with solid gold on the inside and outside, which represents the perfected union of God and man. Let’s look quickly at the three elements that were placed within the ark:

1) The testimonial tablets (Exodus 24:12) which represents the perfected Word of God manifested in your life.

2) Aaron’s rod which budded as a symbol against rebellion to God-given authority (Numbers 17:8-10)

3) An omer of manna which represents supernatural provision and freedom from bondage (Exodus 16:32-34)

When these three elements were maintained inside the ark, it housed the glory of God. Without them present, the ark became just another empty gold box. When the testimonial tablets were missing, the “empty” ark could not be kept in the tabernacle. Do you see what God is telling you? We must also come to understand that in order for us to walk in the perfected power of God, these same elements must be present and remain:

1. There must be a manifestation of the Word, not just sitting in my heart, but operative in my everyday lifestyle. My life must come to a place where I am no longer failing every test and being defeated on every hand. I must have testimonies.

2. Just like Aaron’s rod budding, I must be able to not just stand against that which rebels against God, but in everything I am, I must come to a place that whatever decision God makes for me, my answer is, “Yes, Lord, Thy will be done”. I must be willing and obedient to His every command, and Aarons budding rod is there to remind me that if I choose at any given time to walk in rebellion, I will end up walking out a penalty.

3. My omer of manna represents the fact that I have come to trust the Lord, not the man, for everything I need…therefore freeing me from the bondage of worry and fear. My experience during my time in the wilderness brought me to a place where I know without a shadow of a doubt that my God will supply all of my needs according to His riches in glory, therefore freeing me from leaning on the arms of flesh.

If your heart is not perfected through the process of these elements, you will not be able to come into the most holy place of His glory! An empty heart can not dwell in the secret place. Let’s review. The work of the sacrifices is done in the outer court, and the holy place contains the workings of the sanctuary. But when you pass through the veil into the most holy place, the work of the flesh ceases and the work of the heart of God begins. It is there that you will begin to see what God is doing, over and above hearing His voice. Every time God is preparing to do something that is going to change the course of your life and surroundings, He will show it to you before hand. This is why some things cannot be spoken, because the devil would try to take them. Satan will come along and give you another “word” to confuse your sense of direction – but on this level it becomes a little more difficult for him to confuse your vision. He can’t tell you what you didn’t see in the depths of your spirit man.

One of the best ways to recognize a true vision from God is that it should not make any sense to your natural mind. It should look like something you couldn’t possibly do. It’s too big for your mind to handle. It costs too much… it would be impossible to accomplish. It’s not your level or grade in the Spirit. If a vision doesn’t scare your flesh to death, then it most likely didn’t come from God. It should be so awesome that it should look as if you don’t have what it takes to walk out this vision, nevertheless, your spirit says, “I’m going to do it anyway.”

Have you ever seen people praising God and then just fall to the floor without anyone touching them? When you tap into the third realm, your body automatically yields into a prostrate position under the weight of His glory. Something inside is helping you to understand that you are in the presence of the Spirit whom you are not worthy to see. When you encounter the glory of this realm, the flesh profits nothing. Your spirit can only commune with the Spirit of the Lord as you lie prostrate at His feet. The more you come to God with a pure heart, the more He will take you to new levels and fresh, exciting experiences through your walk of prayer. If you are ready to find God beyond religion, denominationalism or anything you have ever experienced – He is calling for you. Let God lead you through His patter of prayer all the way into His presence behind the veil…because that’s where the impossible is not only the possible – it becomes reality.

Tags: Aaron's rod, Ark of the Covenant, behind the veil, crown, Devil, Flesh, God, God given authority, Holy place, Holy SPirit, human heart, Intercession, Moses, MOst Holy Place, obedience, omer of manna, power of God, rebellion, Satan, supernatual provision, Tabernacle, Temple, Ten Commandments, testimonial tablets, Testimony, third dimension intercession, Threshing Floor, threshing floor prayer, vision, Word of God
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The Power of Intercession – Entering the Most Holy Place – Prayer – Part 14

November 17, 2008

You are about to enter into the most sacred part of the tabernacle. Before God will allow you to operate in the faith that brings results through effectual prayer and intercession, there are foundational requirements for every intercessor that you must satisfy in your life. Now let’s look straight ahead at the divine entrance through the veil. There you will see the golden altar of incense. Because the golden altar of incense was centered in the tabernacle structure, it was the nearest piece of furniture to the divine presence of God behind the veil. It represented the heart of the tabernacle service. Anyone could come into the outer court and wash at the brazen laver before sacrificing at the brazen altar, but only the lower priests and the high priest were allowed to serve in the holy place amidst the table of shewbread, the golden candlestick and the golden altar. And only the high priest could enter into the most holy place.

God administers a tremendous warning in Scripture to those who are not spiritually qualified to minister in intercession and prayer. We must carefully guard against mixing the wrong ingredients into worship. The sacred ingredients of the holy incense were carefully measured in the right quantity and blended together according to the instruction of the Lord before they were beaten into the fine powder. When this holy mixture was sprinkled onto the hot coals in the golden altar, it released a sweet fragrance into the atmosphere that permeated the entire holy place.

When you are a true intercessor – a believer who prays, intercedes, and worships at home, at work, in church or wherever you may be, anyone who comes into your presence should be able to feel the presence of God upon you. There should be a sweet odor of prayer and worship wherever you go.

In 2 Chronicles 26, we find the story of King Uzziah. As an intercessor, it is important that you understand the nature of this king, for he defied the law of God concerning the altar of incense. In the early years of his reign, King Uzziah had a relationship with God. He began his reign correctly under the spiritual covering of the prophet Zechariah. In his early years, King Uzziah yearned for and sought after the Lord, and God prospered him. Then his situation started to turn. Uzziah was able to defeat many of the cities of Israel’s enemy the Philistines. God helped him to be successful and his fame spread abroad. He developed an extremely strong and capable combat army of more than three hundred thousand men. He became famous throughout the land, but King Uzziah went from being classified as a person who sought after and yearned for the Lord to becoming a famous man known for his great success. As his fame became widespread, he began to trust in the strength of his own abilities. This attitude is extremely dangerous. When pride and arrogance takes over, a haughty spirit follows close behind – which means this person won’t receive correction. King Uzziah stormed by the brazen laver, ignored the brazen altar and went straight to the holy place. He ignored the table of shewbread and the golden candlestick, which means that he gave no recognition to the Word of God or to the Holy Spirit. His life was no longer beaten and pressed out. Pride entered in, and the workings of the flesh were fully manifested in him. Disregarding his degraded spiritual condition, he went inside the holy place straight to the golden altar of incense. Look what started to play out in verses 17-20. You will not get any credit in heaven for entering into the presence of God illegally. The true sign of a person who has ignored the prerequisites God established for a true intercessor is this: when correction comes, that person becomes angry and that’s a dangerous place to be with God.

An intercessor starts out seeking God and going forth in Him. That happens long before anyone recognizes the anointing on that person’s life. Before anyone recognizes your talents or giftings, you begin on your face seeking after God. You yearn after God, panting after Him, but something happens when the fame of becoming an intercessor gets out, and people see the anointing of God on your life. They begin to seek you out. When that happens, you must be careful not to step over into pride and lose credit with God.

As an intercessor, it is essential that you understand the power of the golden altar of incense. It must not be disregarded or mishandled. We must spend quality time at the golden altar to achieve the right mixture of prayers, intercession and worship before God. We cannot rush into the holy place and expect instant anointing to be given to us on our terms! Each ingredient in the holy incense undergoes a specific process before it is ready to be added to the incense mixture in a specific amount. For the anointing to be authentic, it must be God’s mixture.

Tags: 2 Chronicles 26, Arrogance, Brazen Altar, Brazen Laver, effectual prayer, Faith, golden altar of incense, golden candlestick, haughty spirit, high priest, Holy place, Intercession, MOst Holy Place, prayer, pride, Relationship with God, scripture, spiritual covering, Tabernacle, Table of Shewbread, true intercession, Uzziah, Word of God, Worship
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The Golden Altar of Incense – Prayer – Part 13

November 16, 2008

This third and central piece of furniture in the holy place is the only element capable of ushering you into the divine presence of God. Now you are ready to experience the power of intercession.

Let’s study the definition of the word intercession. The prefix inter- means, “between, among, mutually, reciprocally”. The word cession is defined as “the act of ceding”. To cede means “to yield or formally surrender to another, to grant or transfer as by will [meaning the will of God].” When you become an intercessor, you “stand between and among, you intermarry, you interweave on behalf of another person”. You actually stand between what a person needs and his/her answer from God. While you are standing there, you act as the point of contact that causes Satan to yield or surrender to the will of God. You act as one who grants or transfers according to God;s will. When you become an intercessor, you stand in the gap for somebody else, and you don’t come out of that place until the enemy has fully surrendered that ground and given up that territory to you.

The word intercession is defined as, “an act or instance of interceding, an interposing or pleading on behalf of another person, a prayer to God on behalf of another”. Another meaning for intercession is to impinge, which means, “to encroach, infringe, to impinge on another’s rights, to strike, to collide, to light; have an effect, ideas that impinge upon or affect the imagination”. Your prayers infringe upon the enemy; they strike and begin to collide with the enemy. This makes an eternal impression and a powerful effect against the workings of Satan.

Another root word, encroach, means “to advance beyond established or proper limits, making gradual inroads to trespass upon the property, domain or rights of another, especially gradually or stealthily.” This means that when I begin to intercede and pray on someone’s behalf, I advance beyond the established proper limits. The enemy thinks that it is proper (perfectly understandable and something he expects us to do) for believers to pray from the outer court. To do so simply tells him that we accept what he is trying to do. When we go beyond the outer court into the holy place and then behind the veil to our final position in the presence of the Lord, Satan’s works are no longer acceptable to us.

Another root word is importunity, which means “an importunate solicitation or demand”. To be importune means “to urge or press with excessive persistence, to trouble, to annoy, to make urgent or persistent solicitations”. When you are a true intercessor, you pray without ceasing – at all times.

Now you are ready to pray in the third realm. As you stand at the golden altar of incense, you are just one step away from a threshing floor experience. In Exodus 30:1-11, God gave Moses instructions concerning the altar of incense. There was a significant difference between the construction of the golden altar of incense and the brazen altar. The brazen altar was made from bronze and wood, but the golden altar was made from shittim wood and overlaid with gold. One of the most notable qualities about the golden altar was that that it was positioned in the center, so it sat in the heart of the holy place. This correlates to intercession being the heart of God. Whatever comes from the golden altar must come from you heart. The condition of your heart can also hinder you from having an intimate relationship with God.

The purpose of the golden altar was threefold: prayer, intercession and worship. The fire on the golden altar was never suppose to go out. After both altars were lit supernaturally, the priests kept the fires burning continually, taking coals off the brazen altar daily and using them to keep the fire kindled at the golden altar, representing that the fire in our worship, intercession and prayer – though it is rekindled by our ongoing sacrifice - must come directly from God. It also represents who Jesus Christ is for us – and who we must become for others.

Like the table of shewbread, the golden altar was also made of shittim wood overlaid with gold. Here again we see a blending of humanity with the deity of God. The brazen altar, which was structured of shittim wood overlaid with bronze, had limitations because the covering wasn’t pure gold. If you spiritually embrace only the brazen altar, you will be limited to that level of an experience with God, one based on the limitations of humanity. But if you embrace the golden altar which was constructed of wood overlaid with gold (symbolizing the deity of God), your prayers, intercession and worship will be strengthened by the supernatural deity of God.

The golden altar was constructed to be three fee in height which corresponded to the height of the ark of the covenant. In practice, this means that when you worship at the golden altar, that piece of furniture brings you to the level where you can commune with God according to His divine pattern.

The holy incense that burned continually upon the coals of the golden altar was made up of several ingredients. This divine mixture of “pure and holy” ingredients symbolized our prayers, intercession and worship – ignited by our sacrifice – giving us entrance into the third realm, the divine presence and revelation of God, behind the veil from the mercy seat.

There were four ingredients used to create the holy incense (Exodus 30:34-35).

The first spice in the holy incense was stacte, a resin that would ooze spontaneously out of the storax tree. By revelation, I believe this means that our prayers, worship, and intercession must not be programmed. They must emerge spontaneously at the direction of the Spirit of God. Stacte must be a part of your prayers, intercession and worship because God needs for you to be instantly obedient to His voice and promptings.

The second spice that was part of the holy incense was onycha which was extracted from the shellfish that lived in the depths of the Red Sea. The revelation of this means you must have depth in your worship. Your level of prayers, intercession, and worship unto God must come from a depth in the Spirit. You must be able to leave the surface of what has already been done to tap into a realm of new experiences that flow from the heartbeat of God. The onycha anointing also means that God will require you to think more deeply about prayers you pray than to constantly repeat Jesus’ model prayer (Matthew 6:9-13). When you are in front of the golden altar of incense, the deep things of the Spirit of God will call forth the deep that is within you (Psalm 42:7).

The third spice was galbanum, a pungent resin that could only be acquired by breaking or splitting the branch of a tree. The word pungent means, “affecting the organs of taste or smell with a sharp acrid sensation”. In other words, it was a bitter ingredient, not all pleasant to the senses. As an intercessor, there will be times when you go through galbanum experiences. Yet during difficult seasons and manifestations, you must come to a place where you can declare, “though I am having a bitter experience, I’m still going to stay in position of prayer, intercession and worship.” As you serve at the golden altar of incense, God will begin to train you in order to help you understand that everything in your life is not always going to run smoothly. But in the midst of these galbanum experiences, you must learn how to keep offering up prayers, intercession, and worship unto God from a deep place in your spirit.

The fourth and final spice that was added to the holy incense was frankincense, a resin that was collected early in the morning from the Boswellia tree (Psalm 63:1-2). When you seek the Lord from the ingredient of frankincense, you are seeking Him early – which doesn’t necessarily mean a time of day. This precious resin is collected early in the morning because it readily flows out at that time. You must seek God early in the morning. In the holy place, it becomes your way of life to seek Him early. When you do this, there will always be a ready flow of His Spirit. You will have a consistent flow of His anointing.

After blending the four elements together, one final element was used to temper them all (Exodus 30:35), salt. The Bible says we are the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13). You are the key element that brings it all together at the golden altar. You have to make prayer, intercession and worship a personal priority. You have to invest yourself into this divine process completely.

At this point you are just a heartbeat away from a threshing floor experience behind the veil.

Tags: behind the veil, Bible, Boswellia Tree, Brazen Altar, divine presence of GOd, Exodus 30, frankincense, galbanum, God, golden altar, golden altar of incense, Holy place, Intercession, intercessor, onycha, position of prayer, Red Sea, salt, Satan, seeking God early, Shittim, Spirit of God, stacte, Surrendering your will to God, threshing floor experience
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The Golden Candlestick (The Holy Place) – Prayer – Part 13

November 16, 2008

The golden candlestick or menorah (Exodus 25:31-40) represents light and illumination, so it symbolizes divine understanding of the Word, the next level of insight and revelation where Word and Spirit are one. At this point, you are becoming able to see and apply the Word whenever and wherever it is needed.

The menorah was made of solid gold. There was no wood in this piece of furniture and there were no measurements given. Since there was no wood, humanity wasn’t represented in the candlestick. The function of the candlestick and what it symbolized has nothing to do with humanity.

In studying Jewish culture, it is said that when God instructed Moses to make the menorah, Moses lamented because the dimensions, details, and curves of the candlestick were impossible for him to envision. So God showed him a menorah of fire and eventually instructed him to throw the stem into the fire from which the completed menorah emerged. Moses didn’t have the tools to create the menorah according to God’s specification, so God formed it supernaturally. This leaves us with the understanding that when you embrace the menorah, you have come to the place where God begins to perform everything He reveals to you in prayer. You receive the illumination and God does the work. This means there are no limitations as you embrace the element. You have access to the mind of the Spirit and are able to discern the deep things of God.

The menorah had a stem (representing God) and six branches (representing the number of man, the church, which was born out of Him) (John 15:5). The golden candlestick helps us to see that Jesus is the vine (stem) and we are the branches (six candles) coming out of Him (John 15:6). An intercessor who disconnects from the vine goes back to the outer court. By illumination of the candlestick, the only thing you are going to ask for in intercession is the will of God because in this realm, His will is the only thing you desire.

The branches of the candlestick have the same decorations as the stem, a design that was beaten and shaped by fire. This design represents the attributes that Jesus gave the church when we were birthed out from Him.

Jesus gave us His glory (Matthew 5:14). Part of being this light to the world is reflecting His image, symbolized by the fine gold that was beaten for the candlestick until it was smooth and reflective. The design on the candlestick was comprised of almonds and flowers which again was beaten and burned into the menorah by fire. The almond on Aaron’s rod was the first branch to bud and blossom, bring forth fruit to the nations of Israel (Num 17:8). This speaks of the everlasting resurrection. As you embrace the work of the menorah, God will make sure to burn the image of the almond into your life. When the image of the almond is in your spirit, it doesn’t matter how many tests you endure or how many trials you go through, you have eternal “getting up power”. You have life and can speak life into any situation.

The flower represents everlasting beauty. If people cannot see the beauty of Christ when they look at you, if they cannot experience the sweet anointing of the Holy Spirit, if there’s nothing about your person that others desire, then the image of the flower isnt apparent in your life.

One final aspect of the golden candlestick is the fact that it was lit by the coals from the brazen altar. The fire of God that lit the altar originally came from glory in the third realm, lighting the golden altar of incense and then the brazen altar. By revelation this means that if there has never been any sacrifice in your life, and if you fail to willingly put yourself on the altar of sacrifice daily, then there will be no fire to light the golden candlestick in your life. There will be no reflection of God’s character for others to see.

The fire on the brazen altar will go out unless you continue to sacrifice to put your flesh and your will on the altar of sacrifice. If this sacrificial fire goes out, the fires of illumination on the golden candlestick will subsequently be extinguished. Even worse, the coals of the golden altar of incense will smolder and die.

Sacrifice is a vital element. Saying yes to God in your mind and in your spirit continually adds wood to the brazen altar and makes it possible to receive illumination in the holy place, making it easy to worship Him at the altar of incense. Personal sacrifice safeguards your understanding of what God desires to do in the lives of the people for whom you are praying. Sacrifice lights the way to prayer.

The golden menorah was crafted of the finest solid gold. The almond shape represented the resurrected power and the image of the flower represented everlasting beauty. This means when we go into intercession and the enemy starts shooting fiery darts at you, your love does not change, your joy isn’t hindered, your peace keeps flowing like a river, and your long suffering/temperance kick in as you carry the burden of the Lord. When you reach the golden lamp stand you will have a solid gold encounter with God.

You may wonder what kept the menorah lit. God instructed Aaron and his sons to keep the lamp stand filled with pure olive oil (Exodus 27:20-21). The pure oil of crushed olives symbolizes the anointing of the Holy Spirit. When you look into the process they used to make this olive oil, it speaks strongly of the threshing process. Basically, as the olive grows to maturity, the early fruit falls to the ground. Then at harvest time, they beat the trees with long sticks to yield the rest of the crop, and then gather all the olives off the ground. Then the oil was pressed out by crushing the olives in the hollow of a stone or by treading on them by foot. When the olives were first pressed, two different lots of oil would come forth. The first press was called extra virgin olive oil, meaning in its purest state. This was the oil that was used to keep the golden candlestick burning.

When you go to the point of wanting to be used by God, we must receive the anointing of the pure olive oil that illuminates. This goes beyond just having fire or intensity because the menorah will stay lit continually only if it is filled with the oil of the anointing.

One final aspect is related to the golden candlestick (Acts 2:1-4). As an intercessor, you need the oil of the spirit on a daily basis. This means that it is an absolute necessity for you to be filled with the Holy Spirit as the disciples were on the Day of Pentecost. Without that infilling, there will be no supernatural utterances from heaven in your prayer closet. Since oil symbolizes the Holy Spirit and oil had to be refilled in the candlestick twice daily to keep the holy place illuminated, there is a strong emphasis on the vital role this experience hold in an intercessor’s life.

Tags: Aaron and his sons, Acts 2, almonds, Anointing, brazen altary, candlestick, design of the menorah, Divine understanding, divine understanding of the WOrd, Enemy, Exodus 25, Exodus 27. olive oil, extra virgin olive oil, God, golden altar of incense, golden candlestick, His glory, Holy SPirit, humanity, illumination, insight, Intercession, Israel, Jesus, John 15, Joy, light, long suffering, Love, Matthew 5, Maturity, menorah, menorah branches, menorah stem, Moses, Numbers, Outer Court, Peace, prayer, resurrection, Revelation, Sacrifice, Spirit, temperance, Word
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The Table of ShewBread (the Holy Place) – Prayer – Part 12

November 15, 2008

Now let’s look at the contents of the holy place.

When you enter the holy place, to the right you will find the table of shewbread. This table was constructed of shittim (Acacia) wood and overlaid with gold. Shittim wood was incorruptible. It was the same wood they used to construct the ark of the covenant. It would stand up against storms, heat or severe conditions. The fact that it was overlaid with gold means that it represents humanity (wood) covered by the deity of Jesus (gold). The table of shewbread also represents the Word of God. It was inlaid with a crown which symbolized the crown of kingship. Twelve loaves of specially baked bread were on the table at all times. These loaves were baked on Friday and replaced every Sabbath – and they miraculously remained as hot and fresh on the Sabbath day as when they were first baked. At the end of seven days, when the loaves were replaced, they were still fresh enough to be divided among the priests. The crown spoke of a king’s responsibility to provide for the safety and prosperity of the nation. As an intercessor, the shewbread represents that you can receive a fresh word from God daily. The people for whom you intercede will prosper as the King of the universe sends heavenly provision through you by way of prayer, making it vital for you to read His Word daily.

As an intercessor, you must have an unlimited resource of the Bread of Life from heaven present within you as you perform the service of the Lord at the table of shewbread. (Matthew 26:26-28) The brazen laver gives you new life as it washes you through the power of the Word. Then when you enter the holy place, the shewbread becomes the bread of maintenance as you begin to eat the Word of God (John 6:53-57). As an intercessor you must eat of Christ to become like Him and be prepared to battle in the heavenly realm. You have to digest the Word regularly to maintain a transformed lifestyle. THe shewbread is your strength. It is the table of shewbread where the intercessor must embrace and partake of the Word of God because this is where the Word becomes your sword. Not only do you gain strength at this table, but you also forge (sharpen) your supernatural weapon. This is the place where the Word turns into power as the Lord gives you permission to use the Word on behalf of someone else. Now that you are in the holy place, you have entered the realm of divine illumination – the place where you are justified and qualified to pray on behalf of others.

Tags: acacia, Ark of the Covenant, Bread of Life, Bread of Maintenance, diety, Divine Illumination, God, Heaven, heavenly realm, Holy place, humanity, intercessor, Jesus, John 6, justified, Kingship, Matthew 26, Power of the Word, Sabbath, Shewbread, Shittim, Sword of the Spirit, Table of Shewbread
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The Holy Place – Prayer – Part 11

November 14, 2008

As you prepare to enter the holy place, having been washed, dressed, anointed, and consecrated, you must remember that Jesus is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him”. You must remember that you came into the outer court through the gate of His finished work. He became the way for you to see your true reflection in the brazen laver and to sacrifice your will on the brazen altar. Now at the door of the tabernacle, you are about to enter the realm of intercession. You have come into a deeper walk with the Lord under the new anointing He has poured upon your life.

But as I said earlier, at this new level you must approach the Father by way of Jesus Christ. The door has the same four colors that were in the gate: white, blue, purple and scarlet. But now, they have taken on a deeper meaning. Let’s see how this applies in your daily walk. According to 1 Corinthians 1:30 and Revelation 19:7-8, the white, fine-twined linen speaks of the Lord, who has become your righteousness. His righteousness can now be clearly seen in you by others. It is the foundation and assurance of victory for every burden you receive from God in Prayer. Blue (turquoise), the color of heaven, speaks of Jesus as the second man, the Lord from Heaven. He was revealed to you at the gate, and now He’s being manifested in you daily as the living Word. When people see you standing at the door of the tabernacle, they will begin to see the kingdom and will of God being validated in the earth through you.

Purple is the color of kingship which means you can be clearly identified as an ambassador of the royal family of Jesus Christ. When people see you in the natural, they see you beyond your title, gender or nationality, all the way to your biblical roots. Principalities and powers in the Spirit realm will also begin to recognize your heritage and bow to your royal lineage.

The last color is scarlet which speaks of a sacrificial blood that Jesus shed for you to be saved and come into a deeper relationship with Him. It also signifies that the battle has already been fought and won for you in the Spirit realm. Now as you begin to make intercession, fully clothed in your priestly garments, you will be able to experience the blood of Jesus going before you and setting the captives free.

In the Holy place, the realm of total truth, God requires that the grace of His Son be made manifest in you. Why? This door, the first veil of the tabernacle was not merely an entrance to an enclosed space. This door shut out common (natural) men. Most importantly, it was the only passageway that led to the manifest presence of God on the threshing floor.

Are you ready to enter His marvelous light? Eternal light is your final destination. Now you must walk knowing that you have come out of the outer court where the light is only temporary. As an intercessor, the works of Christ must progressively be revealed in and through you. You can never go back. As you prepare to enter the holy place, know that you will begin to operate in the supernatural light as you learn to pick up the burden of the Lord. Remember, God hasn’t called you into the marvelous light just for you to sit there and gaze or to be afraid on this new level and run back to the comfort zone of the outer court. There is a divine purpose for you and grace to meet every need just beyond that door.

There are two reasons why priests entered the holy place. The first was to perform the service of the Lord. In performing the temple service, they made sure to replace the shewbread regularly which represented the Word of God. They kept the menorah filled with olive oil which represented the light of the Lord and the oil of the anointing. They also kept a constant fire burning on the altar of incense representing the place of worship and total surrender, ensuring that the glory of the Lord was maintained in that whole area.

The second reason they entered was to lay prostrate before God in prayer. Both purposes speak of a higher degree of separation and devotion to God. The golden altar represents a place, time, and position in prayer where you are separated from everybody else. Once you have gone through all the stages of altar – you will be able to experience the oil of the anointing. The Word of the Lord will become alive to you at the golden altar and true worship will begin to rise out of your spirit.

This is your place of separation. This is also why prayer can be practiced anywhere. This is how we know that we are on our way to the threshing floor because separation is the heart of the threshing process. To thresh means “to separate grain or seeds from straw by beating the stems and husks”. The divine threshing process actually begins when you enter the gate to the outer court in prayer. Then the process of personal repentance in the outer court separates you from a life of sin into a life of obedience to God. Now that you have moved into the holy place, the separation continues as you begin to live within His purpose. Each piece of the tabernacle furniture deepens your intercessory experience.

The furniture inside the holy place was positioned with the table of shewbread to the north, the golden candlestick to the south, and the golden altar of incense to the west of the outer elements.

Tags: 1 Corinthians 1, Anointed, Brazen Altar, Brazen Laver, comfort zone, Consecrated, deeper relationship with Him, diety, fine twined linen, first veil, God in Prayer, golden altar, golden altar of incense, golden candlestick, Intercession, Kingship, Lord, marvelous light, menorah, obedience, olive oil, Outer Court, place of separation, prayer, priestly garments, Revelation 19, Righteousness, Sacrifice, sacrificial blood of Jesus, separation and devotion ot God, Shewbread, Spirit realm, Tabernacle, Table of Shewbread, The Father, THe HOly Place, The life, The Truth, The Way, Threshing Floor
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, Religion, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

The Tabernacle Coverings – Prayer – Part 10

November 12, 2008

As God brings you into the holy place, you must become aware of the tabernacle furniture and how each element relates to you in prayer. This will be the next part of your learning process, but there is a very important thing you must understand – God will never call you to intercede on behalf of the saints and into battle against the hands of the enemy without protecting and covering you.

The outer court is open to the winds, storms, and other weather conditions that may blow your way as you learn to submit your life to God. However, once you walk into the holy place, you are covered. As we study about each covering, you will see a definite connection to the priestly garments. God makes a strong point about the garments and the coverings.

Let’s start by looking more closely at the tabernacle. It has two sections, the holy place and the most holy place. God originally established the tabernacle through Moses so there would be a place for His presence to rest among His people (Exodus 25:8). Do you think the enemy could remain anywhere that God has chosen to rest? Absolutely not! The presence of God will cover you as you make intercession – as long as you remain properly clothed, so don’t fall back into the outer court living!

If you were to stand back just before entering into the holy place, and then look up and around, you would see that the holy place and the most holy place were parts of the tabernacle structure that required covering. Exodus 26:1-14 lists the four layered tabernacle coverings.

The first tabernacle curtain was woven of white “fine twined linen” and three different colors of wool: turquoise, purple and scarlet. This layer of covering was classified as “the tabernacle” and was made from the same basic material that was used to weave the priestly ephod in Exodus 28:6. The difference between the two can be seen in the fact that the ephod had a gold strand of thread woven in with each of the other four threads, and the tabernacle curtains did not. The curtains had four, not five, threads that were woven together into an ornate pattern of cherubim, as well as figures of the lion, eagle, and ox, which could be seen on either side of the fabric.

Here in the design of the curtains we once again see the colors of the finished work of Christ, which laid the foundation for the tabernacle coverings. The first fabric mentioned is the white linen which speaks of the garments of righteousness and salvation that have been given to the saints (Isaiah 61:1-3, 10).

The first covering of the tabernacle in Exodus 26:1 displays not only the four workings of Christ through its colors, but also the images of the cherubim, the lion, the eagle and the ox (Ezekial 1:4-10, Revelation 4:7). The images of the lion, eagle, and bull correspond to one of the colors in the workings of Christ, and e4ach of these images has significance in prayer. The is why they were intricately woven into the design of this first (foundational) covering.

Cherubim are very different from angels. God commanded that cherubim be woven into the fabric because they are a manifestation of everything He is. Angels work on behalf of God in the service of humanity. Cherubim live around the throne of God, exalting Him continually and reflecting His glory. The cherubim embroidered on the tabernacle curtains represent the inwrought work of cherubim who cover you in intercessory prayer and manifest the intricate workings and operation of the Holy Spirit on behalf of the Father and the Son. As you pray, the cherubim remind you of the life, ministry, death, burial and resurrection of Christ.

The image of the lion corresponds to purple in the workings of Christ. It speaks of the righteousness that has been imputed to you as part of the royal priesthood. The lion reminds you of your royal lineage and lets you know that you are now operating in authority that transformed you in the outer court. Because of this you can come boldly to the throne of grace.

The eagle corresponds with blue. It reminds you that God enables your spirit to touch Him in the heavenly realm. Blue speaks of operating in the supernatural. When you see the eagle, you are assured that God will mount you up on His wings and show you the mysteries of heaven so that you can bring His kingdom to the earthly realm.

The image of the ox (bull) corresponds to red. Bullocks were sacrificed for the sins of the high priest or the nation. This image represents that you are to remain broken before the Lord so that you can receive and carry His intercessory burdens for the church. A bull charges toward death, so as the Holy Spirit leads you to your final position in prayer at the threshing floor, your spirit will charge toward God knowing that no flesh can see His face and live.

When you walk into the holy place clothed in your priestly garments, a powerful divine match takes place in the heavenlies. Identifying with the colors and images in the first tabernacle covering identifies you with all the workings of Jesus Christ.

The second layer of covering over the tabernacle was made from black goat’s hair (Exodus 26:7). This layer of the curtains, classified as the “tent” was placed on top of the first covering. Goats were used to atone for the sins of individuals, from rulers to common people. This means as a intercessor, you will receive the grace to carry the burden of the Lord for anyone, anywhere, at any time – without becoming offended or affected by the person’s sin. Since the black goat’s hair was laid directly on top of the first tabernacle curtain, it assures you that your sins have been covered; for this reason you should not allow the enemy to remind you constantly of what you used to be.

The third tabernacle covering (Exodus 26:14) is made from ram’s skin dyed red and it was one of the final two layers, which were referred to as “covers”. The ram was used in guilt offerings. In addition, two rams were part of the sacrifices presented to Aaron and his sons when they were inaugurated (Exodus 29:15-28). After sacrificing the first ram as an elevation offering to God, the second sacrificial ram was called “the ram of perfection”. Every aspect of the ram is powerful. The ram is a sacrifice, a substitute, provision for our table, and a symbol of consecration for divine service. It confirms and completes the divine pattern. This represents that you can have perfect victory in prayer as you depend upon the Lord and upon those things that He already established in heaven and in the earth. Finally through this ram skin covering, God speaks to you from Isaiah 1:18. Remember this when you are entering into intercession.

The fourth and final tabernacle covering was made of badger’s skin (dolphin or porpoise in the Amplified – Exodus 26:14). This layer was the final cover that provided overall protection for each of the other layers. The badger skins were considered strong enough to protect every other layer of the tabernacle against heat, storms and dirt. Nothing could penetrate that skin. When the badger skin was laid over the tabernacle, it didn’t matter what the weather was like outside – the glory still remained on the inside. This is a final confirmation that as you guard your garments and make intercession, you will be protected from any outside onslaught of the devil. The badger’s skin was actually a transitional covering, used not only when the tabernacle was resting in one place, but also while it was being move to a new location. While you are learning how to move in the things of God and discovering the realm of the supernatural, you must trust that the badger’s skin is there to protect you against the wiles of the enemy – because supernatural experiences can be difficult to comprehend.

There is one final aspect about the tabernacle coverings that really minister to me. Specific measurements are given for the first two coverings, the linen embroidered curtain and the black goat’s skin. However, when we read about the skins of the ram and the badger, there are no measurements. There are no measurements because Christ’s sacrifice cannot be measured. His divine substitution on your behalf cannot be measured. His ability to consecrate you in His presence can not be measure. And finally, His divine protection against the wiles of the enemy cannot be measured.

The price has already been paid for you. The work has already been done. You have come through the gate, which made the way for you in the outer court. You are fully clothed. Now that you have walked through the door of the tabernacle, which is the truth – you are fully covered to become an effectual intercessor.

Now it is time to go deeper into the tabernacle. It’s time to go one step closer to your final position in prayer on the threshing floor. So stay tune for Part 11 – The Holy Place.

Tags: Aaron, angels, Authority, badger skin, black goat's hair, blue, bull, cherubim, Christ, consecration, crimson, Devil, dolphin, eagle, ephod, Exodus 25, Exodus 26, Ezekial 1, finished work of Christ, first tabernacle curtain, four covered tabernacle coverings, fourth layer of the tabernacle covering, God, Holy place, Holy SPirit, Intercession, Isaiah 61, lion, MOst Holy Place, Outer Court, ox, porpoise, prayer, priesthood, priestly garments, purple, Revelaton 4, Righteousness, royal lineage, royal priesthood, Salvation, second layer of the tabernacle covering, submission, supernatural, tabernacle coverings, Tabernacle furniture, tabernacle structure, third layer of the tabernacle covering, Threshing Floor, throne room, Victory, white, white linen
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, Religion, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

The Holy Anointing Oil – Prayer – Part 9

November 11, 2008

Now that you are completely dressed for battle, you understand the requirements of how you are to be dressed so that you can be guaranteed of consistent victories in your times of prayer. You now understand that the Lord not only desires for you to know who He is, but He also wants you to understand every level and every position that you are in when you are entering into His presence.

God desires that you not be confused about your posture in prayer, your place in prayer, and your garments of prayer. Knowing this, we will move on to one of the most vital elements in the tabernacle – the holy anointing oil. Since God is a God of detail, He specifically had Moses institute men into the office of becoming Apothecaries who were required by the Lord to become the oil makers for the tabernacle. He also required that olive oil was used to anoint the tabernacle elements and priests (Exodus 30:24)

The olive oil used to keep the menorah lit continually was made by crushing the olive branch in order to squeeze out the oil. Other components and ingredients were added to this oil to create a holy anointing oil to anoint the tabernacle and its elements, as well as, to anoint Aaron and his sons. Each ingredient of this fragrant oil represents a different characteristic of the release of God’s power.

This oil represents the illumination of the Lord from His tabernacle in you – His intercessor. This oil is necessary wherever the Lord requires you to call on His divine presence – whether He sends you to a hospital to pray for a sick person, to pray for someone who has been incarcerated, to go to a mental institution to pray for someone in need, or if He leads you to have a one-on-one counseling session with an individual who is disturbed. Whenever you feel the unction to pray and bring someone into the holy place, you will need the holy anointing oil.

As you read you will understand why the Lord requires that we use the anointing oil. You will learn why these ingredients are important if you are going to be an effectual intercessor and experience quality times of prayer in the divine presence. As we look back to Moses’ inauguration of Aaron and his sons, it is important to understand that after Aaron and his sons were washed and received their new priestly garments, Moses anointed them with the holy anointing oil. Then after their seventh day of consecration, fire came down from heaven as they participated in their first priestly service.

As you submit yourself daily to being a living tabernacle of the Holy Spirit, every element in your tabernacle is anointed. You have passed through the Beautiful Gate by accepting Christ as your personal Savior. You consistently come to receive the Word by washing at the brazen laver. You now have the brazen altar within you where you have submitted your will to the Lord. Now…you are ready to move into the next step of the pattern.

As you prepare to enter into the holy place, you can take that fragrant oil and anoint yourself. Now you can go in and complete the pattern of the Lord in prayer on behalf of somebody else – and that’s when according to scripture the fire will come down from heaven upon your sacrifice.

In Exodus 28:41, God tells Moses to clothe them, anoint them, ordain them and sanctify them and afterwards, “they would be able to serve Me as priests”. Leviticus 8:1-30 tells us that after washing and dressing Aaron for service, Moses anointed the tabernacle and then poured oil over Aaron’s head. After this, he clothed Aaron’s sons in their garments, sacrificed a bull and a ram, and sprinkled the blood and anointing oil upon them.

The oil used for anointing Aaron and his sons is very important. There is a significance in every ingredient that went into the holy anointing oil (Exodus 30:22-30). God instructed that the best spices were necessary because an impure mixture would hinder the anointing.

The first ingredient listed in the anointing oil was 500 shekels of liquid myrrh. For women in Bible days, myrrh was a purifier and an embalming fluid. God was saying, “Not only do I have to purify your anointing, but I also have to embalm what I put to death so that when you see it again in the realm of the Spirit it wont affect you”. Myrrh represents our need to be purified for service to God.

The second ingredient was 250 shekels of sweet cinnamon. This speaks of our attitude and how we treat others. Have you ever known people who were filled with the Holy Spirit yet were as mean as snakes? They are missing an essential ingredient of the anointing. Let me ask, “How do you handle yourself when people do not treat you right? Would the ingredient of sweet cinnamon still be apparent in your life? Ministry is for mature believers, those who have been blood washed, purified, sanctified, and broken under the anointing! Otherwise, your ministry would never survive. Be honest with yourself, there are people in your surroundings right now whom you do not care to speak to. You have to realize that the only way you can be anointed with the sacred oil is to be lied about, talked about, and mistreated. The very person to whom you are not speaking is your anointing! Sweet cinnamon is an essential part of the anointing…because it represents your attitude and response to others.

The third ingredient was 250 shekels of sweet calamus. Calamus is also known as “reed grass”. It thrives on the banks of rivers, growing consistently regardless of age. It represents the maturity you must develop to be prepared to be an intercessor. This is another ingredient that sweetens the anointing oil because when we come through the outer court and are about to enter the purpose of God in the holy place, the enemy tries to target us like never before. So to help us guard our garments, God gives us a double portion anointing of sweetness and maturity – far beyond the normal measure that we see and experience in the natural realm. Unless you have been anointed with the sweet calamus of spiritual maturity, God will be unable to plant you in the midst of a mess that needs your intercession. If the sweet calamus of maturity is not a piece of your anointing, you will be unable to grow as you encounter each piece of furniture inside the holy place. In fact, you won’t be able to get into the door! If you don’t have sweet calamus as part of your intercessory anointing, you will become stagnant in prayer and won’t be able to go to deeper realms in the spirit.

The final ingredient in the holy anointing oil was 500 shekels of cassia which they added to the mixture in equal proportions to the amount of myrrh. Cassia is likely to have come from a plant that’s related to cinnamon. Cassia had to be ground into a powder before being blended into the liquid myrrh along with the other ingredients. This spice symbolized the completion of your anointing. It shows that everything you have received from the river of the Holy Spirit in prayer has formed the foundation for you anointing. Cassia represents the fact that people don’t see you anymore, your form, your style of ministry, your personality, and your emotions have all been crushed to be blended into the sweet smelling savor of the divine presence within you. When you are anointed with cassia, you have learned to walk in the Spirit – to live, move and have your being in God.

When God anoints you with the holy anointing oil, it confirms that He has brought you through the necessary channels so the enemy cannot hinder the assignment God has ordained for you to fulfill in the holy place. Finally you are preparing to enter the holy place and approach the altar of incense where true intercession is made. Soon you will enter into the divine presence of God. You are being anointed to approach the altar of incense – representing power, authority, and kingship – with the right spirit and the right ingredients. You’ve walked through salvation, strength, and power into a deeper level of the anointing. You are no longer in the place where you need salvation. You are now in the place where you are getting ready to fight on someone else’s behalf. You are taking the power and authority in the Spirit realm where you will be in a position to rule and govern what happens in another person’s life – and all of this happen at the golden altar.

Remember, if you fail to guard your garments, you can give place to the devil. When you have holes in your armor, you become vulnerable to the enemy’s devices. So stay properly dressed and the oil of the anointing will equip you to serve faithfully in the holy place of prayer. (www.oilofthespirit.com)

Tags: Aaron and his sons, altar of incence, Anointed, anointing oil, Attitude, Authority, BLood washed, Brazen Altar, Brazen Laver, Calamus, Cassia, Dressed for battle, East Gate, effectural intercessor, exodus 28, Exodus 30, fragrant oild, GOd's Presence, holy anointing oil, Holy place, Holy SPirit, inauguration, intercessor, intercessory, Jesus Christ, Lord, Maturity, menorah, Ministry, Moses, Myrrh, Oil, oil makers, olive branch, olive oil, ordination, power, prayer, presence of God, priestly garments, Sacred OIl, Sacrifice, Salvation, Sanctified, scripture, Spices, Spiritual Maturity, strength, Sweet Cinnamon, Tabernacle, time of prayer, Victory
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, Religion, Uncategorized | 6 Comments »

Adopting A New Heavenly Perspective

November 7, 2008

Ask yourself what is it you want out of life. Take a look at where you stand. Is your life where you desire it to be? Are you headed in a direction that you truly want to go or are you settling for things as they come? Have you ever said to yourself, “Lord, why me?” or “How long Lord?”

I know exactly how you feel; as I have asked myself the same things so many times that I have lost count. My life had in no way turned out how I thought it would. It wasn’t until God started speaking to me that I began to see that I was the solution to my circumstances. So what was I doing so wrong? I read my Word, I went to church, I even tried conducting myself more Christianly, yet, I saw nothing changing or happening. Life for the most part was exactly as it always had been.

This inspired me to write to those out there who may be feeling like me, who are looking for answers, who are looking for direction, and who are looking for God. Do you want more out of life than possessions and money? Are you looking for a spiritual intimacy with our Lord and Savior? Are you hungry to know and grow close to Him? Are you searching for answers that are nowhere to be found? Have you prayed and prayed only to find that the prayers seemed to land on God’s deaf ears? Have you ever wondered if God was even listening to your cries?

Everyday the enemy bombards our minds with thoughts and our lives with circumstances. Where does it all end? One day we are up, the next we are down. One day life seems peaceful, the next it is in total chaos. Do you ever feel like you are on an emotional roller coaster, never knowing what the next minute will bring? I found that in times like these, we are the product of our thoughts. What we think, usually is what we speak, feel, hear, act and more. Don’t you feel sometimes that to think right thoughts is as difficult to do as counting the grains of sand on a beach? Soon as you think you are under control, something else just seems to take you over the edge, making things only worse?

The Bible tells us in Colossians 3:1 that we are to seek or set our minds on the things above. You might ask yourself, how do I do that when it seems the events of life come at you fast and furiously. Who has time to think, when reacting is all you can do? Have you ever thought that this is the very place the enemy wants you to be? The enemy has studied you your entire life, knowing your every fear, your every insecurity, your every doubt, and more. Taking all he has learned about you, he uses your mind as his battlefield. To overcome his fiery darts, we must train our minds to think differently. How do we do that, with all that is happening?

The Bible tells us that we have been raised in Christ, so we must trust that when we rose as a different person that old self died. This is the key to our walk with Christ because if we want to bring the kingdom and power of God into our lives, we have to have a heavenly perspective, that is, we have to come at the enemy and world from a superior position of authority. To do that we must seek the things of God, set our minds on them, meditate upon our position, identity and nature in God. The more we do this, the closer we become to Him, the greater His power and authority manifests in us. God intends for us to do something because we have been raised. Remember, we are not who we used to be. In order to experience the victory Jesus died for, we have to start thinking, meditating and speaking in relationship to who we are. We have to operate like a person of authority, seeing ourselves from the Biblical perspective as one seated with Christ at the right hand of God. It is not enough for us to read God’s Word; we must be God’s Word.

Now most people look to the cross as the end, but really the cross is not the end, it is the beginning. I thank God for the cross, but I also thank God for the burial for without the burial there would be no death to the old self. Even better yet, I thank God for the resurrection, for without the resurrection there is not a new identity that can live on the inside of us. We have been given the Holy Spirit and it is through His power that we have the ability to open every dimension of our lives to the supernatural embodiment of the Lord Jesus Christ. The more we allow the Spirit to manifest in our lives, the more the influence of God will have on our thoughts and circumstances, causing us to become a recipient of whatever we are thinking on.

It is only through knowing God’s Word that we learn about the new man we have become. The more we know, the more we grow. If we are diligent in our studies, we will continue to rise above the place we are, reaping the benefits of that new person. We must go to Christ in our thoughts and in our meditations. Then and only then can we receive from Christ all He has already given us in our new identity. Change the way you think and you change the way you live. Adopt a new heavenly perspective and exercise the authority given to you by Christ to defeat the enemy and the influence he has on your circumstances. You are what you think…. You become what you think…. You do what you think…. So what are you thinking?????

Tags: Battlefield, Changing the way you think, Christian, Circumstances, Colossians, Devil, direction, Doubt, Enemy, Fear, God, God speaking, Hungry for the WOrd, insecurity, Jesus' burial, Jesus' crucifixion, Jesus' resurrection, Life, Life's desires, Looking for answers, Lord, Minds, money, old self, overcoming, possessions, Prayers, Savior, spiritual intimacy, Thoughts
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The Garments of Completion – Prayer – Part 8

October 27, 2008

God is a God of great details, helping us to understand that in the midst of all that’s happening in our lives today, we can still come into His divine presence. To do this, we will study the priestly wardrobe and discover why God saw fit to have the priests dress a certain way. When we understand this, we will also understand that it is not enough for the believer simply to attend church. As God’s people, we must begin to become the church, especially if we are intercessors.

1 Corinthians 6:19 tells us that we are temples of the Holy Spirit because we accepted Jesus as our personal Savior. If there is no priesthood functioning within us, we become people who attend church but have no righteousness. As a result, we have no power or authority in our Christian experience. When the priesthood is present in you, then your temple becomes operational.

Let’s review. We have already come through the gate and accepted the works of Christ. We have repented of our sins and been washed at the brazen laver by God’s Word. We have presented our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto the Lord at the brazen altar. We are clothed with the robe of righteousness – the first garment we receive when we are adopted into the royal priesthood. We will now take a look more closely at the additional priestly garments.

After clothing Aaron with the tunic of righteousness, Moses girded him with the sash (Leviticus 8:7). It’s interesting to read that there were two belts in the garments of the high priest. The first was worn over the tunic and second was part of the ephod. Just as we are commanded to don our spiritual armor, we must also don the garments of intercession understanding that every part must be worn. Omitting any piece of the garments would only weaken our spiritual defenses during intercessory. The belt of truth was worn atop of the tunic of righteousness. Unlike the belt of the ephod, it is invisible to the naked eye as it serves to girds your loins by holding the tunic together underneath the robe of blue. Walking in righteousness plays a critical role in our walk with God as it forces us to embrace the truth as we wear the belt of truth. The belt symbolizes our readiness, to go to the world. When you gird up the loins of your mind with the truth of God’s word, you are able to stand in difficult situations for long periods of time because you have the ability to become creative and productive for God, receiving what the Word tells your mind that you can have.

The next piece of clothing that Moses placed on Aaron was the blue robe, representing your position and authority in God. This robe is very important to us. Its colors are extremely significant to God in prayer because they were one of the ways that God chose to bring knowledge of Himself and the heavenly realm to the human race. Blue represents God’s covering authority, as well as His divinity and grace. Why are all these things important? As you go into prayer with a firm hold on your walk of salvation, Satan can’t penetrate your robe of authority and stop what God is doing in your life, praying through instead of praying about. Not only does the priestly robe give you God’s authority in prayer, but also it covers you while you pray, protecting you against the the devil getting a foothold in your spirit.

Let’s move on. Exodus 28:29-32 tells us that the neckband of the priestly robe Moses gave to Aaron was reinforced. An extra band was woven around the neck opening to keep it from fraying or tearing. The neckband was so strong that if someone had tried to tear this robe off the high priest, it would have broken his neck. Symbolically, your robe of authority has been so designed that it can never be torn from you. Because it symbolizes the office of authority and divinity, the robe becomes the strength of your relationship with God in prayer. Righteousness is your pathway and the belt of truth is what enables you to stand, but when you get into the presence of the Lord, the enemy can never shake the authority of God. He cannot tear it away from you!

After receiving the robe of blue, the next garment Aaron received was the ephod representing the mediator Jesus Christ and His power to become a servant (Lev 8:7). According to Exodus 28:8, the ephod consisted of gold (deity), blue/turquoise (divinity), purple (the royal One), scarlet (servant and humanity) and white fine-twined linen. The ephod had an attached belt to provide a second level of girding for intercessory prayer; this belt was able to be seen by others. Before it was woven with the other colors, the gold cord had to be beaten out symbolizing the trials and tests you have overcome in order to get to this level. When the Spirit of the Lord finds us girded, He responds by girding Himself to us – so that we can relax at His table. We have a part to play in the process of prayer. Our first step in the process is to surrender to God, walking in prayer until the Spirit of the Lord comes and takes over. God girds Himself to us and begins to serve us, answering our prayers and ministering to us about what we have brought to Him. Christ’s ephod helps you to serve others, especially those who are weak and of a lesser status – by His grace- to help the immature come to maturity. On the shoulders of the ephod are two onyx stones inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel placed in the order of their birthright.

The breastplate was the next piece of clothing Aaron receives in Leviticus 8:8. This garment is vital to becoming an intercessor as inside the breastplate was a slip of parchment containing the divine name of God, represented by the Urim and Thummim (exodus 28:28-30). Urim means “light” and Thummim means “completeness”. The breastplate also represents people that you carry to God in prayer symbolized by the twelve precious stones. This breastplate was worn upon the chest of the high priest indicating that he carried the people’s burden close to his heart as he served in the tabernacle.

Now we are at the final piece of the garment, the miter, the headpiece. The miter was like a hat, with one distinguishing feature – the holy crown. This was actually a golden plate that was tied to the front of the Miter (Exodus 28:36-38). Its inscription read, “HOLY TO THE LORD”. This symbolized that the nation of Israel was completely devoted to God and His service. It also reminded the priest never to take holiness for granted as they carried out their duties. At all times they were to conduct their lives worthy of His name. The miter helps you to watch and pray. God fastens it to your head after He has put everything else in place, so that you will never forget to pray and live in a manner worthy of your call to be an intercessor.

Tags: 1 Corinthians 6, Aaron, Authority, believer, belt of truth, Brazen Laver, breastplate, christian experience, Church, Devil, divinity, ephod, exodus 28, Gate, God, God's Word, Grace, high priests, Holy, holy crown, Holy SPirit, Intercessors, intercessory, Jesus Christ, living sacrifice, miter, Moses, Personal savior, prayer, priesthood, priestly garments, sash, Savior, servant, spiritual armor, strength, Strongholds, Tabernacle gate, Temple, thummim, tunic of righteousness, urim, works of Christ
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Foundational Garment – Prayer – Part 7

October 24, 2008

In the Book of Exodus, God gave instructions to Moses regarding the constructions of the tabernacle, as well as, for the garments that Aaron and his sons were wearing when serving as priests. Just as there is a spiritual significance to every detail of the tabernacle’s construction, there is also a spiritual significance in the making of the priestly garments, demonstrating that God never contradicts Himself as each harmonized with the materials and colors that God instructed Moses to use in the holy place and in the East Gate. Like the tabernacle, these garments represented a spirit of excellence that God desires to manifest in the lives of every believer, especially those who had been called to prayer. You will see that by the time we are preparing to go into the holy place, the garments, structure and furniture in the holy place must all work together in order to bring about the successful results in prayer.

It is our responsibility, however, to maintain our righteousness after we have been washed in the Word and have willingly offered ourselves to God as a living sacrifice. Understand, the Spirit and the Word always works together; they complement and complete each other.

The Bible tells us in Matthew 18:18-19, “Truly I tell you, whatever you forbid and declare to be improper and unlawful on earth must be what is already forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit and declare proper and lawful on earth must be what is already permitted in heaven. Again I tell you, if two of you on earth agree (harmonize together, make a symphony together) about whatever [anything and everything] they may ask, it will come to pass and be done for them by My Father in heaven”.

Simply said, whatever we do as a kingdom of priests must originate from heaven. We can’t live according to the world’s standards and expect to hear from God in prayer, and we definitely shouldn’t expect our prayer requests to be answered when we aren’t in agreement with God!

Here is where you must ask yourself, “Are you in harmony with God? Are you walking according to the patterns God set in His Word?” If you answer “no”, don’t expect to experience the glory of God. By breaking or ignoring the patterns of conduct God has outlined in His Word, you are rejecting the works of Christ and ignoring His sacrifice on the cross. Just as a tailor custom makes our garments according to a pattern, God has tailor made our spiritual prayer according to His measures and pattern. You must properly clothe yourself spiritually if you ever expect to come into the presence of the most holy God.

The tabernacle in the Old Testament was built to God’s specification. Since we are God’s tabernacle, we also are built to His specifications. Psalm 127:1 says, “Except the Lord builds a house, they labor in vain who build it; except the Lord keeps the city, the watchmen wakes but in vain”.

Let’s start by reading God’s instructions to Moses with regards to the priesthood and the priestly garments.

Exodus 28:1-3 says, “From among the Israelites take your brother Aaron and his sons with him, that he may minister to Me in the priest’s office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons. And you shall make for Aaron your brother sacred garments [appointed official dress set apart for special holy services] for honor and for beauty. Tell all who are expert, whom I have endowed with skill and good judgment, that they shall make Aaron’s garments to sanctify him for My priesthood.”

In telling Moses to “take Aaron and his sons with him“, God indicated that the chosen priests had to be sons of God before serving in the office of the priests. Aaron symbolized the office of the high priests and his sons represent the lower priestly office. Matthew 22:14 says, “Many were called…but few were chosen“. The path of obedience requires us to enter through the gate, wash at the laver and sacrifice at the altar according to God’s pattern of prayer. This path prepares us to be clothed for victory in intercessory prayer.

John 5:23-24 tells us that “Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, Who has sent Him. I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, the person whose ears are open to My words [who listens to My message] and believes and trusts in and clings to and relies on Him Who sent Me has (possesses now) eternal life. And he does not come into judgment [does not incur sentence of judgment, will not come under condemnation], but he has already passed over out of death into life”

The priestly garments represent everything we do after we enter the holy place.

The foundational garment, the tunic of righteousness, represents the righteousness of God. It is the reason every other piece of priestly clothing can fulfill its purpose. Let’s look at how this garment was made:

Exodus 28:39-43 says, “And you shall weave the long and sleeved tunic of checkerwork of fine linen or silk and make a turban of fine linen or silk; and you shall make a girdle, the work of the embroiderer. For Aaron’s sons you shall make long and sleeved tunics and belts or sashes and caps, for glory and honor and beauty. And you shall put them on Aaron your brother and his sons with him, and shall anoint them and ordain and sanctify them [set them apart for God], that they may serve Me as priests. You shall make for them [white] linen trunks to cover their naked flesh, reaching from the waist to the thighs. And they shall be on Aaron and his sons when they go into the Tent of Meeting or when they come near to the altar to minister in the Holy Place, lest they bring iniquity upon themselves and die; it shall be a statute forever to Aaron and to his descendants after him.”

All priests wore white tunics, but only the high priest wore additional garments over his tunic. Notice that the tunic is what allowed the priests to minister in the holy place; it allowed them to come before the presence of the Lord and not die. The tunic was the first piece of clothing Moses placed upon Aaron. This garment matched the wall that surrounded the outer court, as well as, the white linen thread that was part of the first tabernacle covering.

I believe God is saying that you must put on this tunic as the foundation of everything you do in prayer. For you to be prepared to take up the burden of the Lord, your nakedness must be covered, just as the tunic and trousers covered Aaron and his sons. It is vital that you learn to reject your human senses and to embrace the righteousness of God. Your spiritual underclothing – the white linen trunks and tunic – helps you do this by keeping your nakedness covered, that is, your human nature without God. When you come into the presence of the Lord, these white garments remind you that God doesn’t need anything sensual from you. It is the tunic of righteousness that will help you to walk the path of obedience after you have washed at the laver and sacrificed at the altar. Maintaining the righteousness of God in your life will initially be your biggest struggle in prayer. As you are clothed in your white linen tunic and trunks, it creates a match in the Spirit realm and an entrance into the second and third dimensions of prayer.

Tags: Aaron, Christ, Construction of the tabernacle, Cross, East Gate, Exodus, Foundational Garment, God, high priests, Holy place, Israelites, John 5, Judgment, living sacrifice, Matthew 18:18, Matthew 22, Moses, Old Testament, prayer, priestly garments, Priests, Psalm 127:1, Righteousness, Second and third dimensions of prayer, spiritual underclothing, white tunic, Word
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More on Revelation 2:8-11

October 18, 2008

Sometimes people aren’t what they appear to be and it is sad to say that more often than not, we don’t realize it until it is too late. Have you ever had a person turn on you?

During the times here, there were many who did not truly support Christianity. They looked righteous, they acted righteous, they outwardly appear righteous, but underneath they were the purest form of evil. What appeared holy now becomes your worst nightmare, maybe even your death, as one Christian found.

Don’t be afraid though because God promises us that we will be rewarded for our persecution even unto death. He assures us we will have life everlasting, never experiencing the pain of the second death, that is, life of the wicked reaping the reward of living in hell eternally. All people will have to reap the seeds they sow in life, so be careful how you walk it.

God sees all and knows all. He sees the hearts of all and has taken account of which Master we serve. We live in a world currenly ruled by Satan, but we can happily know that we are not a part of it. We are just passing through performing a work while here.

God told the believers in Smyrna that they would endure hardships for a time. He assured them that this would pass and develop their character in the process. Nothing endured would go unrewarded. The God of resurrected life would reward us with an eternal crown if we just perservered, even unto death.
How much do you love God? Enough to endure for? Enough to suffer for? Enough to die for?

Stand on His word, all He promises will manifest itself now and in the times to come. Until then, stand firm on those promises.

Tags: Character, Christianity, death, Eternal Crown, evil, God, Hell, Master, nightmare, Persecution, reaping the reward, Resurrected life, Revelation 2:8-11, righteous, second death, Smyrna
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Smyrna of Revelation

October 18, 2008

Smyrna, a large ancient city on the Western Coast of Asia Minor, at the head of a gulf which reaches thirty miles inland, was originally peopled by Lelages (Asiatics). Standing upon a good harbor at the head of one of the chief highways to the interior; it became a great trading center and a chief port for the export trade. Its streets were wide and paved. It was celebrated for its schools of science and medicine, and for its handsome buildings. On the slope of Mount Pagus was a theater. In 23 AD, a temple was built in honor of Tiberius and his mother, and the golden street connecting the temples of Zeus and Cybele is said to have been the best in any ancient city.

Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna was martyred. It seems the Jews were more antagonistic than the Romans to the spread of Christianity. Smyrna suffered frequently from earthquakes. Modern Smyrna is the largest city in Asia Minor (50% Greek, 25% Mahammedans). Even under the Turkish government, the city is progressive and is the capital of the Aiden vilayete (the home of the governor). Several railroads follow the courses of the ancient routes into the distant interior. In its harbors, ships from all parts may be seen. The ancient harbor of Paul’s time has been filled in and there the modern bazaars stand.

West of Mount Pagus is the Ephesus gate and the Black Gate as the Turks call it. The prosperity of Smyrna is not only due to the harbor and port of entry to the interior, but partly to the perfect climate of spring and autumn. The winters are cold and summers hot.

Figs, grapes, velonia, opium, sponges, cotton and licorice root are the chief articles of trade.

Smyrna was well known as a city of great trade and wealth. Their spiritual riches are set off by their outward poverty. The persecution they underwent, was noticed by God. In all their afflictions, he is afflicted and will repay to those who troubled them. He knows the wickedness and the falsehood of their enemies, that is, those who pretend to be the only peculiar covenant people of God. Those assemblies which are set up in opposition to the truths of the gospel and which promote and propagate evil, these are the synagogues of Satan. Satan presides over them, he works in them, his interests are served by them, he recieves horrid homage and honor from them.

God knew the future trials of His people and forewarns them. Know that it is the devil that stirs up his instruments, wicked men, to persecute the people of God. God shows how their suffering will be alleviated and limited. First, they should be universal. Second, they were not to be perpetual, but for a set time. It should be an everlasting tribulation. Third, it shoold be to try them, that their faith and patience and courage might be improved and found to be honorable.

Tags: afflictions, Asia Minor, Christianity, courage, Earthquakes, enemies, evil, falsehoods, God, Gospel, Greeks, Mount Pagus, Paul, Persecution, Polycarp, Poverty, railroads, Satan, Smyrna, spiritual riches, Tiberius, Tribulation, Truths, Turkish government, Wealth, wicked men, Zeus
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More on Revelation 2:1-7

October 15, 2008

This letter addressed to the Church of Ephesus, one of the largest and most impressive cities in the Ancient world. Ephesus was a political, religious and commercial center in Asia Minor. The city played a significant role in the spread of Christianity. The city was located at the mouth of the Cayster River and situated between the Meander River to the south and the Hermus River to the north. The city itself had access to the river valleys ensuring prominence in the commercial industry. This guarantee of prominence made it an ideal location for a church as its influence would not only reach out to those who lived and did business there, but also it would reach out to the four corners of the world. Wherever a man could travel, the people would see to it that the Word spread. They were the carriers of the vital lifesaving message, passed from one subject to the next with little to no effort. Each people willing to accept from its own, the new gossip, the epidemic would now spread in magnanimous proportions.

There was one potential problem problem that John mentions and warns against – the source of the message had to remain pure, that is, to continue to be Christlike and full of love, in order for the message to have its fullest impact. Words without action yielded no fruit, that is, they had no impact. Often we, as people, begin to lose sight of our true purpose. We become entangled in rituals, rules and our own piety. When we do so, what becomes important to us is the outward appearance, while underneath, the source of life is slowly dwindling away. We forget the basic source of our power lies in the love we have for God. We begin looking inward at ourselves, enforcing rules, regulations, walking blindly without love. Love is the foundation of all God stands for. It’s the foundation of our faith, the source of our relationships, the glue that holds everything together. Without it, we remove ourselves from the vine, that which feeds, fuels, and maintains the true meaning of spiritual life.

The Ephesians lost sight of this principle. Through John, God reminded them that though their intentions were pure and noteworthy, their lifeline was in danger of being lost. All their work would be in vain if the love they had for God wasnt rekindled and made the motivational center of all they were accomplishing.

What good would our good work, trouble and endurance be to us and those around us, if it wasnt for the the heart? When we forget to love our Father in Heaven, who are we performing these works for but ourselves? What is gained from it all? For out of routine, ritual actions, pride, self centeredness and egotism take root. Instead of looking at how our actions will further the kingdom, we look at how we look and benefit from them.

Christ is in an intimate manner present and talking with His churches. He knows and observes their state; He takes pleasure in them. Though Christ is in heaven, He walks in the midst of the churches on earth, observing what is amiss in them and what it is they want.

The church is commended for their diligence in duty. Christ keeps an account of every day’s work His servants do for Him. The church commended for their patience in suffering. Ministers must have and exercise great patience. There must be waiting patience, that when they have done the will of God, they may recieve the promise. Their zeal was commended. True zeal proceeds with discretion, none should be cast off till they be tried.

The rebuke given to the church – those that have much good in them may have much amiss in them. Jesus takes notice of both. THe sin that the church charged this church was their decay in holy love and zeal. They had lost the fervent degree of it. Christ is grieved and displeased with His people when He sees them grow remiss and cold toward Him.

Those that have lost their first love must compare their present with the former state and consider how much better it was with them than now; how much peace, strength, purity and pleasure they have lost by leaving their first love. They must repent. They must be inwardly greived and ashamed for their sin. They must blame and shame themselves for it and humbly confess it in the sight of God, and judge and condemn themselves for it. They must return and do their first works. They must begin again, go back step by step, till they come to the place where they took the first false step.

Tags: Ancient world, Cayster River, Christlike, commercial center, commercial industry, egotism, Ephesians, Ephesus, epidemic, First LOve, God, Hermus River, Intimacy, Jesus, Kingdom of GOd, Letter to the Church of Ephesus, Love, Meander River, Ministers, Peace, pleasure, political, pride, purity, Rebuke, religious, rituals, routine, Self-Centeredness, Servants, Sin, strength, Zeal
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Ephesus of Revelation

October 15, 2008

Ephesus was the capital of the proconsular Asia. Colonized from Athens, Ephesus was distinguished for the temple of Diana, which produced its wealth and prominence and for its theaters. Many Jews took up their residence in this city, for it was here that the seed of the gospel was sown immediately after the Pentacost. Located near the mouth of the Cayster River, three miles from the western coast of Asia Minor and opposite the island of Samos. With its artificial harbor was accessible tot he largest ships, standing at the entrance of the valley which reaches far into the interior of Asia Minor and connected by highways with the chief cities of the province, Ephesus was the most easily accessible city in Asia, both by land and by sea. It’s location favored its religion, politics and commercial development.

The city stood upon the sloping sides and at the base of two hills – Prion and Corresus, commanding a beautiful view. The climate in Ephesus was exceptionally fine and the soil of the valley was unusually fertile. Ephesus was a mixture of oriental and Greek culture. It’s temple possessed valuable lands, controlled by the fishcries. The priests were the bankers of its enormous revenues. It was also a sanctuary for the criminal, for none might be arrested for any crime when within a bowshot of its walls. There sprang up about the temple, a village in which the thieves, murderers and other criminals made their homes. Not only did the temple bring vast numbers of pilgrims, it employed hosts of people apart from priests. Among them were large numbers of artisans who manufactured images of the goddess Diana or shrines to sell to visiting strangers. Paul was the first to make progress against the worship of Diana. As the fame of his teachings were carried by the pilgrims, with decreasing faith in Diana, came in fewer numbers, the sales of the shrines of the goddess fell off. Diana of the Ephesians was no longer great.

Ephesus became a Christian city in 341AD. The city itself soon lost its importance and decreased in population. In 1308, the Turks took possession of the little that remained in the city and departed or murdered its inhabitants. The Cayster River overflowing it banks gradually covered the spot where the temple stood.

Tags: Asia, Asia Minor, Cayster River, Christian city, climae, commercial development, Criminals, Ephesians, Ephesus, Gospel, Greek culture, Harbor, Highways, Paul, Pentacost, politics, Prominence, Religion, revenues, Temple, Temple of Diana, Theaters, Wealth, Worship
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Reaping What You Sow, Rising Above the Occasion – 2 Samuel 12:15-23

October 13, 2008

Everyday, we as people pursue all the benefit life has to offer. The more we receive, the more we want, sometimes wanting to the point of forsaking all things to get them. God had called David to the throne sixteen years before he ever took it. The path leading to the throne was not an easy one for him. Adversity was David’s lot. Yet no matter the course, no matter the obstacles, David was never too proud to return to God in reconciliation and as a result he remained blessed, but no amount of repenting prevented David from reaping the seed of his actions.

Though David sinned before God when his eyes looked in a direction outside the will of His Creator, God had blessed him with the kingship, blessed him with the respect of all who followed, lacking in nothing. Yet like us all, within David’s heart, a thorn of lust took root in his heart. Sin began to grow with only a thought. The Bible tells us, “for as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” The very seed in his heart now bore the fruit of his tree in his actions, deeds, and words. The country was at war and while David’s forces fought for the lives of the people, David sat home. Have you heard the old saying, “an idle mind is the devil’s playgound?”

While his men fought, David remained home. Relaxing up on the rooftop, David glances across the way and what do you think happened? David’s eye catches sight of the most beautiful of women. It was all over for him now? The devil had planted the seed of lust. Here, a decision or choice had to be made. Unfortunately, David chooses to give life to the seed by dwelling on the desires of his heart. Just as a thorn pierces the very thing it touches, so too does the fleshly desires of this man affect others.

In his weakness, sin took root and began to grow. David, however, knowingly pursued the very thing he knew wasnt his, for this prize belonged to another man. Knowing that did not deter him though. The seed of the sin was already growing in his heart and had begun to show up in his actions. Blinded by his fleshly desires, he plans an innocent man’s death to have this man’s wife. How many of you know that what’s done in the dark will eventually come out in the light? David’s plan may have suceeded, but at who’s expense? Who would know the better? Do you know nothing is free? Lives were lost that day! What value is a man’s life? Had David considered the cost to achieve his end goal? Everyday, many people attempt to achieve a goal, never considering the cost, much less consider how their actions may affect others. David’s actions may have brought about the end goal, but the lives of Uriah and his own men were the means to David’s end.

Do you know for every action there is a consequence for that action? Here sin brought about death to innocent lives not to mention David’s spiritual separation from God. If David only knew what was to come. Upon hearing of Uriah’s death and mourning, David takes Bathsheba as his wife. She, already pregnant, later bears a son to the king, an heir to his throne, but not every blessing brings about good results.

David’s union was not blessed by God. Lives were wrongly lost to bring about this union. Though God’s judgment wasnt immediate, judgment was inevitable and imminent. Nothing would stop what was about to come to pass. Through judgment, God teaches David that there are consequences to every action. What was meant to be a time of joy and blessing, now becomes a time of sadness and loss. Though the child dies just as Nathan prophesies, David accepts God’s judgment.

How would you react to God telling you that the death of your child is your judgment? What would be running through your mind as you watch judgment unfold? Would your attitude change toward God? Would you reject Him? Would you accept the consequences of your actions and go on, or would you harden your heart toward God?

David sinned. He experienced the pain of his actions. Yet he remained true to God, reconciling himself to the One Who gave him life. David didn’t let the consequences of his life change his heart toward serving God. Will you like David rise above the occasion? Will you look inside yourself placing blame where blame is due or would you blame God for your actions? David recognized his sin, took responsibility for his actions, accepted God judgment and lifted his head to continue serve him.

Tags: Adversity, Bathsheba, Bible, Blessed, consequences, David's heart, David's lot, David's throne, deeds, Devil, Fleshly desires, Forsaking things, Fruit of our actions, God, God's judgment, Idle mind is the devil's playground, Judgment, King David, Kingship, Life's Benefits, Lust, Nathan, Obstacles, Reaping what we sow, Reconciliation, Sin, Spiritual separation, The will of God, Uriah, Weaknesses, words
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The Place of Sacrifice – The Brazen Altar – Prayer Part 6

September 30, 2008

Once you have washed in the brazen laver, it is time to be purified at the brazen altar. This is the second stage of our outer court step in God’s pattern of prayer. The brazen altar is where you let go of your will and embrace everything the Lord wants to do in your life.

Let’s review: You have entered prayer through the gate of Jesus Christ with thanksgiving and praise for what He has done. You have drawn near to God by moving through every distraction in the outer court. You have submitted to the “washing of the Word” at the brazen laver, and now you know exactly what “manner of person” you are. The transformation has begun. You have come through “the way”” (the gate), but you are still in the outer court realm of prayer. You have reached the “truth” level for your personal life, but your prayer experience isn’t fully matured; you still have to be broken before the Lord.

What is an altar? The word “altar” in the Hebrew means “a slaughter place”. In the Greek, it’s called “a place of sacrifice”. The brazen altar is the place where natural earthly things that hinder your walk with God are consumed by the fire of God. It’s the place where you become a “living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1-3). Everything within you that does not line up with God’s perfect will comes to an end at the brazen altar. They are set on fire and consumed in the Spirit.

What does it mean to be set on fire and consumed in the Spirit? This describes what it feels like after you become committed to a life of prayer, when the Lord allows you to be confronted with certain situations that will become the very trying of your faith. You must always remember that once you confess and declare that you believe the works of Christ and what He has done in your life, then every work of the Lord in your life shall be tried by fired (1 Corinthians 3:13-15).

For example, gold jewelry is forged by being placed in the fire. The goldsmith’s purpose for doing this is to draw the impurities and black tar particles to the surface. Then he pulls the gold out of the fire, scrapes off the impurities and foreign particles, and puts it back into the fire. He does this repeatedly until he’s gotten to the deepest interior of the lump of gold. During this process, everything that would cause this piece of jewelry not to shine, not to be declared as costly pure gold, is burned out so that the value of the gold increases. God is doing the same purifying work in our lives. When we allow God to put us “in the fire” we are cooperating with everything He is doing in us. We are releasing every impurity that would hinder us from becoming a most valuable resource to Him and to His work. When these impurities are burned out of us, nothing in prayer can be hindered – because the forging process strengthens us to carry the weight in the Spirit. This makes us valuable instruments in His hands, not shallow believers.

God gave Moses very specific instructions for the construction of the altar in Exodus 27:1-8. The altar was to be “five cubits square and three cubits high” Five is the number of grace and three represents the Godhead. When you go to the brazen altar, you are submitting to (proving) the work of the Godhead – and you will be transformed through His Word. Jesus has already perfected the fire, meaning He has already tempered the flame to facilitate each and every person that will enter. No two people go through the same trial. No one goes through the same fire. God tempers the flame so that it only burns up what He cannot use. It will not consume the part of you that He desires to use. Though the fire gets rid of the bad elements, it allows “that which remains” and “that which is good” to be formed and shaped until it adheres completely to His image.

God gave specific measurements for the altar. “Make horns for it on its four corner; they shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with bronze. You shall make pots to take away its ashes, and shovels, basins, forks and firepans; make all its utensils of bronze. Also make for it a grate, a network of bronze; and on the net you shall make four bronze rings at its four corners. And you shall put it under the ledge of the altar, so that the net will extend halfway down the altar. And make the poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood overlaid with bronze. The poles shall be put through the rings on the two sides of the altar, with which to carry it. You shall make [the altar] hollow with slabs or planks; as shown you on the mountain, so shall it be made.”

The brazen altar was made out of wood and then overlaid in bronze. Wood represents humanity, and whenever humanity is involved, there are limitations. Bronze symbolizes judgment, so the brazen altar is where God atoned for the limitations of man through the shedding of blood. (Isaiah 53:5-7) As you approach the altar of sacrifice, your ability to hold fast to your confession will be tested. When you die to the flesh in prayer, the laver and altar enable you to rise up in the Spirit and walk into the holy place. Sacrifice always comes before service. Put yourself on the brazen altar and God will lead you to the second and third realms in prayer. You won’t carry thoughts, ways and ideas to His throne – you will receive divine knowledge and revelation from Him as to how you should pray. That is why you must go beyond outer court prayer.

The brazen altar was three cubits high, which symbolized the Godhead. It also matched the height of the Ark of the Covenant, which rests behind the veil in the most holy place. The base of the ark was two and a half cubits, but it extended to three cubits when they mounted the cherubim on top of the cover. I believe this indicates that the glory of God will be equal to the sacrifice you make on the brazen altar. If there’s no communion with God at the altar, you won’t have a match or connection in the most holy place. To be effective in prayer, your sacrifice must measure up to the level of glory you want to experience with God in intercession. Too many believers want great power with little or no sacrifice. The danger comes when you think you are operating in the light of God, but in reality you are still functioning in natural light. In the outer court, in natural light, daylight ends and night comes. That means sometimes you are able to see your way, and sometimes you cant. In the third realm, the light is supernatural. It always shines because it comes from the glory of God.

The original flame that lit the brazen altar came directly from heaven! The Chumash states that the fire “went into the Holy of Holies and from there it went out to the Golden Altar and then to the Outer Altar, causing the incense and the sacrificial parts to go up in smoke. Do you see the pattern? In his first service for Israel, Aaron performed the sacrifices according to the pattern of prayer revealed to Moses. He followed Gods pattern and the Glory of God was revealed to all the people. After this “day of obedience”, the priests were instructed that the “fire upon the altar shall be kept burning on it’ it shall not be allowed to go out (Lev 6:12). Each morning they were to burn wood on it and make a sacrifice. From that day forward, wood, which represent humanity, kept the fire burning. God requires us to lay ourselves on the brazen altar every day and say, “whatever doesnt please you, Lord, burn it up. Consume my will, desires, emotions – anything that doesn’t line up with Your will”. We are the wood that keeps God’s fire burning on the altar.

Even still, God doesn’t expect you to sacrifice without His help. He provided for you by putting four horns on the corners of the brazen altar – which represent salvation, strength, and power! So when you lay on the altar of sacrifice, you receive salvation, strength, and power from Him to do His will. Why? Your flesh is being consumed in the fire of God, so it can’t hinder your prayer. When you go into the holy place, you will be fully matured in prayer.

When the fire of purification is consuming your flesh (meaning when you are being challenged to walk in right standing with God in the midst of temptation), you must remember your salvation. You must go back to the four works of Christ and learn to praise Him in the fire. This also ties in to the four horns on the altar. The number four represent the earth and its elements – the four winds and the four corners of the earth. So Christ’s power to help you in prayer is unlimited! It extends to all four corners of the earth.

Jesus completed the pattern of prayer to help in time of need. His sacrifice was great and can’t be ignored – we must embrace it. We must be willing to go into the purifying fire of God with faith that Christ will help us.

Tags: acacia, altar, altar of sacrifice, Ark of the Covenant, atonement, basins, behind the veil, Brazen Altar, Brazen Laver, bronze, bronze rings, cherubim, Christ, Confession, consumed by the Spirit, Costly, Distraction, Divine knowledge and revelation, effective prayer, Embracing God's will, Faith, fire of God, fire of purification, firepans, Flesh, flesh in prayer, Forging, forks, four corners, God, God's glory, God's image, God's pattern of prayer, God's perfect will, Godhead, Goldsmith, Greek, Hebrew, holy of holies, Horns, humanity, Impurities, Jesus Christ, Judgment, limitations, MOst Holy Place, natural light, obedience, Old Testament tabernacle, Outer Court, pattern of prayer, personal life, place of sacrifice, power, Praise, prayer, purification, Sacrifice, Salvation, Set on fire, Slaughter place, strength, Strengthen, supernatural, Tabernacle, Tabernacle gate, Tempered by the flames, temptation, Thanksgiving, the veil, The Way, Transformation, Truth, valuable instruments, Washing in the blood, Washing in the Word, Word
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The Place of Washing – The Brazen Laver – Prayer Part 5

September 26, 2008

I can’t tell you how many times I have read the Bible bypassing a lot of the scriptures that cover the genealogy and construction of the tabernacle. To me, once read is enough as there wasn’t much I really saw that was important to me, yet years later, I find that the there was so much to learn about the tabernacle. At first glance, you wouldn’t think so. This study has so proven this way of thought wrong. I can only pray that as we walk through each part, you will find that God hid away in these verses patterns for us to go by, even today. Let’s continue where we left off.

If you remember from our last lesson, we have entered into the outer court, the place where the brazen laver and brazen altar. Now prepare yourself for your journey through the outer court. As you begin to walk through the outer court, you enter the brazen laver stage of God’s pattern of prayer. If you recall, you have passed through the gate that represents the works of Jesus Christ: His righteousness, divinity, kingship and sacrifice. These four works of Christ allow you to enter His “courts” in prayer through expressing praise and thankfulness to God for what He has already done. You have kept moving forward through the outer court, drawing ever nearer to God, becoming a reflection of Christ, Himself. The brazen laver is the place of sanctification, where the Word of God cleanses and begins to prepare you to serve in your priestly function as an intercessor. It is the first piece of furniture in the tabernacle and the first part of God’s nature that embraces your life.

Exodus 30:17-21 (NIV) says, “Then the Lord said to Moses, Make a bronze basin, with its bronze stand, for washing. Place it between the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and put water in it. Whenever they enter the Tent of Meeting, they shall wash with water so that they will not die. Also, when they approach the altar to minister by presenting an offering made to the Lord by fire, they shall wash their hands and feet so that they will not die. This is to be a lasting ordinance for Aaron and his descendants for the generation to come.”

Exodus 38:8 (NIV) says, “They made the bronze basin and its bronze stand from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.”

In these times, the priest were required to wash their hands and feet, indicating that prayer is not suppose to stay on the personal level. By washing, the priest demonstrated their total devotion to God’s service. So what does this have to do with you? By receiving Christ you were given access to the outer court. It is important that you dont stop at entering through the gate. God wants you to keep moving forward. Whether you want to realize it, God must take us to another level in prayer, the level that prepares us to pray for others. Since prayer is not only a personal relationship with God, but also a ministry, you must be taught that washing at the laver prepares you to minister to yourself, to someone else or to the Lord.

Ephesians 5:26 says, “to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.”

So what does the Old Testament Washing at the laver have to do with us today. We, as priests, don’t worship in a tabernacle the way the Levite priests did in ancient times, yet washing has an important significance in God’s pattern of prayer. Washing at the laver is symbolic of our washing in God’s Word, which helps you to strip off the “old self” which is your flesh. Until we wash at the brazen laver, we live “according to the desires of the flesh and are controlled by its unholy effects”. In the outer court, we are still setting our minds on the things which gratify the flesh. This is why you must wash. Our sanctification at the brazen laver is accomplished through the work of the Holy Spirit, our Life Giver. God can’t use a fleshly intercessor. There is no room for a flesh prayer. You must wash at the laver to get cleansed and prepared for the next level of consecration.

Returning to the Bible, we find that the brazen laver was made of solid bronze, symbolizing God’s judgment – so it reminds us that He’s the final judge of whether we are spiritually clean. It also reminds us that there’s a final judgment for those who reject the Word (John 3:18, Revelation 20:11-15). It is through the washing of the word that Jesus is able to begin transforming you into the image of God. You can’t do this for yourself. I believe that is why the laver had no recorded measurements and no wood in it’s construction. The Word of God is absolutely unlimited in its ability to wash and cleanse you. Nothing is too deep within for the laver to reach, too far in your past to erase, or too distant in your future to control. Its cleansing power is unlimited, so you can become exactly who God destined you to be in His kingdom.

In the Old Testament days, the mirrors that women used were made of bronze. The brazen laver was constructed from the mirrors of the Israelite women. I think it’s interesting and somewhat cute that women provided the mirrors, because the spirit of vanity is portrayed in women more than men. It is almost as though God moved upon these women to surrender their vanity and overcome it. To me, this represents a surrendering of what you think you look like to the Lord. Do you really know what “manner of man” you are?

When the priests approached the brazen laver, he saw his reflection in the water and a second reflection in the basin. There could be no mistake about how he looked. When you go to the brazen laver in prayer, God shows you a true reflection of who you are. By coming to Him, you are able to see your natural reflection and get a glimpse of what you are becoming as He imparts the Word into your life. He’s beginning the process of “completing” your salvation (1Peter 2:1-5). This is where you become conscious of doing the Word that God imparts to you from the basin – where you decide to start living for God and become a true reflection of Him, where you decide to rise up from your prayer and begin to live as you believe. The Word helps you see yourself as you really are while it enables you to obey the revealed Word.

Many people hear the Word but fail to understand they need to do what it says. They hang around in the outer court and then wander over to the brazen laver to wash – because everyone else is doing it, but when they can’t endure the washing, they run away from the laver to a place where they feel more comfortable. No matter how far you run, you can’t escape the washing! If only you would wash at the laver, it would reveal the truth about who you really are by reflecting the Word into your heart. Then you would understand that it isn’t that people are suppose to wash – we need to wash! We can’t go deeper in God until we are sanctified at the brazen laver.

Though you wash at the lever, you can not remain there. You are still in the outer court level of praying, so the only person you will be able to pray for is yourself. Remember that the outer court prayer focuses on self, your wrong doings, your limitations and failures, what you need to overcome and so on. At this stage, it’s still about YOU.

As a matter of fact, the priests could not stay at the laver for very long each day before they started performing their priestly duties. In other words, don’t resist God when He deals with areas of your life at the laver! Let the Word do a quick work in you. You can’t afford to miss one day at the laver.

Tags: Aaron, Brazen Altar, Completing your Salvation, consecration, divinity, Exodus 30, Final Judgment, Flesh, Four works of Christ, God, God;s Kingdom, Holy, Holy SPirit, image of God, intercessor, Israelite, Jesus Christ, Judgment, Kingdom, Kingship, lasting Ordinance, Life Giver, Living God, Old Testament, Outer Court, personal relationship with God, Praise, prayer, Priest, priestly functions, Reflection of Jesus, Revelation 20, Righteousness, Sacrifice, sanctification, Self, Tabernacle, Tent of Meeting, Thankfulness, unholy desires, Vanity
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The Early Stages of Prayer – The Outer Court – Part 4

September 15, 2008

Now that we have accepted the works of Christ and are given access through the gate, we will enter into the outer court of the Tabernacle. Since God is always moving and in transition, we too should be ever moving and always in transition.

As I stated before, the tabernacle of the Old Testament was a physical building, whereas the tabernacle of the New Testament resides in our hearts. The Old Testament outer court was located just inside the Tabernacle East Gate. We have a New Testament Outer Court, as well. We are given access to it at our initial conversion, that is, after we have accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior, as we recognize His four works – His righteousness, holiness, kingship and sacrifice.

In the Old Testament, the Outer Court area was open to the effects of the natural elements and lit by natural sunlight. The Outer Court was the very place the people of Israel gathered to discuss their opinions about God and other things. In the New Testament Outer Court, we are offered the eternal light of Christ through our salvation, but we haven’t yet received eternal revelation. We are still under the influence of natural light, that is, the influence imposed by our worldly views and values. Though we are saved, we are constantly being exposed to the world around us. Staying around negative influences for too long will eventually hinder our pursuit of God. We all know that the longer we stay around a particular influence, the more we become what we hang around. The conversations that take place in the Outer court will eventually begin to hinder our prayers. Outer court pray-ers are inconsistent, praying whenever, crying out to God in emergencies when it looks like something terrible is going to happen, admiring God, but never coming into a relationship with Him. Outer Court pray-ers never pass through the courts into intercession because they don’t know God well enough to understand His heart and agonize for Him in prayer. Outer court pray-ers are focused on washing, cleansing, and material things because they are still in their own infant state of their spirituality. Unsure of who they are in Christ, these natural believers spend more time praying for themselves than for others, understand however, God wants us to move from the natural into the supernatural. To pass through this stage, we must force ourselves to move deeper through the court to the brazen laver and the brazen altar, the place where we begin to lay down our life for God, letting go of anything that is not His will. This is where God begins to qualify us to serve in intercession.

God has prepared great things if we would only love and seek after Him with all our heart. The outer court is just the beginning of our journey, but we must move through it to become His ambassador! Staying in the outer court prevents us from finding true intimacy with God. In the outer court stage you see people who are crippled, sick and depressed in spite of your prayers for healing, deliverance and peace. What’s wrong? You cant pray effectually in the outer court! You must mature in the spirit by surrendering yourself to God and then His power will begin to fuel your prayer.

God constructs plans by way of a pattern. If you want God to speak intimately with you, if you want to receive divine revelation and impartation from Him, you have to go to the third dimension of prayer, in the Most Holy Place. Though you are saved and in the outer court, God is calling you to a deeper level of prayer. Follow Him. Pass through every level, every piece of furniture in the tabernacle, to enter the third realm of intercession. This is the level of intimacy with God where anyone whom He has qualified can enter and change the course of this world. We don’t want to get stuck in the outer court, satisfied with just a glimpse, just an aroma of God’s glorious presence. In the next lession, we are going to take a close look at the brazen laver and learn to move deeper in prayer through this experience of cleansing.

Tags: Brazen Altar, Brazen Laver, Christ, East Gate, God, Holiness, Influence, Intercession, Intimacy, Kingship, New Testament, Old Testament, Outer Court, People of Israel, Righteousness, Sacrifice, Salvation, Spirituality, supernatural, Tabernacle
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Revelation 2:8-11 The Church of Smyrna

September 14, 2008

The Church of Smyrna (100-312 AD) was a much persecuted church located in a wealthy city that had little time for Christians. Located 25 miles north of Ephesus, Smyrna was nicknamed the “Port of Asia” because it had an excellent harbor on the Aegean Sea. This church struggled against two hostile forces: a Jewish population strongly opposed to Christianity and a non-Jewish population that was loyal to Rome and supported emperor worship. The commercial center of Asia Minor, it was on the direct trade route from India and Persia to Rome. In the midst of adversity and great persecution, this church was a most faithful church.

Commendation: “I know your afflictions and your poverty, yet you are rich!

Condemnation: Not a Word!

Counsel: “do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days”

Challenge: “He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.”

They Smyrna period was probably the greatest time of persecution the Church of Christ ever known. Satan unleashed a violent attack on the church in effort to to obliterate it, for it became evident to him that the apostolic church, because of its faithful preaching of the gospel, had become a serious threat to his worldwide godless empire. The more he persecuted the church during this period, the more the church overcame the one condemning characteristic of the apostolic age, that of having left its first love. Not one word of condemnation was hurled by Christ at this church. From this Satan learned a great secret: Persecution will not stamp out the Church of Christ!

As predicted by the Lord, Himself in verse 10, “you will suffer persecution for ten days”. The church age saw eight of the ten periods of persecution under the Roman emperors.

Nero (54-68 AD) beheaded Paul and crucified Peter; Domitian (81-96 AD) exiled John; Trajan (98-117 AD) burned Ignatius at the stake; Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD) killed Justin Martyr; Severus (193-211AD); Maximinius (235-238 AD); Decius (249-251 AD); Valerian (253-260 AD); Aurelian (270-275 AD); Diocletian (284-305AD) led a violent attempt to destroy the Bible from the face of the earth. During the second and third centuries this persecution age saw hundreds of Christians bought into the amphitheater of Rome to be fed to hungry lions while thousands of spectators cheered. Many were crucified; others were covered with animal skins and tortured to death by wild dogs. They covered with tar and set on fire to serve as torches. They were boiled in oil and burned at the stake. One church historian has estmated that during this period, five million Christians were martyred for the testimony of Jesus Christ.

The Church of Smyrna was a thriving church as it reached its greatest numbers during this period. This church distinguished itself by its production of many hand-copied manuscripts of the sacred scriptures and the translation of many scriptures into many languages.

The message of Christ to Smyrna is, “These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again”. It’s interesting to note that Christ introduces each message to the churches by reaching back to the vision of Himself in chapter one and picking out one of the characteristics of His nature. To Smyrna He emphasizes His eternal nature, “the First and the Last”; His death for their sins – “I was dead”; His resurrection – “and behold I am alive forever and ever”.

The commendation of Christ is that He does not condemn it. Christ’s commendation highlights three characteristics of the church: tribulation, poverty and affliction.

1) The Church of Smyrna was a Persecuted church. “I know your afflictions “.

2) The Church of Smyrna was a poor church. “and your poverty,” It appears that this church went through a severe period of financial persecution. Smyrna was not only a trade city but also a city of guilds that closely regulated the craftsmen of the day, much as the unions do today. Because of the intense hatred for Christians, when a man took a stand for Christ, his shop was boycotted or his employment was severed or some other means was used to limit his economic opportunity. Those Christians who were rich in this world’s goods went bankrupt. Consequently, the church enjoyed few monetary assets. “ yet you are rich!” highlights a divine principle that, regardless of one’s economic state, knowing Jesus Christ brings wealth in this life and in the life to come! Many who are poor as a proverbial “church mouse” are rich in this life in the things money cannot buy: joy, peace, happiness, contentment, and eternal accomplishments.

3) The Church of Smyrna was an afflicted church. “I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan”. This church was afflicted by false teachers who had claimed to be Jews but really were not.

Satan has his own religious faith. He also has his churches called “synagogues of Satan”. Any church that preaches a gospel other than the gospel of Christ is a synagogue of Satan regardless to what it is called. Two basic heresies emanate from the synagogue of satan. These heresies are a false doctrine of Christ and a mixing of law and grace. Either people are confused about the personal diety of our Lord Jesus Christ, suggesting that though He was a good man, He was not the virgin born Son of God who lived a sinless life, died a sacrificial death, rose bodily from the grave, ascended physically into heaven and promised to return physically to this earth some day. Or they add to salvation “by grace through faith”, saying that in addition to believing on Jesus, we should also keep the Sabbath, observe certain rites and ceremonies, eat or not eat certain kinds of foods, etc. The church of Smyrna withstood these two teaching that are decieving many today.

Jesus counsels the church of Smyrna saying, “Do not be afraid” and “be faithful, even to the point of death”. Jesus predicted that they would suffer, telling them that the devil will put some in prison to test them, telling them some would suffer persecution for ten days. This is the same counsel given to every believer today. When grace is needed, grace will be supplied. When courage is needed, courage is supplied for we have the divine promise that our God is able to meet all our needs according to his glorious riches in Jesus Christ.

The Church of Smyrna is challenged to hear what the Spirit has to say and to overcome. “He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death”. God’s people have His personal promise that they will never be hurt. The second death is that state when people who have died in unbelief are resurrected and cast alive into an eternal state of separation from God in the place called the lake of fire. The second death need never to cause the child of God to fear, for it will have no power over them.

Tags: Affliction, afraid, APostolic Church, Asia Minor, child of God, Christianity, Church of Christ, Church of Smyrna, Condemnation, contentment, courage, crucified, Faith, Faithful, Fear, First LOve, Grace, guilds, Happiness, Hatred, John, Joy, overcome, Paul, Peace, Persecution, Peter, Poverty, resurrection, Satan, Scriptures, second death, Smyrna, synagogue of Satan, Testimony of Jesus Christ, Tribulation
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Revelation 2:1-7 The Church of Ephesus

September 14, 2008

I can’t tell you the number of times I have tried to make sense of the Book of Revelation, only to read it without full understanding. The more revelation came, the hungrier I got to learn more.

Chapters 2 and 3 of Revelations was written to the seven churches of Asia and the message it bears go beyond that time to the churches of today. Each message to the seven churches consists of four parts: Christ’s divine commendation, condemnation, counsel and challenge. Each part is just as vital today as it was in the day they were actually written.

Let’s begin by outlining each of the parts just discussed, then we will go into the scriptures and clarify the meaning more closely. Christ begins His message with this commendation: “I know your deeds, your hard work and perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, and that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endure hardships for my name, and have not grown weary…but you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolatians which I also hate.”

With all these praises, this church had a problem. Christ’s seeing the problem, issues his condemnation saying, “Yet I hold this against you” You have forsaken your first love”

The best news was, Christ didnt leave the church hanging. He told them the problem and he told them the solution. In his attempts to bring this church back to order, He counsels them to “Remember the height from which you have fallen. Repent and do the things you did at first.”

By obeying His command, the church is issued a challenge: “To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God”

It is important to know a few things about Ephesus. Understanding the times and the history of this church will shed some light into your minds as to what the Ephesians were dealing with. It will allow the reader to identify the obstacles and challenges faced by the members and angel of this church.

Ephesus is considered by the Bible scholars to have been one of the finest and largest churches (Apostolic, 33-100 AD) in the New Testament times. It was begun by the Apostle Paul at the end of his second missionary journey (Acts 18:19-20). Ephesus was the capital of Asia Minor, a center of land and sea trade, and along with Alexandria and Antioch in Syria, one of the three most influential cities in Eastern part of the Roman Empire. The temple of Artemis, one of the ancient wonders of the world was located in this city, and a major industry was the manufacture of images of this goddess.

The name Ephesus means “desired one”. The name is very fitting as this church was the most desirable of all the churches or church ages. As a result of the large percentage of Jewish converts that made up the church, this church age was characterized by its fervent evangelism. Scripturally this is supported in Romans 10:18 which tells us that the voice of this church had gone out into all the earth, their words to the end of the world. Romans 16:26 adds that the gospel was made known by the prophetic writings by the command of God, so that the nations might believe and obey Him. Colossians 1:6 says the gospel has come to us all over the world, bearing fruit and growing. Taken as a whole, we see that this church accomplished more widespread preaching of the gospel through the ministry of Jewish Christians than has ever been seen before.

There are many notable things to mention about this church.

1) The church of Ephesus was a working church as scripture says, “I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance”. The speaker in Revelation 2:2-7 is Jesus. He is described here as walking in the midst of the seven golden lamp stands indicating that He is always available and has been given the power and authority over the every aspect of the churches and the angel over these churches. This church was commended for its faithful works of Christian service. No act of service is too small to escape the Savior’s notice.

2) The church of Ephesus was a separated church. Scripture tells us that “I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men”. A true church is a church in the world, but not of the world. The members of this church refused to fraternize with loose Christians. They allowed themselves to be led by the unction of the Spirit to “watch out for those who cause division and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away form them (Rom 16:17). This church was truly separated as it practiced discipline.

3) The Church of Ephesus was a pure church – “you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false”. Satan sowed weeds in the Lord’s wheat field immediately after the Pentacost. Some of these weeds disguised themselves as apostles and went about deceiving some of the early churches in their innocence. However, those who truly looked to God were not decieved, as they tried the spirit of those claiming to be apostles. Because of the devil’s semantic, we have to examine what people mean by the words them employ, as well as the words themselves.

4) The Church of Ephesus was an autonomous church – “you hate the practices of the Nicolatians which I also hate”. The word Nicolatians comes from two Greek words: nikos meaning “to conquer, overthrow” and laos meaning “the people, laity”. It seems that in the early days of the church the followers of Nicolati held two serious views. They practiced sensuality by completely separating one’s spiritual and physical nature, thus giving themselves license to sin. And they tried to establish an ecclesiastical order known as Nicolaitanism. This is an unscriptural idea, which causes the local church to become enslaved by one man or a small group of men.

Though this church had many things that it was praised for, Christ saw beyond these to the core of the issue. He states, “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.” There existed a problem so deep, that without immediate correction, the fate of this church was on the line. Although basically faithful, it had unconsciously given into the natural tendency of letting even the most wonderful experience become commonplace. Although they loved the Lord, they had lost the spontaneous sparkle of their love for Him. This has been illustrated many times in human experience by marriages that fall onto dangerous ground when the husband or wife begin taking each other for granted. Honeymoon love erodes and becomes just routine married life. As devastating as this is in marriage, it is many times worse in the relationship of an individual or a church with Christ. The thrilling flush of new found conversion and experience with Jesus must be guarded by submission to the Holy Spirit all during one’s Christian experience. Most Christian lives consist of a “first love” experience, which develops into a routine walk of having “forsaken your first love”.

Christ counsels the Church of Ephesus to do three things:

1) “Remember the height from which you have fallen”. Christ sternly admonishes the believers of Ephesus to recall the faithfulness of their earlier years and take inventory of their spiritual life.

2) “Repent”. They are to turn back from their coldness and indifference to the vital relationship with Christ.

3) “Do the things you did at first”. Those who truly love Jesus, obey Him. Often we who excuse our indulgence and lack of consecration only prove by our conduct that we do not love Jesus with all our heart., with all our soul, and with all our mind. We who are unwilling to yield all our talents and capabilities to Jesus have a love problem, that is, we do not sufficiently love Christ. It is safe to say that if our love for Christ is what it should be, no task is too great, no sacrifice too much for Him.

The challenge of Christ in the Church of Ephesus falls into two main division “Hear what the Spirit says” and “to him who conquers”.

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit sas to the churches” The statement implies three kinds of individuals.

1) Those without ears. Christ refers to those who are not attuned to the Holy Spirit by the new birth – that is, those who have not been born again and thus are not anointed with the Holy Spirit. Consequently, they cannot hear the voice of God when He speaks.

2) Those who are dull of hearing. Not all born again Christians are willing to hear the SPirit of God when He speaks. This is a reference to those Christians who are in rebellion against the Spirit of God and His mastery of their lives – a most dangerous condition in which to live.

3) Those spiritual minded Christians who are willing to hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

To him who overcomes there is the promise of eternal life. The Tree of Life of which those who overcome are given the opportunity to eat, is unquestionably the tree from which Adam and Eve were forbidden to eat after their sin. A symbol of eternal life, it is pictured as having a prominent place in the paradise of God that awaiths those who trust in Him. Who are the overcomers? 1 John 5:4-5 give us the answer. “For everyone born of God overcomes the world”. Who is it that overcomes the world? “Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God”

Tags: Angel of the Church, Book of Revelation, Challenges, Christ, Christian service, Church History, Colossians, COmmendation, Condemnation, Counsel, deeds, Devil, Ephesians, Ephesus, Evangelism, fervent Evangelism, Hard work, Holy SPirit, Jewish Converts, Nicolatians, Obstacles, Overcomer, Perseverance, Repent, Romans, Seven Churches of Revelation, Sin
Posted in Biblical Teaching, Bread of Life, Christianity, Faith, Fountain of Life, God, God's Word, Jesus, Religion | 2 Comments »

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