Did you ever send an email and have it return without reaching the
recipient that it was sent to? If you use email enough sooner or later
it will happen. In computer jargon, this is called a bounced e-mail. It
is and email that has been sent that never arrives in the recipient's
inbox and is sent back, or bounced back, to the sender with an error
message that indicates to the sender that the e-mail was never
successfully transmitted. In a similar manner, did you ever pray and it
seems that your prayer never reached it's recipient, the Lord? Well
there are reasons for this, so let's explore some things and get some
answers.
First, in the natural, a soldier engaged in combat must have absolute
confidence in his weapon. He is depending either on the manufacturer's
instruction manual or on his drill instructor that he has been given the
correct information on how to use and care for his weapon. When the
soldier enters into combat, other than his fellow soldier around him,
his weapon is the most important thing that he has. It actually becomes
an extension of his body because he literally lives with it even when he
sleeps. Not only does it protect him, but it helps him drive back the
enemy.
In a similar way the believer also has a weapon, "...the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." (Ephesians
6:17) Like a solider in natural combat, the believer in the realm of
spiritual combat, must have absolute, unshakable, unwavering faith
in the the Word of God and its ability to stop the enemy's (the devil)
activities in their life. One of the major differences between physical
and spiritual combat is that when you shoot a physical weapon you can
usually see the damage that has been inflicted by the bullet. In
spiritual combat you must depend entirely on what the manufacturer's
instruction manual (The Bible) says that the damage will be when you use
your spiritual weapon.
For instance, James 4:7 tells us, "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." But because you can't physically see the devil in the act of fleeing, you have to believe with total faith
and confidence that when you resist the devil and use the Word of God
that in the spirit realm, that is exactly what is taking place. "But it
doesn't feel like he is fleeing," you say. "The symptoms are still
there, the problem is even worse than it was. It seems like my finances
are in worse shape than before I prayed. It seems like the pain in my
body is worse now than it was before in prayed. How can the devil be
fleeing if the circumstances are worse than before?" Again, the answer to your questions are found in the manufacturer's
instruction manual, the Bible. Does it say you have to feel good, better
or different to prove that your weapon has worked and the devil is
fleeing from you? No, it doesn't say that. The only condition James 4:7
emphasizes is that you have to be submitted to God when you resist the
devil. "Therefore submit to God..." That condition must be met in your life if you ever expect the devil to flee from you.
Are you submitted to God? Are you staying free from sin and keeping your
fleshly desires that aren't pleasing to God under control by the Power
of the Holy Spirit? Is Jesus the Lord of your life? Are you living
according to His will, in humility and obedience? If not, you could be
giving the devil place, an open door in your life which gives him a
right to not only hang around, but to also continue hassling you. "nor give place to the devil." (Ephesians
4:27) If you have any sin in your life, you must repent and get the
door closed top the devil first, before you begin striking down the
wiles of the devil with the Word of God.
If you are submitted to God and your heart doesn't condemn you, then you
will have total confidence in your weapon and know that the bullet
(God's Word) hit the target exactly where you aimed it and that the
enemy is on the run. "Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we
have confidence toward God. And whatever we ask we receive from Him,
because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing
in His sight. ( 1 John 3:21-22) However, the devil will try to
deceive you. He will tell you that you missed; That God's Word didn't
work for you; that God doesn't really love you; that God's Word
doesn't work that way; and on and on. He will say anything to make you
doubt God and His promises in His Word. However, Jesus tells us, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes." (Mark 9:23) He also tells us, "...Have
faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this
mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in
his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will
have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask
when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them." (Mark 11:22-24)
These are promises from God's Word that we can count on because God does
not lie (Number 23:19) He means what He says and says what He means. If
He didn't mean it, He would not have said it. So as Peter said
concerning the devil, "Resist him (the devil) in the faith..." (1 Peter 5:9) we also must, "take up the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one." (Ephesians 6:16) and stand in faith on God's Word knowing, "Now
this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything
according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us,
whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked
of Him." (1 John 5:14-15)
Monday, October 11, 2021
Hitting The Mark
Monday, October 4, 2021
In His Unchanging Fulness
Unbelief is the greatest culprit behind a
hardened heart and a hardened heart lowers the character, quality, and
value of God's Word. Either way it has caused many in the church to
suffer. They have been taught that somehow God has brought suffering
upon them for some mysterious reason that only He knows and if He
decides to heal, deliver or remove the suffering or not, well it's fine
with me, God's will
be done. Yet in the midst of the suffering that supposedly God has
given they will seek relief from a physician or some other person that
can help them alleviate the suffering. There is certainly nothing wrong
with most physicians. They do help people and have saved lives. However,
logic asks, if the suffering is from God, who is all powerful, all
knowing, and sovereign, then why doesn't the person go to God for the
deliverance? (When I speak of suffering, I am speaking of sickness,
disease and pain)
How it must grieve the heart of our heavenly Father when His children
have been trained to believe that He would strike one of them with pain
and suffering. How it must grieve the heart of our heavenly Father when
His children blame Him for something Satan has done. How it must grieve
the heart of our heavenly Father when His children do not believe His
Word. A look at the prophet Isaiah and the apostle Peter will shed some
light on these things, "In fact, it was our diseases he bore, our pains from which he suffered; yet we regarded him as punished, stricken and afflicted by God. But he was wounded because of our crimes, crushed because of our sins; the disciplining that makes us whole fell on him, and by his bruises we are healed." (Isaiah 53:4-5 CJB) "He personally bore our sins in His [own] body on the tree [as
on an altar and offered Himself on it], that we might die (cease to
exist) to sin and live to righteousness. By His wounds you have been
healed." (1 Peter 2:24 AMP)
Jesus was made sick with our sicknesses. He was made sin with our sin.
This was God's method of dealing with suffering and sin that came upon
humanity due to the fall of man. In the mind of God there is no sin
problem. Christ put sin away and satisfied the claims of justice for
man. The real problem is that there are sinners. In the mind of God,
there is no sickness or suffering problem. The problem lies in the lack
of believers understanding the fullness of redemption and a failure to
act upon their rights, privileges and inheritance in Christ that is
clearly shown in the Word of God. Of course this takes faith in the integrity of the Word of God.
Did you ever give someone your word? Did you ever tell someone, "I give
you my word?" What did that mean to you? It meant that with everything
in your power you would make good on what you gave your word for. Well,
the Father has given us HIS WORD! Not only will He make it good, but I
assure you that He has far greater power to make it good than any
person. He also tells us or rather appeals to what we believe about Him,
"God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He
should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and
will He not make it good?" (Numbers 23:19) Sin and suffering come from the same source, Satan, not the Lord.
It was the plan of the Father to lay mans sin and sickness upon Jesus, "It pleased the LORD to bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief..." (Isaiah 53:10) He did this to free humanity from the tyrannical power of Satan. He did this "to
open our eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from
the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and
an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me. " (Acts 26:18) Notice that these things only become a reality to people when they receive them by faith,
that is, believing and acting upon God's Word. God wants us to know
that when He laid our sins and sicknesses on Jesus it was to the end
that sin and disease should no longer have dominion over us. If there is
any sickness in God's children, as I had previously mentioned, it is
because of a lack of knowledge of our rights, privileges and inheritance
in the redemption that we have in Christ.
Look at some passages that reveal the purpose and ministry of Jesus...
- Acts 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.
- Hebrews 2:14-15 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
- 1 John 3:8 He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.
- Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, TODAY, and forever.
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all...
Monday, September 27, 2021
God and His Word Are One
The Apostle John tells us, the Word became flesh (John 1:14) and His name is Jesus. The Word is God speaking.
God and His Word are one. The Word is the will of the Father, just as
Jesus, the Word made flesh was the will of the Father. What God says,
is. What God says, will become. If He did not want it to be so, He would
not have said it, He would not have sent it. The Word is always now, it
is a present tense fact because God is always now. In this part we will
see the reason why so many in the church struggle with the questions,
as to whether or not what God says in His Word is for today? Does
God really do today what He did through the early church? Is what God
did in the early church to be expected in the church today?
In Matthew's gospel we see a scene where Jesus is with the twelve
apostles and makes a statement concerning the events that awaited Him in
Jerusalem, "From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that
He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and
chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.
(Matthew 16:21) After Jesus gives His apostles some final instructions,
He once again tells them what is about to happen to Him, "You know that after two days is the Passover, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified."
(Matthew 26:2) In the minds of the apostles they may not have been able
to process this or they may wonder why Jesus would even want to go to
Jerusalem if this were going to happen, nevertheless, what Jesus tells
them, happens exactly as He said it would.
After the resurrection, Jesus appears to His apostles. John's gospel
singles out the apostle Thomas and reveals why so many in the church
today question whether or not what God says in His Word is for today? Does
God really do today what He did through the early church? Is what God
did in the early church to be expected in the church today? "Now
Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus
came. The other disciples therefore said to him, "We have seen the
Lord." So he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the print of the
nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand
into His side, I will not believe." (John 20:24-25) Notice that the
only way that Thomas was going to believe that Jesus rose from the dead
was to see and touch Him. It did not matter to him that Jesus told him
that it would happen and then reminded him again that it was about to
happen and it did happen. The only way Thomas was going to believe the
Words of Jesus was to physically see Him and touch Him.
Unbelief is one of the reasons why some many in the church today reject the fact that God and His Word (which
are one) still do today what we see recorded in the New Testament. The
power of God in the Body of Christ has not passed away with the apostles
or in any dispensation. What most call faith today is no more that a
mental assent to the Word of God. Mental assent acknowledges the
truthfulness of God's Word, but never acts upon it. It's like standing
outside of a bakery desiring to have some of the fresh baked goods but
never going into the bakery to purchase or possess them. You see them,
you smell them, you think just how great they will taste. Your brain
acknowledges these things but you do not act upon the truthfulness that
brain has made real through your senses. Just like Thomas, you can only
believe God's Word based on sense knowledge, what your five senses can
make real and never act on what God said. This is the kind of faith that
every human has, but it is not the faith that pleases God (Hebrews
11:6)
John continues to record, "And after eight days His disciples were
again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut,
and stood in the midst, and said, "Peace to you!" Then He said to
Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your
hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but
believing." And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"
Jesus said to him, "Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have
believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." ( John 20:26-29) True Bible faith, the faith that
please God, is to accept and act on God's Word regardless of the things
in the natural. It is accepting and acting on God's Word only because
God said and because He said, we do not need physical proof. This is the
very way that one is saved. You accept Christ as Lord and Savior
without physically seeing Him. It is the same principle across the board
when it comes to everything else that God's Word says. We do not need
physical proof, what God said is proof enough!
Although John's gospel singles out Thomas, Mark's gospel reveals another
issue that keeps most in the church today in bondage to these erroneous
teachings that what God did in the ministry of Jesus and the early
church passed away with the apostles because we have the Bible and do
not need these things today. Mark records, "Later He appeared to the
eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and
hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him
after He had risen." (Mark 16:14) Notice that not one of the apostles believed what Jesus told them concerning what would happen to Him in Jerusalem.
We saw in the life of Thomas that unbelief was why he would not believe
the Lord's Word. Here in Mark's gospel not only is unbelief a problem
but the other reason why so many in the church today do not believe and
act upon God's Word is due to hardness of heart. Jesus said, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:21) and "For
from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts,
adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness,
deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these
evil things come from within and defile a man." (Mark 7:21-23) To
defile means to debase the pureness or excellence of something. A hard
heart lowers the character, quality, and value of God's Word. Unbelief
is the culprit behind a hard heart.
Now that the reasons why so many in the church today doubt the integrity of God's Word has
been exposed, my prayer is that you no longer let the doctrines of man
sway you from truly believing that God's Word is God speaking, now. God
and His Word are one! The Word is the will of the Father, just as
Jesus, the Word made flesh was the will of the Father. What God says,
is. What God says, will become. If He did not want it to be so, He would
not have said it, He would not have sent it. The Word is always now, it
is a present tense fact because God is always now. Amen...
Monday, September 20, 2021
The Same Forever
One of the greatest hindrances that most people struggle with in the
church today is believing whether or not what God says in His Word is
for today. Does God really do today what He did through the early
church? Is what God did in the early church to be expected in the church
today? Well, I want to start by answering YES to both of these
questions. How do we know this to be true? Through His Word. Here are
some passages of scripture that we must consider...
- Psalms 89:34 No, I will not break my covenant; I will not take back a single word I said.
- Psalms 119:89 Forever, O LORD, your word stands firm in heaven.
- Psalms 138:2 I bow before your holy Temple as I worship. I will give thanks to your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness, because your Word is backed by all the honor of your name
- Isaiah 55:11 It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.
- Jeremiah 1:12 Then the LORD said to me, "You have seen well, for I am ready to perform My word."
- Malachi 3:6 For I am the LORD, I do not change...
- Romans 4:17 Abraham believed in the God who brings the dead back to life and who brings into existence what didn't exist before.
- Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful…
- Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds came into being, and still exist, by the Word of God.
- Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever…
God revealed His will, character, nature, purposes and plan in a progressive manner.though the Old Testament, but now has revealed Himself in full revelation through Jesus Christ. Keeping in mind the above passages, let's look deeper as to what this means. To do this we will consider the following passages of scripture...
- John 5:19-21 Then Jesus answered and said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.
- John 6:38-39 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
- John 8:28-29 Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.
- John 10:37-38 If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.
- John 12:49-50 For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak."
The Bible clearly shows us that God and His Word does not change. We also see that Jesus perfectly reveals the Father's will, character, nature, purposes and plan through everything that He says and does. If we read the gospels, we will also find that there is absolutely no evidence that Jesus ever said that what He was doing and saying would ever come to an end or that it would only be for a specific dispensation. On the contrary Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away." (Luke 21:33) Another thing that we can see revealed in scripture is...
- 1 John 5:7 For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.
- John 1:1-2 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.
- John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
- John 10:30 I and My Father are one.
Monday, September 13, 2021
Believers Are Giants
When Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt by the mighty hand of
God their faith in God became the biggest issue that they faced. After
seeing God's hand of protection while Egypt struggled under the plagues
we see something in the scriptures that reveal God's true nature even
before Israel began their journey to the Promised Land. First, we see
God provision and favor on His people, "Speak now in the hearing of
the people, and let every man ask from his neighbor and every woman from
her neighbor, articles of silver and articles of gold. And the LORD
gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians." (Exodus 11:2-3) Next, we see God's desire and power to heal, "He also brought them out with silver and gold, and there was none feeble among His tribes." (Psalm 105:37)
Take a moment to think about these things. Israel spent 430 years in
Egypt (Exodus 12:40-41) were oppressed for 400 years (Acts 7:6) at the
hand of Egyptians taskmasters (Exodus 1:11-14). Yet when they departed
Egypt they left with the silver and gold of the Egyptians and not one
person was lacking in physical or mental strength; none were frail or
weak in any way. In brief, during their journey to the Promised Land,
God leads them, protects them and preserved them from hunger and thirst,
yet their faith
or trust in God was little at best. The apostle Paul tells us that
during their journey, Israel lusted after evil, some became idolaters,
some committed sexual immorality, some tempted Christ and some murmured
against God. Paul also tells us that these things should be examples
that believers should not follow. (1 Corinthians 10:6-11)
There is one particular account of Israel's travels in the wilderness
that I want to focus on. It deals with the twelve spies that were sent
to spy out the land. Numbers 13 tells us that after 40 days of spying
out the land they returned to the camp to give their report. (Numbers
13:25-26) At first, the spies report sounded exciting, "We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit." (Numbers
13:27) This was the report that came from God even before Israel's
deliverance from bondage in Egypt. (Exodus 3:8) However, ten of the
spies rejected God's report and gave a report based solely upon what
their senses understood rejecting God's Word, what He had said, "Nevertheless
the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified
and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there. The
Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites,
and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the
sea and along the banks of the Jordan." (Numbers 13:28-29) "...We
are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than
we. And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which
they had spied out, saying, The land through which we have gone as spies
is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw
in it are men of great stature. There we saw the giants (the descendants
of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own
sight, and so we were in their sight." (Numbers 13:31-33)
The results of this bad report were the cries of doubt, fear and
unbelief and the idea that being in bondage in Egypt or dying in the
wilderness was a better alternative than believing that God was able to
give them what He had promised. (Numbers 14:1-3) The sad thing
concerning this entire account is that God's will for them was life and
blessings not death and curses, (Deuteronomy 30:19-20) and in an
unfortunate way, God permitted them to have what they asked for, "And
the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, How long shall I bear with
this evil congregation who complain against Me? I have heard the
complaints which the children of Israel make against Me. Say to them,'As
I live,' says the LORD, 'just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I
will do to you..." (Numbers 14:26-28) Finally, the ten spies that
gave the bad report were the first to die, but two of the twelve spies
who believed God, Joshua and Caleb, remained alive. (Numbers 14:36-38)
Remember, the apostle Paul told us, all that Israel did in the
wilderness were examples so that believers do not repeat their mistakes,
more importantly, that believers do not live in fear, doubt and
unbelief as Israel did.
What giants do you face that seem to be so ominous in the natural that have robbed your faith
in such a way that you also give a bad report as the ten spies? I hear
church leaders all to often give a bad report that somehow God Himself
has brought a trial such as sickness, disease or some sort of trauma
into their life or the life of someone in the congregation that they
serve. There are several reasons why this happens. I believe the main
reason was spoken by the prophet Hosea, "My people are destroyed because they don't know me..." (Hosea 4:6 TLB) John's gospel reveal an important key to knowing God, "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also..." (John 14:7) "He who has seen Me has seen the Father..." (John 14:9) "God
has in these last days spoken to us by His Son...who being the
brightness of His glory and the express image of His person..." (Hebrews 1:2-3)
Jesus is God in the flesh. Everything He did or said is an exact
representation of the Father's will, nature, character, purposes and
plan. (Hebrews 1:1-4) There is not one time revealed in the ministry of
Jesus shown in the Gospels that He ever brought a trial such as
sickness, disease or some sort of trauma into the life of anyone. As a
matter of fact He did the exact opposite, because He was doing the
Father's will, "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has
anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the
brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of
sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; To
proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD." and "how God anointed
Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about
doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was
with Him." (Acts 10:38) If you look deep enough into the scriptures
you will see that God's Plan of Redemption began immediately after the
fall of man (Genesis 3:15) and His redemptive plan was progressively
revealed throughout the Old Testament until it was fulfilled through the
meritorious work of Christ's death, resurrection and glorification.
If the Father's redemption of humanity began at the fall and was
fulfilled in Christ and Christ did nothing but reveal the Father's will,
nature, character, purposes and plan, how can anyone honestly believe
that our heavenly Father would bring a trial upon one of His children
especially in the form of sickness, disease or some sort of trauma? The
fact is, trials are either brought on by the believer (James 1:13-18) or
by the devil (Job 1:6-19, 2:7) not God! God however will permit these
things happen because believers still have the freedom of choice plus
the devil looks for opportunities to get place in the believers life
although Paul warns us not to give him the opportunity (Ephesians 4:27) A
trial is a place where the believer rises up as a giant in the land,
believes and acts upon God's Word and in the name of Jesus stands
victorious filled with joy. (James 1:2).
I myself have prayed the Word of God over a situation many times and
believed for the answer only to see things grow worse. Did God do this?
Certainly not! I know that I have an adversary that tries to oppose me
and sway my faith.
(Ephesians 6:12) However, I know that faith is not confessing and
agreeing with the problem, but confessing and believing that God gave
His Word and the blood of Jesus to overcome every circumstance no matter
how large or small the circumstances may be. (Revelation 12:11)
Sometimes our prayer may not see immediate results, but it certainly
does not mean that God did not hear our prayer or that He has not sent
the answer, "Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if
we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that
He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we
have asked of Him." (1 John 5:14-15)
The question comes down to, where is our confidence, in ourselves, in
the problem, in others or what God said? Are we doing what Jude exhorts
us to do, "...I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend (to strive for the mastery) earnestly for the faith..." (Jude 3) You see these things come down to an individuals faith. Have
you contended earnestly for the faith, that is believed God's Word
without contradiction, without question? Honestly, sometimes what we
have asked of God comes immediately but sometimes it doesn't. When it
does not manifest immediately, you must continue thanking and praising
God for the answer even though it has not manifested. When we thank Him
we are acting in faith, believing that His Word is true and that we have
what He has promised even though we have no tangible evidence, "Abraham
not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead
(since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah's
womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was
strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced
that what He had promised He was also able to perform." (Romans 4:19-22) We are acting like Abraham.
What I am revealing is true faith as
the scriptures teaches. We are to believe God's Word even when there is
not one shred of evidence in the natural. We believe because God said!
This is what makes a believer a giant in the land. This is what makes a
believer refuse sickness or disease to ravage their body, the temple of
the Holy Spirit. This is what separates Christianity from every other
religion on earth, we believe and act upon God's Word period! "And
since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, I
believed and therefore I spoke, we also believe and therefore speak."
( 2 Corinthians 4:13) I want to encourage you that no matter how long
you have been struggling with the issues that try our faith in this life, simply go to the scriptures. For in them you will find the solution to every problem. Then do as
the apostle Paul said, "I believed and therefore I spoke, we also believe and therefore speak."
So speak to that mountain. (Mark 11:23) Call those things that are not
as though they were (Romans 4:17). Then begin to thank the Lord that He
has not only heard your prayer but has answered it even if you do not
see the evidence immediately. Let's do as Abraham. Do not consider the
natural although it is real, but "give glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform." Amen...
Monday, September 6, 2021
Laboring Together in Love
According to the United States Department of Labor, Labor Day, which
falls on the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor
movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of
American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the
contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and
well-being of our country. From a life perspective, Labor Day for most
means, summer vacation is over, students return to school, college and
universities to begin a new year of learning, which labels Labor Day as
the unofficial end of summer.
In a similar way, believers are called also too celebrate Labor Day but for more than one day a year. The Apostle Paul tells us, "And we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. Be at peace among yourselves."
(1 Thessalonians 5:12-13) Who they were is not mentioned. However, it
is evident that the church was not left without appointed persons to
equip the saints for the work of ministry. We know that there were
elders ordained over the church at Ephesus, and over the churches in
Crete (Acts 20:17; Titus 1:5), and that there were bishops and deacons
at Philippi (Philemon 1:1), and here, "who are over you in the Lord" would lead us to believe that similar leaders would have been appointed in every newly organized church.
In the King James Version of the Bible the phrase "recognize those who labor among you" is "know them which labor among you."
This gives the idea of not only church leaders, but also those who
labor as coordinators or head over ministries, those active in ministry,
as well as elders, bishops and deacons. The word “know” carries with it
the idea that the believers in the local church were not to make
themselves strangers toward those who labor in ministry or to be
ignorant of their needs. They should also seek to be personally
acquainted with them and trust them concerning their own personal life
as well as spiritual matters.
"And admonish you" means,
to put in mind; and then to warn, entreat, exhort. It is a part of the
duty of church leaders to put the people in whom they serve and lead in
mind of the truth; to warn them of danger; to exhort them to perform
their duty; to admonish them if they go astray. As those who labor perform these duties, believers are to respond by "esteeming them very highly in love."
Church leaders who are faithful in their office and function, can
expect high regard from the believers they lead and serve, not because
they deserve it, per se, but because of their unwavering labors. The
Apostle Paul tells Timothy something similar, "Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine." (1 Timothy 5:17)
Paul tells, of these laborers, "My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you."
(Galatians 4:19) Here is a striking illustration of what church leaders
are to do concerning the people they lead and serve. Church leaders are
to labor
over the people until Christ reigns wholly in their hearts. Church
leaders who are truly called into the ministry will labor over the
people they lead and serve not as a labor of struggle or because it is their "job," but as a labor of love. Paul tells us, "We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves." (Romans
15:1) The phrase "who are strong" means the strong “in faith” not
limited to, but most likely church leaders who should not be novices,
but be mature, strong in faith. They ought to bear; to lift up; to bear
away; to remove; to bear with; to endure patiently, the weaknesses of the weaker believers. Church leaders should be willing to deny themselves to promote the happiness of others.
So,
this Labor Day let us be mindful, that as Christians, especially those
called into the ministry, we are not to observe a day free of labor, but
we are called to labor with one another in love, until Christ is formed
in you. Happy Labor Days...
Monday, August 30, 2021
Revelation Knowledge
Strength training is a type of physical exercise specializing in the use
of resistance to induce muscular contraction which builds the strength,
anaerobic endurance, and size of skeletal muscles.Other benefits of
strength training are, develop strong bones, control weight, boost
stamina, manage chronic conditions and sharpen your focus. It is
estimated that Americans spends around $2.6 BILLION! per year on gym
memberships. Another type of strength training so to speak is developing
the mind. According to statistics, the USA spend approximately $809.6
BILLION per year on education. There is nothing wrong with strengthening
our body and our mind, but when the rubber meets the road, both of
these areas are limited. How so? Well, if a portion of the body (an arm
or a leg for example) does not function then the entire body suffers
loss. In the same way, if one of the five senses does not function, then
knowledge also becomes limited.
The Apostle Paul in his letter to the church at Thessalonica writes, "Now
may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your
whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Thessalonians 5:23) We see that man is not
only body and soul (mind, will, emotions and intellect) but he is
spirit. Man was made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26) and
God is Spirit (John 4:24). If man is indeed spirit with a soul in a
body then a dilemma exists. The part of man that is most important and
needs to be strengthened, the spirit, becomes the part that is most
neglected. It's not that we haven't tried to develop the spirit. We had
thought that the only way to do this was through religion or religious
education. Interestingly enough, most Bible Colleges, Seminaries and
Local Churches only teach knowledge and tend to fail at bringing
students and or congregants to a place of understanding spiritual
things.
The knowledge obtained tends to become the only thing that is important,
but again it is limited. This is why the apostle Paul warns us,
"Knowledge puffs up..." (1 Corinthians 8:1) Paul was explaining to the
church that their knowledge of things had filled them with pride and
self-sufficiency, which could lead them to stray from the truth. The
knowledge that they had filled their minds with was sense knowledge.
Knowledge that comes through ones senses. This is the type of knowledge
is the type of knowledge that fills the mind of every person. However,
the Bible does exhort the believer to grown in the knowledge of the
Father and Jesus the Son. (Ephesians 1:17, 2 Peter 3:18) This type of
knowledge only comes through revelation by the Holy Spirit. The Holy
Spirit enables the believer to use the wisdom of God to use knowledge
wisely.
Jesus tells us, "I will pray the Father, and He will give you another
Helper, that He may abide with you forever, the Spirit of truth, whom
the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but
you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you." (John 14:16-17) and "However,
when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all
truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears
He will speak; and He will tell you things to come." (John 16:13)
Here Jesus tells us that the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit would come
and take Jesus' place after He had fully completed His work of
redemption. Unknown to most, the Holy Spirit does not communicate
knowledge to the intellect, except in rare cases, but communicates with
our spirit. Until we know this fact and act upon it, for most there will
be no development of faith nor will we come into the knowledge of our rights and privileges as God's children.
We must also keep in mind that the spirit will never grow and be
strengthened in the things of God until it receives eternal life through
"confessing with the mouth the Lord Jesus Christ and believing in the heart that God raised Him from the dead."
(Romans 10:9) By new birth, the Holy Spirit recreates our human spirit
and imparts to us the Father's nature. With the Father's nature comes
the Father's wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:30). This is the process by which
the believer uses knowledge wisely. In fact, God imparts His entire
nature within the believer (2 Peter 1:4). We may not have worked fully
with the Holy Spirit in developing His nature in us, nevertheless it
does exist within our recreated spirit. This is why it is so important
for believers to grasp the fullness of redemption.
It takes faith to
come to the place where our spirit become so developed that it
dominates the soul and body. Once this happens I believe that the
believer will walk in the same limitless life that Jesus walked in His
ministry on earth as the Son of Man.