God Walks Among Us
From the beginning of time, God has desired to be with his people. He walked with Adam in the garden. He asked Abraham to build a tabernacle. He asked Moses to build a temple. And through Christ, God now lives in his people. God has always had the desire to walk among his people, enjoy their presence and lead them to be a blessing to the nations of the earth. You are the fulfillment of his desire, you are the holy nation through which he is seeking to be a blessing to all the families of the earth.
“For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.””
From the beginning of time, God has desired to be with his people. He walked with Adam in the garden. He asked Abraham and Moses to build a tabernacle. David and Solomon built him a temple. But now, through Christ, God lives in his people.
God has always desired to walk among his people and bless them as well as enjoy their presence, AND lead them to be a blessing to the nations of the earth. You are the fulfillment of his desire, you are the holy nation through which he is seeking to be a blessing to all the families of the earth.
God told Adam to subdue and rule the earth. That mandate still remains, but we gain more insight into how to reign over the earth in God’s commission to Abraham.
Genesis 12:2 “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
God promises to bless Abraham so that he can be a blessing to all the nations of the earth. The blessing is not only for Abraham, but also for the sons of Abraham, which is those who have placed their faith in Christ.
Galatians 3:6 Just as Abraham BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS. 7 Therefore, recognize that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham. 8 The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “ALL THE NATIONS WILL BE BLESSED IN YOU.” 9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.
In Moses we gain even more insight into God’s desire for his people.
Exodus 19:5 Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; 6 and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.”
Not only does he desire to be with his people and bless his people, he desires that his people be a blessing to all the people and nations of the earth. God is seeking to bless his children so we can be a blessing to the world.
God’s capacity to bless his people changed in Jesus. No longer would he be separated from his people, he could now live in his people and guide them into blessing from within their hearts.
Matthew 27:50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and gave up His spirit. 51 And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. 52 Also the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53 and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection, they entered the holy city and appeared to many.
The veil between God and man was torn!! We can now have direct interaction with the presence of God, before his heavenly throne, and within our own hearts.
Hebrews 10:19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body,
1 Corinthians 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?
As carriers of the presence of God, we can experience blessing from God, exceedingly, abundantly above all that we can ask or imagine. Why? So the blessing we experience can overflow and become a blessing to the nations of the earth.
We carry the same message Jesus proclaimed when he announced the agenda for his kingdom in the earth.
Luke 4:18 “THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO BRING GOOD NEWS TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, 19 TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.”
We carry the same mandate; to receive the blessing of God, become a blessing to the world, and spread the good news of the kingdom of Jesus Christ, which is seeking to release the captives, restore the blind, heal the sick, free the oppressed and proclaim freedom in the New Covenant that is secured in his blood.
Are you experiencing God’s favor and blessing? If not, it’s time to open the channel through which blessing flows, your heart. You can not earn God’s favor and blessing, but you can intentionally become a conduit of it. If you will walk uprightly, your conscience will be clear before him, to allow him to guide you.
And if you will intentionally become generous and loving toward people,m your heart will become more confident to receive his blessings and allow them to flow through you to others. You are a priest in God’s kingdom. It’s time to put the agenda of his kingdom first in your life and participate in the increase of his kingdom.
How do you do that? Be a blessing everywhere you go. Make it your daily goal to bless someone in some way, with the intention to make Christ known. The holy nation of God has work to do, we must be busy ministering to the nations because we are priests in God’s kingdom, equipped with his authority and his good news.
Your friends and family are starving for something that is real in their lives, give them the Gospel! Don’t be ashamed, it is the power of God unto salvation.
Take a few moments to commit your intentions to the Lord to be a blessing. Pray this with me; Father, I want to fulfill my role as a priest in your kingdom. I will be a blessing everywhere I go. Thank you for the boldness to spread the good news of your kingdom. I open my heart to be led by you into opportunities to be a blessing, as I represent your kingdom. Amen and amen!!
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Your Prayers are Powerful and Effective
Prayer is the secret weapon of the believer if done so from the proper perspective. If you pray "if it be thy will" prayers, I wouldn't expect much to happen. But if you stand in your identity and authority in Christ, you can expect to see everything Jesus paid for manifest in your life and the life of others.
You don't have to ask God to give you things he's already given you in Christ. In Christ, you have been delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of Jesus. Jesus bore your sickness and disease on the cross. He delivered you from the wrath of God. You have the mind of Christ so that you can have peaceful mental health. God promised to meet your needs exceedingly, abundantly above all that you can ask or imagine. His spirit is in you, guiding you into all truth. He gives you wisdom just by asking. He has given you power to minister to others.
“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”
THE PRAYER OF A RIGHTEOUS PERSON IS POWERFUL AND EFFECTIVE
If Christ is in you, you are righteous in him. Your prayers are powerful and effective.
2 Corinthians 5:21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Prayer is the secret weapon of the believer if done so from the proper perspective. If you pray "if it be thy will" prayers, I wouldn't expect much to happen. But if you stand in your identity and authority in Christ, you can expect to see everything Jesus paid for manifest in your life and the life of others.
You don't have to ask God to give you things he's already given you in Christ. In Christ, you have been delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of Jesus. Jesus bore your sickness and disease on the cross. He delivered you from the wrath of God. You have the mind of Christ so that you can have peaceful mental health. God promised to meet your needs exceedingly, abundantly above all that you can ask or imagine. His spirit is in you, guiding you into all truth. He gives you wisdom just by asking. He has given you power to minister to others.
All of these things are already yours, right now, in Christ. Plus, God already knows what you're going through before you even ask. He knows how to help you.
Hebrews 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.
Not only does he already know what you need, he wants to help you.
Matthew 6:8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
And He's willing to help you.
Matthew 8:1 When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. 2 A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean." 3 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy.
He has already given you what you need.
2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
Jesus has given you power
I give you power, lay hands on the sick... Luke 10:19
So pray from a place of confidence and authority. If what you're praying for doesn't come to pass, stand firm and trust God. Don't blame him or concoct some mysterious doctrine that God must not want you to have what he's already given you in Christ. Don't fall for the "timing" excuse. If Jesus paid for it, it's yours. If you don't see it, don't blame him. Just keep persuading your heart until you're convinced of Christ's finished work.
I realize that's easy to say and hard to believe at times, but it's the truth. God is not withholding the things he's already given us freely in Christ. We still see problems in the world because humans introduced sin and death and messed it up. But we still have dominion over the planet so we can believe, pray, and affect the world with the kingdom of God that is in us.
MANKIND HAS DOMINION OVER CREATION
From June to July 1993, the Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy, Maharishi International University in Fairfield, Iowa, experimented on the impact of prayer and meditation on the crime rate of Washington D.C. You can read the details of the experiment from these two links.
https://research.miu.edu/maharishi-effect/reduced-violent-crime-in-washington-dc
https://www.worldpeacegroup.org/washington_crime_prevention_full_article.html
The summary of the experiment is this: A group of people who practiced meditation wanted to measure the effects of focused intention on a large city. The experiment was led by quantum physicists who understand that humans can affect the behavior of matter merely through observation.
The physicist hypothesized that a large enough group of people could intentionally affect a large city's violent brain wave frequencies. So they organized an experiment to lower the violent crime rate of Washington D.C., which is one of the most violent cities in the United States.
The experiment was successful. They saw a dramatic decrease in violent crime for as long as they meditated, which was a few weeks.
If unbelieving human beings have that kind of influence over a violent city, imagine what the body of Christ can do if we were united to make positive change in the earth. But, unfortunately, we are too divided, too busy figuring out who is right and condemning those we think are wrong.
Humankind has dominion over the planet. The body of Christ has the authority of Heaven, influencing our natural dominion. It's time we use our power to influence the world for Christ. If every believer spent at least 5 minutes a day praying peace, hope, and love over our nations, we would see amazing fruit.
I go into more detail about this experiment and the power of prayer in the sermon above. I pray it is a blessing to you as you seek to exercise your authority as a member of the body of Christ.
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Doing the Word Brings Revival
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”
Why be doers of the Word? Because the world is looking for truth in uncertain times, we can be examples of faith and righteousness.
Your friends and family and the world around you need to see someone who is experiencing the benefits of following God. The world needs to see our love for one another. The world needs the hope that comes from someone who inherits God's promises by walking uprightly.
You are not blessed because of your works, but your works are evidence of your faith. The world is starving for something real, and as we live well within our freedom in Christ, we become His witnesses. As we become His witnesses, we give the world around us hope. And the world is desperate for hope.
The world is confused and afraid, but they don't have to be. We have the solution. But if our relationship with Christ is not benefitting us in this life, we have some work to do. The work is to believe, to become more persuaded of the character of God.
As you do the Word, blessings will follow, and people will see that God is real in your life. Our lives can be testimonies of the faithfulness of God. You can not improve on your salvation through your works, but how you live can affect what you experience in life and bring hope to those who need God.
Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
Do the Word, live by faith, and watch the world come to you asking why your life is different. Then you'll get to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ boldly.
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The Spiritual Practices of Meditation and Contemplation
85% to 95% of your thoughts, feelings, and actions are the same as the day before. Ultimately we bypass our ability to think and change our lives and do what our environment has trained us to be and do. Our obligations, responsibilities, jobs, and relationships dictate our lives to us without thought much of the time. The body becomes the brain.
In other words, you become programmed to do what your external world has told you to do. And you don’t do anything else unless you feel like it. And most people don’t feel like doing much beyond what they have to do. The carnal world and desires become our default. You can retrain your mind to habitualize spiritual awareness and interaction. You can change your life and take control of your present and your future when you decide what you will think about and how you will cultivate a new future based on God’s possibilities.
“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true... and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
Meditation is focused intentional thought. Contemplation is to consider a matter from multiple perspectives. We want to focus on God’s Word and consider the many ways His spirit can move in our lives and empower us to manifest His fruit and promises. Meditation and contemplation are not mystical exercises where you try to leave your body and travel into Heaven to have a mysterious encounter with God. Meditation is simply when you intentionally focus your thoughts on a specific matter.
Most of us meditate all the time. We call it daydreaming, worrying, or spacing out. But more is happening than random thoughts darting around your mind. You are shaping your life in those moments. You are programming beliefs into your heart. And you are creating your future. Romans 12:2 says we are transformed as we meditate or renew our minds.
The question is, on what are you pondering? What thoughts are you allowing to create emotion and beliefs? Because you will be transformed into that image, whether it's healthy or destructive. Your life reflects your habitual thought patterns, especially when you allow your emotions to be affected by what you're focusing on. This is why the Bible gives us much instruction on how to think and what to think about.
Joshua 1:8 Keep this Book of the Law or instruction always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
Colossians 3:1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
Ephesians 4:22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Thoughts are not magic, they merely determine how you respond to and feel about things, which guides your choices. The goal of meditation is to expose yourself to the Word of God to the degree that you not only agree with it and understand it doctrinally, but its promises and expectations become real to you. And even possible. If you read God’s Word and feel like the promises are far from you, you have identified where you need to persuade your heart of His power and faithfulness.
Being shaped by our habitual thought patterns is easy to understand concerning worry. How much time do you spend worrying? How do you feel afterward? Afraid probably. That sense of fear created from how you were thinking will shape your decisions and even how you interpret the leading of the Holy Spirit in your life.
The solution is to meditate on, ponder, think about God's Word until it becomes believable and possible. Think about Heaven. Think about the victory of Christ. Think about God's love for you. Think about what life would be like if you were healed, prosperous, happy, and wise. Those are all things God is trying to establish in you now, so your joy may be full, and so you can be a blessing to others.
The spiritual practices of contemplation and meditation are catalysts to transformation. As we hold God's Word in our minds and hearts, His logos, His word, His logic emanates into our thinking, emotions, and choices. It's a way to reprogram our set points. “Be still and know God” becomes more than a lovely thought. It becomes a way of life to be led by God.
WHEN YOU HOLD THE WORD IN YOUR MIND AND HEART IT WILL PRODUCE FRUIT AND TRANSFORMATION
85% to 95% of your thoughts, feelings, and actions are the same as the day before. Ultimately we bypass our ability to think and change our lives and do what our environment has trained us to be and do. Our obligations, responsibilities, jobs, and relationships dictate our lives to us without thought much of the time. The body becomes the brain.
In other words, you become programmed to do what your external world has told you to do. And you don’t do anything else unless you feel like it. And most people don’t feel like doing much beyond what they have to do. The carnal world and desires become our default. You can retrain your mind to habitualize spiritual awareness and interaction. You can change your life and take control of your present and your future when you decide what you will think about and how you will cultivate a new future based on God’s possibilities.
You can discipline your mind and heart to agree with the Word of God. No matter your emotions, your feelings, or the circumstances you're in. The Word of God is spiritual and can change any circumstance. Focused intentional thought on the Word of God will produce fruit in your life. But you must allow it to create emotions and even expectations that guide you into your desired future rather than just your obligations in life.
Try it. Grab your Bible and find some good news. Focus on it and think about it until it starts to change your feelings. Then commit to believe it and live by it. Watch your life begin to reflect God's will for you. You will prove God's desire for your life through this process. His desire for you is "on earth as it is in Heaven."
I have created several Tools for Transformation that will help you focus on God's Word and cultivate the power of His Spirit in your inner man. Click the button below to browse my resources.
Watch the video above for the full sermon on this topic.
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Discipline Yourself to Pray God's Will
Prayer is perhaps the most fundamental spiritual discipline we can practice. Prayer is a conversation with God. It’s when you rent all that is fearful and ungodly from your soul. Prayer is when you set your mind of things above and allow your thinking to be shaped in the spiritual realm of God’s Kingdom. Prayer is when you let your requests be known to God. Prayer is when you contend for something Jesus paid for, whether for yourself or another person. Prayer is declaring the promises of God into your life. Jesus gave us insight into the proper inner state of prayer.
“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form. And you have been made complete in Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.”
When we engage in spiritual practices and disciplines, we start from a place of completion in Christ. Christ has done the work of salvation. Our inner spirit man is complete already in Christ. We can do nothing in our flesh to improve our salvation, and our spirit is whole. Spiritual practices are to be actuated in our lives so we will experience the things that God has already given us in Christ on a more regular basis.
We are not trying to engage in a self-development program where we become something that we are not. Instead, we are training our mind, soul, and body to yield to our spiritual identity. You can not improve on your salvation, but you can experience more of it. Jesus paid for your complete and total salvation, but we must discipline ourselves to believe and receive.
There is no formal list of spiritual practices in scripture, only a gathering of ideas rooted in scripture. Spiritual practices vary from Bible study, silence before the Lord, generosity, service to others, giving to the poor to prayer, meditation, and contemplation. All of those activities and actions do not gain us more righteousness or make us more holy. Instead, they are either an expression of our faith or mind-renewal exercises to more deeply believe what’s already true of us spiritually.
We can be empowered in our minds, soul, and bodies from our completed spiritual state to reflect our perfected inner identity outwardly. Not to retain salvation but to express it. Not to become more holy, but to allow our holy state to influence the rest of our being. As we do so, we bear the fruit of Christ’s spirit within us, and we show the world what it looks like to yield to the transformative power of God.
The world is starving for truth. Our lives can reflect the ultimate truth, God is real, and He loves humankind. In this world, we should want to be the best version of ourselves we can be. I challenge you to aim as high as you can. You’re not striving for righteousness or anything Jesus paid for, and you are just optimizing your faculties to experience all that is yours in him fully.
Discipline yourself to break off the limitations of your old way of thinking, otherwise known as the flesh. You no longer live according to your own strength, or your flesh, you walk influenced by the power of God’s Spirit.
Living by the spirit optimizes your potential. Your potential is not derived from your flesh or your human nature, it’s derived from a divine nature, Christ in you the hope of glory. The hope of life according to the way God sees it. Therefore, endeavor to believe, do whatever you can to discipline yourself to believe. When you believe, all things are possible. Make every effort to repent and believe.
Prayer
Prayer is perhaps the most fundamental spiritual discipline we can practice. Prayer is a conversation with God. It’s when you rent all that is fearful and ungodly from your soul. Prayer is when you set your mind of things above and allow your thinking to be shaped in the spiritual realm of God’s Kingdom. Prayer is when you let your requests be known to God. Prayer is when you contend for something Jesus paid for, whether for yourself or another person. Prayer is declaring the promises of God into your life. Jesus gave us insight into the proper inner state of prayer.
Matthew 6:6 But when you pray, go into your inner room, shut your door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not babble on like pagans, for they think that by their many words they will be heard. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
We have more teaching on prayer from Jesus here.
Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
This is the ultimate paradox. Believe that you HAVE RECEIVED and it WILL BE yours. The result of your prayer life should leave you believing that you have already received something. What? Everything Jesus paid for. What did Jesus pay for? That’s a good question. I suggest spending time studying atonement and what Jesus accomplished through his self-sacrificial offering. You’ll find that it includes peace, wholeness, deliverance, provision, healing, and several other things.
When you pray, pray according to God’s will as expressed in the life, death, grave experience, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. In that is the will of God for you. In that is what you can legally pray in your life. Prayer is an exercise in mind-renewal to believe that you have ALREADY RECEIVED what you are requesting from God. The prayer becomes more of a declaration of the finished work of Jesus.
When you pray, BELIEVE that it is ALREADY YOURS, and it SHALL come to pass.
I recommend taking some time to write a prayer for yourself. Include your health, finances, ministry, family, and whatever else God would lead you to include. Then, speak from a place of completion, thanking the Father for it already being yours in Christ.
Watch the video above for the full sermon on this topic.
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That Your Joy May Be Full
"I am deeply dissatisfied in life."
I recently watched part of a conversation between two successful A-list actors. They were describing their fulfillment in life while acting versus their real-life. They both agreed that while they were acting, they had a sense of fulfillment they didn’t get out of their real-lives.
The male actor basically said he only feels satisfied and fulfilled when he's pretending to be another person in a world that's not real. I realize that's my summary of his brief statement, but I think there's a more significant takeaway that applies to our faith walk.
I speak with people who love Jesus but feel very dissatisfied in life. You wouldn't know from their Christian activity; how much they read their Bible and how much they give to their church, how much they volunteer. If you were to look at the list of Christian obligations, they check the box for most if not all of them. So why the dissatisfaction? Shouldn't all that Christian activity bring a sense of fulfillment and purpose?
"I am deeply dissatisfied in life."
I recently watched part of a conversation between two successful A-list actors. They were describing their fulfillment in life while acting versus their real-life. They both agreed that while they were acting, they had a sense of fulfillment they didn’t get out of their real-lives.
The male actor basically said he only feels satisfied and fulfilled when he's pretending to be another person in a world that's not real. I realize that's my summary of his brief statement, but I think there's a more significant takeaway that applies to our faith walk.
I speak with people who love Jesus but feel very dissatisfied in life. You wouldn't know from their Christian activity; how much they read their Bible and how much they give to their church, how much they volunteer. If you were to look at the list of Christian obligations, they check the box for most if not all of them. So why the dissatisfaction? Shouldn't all that Christian activity bring a sense of fulfillment and purpose?
Not necessarily. Not if that person's heart isn't in it, or they're doing those things because they feel like that's what they're supposed to do. In Christianity, if you serve, give, and do other things just because you're supposed to do them, you'll eventually want to stop doing them.
The parallel is this. Often the Christian is dissatisfied with life but feels like they're getting a sense of fulfillment when they're on stage acting like a Christian. But when they go home or into the rest of their lives, it feels empty. That leads the Christian to need their church to be exciting for them and give them a purpose. If you need your church to provide you with a sense of purpose, be careful. We are to organize and equip one another for the work of the ministry, but the equipping itself should not replace an authentic expression of ministry. Serving and being involved with a church community can be very fulfilling and rewarding if it's a genuine expression of who you truly are.
But there is still dissatisfaction even when the Christian’s schedule is booked with church programs and religious activity. When we're dissatisfied with life as Jesus followers, it's up to us to rearrange our lives to live from meaning and purpose, even in the mundane. I pray you have an outlet for your faith, and not just a stage to act on. I encourage you to serve and operate in your place in the Body of Christ. But I caution you not to let that be just a role you play.
God is not interested in your amount of activities in His name. He's interested in you being fully engaged in everything you do. Life is hard sometimes. Things happen that are so disappointing that it affects how we make decisions for the rest of our lives. We often give up on ourselves and slip into a survival mentality, believing that living a fulfilled life is not for us. While life may be challenging, we have a promise from God that our joy can be full, even amid disappointment, fear, persecution, suffering, and failure.
John 15:11 “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. 12 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.
Jesus goes on to talk about rejection and persecution from the world. I’ve seen it too many times, people’s lives are hard so they want their Christian life to be fun and exciting to give them a reprieve from the world and its troubles. There’s nothing wrong with fun and exciting faith, but joy is a deeper sense of fulfillment and satisfaction that is spiritual and not from the world.
God wants your joy to be full. He doesn't want you to just act like your joy is full at church or in your Christian activity. He wants you to have a deep sense of fulfillment and purpose in your ordinary and extraordinary moments. That takes living with courage. Courage is not always easy. Sometimes courage is overcoming boredom and depression to connect with God in a way that transcends temporary worldly fulfillment.
Don’t grow weary my friend. The Christian life is the most fulfilling way to live on planet earth. But be careful not to simply go through the motions. God is not on trial, needing to prove Himself to you when you’re disconnected. It’s up to you to dig into your heart and stir up the Spirit within you.
It’s a paradox because the way you stir up your spirit is by engaging in spiritual practices and disciplines. But we’ve all seen it, and maybe even experienced it. These practices and disciplines can grow emotionless and mechanical if they’re not engaged in a relational context with God. Things like prayer, meditation, worship, giving, and serving. Much like life for the actor, we look for another context in which to find fulfillment.
The actor feels alive when pretending to love something in a fake context. We must not let our faith expression become a fake expression in the context of church and ministry. I challenge you to find ways to genuinely engage God on an emotional level and do ministry toward others from a sense of purpose in him, living from fulfillment rather than for it.
We can learn a lesson from Joshua who took over the leadership position for the nation of Israel.. When God called Joshua to take over for Moses, he said this.
Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9
Joshua was facing an impossible situation after wandering in the desert for 40 years. He probably wanted to walk straight into the Promised Land and rest. Maybe kick his feet up and enjoy a church picnic. But he had work to do. Work that would give him plenty of opportunities to disconnect from the mission and retreat into his own world.
You are in the same position. You have the impossible task of representing God in his world. You are called to make disciples and perform miracles. Are you allowing church and Christian activity to replace that mission because it gives you an outlet close enough to the real thing? Or are you ready to be courageous? I can’t tell you what your next step is, but I can tell you that you need to prepare your heart. Be ready to be courageous. Make a commitment to not be discouraged.
Do you have anything to be courageous over in your life? Do you have something to live for that challenges you beyond your natural ability, causing you to depend on God's power? If not, don't beat yourself up, but begin to challenge yourself to give all of yourself to something. Don't pretend to give yourself to the work of Christ, go all in! Be courageous! Do not be discouraged! Do not be dismayed! The LORD, your God, is with you.
Watch the video above for the full sermon on this topic.
Watch the Spiritual Practices and Disciplines Series on YouTube.
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You Have the Ministry of Righteousness and Reconciliation
You are a minister of the New Covenant. You are to minister life by the power of the Spirit. You are to offer the hope of faith-righteousness through Christ. Being a minister of the New Covenant doesn’t mean you only read or minister out of the New Testament books of the Bible, it means you minister to others out of the promises inherited through the finished work of Jesus.
The work of Jesus in His sinless life, as well as His death, burial, and resurrection, are the sureties of the eternal covenant we have with God in Christ. Ministering to others out of the authority and victory of Christ can only be done by the Spirit of God who dwells in us.
“Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation”
#10 in The Ministry of the Holy Spirit
Are you a Christian? Do you follow Jesus? Are you fulfilling the call of God on your life? Not sure what your calling is? There are FOUR general facets of the ministry all New Covenant believers have. The following passages will give you insight into the nature of your ministry toward others..
2 Corinthians 3:2 You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men; 3 clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart. 4 And we have such trust through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. 7 But if the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away, 8 how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? 9 For if the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry of righteousness exceeds much more in glory. 10 For even what was made glorious had no glory in this respect, because of the glory that excels. 11 For if what is passing away was glorious, what remains is much more glorious. 12 Therefore, since we have such hope, we use great boldness of speech— 13 unlike Moses, who put a veil over his face so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the end of what was passing away. 14 But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. 15 But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. 16 Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. NKJV
You are a minister of the New Covenant. You are to minister life by the power of the Spirit. You are to offer the hope of faith-righteousness through Christ. Being a minister of the New Covenant doesn’t mean you only read or minister out of the New Testament books of the Bible, it means you minister to others out of the promises inherited through the finished work of Jesus.
The work of Jesus in His sinless life, as well as His death, burial, and resurrection, are the sureties of the eternal covenant we have with God in Christ. Ministering to others out of the authority and victory of Christ can only be done by the Spirit of God who dwells in us.
We do not use the Law or tactics of condemnation, we use the principles of freedom from sin, death, and condemnation. It’s good news to tell people that God loves them and Jesus bore the effects of their sin in His body. It’s good news to tell people that God loves them and will help them when they are weak. God is not trying to make people weak so they’ll suffer, He will give us grace to experience powerful, victorious transformation. The Spirit will help you minister to others in such a way that their hearts grasp what Jesus did for them and begin to live in the newness of spiritual life for themselves.
We also have the ministry of reconciliation. We are fully validated and equipped representatives, citizens, of Heaven. We are to deliver the good news of the victory over life that is available in God’s kingdom. Your task is to tell people this good news. God will work through you as you go, He is in fact pleading with others through you to come to Him for deliverance and salvation.
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. 21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
You have the ministry of:
The New Covenant
Righteousness
The Spirit
Reconciliation
Move toward the world with this in mind. Have your heart and mind prepared in that you are a carrier of the Spirit of God, equipped with the Gospel to tell people that GOD IS NOT MAD AT THEM. God is not holding their sins against them and it’s safe to go to Him without fear of rejection or judgment. Go forward and invite people to be reconciled to God, preaching the word of faith-righteousness!
Watch the message above for the full sermon on this topic.
Watch “The Ministry of the Holy Spirit” series on YouTube
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Praying in Tongues Rewires Your Brain to Establish Your Identity
When you pray in tongues, your brain enters a state where your sense of self, who you think you are, is open to suggestion. In this time of prayer, the Spirit of God himself will bear witness with your spirit that you are His child and a joint heir with Jesus. As you prime your physiology with the gift of tongues, you can become rewired to transform into the image of Christ. It already happened on a spiritual level at your new birth; it occurs in the rest of your being as you pray with your spirit in an unknown language.
I believe this is true because life and death are in the power of the tongue. You are yielding your authority to God and are allowing Him to establish His will in you, which is to be conformed to the image of Christ.
“I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.”
#9 in The Ministry of the Holy Spirit
Under the Old Covenant, the priests would perform sacrifices and intercede on behalf of Israel for forgiveness. They had to do this continually because the people kept breaking the Law, and they themselves were not perfect. But Jesus secured a New Covenant in his blood. He offered himself as a sin offering once and for all time, with no need to continue offering sacrifices on behalf of our forgiveness. In Him, we are forgiven once and for all time.
He is now our high priest under this New and Better Covenant. His intercession on our behalf now focuses on strengthening us to receive the benefits and riches of God's kingdom, so we are equipped and blessed to spread the Gospel.
Hebrews 7:24 But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. 25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him since He always lives to make intercession for them. 26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; 27 who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people's, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. 28 For the Law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the Law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.
As our eternal high priest, he is continually praying (interceding) for us. He is not interceding for forgiveness continually like Old Covenant priests, he is praying to help us when we're weak. He prays for us when we don’t know what to pray.
Romans 8:26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know how we ought to pray, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words. 27 And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
Take a moment and be thankful for the fact that Jesus is praying for you, at this moment, as you read this. What do you think he is praying? We know he's praying for the areas you are weak. We know he's helping you pray because you don't always know what to pray. He is not continually asking God to forgive since he's the one-time sufficient sacrifice for your sin, what else is he praying?
Romans 8:16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. 17 And if we are children, then we are heirs: heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with Him, so that we may also be glorified with Him.
He continually affirms your identity, spirit to spirit. When Jesus prays for you from Heaven, he reminds you that you are God's child. Not just a child, but an heir. And not just an heir, but a co-heir with Jesus. Not only do you have an inheritance from God as a child of God, but you receive the same thing as Jesus.
Jesus is always praying for you that you would receive everything he died to give you. A complete and total salvation. God wants you to have what Jesus died for you to receive. If you receive the same thing Jesus received, you should know what Jesus received and how to pray so that it is established in your life. Salvation is yours now. The Greek word for salvation is soteria, which means; deliverance from Messianic judgment, restoration, wholeness, healing, prosperity. (Click here for a study link on soteria. Click here for a study link on sozo.)
It's already yours. It's will is already probated through the death of Christ. And it's been made alive in you through the resurrection of Christ. So when you have trouble believing and receiving your inheritance, you can allow Jesus to pray for you that it be established in your life.
We see from Romans 8:26 that the spirit prays from a place of unity with our spirits, from inside us, from our hearts. He helps and prays with us in the form of groaning too deep for words. Does this ever happen to you? You become so aware of God's presence that words lose their meaning, but yet you still have to pray?
Paul calls this praying with your spirit or praying in an unknown tongue. Your mind is unfruitful, but your spirit is effective in this kind of prayer (1 Corinthians 14:14-16). You can pray with your spirit, and when you do, you are yielding the power in your tongue to allow Jesus to pray for you through you. When you pray with your spirit in an unknown tongue, you are allowing God to pray a perfect prayer through you that is according to His will for you. I don't know about you, but I want to co-labor with God and let Him pray perfect powerful prayers through me as much as I can.
But wait, there’s more…
Your Brain Gets Rewired
There is another fascinating aspect to praying in tongues that we only now know through electrical brain-imaging. Dr. Andrew Newberg of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine has conducted research on the brains of Christians while praying in tongues. His brain imaging tests report that the part of the brain that controls speech is not active while praying in tongues. This means the subject does not know what they are saying; their "understanding is unfruitful."
Another conclusion is this; "These findings could be interpreted as the subject's sense of self-being taken over by something else... We believe this is the first scientific imaging study evaluating changes in cerebral activity -- looking at what actually happens to the brain -- when someone is speaking in tongues. This study also showed a number of other changes in the brain, including those areas involved in emotions and establishing our sense of self." Dr. Newberg - University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
By the way, this was only true of Christians praying in tongues. Dr. Newberg conducted the same studies on Buddhist and Franciscan Monks, and both of those groups' brain images did not change to reflect the same results while praying. They chanted and prayed in a language known to them according to their brain activity.
When you pray in tongues, your brain enters a state where your sense of self, who you think you are, is open to suggestion. In this time of prayer, the Spirit of God himself will bear witness with your spirit that you are His child and a joint heir with Jesus. As you prime your physiology with the gift of tongues, you can become rewired to transform into the image of Christ. It already happened on a spiritual level at your new birth; it occurs in the rest of your being as you pray with your spirit in an unknown language.
I believe this is true because life and death are in the power of the tongue. You are yielding your authority to God and are allowing Him to establish His will in you, which is to be conformed to the image of Christ.
If you pray in tongues, do it more. Do it from the heart, not from the mind. If you do not utilize the gift of praying with your spirit in an unknown tongue, ask God to help you and begin to do it. You do not need another dose of the Holy Spirit, you have all of Him if you are born again. Use this gift, use it daily. Don't frustrate the gift with your mind, and don't try to control the narrative of the prayer with your mind. Do it from the heart with your spirit. And rejoice in the fact that God is strengthening you, edifying you, and transforming you as you exercise this gift.
Videos from Dr. Newberg
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The Gifts of the Spirit Work Through You By Love
How do you operate in the gifts of the Spirit? Rest in God’s love until it becomes an intimate experience for you. Experiencing His love for you will manifest as love for others and you will walk in power toward them. The gifts are not special anointings, they are expressions of our love and God’s love for people.
The Spirit pours out of like water, that wellspring of life that Jesus described in John 7:38. That water pours out of us and seeks the dry places in people’s lives. The Spirit becomes what is needed for people. We do not have to try to operate in a specific gift, our task is to be motivated by love for people, then notice what the Spirit is trying to become for that person. It may be a word of encouragement, it may be a healing, it may be a word of correction, it may be a Bible passage, it may be insight about the future, it may be many things.
The more sensitive you are to God’s love for yourself and others, the more sensitive you’ll be to what the Spirit is trying to become for others.
“Pursue love and desire the gifts...”
#8 in The Ministry of the Holy Spirit
Paul sums up his teaching about the gifts in this one idea, “pursue love and desire the gifts.” It’s not the other way around. We are not to pursue or chase after the gifts of the spirit, we are to pursue love.
Firstly, the more correct name is graces of the Spirit. The word “gifts” in the Bible is the Greek word charisma, which is mostly translated as grace. Grace is God’s divine influence in our hearts which brings about capacity and abilities. To use the word “gift” implies a talent, or some kind of possession. You do not have a gift of the Spirit, you experience CHARISMA or the expression of God’s divine influence.
You can experience this expression of his influence within yourself and for others. Paul teaches us that we should desire grace to flow through us in the forms of words of knowledge/wisdom, miracles, and the like. It is healthy to want to see grace operating in your ministry, but we shouldn’t chase after specific expressions of grace.
The priority is love, not the manifestation of the gifts. The gifts are available to bless people as we move toward them in love. Even the one gift that Paul says we should desire the most, prophecy, is all about comforting and building people up in God’s love.
God gave because he loved and Jesus did what he did out of compassion for people. When we pursue gifts not motivated by love, all sorts of things can go awry. When the gifts are the focus, without being an expression of love from a mature heart, the one expressing the gift may think it is his power or his special anointing. We’ve all heard stories about healing ministers falling into sin even though they have miracles in their ministries.
The power of God still works when there is faith. Even a donkey can prophesy. There’s nothing special about the person who can perform miracles, any believer can do it. The goal is to minister to people out of compassion and access the gifts along the way if there is a need.
How To Operate In The Gifts
Grace (gifts) is accessed by faith (Romans 5:2) and faith works by love (Galatians 5:6). Ultimately, grace is an expression of love, specifically God’s love for others being poured out through our hearts.
Ephesians 3:14 For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— 19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
This passage is an excellent description of how grace works. Christ is poured out into our hearts, which roots us in God’s love. When we comprehend and experience that love, we are filled with the fullness of God. This is another way of describing being filled with the Holy Spirit. This is an ongoing experience for the believer. This is not a one-time event. We can continually live under the influence of Christ being poured into our hearts so we are rooted in God’s love for us. As we experience and comprehend God’s love, we are filled with the Spirit. And what happens when you are filled with the Spirit? You are endued with power.
So how do you operate in the gifts of the Spirit? Rest in God’s love until it becomes an intimate experience for you. Experiencing His love for you will manifest as love for others and you will walk in power toward them. The gifts are not special anointings, they are expressions of our love and God’s love for people.
The Spirit pours out of like water, that wellspring of life that Jesus described in John 7:38. That water pours out of us and seeks the dry places in people’s lives. The Spirit becomes what is needed for people. We do not have to try to operate in a specific gift, our task is to be motivated by love for people, then notice what the Spirit is trying to become for that person. It may be a word of encouragement, it may be a healing, it may be a word of correction, it may be a Bible passage, it may be insight about the future, it may be many things.
The more sensitive you are to God’s love for yourself and others, the more sensitive you’ll be to what the Spirit is trying to become for others.
As you minister to others, don’t try to hear God, cultivate compassion. Empathize with them, identify with them and keep your heart open to God in the process. As your heart is filled with compassion for people, you will create a channel for His power to flow as well.
Do you want to operate in the gifts? Practice loving people. Listen to them. See them as God sees them. Remove their condemnation and administer peace. When love is your motivation you will never fail.
Homework
Read 1 Corinthians, chapters 12 through 14. Notice that Paul emphasizes that it's the same spirit that works all gifts through all people. Pay attention to the list of graces of the Spirit in chapter 12. The conclusion of Paul's teaching about the graces of the Spirit is found in chapter 14, pursue love and desire the gifts. Don't chase gifts, but expect them to happen in your life and ministry.
Then read the book of Mark. Identify when Jesus is operating in the graces of the Spirit. Pay attention to, what he does before, who he is speaking to, what he says immediately after and anything else that stands out to you.
I'd love to hear your observations and revelations in the comments below.
If you’d like to hear much more detail on this topic, watch the video at the top of the page.
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How to be Filled with the Holy Spirit
Being baptized with the spirit and being filled with the spirit are two different things. When you hear the Gospel and believe, the Spirit baptizes you into the body of Christ and Christ immerses you in His spirit who lives in you from then on, never to leave you. You receive the Holy Spirit when you are born again. To be filled with the Spirit is when that indwelling Spirit comes upon you to empower, strengthen and lead you. The spirit never leaves you but His empowerment may not always be resting upon you. Let’s chat about how to yield to His influence by grace through faith.
“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”
#7 in The Ministry of the Holy Spirit
To be filled with the Spirit is not describing when you receive the Spirit of God, it’s when you yield to Him and are under His influence. You can say being filled with the Spirit is when He comes upon you in power. While you received the Spirit when you first heard the Gospel and believed, you may not have known you could yield to His influence in your life.
In recent articles, I point out that baptism with the Spirit and baptism into the body of Christ happens when you first hear and believe the Gospel. From then on, you can be filled (under the influence) of the Spirit.
I teach on this topic in much more detail in the sermon above. For this article, I want to give you a practical exercise on how to be filled with the Holy Spirit and yield to the influence of the Holy Spirit so He will come upon you for power.
This passage gives us practical instruction to become filled with the Holy Spirit. This is not a formula, and these are not the only things you can do to experience the Spirit's empowerment. You can also pray with your Spirit. Next week’s article will cover praying with your Spirit. This verse has 2 practical things you can do to be filled with the Spirit.
Ephesians 5:18 Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit, 19 singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in your hearts. 20 And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
To be filled with the Spirit
Sing songs and hymns amongst yourselves (sounds like church)
Sing spiritual songs amongst yourselves (sounds like singing with your spirit)
Make melody in your heart to the Lord
Be thankful
Experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit is not just for ministry toward others, it’s for your personal life too. You can do these things when you’re depressed, feeling anxious, are afraid, or facing temptation. You can meditate on the negative or fearful circumstances of your life, or you can sing songs in your heart to the Lord. You can let lack and fear invade your imagination as you foresee destruction, or you can be thankful for the blessings in your life and have faith in His promises. You can complain and watch conspiracy videos that keep you focused on demonic topics, or you can lift your spirit by putting on His Spirit.
There are many ways to experience the filling of the Spirit. I pray you live a daily lifestyle of choosing to yield to Him in everything. Try it. Practice putting on the Spirit. Develop your own way of putting on His power. Be intentional about it.
If you’d like to hear much more detail on this topic, watch the video at the top of the page.
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