Topic 3: Our Thoughts and Our Words

October 29, 2019January 17, 2020 / wherethereisthewordthereisourway / Leave a comment

Understanding what the Bible says about our words and thoughts, blessings and curses and our ability (empowered by Him and His Word) to train are minds overtime to edit what we think about and say.

To Pray:

Psalm 19:14 “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”

Easy doable first step for anyone wanting to line up with God’s Word on this topic. Pray this Psalm every morning and night and ask Him sincerely to renew your thinking and words.

Simple powerful prayer to pray…. Redeeming ALL of our thoughts and Words for the sake of the Lord and the Kingdom is a foundational principle and KEY to living the victorious Christian Life.

1.__Our Spoken Words are Powerful and can be used for good or evil

Ephesians 4:15 “Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.”

Main point: A body can never act in unity if all of its parts are doing their own thing. Kingdom Key: We must in all things submit to God as Lord and head of our lives. The Most Common obstacle: Self wants to be in charge. We like to be in charge of our lives, our schedules and our resources and we enjoy using them (at least many of us do) to serve ourselves instead of being focussed on the Kingdom.

The Kingdom can only flow in a body of believers that has fully submitted to the Lord. We can all readily understand how are physical bodies simply could not function if we had more than one head involved or worse yet, if each of our body parts was self-directed and their was no coordination between the parts. My hand would be doing one thing, my feet going in differerent directions etc.. that would be bad enough. But my internal organs would simply fail to function and life would cease before it started as it is the precise coordination of these things that allows for life. Kingdom life is the same.. It cannot exist and thrive where the body parts aren’t tuned into and obeying what the head is saying.

Proverbs 10:11 “The words of the godly are a life-giving fountain”

Kingdom Key: Words are immensely powerful, godly words produce abundant life,

In our discussion time, the question was raise, what does it mean to be godly? This ties back into the above comments. To be godly is to be tuned into all the time and to obey every instruction that comes from the head. The body part cannot miss godliness if it is tuned into and acting only on the instructions of the Head (Christ)

Proverbs 12:6 “The words of the wicked are like a murderous ambush, but the words of the godly save lives.”

wicked vs godly…. murderous amush vs saving lives.

Proverbs 12:18 “Some people make cutting remarks, but the words of the wise bring healing. “

https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H4832&t=KJV

מַרְפֵּא marpêʼ, mar-pay’; from H7495; properly, curative, i.e. literally (concretely) a medicine, or (abstractly) a cure; figuratively (concretely) deliverance, or (abstractly) placidity:—(in-)cure(-able), healing(-lth), remedy, sound, wholesome, yielding.

Our Words can cut or they can heal…. as we get hold of these things, we find our speech transforming. Sarcasm and other mocking tones and words fall away as we begin to get a hold of how restorative our words can actually be.

Proverbs 16:24 “Kind words are like honey— sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.”

Same Hebrew word Marpay behind healthy for the body.

Proverbs 18:4 “Wise words are like deep waters; wisdom flows from the wise like a bubbling brook.”

This imagery is so powerful… above we are told like a fountain (endless supply) and it was mentioned in our group time that this imagery is one of joy (bubbling brook).

2 Peter 1:19 “Because of that experience, we have even greater confidence in the message proclaimed by the prophets. You must pay close attention to what they wrote, for their words are like a lamp shining in a dark place—until the Day dawns, and Christ the Morning Star shines in your hearts.”

the Bible is full of wise words and the words of the godly, but ones that have been tried and tested and purified to express the exact will of God. The Word of God is an infinite source of wisdom and wise words that we can encourage one another with during every stage of our walk. Yes, truly a gifts of knowledge or wisdom, the ability to hear the fresh mana from being able to rightly discern and hear the voice of the Lord today is awesome and to be desired. But the words in scripture are available to all of us and can be spoken often amongst us to encourage us and bless us each one as we grow.

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Ephesians 4:29 “Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.”

Our part: we are admonished not to use foul or abusive language. Understanding the above verses motivates me to desire intensively for all my words to be good and helpful.

Easy doable application: start small, set apart a window of time each day whether 5 minutes, 1 hour etc and monitor every word that you speak with this goal in mind, that they would be good and helpful to those who hear.

Ephesians 5:6 “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.”

There are many deception voices in among the body of Christ.

The truth with a twist of a lie hidden in. Going back, we talked about how the Word is powerful and works because in part of its purity. If a taint is added, and the Word is changed, it is no longer the Word but a different tainted thing that lacks many of the attributes the original pure Word has. It is not life giving, it is not Kingdom establishing, it does not uphold the biblical principles and often causes confusion, brings in justification of sin and lawlessness etc. Galatians talks about how they had zero tolerance for anyone teaching a different/false gospel among them. They guarded their ears from being exposed to these corrupted and false teachings as they understood the biblical principal that a little yeast spoils the whole lump.
Very often this involves picking and choosing the parts of scripture that are appealing and full of promises and blessings but then omitting the parts that require sacrifice, self-denial, responsibilty, and cost. Preaching a partial truth is a form of deceit and is a snare that is easily fallen into.
Fear of man often keeps us from confronting in love those who are walking after their own appetites or who have been led astray by temptation. More often than not, the number of false witnesses and those willing to back the worlds or human perspective on a situation, far outnumber those who are willing to take all their direction directly from the Word of the Lord. Just as only Joshua and Caleb believed God’s report over man, we must guard our hearts from seeking out the other ten spies who will lead us astray and away from God’s will and Word.

Proverbs 15:4 “Gentle words are a tree of life; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.”

This might be my own personal scripture of the year. This reminder that a gentle words are a tree of life echoes the verse in 2 Timothy. Perhaps this is an excellent back pocket verse for helping us deal with impatience, frustration, anger, self etc when dealing with the people that seem to break our peace and joy often.

2 Timothy 2:24-25 King James Version (KJV) “24 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;”

It is all of these elements together that seem to be effective and yet even when they are all there, it is still not assured that those who hear will come to repentance and to the acknowledging of the truth. In a way, this is spelling out that in God’s way of thinking, we are to treat no one like a lost cause, and to recognize that it is not God they are opposing not us they are opposing but it is themselves that they are opposing by their actions. It helps me to understand how God approaches me and can look on me with compassion in the areas that I am still ensnared and opposing myself and His Kingdom due to my inability to acknowledge the truth.

Proverbs 18:14 “The human spirit can endure a sick body,but who can bear a crushed spirit?”

Why is deceit the number one tactic of the enemy? Because deceit has the power to crush a spirit and to murder hope. A couple of things that stand out to me in this. There is a very good possibility that depression and other forms of hopelessness are commonly rooted in the person suffering having a crushed spirit which literally saps the will to live. This would be a valuable clue as to how to pray for and help those struggling with these kinds of tormenting thoughts and pressures. If so, then the root cause it that somewhere in the heart of one suffering in this way is a lie, a seed of deceit that has taken root and has displaced a life and hope giving truth of the Word.

If the lie can be uprooted and replaced with the truth, than healing would be sure to follow. This is supported by the verse that says the perfect love of God casts out all fear…. and the torment that fear brings .

1 John 4:18 King James Version (KJV) “18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”

Proverbs 4:20-24 warns us to guard our heart above all things because out of it are the issues of life. Paul confirms this when he told them that their blood would not be on him as he shared with them the full message from God and had left nothing out.

Acts 20:25-28 King James Version (KJV) 25 And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more. 26 Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. 27 For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. 28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

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Colossians 3:1-2 “Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.”

Our part is significant here. We might assume that are thinking and our actions will be automatically renewed when we receive Jesus. The reality is, in many, or even most, possibly in some way all, the promises hang on us hearing and acting on our part. SET YOUR SIGHTS… this means we must do this. God will not do it for us. We have to respond to and do something to accomplish our part. If we are able, then of course, simply acting immediately on His commands is ideal. If we are not able, then we must run back to God and ask Him to help us to even our part and to change our desires and abilities so that we can be enabled to do what we are called to.

The only way we have to become familiar with the things of heaven is through the study of the Word. The Word tells us the ways of the Kingdom, the will of God and the realities of our new lives as citizens of the Kingdom, heirs to the promises, adopted children of God and new creations in Christ. It is through the daily washing of the Word and the renewing of our mind via meditating on the Word that we begin to at first catch glimpses of, and eventually are thinking becomes completely renewed by and rewired by the realities of the heaven. Praise God, their are testimonies of those who had this happen almost instantaneously… Oh how I long for that to happen in my own mind. But for many, it is a process, one of choosing immersion in the Word and in His ways.

There is an expression “You are what you eat”. Most of us kind of get it that if all we eat is junk food and sugar, that our bodies will not thrive. Secretly many of us have been planning to revitalize our lifestyles and sincerely take up exercise, sleeping the right number of hours, eating the right kind of foods because we believe that good health is in some ways a byproduct of the right kind of habits and diet.

The reality is, our mental/soul health mirrors all of these elements. Sleeping could be compared to time spent abiding in God’s presence and REST, the place where we can with confidence cast all of our cares and worries on Him. A diet devoid of junk food and sugar could be compared with feasting daily on the Word of God and total avoidance of the things of darkness, of wordliness, etc. Exercise could be likened to taking all of what we learn past the place head knowledge to a place of action, first in small ways, but as our faith muscles grow stronger, in greater and more intensive ways.

It is hard on the flesh to deny self and do what is truly best for the flesh (as opposed to what feels good to it). The motivation often comes when living with the negative side effects become more inconvenient than the effort it takes to change. Knowledge can help motivate us long before that time and to get healthy and stay healthy long before we hit that other place. I encourage you therefore to always keep your eyes on the conditionals in the Bible. What are the negative consequences that will surely come from not lining up? What are the wonderful blessings that will come if we do? Let us therefore choose to stir up our thinking on the things of heaven and train our selves now to longer fixate on the things of the earth.

Hebrews 12:2 “We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.”

Over and over we will see this need to abide in, keep are eyes on, to follow, to focus on the heavenly perspective etc. Basically we are being told to keep things in a Kingdom perspective as our human perspective will inevitably fall short and mislead us. Jesus knew the cross was the only means to the end He had come to accomplish and there was no way to bypass the pain and shame of it. He Himself kept His eyes on the joy that would come from His great sacrifice. To endure the moment, we too must look ahead and see what the Kingdom gain will be.

Disregarding shame is one of the hardest things for any human being to do. When someone is “mistreating us” or speaking harsh words or casting judgements, looks, tone etc our way, we have this powerful reaction to these things spurred on by a deep sense of entitlement and indignation that anyone would dare to treat us that way. This is in stark contrast to Jesus who was treated in the most humiliating and shameful way and yet He simply pushed the shame of it aside and endured the pain of it. These are in fact some our greatest opportunities to reveal the Kingdom to someone who is hard hearted or hurting and unable to to stop themselves from the cutting remarks and cruel words and looks. For someone to respond in meekness, in love, so secure in who they are that they have no need to defend themselves against such things but trust the Lord to be their redeemer even in times as this WOW. This reactiveness and defensiveness has to die for the Kingdom to be fully expressed in and through our lives.

2 Timothy 2:24-26 King James Version (KJV) 24 And the servant of the Lord must not strive (fight); but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, 25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;

Jesus understood that those in opposition to Him were really in opposition to themselves and that the only chance they stood was for Him to reveal the Kingdom realities to them by how He lived even in the midst of persecutions. This is my present verse that I am meditating on and looking to the Lord to transform me in.

Philippians 4:8 “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.”

How do we endure? Just as Jesus did. We fix our thoughts (by meditating often and intentionally on the things listed in this verse) and rehearse in our mind what will be accomplished as we line up with the Word.

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Ephesians 4:23 “Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.”

How do we let the Spirit do this. We ask for His help and tune our ear to His promptings. When we fall short, we eat our humble pie and ask forgiveness from God and man. We spend daily time in the Word and meditating on the Word. We surround ourselves with others who are accountable to the Lord and seek out their encouragement and prayers. We decide in our hearts to submit fully to God in all areas so when the correction comes, we can receive it as a blessing instead as an offense. Pride flares and pricks at correction. Meekness is a trait required to be renewed.

James 3:2-12 K“For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body. Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body. Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires. Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh.”

KEY TO THE KINGDOM: Our Words absolutely direct the course of our lives, be it for good or evil so taming our tongue is essential.

Kingdom wise, the battle for our tongue, our words is rather epic in scale. If we have got self-control over our tongue, the rest of the ship etc will line up as our tongue is the director of our lives. Letting the Lord renew our thoughts and words is absolutely essential for the Kingdom to be expressed in and through us. Victory is rooted here which is why it is so very difficult to overcome. The enemy knows this and therefore does all to use our thinking and our words against us.

Romans 12:2” Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

Our lives can be so pre-occupied, so deeply running on autopilot of customs, routines, habits etc that we can forget that the rails on which we are running may or may not be helpful to the Kingdom. To make room for God to renew our thinking and transform us we need to:

Set apart daily time to read the Word and pray (talk to God, and especially listen to God)
consider our ways and compare them with scripture. Since we have a new identity, a new citizenship and and are part of a different Kingdom, it follows that are customs and habits will change. When I lived in France, everything changed. We shopped daily at the farmers market for our fruits and vegetables etc as we had a tiny little fridge and freezer. Our routines were different because their routines were different. We ate our meals at different times. We had to speak and change the way we acted (to my chagrin, what is considered normal courtesy and interaction here, communicates some entirely different to the French male population) as the memos our actions conveyed were perceived differently in that culture. Kingdom wise for me, I have been systematically taking everything that we do, our use of time, our use of our resources, what we celebrate and how we celebrate, our prioirities, the contents of our home, the traditions that were passed down to me etc and holding it up next to scripture and seeing if it belongs in the Kingdom or must be purged to make room for the Kingdom. Very often there is a worldly substitute taking up mental or physical space in our time and energies that needs to be removed to make room for the Kingdom blessings and realities to be established in our hearts and homes. Very often their are “giants” (things like fear of man, fear of death, unbelief, fear of sickness, gluttony, self-centredness, worldliness, pride etc )that need to be overcome and totally driven out before Kingdom peace and reign can rule in our lives. Basically, the Kingdom will simply not come to those who are unwilling to conform to it’s ways. (Galatians 5:19-26)

Galatians 5:19-26 KJV “¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, ²⁰Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, ²¹Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. ²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, ²³Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. ²⁴And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. ²⁵If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. ²⁶Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.”

Romans 8:26 “And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.”

I find this to be immensely encouraging. During our chat, it was shared that some feel this refers to praying in tongues… and others believe it is when we are so overcome with emotion that up out of our bellies come tears and sorrow on such a deep level that no words are adequate to express it. It is so encouraging to know that in our weakness the Holy Spirit is right there makeig intercession for us through our pain and weakness.

https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G4726&t=KJV

Strong’s Definitions [?](Strong’s Definitions Legend)

στεναγμός stenagmós, sten-ag-mos’; from G4727; a sigh:—groaning.

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 “We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.”

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Acts 7:38 “And there Moses received life-giving words to pass on to us.”

1 Thessalonians 4:18 “So encourage each other with these words.”

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Luke 10:17 “When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!”

Luke 4:36 “Amazed, the people exclaimed, “What authority and power this man’s words possess! Even evil spirits obey him, and they flee at his command!”

Proverbs 6:2 KJV“Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.“

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Luke 6:43-45 ““A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thornbushes, and grapes are not picked from bramble bushes. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.”

Psalm 55:10 “Its walls are patrolled day and night against invaders, but the real danger is wickedness within the city.”

Proverbs 25:28 “A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls.”

1 Samuel 16:7 “But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Proverbs 4:23 English Standard Version (ESV) “23 Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.”

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Exodus 4:10-12 “But Moses pleaded with the Lord, “O Lord, I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled.” Then the Lord asked Moses, “Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go! I will be with you as you speak, and I will instruct you in what to say.”

Luke 21:15 “for I will give you the right words and such wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to reply or refute you!”

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Matthew 12:36” And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak.”

Psalm 50:19-22 “Your mouth is filled with wickedness, and your tongue is full of lies. You sit around and slander your brother— your own mother’s son. While you did all this, I remained silent, and you thought I didn’t care. But now I will rebuke you, listing all my charges against you. Repent, all of you who forget me, or I will tear you apart, and no one will help you.”

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Proverbs 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit. “

Romans 8:5-6 “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.”

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1 Corinthians 14:9 “It’s the same for you. If you speak to people in words they don’t understand, how will they know what you are saying? You might as well be talking into empty space.”

1 Corinthians 14:15 “Well then, what shall I do? I will pray in the spirit, and I will also pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will also sing in words I understand.”

Reminders:

Proverbs 23:12 “Commit yourself to instruction; listen carefully to words of knowledge.”

Common Blocks:

Be Mindful of Mental strongholds

Mindsets, habits, cultural customs, family traditions, family traits etc, repeated patterns (ie reacting a certain way to a certain person, thing etc), automatic pilot

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John 13:2 “ So[it was] during supper, Satan having already put the thought of betraying Jesus in the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son” [The Amplified Bible]

2 Corinthians 10:4-6 King James Version (KJV) “4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; 6 And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.”

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Deuteronomy 6:16 “You must not test the Lord your God as you did when you complained at Massah.”

Exodus 17:1-7 “At the Lord’s command, the whole community of Israel left the wilderness of Sin and moved from place to place. Eventually they camped at Rephidim, but there was no water there for the people to drink. So once more the people complained against Moses. “Give us water to drink!” they demanded. “Quiet!” Moses replied. “Why are you complaining against me? And why are you testing the Lord?” But tormented by thirst, they continued to argue with Moses. “Why did you bring us out of Egypt? Are you trying to kill us, our children, and our livestock with thirst?” Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “What should I do with these people? They are ready to stone me!” The Lord said to Moses, “Walk out in front of the people. Take your staff, the one you used when you struck the water of the Nile, and call some of the elders of Israel to join you. I will stand before you on the rock at Mount Sinai. Strike the rock, and water will come gushing out. Then the people will be able to drink.” So Moses struck the rock as he was told, and water gushed out as the elders looked on. Moses named the place Massah (which means “test”) and Meribah (which means “arguing”) because the people of Israel argued with Moses and tested the Lord by saying, “Is the Lord here with us or not?”

Ephesians 5:11-12 “Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret.”

Exodus 20:12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the LORD your God is giving you.”

Jeremiah 3:14-15 “And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will guide you with knowledge and understanding.”

Luke 12:1-3 “Meanwhile, the crowds grew until thousands were milling about and stepping on each other. Jesus turned first to his disciples and warned them, “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees—their hypocrisy. The time is coming when everything that is covered up will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all. Whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be shouted from the housetops for all to hear!”

Proverbs 17:19 “Anyone who loves to quarrel loves sin; anyone who trusts in high walls invites disaster.”

Proverbs 25:23 “As surely as a north wind brings rain, so a gossiping tongue causes anger!”

Proverbs 26:20 “Fire goes out without wood, and quarrels disappear when gossip stops.”

Psalm 64:1-8 “O God, listen to my complaint. Protect my life from my enemies’ threats. Hide me from the plots of this evil mob, from this gang of wrongdoers. They sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their bitter words like arrows. They shoot from ambush at the innocent, attacking suddenly and fearlessly. They encourage each other to do evil and plan how to set their traps in secret. “Who will ever notice?” they ask. As they plot their crimes, they say, “We have devised the perfect plan!” Yes, the human heart and mind are cunning. But God himself will shoot them with his arrows, suddenly striking them down. Their own tongues will ruin them, and all who see them will shake their heads in scorn.”

Psalm 101:5 “I will not tolerate people who slander their neighbours. I will not endure conceit and pride.”

Psalm 102:5 “Because of my groaning, I am reduced to skin and bones.”

Psalm 106:24-26 “The people refused to enter the pleasant land, for they wouldn’t believe his promise to care for them. Instead, they grumbled in their tents and refused to obey the Lord. Therefore, he solemnly swore that he would kill them in the wilderness, that he would scatter their descendants among the nations, exiling them to distant lands.”

Romans 1:29 “Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarrelling, deception, malicious behaviour, and gossip.”

Titus 3:1-2 “Remind the believers to submit to the government and its officers. They should be obedient, always ready to do what is good. They must not slander anyone and must avoid quarrelling. Instead, they should be gentle and show true humility to everyone.”

Titus 3:9-11”Do not get involved in foolish discussions about spiritual pedigrees or in quarrels and fights about obedience to Jewish laws. These things are useless and a waste of time.”

1 Corinthians 10:1-11 “I don’t want you to forget, dear brothers and sisters, about our ancestors in the wilderness long ago. All of them were guided by a cloud that moved ahead of them, and all of them walked through the sea on dry ground. In the cloud and in the sea, all of them were baptized as followers of Moses. All of them ate the same spiritual food, and all of them drank the same spiritual water. For they drank from the spiritual rock that traveled with them, and that rock was Christ. Yet God was not pleased with most of them, and their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. These things happened as a warning to us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did, or worship idols as some of them did. As the Scriptures say, “The people celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry.” And we must not engage in sexual immorality as some of them did, causing 23,000 of them to die in one day. Nor should we put Christ to the test, as some of them did and then died from snakebites. And don’t grumble as some of them did, and then were destroyed by the angel of death. These things happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us who live at the end of the age.”

3.________________________________________________________________

Luke 12:11-12 “And when you are brought to trial in the synagogues and before rulers and authorities, don’t worry about how to defend yourself or what to say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what needs to be said.”

Luke 12:25-26 ” Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? And if worry can’t accomplish a little thing like that, what’s the use of worrying over bigger things? “Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?”

Matthew 6:25-28 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life”

Matthew 6:34”Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

Lamentations 3:23 “Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.”

Proverbs 12:25 “Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up.”

1 Peter 3:4 “But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats.”

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Matthew 12:36 KJV “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.”

James 1:19-21 King James Version (KJV) “19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: 20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. 21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. “

Take Home Suggestions:

Wind yourself up with Thankfulness every morning (thank God for 5-10 things) and at confess to God, ask for forgiveness and accept forgiveness for the things that popped out of your mouth that shouldn’t have each day. Pray for his help in the areas that you are having a hard time changing. Then move on. He will be faithful to your efforts and over time you will see things change.
Start being aware of what you are inputting, which magazines you read, shows you watch on TV etc…. ask God to reveal to you if something is a bad influence and start (at your own pace) being more selective about what you are inputting.

Redeeming the Gates

October 20, 2019 / wherethereisthewordthereisourway / 1 Comment

There are so many parallels to be drawn between the state of Jerusalem at the time Nehemiah was called to restore it and to the present day state of the church. The people are not generally living in joy and peace and more often then we would hope, many would define their lives from a perspective of struggle and challenge. Nehemiah was called to help Jerusalem to rebuild and to restore it to God’s plan. There is much we can learn from the book of Nehemiah as we rededicate our lives and commit to restoring the walls and gates and Temple to the glorious, impenetrable state the Lord intended.

I will be doing a series on these three elements: Restoring the wall/hedge around our lives. Replacing the gates that have been burned down, and rededicating and purifying the Temple.

Let’s start with the gates. What purpose does a gate in a fortified city serve? The gate keeps the unwanted elements out and allows the wanted elements in. Even if the walls are completely intact, a fortified city remains constantly vulnerable to attack if there are no “doors” to shut in the gates. The verse below tells us that Jerusalem was vulnerable because her gates were burned and her walls broken down. Therefore a two part repair process was essential.

Nehemiah 1:2-11 King James Version (KJV)

^“2That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. ³And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. ⁴And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, ⁵And said, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments: ⁶Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father’s house have sinned. ⁷We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses. ⁸Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations: ⁹But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there. ¹⁰Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand. ¹¹O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name: and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king’s cupbearer.”

Scripture admonishes us to guard our hears above all things. What are the gates that allow things into our hearts?

Proverbs 4 KJV “²⁰My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. ²¹Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. ²²For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh. ²³Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

Matthew 6:22 King James Version (KJV)

²²The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.

Psalm 1:1 King James Version (KJV)“1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”

The two main gates to our hearts are our eyes and ears. But our senses in general are the way that are minds/hearts gather information from the world. We are called to be gatekeepers. Once we realize that our bodies are actually now the Holy of Holies, litertally the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, how seriously should we be taking our role as the gatekeepers who decide what to let in and what to deny.

2 Kings 23:3-5 King James Version (KJV) “3 And the king stood by a pillar, and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people stood to the covenant. 4 And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Bethel. 5 And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven.”

Josiah, a powerful type and shadow for us to consider while seeking to understand what it takes to truly repent and be restored to the Kingdom of God, ordered the gatekeepers to clean house as soon as he discovered that the Temple was desecrated and profaned by the forbidden.

1 Corinthians 14:20 AMP “Brothers and sisters, do not be children [immature, childlike] in your thinking; be infants in [matters of] evil [completely innocent and inexperienced], but in your minds be mature [adults].”

Habakkuk 1:13 King James Version (KJV) “13 Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?”

Matthew 6:33 King James Version (KJV) “33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

1 Chronicles 16:11 King James Version (KJV) “11 Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually.”

Everything related to the Kingdom of God hangs on us dwelling in His Presence, or more accurate, Him dwelling in us. Habakkuk tells us that God is too pure to look on sin. If we read about the Old Testament descriptions of the Temple, we will quickly discovered the sacredness and holiness of the place. We can be so thankful that we are no longer called to the complex ceremonies and precision that was required to even enter into His presence. That said, we must not lose track of maintaining reverential fear of the Lord at any time. God is Holy and has not changed at all.

1 Corinthians 3:15-17 King James Version (KJV) “15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. 16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.”

It is therefore absolutely essential for us to take up our role as “the keepers of the door”. What does this involve practically speaking. Two main things:

First, making sure the gates are doing what they are meant to. Keeping out all of the things that would allow darkness, evil and the things of darkness into the citadel. The enemy within is a far greater threat than the enemy without.

Matthew 15:19 King James Version (KJV) “19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:”

Mark 7:20-23 King James Version (KJV) “20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. 21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: 23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.”

We can easily deceive ourselves into believing that we can “eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” and not be affected… What we listen to and see and experience through our senses impacts the state of our hearts immensely. A gatekeeper does not have control over what tries to get in, a gatekeeper does have control over what he opens the gate to. If we are walking down the road and our eyes chance upon something we know we ought not to see, then we can avert our gaze. We are firmly closing the gate. If we are on the internet and there are certain ads popping up when we are on certain sites, we can choose immediately to stop using the offending sites. If we are having a conversation with someone who starts to grumble, complain or talk about anything that does not belong in our heart, we can gently interrupt and choose to change the topic or leave the conversation altogether if necessary to guard our heart. If our tongue tempts us to gluttony via the enticing things calling out to it, we can cry out to God for the fruit of His Spirit, self-control and use it as a training ground to crucify our flesh and guard our heart from being controlled by the appetites of the flesh.

The second part, which is equally as important for those of us like Josiah who are discovering God’s Word once the enemy has already taken up residence within the walls, is to remove the defiling items. This is the beginning of the process of taking back the land little by little. We cannot do everything in one day. So we start small and let God direct our paths daily. It might start with something relatively simple like praying about some of the most obvious offenders. Both the radio, tv, cable, and newspapers etc are all windows through which things can readily creep into our hearts.

Exodus 23:29-30 King James Version (KJV)

²⁹I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee. ³⁰By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.”

Which takes us right back to the beginning when God commanded us to have dominion and subdue the earth…

Genesis 1:27-29 King James Version (KJV) “27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”

Practically speaking, cleaning our homes and our hearts is what naturally follows… We can ask ourselves, what objects, pastimes, other elements of our life are encouraging us to use our time, energy and resources for things that are unfruitful to the Kingdom and/or the things that scripture forbids us from taking part in. He is so faithful to show us if we seek what He says in His Word and then purge whatever He calls us to purge. I could make a list of things that we have purged or are in the process of purging but I truly believe He will walk you through your own journey with Him at a pace you can handle and all the while motivating you at a heart level to do it because of your own convictions and not due to the convictions of another.

Every year the Lord reveals to us new things that have started creeping in or old things we never even thought about. As a wonderful side bonus, this ongoing purge is simplifying my life across the board which means more rest, less clutter and an increasing sense of calm and serenity as there are less things competing for my time and thoughts.

I love meditating on what it must have been like in Eden. No clothes to fuss with, no houses to maintain, no stuff to own (or to own you), no dishes, no “what’s for dinner” and no endless bills to pay.

God never ever asks us to give up something without having an even better something in mind to give us in return.

Blessings as you pray about it, seek Him, and consider what it might mean in your own life to rebuild your own gates for His Kingdom and glory.

As always, be Berean and abundantly blessed in the Lord.

How Modern Medicine and God’s Promises Can Work Together

October 17, 2019October 18, 2019 / wherethereisthewordthereisourway / 1 Comment

For years I have struggled with understanding how the Law and the Promises/New Covenant of God work together. It is something I have prayed about, studied out and yet only this year, after spending some significant time in Galatians am I really starting to understand how they fit together. The Law, we are told is like a guardian/ a tutor to keep the people while they are subject to sin and flesh. The New Covenant for those, who like Abraham, have believed and are walking by faith and not by sight. The reality is, that many of us are somewhere on the road in between these two covenants. As long as part of us is walking after the flesh and still in bondage to “the beggarly elements” of this world, the Law can bring us great wisdom and guidance. Understanding the difference between these two covenants is essential in understanding what Jesus has done, how this has impacted our identity, how to see His Kingdom come here on Earth as it is in Heaven and being set truly free from all the dominion of darkness. I am going to hone-in on how these impact health and healing, more specifically exploring how medicine and healing via the Word and faith fit together as I think this is a question on the hearts of many.

I will likely be editting this post several times as I find it a bit of a struggle to put all of these things into words so thank you so much for your forbearance and grace.

Due to the delay (can feel like an eternity) from the time God plants a truth/promise in our hearts, to the time the reality of what His promises is fulfilled, very often, we attempt to “help” Him out to bring things about more quickly. Time and again the Bible stories warn us not to turn to our own methods first, but to rely on God first for every need, to seek Him and His will first. Yet, over and over in the Bible we see people trying to fulfill God’s promises under their own power.

Let’s explore the parallels between these two covenants/two sons/between divine provision, the chid of the promise, Isaac and the child of human effort, Ishmael, and by extension divine healing and medicine. Do keep in mind as you read through that God blessed both Isaac and Ishmael and that I believe that both are an expression of God’s goodness and faithfulness.

I have done a side by side chart to help compare the two agreements/two sons.

Galatians 4″ ²¹Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? ²²For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. ²³But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. ²⁴Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. ²⁵For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. ²⁶But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. ²⁷For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband. ²⁸Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. ²⁹But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. ³⁰Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. ³¹So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.”

NLT vs 29 “²⁹But you are now being persecuted by those who want you to keep the law, just as Ishmael, the child born by human effort, persecuted Isaac, the child born by the power of the Spirit.”

Genesis 17:19-21 King James Version (KJV) “19 And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him. 20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. 21 But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.”

Exodus 15:26 King James Version (KJV) “26 And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee.”

Isaiah 53 King James Version (KJV) “53 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? 2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. 3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

Son of the Promise: Son of the Flesh:

Isaac (type and shadow of Jesus) Ishmael (type and shadow of human effort attempting to fulfill divine promise)

Healing Via the Word and Faith Healing via Modern Medicine/human effort burden of healing on God burden of healing on man’s intellect/ability

Inheritance comes through heir Cannot inherit

Heir to the Promises made to Abraham Blessed but in a covenant with lesser promises

Conceived and birthed according Birthed and conceived via the impatience God’s timing and promises and tendency of man to force the fulfillment by human effort (see v29 NLT)

End result: True Salavation and Freedom Initial and/or limited success but unable to fully break the bondage

“Who the Son Sets Free is free indeed” Strings/ongoing bondage/subject John 8:36 to the elemental forces of this world Not subject to the elemental forces

Able to overcome the impossible Confined to natural laws (eg resurrect the dead after 4 days, create new body parts miraculously etc.)

Healthy and Restored to Whole Some success, often requires ongoing treatments, often incurs potential side effects, cannot resolve underlying aknesses in DNA, environment etc

Cost: Free /Believing Varying degrees of human cost involved Money, time for treatments, uncomfortable painful Test, potential hospitalization and exposure To radiation, chemo, and other known to be harmful Treatments and or tests required to obtain info

Longterm results: Blessing goes to 1000 Longterm: Unresolved genetic mutation Radiant health, Generations, healed DNA passed on for many generations, reduced etc. Increased faith and assurance in all of efficacy of treatments over time in drugs God’s promises like sins being forgiven and increased risks of undesirable side Assurance of the reality of salvation (Matt 9) effects, limited options… removing damaged organs surgically leaves people, limited antibiotic options, leads to creating superbugs

Promises to deliver health, vigor and vitality Assumes old age will mean a measure of throughout old age until death degeneration, weakness and other age related conditions

No drug or treatment counterindications A large variety counterindications so this can be combined with any possible therefore correct dosing and other treatment and by anyone of any assessment of individual situations age and/or health status success essential

The challenge: Requires either equipped mature There are already many qualified elders/believer and/or great personal doctors and nurses available to revelation and understanding of the Word via medicine now so this option is which are not presently widely available therefore essential when the divine healing is not available and/or happening rarely. But also becomes unnecessary once divine healing has occurred and divine health established

Biblical Reason: The true fulfillment can only Biblical Reason: Human effort cannot come through the freeborn son fulfill a divine covenantal promise

Summary: Ishmael represents us taking a covenantal promise from God and trying to bring the results to pass by our own human effort. Initially, we may seem to be getting the results we hoped for. I am sure that is how Sarah and Abraham felt when Hagar conceived. But they did not see Islam in that baby. And they quickly realized they missed it when God told them the son he meant would come by His means. It is very easy for us to try to help God along but very often our efforts birth an Ishmael. God sees the big picture and knows the long term ramifications of our choices.

We recently talked about John the Baptist and how he understood that as Jesus increased and became more pre-eminent, he himself would have to decrease. John 3:30. As we walk more and more with Jesus and the reality of Him and His Kingdom dawn in our hearts, we rely more and more on God and his provision in all areas of our lives and less and less on our human effort and understanding. This is the normal Christian life, a progression from relying on the flesh predominantly to relying on the Spirit. For the Kingdom to fully come, the flesh must give way to the Spirit.

I will add a note here to say that I do not advocate going often treatments or meds until you have confirmation of healing. Even Jesus sent the leper to the established authorities to confirm their healing before going public. See Luke 17:14. Once you are healed, and the doctors have confirmed this, of course the other treatments are simply redundant and should be stopped accordingly (weaning off is sometimes necessary for example). There are no paint by numbers in the Kingdom, formulas always fall short, the keys are to be wise and attentive to the Lord and His instructions and to seek out godly counsel if confusion jumps in to the picture.

God promised to bless all that Abraham set his hands to so Ishmael was blessed by God. I believe truly there is a divine blessing on “Modern Medicines”, nurses, doctors etc. However, I do think there are biblically established boundaries that man simply cannot overcome by effort and smarts.

God sent Jesus to heal “make whole and restore to perfect health”. He is the only one appointed by God for this true redemption, by this I mean total restoration of our spirit, our mind and our bodies. Therefore, we need to look to Jesus as the source of true freedom and wholeness. YES Modern Medicine has a significant place, especially to those who do not know the Lord and have no access to Him. The blessings of God is very evident as there is most decidedly a measure of success and in eliminating some conditions, mediating the symptoms/discomforts of others, and helping people to survive through places of crisis and is well known for buying time for people towards the end of their lives. However, it often comes with long term costs or ongoing strings such as heavy financial burdens, long term or life long dependence on medicines, inconvenient or even painful treatments, fear, stress, loss of body parts too damaged for medicine to help at this time, antibiotic resistant superbugs, etc.. Thank God for those called to practice and serve others via medicine. We can call these precious ones gifts from God. When we put these things in scriptural perspective, we can be more thankful for the help we receive through the son of Hagar, we can be more understanding that there is a reason why medicine is not commonly the miracle cure we were hoping for. We can be more thankful for those who dedicate their lives to serving in this way without being tempted to accuse them when they cannot deliver what we are hoping for. Most importantly, we can put the full burden of our need for our bodies to be completely made whole and redeemed on the One who has been covenantely appointed to do this work in our flesh. Without keeping these things in order we can easily lose sight of the One who wants to and can make us whole and just as easily begin to grumble, complain against, feel frustration with and even accuse those who are working so hard to help us through human means.

The spirit behind Ishmael, behind the son of the bondwoman understands this reality very well. This is why the persecution naturally flows from the one who has no inheritance against the one who has the inheritance. The verses above say that this spiritual force behind it will cause ongoing persecution to flow against the Son of the Promise. It is a sibling rivalry of sorts, a theme we see all through scripture. In some case, ending in death as with Cain and Able… The unfavored son literally tries to kill the favored one. Or ideally, each one accepting their place as what happened with Esau and Jacob. This is my personal hope that in keeping these two elements in godly order, the two brothers can live and work together.

We also have to be aware that this is why it is so easy for us to put our full hope in medicine and lose track of the Son as the central place in which we put our hope. No, I am not discouraging anyone from getting help from medicine, but to always seek Jesus too and keep Him pre-eminently in your heart and thoughts as our only source of complete healing and restoration.

We all understand that no one other than God can forgive our sins, no one other than God can resurrect our dead spirit, but most of us still struggle with the biblical fact that only God is really capable of restoring people to perfect health and wholeness. The measure of success we may sometimes get steals us from us the motivation to seek the Lord Jehovah Rapha for the full restoration of our health. Thank God that we can benefit from both sons but, let us give to the rightful heir the pre-eminence and put our expectations in each according to what they are able to provide. “Seek God first, and His righteousness”…, “…and all these things will be added unto you.”

Above all, seek relationship with your Abba Father. Yes He delights in our wellbeing (Psalm 35:27) but of course the big prize, the central thing remains KNOWING Him. Let us never forget His benefits (Psalm 103:1-4) but more importantly let us learn to be like Mary and delight above all things in simply sitting in His presence, attentive to all that He will share with us.

Things to Be On Guard Against

October 12, 2019 / wherethereisthewordthereisourway / Leave a comment

This is an incomplete list of the things that you may bump into or may attempt to bump into you as you pursue God and some scriptural references to explain these briefly. We have discussed several if not all of these in our group times briefly but I thought a summary might be helpful. I will try to add to this list as we go and hit any other things that would try to prevent us from truly entering and living according to the Kingdom.

Before I jump in though.. just a reminder

1 John 4:4 King James Version (KJV) “4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”

Galatians 4:8-9 New English Translation (NET Bible) ” 8 Formerly when you did not know God, you were enslaved to beings that by nature are not gods at all. 9 But now that you have come to know God (or rather to be known by God), how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless basic forces? Do you want to be enslaved to them all over again?”

Colossians 1:12-14 King James Version (KJV) “12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:”

Jude 1:24 – 25″Jude 24-25 King James Version (KJV) “24 Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, 25 To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.”

Sin
The Appetites of the Flesh (vs 19)
The cares and pleasures of the World / general busy-ness (vs 19)
Satan- the adversary and
Bad Company/Scoffers/Legalism
accuser or the brethren (see vs 15 below)
Traditions of man that displace the Word of God instead of glorifying it
Grumbling and Complaining
Relying on our own understanding / our rational/academic mind
Persecution or hardship – see vs 17 (also see Job for examples of good responses to perspecution (the beginning and the end) and bad (the middle)
Hardness of heart – comes when we grieve
Envy and Jealousy / Comparison

Mark 4:10-20 King James Version (KJV)” 10 And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. 11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: 12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them. 13 And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables? 14 The sower soweth the word. 15 And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts. 16 And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17 And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended. 18 And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, 19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. 20 And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.”

1. Sin

Hebrews 12:1 NKJV “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,”

Habakkuk 1:13 New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE) “13 Your eyes are too pure to look upon wickedness, and the sight of evil you cannot endure. Why, then, do you gaze on the faithless in silence while the wicked devour those more just than themselves?”

Isaiah 59:2 KJV “2But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.”

2. The appetites of the flesh

Romans 6-9 outlines how the flesh wars against the spirit and can keep us from doing what the Father wills.

Romans 8:4-9 King James Version (KJV) “4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 5 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. 8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. 9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.”

Galatians 5:24-25 King James Version (KJV) “24 And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. ”

3. The Cares and Pre-Occupations with the world (mentioned in the parable)

James 1:11 English Standard Version (ESV) “11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.”

Titus 2:11-14 King James Version (KJV) “11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”

1 John 2:15 American Standard Version (ASV) “15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”

James 4:3-5 Contemporary English Version (CEV)”3 Yet even when you do pray, your prayers are not answered, because you pray just for selfish reasons. 4 You people aren’t faithful to God! Don’t you know that if you love the world, you are God’s enemies? And if you decide to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God. 5 Do you doubt the Scriptures that say, “God truly cares about the Spirit he has put in us”?”

4. Satan / Demonic interference

1 Peter 5:8 King James Version (KJV) “8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:”

John 10:10 King James Version (KJV) “10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 New Living Translation (NLT) “3 If the Good News we preach is hidden behind a veil, it is hidden only from people who are perishing. 4 Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.”

There is an intelligent and conscious attack on our faith and on the Word of God that is happening all the time. We need not fear the things that God has publicly shamed and disarmed but we need to know that Satan and his demons are still in the world and still stirring up division, strife, emnity, confusion, despair and fear wherever we tolerate their presence

Ephesians 4:26-27 King James Version (KJV) “26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: 27 Neither give place to the devil.”

James 4:7 King James Version (KJV) “7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

Revelation 12:10 King James Version (KJV) “10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.”

John 8:44 New Century Version (NCV) “44 You belong to your father the devil, and you want to do what he wants. He was a murderer from the beginning and was against the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he shows what he is really like, because he is a liar and the father of lies.”

5.Bad Company/Scoffers/Legalism/Hypocricy

1 Corinthians 15:33 English Standard Version (ESV) “33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”

Matthew 15:13-14 King James Version (KJV) “13 But he answered and said, Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up. 14 Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.”

Matthew 23:1-4 King James Version (KJV) 23 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, 2 Saying The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: 3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. 4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.”

A link to view many verses about the dangers of listening to the hypocrits https://www.biblegateway.com/quicksearch/?qs_version=KJV&quicksearch=hypocr&begin=47&end=73

Luke 12:1 New International Version (NIV) “12 Meanwhile, when a crowd of many thousands had gathered, so that they were trampling on one another, Jesus began to speak first to his disciples, saying: “Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy”

6.Traditions of man that displace the Word of

Matthew 15:2-4 New Living Translation (NLT) 2 “Why do your disciples disobey our age-old tradition? For they ignore our tradition of ceremonial hand washing before they eat.” 3 Jesus replied, “And why do you, by your traditions, violate the direct commandments of God? 4 For instance, God says, ‘Honor your father and mother,’and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’”

Mark 7:13 “Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.”

7.Grumbling and Complaining (block us from the Kingdom)

Jude 15-17 King James Version (KJV) ” To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. 16 These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage. 17 But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;”

Galatians 5 ESVUK “16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy,[d] drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God”

8.Relying on our own understanding / our rational/academic mind

Proverbs 3:5 King James Version (KJV) “5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.”

1 Corinthians 1:21-23 King James Version (KJV) “21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. 22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: 23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;”

God’s wisdom is foolishness to the analytical mind.

1 Corinthians 14:14 King James Version (KJV) “14 For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful.”

9. Persecution –

following Jesus brings many blessings but with these, guaranteed persecutions. Remember from the parable of the sower, many fall away when the tribulations and persecutions come against them if they are unprepared.

Galatians 4:29 King James Version (KJV) “29 But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.”

Those who are not submitted to God as Lord but prefer to continue serving their own flesh and appetites will persecute those who choose to fully submit to the Lord… This is true within the church and outside of the church.

Mark 10:29-31 King James Version (KJV) “9 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s, 30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life. 31 But many that are first shall be last; and the last first.”

2 Timothy 3:12 King James Version (KJV) “12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.”.

10. Hardness of Heart –

Often comes via willfull disobedience or denying the Truth and instead relying on our own understanding

i) via rebellion and disobedience

Isaiah 63:9-10 King James Version (KJV) “9 In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old. 10 But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.”

Ephesians 4:29-32 King James Version (KJV) “29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. 30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”

1 Samuel 16:13-15 King James Version (KJV) “13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah. 14 But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him. 15 And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.”

Please look into the why of why the Spirit departed from Saul. Saul partially obeyed God and specifically broke his commands as he allowed his own understanding and reasoning to explain away and justify doing so.
1 Timothy 1:19 New Living Translation (NLT) “19 Cling to your faith in Christ, and keep your conscience clear. For some people have deliberately violated their consciences; as a result, their faith has been shipwrecked.”

1 Timothy 4:1-6 King James Version (KJV) “4 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; 3 Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. 4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving: 5 For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer. 6 If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained.”

11. Envy and Jealousy / Comparison

James 3:15-17 King James Version (KJV) “15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. 16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.”

Matthew 27 Berean Study Bible “17So when the crowd had assembled, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” 18For he knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over. 19While Pilate was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him this message: “Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered terribly in a dream today because of Him.”

12. Fear of the Supernatural, the gifts of the Spirit, the Counterfeits and the Power of the Kingdom

We are in a war…. Like it or not, we have a devious and subtle enemy whose main tactic is to disarm us via deception. Actually, he needs to disarm us to have any chance of defeating us as scripture records he was publicly shamed and disarmed by Christ [Colossians 2:15]. Could you imagine what would happen to our society if we decided to burn every monetary bill (including the legit ones) as a means of removing the false ones from circulation. What scripture calls us to do is learn to differentiate between the false and the real and only heed the real.

Psalm 18:34 King James Version (KJV) “34 He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.”

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 King James Version (KJV) ” 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”

Ephesians 6 KJV “11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; 19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”

I was reminded this week of the warfare that comes against the gifts of the Spirit via the many counterfeits and false teachers etc that abound. The thing is, that Corinthians makes it very clear that all of these gifts are necessary for equipping the believers

1 Corinthians 4:19-21 King James Version (KJV) “19 But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord will, and will know, not the speech of them which are puffed up, but the power. 20 For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power.21 What will ye? shall I come unto you with a rod, or in love, and in the spirit of meekness?”

Mark 16:16-20 King James Version (KJV)”16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. 17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. 19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. 20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.”

Yes absolutely there is a counterfeit version of this, yes absolutely there are people who get out of balance and perpetually seek for the signs and miss God…. These things in no way change the biblical fact that signs (both new and known) follow the preaching of the Word. The enemy loves to discredit and disarm those operating in spiritual gifts as these are essential to the operation of the Kingdom.

1 Corinthians 12 King James Version (KJV) “12 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant. 2 Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led. 3 Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. 4 Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. 6 And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. 8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; 9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; 10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: 11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. 12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. 14 For the body is not one member, but many. 5 If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 16 And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? 18 But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. 19 And if they were all one member, where were the body? 20 But now are they many members, yet but one body. 21 And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. 22 Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary: 23 And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. 24 For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked. 25 That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. 26 And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. 27 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. 28 And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? 30 Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret? 31 But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.”

Scripture refers to these supernatural elements of the Kingdom as gifts from God, distributed at His will for the good of all, and states that each one has different gifts so that the whole body will benefit. We are also warned that when one body part suffers, the whole suffers… When we silence the gifts of the Spirit we are quenching God and literally harming the larger body of Christ. Ephesians 6 says our weapons of warfare are for disarming things of spiritual nature. God has provided spiritual weapons for the task. We could consider it insane to send soldiers bare handed with no training into a warzone…. Is it wise therefore to leave God’s bereft of the gifts God has given us for the good of all? The end of Matthew specifically commissioned the disciples to teach the believers to observe all that he taught them to do (see Matthew below). Mark 16 (above) says all believers can operate in certain giftings, not all giftings but some are available to all. So these are things that all can do, not saying what all will do.

Ephesians 4:10-12 King James Version (KJV) “10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:”

Matthew 28:”18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

Note here that Matthew is saying that the apostles were to teach them to obey/do ALL things whatsoever that He commanded them to do. We have to read the gospels understanding that any assignment given to the apostles has been given to us as well.

Matthew 10:7-8 King James Version (KJV) “7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. 8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.”

I believe right here we see the true Great Commission that the disciples were to pass onto all believers… I see these as a package deal. Jesus equipped His disciples in all of these things and then sent them out. How can we hope to represent the Kingdom without having freely received all so that we can in turn freely give all that we are called to give?

2 Timothy 3:2-5 King James Version (KJV) “2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

In the forefront of my mind, I try to always remember that Satan defeated Adam in the garden by getting him to take his mind off of what God said and listen to his own reasoning instead. Adam had dominion over every thing that crawled including the serpent but he was undone by the appetites of the flesh, the desire for being like God (especially in wisdom) and by the cunning lies spoken by the serpent. In contrast, it is equally etched on my mind that Jesus completely disarmed the snake and booted him out of the situation after their exchange exerting His dominion by standing immovably on exactly what God said and not giving the slightest room for the serpent to twist it.

Ezekiel 34 King James Version (KJV) 34 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, 2 Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? 3 Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock. 4 The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them. 5 And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered. 6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them. 7 Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord; 8 As I live, saith the Lord God, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock;

9 Therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord; 10 Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them. 11 For thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. 12 As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. 13 And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country. 14 I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel.15 I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God. 16 I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment. 17 And as for you, O my flock, thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams and the he goats. 18 Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet? 19 And as for my flock, they eat that which ye have trodden with your feet; and they drink that which ye have fouled with your feet. 20 Therefore thus saith the Lord God unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle. 21 Because ye have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; 22 Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. 23 And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. 24 And I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the Lord have spoken it. 25 And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. 26 And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. 27 And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them. 28 And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid. 29 And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more. 30 Thus shall they know that I the Lord their God am with them, and that they, even the house of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord God. 31 And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord God.”

I love this verse as it reminds me of how much our God, the Good Shepherd longs to strengthen those who were formerly sick and restore them to safe pastures. Without the gifts of the Spirit, and the supernatural elements of the Kingdom at work, how can we in our human effort accomplish these mighty and beyond natural feats? Do take note of the rebuke that came against the shepherds who failed to do these things for their sheep. Our natural selves were not made for the Kingdom life (scripture records that self resists the Spirit and vice versa) so they squirm and get uncomfortable when the announcement of the Kingdom arriving comes… Instinctively self knows that it must die for the Kingdom to fully come and express itself in and through us. If we are mindful of this, we can do as Paul did and discipline ourselves in the skill of dying to self daily and crucifying our flesh driven selves.

A True Foundation: The Doctrine of Christ

October 12, 2019 / wherethereisthewordthereisourway / Leave a comment

I was asked this week to try to incorporate a broader foundation and perspective this week. As we go through the 14 to 15 different topics, we will certainly cover an immense amount of terrain. With this encouragement, I will especially try to highlight the 6 specific things the scriptures refer to as the doctrine of Christ. Perhaps we can treat this as a bit of a group treasure hunt, and as we read verses in general, we can try to spot where these things pop up as we go. The word refers to the principles taught here as “the foundation from which we can go on to perfection”. So just a moment to encourage you all to keep an eye out for them in your own personal study times as well and do share what you find. Blessings.

Hebrews 6 King James Version (KJV) “6 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of

1.repentance from dead works, and

2 of faith toward God,

3.Of the doctrine of baptisms,

4.and of laying on of hands,

5. and of resurrection of the dead,

6.and of eternal judgment.:”

Our Second Last Week

October 9, 2019 / wherethereisthewordthereisourway / 2 Comments

Just a reminder that this is our Second Last Week in This Session.

The next Session will be about the Power of Our Words and Thoughts. The scriptures we will be studying transformed my own life radically, and are absolutely essential for anyone who feels called to follow Jesus and be equipped to serve powerfully and effectively in His Kingdom.

I have updated a couple of posts this week. I still have others to catch up on.

For those looking for practical application, this post is one that some may find helpful, it is a play by play of how I personally resist symptoms of sickness and very often see them disappear within moments or hours of praying.

https://healinganddiscipleship.com/2019/10/09/practically-speaking-an-example-of-resisting-a-physical-symptom-play-by-play/

During our break time, I plan to dig in more deeply to the book of Galatians and Jeremiah. I will be sharing my commentary on Galatians via this post https://healinganddiscipleship.com/?s=galatians

…specifically in the comments at the bottom. I would be delighted to hear your commentaries and be blessed by what the Lord reveals to you if you are willing to jump in with commentary as well. Simply cut and paste the verse you are commenting on and then highlight, underline, comment on what you see… very much an extension of what we do as a group. During our study, we tend to zoom in on certain trees in the forest. Doing a whole book study I think balances this out. Basically helping to zoom out and look a the forest as a whole and therefore better understand the individual trees within it.

We will be starting our next session on November the 5th. At this time, it seems like most are attending on Tuesday mornings. It is my heart to accomodate as many as feel strongly called as I can. If the Tuesday morning session (9:30 to 11:30) does not work for you, please call me or email me. I am willing to do a second session if there is enough interest and we can find another window that works. If not, I am considering opening up a separate Bible Study time from my home that focuses on one book at a time (like the study of Galatians)… If you are interested, do let me know.

Blessings as you seek Him and grow in wisdom and understanding of Our Awesome God and His glorious Kingdom !

Practically Speaking: An Example of Resisting a Physical Symptom Play by Play

October 9, 2019March 8, 2022 / wherethereisthewordthereisourway / Leave a comment

Practically speaking, how in the world does one put all of this into actual actions? On Tuesday this week I did a little demo of what this looks like in my home presently. I will try to summarize in writing but the physical demo I think is the more effective tool. Here is my approach to resisting a physical symptom… Now of course this varies but give you a good visual hopefully and the steps plus the why behind the steps.

James 4:7 King James Version (KJV)”⁷Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

FIRST ABOVE ALL ELSE: SUBMIT TO GOD

When do I do this…. Sometimes before I do anything else (ideally), sometimes after I have done everything else (more often than I care to admit) and sometimes somewhere in the middle. There is no condemnation is seeking the help of doctors, natural remedies etc… These can cure some things and can often provide varying degrees of relief to what is ailing you. In other words this can be done, before, concurrently or after you have tried everything else. The longer I walk this thing out, the more often I see these steps break the yoke and the symptoms quickly diminish and disappear.

I usually stand up, being on my feet makes me feel more like I am positioned for action instead of passivity and as a victim. I am physically positioning myself for victory even with this tiny step even though it is not necessary.

And then I fix my gaze and heart on God and His Word. I seek to position myself in a position of utter and total submission to who He is (Creator of all and exceedingly more powerful than any other) and what His Word says about me. “By Jesus stripes I was [past tense] healed” Therefore, if I was to base my conclusion of my present state of health or wellness on the Word alone, I would have to conclude that means I am “healthy” today right now. This is also the perfect time to ask God to reveal to you anything that you may need to repent for, anything that may have opened the door for the symptom to come. Perhaps you were recently exposed to someone who had a cold and you felt fear that you would catch it… Simply repent for fearing. Perhaps you were sharp with someone. Whatever He reveals to you agree that you have missed the mark and do a 180 mentally rededicating yourself and your hours to holy, blameless and total dedication to serving as God’s child and as His temple. Remember the annointing with oil is to signify that the one/thing annointed has been set apart as holy, blameless, pure and for the services of the Lord alone.

“Praise You Jehovah Rapha, My Jehovah Nissi (the Lord is my banner/my victory), You have already set me free from all symptoms, all sin, all hell, death and destruction, every element of the Fall. I praise YOU, you are worthy of all my praise. Thank you that I am no longer subject to the begarly elements of this world but have been fully redeemed. I am your beloved child, You uphold me with you right hand so I will not fall. You strengthen my arm for war, you equip me to scale every wall, and to walk as more than a conqueror. You are watching over Your Word and have healed me and saved me from my destructions. Though people are falling all around me, no harm will befall me and no plague will come near my dwelling place. I submit my body an thoughts to You Lord God and ask that you do all to enforce the victory established by Your son and lead me to take every step necessary now.”

Here are some verses that I meditate on in preparation for these times:

Luke 10:19 King James Version (KJV) “19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you”

Psalm 91 King James Version (KJV)
91 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. 4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. 5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; 6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. 7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. 8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. 9 Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; 10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. 11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. 12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. 13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. 14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. 15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. 16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.”

Colossians 2:15 KJV “And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.”

Colossians 1:13 13Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:”

Galatians 4 KJV “Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:4But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, 5To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. 6And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. 7Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.8Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.
9But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?”

Ephesians 4:27-30 King James Version (KJV) “27 Neither give place to the devil. 28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. 29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”

John 10:10 King James Version (KJV) “10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

Romans 6:13 King James Version (KJV) “13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.”

Luke 6 kJV “/6 And it came to pass also on another sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered. 7 And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him. 8 But he knew their thoughts, and said to the man which had the withered hand, Rise up, and stand forth in the midst. And he arose and stood forth. 9 Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it? 10 And looking round about upon them all, he said unto the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he did so: and his hand was restored whole as the other.”

Do note here especially that to leave anyone in a state of infirmity to come into agreement with evil and destroying life which goes completely against what Jesus came to do, to give life and life more abundantly and to agree with the thief who “came to kill, steal and destroy.” From my unerstanding this means that resisting infirmity and sickness is to be accomplice to Jesus and to not resist is to be accomplice to the thief.

I also often think about how we got into this mess in the first place. Adam and Eve had been commanded to take dominion over all living things on behalf of God and to subdue them and take the land. To not subdue what God has commanded us to subue is disobedience. So in order for me to subject myself to all of what these scriptures say, and therefore submit to God, I must have these things first fixed in my heart and mind. So pre-meditating on these verses is absolutely essential to position me for victory. Long before the temptations come, we much prepare our hearts and minds to resist effectively.

Once I am have positioned myself in submission to God, I am now walking and acting under HIS BANNER, His authority and His Kingdom. This is the most essential piece for victory. In Christ I can do all things… but human effort, no matter how zealous, accomplishes nothing.

For me, this has been the hardest part. I do not naturally submit well to anything or anyone. Over the last dozen years I think I have been unintentionally trying to strike the balance between being submitted to God in the ways but still subject to my own appetites and plans in others…. LOL… I have unwittingly been trying to negociate middle ground, asking God to concede to my flesh and my agendas as I rise up in some areas to His. That is not the way that Lordship goes though. I am finally coming to the conclusion that being subject to God means entirely, in all areas, all the time. GASP, CHOKE AHHHHH (that was my flesh and self’s instant response to realizing that it must absolutely defer to and give way to God). SIGH…………….. Total relief that the whole thing, every last bit of the burden, of the responsibility, of the results, the full weight of it lies on the Word, on Jesus Christ and on the Father. The recognition that my victory/ my personal success/ my personal responsibility is not the outcome… but the simple act of submitting and doing what God calls me to do. Every other part of the equations is HIS. THANK GOD! Now I am positioned to fight from a place of REST and utter confidence in Him as my Saviour and Deliverer.

2ND PIECE OF THE PUZZLE: Spend lots and lots of time pre-meditating on the faithfulness, on the promises, on the things that please God, on His Capacity, on His Love and His nature especially as expressed through Jesus Christ. All Fear is disarmed when we realize that our Abba Father is the one who has already established and will enforce the victory. Too many verses to list here. That handout of the Father’s Love Letter is a perfect one to meditate on.

1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”

Psalm 63:8 “My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.”

Jeremiah 1:12 English Standard Version (ESV) “12 Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.”

2nd Resist the Devil

So now that I am submitted, I view myself merely as an extension of the Lord, His Words and body in action on earth. I am simply enforcing what He has done and is watching over to ensure.

Me “You weak and begarly symptom (s), I am subject to what the Lord says about me, I am healthy, I am immune to any harm you can bring against me, I am subject to Him alone and have been completely delivered from the dominion of darkness. You publicly shamed and utterly defeated nothing, get off/out of God’s temple (my body). Jesus nailed you to that cross, with His blood, by laying down His life for mine. I died with Him in baptism, and rose up with Him from the waters in resurrection. I am immune from all the elements of darkness and the fallen world. I am truly free and YOU have no place here. Get back on the other side of the blood, you have NO authority hear. I have yielded my body and thoughts and heart to the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Third Deny Yourself, CommanSd Your Body to Line Up with Scripture

“Body, listen up, you are subject to the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word. Be healed, be filled with SOZO (health and utter wholeness), be completely free of all pain, all discomforts, all infirmities, all afflictions, etc. Be healthy, in perfect balance, whatever is lacking be multiplied now (as in the miracle of the loaves and fish), whatever is harmful or on assignment against my body be cursed to utter destruction. Every evil assignment, every soulish prayer, every evil prayer, every curse that has been sent against my body be annulled now in the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. “

Body, I commit you and rededicate you, I do NOT yield any member (body part) to anyone other than to my Lord. I am fully committed to keeping His temple Holy and Set Apart for His purposes. The LORD rebuke you for attempting to defile and set up camp in HIS temple.” If the symptoms don’t immediately subside ” The LORD rebuke you for not honouring HIS NAME, HIS KINGDOM and YOUR sentence as being publicly shamed and disarmed. I commit my body and wellness to the Lord.”

I am definitely more fiesty when i stop and recognize that my body is the temple of the holy Ghost and these things are actually trying to desecrate the dwelling place of the Most High.

1 Corinthians 6:19 KJV “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?”

If my children are the ones tempted, I love referring to Isaiah 54:13 . If I have been tempted. I tend to stop with the above declaration and move on with my day, not allowing the sensation of the symptom to change my agenda but essentially ignoring it (not even deeming to give it my slightest attention). Any remnants of the symptom tend to clear up shortly after (signs that yes indeed the enemy is facing the Lord for His impudence and failure to honour His Word and His name) If my children are affected, I tend to pray until the symptoms are entirely gone.

“And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace {shalom}of thy children.”

Finally: Turn and receive ministry and strenghthening from the Lord

We have at least 2 examples in scripture of times when Jesus was tempted.

Matthew 4:11 “Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.”

And also in the garden after which time the angels came and strengthened Him for the work at hand. If Jesus Himself needed ministry after temptations, how much more so do we.

“Dear Heavenly Father, I feel weakened and somewhat shakened by this temptation. Dear Lord, please send your ministering angels to strengthen me and bind up any broken or wounded parts of my heart, and body, that I may be strengthened to serve you and fulfill the plans and purposes you have laid on my life day and life”

This is proving in my own life to be a powerful step. We actually get stronger and receive healing to a place of better than before we had the encounter when we receive this ministry that the Lord has prepared for us for these occasions. Jesus was able to walk out what He did in part, because He submitted to and received the strengthening in this way. This also reveals the reason why we seek restoration.. Not to serve our own pleasures, or be restored to our own agendas but to be effectively about the Father’s business.

Our eyes often to turn people, either prayer partners (nothing wrong in this but God has more for us than this alone), or to those that have hurt them. Sadly, the perpetrators (or more rightly, the spirits behind those who hurt us) are not likely motivated to right the wrongs that they have inflicted. But in every case, our Heavenly Father wants to mend our broken hearts and set us free from all bondages and wash us clean from all the dust that inevitably clings to us as we serve in the fallen world.

Hebrews 1:14 KJV “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?”

Sizing up our Adversary

October 3, 2019October 30, 2019 / wherethereisthewordthereisourway / Leave a comment

Genesis 1:28 King James Version (KJV) “28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”

Jumping right in as this is more or less a continuation of the last post. Keeping always in mind that God equips us, strengthens us, renews our minds, gives us wisdom, imparts knowledge to us through His Word and as we cry out to Him and spend regular times in fellowship and prayer with Him. Our part is to faithfully do these things and then He faithfully does the rest including givine us the desire and ability to do what pleases Him. Our part is always the doable part… Mind you, I am constantly crying out for help with my part too. Blessings as you consider these verses. As always, be Berean.

This goes right back to the very beginning. Adam not only had authority over the serpent who came and tempted Eve in the garden, he had a responsibility and a direct command from God to take dominion over him and subdue him. The serpent was the craftiest/subtlest creature… and is still whispering to the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve today. If he can convince us that we are subject to the powers of darkness, to sickness, to sin, to the begarly elements of this world, we are easy prey. If we understand what Jesus has done and restored to us, that we are now free from the dominion of darkness and the begarly elemental powers of this world, and have once again been given power over all the power of the enemy, then we are truly free and positioned to help others be set free as well. This original command stands today, and those who submit to God (accept Him as Lord and hearken to and obey His commands) are called just as Adam and Eve were called to have dominion over every living thing and subdue the earth. We cannot subdue that which we subject ourselves to. One might be thinking, I don’t choose to subject myself to these things, I am simply powerless to prevent them. The question becomes what does scripture say about this. Let’s see.

Luke 10:19 King James Version (KJV) “19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Galatians 4 ” ³Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: ⁴But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, ⁵To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. ⁶And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. ⁷Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. ⁸Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods. ⁹? But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage”

Paul asks a tough question. Why are you making yourselves subject again to the things from which Jesus has set us free? His question confronts us with the scriptural reality that God has put it within out power to decide to whomand what we subject ourselves and put ourselves in bondage to. These verses also indicate that it was predominantly through false teachings that the people believed these lies and were deceived back into bondage in spite of the freedoms obtained for them by Christ.

Colossians 1:12-13 King James Version (KJV) “12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:”

2 Corinthians 10:5 King James Version (KJV) “5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”

Colossians 2:10-23 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV) “10 And because you belong to Christ you are complete, having everything you need. Christ is ruler over every other power and authority. 11 In Christ you had a different kind of circumcision, one that was not done by human hands. That is, you were made free from the power of your sinful self. That is the kind of circumcision Christ does. 12 When you were baptized, you were buried with Christ, and you were raised up with him because of your faith in God’s power. God’s power was shown when he raised Christ from death. 13 You were spiritually dead because of your sins and because you were not free from the power of your sinful self. But God gave you new life together with Christ. He forgave all our sins. 14 Because we broke God’s laws, we owed a debt—a debt that listed all the rules we failed to follow. But God forgave us of that debt. He took it away and nailed it to the cross. 15 He defeated the rulers and powers of the spiritual world. With the cross he won the victory over them and led them away, as defeated and powerless prisoners for the whole world to see.

16 So don’t let anyone make rules for you about eating and drinking or about Jewish customs (festivals, New Moon celebrations, or Sabbath days). 17 In the past these things were like a shadow that showed what was coming. But the new things that were coming are found in Christ. 18 Some people enjoy acting as if they are humble and love to worship angels.[a] They always talk about the visions they have seen. Don’t listen to them when they say you are wrong because you don’t do these things. It is so foolish for them to feel such pride, because it is all based on their own human ideas. 19 They don’t keep themselves under the control of the head. Christ is the head, and the whole body depends on him. Because of Christ all the parts of the body care for each other and help each other. So the body is made stronger and held together as God causes it to grow.

20 You died with Christ and were made free from the powers that influence this world. So why do you act as if you still belong to the world? I mean, why do you follow rules like these: 21 “Don’t eat this,” “Don’t taste that,” “Don’t touch that”? 22 These rules are talking about earthly things that are gone after they are used. They are only human commands and teachings. 23 These rules may seem to be wise as part of a made-up religion in which people pretend to be humble and punish their bodies. But they don’t help people stop doing the evil that the sinful self wants to do.”

We see here again that the people are being deceived by human ideas, teachings and traditions, to the point where they are no longer being lead by/controlled by Christ. When we submit to others, we are no longer submitted to Christ.

Putting Physical Death In Perspective:

Luke 17 NLT “³³If you cling to your life, you will lose it, and if you let your life go, you will save it”

Romans 8:35-39 King James Version (KJV) “35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Seeing things through the lens of scriptures can change everything. Our flesh cries out that the big deal is to be comfortable, pain free, happy and alive, our words, actions and lives speak to this perspective. We spend most of our days working hard to establish these ends. Scripture record that the central goal of our lives is to know God and live in fellowship with Him. Eternal life is knowing Him and living in fellowship with Him. The big deal according to scripture is living in God’s presence.

The world sees physical death as the final blow, the scripture records that separation from God is the very worst thing for a man to experience. From the one perspective, in many ways death represents the end of all thing. From the perspective of scripture, death is talked about in the same terms as taking off a garment. Physical death releases a person into even greater intimacy and union with the Father.

Philippians 1:20-22 King James Version (KJV) “20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.”

2 Corinthians 5 Contemporary English Version (CEV)
“5 Our bodies are like tents that we live in here on earth. But when these tents are destroyed, we know that God will give each of us a place to live. These homes will not be buildings that someone has made, but they are in heaven and will last forever. 2 While we are here on earth, we sigh because we want to live in that heavenly home. 3 We want to put it on like clothes and not be naked. 4 These tents we now live in are like a heavy burden, and we groan. But we don’t do this just because we want to leave these bodies that will die. It is because we want to change them for bodies that will never die. 5 God is the one who makes all of this possible. He has given us his Spirit to make us certain that he will do it. 6 So always be cheerful! As long as we are in these bodies, we are away from the Lord. 7 But we live by faith, not by what we see. 8 We should be cheerful, because we would rather leave these bodies and be at home with the Lord. 9 But whether we are at home with the Lord or away from him, we still try our best to please him. 10 After all, Christ will judge each of us for the good or the bad that we do while living in these bodies.”

Give No Place to the Devil

Ephesians 4:27-30 King James Version (KJV)
“27 Neither give place to the devil. 28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. 29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. 30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”

John 10:10 King James Version (KJV) “10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

If it is killing from us, stealing from us or destroying us, who is the author? If we are commanded to give no place to the devil, then what must we do when we spot his handywork in our lives?

Luke 6 KJV “6 And it came to pass also on another sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered. 7 And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him. 8 But he knew their thoughts, and said to the man which had the withered hand, Rise up, and stand forth in the midst. And he arose and stood forth. 9 Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it? 10 And looking round about upon them all, he said unto the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he did so: and his hand was restored whole as the other.”

To leave infirmity, even something like a withered hand unhealed, Jesus equated with doing evil and destroying life. The thing that strikes me every time I read this passage is that sometime doing nothing is equivalent to agreeing with the destruction of life and doing evil. Is it within our power to heal the sick and set the captives free? What does scripture say. This also reminds me of Proverbs 3:28.

Proverbs 3:28 NLT “If you can help your neighbor now, don’t say, “Come back tomorrow, and then I’ll help you.”

Luke 13 KJV “¹⁶And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?”

Acts 10:38 King James Version (KJV) “38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”

Mark 16:17-19 King James Version (KJV)”17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.”

John 14:12 King James Version (KJV) “12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.”

How do we resist temptation/symptoms?

October 2, 2019March 8, 2022 / wherethereisthewordthereisourway / Leave a comment

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Thank you as always for your grace and mercy as I attempt to tackle some of the more difficult questions of our times together. Please note that I am still working these things out so this post will likely be editted a number of times and my wording may fall short.

I have been camping in Galatians and am particularly drawn back to Galatians 4 over and over again. I encourage you to pause right here and ask for eyes to see, and ears to hear and the ability to understand what this says and perhaps read it out loud a few times… Even maybe meditate on it, just think on it for a couple of days even before reading my thoughts.

Galatians 4 KJV ” Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; ²But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. ³Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: ⁴But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, ⁵To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. ⁷Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. ⁸Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods. ⁹But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage? ¹⁰Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. ¹¹I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.

²¹Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? ²²For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. ²³But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. ²⁴Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. ²⁵For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. ²⁶But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. ²⁷For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband. ²⁸Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. ²⁹But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. ³⁰Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. ³¹So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.”

James 4:7 King James Version (KJV) “7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

Submiting to God is THE most important part of the above verse. We will never be ideally positioned to resist temptation or symptoms or any other work of darkness if we have not yet submitted to God. What exactly does submitting to God mean and actually look like though? We need to know Him, know His heart, know His general desires for all of mankind and His creation and learn to hear Him clearly enough so that we can know His day to day plans and purposes for us along with His big picture vision and agenda for our lives. We need to truly and deeply know our God and let Him give us the desire, power and ability to do what pleases Him. Submitting to Him requires us to resist the devil and all other dominion and subjection to the powers of darkness because He has commanded us lrto do so.

1st point. We resist the devil from a position of doing so because God has commanded us to resist.

Most of the time, when we resist the devil and symptoms, we do so to try to avoid pain, suffering, discomfort and adverse circumstances. Most of our resisting is actually self motivated instead of God motivated. Once we have obtained enough relief for ourselves, our resistance often stops. Let’s take the verse from Romans 6. Hear the command to not yield your body parts (or any part of your life) to sin and that sin no longer has dominion over us. We don’t resist sin/symptoms, both elements of the dominion of darkness attempting to re-establish dominion over us, for our own benefit. We resist, because God has commanded us to not yield even one part to the things from which He has set us free.

2. An ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure… Snuff our every thought/symptom/temptation that raises itself up against the reality of Christ and the Kingdom.

Many of us won’t even bother to pray about a stuffy nose or a little ache or pain because it is more trouble to us to pray then to live with the symptom. When we realize that God has called us into a holy war and to resist all the works of darkness, then even these seemingly trifling things are worth our attention and snuffing out. One little match left burning is all it takes to set a forest on fire under the right conditions. Each symptom and temptation left unchecked is by default us submitting our members, thoughts etc to the dominion of darkness. Even my own head is shouting, well that is just plain outrageously radical. Do note that these verses say, that we become a slave to anything we submit to. It is far easier to snuff out that little match than to put out the fire once that one little match lights a huge portion of our lives on fire.

Romans 6 KJV “5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: 6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 7 For he that is dead is freed from sin. 8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: 9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 Neither yield ye your members [body parts] as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. 16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. 18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. 19 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.20 For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. 21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. 22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.”

3rd point: We resist from the position of knowing who we are in Christ, of understanding what our identity is in Him and what our authority is based on this reality.

Again I turn to Galatians though there are likely hundreds of verses one could quote on this topic. Who we are in Christ will be one of our next topics and we will likely devote at least 2 sessions to it as understanding who we are is essential to how we think, act, speak and live. I have intersperced my commentary through Galatians 3 as I think this gives us a solid glimpse of who we are and hopefully enough to motivate us to dig deeper and pray hard for more and more revelation on this essential key to our walk in Christ.

Galatians 3 KJV ” O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?

²This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

³Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

⁴Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain.

⁵He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

Miracles are a fruit of hearing and acting on faith

⁶Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

⁷Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.

Identity, our identity hangs on believing everything Jesus has said that we are. Remember, Abraham knew that his body was impotent to birth a son at his age AND YET by faith, he believed God anyways. He believed God’s Word over the witness of his own body and that of his elderly wife Sarah. Romans 4 gives many details. We will explore the promises made to Abraham (to which we are now heirs) more fully when we explore the topic of our identity in an upcoming session.

⁸And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.

⁹So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.

¹⁰For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.

The enemy capitalizes on our tendency to need to feel like OUR righteousness / our ability to do what is right, our good works etc are the basis for the promises of God being fulfilled. The promises come to us based on who we are /who we believe ourselves to be. Our actions and lives follow our identity. In Galatians 4 we see the inheritance goes to the child of the free woman. Faith is the mother of the true heirs, the Law is the mother of the servant.

We truly are truly a son or a slave based on what we believe and to whom we submit.

Our actions are a mere reflection of our faith and always give away what we really believe and who we are truly submitted to. For most of us, we are double minded. We choose to fight some battles, but are complacent in others. We want to move from a place of being partially submitted to God and partially submitted to the dominion of darkness to fully submitted to God.

¹¹But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.

¹²And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.

¹³Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

Yeshua, the Lord Jesus, has been (past tense) made the curse for us. Our penalty has been paid in full. Paul said that all that he preached was Jesus crucified and His resurrection. To understand out identity, increading our understanding of the fullness of what Jesus accomplished through His torture, death and ressurection is essential to faith. If we don’t know what He did, we cannot have confidence in what He accomplished on our behalf. He set us completely free from the curse of the Law.

¹⁴That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

¹⁵Brethren, I speak after the manner of men; Though it be but a man’s covenant, yet if it be confirmed, no man disannulleth, or addeth thereto.

¹⁶Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

¹⁷And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.

This is a tremendous verse. It spells out that the law was not in place from the beginning but only implemented 430 years after the promise was given to Abraham. It inicates that the Law in no way disannul the promise given to Abraham and plainly that Abraham was not under the Law.

¹⁸For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise.

¹⁹Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.

Why the Law then? Again, here spelled out so clearly, man in his fallen state needed help. With a dead spirit, (due to man’s loss of ability to be in fellowship with God, to tolerate God’s presence and inability to hearken to God’s voice), God spelled out for the people guidelines that they could relate to and understand in their fallen state. God never stopped broadcasting, the radio station never closed but the people lost their ability to tune into His voice and instead found that they were now tuned into the god of this world (Satan) and appetites and lusts of the flesh. Jesus has now made it possible for anyone who believes to be able to learn to hear God’s voice again. This is why my central prayer is “Lord, Heavenly Father, help me to hear what you are saying and give me the desire, power and ability to live for and do what is pleasing to you”. It is a simple prayer that can change everything if prayed with all sincerity. This is a wonderful first step for any believer who wants to truly grow in Christ.

²⁰Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one.

²¹Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.

²²But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

²³But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.

²⁴Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

The Law was never intended to be the solution to the problem of the Fall. It was always a temporary stop gap measure, a governor, a tutor, a guardian to keep people from some measure of sin, and to reveal to them just how utterly impossible righteouness is to man. There was a gap of some 4000 years between when God first conceive Christ in the flesh right at the moment of the fall and His birth, time of ministry on earth and His death and resurrection.

²⁵But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

Once we receive Jesus as Lord, we are no longer subject to the Law as we are now governed internally by the Spirit instead of externally by the Law. The first requires us to study, to try, to make lists, to exercise continuous effort to conform to the outward boundaries set around us. The second is written on our hearts, it is the force within us, our conscience with a megaphone, our conscience (the Holy Spirit really) to do right empowered to the point that we can plainly hear and do what He prompts us to do. Our thinking and desires being healed and restored so that the fruit of His presence flows out of us like a river, without conscious effort or striving. In other words, one leads us into constant works and striving, the other into a place a constant rest in that we are totally confident and totally reliant on the reality that God will faithfully prompt us and lead us as we walk with Him. Once we have tuned into His voice, it is as simple as listening to and doing all that he shows us to do. It is a place of peace, joy and provision…. of knowing that the one who knows best has done all the hard work. Our hands don’t fret all day about what they need to do. They simply wait for the impulse and instructions to come from the head and then they act. It is the head that keeps them safe, it is the head that cares for the hands, and directs them. Christ is the head of the church and we are the body (Colossians 1:18). Such is the simplicity of lives in Christ.

²⁶For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

²⁷For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Is it possible that baptism, annointing with oil etc…. are more like the monuments that we read about in the Old Testament? That are the seal, the moment in time that mark a momentous event in our lives. Sure, I can take a pile of 12 stones and set them up in our backyard and take my kids there often and tell them all about when the Israelites crossed the Jordan river on dry ground. But because those stones were not put there by the 12 tribes, because they did not come from the dry river bed that the walked over as God supernaturally held back the waters etc.. that monument isn’t really that meaningful to my children. Baptism is the action that follows a soul that cries out to the LORD, “YES!!!! I choose to die to myself, to my life, to my agendas, to sin, to sickness, to the Fall, to cultures and fallen world that surrounds me, to everything other than you taking pre-eminence in my life. I agree with You that following others gods, including self is meaningless and that You are the one TRUE LORD and that I am choosing with all my will to submit to You as LORD of all my life.” The action of being dunked in water is one that we have all experienced many times as babies and infants and children .

There is of course a world of difference between a bath and baptism. The changes do not occur only because of the physical action of being immersed. A human marriage in some ways echoes Baptism… A marriage is consumated by a couple post sharing their vows and committing their lives to one another. First we say I do and commit our lives with vows to be His and His alone, and then, after the vows (some would argue this order can be reversed), we consumate our union with Him in death and resurrection when we are baptized. It is the two elements combined that make for a God honouring union. We can never put on Christ, if we have not first taken off self. In marriage we understand that in saying yes to one we are forsaking all others, how much more so should it ought to be when we enter into union with our LORD. In ancient times, a seal was used to indicate that what was inside the sealed document was legitimate and carrying the weight of the authority of the ones whose seal bore it. Even in home canning a seal is used to keep what is inside a jar from being contaminated and keeping the contents fresh, palatable and safe to eat. Those who can take great cares to make sure that the contents are stelirized and prepared first. A good seal will do absolutely nothing to prevent ill prepared food from spoiling in that jar. Is it possible that we have shifted the importance to the seal itself and have in some ways, forgotten that what is behind the seal, the preparation and the experience that proceeds the act of annointing etc is the actually the weightier matter? Is annointing essential.. Absolutely. Is baptism a necessary step to entering fully into a union with Christ? Scripture records that only those baptized into Christ have put Him on, so YES, 100%. This is a newer question that has just recently stirred up in my own heart.

^“28There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

²⁹And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians+3&version=KJV

Once we are Christ’s alone, once we have died to self, to the world, to sin etc. Our identity has changed. When I was married, my old life in many ways ended. I instantly gained a new name, a new family, a new home etc. I bound myself to the city in which my husband is bound, I inherited all that he had and became part of the community in which he dwelt. There are so many parallels here but still these fall short of the the radical shift that takes place when we become born again. Scripture records that we are “new creations” and that we have put on Christ as our new identity. It is this new creation, this one clothed in Christ, that is truly heir and truly free.

Romans 6:4 KJV “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”

2 Corinthians 5:16-18 KJV “¹⁶Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. ¹⁷Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. ¹⁸And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;”

Galatians 5 KJV”“1Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. ²Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.”

Scripture calls us “to submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee”. For us to submit to God as Lord, we first and above all things have to know Him, know His will for our lives, we have to earnestly with all diligence study the instructions He has spelled out for us in His Word, we have to eat the food He has lovingly prepared for us daily to grow in strength and wisdom, we have to willingly submit to His chastisement and correction and count these a blessing when they come, we need to find a community of others who are also committed to Him and seeking His Kingdom and face above all other things, and do all that we can to live at peace with and be a blessing to the precious brothers and sisters who surround us.

^“24And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. ²⁵If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”

4th point. Recognizing the limitations of our enemy and enforcing the Kingdom

I am going to tackle this one in a separate post. This will also be a future topic to be covered in another session.

From the verses above… Galatians 4. We are no longer subject to the begarly elements of this world so why are we submitting to them if we don’t have to?

Colossians 1:12-13 King James Version (KJV)
“12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:”

Healing and Discipleship

Growing up into the full measure of Christ (Including preaching the Gospel, healing the sick and setting the captives free) & Embracing our New Identity in Him

Month: October 2019

Topic 3: Our Thoughts and Our Words

Easy doable first step for anyone wanting to line up with God’s Word on this topic. Pray this Psalm every morning and night and ask Him sincerely to renew your thinking and words.

1.__Our Spoken Words are Powerful and can be used for good or evil

Redeeming the Gates

Exodus 23:29-30 King James Version (KJV)

How Modern Medicine and God’s Promises Can Work Together

Things to Be On Guard Against

1. Sin

2. The appetites of the flesh

3. The Cares and Pre-Occupations with the world (mentioned in the parable)

4. Satan / Demonic interference

5.Bad Company/Scoffers/Legalism/Hypocricy

6.Traditions of man that displace the Word of

7.Grumbling and Complaining (block us from the Kingdom)

8.Relying on our own understanding / our rational/academic mind

9. Persecution –

10. Hardness of Heart –

11. Envy and Jealousy / Comparison

12. Fear of the Supernatural, the gifts of the Spirit, the Counterfeits and the Power of the Kingdom

A True Foundation: The Doctrine of Christ

Our Second Last Week

Practically Speaking: An Example of Resisting a Physical Symptom Play by Play

James 4:7 King James Version (KJV)”⁷Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

FIRST ABOVE ALL ELSE: SUBMIT TO GOD

2nd Resist the Devil

Third Deny Yourself, CommanSd Your Body to Line Up with Scripture

Finally: Turn and receive ministry and strenghthening from the Lord

Sizing up our Adversary

Give No Place to the Devil

How do we resist temptation/symptoms?

Easy doable first step for anyone wanting to line up with God’s Word on this topic. Pray this Psalm every morning and night and ask Him sincerely to renew your thinking and words.

1.____Our Spoken Words are Powerful and can be used for good or evil__

Exodus 23:29-30 King James Version (KJV)

1. Sin

2. The appetites of the flesh

3. The Cares and Pre-Occupations with the world (mentioned in the parable)

4. Satan / Demonic interference

5.Bad Company/Scoffers/Legalism/Hypocricy

6.Traditions of man that displace the Word of

7.Grumbling and Complaining (block us from the Kingdom)

8.Relying on our own understanding / our rational/academic mind

9. Persecution –

10. Hardness of Heart –

11. Envy and Jealousy / Comparison

12. Fear of the Supernatural, the gifts of the Spirit, the Counterfeits and the Power of the Kingdom

James 4:7 King James Version (KJV)”7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

FIRST ABOVE ALL ELSE: SUBMIT TO GOD

2nd Resist the Devil

Third Deny Yourself, CommanSd Your Body to Line Up with Scripture

Finally: Turn and receive ministry and strenghthening from the Lord

Give No Place to the Devil

1.__Our Spoken Words are Powerful and can be used for good or evil

James 4:7 King James Version (KJV)”⁷Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”