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Created: 08 July 2010

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Hearing God's Voice

 

 

We have been studying all about faith, how God uses it, what it is, and what ingredients we need to add to it.  Several times in this book I wrote about that faith comes by hearing God speak, or in other words, faith is the by-product of our intimacy with God.  "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word [rhema or voice] of God" (Romans 10:17).

Hearing God during our times of suffering has been invaluable to me.

In my experience the most important time for me to hear God's voice is when it does not seem like God is working in my life, when the promises of God seem to be for others and not for me, or when circumstances continue to worsen.  There are seasons of God's dealings that we will not completely understand.  His ways are higher than ours.  Although He has usually revealed to me why He had to take a certain path, He has seldom revealed that to me until after the suffering was over.

It is during those long suffering periods that God's voice is precious!

"If any of you lacks wisdom [hearing God's voice], let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him" (James 1:5).  That is a promise that I stand upon when I just can't understand why certain things just take so long to change.  While I understand that we cannot demand that God speak to us, there have been times when I brought this Scripture before Him, and asked in faith.  I can remember times when within just a few hours He spoke.

Even in those times we have to ask in faith, in trusting in His Word.

"But let him ask in faith [for wisdom], with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind" (James 1:6).

In all Biblical dispensations, hearing God's voice has been a major issue.

Many of the patriarchs heard God's voice.  One of the most important of these was Abraham.

"So the days of Terah were two hundred and five years, and Terah died in Haran. Now the LORD had said to Abram: 'Get out of your country, From your family And from your father's house, To a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed'" (Genesis 11:32-12:3).

During the dispensation of the Law, hearing God's voice was emphasized.

"Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the LORD your God will set you high above all nations of the earth.  And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the LORD your God" (Deuteronomy 28:1, 2).

During Jesus' time on earth He emphasized hearing His voice.

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me" (John 10:27).

After the resurrection hearing His voice is much more common.

That is because the Holy Spirit has been poured out on mankind and it is He who caused us to hear God's voice.

"Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band" (Revelation 1:12, 13).

"Now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, 'Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent'" (Acts 18:9).

"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God" (Romans 8:14). The Strong's Concordance defines the Greek word sons: huios, which means a son who is maturing into the likeness of his father, as opposed to a son who was simply begotten.

 

God's voice heals.

In my experience through the Bondage Breakers ministry, the only way addicts of any kind can be healed is by hearing God's voice.  This is emphasized in most addiction ministries.  If we stop and think about it, we all are in need of the same kind of healing.  All of us are somewhat addicted to many ungodly things and habits, including addiction to the works of our flesh.  We can even become addicted to comfort and pleasure.  Many find themselves seeking God for an easier life.

Jesus made it clear.  He said if you want salvation, deny yourself, die, then follow Me.

If we don't practice God's presence and learn to continually hear His voice, faith will not come.  If faith does not come, then we cannot inherit His promises, we will not have everything we need for life and godliness, and we will not see change in our lives.  God cannot use us to the extent He would like to unless we can hear His voice.

 

Peter's last words before he died.

In a previous chapter about Peter's ingredients, he warns his readers to make sure to always be intimate with God in order to hear His voice, in order to obtain His promises which will bring everything needed for life and godliness.  This must have been of extreme importance to Peter since these were among his final words.  In 2 Peter chapters 1 and 2, he warns that there are only two paths.  First was the Word of God rising in your hearts like the daystar rises to bring morning light.  The other path was to be influenced by false teachers bringing selfishness and even worse things.

Peter's final words were strong.

"For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth.  Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me.  Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease" (2 Peter 1:12-15).

 

Hearing God's voice brings knowing not conventional learning.

When Peter James and John were taken up by Jesus' transfiguration in Matthew chapter 17 they just knew Elijah and Moses without ever seeing them before.  They had no pictures of them, they just knew.  When the Holy Spirit takes you into the Kingdom of God, God's presence, and you hear His voice, knowing just comes.  Often it is a knowing of more of Jesus.  Sometimes it is a knowing of who you are in Christ and of His love.  Other times it is a knowing of yourself and how undone and sinful you are.  Then He gives you the opportunity to appropriate forgivingness and grace and then He replaces you.  Your flesh burns off.  Supernatural things are accomplished for your life and for the furthering of the Kingdom of God.

Passionately pursue knowing God in His presence!  The rewards are eternal not just for this temporal world.

 

The Flowing River [7]

 

Quote from Watchman Nee from his book A Table in the Wilderness, June 20. (6)

"There will I meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony (Exodus 25:22).

What is the basis of our communion with God? It is His glory. At the mercy seat with its shadowing cherubim we have fellowship with-God, and they are "cherubim of glory." It is in the place where God's glory is manifested, with its implied judgment upon man, that we find mercy there and there alone. Cannot God, being God, show mercy where he will? No, he can only show mercy where his moral glory is also maintained. He does not divorce the mercy seat from the cherubim.

It is the shed blood that makes communion possible for sinful man. Because of it God can show mercy without violating his glory; he can commune with man without denying himself. Thus the blood of Christ is essential to fellowship, absolutely essential. Nevertheless it is not the basis of fellowship. When I commune with blood at his mercy seat it is not on the precious blood I gaze, but on the glory. The veil is taken away, and with unveiled face we all behold the glory of God."

 

As a child of God, you are entitled to experience an ever-deepening relationship with the Lord. This includes enjoying fellowship in His presence, but it is much more.  Matthew chapter 6 emphasizes reward in prayer as opposed to answered prayer.  The reward is God Himself. Other results of prayer are simply by-products.  If you are sincere about deepening your relationship with Jesus you may, but there may be a price to pay. God reveals Himself to those people who submit to and obey Him (John 14:21). God also reveals Himself to those who seek him diligently and with pure motives.  Often we must remove ourselves from the familiar, and find time to set aside just for Him.  God seems to honor those who hunger and thirst for true righteousness and holiness. If you do not hunger for these, at least ask God to give you that hunger.

We know that God's presence never leaves us, but I am talking about something totally different. I am talking about entering into His glory, His awesome and very private glory.  This is different from corporate worship. This is just you and God in His Holy of Holies!  This kind of encounter does not necessarily include a manifestation in your physical flesh.  Although it may include that, it may simply be a deep inner and quiet connection. You experience His glory to such a degree that your life is eternally transformed.  I am talking about a deeper baptism in the Holy Spirit, beyond the gifts. I am talking about His holiness invading you and burning off your Adamic nature. As you read on, know that when I use the word "presence" I am talking about this extra dimensional realm.

When a believer knows with faith that Jesus wants to fellowship with him, he can experience that fellowship provided he submits to God's conditions. His conditions are simply to submit to Jesus as Lord, and to quickly obey His Word.  "For all those things My hand has made, And all those things exist, Says the LORD. But on this one will I look (to pay attention to): On him who is poor (afflicted, humble, needy and weak) and of a contrite spirit, And who trembles at My word" (Isaiah 66:2). One major attribute of humility is the wiliness to repent and turn from our old ways, which are unlike God's character.

Those conditions may seem like "old stuff" for many Christians, but there is more to these than may first meet the eye. So many Christians are in "prisons" that are not necessary.  They have compromised being real and honest with themselves and with God.  At some point in time they knew that they had compromised, but now they do not even realize that they are in "prison."  Often the enemy maintains his prison doors with tactics that are very religious.

Many do not want to face pain, and refuse any type of confrontations. Therefore they compromise not receiving God's best. Others live by rules, legalism, or performance in some sort of pretended holiness.  They feel that they are pleasing a harsh God. Still others live by "false grace" feeling that God understands that they are not perfect, therefore why even try to live by faith.  They pray when they are in a hard place, but none of these people are enjoying the person of Jesus, the very presence and fellowship of the Creator! They may enter the Kingdom of God when they die, but they are living in Hell while they are on Earth.

The Flowing River will build your faith, and will invite God to fulfill His desire to reveal Himself to you. It will also give you some things that you need to do in order to react to His invitation.  After I had known the Lord for less than one month I went to a convention and the evangelist made the statement, "The Lord is my best friend.  He is closer to me than my wife."  When I heard that I became hungry for the same thing, and have pursued it ever since.

Bible studies, sermons, books, discipleship lessons are all good, but if you do not experience the presence of the Lord you are missing the nugget of the Christian life.  When you know that Jesus is in the room with you, everything changes. Your joy comes, afflictions seem to diminish, faith rises, and His grace becomes bigger than everything in life that you need to face.

When I discovered this Scriptural path for entering His presence called The Flowing River, my friendship and intimacy with Jesus expanded greatly. I discovered this during times when I could not sense His presence, and when things in life were not going very well with me. I discovered that I could go for a 30-minute walk and in my mind go through the Flowing River pathway, and I would find myself at peace and in contact with the Lord.  The goal is to eventually dwell in this place as a lifestyle.  This is also a "what to do path" to cooperate with God for getting your practical needs supplied.

 

People are really hurting.

Some cannot pay their bills, others have received a bad doctor's report, some have children who have gone astray, and perhaps others have families that are falling apart.  We need to be able to know how to cooperate with God through the blood covenant lifestyle so that we can make it in this life, between now and the time we leave this body and go to Heaven.

Besides enjoying God's presence, there is a very practical "what to do" path in the Flowing River.

Do we really need to follow a path?

This idea of following a pathway to enter the presence of God is in no way meant to reduce your relationship with God to a formula, or to infer that you must enter into His presence in the way I am going to describe.  I do believe that the Flowing River contains relationship skills that will either enhance your relationship with Jesus or perhaps even allow you to make contact for the very first time.

When my children were very young it was always up to me to initiate relationship times.  However, as they grew older they began to have more choices and the relationship and fellowship that we could enjoy depended more and more on how they related to me.

The children that would come to me just for friendship, for advice, for appreciation and thanksgiving would always enter into a deeper relationship with me than if they simply came to me for an allowance or to pay a bill. I always had grace, and how they acted never varied my love for them, but I had deeper fellowship with them when they exercised their free wills and their relationship skills.  Even if at times they would act in an adverse way, my unconditional love would kick in (most of the time).  My mercy and grace is what was supposed to draw them to me, but they needed to react and make a choice.

In a sermon recently preached at Southeastern University, Dr. Mark Rutland helped me to put some of this into proper perspective.  He said the following:

"We are not trying to access the supernatural, but the supernatural, the Living God, Jesus Himself, is trying to access us. Witchcraft, sorcery, and divination attempts to contact the supernatural."

Response and obedience to God's beckoning is what gives us contact with Him in the supernatural. Again, it is God's initiative that even gives us the desire to obey Him that we might be in contact with His living presence. God is pounding at your door saying, "Please obey Me." Contact with Him often depends upon your obedience.

Obedience is a lifestyle not an event.  There is a progressive ladder of obedience.  As you live longer, the issues for obedience grow and build upon one another.  The price continually gets higher. We are called to take up our cross, and we do that. However next time the cross carries a higher price. We never have to take up that old one again, but the new one requires more sacrifice and more obedience because the prize becomes more valuable.

Be prepared! I have seen many people experience Jesus after going through the Flowing River just one time. Make this a habit and your life will change eternally.

 

God's purpose is to reach a dying world and at the same time bless us.  How?

We were blessed in order to become a blessing to a lost and dying world. God told our forefather Abraham, "I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed" (Genesis 12:3).

The only way we can bless others is to allow Jesus in us to do it through us. The only way He can do it through us is for His character to prevail over our old Adamic nature.  This pathway I am going to describe is an opportunity for you to allow God to work His holiness and true righteousness into your life.  As you begin to take up your cross and allow the loving God to gently chasten you, you will become more and more like Jesus, a partaker of His character. He will free you from your inner prisons, He will gently bring you to repentance about issues that are hurting you, and your life will never be the same.  However, this path is not without pain.  If you are lazy, if you will not confront yourself and others who are harming you, you will not enter into this life of fellowship with the Lord.  As we become cleansed and become more like Jesus, we enjoy more of His presence, and our lives simply bless others.

 

Without holiness no man shall see God!

I thank God that righteousness and holiness are legally imputed to us as gifts.  But as you deepen your relationship you begin to experience a true and actual transformation of your character into righteousness and holiness. I am not talking about some put on holiness.  That kind of religious play-acting produces bitter and angry people, whereas true holiness produces joy, love, and all the fruit of the Spirit.  "…and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness" (Ephesians 4:24).

Highway 35. The Highway of Holiness in Isaiah chapter 35.

"A highway shall be there, and a road, And it shall be called the Highway of Holiness.  The unclean shall not pass over it, But it shall be for others.  Whoever walks the road, although a fool, Shall not go astray" (Isaiah 35:8).  Isaiah chapter 33 speaks of the Israelites experiencing judgment due to their sinful lifestyle. Isaiah 34 speaks of God bringing them through the overcoming process and Isaiah chapter 35 shows the result, which is holiness.  The benefits are listed in chapter 35. They include joy, singing, the desert and wastelands becoming springs of waters, deserts blooming with roses, abundant rejoicing, seeing the glory of the Lord.  It describes blind eyes being opened, feebleness being healed, fear turning into faith, the thirsty given springs of water, and living above your spiritual enemies. It would do you well to study this chapter in this context.

 

Ezekiel 47:1-12 shows a picture of a flowing river.

The picture God showed to Ezekiel was of the Temple of God, its ordinances and design, and a river flowing from it. God spoke to Ezekiel and showed him that this was a river of life flowing from God down to the Dead Sea into the putrid waters.  This river would heal the waters and make them alive.  The Scripture in chapter 47 of Ezekiel says that this river started out as a small stream as it came out from under the Temple, but then it progressively became deeper and deeper until it eventually emptied into the Dead Sea.  As it did, the Sea became alive with life.  The sea in the Bible normally stands for the sea of lost humanity. God was showing Ezekiel that the only way that dead people could live would be to be touched by God through something called a river that was to flow from His very presence. John 7:38 says, "He who believes on Me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.'"

 

The River flows in to cleanse you – The River flows out to save a dead world

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Write it down Ezekiel."

God told Ezekiel in chapter 43:10-11 to write down this picture of the Temple and its ordinances so that the people could see it and so that they could repent and thus be a blessing to others.  That is what the Flowing River lesson is all about.

Where is the temple today?  1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says, "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit in you, whom you have of God?  And you are not your own, for you are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's."

 

We cannot become blessed nor be a blessing without the real presence of God.

We need the presence of God to set us free and cleanse us in order to do any kind of ministry, even effective prayer.  Here is the pattern for experiencing the fullness of the Lord for your life, for your church and for the world.  We need the presence of God to set us free and cleanse us in order to do any kind of ministry, even effective prayer.

Here is the pattern for experiencing the fullness of the Lord for your life.

"And they were continuing steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine, and in fellowship and in the breaking of the loaves, and in prayers.  And fear came on every soul. And many wonders and miracles took place through the apostles" (Acts 2:42-43).

Notice the three things the apostles did daily that resulted in many wonders and miracles:

1.  The apostles' doctrine. This is the daily study of the Word of God.

2.  Prayers. This most likely included more than one kind of prayer.  The early church often confessed who they were in Christ, and confessed the Word.

3.  Fellowship and breaking of bread. This was daily communion, or the taking of the cup and the bread in remembrance of the blood covenant.

The early church took communion at least weekly, if not daily.  It was their way to enter into the presence of God and experience a deep knowing of Him in a personal way.  It was not a religious practice, it was a time of enjoying Him in a real way.

The purpose of communion was to bring the partakers into God's presence.  The story in Luke 24:30,31 is an example.  In it they found healing and all their needs supplied.  Luke 24:30-31 says,  “Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.  Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight.”

The presence of God, through His flesh and blood covenant, meets all our needs.  (Taken from Dick Reuben's video series, "A Pattern for Revival Fire: Covenant Meal - The Lord's Table.")

The Flowing River is a daily exercise that does the same thing (not to replace communion, but in addition to it).  The Flowing River walks one through the blood covenant and brings the person through the veil, which is His flesh, into the Holy of Holies right into His presence!  We need His presence daily, not just once in a while!

In John 6:51 Jesus says that He is the Living Bread that came down from Heaven.  Hebrews 10:19-20 talks about a new and living way of coming into the Holy of Holies through the veil that is the flesh of Jesus.

What all of this is saying is that the way into the presence of God is through the recognition of the blood covenant; His blood and flesh.  You will see that going through the Flowing River recognizes the blood covenant much in the same way as does communion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We need to know that there are enemies that want to stop God from being real to us.

 

 

 

 

Our enemies come at us in three main ways:

Our will -

Our mind -

Our emotions-

are attacked by Our Flesh, the World and Satan.

 

Question:

How do we overcome these enemies to get into God's presence for FELLOWSHIP?

Answer:

God has already provided for all victory over all enemies! The way into His presence was provided at the Cross when the veil was torn from top to bottom - Mark 15:38.  Now it is our job to cooperate.  We must take up our cross - that will give us the victory!

 

Luke 9:23-25 says, "And he said to them all, 'If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.  For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?'"

The word for life in Luke 9 means "soul" or the will, mind and emotions.  The word deny means to say no to.

The key to abundant life and receiving all that Jesus has for us, including His presence, is to complete the blood covenant by taking up our cross.

Many of us know the magnificent, all inclusive, all powerful work done by Jesus on the Cross of Calvary; how He shed his blood for our sin, and rose from the dead to give us life.  We cannot add to that.  However, in order to take advantage of that work, we must also die.  We must take up our cross, deny ourselves and follow Him.  We must lose our life.

Our relationship and fellowship with God are based upon a blood covenant.  To the Western mindset that can be a foreign thing.  The closest comparison we have is marriage, and so many people have an understanding of this relationship that is contrary to the Bible.  Ask yourself this: Would you negotiate with your mate-to-be on how many other intimate relationships you are allowed after your marriage?

 

TWO deaths, Jesus' and yours activate the blood covenant!

 

What is so important about a blood covenant?

 

 

1 Peter 1:18-19 says, "For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect."

Leviticus 17:11 says, "For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one's life."

 

The spiritual life can be exchanged by the law of substitution.  A blood covenant changes your family inheritance.

 

 

Family inheritance. This basically means that people may be born into a certain family, and from that family lineage they will receive blessings and curses as their inheritance. However blessings and curses can be changed.  Tribes in Africa, in American Indian culture and other Asian type societies have always looked for ways to swap or trade blessings and curses with other people.

Since ancient times, people have drank blood that was offered to their god, so that they could be like God.

Before the Foundation of the World, God prearranged to have Jesus crucified according to the eternal Spirit, which means that the substitution principle was in effect before any man was created (Revelation 13:8).

In order for a blood covenant to truly be effective, there must be blood shed by two parties, or there must be two deaths and two crosses.  We must die to our self and commit all we are and all we have to Jesus.  The good thing is that Jesus also commits all He has and all He is to us!

 

 

 

When we connect the Cross of Jesus to our cross we are plugged into God, and Power happens!

There are always two crosses that must connect to make a blood covenant.

The Tabernacle is a powerful symbol of the two crosses to use as a prayer guide.  It will help us take up our cross and walk us into the very presence of God for FELLOWSHIP!

 

Quote from God's Plan and the Overcomers (6) - Watchman Nee.

The Old Testament tells us how the chosen people of God lived on earth.  At first, the tabernacle served as the center of the 12 tribes; later it was the temple that became their center.  The center of the temple was the ark.  The tabernacle, the temple and the ark are all types of Christ.  As long as the children of Israel maintained their proper relationship with the tabernacle or the temple they were victorious, and no nation could overcome them.  Even though their enemies learned how to fight while they themselves were not familiar with fighting, the children of Israel overcame all their enemies nonetheless.  But the moment they had problems with the tabernacle or the temple, they were taken into captivity.  Nothing else, whether they had powerful kings or great wisdom in themselves mattered at all; the only concern, which mattered, was whether or not they had offended the ark of the tabernacle or temple.  If the Lord had the preeminence, then theirs was the victory.  So too with us today.  In minding the victory of Christ, we also have the victory.

 

As you journey into fellowship with God, picture taking a walk through the Tabernacle as the priests of the Old Testament did.

 

The Tabernacle

God's reason for the Tabernacle was to apply blood in order to restore the Glory of intimate fellowship.

 

First:  His Cross

Under the Old Covenant, Israel held an annual day of atonement, called Yom Kippur.  The sins of Israel were to be dealt with on this one day of the year when the high priest prepared to go through the Tabernacle on behalf of Israel for their sins.

At the Bronze Altar, in the outer court, there were two young goats called calves.  One was given a scarlet cloth around its neck indicating it would be slain for blood. The other was tied up outside the gate indicating it was to be the scapegoat.  The first goat was slain at the altar and the priest took its blood into the Holy of Holies, where he presented it with incense off the altar of incense (the place of praise).  As the incense burned, it filled the Holy of Holies with smoke, which represented (and actually released) the presence of God.  The priest would sprinkle the blood on the mercy seat once and in front of it seven times.  Outside, every person in the camp lay prostrate through all of this.  No one saw any of it happening, yet it meant that his or her sins would be forgiven for the entire year.

Next, as the priest returned and changed his clothes, he laid his hands on the head of the other goat, the scapegoat, symbolizing the transfer of all of the sins to the head of the animal.  There was to be a very rugged man chosen to take the scapegoat into the desert wilderness and lead it to a place where it could not return.  He would take it to an inescapable place.  They would go to a valley surrounded by ledges and cliffs and the goat was lowered down so it could never escape (Leviticus 16:21-22).

Now as the priest laid hands on the scapegoat, beginning the second part of the ceremony, he confessed the sins of the entire Israel.  He would say, "Lord, place my sins and the sins of the people on the head of this goat.  Now go and depart."  As they led the goat out of the camp, all of the people stood and rejoiced.  They could all see and understand, even the children.  The scapegoat is symbolic of Jesus being our scapegoat, being lowered into Hell for us with our sins on His head.  He took our sin and removed it forever, never again to be found or to return.  Psalm 103:12 says, "as far as the east is from the west, so has He removed our sin from us."  Micah 7:19 says, "that thou will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea."

Hebrews 9:12-14 says, "Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.  For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?"

 

 

Second:  Our Cross

 

When Jesus said that we must deny ourselves, lose our life for His sake, etc., He was using a word that refers to our soul.  So we must deny, or say no to, our soul.

Our soul is three parts: will, mind (intellect) and emotions.  The Holy Place represents that part of our being, the soul.  It has three pieces of furniture that represent our Will, Mind and Emotions (see above picture).  Saying no to these and yes to what God has is the taking up of our cross.

 

Our will -

Our mind -

Our emotions-

are attacked by Our Flesh, the World and Satan.

Now we will take a journey to each of these items in our prayer time and journey right past our enemies into the very presence of God!

What is taking up your cross all about?

We teach here in this Flowing River chapter that we need to "take up our cross" in order to realize the Glory of God, His presence in our own personal lives.

In the Garden of Eden Eve thought that she could have both the Glory of God and independence.  She did not believe that taking the path to independence, The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, would lead to such a tragic end.  In doing so she would not only lose the Glory of God in her life, but she would enter a realm that she had never agreed to specifically.  That realm is what the Bible calls the world system, the Whore of Babylon, the evil woman as described in Proverbs 7.

God told her if she ate of her own independence that she would die, or literally be separated from God.  She did not realize what that really meant.

She had not experienced the dead end of the world's way.  She thought God had lied, and that gave her insecurity.

"But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:3).

Eve had the total Glory of God and yet was tempted away.  That shows that the temptation, the lie, is very strong for you and for me.  Often it takes our experiencing the failure of the World's way in order to value Jesus just for Who He is, and do whatever is needed to prepare for His Glory in our lives.

We need to understand that our independence by default takes us to the Whore, the world.  There is no other choice except for God.  We are deceived because we don't know that independence takes us right into the arms of the Harlot.

The Harlot is spoken about in Proverbs 7.  It shows how the World, the Harlot, entices people.  Then compare that to Proverbs 8 which talks about Wisdom, which is Jesus Himself and how He lures people.

When I saw Jesus in 1979 I already knew that there was nothing in the way of the World that was of any value.  I saw that nothing in the World's system works.  I was in bondage to it and controlled by it.

Taking up our cross really means agreeing to God's ways especially if they are painful and not comfortable at the time, but knowing that it will lead to our benefit, our abundant life and to God's eternal purpose for us and His Kingdom.

Can we really take up our cross without help? We can only take up our cross to a point, but not all the way.  We don't have enough hands to crucify all of ourselves; the last nail must be inserted by the world.  We must experience some sort of pain and breaking to really get the job done.  God does not do this, the world does.  We can offer to God those things that we control, those things that we are aware of.  However, God sees with vision we do not have.  He knows those things in your soul that are keeping you from complete healing and connection with Him.  The more of you that can die, the more of Him can live in you.  His plan is not to clean up your old life, but to have you experience the crucifixion with Him.

 

"The Flowing River"

(Daily Prayer Guide)

 

To Journey Into The Presence of God

Instructions:

1.  Read the first 7 pages first, then again at least once a month.  Then start here on this page on a daily basis, taking at least twenty minutes to make contact with God.

2.  When you start through the tabernacle your back is to be toward the world and your face toward Jesus.  This is important, for the Holy Spirit will not honor you with His presence if you are facing in the wrong direction (spiritual direction,  Acts 26:18).

3.  Go to each "stop" and deal with that subject in prayer with the Lord.  Look up some of the Scriptures.  Be alert for areas of repentance, for this is one of our main contributions toward this fellowship time with God.

4.  It is preferred that you go through all these stops at one time.  You can do it in twenty minutes.  However, if you do not have time in one sitting to go through this entire process, do not give up.  Instead, begin the process in the morning, and go through at least one step.  Then, do the next one at lunch.  If you need to, go ahead and continue the next day.  Eventually, live a life of this process and it will be a natural process of always staying in His presence.

 

The Outer Court

First Stop:  The Bronze Altar - The Cross of Jesus.

 

Forgiveness.

 

The blood covenant swaps everything that we have that is bad for everything that God has that is good.  However, we cannot have forgiveness of sins without making Jesus Lord (Romans 10:9-10).

Start out today by being honest with Jesus.  1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

A big part of taking up your cross is being GUT LEVEL HONEST with God.  You need to be totally transparent and tell Him everything.  Take time to pour out your heart to him as you would your best friend! 1 John 1:7 says, "But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin."  Jesus said in John 3:19 that sin had no power as long as people came out into the light with the truth, and did not attempt to hide in darkness.  Jesus did not die for our excuses; He died for our sin!

 

Here are some relationship disciplines that we feel are extremely important if you are going to pursue an authentic relationship with the Lord Jesus.

Relationship Disciplines and Skills.

God is inviting you to discipline your life to relate to Him and get to know Him.  This is how the blood covenant blessings flow into your life:

1.  Make a firm decision to pursue the relationship. Offer yourself completely to God (Romans 12:1-2).  This is our blood covenant response to a mighty blood covenant offered to us by God.

2.  Take time to listen. You must take in His Word. Words are blood covenant containers.  You must always be in a disciplined Bible study of some kind.  Ask the Holy Spirit to show you.

3.  Take time to talk.  Speak your words. Some people write down your thoughts and feelings in a journal, which can be very valuable. If you have never taken time to be honest with God, you should write down your thoughts, emotions and feelings daily in a journal.  You will see God speak back to you!  Be gut level honest.  Honesty with your blood covenant partner Jesus will cause your sin to go on Him.  You cannot and will not overcome any bondage without this gut level honesty.

4.  Take time to talk. Speak His Words.  Read Psalms and Proverbs by the day. One discipline is to read aloud five Psalms every morning.  Use the system of the calendar. As an example, on the 24^th of the month read Psalms 24, 54, 84, 114 and 144.  Also read Proverb 24.  In this system the student will read all Psalms and Proverbs every month.  Using this system renews the mind, speaks the Word to Satan, and allows the suffering believer to relate his/her emotions to the Psalmist's.  Provisions can be made for months with 31 days, and for Psalm 119.  God may lead you to other Scriptures to read out loud as you progress, but this is a good start, and can be a continued blessing for the rest of your life.

5.  Obey God.  Ask God to give you something simple, something small every day that you may obey.  It may be just encouraging another.  It may be not driving down the same street that fed your addiction.  It may be confessing your sin to Him.

This is a big thing!

John 14:21-23 says that when we obey His Word that He will reveal more and more of Himself to us.  Once you have "seen" Jesus, your relationship with Him will no longer be a discipline, but it will be a passionate pursuit.  The apostle Paul had this passion when he said in Philippians 3:10,  "[For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly], and that I may in that same way come to know the power outflowing from His resurrection [which it exerts over believers], and that I may so share His sufferings as to be continually transformed [in spirit into His likeness even] to His death, [in the hope]."

6. Communion. Take communion on a regular basis.  Many people take it daily.

7.  Stay in fellowship. It is important to be in fellowship with strong Bible believing, Spirit filled believers for refreshing and encouragement.

You need to walk in love, and when you fail, run to God to be cleansed.

"The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus has set us free from the Law of Sin and Death"(Romans 8:2).  If we stay turned toward God and stay honest with Him, He will see us through even in our mistakes and stumbling.

Look at the Flowing River Appendix F and give yourself an honest evaluation.

If there are no known sins then confess Galatians 2:20 and 2 Corinthians 5:21.

 

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More Ingredients From Peter

 

 

 

"Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble [fall]; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 1:1-11).

 

This Scripture in 2nd Peter is very clear about the subject of faith and its very practical application in our everyday lives.

This is a powerful vision!

In the above Scripture, Peter states that God has given us everything we need for life, the visible things, and godliness, the invisible.  He has given us these change gifts in the form of promises, which come by the "knowing" of Him in real time intimacy and fellowship with Him.  He further states that we must add some ingredients to these promises, to our faith.  The promise Peter makes to us if we add these ingredients are wonderful.  He says that we will not be barren or unfruitful in knowing God, our calling and election will be sure, we will never stumble, and our entrance into the Kingdom of God will be abundantly supplied.

Peter makes an interesting statement in verse 10: "Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble [fall]" (2 Peter 1:10).  The word stumble or fall does not really mean "fall."  It means "formerly, or at some time in the past."  I believe Peter was speaking of his own denial of Jesus as in the past.  Here is a man that must have been devastated with failures, and amazed at not only the love and forgiveness of Jesus, but of the power of the Holy Spirit to make him a new man.

To summarize this passage of Scripture:

1.  It says that He gives us power for all things that pertain to life and godliness.

That means to me, the practical everyday things we need to live this life, and our character.  This includes healing from our past wounds, the wounds that keep us in bondages and addictions.  A major part of this healing is discovering, by faith, our real identity in Jesus.  Real faith causes us to know that we really have been crucified with Christ and we really have been raised to a new birth, a new race.  The supernatural power of knowing the truth of who we are will make us free people.

2.  It says that we receive this power by knowing Him, or being intimate with Jesus.

3.  It says that one result of this intimacy is receiving promises that give us His nature, character, and all that we need to escape the corrupt world system and live through the Kingdom of God.

4.  As we have been discussing in previous chapters, promises are seeds that are planted in our hearts that will bear fruit.  When you know a seed has been deposited in your heart, then faith arises in you.  "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1).

 

We need vision.

Vision is like hope.  It is the expectation that we will obtain or receive something.  God is a God of vision.  He has a vision of what something will look like, He speaks, and the Holy Spirit does the work.

In my past life I used to create my own visions and dreams.  Some of them came to pass, but even those, being out of God's will, had disappointing baggage attached.  New Age people create their own vision.  We don't have to do that.  As we are intimate with God, He gives us our vision, the vision that He intends, with His power, to fulfill in our lives.  It will set you free to know that God has promised you His great plan for your life.  Most of the time we don't really know what the vision or dream will really look like when it is fulfilled.  It is always superabundantly beyond what we can think, dream or even pray for.

When God grants you His vision, self-discipline will be something that you find that comes easier.

Let us go back and review what we have learned.

1.  Jesus came to change things for the better.  Isaiah 61 and Luke 4.

2.  His changes come to us in the form of a gift, an inheritance.  They are not something that we earn or work for; we receive them in the wrapping of grace.

3.  His inheritance comes to us by the media of faith.  Faith brings to us His inheritance.

4.  Faith is given to us by grace, it is a free gift.

5.  Faith comes to us by hearing God speak, through His Word and Holy Spirit.

6.  Faith brings to us the seed planted in our heart when we hear the Word of God.

7.  Faith becomes a substance, a spiritually tangible reality.  This is similar to an agricultural seed.  Even though it is not visible to the eye it is real.  Faith is the title deed, the reality of a spiritual truth and promise that cannot be perceived with the physical senses.  It is like a "sixth sense."

8.  Faith, in order to come to its fullness and bear the intended fruit, must be nurtured and developed in each person.

9.  Each person must add several ingredients to his/her faith.  We have been discussing these in various chapters.

So far we have added endurance, long-term perseverance, love, and works.  In this chapter, we will season our faith with several other ingredients.

Diligence – self-discipline.

Peter's Scripture instructs us to add several ingredients.  However he makes it clear that we need to use diligence as we make the additions.

The Microsoft dictionary [i] defines diligence as: Persistent and hard-working effort in doing something, the care or attention expected by the law in doing something, such as fulfilling the terms of a contract.

The Strong's Concordance defines diligence as the Greek word: spoude {spoo-day'}, diligence, haste, business, care, forwardness, earnest care, carefulness, haste, with haste, earnestness in accomplishing, promoting, or striving after anything, to give all diligence, interest one's self most earnestly.

I believe the key to diligence is giving of attention.

If you are passionate about receiving God's inheritance for you, you will give more attention to the needed ingredients than anything else in life.  It will become your passionate priority.

I believe that the term self-discipline can and should be used for diligence.

I am not talking about the self-discipline of "don't do that," but the self-discipline of simply giving priority to the ingredients of faith we have been discussing.  When we do our part with the ingredients, God will give us the power for the "don't do that" issues of life.

Self-discipline for running the race.

"Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize?  Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things.  Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified" (1 Corinthians 9:24-27).

 

The following is extracted and quoted from the book, The Richest Man Who Ever Lived. [6]

Diligence is a something that you are not born with, but is a learnable skill that combines creative persistence, a smart-working effort rightly planned and rightly performed in a timely, efficient, and effective manner to attain a result that is pure and of the highest quality of excellence.

 

The rewards of becoming truly diligent.

You will gain advantage.

"The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, But those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty" (Proverbs 21:5).

You will control the situation, rather than have the situation control you.

"The hand of the diligent will rule, But the lazy man will be put to forced labor" (Proverbs 12:24).

You will experience true fulfillment.

"The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich" (Proverbs 13:4).

You will attain the respect and admiration of those in authority.

"Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before kings; He will not stand before unknown men" (Proverbs 22:29).

Your needs will be satisfied.

"He who tills his land will have plenty of bread, But he who follows frivolity will have poverty enough!" (Proverbs 28:19).

You will experience ever-increasing success.

"Wealth gained by dishonesty will be diminished, But he who gathers by labor will increase" (Proverbs 13:11).

Your efforts will be profitable.

"In all labor there is profit, But idle chatter leads only to poverty" (Proverbs 14:23).

 

The result of not being diligent.

Your efforts will come to nothing.

"In all labor there is profit, But idle chatter leads only to poverty" (Proverbs 14:23).

Overcoming laziness, the opposite of diligence.

There are four root causes of laziness according to what Solomon wrote in the Proverbs.  Self-centeredness, conceit (arrogance), ignorance and irresponsibility.  Often he combines these last two into a category he calls foolishness.

The root causes of laziness.

Self-centeredness.

"Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, But the LORD weighs the hearts" (Proverbs 21:2).

Conceit (arrogance).

"The lazy man is wiser in his own eyes Than seven men who can answer sensibly" (Proverbs 26:16).

Ignorance and irresponsibility (foolishness).

"I went by the field of the lazy man, And by the vineyard of the man devoid of understanding; And there it was, all overgrown with thorns; Its surface was covered with nettles; Its stone wall was broken down" (Proverbs 24:30, 31).

 

Solomon's steps to bring diligence into your life.

1.  Wake up to reality.

"How long will you slumber, O sluggard? When will you rise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to sleep-- So shall your poverty come on you like a prowler, And your need like an armed man" (Proverbs 6:9-11).  In other words, stop procrastinating.

2.  Define your visions.

"Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he" (Proverbs 29:18, KJV).

"Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; But happy is he who keeps the law" (Proverbs 29:18).

3.  Effectively partner.

"Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established" (Proverbs 15:22, KJV).

4.  Pursue wisdom.

"How much better to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver" (Proverbs 16:16).

 

Add to your faith.

Seven ingredients to faith are offered in our anchor Scripture, 2 Peter 1:1-11.  We have covered some of them in previous chapters. I want to briefly cover them here again.

 

Now give your diligence, self-discipline, to these ingredients.

1.  Peter's first ingredient, virtue.

The dictionary defines this word as:  Being morally good or righteous.

The Strong's Concordance defines the Greek word as: arete arete {ar-et'-ay}, a virtuous course of thought, feeling and action, virtue, moral goodness, any particular moral excellence, as modesty, purity.

While I understand that we are righteous by faith, having that understanding should lead you to putting off the things of your old nature and putting on Jesus' new nature.  Yes, He does live inside of you, but you can choose to allow Him to live His life through you or to live as if He never moved in.

"Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry" (Colossians 3:5).

"Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection" (Colossians 3:12-14).

 

2.  Peter's second ingredient, knowledge.

The dictionary defines this word as: A general awareness of possession of information, facts, ideas, truths or principles.  Familiarity of understanding gained through experience or study.

The Strong's Concordance defines the Greek word as: gnosis, knowledge signifies in general intelligence, understanding, the general knowledge of Christian religion the deeper more perfect and enlarged knowledge of this religion, such as belongs to the more advanced, esp. of things lawful and unlawful for Christians, moral wisdom, such as is seen in right living.

We need to continually study the Word to gain knowledge.  A daily study and meditation into the Proverbs and Psalms is valuable for wisdom and knowledge.  However, notice that one of the definitions of knowledge is "gained through experience..."  Often we obtain God's discipline through painful experiences.  He is not beating on us, but He allows us to experience the pain so that we really learn the lesson.  When I have been through some painful lessons, it has caused me to make sure I do not cause others to experience similar pain through my actions.  Experiencing pain causes me to be extremely sensitive to others.  Experience is a great teacher.

On the positive side, we gain knowledge through experience by following people who are successful in those areas in which we are interested.  Much of my education in life has been through mentoring in business and spiritual matters.

3.  Peter's third ingredient, self-control.

The dictionary defines this word as: The ability to control your own behavior, especially in terms of reactions and impulses.

The Strong's Concordance defines the Greek word as: egkrateia, self-control (the virtue of one who masters his desires and passions, esp. his sensual appetites), temperance.

It is important to note that self-control is part of the fruit of the Spirit, the fruit of the Holy Spirit that resides in us.  Self-control comes by grace, by allowing Jesus to live His life through us.  When we sin through lack of self-control, it is our opportunity to allow Jesus to cleanse us and watch His self-control to take over.

4. Peter's fourth ingredient, perseverance.

The dictionary defines this word as: steady and continued action or belief, usually over a long period and especially despite difficulties or setbacks.

The Strong's Concordance defines the Greek word as: hupomone, patience, enduring , patient continuance patient waiting, steadfastness, constancy, endurance, in the NT the characteristic of a man who is not swerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even the greatest trials and sufferings

It is important to note that longsuffering is part of the fruit of the Spirit, the fruit of the Holy Spirit which resides in us.  Longsuffering is very similar in meaning to perseverance.  It is also an act of grace to us.  We studied endurance and running the race in previous chapters.  They are key ingredients!

5.  Peter's fifth ingredient, godliness.

The dictionary defines this word as: conforming to the laws and wishes of God; devout; pious.

The Strong's Concordance defines the Greek word as: eusebeia, godliness, holiness, reverence, respect, piety towards God.

My opinion is that it could be defined as "holiness," or "the life of Jesus lived out in a person through the Holy Spirit."  Live in such submission to the Holy Spirit that you are able to detect His slightest touch when He want you to confess your sin.

6. Peter's sixth ingredient, brotherly kindness.

The dictionary defines this word (kindness) as: the practice of being or the capability to be sympathetic and compassionate, an act that shows consideration and caring.

The Strong's Concordance defines the Greek word as: phileo, Philadelphia. love of brothers or sisters, brotherly love, love of the brethren, in the NT the love which Christians cherish for each other as brethren.

This is one of the "love types" we see in Scripture.  It is not to be confused with the God type of love, agape.

A definition from the website http://www.albatrus.org/english /potpourri /sermons /what_is_love.htm

PHILEO Expresses Love of personal affection, or of pleasure, including even the relevant passions when required.  It does not involve intelligence or high purposes.  This concept places Phileo at a level inferior to that of Agape.  It is a feeling that finds attraction in another person and it expects a return.

 

Kindness to others has been an attribute that is often ignored.  Sometimes kindness is simply listening rather than speaking.  It can be showing a sincere interest in another person and their welfare.  Kindness can be demonstrated by not judging others and letting them know that.

7.  Peter's seventh ingredient love, agape.

We devoted an entire chapter to this, however here are some additional comments.

Most English dictionaries do not have an adequate definition for agape.  The online Wikipedia includes this in their definition:

The term agape is rarely used in ancient manuscripts, but was used by the early Christians to refer to the self-sacrificing love of God for humanity, which they were committed to reciprocating and practicing towards God and among one another.

The Strong's Concordance defines the Greek word as: agape agape {ag-ah'-pay}.  It is love that is only originated in God.  God is love; agape.  His unconditional love towards all, even His enemies is motivated by His own character of preferring the well being of others even to His own self-sacrifice and death on their behalf.  I call it "bloody love."

A definition from the website http://www.albatrus.org/english /potpourri /sermons /what_is_love.htm

This is the Love of intelligence,  of reason and comprehension coupled with the corresponding purpose.  Its concept is vastly superior to any other form of Love,  In essence "Agape" is a permanent benevolent attitude toward God and human beings, without any condition, that freely springs out of the Agape God has place in the heart of His own.  It is disinterested love that does not need anything in return. We can only Agape others only if God has firstly filled us up with His Agape. All the other form of love need a reaction, a return to maintain themselves, whilst Agape comes from God and the beneficiaries that are full of it do not need a confirmation from others, being fully satisfied in the Agape of the Lord.

 

Ephesians 2:4-6 (Amplified Bible) says, "But God--so rich is He in His mercy!  Because of and in order to satisfy the great and wonderful and intense love with which He loved us,  Even when we were dead (slain) by [our own] shortcomings and trespasses, He made us alive together in fellowship and in union with Christ; [He gave us the very life of Christ Himself, the same new life with which He quickened Him, for] it is by grace (His favor and mercy which you did not deserve) that you are saved  delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ's salvation).  And He raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together [giving us [b]joint seating with Him] in the heavenly sphere [by virtue of our being] in Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed One)."

 

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

 

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Faith

Parable of the Sower

 

 

The Mystery of the Kingdom of God.

"And He said to them, 'To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that 'Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them'" (Mark 4:11, 12).  Notice that this is the mystery of the Kingdom of God, not one of its mysteries.

The Strong's Concordance defines mystery as the Greek word: musterion {moos-tay'-ree-on}; from a derivative of muo (to shut the mouth); hidden thing, secret, mystery; generally mysteries, religious secrets, confided only to the initiated and not to ordinary mortals.

I believe that mysteries in the Bible are things that are hidden from ordinary understanding but are meant to be revealed to those who passionately dig for them and who meet the conditions to receive revelation knowledge, rhema, from God.

In this book about faith we have been discussing what faith is, what it's intended value is, how we receive it, and many of our responsibilities for adding ingredients to it.  Jesus simplified the faith process in the Parable of the Sower in Mark chapter 4.  He made it simple enough for the uneducated fishermen of His day to understand, but so simple that it confounded the learned and lettered religious people of His time.  Interestingly, it is still hidden from many Christians today.

 

Desperation.

I recall back in the early 1980s when and how God revealed this mystery to me.  It crashed into my soul like light crashing into a dark place.  It was during a time of great need and desperation in my life.  I had always been hungry to hear God speak, but when He spoke this time, it came in with a loud crashing and life-changing event.

Notice in the above Scripture that Jesus stated that He intentionally has this mystery hidden.  I often wondered why He would say, "And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them."  He was referring to Isaiah chapter 6 wherein it is recorded that Isaiah had a new revelation of the Lord.  This occurred when his King Uzziah died.  Uzziah had been a great and powerful king of Israel.  He brought prosperity and safety from enemies.  But when he died, Isaiah's hope turned only to the Lord.  It is out of that desperation that God reveals Himself to people.  In that same chapter, God called Isaiah to go preach an unusual message.

"And He said, 'Go, and tell this people: 'Keep on hearing, but do not understand; Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.  Make the heart of this people dull, And their ears heavy, And shut their eyes; Lest they see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, And return and be healed.'' Then I said, 'Lord, how long?' And He answered: 'Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, The houses are without a man, The land is utterly desolate'" (Isaiah 6:9-11).

When Isaiah asked the Lord how long he should preach this strange message, the answer was, in my paraphrase, "Until they become desperate."

 

The Parable of the Sower.

Mark 4:1-25

1 And again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea.

2 Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:

3 "Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow.

4 "And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it.

5 "Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth.

6 "But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away.

7 "And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.

8 "But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."

9 And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

10 But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable.

11 And He said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables,

12 "so that 'Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them.'"

13 And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?

 

The seed is the Word of God, the ground is the heart.  The Word is intended to and is capable of bringing to you everything you need for life, but too many people forfeit the treasure!  Why?  Like the natural farmer whose crops fail, they fail to tend the garden.

14 "The sower sows the word.

[Luke 8:11 says, "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God."]

 

Hard ground, a hard heart.

15 "And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts.

 

The shallow heart.  Too much trouble.

16 "These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness;

17 "and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.

Wherein lies the failure?

I have seen too many believers absolutely forfeit their inheritance by giving in to their emotions when trouble and persecution hit them.  Complaining, being unthankful and many such ungodly attitudes gives Satan what he is looking for, a seed that he can steal.  The inheritance that God desires for these people is then lost.  The only way our faith will produce is to maintain a godly attitude during our trouble and persecution.  We must be forgiving and walk in love, which includes taking up our cross against ungodly emotions.

 

Watchman Nee wrote:

"And he said, 'Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the LORD to you: 'Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God's''" (2 Chronicles 20:15).

Fight to get the victory, and you have lost the battle at the very onset.

Your discomfiture as a Christian starts the moment you begin to reckon that you must win. Suppose Satan sets out to assault you in your home or in your business.

Difficulties mount up, misunderstandings arise, a situation you can neither deal with nor escape threatens to overwhelm you.  You pray, you fast, you struggle and resist for days, but nothing happens.

Why?  You are trying to fight into victory, and in doing so are relinquishing the very ground that is yours.  For in the person of Jesus Christ God has already conquered. Victory is ours because it is his. He has given us his victory to hold.  Satan is a defeated foe.  It needs but a breath from the Lord to finish him off, and here you are trying to raise a hurricane!  What then is the secret?  Simply look up and praise him.  "Thy victory, Lord, is all-inclusive.  I praise thee it covers this situation too!"  Then be at  rest in a triumph already secured for you by God.

 

The worldly heart.  Too much pleasure.

18 "Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word,

19 "and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.

 

The good heart is the noble and honest heart.

20 "But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."

[Luke 8:15 says, " But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience."]

 

This is called grace.  This is watching God's seed becoming a full grown plant in your life.  It is an absolutely amazing experience!

To see God provide for your needs beyond what your own ability could accomplish is amazing.  Beyond that, to see God reach out to save and heal others beyond what your ability could accomplish is even more amazing.  How can I describe it?  You have to taste it for yourself.

 

Seeds do not hide in the ground forever.

21 Also He said to them, "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand?

22 "For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.

 

In 2002, God took me to the other side of the world to an African nation to visit a group who had been using our Grow or Die book for discipleship.  I saw fruit!  I should not have been amazed, but I was!  I saw refugees who could not legally obtain work because they were not citizens bearing fruit for their own lives and for the Kingdom of God.  They had planted five churches in previously unreached villages, some of them deep in jungles.  When I boarded the airplane for my trip home, the Lord said to me, "Also He said to them, 'Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand?  For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light" (Mark 4:21, 22).  It was Father's Day in the United States of America, and I received a prophecy from a friend of mine that my Father wanted to take me, His son, on a special trip just to show him some cool things and to spend time with him.  He did and I was amazed!  When we see God's fruit in our lives, it humbles us, knowing that something was accomplished by grace, by Jesus in us.  It causes us to respond like Peter did to the large catch of fish, "Depart from me for I am a sinful man" (Luke 5:8).

 

Your spiritual eyes and ears either grow or die.

23 "If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."

24 Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given.

25 "For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.""

 

God's word is a supernatural seed.  It is real!

When God speaks His Word to us, it is planted into our hearts as a seed planted into the ground.  It is intended to bring fruit to our lives and to further the Kingdom of God.  This is how God relates to us, through His Word in our hearts.  Notice in the parable that when this seed is planted, Satan goes to work.  Satan is not afraid of us, he is only afraid of Jesus.  And Jesus is manifested today as the Word planted into our hearts.  Living this way will certainly bring tribulation and suffering, but it will also bring the abundant life the Jesus spoke of.

 

After the class the students failed the test.

Immediately, the same day, after this teaching, Jesus gave the final examination to His disciples when He said,  "On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, 'Let us cross over to the other side'" (Mark 4:35).

As He spoke this, the Word was planted in their hearts just as He had been teaching them.  However, the circumstances immediately were contrary to the planted Word.

"And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling.  But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.  And they awoke Him and said to Him, 'Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?'" (Mark 4:37, 38).

Jesus responded in mercy but also with a disciplinary word.

"Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 'Peace, be still!'  And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, 'Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?'"  (Mark 4:39, 40).

Did they learn the lesson?

"And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, 'Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!'" (Mark 4:41).

Trust the Word, trust Him, trust His mighty power,  trust His love for you, and not your physical senses.

"Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him" (Hebrews 10:38).

 

 

The Word planted into your heart is the title deed, the guarantee of His promise.

Hebrews 11:1 (Amplified Bible) says, "NOW FAITH is the assurance (the confirmation, (the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses]."

It is similar to a pregnant woman who cannot yet see the baby, but she knows that something alive is in her.

 

What kind of fruit can you expect to see?

In general, the Word of God manifests God's plan for your life when you live by bearing fruit.  I believe that since our body is God's temple that we can expect to see those items that were in the Old Testament temple to be manifested as fruit in our lives.

There are three kinds of fruit, one for everything we need and everything God needs.

1. Fruit of the Spirit. The Law. Interior fruit.  This is godly character.  This is the fruit that makes you like Jesus.  Read Galatians 5:22-23.  "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  Against such things there is no law."

2. Fruit for our lives. Manna. This includes our social situation, family, health and body, financial, etc.  3 John 1:2 that says, "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth."  I have experienced more of my needs cared for as my character changed.  Read 1 Corinthians 9:7 which says, "Who serves as a soldier at his own expense?  Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its grapes? Who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk?"  John 4:36 says, "Even now the reaper draws his wages, even now he harvests the crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together."

A personal testimony.

There was a time in our lives back in 1983 when our income was not sufficient to meet our projected expenses.  I got alone with the Lord in a local park, just walking and kicking rocks, telling Him about my problem.

He spoke so clearly and said, "Larry, if you will believe 2 Corinthians 9:8, put it on your lips and in your heart, and if you will speak it out as many times during the day as you can, I will provide for your needs.  By the way, please tell me what your budget is."  So I told the Lord the minimum that I needed to care for my family.  In less than five months our income increased to just what I had told the Lord I needed!  However, reflecting on this time in my life, I must admit that for years prior to this time I had been giving sacrificially, even large amounts out of my very need.

3.  Missionary fruit. Aaron's Rod that budded. Fruit for others or ministry.  "By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples" (John 15:8).  Our work for the Lord will not count for much, unless it is fruit and not the work of our flesh.

All fruit has seed inside of it for reproduction. Genesis 1:11 says, "Then God said, 'Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.' And it was so."  Once the interior fruit grows inside of us, it spills out seeds that produce exterior fruit, or ministry to others.

A personal testimony.

I had never really planned to have a ministry such as International School of The Bible.  I always had a heart to serve God, however.  In 1995 The Lord spoke to me in two ways.  He spoke Psalm 68:11, which says, "The Lord gave the word; Great was the company of those who proclaimed [published] it" (Psalms 68:11).  He told me that if I wrote and published the Word, that He would see to it that a great host would proclaim it, or re-publish it.

He also spoke to me from Mark chapter 14 where it tells the story of a woman who broke her alabaster flask to pour out its costly oil of spikenard on Jesus.  The Lord spoke to me and said, "Larry, will you take your substance and pour it out on My Body, just because it feels good to Me?"

These Words or rhemas from the Lord became seeds in my heart, and they are now bearing their fruit!  The interesting thing is, that the seeds continually multiply with each piece of fruit, which causes the fruit to grow exponentially!  It has and still is, and the nice thing is that I had very little to do with it.  Sure I worked hard, but only in obedience to what I heard God speak to my heart.  I attempt to avoid "my plans."

 

Seek intimacy with God.  Prepare your heart to be good ground.  You will encounter much warfare, but you will glorify God.

"I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they [the KJV original version identifies "they" as men] gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples" (John 15:1-8).

 

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The Ingredient of Speaking The Word

 

 

"And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, 'I believed and therefore I spoke,' we also believe and therefore speak" (2 Corinthians 4:13).

The spirit of faith is identified as speaking what one believes.

 

Why do we speak the Word?

God and man both rule with words.  God created with His words, and He recreates with His words.  However, He no longer has the authority to speak His words into the earth except through a human being.  Demons have the same restriction, which is why they try to get humans to speak their words.  This earth has been created to be ruled and dominated by words.

He gave Adam dominion.

"Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength, Because of Your enemies, That You may silence the enemy and the avenger. When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels [Elohiym, God], And You have crowned him with glory and honor. You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet" (Psalms 8:2-6).

"The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD'S; But the earth He has given to the children of men" (Psalms 115:16).

 

Look at some examples of God accomplishing His work by speaking.

"Then God said, 'Let there be light'; and there was light." (Genesis 1:3).

"Then God said, 'Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters'" (Genesis 1:6).

"Then God said, 'Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear'; and it was so" (Genesis 1:9).

"Then God said, 'Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth'; and it was so" (Genesis 1:11).

"Then God said, 'Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years'" (Genesis 1:14).

"Then God said, 'Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the heavens'" (Genesis 1:20).

"And God blessed them, saying, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth'" (Genesis 1:22).

"Then God said, 'Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind'; and it was so" (Genesis 1:24).

Notice that in the above Scriptures, nothing argued with God's Word; it always was "and it was so."

Then God rested after He gave man dominion.

"Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth'" (Genesis 1:26).

"Then God blessed them, and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth'" (Genesis 1:28).

"And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done" (Genesis 2:2).

God spoke this mighty word, which resulted in the resurrection of Jesus.

" …will declare the decree: The LORD has said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You" (Psalms 2:7).

 

Satan distorts truth with twisted excesses in two directions.

For centuries, people have misunderstood the "speaking of faith."  Some have never discovered that God gave mankind dominion over the earth to rule it with words.  They have just felt that they should say how they feel.  While we do need to be real with God on how we feel, we also need to get beyond our feelings and believe His Word.

Others have missed it to the other twisted excess, believing that speaking in a positive sense is the entire responsibility of a disciple, and that they, not God, may choose what to say and therefore what to claim with their words.  This is a form of witchcraft and selfishness.  Many cults promote this type of "positive confession."  While positive is better than negative confession, we as disciples must always recognize Jesus as our Lord instead of our own wants and desires.

We need to avoid extremes which miss God's truth and can create shipwreck in our lives.

The truth is that God desires us to fellowship with Him and allow Him to give us the words to speak.  He wants to give us His Words of faith to accomplish His purpose.  In the Garden of Eden, Adam was to fellowship with the Word, the Tree of Life, daily, and then have dominion with his words over the earth.  God gave him dominion, however his dominion was to extend only God's will over the earth and mankind.  Adam decided that he could have dominion without the Tree of Life, and that he could speak the word that he decided needed to be spoken, The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

After Adam did that, Satan began to convince people to speak his words, and the world fell into chaos.  Spiritual beings have been competing to control the words of man ever since.

 

Life and death are in the power of the tongue.

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

James explained the scientific and spiritual value of words.

"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" (James 3:2-12).

Brain scientists have discovered that the speech part of the brain has dominion of the entire brain.  Why?  God knew what He was doing!  The tongue turns the entire course of your life like the small rudder of a large ship determines its course.

 

God told Joshua that success would come as he spoke the word.

"Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.  This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.  For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success" (Joshua 1:7, 8).

 

Entering into the rest of God.

Angels hearken, demons flee.

Jesus is the High Priest over our confessions.  When the Word of God is confessed and prayed over a person or a situation, it is powerful!  Jesus created everything by His Word.  Jesus IS the Word.  Jesus gave us the authority to use the Word as if it were He saying it!

John 1:1-3 says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.  All things came into being through Him, and without Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being."

When the Passover was administered to Israel in Exodus 12, the Israelites were told to put the blood of an innocent lamb over their doors and the death angel (demon) would "pass over" and not hurt them.  Jesus is the Lamb of God, and we can put His blood over our doors and over the doors of our loved ones and those that we pray for.  How?

Revelation 12:11 says, "And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb, and because of the word of their testimony.  And they did not love their soul to the death."

The words of our mouth will apply the blood.

Notice in Exodus 12 that as long as the lamb's blood stayed in the basin, it did no good.  But when they took the hyssop, dipped it in the blood and applied to their door, then God and the devil could see it.  The hyssop was a common weed that did not seem to have much value. The words of our mouth do not seem to have much value, but when we dip them into the Word of God (Who is Jesus Himself) and apply them as blood, God sees it and the devil sees it!

Jesus takes our confession and makes it powerful.  Hebrews 3:1 says, "Therefore, holy brothers, called to be partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus."

When we speak God's Word, Jesus takes it to the Father and asks Him to perform it.  John 16:23 says, "And in that day you shall ask Me nothing. Truly, truly, I say to you, Whatever you shall ask the Father in My name, He will give you."

Then we can enter into rest and let the Word do the work.  Hebrews 4:1 says, "Therefore, a promise being left to enter into His rest, let us fear lest any of you should seem to come short of it."

His work was finished from the foundation of the earth, therefore we can believe. "For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world" (Hebrews 4:3, KJV).

"For the word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing apart of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12).

Angels go to work when they hear God's Word.  "Bless the LORD, O angels of His, who excel in strength, who do His command, listening to the voice of His word" (Psalms 103:20).

Demons flee! Psalms 149:5-9 says, "Let the saints be joyful in glory; let them sing aloud on their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand, to carry out vengeance on the nations and punishments on the peoples, (representing our spiritual enemies) to bind their kings with chains and their nobles with iron-bands, to carry out on them the judgment written; this is an honor for all His saints. Praise the LORD!"

 

Jesus gave us the example.

"Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter, remembering, said to Him, 'Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.' So Jesus answered and said to them, 'Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain,  Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.   Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him,  that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses'" (Mark 11:20-26).

Jesus did not say that only He could speak to mountains. He told the disciples whatever things you ask when you pray, believe.  Mountains often refer to obstacles in Bible tradition.  Look at the process that Jesus spoke:

1.  First He said, "Therefore I say to you…"  If Jesus said it to us, then we have the right to believe what He said.  Jesus told them, whosoever will receive whatsoever.  We are in the image of God, and God needs us to speak for Him here on earth.

2.  He did not just say you should say what you want.  He said whenever you pray and believe that you receive those things that you ask, and then you can say to the mountain.  Therefore, we must first fellowship with Jesus in His Word by the Holy Spirit so that we can hear what He says to us.  When we hear what He says, faith comes for what He wants for us, not just what we may want for ourselves.

3.  When we know that we have received His word, and faith comes as a seed into our heart, then we must speak that word that we have received to bring it to pass.

This is not a formula for claiming selfish requests.  However, having said that, there is a law about our speaking that often works for unbelievers and believers alike.  The law will eventually catch up with everyone.  We usually get what we speak, unless what we have spoken is confessed as sin.

4.  In the above Scripture, Jesus used the word "say" four times and the word believe one time.

 

Personal testimony.

Many times, since I was saved in 1979, God has given me promises for desperate needs.  He always instructed me to water the seed by speaking the promise out loud continually.  In some cases I spoke the promise for over five years before seeing the mountain removed.  My wife and I speak many generic words continually when we pray, including Psalm 91 and Psalm 23.  There are many others.  We have a seventeen page prayer list with dozens of Scriptures that we pray over others and ourselves many times every week.  They have to do with enemies, blessings and curse, financial issues, children, ministry, and other issues.

 

Caution, the way is narrow.

In the following passage of Scripture, I believer that Jesus was teaching people how to live in the Kingdom of God here on Earth.  I my opinion, He told them to ask, seek and knock as the way to pray in order to establish His Kingdom.

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.  Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!  Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets" (Matthew 7:7-12).

Jesus was teaching the same ask, seek and knock lesson in Luke Chapter 11 while He was teaching His disciples about prayer.  Then He ended that teaching with:

"If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"(Luke 11:13).

When we ask, God gives us the revelation of His will by the Holy Spirit as we seek His will on the matter.  Then when we receive His will, His mind and promise, we may begin to knock, or speak that word that He gives to us.

"Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.  Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it" (Matthew 7:7-14).

 

Speaking the Word effectively is simply the fruit of intimacy.  However, I submit that Jesus was stating in the above Scripture that there is a very narrow process for the bearing of fruit.

 

Notice in the above Scripture:

1.  The narrow way, in my opinion is described in the "ask, seek and knock" concept.

2.  Asking God is akin to begging.  We have a need.  We come to him and let Him know that we are unable to meet a need.  We begin by "begging."  This is all in the environment of intimacy and knowing Him.

3.  Seeking is discovering God's will, God's solution, or God's revelation and/or promise.

4.  Knocking is being persistent and speaking the Word.  Speaking the Word without intimacy is not God's narrow way.

 

Jesus knew that few people would choose the ask, seek and knock way of life.  It will lead to abundant life!

Jesus endured the Cross by speaking the Word.

In my opinion, Jesus quoted many passages from Psalm 22 (perhaps even the entire Psalm) that spoke of His suffering on the Cross.  Psalm 22 was written centuries before Jesus was crucified.

Psalm 22:31 (Amplified) says, "They shall come and shall declare His righteousness to a people yet to be born--that He has done it [that it is finished]!"  Pause here and read the entire Psalm to see how this brought Jesus through the Cross.

 

To download a prayer guide with dozens of Scriptures that may be quoted and spoken over very practical issues in your life, go to our website below.

 

http://www.isob-bible.org/abf/prayerbook.htm

 

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