What are you After

Imagine That

I found a quote that should be on everyone's refrigerator.

"Faith is not believing God can; it's knowing God will" Ben Stein

I would venture to say most of the church is hesitant to move out of their comfort zone. To move out where only God can come to their rescue. Like laying on of hands for a healing. To speak out in prophesy. To share the fullness of the Holy Spirit, with signs, and wonders following.

What a sad state of affairs. There are vast numbers of christians who have never witnessed a miracle. Not the babes, but people who have been in the Lord for years and years. Even the ones who believe in the full gospel of healing, deliverance, and the gifts of the Spirit.

The TV programs that come from huge ministeries are watered down. And if you can find one that lets God be God, please let me know! Is the Lord not moving, or not healing, or not setting people free? Of course He is, but it's not in the public view.

Here is a racial faith. You be the one to bring in the miracles. You heal the sick, and deliverance to the captives. You start your own ministry of the impossible. Our Lord loves to do the impossible, then He get's the glory, and not the wisdom of man. It will require you to look the fool for Christ. To step out with nothing to hold you up but the Word of the Lord. This is faith: "knowing that God will". It's not a wish and a hope. It's a settled fact in your spirit. Pray till it is, and stay in the fight till you win.

Doesn't it say that we "always are triumphant in Christ". Do you believe it; do you know it! Then do it. It's nice that we have ministers to encourage us, to teach us, and to impart their gifts into our lives. But how about growing up and feeding ourselves. How about praying until you get ahold of God. Till you know the voice of the Spirit. Get the goods yourself and pass them out to all who will receive.

Isn't it Christ living in you hoping to reveal His glory through you to the whole world? Yes. Aren't you blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places. Then get into the spirit and bring, drag, pull, wrestle, and stir, the heavens with your prayers until you can be that mature christian who lacks nothing. And is ready to whip, destroy, pull down, and overcome all the devil has to throw at people.

It's Jesus who said to ask. It's the Lord who said to seek. It's the King of Glory who told you to knock. Obey Him you Man of War. "Those that know God shall be strong and DO exploits. "Faith is knowing the Lord will DO all that He said". "You may ask me for anything, and I will do it, that the Father be Glorified in the Son".

Faith is not Enough

First we have been confessing the word of God. Forming a renewed mind that thinks in line with the Word. We have used our mind to cast down falsehood. We have understanding into the ways of God. And yet we have not gotten a full victory in every area of our lives. What's up with that?

Faith is not enough!!

Faith has to have accompaning Works. Faith is the action taken on the word. The action on the word is the proof of faith. And by it the manifestation. With-out the manifestation the word is not complete. Or to put it another way. Is dead!

You can love Jesus, go to church, pay tithes, and sing like a bird. That's all good but, to grow in faith you need the word to manifest in your life. I know of whole church's who do all these things, and don't know the moving of the Spirit from a pep rally at a football game! To them it looks the same.

We must become familiar with the Spirit. To do this you must pray in the spirit. Yes, to pray in "other tongues". Sound like foolishness, or like a emotional frenzy? Well, it's not a pep rally. It's a God given, God blessed, God energized, God moving, God revealing, God ordained gift from the Almighty, to all believers, everywhere, for all time, in all nations, in all ages, till Jesus comes.

If this makes you think that it's just a passing fad, an emotional error, or "these who know nothing of the law" and are being mislead. Then you are spiritually blind. Just who is man to tell God how to do things. God's ways are too wonderful for man. But the children, the babes, they will know God and his leading. In God not the greatest receive grace, but the humble, the least, the lowly, and the outcast. These will gladly obey God and be greatly used and blessed.

By praying in the spirit, they will understand the moving of God and do exploits. They will receive revelation about the times and seasons. The gifts of God will be open to them. The work and the word of God will prosper in their life. The blessing of the Lord will be upon them and all men shall see the goodness of God over their comings and going.

Be one of them! You are chosen in Christ. You are filled with his Spirit. You are the "royal prieshood". You are His body, His beloved, His chosen. Be what you are! All things are your's, and all Christ is, He is in you. You come behind in nothing. Be the vessel that God said you are, and show forth the Glory of God in your life!

How to Think

"To be carnally minded is death, to be spiritually minded is life".

This is simple enough to understand. But to live this way is to train ourselves in all cases, and at all times, to walk in the truth as set forth in the word.

When we are weak; "I can do all things through Christ who strenghtens me".

When we are sick; "by His stripes we were healed".

When we are in lack; "My God shall supply all my need according to His riches in Glory in Christ Jesus".

When we don't see; "the Lord is a light unto my path".

When we would fear; "we have been given the Spirit of power, and love, and self discipline".

Years ago there were in the christian bookstores little "promise boxs", these had scripture for spirit, soul, and body. From your inner life to walking in the presence of God. From your concept of yourself to your concept of God.

These are great for helping to train your spirit to agree with God. I came across a valuable quote:

"faith is not opposed to knowledge, but to sight".

The knowledge of God's thought's toward us are to bring us to faith in the Word of God.

Jesus stated two errors to the scribes: not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.

If we train ourselves to know what the Word says, then we will experience the power of God.

On the one error we will have greatly advanced. The "knowing of the power of God" will be a result of our worship of Him. The greatest thing in our lives is not to do or know or walk according to God. But to love and know and fellowship and worship our Father.

Then we will be mature and stable and complete.

I'm not who I was

I'm tired of preachers, authors, sermonizers, and people who lack knowledge telling me who I am. The natural man doesn't know the things of the Spirit.

I am born of God, a being not of this world.

I have the nature, essence, spirit, character, and love of my Father.

I live, abide, and display the fullness of Christ who is my life.

My life is to do the will of my Father.

My inclination is to do good.

My joy is to love.

His words to me are live and powerful.

His thoughts to me are to do me good.

His heart is to bring me to complete maturity.

The way is by faith.

The life is by grace.

The blessings are Yes, and Amen.

Can someone believe.

Can someone learn.

Can someone know.

See that the way of God is higher than the way of man.

See that the salvation is complete.

See that the end is sure.

Call those things that be not as though they were.

Walk in the things of heaven.

Glory in God who has by His own will has accomplished so great a salvation.

The things I love

The treasures of the kingdom of God are great. There are several things in God that are especially delightful to me. One, the presence of the Lord, both in my own soul and in the fellowship with other believers. I don't mean some vague thing, but the very power of His love and might. The deep stiring and great joy, the moving and bubbling forth of the Spirit in my intermost being. This salvation of being born of God is more than my mind or language could express. But I have the rejoicing and worship in my spirit. I love that I can feel God working in me by the Spirit. The sighs, the groaning, the welling up of love to tears. The joy springing up into laughter and songs. The power of His healing balm, the faith to believe all things are possible, and to rejoice in victory over all evil.

I would have been enough for me to be forgiven. To be assigned a place to work for God as a servant. I would have been gratful just to have been admitted to be allowed in His Kingdom. But Oh!, what a Great God we have. As the prodical son I have been made His son, His very own! He has lavished His love upon me and I am now His. How can the heart ever express the overwhelming joy? What act can I do to express my gratitude? My mind can't fathom the blessing that God has bestowed upon me. If I act a little emotional now don't think me strange. It would be stranger if I didn't! Besides, if you think I get carried away now, wait until you see me in Glory! As Paul said, "if I am beside myself it is unto God, if I am in my right mind it is for you".

Do whatever he tells you

In John's gospel we have the account of the wedding at Cana in Galilee.

When the wine was gone, Jesus's mother said to him, "They have no more wine." "Dear woman why do you involve me?" Jesus replied. "My time has not yet come." His mother said to the servints, "Do whatever he tells you." John 2:3

Here we have the disciples, mary, and Jesus, along with many guest at a wedding feast. An occasion of joy and celebration. This is a normal activity for all of us as the song says, "love and marriage go together as a horse and carriage".

In looking at this, I would say that the disciples, and Jesus himself were aware that there was no more wine. But that fact alone didn't involve Jesus. As we can see from His question, "why do you involve me?" This shows us that need in itself doesn't move the Lord. It takes a petition (prayer) of faith. Mary asked of Jesus, and expected his answer to provide. As she then told the servants to "do whatever he tells you".

There are many points to this short narrative, such as, the petition was not for herself, but on behalf of the wedding party. It was not a critical situation, nor a matter of life and death. One lesson we could draw from this is the willingness of the Lord to be involved in the hum-drum everyday activity of our lives. Another could be to remind us to talk with the Lord about situations we find ourselves in to see what he would say for us to do. A third could be to not focus on only those things that are for our own benefit, but for the needs of others. There are a number of other lessons as well. With this in mind I want to focus on another point.

"Do whatever he tells you". In the commission to the disciples we have the mandate to "make disciples, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you". Matthew 28:18-20. The clear lesson of "do whatever he tells you" is a willing, loving, trusting obedience to the whole of the word of God. It is the first place to start in our walk with the Lord. It is not a intellectual agreement, many of the things that the Lord commands go against our thoughts and mind set. We will not think that the word of the Lord is reasonable. I ask you, is it reasonable to fill jars with water and serve it as wine? Of course not. If the Lord spoke such things in the days of His flesh, do we think that He's more inclined to do things our way today? Of course not?

We operate with limited knowledge, his is limitless. Jesus was constantly challenging the thinking of the disciples. Expanding on there knowledge. It is the same for us. Also it was not just the thoughts, but the actions on His word that He desired. It is of no effect to have the right idea, with no action. For example "love your enemies, do good to those who abuse you". Or "do not worry, take no though for your life. Consider the lilly's of the valley". These and many more commands are contary to the natural mind. I ask you, have you been a blessing to those who oppose you. Do you bless the guy in the car that cut you off? What about your heathen neighbor? Are you worried about something, the bills, the children, the world? It is one thing to talk it, but be honest with yourself, do you walk it?

Well you can, if God said it, then he will perform it in you. That is the goal of the word, to transform us into the image of Christ. To make us living epistles. But it is not according to your thoughs, but as the word and the Spirit transform us. How many things in the word do you discount or ignore or change to suit our idea of what we think God said? Can you claim some knowledge of how God ought to do things? He has hid the eternal things for the humble and the lowly. For those who are "babes" he has ordained praise. He has chosen the foolish to confound the wise, the lowly, and the things that are not, to bring to naught the things that are.

Let's say you've examined yourself, and to your knowledge you are quick to obey all that you know the Lord has commanded to do. Good for you. But we need to be open to further instruction in the word. That is why there are the ministry gifts, the anointing for pastors, teachers, etc. If we have the "amen" in our spirit to do all that the Lord would command, then we are on our way to the deeper things of God.

This is the lesson that Peter learned; "never the less, at your word I will let down the net for a catch." The result was more fish than the vessels could hold. This is the lesson of Saul on the road with his encounter with Jesus; "Lord, what would you have me to do?" This then is to be our FIRST RESPONSE. "Lord, what would you have me to do?" Then; "Do whatever he tells you!"