Part 3 of Working Your Faith (if you have not already, you should first read Working Your Faith at http://www.saintsinlight.com/post/2010/06/Working-Your-Faith.aspx)

Faith as a Shield

The armor of God listed in Ephesians contains a "shield of faith".  This is the first line of defense, if you have a solid shield and use it properly the enemy will not get to the rest of your armor, nor cause you to suffer loss.  In Ephesians 6:16 it says “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. “

Everyone that is born again has the shield of faith, it was given them along with the rest of the armor.  Some have thought everyone has a different size of shield based on their amount of faith.  I have never heard anyone say you can have a bigger helmet, nor a bigger sword, it is only the shield that is reasoned to be of differing sizes.  This is the armor of God, He does not give you ineffective nor defective amour, we all have the exact same armor, the path to victory is decided by how we take care of shield, how we use it along with being alert to the enemy.

Rust corrupts and makes the shield weak and creates holes where the fiery darts get through. You must take care of your shield, doubts are like rust, they make your shield become ineffective for stopping those fiery darts of the enemy.  We put down doubts by consuming God’s Word, prayer and our daily confession thus making our shields will be strong and effective. 

You have a shield but you must know how to use it for it to be of any use.  You must recognize from which direction your enemy comes and when he is attacking, to lift your shield to protect yourself.  If you do not pay attention and be alert you will not have your shield up in that direction and those darts get through.

Another aspect of battle is unions.  We need to form unions with others so that we can focus on what is in front of us and not what is behind us.  When we are back to back with others or we are in a circle, the enemy has a harder time coming to attack us.  We need to use caution though and not put too much trust in others, we still have to be alert to possible attacks, remember the others can fail at times too.  We can help each other, but others are not a replacement of diligence, guard yourself, learn how to be skillful.

In a church environment, we should have many skilled people of faith that can form a circle around all those that are still learning to use their shields.  As those inside the circle watch and learn, they can be brought out and join in the circle enlarging it and allowing more young ones in the faith to be inside the circle.  If we have a well structured church body, we should be able to handle more and more new Christians while maintaining strength in the overall body.

Faith as a Pipe

Faith as a Garden and Faith as a Shield covered most aspects, but there was one still missing.  While not a lot of depth in this picture, it still helps use fill up the coverage of faith and how we can stop the flow.

We have all been given a pipe from which faith can flow.  You can only have a certain maximum of flow based on the size of the pipe and we all have the same size of pipe, but it is the purity of what is flowing that makes the difference.  When we put faith into us it flows through us, but on the other hand if we take in doubts, they will mix with the faith and dilute it making it ineffective.

Since faith flows through us, we will spread what we are producing.  This means that we can be spreading polluted faith to those around us if we do not keep the pipe clean and faith pure.  Many times people do not even know the pollution that is coming from them hindering those around them.  We must keep everything based on the Bible and keep our faith pure.  We do not want to hinder others and we want our faith to be effective.

When we get into disbelief, we block the pipe so that nothing can flow.  We must pull down those strong holds and get the flow moving.  We must control the doubts so that pure faith can flow and produce the expected results.

Conclusion

I pray these illustrations of Faith has helped you to understand that faith is more than just thinking you believe something and that we are responsible to keep our faith pure.  At the end of the day, the methods are simple, to stay completely in love with God and His precious Word, this will always bring the victory if we only break down those strong holds in our hearts and minds.  We have a Good God and He wants only the best for us and has already given His best!

Part 2 of Working Your Faith (if you have not already, you should first read Working Your Faith at http://www.saintsinlight.com/post/2010/06/Working-Your-Faith.aspx)

Faith as a Garden

Consider faith as a garden. What you plant in your garden of faith will grow and bring forth harvest. We are all given the same size garden but we all see differing results depending on how we prepare, plant, tend to and protect our garden.

We can see this concept in the following, where it describes the Word as seed and the different types of ground with their results and what causes different situations:

Mar 4:13  And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables?
Mar 4:14  The sower soweth the word.
Mar 4:15  And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts.
Mar 4:16  And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;
Mar 4:17  And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended.
Mar 4:18  And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word,
Mar 4:19  And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.
Mar 4:20  And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.

In our Garden of Faith though, we plant seed which can come from many sources, and that seed produces either “belief” or “doubt”.  If we work our garden and planet good seed everywhere we should have a good harvest of faith without any doubts.

Prepare the Ground

The first step to bring forth a good harvest is to till the soil and get it ready for seed.  If your soil is not prepared it will not bring forth the best harvest and may not bring forth one at all, if the soil is too hard.  -- The garden of faith is in your heart. If the ground is hard due to hurt, bitterness, unforgiveness or other sins, you will not receive the desired results. We must walk in love of  both God and mankind to have the soil properly prepared.

Hos 10:12  Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.

Jer 4:3  For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.

Some hardened clods and even some stones in the ground are strong holds we have built up that must be broken down and removed.  The strong holds are in our mind and heart, they are hardened ground from what we have heard, reasoned or experienced that is not based on the true Word.  For example, in healing, you might have been raised to believe healing is not for today, healing is not for every Christian, perhaps that healing is dependant on God’s timing, or any number of excuses that people use.  These must be cast down as they go against God’s word.  These are from lack of knowledge or improper teaching.

Strong holds are also formed by experiences we or others have had and cause us to form an opinion, which does not conform to God’s Word.  And example of this, again with healing, you might have prayed for someone you thought were very close to God and they still died of the sickness.  You then feel that healing is not for everyone or that person would have been healed.  Issues like this are some of the hardest to break as we MUST rely on God’s Word and not our experiences.  When we study healing as many other topics, we will find the answers to these issues, but if there is even one Scripture that clearly points against what we think, then we cannot accept our experiences as truth, we need to be more diligent in our studies to find the truth.

We need to get a hold of:

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

Notice, this is referring to strong holds in our mind and heart, that we are to cast down these imagination that try to put themselves above the Word of God.  We are not to allow these into our hearts  in the first place and must control our thoughts.  You might think it is impossible to do this, but if God’s Word says that we are to do this, then it is possible for us, He would not tell us something we could not do.

The Seed

Another important step is that you must plant seed in your garden of faith if you want a harvest.  You cannot bring forth a harvest if you do not put the seed in the ground, you only will end up with fertile soil and nothing growing in it and eventually it will become hardened and fallow again.

We must be careful of what seed we plant.  Good seed is the Word of God that we understand.  If we are not sure about the meaning of Scripture then it cannot bring forth the harvest we would expect.  For example, if we have a passage about healing and we are not sure the passage is referring to healing, we have just be told it is, then it is defective seed.  We must know the Word that we are planting, it can only enter into the heart and be planted properly if we know it and become intimate with the Word, making it real in our heart.

Another  type of seed we do not want is mutated seed.  When we listen to people about the Word or try to reason something without enough study, we can mutate God’s Word to say something it does not say or at least, weaken its effectiveness.  For example, traditions often have a foot in the Word, but have a lot of man’s carnal reasoning added to them and thus mutating the meaning and producing a different result.  We must STUDY to make sure what we say we believe IS the true Word of God or we will not receive the harvest you expect.

Mat 15:3-6  But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?  For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.  But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me;  And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.

Mar 7:7-9  Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.  For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.  And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

The only seed that will bring forth a full pure harvest is true seed from the Word of God that we know intimately in our hearts.  All other types of seed will produce either strange results from what we plant or ineffective results.  At times it may even harm the good seed nearby.

You might ask, how can we know for sure what seed we have planted and the condition of our garden?  The easiest way to know the condition of your garden is to listen what comes out of your mouth.  Jesus told us that out of the abundance of our heart our mouth speaks.  If for example in healing, we keep saying we are not healed or dwell on the sickness then we have not planted a full crop or an ineffective one.  Once we plant enough good seed and maintain our garden, we should speak what the seed says and not what our doubts say.

Mat 12:34-37  O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Luk 6:43-45  For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

We must keep a close watch on our lips be alert to the condition of our garden.  By this same principle, we know the state of other people’s gardens also.

Time for Growth

We know we have the seed in the ground, we rest in the knowledge we will have a great harvest as long as we are patient and wait as the seed needs time to grow and bring forth, first the blade, then the ear, then the full corn.  The amount of time varies by the time of the season and the type of seed.

Heb 10:35-36  Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.  For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

Mar 4:26-29 And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how.  For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.  But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.

Caring for the Garden

We must understand though, we need to tend to our garden or our harvest will not be full and may not come at all.  It needs to be watered and fertilized for best results.  This is where worship and prayer comes in to work as the Holy Spirit moves. 

Eph 5:25-27  Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

Joh 7:38  He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

There is one last very important step, we must protect our garden from weeds, frost and invaders. The enemy tries to come and destroy our crop before we harvest. The thief comes to steal kill and destroy, he roams around seeking whom he MAY devour.  We must watch out for the enemy, be alert, set up scarecrows, put up a fence, watch out for tracks around our garden, and be ready to take action.

The primary tool used by the enemy upon our garden is “doubts:, the are like weeds, blowing in from many sources, they try to lodge in our garden and grow.  Once they fully grow they go to seed and spread all over our garden with the end result of overtaking and killing what we have growing or choking it out and bringing forth an incomplete harvest requiring even more work at harvest time to separate the grain from the weeds.

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

Rom 12:1-2  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

That part “renewing your mind” is a daily experience, we need to keep planting our garden and keep it full to make it harder for the weeds to find a place to take hold.  This is simply remembering and meditating on the promises of God we have sown.

Doubts are in our mind and heart.  We need to take care not to allow them into us and if they do make it inside, then we pull them out. The passages above show the battle is in our mind, the weapons of our warfare is not carnal, that is to say it is  not of the material world nor of worldly reasoning, but effectual only through God.  We use God's Word to bring down these thoughts that come in and destroy their efforts.  When some doubt comes, we apply the Word so what in the end is planted is the Word, which replaces the weed with good seed.

Our five senses are bad for brining in doubt.  If you are working faith for healing, the body will give you a pain or you might see some change and sow vast amounts of doubt in your field.   All these need to be put down with what the Word says about our healing and not take in all that doubt seed.

Another source of doubts come from where your garden is located.  If we have a garden and it is next to someone’s field that is not kept and is overgrown with weeds, seeds of those weeds of the unkempt garden will blow into our garden and pollute our field.  We need to keep our field around other fields where people take care of them and keep them weeded.  It is important WHO we are around as others will sow into our field if allowed.  This will cost us much more work and perhaps will cost us part if not all of our harvest.

As an example, if we are believing for finances and we are around people who think every Christian should be poor, that prosperity is evil, when we mention anything from our garden (remember out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks, we should expect to be talking about those promises if we have sown them properly), they then come back saying it is a bunch of rubbish and anyone who teaches it are evil. 

Another example is if you we believing for a healing and caring, loving people with unkempt gardens might tell you that you need to do this or that, or perhaps they knew someone who had that same thing and they died, or perhaps that it may happen in God’s time or it is just up to God’s will.

In both these examples, we have waves of bad weed seed from those around us.  The more you have of these types of fields around you the less likely you will be to keep up with all the bad seed and it can overwhelm you, the end result, you good harvest is lost.

We know from the Word that Jesus had times He had to limit those around Him to only ones of faith so they did not hinder His miracles:

Mar 5:35-42  While he yet spake, there came from the ruler of the synagogue's house certain which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further?  As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.

And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James.

And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly.  And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying.  And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise.  And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment.

He only wanted those that He knew would not fight His faith.  Then there is the time in His own country:

Mar 6:4-6  But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.  And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.  And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.

We need to surround ourselves with people of faith that speak faith and live by faith. This will help keep the weeds from coming into our garden making less work on weed control work.  Note though, this is a two way street, we MUST also be diligent to keep the weeds out of ours as not to spread them to those around us and cause them harm.

Pro 27:17  Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

Pro 13:20  He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.

Amo 3:3  Can two walk together, except they be agreed?

Conclusion

If we tend to our garden of faith and keep the tares out, we will have faith without doubts (all faith) and be able to move mountains.  We have to be diligent!

Everything is by faith. Without faith we cannot be Born Again or ever please God without faith, it is required.

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Rom 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Once we hear and receive faith, how much faith do we get and how do we grow it?

This is a misconception about faith. When we are born again we are all given a measure of "faith" and we do not need more and cannot have less. 

Rom 12:3  For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Here we are told that everyone has been given the same measure of faith. Some have thought this is the beginning and now we grow it, but this passage is actually trying to warn people who were thinking they were better or greater than others because they had more faith and Paul was telling them that they all had the same measure of faith. You cannot boast in your great faith as we all have the same measure.

There are passages that sound like you will grow in faith, but if read carefully, you will see they are saying grow in "the" faith, that we mature in our walk with God. Kind of like that old song, "Through it all we have learned to trust in Jesus we have learned to trust in God". This is our experiences in "the faith" that adds richness and depth to our walk but we still have the same measure of faith.

What about all those passages of little faith? How is it we pray according to the Word and we do not receive?

This is a point that took me a while to understand. I was confused by the passage

Mar 9:23  Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
Mar 9:24  And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

I did not understand what was meant in the version I was reading as it sounded like it contradicted itself, he said he believed and then asked to help his unbelief.  When I come by Scriptures such as this that I know I am missing something, I put it in the back of mind and let it hang around pondering them every now and then to see if I have found an answer.  When I was going through the New Living Translation I found the meaning of that passage quite clear.

Mar 9:23-24  "What do you mean, `If I can'?" Jesus asked. "Anything is possible if a person believes."  The father instantly replied, "I do believe, but help me not to doubt!"

That revelation opened a door to a flood of knowledge.  I could clearly see that faith and doubts can coexist and doubts can cancel out the effectiveness of our faith.  So, no longer we need grow or receive "more" faith, but rather, we need to get rid of and protect ourselves against, doubts coming in and taking root in us undermining our faith.

Now these mountain moving passages become very clear:

Mar 11:22-24  And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall NOT DOUBT in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

Mat 21:21-22  Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye HAVE FAITH, and DOUBT NOT, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

Mat 17:20  And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

Luk 17:6  And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.

For some time now I have understood this concept, but faith was still kind of hard to share with others and give them a clear picture of how a person can “work” their faith.  I prayed for God to give me some way to picture working faith to be able to share it with others.  Shortly, the idea of “Faith as a Garden” and “Faith as a Shield”.  Later I could see another point was missing and “Faith as Pipe” fill in the rest of the thought.

The next three posts are a rough draft of what was floating around inside me.  Over time, I keep finding more points, but I will share now what I have so far.  Be sure to share with others!

Look for:

Working Your Faith – Faith as a Garden

http://www.thesaintsinlight.com/post/2010/06/Working-Your-Faith---Faith-as-a-Garden.aspx

Working Your Faith – Faith as a Shield
Working Your Faith – Faith as a Pipe

http://thesaintsinlight.com/post/2010/08/Working-Your-Faith-ndash3b-Faith-as-a-Shield.aspx

Here is a great spiritual resource I found on the internet. It contains many sermons of and several books about Smith Wigglesworth.  If you do not know him, you need to read about him. Throughout the ministry God gave him, there were the confirmed account of 14 people raised from the dead and thousands saved and healed by Jesus through him.  Wigglesworth died at an old age in 1947 but the message of faith he preached continues and is foundational for many teachings today.  His teachings should be required reading for all new believers!

The link below takes you to chapter one of “Smith Wigglesworth: Apostle of Faith 1949 -First the blade.."  You will find other chapters of the book, to continue his story, on for down on the left side of the page under the heading  “Smith Wigglesworth: Apostle of Faith 1949, "First the blade..", "An helpmeet for him", "Then the ear...", etc.

http://smithwigglesworth.blogspot.com/2008/11/first-blade.html

Many of us in the Church today have little sins that we do not think much about, we confess them and ask for forgiveness and move on, it does not impact our life like those big sins we happen to have every now and then.  Well, just look at the picture on this post and see the price that was paid for those little sins just as much as for any of them.  This is what paid for those little sins so that you do not have to face a Just God and receive your Just punishment for those little sins, or any sin!  This was the price that was paid, even those little sins are important, but that is another post one day.

Some feel that they are not worthy.  Some feel they have no worth, no value to anyone.  Every person already has a value set on them, by none less than God Himself.  Your worth to God is show in the picture on this post.  He values you to this great degree.  Let your mind and heart never forget how much value you have in God’s sight!

The focus of this post is on what the Blood has purchased for us as part of this new covenant.  This new covenant that is sealed with the Blood of God.

It was only the blood of Jesus that could forge this new covenant.

1Co 6:19-20  What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?  For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

Heb 9:12  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.

Heb 10:4  For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.

Heb 10:16-17  This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;  And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.

Heb 10:19  Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus,

1Co 11:23-26  For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:  And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.  After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.

What is in this covenant though?  We claim to have this covenant through faith in Jesus and His finished work, but what does it include?

I am still learning of all that the Blood of Jesus has purchased for us and the revealed power of that blood.  I often ask God to show me about the Blood, because I know there is even more than what I detail here, but brothers and sisters, if what I mention here was all of it, that would be enough that we should live our lives for God, if only as a thank your for all that He has already done and given unto us!

Here are four core benefits this great sacrifice has already purchased us:

1: Salvation

We undergo the Born Again experience where God removes our old dead spirit and then creates in us a new spirit and then places inside our spirit the indwelling of His Holy Spirit to lead and guide us.

Joh 3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Rom 5:8-12  But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.  And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Gal 3:13-14  Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:  That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Eph 1:7  In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace

Mat 26:26-28  And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;   For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Heb 10:16-7  This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;  And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.

1Jn 1:6-9  If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1Pe 1:2  Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

2Co 5:17  Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Heb 9:14  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?

And many more like passages.  Salvation for us was purchased through is body and blood.  That sacrifice has justified us to God and removed our sins, not just covered them, they are gone.  We are in right standing with God as though we never sinned.

2: Deliverance from the powers of darkness

There is deliverance in the blood atonement!  You have been delivered from the power or authority of darkness and it has no power over you unless you give it power.

Col 1:12-13  Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

We clearly see in this passage that we have already been delivered from the power and authority of darkness.  You are no longer under the Satan’s domain, the enemy has no power over you in this covenant.

Mat 28:18  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

Jesus has taken all power and authority.  Thus there is no power of Satan that can directly hurt you unless you give him power.  Notice I say “directly”, he still works indirectly through others to persecute us as he did Paul and all other believers.

Those outside the covenant though, the enemy can take over at his will:

2Ti 2:25-26  In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;  And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

The enemy has power and authority over non-believes and he can take them at his will (unless we are praying for them).  But once you are are born again, he no longer has any power over you.

If that were not enough, we have:

Eph 2:4-6  But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

We are made to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, thus above all the powers of darkness.  The only power the enemy has over us is that power we give them.  One way is to open doors with our mouth.  People say things like, “Cancer runs in my family, so I will probably get it” or even things simple like “oh, watch out for devil, he will rip you to shreds” or “It does not fail, I always seem to get the flu”, or “I never seem to have anything” or “well, if I did not have bad luck I would have no luck at all” or ….  Want to know what you truly believe, watch the words that come out of your mouth they tell the condition of your heart, Mat 12:34, Mat 15:18, and Luk 6:45.

Let us not forget:

*Mar 16:17-18  And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;  They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

If we, after being born again (them that believe) have power to cast the devils out, then it would seem we have authority, by the new birth, over the power of the enemy.

* Some will argue the validity of Mar 16:17-18 as it appears in some scripts from the past and not in others, but the content of the passage has been proven by experience time and time again, so the validity of the verse stands.

There is also:

Rev 12:11  And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

I am still trying to learn the fullness of this passage and of it’s use of the Blood.  As I said, I do not know all there is about the Blood, but I see the Blood in this passage possibly being used as defense or perhaps as a weapon against the enemy, but I still need more study and prayer on this verse.  I mention it here as a note as the passage refers to overcoming and having power over the darkness.  This may only apply to those that are here during the Tribulation.

Overall though, It is clear, the enemy does not have any power over you, unless you give it to them.  You have been delivered from his power and authority by the sacrifice of Jesus. The enemy’s only weapon is deceit, he can only trick you into giving him power over you as he did with Adam and Eve. So be on the alert and remove those things from your life and heart that empower the enemy.

3: Healing

There are many different witnesses of healing complete in the covenant.  First we are free from the curse of the Law which God would put on those that were disobedient and did not follow the Law.  In that curse, God would smite them with all kinds of horrible things such as poverty, sickness and disease.  God has set us free from such curse, so that even though we do not keep the Law, He does not send these terrible things upon us:

Gal 3:13-14  Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:  That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

So we know God does not put sickness on us as punishment nor to teach us a lesson, it is the thief that comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10).

The Sacrifice of:

Isa 53:4  Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

Isa 53:5  But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

There is a lot wrapped up in these two verses.  First in verse 4, the translation does not represent the actual meaning.  In many translations the “griefs” and “Sorrows” are better translated “Sickness” or “Diseases” and “pains”.  But another is found in:

Mat 8:16-17  When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:  That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.

He took sickness and disease  upon Himself just as He did our sins.

We also have the ending of verse 53:5 that says “with His stripes we are healed”.  Some try to translate that out to mean just spiritual healing and not related to the physical body, but when studied more, you will find it means all planes, that is mind, flesh and spirit, it is to make whole again, to put back together us and God. renewed and restored.

If all that were not enough, in verse 53 it says the “Chastisement of our peace was upon Him”.  He paid the price for our Peace, but there is more to that word than some know.  The Hebrew word for “Peace” actually means safety, welfare, health, prosperity, contentment,  completeness,wholeness, nothing missing, nothing broken.  Again, He is making everything whole and complete again.

Healing is not just found in the new covenant, but even under the prior covenant God had health and prosperity under the blessing of Deuteronomy 28 and God says He will taken away sickness from them in Exodus 23:25 and Deuteronomy 7:15.  Healing is not new, God is a “Good” God and takes care of those that are His and this covenant is built with healing in it, sealed by the blood of God.

See also: Mark 16:17-18, James 5:14-16, Mark 11:22-24, Matthew 21:21-22, Mat 17:20, Luke 17:6, Rom 12:3, John 15:7, 1 John 5:14-15, Psalms 103:1-5, Psalms 107:20, 1 Peter 2:24, John 14:12-14, John 16:23-24

4: Blessing

This is about blessing for us, right now, here, not some day in the future after we are in heaven.  Some blast prosperity messages from ministers, but they need to look to the Word and not to the other ministers, the Bible is full of passages of blessing on the people of God.  When you read and study the Bible you find that God desires to pour out blessing upon HIs people.  Prosperity, just like healing is there in the covenant, but we have to reach out and take it and not go around denying the blessing on our lives thus hindering the work of God for us.

Here is a very clear scripture that shows the sacrifice of Jesus brought blessing on EVERYONE that believes in Him:

Gal 3:13-14  Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:  That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Yes, you have seen this passage a few times in this posting, that is due to the  power of this passage.  We have been redeemed from the curse of the Law, so God is not putting poverty upon us since that was included in the curse.  It is, once again, the the enemy which comes to steal, kill and destroy.

This passage goes further than just the fact we have been redeemed from the curse of the Law, it says “that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus”.  Yep, EVERY believer has the blessings of Abraham upon their lives just he same as his physical descendants.

If that is not enough to make you say you are blessed, there is also:

Eph 1:3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

There are so many passages when we read through the Bible that clearly show God’s desire to bless His people.  And we are His people and should expect to be blessed.  Again, God is a “Good” God and wants the best for us.

Conclusion:

This post points out that Salvation, Deliverance, Healing, Blessing are all brought to us through the Blood Sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross.  Look at the picture attached to this post and realize the fullness of the price that was paid for us.

1Co 6:20  For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

Rom 12:1-2  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

That is a strong statement and one that many in the Body of the Christ do not believe.   Many think that God has for some reason to put sickness on them to teach them a lesson or He “Allows” it on them for some purpose.  It is NEVER the will of God to have any believer sick nor in poverty and He will NEVER put that on you, He has promised!

Gal 3:13-14 ~ Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus the Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

There is a lot mentioned in that one passage and this post will not even start into the blessing of Abraham nor the promise of the Spirit, we will just look at the first statement, that the Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law.

While the curse and blessing in Deu 28 represented the nation of Israel at the time, it is applicable today in an example of what God will or will not do.  Here is the curse of the law as God described it:

Deu 28:15  But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:
Deu 28:16  Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.
Deu 28:17  Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.
Deu 28:18  Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.
Deu 28:19  Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out.
Deu 28:20  The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me.
Deu 28:21  The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it.
Deu 28:22  The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
Deu 28:23  And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
Deu 28:24  The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
Deu 28:25  The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
Deu 28:26  And thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and no man shall fray them away.
Deu 28:27  The LORD will smite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed.
Deu 28:28  The LORD shall smite thee with madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart:
Deu 28:29  And thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness, and thou shalt not prosper in thy ways: and thou shalt be only oppressed and spoiled evermore, and no man shall save thee.
Deu 28:30  Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: thou shalt build an house, and thou shalt not dwell therein: thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not gather the grapes thereof.
Deu 28:31  Thine ox shall be slain before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof: thine ass shall be violently taken away from before thy face, and shall not be restored to thee: thy sheep shall be given unto thine enemies, and thou shalt have none to rescue them.
Deu 28:32  Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day long: and there shall be no might in thine hand.
Deu 28:33  The fruit of thy land, and all thy labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not eat up; and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed alway:
Deu 28:34  So that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.
Deu 28:35  The LORD shall smite thee in the knees, and in the legs, with a sore botch that cannot be healed, from the sole of thy foot unto the top of thy head.
Deu 28:36  The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone.
Deu 28:37  And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations whither the LORD shall lead thee.
Deu 28:38  Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in; for the locust shall consume it.
Deu 28:39  Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them.
Deu 28:40  Thou shalt have olive trees throughout all thy coasts, but thou shalt not anoint thyself with the oil; for thine olive shall cast his fruit.
Deu 28:41  Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall go into captivity.
Deu 28:42  All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume.
Deu 28:43  The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low.
Deu 28:44  He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail.
Deu 28:45  Moreover all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed; because thou hearkenedst not unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee:
Deu 28:46  And they shall be upon thee for a sign and for a wonder, and upon thy seed for ever.
Deu 28:47  Because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things;
Deu 28:48  Therefore shalt thou serve thine enemies which the LORD shall send against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck, until he have destroyed thee.
Deu 28:49  The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand;
Deu 28:50  A nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor shew favour to the young:
Deu 28:51  And he shall eat the fruit of thy cattle, and the fruit of thy land, until thou be destroyed: which also shall not leave thee either corn, wine, or oil, or the increase of thy kine, or flocks of thy sheep, until he have destroyed thee.
Deu 28:52  And he shall besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and fenced walls come down, wherein thou trustedst, throughout all thy land: and he shall besiege thee in all thy gates throughout all thy land, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.
Deu 28:53  And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the LORD thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee:
Deu 28:54  So that the man that is tender among you, and very delicate, his eye shall be evil toward his brother, and toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the remnant of his children which he shall leave:
Deu 28:55  So that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children whom he shall eat: because he hath nothing left him in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee in all thy gates.
Deu 28:56  The tender and delicate woman among you, which would not adventure to set the sole of her foot upon the ground for delicateness and tenderness, her eye shall be evil toward the husband of her bosom, and toward her son, and toward her daughter,
Deu 28:57  And toward her young one that cometh out from between her feet, and toward her children which she shall bear: for she shall eat them for want of all things secretly in the siege and straitness, wherewith thine enemy shall distress thee in thy gates.
Deu 28:58  If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayest fear this glorious and fearful name, THE LORD THY GOD;
Deu 28:59  Then the LORD will make thy plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses, and of long continuance.
Deu 28:60  Moreover he will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt, which thou wast afraid of; and they shall cleave unto thee.
Deu 28:61  Also every sickness, and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, them will the LORD bring upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
Deu 28:62  And ye shall be left few in number, whereas ye were as the stars of heaven for multitude; because thou wouldest not obey the voice of the LORD thy God.
Deu 28:63  And it shall come to pass, that as the LORD rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you; so the LORD will rejoice over you to destroy you, and to bring you to nought; and ye shall be plucked from off the land whither thou goest to possess it.
Deu 28:64  And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone.
Deu 28:65  And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind:
Deu 28:66  And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life:
Deu 28:67  In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear of thine heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.
Deu 28:68  And the LORD shall bring thee into Egypt again with ships, by the way whereof I spake unto thee, Thou shalt see it no more again: and there ye shall be sold unto your enemies for bondmen and bondwomen, and no man shall buy you.

God was clearly serious about transgression and would thoroughly judge those that turned away from His commands with this curse.

Jesus was made a curse for us so that we would not face the curse of the Law anymore.  God poured out all His judgment for us upon the Christ on the cross.  For those that are His, He will NEVER afflict them with this curse.  The Lord still chastens us to help us grow and stay on the right path, but He does not and cannot bring this curse or any part of it, upon us as Jesus already took it.

We clearly see in 28:61 that He did not limit the curse to just the known sickness at that time nor specific ones, but “Also every sickness, and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law”.  That is every sickness to ever afflict anyone!

Why then do Christians get sick some some die of sickness?  Well simply, it is our own fault as we either bring it upon ourselves by our actions or allow the enemy to do so without standing up for our rights.  Some might say that they know of a person that was so close to God that they almost walked on water, that they seemed to never have one bad thought nor did the ever sin.  First, time for a reality check, we cannot see into the heart of another and know what they truly face, so you can only make assumptions about them, you do not know their battles.  Everyone who lives in a fleshly body will have a daily battle without anyone even knowing about it.

Gal 5:17  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

Let’s look at it this way, God clearly does not want us sick nor in poverty, this does not bring glory to His name (and do not even go with the “He can use sickness to get glory” stuff, if we are healed and made whole by His hand, there is not greater glory, nor greater witness than that!).  If it was His will for us to be sick then He would not have included all the healing Scriptures such as these obvious ones:

Jas 5:14-16 ~ Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:  And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Isaiah 53:4-5 ~ Surely he hath borne our griefs, (took our infirmities, bare our sicknesses, according to Mat: 8:16-17) and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.  But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

I Peter 2:24 ~ Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should  live unto righteousness; By whose strips ye were healed.

Mar 16:17-18 ~ And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

Psalms 107:20 ~ He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions

Psalms 103:1-5 ~ Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: who forgiveth all thine iniquites; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;  Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Joh 14:12-14 ~ Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

So, if it is God’s will for us to be whole and it brings Him glory, then the problem is not on His side and there is only one other side and that is ours.  If we act in true faith without doubts we will receive, every time without fail.  For many though, having that kind of faith for ourselves can be hard, it is easier to believe for others than ourselves.  That is where James 5:14-16 comes in as there is supposed to be Elders in a close walk with God who trust Him and always have “faith without doubts” to pray for people as a last line of defense.  Trust comes from spending time with God and deep relationship, continually partaking of His promises.

It is a lot like the filling of the Spirit, some believe, seek God on the matter and receive, others deny the experience or perhaps only seek for a short time and never receive.  Did God without from them?  No, they just did not take claim on what was theirs by faith.

I might have written before about this, but here it goes again.  I heard an old tale about a person taking a cruise and it goes something like this:  There was a man who had saved up money for years to be able to go on a cruise.  He gets on the ship and for the next week he is carried all over the world to see wonderful sites.  The entire trip he does not eat one thing as he only saved enough money for the ticket, so he went without.  When the trip was over they started to leave the ship and the captain spotted Him and asked if there was something wrong with the vast array of food they had as he noticed the man did not eat anything throughout the trip.  The man replied to him that he did not have enough money and the captain told him that it was all included in the price of the ticket.  The captain did not withhold anything from him, no one was being unfair, the man simply did not know what was included and never received.

Brothers and Sisters, it is all included in the price Jesus paid.  We must take it though and truly believe in our hearts that it is ours.  We can only blame sickness and poverty on either ourselves or the enemy that is about steal, kill and destroy.  But God is always there to heal you and make provisions you need when we come with faith.

It seems to be a common sport to bash televangelists and other ministries for their teachings of Prosperity, Word of Faith or Healing.  Often the battle cry is that they are only after your money.  What is concerning, is the open hostility some have for these ministries.  There are various secular entities that are only after your money, but they seem to draw far less rage and many, no rage at all, among the same people who are ready to crucify these ministers.  What is the difference?

Some might say the reason for the hostility is “Holy Anger”.  Remember Jesus drove out those evil merchants at the temple.  There have been many different battles over why Jesus did this.  Some say that they were cheating people selling them quality animals to sacrifices, but once paid would swap them for sickly and worthless animals.  Some conclude that it was due to selling of tools to worship God.  If your belief is the latter then you should never buy another Christian song or purchase a Bible anywhere, this would be the same thing wouldn’t it?

We need to remember these Scriptures:

Gal 5:22-23 ~  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

2Ti 2:24-26 ~  And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;  And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

I know it is easy to fall into the trap of condemning people or being critical of different ministries.  Even writing this post, I felt conviction of some of the things I have felt and  said in the past and had to repent.  That is the point, we do not continue to do wrong when I see that it is wrong, but repent and change!

False doctrines, are you sure?

One of my first lessons after being Born Again was that I would grow and my views on some doctrines would change.  How can we hope to know everything in the beginning when often we do not even know what is contained in the entire Bible.  When I was a new believer, I thought the Lord would return at the end of what is known as the “Tribulation” because of what I had heard earlier from others and a few passages I read.  Later His return seemed to moved to the middle, and after learning more of Daniel and Ezekiel and some more New Testament passages, I believe His return will be in the beginning. Am I willing to bet my eternal life upon it?  No way, there is too many passages that can go in all ways.

There is the first point, many doctrines have Scripture going in different directions and when we study we find the more-than-likely view, but this has to be tempered by the nature of God and the content of the topic.  There are few things we can be completely dogmatic about, to the extent we will bet our eternal salvation upon them.  One such doctrine is Salvation and the fact Jesus shall return.  These are core to our belief, but other doctrines we need to use the full council of God’s Word.  Of course, this is not to be driven by our feelings or even perhaps by our experiences, but by God’s Word alone.

The most common attacks on doctrine for Televangelists seem to be in the doctrines of Prosperity, Word of Faith and Healing.  Why these three?  Perhaps because so few of typical Christians have a clue as to what the Word of God says on the subjects and when hearing the lofty claims being made, try them out themselves and fail not know the full council of God’s Word.  Their experience then turns into disbelief and often bitterness thereby opening the door for Evil to walk all over them.  Many times, once the disbelief and bitterness has taken root, people tend to make fun of or slam those doctrines and ministers.  In the process our we not slamming the Word of God?  That is, if they use Scripture to make the point, are we not fighting against the Word?  We need to be VERY careful!

Word of Faith:

This doctrine really includes Prosperity and Healing, as it is the doctrine of obtaining from God.  I know people who will slam this doctrine while at the same time embrace it.  We have seen some ministers in the past who went off the map, promoting people can claim anything and as long as they believe it, they will receive it.  Yes, they had people claiming for all kinds of things as if God was some kind of personal genie you could bring out at will to give you every frivolous desire of your flesh.  When the people did not receive because they were asking amiss, doubts or perhaps they had sin in their life, they went into disbelief and followed that with bitterness toward those ministries.

So, for a quickie on Word of Faith, the Scriptures say clearly in many places that if you have faith and doubt not you will received.  For example,  here are a few of them:

Joh 14:12-14 ~ Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

Joh 16:23-24 ~ And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.

Mark 11:22-24 ~ And Jesus answering saith unto them, have faith in God.  For verily I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoevery he saith.  Therefore I say unto you, what things soever you desire, when you pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

So, people would grab these Scriptures and pray for expensive luxury car or multimillion dollar home, perhaps millions in cash and some even that they would hit the lottery.  While they had part of the truth they did not know or some did not wish to acknowledge what they already knew, there are conditions.  We have the full power of creation at our finger tips, but how is it wielded and why?  Imagine if everyone was out moving mountains because they wanted a different view?  Yes, that would be silly and God will not put up with it.

Now, are the teachings in Error?  Not completely, most of them just need to add the conditions.  There is nothing impossible for God but there are some things He will not do.  If His word says that He will do something and you fulfill the requirements for the promise, then the promise is yours and God will absolutely do it.  God says He watches over His Word to perform it.  He is not a respecter of persons, if you qualify and your reasons qualify and you have the Word for the promise, it is yours.  It is by your faith without doubts and your knowledge of God’s will on the promise that delivers it to you.  The scriptural reference to the promise insures you have God’s will as long as you know all of Scripture regarding the topic.

You can call it what you like, “Name it and Claim it” or “Word of Faith”, it all comes down to finding what God has to say about a promise, praying in faith for the promise and standing in faith without doubts claiming the promise.  It is a simple truth in the Bible that has been abused a bit, but it is none the less that, the truth.

Still not sure?  How do you think you became Born Again in the first place?  If we did not have the promise telling us that He does save and He had not given us the faith to believe Him for the promise, no one would be saved.  It is by grace that you are saved through faith and that not of your own, but it is a gift from God.

There is power in what you say.  If you are not aware of that, then you need to study more as it is from the beginning to the end of The Scriptures, you are to watch what you say.  People can say a lot of things that open the door to the enemy even though they walk the right path.  Look at what happened to the children of Israel when they murmured.  We should proclaim the goodness of God with our mouths and not the works of the enemy. 

Sure, you can say your are a pickle every day of your life and it does not make you a pickle.  You will never believe you are a pickle and there is no demon of picklism out there waiting to be empowered by your words.  But when you continually confess sickness, weakness, lack of faith, hopelessness, anger, poverty, then you are opening doors not only to your but your family if you are not careful!

Healing:

There have been a number of frauds out there over the century promoting healing and cleaning people out with false teachings.  Typically though, they feed on those that do not know the Word of God and they twist it to the point that you have to “send in” for something such as healing cloths, healing oils and what not.  Given the full council of God’s Word, you would be able to see that healing is for every Christian and is part of the New Covenant.  Yes, our body will be redeemed later so that it cannot ever by harmed and know no pain, but God provides us healing now so that we do not have to die of sickness or disease. When God says our life has come to an end, He will simply stop our heart or breath and we go home.  It is not God’s will for any believer to die a torturous death.

Disease and sickness is from our system being perverted either by what we do to our bodies or what the enemy does to it.  Some of this perversion of our cells happen even before birth as we are in a fallen world and things are corrupt.  That does mean we have to live that way through out our lives, God is our healer, He has provided us healing.  Remember, He lives IN all of us who are Born Again, all the power of creation resides in us and the only requirement is faith without doubts.

Often people think some are not meant to be healed, I mean, look at Paul’s thorn.  It seems that often Paul is used as proof that God does not bless some people or that He DESIRES that some be sick to teach them lessons.  First and foremost, if you believe this way, how do you expect to ever receive from God.  If it is God’s will for people to be sick, then why do you fight against it?  God loves you, He wants you healed more than you want to be healed.  Look to Jesus and you will see how much He values you.  BTW, Paul’s thorn has nothing to do with sickness and there is biblical proof for the reasonable mind.

Others think that God takes different methods to heal people.  You know, that some times you go through surgeries and have them cut out this or that, or make you barely exist while burying you in debts.  What does the Bible say the sick are to do, it is clear?

Jas 5:14 ~ Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

How clear do you need it?  A note here though, who are the “Elders” and what is required of them?

There are many healing passages in the Bible but one of my favorites is in Psalms:

Psa 103:1-5 ~ Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

So, why are some not healed?  Simply, it is faith, doubts or sin, I know of no other possibilities.  If we have no unrepentant sin in our lives, if we do not have any unforgiveness (again sin) in our heart, and if we have faith without doubts (usually the biggest stumbling block), then we will be healed.  If you go to the elders and have them pray over your anointing you with oil and do not appear healed, then it is up to you to study and draw close to God as you need to remove doubts and develop more trust in Him.  The issue is not with God but with Us!  It is all about relationship, if you have an intimate relationship with someone you will know if you can trust them and if they are trustworthy, nothing can break that trust or cause doubts.  Same goes with God, if your relationship is strong, you will have no doubts.

Prosperity:

This is one area that may have fallen into continual bashing.  While healing is needed at times, many people want prosperity in their lives and if they do not see it, they can get the feeling that people are saying it is due to sin or something they lack or they would be prosperous.  Other times, it is bitterness in them because they have tried and followed some of the teachings out there only to have sunken deeper in debt purchasing books, CDs, videos, etc without any improvement.  When it is all over they blame the teaching or the minister.

There are a number of ministers that virtually flaunt wealth and often their messages are focused on wealth as they sell their teachings or ask for offerings.  Do we throw the baby out with the bathwater? If the teaching lines up with the Word of God, then we should do more study.

The first question is does God want us to be prosperous?

Psa 35:27 ~ Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the LORD be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.

Pro 10:22 ~ The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.

Ecc 5:18-20 ~ Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion. Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God. For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth him in the joy of his heart.

Deu 8:18 ~ But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.

It is God who gives us power to get wealth.  It is for us to use that power.  There is a catch however, what do you call wealthy and what is the wealth used for?

Jas 4:2-3 ~ Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

If we want wealth to be wealthy, we only want for ourselves, then we are asking amiss. Often it can be hard to tell if you are asking amiss as we can be quite good and justifying desires that wrong.  In that same line, if we ask without believing or with doubts that it is God’s will, we can be in the same boat.  There are many passages in the Bible that refer to wealth and prosperity, but I find one interesting in Proverbs:

Pro 30:7-9 ~ Two things have I required of thee; deny me them not before I die: Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.

I am not sure how much that one applies in today’s world with us having God living inside us, as the Spirit will guide us if we listen, but still the point that we should have a level at which we say “that is enough for me”.  I think anything more than that opens doors to the enemy and a weakness in us.

Well, what about Paul again you might ask.  Yes, he said he had done without and has lived with and without.  In some spots it almost sounds as if he is trying to coerce others into giving to help those in Jerusalem. I go back to the Gospels though, when Jesus sent all the ministers, He sent them without anything and after their ministry, He asked them if they lacked anything and they said they did not.  With the:

• Volume of Scripture showing clearly a blessing upon those that follow after righteousness
• The ministry of Jesus and those He sent out
• Quotes like “I have not seen the righteous forsaken nor his seed begging bread”
• The fact that Poverty is claimed under the Curse
• We have the blessings of Abraham being grafted in
• We have all Spiritual Blessings in Jesus

The only rational conclusion is prosperity, like healing is there for those that take hold and possess it.  Remember, the enemy will fight you at every turn to deny the Word of God.  We need to study and know what God has to offer.  All of us should be more like Peter, he was always ready to reach out for all that God had to offer, he was the only one who asked to walk on water, even though he was not sure, he still asked and he was the only one of them that did walk on water.

Just because we do not see God move in our lives with something, we must not pull into a shell and say something is wrong without clear study and a close walk with God. 

All about the money?

Okay, in today’s world there are a number of ministries that seem sell a lot of things and there are others that continually beg for money.  Are they all evil?

While I believe there are some ministries only after money and it is business and nothing more, we still need proceed carefully.  I have seen videos of a man back in the 70's that he himself made of him fleecing the flock and being proud of it.  On the platform he sounds like many other ministers but when he left, he was downright evil, rejoicing at how much money he tricked out of the people by lies and acting.  I personally think this type of thing happens although it is not that common in the top ministries, but probably more so among the smaller ones that go from place to place.  Even with that though, what is to be said?

Php 1:12-18 ~ But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will: The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds: But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel.

What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice.

If Christ is being preached and people are pointed to the Bible as truth, then what should we do?  If you have proof that someone is false, in that they are intentionally deceiving people for the purpose of personal gain, then that should be exposed by turning to the leaders of the Church, but if you are moving completely on feelings, then you should be silent as you do not know the person's heart, you are placing yourself as Judge on them without knowing all the facts and that is a scary place to be found.

As an example, I have heard people say that certain TV evangelists are only out for money, they are just milking the people.  First, do you know this for a fact, you have proof or is it just "gut feelings"?  We have to understand that some ministries claim God has lead them to receive offerings. Are you sure they have not heard from God?  What if your eternal life depending on your claims, are you sure they are only after money?  I am not asking are you sure they “are after money”, but that they are “Only” after money.  There is a difference.

Some do fall into the money trap.  I have heard ministers say they promised God they would never beg for money.  Then a few months or years down the road they would have their assistants start asking for money and then eventually, they start down that path themselves until the message about needing money takes more and more time.  What has happened?  Were they false from the beginning?

Often ministers fall into this trap by either other ministers telling them it is God's will or they fall on hard times and instead of shrinking the ministry the find out how much can be brought in by simply making a request.  That is a slippery slope since they are putting trust in themselves and not in God.  But there are few that I think would handle this with control and not fall into the trap, if they do not have good consul around them to warning them when they start to fall.  Can you imagine if you had a large multimillion dollar ministry, the funds dried up and you were looking at a financial collapse, how tempting it would be if all it would take is a few words to the people and you would have more than enough to pay for everything?  Think of how easily it would be in your mind to justify that!  Remember ministers are still just like every one of us, they make mistakes just the same.

What next?

Okay, so you know a ministry that have fallen in a money trap or one with invalid doctrine.  If you know this is intentional and you have proof, then you need to take it to your spiritual leaders and see where to go from there.  I do not believe it is God’s will for you to just spew this out whenever you have a chance to slam against everyone who has a ministry on TV.  There are many things that can be done for false ministries, but often maybe all that is required is for the Church leaders to warn their congregation against that ministry and pray for them.  If however it is a blanket attack against TV Evangelists, then I do not believe it is from God.  Since the creation of TV, God has used the media to reach people through ministers ministering the Word.  Millions of people have come into the Kingdom of God by the use of media. 

Just because we might not like or agree with a certain doctrine, it does not mean we throw away that ministry.  As an example, I am a young earth creationist and do not find any Scriptural proof of a prior world nor billions or millions of years in creation.  There are many ministries that teach an old earth, long creation, but while I have strong feelings against this do I throw out their ministry as evil.  There are some that I have doubts about because of their violent attacks on young earth creationists along with how they twist volumes of Scripture, but it is hard to judge as we cannot tell the intent of their hearts.  Now however, if someone says evolution is the the true creation, then I consider their ministers completely false.  The reason for the difference is simply that you cannot believe in the God shown in the Bible while denying the Creation account and saying that Mankind evolved.  This is complete heresy and must be rejected.

What do we do if you have found a fault in a ministry but we have no proof or it is just a doctrinal issue, are we free to bash them now?  NO!  Is it Christ like to bash others in the work?  Some might say, “Well look at how Jesus talked to the religious leaders”.  What were the “religious leaders” doing or did Jesus claim there were doing?  Often it was simply because they exalted themselves as judge over people, showing themselves as more “Holy” than others and at times because they attacked His ministry as being false and not of God.  Sounds familiar doesn’t it?

For those continually bashing Christian TV and Televangelists, let me ask you a couple of question,

• How long have you fasted and prayed for those ministries before you bashed them in front of others?
• Have you removed all beams out of your eyes first so you can see clearly to make yourself judge over them?
• How many souls have they bought into the Kingdom and how many have your brought in?

We need to examine our intentions and see if they are pure before God.  While all ministries we have seen on TV or off are not perfect and we can find fault with them all, it does not mean we need to attack them mercilessly for ever fault we find, it should be viewed as a reminder to pray for them.  Do you believe in the power of prayer?  If so, then use it!  We do not have time to waste judging everyone for not living up to the true measuring stick, which is Jesus, but we are all called to help.

Conclusion

If you happen to be a person that is given to bashing Televangelist or the doctrines of Prosperity, Word of Faith or Healing, I ask you to look prayerfully inside to see if there is not a root of anger or bitterness.  The Bible is full of Scriptures telling us that God is Good and He is Good to His People.  But we need to be open to Him in order to obtain His Goodness.  God does not force anything on us.

Pick up the Bible (not a reference one with all the commentaries and all that stuff, just the basic Bible) and read it from cover to cover, study!  Do not go to outside studies, focus on the Bible alone.  Be sure to read the four Gospels over and over and over.  Seek out the nature of God and see that God is Good and He only wants Good for you and hate has no place in His Goodness.

If you have a comment, use the “Contact” option at the top of the page to send me a note.

Tonight, while listening to Kenneth Copeland’s grandson, Jeremy Pearsons talk on faith, I was moved by the power of some statements that often find their way into our minds, but we seem to look at them from the wrong perspective.  The message is basically trying to force us to keep our eye on the fact that our faith is in Jesus the Christ and is where it needs to stay.

In his teaching, Jeremy would take the word Faith when used and add “In Jesus the Christ” to the end of it.  So, instead of “have faith”, it would be “have faith in Jesus the Christ”.  Sounds simple enough with many common phrases, but then he hit one that opened my eyes a bit to point he was making.  In his example, instead of saying “I am not sure I have faith enough for .. “ would be replaced with “I am not sure I have faith enough in Jesus the Christ for ..”.  This is really what is being said, but it is much more palatable in the former method as it does not directly invoke Jesus.

One of my recent eye openers over the last six months was the passage in Mark 9:24 where the man who had a devil possessed boy brought him to the disciples, but they could not cast the devils out.  Jesus said to him “if thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth”.  The man then replied (out of the new Living Translation), “I do believe, but help me not to doubt”.  When I came upon this translation it made more sense since the other versions which typically translated like “I believe but help my unbelief” which did not seem clear.  When I saw the use of doubts, I realized that you can believe in something but still have doubts that you need to work out.  The only problem here is that it still leaves an open door for that “who knows” feeling and that someday, just maybe we will overcome our doubts.  We do not really consider what we are doubting about or doubting in.

By applying the above principle, we would have to ask ourselves doubt in what?  We have faith IN something we also have doubts IN something.  In the end of the day, it comes down to doubts that Jesus will do as promised.  So, we then see the problem is that we do not trust that God will fulfill His Word.  This gives us a direction to seek God to eliminate error in us and forces us into His Word to find more proof so that we will believe.

Way back when in the 40’s and 50’s, my grandfather was a minister and I managed to get a few of his services that were on reel-to-reel tape.  In one service, he was talking about what we have placed our faith in, that all of us walk in faith, but what is that which we place our faith on.  This moved around in my mind back a number of years ago and I realized that many people have built for themselves there own gods.  For some it is a god of supposed science where evolution and the unknown allows them to live without worry of what comes after this life.  Others have made a god of desire, living a hedonistic lifestyle merely to fulfill their own pleasure without regard to others or a greater good.  There are even those that may call themselves Christians that have created a god they claim is the God the Bible describers, but they leave out the attributes that are unpleasing to them, in the god they have created, often making a god that allows a believer to live as they please without any demands upon them and in the end, their god is not a god of justice nor morality, but one that leads again to a hedonistic lifestyle washing you from all conviction.

Anyone can create whatever kind of god they so desire, but when this life is over and often even throughout this life, they miss out as their god is nothing more than a thought they cared to imagination.  They will at one time or another come face-to-face with the true God of the Bible and it will not matter how good they were nor what they did in the name of their imaginary god, they will move into eternity without God and face everlasting damnation.

So, in what or whom have you placed your faith?  May it only be on the God of the Bible without modification nor emulations, for it is only this God that will give you peace and life with Him. 

On September 29th, 2008 the Dow Jones Industrial average dropped its biggest single day point drop in history.  This was not the record percentage drop, but the record actual point drop.

There is a large percentage of people very concerned with the future with all the economic uncertainty along with many other spiritual, social, economical and governmental woes we are currently witnessing.   In the natural, the future seems a bit bleak and for some, a fearful part of their lives.  Fortunes are being lost and a many are watching their retirement funds dropping like a brick.

While at a prayer meeting recently, a brother pointed something out which confirmed what I had noticed.  Some may say it is just a coincidence, but what are the real odds in seeing a record set with a 777 (plus a little change) point drop?  It was not 776, nor 778, but 777!  To much of the world that does not mean anything, but to us Christians, that is a very meaningful number since it is two of the most important numbers in the Bible.  We all know that three is important for the trinity, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Most Christians also recognize the seven as God’s number of completion such as the seven days of creation, the seven Spirits before God (read the Book of the Revelation and find the number’s significance).

On such a dark day to our economy and after so many people have been in distress worried about the economic future, it was much like God was saying, “Do not worry, have faith for I am in control and I will take care of and provide for your”.  It is not a word or prophecy or anything like that, it is just a point to be noticed and a reminder that we should have our faith in God and not in the things of this world. 

We as Christians do not have to worry about our futures, we are supposed to trust in God, knowing that He loves us and has our future in His capable hands.  Our part is simple, place our trust in Him and walk in His light and He will be with us and provide as the situation demands.  After all, He loves us and only wants what is best for us.  We only have to read our Bibles and see example after example of God’s faithfulness to those that walk in His ways and are His.

Psa 37:18-19 ~ The LORD knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

Is your alarm set to wake up and get busy for God?  A few days away, that mode of as soon as I get through with this or that?  If it is, then your alarm needs adjustment, that day will never come, as you will only find more things to keep the alarm from ever sounding until it is too late.

Is your alarm set for months or years away, such as when the kids are grown or other responsibilities no longer require you.  This also will never happen and you are only fooling yourself.  The enemy of the Cross has you where they want you, always put off the work of God…

Is your alarm set to go off when someone else comes by and helps it sound?  That is, you are waiting for others to come along and stir a fire in your soul?  What are you waiting for then, Jesus has already came along and stirred you, now it is time to wake up!

What will it take for you to push the cares of this world to the back burner and actually take the time to seek God’s face and have His Holy Spirit flow through you?  Do you really need to have yourself or a loved one experience a life-death situation before you wake up?  Perhaps it will take the loss of everything that is important to you? 

Remember, you are bought with a price and are no longer your own.  You have been purchased, it is time to wake up and take your place in the Body of the Christ.  It is not my words, it is:

1Co 6:19-20 ~  What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?  For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

Rom 12:1-2 ~ I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Rom 6:19 ~ I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

Luk 17:7-10 ~  But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat?  And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink?  Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not.  So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.

2Co 6:16-18 ~  And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

Bothers and Sisters in the Christ, it is time that we walk in newness of life and no longer looking, acting or partaking of things as the world does.  We are set for better things than the temporal form of this world, we are called to set our affections on the things that are above as in Colossians chapter 3.

Do you not realize that God dwells IN YOU and He has available to you the entire power of creation to do His work?  His power is in you and ready to be used:

Eph 3:20-21 ~ Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by the Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

If you do not already know it, you are called to higher things than the mere entanglements of this life.  You, not just some others, but You are important to the Body of the Christ and You are to grow until the full stature of Christ:

Eph 4:11-16 ~ And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

How would you like to heal the sick by anointing them with oil and praying over them?  This is what believers are supposed to do:

Mar 16:17-18 ~ And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

This is no different than when Jesus sent out the disciples and then the seventy, He told them:

Luk 10:19 ~ Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Mat 10:7-8 ~ And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.  Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

This is not just for the top ministers or a select few, this is for all believers.  Remember, God dwells IN YOU.  Also remember, healing is just one of the Gifts of the Spirit.  It is time to wake up and use your supernatural Gifts of the Spirit.

Maybe it is time to spend a few days in a burn center or a child cancer center.  That should wake you up and look at the things of this world as being dimmed and of no importance as you earnestly seek a move of God through your life.

Whatever it takes, just wake up.  It is no longer time to sleep, it is time for work, while we have the chance.  The Lord could return at any time and the time for work will be over.  Even if the Lord should tarry a little while more, tragedy could come into your life tomorrow, are you prepared, walking with the Master to know you will be able to receive of His power in that time of need?

WAKE UP!