Dream Big!!!

Think back to when you were a child or talk to a child today and ask them what they want to be when they grow up. You may hear a doctor, an actor, a football player, or many other possibilities. Children dream big and they believe that they will achieve their goals but as they grow up, many are told they may have to settle on something else for their future. Some make it to that dream because they never let go of it.

Once we get to adulthood, I think our ability to dream gets drowned out by the worry and stresses of everyday life.  How nice it would be if we could allow ourselves to dream again and not talk ourselves out of that dream because we think it is just not possible. It’s too late or I just don’t have the money, we can come up with all kinds of reasons why something is unreachable.

God gave each of us an imagination for a reason and He wants us to use it. In fact, our imagination is an important part of our faith walk with God. Think about it, the definition of imagination is the forming of mental images or concepts of what is not actually present to the senses. I think that goes hand in hand with what it says in Hebrew 11:1 – Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. It is difficult to maintain faith for something that you cannot see in your imagination, in fact, I would go as far as to say that it is impossible.

There is a show on television where you can watch people on their journey to buy a house. As they look at each house, it is usually seen from two different perspectives. One would only see what is in front of them and the other sees the potential of what that house could be in the future. There is great power in our imaginations and they can be a catalyst to move us into the life that God wants us to have.

God asked Abram to leave everything and everyone that he knew and go to an unknown place, and God also told Abram that He would make him a great nation. God greatly prospered Abram during his journey but there were still no descendants.   The first time we see God giving Abram a mental picture of His promise is in Genesis 13:14-17. God tells him that his descendants will be like the dust of the earth meaning that Abram will have so many descendants that they cannot be counted, and they will live in the land God was showing him.  This visual was important because it sparked Abram’s imagination, so he could have the mental image to meditate on. Some time had passed and still no descendant and Abram brought his concerns to God. In Genesis 15:1-6, God gave Abram another mental picture of His promise. This time God showed Abram the stars and said his descendants will be so numerous that you cannot count them, and Abram believed Him. Abram had to deal with the outside influence of another who did not have the mental image that he had.  Abram’s wife laid out her plan to have a child and Abram listened and then he settled. I believe this postponed the promised child for many years because Abram settled for something less than his dream. God had to revive that dream and He did so by changing Abram’s name to Abraham in Genesis 17:3-5. Abraham means “father of many”, so every time someone said his new name, they were calling him a father of many.  Now that is one way to keep a dream alive.

God has a plan for every one of our lives and it is a good plan, Jeremiah 29:11.

We can give our imaginations over to God and He will help us get our mental image. Once we get our mental image, it is our job to keep a tight hold on it and not let outside influence corrupt it. This will help keep our faith strong for the future.   

Ephesians 3:20   Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think,                                           according to the power that works within us…

Dream Big!!!

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Spiritual Victory

I was watching a sermon by Robert Morris on resurrection day and it was amazing. The revelation of how the spiritual and the natural realms are connected is awesome. When we look at the finished works of Jesus, we must look at His life, His death, and His resurrection because they all are a vital part of God’s plan.  I would like to look at the events of resurrection day, both natural and spiritual and hopefully you will gain revelation on what Jesus did for us.

Jesus was preparing His disciples for all that He had to go and do when He said He would be going away and then coming back, but do we think about what He was doing while He was gone?

John 14:1-2         Don’t let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me…for I go to prepare a place for you.

John 14:25-29     …because I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. Now I have told you before it happens, so                                 that when it happens, you may believe.

I love how Jesus says that He will go and prepare a place for us, that is what He was doing while gone from the earth but as we will see, He was busy.

All the disciples knew was that Jesus was gone, we usually talk about how Jesus told them that He would be back but they didn’t listen and now He was back and reveals Himself to Mary at the tomb but tells her not to touch Him. Then He says that He has not gone to the Father yet so where has He been and why can’t Mary touch Him?

John 20:1             Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark…

John 20:16-17     Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to (touch) Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My                                 brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”

  Greek: Cling – haptomai – to attach oneself to, that is to touch. (Translated as touch 36 times and cling once)

We know that Jesus was going to see His Father after He saw Mary at the tomb. I love that Jesus says, “My Father and your Father, and My God and your God”.

Where had Jesus been for the three days in the tomb? We know that He was taking care of business, but He said that He had not yet ascended to the Father and that is where He told Mary that He is going now. We can see where Jesus went in these two scriptures.

Ephesians 4:8-10 Therefore He says: “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gift to men.” (Now                                 this, “He ascended” – what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the                                 earth? He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all                                 things.)

1 Peter 3:18-20  Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but He died for sinners to bring you      NLT                        safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but He was raised to life in the Spirit. So, He went and                                 preached to the spirits in prison – those who disobeyed God long ago…

We can see here that Jesus went to preach the good news of Himself to those who had died and were in prison. This shows us that God had a plan of salvation for everyone that has ever walked on the earth, none were left out. Jesus was not just hanging out for three days, He was busy telling all who would listen about Himself and the freedom they would now have if they believe in Him. This is why Jesus had not gone to the Father yet.

Now, we are back to Jesus at the tomb with Mary and He told her not to touch Him. When you think about it, Jesus was still the perfect sacrifice for all mankind, but He had not been presented to the Father yet. So, it makes sense that Mary could not touch Him until He had been presented to God.  Let’s look at what happened next by reading the vision that Daniel had of what happened in the spiritual realm. When Daniel had this vision, none of this had happened yet, it was a vision of what was going to happen, and it is awesome that we can see what took place in the spirit.

Daniel 7:9-12      I watched till thrones were put in place and the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as                                 snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, it wheels a burning fire;                        …The court was seated, and the books were opened.

Wow, what a scene to imagine but this is what Jesus saw when He went to see His Father, the Ancient of Days. I know this sounds like the final judgement of when we all stand before God but as you can read, this is talking about the judgement of the enemy and his angels. They lost their dominion over the earth on this day and it was given to Jesus.

Daniel 7:13-14    … and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of                                 Days, and they brought Him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a                                    kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting                                 dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom is one which shall not be destroyed.

This judgement seat of God was set to take back what the enemy had stolen back in the garden and give it to Jesus.

Daniel 7:21-22    I was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them,                                 until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgement was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and                                 the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom.

This was a court room where judgement was made in favor of the saints (us) and at this moment, the saints (believers) were given the kingdom of God!!! Now that is exciting news!! We get to see when Jesus was victorious, and the enemy lost it all.

When Jesus returned to earth, He walked with two disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24) and brought the disciples back gifts of peace and the Holy Spirit. Now that Jesus has dominion and the saints have the kingdom, it is time to go to work.

John 20:19-23     So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week…

                                So, Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

                                … “Receive the Holy Spirit” …

We can see here that Jesus went and offered Himself as the sacrifice to the Father in heaven on the day of resurrection. That is when all dominion was given to Him and the saints (believers) were given the kingdom.

Hebrews 9:12     Not the blood of goats or calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all,                                 having obtained eternal redemption.

Before Jesus went to the cross, He gave a glimpse of what was about to happen in the spiritual realm. I want you to notice that Jesus says “now” twice, that means that all this took place now, not later.

John 12:31-32     “Now judgement is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up                                 from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.”

After ascending to our Father as the sacrifice for us, Jesus said:

Matthew 28:18  And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on                                 earth.”

Jesus took back all that the enemy had stolen from Adam through His death and resurrection. I love that we can see this clearly in the scriptures so that there is no doubt of what Jesus did for us. The enemy and his angels no longer have dominion on this earth, they have been kicked out of heaven. Dominion was given to the saints and we are the saints of God. We have dominion!

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Spiritual Battle

God has our best interest at heart! We have a wonderful Father who wants to take care of His children. The one thing we need to remember is that there is an enemy out there that wants to kill, steal and destroy us. I am posting the notes from a recent bible study that I did that looks at the natural vs the spiritual side of things.  God is always working behind the scenes for His children. I believe that this bible study illustrates how much God has done for us that we cannot even see. This is a great reminder that we are in a spiritual battle and we need to remember who our enemy is.

The original plan that God had for man was for him to have dominion or rule over the earth. God created the earth for man, but the enemy was jealous and wanted to rule over all so he deceived Adam and Eve in order to get the dominion that God had given to man.

Genesis 1:28       God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; …

The enemy was successful and now he was the god of this world and had dominion over it. God cursed the serpent and gave him warning that Jesus (her Seed) would be coming to reverse what he had done and gain back dominion over the earth.

Genesis 3:15       And I will put enmity between you (serpent) and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He                                 shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”

The enemy remembered that the Seed from the woman would remove him from his position so his obsession with finding Jesus started from that day forward. The enemy was forced to search for the Seed from the woman by relying on information gathered from earth because, unlike God, he cannot be everywhere at once. When we look at these scriptures in revelation, I believe that the enemy cast one third of the stars (angels) down to earth to help him find out all that he could to destroy the Seed.

Revelation 12:1-2 And a great sign was seen in heaven, a woman having been clothed with the sun, and the moon                                 underneath her feet, and on her head was a crown of twelve stars; and having a babe in womb …

Revelation 12:3-4 … And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave                                 birth, he might devour her child.

We can see that the scriptures in Matthew show us what was happening here on earth as the enemy looked for the Seed.  I am sure that the enemy thought he had Jesus right here.

Matthew 2:1-10 And he (Herod) sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when                                 you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him”.

In the spirit realm, God made the way of protection and provision for Jesus where the enemy could not find Him. We have our place of protection and provision in the secret place of the Most High. God has already made our place of protection and provision just like He did for Jesus.

Revelation 12:5-6 And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all nations with a rod of iron; and her child                                 was caught up to God and to His throne. Then the woman fled into the wilderness (desert, solitary)                                 where she had a place prepared by God, so that there she would be nourished…

We can see this play out on the earth when God sent Joseph to Egypt (a solitary place or a desert) for a period of time. Provision for their time in the desert was made for them by gifts brought to them from the magi.

Matthew 2:10-12 … opening their (Magi) treasuries, they presented to Him (Jesus) gifts of gold, frankincense and                                 myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi left or their own country                                 by another way.

Matthew 2:13-16 …behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and                                 His mother and flee to Egypt and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child                                 to destroy Him.”

The enemy was not successful in destroying the child, so he had to wait for Jesus to show himself later and that time happened when Jesus was baptized and led to the wilderness (desert or solitary place). God protected Jesus once again, He was full of the Holy Spirit before going into the wilderness.

Luke 4:1                Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness                                 (desert, solitary) for forty days, being tempted by the devil.

Luke 4:6                And the devil said to Him, “I will give you all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to                                 me, and I give it to whomever I wish.

I believe that this battle between Jesus and the enemy happened in the spirit realm also.  Jesus was in human form and operated as a human while on the earth so the battle would have taken place in His mind, will and emotions.  When you think about how the enemy attacks us today, the battle happens in our minds. Scripture says that Jesus was tempted in every way that we are, and the mind is where temptation starts. Also, this states that Satan showed Jesus all the kingdoms in the world in a moment. This would have to take place in the imagination, or they would have been flying around the earth like superman (and I still think it would take longer than a moment). What I am trying to say here is that Jesus had to face fear, pain and heartache the exact same way that we do and that is by relying on God. God gave us the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth and give us the wisdom we need in any situation. Our part in this is to look to Him in all that we do. Full of the Holy Spirit, this does not mean that Jesus didn’t already have the Holy Spirit, it means that He was filled up and ready to face what He had to face. We can ask God to fill us up with the Holy Spirit so we can be ready to face whatever it is we need to face here on earth. We need to remember that there is a spiritual battle going on and it is not just what we can see.

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Abiding in His Word

Here is the last bible study in this series. I hope you enjoy it and gain more insight from God as I have in studying it.

In His teachings, Jesus spoke of abiding in Him so my question to God was, how do you abide in Jesus?

This is what God showed me:

John 8:31-32       So Jesus was saying to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word (logos), then you                                                 are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

John 15:4-6         Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so                                                   neither can you unless you abide in Me.

John 15:7             If you abide in Me, and My words (rhema) abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done                                                 for you.

Jesus is God’s word so when you continue (remain or stay) in it, you are His disciple (a learner or student). When we continuously remain or stay in God’s written word, we are reading it and thinking about it, we are abiding in Jesus.  Jesus takes it one step further in John 15:7, He is telling us that when we continuously stay or remain in His word, then He will give us a specific word for our lives and if we believe and trust in that specific word from God,  then we will be able to ask God for whatever we wish, as it pertains to that specific word, and He will give it to us.

An example would be that God has given you a specific word about His purpose for your future, maybe that you are to go to a faraway place to share the gospel. If you keep that specific word in front of you and ask for God’s help in making it happen, He will answer that request. The key here is that God gave you that specific word.

Jesus tells us how this works in the parable of the sower. He tells of a sower, who went out to sow seed and the different types of ground the seed fell on but then Jesus reveals to His disciples what the parable means.

Luke 8:11-15       Now the parable is this: the seed is the word (logos) of God….…But the seed in the good soil, these are                                                 the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with                                       perseverance.

When you read the entire explanation that Jesus gives, you can see that three of the heart conditions did not make the logos word of God a priority in their lives. But what made the last heart condition honest and good was that the logos word of God was accepted as truth and important. Then the word remained (held fast) so that fruit was then produced with perseverance. Now we look at the word perseverance and we may think that it’s a bad thing, but it means endurance or constancy. If we consistently keep or abide in the word of God, we will have results, we will hear a rhema word from God and we will have fruit in our lives.

If our minds are soil and Jesus is telling us that planting God’s word will produce fruit in our lives.

Will words planted from the enemy or the world produce fruit also?

We can see how Jesus handled the enemy’s words and did not let them take root.

We have heard the following scriptures taught many times, but I would like you to look at them in a new light.

Let’s look at Luke 4:1-13

Luke 4:1                Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, for                                                 forty days, being tempted by the devil.

The Greek word for led is “ago”, it means to lead or to bring drive. We know that the Holy Spirit did not physically appear to Jesus and grab him by the hand and lead Him into the wilderness. It was a leading He felt inside.

Luke 4:5                And he (devil) led Him (Jesus) up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment in time.

The Greek word for led is “anago” which means to lead up or sail away.  As you can see, its origin is from the original word we looked at in verse one.

Luke 4:9                And he (devil) led Him (Jesus) to Jerusalem and had Him stand on a pinnacle of the temple, …

The Greek word for led is “ago”, the same word used in verse one for the Holy Spirit leading Jesus.

I don’t know about you, but when I would read these scriptures, I would visualize the devil appearing in front of Jesus and the two of them flying off to each one of these temptations. Which would really make it a little easier to do battle because you can see your enemy but think about it in a different perspective.

Knowing that the Holy Spirit leads us from within and the enemy will put thoughts into our heads and try to lead us from within, wouldn’t it make sense that this is the same way he led Jesus. We can see that Luke used the same or similar word to describe Jesus being led. Also, the enemy showed Jesus all the kingdoms in a moment of time. Now that would have to take place while flying around really fast or it would happen in the imagination of the mind.

I believe that this battle between Jesus and the enemy happened in the spirit realm of the mind, remember that Jesus was in human form and operated as a human while here. Jesus may have even willingly walked to these different places because the enemy could not force Him, the enemy could only influence. Also, it does not say that all of these temptations happened after the forty days were complete or in that exact order because Matthew’s account is in a different order than Luke’s.

With all that being said, Jesus had to do battle with temptation the same way we do. He had to know when the enemy was speaking to Him and depend on the Holy Spirit to help Him through. Isn’t that what we have to deal with today? We have different voices in our head trying to guide us and we have to purposefully keep our focus on God.

It builds my faith to know that Jesus went through the same thing.

God cares about our thought life and it is important to keep your focus on God’s word. We can see how much God cares in the following scriptures.

James 4:7-8        Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will                                                 draw near to you….

The first step is submitting to God and how do you do that, get into His word and learn to trust Him. Then you can resist what the enemy says to you and cut off his influence in your life. The promise here is awesome, when you draw near to God (make Him first place in your life), He WILL draw near to you.

Once you submit to God, He wants to go to work on all the lies that have been fed to you and have taken root.

Matthew 15:13                  But He (Jesus) answered and said, “Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be                                                           rooted up.

When you first read this scripture, you would think that God is rooting out bad people but if you look at this in context, He just told a parable about how words defile a person (Matt 15:10,18).  When you read and speak God’s word, it takes root and the more you do it, the more those roots will take over in your heart. All the lies from the enemy and the world have already taken root on the inside and it will take time for God’s word to choke all of that out. It is just like the parable of the sower that we looked at, but with the opposite effect.

God sent Jesus to show us His nature and to heal all that were oppressed by the devil.

What does it mean to be oppressed by the devil?

Acts 10:38            You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how                                                 He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.

Let’s do a little Greek word study:

                Good – euergeteo – to be philanthropic, do good.

                                                        Dictionary: Philanthropy – altruistic concern for human welfare and advancement.

                 Healing – iaomai –          to cure, heal, make whole

God is concerned with your human condition and wants to make you whole by bringing you up into His kingdom!

                Oppressed – katadunasteuo –    To exercise dominion against

                                                It comes from the word “kata” meaning down (in place or time)

                                                And is a derivative of the word “dunastes” meaning a ruler or officer, of great authority

                Devil – a traducer, false accuser, slanderer

The devil falsely accuses us or lies to us in an attempt to keep us down and from being made whole. He will try to hold us down under his false authority by feeding us lies and hoping they will take root in our hearts. When we believe his lies, it keeps us away from all that God wants to do in our lives. God loves you and wants His best for you!

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The Word is Vital

In the last bible study, we looked at how Jesus is the Word of God and how God sent Jesus to heal and deliver His people from the beginning. Then we looked at how powerful God’s word really is because it is alive and working for whoever speaks it.

Luke 21:33           Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words (logos) will not pass away.

We can see once again just how powerful God’s word is. It will last forever, beyond everything that we can see.

The Greek word used for “word” in this scripture is logos, which means “something said.

Now let’s dig a little deeper into God’s word:

1 Peter 1:23-25  You have been regenerated (born again), not from a mortal origin (seed, sperm), but from one that is AMPC                   immortal by the living and lasting Word (logos) of God. For all flesh (mankind) is like grass, and all its                                 glory (honor) like the flower of the grass. The grass withers and the flower drops off. But the Word                                 (rhema) of the Lord (divine instruction) endure forever. And this Word (rhema) is the good news                                   which was preached to you.

When you read this in the Amplified Classic Version, you can see that verse 23 is referring to us being born again in Jesus and Peter uses the Greek word “logos” to describe Him. Then in verse 25, Peter uses a different Greek word in reference to “the word”, he uses “rhema” in this verse twice. This can be a little confusing because the English translation for both “logos” and “rhema” is word, but they have different meanings.

The best description that I have found to help in understanding this:

Logos is a word (spoken/written) given generally – the general word of God that communicates His ability to do something or His general will on a matter.

Rhema is a word (spoken/written) given specifically – the word the Holy Spirit quickens to a specific person for a specific situation.

Logos & Rhema are always in alignment with one another.

Peter is stating that the apostles were teaching and preaching the word that was given to them directly from God. God was guiding them in their teachings using the Holy Spirit. Paul confirms this when he states, “all scripture is inspired by God” (2 Timothy 3:16). When Paul said this, all scripture had not been put together yet, so this was from God for us today.

Jesus gave His disciples a very specific word about communion in John 6:52-58 and they were having a hard time receiving it because it was like nothing they had ever heard before. Later they understood what Jesus was saying because He demonstrated the drinking of His blood and eating of His body during the last supper. But in the moment that Jesus first made this statement the disciples were grumbling which led Jesus to say the following:

John 6:63             It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words (rhema) that I have spoken to you                                 are spirit and are life.

Jesus used the word “rhema” in this scripture which tells me that this was a specific word from God to the disciples. Jesus is telling them that in our flesh or natural mind, we will not be able to understand the specific word that God wants to impart to us. We will get frustrated because we don’t understand, that happens at times when reading the bible and we don’t understand what it is trying to say to us. The only way to understand is with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can ask for help in understanding and God will assist us every time.

A great example of this for me is when Jesus is talking about receiving the Holy Spirit and the following scripture was one that I didn’t fully understand:

John 16:12-15     He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has                                 are Mine therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.

I know that disclose means to reveal or uncover, but how would the Holy Spirit reveal what belongs to Jesus?

Jesus is the Word (Logos), which is God’s general will and ability on things.

The Holy Spirit brings us the word (Rhema), which is God’s word given for a specific situation.

Which means that the Holy Spirit will:

                 take from Logos (God’s general word) and give you Rhema (God’s specific word for your situation).

When we allow the Holy Spirit to speak into our lives, we build up our faith and trust in the finish work of Jesus.

Romans 10:17    So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word (rhema) of Christ.

This is telling us that the specific word from God is going to strengthen us and keep us in our time of need. I’m not saying that we should not rely on the written word of God, but I am saying that asking God to give us greater understanding of His word will bring His written word alive in us. Just like Jesus said in John 6:63, His rhema word is spirit and life.

Another instance when the rhema word of God is important is during spiritual warfare. Paul is telling us here that our sword is a specific word from God for our situation.

Ephesians 6:17   And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word (rhema) of God.

Reading and declaring the written word of God over our lives is very important and there may be times when you don’t have a specific word from God. Continuing to spend time in God’s written word is important while you seek God for His specific word over your situation and that can only be done by asking Him for it.

Jesus used His sword when He was being tempted by the enemy in the wilderness. As you can see, Jesus’ words are from the logos word of God in the old testament but became the rhema word of God when the Holy Spirit quickened them to Him to say at just the right time. This is also why Jesus used the word “rhema” when He spoke. When we are feeding on the written word of God, the Holy Spirit will bring to mind the specific word that fits our situation and that is what we use as our sword.

Matthew 4:4      But He (Jesus) answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word                                 (rhema) that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’”

God will give us His specific word when we ask, seek or knock:

Matthew 7:7-8  Ask, and it will be given to you: seek, and you will find: knock, and it will be opened to you. For                                      everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

I don’t believe this scripture is telling us that we need to do all these things in order to get an answer from God.  This covers all the bases because these are all the different ways that we might come to God in prayer and He will respond. God is a gentleman and He will not force an answer on us, He is waiting for us to ask, seek, or knock. He is graciously waiting, with the answer, for us to approach Him in the way that is most comfortable to us.

Maybe you are waiting on a specific word from God on your situation, you can have peace in knowing that all of God’s word has power and authority. This means that spending time in the bible, reading and speaking God’s logos word over your life is also very powerful.

Luke 4:32             And they were amazed at His (Jesus) teaching, for His word (logos) was with authority and ability and AMPC                   weight and power.

Jesus spoke the word of God throughout His time here on earth and that is where He drew His power from.

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The Word Has Power

In closing out one year and transitioning into another, God has been showing me just how important His Word is in our lives. I have written many bible studies on how important our words are and how they have the power to direct our lives, whether good or bad, because our words come from our heart but that is a different bible study.

I want to share with you what God has shown me during my meditation on a scripture and hopefully it will bless you and give you better understanding as it has me.

Let’s start in John, with a verse we have read many times before but this time slow down and think about it.

John 1:1                In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

This scripture is talking about who Jesus is. Not only is this telling us that Jesus is God but also that Jesus is the Word. The Word of God is Jesus!

John 1:14             And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten                                 from the Father, full of grace and truth.

*The Greek word used for Word in these two scriptures is logos, which means “something said”.

Everything that we see was created by the spoken word of God. When God was speaking everything into existence, it was through Jesus that everything came into being. The spoken Word of God is Jesus.

John 1:2-3            He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him                                   nothing came into being, that has come into being.

Hebrews 11:3     By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, of that what is seen was                                 not made out of things that are visible.

This is powerful, God used His Word to create all things and we now know that it was through Jesus because Jesus is the Word. Any and everything you see was created through God’s word = Jesus.

The scripture that I was meditating on and started my journey on this thought was:

Psalm 107:20      He (God) sent His word and healed them and delivered them from their destructions.

I’m not sure who the writer of this Psalm is but it was written many years before Jesus came to the earth. This is telling us that God sent His Word (Jesus) to heal and to deliver long before Jesus went to the cross. God has always wanted health and wholeness for His people, so He sent His word and His word is Jesus.

Do we really understand the power held in God’s word?

1 Corinthians 1:18            For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being                                                 saved it is the power of God.

Greek: power – dunamis – force, specifically miraculous power, ability, abundance meaning might

I have heard that God’s word is truth and it has power to set you free, but the power of God’s word is so much more than that. That is why He gave it to us.

God tells us that His word goes out and does exactly what it is supposed to do, it never fails or goes off course.

Isaiah 55:11         So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; it will not return to Me empty, without                                       accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

We may have read or heard the scripture “nothing is impossible with God”, but most translations do not have this text in its entirety. When I went to my Greek word vs English word translation, sure enough, “pas rhema” meaning “every word” was at the end of this scripture. Most bibles completely left it out, except the Amplified Classic.

Luke 1:37 AMPC               for with God nothing is ever impossible and no word from God shall be without power or                                                 impossible of fulfillment.

Interlinear Translation:  because not will be impossible with God every word.

When you look at this in the Greek, it is saying that nothing is impossible with God’s every word. Wow, that changes things. If I have God’s word, then the sky is the limit because when you have His word, you have His will.

Angels obey His word, even when His children are speaking it. This says “the voice” of his word which means that when we speak it, they are compelled to obey but this scripture implies that it must be spoken aloud.

Psalm 103:20      Bless the Lord, you His angels, mighty in strength, who perform His word, obeying the voice of His                                 word!

Hebrew:  the voice - qol qol – call aloud, a voice or a sound

When we are feeling powerless or weak, the word will build us up and the inheritance that we were promised comes to us through the word.

Acts 20:32            And now I commend you to God and to the Word of His grace, which is able to build up and to give                                 the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

All scripture is the logos of God! We have the spoken word of God available to us and it is the power of God to everyone that is a born-again believer in Jesus. We speak God’s word from the bible because He spoke it first.

2 Timothy 3:16-17            All scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, ESV                                        and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every                                                 good work.        

Many teachings will focus on correction and reproof in this scripture and these are necessary, but I want you to see that God’s word is training us on how to live in His kingdom. We became righteous when we were born again, and the bible trains us in how to walk that out. God wants us to be complete and equipped with everything we need to live in His power.

God wants us to understand how important it is to act on what He tells us in His word.

This scripture is not focusing on outward behavior. It is telling us to take God’s word into our hearts and know who we are in Christ.

James 1:22-24    But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves…

That is why James refers to our reflection in the mirror. When we forget who we are and what we have, we are powerless against the enemy, but when we know who we are in God’s word, then we will be using our sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17) in a powerful and effective way.

In James 4:7 it says, “resist the devil and he will flee from you”. How do we resist the devil and make him run?

By knowing who we are and what we have as believers in Jesus Christ. We can speak God’s word over any situation going on in our lives and expect results. Jesus did this when the devil came after Him in the wilderness and Jesus said, “it is written”. That’s where the power was, in God’s word.

Luke 4:13             And when the devil had ended every temptation, he [temporarily] left Him [that is, stood off from AMPC                   Him] until another more opportune and favorable time.

The church that Jesus is speaking to here understands that God’s word is important because they guarded it, but Jesus tells them that they have little miraculous power. This tells me that this church was a hearer of the word but not a doer, which resulted in less power in that church. They were worn out because in the first sentence, Jesus says that He knew their toil, so He had compassion on them and made the way for them to have victory.

Revelation 3:8    I know your works (toil). Behold, I have put before you an open door which no one is able to shut. I                                 know that you have but little power (dunamis-miraculous power), and yet you have kept (to guard)                                 my word (logos) and have not denied My name.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want toil, I want to live from victory to victory.

God’s Word is a vital part in our everyday Christian walk. It is the power of God in our lives!

Is it all about obedience?

As I was scrolling through Facebook one day, I read a quote from a student minister that said:

 “Above all God desires our obedience! When He has our obedience, He has our heart and our mind is focused on Him. Since obeying Him means loving Him more than anything, our obedience will make us more like Jesus who was the example of complete obedience to the Lord!”

Is this true? Is this what God desires most?

I ‘ve heard that obedience was the top priority for God in my years of church attendance.

Think about it, if God just wanted our obedience then why give us a free will to choose?

When you look at the behavior of the Israelites, you can see that they had an obedience problem which resulted in bad consequences time and again. It appears that going through the motions of being obedient in their own effort only lasted short periods of time and once things were good, they turned their focus back on their own desires.

Nehemiah 9:19-21, 25-31              …But they became disobedient and rebelled against You, …                                                     therefore You delivered them into the hand of their oppressors …  (NASB)

Scripture tells us that God is jealous. Is He jealous because He wants obedience?

Usually a person is jealous because there is love or attention missing from the relationship. God also wants to be our rock and have us take refuge in Him. So, if we are placing our trust and confidence in something else, wouldn’t that provoke jealousy?

Nahum 1:2-3      A jealous and avenging God is the Lord… the Lord is slow to anger and great in power…

Nahum 1:7          The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble and He knows those who take refuge in Him.  (NASB)

What does God require of man? These scriptures answer that question and it appears that God is not interested in all the external things we try to offer but God wants our heart. Walking humbly means relying and trusting in God’s love for us and when we do that, we will start to want what He wants.

Micah 6:6-8         …He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?   (NASB)

The psalmist starts off this psalm, which contains valuable promises from God for us, with how those promises are received.  A close relationship with God to the point that the first thing out of your mouth is “I trust God with everything in my life” is the key.

Psalm 91:1-2       He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High, shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God, in Him will I trust. (KJV)

Think about a relationship between a father and son.  If the father said to the son “all I desire from you is your obedience!” How would it affect that relationship? You would have one of two options: a son that continuously performed to get his fathers approval or a son that rebelled because he did not feel loved. Either way it doesn’t pave the way for a good relationship, one would be very mechanical in nature and the other would be very painful.

I disagree with the statement that “Above all God desires our obedience!” 

I believe that “Above all God desires to have a loving relationship with us!”

Jesus tells us this in His teaching from the sermon on the mount. He is stating that the public practices of obedience of the religious people in that day are not what God is after. They were obeying the law, but they were going through the motions and not doing it from the heart, God wants your heart.

Matthew 6:4,6,18             …your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you…   (NASB)

God knows what is best for us and how we can abide in Him. When your eyes focus on Jesus (light), your spirit then is filled with light. Darkness comes with the heaviness of labor and toil in this world. This is not an obedience issue; it is a spiritual issue. Everything in your life starts in the spirit and then manifests in the physical. Jesus is telling us how to keep our focus on Him. The condition of our eye pertains to our focus in this life. If your eye is clear, it has a single focus on the goodness of God and the finished work of Jesus. If your eye is bad, it is focused on your own efforts and a performance for God mentality which is full of labor and toil.

Matthew 6:22    The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eye is clear, your entire body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness.

Vine’s Greek Translation:

                clear – haplous – simple or single, singleness of purpose keeps us from the snare of having                                                a double treasure and consequently a divided heart.

                Bad – poneros – labor or toil, denotes evil that causes labor, pain, sorrow, malignant evil.

Anxiety about our future and provision (not just money) is a perfect example of labor and toil. We, as believers, can be diligent to do everything that the bible tells us to do in order to obtain a promise from God and have some results in our life, but isn’t that a self-effort mentality full of labor and toil? 

Jesus came to show us how much God loves us and to bring us into relationship with Him!

Matthew 6:25-34              But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Vine’s Greek Translation:

                kingdom - basileia – denoting sovereignty, royal power, dominion

                Righteousness – dikaiosune – the character or quality of being right or just. Means essentially the same as His faithfulness or truthfulness, that which is consistent with His own nature and promises.

Seeking His kingdom and righteousness is seeking to know who God is, His character and His love for us. Then we will love and trust in Him, which will completely change the course of our life.

God wants a relationship with each of us, that is His desire!