Go Into Peace

And He said to her, Daughter, your faith (your confidence and trust in Me) has made you well! Go (enter) into peace (untroubled, undisturbed well-being). (Luke 8:48)

When the voices around us continue to pour forth proclamations of dire warnings and the “inevitable forecasts” of ongoing turmoil and sickness and economic woes for the world, those led by the Spirit of God walk in peace. When medical experts inform the world that their worries and fears are valid; that more and worse is coming and we need to brace ourselves for that – those who trust in God’s care walk in peace. When economic experts predict great trouble ahead and an overwhelming financial crisis, those who know and understand the Name of the Lord (Psalm 91:14) live in and demonstrate a peace that truly confounds the people of the world (Philippians 4:7).

We are to be so very careful in the daily guarding of our hearts (Proverbs 4:23). We are meant to encourage and exhort each other to follow after God’s Word and His expectations of His people (Hebrews 10:38; 11:6). You cannot at one and the same time look at the “problem” and steadfastly look at the answer. When you give energy and time and attention to speaking of your concerns (and even your observations), you are not speaking of the remedy – your Fathers’ Word.

There will always be members of the Body of Christ who have not come to full grown maturity in the Spirit:

There is no fear in love [dread does not exist], but full-grown (complete, perfect) love turns fear out of doors and expels every trace of terror! For fear brings with it the thought of punishment, and [so] he who is afraid has not reached the full maturity of love [is not yet grown into love’s complete perfection]. (1 John 4:18)

There will always be new born believers. We are all in training concerning the things of the Spirit. We will never stop growing and learning about our God and all that Jesus accomplished on our behalf. We will see others stumble in their faith, or represent our Father incorrectly, or step away from absolute reliance on God’s Word and covenant promises to accommodate or try to explain the latest “crisis”. Then we who are of the household of faith (Galatians 6:10) who have learned that particular lesson, or have been taught well in that particular area, must not keep silence. When we have seen the successful result of standing on God’s Word in faith to “receive and carry away and enjoy to the full what is promised ” (Hebrews 10:36), that is never for our benefit alone.

So when a Christian writer shares her beliefs that her sickness and physical suffering glorifies God in her life, or a Christian psychologist suggests that this current pandemic may not make everyone physically ill, but we will all suffer a mental health crisis, then it’s time for us to say, in love, no. That does not represent my Father well or correctly.

Therefore encourage (admonish, exhort) one another and edify (strengthen and build up) one another, just as you are doing. (1 Thessalonians 5:11)

It is not at all surprising that the people of the world are experiencing turmoil and great disturbance at the moment. It is actually a time for the Body of Christ – the Church – to shine, and by our words and actions lead many to saving faith. When the lost look and see “peace and undisturbed composure” (Isaiah 54:13) then truly you are letting your light so shine (Matthew 5: 14 – 16) and it has the potential of dispelling the darkness in many lives. But when the church sounds and looks like the lost, our Father’s message to them is lost.

Go into peace, and let our witness to the world be – as for me and my household, “we will trust in and boast of the name of the Lord our God” (Psalm 20:7)

Guard Your Heart

“Nothing comes into your life without God’s permission.”

The opening quote, heard during a Sunday sermon, has caused me to spend quiet moments praying and listening, because it so misrepresents our Father, His purposes in the lives of men, and His character as revealed in His Word. It seemed to me, immediately upon hearing those words, that, if received and believed, they would severely hamper a person’s faith walk. A stance that God clearly expects of us:

But the just shall live by faith [My righteous servant shall live by his conviction respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, and holy fervor born of faith and conjoined with it]; and if he draws back and shrinks in fear, My soul has no delight or pleasure in him. (Hebrews 10:38)

But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out]. (Hebrews 11:6)

And because our Father expects us to live by faith in Him, in His Word, and because He is a good, good, Father, His expectation is not unfair, or without results. We know our faith will receive what is promised. Doesn’t our opening statement compromise and limit our faith? For if a believer truly believes that whatever negative circumstance they are going through is always with God’s permission, where is the faith to stand against it?

Therefore put on God’s complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place]. (Ephesians 6:13)

It reminds me of the often stated, erroneous belief that God puts sickness on people to teach them a valuable lesson. (And because we seldom take our incorrect faith pronouncements out to their logical conclusion, if the sickness is from God, why are you seeking medical help for a cure?)  God can not at one and the same time be our Healer (Exodus 15:26, Acts 10:38) and the cause (or permitter) of the disease (or the financial turmoil, or the confusion, or the fear). God is not the author of the storm, He speaks peace to the storm (Mark 4:37-39). And as believers in Jesus Christ, that is to be our stand as well.

God expects us to speak His Word into every situation. If circumstances don’t line up with the covenant promises of God which are ours through Jesus, we speak His Word in faith that He sees to its manifestation in our lives (Isaiah 55:11). Let His Word fill your pronouncements, not the faith killing verbal acceptance that God must be behind whatever negative situation you are facing. After everything Jesus did to purchase our freedom and restore us back to God’s favor, to point a finger towards our Father as the cause of our turmoil rejects His loving-kindness and tender mercy. It rejects the very character of God.  He has given us every powerful tool we need to overcome the  issues that our opening statement says He permits!

For though we walk (live) in the flesh, we are not carrying on our warfare according to the flesh and using mere human weapons. For the weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood], but they are mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds, [Inasmuch as we] refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One), ( Corinthians 10:3-5)

There are other forces at work to cause the negative circumstance – the foolishness and disobedience of men and the work of the enemy, Satan. Both of these causes find their solution in the Word of God.  Psalm 91 is a definitive look at God’s desire to protect His people; His “if you, then I” promises. Read it. Speak it out daily in faith. It is truly the Psalm of the sustained ones! Look too at Psalm 55:22:

Cast your burden on the Lord [releasing the weight of it] and He will sustain you; He will never allow the [consistently] righteous to be moved (made to slip, fall, or fail).

We are to always judge what we hear. Does it line up with the Truth of the Word of God? (1 Corinthians 2:15). Does it correctly reflect the loving-kindness of our Father and the completeness of the saving work of Jesus? Does it strengthen the faith stand that pleases God? Guard your heart always (Proverbs 4:23).

Mornings in the Garden – The Weed of Dishonor

As we continue to carefully weed out “interlopers” in our life’s garden , applying the organic standards of the Lord to those heart attitudes that diminish or derail our faith walk, we come across the weed of dishonor.

Consistently honoring God and the leading of the Holy Spirit, and honoring each other roots out his weed. The weed of dishonor in your garden powerfully repels God’s blessings. It is hugely important to our walk in the Spirit that we obey His commands in this area. Our Father is the “Rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him out” (Hebrews 11:6). Consistent obedience to His directives reveals  our earnest and diligent seeking out of God.

When we understand the Lord’s expectations along these lines, the practice and the principle of honor will usher in great rewards. Conversely, not attending to this principle, not committing our hearts to purposefully seeing to its implementation, severely curtails our connection to the Vine, our success in the Spirit, and the manifestation of Gods purposes and promises in a life. The promise of Psalm 57:2:

I will cry to God Most High, Who performs on my behalf and rewards me {Who brings to pass His purposes for me and surely completes them}.

is profoundly affected when we allow dishonor to infiltrate our faith walk.
Honor begins with the fear of the Lord (Isaiah 29:13); true honor comes from the spirit that fears and reverences God. He deserves (and commands) our honor and our praise.

…For those who honor Me, I will honor. And those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.(1 Samuel 2:30)

…whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, Who has sent Him. (John 5:23)

But this requirement to extend honor encompasses our interrelationships with others as well, and we live in an age when honoring men is in short supply. In his book Honor’s Reward, John Bevere speaks of ministers of the Gospel whose work in Africa produced miraculous results in the area of healing and multitudes receiving salvation, while their meetings in America resulted in no mighty works – no miracles. The difference? Unlike many American congregations, the people in Africa highly esteemed their ministry and their message.. They were greatly honored for the position they held as ministers of the Gospel. Believing that these evangelists were called by God and given His authority to act, the people received blessing upon blessing because they recognized and honored that authority, thereby honoring God. Carrying that same message to American churches, there was a noticeable difference. The esteem and honor due these servants of God was missing. A similar situation is found in Mark 6:1-6 when our Lord was dishonored in His own home town (“Is not this the carpenter … and they took offense at Him…and they were caused to stumble and fall”).Unlike the effects of His ministry elsewhere, He was unable to do any mighty works there. In Luke 5:17-21, we are told that the power of the Lord was there to heal, yet the scribes and the Pharisees, in dishonoring Jesus, were not touched by the power of Heaven . So throughout Gods Word and in the world we live in today we see clearly the Scriptural results of dishonor.

By truly extending heart-felt honor to the men and women who cross our path, we are treating our Father and His authority to the honor He deserves. In James 3: 8-10 we again find the honor principle and our Abba’s requirement for people to people contact:

But the human tongue can be tamed by no man. It is a restless (undisciplined, irreconcilable) evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord, and with it we curse men who are made in Gods likeness! Out of the same mouth come forth blessing and cursing. These things, my brethren, ought not to be so.

Gossip, speaking ill of someone, mocking someone’s behavior or speech or actions, rolled eyes demonstrating disdain all fall under the heading of dishonor and that does not please God:

…in the true spirit of humility (lowliness of mind) let each regard the other as better than and superior to himself {thinking more highly of one another than you do of yourselves. Let each of you esteem and look upon and be concerned for not {merely} his own interests, but also each for the interests of others. (Philippians 2:3-4)

When offended by someone, pray! When the enemy encourages you to mock, pray! When others gossip, pray! When you are tempted to step away from honor into dishonor, pray and obey! Our work is to honor all those He sends our way for that represents our Father well. The enemy is very attentive to creating situations in our lives that might tempt us to act, or even think, towards others dishonorably. Determine now that you are resolved to obey God and not respond to Satan’s devices. God will attend to the end result.

…When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him and put him to flight.(Isaiah 59:19)

God’s standard against the work of the enemy is love extended to all. When we operate within the parameters of that principle we are correctly guarding our hearts and pleasing our Father. Let’s root this weed of dishonor permanently out of our life’s garden.

Mornings in the Garden – The Weed of Fear

Here is a weed that burrows underground and pops up in many areas of your life’s garden. In the area of your finances, your health, your peace, your confidence and your attitude concerning the future, fear so often influences our thoughts, words, and emotions.

When Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue heard of the death of his daughter, Jesus immediately said to him:

Do not be seized with alarm and struck with fear; only keep on believing. (Mark 5 36)

In fact, we are told in that same verse that Jesus was “Overhearing but ignoring what  they said.”   Hearing, but ignoring. There is the formula to cast out fear in whatever form it may take in your life. The key here is to be well-versed in what the Word says on any and every subject. Faith in God and the Truth of His Word kills this weed of fear every time

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity (of cowardice, of craven and cringing and fawning fear), but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control.  (2 Timothy 1:7)

We are told in 1 John 4 that “God is love” and that “there is no fear in love” (verses 16 and 18). In fact, God instructs us that:

…love turns fear out of doors and expels every trace of terror! … he who is afraid has not reached the full maturity of love. (1 John 4:18)

As one of Satan’s primary tactics, fear severely compromises our faith walk for it puts into question the veracity of God’s Word. Fear takes the beauty of the life in the Spirit that God extends to us and casts a shadow of concern over the garden. It is a virulent weed for it has the ability to reduce God’s Word and His promises to us to the realm of “hope so” instead of “know so”! It also stands in direct opposition to our Father’s loving directive to us:

Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. (1 Peter 5:7)

Interestingly, immediately before we are directed to cast all of our anxieties, worries and cares onto Him, we are told in verse six to humble ourselves:

…lower yourselves in your own estimation} under the mighty hand of God, that in due time He may exalt you. (v. 6)

In other words, take yourself  out of your own keeping (See Acts 16:31 Amplified Bible). Be humble enough and wise enough to recognize that we cannot do this life without Him. He is our Strength, our Refuge, and our Answer. How then, with God in charge, can fear of anything trouble us? Then, immediately after we are directed to cast all of our cares on Him we are warned of the devil’s tactics:

…that enemy of yours, the devil, roams about like a lion roaring {in fierce hunger}, seeking someone to seize upon and devour. Withstand him; be firm in faith… (v.8)

So here is God’s remedy for the eradication of fear from your garden. Humble yourself, hand Him every one of your cares and concerns, and in faith defeat this fear tactic of the enemy.

That God’s Word is forever settled (Isaiah 40:8) and that His covenant promises can be utterly relied upon (1 Corinthians 10:13) is mocked by a spirit of fear. So make a close inspection of your garden. This is a gardener’s daily duty. Among the beautiful flowers that you and the Holy Spirit are tending, does the weed of fear ever crop up? Do you verbalize fearful thoughts hidden in your heart? Remember, our words indicate the state of our spirit and the condition of our hearts before God. Our enemy knows this. He wants your words to compromise God’s Truth and hinder God’s ability to bless you. Do you speak out words that may correctly characterize an issue that you are currently facing but that incorrectly represent God’s promises to you? Do you report on the immediately seen rather than on the unseen – in other words are you speaking of the problem you are presently facing rather than the promise of God that you have been given? To allow the weed of fear in your life’s garden is tantamount to attributing to God the ability to lie and deceive His children. Be vigilant about this weed. Recognize it quickly and root it out.

When God says that He is love and that perfect love casts out all fear, that is your rallying cry. Upon that Truth the weed of fear can no longer disfigure your garden! For to trust and love your heavenly Father is to accept His Word as absolutely true and to recognize where the fear comes from. It is a tactic of the enemy whose singular purpose in your life is to diminish or disprove God and His Word.

The Weed of Unforgiveness – Part Two

We see in Matthew 18:21-35 the definitive parable on forgiveness. The attendant whose debt was forgiven by the king did not offer the same blessing of forgiveness to another attendant who owed him money.

Then his master called him and said to him, You contemptible and wicked attendant! I forgave and cancelled all that [great] debt of yours because you begged me to. And should you not have had pity and mercy on your fellow attendant, as I had pity and mercy on you? And in wrath his master turned him over to the torturers (the jailers), till he should pay all that he owed.  (Matthew 18:32-34)

When we fully come to realize the great debt that God has forgiven; when we truly see the full picture of our redemption – from lost to found and from rejected by God to accepted in the Beloved (Ephesians 1:6) – the act of unforgiveness towards others is seen in its true light. It is a foundational principle of the kingdom of God; of life in the Spirit. It is the way His children are to represent Him to the world. It is a required heart attitude in pleasing our Father and walking in the peace that characterizes our heavenly citizenship and the love that identifies our discipleship.  Unforgiveness is discordant. There is no heart harmony when unforgiveness is present; the peace of the Lord is far from us, and the promises of the Lord hindered.

Unforgiveness can be harsh and hard and blatantly obvious – it can manifest in anger and shunning and severed relationships. As such, it can clearly be seen by all. It can also be subtle – quietly disguised as a reasonable reaction to a perceived wrong. Recently, in fact while writing this section on unforgiveness, I recalled having identified just such an attitude I had harbored in my own heart. My devotional, God’s Beloved Daughters, had just been published and I was asked if I was going to send copies to certain women in my life. Their apparent lack of interest in my writings caused me to say that I would not. “They have never indicated that my writing was of any interest to them,” I said. I had been holding on to a negative feeling in this area which was clearly the weed of unforgiveness. It seemed to make sense didn’t it? They showed no interest in my work so I should reciprocate  that lack of interest by neglecting to send them off a copy. And yet the entire purpose of the devotional was to bless, inform, encourage and edify God’s daughters. My negative feelings were taking precedence over my ministry before the Lord. It was the selfish tending to an emotional wound that did not honor God and the work He had given me to do. I sent off the copies to them with a prayer that it would mightily bless them!

Unforgiveness is directly related to judgment. Judgment is, in fact, the first step in falling into unforgiveness. We judge others as unworthy to receive forgiveness from us. We judge their behavior as a direct affront to our sense of right and wrong. It takes daily care not to fall prey to this emotional trap of the enemy.  The world we live in is divided and contentious with opposing sides “dug in” and unyielding. {This seems especially true in the world of political thinking. And yet God’s instructions to us on this front are very clear (1 Timothy 2:1-4) and unalterably opposed to “what comes naturally”.} It is so easy, when allowing our flesh to prevail over our spirit, to give place to unforgiveness and judgment. God’s Word tells us that we act in error when at one and the same time we:

...bless the Lord and Father, and…we curse men who were made in God’s image. Out of the same mouth come forth blessing and cursing. These things, my brethren, ought not to be so. (James 3:9-10)

As with unforgiveness, the disobedient act of judging others has unfortunate consequences.

Do not judge and criticize and condemn others, so that you may not be judged and criticized and condemned yourselves. (Matthew 7:1)

As you attend to your life’s garden, under the tutelage of the Holy Spirit, quickly and purposefully root out the weed of unforgiveness. Do not hesitate to clear it out completely. It is a blessing killer, and the Master Gardener wants you to recognize its power to diminish your faith walk.

Mornings in the Garden: The Weed of Unforgiveness

To forgive is to set a prisoner free and to discover the prisoner was you – Corrie Ten Boom

Forgiveness is another powerful weed killer.

Above all things have intense and unfailing love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins [forgives and disregards the offenses of others].
(1 Peter 4:8)

Unforgiveness hardens the heart that God wants soft and uncompromising towards Him and our fellow men. Left untended, our hearts are hindered by a “settled state of hardness” (Mark 8:17 Amplified). Each of us has experienced this weed in our garden. We cannot have walked the earth among men and not have fallen into this heart attitude. It is often, in human terms, the predictable and understandable response to the inevitable daily conflicts among fallen men and women. It is the natural, fleshly response to a perceived wrong – a defense mechanism, the assertion of personal rights, the establishment of a protective perimeter, and a weapon for self-preservation. It is the personal determination not to grant blessings to the one who has wounded us.
The love walk, however, necessitates forgiveness.

Clothe yourselves therefore, as God’s own chosen ones (His own picked representatives), [who are] purified and holy and well-beloved [by God Himself, by putting on behavior marked by] tenderhearted pity and mercy, kind feeling, a lowly opinion of yourselves, gentle ways, [and] patience [which is tireless and long-suffering, and has the power to endure whatever comes, with good temper]. Be gentle and forbearing with one another and, if one has a difference (a grievance or complaint) against another, readily pardoning each other; even as the Lord has [freely] forgiven you, so must you also [forgive]. (Colossians 3:12-13)

We are to forgive each other readily and freely as God forgave us. We are to be imitators of our Heavenly Father, following His example in all things (Ephesians 5:1). As with all of our Abba’s* directives, His life-giving instructions are for our benefit and blessing as well as for the blessing and edification of others. God’s directives are always overflowing with abundant life for all! They bless the giver and they bless the receiver. His desire is only to bless and do us all good. So let’s look at both sides of the forgiveness interaction.

Scripture teaches that forgiveness keeps Satan from gaining an advantage over us ( see 2 Corinthians 2:10-11). Clearly the choice not to forgive is an act of disobedience, and as such constitutes obedience to the enemy of God. It is a choice to accept Satan’s ways and tactics rather than God’s highest and best. The extended outcome of such a choice is seen in Matthew 6:14-15:

For if you forgive people their trespasses {their reckless and willful sins, leaving them, letting them go, and giving up resentment}, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their trespasses… neither will your Father forgive you your trespasses.

If we hold on to unforgiveness we do not walk in the blessing of God’s forgiveness towards us. If, as an act of our own will, we do not obey and imitate our Father in this, then we forego that same blessing from Him. In that area of our life, with those choices, we are subject to the kingdom of darkness; unforgiveness honors Satan and misrepresents God. Because, as born again children of a loving God, our main purpose is to represent Him, we are allowing this weed in our garden to diminish our effectiveness as ambassadors to the world of the lost (2 Corinthians 5:18-20). The choice not to forgive is a decision to step away from our very identity and purpose. As all weeds do, unforgiveness depletes the nutrients in our life’s garden; God’s life in us is compromised and rendered ineffective as this weed prevails. As we purpose to send our life’s roots deeply into the life of God but allow this weed to remain it will rise up and choke out blessing upon blessing.

But what of the person toward whom our forgiveness is withheld? Are they as adversely affected? One might surmise that it is the one holding on to unforgiveness, rather than the one toward whom it is directed, that is the most injured. For the ones who are unforgiving hold on to this dark emotion; they are the ones who made the choice to take on Satan’s tactics. Yet Scripture tells us that if we do not forgive them, they are not forgiven by Heaven!

{Now having received the Holy Spirit, and being led and directed by Him} if you forgive the sins of anyone, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of anyone, they are retained. (John 20:23)

Jesus is our example in this, extending forgiveness in a prayer to the Father on the cross to those who were responsible for His death (Luke 23:34). Forgiveness is a cornerstone of Gospel living. Jesus’ very purpose in coming to us, in facing the cross, was to enable God’s forgiveness to extend to all who believe (Matthew 26:28). Forgiveness is love in action. It says, “I determine that my life and actions will be a clear representation to you of God and of Heaven’s principles. I resolve that your salvation and relationship with God is far more important than my own needs. For God is in charge of my needs and I want only His highest and best for you.” Forgiveness sets aside personal inclinations for the benefit of others – for their eternal well-being.

The interrelationship of our behavioral choices is so clearly seen with this dynamic of forgiveness. Through the saving work of Jesus, God forgives us. He then instructs us that we are to unreservedly forgive others, as imitators of Him and representatives of His kingdom. As others witness firsthand this forgiveness, they see standards quite unlike their worldly experience and come face to face with God’s ways of doing and being right (Matthew 6:33 Amplified Bible) They see God in us. We get it right before God and they get a glimpse of Heaven.

*- “Abba” can best be translated “Daddy” or “Papa”. It expresses the close intimate relationship of a father to his child, and the child-like trust children have for their “Daddy”. (See Romans 8:15, Galatians 4:6)

Faith Speaks

Nor of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor of the destruction and sudden death that surprise and lay waste at noonday. (Psalm 91:6) {Part Two}

Pastor Willy George, known to many as Gospel Bill, tells of a vacation he was taking with his family to the Grand Canyon. On the plane, flying to their destination,  he was led by the Spirit of God to pray in tongues, which he did quietly in order to not draw attention to himself from people who would not understand the concept.  The next day while viewing the canyon, he heard the squeal of brakes and turned to see that his young son had barely escaped being hit by an oncoming vehicle. In asking the Lord why his son almost died when he always covered his family with protective prayer, the Lord said, “He was protected.  We covered that yesterday on the plane when you prayed in your prayer language.”

Being quick to obey the promptings of the Holy Spirit, being faithful to seek the Lord daily as we walk through this place of spiritual darkness, recognizing our mandate to always yield to His guidance and expect His Word to come to pass in our lives – that is who we are as children of God. Faith receives all that our God has provided for us and speaks and acts accordingly.  That is God’s expectation for His children. Again, we consider why so many of His born again children are not experiencing the blessed life, the protected life, the carefree and fear free life He offers and extends to all who would believe.  We go to the Word for our answers.

Remember that Verse 2 of Psalm 91, our part of the covenant, requires that our words speak forth His Lordship.  We are to say and believe that He is our refuge, our fortress, our protection. Our words come forth from the overflow of our hearts (Matthew 12:34). And if we truly believe what we say, our actions, our responses, our character will reflect our spoken word. Remember, Jesus said:

Not everyone who says to Me Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of My Father Who is in Heaven. (Matthew 7:21)

And what is the will of our Father?

Jesus replied, This is the work (service) that God asks of you: that you believe in the One Whom He sent {that you cleave to, trust, rely on, and have faith in His Messenger}. (John 6:29)

Our demonstration of faith in God and in our Lord Jesus is evidenced by the words we speak.

The psalmist asks in Psalm 15:1-2, “Who will dwell in Your tabernacle and on Your holy Hill?”   In other words, who will find favor with You, Father?  Whose life will give evidence of Your blessings?  The answer is:

He who walks and lives uprightly and blamelessly, who works rightness and justice and speaks and thinks the truth in his heart.” {Emphasis mine}

Every promise that God ever uttered and extended to His children is dependent upon this expectation of our faith in His goodness and trustworthiness. Speaking and thinking His Truth in our hearts – only.  So many believe they are in faith and yet do not see the full manifestation of a God-directed, God blessed life.  God directs us, encourages us, defines us as people who will not be afraid of any possible harm – pestilence, destruction, sudden death; people who recognize the attacks of the enemy and counter them with the eternal promises of God. Then, in faith, that is who we are.  No tactic of the enemy will concern those who operate in and out of faith.  In that place of resolve we mightily please our Father and defeat the enemy. Faith knows peace.  Faith knows the God of peace.

 

Faith’s Outcome is Always Good

You shall not be afraid of the terror of the night, nor of the arrow (the evil plots and slanders of the wicked) that flies by day, (Psalm 91:5) {Part Two}

The daily process of putting fear in its place is a successful by-product of the faith walk.  Our Lord taught clearly concerning our daily approach to any potential negative circumstance in Mark 5:35-36.  Jairus, one of the rulers of the synagogue, came to the Lord for help concerning his daughter who was close to death.  As they approached the home, someone came to Jairus and announced that his daughter was dead, “Why bother and distress the Teacher any further?”

Overhearing but ignoring what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, Do not be seized with alarm and struck with fear; only keep on believing.”

Jesus spoke of death this way!  The outcome might have, would have, been quite different if Jairus allowed himself to be seized with alarm and struck with fear, for the tactics of the enemy would have been exalted above the wisdom and directives and power of the Lord.  When the Lord said that the little girl was not dead but sleeping, His statement was met with jeering and scoffing from the crowd.  He removed the mockers from the home before He was able to raise her up “from the sleep of death” (Mark 5:41). This is our example – our Lord is Who we emulate.  Overhearing the evil report, but ignoring.  Considering not! Let no unbelief or distrust cause you to waver (Romans 4:20).  Keep your eyes on the promises; keep your heart settled and established in the Lord.

The Word of God is forever settled (Psalm 119:89). He is faithful to His promises (1 Corinthians 1:9). 

God is not a man, that He should tell or act a lie, neither the son of man that He should feel repentance or compunction {for what He has promised}. Has He said and shall He not do it? Or has He spoken and shall He not make it good? (Numbers 23:19)

In Matthew 7:21-27 and again in Luke 6:46-49, we are given a clear understanding of why faith for some seems weak and victory lost.  Why do some believers not experience the full manifestation in their lives of God’s revealed will? Why do so many born again believers fall victim to fear, depression, illness – all the worldly woes?  Why are their words so often couched in defeat and even whining?  Why do their careless, thoughtless words dare to contradict the Word of God? Why do the promises of the 91st Psalm elude them?  Why do so many shy away from the faith stand that will not be denied? Be sure to stop and read both passages.

In Matthew 7 and Luke 6, we see the life defining pictures of true faith and counterfeit or feigned faith.  The Master begins by warning that God looks at the heart and at obedience:

Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of My Father Who is in Heaven.

Even those who claim to have done mighty works for God (Matthew 7:22) are not exempt from kingdom standards.  The home (life) that was not destroyed when troubles came was the home founded on the rock of faithful obedience to God.  The life yielded to God, the one with:

…steadfast patience and endurance, so that you can perform and fully accomplish the will of God, and thus receive and carry away {and enjoy to the full} what is promised (Hebrews 10:36)

could not be moved.  This is the faith-founded life that will not be afraid of the terror of night or the arrow that flies by day, for it is securely founded on the rock of obedience.  They are safe and secure in the care of the Lord – they will not be moved away from that stand! Trouble in a life is overcome by faith in the promises and the character of God, the heart assurance that God is true to His Word and to His compassionate nature (1 Corinthians 10:13; 2 Timothy 2:13). The one who hears the Lord’s directives only, but does not put them into practice, not only collapses when trouble comes, but builds a doctrine up around their failure and then teaches that doctrine to others.  Cast fear and its cousins worry and concern far away from your thoughts.  The Lord assures us throughout His Word that He is our safety and our outcome is always good!

                     

Established in the Word

In a recent edition of Victory Magazine, Gloria Copeland writes:

“Whatever you have established that you are in prayer, that’s what you are… even before you see it.”

There is not only trans-formative power in the Word of God, there is prophetic capability there as well. The Word of God renews our mind, our thinking {trans-formative} (Romans 12:2), and it is the tool we use to create our tomorrows {prophetic} (Hebrews 11:3). Imagine, if you will, waking in the morning and, before you step out of the bed and into your day, you regard and attend only to your heart’s understanding of all that you are, all that you have been given, in Christ.  You view the day through the lens of the Word only. You see yourself according to what God says about you, and that, and that only, is what you speak forth:

“I am healed, prosperous, and blessed.  God has a wonderful plan for my life.  I hear His voice clearly and I follow. No weapon formed against me will prosper. I am a child of God, filled with His Spirit.  This is the day that my Father God has made – I will rejoice and be glad in it.  My Father busies Himself with my every step.  I am safe all day long in His sheltering place.”

Every statement within that confession is a scriptural Truth.  When we resolve that God’s Word only is what defines us, and when we give voice to that in faith, those prophetic utterances will become reality for you.  It is so very important for a child of God to establish this foundation to build their life upon.  God’s Word is “alive and active” (Hebrews 4:12), with “self-fulfilling power (Isaiah 61:11).  In speaking forth that Word absolutely believing that it must be because He promised that it would, not only are we demonstrating a trust that greatly pleases God (Hebrews 10:38), we are emulating our Father Who “speaks of the nonexistent things that {He has foretold and promised} as if they {already} existed” (Romans 4:17), and we are defeating the enemy’s attempts to harm us.

Over my years of walking with the Lord, being led by the Holy Spirit, there have been some significant guideposts along the way that have restructured reality for me.   The woman I was when I first started out on this faith walk is long gone!  As the Word of God and the teaching of the Holy Spirit gently guided me, I was challenged to let in more and more of Heaven’s ways of doing and being right (Matthew 6:33).  Surprisingly, one of the most difficult concepts to incorporate into my life was the idea of living carefree before God (1 Peter 5:7). Ironic that being carefree is a hard place to get to!  It takes personal resolve and effort to be carefree!  And yet that is what pleases our Father and allows Him to establish His plans and purposes for us (Philippians 2:13).

When a particular issue troubles us – health, provision, the need for direction, etc. – our first response locates the strength or weakness of our faith and trust in God’s Word.  We can allow the problem to overwhelm, or we can allow the Word of God to remedy. We can cast that concern over into our Father’s care and speak forth the promises He has given us that will establish us in peace and resolve the problem.

Carefree living is very much based on how we attend to and speak forth God’s Word in faith.  Gloria Copeland’s words are truth and encouragement for us. Let your words, speaking forth God’s Word, establish who you are.  And then, even before you see it, know that you have received.  You have God’s Word on it.

 

Never-Ending, Unshakeable Peace

John 14:27 – Peace I leave with you; My {own} peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. {Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.} (emphasis mine)

John 14:20 – …I am in My Father, and you {are} in Me, and I {am} in you.

John 14:30 – {Satan} …has no claim on Me. {He has nothing in common with Me; there is nothing in Me that belongs to him, and he has no power over Me.} (emphasis mine)

Following the progression in the above Scriptures, we are encouraged and instructed through this good Word to receive and constantly evidence deep abiding peace – always. No matter what the day’s circumstances bring, peace is to be a defining characteristic in the life of a Spirit-filled believer. Through the Holy Spirit God lives in us. Jesus lives in us. There is nothing that we will encounter that diminishes that Truth. We see here the overcoming force of the believer obeying and working with the Lord – through His Spirit Who lives in us. Synergy – two working together.

Each believer must own the Truth of these verses. When we, without reservation, without the diminishing power of unbelief, fully accept God’s Word as true, when His Word is more dear and defining to our lives than any other idea or circumstance or attention-grabbing issue, then peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7) is the inevitable result.

First, in Verse 27, we understand that Jesus has given His peace to us. When the enemy, the world’s attitudes and troubles, and the concerns and ailments and longings of the flesh try to hinder your faith walk (that’s what the world offers us), Jesus tells us that He has already given us, bequeathed to us, His peace. Knowing that, believing and receiving that, agitation, disturbedness, fear, intimidation, unsettledness have no place to live in us. Our Lord’s instructions to us that help us maintain this peace are very clear. “Stop allowing!” We have a role to play here. The role is to believe that our Lord speaks Truth. His peace is ours, and everything else that falls short of that Truth may not stand in our lives. We need to recognize when our heart peace is being challenged and stolen.

And let the peace (soul harmony which comes) from Christ rule {act as umpire continually} in your hearts {deciding and settling with finality all questions that arise in your minds, in that peaceful state} to which as {members of Christ’s} one body you were also called {to live}. And be thankful (appreciative), {giving praise to God always}. (Colossians 3:15)

In verse 20, the extraordinary, awesome way in which our Creator determined to interact with His children is revealed. Knowing our frame, our weaknesses, He enables us to realize all of His benefits by living in us. The Holy Spirit of God dwells in each believer to teach and guide and come alongside and counsel and strengthen us (John 14:16). The divine interaction of Jesus in God, and us in Jesus and God in us reveals the heart and the love of God for His creation – you! And with this holy impartation, there must be peace. How do we “stop allowing” anything at all that would try to diminish that peace? Faith in the Truth and reliability of God’s Word. True faith in our Father’s character and in His Word exhibits peace.

Finally, in verse 30, the Master speaks of his complete separateness and immunity to the devices of the enemy. “He has nothing in common with Me; there is nothing in Me that belongs to him, and he has no power over Me.” Because He lives in us, the same is true of us. The life of God, the Holy Spirit, fills us. There is no place in our lives for the machinations of a defeated foe (Colossians 2:15), the “dictates of the flesh” (Romans 8:1), or the errant philosophies of the world (Romans 12:2). Never-ending, unshakable peace is the heritage of God’s Spirit- filled sons and daughters.

Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. (Philippians 4:7 – Message Bible)