Forty Days Opening Their Understanding

And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. (Luke 24:45)

Jesus had been with the disciples for three years, living with them, leading them, teaching them, ministering with them, even sending them out to do the work of the ministry. But for some reason, they still just did not get it. Even His death and resurrection came as a surprise to them, though Jesus had foretold them of these things more than once.

Now He suddenly appeared before them, inviting them to touch His hands and feet. This was no ghost they were dealing with. This was flesh and blood — Jesus in His resurrection. After eating some broiled fish and honeycomb, He said,

These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me. (Luke 24:44)

Luke’s comment at this point is, “And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.” The Greek word for “opened” means to open thoroughly. The word for “understanding” is the word for “mind.” Jesus thoroughly opened their minds. There were now no obstructions to impede their understanding of these things. It had been in the Law and the Prophets and the Psalms all along, they just never understood it before. To be fair, we should recognize the truth of what Paul said,

For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. (2 Corinthians 2:11-12)

We have been conditioned by the world too much to recognize spiritual realities. The spirit of the world can never understand these things, they must be revealed to us by the Spirit of God. That is what happened with the disciples: Jesus caused them to “comprehend.” The Greek word means to “put together.” They were now able to add up all that Jesus had taught them and all the Scriptures had taught them and bring it all together into one magnificent picture. Jesus continued:

Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these things. Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high. (Luke 24:46-49)

Now they got it. It was all making sense for them as it never had before. But there was more. They were about to receive the “Promise of the Father,” power from heaven. This was the promise of the Holy Spirit, who came upon them at Pentecost! Now they would be able to take this glorious portrait of Jesus and present it to the nations in a living and powerful way.

By His Spirit, God opens our understanding to comprehend that the Scriptures, the witness of God’s eternal plan and redemptive purpose for all the nations of the world, all comes together in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Forty Days of Kingdom Revelation

The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. (Acts 1:1-3)

The forty days between Jesus’ resurrection and His ascension to His throne in heaven — what an unusual time for Him and His disciples — are full of world-changing significance. Like everything else in His ministry, they were about the kingdom of God. He began His ministry announcing that it was now at hand. He went about preaching it and teaching it by parables and discourse. He demonstrated it by healing the sick, cleansing the lepers, casting out demons and raising the dead — and sent His disciples out to do the same. He taught them how to pray, “Kingdom of God, come! Will of God, be done!” He announced that the kingdom was within them.

After the resurrection, He declared that all authority in heaven and on earth had been given to Him. Surely, that is about the kingdom of God, the rule and reign of God coming to earth and the will of God being done on earth as it is in heaven. It was in that context that He commissioned His disciples to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe all the things Jesus had commanded them. This is all about the kingdom of God.

Before He ascended to His throne in heaven, He told His disciples to go to Jerusalem and wait for the Promise of the Father. They asked Him if He was restoring the kingdom to Israel at that time. He answered that it was not for them to know the times or the seasons which the Father placed in His own authority. Instead, He gave them this — and I believe it is where the answer to their question is really found: “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” This power and this witness are all about the kingdom of God, testifying and demonstrating that Jesus is King and His kingdom is now in the world — in Jerusalem, in Judea, in Samaria and extending to the ends of the earth. These forty days between Resurrection and Ascension were about preparing the disciples to receive His kingdom and manifest it by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The kingdom of God has come into the world. The resurrected Christ has ascended to His glory and the Holy Spirit has come upon His people. His purpose is to bring forth the evidence of who Jesus is and manifest His kingdom, heaven on earth, here and now.

Do You Believe This?

I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this? (John 11:25-26)

These are the words Jesus spoke to Martha. Her brother Lazarus had been in the tomb four days. Martha had said, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You” (v. 21-22).

Jesus assured her, “Your brother will rise again” (v. 23).

“I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day,” she said.

Then Jesus answered, “I am the resurrection and the life.” We often limit the resurrection to an event, or a time. But, first of all, it is a person, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the resurrection; He is the life. The statement “I am” goes back to God’s answer when Moses asked Him, “What shall I say to the children of Israel when they ask who sent me and ‘What is His name?’” God said, “I AM WHO I AM … Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:14).

How do we receive this resurrection and this life? By faith in Him. “He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.” In both the body and the spirit, there is death and there is life. We come to Him spiritually dead, He gives us spiritual life. When we believe in Him, though the body may die, the spirit lives on and will never die.

On another occasion, Jesus said.

Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. (John 5:24-25)

It is a spiritual resurrection He speaks of here, but there is also a physical resurrection coming, for He adds, “Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth” (John 5:28-29). So Martha was correct, there will be a resurrection of the body in the future, at the “last day.” Jesus gave us a glimpse when He called forth Lazarus from the grave — and Lazarus came back to life. But it is seen most powerfully and enduringly in the resurrection of Jesus Himself after three days in the tomb. It is important to note that He rose bodily from the grave, for as the “firstborn from the dead,” He is the guarantee of our own bodies being raised, we who believe in Him.

So there are two resurrections in view: one spiritual, the other physical. We receive them both by faith, for Jesus said, “Whoever believes in Me.” This presents us, then, with the question He asked Martha, “Do you believe this?”

Now, faith is not passive but active. It is a verb as well as a noun. Though in English we have “faith” as the noun and “believe” as the verb, in Greek, they are both the same word. Faith is not just something we have but something we do. It is an action as well as a possession.

“Do you believe this?” Notice the tense. Jesus did not ask, “Did you believe this?” but “Do you believe this?” Faith is not about what you may have believed at some point in the past but about what you are believing now. That is the only question. Faith is always present tense — that is where the life is. God is eternal and the place where we meet Him is the present.

Jesus is the resurrection and the life. For those who believe in Him, there is spiritual resurrection now and bodily resurrection in the future. Do you believe this? That is the question the season of Easter presents to us.

The Sound of Marching

So they went up to Baal Perazim, and David defeated them there. Then David said, “God has broken through my enemies by my hand like a breakthrough of water.” Therefore they called the name of that place Baal Perazim. (1 Chronicles 14:11)

David had just been anointed king, and the Philistines did not like it, so they came looking for him. David heard of this and went out against them. The Philistines raided the valley of Rephaim. David asked the Lord whether he should go up after them. “Will You deliver them into my hand?” The Lord said, “Go up, for I will deliver them into your hand.” So David led them up to the place which would be called Baal Perazim, which means “Lord of Breakthroughs.” It was there that God broke through David’s enemies “like a breakthrough of water.”

This was not like a few drips and drops. It was not a smattering of sprays and spurts. It was not a leak. It was a flood, a dam break! It devastated the Philistines. They retreated, leaving their idols behind, which David then burned. However, the Philistines made one more attempt on the valley. Again, David asked the Lord what to do. God said,

You shall not go up after them; circle around them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees. And it shall be, when you hear a sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall go out to battle, for God has gone out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines. (1 Chronicles 14:14-15)

God was going to go before David and strike the Philistine army. The sign for this would be the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees. Then David would go out to battle and finish them off, which David did, driving them back all the way back to Philistia. “Then the fame of David went out into all lands, and the LORD brought the fear of him upon all nations” (v. 17). The Philistines were never a problem for David anymore after that.

Today, I am thinking of Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday in terms of this narrative, which chronicles the final victory of David over the Philistines. It came in two parts. There was the breaking forth of many waters and then the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees.

On Good Friday, there was the breakthrough of many waters as Jesus dealt the death blow to His enemies, and ours. For He came to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8) as well as him who had the power of death, the devil himself (Hebrews 2:14). On Resurrection Sunday, this victory became apparent as God raised Jesus from the dead. Sin, death and the devil no longer have any power over us. The Lord of Breakthroughs has prevailed.

The day between Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday has traditionally been called Holy Saturday. It is a time of reflecting on the breakthrough that has been made for us, the great victory Jesus won for us on the Cross. But it is also a time of listening for the “sound of marching” as that victory manifests in resurrection life.

Let God Arise and His Enemies Be Scattered

Let God arise,
Let His enemies be scattered;
Let those also who hate Him flee before Him.
As smoke is driven away,
So drive them away;
As wax melts before the fire,
So let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
But let the righteous be glad;
Let them rejoice before God;
Yes, let them rejoiced exceedingly.

(Psalm 68:1-3)

For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3:8)

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. (Hebrews 2:14-15)

Good Friday was our victory day, the day God arose to scatter His enemies. Jesus, the Word of God, became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). God made Him, who knew no sin, to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). Through death, he Lord Jesus destroyed the evil one, who had the power of death, and released us from bondage. Indeed, He came for this purpose: to destroy the works of the devil.

On this day, God arose to scatter His enemies and destroy the works of the devil. Jesus shed His blood to establish a new covenant between God and us (Luke 22:20; Hebrews 8:6). This means that His enemies are our enemies and our enemies are His.

Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me;
Fight against those who fight against me.
Take up shield and buckler;
Arise and come to my aid.
Brandish spear and javelin against those who pursue me.
Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.”

(Psalm 35:1-3 NIV)

The Hebrew word for “salvation” in that passage is yeshuah. As a proper name, it is Yeshua, which is Hebrew for “Jesus.” Jesus is our salvation, our victory, and through faith in Him, we are made victorious.

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? … Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us form the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:31-36, 37-39).

In Jesus Christ, Good Friday has become your victory day. God has destroyed the works of the devil on your behalf and scattered your enemies. Their bondage is broken and they no longer have any power over you. It is a cause for great rejoicing in the presence of the Lord.

The Table of Testimony

And you shall put into the ark the Testimony which I will give you. (Exodus 25:16)

Do this in remembrance of Me. (Luke 22:19)

The essence of testimony is remembrance. The Hebrew word for “testimony” means to duplicate or repeat. Its purpose is to bring something back to mind, to represent (re-present) an experience, to stir up a heart of faith.

Testimony is a powerful thing. It can not only bring something back to your mind but also back to your heart. It can recreate the emotions, the sense of the experience of that to which it testifies. For example, have you ever heard an old song on the radio that reminded you of the days when you first heard that song? It can make you think of old friends and places and the way you felt back then. It is amazing how a song can bring them again to you in such an emotionally powerful way. When a song triggers a memory like that, people even say, “Oh, that takes me back.” And in a way, it does take them back to that time and place, and those old friends. That song has become a testimony to them, a witness of things past but which still have great significance for the present.

That is what the Ark of the Testimony did. It was a witness that spoke of the covenant God made with Israel. Everything about it testified to something in their experience with Him. It showed His presence among them. On top was the mercy-seat, the place of atonement, divine forgiveness. The Testimony that was placed inside was threefold: The Ten Commandments, a jar of manna and Aaron’s rod that budded (Hebrews 9:4).

The testimony of these things was always before them to remind them, not only of who God had been to them in the past, but also who He would continue to be to them in the future. It was a continual witness of God’s saving act on behalf of His people, a sign of His ever present covenant love and mercy.

In the New Testament, Jesus has provided us a testimony that continually speaks to us of His saving act on our behalf. It is the sign of the new covenant God has made with us in Christ. This testimony is the Table of the Lord. The bread and the wine testify to the body and blood of Jesus. They speak of what has been given for us and to us. They represent Jesus Christ to us. In them, we experience anew the reality of His body and blood, and our participation in Him as the body of Christ.

The Table of the Lord is an ark of testimony. It is the witness of what Jesus Christ has done for us at the Cross, the sign of the covenant we have with God today and the promise that He is with us now and forever.

Give No Place to Fear

Do not … give place to the devil. (Ephesians 4:26-27)

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7).

The devil delights in fear and knows how to use it. Take Job, for example. We know that God allowed satan to go after him, but I believe that was because Job himself allowed it. Peter said that satan is like a roaring lion, going to and fro, looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). So satan went looking for how he could devour Job. Paul said, “Do not give place to the devil.” He cannot come in on us if we do not give him a place, and if we give him place, he will not pass by an open door but will go right on in. That is why James said, “Submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee” (James 4:7). If we resist the devil, he must flee.

So, it was not enough that God allowed satan to pursue Job. He would also have to find Job with his guard down, leaving a place for him to enter in. I think we find that place in Job 3:25, where Job says, “For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has happened to me.”

Where did this fear and dread come from? Certainly not from God, for it was not the fear of the Lord, but the fear of circumstances. Job inadvertently opened himself up to the work of the devil by first listening to his whispers, then by meditating on his lies, letting himself be filled with worry and all the things the world fears. Then he probably started speaking out his worries and fears instead of trusting in the goodness of God, which is much greater. Before long, what began as worry turned into great fear and dread; satan soon found that opening and played it for all it was worth.

But what if Job had not been full of fear and dread that these things might happen? What if he had not dwelt on them, letting them become magnified in his heart? The devil would have had no other way to get in, for Job was a righteous and upright man (Job 1:8). But fear left an open door into his life.

The word “fear” has sometimes been defined by the acronym F.E.A.R. — False Evidence Appearing Real. Job worried that these things might one day come upon him. They appeared real to him long before they actually came to pass. Some might say that this was just coincidence, but isn’t it interesting that the very thing Job greatly feared and dreaded was the thing satan actually ended up doing to him?

Now, satan does not usually go for outright terror. That would be too obvious for many Christians and they would not fall for it. But if the devil can’t get terror going, he’ll gladly work on low-level fear, the little worries and anxieties of life. Worry is like a seed, just as faith is like a seed, and when it is planted in the heart, it can spring up quickly into paralyzing fear.

God has not given us the spirit of fear. Neither full-grown fear nor the seedling of worry comes from Him. Rather, God has given us the spirit of power, love and sound mind. This power is actually the miracle-working power of the Holy Spirit. This love is the love God has for us, and when we let it fill our hearts, it casts out fear (1 John 4:18). The Greek word for “sound mind” speaks of self-control. It is about the discipline of understanding and living by the truth. That is how we resist the devil and overcome fear: We believe the love God has for us, and the power we have in Him, and we live by it.

The best time to deal with fear is when it first enters in as anxiety. As Barney Fife might say, “Nip it! Nip it in the bud!” Jesus put it this way:

Therefore do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 6:31-33)

The world is anxious, seeking after all these things. But for those who know the Lord Jesus, that problem has already been solved. Our job is to seek the rule and reign and God, and His way of doing things. Everything else will be taken care of. No worry, no fear. Just divine power and love, and a sound mind. For God “is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us” (Ephesians 3:20).

Do not give the devil a place in your life by letting worry and fear into your heart. Believe the love God has for you and the divine power at work in you, and be at peace. Seek His kingdom, and whatever is needed will be provided.

The Table of Splendor and Majesty

The Lord’s works are great,
Studied by all who delight in them.
All that He does is splendid and majestic;
His righteousness endures forever.
He has caused His wonderful works to be remembered.
The Lord is gracious and compassionate.
He has provided food for those who fear Him;
He remembers His covenant forever.

(Psalm 111:2-5 HCSB)

The works of the Lord are great. They are studied — earnestly pursued, carefully sought out, diligently researched — by those who desire and take delight in them. For the works of the Lord reveal something about the character of God, what He is like and what He desires.

Those who take delight in His ways study and mediate on them; they understand that, as Spurgeon said, “What God has done once is a prophecy of what He intends to do again (The Story of God’s Mighty Acts). The works of the Lord are not just a testimony of what once way, but also what is now and what shall be, for “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever” Hebrews 13:8).

Everything God does is grand and glorious, full of splendor and majesty. They demonstrate that everything He does is exactly right, just, proper, true and prosperous. These are wonderful works — that is, distinguished and unique, extra-ordinary, surpassing all others — and He has caused them to be remembered by His people, for they do not speak of what He was but what He is. His grace and compassion are just as much for us today as they were for yesterday, and they will be here for us tomorrow as well.

Out of His grace, God has given food to those who fear Him, because He is always remembering His covenant, and He has caused us to remember, too, so that we may draw on His provision for us. In this, we can see the Table of the Lord.

• It is a table of sustenance. This is the food and drink God has prepared for those who know, love and fear Him. Jesus is the “bread of life … which comes down from heaven. that one may eat of it and not die” (John 6:48, 50). By faith, we eat His body and drink His blood (John 6:53-58) and it is for us spirit and life (John 6:63).
• It is a table of remembrance. Here we remember the wonderful works of God on our behalf. As Jesus took the bread, blessed it and gave it to the disciples, He said, “This is My body which is given for You; do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19).
• It is a table of covenant. Jesus took the cup and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is shed for you” (Luke 22:20). Jesus, our High Priest, who has offered His own body and blood for our sakes, is now forever seated at the “right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens” (Hebrews 8:1), that is, the throne of God. He is there as the “Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6). If God was faithful to remember His former covenant, how much more will He remember the new and better covenant we have in Jesus Christ, when the one who cut it with His own blood is always seated before Him?

The Table of the Lord is a table of splendor and majesty. It reveals to us the Lord Jesus Christ, brings us again to the reality of what He has done for us, focuses our hearts on the source of all true delight and prophecies the wonderful works God has in store for us today.

Super-Elated with the Things of God

And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. (2 Corinthians 12:7)

Here is a verse that is commonly misunderstood on a number of points. It is often thought that, because of the revelations Paul received from the Lord, God gave him a “thorn in the flesh” (often erroneously thought to be a sickness of some sort; see Pulling Paul’s Thorn) in order to keep him from becoming proud — lest he be “exalted above measure.”

Let’s take a look at the Greek word for that, hyperairo. It is found twice in this verse.” It is a compound word made up of hyper, which means “over, beyond or more than,” and airo, which means to lift or raise up. Sometimes it is used to speak of exaltation, which might be unseemly when it is applied to a man. But there is also another way this word is used that can have a very positive connotation.

• Renn’s Expository Dictionary of Bible Words says of hyperairo that, in this verse, it means to be exalted “in the sense of being affected by a feeling of supreme elation.”
• Weymouth’s New Testament translation has it as “lest I should be over-elated.”
• The English Standard Version has “to keep me from being too elated.”
• The Revised English Bible says, “to keep me from being unduly elated.”
• The Revised Standard Version: “to keep me from being too elated.”

For a human being to be exalted brings up negative connotations, and for a man to be exalted “beyond measure” causes people to think that a humbling is in order. That is what many interpreters have done with this verse. They read “exalted beyond measure” and immediately jump to the conclusion that what comes next, the “thorn in the flesh,” was given to Paul to humble him. Never mind that the word “humble” does not even appear in the text, but is simply assumed.

What is more, they often assume that it was God who gave Paul this thorn in order to humble him. Again, never mind that the text does not identify God as the one who gave him this thorn; it is called a “messenger of satan.” Unfortunately, though, the prevailing, and generally unexamined, assumption is that it was God who gave it and that it was for the purpose of humbling Paul, to knock him down a few pegs and keep him from becoming proud.

On the other hand, if hyperairo can just as well be rendered as “elation,” as many versions do, then the story this verse tells is more consistent with what the Bible teaches us about both God and the devil: God wants us to be full of joy; satan wants us to be full of pride. And it makes better sense of what the verse actually does say instead of assuming things it does not say.

“Elation” does not speak of pride or arrogance, but of joy and exhilaration. What did Paul have to be elated about? What could have filled him with such joy and exhilaration? The revelations He received from God. Paul was elated about the things God was showing him, and that is something to be excited about. Indeed, it is something to be super-elated about, as the Greek prefix hyper here implies.

Now think for a moment: Who is pleased when we are excited and filled with joy, super-elated about the things of God? Is it not God? And who is displeased when we are thrilled and overjoyed by the things of God? Is it not satan? So why should we assume that God would want to keep Paul from being excited and overjoyed about the things He was revealing to him?

Doesn’t it make more sense that satan gave Paul this thorn (remember, it is called a “messenger of satan”) to keep him from being thrilled and elated about the what God was showing him. If Paul was super-excited about these divine revelations, it could only mean bad news for satan. He would certainly want to deflate Paul, to knock the wind out of his sails. But if Paul was full of pride and arrogance, that would have played right into the devil’s hand. Satan would not try to prevent it. Quite the opposite, he would have done whatever he could to promote it.

The devil wants you to be full of pride and arrogance. God wants you to be joyful, exhilarated, super-elated with the things of God.

The Nations for Your Inheritance

Ask of Me, and I will give You
The nations for Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth for Your possession

(Psalm 2:8)

This is the promise of God to Messiah: Ask of Me and I will give you the nations for Your inheritance. But it is a promise made all to His people:

He has declared to His people the power of His works,
In giving them the heritage of the nations.

(Psalm 11:6)

The reference here is to the land of the Canaanite nations that He gave to Israel, but the application is much greater: God is interested in gathering in the nations themselves, in the days of Messiah. This is richly portrayed in the prophet Isaiah:

Now it shall come to pass in that latter days
That the mountain of the LORD’s house
Shall be established on the top of the mountains,
And shall be exalted above the hills
And all nations shall flow to it.
Many people shall come and say,
“Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
To the house of the God of Jacob;
He will teach us His ways,
And we shall walk in His paths.”

(Isaiah 2:2-3)

In that day there shall be a root of Jesse,
Who shall stand as a banner to the people;
For the Gentiles [nations] shall seek Him,
And His resting place shall be glorious.

(Isaiah 11:9)

Also the sons of the foreigner
Who join themselves to the LORD, to serve Him,
And to love the name of the LORD, to be His servants —
Everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath,
And holds fast My covenant —
Even them I will bring to My holy mountain,
And make them joyful in My house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
Will be accepted on My altar;
For My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.

(Isaiah 56:6-7)

This is the inheritance of nations promised Messiah, and through Him, for His people. For we are joint-heirs with Him:

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs — heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ [Messiah], if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. (Romans 8:16-17)

“Joint-heirs” means that whatever He inherits, we inherit with Him. If He has the nations for His inheritance, then so do we. All those who know the Lord Jesus Christ, whether they be from among the Jews or the Gentiles (nations), partake of this inheritance with Him. Indeed, we are the inheritance, we belong to each other as well as to Him.

Years ago, I was praying in Psalm 2 (my habit is to pray through the Psalms each month) and I was moved by verse 8: “Ask of Me and I will give you the nations for Your inheritance.” Realizing that those who know Jesus are joint-heirs with Him, I desired to know this inheritance in a deeper way. So I went for it. I asked God, “Lord, give me the nations for my inheritance.”

The next thing I knew, I was on the worldwide web with a ministry home page. It has since grown and now we have many blogs and articles on Christian prayer and Biblical faith that are accessible through the world. Over the years, our pages have received many visitors from the nations. Some have emailed us to tell us how our ministry has blessed them. As I have often said, it really is a worldwide web. I consider that God has indeed answered my prayer, and is continually enlarging our inheritance. Thanks be to God.

God has created an inheritance for Jesus Messiah and all who receive Him.

A Time for Witty Inventions

I wisdom dwell with prudence and find out knowledge of witty inventions. (Proverbs 8:12)

Prudence is the practical application of wisdom. It leads to “witty inventions.” Young’s Literal Translation renders this as “knowledge of devices.” The English Standard Bible has “discretion.” John Wesley calls it “ingenious contrivances for the glory of God, and for the good of men.” In his Commentary on the Bible, Adam Clarke has this: “The farther wisdom proceeds in man, the more practical knowledge it gains; and finding out the nature and properties of things, and the general course of providence, it can contrive by new combinations to produce new results.” Here is Keil and Delitzsch (Commentary on the Old Testament) on this verse:

It denotes well-considered, carefully thought out designs, plans, conclusions, and da’ath [“knowledge”] is here the knowledge that is so potent. This intellectual power is nothing beyond wisdom, it is in her possession on every occasion; she strives after it not in vain, her knowledge is defined according to her wish.

God wants to give you some witty inventions, clever devices, ingenious contrivances and bright ideas. Surely, that would be very helpful for these challenging times. Crisis is really opportunity in disguise — and what a lot of opportunity has been dumped in our laps!

Witty inventions come from prudence; prudence is the practical application of wisdom; wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord — living in awe and honor of God. When we seek Him, He will give us wisdom for the asking (James 1:5), for His desire is for us to succeed and prosper in all things and every situation (Joshua 1:6-8; Psalm 1:1-3; 3 John 2).

In Genesis, Joseph experienced many adversities, but he looked to the Lord and prevailed over them all. When famine was about to come upon the land, Joseph recognized it by Pharaoh’s dream and the wisdom God gave to interpret. Then he received divine wisdom about what to do about it. As a result, Joseph ended up as vice-regent over all of Egypt, and his “witty invention” blessed all the people in the land and brought in much wealth and prosperity for Egypt.

The prophet Daniel was another man who knew how to face adversity with divine wisdom. As a captive in Babylon, when other young men were being fed rich meats, foods and wines from the king’s table, Daniel developed a very healthy diet for him and his three friends, and then devised a clever test to convince his superior of the benefits of this diet. Not only did these four young men turn out to be the healthiest in the bunch, God also gave them great knowledge and skill in literature and wisdom, and they were ten times better than all the king’s magicians and astrologers (Daniel 2). Like Joseph before Pharaoh, God gave Daniel the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dreams, which brought glory to God and promotion to Daniel. He ended up as the chief of the wise men, lived in the gate of the king and became governor over Babylon.

This is a time for the practical application of wisdom in crafting solutions, a time for ingenious contrivances, clever devices and bright ideas. This is a time for Josephs and Daniels to arise, a time for witty inventions. Ask God for divine wisdom, then watch for what He will show you. You might very well end up with something that brings great glory to God, great blessing to others and great promotion and prosperity for yourself.

Expect God’s Mighty Acts Today

Reading Bill Johnson’s book, Release the Power of Jesus, I came across a sermon quote from Charles Haddon Spurgeon. I include it here, with a bit more from that sermon, because it is so good about expecting to see the power of God today:

When people hear about what God used to do, one of the things they say is: “Oh, that was a very long while ago.” They imagine that times have altered since then …Things were in a different state then from what they are now.” Granted; but I want to know what the things have to do with it. I thought it was God that did it.

Has God changed? Is He not an immutable God, the same yesterday, today and forever? Does not that furnish an argument to prove that what God has done at one time He can do at another? Nay, I think I may push it a little further, and say what He has done once is a prophecy of what He intends to do again — that the mighty works which have been accomplished in the olden time shall all be repeated, and the Lord's song shall be sung again in Zion, and He shall again be greatly glorified.

Others among you say, “Oh, well I look upon these things as great prodigies — miracles. We are not to expect them every day.” That is the very reason why we do not get them. If we had learned to expect them, we should no doubt obtain them, but we put them up on the shelf, as being out of the common order of our moderate religion, as being mere curiosities of Scripture history. We imagine such things, however true, to be prodigies of providence; we cannot imagine them to be according to the ordinary working of His mighty power. I beseech you, my friends, abjure that idea, put it out of your mind. (The Story of God’s Mighty Acts)

Spurgeon knew the mighty acts of God in his own day. He knew about the power of faith to heal in Jesus’ name and experienced many remarkable healings in his ministry. He also had frequent “words of knowledge” about things he could not have known unless God had revealed them to him. I have compiled many of these in Miracles and Manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the History of the Church. God is still doing today what He has always done.

What God has done in the past is a prophecy of what He intends to do again. If we learn to expect it, we shall see it. What is your expectation?

We Have a Confession to Make

Consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus. (Hebrews 3:1)

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. (Hebrews 10:23)

God has given many wonderful promises and benefits for those who know, love and serve Him, and they are all found in Jesus Christ, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession.

The Greek word for “confess” is homologeo and means, “to say the same thing” (homo, same; logeo, to speak or say). To confess is to speak in agreement with something. Jesus is the Apostle and High Priest of our confession. He is the one we confess, speak in agreement with and about. To confess Him is to declare our faith in Him.

• We confess that Jesus Christ is Apostle. The word “apostle” refers to one who is sent. By confessing Jesus Christ as Apostle, we agree that He is the one who is sent by God. He represents the Father before us. “He who has seen Me has seen the Father,” He said (John 14:9). All other apostles are apostles of Jesus Christ, sent by Him, but Jesus Christ is the Apostle of the Father, the One sent by God.
• We confess that Jesus Christ is our High Priest. The role of the High Priest is to represent God to the people and the people to God. Jesus Christ is uniquely qualified to do that because He is fully divine and fully human, Son of God and Son of Man.

As High Priest, Jesus Christ has made complete atonement for us, taking our sins upon Himself and nailing them to the Cross. He has cleansed us from all guilt and shame. As High Priest, He is the mediator of a “better covenant, which was established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6), a covenant cut in His own blood (Luke 22:20). As wonderful as the promises of the Old Covenant were, this covenant is even better, adding to those promises.

When we confess Jesus Christ as Apostle and High Priest, we are agreeing that He is the one sent by the Father to us. In confessing Him, we also confess the covenant He has mediated for us, for He completely fulfills all the requirements of both the old and new covenants. He has done all that is necessary; our part is to commit ourselves to Him by faith.

With that in mind, I have written two confessions based on two passages from the old covenant. I chose these because they are wide-ranging and form a good foundation for laying hold of what God wants to do for us in this life. I believe they will be an encouragement to you, especially in these difficult times. Do you confess Jesus as your Lord? Are you trusting Him with your life? Then these confessions are for you, too.

Be bold when you make these confessions. Years ago, I began making confessions like these, based on similar Scriptures. I was in a very difficult time in my life and I knew I needed a strong, bold faith in God if I was going to get the turnaround I needed. So I printed out a number of Scripture promises, cast them in the first person, in the form of personal confessions, and began speaking them out. I did not just read them silently to myself — I knew I had to get these down deep into my heart. So I read them out loud. It was awkward at first, but I kept at it. I paced back and forth in the hallway of my house, reading and repeating these promises and confessions out loud, over and over. Before long, I began to speak them out louder and louder. I got to where I was shouting them out regularly.

What was I doing? Letting them fill my eyes, my mind, my mouth and my ears, and before long they began to fill my heart. You might say I was defibrillating, shocking my heart back into the rhythms of faith with the Word of God, recalibrating my thoughts and emotions with the promises of God, realigning my will with the heart of God. After about a month, I began to see breakthrough. My life has been different and I have walked in a deeper level of faith, and joy, ever since.

It seems to me that now is a good time to pick up these “defibrillating” paddles once again and reinvigorate our faith with the promises of God. I invite you to join me in these confessions:

All the blessings of God come upon us and overtake us, because we obey the voice of the LORD our God. We are blessed everywhere we go, in the city and in the country. We are blessed with increase in every area of our life — at home, in business, in ministry. We are blessed in all our comings and goings — when we go out, we go out in safety; when we come home, we come home in safety. The LORD causes all our enemies to be defeated — they scatter from before us in every direction. The LORD commands His blessing on us in our storehouses, and in all we set our hand to. The LORD establishes us as holy unto Himself, to fulfill His plans and purposes for our lives — He leads us into our destiny. The LORD gives us plenty of goods and abundance of prosperity. The LORD opens His treasury to bless all the work of our hands. We shall lend to many and shall never have to borrow. (from Deuteronomy 28:1-14)

We are blessed by the LORD, because we delight in His commandments. Our descendants will be mighty on the earth. Wealth and riches are in our house. Light arises for us in the darkness. We are gracious, full of compassion and righteous. We deal graciously and lend, and we guide our affairs with discretion. We will never be shaken. We will be in everlasting remembrance. We will not be afraid of evil tidings. Our hearts are steadfast, trusting in the LORD. We are established in heart, and we will not be afraid. We shall look in triumph on our foes. We are generous and share our gifts abroad. We remember to give to the poor. Our righteousness (the righteousness of Christ now at work in us) endures forever, and we will be exalted with honor. (from Psalm 112)

Jesus is our High Priest, and in Him, we have many wonderful promises to confess.

The Kingdom of Heaven is Now on Earth

The Kingdom of Heaven on Earth:
Keys to the Kingdom of God in the Gospel of Matthew 
by Jeff Doles

JESUS began His ministry proclaiming, “The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” In other words — it is now here! Everywhere He went, He preached it, taught it and demonstrated it by signs and wonders, healing the sick and setting the spiritual captives free. He brought heaven to earth and taught His disciples how to do it, too.

The Kingdom of Heaven on Earth is a study of the nature and dynamics of the kingdom of Heaven on Earth, and how to live and operate effectively in its dominion. It is a motivational commentary on select passages in the Gospel of Matthew, to stir up your passion for the reality of God’s kingdom now at work in the world. In this book, you will learn about:

• The Kingdom of the Heart
• The Kingdom of Authentic Living
• The Treasure of Heaven on Earth
• Discerning Heaven on Earth
• The Authority of Heaven on Earth
• Parables of Heaven on Earth
• The Glory of Heaven on Earth
• The Incomparable Value of Heaven on Earth
• The Controversy of Heaven on Earth
• Heaven on Earth and the End of the Age
• The Victorious Kingdom

"The Kingdom of Heaven on Earth by Jeff Doles is an excellent and insightful presentation of the teachings of Jesus in Matthew concerning the Kingdom of Heaven. With his usual thorough and thoughtful style, Jeff shares the passionate heart of Jesus to bring the blessings of Heaven to the earth. This book is a tremendous guide for personal or group Bible study. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to better understand the essence of the Christian life from the transformational teachings of Jesus, the King of Kings, who will rule over the Kingdom of Heaven on the Earth."

— Ben R Peters, President of Open Heart Ministries.
international conference speaker and author

If I Am Not Filled with Wonder

If I am not filled with wonder, am I really positioned to say He is wonderful? If I am not filled with power, am I really positioned to say He is powerful? Where I have set the eyes of my heart will determine the reality that I release around me.

Heaven is filled with perfect trust in God, and the earth is filled with mistrust. We will always reflect the nature of the world we are most aware of.

—Bill Johnson, Release the Power of Jesus

What Will You Call It?

Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. (Genesis 2:19)

Here’s an amazing thing: God created man in His own image — to be like Him — and gave him dominion over all the earth (Genesis 1:26-28). He formed Adam from the dust, then puffed the breath of life into his nostrils, and man became a “living being” (Genesis 2:7). The Hebrew is nephesh chayah. The Targum Onkelos, an ancient Jewish commentary, says that man became a “speaking spirit.” Just as God had the ability to speak — and by it called the heavens and earth into existence — man, created in the likeness of God, had the same ability to use word.

We see this in the first thing God had Adam do: He brought the animals to him to see what Adam would call them. Notice, God did not tell Adam what to call them. He simply observed what Adam named them — that is, how Adam exercised his dominion and the power of his words, and whatever Adam called each animal, that was its name. The decision was Adam’s. God did not change it in any way, for He had given dominion of the planet over to Adam.

This often forgotten little episode is quite significant today because the names you give things determine how you see and relate to them, and what they will be in your life. Your words have a creative ability. This is a vitally important truth to remember as you consider the current economic climate and the challenges it presents: Whatever you call it, that will be its name!

What will you call this present situation you find yourself in? Because you will name it something. Will you name it out of fear, or out of faith? Because it will be one way or the other.

Remember what Job went through. We know that satan wanted to have a go at him, and God allowed it to happen (see Job 1-2). But what a lot of people do not see is that Job himself was also a participant in what happened to him. He left an opening for satan to exploit. It was not a matter of sin, as Job’s three friends had wrongfully supposed, for God had already declared that Job was “a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil” (Job 1:8). No, this was about something Job spoke out of his own mouth. When satan’s calamities began to come upon him, Job revealed what had been going on in his heart: “For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has happened to me” (Job 3:25).

Great fear and dread had gripped Job long before his physical situation started to fall apart. It filled his heart in abundance, for it was not just a little anxiety and worry he possessed but great fear and dread. Because it was in his heart in abundance, it is very likely that he often spoke it out, calling it with his words. And whatever he called it, that was its name, and was exactly what happened to him. In the end, we see that Job had to “repent in dust and ashes” for wrongfully accusing God for his troubles (John 42:1-6).

Or remember what happened with the twelve men Moses sent to spy out the land of Canaan, which God had promised to give to Israel. Ten came back with a sorry and fearful report. They recognized that it was indeed a marvelous land, flowing with “milk and honey,” but then they called forth their fear: “Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large … We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we … There we saw the giants … and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight” (Numbers 13).

However, the other two spies, Joshua and Caleb gave a very different assessment.

Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it. (Numbers 13:30)

The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, “a land which flows with milk and honey.” Only do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the LORD is with us. Do not fear them. (Numbers 14:7-9)

The ten and the two each called the situation by very different names:

• The ten said, “We saw the giants.” The two said, “They are our bread.”
• The ten said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” The two said, “We are well able to overcome.”
• The ten said, “We were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” The two said, “The LORD is with us … He will bring us into this land and give it to us.”

Whatever each called it, that was its name and how it operated in their lives. The ten never went up against the “giants,” never possessed the Promised Land, but died in the wilderness. On the other hand, Joshua and Caleb eventually went in, overcame and possessed the land, for God was with them and gave it to them.

Some people say, “Well, I call it like I see it.” Okay, then maybe you need to change the way you see it. The ten spies saw themselves as grasshoppers and then assumed that that was how the Canaanites saw them. Joshua and Caleb saw something different. They saw that God was with them and that He had given them a promise. The ten spies spoke out of their fear. Joshua and Caleb spoke out of faith in God and what He said — and that made all the difference, for whatever they called it, that was its name.

God has given promises to those who know, love and serve Him. Here are a few that are pertinent to the current economic situation:

• God has given us the ability to create wealth, because He is establishing His covenant in the earth (Deuteronomy 8:18).
• God commands the blessing on us in our storehouses and in all to which we set our hands (Deuteronomy 28:8).
• God enables us to prosper in whatever we do (Psalm 1:3).
• God does not hold back any good thing from those who do what is right (Psalm 84:11).
• Wealth and riches will be in our houses (Psalm 112:3).
• The blessing of the Lord makes us rich, and there is no sorrow with it (Proverbs 10:22).
• God makes His grace abound to us so that we, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have abundance for every good work (2 Corinthians (9:8). Paul made this statement in a financial context.
  
• God supplies all our needs according to glorious riches in Christ (Philippians 4:19). In other words, it is not about our own resources but His.
• God’s desire is for us to prosper in all things and be in health, even as our souls prosper (3 John 2).

Don’t over-spiritualize these promises to the exclusion of material prosperity, for true and lasting material prosperity is based upon the reality of spiritual prosperity. God wants you to prosper in all things (finances are not excluded) according to the prosperity of your inner being.

What will you call your financial circumstance at this time? Will you name it out of fear or out of faith? Will you look at it in the panicky way the world sees it, or will you let the promises of God change the way you see it, and therefore, what you will call it? For whatever you call it, that will be its name in your life.

Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled

In the LORD I put my trust (Psalm 11:1)

David is cool in the face of turmoil. While those around him are in a panic, David asserts his faith:

In the LORD I put my trust;
How can you say to my soul,

“Flee as a bird to your mountain?
For look! The wicked bend their bow,
They make ready their arrow on the string,
That they may shoot secretly at the upright in heart.
If the foundations are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?”

(Psalm 11:1-3)

It is a wonder to him that anyone would even think of speaking to him this way. Why? Doesn’t he know what is happening all around him? Is he unaware of all those out to get him, the wicked who want to do violence to him? Yes, he understands that, but he also knows something more important and far greater than that:

The LORD is in His holy temple,
The LORD’s throne is in heaven;
His eyes behold,
His eyelids test the sons of men.
The LORD tests the righteous,
But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates.

(Psalm 11:4-5)

The fearful ones around him think that the foundations of the righteous have been destroyed. But David understands that this is impossible because the Lord is in His temple, and His throne is in heaven. The Lord still rules and reigns; His throne has not been shifted by calamity. Or as my wife likes to remind the worriers, “My God hasn’t gone anywhere.”

God has not been shaken, and He is the foundation of the righteous. The events of earth have not taken Him by surprise. He is well aware of what is going on, and He knows exactly what the wicked are up to, but it does not find Him wringing His hands.

This is David’s confidence and the reason he refuses to be full of anxiety and dread.

Many today are in a panic about the state of national and world economies. Even a lot of Christians are running scared. And that is exactly where the enemy wants you — full of worry and fear, thinking that your foundation has been, or is about to be, destroyed. But if you know the Lord Jesus, if your trust is in Him, your foundation can never be destroyed but will stand forever.

God is in His temple and His throne remains in heaven where it has always been. Jesus our King is seated there at His right hand, “far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come” (Ephesians 1:21). And that is where everyone who puts their trust in Him is as well, for God has “and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6). All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus (Matthew 28:18) and He is with us always, “even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). He will take care of us, now and forever.

Let not your heart be troubled. If your trust is in the Lord, your foundation is secure.

How to Prosper in Everything

He is like a tree planted beside streams of water
That bears its fruit in season
And whose leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers.

(Psalm 1:3 HCSB)

True prosperity is not a function of the economy. It does not come from Wall Street. It cannot be guaranteed by the president or Congress. Therefore, it cannot be taken away by Wall Street, by the president or Congress. It does not arise because of an “up” economy, so it cannot be lost because of a “down” one.

True prosperity comes from God.

It does not come by following the advice of the world, acting the way the world acts, thinking what the world thinks (v. 1). It comes by a radically different path, rooted in a completely different source. It comes by delighting in the instruction of the Lord, the “law” of the Lord. The Hebrew word for “law” is torah and means instruction. God wants to instruct you, to teach you how to prosper.

If you will delight in His ways and let His instruction saturate your heart, fill your thought and direct your path, you will be like the man in Psalm 1:3.

• You will be like trees planted beside streams of water. This is stability, even in a drought season, because the streams of God do not dry up.
• You will bear fruit in season. When the season for bearing fruit comes around, you will not miss it. You will not cast off your fruit early, in the unripe stage, nor will it come too late to be any good. It will come in its proper time.
• You will not wither away. Your supply will not dry up. God is your source and will keep you fresh and green to keep on bearing fruit in His courts (Psalm 92:12-15).
• Whatever you do will prosper. When you follow the direction of the Lord, your efforts will not be in vain but will produce good things.

Whatever you do will prosper. God makes a similar promise in Deuteronomy 28:8, “The LORD will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand.” This, of course, assumes that you are setting your hand to something. Some people focus on their circumstances and let that keep them from doing anything. But if you are not putting your hand to something, there is nothing there for the Lord to command the blessing on. When you sow seed, He can multiply it for the harvest, but when you sow nothing, there is nothing to multiply.

Now, notice that God says, “Whatever he does shall prosper.” It would be wrong to make this just about finances — it is about so much more than that. It is about everything in your life. By the same token, although it might sound very pious and spiritual, it is just as wrong to think that financial prosperity is somehow excluded from the promise of God — whatever includes everything!

This is not just an Old Testament promise, as some have supposed, as if God does not want to do the same thing for us under the New Testament. The apostle John demonstrates the will of God for us when He says, “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers” (3 John 2). The blessing of God on those who love Him is for every area of life today, just as it has always been.

Do not focus on the circumstances, the drought, the famine, the “down” economy. These do not determine the prosperity of your soul or even of your finances. But love the Lord with all your heart, delight in His ways and look to Him for instruction and direction in your life. Focus on Him as your source and supply, and whatever you do will prosper.

How to Have a Blessed Economy

Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
Who delights greatly in His commandments.

(Psalm 112:1)

“Blessed” speaks of great happiness and bliss. What is the cause of such an exceedingly happy condition? The fear of the Lord, and delighting in His commandments.

The fear of the Lord speaks of living in supreme awe of Him. It is loving what He loves and hating what He hates. It is recognizing that His displeasure is greatly to be avoided but His favor is greatly to be desired. To delight in something is to have a desire for it, to take pleasure in it. Here, it is modified by the word “greatly,” which speaks of exceeding abundance, completeness, and diligence. This delight, desire and pleasure is wholehearted and intense. When we start to understand how awesome God is, how great His love and how marvelous His favor, we begin to take intense pleasure in His ways — and that leads to bliss, as this psalm describes.

What does the fear of the Lord look like in the everyday life of a person who has it?

He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
A good man deals graciously and lends;
He will guide his affairs with discretion. (vv. 4-5)
His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. (v. 7)
He has dispersed abroad,
He has given to the poor. (v. 9)

• He has received grace and favor from the Lord, so he shows grace and favor to others.
• He has experienced compassion and mercy from God, so he knows how to extend compassion and mercy to others.
• He is not stingy with what is his, but generously lends to others.
• He shows good judgment in all his dealings. The HCSB has, “conducts his business fairly.” He makes sound business decisions that are equitable and promote what is good.
• His trust is in the Lord and he lets that settle all the worries and concerns of his heart.
• He not only lends freely, He gives generously to the poor. The Hebrew for “disperse” literally means to scatter. He understands the paradox of Proverbs 11:24, “There is one who scatters, yet increases more; and there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty.”

That’s a short sketch of how the fear of the Lord gets lived out. Now, let’s take a brief look at what the blessing — the bliss — of such a person looks like.

• “His descendants will be mighty on earth; the generation of the upright will be blessed’ (v. 2). His descendants will receive a spiritual inheritance that, if they will follow it, will lead them into a life of blessing, abundance and significance.
• “Wealth and riches will be in his house, and his righteousness endures forever” (v. 3). Because he is making good decisions and doing what is right, which leads to prosperity, prosperity will fill his house. The results of living well will endure for the next generations. As Proverbs 13:22 says, “A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children.”
• “Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness” (v. 4). This does not mean that he will never have to go through dark times (or poor economies), but that when he does, there will light to lead him through it to the other side. The surrounding darkness will not cause him to fear because he is focused on the light that comes from the Lord.
• “Good will come to a man who lends generously” (v. 5, HCSB). Because he does what is good, goodness comes back to him. It is the principle of sowing and reaping. Jesus put it this way, “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the measure that you use, it will be measured back to you” (Luke 6:38). This is not just about money, as some think, but about how we deal with each other in general: When we show goodness to others, it will come back around to us.
• “Surely he will never be shaken; the righteous will be in everlasting remembrance” (v. 6). Living in awe of God brings him into a place of stability. There may be earthquakes, but when the dust clears, he will still be standing. He will have a testimony and the significance of his life will remain.
• “He will not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD” (v. 7). Bad news, failing economies, and financial disasters will not strike fear in him because his life and prosperity — his blessing — is founded upon God. His focus and trust are in the Lord.
• “His heart is established; he will not be afraid until he sees his desire upon his enemies” (v. 8; the HCSB has, “In the end he will look in triumph on his foes”). He does not focus his heart on the adversarial circumstances that surround him, but on the Lord. He does not fear when leaders forecast gloom or threaten catastrophe. The peace of his heart is settled on God and nothing can disturb the calm state of his soul.
• “His righteousness endures forever; his horn will be exalted with honor” (v. 9). His influence and honor will increase and the effect of living God’s way will continue to make him a blessing to others.
• “The wicked will see it and be grieved; he will gnash his teeth and melt away; the desire of the wicked shall perish” (v. 10). The wicked are those who are at odds with God’s way of doing things. Great blessing will come to those who live in awe of Him and walk in His ways, but for the wicked there is only grief, despair and frustration of purpose. They will fade away, therefore do not let your heart be troubled by them.

The psalm writer gives us just some of what it means to live in awe and delight of God and to know His blessing. Jesus puts it all very succinctly: “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

When you live in the fear of the Lord you do not have to fear anything else. Live your life in awe of Him and follow His ways. Let these be the economic indicators of your life, and you will not be troubled by the current panic in the world — you will know the blessing.

Pray for our country, that God will raise up godly leaders who will live in the fear and awe of Him, to love what He loves, hate what He hates, and do what is wise and good. Then the whole nation can enjoy a blessed economy.

The Ark of Your Testimony

And you shall put into the ark the Testimony which I will give you. (Exodus 25:16)

The Ark of the Covenant is also known as the Ark of the Testimony. The Hebrew word for “testimony” is edut, which means “witness” or “record.” It comes from the primitive root ud, which means to duplicate or repeat. Literally, it refers to something that is spoken again and again. Its purpose is to remind, to bring up again in your mind, and bring to prominence in your thinking.

Testimony is a powerful thing. It can not only bring something back to your mind but also back to your heart. It can recreate the emotions, the sense of the experience of that to which it testifies. For example, have you ever heard an old song on the radio that reminded you of the days when you first heard that song. It can make you think of old friends and places and the way you felt back then. It is amazing how a song can bring them again to you in such an emotionally powerful way. When a song triggers a memory like that, people even say, “Oh, that takes me back.” And in a way, it really does take them back to that time and place, and those old friends. That song has become a testimony to them, a witness of things past but which still have great meaning.

That is what the Ark of the Testimony did. It was a witness that spoke of the covenant God made with Israel. Everything about it testified to something in their experience with Him. It represented — re-presented — His presence among them. On top was the mercy-seat, the place of atonement, of divine forgiveness. The Testimony that was placed inside was threefold: The Ten Commandments, a jar of manna and Aaron’s rod that budded (Hebrews 9:4).

• The tables of the commandments spoke of God’s instruction, wisdom and promises — the covenant He made with Israel.
• The jar of manna spoke of the miraculous provision God made for them in the wilderness, a provision that sustained them throughout their wilderness wanderings.
• The rod of Aaron spoke of high priestly authority. For when the people tested God and rebelled against Aaron, God caused his rod to bud as a sign that He had indeed chosen Aaron.

The testimony of these things was always before them to remind them, not only of who God had been to them in the past, but also who He would continue to be to them in the future. For a testimony is not just about what God has done, it also reveals what He is going to do.

David understood this. He kept an ark of testimony in his heart so that He would not forget the benefits of God in his life, to give God glory and continue to trust in Him. He specifically instructed and reminded himself. “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits” (Psalm 103:1-2). Look at what he kept in the ark of his testimony:

• Who forgives all your iniquities (v. 3)
• Who heals all your diseases (v. 3)
• Who redeems your life from destruction (v. 4)
• Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies (v. 4)
• Who satisfies your mouth with good things (v. 5)
• So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s (v. 5)
• The Lord executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed (v. 6)
• He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel (v. 7)
• The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy (v. 8)

This is not just about the way God used to be, but about the way He is now and always will be. He is the same yesterday, today and forever — He does not change. The testimony of what He has done in the past is a seed of faith about what we can also expect Him to do in the future. When someone stands up and gives a testimony that God forgave them, saved them, rescued them, healed them, changed their life, it is a witness that He will do the same for whoever will trust Him. That is why it is important to remember the testimony of what God has done for you and share it with others. It is also why it is important to pay attention to the testimonies of others. They remind you of who God is and what He can do. The most important testimony, of course, is that of God Himself — what He was done for us in Jesus Christ, and the promises we have through faith in Him.

What is in the ark of your testimony? What are the promises of God’s Word that you are claiming? What are the times you have experienced God’s guidance? What are the provisions you have received from Him, the daily providences and the unusual supply that has shown up in your life? What are the ways that He has made His presence known to you? What are the ways He has revealed the life of Jesus to you? What are the ways He has revealed the life of Jesus through you to others? These are seeds of expectation that He will continue to be and do what He has always been and done, and that He will see you through any crisis.

Greetings to our friends in Telemark, Norway; Waterloo, Ontario; Baden-Wurttemburg; Tel Aviv; Glasgow; Yakima, WA; Walterboro, SC; Eugene, OR; Sunnyside, NY and Polway, CA.

A Different Priority

Yesterday, I wrote about living in an economy that is different from that of the world. An economy that is one of increase, abundance, prosperity, fulfillment and peace. It is not an end in itself but the byproduct of something else. It comes, not as the result of seeking it, but of seeking something else. Jesus put it this way (don’t let the familiarity of this passage cause you to miss what He is saying  — let it soak in):

Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 6:30-33)

No doubt, we need food to eat and drink, clothes to wear, a place to live, the means to travel wherever we need to go, and other things. The world worries — even gets into a downright panic—about these things. But God knows we have need of them. It has not escaped His attention. However, the way we get all these needs met is not by worrying about them. Worrying will get you nowhere. Jesus said, “Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?” Worry is just another name for fear, and fear does not change anything. Someone described worry as “meditating on the devil’s lies.” Someone else defined fear by the acronym F.E.A.R., “False Evidence Appearing Real.”

See, the “Gentiles” worry about all these things. The word “Gentiles” refers to all those who do not have a covenant with the Lord God. But God has made a covenant with His people in which He has promised to take care of us if we will trust Him. The essence of covenant is exchange: He gives us all He is and has; we give Him all we are and have.

So the Gentiles, the world outside of covenant with God, is seeking frantically after all the necessities of life. In this current economic crisis, some are suggesting that we need to do something drastic, but that is far too vague. Anything is something, so the advice to do something drastic translates into a plea to do anything drastic. That is not the response of wisdom but the reaction of panic, and doing it quickly does not make the results of foolish action any less foolish.

Jesus gives us different counsel: “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” It is a priority very different from that of the world. In fact, it seems counter-intuitive in the world’s way of thinking. But it is the only way to lasting peace and prosperity. It is not the way of fear but the way of faith.

The kingdom of God is His rule and reign in the world. The righteousness of God is His way of doing things, which is always right and always brings the right results. If we make it our priority to seek after His kingdom and rightness, the promise is that “all these things shall be added to you.” Everything else will be well taken care of and all our needs will be met. For “God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8).

To live in a different economy, one where everything is taken care of, you must have a different priority — the kingdom of God and His righteousness.

A Different Economy

The economies of the world are not doing too well these days, but God has a different economy for His people. It is an economy of increase, abundance and prosperity.

If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments, and perform them, then I will give you rain in its season, the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.

Your threshing shall last till the time of vintage, and the vintage shall last till the time of sowing; you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.

I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none will make you afraid; I will rid the land of evil beasts, and the sword will not go through your land.

You will chase your enemies, and they shall fall by the sword before you. Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight; your enemies shall fall by the sword before you.

For I will look on you favorably and make you fruitful, multiply you and confirm My covenant with you. You shall eat the old harvest, and clear out the old because of the new.

(Leviticus 26:1-10)

When you know the Lord and walk in His ways, you are not bound by the economies of the world. You can partake of the economy of heaven, in which there is no lack, no debt, no late payments, no late fees, no doing without. You will get full measure from your old harvests and full measure in your new.

You will have all your needs met and plenty more besides for every good work: “God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8).

Your source and supply is not limited by the current economic distresses of the world. Trust in the Lord and follow His ways. Be generous with what you have and give to those in need. God will take care of you. Seek His kingdom and His way of doing and being right in everything you do, and all you need will be added to you.

The Table of Wonder

I will remember the LORD’s works;
Yes, I will remember Your ancient wonders.
I will reflect on all You have done
And meditate on Your actions.

(Psalm 77:11-12 HCSB)

At the Table of the Lord we remember His works, His ancient wonders. We reflect on all He has done for us and meditate on His actions. The Table speaks of the giving of Himself, His body and of His blood, which is wondrous indeed. Consider:

• The Wonder of the Incarnation. The eternal Son of God became human flesh. He did not just take it upon Himself as a costume that He cast aside when He was finished with it. No, He became flesh (John 1:14).
• The Wonder of the Transfiguration. The wonder of Jesus in His humanity was revealed at Mount Tabor, where Peter, James and John saw the glory of God overshadow Him. “His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light” (Matthew 17:2). This is the glory God originally intended for Adam, and the glory of which we may all now partake.
• The Wonder of the Cross. It is a wonder that the Son of God not only became flesh, “He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:8). For this reason, God has highly exalted Him and “given Him the name which is above every name” (v. 9). He is exalted, not only in His divinity, but also in His humanity, His flesh.
• The Wonder of the Resurrection. He was “delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification” (Romans 4:25). “God both raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by His power” (1 Corinthians 6:14). “He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11).
• The Wonder of the Ascension. God “raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come” (Ephesians 1:20-21). Jesus, in His humanity—His body—as well as His divinity, sits on the throne of God, where He now rules and reigns forever. And we have been raised up together with Him, and made to sit together with Him in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). This is not future hope but present reality.

The Table of the Lord is where we consider these ancient mysteries and lay hold of these awesome realities. It is a Table of Wonder.

God’s Word in Your Mouth

I have put My words in your mouth,
and covered you in the shadow My hand,
in order to plant the heavens,
to found the earth,
and to say to Zion, “You are My people.”

(Isaiah 51:16 HCSB)

God has put His words in our mouths. Not just in our hearts, so that we may know them, but in our mouths, so that we may speak them. Why? In order to plant the heavens and lay the foundation of earth. In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, He spoke it all into existence by His words. The author of Hebrews reminds us, “By faith, we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible” (Hebrews 11:3).

Just as God originally created heaven and earth by His words, He has put His words in our mouths in order to again establish the heavens and give foundation to the earth. For the whole world fell under a curse when Adam rebelled against God, disconnecting from the life of God. Since man was given dominion over the world, when Adam lost the life and the glory of God, the whole world was plunged into darkness and decay. In Jesus Christ, the “Second Adam,” there is not only redemption for mankind, but restoration for all creation. That is why Paul says,

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. (Romans 8:18-22)

God puts His words in our mouths so that we may be revealed as the “sons of God.” That is why Jesus came: “But as many as received Him [Jesus], to them He gave the right to become the children of God, to those who believe in His name” (John 1:12). That is also why God gives us His Spirit: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” (Romans 8:14).

What are the words that establish heaven and earth? Every promise of God. As we believe them in our hearts and speak them with mouths, we are bringing divine transformation into the world. In this way we exercise dominion and “subdue” the earth, that is, bring it into line with the purpose of God, which is what God created for us to do (Genesis 1:26-28).

Jesus taught us to pray, “Your kingdom, come. Your will, be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). Whenever we see things on earth that are out of joint with the will of God in heaven, we have the authority to bring it into alignment by the words of our prayer: “Kingdom of God, come here into this place. Will of God, be done in this place just as it is being done in heaven.”

He also taught us this: “Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 18:18). The grammatical tense of the Greek text actually means that whatever we bind or loose on earth will have already been bound or loosed in heaven. In other words, by what we bind and loose, we are bringing earth into alignment with heaven.

Jesus continued: “Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven” (Matthew 18:19). When we, as disciples of Jesus, come into agreement on earth about something, it will be done for us from heaven — our Father will see to it. Again, it is bringing earth into alignment with heaven.

Praying in this way and with this authority not only establishes heaven and earth, it establishes heaven on earth. For that is God’s plan, for heaven and earth to joined together as one, forever.

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” (Revelation 21:1-5)

These are the words God puts in our mouths and this is what they are for.

What are the words you are speaking with your mouth? Are they words that establish heaven on earth?

For more about the dynamics of faith and the power of God’s words, see God’s Word in Your Mouth: Changing Your World Through Faith.

The Prayer of Abandonment

Here is that second prayer I was talking about the other day that has helped me to be content that the course of my life is in God’s hands. It is by Charles de Foucauld, also known as Brother Charles of Jesus. He reminds me of Heidi Baker in that he always sought to be “lower still,” to enter the low place of serving others, the ones in front of him.

When I first began praying this prayer years ago, it was with great resignation. Eventually, I found that I began to pray it with great joy and the confidence that my Father is love.

Father, I abandon myself into Your hands.
Do with me what You will.
Whatever You do, I thank You.
I am ready for all,
I accept all.
Let only Your will be done in me, and in all Your creatures,
I ask no more than this, O Lord.

Into Your hands I commend my soul;
I offer it to You with all the love of my heart,
For I love You, Lord, and so need to give myself,
To surrender myself into Your hands,
Without reserve and with boundless confidence,
For You are my Father.

The Course of My Life

The course of my life is in Your power. (Psalm 31:15 HCSB)

The NKJV has the more familiar reading, “My times are in Your hand.” However, “the course of my life,” speaks to me more of the trajectory of my life — not just where I am now, but also where I am heading. It is all in the power of God’s hand.

Recently, I received a note from a friend who had a vision of me. She saw me sitting in my usual place at church (maybe I should get around the room more) with a hardbound book in my hand. Then she saw hands take the book and rip out the last quarter of the pages. As she prayed about this vision, she felt that God was saying I had some preconceived ideas about how things will end but that God had a different ending written. She also sensed that there were still more pages to be written and they would be full of unexpected turns that would never have occurred to me in my version of things. But God has them all written and woven into the plan of my life.

Sounds about right. It was only a week earlier that I myself had ripped out a section of pages. I had made the decision to quit pursuing a course I had been following, on and off, for about fifteen years. I had thought it was God’s path for me, but then I came to the unexpected realization that I did not need to take it to completion — I had already received the benefit I needed from it and this course would no longer serve. So I ripped out those pages about where I thought it would take me. It was a hard thing, but the right thing. There has been a little grieving over it, but mostly a pervading peace.

So now, I have a lot of blank pages. I think I know the chapter I am on, but I do not know exactly where, how or when this one ends and the next one begins. And that’s okay. The course of my life is in God’s hands — and His are very good hands.

I feel a little like Abraham, when God came and said, “Get out of your country … to a land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). Abraham probably thought he knew where his life was going, but then God suddenly appeared and changed everything. Abraham’s life now took on new and unexpected — and wonderful — dimensions. The significance of his life became immeasurable.

There are a couple of prayers that are helpful to me at moments like these. I’ll share one of them with you now:

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you and I hope that I have that desire in all that I am doing. And I know that if I do this, you will lead me by the right road although I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death, I will not fear, for you are ever with me and you will never leave me to face my perils alone. ~  Thomas Merton, Thoughts in Solitude.

The course of your life is in God’s hands — and they are very good hands.