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.

How Jesus Did the Impossible

Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. (John 14:10)

How did Jesus do the many impossible things He did—healing the sick, loosing people from demonic oppression, cleansing the lepers, raising the dead—the many signs and wonders He performed? Jesus tells us: It was the Father who dwelt in Him who did it.

Jesus was in the Father, and the Father was in Jesus. There was a dwelling, an abiding. Just a few verses earlier, Jesus told the disciples about an abode.

In My Father’s house are many mansions;” if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. (John 14:2-3)

The Greek word for “mansions” is monay and means “abode.” There are many abodes in the Father’s House, many dwelling places. A lot Christians think Jesus was talking about little houses in heaven, some big, some small, according to how well we have lived here. Actually, though, He was speaking of many abodes in the one house, that of the Father.

Jesus said, “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself.” Again, Christians think He was talking about how He is now busy preparing a place for us, and that when He returns, He will take us there. But I think He had something different in mind; I think He was speaking of what He was about to do on the cross. It was on the cross that He prepared a place for us in the Father, removing the sin that separated us from God. The return He speaks of is not the Second Coming at the end of this present age, but His return from the dead. He went and prepared the place for us, and then He came back and received us to Himself. Paul speaks about the reality of the abiding place we have in the Father’s house:

God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-6)

• Notice where we are seated: In the heavenlies, in Christ, at the right hand of the Father.
• Notice when we are seated there: Now! It is not a future hope but a present reality. It is something God has already done, not something we are waiting for Him to do.

Jesus has prepared a place for us in the Father’s house and God has seated us there. It is now our abode.

Jesus said, “Believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me.” Jesus was in the Father, but He has now prepared a place for us in the Father, too, and has received us to Himself.

Now consider the second part: “The Father is in Me.” Through faith in Jesus Christ, we now belong in the Father—He is our dwelling place, our abode. But does He also dwell in us? Jesus answers that:

If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. (John 14:23)

The Greek word for “home” here the same word used earlier for “mansion.” In fact, it is the only other time we find this word in the New Testament. When we love Jesus and obey His commands, He and the Father make their abode in us—they are at home in us.

Jesus did the impossible because He abided in the Father and the Father abided in Him. The same is also now true of all who receive the Lord Jesus—we abide in the Father and the Father abides in us.

Now think about what else Jesus said, “The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.” Jesus did not act out of His own authority, even though He is the eternal Son of God, fully divine as well as fully human. He did not speak His own words, but those of the Father. Therefore the Father was able to do all those impossible works through Him. Jesus says something similar in John 5, where He healed the lame man at the pool of Bethesda:

Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner … I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent me. (vv. 19, 30)

By Himself, Jesus could do nothing! Even though He was the fully divine Son of God. It was only as He saw what the Father was doing and said what the Father was saying, and doing and saying those same things, that He could do anything. If that was true of Him, how much more must it be true of us?

And now, Jesus calls us to do impossible things, too. “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father” (John 14:12). The same works He did, we will do—and even greater works. Why? Because He was going to the Father. A little while later, He explained that He would be sending the Holy Spirit (John 14:26; 15:26) Indeed, He had to go so that He could send the Spirit: “It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you” (John 16:7).

Jesus sent us the Helper—the Holy Spirit. This is important because it was by the Spirit, as well as the Father, that Jesus was able to do all those wonderful, impossible works. That is what Peter preached to Cornelius:

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

Jesus promised us the same Spirit and the same power: “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, an in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Our witness is not only by words but also by works—the evidence of who Jesus is and what He is doing in the world. By this power, the disciples were able to heal the sick, expel demons, perform signs and wonders, and even raise the day, just as Jesus did. We see this in the rest of the book of Acts and throughout Church history (see Miracles and Manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the History of the Church for a multitude ofexamples).

Jesus did the impossible because He was in the Father and the Father was in Him; because He did what He saw the Father doing and said what He heard the Father saying; because He was anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power. All these belong to us today. Through faith, God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—abides in us and will do the same works through us that were done through Jesus.

Doing the Impossible Things

“Many Christians mistakenly believe that some of Christ’s commands, like the command to love your neighbor as yourself, are possible to observe, while others, like the one to raise the dead, are impossible. The truth is that all of Christ’s commands are impossible to fulfill apart from His grace and supernatural power through the Holy Spirit.” ~ Bill Johnson, Release the Power of Jesus

Lord, help me to do the impossible thing of loving my neighbor as myself so that I may do the impossible thing of raising him from the dead. Amen.

The Light of Heaven, the Fire of Hell

God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. (1 John 1:5)

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. (James 1:17)

The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. (Revelation 21:23).

The light of God is His glory, the expression of His majesty and goodness. It is the light of heaven and earth. Jesus is the light, “the true Light which give light to every man coming into the world” (John 1:8). In Him is life, and the life is the light of men (John 1:4).

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.’ (John 8:12)

Though Jesus gives light to everyone who comes into the world, there are those who would rather have darkness.

And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God. (John 3:19-21)

In the end, though, it is the light that prevails. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it (John 1:5). Indeed, as John says, “The darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining” (1 John 2:8). But for those who love the darkness, the light is a torment, and for those who hate God, the glory is agony.

God is light, but He is also a “consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29). I don’t think this is speaking of two different things, but rather, two aspects of the same thing. For those who love God and walk in His ways, the light and the glory are a blessing; but for those who despise God and embrace evil, the light and the glory are a terrible consuming fire.

Everything that belongs to God is gathered in as wheat; everything that does not belong to Him is cast out as chaff for “unquenchable fire” (Matthew 3:12). “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Matthew 7:19). “Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age” (Matthew 13:40).

Such expressions are traditionally understood as references to hell, and perhaps that is true. However, they do not speak of literal fire but, I think, of the light of God. Those who love evil are totally unprepared to rejoice in the glory of God. To them, the light of God is a fire of judgment that will not relent. Indeed, it cannot relent, for God cannot cease to be who He is — His glory is eternal.

The light of heaven is the fire of hell. Therefore, be reconciled to God through faith in Jesus Christ.

Where Do You Live?

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together I the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-6)

Paul says that we have been made alive together with Christ, raised up with Him and have been seated in the heavenlies in Christ. Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father, the place of ruling and reigning. That is where we must be seated as well, since we are seated in Christ. Notice that Paul does not speak of this as future hope but as present reality.

So where do we live? In heaven or on earth? Our thinking gets too earthbound. Sure, we dwell bodily on this material planet. But we are called to have the perspective of heaven.

If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God [and where we are seated as well]. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. (Colossians 3:1-2)

We are called to live from out of a different place than the only one we knew before we were born again (John 3:6, literally “born from above”). In Jesus Christ we are new creatures and the situation has totally changed for us (2 Corinthians 5:17). We have been made citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:20). At the end of the Book, heaven and earth become one. It is not that heaven changes, but earth changes as God's kingdom pervades and the will of God is done on earth as in heaven.

Where do you live? If you know Jesus, you are a citizen of heaven and have been raised up and seated with Him in the heavenlies. That changes everything about your life here on earth. Set your mind on things above. Focus on the perspective of heaven and live from that higher place.

Calling Forth Your Divine Destiny

Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did. (Romans 4:16-17)

God renamed Abram, calling him Abraham. He added a divine “ha” to his name — think of it as the life-giving breath, even the laughter of God — and that changed everything. The name Abram meant “exalted father,” but what a joke that turned out to be. Abram was seventy-five years old when God first came to him, and he and his wife, Sarai, had been barren all their years. No children, therefore no fatherhood for Abram, and by natural reckoning, it was now too late. But God made him a promise anyway: “I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great” (Genesis 12:2).

Abram began to cast about for how that might happen. Would it be through his nephew Lot? Or perhaps through his servant Eliezer? Sarai came up with a plan they both thought was pretty clever (not!): Why not go and have a child with Hagar, Sarai’s handmaid — maybe that’s what God had in mind. Nope, none of the above.

God came to him again when Abram was about eighty-seven and renewed the word of promise. He directed Abram’s attention to the stars, numberless in the sky: “So shall your descendents be” (Genesis 15:5). Abram believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness (v. 6). Of course, it was just after that that Sarai came up with her brilliant idea, and Abram, still trying to manufacture the fulfillment for himself, thought it was worth a try. That didn’t work out, though, and Abram was back where he started.

Finally, when Abram was ninety-nine years old, God came to him again. And that’s when it happened. God breathed life into his name (God’s word is creative; that’s how He made the heavens and the earth). “No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations” (Genesis 17:5). Abraham means “father of multitudes.” God, who calls things that are not as though they were, was now calling the promise into existence.

Father of Multitudes! That was now Abram’s new name. Whenever he introduced himself to others, he would be speaking his destiny, “Hi, I’m Father of Multitudes.” Whenever Sarah, whose name God changed from Sarai, would call him it would be, “Father of Multitudes.” Now the promise would be in his ears and upon his lips. It would continually stir in his heart. In agreement with God, he would be calling those things that are not as though they were. He would be calling forth his divine destiny. And so it came to pass.

That is how faith works. We receive the promise of God, we believe it in our hearts and we speak it forth with our lips. The heart believes and the mouth confesses, that is, speaks in agreement with it (Romans 10:10). Jesus put it this way:

Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, “Be removed and be cast into the sea,” and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. (Mark 11:22-23)

Gather up the promises God has given you in His Word, the dreams He has dreamed you in the night, the destiny He has whispered in your ears. Believe them with all your heart and confess them with your mouth. Speak them aloud, even if only to yourself. Call them forth in agreement with God. Let Him breathe life into your spirit and put the divine ha! in your heart. He is giving life to what you thought was dead and speaking forth your divine destiny — all of faith and according to His grace.

Praise, Increase and the Theory of Entanglement

Let the peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
Then the earth shall yield her increase.

(Psalm 67:4-5)

In Quantum Physics there is a theory called Entanglement, which says that two particles that have ever been connected are so related to one another that, even if they are separated on opposite sides of the universe, the state of one affects the state of the other. Consider, then, the significance of Genesis 2:7 in the light of that theory: “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground.”

The life of man is found in the breath of God. He became of living being when God breathed the breath of life into his nostrils (Genesis 2:7). But the body of man is inextricably bound with the material of the universe. That is why, when Adam disconnected from the life of God through his rebellion, it affected the whole planet: “Cursed is the ground for your sake [i.e., because of you] … for out of it you were taken” (Genesis 3:17, 19).

Just as all creation was affected by the fall of man, so all creation finds restoration in the redemption of man.

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 8:19-22)

This brings out the significance of the psalm: “Let all the peoples praise You. Then the earth shall yield her increase.” When the nations and peoples of the earth release praise to God, it is not just the expression of redeemed humanity, it also brings forth fruitfulness from the dust of the ground with which we are so connected. The earth yields her increase because of our praise.

When we are out of joint with God through rebellion, ingratitude and unbelief, the whole earth is out of joint, too. But when we return to God in faith and praise, divine order is reestablished in the earth because we are so entangled with the stuff of creation. In this manner, therefore, pray: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom, come. Your will, be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:9-10).

(For some amazing discussion about Entanglement, check out these video clips: Are We All Connected? and Quantum Entanglement and the Power of Intention.)

The Generation of the Righteous

Blessed is the man who fears the LORD.
Who greatly delights in His commandments.
His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed.

(Psalm 112:1-2)

The purpose of God in the world reaches out to nations and down through generations. Those who are blessed by the Lord, who delight in His commandments and walk in His ways, leave a great legacy for their children. The blessing we have through faith in Jesus Christ is not just for us, it is for our children — it is their inheritance, if they also will lay hold of it by faith. And it is not just for our children but for all the nations of the earth as our children walk it out in the world.

And your descendants will inherit the nations,
And make the desolate cities inhabited.

(Isaiah 54:2-3)

This is the same blessing God promised Abraham:

I will make you a great nation;
I will bless you
And make your name great;
And you shall be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
And I will curse him who curses you;
And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

(Genesis 12:2-3)

Notice the word “families.” It is a very powerful one because it is through families that God does His best work. It is through the family of Abraham that blessing comes to all the families of the earth. The blessing from in Abraham’s family, from one generation to the next, until it was fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Jesus went to the cross to deliver us from the curse so that the blessing of Abraham might come upon all, even those not of Abraham’s house (Galatians 3:13-14). Through faith in Jesus Christ, we may now all receive the promise God made in the beginning.

Ever since, the blessing of Abraham has come upon more and more people, family to family, nation to nation, generation after generation. God’s purpose is increasingly being fulfilled until it will one day appear in all its glory. The kingdom of God is coming; the will of God is being done more and more on earth as in heaven.

God is doing it through the influence of fathers, family and inheritance. The Philippian jailer asked, “What must I do to be saved?” Paul answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household” (Acts 16:30-31). Through faith, this Philippian father became the gateway for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the blessing of Abraham to come upon his household; they all believed and were baptized.

The older I get, the more I become aware of God’s workings through the generations. I received the inheritance of faith from my fathers, embraced the Lord Jesus for myself and now I leave a legacy for my children and my children’s children — indeed, for all my descendents. My focus has sharpened and I pray daily for my children, claiming the promise for them. My descendants will be mighty in the land and their generations will be blessed. They will inherit that nations and make the desolate cities inhabited. They will be a blessing to many others in fulfillment continual fulfillment of the promise God gave Father Abraham.

Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments. (Deuteronomy 7:9)

How happy are those who live in awe of God, trust in His Word and walk in His ways. This great joy is for all their descendants, too, as many as will take hold of it by faith in Jesus Christ. For the blessing of Abraham has come to their house.

The Time for Pressing In

New year, new opportunities, new challenges (which are really opportunities in disguise). The world is a'twitter about the economy and other things. However, for those who follow after Jesus Christ and seek the kingdom of God and righteousness (His way of doing things), though we are in the world, we are not of it. In Isaiah 54:2-3, we find a different call than the world is hearing.

Enlarge the place of your tent,
And let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings;
Do not spare;
Lengthen your cords,
And strengthen your stakes.
For you shall expand to the right and to the left,
And your descendants will inherit the nations,
And make the desolate cities inhabited.

It is a call to preparation, to enlargement, to stretching out into the dream God has given you. It is not a time for sparing or holding back your resources but a time for lengthening your tent cords and strengthening your stakes, to expand your vision on all sides. God is giving us an inheritance to live out and a legacy for the next generation that will bless the nations, make the barren places fertile and bring life to the desolate cities.

Ever since Jesus came, the kingdom of God has been forcefully advancing and forceful men lay hold it (Matthew 11:12 NIV). Luke’s version says, “Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.” (Luke 16:16 NKJV; see A Kingdom Forcefully Advancing).

Now is the time to keep pressing in for the kingdom of God to be fulfilled and His will done on earth as it is in heaven.

Blessings for a New Year

Meditating and Praying Psalm 1 is how I start each new month and, consequently, each new year. It is good news of blessing and bliss (which is the Hebrew word for “blessed” means — literally an exclamation, “O the happinesses!”) for all those who love the Lord and walk in His ways.

Blessed is the man

Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,

Nor stands in the path of sinners,

Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,

And in His law he meditates day and night.

He shall be like a tree

Planted by the rivers of water,

That brings forth its fruit in its season,

Whose leaf also shall not wither;

And whatever he does shall prosper.

(Psalm 1:1-3)

Psalm 112 also seems an appropriate one to pray and believe, considering all that is going on around us. It begins:

Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
Who delights greatly in His commandments. (v. 1)

Let us count the ways such a one is blessed:

• His descendants will be mighty on earth (v. 2).
• The generation of the upright will be blessed (v. 2).
• Wealth and riches will be in his house (v. 3).
• And his righteousness endures forever (v. 3).
• Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness (v. 4).
• He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous (v. 4).
• A good man deals graciously and lends (v. 5).
• He will guide his affairs with discretion (v. 5).
• Surely he will never be shaken (v. 6).
• The righteous will be in everlasting remembrance (v. 6).
• He will not be afraid of evil tidings (v. 7).
• His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord (v. 7).
• His heart is established (v. 8).
• He will not be afraid (v. 8).
• He will see his desire upon his enemies (v. 8).
• He has dispersed abroad, he has given to the poor (v. 9).
• His righteousness endures forever (v. 9).
• His horn will be exalted with honor (v. 9).

For those who know the Lord, there is no reason to fear and every reason to rejoice. This new year holds wonderful things for you. Lay hold of them by faith. Instead of meditating on the dour forecasts of the world, let the promises of God fill your mind, your mouth and your heart.

C. S. Lewis on Calvinism and Free Will

Reading in Yours, Jack: Spiritual Direction from C. S. Lewis, a selection from among his many letters, I came across a couple of interesting takes on Calvinism and the question of free will:

On Calvinism. Both the statement that our final destination is already settled and the view that it still may be either Heaven or Hell, seem to me to imply the ultimate reality of Time, which I don't believe in. The controversy is one I can’t join on either side for I think that in the real (Timeless) world it is meaningless. (pp. 117-8)

All that Calvinist question — Free-Will and Predestination, is to my mind undiscussable, insoluble. Of course (say us) if a man repents God will accept him. Ah yes, (say they) but the fact of his repenting shows that God has already moved him to do so. This at any rate leaves us with the fact that in any concrete case the question never arrives as a practical one. But I suspect it is really a meaningless question. The difference between Freedom and Necessity is fairly clear on the bodily level: we know the difference between making our teeth chatter on purpose and just finding them chattering with cold. It begins to be less clear when we talk of human love (leaving out the erotic kind). ‘Do I like him because I choose or because I must?’ — there are cases where this has an answer, but others where it seems to me to mean nothing. When we carry it up to relations between God and Man, has the distinction perhaps become nonsensical? After all, when we are most free, it is only with a freedom God has given us: and when our will is most influenced by Grace, it is still our will. And if what our will does is not ‘voluntary’, and if ‘voluntary’ does not mean ‘free’, what are we talking about? I’d leave it all alone. (p. 186)

That pretty well says where I am on the matter. I wore Calvinism for about 25 years, from a couple of years out of Bible college until a few years back when I hung it back up on the rack because it didn’t fit. It just doesn’t seem to be relevant to anything real. The whole point-counterpoint between Calvinism and Arminianism seems to be trying to answer questions that the Bible does not ask or means to answer.

The discussion often proceeds as if God is bound by time, as we are. But He is the creator of time and as such is not constrained by it. We speak of foreknowledge, as if it is prior knowledge from God’s point of view, as it is from ours. But for God, it is simply knowledge with no “before” or “after” about it. He can know something as it happens — and it all happens for Him in one moment — without that knowledge being the cause of it happening. Knowledge does not equal causality. For example, if you and I were sitting together and you turned to me and said something, I would know what you were saying as you were saying it. But my knowledge of you saying it would not be the cause of you saying it. You would be free to say it or not. Likewise, God’s “foreknowledge” (which to Him is simply knowledge) of what we do, say, think or believe does not require that He be the cause of it.

In His sovereignty God has, for whatever reason, chosen to give us free will. That is a grace. And if He has chosen to influence our will by a further grace to turn to Him, it is still, as Lewis says, our will that does so. If we treat the will as anything other than voluntary and free to do or not do otherwise, then we are really not talking about will but determinism.

After years of batting the question around I have found no significance to it. With Lewis, I suspect it really is a meaningless question, and agree that perhaps the distinction it makes really is nonsensical after all.

Blessings to all my Calvinist friends, as well as my non-Calvinist ones.

Greetings to our friends in Dubai and Singapore.

Happy New Year to all.

Discerning a Heart of Faith

For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrew 4:12)

This verse is often quoted out of the blue, as if it were not related to a context. But the word “for” at the beginning of this verse alerts us to the fact that it is connected to the idea of the previous verse: “Be diligent to enter that rest.” The “rest” in view is the rest God has for His people. In the larger context, the author illustrates his point by reminding us that the children of Israel died in the wilderness instead of enjoying the Promised Land, the rest God had prepared for them.

What does this have to do with the Word of God being living and powerful and discerning the thoughts and intents of the heart? Everything. Because it has to do with faith. The children of Israel did not enter God’s rest because of their unbelief, even though God had promised He was giving the land to them.

It is not that they were unable to believe. No, they were unwilling to believe. Had they been willing, they would have been able because faith comes by hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17). Every promise of God carries with it the faith to believe that promise. The children of Israel heard the promise but they did not give any room for faith to arise in them to believe it. The word of promise tested them and found they had rejected faith.

The Word of God offers us many wonderful promises and gives us the faith to believe. But it also probes us with surgical precision to see whether we will lay hold of that faith. There is no fooling God. He discerns the thoughts and intents of our hearts to see whether we are willing to believe Him.

In the wilderness, God promised the children of Israel that He was giving them the land of Canaan, and that promise tested them: Were they willing to believe God above all else? Would they believe the truth of His Word more than the facts of their current circumstances? More than the giants in the land? More than their own eyes?

As we know, out of all that generation, only Joshua and Caleb choose to believe God. They were not unaware of the circumstances, and they had certainly seen the giants in the land, just as the other spies had. But they understood that the truth of God’s promise was far greater than what they experienced with their senses. As the author of Hebrews tells 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). The greater reality is not that which can be seen or felt but is apprehended by faith. That is why Paul teaches us, “We walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).

The same Word of God by which faith comes also discerns our hearts. It cuts through all our rationalizations to reveal whether we are willing to believe the promise of God. Those who are willing enter into His rest.