Invitation of Joy to the Nations

Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!
Serve the LORD with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.

(Psalm 100:1-2)

God is not exclusive to one people or place. Quite the contrary. He invites all peoples and all lands to come and enter into joy with Him.

Make a joyful shout! The Hebrew word is rua and means to break out of silence with ear-splitting sounds of joy. It might be a loud “Yahoo!” or the celebratory blast of a horn. In my neighborhood, whenever our football team scores a goal, my neighbor runs out to his car and honks the horn — repeatedly! He is making a joyful noise.

To the LORD. It is a joy that is in honor of, and is caused by the LORD, Yahweh! God is the source of joy — His presence is full of it (Psalm 16:11). Joy is the fruit of His Spirit (Galatians 5:22).

Serve the LORD with gladness. “Gladness” is the Hebrew simcha — lightheartedness, joy, mirth, gaiety and pleasure. And it comes from serving the LORD. Serving God is never just a matter of rendering service to Him, but of serving with Him. For God is love, and it is the nature of love to give and to serve. “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:16). “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

So the call to serve the LORD is actually an invitation to partner with Him. Yes, God invites all the earth to come and join in partnership — fellowship — with Him. No wonder it is joyful, lighthearted and full of pleasure.

Come before His presence with singing. Here is the invitation to come into the presence of the King of all kings. And the surprise is that it is not meant to be full or terror or even of sorrow. We come singing, not mournful tunes or sorrowful dirges, but songs of joy and triumph. The kingdom of God is a party!

The psalm writer continues:

Know that the LORD, He is God;
It is He who made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

(Psalm 100:3)

This invitation is to come and know God by His personal name, Yahweh (rendered in English translations by “LORD” in all caps). This is the name by which He reveals Himself in covenant with His people. Indeed, this is a call to come enter covenant with Him.

This is an invitation for all the peoples to know the God who created them. We certainly did not create ourselves — pulling ourselves together out of the ooze, generating for ourselves the vast library of our genetic code, instilling our own personhood and intelligence into ourselves. No, God is our Creator, making us specifically in His own image and breathing into us the breath of His spirit.

This is also an invitation to come and know God as our Shepherd. “The LORD is my shepherd,” David declared, “I shall not be in want” (Psalm 23). Here is the promise of rest, provision, protection, guidance, goodness and mercy — all the blessing of God to all who come to Him. Jesus is the Good Shepherd who comes to give us the life of God in abundance (John 10).

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

(Psalm 100:4)

Yes, come on in. Recognize the blessing God has for you and join the celebration. You cannot do for yourself. Let God to for you whatever you need and give Him thanks. Enter deeper into His presence with joyful songs of praise. Pull your head out and behold the wonderful gift that has been given to you, then lift your hands in worship and bless the One who has reached His hand out to you.

For the LORD is good;
His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.

(Psalm 100:5)

Yahweh is God and Yahweh is good! This is not a one-off, one-time celebration. What He is inviting the nations to is something that will endure forever. This is not just for the nations but for the generations. When you accept His gracious offer and step into His wonderful life, it will be a blessing, not only to yourself, but also to your children and your children’s children — even to a thousand generations.

Make a joyful noise — everybody! Everywhere! The fathers of the Westminster Confession understood this well. It declares the mankind was made for this purpose — to glorify God and enjoy Him forever!

God is reaching out to the nations. Become aware of His glory manifesting all around you. Enter into covenant with Him. Partner up with the Servant King of the Ages and reach out with Him to love, give and serve. Intercede for all peoples in all places. Pray the Lord of the Harvest and let Him send you into all the world preaching the Good News, bringing forth signs and wonders of healing and deliverance. Then pass this great inheritance on to your children and your children’s children. For the LORD is good, His love and faithfulness will endure to all your generations. Come glorify God and enjoy Him forever!

God Wants You Well

Healing Scriptures and Prayers
by Jeff Doles
Walking Barefoot Ministries
ISBN 0-9744748-1-9 (Paperback)
6 x 9 in., 128 pages

Someone has said that prayer is not about overcoming God's reluctance, but about laying hold of His willingness. This can also be said of healing ministry — it is not about overcoming God's reluctance, but laying hold of His willingness to heal. God's willingness is seen in His Word, where He has repeatedly revealed His desire to heal His people. This book is designed to help you lay hold of God's willingness to heal you by laying hold of His Word and praying it back to Him.

The Bible says that "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God" (Romans 10.17). The Word of God reveals the will of God, and so enables us to pray effectively. "Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him" (1 John 5.14,15). Healing is the will of God for His people, as these Scriptures show, so you can pray confidently, knowing that He hears you, and that you will receive your healing. In this book you will discover:

• God's healing words in the Old Testament
• How healing is revealed in the names of God
• How to choose life
• God's healing words in the New Testament
• The healing ministry of Jesus
• The healing ministry of the disciples
• Life restoration stories in the Bible
• How healing is revealed in the name of Jesus
• The Lord's Prayer as healing prayer
• The Lord's Supper as healing prayer

This is also a great tool to help you minister healing to others.

Available in paperback, Kindle, epub and PDF. Click here to for more information.

Discover the Passions of God

Do not be conformed this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you ma prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:2)

First, note that the Greek word for behind “world” is aion. It is where we get our word “eon.” So it primarily refers, not to a place, but to a time (yes, yes, I know that time and space are relative, but I did say primarily). It should actually be translated, not at “world” but as “age.”

So we have, “Do not be conformed to this age.”

You see, they are two ages going on: this present one and the one that is to come. To one that is to come is the age of God’s kingdom — the age of His rule and reign. The age that is to come has actually already been breaking into to this present one. Has been every since Jesus began His ministry preaching “Repent and believe, for the kingdom of God is at hand.”

The enemy of our souls wants us to continued to be conformed to this age, to think the thoughts of this present world order. He wants to blind us to the age of God’s reign, which is breaking in all around us. Paul said,

But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:3-6)

The light of Christ is already shining brightly in the world, and the whole earth if full of the glory of God (Isaiah 6:3). But the devil, the god of this present age, has blinded the eyes of so many so that they don’t even recognized the light and know the glory.

There are only two kinds of people in the world: those who are being conformed to this age, and those who are being transformed by the renewing of their minds.

Enough about the former. Let’s talk about the latter.

“Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” For too long we have been discipled by the present age to think that way it thinks, feel the way it feels, act the way it acts. We have been conformed by it. Even in the Church, there are many who have been deceived by the spirit of religion to adopt a form of godliness, but totally lacking the power of godliness.

We need to be transformed, and it happens by the renewing of our minds. We need to begin thinking differently. That is what repentance means. The Greek word for “repentance” is metanoeo, and it literally means to think differently.

“My thoughts re not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD.
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

(Isaiah 55:11)

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)

God’s thoughts and ways are different from those we have received in this present age. He wants us to think His thoughts and walk in His ways, because the age of His rule and reign is breaking in. That is why He has given us His Word and His Spirit, so we could be renewed in our thinking, and thus be transformed. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).

We need to be transformed and have our thoughts renewed so we can discover the will of God. The will of God is not a plan to manipulate and control us. The will of God is the passionate desire He has for us. He has created us for great things, to partake of His divine nature (2 Peter 1:4). He longs for us to enter into in, to see how good His will is, how full of favor His desire for us is, how perfect and complete His passions toward us are.

Our minds were made to think God’s thoughts, our emotions were made to express God’s heart, and our wills were made to express God’s desires. When we let God renew our thinking by His Word and the Holy Spirit, it will totally transform our lives and prepare us to receive His kingdom, already breaking in all around us — to discover the passions of God.

Rethinking Basic Discipleship

Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature … And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover. (Mark 16:15-18)

The Lord Jesus gave this commission to His disciples, and it is all part and parcel of preaching the Gospel — the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Notice first that there signs which will follow those who believe. Notice also that these signs will not merely follow the disciples, but will actually be performed by the disciples in the name of Jesus.

Jesus said, In My name they (those who believe) will:

• Cast out demons.
• Speak with new tongues.
• Experience divine protection.*
• Lay hands on the sick, and the sick will recover.

[*The bit about taking up serpents and drinking anything deadly is not a command to perform, but a promise of protection in case those things should happen. On the island of Malta, while Paul was collecting wood for the fire, he was accidentally bitten by a deadly snake. He should have immediately fallen ill and died — but he didn’t, and this increased his credibility with the islanders (Acts 28:3-6). Early Church history records the incident of a Christian leader who was deliberately poisoned but was not harmed by it.]

If these things are to follow those who believe the Gospel, how is it that so often they do not. We can trace the history of when and how these things began to fall away from the mainstream Church (Francis MacNutt does a good job of this in The Healing Reawakening: Reclaiming Our Lost Inheritance).

A lot of it was given up when the church developed the clergy/laity distinction (readily found in tradition, but not in the Bible). Only a special class of Christian was considered fit to pursue these ministries, and they pursued the less and less. When pride set in, they were not able to perform them even when they tried.

So there was a drought of these signs, but not a complete absence. They still turned up in many times and places in the history of the church. The attitudes of the institutionalized Church carried over into the Reformed and Evangelical Church and the signs were absent in these churches as well, not altogether, but to a significant degree.

Another reason for the lack is that the Gospel has often been limited, in modern Reformed and Evangelical churches, to salvation from sin. But Jesus never did this. Everywhere He went, He was always teaching and preaching the kingdom of God, casting out demons and healing all kinds of sickness and disease. Even His death on the cross was not limited to forgiveness of sin. The meaning of “salvation” in Scripture is much broader than that. The Greek and Hebrew words refer to deliverance, healing, wholeness, prosperity, and being rescued from whatever you need to be rescued from. And the name of Jesus in Hebrew, Yeshua, is actually the Hebrew word for salvation, so even His name includes healing and deliverance.

Is it any wonder then that whenever the Gospel is preached and believed, we should see people healed and delivered from demonic affliction? No, what we really ought to wonder about is when we don’t see those things.

Because of many of the traditions of the Church and the limiting of the Gospel to nothing more than the forgiveness of sins, many Christians have not been taught to expect these signs to follow. In fact, they have been taught to NOT expect them, even to reject the idea that they should happen at all.

Consequently, there is a big hole in their discipleship. For if these things — casting out demons, speaking in tongues, experiencing divine protection, and healing through the laying on of hands — are supposed to follow those who believe, then out not the basic instruction of new believers include how to minister and walk in these things?

Let that percolate a while (or if you prefer — Selah).

The need for these things has not disappeared. The Church has just largely forgotten how to minister them. Isn’t it time to rethink basic discipleship?

---

Miracles and Manifestations of the Holy Spirit
in the History of the Church
by Jeff Doles

Preview with Amazon’s “Look Inside.”

Available in paperback and Kindle (Amazon), epub (Google and iTunes) and PDF.

Give Us Today the Bread of Tomorrow

Give us this day our daily bread. (Matthew 6:11)

No doubt, you will recognize this verse from the Lord’s Prayer. But I think it may be greatly misunderstood. Most Christians think of it as a request for God to take care of the little everyday necessities of life. For example, The Message has it as beggarly “Keep us alive with three square meals.”

There must be more to it than that. Just a few verses down, in Matthew 6:33 (another often-quoted verse) Jesus says, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

This is in response to the questions, “What shall we eat? What shall we drink? What clothes shall we wear?” God has already promised these to us. So the way to get our daily needs met is to seek God’s kingdom, and these things will follow as a matter of course. We don’t have to ask for them, we just need to believe God’s promise for them.

So what does “Give us this day our daily bread” mean? Let’s look at the word “daily” for a moment. The Greek word is epiousios. It is found only twice in the Bible — in Matthew's and Luke's versions of the Lord’s Prayer. Many Bible commentators believe that it actually means “for the morrow.” This is supported by the translation of a related word, epiouse, as “the next day” in Acts 7.26 and 16.11. The “daily bread” is not the bread of today but the bread of tomorrow.

So what is the “bread of tomorrow?”

To understand that, we must recognize that the Lord’s Prayer is a kingdom prayer. It comes in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount, which begins, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). On the other side of the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus tells us to “seek first the kingdom of God.” And in the middle of the prayer itself, right before the part about “daily bread,” is this powerful petition, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

You see, it’s all about the kingdom of God. This kingdom is not primarily about a place but about an authority — the rule and reign of God. And it is about the coming age that is breaking forth into this present one.

The prayer, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done,” is actually set in the imperative mood. That is, it’s a command: “Kingdom of God, come! Will of God, be done on earth as it is in heaven!” This may seem startling, but Jesus actually gives us the authority to call forth the kingdom and will of God upon the earth.By this prayer, we are actually calling forth the reality of the next age — the age when God’s kingdom and will are fully in manifestation on earth just as they are in heaven — into this present one.

Then comes the next line, “Give us this day our daily bread.” It is the bread of “the next day,” or “tomorrow.” Young’s Literal Translation calls it “our appointed bread.” It is the portion that belongs to us in the kingdom age.

The kingdom of God — His rule and reign — has been breaking into this present age ever since Jesus came, and it will continue to come until it is completely fulfilled. Our part is to pray and command it to come, just as Jesus taught us.

We no longer belong to this present age. We may be in it, but we are not of it. Paul tells us that we are not to be conformed to it, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2). We are kingdom people, and we require the provision of the kingdom. The resources of this present age simply will not do. We need the provision and power of the next age in order to see the kingdom come into this one. We need the bread of tomorrow — today!

Give us today the bread of that coming day, the provision and power of God’s kingdom. Amen.

Releasing the Glory

If you have received the Lord Jesus Christ, you have been born from above by the Spirit of God (John 3:3). You are an authorized agent of heaven, where you are seated with Christ at the right hand of God the Father (Ephesians 2:6). Not only are you a possessor of the glory of God, but you are also fully qualified to be a releaser of the glory of God.

You see, the whole earth is full of the glory of God (Isaiah 6:3). It is not absent, only veiled (2 Corinthians 4:3-6). But you and I have the privilege of loosing the glory and changing the spiritual temperature of a place, wherever we go, to set an atmosphere that is conducive to the revealing of God’s love, mercy and power.

Here are some simple prayers and faith declarations you can use to begin changing the world by releasing God’s glory. These can be effective in prayer walks through neighborhoods, shopping malls, hospitals, and everywhere else you go:

Rivers of living water. Jesus said, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (John 7:38). The next verse adds, “This He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive.” Wherever you go, you can begin to release the glory by saying: “In the name of Jesus, I release rivers of living water from out of my innermost being.”

Let God arise. Wherever you go, declare as the psalm writer declared: “Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered. Let those also who hate His name flee from before Him. As smoke is driven away, so drive them away. But let the righteous be glad. Let them rejoice before God. Yes, let them rejoice exceedingly” (Psalm 68:2-3). That will help bind the enemies of God and loose an atmosphere of rejoicing.

Kingdom come. In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus has given us the authority to call forth the kingdom of God and command the will of God to be done on earth as it is in heaven. You can call for those things to manifest wherever you go: “Kingdom of God, come! Will of God, be done on earth (at Walmart, McDonald’s, school, work—wherever) as it is in heaven!”

The healing hand of God. The early Church set a powerful atmosphere for witness by praying, “Lord, grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus” (Acts 4:29-30). The result is that they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and spoke the Word of God with boldness. Signs, wonders and healing miracles began to show up.

Unfolding the Word. The psalm writer said, “The unfolding of Your words gives light. It gives understanding to the simple” (Psalm 119:30 NASB). Whenever the Word of God is opened up, it brings light into dark places. So wherever you go, watch for the Lord to show you a Scripture, then simply start declaring it. It may be something as simple as “Jesus wept” (John 11:35, very simple but very powerful). Declare it in faith, even if it is only under your breath, trusting that the Word of God will not return empty-handed (Isaiah 55:11).

As you go, releasing the glory of God, recognize that you are preparing the soil for gospel (the good news of Jesus Christ) to penetrate. Watch for opportunities to manifest God’s glory. Ask God to lead you to someone who needs His touch through you. Ask Him also to give you words you can say to them.

• To share the good news of Jesus Christ — the forgiveness of sins and restoration of fellowship with God through Him.
• To pray for someone in distress of who needs healing.
• To speak a word of blessing over someone.
• To give a word of wisdom to someone needing direction.
• To encourage someone with a kind word or action.

This list certainly isn’t exhaustive. Just some things to help you get started. As you go, ask the Lord to show you more. Then watch for His glory to appear.

You were made to release the glory of God, by your life, by your words, even by your presence.

Whatever You Desire, When You Pray

Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. (Mark 11:24 NKJV)

Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. (KJV)

That is why I tell you, as to whatever you pray and make request for, if you believe that you have received it, it shall be yours. (Weymouth)

Ask, desire, request — it is all the same word in the Greek, and all in the context of prayer and faith. And yet, some people, when they pray, don’t do any of them. They don’t ask, they don’t make request, they don’t speak their desire — they just complain. They whine to God and call it prayer.

But their prayers don’t get answered because they don’t have anything of faith to them. The Bible says, “Without faith, it is impossible to please Him” (Hebrews 11:6). God hears faith — and His desire is aroused by it. But whining doesn’t even get His attention.

Remember the man in John 5, who had had an infirmity for thirty-eight years, and he was waiting for the troubling of the waters by the pool of Bethesda? Jesus came to him and asked him, very directly, “Do you want to be made well?” (v. 6).

But the man was actually confused about what he really wanted. So he began to complain, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me” (v.7).

Can’t you just hear him whine? He lost sight of the solution and focused on the problem, and the problem about getting the problem taken care of.

The Answer was literally staring him in the face and asking, “What do you want?”

Now consider what happened with two blind men Jesus met as He was passing from the old city of Jericho to the new. It is found in Matthew 20:29-34. These two men cried out to Jesus, “Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David.” Even when the crowd tried to hush them up, they just cried out louder, “Have mercy on us.”

So Jesus stopped and asked them, “What do you want Me to do for you?” And what do you suppose they answered? Just this: “Lord, that our eyes may be opened.” No whining. No complaining. But a simple, faith-filled request. They spoke their desire.

In Mark 11:23, Jesus declared, “Whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed ad 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.”

Don’t whine to the mountain — speak to it. Don’t complain about how hard it is to get around or to climb over it — tell it to move. Don’t explain to your friends that, you know, you would like to move ahead, but you see, there is this huge mountain in the way, and you’ve called this person and that one, but nobody really seems to understand or is willing to help, and now you just don’t know what you’re gonna do. You might as well have a seat, because you are going to be there for a long, long time — looking at that mountain.

Or you can do what Jesus says in the next verse and speak what you desire. Not only that, Jesus says, but believe that you receive it. The NASB says “believe that you have received it.” When you do, Jesus says, you will have it — it will be yours.

Whenever you pray, understand the difference between speaking your desire to God and simply complaining. God can do tons with the former and nothing with the latter. Don’t focus on the problem, focus on the answer. Have faith in God’s Word concerning it and believe that you receive what you are believing Him for, then you will see it come to pass.

Rhema Revelation

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. (Romans 10:17)

That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. (Ephesians 1:17)

Which is more important — faith or revelation? Which is more important — your left leg or your right leg? The answer in both cases, of course, is that they both are equally important. They are two sides to the same coin.

We need to hear the Word of God because it is itself a revelation of God given by the Holy Spirit. In the Greek New Testament, there are two different words for “word.” The first is logos, and refers to words in general. All the words of Scripture are logos (or logoi, plural). They are all God-breathed and given to us by the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21). By themselves, they convey a certain understanding of God, His ways and His purposes. But there are things in them that are not going to be understood by the natural man. Paul tells us why:

We speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age know; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written:

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 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.

These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of god, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

(1 Corinthians 2:6-14)

Long passage, I know. But very helpful to understanding the dynamics involved in the Word of God. You see, without the Spirit, so much of the Scriptures seems like foolishness. The wisdom of the world simply does not comprehend the things of the Spirit. The words (logoi) of Scripture are given by the Holy Spirit, and that means that we must have the Holy Spirit at work in us before we can come to a full understanding of them.

Paul says that the Holy Spirit “compares spiritual with spiritual” (the word “things” is not in the Greek text). That is, He teaches us Holy Spirit truths using Holy Spirit words. The natural man does not understand because they are “spiritually discerned,” that is, discerned by the Holy Spirit revealing them to our spirit.

That is why Paul prayed for Christians in Ephesians that God would give them the Spirit of wisdom and revelation — that is, revelation by the Holy Spirit — so they could know God more and more in intimate relationship.

So what does that have to do with “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God?” That brings us to the other Greek word for “word,” rhema. Logos refers to words generally, but rhema refers to words which are acutely spoken, words that are especially needed in a particular instance.

All the words of God are true all the time. But there are some words I need particularly for this hour to deal with specific circumstances in my life. All the words of God are wisdom, but there is a particular guidance I need for this moment. It is when the Holy Spirit takes from the words of Scripture the thing that I especially need to hear today, and speaks it to my heart — then it has become a rhema.

Perhaps you have experienced, in your quiet time with God, reading a passage from Scripture that you have read dozens of times before. The words may be very familiar to you, and though they are inspired, they may seem very uninspiring to you. But then one day, while you are reading that same passage, all of a sudden the words seem to leap off of the page and strike up an excitement within you. Now you understand them with a depth you did no have before and you have an intense realization of what they mean in your life and in your relationship with God. You have had a rhema moment. The Holy Spirit has taken the Word of God and spoken it to your heart with an astonishing acuteness and clarity. The light has come on and now you can see. God has awakened your spirit with Holy Spirit insight.

That is what Paul is talking about in Romans 10:17, “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.” The word for “word” here is rhema. When the Holy Spirit speaks the Word of God to your spirit with precision and simplicity, it has become a rhema. Then faith begins to arise and become powerful inside you.

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the rhema of God. If you have been born again by the Spirit of God through faith in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit dwells within you. If you listen very carefully, He will bring the Word of God to you today with such amazing lucidity and relevance that it will change your life forever.

You Don’t Have to Take It

Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?

(Matthew 6:31)

The New King James Version reads, “Therefore do not worry, saying …”

Many people worry all the time. Some worry about implausible things, things that are not very likely to happen, but somehow grip the mind and fill the heart with fear anyway. Others worry over “sensible things,” like the basic necessities:

• How shall we pay the rent?
• How shall we buy our food?
• What will we do for clothes?
• How shall we get to where we need to go?
• What will we do for money?
• How shall we pay the doctor bills?
• How will we ever get out of debt?

These are the people Jesus is addressing, and He tells them, “Take no thought.” This reveals something very important about how we get into the place of worry. We have generally been conditioned by the world to think that we have to take whatever thought comes into our head and accept it as our own. We do not. We are perfectly free to choose the thoughts we will accept and which ones we will reject. Jesus shows us that there are some thoughts that do not belong to us and we don’t need to accept them.

Notice another thing Jesus teaches us about worry — how we activate it. Once we have taken the worry thought, we usually then give voice to it by our words. But Jesus said, “Take no thought, saying.” What we say is very important because our words cause things to happen.

Words are very powerful. In the beginning, when darkness was on the face of the deep, God spoke a word, “Light, be,” and there was light. He did not worry over the darkness and start talking about how terrible it was. He simply spoke the answer. We are created in the image of God, we have the breath of God in us, and we have been given the mandate (authority and responsibility) to subdue the earth and exercise dominion over it. We do this in the same way God did — by words. (See Having Dominion)

When we take thoughts of worry and then begin speaking them, we are calling for the very things we dread. We are giving place to them in our lives by our words. Jesus says don’t do that.

Look in the next verse: “ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things” (Matthew 6:32).

Here is another reason why we get into worry: We think that it is our job to seek after the necessity of our lives. That’s the way the world thinks, and that’s the way the way the world has taught us.

Pagans (that is what the word “Gentiles” actually refers to) have no covenant with God, and so they think their provision is all up to them. But if you know the Lord Jesus Christ, you have a covenant with God. You have a heavenly Father who already knows your need. You don’t have to take thought about it because Father God has already considered it and made all the provision you’ll ever need.

Instead of getting into worry and fear, we can start taking different thoughts, speaking different words and seeking after something the world does not even know to seek after.

1. Take God’s thoughts.
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts higher than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9). That does not mean you cannot know the thoughts of God. He sent His Word precisely so you could know His thoughts and think them with Him. Your mind was made to think His thoughts. (See Created to Know and Speak the Mind of God)

So when the world tries to plant thoughts of worry, you do not have to take them. You can take the thoughts of God instead. His Word has a promise for every need and circumstance of your life. Start finding those promises and thinking them with God.

2. Speak God’s words.
Jesus said, “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 11:23). Just as worry is activated by what you say, so it is with faith. The words of Jesus are pretty straightforward: Believe in your heart, say with your mouth, and receive what you say.

Now, God always knows what to say in any given situation. So find out what He says, then start saying it with Him. That is how Jesus operated. “I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him … I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things” (John 8:26, 28). If that was His modus operandi, shouldn’t it be yours also? Your mouth was made to speak the Word of God.

3. Seek God’s Kingdom.
The world seeks after the necessities of life and gets stressed out over it. That is completely upside down, for Jesus said, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). The way to get your needs met is not by seeking what you need. The way to get your needs met is to seek God’s kingdom, for that is where every provision has already been made for you.

The kingdom of God is His rule and reign. His righteousness is His rightness — His way of doing and being right. Your heart was made to seek His heart and walk in His ways.

The world teaches you to take thought for your needs, which leads to anxiety and stress. But you have a choice. You can think God’s thoughts, speak Gods words and seek God’s kingdom. When you do, you will find that they are more than enough to take care of everything you’ll ever need.

(See also How to Not Worry)

Faith Gets Heard

One who turns away his ear from hearing the law,
Even his prayer is an abomination.

(Proverbs 28:9)

There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who delight in the law of the Lord (Psalm 1:2) and those who turn away from even hearing it. Those who delight in God’s Word, who meditate on it and obey it, are blessed. Those who refuse to hear will themselves not be heard by the Lord.

A word about God’s law. People often think of it as nothing more than a series of do’s and don’ts, a system of “Thou shalt not’s” and “I’m gonna get ya’s,” designed to control and manipulate and smother the joy of living.

Not so. The Hebrew word for “law” is torah, and can just as well be translated as “instruction,” which sets a much different tone. Instruction helps us, enables us, frees us. The Word of God, which is the law of the Lord, presents us with the precepts, the beginning principles, of living successful, fulfilling lives.

That is all well and good — but why is it that the one who turns away from hearing the law does not get his prayers heard by God?

The answer is that God specifically tunes in on faith. The Bible says, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him” (Hebrews 11:6). And how do we get faith? By hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17). Faith is believing what God has said. Those who have never heard the promises of God’s Word are not in any kind of position to believe them. Those who refuse to hear have cut themselves off from relationship with God.

There are three things: faith, doubt, unbelief.

Faith is hearing and believing the Word of God. God always listens to faith when it prays, and is very pleased by it. John said, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him” (1 John 5:14-15). Faith gets heard — and receives the answer.

Doubt is lack of knowledge about what God has said. When you don’t know what God has promised and provided on your behalf, you are uncertain about what He will do for you. Your prayers will be tentative and feel like a “crap shoot.” James said, “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he shall receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways” (James 1:6-7). Doubt has no guarantee of ever getting heard. The solution to doubt is simple — start getting into the Word of God, listening to His promises and following His instructions. Faith will come.

Unbelief is the deliberate turning away from the Word of God. This is what Proverbs 28:9 is talking about, a man who is not simply ignorant of what the Word says, but has turned away and refuses to hear what it says. Faith is far from him, for he has despised the very source of faith. Consequently, when he prays, his prayers do not get heard. God is in no way pleased by them because they have nothing of faith to them.

It might seem odd that there would be someone who turns away from the Word of God and still prays. But that is where the spirit of religion, which is prevalent in the churches, leads people. Listen to the story Jesus tells of two very different men who went to pray:

Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, “God, I thank You that I am not like other men — extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.”

And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!”

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself shall be exalted.

(Luke 18:9-14)

The Pharisee observed the outward form of the law, but his heart was turned away from hearing the heart of God in the torah. He had plenty of pride, and tons of faith in his good works, but he did not have the Bible kind of faith, which comes only by hearing the Word of God. Jesus says that the Pharisee prayed “with himself.” His prayer got all tangled up with his pride and never reached the ear of God.

The tax-collector heard enough of the Word of God to know that he was a sinner, but more than that, he heard the promise of God’s mercy. He was full of faith about both those things and he believed the mercy with everything that was in him.

Result: The Lord despised the haughty prayer of the Pharisee, who turned from hearing the law of God, but was greatly pleased by the humble prayer of the tax-collector, who fully believe the Word of God’s mercy.

God always listens to faith, and His passions are aroused by it. Faith comes by hearing what God has said. If you will hear Him, He will hear you.

Four Views of Joy

But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You;
Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them;
Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You.
For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous;
With favor You will surround him as with a shield.

(Psalm 5:11-12)

Here are four words used for “joy” in the Old Testament:

• samach — to be cheerful, light-hearted.
• ranan — shouting for joy.
• alats — jumping for joy.
• gul — spinning, whirling, twirling for joy.

We see the first three in the passage above:

But let all those rejoice [samach] who put their trust in You;
Let them ever shout for joy [ranan], because You defend them;
Let those also who love Your name be joyful [alats] in You.

We find the fourth one in this well-known verse:

This is the day the LORD has made;
We will rejoice [gul] and be glad [samach] in it.

(Psalm 118:24)

The Bible says, “In Your presence is fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:16). The word for “joy” there is simcha, from the same root as samach. God is all about joy. In fact, it is in His presence that joy originates and finds its complete fulfillment and expression.

In the verses above, we discover that joy comes from trusting the LORD, knowing Him as our defender, loving His name, living in the victory day He has made for us, and pressing into His presence.

Yes, we can rejoice mightily in the LORD. But did you know that He also rejoices over you? Its true:

The LORD your God in your midst,
The Mighty One, will save;
He will rejoice [sus] over you with gladness [simcha],
He will quiet you with His love.
He will rejoice [gul] over you with singing [rinnah].

(Zephaniah 3:17)

Sus, like samach and simcha, means to be bright and cheerful. Rinnah comes from ranan.

Good news! God is not mad or sad at His people — He’s glad! He is lighthearted and cheerful over us. He comforts us with His love and whirls and twirls over us with shouts of joy.

You can get in on this wonderful celebration by receiving the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Mighty One Who Saves (even His name means “salvation”). He came to carry off everything that stands between you and a personal relationship with the Father.

Put your trust in the Lord and be lighthearted and cheerful. Shout for joy as you look to Him as your defender. Love His name and jump for joy. Whirl and twirl with joy because God has created this day to be a day of victory for you. Rejoice and dance with God as He rejoices over you — whirling, twirling, spinning and shouting with delight. The kingdom of God is a party!

God’s Desire for You

Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. (3 John 2)

This verse perfectly expresses God’s will and desire for you. It was written by the Apostle John, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The Bible says that “God is no respecter of persons” (Acts 10:34), that is, He is ready to show equal favor to all who come to Him. That includes me and you.

In this verse, we see three things God desires to bring forth in your life:

1. Prosperity of soul. This is key, for out of it flows everything else. The Bible says, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23). Jesus said, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

2. Prosperity in all things. Not just spiritual things, not just physical things, not just financial things, and not in everything except finances — but in all things.. Listen to what the Lord says about those who delight in His Word and make it their constant meditation: “He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper” (Psalm 1:3).

3. Health. Not just healing, but health. The Greek words means wellness, soundness, wholeness. Some Christians try to make a deal with God: “Heal me of cancer, Lord, and I’ll keep the diabetes.” That misses God’s will — He wants to heal us of everything, not just some thing, so that we can walk in divine health. God has identified Himself to us as “The LORD Who Heals You” (Exodus 15:26).

Wow! Consider what this means:

• God does not want you to be soul-sick: full of anger, envy, jealousy, bitterness, unforgiveness, fear and doubt. Instead, He wants you to be full of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness and self-control (the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23).
• God does not want you to be broke. Poverty and lack do not come from Him. His plan for you is just the opposite — full provision and prosperity. Paul said, “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, study this passage and carefully note the financial context).
• God does not want you to be afflicted with sickness or disease. He does not send them to punish you, teach you or humble you. In fact, they do not come from Him at all. He can certainly teach you in the midst of sickness, to help you overcome by faith, but He does not send them to you.

Now, some Christians (especially those afflicted with a religious spirit) are so blown away by these promises that they feel they have to explain them away. “Oh, that’s John’s way of greeting people. He doesn’t really mean all that.” Or, “John simply means spiritual blessing, nothing more” (as if the spiritual realm has nothing to do with the natural realm — see The Connection Between Spiritual and Natural). Or “It is just John’s wish, not God’s will.” They are not ready to give themselves fully to the abundance of God’s grace.

But the Holy Spirit does not use words lightly. Neither does John. John’s prayer is given to us precisely because it reflects the heart of God for His people. You and I might say, in a very perfunctory manner, “Hi, how are you? Hope you’re doing well,” and not really be thinking about what we’re saying. But God is not like that. He does not use words lightly — what He says, He means. He will do all that He promises, and if we are willing to believe, we shall receive it.

John much more than spiritual prosperity in mind. He covers that aspect under “just as your soul prospers.” The health he prays for is the health of the body. Prosperity in all things includes physical, financial, family, business, ministry and every other kind of prosperity — in addition to prosperity of soul. As we have already seen, prosperity in all other things is actually based upon prosperity of soul.

Of course, there are many Christians who do not experience prosperity in all things, in their bodies, or even prosperity in their souls. That is because, although God desires to bring these things forth in their lives, they are not automatic. We must receive them by faith and resist the devil. You see, it is the devil, not God, who sends sickness, lack and failure into your life. But the Bible says that, if you submit to God and resist the devil, he will flee from you (James 4:7).

You submit to God by believing His promises and obeying His Word. You resist the devil by refusing to accept sickness, lack and inner turmoil in your life. This does not mean that you deny their reality, but that you deny their right to be in your life. If you have somehow given those things a right to afflict you, you can deal with that by repenting, confessing and renouncing whatever has given the devil a place in you. God is faithful both to forgive and to cleanse you from all everything that is not right in your life (1 John 1:9). Then keep speaking the promises of God over lack, sickness and confusion. The devil will flee and the abundance of God will begin to come forth.

God’s desire is for you to prosper in all things and be in health, even as your soul prospers. So submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you, taking his afflictions with him.

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Healing Scriptures and Prayers
by Jeff Doles

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The Story of Inheritance

Inheritance — we find it in the Old Testament from beginning to end. In Genesis 1, we see that every thing is to reproduce after its kind. That is, each generation receives its character, nature and destiny from the generation that precedes it. Dogs give birth to dogs; cats give birth to cats, and so on.

Man, though a different class of being, is told to be fruitful and multiply — to reproduce and pass on the inheritance. What is that he is to multiply upon the earth? The image of God. For that is how man was created. So we might even say that God reproduces after His kind. Man is not God, but He is a divine creature — made in the image of God and given the very breath of God in his mouth. This cannot be said of any other creature, not even the highest order of angels. Man (Hebrew, Adam) is the only creature who is called “son of God” (Luke 3:38). That is why it is just as important that Jesus is called “Son of Man” as He is “Son of God.” And that is why He is called the Second Adam.

We find inheritance also in the very last chapter of the Old Testament, Malachi 4. There the promise is given of one who will come in the spirit of Elijah, whose purpose will be to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers. Anytime you see the word “father” or “fathers,” you can know that there is an inheritance involved, for inheritance is the very essence of fatherhood.

From the beginning, God has desired to see the whole world filled with an inheritance that comes from Him. That is why He commanded Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply, to fill the earth and have dominion over all things. From the beginning, the adversary, satan, has desired to stop that inheritance from filling the earth. In between Genesis 1 and Malachi 4, we see the conflict.

That is why there must be those who come in the spirit and power of Elijah. John the Baptist fulfilled this role in the New Testament by heralding the kingdom of God and the need for repentance. He pointed us to Messiah — the Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus has already done all that is needed — He has won the victory. All that is left is repentance, the turning of the heart — fathers to their children, children to their fathers — and Man turning his heart back to the Father. In this way, the inheritance we be complete, and the whole earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God.

Rain for the Just and the Unjust

But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. (Matthew 5:45)

These are the “red words,” the words of Jesus. But often I hear people take the last line of the verse and grossly misuse it. They say, “Well, you know, God lets it rain on the just and the unjust,” and from the tone of their voice and the context of what they are saying, they mean it in a negative way. Like the old song that said, “Into each life some rain must fall.”

But Jesus meant this in a very positive way. For a day at the beach or a picnic in the park, you probably don’t want to see much rain. But for an agrarian economy, farmers looked for, even longed for, the early and latter rains. Rain is a very good thing.

So Jesus was not saying here that God sends bad things upon the just as well as the unjust. He is not even saying that God sends bad things upon the unjust at all. Quite the opposite: God sends sunshine for the those who are evil as well as those who are good. And He gives rain, not just for the just, but for the unjust as well.

Notice that Jesus started out by saying, “Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those you hate you.” Love, bless, do good—not just for your friends, but for your enemies as well. That is God’s way, and when we follow it, we show ourselves to be sons of the Father. “Sons” speaks of maturity, and our love and kindness toward our enemies demonstrates that we are indeed part of the family of God—we’re living up to the family name.

There are, without a doubt, battles and negative circumstances which God’s people must face, even as the unjust do. But they do not come from God. God gives only good gifts (James 1:17). So when He sends the sun, it is to bless, even the unjust. When He sends the rain, it is to do good, even to the unjust.

God’s purpose is for us to be a means of blessing. When He blesses us, it is not only for ourselves, but for all those around as well. In that way, even our very presence becomes a blessing to others, for God will always watch out for us and take care of us. He blesses with such abundance that we cannot help but for it to splash over onto others. It is designed for their benefit as well as ours, for the goodness of God leads to repentance (Romans 2:4).

We are called to partner with God in blessing. We are to demonstrate our love, even to our enemies, to bless even those who curse us, to do good, even to those who hate us. That’s what it means to be “grown up” in the Lord, and everyone will see who our Father is.

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

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The Knowledge of the Glory

For the earth will be filled
With the knowledge of the glory of the LORD,
As the waters cover the sea.

(Habakkuk 2:14)

Notice that the prophet is talking, not just about the glory of the LORD, but of the knowledge of the glory of the LORD. The earth is already filled with the glory of the LORD. We see this in Isaiah’s vision, where the angels cry out,

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts;
The whole earth is full of His glory.

(Isaiah 6:3)

The glory of God is already here — always has been, always will be. What is really needed is the knowledge of His glory. And that is what Habakkuk is prosphesying — that the knowledge of His glory will fill the earth.

Knowledge is awareness, perception, acknowledgement, discernment, wisdom or understanding concerning a thing. The knowledge of the glory of the LORD comes by revelation. That is how it came to Isaiah, that is how it comes to you and me. Paul’s prayer for believers in Ephesians was that the Father of Glory would give them wisdom and revelation by the Holy Spirit, so that they could know Him more and more (Ephesians 1:17).

The Hebrew word for “fill,” mala, means to accomplish, confirm, consecrate, or fulfill. When the earth is filled with the knowledge of God’s glory, there is a setting apart for the purposes of God, and a completion of those purposes.

Notice the extent of this revelation that is to come upon the earth: “As the waters cover the sea.” Now, we know that seventy percent of the earth’s surface is covered with water, but one hundred percent of the seas are covered with water. Either way you want to take it, the point is that this revelation of God’s glory is going to be all around us.

But how shall this be, and when? Habakkuk gives us a clue:

Behold, is it not of the LORD of Hosts
That the peoples labor to feed the fire,
And nations weary themselves in vain?

(Habakkuk 3:13)

There is a feeding of the fire, the vanities of peoples and nations being revealed as God comes to set things right. In the Bible, fire is a judgment which purifies the good and destroys the evil.

• “For our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29). But also, “God is love” (1 John 4:8). So the fire is ultimately an expression of His love.
• Speaking of Jesus, John the Baptist said, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11).
• Paul said, “No other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is” (1 Corinthians 3:11-13).
• Peter concluded, “Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness; looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:11-13).

Whenever the vanity of man is burned up in the fire, the knowledge of God’s glory comes forth. For it is the goodness of God which not only reveals the sinfulness of man, but also deals with it.

When Isaiah had his vision, as he became aware of the glory of the LORD, it would have killed him, had it not been veiled by smoke. In that moment, Isaiah also became aware of his sinfulness.

Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Hosts. (Isaiah 6:5)

But the love of God had a solution — fire!

Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth with it, and said, “Behold, this has touched your lips. Your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged.” (Isaiah 6:6-7)

The revelation of the glory of the LORD is an “end time” event, but in Bible terms, we have been in the “last days” ever since Jesus came. For it is ultimately in Him that we come to the knowledge of the glory of God. Paul said,

But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age had blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake. For it is God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:3-6)

It is when the gospel of Jesus Christ is proclaimed — and believed — that we begin to see the glory of God made known. For the fire of His love reveals the vanity of our own works and points us to the Lord Jesus Christ, who took the judgment of our sin upon Himself.

Those who reject Him will be totally unprepared when the glory of God is revealed, and the brightness of that glory will be as a fire that torments them. But those who receive Him will be baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire, cleansed and set apart for the divine destiny for which they were created. For in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ we behold the glory of God.

Who’s the Boss?

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. (Ephesians 5:22-24)

Many Christians (mostly men, but not a few women) look at this passage and think it is about who’s the boss. They completely miss the point. It is the sort of question people ask who don’t understand very much about intimate, personal relationships.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word. (Ephesians 5:25-26)

Notice that Paul does not say, “Husbands, boss your wives,” or “Husbands, make your wives submit.” Nothing of the kind. Rather, he says something completely different: “Husbands, love your wives.”

Then Paul gives definition to that love. It is not the world’s idea of love, but God’s idea. We see this clearly portrayed in the Lord Jesus Christ: “Just as Christ also love the church and gave Himself for her.”

The Bible says that God is love (1 John 4:8), and it is the nature of love to give and serve. God so loved that He gave His only begotten Son (John 3:16). Jesus came, not to serve, but to be served, and to give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).

So Paul is not talking at all about “who’s the boss.” Rather, he is talking about “who’s the servant.” When he says, “Husbands, love your wives,” he is saying, “Husbands, give yourselves to your wives, and serve them.” BIG difference!

Some husbands go to God and complain, “Lord, that woman you gave me won’t submit.” They sound like Adam when he was caught in sin: “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate” (Genesis 3:12). As if that made any difference at all concerning his own responsibility.

Husbands are to love and serve their wives regardless of whether their wives submit to them. In fact, husbands are to submit to their wives, for Paul speaks in verse 21 of “submitting to one another in the fear of God.” Husbands are supposed to submit to their wives every bit as much as wives are supposed to submit to their husbands.

In fact, the greater obligation is on the husband to love, serve and give — even if the wife does not submit.

Husbands, forget about who’s the boss — you will not like where it leads you. Focus instead on who’s the servant-lover, then you will be much more like Christ. For God is love, and love gives and serves.

How Praying in the Spirit Helps Me

This is a response to someone who asked about speaking mysteries in the spirit (1 Corinthians 14:22). See Downloading in the Spirit.

Jeff, I'm guessing that you have experienced this downloading of something from God that is ministering to your inner man. Can you please give me an example of this in your life? What do think this “something” is that is going on in the spirit that the mind cannot understand? It seems rather pointless to have something going on within me that I don't understand and is therefore useless to my spiritual growth. Do you speak in tongues? If so, what languages do you speak in?

Dear Stan,

Yes, I believe I have experienced the downloading of things from God which minister to my spirit. For example, whenever I go to preach or teach or lead worship, I spend some time praying in the Spirit. Since I have started doing this, I have found that my ministry time has been much more empowered and effective, with a much greater clarity.

I also pray in the Spirit when I need to make a decision about something, or need the answer to a problem. I often find that, immediately afterwards, the guidance or answer I am seeking from God shows up.

If it seems pointless to have something going in me that my mind does not understand, that is probably because my mind always wants to be in charge. But my mind was not made for that. The Bible says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5-6). Notice that it does not say, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart AND lean on your own understanding.”

The mind was never meant to be the boss. On the day Adam and Eve ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, man died spiritually and the soul lost its connection with God. In that vacuum, the mind just assumed control.

There is nothing illogical about my spirit being edified by things my mind does not understand. There are also plenty of things that go on in my body that my mind does not understand (and medical science still has much to discover about it, as well), but the physical function of my body proceeds merrily along anyway. For example, my breathing is an involuntary process, not something I regulate by my thoughts.

My mind is not my spirit, nor is it the master of my spirit—it is the servant of my spirit. My mind functioned before I ever experienced the new birth, the spiritual birth from above by the Spirit of God. But I am not a mind, I am spirit, and I have a mind.

So what is the “something” that is going on in my spirit that my mind does not understand? I think there are a number of things that happen through praying in tongues.

1. Wisdom and revelation. Paul prayed in Ephesians that God would give his readers the spirit of wisdom and revelation (Ephesians 1:17). Paul was a very articulate communicator, but he wasn’t asking for better skills at preaching and teaching, or to make him more cogent or coherent in his letters. I think he realized early on that his communication would not mean a thing unless the Holy Spirit was ministering it to the heart. Now, I don’t think Paul necessarily had speaking in tongues in mind when he prayed this prayer. But I do think that speaking in tongues is a powerful way for this to happen.

2. Intimate fellowship with God. That was the purpose Paul prayed that prayer in Ephesians in the first place. God’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts and His ways higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:11). But that does not mean we cannot experience them. In Isaiah 55, we see that He sent the revelation of His Word. In 1 Corinthians 2:9-10, we see the revelatory work of the Holy Spirit bringing forth the deep things of God:

Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of ma the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. BUT God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.

When we pray in the Spirit, we are not limited by our own understanding because the Holy Spirit knows the mind of God (1 Corinthians 2:11).

3. Unhindered worship. When we pray in the Spirit, we give thanks to God well (1 Corinthians 14:17). Worship is a spiritual activity, that is, a Holy Spirit directed activity. No one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:3).

In Acts 2, speaking in tongues was worship, for the people declared, “We hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God” (Acts 2:11). Peter’s evangelistic sermon was apparently in his own language, not speaking in tongues.

4. Effective prayer. Paul said that the Spirit helps us because we do not know what or how we should pray (Romans 8:26). “But the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” Now, whether one wishes to take “groanings that cannot be uttered” in an absolute sense or simply understood as things which cannot be articulated by our own words, the point remains that in 1 Corinthians, praying in tongues was an activity involving the Holy Spirit.

When we pray in the Spirit, our prayers are focused because the Holy Spirit is not distracted. They are pure because the Holy Spirit has pure motives. They are effective and powerful because the Holy Spirit knows exactly what to pray.

By this time, you probably realize that, Yes, I do speak in tongues. But I don’t know what languages I pray in. There are so many known languages and dialects in the world (and that’s not counting the languages of angels) that I would not even know where to begin to try to figure out which ones I am speaking. Fortunately, identifying languages is not a Biblical prerequisite for speaking in tongues.

The Lord bless you in all things.

(See also Benefits of Praying in the Spirit.)

"Ask Me, Command Me," Says the LORD

Thus says the LORD,
The Holy One of Israel, and his Maker;
“Ask Me of things to come concerning My sons;
And concerning the work of My hands;
you command me.”

(Isaiah 45:11)

Here is a verse that makes a lot of Christians uncomfortable. Everyone is cool with “ask Me.” It’s when they get to “command Me,” that they start to get wobbly. They think, “Are we supposed to boss God around?”

No, that’s the kind of question people ask who don’t understand what intimate personal relationships are about. For them, to command means to insist that someone do something that is against their will. We need to grow up.

God is love, and the nature of love is to give and serve. When we get close to God and begin to understand His heart, our heart will become more like His, and we will begin to understand that this is about relationship, not about religion, rules or regulations.

In Isaiah 45:11, the word “ask” means to inquire, request, or even demand. Now, to demand does not mean to be controlling, abrasive, abusive, belligerent or petulant. It simply means to lay claim to or call for something. You might notice on any check you write or receive that is says, “Pay to the order of ...”

That check is a promise to pay the sum specified. The bearer of the check then demands that which has already been promised. He does this by endorsing the check and ultimately presenting it to the bank and account upon which it has been drawn. The demand presents no breach to the authority of the person who issued the check. In fact, the demand actually acknowledges and honors the sovereignty of the check writer.

For another example, if my father promises to do such and such a thing for me at such and such a time, it does him no dishonor when I go to him and say, “Poppa, the time has come. Do what you have promised.” Rather, it honors him because it honors his freely given word.

In the same way, God has made certain promises to His people. Therefore, to demand — to lay claim to or call for — that which He has promised does not in any way take away from the fact that He is God and that He is sovereign. No, it actually honors His sovereignty and pleases Him greatly. For it is taking God at His Word — and that is what faith is all about. In fact, it displeases God when we do not make demand on His promises. For without faith, the Bible says, it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6).

The use of “command” in Isaiah 45:11 operates in the same way. It is not about bossing God around or getting Him to do anything against His will. It is about taking Him at His Word and honoring His authority by exercising the authority He has given to us. We command what He has promised.

So how do we know what that authority is? How do we know what we can call for and lay claim to? How do we discover what we can demand of Him and command His hand concerning?

One word: Ask.

The LORD says, “Ask Me of things to come concerning My sons.” The Bible says that if you have received the Lord Jesus Christ, you have the right to be called a “son of God” (John 1:12). God has also made certain promises concerning you and you have the right to ask what those are. And if you ask, God will tell you. He will reveal it to you in His Word and by His Spirit.

Don’t be afraid to ask God what He has promised concerning His children. Then boldly go to Him and command His hand concerning those promises.

(See also Commanding the Hand of God?)

The Weaned, Quieted Heart

LORD, my heart is not haughty,
  Nor my eyes lofty.
Neither do I concern myself with great matters,
  Nor with things too profound for me.

Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul,
  Like a weaned child with his mother;
  Like a weaned child is my soul within me.

O Israel, hope in the LORD
  From this time forth and forever.

(Psalm 131)

This is called “growing up” in the LORD. Paul said, “As many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God” (Romans 8:14). He is not talking about “children” in the Lord, but about “sons,” that is, those who have come to a place of maturity in their relationship with God.

It has nothing to do with chronology. There are many who are old in years but still children in the Lord — they just never grew up. On the other hand, there are those who are very young in years but who know how to be led by the Spirit of God — they are the mature sons Paul is talking about. (It is not about male and female either. If men can be the “bride” of Christ, women can be the “sons” of God.) In Psalm 131, David shows what that maturity looks like:

My heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty.

There is no pride or arrogance, no unjust assumptions about what we see with the eyes (for our eyes can easily deceive us).

Nor do I concern myself with great matters, nor with things too profound for me.

We don’t have to figure everything out with our reasoning. The Bible says, “Trust in the LORD with all you heart and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

There are things too profound for our own understanding. God’s ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:11), but God sent His Word and His Spirit so that we could operate according to His ways and thoughts. Paul said,

But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)

That’s why it is important for our maturity to be led by the Holy Spirit, for He searches and reveals the things that are too profound for us.

Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul,
Like a weaned child with his mother;
Like a weaned child is my soul within me.

This maturity is about relationship, not about reasoning. The weaned child is calm and quiet with his mother, not because he has figured everything out, but because he has learned to trust his mother, that she loves him and will take care of him.

Notice that this is a decision we must make. God cannot calm and quiet our soul if we are not willing. We must choose to trust Him, then the peace of God comes and we know that all shall be well. One way to begin is simply by saying, whatever the circumstance, “God, I choose to trust You.” Say it often, at every turn in the road. Instruct your soul with this and let it become big inside you.

O Israel, hope in the LORD
From this time forth and forever.

This is David’s conclusion, his kingly counsel to the people of God. To “hope” means to trust, with a positive expectation, a joyful anticipation.

When we have our expectation in God, there is no haughtiness or arrogance, because now we know that it is all about Him and not about us. This is our “standard operating procedure” from now on.

Set your trust, your hope, your expectation upon God in all things — now and forever. Let the Spirit of God search the deep things of God and reveal them to you (simply ask Him, and the Word of God will “come alive” for you). Learn to hear His voice and be led by Him. Then you will move forward in your life in calmness, quietness and confidence.

Psalm ~ An Open Invitation

Anybody who has kept up with The Faith Log soon discovers that a lot of what I write about is instigated by some passage in the Psalms. I've been praying through the Psalms for over 15 years now, and it really has become an ongoing conversation between me and Yahweh. Psalms lend themselves so wonderfully for that because that is exactly what they are — living conversations between the LORD and His people.

There is the “give and take” of relationship, and the psalm-writers don't hold anything back. Sometimes they are exuberant in praise, sometimes they whine and complain, sometimes they breathe out venom on their enemies.

Sometimes there is a real wrestling with God, Jacob-style. I like the title Mark D. Roberts has given to his book about the Psalms — No Holds Barred: Wrestling With God in Prayer. VERY appropriate. Sometimes there is confusion and disappointment. Psalm 88 does not have a happy ending –“The darkness is my closest friend” (NIV).All these things are held in tension. In Spirituality of the Psalms, Walter Brueggemann describes it as orientation, disorientation, reorientation. But it all becomes part of the Book of Praises (Hebrew tehillim), as the Psalms are called, because it is all brought to the LORD for Him to deal with.

Does that entice you? The Book of Psalms is an open invitation for you to come and lay out all the issues of your heart before the LORD. In the process, you will discover the heart of God.

The Breakthrough of a Broken Heart

There is an old Jewish proverb that says, “The teacher cannot place the truth in the heart of his student. He can only place it on top, so that when the heart breaks, the truth will fall in.”

There are things that God wants to do in our hearts, but He will not force His way in to do them. Yes, He is the healer of the brokenhearted, but sometimes a heart cannot be healed until it is broken. Then we are ready to let the Lord come and do a work in us.

There are things that I have been crying out to God for, and this morning my heart has been breaking over something I have been reading. It is not tragic things I have been reading about, but some very good things — ways that God is using people to bless others. My heart is bursting because I very much want to be a part of it — to hear the voice of God in such a powerful way, and to declare it boldly, that many will be blessed by the revealing of their heart before God and turn to Him.

One of the touchstone verses of my life has been this:

The Lord GOD has given me the tongue of disciples,
  That I may now how to sustain the weary one with a word.
He awakens me morning by morning,
  He awakens my ear to listen as a disciple.

(Isaiah 50:4 NIV)

That is what my heart cries out for this morning.

Sometimes the breakthrough we need the most is the breaking of our hearts.

Opening Your Heart to the Voice of God

He is our God,
And we are the people of His pasture,
And the sheep of His hand.
Today, if you will hear His voice,
Do not harden your heart.

(Psalm 95:7-8)

The LORD is our God, but He is also our Shepherd. David brought this out very well in Psalm 23. In the New Testament, we see Jesus declaring, “I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd gives His life for the sheep” (John 10:11). Then He says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27).

Notice that in Psalm 95, after calling us the “sheep of His hand,” there is an invitation, “Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your heart.”

Now, notice that the vehicle for hearing the voice of the Shepherd is not the ear, but the heart. Jesus said a number of times, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear,” but He was not talking about the flaps on the sides of our heads, He was talking about our hearts.

If you want to hear the voice of the Lord, you must open your heart — the core of your being — to receive His Word. Faith comes from hearing the Word, and will be followed up by willing obedience. As James said, “Be doers of the Word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22). Hearing without obedience is a deception, a hardness of heart.

Our hearts have long been discipled by the world, conditioned to be hard toward the voice of God. But God has given the Holy Spirit as an anointing oil to soften up the hardened heart.

Perhaps you are thinking, “It’s too late. My heart is already too hard to hear. What’s the use?” But I tell you there is something you can do. You can go to the Lord, whatever your condition, confess your heart to Him and ask Him to change it:

• Father, my heart is hard toward You, but I want to hear Your voice. Please soften my heart.
• Father, my heart does not even want to obey You, but please come and open my heart to Your words, and give me a heart of joyful obedience.
• Father, there are things in my life I want to hold on to, even though they keep me from You. But come and change the desires of my heart to line up with Yours.
  

God will not turn you away. He is ready to come and do a powerful work in your heart and change your life for the better. Listen to His promise:

I know the thoughts that I think toward you, say the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the LORD and I will bring you back from your captivity. (Jeremiah 29:11-14)

Open your heart to the LORD and you will hear His voice. He will reveal His heart to you and bring you into the blessing He has prepared for you all along.

Downloading in the Spirit

For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however in the spirit he speaks mysteries. (1 Corinthians 14:2)

Someone asked “What do you think it means in this verse when it says, ‘in the spirit he speaks mysteries?’” To answer that, let us first look at 1 Corinthians 14:14, where Paul says: “For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful.”

Praying in tongues does not primarily yield something to the intelligence of the mind. Nonetheless, there is something going on in the spirit. It is a kind of prayer that the mind does not understand.

What is a mystery? Usually in the Bible, a mystery is a secret, not one that God is keeping from His people, but one that He is revealing.

That is what is going on in 1 Corinthians 14:2, “in the spirit he speaks mysteries.” He is downloading something from God that is ministering to his inner man. For in verse 4, Paul says “He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself.”

“What is the conclusion then?” Paul asks in verse 15. “I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.”

In other words, Paul recognized that some of what he prayed was not going to be intelligible to his mind, but there would be edification going on in his spirit — the speaking of mysteries, or downloads from the Spirit of God, so to speak.

That seems to be quite okay with Paul, who decided he was going to pray both ways in his personal prayer life. “I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all,” he says in verse 18.

Then in verse 19, he draws the distinction between the dynamics of private prayer and public assembly: “Yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.”

That is why tongues, when addressed to the church, must be accompanied by interpretation. At that point, the mysteries a man speaks when he prays in tongues can become a prophesy that edifies the congregation.

(See also The Benefits of Praying in the Spirit.)

Are you hearing from God when you pray?