Last evening, I was in a time of prayer and praise with some dear brethren, when the Lord called my attention to a particular brother who looked like he was really suffering from a migraine head ache. Migraines are miserable things to deal with, as those who suffer will attest. He had his head cupped in his hands and bent over in his lap. Fortunately we both were seated in the back of the room. As prayer continued, I made my way over to him. My spirit was grieved to see him hurting so badly. I felt like the Lord told me to go over and lay my hands on his head and take authority in the Name of Jesus over the migraine and release His peace of mind to my brother. Another brother and sister prayed also with us, as the Lord led them, for the blood of Jesus to bring healing and deliverance
While the singing continued and the Word of encouragement was spoken for the whole body, my brother rested in the Lord. Slowly, he began to reach out for the Lord. His hands fell from his head in a posture of receiving healing. Within a short time, my brother stood to his feet, with hands raised, praising the Lord in a loud voice. What a beautiful victory the Lord brought to him and a rich blessing to the Lord.
During that time I received a word for my brother, but it encouraged me too. "Jesus wore the Crown of Thorns to consume the consequences of Adam's sin, which was sin, sickness and disease. To experience a migraine or any head pain is to acknowledge the suffering of the Crown of Thorns, Christ wore for us. But, the truth doesn't stop there. It is one thing to share in His suffering and another to experience His victory. Today, our Lord wears a Crown of Glory, seated at His Father's right hand and extends His healing and deliverance to those who suffer such pain.
1John 5:4 says, "For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world, and this is the victory that has overcome the world--OUR FAITH--. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God." Jesus has overcome the world and all its consequences of sin. 1John 4:17 also says, " As He is, so are we in this world," Is Jesus healthy? So are we in this world. Is Jesus victorious over sin? So are we in this world. Is Jesus victorious over diseases? So are we in this world.
I am not saying that you and I will never get sick, have a migraine or some disease Jesus said that we would have trials and tribulations, BUT, He had overcome them all, (Psalms 34:15-19) Jesus paid the price to overcome the consequences of Adam's sin and by our faith in His finished work at Calvary, we can believe and say, " AS HE IS, SO ARE WE IN THIS WORLD" and let His truth manifest itself. It may not come right away, but if God said it, it will happen, it will come to pass. We have so much to be thankful for. Jesus paid it all. IT IS FINISHED!!
Our bridegroom is coming for His bride very soon. His love for us is amazing. He never takes His eyes off His own. When we hurt, Jesus hurts and He feels our pain. However, He doesn't leave us there. He leads us to His cross for us to remember that, "by His stripes we are healed" We are healed spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically. He exchanged His CROWN OF THORNS for His CROWN OF GLORY that He is wearing today for us. May the Name of the Lord be praised forever and ever.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Friday, March 16, 2012
Highway to Holiness
This past Sunday a dear brother challenged me to think about "The Way of Holiness" in Isaiah 35, and what did I think it meant. I do have a few thoughts,but do not confess to have a complete interpretation. I would love to hear from you also on this topic.
In Isaiah 35, I believe this scripture is an encouragement for Israel when one day they shall return to Zion with singing and an everlasting joy shall be upon there heads. They shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.......It is prophetic to the Nation anticipating the day their Messiah will come and set all things straight. The Highway of Holiness spoken here, I believe is the Messiah, because Isaiah also says, " and the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray."
I believe the Highway to Holiness is THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, HIMSELF, the long awaited Messiah of Israel.. He said in John 14:6, "I am the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE, No one comes to the Father but by ME." .There is only ONE HOLY GOD and He is our God. His Name is Holy, (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). He is totally separate and above all other gods. In Matthews 7:13, Jesus is again talking to the disciples explaining the Narrow Way, "Enter by the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction,and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the WAY is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few" .
I use to think that the Highway to Holiness was hard work. I had to perform and be good. It was all about my behavior. Didn't He say that the WAY was hard and few find it? Christianity was getting very hard and quite boring, until the LIGHT BULB went on.
For me, it was all about FAITH in the Word of God. Did I believe that I had entered the narrow gate by identifying with the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, as my own? (Romans 6). Was it faith through grace, that Jesus had secured me on the narrow road to holiness? Would I be transformed as I grew to see Jesus from glory to glory? Yes! There was such a peace to know that it was NOT by any works that I had done to get there or to even stay there.
It is all about God's glory. We owe Him our lives. To be hidden in Christ in God is the only way I know to walk the way of holiness. OUR WONDERFUL JESUS walked that road before us, the road to Calvary. He turns to us and says, "If anyone would come to me, let him deny himself, pick up his cross, and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and loses his own soul.." Now, when I close my eyes, I see Jesus carrying each one of us in His heart on the WAY OF HOLINESS bringing us HOME to His Father.
In Isaiah 35, I believe this scripture is an encouragement for Israel when one day they shall return to Zion with singing and an everlasting joy shall be upon there heads. They shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.......It is prophetic to the Nation anticipating the day their Messiah will come and set all things straight. The Highway of Holiness spoken here, I believe is the Messiah, because Isaiah also says, " and the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray."
I believe the Highway to Holiness is THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, HIMSELF, the long awaited Messiah of Israel.. He said in John 14:6, "I am the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE, No one comes to the Father but by ME." .There is only ONE HOLY GOD and He is our God. His Name is Holy, (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). He is totally separate and above all other gods. In Matthews 7:13, Jesus is again talking to the disciples explaining the Narrow Way, "Enter by the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction,and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the WAY is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few" .
I use to think that the Highway to Holiness was hard work. I had to perform and be good. It was all about my behavior. Didn't He say that the WAY was hard and few find it? Christianity was getting very hard and quite boring, until the LIGHT BULB went on.
For me, it was all about FAITH in the Word of God. Did I believe that I had entered the narrow gate by identifying with the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, as my own? (Romans 6). Was it faith through grace, that Jesus had secured me on the narrow road to holiness? Would I be transformed as I grew to see Jesus from glory to glory? Yes! There was such a peace to know that it was NOT by any works that I had done to get there or to even stay there.
It is all about God's glory. We owe Him our lives. To be hidden in Christ in God is the only way I know to walk the way of holiness. OUR WONDERFUL JESUS walked that road before us, the road to Calvary. He turns to us and says, "If anyone would come to me, let him deny himself, pick up his cross, and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and loses his own soul.." Now, when I close my eyes, I see Jesus carrying each one of us in His heart on the WAY OF HOLINESS bringing us HOME to His Father.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Christ our Jubilee
The year of Jubilee caught my attention this week and I would like to share with you some of my thoughts. I realize that there is so much more than what I understand, but what I do know has richly blessed me.
The primary reason for the Year of Jubilee was to prevent oppression in Israel. (Lev. 25:14.17) All hired workers were to be set free. This was unconditional liberty. All bond slaves were released even if the Jubilee Year came before the completion of their six years of service. This also included bond slaves who had earlier declined to go free in the seventh year of their employment. All were set at liberty.
Besides all the bond slaves and slaves to be set free, all the land was returned to its original owners. (Lev. 25:13, 223-28). This law preserved the identity of the tribes and their allotted inheritance of the land. (Num.36:4,7)
From what I have learned, this particular celebration has never taken place in modern Israel. The ancient rabbis generally believed that the Jubilee was no longer in effect after the exile of the northern ten tribes (722 B.C) because the biblical command was to be observed for "all the inhabitants thereof" (Lev. 25:10). They believed that the Jubilee Year applied only when all the Jewish people were in the land, and each tribe in its own territory. They are still waiting for this event to occur ever since they have returned to the land in 1948.
As the Jews look forward to their year of Jubilee, we as believers already celebrate and rejoice in Christ our Jubilee. In the Old Testament (Isaiah 61) and in the New Testament (Luke 4) the Lord says " The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound, to proclaim the year of the LORD'S favor (Jubilee)..............." It is beautiful. What Adam lost to Satan, Jesus bought back and restored to God. We are free from all condemnation and the power of sin. Satan no longer has any control over our lives. We have been redeemed, purchased by the blood of Jesus, never again to be under the law of sin and death. The law of life in Jesus Christ has set us free. Jesus is our Jubilee.
"The Feasts of the LORD" by Kevin Howard and Marvin Rosenthal for further study.
The primary reason for the Year of Jubilee was to prevent oppression in Israel. (Lev. 25:14.17) All hired workers were to be set free. This was unconditional liberty. All bond slaves were released even if the Jubilee Year came before the completion of their six years of service. This also included bond slaves who had earlier declined to go free in the seventh year of their employment. All were set at liberty.
Besides all the bond slaves and slaves to be set free, all the land was returned to its original owners. (Lev. 25:13, 223-28). This law preserved the identity of the tribes and their allotted inheritance of the land. (Num.36:4,7)
From what I have learned, this particular celebration has never taken place in modern Israel. The ancient rabbis generally believed that the Jubilee was no longer in effect after the exile of the northern ten tribes (722 B.C) because the biblical command was to be observed for "all the inhabitants thereof" (Lev. 25:10). They believed that the Jubilee Year applied only when all the Jewish people were in the land, and each tribe in its own territory. They are still waiting for this event to occur ever since they have returned to the land in 1948.
As the Jews look forward to their year of Jubilee, we as believers already celebrate and rejoice in Christ our Jubilee. In the Old Testament (Isaiah 61) and in the New Testament (Luke 4) the Lord says " The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound, to proclaim the year of the LORD'S favor (Jubilee)..............." It is beautiful. What Adam lost to Satan, Jesus bought back and restored to God. We are free from all condemnation and the power of sin. Satan no longer has any control over our lives. We have been redeemed, purchased by the blood of Jesus, never again to be under the law of sin and death. The law of life in Jesus Christ has set us free. Jesus is our Jubilee.
"The Feasts of the LORD" by Kevin Howard and Marvin Rosenthal for further study.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
God is my Father
I pray that these verses will bless you as they have me. We have a "daddy" who loves us more than we can think or imagine. He demonstrated His love for us by sending His Son. What a blessing it is to be able to call the God of heaven and earth, "our daddy" Even when we sin, we are still loved by "our daddy" and can trust his heart towards us. He will correct us where it is needed, but with gentleness and kindness leading us to repentance. He will never forsake or reject us. We are accepted in the beloved. He will be "our daddy" for all eternity
I am a child of God.
I have been adopted as a child of God.
My Father has made me.
In love, He has predestined me
to be adopted as His child
My Father knows what I need,
even before I ask Him
As a father has compassion on his
children, so You, Lord
have compassion on me
I did not receive a spirit that makes me
a slave again to fear, but I have received
the Spirit of sonship, and by Him I cry
"Abba Father"
The Lord Almighty says to me,
"I will be a Father to you and you shall be My child.
What a wonderful privilege to call the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ...Abba Father...our Father too.
John 1:12, 1 Corinthians 12:27, Ephesians 1:5, Deuteronomy 32:6,
Ephesians 1:4-5, Matthew 6:8, Psalm 103:13, Romans 8:15, 2corinthians 6:18
These verses have been compiled by Derek Prince Ministries.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
The Divine Exchange
From the foundation of the earth the Lamb of God was slain. God the Father knew that Man would fall from grace and that He would have to separate Himself from Adam's sin. At that time,God the Son loved the Father so much that He submitted to His Father and was willing to endure the wrath of God for our unrighteousness. Thousands of years later, a blood Covenant between God the Father and God the Son was manifested at the cross of Calvary. God's justice was satisfied by the death of His Son. When Jesus cried out, "My God, my God , why have you forsaken me?" God the Father had turned His back, on His Son. Jesus became sin.
Have you ever wondered why Jesus didn't call out, "Father, Father why have you forsaken me?" Could it be that Jesus at that moment became sin and His Father disowned Him, so we through His death and resurrection could call God "our Father, too?"
In the mind of God that day, the most incredible and amazing DIVINE EXCHANGE took place. Believing and understanding this exchange has given me a more positive and growing intimate relationship with the Lord. Our new life in Christ Jesus is so much more than just being forgiven. We process the very life of our God.
Jesus said, "Greater things you shall do because I go to the Father."
Do you think the disciples understood what He meant? Do we as believers really today believe this divine exchange for ourselves?
Jesus was punished....
that we might be forgiven
Jesus was wounded...
that we might be healed,
Jesus was made sin from our sinfulness...
that we might be made
righteous with His righteousness.
Jesus died our death
that we might receive life
Jesus was made a curse
that we might enter into the blessing
Jesus endured our poverty...
that we might share His abundance
Jesus bore our shame...
that we might share His glory
Jesus endured our rejection ...
that we might have
His acceptance with the Father
Jesus was cut off by death...
that we might be joined to God eternally.
Our old man was put to death in Him
that the new man
might come to life in us.
Isaiah 53:4-5, 2Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 2:9, Galatians 3:13, 2 Corinthians 8:9, Hebrew 12:2
Ephesians 1:5-6, Isaiah 53:8b, Colossians 3:0-10
These verses have been put together by Derek Prince Ministries to encourage us in our new life.
Have you ever wondered why Jesus didn't call out, "Father, Father why have you forsaken me?" Could it be that Jesus at that moment became sin and His Father disowned Him, so we through His death and resurrection could call God "our Father, too?"
In the mind of God that day, the most incredible and amazing DIVINE EXCHANGE took place. Believing and understanding this exchange has given me a more positive and growing intimate relationship with the Lord. Our new life in Christ Jesus is so much more than just being forgiven. We process the very life of our God.
Jesus said, "Greater things you shall do because I go to the Father."
Do you think the disciples understood what He meant? Do we as believers really today believe this divine exchange for ourselves?
Jesus was punished....
that we might be forgiven
Jesus was wounded...
that we might be healed,
Jesus was made sin from our sinfulness...
that we might be made
righteous with His righteousness.
Jesus died our death
that we might receive life
Jesus was made a curse
that we might enter into the blessing
Jesus endured our poverty...
that we might share His abundance
Jesus bore our shame...
that we might share His glory
Jesus endured our rejection ...
that we might have
His acceptance with the Father
Jesus was cut off by death...
that we might be joined to God eternally.
Our old man was put to death in Him
that the new man
might come to life in us.
Isaiah 53:4-5, 2Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 2:9, Galatians 3:13, 2 Corinthians 8:9, Hebrew 12:2
Ephesians 1:5-6, Isaiah 53:8b, Colossians 3:0-10
These verses have been put together by Derek Prince Ministries to encourage us in our new life.
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