The Righteous, Blessed Ones

Psalm 112 tells us about the righteous ones, which you are if you have accepted Jesus as your Savior.  Today we will speak that Psalm over ourselves.  It is a very specific description of who we are and what we have in the midst of a world full of wickedness.  Meditate on this Psalm until you see yourself as that person God describes in this scripture.

I praise You, Lord.  I am blessed as a man/woman that reveres and worships You, Lord.

I delight greatly in Your commandments (Word).

My seed, my offspring shall be mighty upon the earth.

I am upright and my generation shall be blessed.

Wealth and riches shall be in my house and my righteousness endures forever.

Light arises in the middle of the darkness for me as God’s righteous one.

I am gracious and full of compassion and in right standing with God.

It is well with me.  I show favor, deal generously and lend.

I conduct my affairs with justice and discretion.

I will not be moved forever.

I as God’s righteous one shall be in everlasting remembrance.

I shall not be afraid of evil tidings.

My heart is firmly fixed, trusting in the Lord.  I am leaning on Him and I am confident in Him.

My heart is established and steady.

I will not be afraid, until I see my desire upon my enemies.

I have distributed freely.  I have given to the poor and needy.

My righteousness with God endures forever.

My horn, emblem of excessive strength and power, shall be exalted with honor.

The wicked man will see it (my righteousness and power and authority) and be grieved and angered.

He will gnash his teeth and disappear in despair.

The desire of the wicked shall perish and come to nothing.

What do we see in this Psalm?

We as God’s righteous children do not have to be afraid or troubled.

Our hearts are to be firmly fixed and trusting in the Lord.

He alone is the One with the power and strength and authority, and He has given it to us.

We do not have to fear the wicked, for they shall perish and come to nothing.

We can praise God and worship Him and delight greatly in His Word.  He is our Light and our Salvation.

Holy Spirit Residence – The Secret Place, Part 2

I am fixed under the shadow of the Almighty.  What does this mean?  I thought there was no shadow with God.  This is our English translation’s way of saying “covering.”  God’s glory is this covering.  It is a canopy of divine love and protection.  It is God.  We know that His glory is His Love (Power) expressed or manifested on earth.

He allows us to see His glory.  His glory is His Presence.  When our spiritual eyes are open here on earth, we can perceive God’s presence and power expressed in our personal lives, as well as in corporate gatherings.  When we get to heaven, we will have the spiritual ability to see Him and His glory all the time.  The only reason we cannot see it here on this earth all the time is that we don’t walk in the spirit all the time.  Flesh has to be dealt with continually.  The flesh cannot see God nor perceive Him.

The Holy Spirit is here to help us stay in the spirit and still live a normal life here with his “super” on our “natural.”  I love living supernaturally in this natural world.  It is so much fun.  It is a carefree life.  We are God’s responsibility.  We do what He tells us to do.  He performs His Word on our behalf and for those to whom He sends us.  It is an effortless life of sweatless victory.  What produces that kind of life?  Trust and confidence in God’s ability and capability of taking care of us.

If you are like me (maybe you are not), it is difficult to have the patience to wait on someone else to do something when you think you have the ability to do it so much faster.  I believe that many times we have this mindset about God.  We have this concept that it takes forever to receive from Him.  It is all this work and pressure and stress and strain.  He didn’t put those thoughts in your head.  It is satan, because he knows that once you and I know that God does things much better than we can ever do them (and God will do them for us), he has “had it.”  He won’t be able to harass us anymore.

We dwell, remain stable and fixed in the secret place of the Most High and are established, unalterably settled under God’s glory which is a canopy, a defense of divine love and protection of the Almighty God Whose power no foe can withstand.

Holy Spirit Residence – The Secret Place, Part 1

You as God’s child are the resting place, the abiding place, the Holy Ghost residence of the Most High God.  He has taken up residence.  He is not just a renter.  He is a home owner.  He is in us and we are in Him.  Our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit.  He dwells in us.  We are His people.  He is our God.  He desires to be the One Who takes care of us.  He is a wonderful caretaker.

We also are to dwell or abide in Him.  Let’s look at Psalm 91:1.

We dwell in the secret place of the Most High and abide under the shadow of the Most High God.  We live in God.  Our lives are immersed in His life.  His Life is flowing through us.  His Love is flowing through us.  His Light is flowing through us.  He doesn’t stop that flow.  We are the ones who can stop it.

I am learning that I must consistently stay focused on what God’s Word says about me, regardless of what I feel or whether it appears to be working in my life.  The Word is not true because it works in my life.  The Word is true, period, end of paragraph!  I must have this mindset:  God’s Word is true for me and it will work for me.  He is no respecter of persons.

What is this secret place of the Most High God?  It is His covering, His protection, our shelter from the enemy, and our place of His abiding Presence.  It is His Word.  It is His Presence.  It is God’s place.  I’m living there.  Psalm 31:20:  God hides us in the secret place of His Presence.  He hides us.  He keeps us secretly in His pavilion, covering, shelter, defense and hedges us in, shuts us up and protects us from the evil one.  In this secret place we are inaccessible to the enemy.  It is forbidden access to him.

I am fixed in this secret place.  Everyone who is born again lives in God’s secret place (His Presence), whether they know it or whether they act on this knowledge.  In this place in God we are stable; we are unalterably settled; we are set; we are firm; we are steadfast; and we are established.  Established in what?  Him and His Word and faith in Him performing His Word in our lives personally.

Trust Releases The Blessing of God

When we put our trust in the Lord, and seek Him, we are blessed (Psalm 2:12).

Trust is a simple word but it carries with it all the power of The Blessing of God.  When we trust God in any situation and with any challenge in our life, we are releasing Him to pour out on us The Blessing.  What is The Blessing?  It is God’s fullness of His Kingdom which is given to us on this earth.  It is God Himself pouring out on us His prosperity and goodness.  To prosper is to succeed in every area of life whether it is in our bodies or our finances or our relationships.

God has declared His Blessing upon us.  He decreed it over Adam and Eve, and even when they lost it, He had a plan to reinstate His decree over mankind.  He blessed us.  That means He gave us the ability to prosper.  He gave us His power to succeed.  His power is given to us to excel, create and achieve.

The result of His Blessing is fruitfulness and multiplication which is not just for us but for all those around us.  God’s Blessing spills over onto those with whom we come in contact.  Wherever we as born-again children of God are, He is there with His Blessing.  People are blessed in our workplace.  They are blessed in our communities.  They are blessed in our nation because we are there.  It really has nothing to do with us other than the fact that we are vessels of the Most High God, allowing Him to pour out His Blessing on us and others.

I looked up the word “trust” in the dictionary and in the Greek and Hebrew language and found one word that seems to be common as a definition of the word—-confidence.  When you and I have confidence in what God can do for us and that He will do it for us, we are trusting Him.  Blessed is the person who puts his trust in the Lord.

Regardless of how it seems, we are to trust God to take care of things for us.  Even when it looks like everything is going the opposite of what we need, we must trust Him.  The devil wants us to doubt God’s desire to do what His Word says, and particularly for us.  He started in the Garden of Eden by convincing Eve to doubt the truth of what God said.  He has never changed.  He says to you and me all the time:  “Has God said?  Did He really mean what He said?  Nah, I don’t think so.  Go ahead, you can’t trust God to come through for you.”

Deliberately, on purpose, choose to trust God.  Make a quality decision that no matter what happens, you choose to trust Him.  Make a commitment to Him that you will remain true to Him and believe His Word.  That commitment is not dependent on whether you see results or not.  It is a decision you make to believe God and His Word, regardless of what happens in your life.  That is what honor is.  Honor does not depend on whether you have everything great in your life.  Honor is what you choose to do.  Respect and esteem God for Who He is and not for what He can do for you.

Oh, yes, as you honor Him and His Word, you will see results.  You will walk in the blessed life.  You will experience breakthrough and turnaround.  God looks to and fro throughout the earth to find those who are committed to Him and His Word, not because of what He does for them, but because they love Him with all their hearts and want to please Him and honor Him.

Trust God!  He loves you so much.  Today and every day show Him how much you love Him and trust Him.

The World Behind Me, Part 2

Today we finish our study of 1 John 2:12-17 and 1 John 5:21.

Do not love or cherish the world or the things that are in the world.  If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him.

For all that is in the world—-

the lust of the flesh [craving for sensual gratification],

and the lust of the eyes [greedy longings of the mind]

and the pride of life [assurance of one’s own resources or in the stability of earthly things]—-these do not come from the Father but are from the world [itself].

And the world passes away and disappears, and with it the forbidden cravings (the passionate desires, the lust) of it; but he who does the will of God and carries out His purposes in his life abides (remains) forever.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols (false gods)—-[from anything and everything that would occupy the place in your heart due to God, from any sort of substitute for Him that would take first place in your life].

As I look at these verses for a personal evaluation of myself, I am asking the Holy Spirit to reveal to me any areas in my life that would keep me from knowing God intimately and putting Him in first place.

We may think that we don’t have any idols in our lives since we think of idols as little carved icons or whatever, but what about the thing you spend the most of your time on.  Is it Jesus or is it something which steals all of your time from Him?

What John tells us here in these verses is strong.  We are not to love the world or the love of the Father is not in us.  In the world are things that would gratify our senses (sense of touch, seeing, hearing, smelling, speaking).  In the world are things that would satisfy the longings in our mind.  In the world is self-assurance and faith in earthly resources to solve our problems.  Self can sometimes be our biggest hindrance to faith in God.  Most of us have been taught to depend on our own abilities since we were small.  But God——-!

God wants to completely take care of us and has already supplied our needs and wants.  What we must do is “let go” of all these earthly comfort zones on which we rely and choose instead to trust God.  Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal those places in your heart that belong to Him but which you have not been able to give over to Him.  He is waiting!  He will help you to become totally free of the world’s way of doing things and reliance on your own self-efforts.

The World Behind Me, Part 1

In 1 John 2:12-17  and 1 John 5:21 (Amplified Bible) the Apostle John has some very specific instructions for all of us, which I think applies particularly to the days in which we are living.  Some of these instructions are to fathers, children, and young men, but I think every one of us can heed these words of wisdom.

I am writing to you, little children, because for His name’s sake YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN [pardoned through His name and on account of confessing His name].

I am writing to you, fathers, because YOU HAVE COME TO KNOW (recognize, be aware of, and understand) HIM Who [has existed] from the beginning.

I am writing to you, young men, because you HAVE BEEN VICTORIOUS OVER THE WICKED [ONE].

I write to you, boys (lads), because you have come to know (RECOGNIZE AND BE AWARE OF) THE FATHER.

I write to you, fathers, because you have come to know (recognize, be conscious of, and UNDERSTAND) HIM WHO [HAS EXISTED] FROM THE BEGINNING.

I write to you, young men, because you are STRONG AND VIGOROUS, AND THE WORD OF GOD IS [ALWAYS] ABIDING IN YOU (IN YOUR HEARTS), AND YOU HAVE BEEN VICTORIOUS OVER THE WICKED ONE.

God’s Spirit of Power and Love and a Sound Mind, Part 2

Let’s talk a little bit more about God’s power and then move on to discussing His Love and the sound mind He has given us.

In Ephesians 3:20 we see that God will do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think, infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes or dreams in consequence of or according to the action of His power that is at work within us.  It is our choice.  We can choose to believe that we are dynamic powerhouses for God, or we can choose to believe that we can’t make it.  God gives us choices all the time.

God’s power is there in us and is available for us to walk victoriously.

Secondly, God’s Love is in us.  Romans 5:5 tells us that the love of God has been shed abroad or poured forth in our hearts by the Holy Ghost.  In 1 John we are told that God is Love.  His Love is His power source.  He is all Love.  We are all Love if we are His child.  We are Love if we are His child.  God has given us a Spirit of Love, His Love.

Thirdly, God has given us a sound mind.  He has given us the mind of Christ, to hold the thoughts, feelings and purposes of His heart (1 Corinthians 2:16).  When we look at the words “sound mind,” they come from root words that mean to fence or enclose, stop, silence, to rein in or curb.  Figuratively, they mean feelings or understanding.  God has given us His mind to silence and stop the thoughts of the enemy that continually bombard us.  He has given us His mind to rein in or curb, cast down, and bring into captivity every thought that exalts itself against the knowledge of God.  When we take on His mind, we are in obedience to Him.  We align our feelings and understanding with Him.

There is only one way to take on God’s mind.  He has given us this Word of His, which expresses His whole way of operating His Kingdom.  It is the direct opposite to everything we see in this world.  We must come into obedience to His Word and to Him in order to thrive in this present world.  We can either be just surviving with our head barely above the water, or we can thrive in spite of what is going on around us.  Once again, it is a choice, not just daily, but sometimes moment by moment.  Choose you this day whom you will serve:  We choose God and His Word.

God’s Spirit of Power and Love and a Sound Mind, Part 1

God has not given us a spirit of fear, of craven and cringing and fawning fear, but He has given us a Spirit of Power and of Love and of a Sound Mind (2 Timothy 1:7, KJV and Amplified Bible).

No, God has not given us as His children a spirit of fear.  That spirit of fear is from satan.  It is his method of operation.  Fear is more than being afraid.  It is having faith in satan’s ability to harm you and take away from you.  We are instructed here with a very specific instruction.  God has not given us a spirit of fear.

Here is what God has given us.  He has given us His Holy Spirit of Power.  He has given us His Holy Spirit of Love.  He has given us His Holy Spirit of a Sound Mind.

Let’s look at these three forces we have been given:  power, love, a sound mind.

God has given us His Spirit of Power.  The Greek word for power here is dunamis.  It is the same word as Paul used in Ephesians 1:19 to describe the working of God when He raised Jesus from the dead.  It is resurrection power.  It is the pure power of God.  There is no power greater than His power.  It is the mighty power of God that is inherent in Christ, the power that is fixed in the Anointed One and exists in His anointing.  It is the same power that has been given to us, that resides in us.

In Romans 8:11 we are told that the same Holy Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead dwells in us.  He is in us.  He lives in us as Christians.  Christ is in us, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).  God’s power is in us.  So what is the problem?  Why aren’t we seeing more of the demonstration of God’s power in us on this earth like His power was demonstrated in Jesus?  As with everything with God, it takes faith; we must believe His power is available and operating in us; we must have confidence His power is working in us.  Nothing will happen until we choose to believe that God’s power is personally working in us.

God’s Vision, Part 2

It was a sad day for the Lord when the man and woman He had created, submitted to the deception of the devil and hooked up with him.  Three things happened to Adam and Eve when they ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 3:7,8).

(1)  Their eyes were opened to evil.  Their eyes were opened in the wrong way.  It was never God’s intent that they know anything about the devil’s ways of evil from the devil’s perspective.  The devil tricked them into submission to him.  He convinced them that God did not mean what He said to them.  He was just holding out on them.  The devil works the same way today convincing people that what God said in His Word is not true.  This is called deception.

I fully believe that God would have explained the ways of evil to Adam and Eve, if they had waited on their Father to talk to them about it.  He is a loving Heavenly Father.  And, if He thought it was best that they never know about evil, that would have been OK also.  They should have allowed their Father to handle it.  He had given them an instruction to obey.  Their disobedience opened up the temptation of the whole world of the devil and his evil ways.

(2)  They knew they were naked.  They perceived that spiritually first.  They realized that the light of God’s glorious presence on them was gone.  Then they saw physically that their bodies were no longer clothed in that presence.  They looked for something to cover them.  Fig leaves were a poor substitute for God’s glory.

(3)  They were afraid.

This is the condition of the world today without God.  They are open to evil.  They are not clothed in God’s robe of righteousness.  They are full of fear.

Unfortunately, that is the condition of too many Christians.  They don’t know that they are righteous and can walk in a new way with the Lord.  They don’t know their rightful position, a position of being right with God through Jesus, Who makes us right through His blood.  They don’t know that they are royalty in the Father’s household, with all the rights and privileges of the household.

Many Christians are full of fear of so many things—-cancer, heart attacks, terrorism, losing their jobs, families falling apart, marriages failing.  They are in no better place than the people of the world, except they are going to heaven, which is a wonderful thing to know.  But, oh, the benefits of serving the Lord while we are right here on this earth.  We do not have to fear because our dear Heavenly Father has taken care of us through Jesus His Son coming and taking our place.  Now the Holy Spirit is living in us to show us how to receive in our daily lives what Jesus has purchased for us.

My prayer today for you is that you will take on God’s vision and understand the hope to which He has called you, the richness of your inheritance, and the very resurrection power that God has given you, which seats you far above all principality and power and all earthly titles and names.  Hallelujah!

God’s Vision, Part 1

God sees through different eyes than the world.  His vision is pure and lovely and clear and perfect.  His vision is love vision.  His vision is pure power.  He is Love and that is the way He sees us.  He doesn’t look at things the way the world looks at things.  When God sees people, He sees value in them.  He doesn’t see what they can do for Him.  He sees their worth as individuals.

God’s vision is one of redemption and wholeness.  He sees us as His again, bought with the blood of His Son Jesus Christ—-redeemed at last, free, delivered, once again His own.  We have been bought with a price, the highest price the Father could pay, the blood of His Son.

Without God’s vision, we perish, we are made naked, we have nothing and are nothing.  In fact, that is exactly what Proverbs 29:18 says:  “Where there is no vision (no redemptive revelation of God), the people perish (are made naked).  When we don’t understand Who God is and what He has done for us, we perish, and we are naked, devoid of anything of value or worth because He is our all in all.

Paul prayed for us in Ephesians 1:18 that the eyes of our understanding would be enlightened or that the eyes of our heart would be flooded with light.  He was talking about us understanding God and His Kingdom.  Oh, yes, it is possible to do just that very thing.  God wants us to be able to understand Him.  After all, He is our Father.  We are His children.  He wants our hearts to be overflowing with His Light; He is Light.  He said in Genesis 1:  “Light, be.”  In other words, God was saying this:  “I Who am Light, Be in this earth.”  And the earth was filled with Him.  He wants us to understand how He operates, so that we can imitate “papa” and be exactly like Him.

God wants our eyes to be opened to turn from darkness to light and from the power of satan to God Himself (Acts 26:18).  He wants us to open our eyes to behold wondrous things out of His Word (Psalm 119:18).