The Gift Of Tongues

And these signs shall follow them that believe; In My Name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak in new tongues; Mark 16:17

  

And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Acts 2:4

Notice that on the Day of Pentecost, all of the believers were speaking in new tongues, not just the Apostles, but all 120 people, both women and men spoke in tongues. All of the believers who were there at Pentecost spoke with tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance! Jesus said the sign of speaking in tongues would follow all who believe. Speaking in tongues is a sign of the presence of our Father. Whether we are speaking in an earthly language that is not our own or a heavenly one, it is the Spirit that gives us the ability to do so, and it is a sign that our Father is real, that He is alive, and that He dwells within us.

Eagerly pursue and seek to acquire [this] love [make it your aim, your great quest]; and earnestly desire and cultivate the spiritual endowments (gifts), especially that you may prophesy (interpret the Divine will and purpose in inspired preaching and teaching). 1 Corinthians 14:1

Tongues is a gift from our Father that acts as a sign to the world, a sign that proves that He is real, and since it does, we should eagerly desire it. Should we desire tongues above the other gifts of the Spirit, no; but we should desire it. Think of never needing an interpreter to preach the Gospel. How awesome, regardless of which nation we will be in, the power of the Holy Spirit will give us exactly the Words that our Father wants spoken, exactly when they should be spoken, and exactly how the people hearing them need them spoken. Through the power of the Spirit we can speak to a person, even if we have never spoken their language before, exactly as our Father would speak to them. Think of the intimacy and understanding that our Father has, and that is exactly how we will be used by Him to speak to with people! Awesome, absolutely awesome!

Now think of praying in tongues. The Spirit of our Father giving us the utterance, so we are praying exactly what needs to be prayed, exactly how it needs prayed, and all through the power of God Himself! Jesus said that we all would speak in new tongues, and the Holy Ghost inspired Paul to write that we should all eagerly desire it! The gifts of our Father are not to be feared, we haven’t been given a spirit of fear, but of power. God’s signs should be desired by all of us. Faith comes from hearing the Truth and the Truth sets us free.

There is no condemnation here, if our Father hasn’t given you the gift of tongues yet, He will, for it is a sign for all who believe. So there is no fretting if you don’t have it yet. Eagerly desire the gift though!

Why We Desire Signs

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

And ye shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall make you free. John 8:32

We need to hear the Truth that Jesus said that those who empowered by the Holy Spirit to believe will have these signs following them: casting out devils, speaking in tongues, no deadly thing harming them, and being used by God to perform miraculous healing’s, Mark 16:16-18. The Truth of the power of God that is within us will set us free! The Truth will set us free from fearing gifts like tongues. The Truth will allow us to see why we have been given gifts, what they are, and that it is our Father within us doing all of them!

Faith comes from hearing the Truth and the Truth sets the world free! The great Truth about the signs of our Father, the signs that will follow us, is that they are only happening because it is Him within us doing them. Through the power and freedom that Jesus’ sacrifice has provided, God can now do all things through us! There are no limitations for our Father any longer regarding us; He is now free to work through us completely as He worked through Jesus completely.

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Philippians 4:13

Christ, the Anointing of God, allows us to be used by our Father to do all things and it is our Father within us, He is doing the works! Christ allows God to do all things through us. The world will see God through us, and the world will accept Him, not just because we talk about Him, but by the signs that He performs through us! There will be no doubt as to the One Who is working through us; the works will go beyond man’s abilities, and God will be glorified by them! We should all eagerly desire the Love of God, which manifest itself in the signs He performs through us. We should all eagerly desire that our Father use us as vessels of His honor. We should desire that the sick be healed by our Father’s power working through us. We should want Him to use our mouths to utter exact prophecies in whatever language that is needed. Our hope should be that because of God and the signs that are an evidence of His presence, multitudes come to believe and be saved!

Jesus is Lord and this is the day that He has made and through His glorious presence within our lives we will rejoice and be glad in it!

The Power Of God's Perfect Love

And this is how we may discern [daily, by experience] that we are coming to know Him [to perceive, recognize, understand, and become better acquainted with Him]: if we keep (bear in mind, observe, practice) His teachings (precepts, commandments). Whoever says, I know Him [I perceive, recognize, understand, and am acquainted with Him] but fails to keep and obey His commandments (teachings) is a liar, and the Truth [of the Gospel] is not in him. But he who keeps (treasures) His Word [who bears in mind His precepts, who observes His message in its entirety], truly in him has the love of and for God been perfected (completed, reached maturity). By this we may perceive (know, recognize, and be sure) that we are in Him: Whoever says he abides in Him ought [as a personal debt] to walk and conduct himself in the same way in which He walked and conducted Himself. 1 John 2:3-6

Praise God for the power of His Word. We can see that the love of our Father is now perfected within us, that there is no occasion for us to stumble, and that we are actually able to walk as Jesus walked. These Truth's are what our Father has to say about those who are empowered to accept the sacrifice of Jesus and who are baptized with the Holy Spirit. Do you see that salvation is not us just getting by, barely making it into Heaven? Our Father talks about us abiding in His Holiest. Our Father says that as He is, so are we in this world, 1 John 4:17, and our Father says that through the Blood of Christ we are saved to the uttermost, Hebrews 7:25! Our Father tells us to consider ourselves dead to sin, in the same way that Jesus is dead to sin, Romans 6:11. Jesus tells us that we will be used by God to do greater works than He did, John 14:12, and Jesus tells us that the Holy Ghost will teach us all things, John 14:26, and knowing perfect love is part of all things.

Salvation is what brings us into line with what God created: man in His image. But salvation goes so far beyond just being in our Fathers image, it goes into us being one with Him, there is now no separation between us. We are just like a branch that only lives because the vine is connected to it. We now only live because we are always connected to Jesus. Jesus is the One Who is alive within us, so of course we would have and share in His personality, His character, His abilities, His everything, we are now one, and the only reason we live is because He lives. We are flesh of His flesh and bone of His bones, Ephesians 5:30! We now are one with the very Spirit of God. We are one with Who God is, what He feels, what He wants, and what He desires. Jesus has sent all that our Father is to become one with us and to dwell within us, the same Spirit that strengthens and makes God Who He is, now dwells within us and strengthens us to be as He is!

Think about it, do you hear that the Church actually has the power to never stumble or fall? Have you ever heard that God’s love can actually be perfected within us, or that we are saved to the uttermost? I have heard that we should strive for these things, but it was preached and implied that we must use our own efforts to get there, and if we did everything just right than it would come. It was never preached to me that we couldn’t help but be there, because we are now one with God, and He is always one with us. So the Truth that sets us free is that we cannot help but keep what Jesus taught, because it is a Father within us, never leaving us or forsaking us, Who is doing the works. 

The Weapons Of Our Warfare

(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 2 Corinthians 10:4

The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, they are Spiritual, they are of God, and they are mighty to the bringing down of every stronghold! Right now in America it looks like God is being challenged on every front: prayer in schools, abortion, gay marriages, and the limiting of free speech when it comes to talking about Jesus. These all  seem like some strongholds to me? But through the power of Christ we now have uttermost salvation; we now have direct access to the Holiest, we have virtue, Divine natures, the Holy Spirit, love, hope, and faith. And amen, faith even as small as a grain of mustard seed will blow a mountain into the sea! We have been given the glory that our Lord and Savior has been given. We are empowered with the Holy Spirit to ask and we receive; our weapons are eternal and they are able to tear down every single stronghold through the glorious power of Love!

So let’s pray for the people who champion these ungodly ideas. Let’s not condemn them, their ideas are wrong, we all know this, so let’s pray that the victory and glory of salvation is able to be seen and accepted by them. Let’s bless them who curse us and pray for them that despitefully use us, Luke 6:28. Our weapons are peculiar, let’s feed our enemy and give drink to those who hate us. Through Christ we are empowered to give our Father place for any vengeance and to act in love as those who have been set free. There is nothing they are doing that we weren’t delivered from, sin is sin. Theirs may be different sinful acts then what we did, but they are not any worse. There was someone praying for us, so let’s pray for them. This is the weapon of our warfare and it will bring down any and every stronghold! Jesus will deliver us from any temptation to do otherwise, and in Jesus’ Name, those who are supporting these ungodly ideas will join us in the uttermost salvation of Jesus Christ! The captives will be set free! Through the Love and Power of Christ we can believe that there is a total and complete move of salvation through America’s and the World's Courts. We have the faith and are able to believe that there will be no abortions. We can think of millions upon millions of homosexuals being empowered to accept Jesus and being set free. Our Father is able to do all of these things and so much more by His power that is at work within us! Faith is the evidence of things hoped for and faith comes from hearing the Word of God!

That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:3

We need to declare these Truths of Love and Freedom with our enemies and pray that they too come to accept and rejoice in them, so that we all can have fellowship and the strongholds shall be brought down! Jesus loves all of us and He is living to intercede for all of us. There is now no condemnation for us, so there is now no condemnation from us, Romans 8:1. Put down the stones and pick up the weapons of Love, Faith, Salvation, Righteousness, Truth, and the Gospel of Peace, the whole armor of God! With it we will stand as one in the power of Jesus and through God, the strongholds will be brought down. Faithful is He Who has spoken these Truth's to us and faithful is He Who will do it through us!

Through Christ We Are Perfect

Now may the God of peace [Who is the Author and the Giver of peace], Who brought again from among the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, by the blood [that sealed, ratified] the everlasting agreement (covenant, testament), Strengthen (complete, perfect) and make you what you ought to be and equip you with everything good that you may carry out His will; [while He Himself] works in you and accomplishes that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ (the Messiah); to Whom be the glory forever and ever (to the ages of the ages). Amen (so be it). Hebrews 13:20-21

And may the God of peace Himself sanctify you through and through [separate you from profane things, make you pure and wholly consecrated to God]; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved sound and complete [and found] blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah). Faithful is He Who is calling you [to Himself] and utterly trustworthy, and He will also do it [fulfill His call by hallowing and keeping you]. 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

When you see verses like these four, you can see that it’s not at all impossible to live as one who is saved to the uttermost, sanctified wholly, perfect in every good work, and well pleasing to God. It’s not even hard to have the faith that we can never stumble and live in perfection. Look at what our Father says, it’s not us doing it; it’s Him doing it within us. The Blood of Jesus makes us perfect in every good work, and our Father is faithful to preserve us blameless, He will do it! I don’t think any believer stumbles at believing God can do anything, we stumble when we think that we have to do it, but praise God it’s not up to us, it’s up to Him, and He is faithful to do what He has said.

Merry Christmas

For this Christmas posting I felt lead to share the story of my favorite Christmas. I have to be honest, our Father has allowed me to have a very blessed life and most, no that isn’t true, every Christmas, has been a good one. But when I was like ten years old, I don’t remember my exact age, I experienced Grace and Love in a way that has stuck with me to this very day. The Lord has used what I felt and saw that day to drive each and every Christmas of my life.

What made that Christmas so awesome was that our Father brought my Uncle Bill over for breakfast. Uncle Bill was my dad’s older brother and he had a serious and I mean serious drinking problem. Alcohol was killing him and eventually did. His addiction had destroyed his marriage, caused unbelievable harm to my cousins, and had created a lot of heartache amongst all of the family. He had moved in with my Grandmother that year and I just remember there being a lot of uneasiness about it.

But that Christmas morning my parents allowed Uncle Bill to come over for breakfast. We had country ham, I love salty country ham. I remember sitting around the kitchen table and feeling Divine Grace at work. It was such a powerful feeling and more than any other event in my life showed me what Christmas is all about. Love covers a multitude of sin and our Father allowed His Love to flow through my parents that morning and I can still feel it to this day. My Uncle didn’t deserve Grace. I don’t think that he asked for it, but yet our Father used my parents to freely give it. Just as He did with Jesus on the Cross.  

I have made Your Name known to them and revealed Your character and Your very Self, and I will continue to make [You] known, that the love which You have bestowed upon Me may be in them [felt in their hearts] and that I [Myself] may be in them. John 17:26

Merry Christmas! May God cause and use all of us to freely bestow the peace of freedom from sin on all that we come into contact with. Freely we have received His Grace and Freely we will be used to give it. 

Why Signs?

And Jesus said unto them, Go into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In My Name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak in new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” Mark 16:15-18

Why did Jesus say signs? He could have said works, but Jesus said signs! Jesus said that signs would follow us because we are the living testament that God is real and that He has come to dwell as one with man! People see our Father through us; they see works and actions that man is incapable of! Our Father does His miraculous works through us because only God can perform the works of God.

Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but the Father that dwelleth in Me, He doth the works. John 15:10

Jesus told the people clearly that it was not Him alone doing the works, but that it was God doing the works through Him! Then to confirm His testimony, Jesus told the people to look at the works that were happening through Him.

Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works sake. John 15:11

We should say the exact same thing as we are being used to minister. “People believe that we are saved and believe that we are in God and that He is in us through Jesus Christ our Lord. Now if you don’t believe us notice how we are not harmed by deadly drinks or snakes. Believe that we are saved and united with God because devils flee from us, believe because we speak in new tongues, and believe because God leads us to lay hands on the sick and they recover!” 

Jesus told the people to believe because of the works they saw God performing through Him and Jesus tells us that we will see the works of God being performed through us. Signs prove to the world that we are saved: signs both for us and for the entire world to see.

Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word. That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me. John 17:20-21

We are one with God, just as Jesus is One with God. Really grab this Truth: we are one with God just as Jesus is One with God. When we think of Jesus being One with God, we should think of ourselves as one too. That is why Jesus came, so that we could enjoy the exact same unity with our Father that our Lord and Savior enjoys! 

Praying

THEN HE was praying in a certain place; and when He stopped, one of His disciples said to Him, Lord, teach us to pray, [just] as John taught his disciples. And He said to them, When you pray, say: Our Father Who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come. Your will be done [held holy and revered] on earth as it is in heaven. Give us daily our bread [food for the morrow]. And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us [who has offended us or done us wrong]. And bring us not into temptation but rescue us from evil. Luke 11:1-4

Notice how Jesus taught the disciples to pray, “our Father,” “give us,” “forgive us,” “bring us,” and “rescue us.” When Jesus taught us to pray, He did not teach us to pray: my Father, give me, forgive me, bring me, and rescue me.

When Jesus taught us to pray, the prayer was for the body as a whole and not just for a specific member. Let’s look at Jesus’ prayer in John 17. This is a prayer that Jesus prayed right before He was crucified, at the time of His greatest need, He prayed for the body as a whole. He prayed for all who would believe in Him. He prayed for the body to have eternal life. Jesus prayed for us to all be one with our Father as He is One with our Father. He prayed for the body as a whole to be sanctified and for all of us to have our Fathers love abiding within us. We don’t see many examples of prayers in the Gospels, but the two prayers that the Holy Spirit did have written, were both for the body as a whole.

There is a power here that I think the church is missing. The Truth is that we are all one, we are all the body of Christ. We are members of His body, flesh of His flesh, and bone of His bone. If I have a need or you have a need, the body has a need. Jesus knows better than any our oneness with our Father through Him and our oneness with each other. When our Lord taught us to pray, it was for the body as a whole and not just for a specific member. Just think of your own body and how it works, if your hand is cut, your whole body has a need and the whole body joins together to assist the hand. This is exactly how the body of Christ is, we are one!

When Jesus taught us to pray, He was teaching us to not only look to our Father for every need, but that our need is actually the body’s need, and when we pray our prayers should reflect this Truth. There is only One Spirit, One Lord, and one body. So our prayers should sound something like, Father in Jesus’ Name I ask that all who are called and chosen are healed this day, that this day all of your children have perfect wisdom and peace. That today all of your children are debt free and lenders and not borrowers. So whatever your need or desire may be, include the whole body in your prayer.

Why We Speak Of Abundant Faith

But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thy heart, Who shall ascend into Heaven? (That is to bring Christ down from above: Romans 10:8

Our Father and His Word are now in abundance in our hearts and since they are, that is what is spoken abundantly out of our mouths! For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth will speak, Matthew 12:34! Our Father has given us a new heart, Ezekiel 36:26.We no longer have to seek Him out, because we know that He is always with us. We are one with our Father, just as Jesus is One with Him. We are now eternally one with God through our Lord and Savior.

This is how the righteousness of faith, which is in abundance in our hearts, speaks. This is how the faith that is Authored and Finished by Jesus speaks! We speak this way because it is the actual Anointing of God speaking through us. Our Father’s Holy Spirit cries out from within us that God is our Father, that we are born of Him, and that we are one with Him through Jesus Christ our Savior! We talk like Jesus talks, because Jesus is now our Head, and He is now our righteousness! We have been crucified with Jesus, and yet we still live. It is no longer our old self that is alive, that body of sin and unrighteousness has been destroyed.

We know that our old (unrenewed) self was nailed to the cross with Him in order that [our] body [which is the instrument] of sin might be made ineffective and inactive for evil, that we might no longer be the slaves of sin. Romans 6:6

We are now completely new, recreated in Christ that lives! We are now new creatures in Christ, old things and the old way of speaking have passed away, 2 Corinthians 5:17. It is now Christ that is alive within us and everything has become new for us! We speak like Christ, because we can speak no other way, we are now one with Him; we are joint-heirs with Him, we are His body, Romans 8:17! We have been recreated in God’s image in true righteousness and true holiness, Ephesians 2;10! We have been born again from the Incorruptible Seed of God and we will speak as the Seed that has bore us speaks, 1 Peter 1:23! A-men, how glorious is the awesome power that God now has through us because of Jesus!

Victory Is Our Sign

They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. Mark 16:18

Really take hold of and notice that Jesus does not say that our testimony about Him would be the sign of our unity with our Father, but rather that the miraculous works of God through us would be the sign! Deadly drinks and poisonous snakes kill men, but they have no effect on God and on those whom God indwells!

And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, no doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live. And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm. Acts 28:3-5

Paul didn’t have super human power, our Father had the power, and God is exactly the same within us, our Father never changes!

Our Father allowed Paul to be bitten by the snake, Daniel to be cast into the lions den, Goliath to taunt David, and Jesus to endure the Cross. Persecution will arise for the Word’s sake, but our Father will never leave us or forsake and through Christ we are always and eternally more than conquerors! No weapon, and there are many weapons that are formed against us, will ever prosper. Our Father working through us is the sign of His Truth and His Truth sets us free! So welcome the attacks, rejoice in the tribulation, for we have been counted as worthy to be used by God to glorify His Kingdom!

Moreover [let us also be full of joy now!] let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance. And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity). And character [of this sort] produces [the habit of] joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us. Romans 5:3-5

Our Father Will Use Us

Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but the Father that dwelleth in Me, He doth the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works sake. John 15:10-11

The first faithful thing that Jesus will lead us into regarding works of righteousness is this: it is our Father within us, He does all of the works! Faith authored by Jesus regarding this Truth is the key to walking in the full power and love of God Himself! Faith in this Truth will allow us to walk as Jesus walked! 

He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked. 1 John 2:6 

I am come a Light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness. John 12:46 

Through Jesus we are empowered to live and understand all of the Truth’s of our Father! Through Christ, and the Light that He provides for us, there is now no darkness for us! And since there is now no darkness for us, there is now no occasion for us to stumble and fall, 1 John 2:10! Jesus will teach us all that there is to know about our Father and He will give us the confidence and full assuredness that it is God within us doing His works of righteousness! Jesus will Author the faith within us so that our Father can give us the utterance to speak in new tongues. Jesus will finish the faith within us so that our Father can cast out all devils through us! Jesus we Author and Finish our faith, so that God can empower us to suffer no harm or ill effects from deadly things! Through Christ, and through the faith that He now gives us, we will lay hands on the sick and the power of our Father within us will cause them to recover, just as they recovered when Jesus laid His hands on them! Jesus will Finish our faith so that we just don’t talk about these Truth’s of God. He will Finish our faith so that we will actually live and rejoice in the Truth’s of Him. The world will believe and they will know that our Father loves us, just as He loves Jesus because of what He will use us to do! We will live in the fullness of God and in the full power of Him because Jesus has given us the faith that allows our Father to work fully through us!

Jesus Is Our Confidence

For we are of the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Philippians 3:3

Through the Anointing of God in our lives we have absolutely no reason to ever put any trust or confidence in ourselves to do anything that would allow Him to move in our lives! We have been given the peace of our Father that passes all understanding and God has allowed us to see the Truth that we are only righteous because Jesus is righteous. 

For if the first fruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches. Romans 11:16 

Our Father has freed us and we are now blessed because we have obtained righteousness apart from our own works. God has now revealed the Truth to us and we no longer have to rely on ourselves, or our own abilities to be right with Him. Through the revelation of who we are in Christ, we now have no confidence in human abilities!

Even our faith is not our own, our faith is now Jesus’ faith. We now stand in the power of Jesus’ ability to believe the Truth. Jesus has given us the Holy Spirit, to dwell permanently within us, so that through the power of God Himself, we are now able to look to Jesus for His faith! Jesus does not stumble at the promises of God, He is completely confident that our Father is willing and that He is able to do all that He has spoken. This is faith and this is what Jesus Authors and Finishes within us! Since Jesus has given us His faith, our Father is now able to work His works of righteousness through us. God is able to cast out demons through us, God is able to heal the sick through us, and God is able to preach the Gospel to every creature through us. God does not fail and with Him working through us, we will never be ashamed and we will always rejoice in His Anointing! 

We will rejoice because Jesus has given us the faith that it is our Father working within us and we no longer have to look to ourselves. People are not healed by the power of our hands being laid on them; they are healed by the power of our Father that is within us, Who led us to lay hands on them! It’s no longer us sharing the Gospel, it’s our Father within us preaching! We will never be ashamed because Jesus has given us His faith that God is able and willing to work through us completely! Jesus Authors our faith to be just as His faith, so that we know beyond any shadow of a doubt that we can do nothing without Him. But with Jesus, our Father will use us to do all things! We have been empowered to not stumble at the Stumbling-stone. We have been anointed to accept the Truth that we can do nothing on our own and we have been saved from the lies that say we should even try. Through Christ, and God’s Truth of who we are in Christ, we are never ashamed!

Messing Up

Philip answered Him, Two hundred pennies' (forty dollars) worth of bread is not enough that everyone may receive even a little.  John 6:7

Then Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, I have pity and sympathy and am deeply moved for the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days and they have nothing [at all left] to eat; and I am not willing to send them away hungry, lest they faint or become exhausted on the way. And the disciples said to Him, Where are we to get bread sufficient to feed so great a crowd in this isolated and desert place? Matthew 15:32-33

The first response of the disciples was to doubt that they could help. Not only did they doubt, they even mocked Jesus a little: “forty dollars won’t even begin to meet the need.” They even doubted and mocked Jesus a second time, after they had already seen a miraculous production of food.

Jesus said to him, Solemnly I declare to you, this very night, before a single rooster crows, you will deny and disown Me three times. Matthew 26:34

And sure enough, Peter denied Jesus three times that night. The other disciples also fled Jesus in a time of His need.

Then [His disciples], forsaking Him, fled, all [of them]. Mark 14:50

Now, let me ask you a question, what was different between the Disciples, who doubted, mocked, denied, and forsook Jesus and the rest of Israel who doubted, mocked, denied, and forsook Jesus? Jesus clearly said that if we deny Him before men, He will deny us before the Father, Matthew 10:33. But yet, the Disciples were allowed to doubt, deny, mock, and forsake Jesus and still receive the promise of the Holy Spirit. Yet the rest of Israel, who did the same things, were not, why?

Now this is the really cool part, because this Truth will blow religion away. The Disciples were simply rewarded in spite of themselves, because they were chosen of God to serve. The same reason that we can doubt, question, deny, and mock Jesus and not be separated from Him and still receive all of the blessings that come along with being chosen to serve. Religion tries to tell us that we are in control and that if we obey, then we receive a blessing and if we don’t obey, there is a curse for us. But yet we see that Peter did not obey and even denied and lied, and yet he was rewarded. We see that the Disciples doubted and mocked and yet they received a surplus of food. They all received simply because they were God’s chosen vessels. Now admit it, we all have questioned, doubted, mocked, forsook, and denied our Lord, even after we were saved! And praise God, He never left us for one moment and He never forsook us!

No Fear

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18

The Light of our Savior has cast all of the darkness of fear from us! Jesus’ love is perfect love and He will do all that it takes for us to insure that we walk in His perfect love. He will lead us in a path that insures that we accept His perfect love and that we trust in it, so that there will be no fear at all within us! We are perfect in His love because of the power of His love! The power of Jesus’ perfect love cast out all fear from within us of not measuring up, or questions about God’s willingness to use us. Read anywhere in the Bible, about any thing we are to do and then remember, Jesus will Author and He will Finish the faith within us to live it! Our Father has not given us a spirit of fear; all of the fullness and power of God that we read of in the Bible now live within us! 

And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Ephesians 3:19 

Through Christ, there is no darkness at all for us! Through Christ and the freedom that His Blood brings, we can have the fullness of our Father within us, 100% of the time. We are never separated from the power of our Father which is working all of His works of an abundant and godly life, an abundant life here on this earth, and an abundant eternal life!

Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the Day of Judgment: because as He is, so are we in this world. 1 John 4:17 

Through Jesus we will stand fully confident with boldness on the day of judgment, there will be no fear within us, for His love has cast out all fear from us! We will have boldness, we will have full assured faith, Authored by Jesus Himself, that we have the right to stand there. Because just as Jesus lived on this earth, so did we; we will have lived by the power of our Father within us and He did the works! How awesome is that? Just as sure as Jesus, that’s how sure we will be! Jesus knew that He was going to be raised from the dead and that He was going to be seated at the right hand of God. He knew that it was His right and there was no fear in Him at all that it was going to happen. That is how we will be when Jesus returns! The Church will be bold in who we are in Christ, there will be no fear and there will be no doubts, because as He is, so were we, even in this world! We stand in the confidence that Jesus has, Jesus knows that He was raised from the dead, there is no doubt for Him at all, and that confidence, that faith, is now within us!

We Have An Anointed Mind

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7

Jesus has given us a sound mind, actually the soundest mind of all, because He has given us His Own mind. 

For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:16 

Jesus has given us His mind and Jesus’ mind knows beyond any shadow of a doubt that our Father will produce much fruit through us! We now have the peace and the wisdom that Jesus has about us: the Truth that it is our Father within us producing His fruit! We have been given a mind of knowledge that knows it’s only by the Anointing of God, which is Christ, that our Father is able to work through us! We do not fear this Truth that we have to put complete and total trust in God and that we can place no trust in ourselves. The sound mind that our Father has given us, gives us the ability to believe in such a powerful way! We have been given the same mind as Christ, so we now believe as He believes! We know that it is a lie of the devil that says God helps those who help themselves! We now have a mind that does not fear the complete and total power of our Father that is working through us! We have a mind that desires the fullness of our Father to be within us, and a mind that expects Him to do His works through us! We have a mind that expects victory in every situation and in every area of our lives!

Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of His knowledge by us in every place. 2 Corinthians 2:14

This is the faith that Jesus has given us, His very own faith, and there is not one work that we could ever perform that could earn it. Our flesh on its own just doesn’t have the ability to work that way! But through Christ, our Father will always cause us to triumph and He will always use us to make Jesus known in every place! Through Christ, our Father will lead us into the world to preach the Gospel to every creature and through Christ we will proclaim from the rooftops what Jesus proclaimed in silence! 

We Have Jesus' Anointing To Be Used

And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Ephesians 3:19

Hallelujah, our Father is going to work through us in the full power and demonstration of His Spirit! Think of the way that Jesus lived when He was manifested in the flesh. He had compassion on the sick, so our Father used Him to heal the sick and raise the dead! Jesus didn’t stumble at Who He was, He rejoiced in it. We are now one with Him and our Father has given us our Lord's Anointed mind that looks toward Him for full understanding of who we are. Jesus knows exactly who we are, He knows exactly Who He is, and He will show us and He will give us the ability to accept and have boldness in the Truth that we are now one with Him!

Now here is the powerful Truth of our salvation, if we have truly been empowered by the Holy Spirit to make Jesus the Lord of our lives, we can’t help but look unto Him!

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, Who loved me, and gave Himself for me. Galatians 2:20

If we are truly saved, it is now Christ, which is our Father’s anointing, the exact same anointing that Jesus has, that now lives within us. The exact same anointing that our Father gave to Jesus to live and to fulfill all that He is to do, now lives within us! The same anointing that allows Jesus to know that it is God within Him doing the works now lives within us! The same anointing that allows Jesus to fully know that He is One with God, now lives within us! We have not been given a different anointing than Jesus has, we have the exact same anointing, and it is that force that now lives within us. We will look unto Jesus to Author and Finish our faith, the very life force within us can do nothing else! We will win and our Father will work through us, and it’s not dependent upon our abilities to accept our Fathers Truth’s. We are dead and it is now Christ that lives within us, so it’s dependent upon Jesus’ abilities, and He finished all that was needed for us to fully believe at the Cross!

Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy. Jude 24

Because we are saved, and because we are now one with Jesus, and since we have His Anointing, we will never fall, and we will stand before our Father with boldness and with all joy! Because greater is He that is within us, than he that is in the world! 

Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world. 1 John 4:4

Jesus Is Responsible For Our Faith

Looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith; Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the Cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the Throne of God. Hebrews 12:2

There is no greater Truth regarding our faith than this: true godly faith can only come from Jesus. Jesus endured the Cross and all of the pain and suffering that went along with it. He did it for the shear joy of being the only One Who could lead us into completely and totally trusting in God!  Only Jesus begins our faith and He finishes our faith. 

Faith is not a human ability to accept and believe the things of God. Faith is Jesus’ ability working through us, by the power of Christ, to accept and believe our Father's eternal Truths! No one is greater at faith than Jesus and we have free access to Him, and Jesus will freely Author our faith and He will freely Finish our faith! Only with faith that has been Authored and Finished by Jesus can we accept and walk in the full power of what God has provided for us. Faith that comes from Jesus will never stumble at the promises of God and it will never hesitate or question the Truths of God. Only faith that is produced by Jesus is fully pleasing to God! 

But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 

When we are empowered with the very Spirit of our Father that allows Jesus to Author and Finish our faith, then we too are fully pleasing to God, just as Jesus is fully pleasing to Him! On our own and through our own efforts we have no ability to believe any Truth of God, John 15:5. Only through the power of Christ can we walk in true faith and only through Christ’s power can we have the ability to accept all of the Truth’s of God! This precious gift is unlimited and it is available for all who are empowered to seek it; Jesus will Author and Finish faith for everyone who looks unto Him!

Why Parables?

AND AGAIN Jesus spoke to them in parables (comparisons, stories used to illustrate and explain), saying, Matthew 22:1

The disciples asked Jesus directly in Matthew 13 why He spoke to the people in parables and not plainly so that all of the people could understand exactly what He was saying?

Then the disciples came to Him and said, Why do You speak to them in parables? And He replied to them, To you it has been given to know the secrets and mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. Matthew 13:10-11

Here is the plain and simple Truth, the secrets of the Kingdom of our Father are not for anyone to know but the Bride of Christ. We have studied a lot about the Marriage Supper of The Lamb with these blogs. As we do I want you to think of an actual marriage celebration. Think about how the Bride and Groom share things and know things that the guests of the wedding do not know and understand. It doesn’t mean that the guest are not loved or that they are not considered in the highest regard. It just means that they are not the Bride and Groom.

Think of how there are many people at a wedding celebration. Think about how there are more people at the wedding banquet than just the Bride and Groom. Think of how the guests of the wedding are served by the couple who have been married. The guests do not bring their own food to celebrate, they are served food. All of these things apply to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb as well. The world cannot understand the Truth’s that Jesus spoke to His Bride here in Matthew. Yet, for the called and chosen, the born again, or saved, who are the Bride of Christ, we can fully know and understand the Truth. We can understand all that our Father has for us because we have been given the Holy Spirit and He causes us to understand all things.

But the Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will cause you to recall (will remind you of, bring to your remembrance) everything I have told you. John 14:26

The Holy Spirit will have us sow His Word to everyone. Some will grow and some won’t grow, but we will be used to sow it to all of the world.

The Lie Of Free Will Part II

I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing. John 15:5

Not that we are fit (qualified and sufficient in ability) of ourselves to form personal judgments or to claim or count anything as coming from us, but our power and ability and sufficiency are from God. 2 Corinthians 3:5

For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was aware and loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness], that He might become the firstborn among many brethren. And those whom He thus foreordained, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified (acquitted, made righteous, putting them into right standing with Himself). And those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity and condition or state of being]. Romans 8:29-30

Man's steps are ordered by the Lord. How then can a man understand his way? Proverbs 20:24

For it was in Him that all things were created, in heaven and on earth, things seen and things unseen, whether thrones, dominions, rulers, or authorities; all things were created and exist through Him [by His service, intervention] and in and for Him. Colossians 1:16

For in this city there actually met and plotted together against Your holy Child and Servant Jesus, Whom You consecrated by anointing, both Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and peoples of Israel, To carry out all that Your hand and Your will and purpose had predestined (predetermined) should occur. Acts 4:27-28

Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: Romans 9:21-22

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20

And, A Stone that will cause stumbling and a Rock that will give [men] offense; they stumble because they disobey and disbelieve [God's] Word, as those [who reject Him] were destined (appointed) to do. 1 Peter 2:8

After reading all of these verses, how can one preach that free will exists?

The Lie Of Free Will

And I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you shall heed My ordinances and do them. Ezekiel 36:27

For we are God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live]. Ephesians 2:10

Even as [in His love] He chose us [actually picked us out for Himself as His own] in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy (consecrated and set apart for Him) and blameless in His sight, even above reproach, before Him in love. For He foreordained us (destined us, planned in love for us) to be adopted (revealed) as His own children through Jesus Christ, in accordance with the purpose of His will because it pleased Him and was His kind intent]—Ephesians 1:4-5

In Him we also were made [God's] heritage (portion) and we obtained an inheritance; for we had been foreordained (chosen and appointed beforehand) in accordance with His purpose, Who works out everything in agreement with the counsel and design of His [own] will, Ephesians 1:11

But when He, Who had chosen and set me apart [even] before I was born and had called me by His grace (His undeserved favor and blessing), saw fit and was pleased To reveal (unveil, disclose) His Son within me so that I might proclaim Him among the Gentiles (the non-Jewish world) as the glad tidings (Gospel), immediately I did not confer with flesh and blood [did not consult or counsel with any frail human being or communicate with anyone]. Galatians 1:15-16

Now He Who has fashioned us [preparing and making us fit] for this very thing is God, Who also has given us the [Holy] Spirit as a guarantee [of the fulfillment of His promise]. 2 Corinthians 5:5

Your eyes saw my unformed substance, and in Your book all the days [of my life] were written before ever they took shape, when as yet there was none of them. Psalm 139:16

O Lord [pleads Jeremiah in the name of the people], I know that [the determination of] the way of a man is not in himself; it is not in man [even in a strong man or in a man at his best] to direct his [own] steps. Jeremiah 10:23

John answered, A man can receive nothing [he can claim nothing, he can take unto himself nothing] except as it has been granted to him from heaven. [A man must be content to receive the gift which is given him from heaven; there is no other source.] John 3:27

Today I just want you to look at what our Father has to say about free will.