Already an Overcomer

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always felt like Revelations 3:21 was sort of a veiled threat…either preached as such, or when I read it on my own.

“He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.”

Sort of ‘Oh my gosh, I hope I can do enough to overcome, I hope I can make it…’ accompanied with a vague feeling of ‘I may not be good enough, or I don’t know if I can do what it takes…’

But then I started thinking…wait a minute, here. Aren’t we already seated in Him in heavenly places? Are we not already born of the imperishable seed—the living and enduring Word of God, One Spirit with the Lord? We know He is the Word, but when people were born again in the book of Acts, doesn’t it say that the Word multiplied, or grew daily? [Ephesians 2:6; 1 Peter 1:23; 1 Corinthians 6:17; Acts 6:7, 12:24, 19:20]

And then there are scriptures that say we are already overcomers…

‘You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He Who is in you than he who is in the world.’ [1 John 4:4]

‘For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?’ [1 John 5:4,5]

‘And they overcame him [the accuser of the brethren—v10] because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death.’ [Revelations 12:11]

Romans 8:37 says in all things we OVERWHELMINGLY conquer through Him Who loved us. Sounds like an overcomer to me.

Then I looked up at the preceding verse.

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.” [Revelations 3:20]

Oh. If we let Him in, He considers that overcoming. When we died with Him, we also arose with Him. He overcame the world [John 16:33] so we, in Him, have overcome the world.

‘Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.’ [1 John 4:15-17]

In the Spirit, the book of Revelations is eternal—both ongoing and finished, forward and back, without time. Hebrews 4:3 says His [God’s] works were finished from the foundation of the world!

Folks, if you have been born again, you have already overcome! You are already seated in Christ Jesus in heavenly places! Where is that? On His throne!

Hallelujah!

Related Posts: Already Blessed, God Inside, Abide

Agree With Him

You really only have two choices.

Agree with God and His Word, or agree with your natural circumstances, or that fear-filled voice in your ear, or those negative images roaring around your head.

And you must agree in two places: in your heart—your imagination—and in your mouth. Because that’s how you agree with anything…you see it, then you say it.

So when circumstances threaten you—speak to you and tell you that things are hopelessly impossible—agree with what God has already said! On purpose, see His word as true for you now, and speak it out.

Agree with Him! Be the AMEN to His glory operating through us—see His every promise as YES in Jesus. [2 Corinthians 1:20]

If He says you’re delivered [and He already has], agree with Him, regardless of what it looks like.

If He says you’re healed, or protected, or rich…agree with Him and give thanks for His faithfulness to His Word.

Hallelujah!

Related Posts: Fear—The Deadly Enemy, Be The Ball, Schrodinger’s Cat, Trapped, He Commanded

Resurrected!

It is Easter, and our thoughts turn toward Calvary once more.

As you meditate on the wonder of the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus, consider this: the Word clearly teaches that we were crucified with Him!

What!?!
Paul states in Galatians 2:20 that "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me."

Romans 6:6 confirms this: "...knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin."

These are wonderful quantum verses. 2000 years ago, we were crucified with Christ! And not just crucified...buried with Him in baptism [Colossians 2:12] and raised up with Him, and seated with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus! [Ephesians 2:6]

Ephesians 2:9-14 tells the story.

'For in Him all the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority; and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, Who raised Him from the dead.

'When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having cancelled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.'

Yes, it's true. We were crucified with Him, buried and raised up together with Him and seated with Him in heavenly places!

He was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, and I think that means us, too! Romans 8:29 says 'For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren." God knew us...that we would choose Him, and be born as the brethren of Jesus...before the foundation of the world!

'Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.' [Ephesians 1:4]

It is spiritual reality: as we are positionally in two places—here on the earth and seated with Him in heavenly places—we were born 2000 years after an event that we participated in! The crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ! Hallelujah!

Talk about Quantum Physics!

Think about this...were we also in Him during the period between His death and resurrection, when He was disarming rulers and authorities? [Colossians 2"15] He did give us authority over all the power of the enemy...[Luke 10:19] Wow! Just the possibility is mind-bending!

Resurrection Power

'But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.' [Romans 8:11]

If you read up a few verses in that chapter, you'll see that '...those who are in the flesh cannot please God.'

Now, this verse is usually used to condemn and admonish...if you're not holy enough, you aren't going to please God, period. Christians have spent their lives worrying whether they're holy enough.Thousands of sermons have been preached, beating us over the head and telling us that we are not pleasing to God because of [fill in the sin of the week].

But read on! Verse 9 says 'However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.' Being 'in the Spirit' is not some temporary state of ecstatic prayer [although I think it can mean that, as well] but the permanent state of the reborn man or woman! And the Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead dwells in you!

Saint or Sinner? Habitation of God?
Remember the definition of the Greek word for saint, hagios. It is translated in the New Testament as holy—Holy of Holies, holy one, holy place, most holy, sanctuary!

We are His most holy ones, His holy place, His sanctuary. In fact, God no longer dwells in the Holy of Holies made by human hands, but in us...we are His Holy of Holies! And it has nothing to do with our behavior; rather it is who we become when we are reborn...we have this treasure in earthen vessels! [2 Corinthians 4:7]

Psalm 26:8 says that His habitation is the place where His glory dwells!

'How lovely are Your dwelling places, O Lord of Hosts!' [Psalm 84:1] Not only holy, but full of glory...and lovely, too!

'...and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.' [1 Peter 1:8]

We are new creatures, new creations. [2 Corinthians 5:17] The race of the sons and daughters of God! And not some new age, nebulous family of man, either. Real, true sons and daughters of the God Who was and is and is to come!

'"And I will be a Father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me," says the Lord Almighty.' [2 Corinthians 6:18]

1 Corinthians 3:16 and 6:19 confirm that we are indeed the temple of God...the Holy of Holies!

Righteous
2 Corinthians 5:21 tells us that 'He made Him Who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.'

Ephesians 4:24 confirms '...and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.' We're created in His likeness, in righteousness and holiness!

So, most holy ones, remember during this Easter season that you were crucified with Him, buried and raised up together with Him and seated with Him in heavenly place. You're seated with Him now in heavenly places, and you got there 2000 years ago. You may have even been there before the foundation of the world...

As He IS, so also are we IN THIS WORLD. [1 John 4:17]

How is He, right now? He is the resurrected Jesus, seated at the right hand of God the Father. And we are seated with Him, there, and as He is here in this world.

In Conclusion
Romans 6:4 states it succinctly:

'Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.'

You are His most holy one: beloved, beautiful, the habitation of the Most High God. You are seated with Him in heavenly places, having been crucified, buried and raised up together with Him 2000 years ago…or was it before the foundation of the world?

Ponder that and rejoice!

Related posts: Exact Representation of His Nature, One Spirit with the Lord, What Exactly is a Saint, Anyway?, Thoughts on the New Birth.

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Liar, Liar, Pants DEFINITELY on Fire! [re-post]

Updated and improved!

Satan has one objective in mind...to keep us from understanding that we are one Spirit with the Lord, filled up to all the fulness of God. [2 Corinthians 1:20, Ephesians 3:19] He does not want us to know that we are called to reign in life and that the Father has gladly given us the kingdom. [Romans 5:17, Luke 12:32]

He wants us to feel afraid—helpless and alone. To feel separate from God, separate from Jesus. And he really loves to make us feel guilty and unworthy—to keep us beating ourselves up over and over again over some sin. He does not want us to know that we've been forgiven, once for all time, past, present and future, and that God doesn't even remember our sin! [Jeremiah 31:34]

And he really doesn't want us to know we've been strengthened with ALL POWER in our inner man! [Colossians 1:11, Ephesians 3:16]

He will throw everything at us—any circumstance, any weapon—to keep us from finding out who we really are in Christ. His worst nightmare is that we just might find out that Jesus is the Word and we're the Word multiplied! [Acts 12:24] That by believing, we're freed from all things, from which we could not be freed through the Law of Moses! [Acts 13:39]

He knows that He [the Father] Who did not spare His own Son but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him FREELY GIVE US ALL THINGS. [Romans 8:32]

He also knows that we have the power to overcome him by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. He was watching, I'm sure, when Jesus explained that the physical, natural world obeys us! He will do anything to keep us from finding out the truth!

He'll keep preachers preaching all sorts of error and keep us singing songs like 'He gives and takes away'...he'll keep us in Old Covenant thinking as much as possible, where we are 'down here' and God is 'up there.'

Because he knows the truth. He knows exactly who we are in Christ, how powerful we really are and that we are joint heirs with the Heir of all things. [Hebrews 1:2, Romans 8:17]

He knows that we are from God, an that greater is He Who is in us than he [Satan] who is in the world. [1 John 4:4]

He just can't afford for us to find out.

How It’s Supposed to Work
I think this is how it's really supposed to work.

Let's say we are standing in faith for protection from harm [no harm befalls the righteous—Proverbs 12:21 and all of Psalm 91]. But if the destroyer managed to get through, say with sickness or accident aimed at a loved one, we would simply lay hands on them and they would be healed. If he still managed to break through and kill them, we would simply raise them up. Failing that, we would understand that we are already seated with them in heavenly places in Christ anyway. [Ephesians 2:6]

Now that's walking in absolute power and victory! 2 Corinthians says 'But thanks be to God, Who ALWAYS LEADS US IN TRIUMPH IN CHRIST, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.' Satan is a spirit—he sees and knows exactly who we are in the Spirit.

And I do mean all believers walking in this kind of power and victory, not just a few famous preachers on TV! Proving what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God! [Romans 12:2]

Why Did Jesus Come?
Did you know that Jesus already had authority over all the power of the enemy? He came to give that authority back to us...the authority usurped in the Garden of Eden!

In Luke 10, He gave that authority to His disciples—unregenerate men! How much more do we who are one Spirit with the Lord have such authority?

1 John 3:8 tell us plainly that 'The Son of God appeared for this purpose, TO DESTROY THE WORKS OF THE DEVIL.' And John 14:12 says that we are to do greater works than He did...how? Because instead of one Son of God, working in one place at one time, now there are many sons and daughters, filled with His power, in many places and in many times!

So what's a devil to do? Stop it any way he can! Kill, steal, destroy, deceive...lie, lie, lie. Keep us so confused by sermons like 'sometimes the answer is no...' and funeral messages like 'we don't know why God took this 12 year old...' that we spend all our time in doubt and despair. Attack our bodies, steal our wealth and blame it all on God. What good is a tissue paper helmet of salvation anyway? If we don't think our salvation is anything more than fire insurance, it's not going to protect us from anything!

Ephesians 6 teaches that we struggle with powerful spiritual enemies. Now, if God says that He always leads us in triumph and we overwhelmingly conquer through Him Who loved us [Romans 8:37] than our armor and weapons are designed to work! If it is His will for us to win (and it is), we must be able to!

1 Corinthians 15:57 says

'...but thanks be to God, Who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Or 2 Corinthians 2:14…

‘But thanks be to God, Who ALWAYS leads us in TRIUMPH in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.

How about 1 John 5:4?

'For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.'

The Bottom Line
The bottom line is John 10:10. "The thief comes ONLY to STEAL and KILL and DESTROY. I [Jesus] came that they may have LIFE, and have it abundantly." [John 10:10]

This is Jesus speaking, giving us a cheat sheet to who's doing what to whom. An interesting aside—this verse can also be translated '...and have abundance.'

If you can keep this always in mind, it will help when the deceiver strikes, whispering that [fill in the problem] is really from God.

Especially when it involves death, either of a loved one, or death in any area of life. God has PLAINLY stated that death is the last ENEMY [1 Corinthian 15:26] and that His will is that His [Jesus] enemies be made a FOOTSTOOL for His feet. [Psalm 110:1, Luke 20:43, Acts 2:35, Hebrews 1:13, Hebrews 10:13]

And this will blow your mind…He’s WAITING for death to be made a footstool! God says in Psalms 110:

“Sit at My [The Father] right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.” The Lord will stretch forth Your [Jesus] STRONG SCEPTER from ZION [we’ve already come to Mt. Zion, seated in Him in heavenly places] SAYING “Rule in the midst of Your enemies.” YOUR people will volunteer freely in the day of YOUR POWER, in holy array, from the womb of the dawn, Your youth are to you as the dew.” [Psalm 110:5-7]

HALLELUJAH! Ephesians and Colossians tell us in several place that we are filled with DUNAMIS [gr]—miracle-working power—and we are to release that power to allow God to make His enemies His footstool now by SAYING. It’s all about Him working more than we can ask or think according the POWER that works WITHIN—in, by, with—us! We don’t do it, He does it through us.

That’s why we’re supposed to be reigning in life—Romans 5:17 and healing the sick, raising the dead, cleansing lepers, casting out demons [Matthew 10:7, 8]

So NEVER let anyone, especially a preacher, tell you that God has taken—Christian speak for killed—your loved one because it’s just not true. He considers death an enemy [1 Corinthians 15:26] and so should you!

Job may have said ‘The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away’ but it does NOT apply to us. We are ONE Spirit with the Lord, His Body in the earth. When we FINALLY realize the we died at Calvary with Jesus [Romans 6:6, Galatians 2:20] and it is He alone that lives in us through the Holy Spirit, we will start to walk in the power, love and dominion that is our birthright. We are heirs of God and fellow or joint heirs with Christ! [Romans 8:17]

One more thing…

‘For in Him ALL THE FULLNESS OF DEITY dwells in bodily form, and IN HIM YOU HAVE BEEN MADE COMPLETE…’ [Colossians 2:9,10]

And…

‘…that He would grant YOU, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power [DUNAMIS] through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that YOU may be filled up to ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD.

‘Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power [DUNAMIS] that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen—SO BE IT.’ [Ephesians 3:16-21]

Finally…

‘By this, love is PERFECTED in us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because AS HE IS, SO ALSO ARE WE IN THIS WORLD.’ [John 4:17]

Yes, that’s the Holy Spirit praying for you, and me, and all the saints…no one left out. Hallelujah!

Okay, I’m back…

It’s A Fact
It's a fact. We've been lied to and those lies have rendered us powerless and defeated.

But now is the time to shake off defeat and rise up in triumph! Think about words like triumph, victory, conquer...these are strong words of successful warfare, and God—GOD—spoke them over us. The same God Who spoke the world into existence has spoken words like triumph, victory and conquer ABOUT US!

But How…
Someone online has called them the 'cursed hows.' I love that! Because if we continually focus on the natural 'hows' we can never fully walk in the triumphs of faith.

What does 1 John 5:4 says is the VICTORY that has OVERCOME the world? OUR FAITH! The real how—how God prepared the worlds [Hebrews 11:3]—is faith!

Faith is the assurance—the SUBSTANCE [existence, foundation, substructure]—of THINGS hoped for, the conviction [proof or evidence] of THINGS not seen. The Greek word for things in this scripture is pragma—that which has been done, a deed, and ACCOMPLISHED FACT; what is being done or accomplished, THAT WHICH IS OR EXISTS, a thing.

Do these things stay unseen? This is a popular argument against using faith to manipulate the natural world—that our blessings and the promises of God are only on the spiritual plane. Are the worlds still unseen? Or were they just unseen in the physical realm before God spoke them into existence by His faith? Did He see them first, before speaking them into natural form or did He create without any idea of what He was creating? Did He see first and then speak? Are the worlds spinning in order or is the universe just some orderless chaos?

We are told in 2 Corinthians 4:18 to look at the unseen—that which is eternal—because that which is seen is temporary. Didn't Jesus demonstrate this by speaking to all kinds of temporary, physical things and telling them what to do? Telling fig trees to die and fish to scoop up coins, and bodies to heal and dead people to rise up? Telling pots of water to turn into wine or storms to cease?

And didn't He then tell us to do the same?

It is our job—our calling and our privilege—to bring the natural world into alignment with the will of God! Jesus told us to pray "...Your will be done, on earth, as it is in Heaven..." God Himself said "For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea" [Habakkuk 2:14] and "...as I lie, all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord." [Numbers 14:21]

Plus, don’t forget [and watch out for villagers with torches]…

“The glory which You have given Me I HAVE given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one…” [John 10]

As the temple of old was filled with His glory, so are we. Jesus said it—it’s in RED— so don’t yell at me.

Now you know why I disabled comments on this site…

Ephesians 1:9,10 says:

'He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him with a view to an ADMINISTRATION SUITABLE TO THE FULLNESS OF TIMES, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.'

We are to administer His kingdom on the earth! To bring His will into physical reality...His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven!

What is the will of God in Heaven? All of His already finished works! [Hebrews 4:3] Every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places! [Ephesians 1:3] Everything pertaining to life and godliness through the true knowledge of Him Who called us by His own glory and excellence—His precious and magnificent promises, by which we become partakers of the diving nature! [2 Peter 1:3,4]

And we are the agents who are to cover the earth with His glory…the very Body of Christ, one Spirit with the Lord, with the Mind of Christ!

Surrounded
Did you know that the Seraphim—majestic beings in Heaven—are continuously calling to each other "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of Hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory." [Isaiah 6:3]

Did you also know that we are surrounded by songs or shouts of deliverance? [Psalm 32:7] Surrounded by His favor like a shield? [Psalm 5:12]

Actually, the Bible says we're surrounded by a lot of things, both good and evil! There's a lot of activity going on around us, and we're meant to know and understand it—see the unseen—and reign in life through the One, Christ Jesus!

Live in the seen, work in the unseen. Dominate the enemy and his works by faith, prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

"No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper; and EVERY TONGUE that accuses you in judgment you will condemn." [Isaiah 54:17]

Who is the accuser of the brethren? Satan is and he's been thrown down! [Revelations 12:10] His weapons against us are words, just like our weapon against him is the Word—the Sword of the Spirit! [Ephesians 6:17]

2 Corinthians 10:4 says that '...the weapons of our warfare are NOT of the flesh, but DIVINELY POWERFUL for the destruction of fortresses.'

Yes, divinely powerful, for the express purpose of WINNING! In spite of the many, many sermons which have explained over the years that God is glorified in our defeat, we are built to win! To cover the earth with the glory of God! This is His true plan, and Satan knows it.

So Now What?
WAKE UP!! 'Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.' [Isaiah 60:1]

Don't listen to lies...resist the devil, and he will flee! The Greek word for flee is pheugo...to flee away, seek safety by flight, to flee something abhorrent, to escape safely out of danger! He knows that when we finally turn our power toward him, he will have to flee to seek safety from that danger!

He knows we're dangerous...time for us to know it, too.

__________________________________

Read Lies, Lies, Lies; Fear—The Deadly Enemy, Fear, What Are the Giants Saying to You, Wow! [That's all I could think of...], Camping in the Desert, Bound, God Isn't Holding Back 2

Shield

Here are some excellent Scriptures to pray and say over yourself and your family…remember, you’ve been made the righteousness of God in Christ [2 Corinthians 5:21] and have been grafted into Israel! [Romans 4:17]

You are my hiding place and my shield; I wait [hope, expect] for Your Word. [Psalm 119:114]

For it is You Who blesses the righteous man, O Lord, You surround him with favor as with a shield. [Psalm 5:12]

But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the One Who lifts my head. [Psalm 3:3]

The Lord is my strength [might, stronghold] and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart exults, and with my song I shall thank Him. [Psalm 28:7]

For the LORD God is a sun and shield; The LORD gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. [Psalm 84:11]

​After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; Your reward shall be very great.” [Genesis 15:1]

“Blessed are you, O Israel; Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord, Who is the shield of your help and the sword of your majesty! So your enemies will cringe before you, and you will tread upon their high places.” [Deuteronomy 33:29]

“As for God, His way is blameless; the word of the Lord is tested; He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him." [2 Samuel 22:31]

“You have also given me the shield of Your salvation, and Your help makes me great. [2 Samuel 22:36]

The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, And I am saved from my enemies. [Psalm 18:2,3]

As for God, His way is blameless; The word of the Lord is tried; He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him…You have also given me the shield of Your salvation, and Your right hand upholds me; and Your gentleness makes me great. [Psalm 18:30, 35]

Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. [Psalm 33:20]

Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me. Take hold of buckler and shield and rise up for my help. Draw also the spear and the battle- axe to meet those who pursue me; say to my soul, “I am your salvation.” [Psalm 35:1-3]

Blessed be the Lord, my rock, Who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle; my lovingkindness and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield and He in whom I take refuge, Who subdues my people under me. [Psalm 144:1,2]

Every word of God is tested; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. [Proverbs 30:5]

He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. [Psalm 91:4]

Meditations & Confessions

Meditate and confess one or more of these out loud as many times as you need to calm your spirit and boost your faith...they are all directly from the Word.

I am One Spirit with the Lord, filled with His Spirit...the Father and Son dwell in this earthen vessel by the power of the Holy Spirit. I am the temple of God, filled with His glory.

I am the righteousness of God in Christ—I have been MADE the righteousness of God in Christ, and my righteousness is of HIM. I am established in righteousness and I DO NOT FEAR.

I have received the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness and I reign IN LIFE through the One, Christ Jesus. I am filled with the Glory of God.

God my Father accomplishes what concerns me and removes every obstacle from my way. He is my Deliverer and the lifter of my head. He is the God of hope Who fills me with ALL joy and peace in believing so that I abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

My way is built up and every obstacle is removed from my path. The Lord goes before me and Himself fights on my behalf; He is my rear guard and angels protect me in all my ways. The evil one DOES NOT TOUCH ME.

Death and life, blessing and cursing, are all in the power [hand] of my tongue, for me to choose. Therefore I choose life and blessing and prosperity! I walk in the blessings of Abraham and of Deuteronomy 28 daily, and I am redeemed from the curse of the Law. I am the head and NOT the tail, blessed coming in and going out.

Jesus has become to me Wisdom—I have the mind of Christ. I have an anointing from the Holy One and I know—understand—all things.

I am surrounded by favor as a shield…everything I touch prospers, and ALL things work together for my good. Every promise of God is YES for me, and I believe that what I say happens.

As He is, so am I in the earth. I am born of God and have overcome evil spirits. Greater is He Who is in me than he who is in the world. I am more than a conqueror through Him Who loved me.

I am a descendant of the righteous—all who see me says “Surely that one is blessed of the Lord.” I am mighty in the earth—I am taught of the Lord and my SHALOM well-being is great.

God Himself continually grants me peace—shalom—in every circumstance! He is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that I ask or think according to the power that works in me.

The Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord gives grace and glory. No good thing does He withhold from me because in Jesus, I am upright before Him. He Who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give me all things?

God is my refuge and fortress...I trust in Him. Angels have been given charge over me and guard me in all my ways. No evil shall befall me, no plague shall come near my dwelling. I tread upon the lion and cobra, the young lion and the serpent I trample down. Because I have loved Him, He has delivered me; He has set me securely on high, because I have known His name. I call upon Him and He answers me; He is with me in trouble; He rescues me and honor me. With a long life He satisfies me and lets me see His salvation.

I have been strengthened with all miracle-working power in my inner man...I am rooted and grounded in love and I know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge. I am filled up to all the fullness of God.

I am blessed with Abraham the Believer. The promises were spoken to him and to his seed...I belong to Christ and I am Abraham's descendant, an heir according to promise. His blessings of favor, strength, and wealth are mine every day.

If God is for me, who can be against me? No man can stand before me any of the days of my life...just as He was with Moses and Joshua; He is with and in me.

No weapon formed against me shall prosper and every tongue that accuses in judgment I will condemn. No harm befalls me because I've been made the righteousness of God in Christ. He strengthens me and protects me from ALL evil.

HALLELUJAH!!

Ever Wonder Why...

…you feel the same as you did when you were young, as though you’ve never aged? Then you look in the mirror and WHOA! Who IS that old person?

I was having this discussion with my family over Thanksgiving and the answer came out of my mouth before I realized it…

Your spirit is eternal! Backwards, forwards, up, down—eternal! NOT linear, although we count the years in a straight line from birth to death.

But that’s just the physical reckoning, based on the physical rotation of a physical earth around a physical sun, creating day and night—time. It has NOTHING to do with the spirit within.

Luke 11:50 says the blood of the prophets were shed since the foundation of the world! Ephesians 1:4 says that we were chosen IN HIM before the foundation of the world. And He told Jeremiah that He knew him BEFORE He formed him in the womb! [Jeremiah 1:5]

That spirit is the one who was crucified with Jesus, buried with Him in baptism, raised up together with Him and seated with Him in heavenly places…right now! [Colossians 2:12,13; Ephesians 4:3-7]

If you are in Christ Jesus, you have been born again—not of seed which is perishable but IMPERISHABLE, that is, through the living and enduring Word of God… [1 Peter 1:23] But it is not your body, or even your mind, that has been born again—it is your eternal spirit, now born from the seed of the Word of God. The same seed planted in the womb of a young virgin girl…He is the Word, we are the Word multiplied! [read One with the Word, The Jesus Blueprint, Thoughts on the New Birth]

Don’t get mad at me…this is Bible truth!

Your spirit—the one who feels ageless—is in fact, ageless! And living in multiple dimensions at the same time! Trapped in an aging, earthen vessel while at the same time seated with and in Him in heavenly places!

And that same spirit is one Spirit with the Lord! ONE SPIRIT WITH THE LORD!!

Here’s how Paul puts it:

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but CHRIST LIVES IN ME; and the life which I now live in the flesh i live by faith in the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” [Galatians 2:20]

And it’s good for your body, as well:

‘But if the Spirit of Him Who raised Jesus from the dead DWELLS IN YOU, He Who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also GIVE LIFE TO YOUR MORTAL BODIES through His Spirit WHO DWELLS IN YOU.’ [Romans 8:11]

‘Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit Who is in you, Whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?’ [1 Corinthians 6:19]

Just stop and think about Who is looking out through those eyes of yours…

Spirit
Furthermore, words are spirit, spoken forth into the natural, or physical, realm. Furthermore, words are spirit, spoken forth into the natural, or physical, realm.

We know this because Jesus said that His words were spirit [John 6:63] and we know that unclean spirits come out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast and the false prophet as well. [Revelations 16:13]

It’s not just Jesus’ words that are spirit…ALL words are spirit. And they have a creative effect in the natural, physical world. But His words are LIFE as well…zoe, the absolute fulness of life, belonging to God, real and genuine [from NAS Greek Lexicon].

In Job 26:4, Job asks “To whom have you uttered words? And whose spirit was expressed through you?”

The reason you feel ageless is that your spirit IS ageless, eternal…and it reigns upon the earth by words.

That ageless, eternal spirit that is looking through your eyes is one with Jesus, one with the Father, by the Holy Spirit within! [1 Corinthians 6:17; John 14:20,23]

Put that together with Ephesians 3:14-21…

‘For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, TO BE STRENGTHENED WITH POWER THROUGH HIS SPIRIT in the inner man, so that CHRIST MAY DWELL IN YOUR HEARTS THROUGH FAITH; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and length and height and depth, and TO KNOW THE LOVE OF CHRIST WHICH SURPASSES KNOWLEDGE, THAT YOU MAY BE FILLED UP TO ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD.

Now to Him WHO IS ABLE TO DO FAR MORE ABUNDANTLY BEYOND ALL THAT WE ASK OR THINK, ACCORDING TO THE POWER THAT WORKS WITHIN US, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. AMEN.’

That one looking out through your eyes is strengthened with ALL POWER and filled up to ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD! And that power is there to do FAR MORE ABUNDANTLY BEYOND ALL THAT WE ASK OR THINK!

I don’t know about you, but I can ask and think quite a bit…

HALLELUJAH!!

Grace

The Greek word charis, or grace, is used 148 times in the NT. Ask any Christian what grace is and they will probably parrot ‘God’s unmerited favor.’

Yes, this is part of it, but if you look at a NT lexicon or dictionary, you will find that it is so much more!

It also means that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness; good will, loving-kindness, favor; benefit, bounty, recompense, reward.

John 1:14 says that Jesus was full of grace and truth…John 1:16 tells ‘For of HIS FULLNESS we have ALL received, and grace upon grace.’ No second-class Christians here, just temples of God, full of HIS fullness and grace! Meditate on THAT for awhile…

Then, of course, there’s Colossians 2:9,10…

‘For in Him ALL THE FULLNESS OF DEITY dwells in bodily form, and in Him YOU HAVE BEEN MADE COMPLETE…’

Paul's Thorn
When Paul asks to be delivered from the demon sent to torment him, God tells him “My grace is sufficient for you, for power [dunamis] is perfected [fulfilled, finished, completed, paid] in weakness.’ [2 Corinthians 12:9]

Prevailing heresies tell us that this means he had to live with some disease or affliction, even though the Word clearly says it was a MESSENGER of Satan…a demon sent to torment him. And according to Luke 10:19, we have authority over ALL the power of the enemy and nothing will injure us! Psalm 91 says we will tread upon the lion and cobra and TRAMPLE THEM DOWN.

This lie has been repeated over and over again to keep us in bondage—if God wouldn’t deliver Paul and wanted him to continue to suffer with some sort of mystical band aid to help him bear it, then there’s a good chance we won’t be healed or delivered either.

Sufficient
Another interesting word in this verse is the Greek word for sufficient…arkeo. We think it means ‘that’s good enough for you’ or ‘learn to live with it, you’ll get by.’

Back to the lexicon! Arkeo means TO BE POSSESSED OF UNFAILING STRENGTH! To be strong, to suffice, to be enough, to defend, ward off, to be SATISFIED or CONTENTED!

God was telling Paul that His GRACE—joy, pleasure, favor, delight, loveliness, good will, benefit, bounty, reward—was sufficient, or possessed of UNFAILING STRENGTH! For POWER, or dunamis [the miracle-working power that upholds the world] is perfected [complete, finished, fulfilled—TO CARRY OUT THE CONTENTS OF A COMMAND] in weakness.

In other words, where Paul was weak, the miracle working power was full of unfailing strength to do whatever needed to be done, to overcome in any situation.

Hallelujah!

His grace—that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness; good will, loving-kindness, favor; benefit, bounty, recompense, reward—possesses unfailing strength for us! Because His power—the miracle-working power, the power with which Jesus UPHOLDS ALL THINGS [Hebrews 1:3]—is made perfect or complete in our weakness.

Don’t forget…according to Colossians 1:11 the Holy Spirit prayed that we would be strengthened with ALL POWER! The very same dunamis with which Jesus is upholding all things. Not just a drop or two…ALL POWER! [read Dumanis]

And we have this treasure IN EARTHEN VESSELS! So that the surpassing greatness of the POWER [dunamis] will be of God and not from ourselves...[2 Corinthians 4:7]

There’s another prayer, prayed for us by the Holy Spirit though Paul, in Ephesians 3.

'For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with POWER [dunamis] through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints [most holy ones], what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be FILLED UP TO ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD.

'Now to Him Who is able to do FAR MORE ABUNDANTLY beyond ALL that we ask or think, according to the POWER [dunamis] that WORKS WITHIN US, to Him be the glory [splendor magnificence, most glorious condition or exalted state] in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen—so be it, may it be fulfilled, truly.'

Now that’s grace!

Full of God, full of His power, one Spirit with the Lord. Not some hackneyed phrase that nobody stops to think about, not some meaningless church buzzword.

HALLELUJAH!!

The Father Within

Wait a minute...I might have just seen something amazing here...

'"Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works."' [John 14:10] 

'Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.' [John 14:23] 

'Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.' [Ephesians 3:20,21]

Yes, it's true. The Father is within, and He works through us, just like He did through Jesus.

Put that together with these verses, and you'll see something wonderful!

'The Lord your God who goes before you will Himself fight on your behalf, just as He did for you in Egypt before your eyes...' [Deuteronomy 1:30] 

'...for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.' [Deuteronomy 20:4]

'Then Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song to the Lord, and said, "I will sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted; the horse and its rider He has hurled into the sea. The Lord is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise Him; my father's God, and I will extol Him. THE LORD IS A WARRIOR; the Lord is His name. Pharaoh's chariots and his army He has cast into the sea; and the choicest of his officers are drowned in the Red Sea.' [Exodus 15:1-4]

'The Lord will go forth like a warrior, He will arouse His zeal like a man of war. He will utter a shout, yes, He will raise a war cry. He will prevail against His enemies.' [Isaiah 42:13]

'The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.' [Zephaniah 3:17]

The Lord is within us, and He is a warrior! He IS the power that works within—He IS mighty and He will fight for us!

What's more, we are IN HIM...one Spirit with the Warrior Lord! 

'But the one who joins himself to the Lord is ONE SPIRIT WITH HIM.' [1 Corinthians 6:17]

'But by HIS DOING you are IN CHRIST JESUS, Who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption...' [1 Corinthians 1:30]

'For IN HIM ALL THE FULLNESS OF DEITY dwells in bodily form, and IN HIM YOU HAVE BEEN MADE COMPLETE, and HE is the head over ALL rule and authority...' [Colossians 2:9,10]

And don't be afraid.

'When you go out to battle against your enemies and see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, is with you. 

"When you are approaching the battle, the priest shall come near and speak to the people. He shall say to them, 'Hear, O Israel, you are approaching the battle against your enemies today. Do not be fainthearted.

'Do not be afraid, or panic, or tremble before them, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.' [Deuteronomy 20:1-4]

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Schrodinger's Cat

A very famous Quantum Physics experiment called Schrodinger's Cat illustrates the principle that there is no single outcome unless it is observed. The cat is either alive or dead—2 probable universes, 2 different realities. 

We know from the Bible that multiple realities exist—the natural, physical plane and the spiritual realm. Even within that there appears to be different levels—the heaven where God dwells [and us, too, according to Ephesians 2:6] and a spiritual plane in the earth to which Satan fell when he was thrown down to the earth. [Luke 10:18, Revelation 12:9]

Paul talks about being caught up into the third heaven. [2 Corinthians 12:2]

We know that we are spirits living in earthly bodies—that in our hearts are the highways to Zion. [Psalm 84:5] We know that there is both an earthly and a heavenly Jerusalem and that we're ALREADY there! [Hebrews 12:22]

We walk on the earth yet are seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus! [Ephesians 2:6]

In fact, there are many places in the Word where the veil is pulled back and we see multiple realities intersect—the mountain of transfiguration, Jacob’s ladder, the angels in Bethlehem, and of course, the well of Hagar.

[For more in-depth exploration, read Quantum Possibilities, The Quantum Table, The Quantum Table 2 and Stop Begging--It's Inside!] 

What, Me Worry? 
Anyway, I was worrying about money...again!

I had already confessed several wonderful scriptures regarding blessing, abundance and wealth. According to Matthew 16 and 19, I had already bound the enemy and forbidden him to withhold what Jesus had already bought and paid for. I confessed my redemption from the curse.

I particularly confessed that...

• Jesus became to [made unto, wrought, come to pass] me wisdom and righteousness [1 Corinthians 1:30]
• Great wealth is in the house of the righteous [Proverbs 15:6]
• Wisdom endows me with wealth, filling my treasuries [Proverbs 8:21]
• Long life is in her [Wisdom's] right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor [Proverbs 3:16]
• Riches and honor are with Wisdom; therefore they are with me [Proverbs 8:18]
• The reward of humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, honor and life. [Proverbs 22:4]
• I know the grace of my Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, for my sake became poor, so that through His poverty I might become rich [2 Corinthians 8:9] 

Yet I was still feeling extremely anxious, and I know that is usually a sign that my mind is in full rebellion against my reborn spirit, which is full of God. And the rebellion is usually instigated by the deceiver, who shows me all sorts of horrible outcomes and points to seemingly intransigent circumstances.

Which of course leads to the mind loop "I can't see any way...what am I going to do...I can't see any way...what am I going to do...ad infinitum"

And Then I Heard... 
I heard/felt/saw/knew that familiar voice, saying "Oh...so you really think the money is not there..."

I knew immediately what He meant. Even with all my dutiful confessions, I didn't really believe that anything was happening. Instead of believing that what I say is going to happen, I was speaking in fear and unbelief. Instead of believing I received when I prayed, I got up from prayer and immediately started worrying.

What I failed to remember was Hagar's well. And the Palm Sunday donkey...and the fish with the coin in its mouth. Isaac's ram, Elisha's army, the lunch that fed 5000...not to mention all the things the Word says we're surrounded by! [read Decreed]

I forgot that all things already belong to me, and I belong to Christ, and Christ belonged to God. [1 Corinthians 3:23] I forgot that the spiritual plane of existence is real and complete and finished. That I am in Christ, and in Christ is a completely different place than just being in the world by myself.

To be more specific, my needs were met before the foundation of the world, because God said they were...and His works were finished from the foundation of the world!

Choices 
So I have two choices in every situation. I can choose to believe God's forever settled Word, complete and finished in heaven, in the Spirit where I am seated in Christ. I can choose to believe that my faith in His Word—seeing it and speaking it as already done—brings spiritual realities into physical manifestation. I can believe Jesus when He told me to speak to circumstances and they would obey.

Or, I can choose to believe my circumstances and satan's lies, even though I know he's a liar, a killer and a thief. [John 8:44; 10:10] Even though I know that the things which are seen are temporal—temporary—while the things which are not seen are eternal. [2 Corinthians 4:18]

Even though we are told explicitly to look NOT at the things which are seen but at the things which are NOT SEEN. To walk by faith and NOT sight...[2 Corinthians 5:7]

I can choose to listen to the liar and give in to the fear...even though I know that what I fear comes upon me and what I dread befalls me. [Job 3:25]

Believe You Receive 
As always, the bottom line is faith.

To believe you receive when you pray, or to believe that what you say is going to happen, you must have an acute awareness of the reality of the Kingdom of Heaven. You must know for a certainty that God's Word is forever settled and His works finished from the foundation of the world.

You must see the unseen when you pray or speak in faith. You must believe that if Jesus told you to speak to physical reality and it would obey you, He was telling the truth.

You must know that your bank account is filled with wealth by Wisdom the moment you agree with God's decree that it is. Technically, it was filled before the foundation of the world, just like Hagar's well.

Don't Waver 
Finally, don't waver in unbelief. Speaking of Abraham, Romans 4:20 says '...yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God.'

Giving glory to God is very important. In this context, it means to give Him glory and honor and praise for the thing already done. That's what Abraham did. He didn't waver in his faith. [He wavered in his behavior, alright, because he thought he had to make it happen...and what a mess!]

But he never lost sight of the promise! And once he started calling himself Father of Nations, the promise came to pass almost immediately. [Hmmm...]

Don't waver. See the promised of God as finished for you according to 2 Corinthians 1:20—see the unseen forever settled Word as complete in your life. See it with the eyes of your heart, then speak it. It is finished

Hallelujah!