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Is It God’s Will
The “Our Father”
Scriptures For Reinforcement And Faith
Reinforcement
References
A Good Confession
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Video Part 2
Summary
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Through
a constant process of the revealing or unfolding of the knowledge of the
scriptures over the last two thousand years, a concept in recent years has
been unveiled concerning God's will for our lives. Prior to this unfolding
of the knowledge to prosper and be in health, a strong religious spirit of
suffering has prevailed in the church world.
Based on
the thought that it was a punitive measure from God or a sign that He has
specially selected someone, people have been taught to accept evil in their
lives such as sickness, premature death, emotional stress, financial poverty,
accidents, etc.
These
things happen and are now thought by many to be a product of God's planning in
their lives. These concepts about bad things have been derived from Old
Testament under-the-law thinking, which is based on works. Ephesians
2:8-9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.”
It is
hard to achieve success through a concept of religious works, as it will
produce guilt and condemnation, resulting in the acceptance of evil things in
one's life as punishment from God. This leaves the door open for the enemy to
come in to steal, kill and destroy. John 10:10, “The thief
cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they
might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
We are
not to accept evil as from God.
James 1:13, “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am
tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any
man.”
Believers are now living in the New Testament covenant of Christ under
which, by faith, we are heirs of the Father and joint heirs with Christ,
Romans 8:17, “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God,
and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be
also glorified together,” and the blessings of Abraham are ours.
Galatians 3:14, “That the blessing of Abraham might come on
the gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the
Spirit through faith.” Any blessings or promises in the Old or New
Testament are ours simply by faith in Christ. All curses and
negatives of the Old Testament have been nailed to the cross as Christ was
made a curse for us. Colossians 2:14, “Blotting out the
handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and
took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross,” Galatians 3:13,
“Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse
for us: for it is written, cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree,”
and 2 Corinthians 8:9, “For ye know the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, that, though He was
rich,
yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich.”
It is a covenant - based on the shed blood of
Christ and the sacrifice of His body in our place and not by our good works or
religious endeavors.
If you
accept the concept that Jesus Christ paid the death penalty for
you through His shed blood and that you are a joint heir with Him from the
Father, you have made the first step in entering into kingdom living or
abundant life.
It is an innate desire of man to be happy,
prosper, and be in health, a desire that has been placed there by God in
creation. It is interesting to watch those who would think that it is God's
will to be sick or be in poverty and experience negative living, striving so
hard to fight God's supposed will by getting better jobs, going to hospitals
to cure their sicknesses, and saving up for the so called “rainy day.” If the
rainy day is from God, then why try to prevent it? Let it come and pray for
more of it so that you might receive more of God's will for your life!
In our
hearts we know that it is not God's will for us to live that kind of life!
Yet somehow people
have
bought the concept of suffering, poverty, depression, confusion etc., as being
part of the plan of God.
It is
no wonder why the scriptures say, “My people are destroyed for lack of
knowledge,” Hosea 4:6. It is this very
lack that has caused so many to accept, through fear and guilt, a negative
concept of life.
“Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy
will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors, and lead us not into
temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power,
and the glory, for ever. Amen.”
In this example of prayer by Jesus Christ, God incarnate, who
came to earth to show us God's perfect will for our lives, there are three
observations that we would like to point out.
First:
“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.”
It will only take a moment of thought for you to realize that in heaven there
is no sickness, pain, poverty, death, etc. It is obvious that Jesus is asking
the Father to bring that same element to earthly living. How is God's will
done in heaven? Think about it. The only reason why there is negative life on
earth is because of the fall of Lucifer and the rebellion of man. Through
Christ, the curse has been reversed. 1 Corinthians 15:45,
“And so it is written, the first man Adam was made a living soul; the
last Adam was made a quickening spirit.”
Second:
Under New Testament thought or under the New Covenant, Jesus prayed,
“lead us not into temptation.” Remember now, Jesus Christ
is giving us the perfect example of prayer for the perfect will of God in our
own lives. Temptation here in the Greek (pelagos -deep or open sea and
sometimes peirasmos - provocation) allegorically implies things
that are of a destructive, evil nature, the negative forces in this world.
The idea here is that one would be led, as it were, through enemy lines,
without being detected, into abundant life. In other words, if we're not to
be led into temptation, then where are we to be led? It's so obvious.
The
third observation is, “deliver us from evil.” If we do fall, as
a result of our error due to a lack of knowledge into a place of tribulation
or evil, the perfect prayer is for deliverance from evil, not, Oh God help me
to endure what you have put upon me. There are times when we will suffer
persecution for righteousness sake and may have to go through the malicious
treatment of other people. There is also the suffering of self-denial, doing
things we do not want to do for the good of others. Even so, in those times,
we are given supernatural love, peace and joy and even in that kind of
situation, life can be abundant. Any evil outside of the aforementioned is not
to be accepted and deliverance is the perfect prayer!
So we
can see through the perfect prayer of the Our Father that it is not
God's will for us to suffer sickness, confusion pain, fear and other obvious
negative elements, but rather that God would lead us away from,
through, or around these things through wisdom and
divine insight.
In
James 1:2 it says, "My brethren, count it all joy when ye
fall into divers temptations," and we see that an individual
falls into temptation, they are not led there. James goes on to say
that even then, it will work for the good. James 1:3-4, “Knowing this,
that the trying of your faith worketh patience. but let patience have her
perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing,” and
also see Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for
good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his
purpose.” He implies in James 1:5, “If any of
you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and
upbraideth not; and it shall be given him,” that it's a result of the
lack of one's wisdom and that we are to ask God for more wisdom so as to avoid
pitfalls. In verse 12 of the same Chapter, “Blessed is
the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the
crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him,”
He gives a further blessing for enduring that temptation, but in
verse 13, “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of
God:
for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man,”
he
clearly states it is not from God, but a result of our own lusts. Verses
14-15, “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and
enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when
it is finished, bringeth forth death.” Verse 16, “Do not err,
my beloved brethren,” tells us not to err by attributing evil to God.
Verse 17 shows us plainly where good things come from.
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from
the Father of Lights, with whom there is no variableness neither shadow of
turning.” In other words, God does not change. He is good all
of the time and does not put evil on His children. John
10:10-11,
“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am
come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.”
However, rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, 1 Samuel 15:23, “For
rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and
idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, He hath also
rejected thee from being king,” and if we rebel, God
will chasten us by releasing us to our rebellion. Romans
1:24, “Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of
their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves.”
If we obey Him we will get the good of the land. Isaiah 1:19, “If ye be
willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land.”
AND FAITH
The
knowledge that you obtained in the study called The Authority of the
Believer, combined with the following references, will produce
the kind of life that God has intended for every one of His children. For God
has not appointed His children unto wrath, 1 Thessalonians 5:9, “For God
hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus
Christ,” and the following verses will give proof and build faith for
the kind of life that God has for you. Faith in Christ is the basis
for new testament living. It is a new way of living. Hebrews 10:20,
“By a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil,
that is to say, His flesh.” If you can believe for it,
then you can have it. Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is the substance of
things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
Consistent and regular meditation on these scriptures and confession of them
to one's self will change your way of thinking and renew your mind.
Romans 12:2, “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the
renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable,
and perfect, will of God,” so as to produce faith for
divine health and prosperity. Psalms 1:2-3, “But his delight is in the
law of the Lord; and in His law doth he meditate day and night. and he shall
be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit
in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth
shall prosper” This, in turn, results in a good confession or
profession of faith, Hebrews 10:23, “Let us hold fast the
profession of our faith without wavering; for he is faithful that promised,”
initiating a release of power through our faith. Mark 11:23,
“For verily I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, be
thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart,
but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he
shall have whatsoever he saith,” and Ephesians
3:20, “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly
above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.”
When a thought of sickness or poverty of any kind comes into your mind, it
will be displaced by having the following scriptures internalized in your
spirit through prayer, meditation and confession.
Hebrews
11:6,
“But without faith it is impossible to please him; for he that cometh to
God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently
seek him.”
John
10:10,“The
thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come
that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
3 John
2,
“Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health,
even as thy soul prospereth.”
2
Corinthians 8:9,“For
ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for
your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.”
2
Timothy 1:7,
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of love and of power, and
of a sound mind.”
Galatians 3:14,
“That the blessing of Abraham might come on the gentiles through Jesus Christ;
that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.”
James
1:17,
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the
Father of Lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”
Philemon 1:6,
“That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging
of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.”
Matthew
7:11,
“If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how
much more shall your Father which is in Heaven give good things to them that
ask him?”
Philippians 4:19,
“But my God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by
Christ Jesus.”
1 Peter
2:24,
“Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being
dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were
healed.”
Matthew
8:17,
“That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.”
James
5:15,
“And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up;
and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.”
Psalms
103:3,
“Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases.”
Deuteronomy 28:1-14,
“And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently
unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all
His commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will
set thee on high above all nations of the earth:and all these blessings shall
come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the
Lord thy God. Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in
the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy
ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks
of thy sheep. Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store. Blessed shalt thou
be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out. The
Lord shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before
thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven
ways. The Lord shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and
in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land
which the Lord thy God giveth thee. The Lord shall establish thee an holy
people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the
commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk in his ways. And all people of the
earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the Lord; and they shall
be afraid of thee. And the Lord shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the
fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy
ground, in the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers to give thee. The
Lord shall open unto thee His good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto
thy land in His season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou
shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow. And the Lord shall
make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou
shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the Lord
thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them: and thou
shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the
right hand, or to the left, to go after other Gods to serve them.”
Note: Jesus did "hearken diligently," "observe" and "do all His
commandments" for us. It is done, in the Son.
Malachi 3:10,
“Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine
house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I will not open
you the windows of Heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not
be room enough to receive it.”
1
Thessalonians 5:21,
“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.”
John
6:35,
“And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall
never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.”
Matthew
11:28-30,
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you
rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in
heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my
burden is light.”
Psalms
112:1-3,
“Praise ye the Lord. Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that
delighteth greatly in his commandments. His seed shall be mighty upon earth:
the generation of the upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in
his house: and his righteousness endureth for ever.”
Joshua
1:7-9,
“Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do
according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from
it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever
thou goest. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou
shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according
to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous,
and then thou shalt have good success. Have not I commanded thee? Be strong
and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord
thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
Acts
10:38,
“How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who
went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for
God was with him.”
What is
a good confession? The Word of God says not to let His Word depart out of
your mouth and you shall have good success. Joshua 1:8, “This book of
the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day
and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written
therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have
good success."
Romans
10:8
says, “The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that
is, the word of faith, which we preach.” In
Romans 10:9, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the lord
Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the
dead, thou shalt be saved (delivered),” we see that
confession is a part of the process of salvation, along with believing in the
heart. Verse 10 says, “confession is made unto salvation.”
Confession does not make salvation, but is
designed to bring us into or allows us to access the salvation or benefits
that already exist in Christ.
So we
see through a combination of believing in the heart and confessing with our
mouth, salvation is consummated and secured to us through faith and
confession. It is not a confession of sin that is being referred to here, but
rather a confession of faith. If salvation itself is secured by the word of
faith, verse 8, “But what saith it? The word is nigh thee,
even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we
preach,” then the benefits of salvation are likewise
received in the same manner.
Though
we cannot see salvation, we believe for salvation through faith and we know
that even now we are saved, not by natural sight but by faith. 2
Corinthians 5:7, “For we walk by faith, not by sight.”
Likewise, are the benefits of salvation that we have seen through the
aforementioned scriptures received. A confession of faith is a result
of a confession unto faith. In other words, faith cometh by hearing
and hearing by the Word of God. Romans 10:17, “So then faith cometh by
hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
Through
hearing the Word preached or taught, confessing scriptures to one's self or
meditating on them, one will internalize them into their spirit, producing
faith, resulting in a confession of faith.
In
Psalms 1:2, “But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and
in his law doth he meditate day and night,” the secret
to the prosperity of verse 3, “And he shall be like a tree
planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season;
his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper,”
was given - meditate on the Word. Meditation is reflective
thought; thought that one reflects back into one's self. Do not mistake the
internalizing of scriptures into one's spirit for the memorization of the
scriptures in one's soul, or conscious mind. To memorize and internalize are
two different things. You may not have consciously memorized the Word and
still could have unconsciously internalized the Word in your spirit. This can
be easily confirmed when witnessing, you will find scriptures come to mind
that you did not consciously realize you knew.
Meditation is a key vehicle used to impregnate or sink the seed of God's Word
deep into one's heart or inner man.
David said in the Psalms, “Thy word hath I hid in my heart that I might
not sin against thee,” Psalms 119:11. The Word within
the heart or spirit of a believer will produce a force that will keep one from
sin, poverty, sickness, depression, etc.
Make no
mistake, God's Word is quick and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword,
Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and
sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of
soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow,” and is a discerner of the
thoughts and intents of the heart, and it, germinated within you, will
produce faith through which God's Spirit will destroy any opposition that
comes against you. It is, and will be, the Word of God that will do the work
in you and not the power of your will. It will do you well to spend
some time thinking about what you have just read in this section of this
lesson.
*
Paul
said to Timothy, “Meditate on these things, give thyself wholly to them;
that thy profiting may appear to all,” 1 Timothy 4:15. The
word in the Greek for the word meditate in this particular verse is
meletao, which means to revolve a thought in one's mind, connotating a
kind of drilling of instruction into one's self. Again, do not confuse
reflective meditation with memorizing. You can memorize the letter soulishly
and still not have grasped it spiritually. 2 Corinthians 3:6,
“Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the
letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth
life.” The key is to root yourself into the work of Christ so
that the Word comes alive in you.
I would
like to summarize this lesson by giving a very simple parallel concerning good
and evil. Let us base it on the statement of Christ in John 10:10,
“The thief cometh not but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I have
come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly.”
The enemy, Satan, is a thief. He's come to steal your love, joy, peace,
prosperity and health. He is a murderer! He is the author of wars, sickness,
depression, confusion, doubt and desperation! When Jesus Christ
comes again, Satan will be chained and bound in the lake of fire.
Revelation 20:10, “And the devil that deceived them was cast
into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet
are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”
Until
then, we must learn to fight the good fight of faith, 1 Timothy 6:12,
“Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto
thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many
witnesses,” knowing our spiritual, legal rights to the benefits of
God, as his benefactors through Jesus Christ! Romans 8:17, “And
if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be
that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.”
Jesus
Christ came to earth to directly express the perfect will of God for
us. In John 10:10, Jesus said that He came to give us abundant
life. We must get it into our minds and hearts that abundant life has nothing
to do with evil. He clearly contrasts himself with the devil as being the
opposite of what the devil represents. The Apostle James was one of the
half-brothers of Jesus (children born of Mary through the seed of her husband
Joseph, after Christ). He lived with Jesus, God's Son. As a result, I'm sure
he had a good perception of what God is like. In his book, James wrote that
all good gifts and perfect gifts come from God and that God cannot be tempted
with evil and does not tempt any man. James 1:13-17, “Let no man say
when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil,
neither tempteth he any man: but every man is tempted, when he is drawn away
of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth
sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. Do not err, my
beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and
cometh down from the Father of Lights, with whom is no variableness, neither
shadow of turning.”
In
conclusion, let us simply understand that God is good to His children, that
God is good and the wicked one is evil, that good comes from God and evil
comes from the enemy of our souls and the fall of man.
Therefore, resist the devil and all he represents and he will flee from you.
James 4:7, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the
devil, and he will flee from you,” and 1 John
4:4, “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.”
Know he
is defeated, Hebrews 2:14, “Forasmuch then as the children
are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the
same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of
death, that is, the devil,” and his works are destroyed, 1 John
3:8, “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil
sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested,
that he might destroy the works of the devil, and through your faith in
Christ you have the victory.” and 1 John 5:4, “For whatsoever is
born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the
world, even our faith.”
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