The Believer’s Walk as Revealed in the Song of Solomon – Chapter 3

• This book was written by Solomon to recount his love relationship and marriage to a lovely young Shulamite maiden. It is also a portrait of God’s relationship with Israel. The Song of Solomon is cherished as a guide and an inspiration for the Bride of Christ, the Church, and her relationship with the Bridegroom, Jesus Christ, and seeks to lead the believer toward a closer and more OBEDIENT walk with the Lord. The Song of Solomon became one of the five scrolls of the third part of the Hebrew Bible, each of which was read publicly at one of the annual Jewish Feasts. This one was assigned to be read at the PASSOVER. Passover also marks the beginning of the journey to the Promised Land.

WARFARE Is Not an Option, We Simply Must Learn To FIGHT

Climbing the Mountain of Faith

¹By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not.²I will rise now, and go about the city in the streets, and in the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not.

• The word “night” is plural in the Hebrew indicating that she sought Him night after night. What Happened? “She Found Him Not”.

³The watchmen that go about the city found me: to whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth? ⁴It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother’s house, and into the chamber of her that conceived me.

• She asks the watchmen of the city “Saw Ye Him Whom My Soul Loveth?” When she finally found him “She Held Him, and Would Not Let Him Go Until She Had Brought Him into Her Mother’s House”.

• The maiden brought her Solomon home to rekindle their love. The believer must not only find the Lord and return to Him but also return to the House of God.

⁵I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.

• Intent on cementing their relationship, the bride repeats her charge to all forms of distraction to leave her undisturbed in her time of repentance and restoration.

Neither the bride nor the bridegroom is speaking in the next few verses but the daughters of Jerusalem. The daughters of Jerusalem represent our testimony to others (the world).

⁶Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all powders of the merchant?

• They ask “Who Is This That Cometh Out Of The Wilderness Like Pillars Of Smoke, Perfumed With Myrrh And Frankincense?” (“This” is feminine in the Hebrew. The words that follow refer to the bride’s coming.)

• The repentant bride is seen coming out of the wilderness having made a sacrificial offering; therefore, she is seen “As Pillars Of Smoke”. So different does she appear because of her new commitment that the daughters of Jerusalem cry, “Who Is This?”

⁷Behold his bed, which is Solomon’s; threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel.⁸They all hold swords, being expert in war: every man hath his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night.

• It is not only the bride who is seen but the bridegroom as well. They are together in a procession. The bed refers to a hand carried chariot. The mood of the procession is not one of love, but of warfare. In what are the valiant men experts? “WAR.”

¹¹Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold King Solomon with the crown wherewith his mother crowned him in the day of his espousals, and in the day of the gladness of his heart.

• Now that the bride has agreed to go with Solomon into battle, their wedding day is assured. Apparently, Solomon’s mother took part in the ceremony. In Scripture typology, the mother represents Israel (Rev.12:1-2; Gal.4:26).

When the wedding march (the Rapture) begins for Christ and His bride, God will turn back to Israel and she will begin to serve Him again. Thus, Israel will rejoice “In the day of His Espousals/wedding day”.

http://youtu.be/_zcNqxobJW8

(To be continued…)

The Believer’s Walk as Revealed in the Song of Solomon – Chapter 2

• This book was written by Solomon to recount his love relationship and marriage to a lovely young Shulamite maiden. It is also a portrait of God’s relationship with Israel. The Song of Solomon is cherished as a guide and an inspiration for the Bride of Christ, the Church, and her relationship with the Bridegroom, Jesus Christ, and seeks to lead the believer toward a closer and more OBEDIENT walk with the Lord. The Song of Solomon became one of the five scrolls of the third part of the Hebrew Bible, each of which was read publicly at one of the annual Jewish Feasts. This one was assigned to be read at the PASSOVER. Passover also marks the beginning of the journey to the Promised Land.

The DISCIPLINE of the Lord Is Not Forced OBEDIENCE

Climbing the Mountain of Faith

¹I am the rose of Sharon and the lily of the valleys.

• The bridegroom calls Himself “The Rose Of Sharon, the Lily of the Valleys”. The rose is considered to be the zenith among all flowers. The lily has always been a symbol of purity. In the lowlands of humanity where the swamps of human degradation abound, there is a spotless lily, Christ the Lord.

²As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters.

• The bride is called “The Lily among Thorns”. And so the church should be, so very different from the world and so pure that she resembles a lily among thorns.

³As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.

• The bride compares her beloved to “The Apple Tree among the Trees of the Forest”. The apple tree “viewed” as the king of fruits is here described as sweet, fragrant and suitable for shade.

• The fruit was used figuratively to show how precious we are to God. The bride described “THE TASTE OF HIS FRUIT AS SWEET”.

⁴He brought me to the banqueting house and his banner over me was love.

• The king takes his maiden “To the Banqueting Table”. At a banqueting table no ordinary or common foods are served. A banquet is a feast of the choicest foods.

• When we enter into close fellowship with the Lord we will no longer be restricted to a common prayer and study life, but we will find delicacies in THE WORD served in grand abundance (Prov.15:15).

⁶His left hand is under my head and his right hand doth embrace me.

• The bride describes the bridegroom’s all encompassing care and protection as “His Left Hand Is Under My Head, And His Right Hand Doth Embrace Me”, Deu.33:27.

⁷I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.

• The maiden charges the daughters of Jerusalem “That Ye Stir Not Up, Nor Awake My Love, Till He Please”. Solomon’s maiden was insisting that the other women not disturb this precious time of intimacy. We too, must insist that the cares of this world not disturb and destroy our time alone with the Lord.

v.8 begins a transition in our story. Of course there is more to Christianity than just building a love relationship with the Lord. However, our relationship must be established FIRST in order to hear His call to go further. From henceforth, the bride is called out of her protective place to follow Him and to serve Him in the power of the resurrection.

⁸The voice of my beloved! Behold, he cometh leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills.

• The bride hears “The Voice of Her Beloved! Leaping upon the Mountains, Skipping Upon the Hills” portrays Christ the bridegroom coming in majesty and power.

⁹My beloved is like a roe or a young hart: behold, he standeth behind our wall, he looketh forth at the windows, shewing himself through the lattice. ¹⁰My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. ¹¹For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; ¹²The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land; ¹³The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away.

• Where did the bridegroom stand? “Behind Our Wall”. What did he call to her? “Rise Up, My Love, My Fair One, And Come Away”.

What time of year did he tell her it was? “Springtime”. Springtime has always been symbolic of the resurrection. The Lord calls to His people to rise up and come away from the self-life and enter into the springtime of His resurrection power.

¹⁴O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely.

• The bridegroom’s request of the maiden “Let Me See Thou Countenance, Let Me Hear Thy Voice”. Solomon speaks of a day when he went to call his Shulamite bride to come to the palace. For some reason, although she heard his voice, she did not respond. Some Christians assume that if they feed in the Lord’s green pastures (read their Bibles and go to church) and dine at His banqueting table (read books, listen to tapes and watch Christian television), then the will of God has been done in their life, Ecc.12:12.

• The bride speaks of a wall between them v9 and the bridegroom is twice forced to call for her response, vv.10, 13. We can become like Peter on the mount of transfiguration who wanted to build a tabernacle and stay in the presence of God, while human need was crying out at the bottom of the mountain, Luke 9:38. Many Christians are still seated at the banqueting table delighting in the banner of Hid love when there is much work to be done for the Lord, and the call has come to go to work in the field, Mt.9:37-38.

¹⁵Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.

• While remaining in her place of comfort the maiden discovered “Her Vines Have Tender Grapes and the Little Foxes were spoiling them”.

• The little foxes hide under the leaves of the vine and when all is quiet they eat the tender fruit and slip away unnoticed. The maiden’s observance recorded here is direct instruction for the believer. It is the little things that spoil our vine and keep us from responding to the Lord’s greater call. These little areas may hide from everyone’s eyes, except the Bridegroom’s.

• Foxes are very fond of tender young grapes. If they are permitted to remain in the vineyard, they will eat away at the tender fruit of our relationship with Jesus, and our spiritual growth will be hindered, Gal.5:9; I Cor.5:7.

¹⁶My beloved is mine and I am his: he feedeth among the lilies.

• Here the bride reveals that she is confident in her position and that she knows just where to find the bridegroom. This points to an overconfident attitude. An attitude that often yields to a common deception; that we can respond when WE choose and not as HE chooses.

¹⁷Until the day break and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of Bether.

• She asks her beloved to “Flee Away until the Day Break”. The maiden didn’t respond to Solomon but thought that she could call to him later. Poor foolish bride! And poor foolish Christian if we think we can determine the time of our response.

• The Spirit of the Lord will not always strive with man (Ps.103:9). You’re have heard it said, “It’s never too late to serve God.” that’s partly true. “For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance,” but THE OPPORTUNITIES are not (Ro.11:29).

http://youtu.be/CvIxwc90BEI

 

(To be continued…)

The Believer’s Walk as Revealed in the Song of Solomon – Chapter 1

This book was written by Solomon to recount his love relationship and marriage to a lovely young Shulamite maiden. It is also a portrait of God’s relationship with Israel. The Song of Solomon is cherished as a guide and an inspiration for the Bride of Christ, the Church, and her relationship with the Bridegroom, Jesus Christ, and seeks to lead the believer toward a closer and more OBEDIENT walk with the Lord. The Song of Solomon became one of the five scrolls of the third part of the Hebrew Bible, each of which was read publicly at one of the annual Jewish Feasts. This one was assigned to be read at the PASSOVER. Passover also marks the beginning of the journey to the Promised Land.

The Proof of DESIRE is in PURSUIT

Climbing the Mountain of Faith

¹The Song of songs, which is Solomon’s.

By divine record we are informed that King Solomon wrote 1005 songs (I Kings 4:32). However, he entitled this story “The Song of songs”. Just as the inner sanctuary of the temple was the Holy of holies and Christ is King of kings, so this book is indeed “The Song of songs”.

• The story begins with Solomon’s bride speaking.

²Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than wine.

The bride’s intense longing is expressed as desiring “The Kisses of His Mouth”. We are all familiar with the kisses on the cheek. Even so, our longing will increase from seeking mere kisses on the cheek, occasional blessings, to pursuing a closer and more intimate relationship with Christ through His Word.

The bride says that His great love is “Better Than Wine”. Many times in Scripture wine represents the joys of the world. Once we have tasted of the kisses of His mouth, the meat of the Word, how far better is the love of God than all the pleasures of the world.

³because of the savor of thy good ointments thy name is as ointment poured forth, therefore do the virgins love thee.

The virgins love the king because “Thy Name Is As Ointment Poured Forth”. His name has not been kept as bottled ointment but rather as ointment poured forth upon His people who now find new identity and power through the name of Jesus.

⁴Draw me, we will run after thee: the king hath brought me into his chambers: we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will remember thy love more than wine: the upright love thee.

The bride says to the king “Draw Me”. As we serve the Lord, we become increasingly aware of the fact that “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak,” Mt.26:41. We not only need to desire Him, but we need to be drawn.

How do the virgins respond? “We Will Run After Thee”. The king takes his running bride “Into His Chambers”. When the king brings us into his chambers, we have entered into the secret place of the Most High, Psalm 91:1.

⁵I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon. ⁶Look not upon me, because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me: my mother’s children were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept.

The maiden had attended to other vineyards: job, ministry, and etc, but what vineyard had she left unkept? “Her Own Vineyard”; represented by the disregard for her complexion. If we are successful in all other areas of life, but neglect to attend to THE WORD, the source of our spiritual complexion, we have failed to keep the most important vineyard of all. Our vineyard can bring forth much fruit by abiding in the vine, THE WORD, John 15:5-7.

The maiden stated in v5 that “I Am Black”. She recognized that she did not have her own beauty, but through the love of the king she could declare to others “O Ye Daughters of Jerusalem” that she was lovely. The tents of Kedar were dark in appearance but the curtains of Solomon were delicate fine linen.

The closer we draw to the Lord the more conscious we become that we are arrayed in fine linen and made to be glorious, Eph.5:27. In Rev.19:7-8, the Bride of Christ, at the marriage supper of the Lamb, will be wearing “Fine Linen, Clean and White”.

⁷Tell me, O thou whom my soul loves, where thou feeds, where thou makes thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turns aside by the flocks of thy companions?

The maiden ask the bridegroom to tell her “Where Do You Graze Your Flock and Where Do You Rest Your Sheep at Noonday?” The maiden specifically requested the place of the noonday feeding. When the ancient shepherds in the east fed their flocks, they took them to the grassy riverbeds and springs when the heat of the noonday came. Therefore, the richest food was to be eaten at noon. We should covet earnestly the finest possible spiritual food, I Cor.12:31.

As lovers of God’s Word we should be in earnest pursuit of the rich grasses of the noonday feeding. For the shepherds of the east it was a difficult journey down the steep mountainside to the cool river valley. Likewise, to feed delicately on spiritual things may require extra labor to obtain the rich valley grass necessary to continue the inner chamber relationship with the Lord.

The maiden ask the bridegroom “Why Should I Be Like One Who Wanders Beside the Flock Of Thy Companions?” Why should the church be like one who wanders outside the blessings of God – the rich grasses of the noonday feeding?

⁸If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds’ tents.

Solomon calls her “O Thou Fairest Among Women”. In Deu.32:10; Ps.17:8, God’s people are called “The Apple Of His Eye”, an old English expression referring to the pupil of the eye. The phrase is used symbolically of something cherished, precious, and protected.

The king tells the maiden to “Go Thy Way Forth By The Footsteps Of The Flock”. The footsteps of the flock refer to the pathway trodden by other saints who have also chosen to pick up the Cross and follow Him.

⁹I have compared thee, O my love, to a company of horses in Pharaoh’s chariots.

To what are we compared? “A Company Of Horses In Pharaoh’s Chariots”. The horses of Pharaoh were reputed to be the best in the world. Along with their great beauty, they were strong, swift and courageous in battle!

¹¹We will make thee borders of gold with studs of silver.

“WE” speaks of the trinity of God. “Borders Of Gold With Studs Of Silver” refer to the crown being prepared for us that we will receive when in the eternal presence of God.

¹²While the king sits at his table, my spikenard sends forth the smell thereof.

The maiden perceives that the king could smell “Her Spikenard”. Spikenard was a very costly ointment that was extremely fragrant. It was a plant not native to Israel but imported at great expense. At His great expense, the Lord has planted the Christ life within that makes us lovely and fragrant with a savor far beyond any earthly plant.

¹³A bundle of myrrh is my well-beloved unto me; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts.

The maiden says that her beloved is to her “A Bundle Of Myrrh”. Myrrh was a highly fragrant and costly spice imported to Israel. At great cost, our Savior was imported from afar and is highly fragrant to all who know Him. Myrrh was used to deaden pain, as walking with the Lord comforts us through the heartaches of this life. Myrrh was very bitter to the taste and refers to the cross we must bear as we serve Him, Mt. 10:38. Myrrh was used medicinally and was a cure for many ailments as our great Physician is health and healing to all who believe in Him.

To those who experience these various aspects of the Lord’s character, He is truly a bundle of myrrh; The Balm of Gilead; The Bread of Life; The Lamb of God, Jer.8:22; Gen.37:24-26; Gal.3:13; Is.53:5.

¹⁵Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves’ eyes.

Hearing her loving evaluation, the king responds wholeheartedly and says of her eyes “Thou Hast Doves’ Eyes”. Eyes are the window of the soul and have always been recognized as the place where character can be seen. The dove is the emblem of simplicity, innocency, and fidelity. We have been washed in the blood of Jesus and made to be innocent and pure like the dove.

¹⁷The beams of our house are cedar and our rafters of fir.

Solomon’s bride refers to the beautiful and strong wood to build their home together. When we are living close to the Lord, we too are building a strong and lovely home for His habitation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whjZTug_O-Y

(To be continued…)

MAN’S FIRST DIMENTION – THE SPIRIT

Kenneth E. Hagin

Man is a spirit who possesses a soul and lives in a body. Man’s spirit is that part of him that knows God. He is in the same class with God because God is a Spirit and God made man to fellowship with him. God made man for His own pleasure. Man is not an animal. In order to fellowship with God, man must be in the same category with God. Therefore, just as God is a Spirit, so man is a spirit.

We can’t fellowship with animals because they are in a different kingdom , a different class than we are. But we can fellowship with one another, and we can fellowship with God because we are the same type of being.

Jesus told the woman at the well in Samaria,

• “God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth,” John 4:24. We cannot know God or touch Him physically. He is not a man. He is a Spirit. We cannot communicate with Him mentally, for He is not a mind. He is a Spirit. But we can reach Him with our spirit, and it is through our spirit that we come to know God.

So we know that God is a Spirit. And yet God, who is a Spirit, took upon Himself a man’s body. Jesus was God manifested in the flesh.

• “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made… And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us…,” John 1:1-3, 14.

When God took upon Himself human form, He was no less God than when He didn’t have a body. Man, at physical death, leaves his body. Yet he is no less man than when he had a body. We see this in Christ’s account of Lazarus and the rich man at death,

• Luke 16:19-31, There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.

In Paul’s epistle to the church at Thessalonica we see a glimpse of man’s three-fold nature.

• “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,” I Thessalonians 5:23.

Another version translates this verse, “I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved entire, without blame, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This three-fold man is to be preserved “entire,” without blame at the coming of the Lord. That will be a great day, for when the Lord comes, this whole man – spirit, soul and body – salvation, new birth,  will be preserved “entire.”

We have a new spirit now, for our spirits are born of God. But we will have a new body “at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.” We have a new life now, but we will have a new body then.

• The Bible talks about salvation in the past, present and future tense. When it talks about salvation in the past tense, its connected to the “new birth.” When it speaks of salvation in the present tense, its connected to the “renewed mind” Romans 12:2. When it speaks of salvation in the future tense, its connected to the redemption of our bodies.

More than one Old Testament prophet prophesied concerning Israel that God would establish a new covenant with the house of Israel. This new covenant is the New Testament as we know it. Through the prophet Ezekiel God said,

• “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes and you shall keep My judgments, and do them” Ezekiel 36:26-27.

Ezekiel was prophesying the new birth. When a man is born again, the spirit (which is the real man) is born again and the old man is gone. The old hard, stony heart is gone. He is a new creature, as Paul said in II Corinthians 5:17,

• “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

The words “heart” and “spirit” are used interchangeably in the scriptures. Your heart is your spirit. When the Word of God speaks about the heart of man, it is speaking of the spirit of man.

Peter talked about the “hidden man of the heart.” He was telling us not merely to be concerned with outward adorning,

• “But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and a quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price,”   I Peter 3:4. This is the real man. It is not the outward man, the man of flesh and bones; it is not the body. It is the inward man.

Paul referred to the “hidden man of the heart” – man’s spirit – as the inward man.

• “…Though our outward man perish (another version says ‘is decaying’), yet the inward man is renewed day by day,” II Corinthians 4:16. The outward man, or the body, is growing older and “is decaying,” just as the house you live in is decaying and needs constant upkeep and repairs. But the real you is not getting older, for Paul said, “…yet the inward man is renewed day by day.”

You will never be any older than what you are right now. You are no older now than you were a few years ago. You know more now than you did then, but you are not any older. Your hair may become grayer and you may get a few more wrinkles, but the real you will never become old. For the inward man is renewed day by day.

Then Paul went on to say,

• “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things that are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal,” II Corinthians 4:17-18. You may be going through some kind of trial which is making your life miserable from the natural standpoint. But remember, it is just for a moment. For we look forward to something far more wonderful which will last, not for a moment, but for eternity.

“While we look not at the things which are see, but at the things which are not seen…” The outward man is seen, but the inward man is that hidden, unseen man. Too many people are defeated in life because they are looking at the wrong things. All they ever see is physical. Smith Wigglesworth once said “I’m not moved by what I see. I’m not moved by what I feel. I’m moved only by what I believe.” The only way we can look at the unseen is by faith.

The first verse of the next chapter is a continuation of what Paul was saying here. When Paul wrote this epistle it was all one long letter to the church at Corinth. Man has divided it into chapters for easier reference. Talking about things that are not seen and about the inward man, Paul said,

• “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens,” II Corinthians 5:1.

The “earthly house” that Paul talks about here is, of course our physical body. He says that if our body is “dissolved…” if it dies and is placed in a grave, decays and goes back to dust, that is not the end. “…We have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens…” He is referring to the spirit of man, the inward man, that is eternal.

Paul continues on this subject further in this same chapter.

• “Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord,” II Corinthians 5:6-8. In v.6 Paul said, “we are always confident;” then again in v.8 he said, “we are confident…” Paul knew what he was talking about. He was confident that while “we (the inward man) are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord.” But when we (the inward man, the real man) are “absent from the body,” we are “present with the Lord.”

Living in the natural, physical world as we do, it is difficult to realize that the spirit world is far more real than this natural world. We think of people as existing only in their physical bodies, and when they are dead as no longer existing. However, the scriptures tell us that the real man is the inward man, the hidden man of the heart, that he is an eternal being. He will live on long after his “earthly house” has returned to dust.

Death in the scriptures does not mean the cessation of life as we understand it. It means separation from God.

Remembering RW Shambach, International Evangelist

Aimee Herd (January 26, 2012)

“You don’t have any trouble… all you need is faith in God.” -RW Shambach

(Texas, USA)—On January 17th, East Texas-based pastor and international evangelist, RW Shambach went home to the Lord.

According to his ministry’s website, Shambach suffered heart failure, he was 85.

A statement on Shambach’s website read: “His life and ministry were a divine military mission, which began on a destroyer off the coast of Japan in WWII. He and his wife Winn served in international crusades, inner-city tent meetings, bringing countless thousands to the saving knowledge of Jesus for over six decades.”

The CBN News report noted that Shambach preached in over 200 countries “boldly proclaiming, ‘You don’t have any trouble… all you need is faith in God.'”

There will be memorial services at the Rose Heights Church of God in Tyler, Texas, at 7PM on February 3rd.

Source: News Staff – CBN News

Leadership

Tim Tebow is not a religious symbol. He’s a shrine to the power of a strong, committed, passionate two-parent upbringing. Tebow’s performance on the football field is testament to Bob and Pam Tebow and what they instilled in their youngest child.

What should be dawning on us — is that, thanks to a rock-solid, two-parent upbringing, Tebow is quite different from other young QB’s in terms of mental and emotional makeup.

What do I mean?

NFL quarterback is a position best played by young men who were raised by strong fathers. Quarterback is the ultimate leadership position. You have to be taught how to lead. You have to be taught how to prepare.

Other young QB‘s, athletic freaks on par with Tebow, do not have Tebow’s nuclear-family foundation. These young QB’s entered the league emotionally immature and with a set of values inconsistent with the values that lead to consistent, strong QB play.

Tebow is the first super-athletic quarterback who also has the discipline to prepare. That’s a huge advantage. Tebow is winning because he curtails his mental errors. He’s thrown few interceptions and lost two fumbles since taking over as the starter for Denver. Denver’s winning formula is basic and old school. The Broncos stop the run, run the football and win the turnover battle.

You can’t build a revolutionary offense around a quarterback who lacks the discipline or maturity to prepare. As it relates to Tebow’s on-field performance, we should spend more time celebrating his two-parent upbringing.

THE THREE-FOLD NATURE OF MAN

By Kenneth E. Hagin

Man’s three-fold nature¾ spirit, soul, and body. Its quiet easy to distinguish the body from the other two. But its difficult sometimes to distinguish between the spirit and the soul. Nothing but the Bible can do that. “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.” Heb.4:12

If they were the same, they could not be divided. If they were the same, Paul would not have said, “…I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,” I Thess.5:23

With the body we contact the physical realm. With the soul we contact the intellectual realm. With the spirit we contact the spiritual realm. It’s the spirit of man that contacts God, for God is a Spirit. The new birth is a rebirth or re-creation of the human spirit, for Jesus told Nicodemus, “…Ye must be born again,” John 3:7

Nicodemus, thinking naturally said, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?” Jesus answered, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

Paul said in Romans 2:28-29, “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.” Paul was saying here that the spirit is the heart. They’re one and the same. [when the Bible talks about the heart, its not talking about your blood pump.]

In I Corinthians 14:14 we read, “For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prays but my understanding is unfruitful.” The Amplified Translation reads, “My spirit (by the Holy Spirit within me prays…”) In v.18 Paul said, “I thank my God, I speak with tongues more than ye all.” Paul used the terms “my spirit” and “I” interchangeably.

Briefly, man’s three-fold nature is this:

Spirit -The dimension of man which deals with the spiritual realm. The part of man that knows God.

Soul – The dimension of man which deals with the emotions, the will, and the intellect (mind or reason).

Body -The dimension of man which deals with the physical realm. The earth suit in which we live. To live on the moon you need a moon suit.

Courageous Worship Leads to Breakthrough for Our Cities

Caleb Klinge

When we think of Gideon’s story, we often think of fleeces and the less-is-more army of 300 trumpet-blowing warriors that defeated an innumerable host of Midianites because of God’s Presence with them. But this powerful story has an important background. Before Gideon could lead Israel to victory he had to experience victory in his own city.

Personal Surrender

Gideon had a response of true worship when he was first encountered by the Angel of the Lord. He presented his personal offering to the Angel of the Lord in Judges 6:21, and the fire of God consumed the offering. After this encounter, Gideon built an altar to the Lord. An offering represents a moment of worship, but an altar represents a lifestyle of ongoing worship and surrender. This altar became a foundation for every other breakthrough that Gideon experienced.

Divine Assignments

God has already pre-ordained the good works that we are to walk in (Ephesians 2:10). Altars align our hearts with Heaven and position us to receive these assignments from the Father and fulfill them with authority.

Once his personal altar was built, Gideon received his first assignment from the Lord. It wasn’t to rally an army. It wasn’t to form a strategy to lead the nation back to God. Rather, his first assignment was to build a furnace of worship in his home-town, the village of Ophrah. His personal altar of worship was the first level. Now his personal breakthrough would expand to influence the entire city.

In Judges 6:25-27, the Lord instructed Gideon: “Take your father’s young bull, the second bull of seven years old, and tear down the altar of baal that your father has, and cut down the wooden image that is beside it; and build an altar to the Lord your God on top of this rock in the proper arrangement, and take the second bull and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the image which you shall cut down.”

This assignment required incredible courage. Most of the city worshipped baal, and his own father was the biggest baal-worshipper of them all! The altar to baal was at his house, in his backyard – and people don’t enjoy having their “idols” messed with.

Light was about to collide with darkness. This act of obedience would cause conviction to fall on a community that desperately needed repentance.

A Burning Company

So Gideon took ten men from among his servants and did as the Lord had said to him. But because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city too much to do it by day, he did it by night. Judges 6:27

Gideon was in a growth process. He was overcoming fear. Courage is not the absence of fear. It is the faith to act in obedience in the face of fear, trusting that God will back you up. Even though Gideon struggled with fear, he still obeyed.

So he gathered 10 men, a burning company to give a burnt offering (an offering that is 100% for God). In the middle of the night, these 10 men ignited a bonfire of worship in the center of their city that broke it through the status quo of idol-worship and into the purpose and Presence of God.

Never underestimate the power of praying and worshipping in the middle of the night with a band of brothers and sisters in your city! The wood of the idol they chopped down became the fuel for the fire of the true worship of God!

A Corporate Furnace

A personal altar (lifestyle) of worship is so vital, but it’s the corporate altars (2-3+ individuals) of worship that transform a city.

Gideon didn’t take 10 men with him to complete this assignment because of fear. He took this 10-man squad with him because the assignment was larger than him. It was an assignment that required a unified effort of a community, not just the passion of one individual.

Not only was the demolition of the altar of baal and the building of the altar of the Lord required, they were to offer a bull as a burnt offering. A full-grown bull weighs a ton, literally – up to 2,000 pounds. This expression of worship was more than an individual could give on their own. It would take a group to lift this offering onto the altar. It would require a community that made a covenant to worship the Lord doing it together!

Embers From the Fire

Authentic worship always creates a reaction. From David’s undignified worship to Mary’s alabaster box, we see that people either reacted by following suit or criticizing the one worshipping.

When Gideon’s village awoke in the morning, they saw their altar and idol destroyed, and 2,000 pounds of tri-tip smoldering on the newly built altar of the Lord. It created a reaction.

When the men of the city discovered that Gideon had done it, they went to his father in a full-blown mob mentality and demanded that he hand Gideon over so they could put him to death. But Gideon’s father had an unexpected response: “If baal is a god, let him plead for himself!”

Not only was Gideon’s life spared, but a major shift had taken place in his father’s heart. Gideon’s courageous, passionate worship broke the spirit of idolatry that gripped his father’s life. The embers from the altar of true worship will ignite a fire in the hearts of those who have lost their passion, and call them back to their first love.

Before Gideon ever led an army, he led a group of 10 worshippers to burn for the Lord in their own city. And this was the foundation of all the victory that followed!

As it was with Gideon, may it be in your city as you worship the King of kings!

Caleb Klinge
New Life Christian Center
Email: office@nlcci.org

About Caleb Klinge: Caleb is the lead pastor at New Life Christian Center in Novato, California, together with his wife Rachel. Located in Marin County, just north of the Golden Gate in the San Francisco Bay Area, they are passionate for an invasion of God’s Presence and Kingdom that brings regional transformation. His ministry is used by the Lord to release faith, encouragement, and breakthrough. Caleb and Rachel have been married for 14 years, and have two children, Benjamin and Phebe.

Characteristics of True Fathers and Mothers of the Faith

Catherine Brown

Following on from my previous article on the Elijah List, we will consider some aspects of what the “self-parenting” generation may look like. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list, but rather a point of contact for our hearts and minds to engage with the Holy Spirit. May God grant us wisdom and revelation by His Holy Spirit and add to our understanding.

“Caretaker Mentality”

When the “self-parenting” person becomes responsible for the well-being of others, provision for those entrusted to their care is extremely high on the agenda because they have had to learn to provide for themselves most of their lives and they know what it is to struggle and do without. Care must be taken by such an individual to avoid operating in a poverty mindset, which I will define simply as the fear of not having, or the fear of losing. Operating in a poverty mindset is not about the amount of money or resource one does or does not possess. It is about the fear of not having or losing. We are called to walk in favour, abundance, and blessing and to exercise faith in the belief that there is no lack in the Kingdom of God. Our Heavenly Father is willing and able to lovingly provide for all our needs.

Whilst wanting to provide for others, especially one’s physical or spiritual children, and is an admirable quality, there is a fine line between being a provider who trusts God for provision in order to be a wise and godly steward vis-a-vis becoming a caretaker, i.e. a person who potentially may become over-burdened by taking on the role of absolute responsibility for provision for others.

God alone is our ultimate source of provision and blesses us with grace and wisdom for stewardship of what He provides. When a person unwittingly fills this role of caretaker, it is an example of independent thinking, self-sufficiency and self-reliance rather than God-reliance. Such personality traits can lead to false burden-bearing and potential burnout in life and in ministry.

I believe Apostle Paul understood this dilemma when he spoke to the Church in Corinth, that in their lives they may have 10,000 guardians but very few fathers (1 Corinthians 4:15). To father another in the faith is the most beautiful privilege, and one which we should cherish and treat with wisdom and deep reverence before the Lord. However, we should also note that whilst all spiritual fathers/mothers are mentors, not all who mentor are called to be spiritual fathers/mothers.

Under-Developed

For the self-parenting generation, nurturing others is most likely less of a priority than providing for others. This is as a result of there being insufficient (or total lack of) personal nurturing at the early developmental stages and when growing up. Sadly, no one has taken the time to develop them fully and so the ability to develop others has to be learned in adulthood under the training of the Holy Spirit and by spiritual parents investing in them. If nurturing others does take place at all prior to such Godly intervention, then it is usually more from a “training for task” perspective than from a “leadership development” approach, whose chief aim is to raise spiritual sons and daughters, through which God will advance His Kingdom on earth.

Once again we see echoes in Scripture of our Heavenly Father’s love in Apostle Paul’s words to the Church in Ephesus. As he earnestly prays for the Believers, we see the man of God on his knees before the God of all creation, praying from a revelation of Father’s love for the ones he is privileged to serve.

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom His whole family in Heaven and on earth derives its name. Ephesians 3:14-15

Paul understood that God the Father’s love is the key to unlock all healing and all Kingdom potential within every Believer, and so must we.

The message of generational succession embodies the idea of “passing on the baton,” i.e. passing on one’s spiritual legacy to the next generation. However, where spiritual parenting has been absent, there is no model for children to follow. It is an obvious thing to say, but in order to pass on a baton, it must first be received. We cannot give to others what we have not yet comprehended or received ourselves. In other words, a fatherless, self-parenting generation cannot possibly know how to father the next generation unless they themselves are fathered.

However, when God’s grace brings revelation of His Father’s love to our lives, we are then able to apply faith to appropriate the spiritual blessing. In this case, the blessing relates to being valued as a son/daughter, which in turn relates to raising others up as spiritual sons and daughters. True fathers/mothers run with their children in the race of faith, teaching them the value of being loved as their child. When we comprehend we are valued as a son (or daughter), we then place value on sonship and raising other sons in the faith.

Go-it-Alone

The self-parenting generation can be lonely/insular, isolated, and often tend to “go it alone.” As a consequence, they may struggle with working in a team and/or delegating to others, simply because they have always had to do things for themselves. There may also be issues of jealousy with siblings, or a tendency towards developing relationships that are co-dependent. A co-dependent relationship is an unhealthy relationship based on “need,” and often occurs between people who have suffered trauma and experienced difficult circumstances in life. Such a relationship produces a debilitating cycle of victim/accuser/abuser when demands are not met by the people involved in the relationship. It is soulish and can become oppressive, manipulative and emotionally, physically and spiritually destructive.

The Lord’s desire for us is that we have godly relationships led by the Holy Spirit based on His covenant love that bear good fruit and which serve His purposes in each other without making soulish demands on the other person.

However, with the right type of encouragement and nurturing, this can be turned around. We see evidence of healing in the life of Moses, who was able to work alongside his brother Aaron and also able to take on board his father-in-law Jethro’s suggestions to appoint others to help share the leadership role. Jethro spoke to Moses out of their relationship, and Moses was able to hear and apply Jethro’s fatherly advice because of this. As a result he opted out of “self-parenting” modus operandi, and became a true father of the faith by releasing others under his care with responsibility and assigned spheres of authority under his leadership.

Authority Issues/Rebellion

A self-parenting generation often has issues with authority, mostly because there has been an absentee father/mother, therefore there has been no constant, true and loving authority figure present whilst the child was growing up and no godly standard of authority modeled, taught or experienced. As a consequence, the self-parenting generation does not initially know how to embrace godly authority and accountability in a way that does not feel irrelevant or more like a punishment than a blessing. To them, authority feels much more like a hierarchical imposition from above, rather than a flow of love from the relationship with our Heavenly Father and through covenant with others.

The self-parenting generation may have difficulty in trusting others. Abandonment can lead to a fear of future abandonment, and this can only be counteracted in the love of God the Father as we are established in covenant relationship and calling as legitimate sons and heirs.

Difficulty in Establishing Godly Boundaries

Due to the absence of a main family nurturer when growing up, the self-parenting generation may face difficulties in establishing godly boundaries. A father/mother helps their child to experience and develop boundaries in their own life as they are growing up through various stages of childhood, adolescence and adulthood.

The ability to establish boundaries is an important part of living a safe, well-balanced life. If individuals do not learn how to establish boundaries they may unwittingly allow predatory types to enter their lives, they may overstep their authority in certain instances, and will also not learn the importance of being able to say “no.” This causes insecurity and could lean towards “man pleasing” rather than God pleasing.

Rejection Mindset

The self-parenting generation has a tendency towards filtering circumstances through a rejection mindset; this is primarily because they have not fully known the affirmation of God as Father or experienced His love through a spiritual father/mother. A person’s objectivity and discernment are deeply affected by rejection wounds, and subsequently, disappointments in life and in relationships become distorted and exaggerated causing a vicious, downward spiral of further rejection tendencies and wounding.

The result of such deep insecurity can mean that close, meaningful relationships are difficult, if not impossible. Nonetheless, once the revelation of God as Father is firmly established in the person’s life as a spiritual reality, along with the constant love of a spiritual parent, they are able to overcome the debilitating effects of rejection through the healing of being adopted, accepted and affirmed as bona fide children of God and co-heirs with Christ.

Redeemed in Christ

When God heals the self-parenting person, He creates a wonderful, rounded, loving, capable, anointed, radical disciple of Jesus Christ, with a passion for His Kingdom and the King! Surely the healing of the self-parenting generation will release a global paradigm shift of spiritual parenting that will be part of the preparation of the Bride of Christ for the return of the Bridegroom King!

Be blessed as you continue in your faith walk with Christ.

All for His glory,

Catherine Brown
Founder/Director, Gatekeepers Global Ministries
Co-Founder, Scottish Apostolic Networking Enterprise
Email: admin@gatekeepers.org.uk

A Season of Redefining – From Doubter to Proclaimer

Garris Elkins

Each life is like a photo album that contains snapshots of individual moments in time. No life is fully defined by a single image. We are made up of a composite of our experiences. One snapshot of time does not define our identity. Our identity is in a Person, not in a label created from a single experience.

We all have moments in our lives when, if you caught us in that moment and took a single picture, we would all appear faithless. God never intended our lives to be held hostage to a single moment of failure or unbelief. God invites us to peel off those labels of failure and brokenness that do not reflect His heart and begin, once again, to move forward towards our true destiny.

The Doubting Thomas

In the Scripture Thomas is one of those people who was defined by a single moment in his life when he become universally known as the “Doubting Thomas.” The sad part of this label is that the Church continues to refer to Thomas as a doubter and not the man who interacted with Jesus eight days after His resurrection and trumped his initial unbelief with one of the greatest statements of faith in all of Scripture.

John 20:24-29 describes that interaction:

One of the twelve disciples, Thomas (nicknamed the Twin), was not with the others when Jesus came. They told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in His hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in His side.” Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” He said. Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at My hands. Put your hand into the wound in My side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!” “My Lord and My God!” Thomas exclaimed. Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen Me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing Me.”

When the disciples were first gathered in that locked room and the Lord appeared to them on the evening of Resurrection Sunday, only ten of the twelve disciples were present. Judas had killed himself. We are not told why Thomas was not present. To these ten disciples Jesus showed His wounds. They did not need to touch the evidence because the evidence was standing before them.

The disciples who were present when Jesus appeared excitedly said to Thomas, “We have seen the Lord!” Thomas did not share their joy because he had missed the occasion of their joy. If I were Thomas I would have felt left out because I would have just missed the most significant event of my lifetime. I would have felt isolated from the joy the other disciples were experiencing. Their words, “We have seen the Lord!” would have produced a sorrow in my heart, like salt in a wound, since there would have been no expectation of ever seeing Jesus again.

Thomas did what many of us have done – he made a vow in his pain. “I won’t believe unless I see the nail wounds in His hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in His side.” Thomas made a vow out of his pain that aligned him with faithlessness. Jesus said to Thomas, “Don’t be faithless any longer.”

What followed this command was a single word sentence with an exclamation mark – “Believe!” In the Greek language the word “believe” can be translated, “to entrust.” When Jesus commanded Thomas to believe, He was not asking Thomas to comprehend a full package of doctrine or somehow attain a complete understanding of the workings of God’s Kingdom. Jesus was asking Thomas to entrust himself to Him. Believing is entrusting ourselves to the Lord as a Person.

The Proclaiming Thomas

In the moment Thomas was commanded to believe something supernatural took place. Trust rose up in Thomas. As he saw the Lord standing before him without anger and condemnation, fully displaying the evidence of His resurrection, Thomas redefined his life with words that followed the revelation he was experiencing, “My Lord and my God!” The doubt Thomas was living under was now displaced by words of belief. The “Doubting Thomas” had now become the “Proclaiming Thomas.”

“My Lord and my God!” are powerful words. When Thomas declared that Jesus was Lord it meant he understood that someone was now leading his life who could be trusted. God would be faithful to move Thomas forward into the goodness He had planned. Thomas was professing belief in the trustworthy nature of the Leader-Lord.

The “God” part of what Thomas declared meant that Thomas was following Someone who lives in absolute resurrection power. The declaration of Thomas was the acknowledgement that there would be resurrection power available to raise Thomas above the limiting restraints of whatever he encountered as Jesus led him forward in life.

The text in John continues in verses 30-31:

The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in Him you will have life by the power of His name.

The evidence of Jesus’ life and miracles are given so that you and I would continue to believe. The continuance of belief infers that we can stop believing. In his pain, Thomas had discontinued his belief. Thomas declared that he would stop believing until his demands were met. Jesus doesn’t meet demands – He meets people.

As powerful as Thomas’ experience was that day, our belief on this side of Pentecost has a greater potential. Jesus said there was a blessing for those of us who would believe (entrust) in the future without seeing the object of our belief.

Faith is an Action Word

In Hebrews 11:1 we read, Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

Like Thomas we can lose our ability to believe if we tie ourselves to demands and vows birthed in painful circumstances when life does not work out like we thought it would. We can miss the promised confidence and assurance of faith if we tie ourselves to the sorrow of feeling left out of from whatever God is doing.

When we come to realize that God is good, and has good thoughts and intentions for us in all circumstances, we can then step into that place where true transformation is possible. In the moment I choose to lay down my demands, judgments, and vows and declare, “My Lord and my God!”, something supernatural is released into my life.

Faith is an action word. We can think faith is an action word that only has implications on this side of eternity based on what we do for God in faith. Faith is much more – it activates something in Heaven. When faith is displayed in the earth it draws on Heaven to assure us that what we just believed for will actually happen.

Hebrews 11:1 says that faith gives us assurance about things we cannot see. Faith gives us something. Every act of our faith contains the gift of assurance that is given when we exercise faith. These gifts of faith come to us carrying the residue of the environment of glory because they come from Heaven. The day Jesus commanded Thomas to believe, this incoming faith-evidence produced in Thomas the words, “My Lord and my God!” The language of Heaven was heard upon the earth and in a moment a man was redefined from doubter to proclaimer.

A Season of Redefining

Today, the Church needs to rethink its image of Thomas. The man who was once a doubter should now be evaluated based on his final words and redefined as a proclaimer of faith. We need to do this because there are many of us, who like Thomas, need to be viewed as a life-album, not a single snapshot. We need to make this adjustment because Thomas is not viewed from Heaven’s perspective as a doubter. Thomas became the very voice of Heaven upon the earth when he made his declaration about Jesus.

God does not want us living in the results of faithless words that do not define His full intent for our lives. Jesus has plans to visit our lives with the evidence of His resurrection power and this visitation will change the way we speak and live.

Where are you living and speaking words of unbelief? Go to that faithless place and begin to believe for His appearing. Let your belief become words of faith declaring the goodness of God. In faith, begin to craft words that reflect God’s heart for you and your circumstance. God has already made up His mind about you and He has nothing but goodness in mind when He thinks of you.

This is a season of redefining. You and I are the ones responsible to speak the redefining words. God is ready to turn Doubters into Proclaimers and He will use the very words of our mouths to redefine our lives.

Garris Elkins, Senior Leader
Living Waters Church – Medford, Oregon
Email: prophetichorizons@gmail.com