The Pre-Eminency of Jesus Christ
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Transcript of The Pre-Eminency of Jesus Christ
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The Pre-Eminency of Jesus Christ Foundational Truths
‘And He is the head of the body, the Church, who is the beginning, the
Firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the
pre-eminence’ Col. 1:18
Rumacques Z. Brown
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©rúmaçz_brown
First Print
First Edition
All rights reserved
Copyright: You have the right to copy
This book may be freely copied and distributed, providing that no changes are made to text,
headings and names referred to in this book. You may freely quote from this book for formal
written purposes, providing that you include the following section in your appendix or footnotes:
Quoted from "The Pre-Eminency of Jesus Christ, Foundational Truths", by Rumacques Zane
Brown, Copyright ©rúmaçz_brown, used by permission of the author, all rights reserved.
ISBN 978-0-9869897-1-1
Front and Back Cover Design: Rumacques Brown
Scripture taken from the New King James Version.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.
All rights reserved. www.thomasnelson.com
Scripture taken from The Message.
Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of Nav Press
Publishing Group.
Scripture taken from the Holy Bible: International Standard Version®.
Copyright © 1996-2012 by The ISV Foundation. All rights reserved internationally.
Used by permission.
Scripture taken from the Amplified Bible (AMP)
Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation
Email address: [email protected]
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Dedication
This book is dedicated to the Body of Christ and specifically to every
young believer in the Lord.
I pray that you will be greatly encouraged as you study and work
through this material.
Purpose in your heart to follow Jesus regardless the cost.
Acknowledgments
A special thank you to Juanita de Mesquita for proof reading this work
and writing the forward. Juanita, your passion for Jesus is a great
inspiration and you so beautifully captured the heart of this work.
To Doxa Deo Midstream Campus, thanks a million for being
instrumental in the birthing of this script.
And a heartfelt thank you, to everyone who fathered me in the spirit.
You’ve laid a strong foundation of truth in my life and I’m forever
indebted to you. What you have imparted to me has been captured on
the pages of this book. May the Lord honor you for your incessant toil
of love in His kingdom.
Finally
All glory and honor to Jesus, who through His eternal Spirit inspired me
to write this book.
“But who am I … to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from You
and of Your own we have given to You” 1Chr. 29:14
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FOREWORD I was asked to proof read this work and what an exciting journey it was. I consider
Rumacques as a friend and as an inspiration, and when he requested me to read
his book, I saw it as an opportunity to grow spiritually.
As a new believer, I need spiritual nourishment to mature in Christ. But with a
demanding career and an arduous training schedule, it’s sometimes impossible to
find the balance between, everyday life and quality time spent with Jesus, our
Lord and Saviour. In managing and planning my day to day activities, it’s
important to me, that the time I spent with God fulfills every need and leaves me
with a hunger for more.
This book did exactly that and more. I did not only grow in my knowledge of
scripture and of Christ, but I also developed a hunger for more of Him. Every
chapter left me with a desire to grow in my revelation of who Jesus is.
Chapters was to the point, but detailed enough to have had an impact on me,
both practically and spiritually. This book laid a solid foundation in my life and it
bent my feet in the right direction. I cannot wait to engage Jesus on a daily basis,
and I know that I’m embarking on a life changing journey, because, it’s a journey
with Him and in Him.
I Pray, believe, declare and hope that this book encourages and touches your life,
as it did mine. It will surely lay the right foundation for you and set your feet on
the right path as His disciple, the One who is to come.
Juanita De Mesquita
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CONTENTS
1 God Defines Himself 7
2 Christ the Bridegroom 12
3 Christ the King 17
4 Christ the Judge 20
5 First things First 26
6 The Believer’s Baptism 28
7 God is Spirit 32
8 The Gifts of the Holy Spirit 34
9 The Revelatory Gifts 36
10 The Verbal Gifts 38
11 The Power Gifts 42
12 Decently and in Order 44
13 The Believer’s Authority 46
14 Laying Hold of Christ 48
15 Colossians 1:15-17 51
16 Colossians 1:18-20 55
17 In Him and With Him 58
18 The Exalted Christ 61
19 The Glory of Christ 63
20 Christ the Truth and the Power of God 64
21 Encountering Christ 65
22 The Spirit and the Bride 69
23 Bridal Love 74
24 Have Faith in Jesus 80
25 In Closing 83
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INTRODUCTION
In Matthew 28:19, Jesus says, ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to obey (observe) all things that I have commanded you’.
Jesus commissions us to go and to make disciples. He commissions us to baptise
them and to teach them to obey all things. This is one of the most important
directives that Jesus gave to His Church. We are called to teach every disciple of
Christ, to obey Him in everything that He taught and lived. We have a sacred,
God-given responsibility to teach them to obey Him in all things.
The phrase ‘make disciples’, implies that there’s a process involved in becoming a
true disciple of Jesus, and once we’ve been firmly rooted and established in
Christ, then, we are to, ‘go … and make disciples’ ourselves.
It’s important to note that we have been called to make disciples of Jesus, and not
of a man, a Church, a doctrine or a specific way of life.
The following, however, is of equal importance. We cannot say that we love Jesus
but not His Church; we cannot say that we stand in relationship with Him but not
with His Bride; we cannot say that we’ll partner with Christ but not with His Body.
We cannot separate the Head from the Body or the Body from the Head. Jesus
and His Body are one, and should be loved as one, served as one and honored as
one (1Cor. 12:12-27; Eph. 4:4-6).
This book has been specifically designed, to introduce you to the foundational
truths of this life-long process of becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ, the
pre-eminent One.
In the same way that natural birth requires a commitment from the soon to be
mom, to actively engage in the process of giving birth, so does the process of
discipleship require, an active engagement from you and me to mature in Christ.
I pray that the Spirit of God will avidly inspire all of us to reach for more of Christ
and less of ourselves. May this book inspire you to live a life that is wholly
devoted to Jesus and to live a life that brings glory and honor to our Lord and
Savior, Jesus Christ.
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GOD DEFINES HIMSELF “When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples,
saying, ‘Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?’ So they said, ‘Some say John
the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to
them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’
And Simon Peter answered and said, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living
God’. Jesus answered and said to him, ‘You are blessed, Simon, son of Jonah, for
flesh and blood did not reveal it to you, but My Father in Heaven’ (Matt. 16:13-17;
1Peter 1:3).
Jesus cannot be explained, He needs to be revealed. We all need a revelation of
who Jesus is. No man can define Jesus for who He is, except Christ Himself. A
revelation of who Jesus Christ is comes through who He says He is.
Peter received a revelation from God the Father and it was on this revelation, of
who Jesus is, that the Church was founded. Now, if it holds true for Peter, then, it
holds true for us. Jesus needs to be revealed to us and when we receive a
revelation of who He is, we can build our lives upon it. No flesh and blood can
explain or reveal Him. Our journey of faith begins with a revelation of who He is.
In Exodus 3:14 the Lord God Almighty reveals Himself to Moses as the ‘I Am’. This
specific name of God is widely interpreted as, ‘I Am who I Am, ‘I will be who I
will be’, or as, ‘I will be whomever I want to be’. It describes the Lord as the all-
inclusive, all comprehensive and all completed One. He is the One who is
uncreated and who exists independent, autonomous and self-sufficiently all by
Himself as the triune God. Everything that we need in this life is found in Him, the
‘I Am’ and in Him alone. He is the One who is omnipotent, omnipresent and
omniscient all by Himself. He is the One who is, who was and who is to come and
Jesus is the complete and the full expression of God, as the great ‘I Am’ (Heb. 1:3).
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THE REDEMPTIVE NAMES OF GOD
The Lord began to reveal and define Himself to Israel, for who He was, is and
always would be through His redemptive names (Mal. 3:6; Heb. 1:6). These names
firstly revealed, that God is a God of covenant and secondly, that everything that
He was about to do in and through Israel, would only happen within the context
of covenant love and life.
Jesus is the ultimate fulfilment and the complete, comprehensive revelation of
these names (Col. 1:19). Scholars across the ages have defined the redemptive
names of God as follows.
JEHOVAH - JIREH (Gen. 22:14) ‘The Lord our provider’
JEHOVAH - NISSI (Ex. 17:15) ‘The Lord our banner’
JEHOVAH - SHALOM (Judges 6:24) ‘The Lord our perfect peace’
JEHOVAH - TSID-KENU (Jeremiah 23:6) ‘The Lord our righteousness’
JEHOVAH - SHAMMAH (Ezekiel 48:35) ‘The Lord who is ever present’
JEHOVAH - SABAOTH (Psalm 46:7) ‘The Lord of Hosts, our Protector’
JEHOVAH - RAAH (Psalm 23) ‘The Lord our Shepherd’
JEHOVAH - RAPHA (Exodus 15:26) ‘The Lord our Healer”
These names are all summed up in who the Lord declares Himself to be, as the ‘I
Am’. Exodus 3:14-15 says, ‘I am who I Am ... this is My Name forever and this is
My memorial to all generations’ (Rev. 1:8).
No man can define God for who He is, but God Himself. A revelation of who He is,
comes through, who He says He is. He alone defines Himself. He alone defines
who He is in character and in nature and we should never lose focus of His
sovereignty as the Lord our God (Isaiah 55:8-9). He remains sovereign above and
before all of creation and He needs no one’s permission, as to how, He should
execute His will in the earth.
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KEY SCRIPTURES TO STUDY AND TO MEMORISE
Numbers 23:19
God is not a man and He cannot lie
Jeremiah 9:23-24
God exercises loving-kindness, judgment and righteousness in the earth
Malachi 3:6
God cannot change
2Timothy 2:13 (Heb. 11:6)
God cannot deny Himself
Hebrews 13:8
God is eternally the same yesterday, today and forever
Exodus 34: 6-7
‘And Yahweh passed by before him and proclaimed, Yahweh! Yahweh God,
merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin’.
Also study the following scriptures concerning God’s character and nature:
Matt. 5:44-45; 6:25-34; Luke 6:35-36; Rom. 2:4 and James 1:17.
THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST Revelation 1:1
The book of Revelations, is all about the revelation of Jesus Christ as the
enthroned, resurrected, Son of the Living God. Jesus appears to John, on the Isle
of Patmos, not as the crucified Christ, but as the resurrected Christ.
He introduces Himself as, ‘the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End
… who is, who was and who is to come, the Almighty’ (Rev. 1:8; Ps. 91:1); ‘the
First and the Last ... He who Lives and was Dead and … alive forevermore’ (Rev. 1:11 & 18).
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While on earth, Jesus defined Himself as:
‘the bread of life’ John 6:35
‘the light of the world’ John 8:12
‘the door’ John 10:9
‘the good shepherd’ John 10:11
‘the resurrection and the life’ John 11:25
‘the way, the truth and the life’ John 14:6
A revelation of who Jesus is, comes through who He says He is. Jesus will always
be the ultimate and the complete, comprehensive revelation, of who God is, was
and always will be.
Hebrews 1:1-2 says that the Father spoke, ‘at various times and in various ways
… in time past to the fathers by the prophets, (He) has in these last days spoken to
us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He
made the worlds ...’; ‘For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should
dwell’ (Col. 1:19).
THE POWER OF AN IMAGE
One of the most powerful things that one can do in life is to create an image. The
second most powerful thing that one can do in life is to destroy that image.
What image do you have of Christ Jesus? What is your perception of Him? Who
do you say He is? Is He still hanging on the cross or has He become the all
Powerful, Living, Lord God Almighty in your life, who calls Himself the ‘I Am’? Do
you understand the power of who Jesus is?
Jesus calls us to have our own revelation of who He is and He calls us to have our
own relationship with Him. It’s a none-negotiable. We all have identified with the
crucified Christ, but not everyone has identified with the resurrected Christ.
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It is one thing to have an image of Christ crucified (Isaiah 53); It’s another, to have
an image of Christ, as the resurrected Son of God (Revelation 1:10-18).
Not everyone that is born again had an encounter with the resurrected Christ.
Encountering the resurrected Christ is like running into a 50 ton road roller. Once
you’ve picked yourself up from the road, you look different, you sound different
and you walk different.
You will not be able to deny that you had an encounter with a 50 ton road roller
and others will not be able to ignore that encounter. Christ is more powerful than
a 50 ton road roller.
Now, imagine you having that encounter with Him.
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CHRIST THE BRIDEGROOM ‘And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many
waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, “Alleluia! For the Lord
God Omnipotent reigns! Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the
marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready”’ (Rev. 19:6-7).
GOD’S DESIRE
‘For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men
to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one
Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus’ (1Tim.2: 3-5).
‘The Lord is not slow concerning His promise, as some count slowness, but is long-
suffering toward us, not purposing that any should perish, but that all should
come to repentance’ (2 Peter 3:9).
‘Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? Says the Lord God, and not
that he should return from his ways and live? (Ezekiel 18:23).
THE BRIDEGROOMS DESIRE - ‘WILL YOU MARRY ME’?
The invitation to salvation is, also the invitation to marriage (John 3:16). When
Jesus presents us with the question of salvation, He’s also proposing to us, ‘Will
you marry Me’? This invitation will be extended from generation to generation
until the return of Jesus. He strongly desires to see the families of the earth,
inclusive of every tribe, people, nation and tongue, to be born again (Rev. 5:8-10).
This invitation starts with each one of us, and His desire, is to see our whole
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family turning to Him as Lord and as Savior (Acts 16:31). Yes, your whole family
can experience salvation, because it’s the Bridegrooms desire.
John 3:1-8, tells the story of Nicodemus. It’s in the presence of Jesus that he
realizes that he is in need of a Savior, and that he must be born again. Jesus
ignores his status and accomplishments in life, and confronts him with the need
for salvation. The rich young man acknowledged his own need for a Savior, when
he asks Jesus, ‘What shall I do that I may inherit eternal life’? (Mark 10:17-21).
This young man, was very concerned with eternity, because he understood that
eternity, is as real, as our day to day living, and that, it is not a myth. Are we as
concerned with the question of eternity, as the rich young man? ‘And this is life
eternal, that they might know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You
have sent’ (John 17:3). We cannot know eternal life without accepting Christ as
Lord and Savior (Rom. 10:8-10).
Jesus is the only ‘door’ to salvation (John 10:9). The Church is not the door, the
pastor is not the door, and our good works and good behavior, is not the door.
We all have sinned and are in desperate need of a Savior, if we are not born
again. We cannot save ourselves and there is no other name by which man can be
saved, except by the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12; Rom. 3:23).
The Word of God confronts us with the reality of eternity and with our own need
for a Savior. Once we receive Jesus as Lord and Savior, we are born again and we
have said yes, to His proposal, ‘Will you marry me’? Once we have said yes, we
become His betrothed, and He now becomes our Bridegroom to be.
PAROUSIA
Scripture declares that a day will come when Jesus, as our Bridegroom, will return
for His beloved and most beautiful Bride, the Church (Rev. 1:7; 19:7-9; 21:9;
22:17; 2Cor. 11:2). It’s the Father’s burning desire to present His Son, with a
flawless, spotless and glorious Bride (Matt. 22:1-10; Eph. 5:25-32; Rev. 19:8). A
Bride after His own heart, and just like David, a Bride who will fulfill all His heart’s
desire (Acts 13:22).
As Bridegroom, Jesus has a fervent yearning to be with us, His betrothed (Jer. 2:2;
2Cor. 11:2). His burning, fiery furnace of love, made Him to go to the cross for us
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(Isa. 53); made Him to become sin for us (2Cor. 5:21), and made Him to defeat
Satan and overthrow his kingdom on our behalf (Col. 2:15). ‘For the joy that was
set before Him, (He) endured the cross’ (Heb. 12:2). He redeemed us with His own
blood, because of His unfailing, eternal love for us (Jer. 31:3; Eph. 1:7). We
became His standard of beauty and love for all eternity. We became His first and
only choice, as a married partner, and for all eternity, there will be no other.
Jesus expects the same from us, because, when a man asks a woman to marry
him, he’s also asking her to forsake all others, and so does Christ (Matt. 16:24;
Lk 14:26-33). As our Bridegroom, He calls us to forsake all others, and to give the
deepest affections of our heart and very being, to Him and Him alone, and to give
it in the power of His Spirit (Rom. 5:5).
Scripture declares that there was a man sent by God, whose name was John. He
was sent to bear witness of the Light, of Jesus as Redeemer, Savior, but also as
the promised Bridegroom (Hos. 2:16-17; 19-20; John 1:6-9). Isaiah prophesied and
declared, that John would be, ‘the voice of one crying in the wilderness’, the one,
who would reveal Jesus as the promised, Bridegroom Messiah (John 3:29; 1:14;
4:25; Isa. 54:4-6; 62:2-5; Hos. 2:16-17; 19-20). His very ministry bore witness to
Jesus as the long awaited Bridegroom God.
The early Church had a very strong expectation of Christ, returning as the
Bridegroom. The ancient Greek word used, to give expression to this intense,
earnest expectation, was the word, ‘Parousia’. In Afrikaans, this Greek word is
translated as a, ‘Wederkoms Verwagting’. Although ‘Parousia’ is translated into
English as, ‘presence, arrival or official visit’, it primarily denotes, the Second
Advent, or, second coming of Christ. Furthermore, it also describes the intense
emotions, which go hand in hand with the expected arrival of a long awaited
loved one.
Matthew 24, verses 3; 27; 37 and 39 read as follows, ‘Tell us when will this be,
and what will be the sign of your parousia and the close of the age? For as the
lightning shines from the east to the west, so will be the parousia of the Son of
Man. As were the days of Noah, so will be the parousia of the Son of Man. And
they did not know until the flood came and swept them all away so will be
the parousia of the Son of Man’ (1Cor. 15:23; 1Thess. 2:19; 3:13; 4:15-17; 5:23;
2Thess. 2:1; James 5:7-8; 2Pet. 1:16; 3:3-13).
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In the parable of the ten virgins (Matt. 25:1-13), Jesus captures this, ‘Parousia’, of
the ten maidens. One can assume that they all went out in the finest, bridal
apparel, beautifully adorned, with all the bells and whistles, to meet their
Bridegroom, with an intense desire to be united with Him in holy matrimony. In
Revelation 22:17, we see both the Spirit and the Bride expressing this, ‘Parousia’, a very strong longing for the return of Jesus; a strong yearning and a lovesick
craving for Christ to return. The Spirit and the Bride are actually saying, ‘Lord we
really miss you. We cannot continue life without you. Please return Lord Jesus,
please return quickly’.
I believe that the Holy Spirit is bringing the Church into a season where all of us
will develop such a strong longing, and an insatiable desire, for the return of
Jesus. And in that season, the Bride will hear Jesus say, ‘Surely, I am coming
quickly’ (Rev. 22:20).
ARRABON
The primary role and function of God the Holy Spirit, in tandem with our Heavenly
Father, is to prepare a flawless, spotless and glorious Bride for Jesus (Eph. 5:25-
32; Phil. 2:13). In salvation, Jesus asks, ‘Will you marry me’? And when we say
yes, we get born-again, and the Father gives us the Holy Spirit as a guarantee of
our inheritance in Jesus. ‘In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of
truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed
with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the
redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory’ (Eph. 1:13-14).
The Greek word for, ‘guarantee’, in this passage is, ‘Arrabon’. It describes God the
Holy Spirit as, a down payment, a deposit, a first installment, a purchase price in
advance, a pledge and as an engagement ring. As the engagement ring, the Father
gives the Spirit as a promise to us, promising, that we will be eternally united with
Christ in holy matrimony at His return. Through this, ‘Arrabon’, Jesus is saying to
us, ‘With this ring, I promise to return to you as your Bridegroom, and to be
united with you in holy matrimony for all eternity’. The Holy Spirit, as the
‘Arrabon’ of God, is also the One who stirs us in our, ‘Parousia’, for Christ, as our
beloved Bridegroom.
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‘God has prepared us for this and has given us his Spirit as a guarantee’ (2Cor. 5:5,
ISV Translation). ‘Who has placed his seal on us and has given us the Spirit in our
hearts as a down payment’ (2Cor. 1:22, ISV Translation).
‘WILL YOU MARRY ME’?
Jesus said, ‘You must be born again’ (John 3:1-8). Will you respond to His
invitation to marriage, if you have never accepted Him as Lord and as Savior? Now
is the time for your salvation.
Romans 10:9-10 says, that, if we confess with our mouths the Lord Jesus Christ,
and believe in our hearts that God has raised Him from the dead, that we will be
saved. That is, that we will receive the gift of eternal life.
For with the heart one believes unto righteousness and with the mouth
confession is made unto salvation. If you have a desire to receive Christ Jesus as
your Lord and Savior right now, then, pray this prayer with me, and in accordance
with scripture, you will be born again.
‘Heavenly Father, I acknowledge that I have sinned against You and You alone,
and I believe that my sin has separated me from You. I believe that You have given
me Your Son, Jesus Christ, to die for my sins. I believe that through His blood,
Jesus has paid for my sins, and that He brought forgiveness for all my sins.
I believe that through Your Son, I am receiving the gift of eternal life. I now
surrender all of my life, to Jesus Christ Your Son, as my Lord and my Saviour.
Lord Jesus, make me wholly Yours, as I accept You as my Lord, Master and my
Savior.
Heavenly Father, thank you, for forgiving me my sins and for blessing me with the
gift of eternal life, in Jesus Christ Your Son.
Amen!
Now that you are born-again, you are engaged to Jesus, as your coming
Bridegroom. You are now betrothed to Christ and part of His beloved Bride, the
Church.
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CHRIST THE KING ‘He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom
of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the
forgiveness of sins’ (Col. 1:13-14).
‘John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him
who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before
His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the Firstborn from the
dead, and the Ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and
washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to
His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen’ (Rev. 1:4-6).
In Chapter 18, we will discuss Daniel’s vision and experience of the inauguration
procession of Jesus, being crowned the King of kings and the Lord of lords. In his
vision, Jesus was seated at the right hand of God the Father, far above all
principality and power and might and dominion, and above every name that is
named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come (Phil. 2:9-11). In the
vision, Jesus received an everlasting kingdom, a kingdom that cannot be shaken
nor be destroyed (Dan. 7:13-14; Heb. 12:28).
We are born into this kingdom when we receive Jesus as Lord and as Savior, and
we are powerfully delivered from the kingdom of darkness, when we embrace
Jesus’ rule, authority, reign and dominion as our King (Col. 1:13-14; John 3:1-5).
Embracing Jesus ushers in His rule and His form of government into our lives and
homes. There’s a change of government, there’s a change of rule and there’s a
change of order. All things become new (2Cor. 5:17), because the King of the
kingdom, determines and sets the rule of government within His kingdom.
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There’s a need, on earth, for God to re-establish His rule and His reign, as it is in
heaven (Matt. 6:10). The need is, on earth, in our lives, in our families and at
home, and in every sphere of society as we know it.
In Matthew 6:10, Jesus teaches His disciples to pray, ‘Let your kingdom come’. This request is a very powerful invitation to the Father to come, and to establish
His rule and His form of government in our lives. The Father’s rule, initiates His
order and His authority wherever His kingdom is established. Thus the invitation,
‘Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. For Yours is
the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen’ (Matt. 6:10; 13).
In John 3:5, Jesus is saying that unless one is born-again, one will never see His
rule and His reign come into one’s life, family and home. There will be no change
of government. His rule is only established where we declare and make Him King.
Wherever we declare and make Him King, we have the right to enforce His rule of
government in our lives, family and home. Where God’s rule is not evident in a
specific area of our lives, we then, need to seek it until it comes and until it is
established by His own hand.
Jesus is set on seeing His kingdom established here on earth, as it is in heaven. His
mandate is clear, and that is, to re-establish righteousness and justice in the earth
(Ps. 97:2). The Great Commission is a directive to His Church, to see His rule of
government established here on earth as it is in heaven (Matt. 28:19).
‘For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given; and the government shall be on His
shoulder; and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God,
The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. There is no end of the increase of His
government and peace on the throne of David, and on His kingdom, to order it and
to establish it with judgment and with justice from now on, even forever. The zeal
of the Lord of Hosts will do this’ (Isa. 9:6-4).
‘Thus says the Lord, “Do not let the wise glory in his wisdom, nor let the mighty
glory in his might; nor let the rich glory in his riches; but let him who glories glory
in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord, exercising loving-
kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth; for in these I delight, says
Jehovah’ (Jer. 9:23-24).
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A day will come when all kingdoms will be subdued to the King of all kings and to
the Lord of all lords (Rev. 17:14). In that day, all of creation will bow to Jesus as
King, and all of creation will confess Him as such. In that day, His rule of
government will be forever established in the new heaven and the new earth
(Rev. 21:1).
‘Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and
glory forever and ever. Amen (1Tim. 1:17).
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4
CHRIST THE JUDGE
‘Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on
him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes
war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had
a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe
dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in
heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. Now
out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations.
And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress
of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on His robe and on His
thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS’ (Rev. 19:11-16).
THE SINNERS JUDGMENT
The present ruling on all, who does not believe in and receive, Jesus Christ in His
love, as Lord and as Savior, is one of eternal separation from the living, Lord God
Almighty. It is the Father’s burning desire that all should come to repentance in
Jesus Christ His Son. Peter, so beautifully captures the heart of the Father, when
he says, ‘The Lord is not slow concerning His promise, as some count slowness,
but is long-suffering toward us, not purposing that any should perish, but that all
should come to repentance’ (2 Peter 3:9).
‘Truly, these times of ignorance God has overlooked, but now, commands all men
to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in
righteousness by the man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to
all by raising Him from the dead’ (Acts 17:30-31).
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All those who refuse to believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and as Savior, and accept
Him as such, will be eternally separated from God. It is irrefutably true.
‘But even as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of
Man be lifted up, so that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have
everlasting life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son,
that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God
did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but so that the world
might be saved through Him. He who believes on Him is not condemned, but he
who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name
of the only-begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the Light has
come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than the Light, because their
deeds were evil’ (John 3:14-19).
THE WHITE THRONE SEAT OF JUDGMENT
Everyone who dies, without receiving Jesus Christ in His love, as Lord and as
Savior, will be eternally separated from God, and they will face Him as Judge,
when the time arrives.
‘And I saw a great white throne, and Him sitting on it, from whose face the earth
and the heaven fled away. And a place was not found for them. And I saw the dead,
the small and the great, stand before God. And books were opened, and another
book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged out of those
things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave
up the dead in it. And death and hell delivered up the dead in them. And each one
of them was judged according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the
Lake of Fire. This is the second death. And if anyone was not found having been
written in the Book of Life, he was cast into the Lake of Fire’ (Rev. 20:11-15).
AN APPOINTED DAY
God has appointed a day for judgment, and no one will be able to escape that
day. ‘He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness’.
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‘The earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them’ (Acts 17:30-31; Rev. 20:11).
WHO WILL BE JUDGED?
The believer will not face the white throne judgment seat of God. The dead, those
who did not receive and accept Jesus in His love, as Lord and as Savior, great and
small, will stand before God as Judge, and they will be judged according to their
deeds, as recorded in the books. ‘And I saw the dead, the small and the great,
stand before God. And books were opened, and another book was opened, which is
the Book of Life. And the dead were judged out of those things which were written
in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead in it. And
death and hell delivered up the dead in them. And each one of them was judged
according to their works (Rev. 20:12-13).
THE LAKE OF FIRE
‘If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the
lake of fire’ (Rev. 20:15). Everyone, whose name is not found in the Lambs Book of
Life, will be forever separated from the living, Lord God Almighty.
There will be great weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 13:37-43; 47-50). It will
be such a frightening, and a dreadful day, far beyond our imagination, for all
those who refused to receive Jesus in His love, as Lord and as Savior. ‘The angels
will come forth, separate the wicked from amongst the just and cast them into the
furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth’ (Matt. 13:49-50).
The devil, the beast, the false prophet, and death and hades, will also be cast into
the lake of fire. ‘The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and
brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented
day and night forever and ever. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of
fire. This is the second death’ (Rev. 20:10; 14).
In that day, the final execution of all things, already subdued to the authority, the
rule and the reign of Jesus Christ as King, will be concluded (Eph. 1:15-23).
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THE BELIEVER’S JUDGMENT AS SINNER
The judgment of the believer as sinner is already finished. Jesus was judged on
behalf of the believer, and the judgment and the punishment that was due us,
Christ took upon Himself (Isa. 53; 2Cor. 5:21). The Father demonstrated His justice
by sending Jesus to the cross, and He demonstrated His love by giving Jesus as a
gift to mankind (John 3:16; Rom. 3:23-26). In Christ’s death, God reckons the
believer already judged. Christ was judged on our behalf, and in Him, we are
declared righteous and guiltless (Col. 1:20).
In Jesus, the Father’s wrath was appeased and the believer now stands guiltless
before a just and righteous God (Rom. 3:23-26; Isa. 53:4-5; 10). Because of Jesus,
the believer will not appear before the great, white throne seat of judgment, to
face God, as Judge. To the believer, He is now Father and no longer Judge. ‘He
that hears My Word and believes Him that sent Me, has eternal life and comes not
into judgment but has passed out of death into life’ (John 5:2).
THE BELIEVER’S DISCIPLINE AS A SON
‘And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons, "My son,
despise not the chastening (discipline) of the Lord, nor faint when you are rebuked
by Him; for whom the Lord loves He chastens (disciplines), and He scourges every
son whom He receives.” If you endure chastening (discipline), God deals with you
as with sons, for what son is he whom the father does not chasten (discipline)?
(Heb. 12:5-7).
The believer no longer stands as a sinner before God, but as a son. As a son, he is
no longer awaiting the white throne, judgment seat of God, as described in
Revelation 20:11-15. He is a child in the Father’s house, and is therefore, subject
to the Father’s rule and present discipline as exercised in His house (John 15:1-2;
Heb. 3:1-6).
‘Behold what manner of love the Father has given us, that we should be called
children of God. Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know
Him’ (1John 3:1).
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THE JUDMENT SEAT OF CHRIST
‘For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may
receive the things done through the body, according to that which he has done,
whether good or bad’ (2Cor. 5:10).
THE BELIEVER’S JUDGMENT AT THE SEAT OF CHRIST
Jesus, not only calls us sons of the kingdom, but He also calls us servants of the
kingdom. Every believer has been assigned as a steward in the kingdom, and has
been, ‘entrusted with the Master’s goods’ (Matt. 25:14; 1Pet. 4:10). Each one of us
will therefore, appear before the judgment seat of Christ, the seat, where the
reward and the recompense of our service to Jesus will be made known.
The judgment seat of Christ is not the place where Jesus will mete out
punishment for sins committed. This place is not punitive at all, but it is the place
where rewards will be given, or lost, depending on how we have lived our lives
before God (1Cor. 3:10-15). Secondly, this place is also the place where every
believer will have to give an account of their lives (Rev. 22:12). Jesus will review,
examine, declare and reward what has pleased Him in, ‘that Day’ (2Tim. 4:8). Paul
says, ‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.
Now there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the
righteous Judge, shall give me at that Day; and not to me only, but also to all those
who love His appearing’ (2Tim. 4:7-8).
At the judgment seat of Christ, believers will be rewarded with crowns (2Tim. 4:7-
8; James 1:12; 1Pet. 5:4; Rev. 2:10; 3:11); treasures (Matt. 6:19-20) and receive
tribute, respect and honor (Matt. 25:21; Lk. 19:17); they will be rewarded for
overcoming (Rev. 2:7; 11; 17; 26; 3:5; 12; 21; 21:7), and they will be rewarded
with responsibilities and authority as faithful stewards to rule and to reign with
Christ in His eternal kingdom (Matt. 19:28; 24:45-47; 25:21; 23; Lk. 19:17-19;
22:29-30; Rev. 2:26).
‘And I saw a new heaven and a new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth
had passed away. And the sea no longer is. And I, John, saw the holy city, New
Jerusalem, coming down from God out of Heaven, prepared as a Bride adorned for
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her Husband. And I heard a great voice out of Heaven saying, Behold, the
tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they will be His
people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe
away all tears from their eyes. And there will be no more death, nor mourning, nor
crying out, nor will there be any more pain; for the first things passed away. And
He sitting on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.
And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful”. And He said to
me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him
who thirsts I will give of the fountain of the Water of Life freely. He who overcomes
will inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he will be My son. But the fearful,
and the unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and
sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, will have their part in the Lake burning with
fire and brimstone, which is the second death”’ (Rev. 21:1-8).
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5
FIRST THINGS FIRST
RECEIVING THE HOLY SPIRIT
‘However, when He, the Spirit of truth has come, He will guide you into all truth
… He will glorify Me’ (John 16:13-14).
Scripture makes it very clear that we cannot know, nor understand Jesus Christ
apart from God the Holy Spirit. ‘No one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus
accursed and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit’
(1Cor. 12:3). ‘No one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God’ (1Cor. 2:11(b)-10).
He is the Anointing that will teach us concerning all things (1John 2:20 & 27;
John 16:13-15). He glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ and He will show us of things to
come (John 16:13-15).
TWO EXPERIENCES
There are two distinct experiences with and in God the Holy Spirit. First, the
‘Born-Again’ experience (John 20:21-22; Titus 3:4-5; John 3:5-8; Eph. 1:13-14) and
secondly, the ‘Baptism of Empowerment’ (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:8; 2:1-4).
The Born-Again Experience (Salvation)
In John 20:22, we see Jesus breathing on the disciples to receive the Holy Spirit. I
believe that this was their born-again experience in and with God the Holy Spirit.
In John 3:3-8, Jesus makes it very clear that no one can enter into the Kingdom of
God unless they are born-again (Acts 2:37-39). The disciples had to be born again
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and this was their moment of receiving the gift of eternal life in Jesus Christ as
Lord and as Saviour. Our journey in the Kingdom starts with salvation in Jesus, as
Lord and as Savior.
Titus 3:5 says that, ‘He saved us, through the washing of regeneration (the born
again experience) and renewing of the Holy Spirit’.
Then, Jesus commands his disciples to go and wait for the baptism of
empowerment in and with the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:5 & 8). This second
experience with the Spirit of the Sovereign Lord God Almighty is, as important as
the born again experience.
Receiving the Empowerment of the Spirit
In Luke 11:9-13, Jesus encourages us to ask the Father for the Gift of the Holy
Spirit (Matt. 7:7-8).
Once we’ve asked, we need to understand that Jesus Christ is the Baptiser. He
baptises us with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Matt. 3:11).
In scripture, the baptism of empowerment can be received in various ways.
Through the laying on of hands (Acts 8:14-17; 19:6), through prayer (Acts 4:31)
and through the preaching of the Word (Acts 10:44-45; 11:15-16). Please
remember, that God remains sovereign and He ultimately decides how He will
give the Holy Spirit to those who asks of Him for His precious Spirit.
Once we have asked for the Gift of the Holy Spirit, we need to receive Him by
Faith. We need to believe that we have received Him in the fullness of His love
and of His power (Mark 16:17-18; John 7:37-39; Rom. 5:5). Then, we need to
Expect His love and power to manifest in our lives (Luke 24:49; Acts 2:1-4; 4:31).
JESUS SETS THE EXAMPLE
Jesus was fully God and fully Man, but as man, He needed the baptism of
empowerment from the Father (Matt. 3:16; Hebrews 5:7; 1Tim. 3:16). In Luke
4:18, Jesus equates His ministry of love and power, to the Anointing or the
empowerment of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38).
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6
THE BELIEVER’S BAPTISM Jesus said, ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the
name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey all
things that I have commanded you’ (Matt. 28:19-20).
The qualification for the believer’s baptism, or water baptism as we know it, is
salvation. In Acts 38:36-38, we see how the Ethiopian Eunuch, first comes to
salvation, before he is baptised in water. ‘And the Eunuch said, “See, here is
water. What hinders me from being baptized?” Then Philip said, “If you believe
with all your heart, you may”. And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus
Christ is the Son of God” ... And both Philip and the Eunuch went down into the
water and he baptized him’ (Acts 8:36-38).
Peter on the day of Pentecost, first ministers the message of salvation, and then
urges the crowd to be baptised. ‘Then Peter said to them, repent and be baptized,
every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ to remission of sins, and you shall
receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’ (Acts 2:38).
It’s important to note that salvation is an individual choice and that no man or
woman can make the choice for you or for me (John 3:1-8 & 14-17). This brings us
to baby dedication. Baby dedication is not the believer’s baptism, or water
baptism, because salvation is not the focus of the ceremony, nor can be, because
the baby cannot exercise his or her will to choose to accept Christ as Lord and
Savior.
Baby dedication, however, is a promise that the parents of the baby make unto
God, to raise their child in the fear of Lord, and that, this upbringing will facilitate
the salvation of the child in Christ Jesus and in Him alone. The believer’s baptism,
or water baptism, is the act of consummation that celebrates the fulfillment of
this promise, which the parents made unto the Lord.
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Let me paint this picture. If salvation would represent the wedding ceremony,
then, the believer’s baptism or water baptism would represent the act of
consummation. Just as the sexual act consummates, the marriage ceremony after
the wedding vows have been exchanged, so does the act of the believer’s
baptism, consummate our parents vows unto Jesus, to raise us in the fear of the
Lord. The believer’s baptism, or water baptism, is one of the first natural steps of
obedience to take, in our journey of faith (Acts 2:38; John 3:1-8).
Hebrews 6:1-2 says, ‘Therefore, leaving behind the elementary teachings about
Christ, let us continue to be carried along to maturity, not laying again a
foundation of repentance from dead works, faith toward God, instruction about
baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal
judgment’. It’s important to note that the doctrine of the baptism of water and
the doctrine of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is implied in this text (Matt. 3:11;
28:19-20). Jesus Himself was setting an example for us, when He allowed John to
baptise Him in Matthew 3:14-15. We have been called to become disciples of
Jesus Christ; we have been called to go and to make disciples of Him and of Him
alone. We are not called to make disciples of a man, a Church, a doctrine or a
specific way of life. We have been called to follow His example and His alone.
1Cor. 11:1 says, ‘Be … followers of me, even as I am also of Christ’. Paul’s
qualification was thus, ‘follow me as I follow Christ’. Was he making disciples of
himself, or was he making disciples of Jesus Christ? Look at Paul’s passion and his
focus in making disciples, when he says, ‘For I am jealous over you with godly
jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one man, to present you as a pure virgin to
Christ’ (2Cor. 11:2) (MKJV). ‘The thing that has me so upset is that I care about
you so much-this is the passion of God burning inside me! I promised your hand in
marriage to Christ, presenting you as a pure virgin to her husband’ (2Cor. 11:2)
(MSG). ‘My little children I labor for you in birth until Christ is formed in you’ (Gal. 4:19).
It’s clear that Paul’s sole desire was to make disciples of Jesus Christ and of Him
alone. Paul was never the focus of this discipleship making process. Let us
therefore, follow his example as he followed Christ. Jesus was water baptised and
Paul followed His example. What prevents us then, from following the same
example of Jesus in being baptised in water? What prevents you? Did Jesus not
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command us to ‘obey Him in all things’ (Matthew 28:19-20)? Please note that the
believer’s baptism, is an act of loving obedience to Jesus as our Lord and Savior.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE BELIEVER’S BAPTISM
The believer’s baptism first and foremost signifies our eternal identification with
the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Rom. 6:1-14). On the cross,
Christ fully identified Himself with us in our sin (2Cor. 5:21). Through the
believer’s baptism, we fully identify with Christ in His righteousness, and we
publically declare before all of creation, that we are now the righteousness of God
in Christ Jesus.
‘Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into His death, that just as
Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should
walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His
death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this,
that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away
with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died, has been freed
from sin’ (Rom. 6:4-7).
This public identification with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, declares
that Jesus became for us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption
from God (1Cor. 1:30). 2Corinthians 5:21 says that, ‘He … made Him who knew
no sin, to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him’. A
divine exchange has taken place on the cross; my sin was exchanged for His
righteousness, and my foolishness was exchanged for His wisdom.
Through the act of water baptism, we acknowledge, that is, we come into
agreement with the complete work of Christ on the cross as the complete
redemptive work of the Father. Nothing can be added to it and nothing can be
taken from it. In Christ, we have been justified, and that means, to be declared
righteous before a holy God. Christ was judged for us (Isa. 53) and in Him, we are
declared righteous (justified - Rom. 5:9), as if, we have never sinned and declared
guiltless by God.
In Christ, we are therefore, declared holy, righteous and just in the sight of the
living God (Eph. 1:3-12). ‘In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision
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made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the
circumcision of Christ, buried with Him in baptism, in whom also you were
raised through the faith of the working of God, raising Him from the dead. And
you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made
alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the
handwriting of requirements (ordinances) that was against us, which was contrary
to us, and has taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross’ (Col. 2:11-14).
Publicly, we also declare our allegiance, to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and
that the Father, ‘has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into
the Kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His
blood, the forgiveness of sins’ (Col. 1:13-14). We publically declare, that Satan no
longer owns us; we publically declare, that we are no longer children of darkness,
but of the kingdom of the Son of God, and we publically declare Jesus’ victory
over Satan and his kingdom (Col. 2:15).
The believer’s baptism is also an outward sign of an inward work. Colossians 2:11-
12 says that, God came and circumcised our hearts (Ezek. 36:24-27; Heb. 8:10).
It’s therefore, a public declaration and an acknowledgement, that we stand in an
eternal, irrevocable and unchangeable, blood covenant with our heavenly Father
through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
God makes a personal, one on one covenant with us, when we receive Jesus as
Lord and Savior. He personally comes and circumcises our hearts, through Jesus
His Son. The believer’s baptism publically announces this personal, one on one,
blood covenant, that we have with the Most High God.
For every blood covenant God gives a sign in the natural with a spiritual impact.
God clothed Adam and Eve with the skin of an animal (Gen. 3:21); God gave the
rainbow to Noah (Gen. 9:13); God gave circumcision to Abraham (Gen. 17:11); the
wedding ring, is a sign that a man and a woman stands in a blood covenant
relationship with each other (Heb. 13:4), and so does water baptism signifies our
personal covenant relationship with our heavenly Father.
The believer’s baptism is not just an act of loving obedience. It also bears
testimony and witness to the complete work of Jesus Christ on the cross, and it
bears witness and testimony of His complete work of redemption in the life of the
believer (Titus 2:11-14; Rev. 1:4-6).
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7
GOD IS SPIRIT John 4:24 says, ‘God is Spirit’. It’s important to understand, that everything that
proceeds from God, is spirit in essence and in nature. Jesus, in John 6:63,
continues to establish this basic truth of life, when He says, ‘it is the Spirit who
gives life … the words that I speak to you, are Spirit and they are life’. It’s
imperative, that we comprehend the profoundness of this truth, that, everything
that proceeds from God, is first spirit, in essence and in nature.
All of scripture is God breathed (2Tim. 3:16). It contains the very life of God in it. It
is Spirit in its essence and in its nature, and is therefore, life-giving and powerful
(Heb. 4:12; John 1:1-3; Rom. 8:11). Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the
Word of God (Romans 10:17). The eternal Word, accompanied by the Holy Spirit’s
presence, has the power to awaken our spirit senses, and specifically, our spiritual
sense of hearing (Isaiah 50:4-5; John 10:1-5’ Eph. 1:15-18).
God is spirit and everything that proceeds from Him, is spiritually discerned and
spiritually received. Scripture, visions, dreams and the gifts of the Spirit, can only
be spiritually received, grasped and understood. It’s not a natural, mental
understanding, but a spiritual understanding, that only God the Holy Spirit can
bring (1Cor. 2:9-16). Jesus said to Peter, ‘flesh and blood did not reveal this to you
but my Father in heaven’ (Matt. 16:17).
God created us in His image and in His likeness (Gen. 1:26-27). In essence, we are
spirit beings, living in a natural body, with a soul to will, to think and to feel
(1Thess. 5:23). Only the born-again, human spirit, can receive, grasp and
understand the things of God through the Holy Spirit. ‘But the natural man does
not receive the things of the Spirit of God for they are foolishness to him; nor can he
know them because they are spiritually discerned (1Cor. 2:14). He who is spiritual,
judges (discerns) all things’ (1Cor. 2:15; Prov. 20:27).
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THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM AND REVELATION
In Eph. 1:15-18, Paul prays the following prayer, ‘Therefore I also, hearing of your
faith in the Lord Jesus and love to all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you,
making mention of you in my prayers, that the … Father of glory may give to you
the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your
understanding being enlightened’.
The Holy Spirit, as the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation, touches two faculties of
our spiritual make up. He touches the faculty of our spiritual understanding, to
grasp and to comprehend spiritual things (1Cor. 2:14). He also touches, the
faculty of our spirit senses, to perceive, to receive and to discern spiritual things
(1Cor. 2:9-16; Heb. 5:14).
The eyes of our understanding are powerfully touched and opened by the Spirit of
God, as the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation. He is the One who causes us to see,
hear, perceive, know, understand and grasp spiritual things.
None of us will ever grasp, nor comprehend spiritual things, unless God the Holy
Spirit reveals it to us (1Cor. 2:11), and He does so, as the Spirit of Wisdom and
Revelation.
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8
THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 1Cor. 12:7-11
In 1Cor. 12:1, Paul urges us not to be ignorant concerning spiritual gifts, but to
earnestly desire them (1Cor. 12:31). In verse one, He says, ‘now concerning
spiritual gifts … I do not want you to be ignorant’, and in verse 31, he continues
to say, ‘earnestly desire the best gifts’.
The gifts of the Spirit is given to every believer, to build up, exhort and comfort
the Church (1Cor. 14:3), and secondly, it’s given for the fulfillment of the Great
Commission (Matt. 28:19-20; 1Cor. 14:24-25).
The gifts are received, when we experience the baptism of empowerment, in the
Holy Ghost (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:8; 2:1-4). It’s important to understand, that the
gifts of the Spirit, is a manifestation of the person of God the Holy Spirit, to profit
all, both the Church and the unbeliever (1Cor. 12:7; 14:24-25).
The Holy Spirit chooses which gift will be received by whom (1Cor. 12:11), thus
Paul’s question, in 1Cor. 12:30, ‘Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with
tongues? Do all interpret’? The Holy Spirit is the Giver of the gifts; He chooses
which gift will be received by whom.
Paul makes it very clear, that the gifts of the Spirit should be desired by every
believer. ‘Earnestly desire the best gifts’ (1Cor. 12:31); ‘Pursue love and desire
Spiritual Gifts’ (1Cor. 14:1); ‘Since you are zealous for Spiritual Gifts’
(1Cor. 14:12); ‘desire earnestly to prophesy’ (1Cor. 14:39; Psalm 21:2; Ps. 37:4;
Matt. 7:7-11). The gifts should be desired to impact lives. We need to understand,
that walking in the gifts, opens up the door for God’s kingdom to come, on earth
as it is in heaven (Matt. 6:10; 12:22-28).
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THE NINE PRIMARY GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
1Cor. 14:1 says, ‘Pursue love and desire spiritual gifts’. There are nine gifts of the
Holy Spirit listed in 1Cor. 12:7-11. They are, the Gift of the Word of Knowledge;
the Gift of the Word of Wisdom; the Gift of Discernment; the Gift of Tongues; the
Gift of the Interpretation of tongues; the Gift of Prophecy; the Gift of Faith; the
Gift of Healings and the Gift of the Working of Miracles.
The Gifts of the Spirit is for the profit of all (1Cor. 12:7) and are for the edification,
exhortation and comfort of the Church and the unbeliever (1Cor. 14:3, 12, 24-25).
Paul makes it clear, that we should be zealous for and seek to excel in spiritual
gifts, for the edification of the Church (1Cor. 14:12; Isa. 11:2; Rom.10:2).
The Gifts of the Spirit can be grouped as follows:
THE REVELATORY GIFTS THE INSPIRATIONAL GIFTS THE POWER GIFTS
Knowledge Tongues Faith
Wisdom Interpretation Healings
Discernment Prophecy Miracles
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9
THE REVELATORY GIFTS The revelatory gifts are gifts that reveal something. It is when God informs us of
things. It is the Gift of the Word of Knowledge, the Gift of the Word of Wisdom
and the Gift of Discernment.
The Word of Knowledge
The Word of Knowledge reveals something about the past or the present. It is
supernatural insight into a person’s yesterday, or today, or insight about places,
or circumstances, or insight concerning spiritual entities.
Scriptural Examples: John 4:5-30; Acts 5:1-11; Acts 9:10-16; Acts 16:16.
The Word of Wisdom
Scripture reveals two kinds of wisdom. God’s wisdom for daily living (James 1:5;
3:13-18; Proverbs 2) and God’s wisdom concerning the future that proceeds from
His foreknowledge (Ephesians 3:10; 1Cor. 2:6-10).
The Gift of the Word of Wisdom taps into the foreknowledge of God and reveals
something about the future. It is supernatural insight into the foreknowledge of
God concerning a person, a people group, a nation, a family, a place or a city.
Scriptural Examples: John 1:32-33; Luke 19:40-44; Acts 21:10-11; Romans 8:29;
Jer. 1:5; Ps. 139:16; Eph. 2:10
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The Discerning of Spirits
The Gift of the Discerning of Spirits reveals or opens up the spirit world to us. It is
supernatural insight, or the ability to see, into the realm of the spirit. Spirit
entities are discerned or disclosed by the Holy Spirit.
Hebrews 5:14 says that we can exercise and develop a natural, spiritual ability of
discernment. This is not the Gift of the Discerning of Spirits in operation, but our
natural, spiritual ability to discern spiritual things (1Cor. 2:14-15).
Scriptural Examples: Matt. 16:22-23; Acts 8:18-23; Acts 27:23-24; Rev. 1:10-18
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10
THE VERBAL GIFTS The verbal gifts, oral or inspirational, are gifts that are spoken. It is when God
speaks through us. It is the Gift of Prophecy, the Gift of Speaking in Tongues and
the Gift of the Interpretation of Tongues.
The Gift of Prophecy
Prophecy is supernatural utterance, that communicates the heart and the mind of
God (1Cor. 2:16), concerning a person, a people group, a nation, a family, a place
or a city, at a specific moment in time. It communicates how God feels about a
person, a people group, a nation, a family, a place or a city, in the now, present
moment.
Prophecy is given for the edification, exhortation and comfort of the Church
(1Cor. 14:3) and for the unsaved (1Cor. 14:24-25). The Gift of Prophecy is
confirmation and not revelation. It confirms what God has already spoken to the
human spirit (Romans 8:16; 10:8).
When the prophetic moves into the realm of revelation, the Gift of the Word of
Wisdom is in operation. God is giving insight into His foreknowledge concerning
the future. Now, revelation is experienced and not confirmation.
Scriptural Examples: Matt. 5:3-10; Matt. 16:17-19; Acts 9:15-19; Acts 26:12-18
The Gift of Speaking in Tongues and the Gift of the
Interpretation of Tongues
The speaking in tongues is one of the most controversial and most misunderstood
topics in the Body of Christ. It’s important to note that Paul makes a distinction
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between, the gift of tongues (1Cor. 12:10) and what I will call, tongues as the
‘voice’ of the born-again, human spirit (1Cor. 14:14). One is a superlative ability,
that is, the gift of tongues. The other, is a natural, spiritual ability and that is, the
‘voice’ of the born-again, human spirit.
We all have the natural ability to run, but not everyone has the superlative ability
to be a 100m sprinter. The same logic applies to tongues as discussed in 1Cor. 12,
13 and 14. We can all speak in tongues, but not everyone functions in the gift of
tongues (1Cor. 12:11; 30).
Before we attempt to understand what Paul is saying, we first have to
differentiate, when Paul is referring to the gift of tongues, and when, he is talking
about tongues, as the ‘voice’ of the born-again, human spirit. For example, is Paul
referring to the gift of tongues in 1Cor. 12:30 or to the ‘voice’ of the human spirit?
In 1Cor. 14:2, is he referring to the ‘voice’ of the human spirit or to the gift of
tongues? If we can make this distinction, then, understanding the speaking of
tongues will be as easy as understanding, that one plus one equals two.
This brings us to the Gift of Speaking in Tongues and the Gift of the Interpretation
of Tongues.
The gift of tongues is one of the nine primary gifts of the Holy Spirit (1Cor. 12:7-
11). It’s important to note that the gift of tongues will always manifest together
with the gift of the interpretation of tongues, thus Paul’s referral to both in
1Cor. 12:30.
The gift of tongues, is supernatural utterance that God the Holy Spirit gives to the
speaker, to communicate that which is either unknown to himself and his hearers,
as the tongues of angels (1Cor. 13:1; Mark 16:17), or, known to the hearers, but
unknown to himself, as the tongues of men (1Cor. 13:1; Acts 2:11-12).
The gift of tongues, together with, the gift of the interpretation of tongues
(1Cor. 12:10; 14:27-28), is given to edify, exhort and comfort both the Church and
the unbeliever (1Cor. 14:3).
The gift of the interpretation of tongues operates when the Holy Spirit gives the
interpretation through utterance of what was said through the gift of tongues
(Acts 2:11-12).
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Not everyone will function in the gift of Tongues, or in the gift of the
Interpretation of Tongues (1Cor. 12:11; 30).
TONGUES AS THE ‘VOICE’ OF THE BORN-AGAIN SPIRIT
‘If I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my understanding is unfruitful
(1Cor.14:14). For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God for
no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries (1Cor. 14:2).
He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself (1Cor. 14:4). What is the conclusion
then? I will pray with the spirit and I will also pray with the understanding. I will
sing with the spirit and I will also sing with the understanding’ (1Cor. 14:15).
I believe that all can speak in tongues, but that not everyone will function in the
gift of speaking in tongues. Paul says in 1Cor. 14:5, ‘I wish you all spoke with
tongues, but even more that you prophesied’ (1Cor. 14:18-19).
The speaking in tongues is released with the baptism of empowerment
(Acts 2:1-4), yet, not everyone experience a release into it for various reasons.
Some may have a fear of speaking in tongues, some may not have a clear
understanding of tongues, and others may believe in wrong doctrine concerning
tongues.
Tongues, however, remains a gift from the Spirit, and He will never force the
speaking of tongues on anyone. We have to choose it. Not speaking in tongues,
does not mean, that we are not baptised in the Holy Spirit. Secondly, the Lord will
neither judge nor condemn us if we do not speak in tongues. But, we need to
understand, that every good gift and every perfect gift comes from the Father
(James 1:17), and if, tongues comes from Him, then, it can only be a good and a
perfect gift given, with a specific purpose, and it is therefore, to be desired by all
believers. The saying, ‘reject the gift and you reject the giver’, is also true, and we
need to be very careful, as to how we respond to the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
WHY TONGUES?
The speaking in tongues is the doorway, which leads us out of the familiar and out
of the natural realm, into the realm of the spirit. It’s the doorway to experiencing
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God on His level (Isa. 55:8-9), which is a spiritual dimension (John 4:24;
Gen. 1:26-27). This is the dimension where we walk by faith and not by sight
(2Cor. 5:7).
Tongues are for worship and intimacy (John 4:24; Acts 10:46; 1Cor. 14:2, 15);
communion and fellowship with the Holy Spirit (2Cor. 13:14; Phil. 1:1); edification
and Spiritual growth (1Cor. 14:4; Jude 20); discernment (Heb. 5:14; 1Cor. 2:14);
spiritual understanding and revelation (1Cor. 14:2, 13; 2:15-16); intercession
(Rom. 8:26-27), and for direction and instruction (Rom. 8:16; Gal. 5:25;
John 16:13).
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11
THE POWER GIFTS The power gifts are gifts that manifest the power and might of God. It is God
working through us. It is the Gifts of Healings, the Gift of the Working of Miracles
and the Gift of Faith.
The Gifts of Healings
These Gifts are the manifestation of the healing power of Jesus Christ through the
believer. It’s the supernatural healing of sicknesses and diseases without any
natural intervention (Mark 9:1-2).
Luke 5:17 says that, ‘The power of the Lord was present to heal’. Please note that
these gifts are in its plural form, because there is a diversity of gifts concerning
healing (1Cor. 12:9, 30).
Scriptural Examples: The Gospel of Mark; The Book of Acts; Acts 10:38
The Gift of the Working of Miracles
This Gift manifests through the believer when the Holy Spirit displays the power
and the might of God contrary to the laws of nature. It’s impossible to turn water
into wine, but Jesus did; it’s impossible to walk on water, but Jesus did.
Scriptural Examples: John 2:1-11; Acts 5:14-15; Acts 19:11-12
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The Gift of Faith
This Gift is not natural spiritual faith, as seen in 2Cor. 5:7 and Rom. 1:17 (b). This
gift manifests through the believer, when the Holy Spirit lays hold of his or her
faith to believe that whatever God wants to manifest in the now moment, will
come to pass, at that precise moment, beyond a shadow of a doubt. This Gift is
accompanied with great confidence and boldness, but not arrogance.
Scriptural Examples: Mark 4:36-39; Acts 3:1-7
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12
DECENTLY AND IN ORDER
‘Let all things be done decently and in order’ (1Cor. 14:40). Paul devotes three
chapters (1Cor. 12; 13 & 14) to the gifts of the Spirit and more specifically to
tongues and prophecy. He gives clear directives as to how the gifts of the Spirit
should be administered within the body of Christ.
In 1Cor. 12 Paul mentions the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit. In chapter 13, he lays
the foundation for the gifts, which is love, and in chapter 14, he gives clear
instructions for the administration of the gifts.
The gifts of the Spirit are for the profit of all (1Cor. 12:7). It’s for the edification,
exhortation and comfort of the Church and the unbeliever (1Cor. 14:3, 12, 24-25).
TONGUES
The gift of tongues must be accompanied with the gift of the interpretation of
tongues, when it is administered in a Church setting. If there is no interpretation,
then, the one with the tongue, should remain silent (1Cor. 14:27-28).
Paul encourages the speaking of tongues, that is, the ‘voice’ of the human spirit,
but he indicates clearly, as to when, where and why (1Cor. 14:2, 4-19).
1Cor. 14:39 says that we should, ‘not forbid’ the speaking of tongues.
PROPHECY
Prophecy should be desired (1Cor. 14:1, 39) and in a Church setting, it can happen
on three levels. All can prophesy at the same time (1Cor. 14:24. This is when the
Spirit of prophecy is in operation - Rev. 19:10), or, two or three prophets can
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speak the word of the Lord (1Cor. 14:29. This is when the office of the Prophet is
in operation - Eph. 4:11), or, all can prophesy one by one (1Cor. 14:31. This is
when the Gift of prophecy is in operation - 1Cor. 12:10). Paul makes it very clear
that all prophecy should be judged (1Cor. 14:29). We judge or test (1John 4:1)
prophecy through Scripture (Prov. 30:5-6), the Spirit witness (Rom. 8:16), the
peace of God (Phil. 4:4-7), God’s character (1Cor. 13:4-7) and through the
testimony of two or three witnesses (2Cor. 13:1).
The guidelines for the gifts of the Spirit, and specifically for tongues and prophecy
are very simple and easy to understand, when 1Cor. 12-14 is studied in its proper
context.
‘God is not the author of confusion but of peace’ (1Cor. 14:33). I believe, that God
is not only the author of peace, but also the author of simplicity.
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13
THE BELIEVER’S AUTHORITY
The believer’s authority is very real. In Jesus, we have imputed authority
(Matt. 28:18) to, ‘trample on serpents and scorpions’, and we have authority, ‘over
all the power of the enemy’, with the promise that, ’nothing shall by any means
hurt’, us (Luke 10:19; Luke 9:1-2; Mark 16:14-18).
In Luke 9:1-2, Jesus sends His disciples with a specific mandate. He authorized and
deputized them to, ‘preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick’. Verse one
says that Jesus, ‘gave them power and authority over all demons’. As believers, we
have received the same authority over all the power of the enemy and we have
no need to fear him (2Cor. 10:3-6). Every knee must bow to the name of Jesus,
when we exercise the authority that is locked up in His name (Phil. 2:9-11).
We live in a two dimensional reality (1Cor. 15:39-49; Eph. 6:12; 2Cor. 10:3-4).
There is a natural dimension or the seen world, and there is a spiritual dimension,
or the unseen world. The unseen world is that reality of life which lies beyond the
perception of sense knowledge, and that is experienced through our spirit senses.
The natural world is that reality of life, that we experience daily, through our
natural senses of taste, smell, sight, hearing and touch.
God created us in His image and in His likeness (Gen. 1:26-27). In essence, we are
spirit beings, living in a natural body with a soul to will, to think and to feel
(1Thess. 5:23). In the natural realm we walk by sight and in the spiritual realm we
walk by faith (2Cor. 5:7). It’s important to note that Jesus is the only Door into the
spirit world (John 10:1-2; Luke 10:19-20; Matt. 28:18). Operating in the spiritual
realm, is either legitimate (1Cor. 12:3; Luke 4:18; Acts 10:38) or illegitimate
(Acts 16:16-19; 19:19-20). Occultic practices like magic, exorcism, horoscopes,
hypnosis or fortune telling are all practices that access the spirit world
illegitimately.
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To access the spirit world legitimately, we must be born again in Jesus Christ as
our Lord and Savior, and secondly, we must be filled with God the Holy Spirit. We
only engage the spirit world, when the Holy Spirit leads us into it. In Matthew 4:1,
we see how God the Holy Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by
the devil, and in Luke 11:20, we see how Jesus cast’s out demons by the ‘finger’ of
God, or by God the Holy Spirit.
Jesus and Paul was well known in the spirit world (Acts 19:11-15). The Sons of
Sceva, however, was not known in the spirit world and when they tried to cast out
an evil spirit, the spirit overpowered them and wounded them (Acts 19:13-16). It’s
imperative to understand that we, not only, bear God the Holy Spirit as the seal of
authority in the spirit world (Eph. 1:13-14; Acts 19:15), but that we also need to
be led by the Holy Spirit in all spiritual matters.
The believer has received tremendous authority in both realms, and we need to
understand that Jesus gave us the keys of the kingdom, and whatever we bind on
earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever we loose on earth will be loosed in
heaven (Matt. 16:19).
Paul confirms our spiritual authority, when he says that, ‘we are seated with
Christ, who is the head of all principality and power’ (Eph. 2:6; Col. 2:10). The
spiritual authority of the believer is very real, and should not be underestimated.
When we pray for people things happen. James 5:16 (b) says, ‘The effective,
fervent prayer of the righteous … avails much’.
It’s from this place of spiritual authority in Christ Jesus, that we function when we
operate in the Anointing and in the power of God the Holy Spirit.
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14
LAYING HOLD OF CHRIST
PHILLIPPIANS 3 - THE MESSAGE BIBLE
‘Even though we can list what many might think are impressive credentials. You
know my pedigree: a legitimate birth, circumcised on the eighth day; an Israelite
from the elite tribe of Benjamin; a strict and devout adherent to God's law; a fiery
defender of the purity of my religion, even to the point of persecuting Christians; a
meticulous observer of everything set down in God's law Book.
The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I'm
tearing up and throwing out with the trash--along with everything else I used to
take credit for. And why? Because of Christ.
Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life.
Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, first-hand,
everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant--dog dung. I've
dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I
didn't want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a
list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ--
God's righteousness.
I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his
resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to
death itself. If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I
wanted to do it. I'm not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made.
But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached
out for me.
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Friends, don't get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of
this, but I've got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward--to Jesus.
I'm off and running, and I'm not turning back.
So let's keep focused on that goal (laying hold of Christ), those of us who want
everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something
less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision--you'll see it yet!
Now that we're on the right track, let's stay on it. Stick with me, friends. Keep
track of those you see running this same course, headed for this same goal. There
are many out there taking other paths, choosing other goals, and trying to get you
to go along with them. I've warned you of them many times; sadly, I'm having to
do it again. All they want is easy street. They hate Christ's Cross.
But easy street is a dead-end street. Those who live there make their bellies their
gods; belches are their praise; all they can think of is their appetites. But there's far
more to life for us. We're citizens of high heaven! We're waiting the arrival of the
Savior, the Master, Jesus Christ, who will transform our earthy bodies into
glorious bodies like his own. He'll make us beautiful and whole with the same
powerful skill by which he is putting everything as it should be, under and around
him.’
Paul makes it very clear that Jesus should become our ultimate pursuit in life, and
that He should become our life’s mission. Jesus is so much more than just being
the proverbial, ‘spice of life’, and that, was Paul’s message to the Philippians. He
therefore, urges us to pursue Jesus in everything we do, in every season of life, in
every trial, in every storm and in every temptation that comes our way.
It’s our privilege to know Jesus personally, to experience His resurrection power
daily, and to know Him on a first-hand basis. We are challenged by Paul, to lay
hold of Christ regardless the cost, and to make Him our ultimate goal, our
ultimate mission and purpose in life.
In hymns like ‘Amazing Grace’, ‘I Surrender All’, ‘How Great Thou Art’ and so
many more, we see how the glory of Christ is reflected verse by verse. We see
how His glory is reflected, in the praise, the pain and the suffering of the authors.
We see His glory reflected in their trials and their failures.
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We are therefore, challenged to pursue Christ like they did, relentlessly. We are
challenged to pursue Christ, until He lays hold of us in the midst of our addictions
and bondage; until He lays hold of us in the midst of our doubts and fears; until
He lays hold of us in the midst of our trials and failures and until He breaks
through our selfishness and self-centeredness as the glorified Christ.
The glory of the resurrected Christ was known by these men and women, and we
can know it too. We can ‘know Christ Jesus as Master, first-hand’. We can ‘know
Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering
and go all the way with him to death itself’. It is attainable, in Him and through
Him. Paul said, ‘For I determined not to know anything among you, except Jesus
Christ and Him crucified’ (1Cor. 2:2).
Let us therefore, make Jesus our life’s mission and let us always be in pursuit of
His Majesty, regardless the cost, and let us pursue Him, until He lays hold of us in
everything we are and do.
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15
COLOSSIANS 1:15-17
‘(Christ) is the image of the invisible God, the First-born of all creation. For all
things were created in Him, the things in the heavens, and the things on the earth,
the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or
powers, all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all
things, and by Him all things consist’.
What we believe about Jesus, have a powerful impact on how we view life and
how we experience it. It impacts our interpretation of Scripture, it impacts our
relationship with God the Father and His Eternal Spirit, and it impacts our view on
eternal life and eternity. It’s imperative that every believer be firmly rooted in
their belief concerning the identity and the works of Jesus Christ, our Lord and
Saviour.
In Paul’s day, many denied the divine nature of Jesus, His supernatural
conception, and His humanity. Many even believed that Jesus was a created being
and that He was the highest of all created beings. These heresies, not only led
believers astray, but also caused much division and confusion in the early Church.
Paul refutes these false doctrines about Jesus in his epistles and in second
Timothy 3:16-17 he declares that, ‘All Scripture is God-breathed, and is profitable
for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the
man of God may be perfected, thoroughly equipped for every good work’. He made
it very clear, that Scripture has the final say on Christ, His identity and His works.
As believers, we need to firmly establish ourselves in what Scripture teaches
concerning Jesus. Who He is, what He taught and what He did for us on the cross.
We need to be completely sold out to the authority of Scripture, trusting that the
final authority, in what we believe about Jesus, is locked up in it.
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JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD AND THE SON OF MAN
The deity and the humanity of Jesus Christ have always been questioned through
the ages, and it is therefore, one of the most important foundational truths to
address. Jesus was fully man and fully God while on earth. He was endowed with
the titles, the Son of Man (Matt. 8:20; 9:6; 10:23; Rev. 1:13) and the Son of God,
while on earth (Matt. 8:29; 14:33; 16:16). He was not only the very representation
of God in the earth, but He was also the very manifestation of God in the earth
(Phil. 2:5-7; 1Tim. 2.5; 1John 4:2-3).
As God He was called Immanuel, meaning, God with us (Isa. 7:14; 9:6-9;
Matt. 1:23); As God, He was the Eternal Word, that became flesh (John 1:1-5 &
14) and as God, He was the exact, accurate and precise image of the invisible
Godhead (Heb. 1:3 & 8). In John 14:9, Jesus says that, ‘He who has seen Me has
seen the Father’. As Man, He was tempted, yet without sin (Heb. 4:15); as Man He
was hungry (Matt. 4:1-2), and as Man, He learned obedience through the things
He suffered (Heb. 5:8). Jesus was fully God and fully man while on earth (John
20:28; Col. 2:9).
JESUS IS THE CREATOR
Jesus is not a created being, but the Creator Himself. Colossians 1:16 makes it
very clear, that, ‘all things were created’ by Him. He created all things in Him,
through Him and for Himself. Everything in heaven and everything in the universe,
and everything on the earth, was created by Jesus; All things visible and all things
invisible, was created by Him, ’whether thrones or dominions or principalities or
powers, all things were created through Him and for Him’ (John 1:3; 1Cor. 8:6;
Eph. 3:9; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:2; Rev. 4:11).
Jesus was not an angelic being, but He was and is the One who created them. He
is the One who holds supreme rule and authority over them, not only as their
Creator, but also as their, Commander and Chief, the Lord of Hosts (Heb. 1:1-8;
Psalm 46:7; 103:19-21). The worship of angels is, therefore, an abomination in the
sight of God. Jesus as our Creator will always remain the Pre-eminent: Supreme
Ruler, Supreme Authority, Supreme Head and Sovereign Lord God Almighty above
and over all of creation, in both arenas of reality, the visible and the invisible.
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JESUS WAS AND IS BEFORE ALL THINGS
Jesus existed as God before His incarnation (John 8:58; 17:5), and therefore, was
already in existence, when the heavens and the earth were created (Micah 5:2;
John 1:1-3; 16:26-28; 17:1-5; Eph. 1:1-4). Before creation came into being, He
already was (Jer. 1:5; Ps. 139:16; Rom. 8:29; Rev. 22:13). He was pre-existent
before all things (Eph. 3:8-12). He is, ‘the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning
and the Ending, the First and the Last’ (Rev. 22:13).
JESUS IS THE FIRST-BORN OVER ALL CREATION
The title given to Jesus, as the first-born, is not a reflection of Christ as a created
being, and His birth does not establish His origin in time, but only His entrance as
man. In the light of verses 16-18, Paul establishes Christ as, God’s first and only
choice, to be Heir and Ruler over and above all of creation - His inheritance. In
Jewish culture, the first-born son is appointed by his father, as the rightful heir
and ruler of his inheritance. In this context, Jesus is declared to be the first-born
over all creation. He has been chosen by the Father, as the sole Heir and the sole
Ruler of His inheritance (Heb. 1:4). Jesus has all authority and all dominion over
the Father’s inheritance.
The title, first-born, establishes Jesus as sovereign in rank over everything He
created; He is first in rank and in position (Ps. 89:27); He is supreme above all and
the highest rank of all authorities, in all of creation; He is the King of kings and the
Lord of lords, and no one will be above Him in rank, dominion and authority.
‘Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and
glory forever and ever. Amen. For He in His own time will reveal who is the
blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has
immortality, dwelling in light which cannot be approached, whom no one of men
have seen, nor can see; to whom be honor and power everlasting. Amen’ (1Tim. 1:17; 6:15-16).
Jesus has all dominion, all authority and all pre-eminence over His creation, and
instead of being part of creation, He stands supreme before it and above it. He is
the first-born over all creation. He has neither a beginning, nor an end, and exists
outside of any human concept of time and space.
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JESUS IS THE IMAGE OF THE INVISIBLE GOD
Jesus is the exact, accurate and precise image of the invisible Godhead (Heb. 1:3
& 8). He is the image of God, who is invisible (1Tim. 1:17). John 1:18 says that, ‘No
one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the
Father, He has declared Him’.
The writer to the Hebrews declares Jesus as the brightness of God’s glory, and as
the express image of God’s person (Heb. 1:3). 2Cor. 4:4 says that Christ is the
‘Image of God’. In verse 6, Paul continues to say that, ‘For it is ... God who
commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the
light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ’.
Scripture clearly declares Jesus, to be the perfect expression of the being and
perfection of who God is. Jesus is and will always remain the exact, accurate and
precise image of God who is invisible.
JESUS IS THE SUSTAINER OF ALL THINGS
Jesus sustains all of creation. The whole universe, the heavens, the earth and
everything in it, both visible and invisible is sustained in Him. Jesus not only
created all things, but He also holds and keeps everything, coherently together
and functional in Him and through Him. All things are maintained and preserved
in Him. Hebrews 1:3 says that Jesus is, ‘the shining splendor of His glory, and the
express image of His essence, upholding (sustaining) all things by the word of His
power’.
As the creator of the universe, He keeps it, in its order and its form. The magnetic
field of the earth, the gravitational influence of the moon, the cyclical seasons of
the earth, the alignment of the stars and the planets, all of it, has its consistency
and continuum in Him. His DNA imprint permeates and sustains all of creation,
both visible and invisible.
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COLOSSIANS 1:18-20 ‘And He is the Head of the body, the Church, who is the Beginning, the First-born
from the dead, that He may be pre-eminent in all things. For it pleased the Father
that in Him all fullness should dwell. And through Him having made peace
through the blood of His cross, it pleased the Father to reconcile all things to
Himself through Him, whether the things on earth or the things in Heaven’.
JESUS IS THE HEAD OF THE BODY
Jesus is the sole, authoritative and supreme Head, and Ruler over His own Body,
the Church, and no human being can assume this place over the Body of Christ.
We are the household of Jesus Christ, a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a
holy nation, and a people set apart for His sole possession (Rev. 1:4-6; 1Pet. 2:9;
Eph. 2:19-22). ‘For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is
God. And Moses truly was faithful in all His house, as a servant, for a testimony of
those things which were to be spoken afterward. But Christ was faithful as a Son
over his own house; whose house we are, if we hold fast the confidence and the
rejoicing of the hope firm to the end’ (Heb. 3:4-6).
In God’s Kingdom there’s always divine order. In the same fashion, that the
husband is the head of his wife and family, so Christ is the Head of His Bride, the
Church (1Cor. 11:3; Eph. 1:22). Ephesians 5:23 reads as follows, ‘For the husband
is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the Church; and He is the
Saviour of the body’. Jesus is the Author and the Finisher of our faith (Heb. 12:2);
He is the Shepherd and the Overseer of our souls (John 10:1-10; 1Peter 2:25); He
is the Apostle and the High Priest of our profession (Heb. 3:1), and He’s the head
of His Body, the Church, whom we are.
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JESUS IS THE BEGINNING
All of creation, both visible and invisible, has its origins in Jesus (John 1:3). He is
the beginning and the end of all things created, visible and invisible (Rev. 1:8). All
things originated in Him; the universe, the earth and the heavens, all of it,
originated in Him. The redemption of mankind, has its origins in Jesus; the gift of
eternal life, has its origins in Jesus; faith, healing, deliverance, grace and truth, all
of life, has its origins in Jesus. He is the beginning and the end of all things, both
visible and invisible (Col. 1:20).
JESUS IS THE FIRST-BORN FROM THE DEAD
Jesus, is not only the first-born over all of creation, but He is also the first-born
from the dead.
As the first-born over all creation, He is sovereign in rank, over everything He
created; He is first in rank and in position (Ps. 89:27); He is supreme above all and
the highest rank of all authorities in all of creation (Col. 2:9-10); He is the King of
kings and the Lord of lords and no one will be above Him in rank, dominion and
authority (1Tim. 1:17; 6:15-16).
As the first-born from the dead, Jesus has supreme rule, dominion and authority
over death. Revelation’s 1:18 says that, He holds the keys of Hades and Death
(Rev. 1:18). Christ has first place in all things. In creation He is first, in the Church
He is first, in redemption He is first, and in death He is first. The law of
primogeniture dictates that He holds the title, and the privileges of the first-born
Son. He is pre-eminent or first in all and over all.
JESUS IS THE FATHER’S DELIGHT
The Father’s intention, from the beginning, was for all things to be summed up in
Christ (Eph. 1:10). Colossians 1:19 says that, ‘it pleased the Father that in Him all
fullness should dwell’. Creation is summed in Christ, redemption is summed up in
Christ, the Church is summed up in Christ and death is summed up in Christ.
Jesus is the very definition and standard by which all things will be defined and
judged. All fullness dwells in Him. Jesus became the wisdom, the righteousness,
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the sanctification and the redemption of God for us (1Co 1:30). He is our standard
of holiness, justice and righteousness. All things in heaven and in earth, both
visible and invisible, have been reconciled unto the Father, through Jesus’ blood.
Ephesians 1:8-10 in the Message Bible says that, ‘(The Father) thought of
everything, provided for everything we could possibly need, letting us in on the
plans He took such delight in making. He set it all out before us in Christ, a long-
range plan in which everything would be brought together and summed up in
Him, everything in deepest heaven, everything on planet earth’. Christ is the sum
of all things and the centre of everything ever created (Isaiah 42:8; Jer. 9:23-24).
‘We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. We look at this Son and
see God's original purpose in everything created. For everything, absolutely
everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of
angels—everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him. He was there
before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this
moment. And when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together, like
a head does a body.
He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—he is
supreme in the end. From beginning to end he's there, towering far above
everything, everyone. So spacious is he, so roomy, that everything of God finds its
proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and
dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get
properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his
blood that poured down from the cross’. COLOSSIANS 1:15-20 (The Message Bible)
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IN HIM AND WITH HIM Paul uses two very distinct expressions in His epistles to the Church, ‘in Him’ and
‘with Him’. He makes it very clear in his writings, that Jesus Christ, is the essence
of the Godhead (Col. 1:19); that Jesus is the source of all spiritual and natural life,
and that in Him and with Him, the believer is complete; that in Him and with Him,
the believer has triumph over every enemy, and that the abundant life
(John 10:10), in Him and with Him, is possible, because Jesus Himself is the
fullness of God (Col. 2:9).
IN HIM
The expression ‘in Him’, refers to our position in Christ. It’s how our heavenly
Father sees us, when He looks at us. He sees us in Jesus, as just, holy, complete,
perfect and flawless (1Cor. 1:30; 2Cor. 5:21).
In Him, we have been justified. Romans 5:1, says, ‘Therefore being justified by
faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ’.
Man is born in sin and by nature is without righteousness in the sight of God.
Scripture declares that man’s own effort to live righteously and to establish his
own righteousness, are like filthy rags before a holy and a just God (Is. 64:6).
‘There is none righteous, no not one’ (Romans 3:10).
To justify means, to reckon one to be righteous, or, to be declared righteous.
Righteousness is the ability to stand before a holy God, as if one has never sinned;
to stand before Him guiltless, as in a court of law. Justification is a legal term and
discloses God in His character as Judge. God as a holy Judge has declared the
sinner guilty, and the presiding sentence upon his guilt is death, and that is, an
eternal separation from a loving, righteous and a holy God.
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Scripture, however, declares that, God so loved the world that He sent His only
begotten Son, to bear the penalty of man’s sin (John 3:16-18). 1John 4:10
declares, ‘Not that we loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the
propitiation or appeasement for our sins’.
Christ was judged on our behalf and in Him, we are declared righteous and
guiltless; In Him, we are declared holy in the sight of God; In Him, we have a right
standing with our heavenly Father (Col. 1:20). The gift of Jesus is evidence that
God is love (1John 4:8) and the death of Christ is proof and bears witness to the
fact that God is a just and righteous Judge (Is. 53:4). Paul says, that, God
demonstrated His justice in sentencing Christ to the cross, so that, He might prove
Himself just and the Justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Romans 3:26 says,
‘He wanted to demonstrate at the present time that He himself is righteous and
that He justifies the person who has faith in Jesus’.
Jesus is God’s benchmark of righteousness and our own efforts, as an act of
righteousness to please God, will always remain as filthy rags before Him. Jesus is
God’s standard of unconditional love, acceptance and righteousness, and we can
do nothing, to earn, or disserve His love. 1Pet. 3:18 says that, ‘Christ … has
suffered for sins, the Just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God’. Jesus
made it very clear that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and that no one can
come to the Father, except through and in Him (John 14:6).
In Jesus, God declares us acceptable. Our acceptability is not based on what we
do and not do, say or not say, but purely based on what Christ did for us on the
cross (Rom. 3:23-24; Heb. 10:14). Our justification in the sight of God, depends on
Jesus’ sinless perfection alone (Heb. 9:14). In His love, Jesus provides His
righteousness for our sin (2Cor. 5:21) and in Jesus, the Father’s wrath was
appeased (Rom. 3:23-26; Isa. 53:4-5; 10). Because of Jesus, we are already
pleasing to God and, because of Jesus, the Father declared us to be ok.
WITH HIM
The expression ‘with Him’, is strongly relational in its context and its essence
(2Cor. 6:16-18; Eph. 5:25-32). The apostle John, so beautifully captures the
Father’s heart, when he says, ‘Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed
on us, that we should be called children of God!’ (1John 3:1). ‘In this the love of
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God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the
world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but
that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation or appeasement for our
sins’ (1John 4:9-10).
The believer is inseparably united, relationally, to Jesus Christ as Savior,
Redeemer, Lord and Bridegroom (1Cor. 6:17). We were buried and raised ‘with
Him’ (Rom. 6:1-11); our old man is crucified ‘with Him’ (Rom. 6:6); we are joint-
heirs ‘with Him’ (Rom. 8:17); we suffer ‘with Him’ (Rom. 8:17); we shall live
‘with Him’ (2Cor. 13:4); we are seated ‘with Him’ (Eph. 1:3-6; 2:1-9); we shall
reign ‘with Him’ (2Tim. 2:12) and we will be revealed ‘with Him’ in His Glory
(Col. 3:4).
In our journey of faith, Jesus remains with us every step of the way. He is a
devoted and trustworthy Husband, and His irrevocable faithfulness to us His
bride, is summed up in this expression ‘with Him’. We have been so graced with
the blessing of His incessant presence (John 3:18; 21; 23; Deut. 31:6; Ezekiel
48:35), that Jesus completely redefines the concept of the power of association.
My friends, do we really understand the power of who Jesus is?
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THE EXALTED CHRIST ‘Therefore God has highly exalted Him, and has given Him a name which is above
every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of heavenly ones, and
of earthly ones, and of ones under the earth; and that every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father’ (Phil. 2:9-11).
‘I watched until the thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of days was seated,
whose robe was white as snow, and the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne
was like flames of fire, and His wheels like burning fire. A stream of fire went out
and came out from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him, and ten
thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was set, and the books
were opened. And behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven,
and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought Him near before Him. And
dominion and glory was given Him, and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations and
languages, should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which shall
not pass away, and His kingdom, that, which shall not be destroyed (Dan. 7:9-14).
‘He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly
places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every
name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come’ (Eph. 1:20-21).
‘And you are complete in Him, who is the Head of all principality and power’ (Col. 2:10)
Daniel prophetically saw and experienced Acts 1:9, which says, ‘And saying these
things, as they watched, He was taken up. And a cloud received Him out of their
sight’. Daniel saw Jesus coming on a cloud to the Ancient of days and he gives us a
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very significant account of what was happening in the realm of the spirit, when
Jesus ascended into heaven, in Acts 1:9 (also read verses 10 and 11).
Daniel saw the procession and the inaugural ceremony of Jesus, being crowned
the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Thrones were set in place, books were
opened, the Ancient of days was seated, and ten thousand, times ten thousand
stood before Him, while a thousand, thousands ministered to Him, awaiting Jesus’
entrance into the heavenly courtroom, and when Christ entered, dominion, glory
and a kingdom was given to Him.
He was now seated at the right hand of God the Father, far above all principality
and power and might and dominion, and above every name that is named, not
only in this age but also in that which is to come. The Father highly exalted Jesus
and gave Him a name which stands above every other name, ever named. That, at
the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, of heavenly ones, and of earthly ones,
and of ones under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus
Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
‘He seated Him at His right hand in the heavenlies, far above all principality and
authority and power and dominion, and every name being named, not only in this
world, but also in the coming age. And He has put all things under His feet and
gave Him to be Head over all things to the Church, which is His body, the fullness
of Him who fills all in all’ (Eph. 1:20-23).
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THE GLORY OF CHRIST ‘And now … Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had
with You before the world was’ (John 17:5).
Daniel chapter 10 gives us a glimpse of the glory that Jesus is referring too, in John
chapter 17. In Philippians 2:5-8, Paul describes how Christ laid down the glory that
He had with the Father, and in Revelation chapter 1, we see Jesus, restored to the
glory which He previously had, before the world was (Dan. 10:4-6; Rev. 1:12-16).
These chapters give us a distinct picture of the immutability, or, the
changelessness of the Lord Jesus Christ. Hebrews 13:8 says, ‘Jesus Christ is the
same yesterday, today and forever’ (Heb. 1:12); Malachi 3:6 says, ‘I Am the Lord, I
do not change’, and Revelation 1:8 says, ‘I Am the Alpha and the Omega, the
Beginning and the End,’ says the Lord, ‘who is, who was and who is to come, the
Almighty’ (Ps. 102:27).
Many believe that the book of Daniel was written in 170 B.C., and that the book
of Revelation was written in A.D. 95. Both Daniel and John experienced Christ as
the Son of God and the Son of Man; both of them, gives an accurate, identical
description of the glorified Christ. Daniel experienced Him before the cross in 170
B.C., and John experienced Him after the cross in A.D. 95; both of them, were
powerfully touched and changed when they encountered Him; both of them
experienced the power of who Jesus is, and both of them came to know Him,
‘first-hand’ and ‘personally’ (Philippians 3 - The Message). Everyone who had a
face to face encounter with the glorified Christ, were extremely terrified in their
being and His very presence provoked a powerful response of reverential worship
and adoration. It’s important to note that Jesus laid down His glory and not His
deity, when He became a man. Before His incarnation and after His incarnation,
He remained God (Phil. 2:5-8). In becoming man, He did not cease to be God
(John 20:28; Col. 1:19; 2:9; Heb. 1:5; 1Tim. 3:16). He was fully God and fully man
while on earth (1John 4:2-3; Heb. 5:5-8).
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CHRIST THE TRUTH OF GOD
AND THE POWER OF GOD In Romans 12:1-2, Paul urges us to, ‘be transformed by the renewing’, of our
minds. Freedom in Christ is established on two levels and, that is, to encounter
Him as the truth of God (John 8:32), and to encounter Him as the power of God
(John 8:36). There’s a truth encounter with Christ and there’s a power encounter
with Christ. The truth encounter happens in the mind, it happens in the mental
faculties of our human make up (2Cor. 10:4-6). The power encounter is
experienced in the spirit, soul and the body (1Thess. 5:23-24).
‘Renewing the mind’, has everything to do with encountering Christ as the truth
of God (Romans 12:2; John 8:32). Being, ‘transformed’, has everything to do with
encountering Christ as the power of God (Romans 12:2; John 8:36; 1Cor. 2:4-5).
‘For the Word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged
sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit and of the joints and marrow
and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart’ (Heb. 4:12). Jesus is the
Word of God (John 1:1-3; Rev. 19:13), and as the Word of God, He divides the soul
and the spirit, and He becomes the discerner of the thoughts and the intents of
the heart. Jesus is both the rhema and the logos Word of God, and when we
encounter Him, as the truth and as the power of God, we encounter Him as the
Word of God, who is both living and powerful.
A commitment made to scripture, is a commitment made to Jesus, Himself. It
holds the promise to an experience with Christ, as the truth of God and as the
power of God, who is both living and powerful.
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ENCOUNTERING CHRIST Scripture chronicles authentic encounters between God and man. These are not
just stories; these are real life experiences. In chapter one, I mentioned that
encountering Christ is like running into a 50 ton road roller. Once you’ve picked
yourself up from the road, you look different, you sound different and you walk
different. You will not be able to deny that you had an encounter with a 50 ton
road roller, and others will not be able to ignore that encounter. Christ, however,
is more powerful than a 50 ton road roller. The stories that are captured in this
chapter, describes, how life changing, an encounter with the living Christ is. All
these men discovered the power of who Jesus really is as the glorified Christ.
Encountering the power of who He is, is a very terrifying experience, and yet,
exhilarating at the same time.
JOHN’S RESPONSE
‘And I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned, I saw seven
golden lampstands. And in the midst of the seven lampstands I saw One like the
Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the feet, and tied around the breast
with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow. And
His eyes were like a flame of fire. And His feet were like burnished brass having
been fired in a furnace. And His voice was like the sound of many waters. And He
had seven stars in His right hand, and out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged
sword. And His face was like the sun shining in its strength. And when I saw
Him, I fell at His feet as dead. And He laid His right hand upon me, saying to me,
Do not fear, I am the First and the Last, and the Living One, and I became dead,
and behold, I am alive forever and ever, Amen’ (Rev. 1:12-18). When John saw
Jesus as the glorified Christ, he fell at His feet as dead. All that John could say
was, ‘I fainted … at His feet’ (The Message Bible).
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DANIEL’S RESPONSE
‘And in the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great
river, which is Tigris, then I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, a certain
man was clothed in linen, whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz. His
body also was like the beryl, and his face looked like lightning. And his eyes were
like lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet in color were like polished bronze, and
the voice of his words like the sound of a multitude. And I, Daniel, alone saw the
vision. For the men who were with me did not see the vision; but a great quaking
fell on them, so that they fled to hide themselves. Therefore I was left alone, and
saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me. For my beauty was
turned within me to corruption, and I kept no strength. Yet I heard the voice of his
words. And when I heard the voice of his words, then I was in a deep sleep on my
face, and my face was toward the ground. And behold, a hand touched me, which
set me shaking on my knees and the palms of my hands. And he said to me, O
Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand
upright. For to you I am now sent. And when he had spoken this word to me, I
stood trembling. Then he said to me, do not fear, Daniel’ (Dan. 10:4-12).
Scripture declares that, ‘a great quaking fell’, on the men that was with Daniel, ‘so
that they fled to hide themselves’. Daniel said, ‘there remained no strength in me’;
‘I was in a deep sleep on my face, and my face was toward the ground’; ‘a hand
touched me, which set me shaking on my knees and the palms of my hands’; ‘I
stood trembling’.
PAUL’S RESPONSE
‘And Saul, still breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of
the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from him to Damascus to the
synagogues; so that if he found any of the Way, whether they were men or women,
he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. But in going, it happened as he drew
near to Damascus, even suddenly a light from the heaven shone around him. And
he fell to the earth and heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why do you
persecute Me? And he said, Who are you, lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus
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whom you persecute. It is hard for you to kick against the goads. And trembling
and astonished, he said, Lord, what will You have me to do? And the Lord said to
him, Arise and go into the city, and you shall be told what you must do. And the
men who journeyed with him stood speechless, indeed hearing a voice but seeing no
one. And Saul was lifted up from the earth, his eyes were opened, but he saw no
one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And he was
three days not seeing, and did not eat or drink’ (Acts 9:1-9).
The men with Paul, ‘stood speechless, indeed hearing a voice but seeing no one’.
Paul, on the other hand, ‘fell to the earth’, ‘trembling and astonished’, and He
could not see for three days, ‘and did not eat or drink’.
HEAVEN’S RESPONSE
‘I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up and the train of His robe
filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim, each one had six wings … and one cried
to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of Hosts; the whole earth is full
of His Glory”’ (Isa. 6:1-3).
‘The four living creatures, each having six wings … do not rest day or night,
saying: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”’ (Rev. 4:8).
‘Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits
on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before
Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast
their crowns before the throne, saying: “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory
and honor and power; For You created all things, and by Your will they exist and
were created”’ (Rev. 4:9-11).
‘Then I looked and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living
creatures and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten
thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying: “Worthy is the Lamb who was
slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory
and blessing!”’ (Rev. 5:11-12).
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‘All the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures
and fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying: “Amen!
Blessing and glory and wisdom, thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be
to our God forever and ever. Amen”’ (Rev. 7:11-12).
‘And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces
and worshiped God, saying: “We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, The
One who is and who is to come”’ (Rev. 11:16-17).
CREATION’S RESPONSE
‘And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and
such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: “Blessing and honor
and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb, forever and
ever”’ (Rev. 5:13).
Encountering Jesus as the glorified Son of God provokes from all of creation, a
reverential response of awe and loving, worshipful adoration. One cannot but
respond, in loving, fearful adulation, when coming face to face with Jesus Christ,
as the resurrected, glorified, Son of the Living God. The sheer weight of His love
and presence is irrefutably irresistible, and only Jesus, can provoke such a
response from the human spirit and from all of creation.
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THE SPIRIT AND THE BRIDE ‘The Spirit and the Bride say, Come!’ (Rev. 22:17)
The Holy Spirit really loves the Church. He loves us with the same intensity as the
Father and the Son does. He is as committed to the Bride, as the Father and the
Son is, and His delight and His joy, is in us (Proverbs 8:30-31; Zeph. 3:17).
Everything the Father does, He only does in the presence of His Spirit. The Father
created the heavens and the earth, in the presence of His Spirit (Gen 1:1-2;
Prov. 8:22-31); Man became a living soul, in the presence of the Spirit (Gen. 2:7);
Jesus was conceived, in the presence of the Spirit (Luke 1:35); He fulfilled His
ministry, in the presence of the Spirit (Is. 11:2; Luke 4:18); He went to the cross, in
the presence of the Spirit (Heb. 9:14); He was raised from the dead, in the
presence of the Spirit (Rom. 8:11), and He will return to marry His Bride, in the
presence of the Spirit.
The Father does nothing without the presence of His much beloved Spirit. It is to
the Spirit, that the Father has entrusted the Bride, to prepare her for the coming
of Jesus, her Bridegroom, King and Judge (Isa. 61-63; Ps. 45; Matt. 24-25; 1Cor.
2:4-5; Eph. 5:25-27; Rev. 19).
THE ANOINTING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
‘But you have an Anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. The
Anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you do not need
anyone to teach you. But as the same Anointing teaches you concerning all things,
and is true and no lie, and as He has taught you, abide in Him’ (1John 2:20; 27).
The Anointing is one of the titles of God the Holy Spirit. To be anointed means, to
be divinely empowered, or to be divinely enabled by God to complete, or to fulfill
a specific mandate (Luke 4:18; Acts 10:38). Through His Anointing, He enables us
to live life and through His Anointing, He prepares us for the coming of Jesus, as
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our Bridegroom God (Matt. 25:1-10; 28:18-20; John 10:10; Acts 1:8; 1John 2:20;
27; Rev. 19:7).
Scripture declares that we have been anointed. We have been divinely enabled to
live life and to fulfill the calling of God on our lives (1Sam. 16:13; 2Kings 13:21;
Acts 5:15; Lev. 27:28; Eph. 4:11; 2Cor. 3:5-11). The Anointing of the Holy Spirit is
equated with oil, and therefore, oil, is always a type or a symbol of God the Holy
Spirit (Ps. 92:10). The Lord Himself, has chosen that the treasure of His Anointing
should abide, or dwell, in an earthen vessel (2Cor. 4:7; 1John 2:20 & 27). What an
honor and what a privilege to be a living temple of God the Holy Spirit.
JESUS MESSIAH
In the Old Testament Jesus is called the ‘Messiah’ (Dan. 9:25-26; John 1:41; 4:25),
and in the New Testament He is called the ‘Christos’ (Matt. 1:1; Mark 1:1;
Luke 2:11; John 1:17). Both these names refer to Jesus, as the ‘Anointed One’.
Christos is the Greek word for Messiah, and the word, ‘Christ’, is the
transliterated form of the word Christos. Jesus Christ, is therefore translated as,
‘Jesus, the Anointed One’. The name of Jesus, on the other hand, means Savior.
Jesus Christ, is then also translated as, ‘the Anointed Savior’. Matthew 1:21 says,
‘And she will bring forth a son and you shall call his name Jesus, for He will save
His people from their sins’.
JESUS ANOINTED
The Anointing of the Holy Spirit is an integral part of the believer’s life, calling and
ministry. None of us can fulfill our life’s mission without His Anointing. Jesus could
not complete His mandate without the anointing of the Spirit, and the Father was
very committed to ensure that His Son receives the Anointing of His Spirit. As
believers, we should relentlessly pursue His Anointing with earnest desire and
expectation.
‘For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and
Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together’ (Acts 4:27).
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‘How God Anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who
went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God
was with Him’ (Acts 10:38).
‘He saw the Spirit of God descending like dove and coming to rest on Him’ (Matt. 3:16).
‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has Anointed Me’ (Luke 4:18).
‘Your God has Anointed You with the oil of gladness’ (Heb. 1:9).
THE ANOINTING OF THE BELIEVER
The believer receives the Anointing of the Holy Spirit when he or she experiences
the baptism of empowerment in the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:8; 2:1-4). I
believe that the Anointing of the Spirit is released through obedience
(Rom. 8:14; Gal. 5:25), through prayer (Eph. 6:18; James 5:13-16) and through
faith (Mark 11:22-24; 16:17), and should be earnestly desired by all believers who
yearns for the fullness of the Spirit (1Cor. 12:31; 1Cor. 14:1; 1Cor. 14:12;
1Cor. 14:39).
A powerful Anointing on the life and ministry of the believer is conceived, when
we live a life of consecration unto the Anointing of the Spirit. It’s conceived when
we learn to walk in consistent obedience to the leading of the Spirit. Our
sufficiency as a believer, however, only proceeds from the Father who makes us
competent ministers of the Gospel, through the Anointing of His Spirit. He
divinely empowers and enables us, as believers, to become effective witnesses, of
the testimony of who Jesus is and of what He has done.
‘Our sufficiency is of God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new
covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives
life … now the Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is
liberty’ (2Cor. 3:6; 17; Acts 1:8).
QUALIFIED FOR MINISTRY
The Anointing of the Holy Spirit qualifies the believer for ministry (Eph. 4:11-16).
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In the Old Testament, the priests were anointed for their ministry (Lev. 8:12);
kings were anointed for the Kings office (1Sam. 16:15) and prophets were
anointed to speak and minister on behalf of God (1Kings 19:16). In the New
Testament we see Jesus anointed for ministry and service (Acts 4:27; 10:38) and
we see the Apostles anointed for ministry and service (2Cor. 1:21; Acts 6:1-4 & 8;
Acts 13:1-4);
The Anointing of the Holy Spirit cannot be separated from Scripture (Mark 16:20;
John 16:13-15; Heb. 4:12; James 1:22; 1John 5:7). Anointed ministry should
always proceed from a strong scriptural foundation in one’s life. We have
received an, ‘Anointing from the Holy One’ (1John 2:20), and we have been
anointed to live life and to fulfill ministry, only if, we have received the baptism of
empowerment.
THE MANIFESTATION OF THE SPIRIT
2Cor. 12:7 says that, there are different manifestations of the Spirit and these are
different traits, or characteristics of His personhood, that is, of who He is.
In Isaiah 11:2, we see Him manifesting as the 7 folded Spirit of God; In Rom. 1:4,
we see Him manifesting as the Spirit of Holiness; In 2Cor. 12:8-11, we see Him,
manifesting His Gifts to the believer; In 1Peter 4:14, we see Him manifesting as
the Spirit of Glory, and in Rev. 19:10, we see Him manifesting as the Spirit of
Prophecy (1Sam. 19:18-24). There are therefore, different kinds of Anointing’s.
There’s an Anointing to preach the gospel to the poor; to heal the brokenhearted;
to proclaim liberty to the captives; to proclaim recovery of sight to the blind; to
set at liberty those who are oppressed, and to proclaim the acceptable year of the
Lord (Luke 4:18).
There’s an Anointing of power (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:8; 1Cor. 2:4; 1Thess. 1:5;
Heb. 2:4; Mark 16:17-18 & 20). ‘Truly, I am full of power by the Spirit of the Lord’
(Micah 3:8). ‘How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with
power’ (Acts 10:38). There’s an Anointing of the mental faculties and of the persona of the believer
(Mental Faculties: Eph. 1:17-18; Isa. 11:2; 1Cor. 2:16. The Persona: 2Cor. 5:17;
Eph. 4:23-24; Rom. 6:5-7).
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What the Holy Spirit did in the life and the ministry of Jesus, He also wants to do
in the life and the ministry of the believer. Scripture declares that, ‘He who
establishes us … in Christ, and has anointed us, is God’ (2Cor. 1:21). Our
sufficiency is of Him and Him alone, and therefore, we have been divinely enabled
to live life, and we have been qualified as ministers of the Gospel through the
Anointing of His Spirit.
THE ANOINTED BRIDE
‘The yoke will be destroyed because of the Anointing oil’ (Isa. 10:27).
The Anointing of the Holy Spirit is first and foremost given, to bring freedom and
wholeness into the life of the believer, as the Bride of Christ (2Cor. 3:17;
1Thess. 5:23-24).
In Romans 1:4, the Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Holiness. He enables the
believer, as the Bride, to live a consecrated life unto the Lord Most High. He’s the
One who sanctifies us (Eph. 5:25-27), and He’s the One who sets us apart for a
special purpose and mission.
The sanctification of believers is twofold. Firstly, there’s a positional sanctification
which has been done for the believer, once and for all in Jesus, our Lord and our
Savior (1Cor. 1:2 & 30; 6:11; Acts 22:32; 26:18; Eph. 5:26; Heb. 2:11). Secondly,
there’s a practical sanctification, one that is effected on a daily basis in the
believer by the Spirit of Holiness (Phil. 1:6; 1Thess. 5:23-24). This is where the
believer must learn to yield, or to surrender in loving trust and obedience to the
leading of God the Holy Spirit for his, or her daily sanctification (Rom. 8:11;
12:1-2; 6:1-22).
Jesus is returning for a Bride without spot, or wrinkle, and it is the Spirit’s
responsibility to ensure, that at His return, the Bride is presented to Him, as a
chaste virgin (Matt. 25:1-13; Eph. 5:25-27). With this in mind, we are therefore
urged, to diligently give ourselves to the Anointing of His Spirit.
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BRIDAL LOVE It doesn’t matter where we are in our relationship with Jesus, or where we’re at
in life. If we are betrothed to Him, He’ll always call us to deeper levels of intimacy.
No matter what we’ve done or not done, His invitation and call to intimacy will
always resound in the depths of our spirit. All that He desires is a responsive
heart, to His unfailing love. There’s a place where, ‘deep calls unto deep’ (Ps. 42:7-8). It’s a place where the Spirit of God speaks into and touches the very
depths of the human spirit, ever wooing us with the love of God, to deeper levels
of intimacy and consecration (Ez. 47:3-6; Rom. 5:5).
The psalmist says that Jesus, ‘comes forth as a Bridegroom from his canopy; He
rejoices as a strong man to run a race’ (Ps. 19:5). He paints a very powerful picture
of how Jesus pursues us, of how He comes running after us and of how He comes
looking for us. He searches us out from wherever we are and none of us can
escape the furnace of His desire and love for His Bride. He continues to say that
no one can hide from the passion of His fiery love (Ps. 19:6; 139:7-10). ‘He has set
a tabernacle for the sun, and He comes forth as a Bridegroom from His canopy; He
rejoices as a strong man to run a race, going forth from the end of the heavens, and
its course is to their ends. And there is nothing hidden from its heat’ (Ps. 19:4-6).
‘As the Bridegroom rejoices over the Bride, so will your God rejoice over you’ (Isa. 62:5).
It’s the Bridegroom, who is constantly proposing to a lost and a dying world, ‘Will
you marry Me’? (John 3:16). And it’s the Bridegroom, who rejoices over His
fiancée with great delight, and who continuously refreshes her with His relentless
and endless love. For, ‘the Lord your God … the Mighty One … will rejoice over
you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with
singing’ (Zeph. 3:17).
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The Bridegrooms call, to get intimately lost in the furnace of His eternal love, is
very real, and powerfully life changing. And it begins with a heartfelt response to
the call to intimacy and consecration.
THE CALL TO CONSECRATION
Leviticus 27:28-33 says that, everything devoted, or consecrated unto the Lord
becomes most holy to Him. This brings me to the prayer of consecration. The
prayer of consecration is, when we present all of ourselves and all that we
possess to God for His exclusive use. In Romans 12:1-2, Paul instructs us to
specifically dedicate, or devote our bodies to God as an act of loving worship and
adoration.
The word consecration means: to devote, or to set something, or someone apart
for God’s exclusive use, or as sacred unto God, for example, baby dedication; to
make the Lord the sole possessor and owner of whom we are and what we have.
As we practice the loving discipline of consecration, that is, to bringing ourselves
to Him, God is committed to the process of transformation in our lives
(Rom. 12:1-2; Phil 2:13). Our consecration is totally dependent on the complete
work of Christ, who, ‘became for us wisdom from God – and righteousness and
sanctification and redemption’ (1Cor. 1:26-31).
In the context of betrothal, we need to understand that when a man asks a
woman to marry him, he’s also asking her to forsake all others, and so does Christ
(Matt. 16:24; Lk 14:26-33). As our Fiancé, Jesus expects from us, to forsake all
others and to give the deepest affections of our heart to Him and Him alone, and
to give it in the power of His Spirit (Rom. 5:5). The discipline of loving
consecration is a commitment to forsake all others, and it’s the Holy Spirit who
relentlessly invites, and who calls us to live a life of loving consecration to Jesus.
THE CALL TO INTIMACY
The Secret Place
Psalm 91:1 says that, ‘He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall
abide under the shadow (or presence) of the Almighty’ (Rev. 1:8). There’s a place in
the Spirit where we can meet face to face with the Most High God. It’s a place in
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Him; it’s a place that He calls, the ‘secret place’. ‘But you, when you pray, go into
your inner room and when you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in
the secret place’ (Matthew 6:6).
The Lord Jesus confirms this place of convergence, this place of confluence and
this place of meeting, when He says that, we should pray to our Father, ‘who is in
the secret place’. It’s a very real, authentic and actual place in the Spirit - in Him.
It’s not a fake, or mystical place, or a fabricated, fictitious place. It’s as real as the
words on this page. In fact, it’s more real than the words you are reading right
now. Psalm 31:20 says, ‘You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence’.
The Sanctuary
Another word for, ‘the secret place’, is the word, ‘sanctuary’ (Leviticus 4:6). Firstly,
sanctuary refers to a sacred place, a consecrated place, a sanctified place, or a
place that is specifically set aside for the worship of God. The Lord Jesus calls it
the, ‘inner room’, in Matthew 6:6. It’s a place where we need to, ‘shut the door’;
it’s a place set aside as, ‘sacred’, and, ‘holy’, that is, a place set aside for God’s
exclusive use. It’s a place where we meet alone with the Most High God. Leviticus
27:28 (b) says that, ‘every devoted (consecrated) offering is most holy to the Lord’.
Secondly, sanctuary refers to a place that is set aside for, refuge from danger, or
trouble. The same place of adoration and adulation now becomes a mighty battle
fortress (Psalm 91:1-16; 18:1-3).
Thirdly, sanctuary also refers to the place of inquiring, rest, peace, strengthening,
refreshing and unburdening (Ps. 27:4; Heb. 4:3-11; Phil. 4:6-7; Acts 3:19;
Dan. 11:32; 1Peter 5:7).
The Place of His Glory
‘Lord, I have loved the habitation of Your house and the place where Your glory
dwells’ (Psalm 26:8). The Secret Place is the place where the weight of God’s glory
and the weight of His presence dwell. In the Old Testament we had the,
‘tabernacle of meeting’, which consisted of the outer court, the inner court, or the
holy place, and the most holy place, or the holies of holies (Exodus 25-27). In
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1Corinthians 6:19-20, Paul calls us the, ‘temple or tabernacle’, of the Holy Spirit.
Our body now represents the, ‘outer’, court, our soul represents the, ‘holy place’,
and our spirit represents the, ‘holy of holies or the most holy place or the secret
place’. It’s in this place, our spirit, where we meet face to face with the Most High
God.
Our spirit is the place of convergence, the place of confluence, the place of
meeting, and the place where His Presence and His Glory wants to rest. The
secret place must become the most desired and the most beloved place in our
lives, for it is in this place, where we will behold the beauty and the glory of the
Most High God, Jesus Christ Himself. ‘One thing I have desired of the Lord, that
will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to
behold the beauty of the Lord’ (Psalm 27:4-5).
LIVING LIFE AND MINISTERING FROM THE SECRET
PLACE
‘He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow
(presence) of the Almighty’ (Psalm 91:1). The, ‘secret place’, is not only a place of
worship and a place of refuge, but it’s also the place from which life should be
lived from (Psalm 91:9), and from which ministry should flow (John 7:7). Scripture
declares, ‘you have made the Lord … even the Most High, your dwelling place’
(Psalm 91:9), and ‘out of his heart (inner most being) will flow, rivers of living
water’ (John 7:37-39).
God has provided a dwelling place for us in the here and the now. It’s a very
powerful place of worship, refuge, inquiring, rest, peace, strengthening,
refreshing, unburdening and revelation (Ps. 91). It’s also, a very powerful place
from which ministry should flow (Luke 4:18).
In Ezekiel 47:7, we see how the waters that flows from the temple, becomes a
river. I believe that this river is symbolic of the Anointing of the Spirit, and that
this river is found within the secret place. It is the Fathers desire to first bring us
into the river, and then, to release it from our inner most being (John 7:7). The
depth of the river is only experienced in the secret place as we trust Him to bring
us ankle deep, knee deep and waist deep into it, until we can stand no more.
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‘And he showed me a pure river of water of life; clear as crystal, proceeding from
the throne of God and of the Lamb’ (Rev. 22:1). ‘Everything will live wherever the
river goes’ (Ez. 47:9). Lives are powerfully touched and changed, when we live life
from the secret place and when we minister from there (Ez. 47:7-10).
The river that is released from our inner most being brings healing and life
wherever it flows. Every broken life it touches is healed and every dead thing it
touches comes to life, because the Life-Giving-Presence of the Most High God
accompanies it. We can only know the power of this river to the degree that we
come to know the Lord God Almighty in His secret place; the place where the
weight of His presence and the weight of His glory dwells.
‘They will bear fruit every month because their water flows from the sanctuary’ (Ez. 47:12). The one, who lives life from the secret place, is he, whose life is
marked with fruitfulness, ‘their fruit will be for food and their leaves for medicine’ (Ez. 47:12 (b); John 15:16).
DEEPER
‘He brought me back … to the door of the temple and there was water … and He
brought me through the waters’ (Ez. 47:1-3). Ezekiel is led to the temple and then
into the waters. He is led ankle deep, knee deep, waist deep, and then, until he
could stand no more (v.3-6). I believe that the man, who led Ezekiel, represents
God the Holy Spirit, who is forever calling and leading us into a deeper
relationship with Jesus.
I believe that the depth of our relationship with the Most High God is reflected in
this passage. It’s either ankle deep, knee deep, or waist deep, or, we are at a
place where we can stand no more. The question we need to ask ourselves is this,
‘Is my relationship with Jesus Christ, ankle deep, knee deep or waist deep? Or Am
I at a place where I can stand no more?
God never intended for us to live life without Him. He provided a very real place of
intimacy, and His desire for us, is to make Him, Jesus Christ, our dwelling Place.
‘You have made the Lord … even the Most High, your dwelling place’
(Psalm 91:9).
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It’s my earnest desire that the Holy Spirit, will lovingly draw us, passionately rouse
us and avidly inspire us to meet with Jesus Christ, on a daily basis - in this place,
He calls, the secret place. I believe that he, who dwells in the secret place, is he,
who not only carries the presence of the Spirit, but also knows the depths of the
Almighty (Jer. 9:23-24).
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HAVE FAITH IN JESUS Scripture encourages us to have great confidence in who Jesus is, and to have
great assurance in His accomplished work on the cross, and, in His continual
ministry before the throne. We need to have faith in Jesus, we need to have faith
in who He says He is, we need to have faith in what He has done for us, and we
need to have faith in His heavenly ministry before the Father. We are urged to live
life with full assurance in Jesus, to live life by faith in the Son of God.
The benchmark for facing life and all its challenges is Christ. He becomes our
standard of living. Paul says in Galatians 2:20, ‘I have been crucified with Christ; 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 for me’. This
declaration should become our anthem in life and the motivation behind
everything we do for our Lord and King. His love compels us (2Cor. 5:14) and His
love restrains us (1Cor. 13:4-7). Faith works by love and we need to understand
that our faith in Jesus is only conceived in His unconditional love for us (Gal. 5:6;
Eph. 3:14-21).
THE HEAVENLY MINISTRY OF JESUS
The love that Jesus has for His Church compels Him to continually engage in active
ministry before the throne of the Father. Scripture declares Jesus to be: the
Author and the Finisher of our faith (Heb. 12:2); the Apostle and the High Priest of
what we profess (Heb. 3:1); the Shepherd and the Overseer of our souls
(1Pet. 2:25), and also declares Jesus as our Intercessor (Heb. 7:25), Mediator
(Heb. 8:6) and Advocate (1John 2:1). These are all ministry titles of Jesus and it
gives us an excellent depiction of His active ministry engagement, with the throne
of our heavenly Father. Christ is therefore our hope of glory (Col. 1:27) and it is
this hope that anchors the soul, ‘both sure and steadfast’ (Heb. 6:19).
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CHRIST AT WORK IN US
‘Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will
complete it until the day of Jesus Christ’ (Phil. 1:6). This is the confidence that we
have in Christ, that He, who has begun a good work in us, is also faithful to
complete it until His return. He is powerfully at work on the inside of us, ‘for it is
God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure’ (Phil. 2:13).
God is a God of great comfort (2Cor. 1:3-11), ‘therefore we do not lose heart. Even
though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by
day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far
more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things
which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are
seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal’ (2Cor. 4:16-18).
GOD HAS SET EVERYTHING RIGHT
‘The earlier revelation was intended simply to get us ready for the Messiah, who
then puts everything right for those who trust him to do it. Moses wrote that
anyone who insists on using the law code to live right before God soon discovers
it's not so easy—every detail of life regulated by fine print!
But trusting God to shape the right living in us is a different story— no precarious
climb up to heaven to recruit the Messiah, no dangerous descent into hell to rescue
the Messiah. So what exactly was Moses saying? The word that saves is right
here, as near as the tongue in your mouth, as close as the heart in your chest. It's
the word of faith that welcomes God to go to work and set things right for us.
This is the core of our preaching. Say the welcoming word to God—"Jesus is my
Master"—embracing, body and soul, God's work of doing in us what he did in
raising Jesus from the dead. That's it. You're not "doing" anything; you're simply
calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you. That's salvation. With your whole
being you embrace God setting things right, and then you say it, right out loud:
"God has set everything right between Him and me’ (Rom. 10:4-10, The Message).
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BE ENCOURAGED
Be therefore greatly encouraged and have great confidence in Jesus (Mark 11:22),
knowing that He will be with us through every season of life, and that He will
never leave us nor forsake us, but bring us into the fullness of who He is
at His return (1Cor. 13:8-12).
‘For He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor
leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave
you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly
not!] (Heb. 13:5 Amplified).
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IN CLOSING
‘John … bore witness to the Word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ’ (Rev. 1:2). As believers, Jesus is calling us to become life-giving witnesses to the
power of His saving grace. He gave us His Spirit to live life as a testimony to who
He is and to what He has done on the cross and through the cross (Acts 1:8;
Rev. 19:10). It’s important to understand that we can only testify and bear
witness of things that we have seen, heard and experienced, in Him and through
His Spirit.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is one of experience and not just hearsay. It is neither a
weak, nor a powerless Gospel. It’s the, ‘power of God unto salvation for everyone
who believes’ (Rom. 1:16-17). It’s powerful, ‘for in it the righteousness of God is
revealed’ (Romans 1:17; 1Cor. 2:4; 1Thess. 1:5; Heb. 2:4; Mark 16:17-18; 20). It’s
imperative to know that Jesus did not die to leave a feeble Gospel behind. In fact,
He is the Gospel, and He is experienced on two levels, first as the crucified Christ
(Isa. 53) and secondly as the resurrected Christ (Rev. 1:10-18).
He is returning as King, Judge and Bridegroom and His invitation to marry Him,
still stands from one generation to the next. What image do you have of Jesus
Christ? What is your perception of Him? Who do you say He is? Do you know the
power of who He really is? Is He still hanging on the cross, or has He become the
all-powerful, Living, Lord God Almighty in your life, who calls Himself the great
‘I AM’?
I pray that your journey through this work has led you to a greater desire to know
Christ and to follow Him, regardless the cost. May the Lord strengthen you and
encourage you to finish His work here on earth through you, and may we, like
Paul, at the end of our journey say, ‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished
the race (and) I have kept the faith’ (2Tim. 4:7). Live your life therefore, knowing,
that He will be with us, until the end.
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‘John … bore witness to the Word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ’ (Rev. 1:2). As believers, Jesus is calling us to become life-giving witnesses to the
power of His saving grace. He gave us His Spirit to live life as a testimony to who
He is, and to what He has done on the cross and through the cross (Acts 1:8; Rev.
19:10), and we can only testify and bear witness of things that we have seen,
heard and experienced, in Him and through His Spirit.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is one of experience and not just hearsay. It is neither a
weak nor a powerless Gospel. It’s the, ‘power of God unto salvation for everyone
who believes’ (Rom. 1:16-17). It’s powerful, ‘for in it the righteousness of God is
revealed’ (Romans 1:17). Jesus did not die to leave a feeble Gospel behind. In fact,
He is the Gospel and He is experienced on two levels, first as the crucified Christ
(Isa. 53) and secondly as the resurrected Christ (Rev. 1:10-18).
What image do you have of Jesus? What is your perception of Him? Who do you
say He is? Is He still hanging on the cross or has He become the all Powerful,
Living, Lord God Almighty in your life, who calls Himself the great I AM?
It doesn’t matter where we are in our relationship with Jesus or where we’re at in
life. If we stand in covenant with Him, He’ll always call us into a deeper
relationship with Him. No matter what we’ve done or not done, His invitation and
call to a deeper level of intimacy, in Him and with Him, will always resound in the
depths of our spirit. All that He expects from us is a response.
The Psalmist says that there is a place where, ‘deep calls unto deep’ (Ps. 42:7-8).
It’s a place where the Spirit of God speaks into the depths of the human spirit,
ever calling us, to deeper levels of intimacy and consecration (Ez. 47:3-6).
I pray that your journey through this work will lead you into a greater desire to
know Christ and to follow Him, regardless the cost.
