Part 4 (2/2)

Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus,By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh.Hebrews 10:19,20 You ought to come boldly to G.o.d by the new and living way which the Lord has consecrated for us through His flesh. We have boldness to enter right into the holiest of holies because of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to come to G.o.d just like Adam and Eve did before they sinned! You don't have to focus your attention on yourself and your failures, but just be so G.o.d-conscious that even if you're naked you wouldn't know the difference, because your attention is so totally on G.o.d.

Did you know that privilege is yours and that's the way G.o.d sees it? That's the real nature of G.o.d and the way He looks at you. G.o.d sees you through what Jesus did, and that is probably different from how you see yourself. You tend to look on the flesh and see your mistakes and failures, but G.o.d looks on your heart.

G.o.d is a spirit, and those who wors.h.i.+p Him must wors.h.i.+p Him in spirit and in truth. (See John 4:24.) When you come before G.o.d, He sees your spirit. And in your spirit being, according to Ephesians 4:24, you are righteous and truly holy. You are pure and you are as holy as you'll ever get. Your born-again spirit will never be made better than it is right now!

Your spirit isn't stained with sin. If you sin, your spirit isn't stained by that sin. Your spirit is as holy and pure and righteous as it will be with G.o.d in Heaven throughout all eternity. It is perfect, it's in the image of G.o.d, and it's exactly as He is. First John 4:17 says, Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

That's the way G.o.d sees you, so that's the way you are. And when you come to G.o.d because you've sinned and need forgiveness, or you just want to spend time with Him and wors.h.i.+p Him, you're standing before Him in the very righteousness of Jesus Christ!

That's the way G.o.d sees you, so that's the way you are. And when you come to G.o.d because you've sinned and need forgiveness, or you just want to spend time with Him and wors.h.i.+p Him, you're standing before Him in the very righteousness of Jesus Christ!

Chapter 6

The Knowledge of of Him Him .

Because we haven't really understood the nature and the character of G.o.d, we haven't understood how G.o.d deals with us and why He answers prayer. Therefore, we haven't been allowing G.o.d to truly manifest Himself in our lives by meeting our needs. we haven't really understood the nature and the character of G.o.d, we haven't understood how G.o.d deals with us and why He answers prayer. Therefore, we haven't been allowing G.o.d to truly manifest Himself in our lives by meeting our needs. His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and G.o.dliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue. His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and G.o.dliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue.

2 Peter 1:3 G.o.d said all all things that pertain unto life and G.o.dliness. Did you know that includes healing, joy, deliverance, prosperity, and anything you can think of that results from our redemption? These ”all things” that pertain to life and G.o.dliness come through things that pertain unto life and G.o.dliness. Did you know that includes healing, joy, deliverance, prosperity, and anything you can think of that results from our redemption? These ”all things” that pertain to life and G.o.dliness come through the knowledge of Him. the knowledge of Him. If you've got If you've got wrong wrong knowledge about G.o.d, you are not going to receive the ”all things” that pertain to life and G.o.dliness! knowledge about G.o.d, you are not going to receive the ”all things” that pertain to life and G.o.dliness!

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.Proverbs 23:7 As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. If you've got a wrong impression of G.o.d, then you are going to expect the wrong things from G.o.d - judgment, punishment, and withholding of what you are asking for in prayer. You'll get what you expect or believe. Jesus affirmed this in many places, including Matthew 9:29, According to your faith be it unto you. According to your faith be it unto you.

Many believers have a wrong att.i.tude and concept of G.o.d - Who He is and how He operates in their lives. I'm not saying people have it all wrong, but I am saying many people have got things mixed up in their theology. Satan is using that misunderstanding to keep them from receiving the fullness of what G.o.d has provided for them through Jesus.

If you can receive this and let G.o.d reveal Himself to you in the way Jesus revealed His nature and character, then I promise you will come to truly know the way G.o.d is. And then you'll find out faith isn't something hard. In fact, it's really hard to disbelieve disbelieve G.o.d once you really G.o.d once you really know know G.o.d. G.o.d.

For a person who really knows G.o.d intimately and has a true revelation of His character, it would hardly be possible for them to believe it when Satan says, ”Oh, G.o.d won't bless you. Your faith's not going to work for you.” The devil could not deceive a person who really knows G.o.d and has an intimate relations.h.i.+p with Him.

You know what G.o.d is like when you look at Jesus. Once you understand the true nature of G.o.d and how much He loves you, the love of G.o.d will be shed abroad in your heart. I believe that will help you to have a new relations.h.i.+p with G.o.d, one you've never had before.

I also want to say that I don't excuse sin. I'm not saying G.o.d doesn't care whether you sin. But Jesus is the payment for that sin, and Jesus has borne all of that sin so that it no longer has to separate us from G.o.d.

Getting Your Needs Met Your Needs Met .

I really believe that one of the biggest problems in the body of Christ is that we learn the mechanics mechanics of how Christianity works - we learn about faith, we learn about confession of G.o.d's Word, we learn about giving and receiving, and so forth. We learn all of these things to of how Christianity works - we learn about faith, we learn about confession of G.o.d's Word, we learn about giving and receiving, and so forth. We learn all of these things to do do and many times we try to put them into practice without really knowing and many times we try to put them into practice without really knowing G.o.d. G.o.d.

The mechanics of Christianity do not produce the ”all things” that we need from G.o.d for our life. The fruit of the Christian life comes out of really knowing G.o.d. Faith comes from knowing Him, and knowing Him is the basis of everything else in Christianity. Remember, 2 Peter 1:3 said that through the knowledge knowledge of G.o.d He has given to us all things that pertain unto life and G.o.dliness. of G.o.d He has given to us all things that pertain unto life and G.o.dliness.

If we really knew G.o.d, then all of His fullness would already be ours. I believe in and am not against prosperity, but sometimes you nearly have to overstate things to keep people from misunderstanding you. People tend to put you in just one category - you're either a faith preacher or you're a doubt-and-unbelief preacher. They think you have to drive a luxury car to prove you have faith or that G.o.d wants you to walk around with holes in your shoes. Well, I'm not either one of those!

I believe in prosperity, but I also believe that if people really knew G.o.d, all the teaching on prosperity that would be necessary could be put into a thimble. You wouldn't have to know all of the ins and outs of prosperity techniques, because if you're really seeking first first the kingdom of the kingdom of G.o.d G.o.d and and His His righteousness, everything else would be added to you! (See Matthew 6:33.) righteousness, everything else would be added to you! (See Matthew 6:33.) Many of us have taken our faith teaching and used it to get houses and cars and more things, but I believe G.o.d gave us faith to overcome the devil, tear down his kingdom, and get people born again, healed, and delivered. There's nothing wrong with houses and cars, but that's not what faith is for.

You should not have to spend so much time believing for material things. G.o.d didn't give us faith so we could have things. G.o.d gave us faith in order for us to know Him. Then, because His divine life is flowing through us, cars, houses, boats, and things like that would find us. They would come as byproducts of our faith in Him. They are the extras that come after seeking first the kingdom of G.o.d and knowing Him. If we really knew G.o.d in an intimate way, I believe G.o.d would shower more upon us than we could ever use.

Do parents feel they have to teach their children how to manipulate them - how to confess, ask them just the right way, and do all of the right things - in order to supply their food, clothes, bikes, and all of the things they need? We don't do that! We just love our children and provide for them because of our love. We take delight in giving them surprise gifts.

How much more does our Heavenly Father want to bless us? We need to renew our minds and eliminate teaching that has told us G.o.d wants us to be poor, sick, and stupid, but we also must be careful not to focus our attention on the mechanics mechanics of how things work. I'm not saying that teaching faith and prosperity are false teachings, but they can actually be used to destroy people if they don't have their lives focused on the central figure of of how things work. I'm not saying that teaching faith and prosperity are false teachings, but they can actually be used to destroy people if they don't have their lives focused on the central figure of all all of life - the Lord Jesus Christ. of life - the Lord Jesus Christ.

When we are more concerned about the mechanics of how to work Christianity and all of the things we've got to do do more than we are in more than we are in knowing knowing Jesus, our Christianity doesn't work. On the other hand, if we know Jesus, and we Jesus, our Christianity doesn't work. On the other hand, if we know Jesus, and we really really know Him, it is know Him, it is amazing amazing what we can get done and how blessed we become without knowing a lot of formulas. what we can get done and how blessed we become without knowing a lot of formulas.

Never Leave His Presence Leave His Presence .

When my wife and I first started ministering, we didn't know ”come here” from ”sic 'em” about faith. We hadn't heard of faith teaching, and yet we saw people healed, we saw finances supplied, and we saw every kind of miracle you could imagine. I can't really tell you how it happened, except that we were just seeking G.o.d with all of our hearts. I guarantee you that goes a long way towards releasing the blessings of G.o.d into your life! We didn't know a whole bunch about faith techniques, but we knew Him and were continually seeking Him.

It's a shame, but many times when people begin to learn things about G.o.d, over the years they start to subst.i.tute the knowledge they have about G.o.d for an intimate relations.h.i.+p with with Him. Him.

When people are first born again, it seems like everything works for them. They pray, ask, and they get just about anything they ask for. Miracles are happening, and then after awhile they seem to dry up. They go back to the people who led them to the Lord to inquire why. Sometimes they are told, ”Well, the honeymoon's over. Now you've got to start growing up and you've got to start getting things the way everybody else does.”

But what really happened was, there was a period of time when their mind was so stayed upon G.o.d, they were just walking in His presence. They had a conscious awareness of Him, and they were overwhelmed with His love - and faith works by love! (See Galatians 5:6.) Through hard knocks, not knowing the Word of G.o.d, and Satan coming at them with problems, they got moved away from that first love and began to see things fall apart. And then the religious folks told them that's the way it's supposed to be - that G.o.d is doing this to grow them up, teach them, and mature them.

The truth is, you can live in a realm where you are so intimate with G.o.d that things will work for you. And I believe that's a way of life G.o.d is drawing His people into, why we are talking about knowing G.o.d. If we really focus on knowing G.o.d, then everything else will work out of that.

We need knowledge of G.o.d's Word because His Word reveals His true nature. But when the Word becomes technical details and formulas concerning the mechanics of Christianity, we have lost our focus. We are doing things in our own strength and not His. We are trying to impress Him with works instead of being impressed by His work and Who He is.

If you develop your personal relations.h.i.+p with G.o.d to the point you understand how much G.o.d loves you, it would not be hard to believe He is going to supply your $20 grocery bill, heal the corn on your toe, and draw your unsaved loved ones into the kingdom.

Those who are struggling to receive from G.o.d just need to know Him better. When they really know Him, they will be totally convinced of His love and His commitment to them. Then they will have no fear that He won't meet the needs in their lives.

Chapter 7

G.o.d's Goodness in in Ministry Ministry Most of us are more conscious of our sin than we are of G.o.d's goodness, and unfortunately it is most obvious when we are trying to minister to someone. All Satan has to do is bring up some failure and say, ”G.o.d's power won't work for you because you haven't been good enough,” and we're defeated.

Most Christians will immediately agree with the devil, believing G.o.d moves in our lives in proportion to our performance. The moment they agree with that thought, they are doomed for failure, because their performance is never going to be good enough to earn them the covenant blessings from G.o.d.

When I stand up in front of people to minister, in their eyes the responsibility is almost always on me to see their needs met! That could overwhelm a minister very easily. Actually, that's an error on the people's part, because it has to be G.o.d Who heals their bodies and saves their marriages. My performance could never be good enough to force G.o.d to supernaturally meet all the needs of mankind.

I haven't been in the ministry very long, and yet I could name dozens of people right now whom I've preached my heart to and shared the Word of G.o.d with, but they're dead today because they didn't take advantage of the truth I presented. There are a lot of people who the Word of G.o.d could have set free, but they didn't take it to heart.

I'm not trying to prophesy this, but there are people who will read this book and let what I've said go in one ear and out the other. They won't take it into their heart and renew their mind with the truth of G.o.d's Word, and they will die staying in their old way of thinking and believing. I'm not saying that as a bad confession, I'm just pointing out what Mark, chapter 4, says in the parable. When the sower sows the Word, it falls on all kinds of soil and it won't take root in some people.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:15, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. It's true that some people don't allow themselves to really hear the Word of G.o.d. The Bible says in 1 Peter 5:8 that Satan is going about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour, and there are some people who will read this who will still let Satan devour them. That's not G.o.d's will! And if that is why, when I know I'm dealing with people's lives, I'm going to make the effort to get the point across clearly. It's true that some people don't allow themselves to really hear the Word of G.o.d. The Bible says in 1 Peter 5:8 that Satan is going about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour, and there are some people who will read this who will still let Satan devour them. That's not G.o.d's will! And if that is why, when I know I'm dealing with people's lives, I'm going to make the effort to get the point across clearly.

For a minister, the responsibility to perform gets heavy sometimes. This has been true in my own life, and I believe the same is true of most of the ministers I have known. At first you start thinking, ”Oh G.o.d, I've got to have Your anointing.” So you start fasting, praying, and doing the right things. But there is a tendency to do them with the att.i.tude of, ”G.o.d, I'm doing all these things and now I know You'll anoint me.” You can begin trusting in what you've done instead of trusting in G.o.d.

The irony is, regardless of how much you've done, Satan can just come up to you and p.r.i.c.k your conscience in some area where you aren't perfect, and there goes your faith that G.o.d will come through for you! If your confidence is in your own goodness, Satan can defeat you regularly.

Satan can send that one person you can't stand across your path and get them to say something that really gets to you! You have a thought of sin towards them, and right after Satan has set you up with that situation, he will say, ”You old sc.u.m of the earth. What makes you think G.o.d would use you in ministry? What makes you think G.o.d would use you you to save or heal anybody?” to save or heal anybody?”

When I first got started in ministry, I used to think G.o.d was going to use me according to how I performed. Every time I saw a failure in myself of any type, I lost all of my faith to pray for people. I thought, ”Oh G.o.d, how could You use me?” And for most people, that's probably the way they still think!

Promises, Promises! Promises!

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