Tag: Faith

Know God Is Real

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

 

Why Should An Intelligent Person Believe In God?

An intelligent person should follow the available evidence with an open mind wherever it takes them.  They should reach their own conclusion about God with sound logic. If you want to know if God is real, or if you want more confidence in your current belief, the following discussion provides several lines of exploration you can and should pursue.

It Matters

The most important decision of your life is whether to believe God is real and worthy of your worship and devotion, or whether to ignore God and focus all your energy on you and your earthly life. If God is real, this decision has major ramifications for you and those around you, both now in this life and for eternity.  And if God is real, and this decision does have major ramifications, and you risk spending eternity in some lake of burning fire if you don’t get with the program, then it would be appropriate to invest some time and energy to explore the evidence, find out what is going on, and align yourself to avoid such a scenario. If God is not real, none of this really matters and the worst you will have done by exploring this is to waste some unimportant time learning about the most popular and pervasive myth ever concocted by mankind. This is called Pascal’s Wager… are you willing to bet an eternity in hell that it is ok to continue not believing in God.

God Hides, You will find Him only if you truly want to find Him.

God hides himself just enough that you must decide to spend some of your precious energy to pursue Him. If He was obvious and standing right in front of us, we would not require faith to believe in Him. The spiritual world operates on faith, and our free will decisions to pursue and believe. If you want to find reasons not to believe you can, and it is your choice, but beware, there just might be some serious consequences.  Once we decide to explore beyond the physical world in front of us and commit to explore the evidence for God with a truly open mind and open heart, He promises you will find Him.  I am highly confident based on my experience, If you truly want to find Him, You will, and I am happy to help.  

Faith should not be blind

The God of the Christian Bible never asks us to have blind faith. He is very clear that He left ample evidence of His handiwork in creation; The heavens reveal His Glory, his fingerprint can be seen in the world all around us, and He has written Himself in our hearts. He boldly claims that no one has an excuse to be ignorant of Him. He expects us to be able to gather up the evidence, figure it out, and make a sound conclusion. 

We should be able to defend our position

He also asks us to be ready and able to defend that decision with convincing logic any time.  Do you believe in God? What is the basis for your belief? What are your top 3 reasons?

The Evolution of Science

One interesting aspect of mankind’s spiritual journey is the evolution of science. The scientific community spent most of the 20th century trying to prove that we do not need a supernatural God to explain how everything works or how we got here in the first place. Over the last 50 years, scientific discoveries have made that much harder to do at almost every level. Open minded researchers can see that the evidence points more and more towards the existence of a supernatural God.  Those researchers who are committed to a materialist world view, who categorically refuse to consider God as a potential hypothesis, remain hopeful for an alternative explanation to emerge even when the odds are astronomically low and going lower with every new discovery. The interesting thing to understand is that this materialist approach is a new thing born within the scientific community. Science was originally founded out of Christian pursuit to better understand God. Based on His promise in the psalms.

The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. Psalm 19:1

They expected to learn more about Him by studying his orderly creation. The early scientists were Christians, and the first universities grew out of monasteries. It is fitting that following the science is taking us back to God where it started.

What evidence is available to support a Belief In God, Sometimes Called a God hypothesis?

These are my Top Ten +1 reasons to believe:

  1. The order and design of the universe points to an intelligent source.
  2. Evolution explains adaptation, but it does not explain the explosion of species or how we got here. There is another force at work
  3. Simple Cells are Not so simple. The more we learn, the harder it is to imagine them emerging from a soup of chemicals. None of what happens in a cell is random.
  4. DNA is information telling each aspect of each cell what to do, how to do it, and when. The only known source for information is an intelligent mind. 
  5. Life only comes from life, We have no evidence of life coming from non-life. The chemical building blocks of life are unstable and assembling them into useful structures is not non-random. Life only comes from life.
  6. Every painting has a painter. Everything that has a beginning has a casue outside of it. The big bang happened before space, time and matter, so the cause must be something super powerfull and outside of space, time and mater. 
  7. The Bible is a very remarkable document with powerful wisdom when understood and applied. There is more and more archeological evidence to support the reliability of what has been preserved since it was originally written, and to substantiate the people, places and activities described in its stories.
  8. Jesus was a real person, and the evidence for His crucifixion is remarkable
  9. Superntural experiences such as Nead Death Experiences are more and more well documented and yield very practical insights.  
  10. Personal experience interacting with God, guiding and shaping me along my journey, and working through me to help others
  11. There is an objective morality written on our hearts, an objective morality demands a morality writer.

Lets take each of them in a bit more detail:

1) The order and design of the universe points to an intelligent source.

Everything about the universe is organized and highly tuned to allow life on earth. Astrophysicists have identified dozens and dozens of characteristics of the universe that are critical to life on earth; These include the laws of nature like gravity, the constants of physics like the cosmological constant, and the initial conditions of the big bang like how much energy. In recent years they have learned that these constants and quantities are so precisely tuned that the odds that they came into being randomly are astronomically low. If the universe had more initial mass, it would collapse back into itself. If the physics laws that govern molecules were any different, we would not have developed stable galaxies. If the earth were only slightly closer to the sun we would burn up, if any further away we would freeze. If the mass of the earth were any greater we would be crushed by gravity, if it were less massive we would not have a protective atmosphere.  If Jupiter were not exactly where is, we would have been destroyed by asteroids. These are just a few examples.

Learn more:

Video from J Warner Wallace: (Link)

Video from Dr William Lane Criag Videos – The Fine-Tuning of the Universe (Link)

Video from Stephen Meyer: (Link)

2) Evolution explains adaptation, but not macro evolution

Evolution theory does a wonderful job explaining minor adaptations to environmental conditions. There is no evidence for macro evolution. Darwin’s theory demands incremental changes over time. There is no fossil evidence showing increments of one species gradually becoming another. Instead, the fossil record shows many species emerging very rapidly in explosions of change. The explosion of new species is even more challenging to evolutionists now that we understand how DNA controls animal architecture and cell function, and any new body plans require significant new chunks of DNA to cause the animal to produce the proteins needed ot create the cells for the new features, and then assemble the new cells into tissues and fibers, and then arrange them into structures, then to know how to use the new structures once they arrive. Many species share common characteristics, but rather than evolving randomly over time in a long chain from a common ancestor, these common characteristics could be genetic building blocks used and reused by a creator who intervened with His creation along the way.

Learn more:

Video from Hoover Institute, “Mathematical Challenges to Darwin’s Theory of Evolution” with David Berlinski, David Gelernter, and Stephen Meyer (Link)

Video from Hoover institute ” By Design: Behe, Lennox, and Meyer on the Evidence for a Creator”  (Link)

3) Simple Cells Are Not So simple

Advances in Microbiology now reveal that each cell has a vast array of molecular level machines opertaing to perform the functions encessary to keep it alive, and the cell wall has a multitude of very specific structures and features that allow it to bring in the necessary mix of nutrients and export the necessary wastes so that it can survive and mmultiply. The more we learn about simple cells the harde rit is to imagine that they could emerge randomly from a soup of chemicals. 

Learn more: 

Video from Tomorrow’s World Viewpoint:  Darwin’s Not-So-Simple Cell (Link)

Video from Science Communication Lab – Ron Vale: Molecular Motor Proteins (Link)

Video from  Clockwork: Your Unstoppable Copy Machine｜DNA Replication (Link)

4) DNA is information, and information only comes from an intelligent source.

Each living cell has DNA which is basically a computer program for organizing the entire organism and running all the processes in each cell. DNA in each human cell contains approximately 3 million base pairs which represent approximately 1.5Gig of data. The DNA coding includes instructions for controlling replication and repair of itself. DNA is Information, Information is not generated randomly, it is highly specific and very complicated. information only comes from an intelligent source.

Learn more:

What kind of information is in DNA – Stephen Meyer  (Link)

5) Life only comes from life, life never comes from non-life.

Life propagates, it is never created from non-life. The popular story that life was sparked into existence by lightning striking a primordial soup of chemicals is a myth. The building block chemicals for life are naturally unstable and cannot wait around for lightning, and the complex chemical reactions to build chains of amino acids and other necessary complex molecules cannot be executed randomly in nature, these processes must be guided in a very precise way.

Learn more:

Hoover Institute Interview with James Tour and Stephen Meyer: (Link)

Creation Ministries Interview with Dr Stephen Grocott: (Link)

6) Every Painting Has a Painter.

We know from science and practical experience that everything that has a beginning has a cause from outside of it. This is called the Cosmological Argument. Science discovered in 1929 that the universe is expanding. If we run the clock backwards we know that the universe started in a big bang. The big bag was a tremendous release of pure energy before there was matter, space and time. The universe had a beginning so it must have a cause. The cause must be bigger and more powerful than the entire universe and it must be able to operate outside of matter, space, and time. A creator God is the most logical and elegant solution for that cause, and it happens to be consistent with Genesis 1:1 – In the beginning God.

Learn more:

Video From drcraigvideos – The Kalam Cosmological Argument – (Link)

7) The Bible is an Extraordinary Document and A Reliable Source of Wisdom, and History 

The Bible is remarkable in many ways, as the most popular literary work of all time, for the remarkable wisdom it contains, for how well it has been preserved over time, for how acurately it has captured the past, and how well it has predicted the future, and the impact it has had on individuals, nations, and society as a whole.    

Remarkable Literary Work

The bible was created to document the great acts of God over time to redeam and save His people and the world He created. It is the most popular book of all time with over a billion copies published.  It is a collection of 66 different works (Books), inspired by the Holy Spirit and recorded by 40 different authors from various walks of life from kings to soldiers, to prophets and priests. It was compiled over the course of more than 1500 years but has a consistent narrative ark throughout and has a remarkable number of interlinked passages; there are over 63,000 “Hyperlinks” in the bible. The layers of meanings in the bible become more and more significant as you read and re-read them over time. 

Learn More:  

Video from Tim Mackie – Where did the bible come from and why should we care (Link)

Chris Harrison visualization tool for seeing the 64K interlinks (Link)

Jordan Peterson describing how the Bible as the first hyperlinked text (Link), Deeper discussion (Link)

 Video from Mark Ashton at Christ Community Church  – 10 Reasons the bible is extraodinary (Link).

Profound Wisdom

The bible is full of profound wisdom; It is moving, and it has a broad influence on the way we see, think, and act at the individual levle and at the leve of society.  It offers timeless guidance on a wide range of life situations, including morality, relationships, and personal conduct. The biblical teachings have shaped western society with concepts like – we are each individuslly are created in God’s image and are worthy of respect. The bible has several books dedicated specifically to imparting wisdom to those who are willing to learn and apply it: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Solomon, and Ecclesiastes.  The other biblical stories often share lessons by example; people following God’s commands and being rewarded or choosing to ignore God, pursue their own agenda and suffer serious consequences. Many of the biblical writings have layers of meaning, The literal story can be informative, but it can also be symbolic of other deeper meanings.  Many of the teachings are done in the form of metaphor and parable, where you must think about the story and figure out how the deeper message applies to your situation, but the deeper meaning is always profound when you figure it out and apply it. The bible reveals God’s nature and purpose.  As you embrace it’s teaching, you can be molded more and more into His image. 

Learn more:

The Bible Project – Wisdom Series Videos (Link),  Intro to Wisdom Literature Podcast (Link). 

The HIGHEST Truth Of Them All | Jordan Peterson Deconstructing The BIBLE (Link)

Well Preserved

The bible is the best preserved piece of anchient literature we have. There are over 5,300 copies of the new testament in the original Greek, and hundreds of manuscripts of the old testament. The original writings were propogated by monks using a meticulous process. Detailed analysis of these documents and scrutiny of the variations that propagated allows us to understand when each variation was introduced and which is the most likely original. None of the variations impact the essential message fo Christ’s virgin birth, sinless life, sacrifice by crucifixion, and resurrection on  the 3rd day. The dead sea scrolls discovered in 1947 provided an even earlier copy of old testiment documents dated to 200 BC, and these further confim we have good traceability to the original writings.

Learn more:

Video form Dan Wallace – How can you trust the New Testament when the original manuscripts are different? (Link)

Interview with Deeper discussion – How Reliable Are Our New Testament Manuscripts? Dr. Daniel Wallace (Link)

Historically Accurate

The bible has proven to be reliable source of ancient historic information and even some scientific wisdom. The bible has been used to guide archeology digs and we now have archeological evidence of hundreds of people, places, and events described in the bible stories. For example Sodom and Gomorrah were real cities destroyed by fire from the heavens, A tribe of folks worshipping the God of the bible (YHWH) were indeed wandering the desert in ancient times, There were competing cultures sacrificing babies at alters that were warned to stop and then destroyed after 400 years of ignoring the warnings, There was a King David, There was a temple and it was destroyed, King Davids descendants were held in captivity in Babylon and then released to return and rebuild, Jesus was a real person, etc.

Predicted The Future

The bible was compiled from individual works written over a span of more than 1500 years. Over that time, there were many predicitons made of future events. There were over 2500 prophesies of future events in the bible, 2000 of them have already come true, the remainder are still in the future. Only God can predict the future, and He has demonstrated that capability.

Learn more: Article from Reasons to believe – Fulfilled Prophesy: Evidence for the Reliability of the Bible (Link) 

Remarkable Impact

The Bible is the best selling book of all time. It’s teachings change individual lives; people from around the world share testimony of being freed from substance abuse, destructive lifestyles, immoral behavior, and undesired behaviors due to following biblical principles and their faith in Jesus Chris.  The bibles teachings have transformed the world: Followers of the bible created science because they believed that it was orderly and studying it would reveal knowledge.Followers of the bible lead the abolition of slavery because the bible teaches that all people are created in God’s image and are worthy of respect., Followers of the bible created the entire western world which is the most prosperous of any society in history. Teachings can be corrupted and mis-used, but when applied correctly the reulsts are amazing.

8) Jesus was a Real Person, and There Is Convincing Evidence for His Resurrection 

The entire Christian religion hinges on three events: Jesus virgin birth, His suffering and innocent death on the cross, and His resurreciton on the 3rd day. Many non-believers question if Jesus was a real person, or if He really died on the cross, or if He was actually resurrected, When you review the evidence, there is a pretty convincing case that He was a real person, he did die on a cross at the hands of the romans, he was buried and then raised from the dead on the 3rd day.

    • The Gospels provide 4 eye-witness acounts of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection
    • There are several extra-biblical accounts of Jesus’ life, death, and hoards of followers who believe resurrection
    • There were over 500 eyewitnesses willing to suffer for admitting that they had seen the resurrected Jesus.
    • There was no debate at the time, that Jesus tomb was empty on the 3rd day. The critics of Jesus accused the disciples of stealing His body from the sealed and heavily guarded tomb. 
    • The 11 remaining disciples and Jesus’s brother James were so convinced by their encounters with the risen Jesus, they were willing to devote their remainder of their lives to spreading the word, being pursecuted, and enduring torture to the point of death. People do not take lies to the grave if they know the truth.
    • There is a creed written by the early church within weeks or months or a couple years of Jesus death to capture the essence of the Gospal story for those wanting to understand and believe. This creed is captured by Paul in 1st Corinthians 15.

Learn more:

Video From Lee Strobel – The Case for Christianity in 15 min – (Link)

Video From J Warner Wallace – Cold Case Christianity (Link)

Video Interview of J Warner Wallace – A 10 year Update of Cold Case Christianity (Link)

9) Supernatural Experiences Provide Insights

Near Death Experiences provide compelling evidence for Life After Death, God, Heaven, Purpose, and Accountability for your life.  Millions of people have had experiences during trauma where they leave their physical body, travel to heaven, visit with loved ones, meet angels or God, relive part of their lives, gain insights on their purpose, are sent back to continue their life, and come back a changed person. Analysis of these experiences across diverse cultures shows they are not a random phenomenon, God is real, Heaven is real, We are each here on earth temporarily and we are here for a purpose, the goal of our life is to transform so we flow God’s love through us to the rest of creation using our gifts and talents.

Learn more:

My Web Page on Near Death Experiences (Link)

    • My Web Page on The works of Emanuel Swedenborg (Link)

10) Personal Experience – We Each Can Observe God’s Hand In Our Life

If we open our eyes to the spiritual world, and are willing to invest some of our time and energy, we can see how we are being impacted by it, and then if we engage effectively, how we are impacting it. We can see God’s hand in our life (Providence), We can fele a deep sense of purpose for our lives, We can see God answering our prayers, We can even feel his presence if we draw near to Him. If we are willing to yeild our lives to Him, He will lead us on a wonderful adventure (Lead By The Spirit), and when we accept the authority he delegates to us, we can see the power of the Holy Spirit moving through us and impacting peoples lives.

Providence:

God puts us in just the right spot with just the right person to experience something significant that shapes our earthly journey. These events are often related to how you met your spouse, how you chose what school to go to, or how you got a job. When you look at the scenarios you experienced, the probability that all of those aspects happened randomly is close to zero, and once you recognize that such things have happened more than once in your life, it becomes clear that there is a greater force at work.

Sense of Purpose:

We are each programmed with a sense of purpose deep inside. If we are honest with ourselves and reflect on our lives, we know we are here for a reason, we have a purpose, there is a calling on their life. This purpose is different for each person but it is not random.  Our unique calling aligns with a passion deep in our heart and the gifts and talents we have in our earthly body.

Power of Prayers:

Purposeful and fervent prayer aligned with God’s will is very effective. A simple log of prayers and results seen will reveal that God is real and He is answering your prayers. 

Presence:

When we pursue God and draw near to Him in prayer or worship, we can sense His presence inside us – As sense of connection, inflow, and peace appears in our soul. 

Lead By the Spirit:

God wants to help you grow and mature. He is a Father, Counselor, Teacher and Shepherd. God will engage in an intimate conversation with you if you engage Him with all your heart. He will teach you, coach you, and lead you onto the path He has set before you. His path will enable you to bear fruit in this life and bring Him glory. Pretty wonderful 

Power:

When we align with God’s wil and actively engage others with the authority God grants by praying into some situation they face, you can often feel the holy spirit flow with energy to effect the other person. The effect is sometimes immediately visible, and sometimes delayed, but the sensation of the Holy Spirit moving is very real.

Learn more:

How To Hear His Voice – (Link to My Blog Post)

How To Get A Word Of Wisdom to Guide your path – (Link To My Blog Post),  (My Video)

11) There is a transcendent objective morality.

If we evolved as random accidents driven by propagation of our species, we should be motivated to do whatever it takes to elevate ourselves above others for our own survival and propagation. We should be murdering our competition, stealing their resources, and having sex with as many partners as possible to maximize our propagation. Counter to that agenda however, We know in our heart that murder of an innocent person is wrong, theft of others property is wrong, and that rape, incest and adultery is wrong. These are moral absolutes that suggest each of us has some inherent value as individuals which deserve to be respected and protected. This is consistent with bible teaching that we are created in the image of God with value and purpose, and those objective morals are written on our heart.

Learn more: 

Video from DrCraigVideos – Is There Meaning to Life? (Link)

Video from Jordan Peterson – The Lie of Relative Morality (Link)

Video from Jordan Peterson – The Case Against Moral Relativism (Link)

Video from Stand To Reason – Fatal Flaws of Moral Relativism (Link)

That is a summary of my top 10 +1 reasons to believe in God. Hope you find them helpful.  Post a comment if you agree, or if you disagree with anything I have said. I want to tune up these write ups over time. 

Next up: 

What are the arguments against God? And what are the best counters to those arguments. (Link) 

Was Jesus Real

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

What Evidence Do We Have That Jesus Was A Real Person 

The most imporatnt decision in your life will be whether to ccept Jesus as your lord or not. This decision will shape your life and and dictte how you spend etenrity. 

The critical beliefs in Christianity are that:

  • Mankind has fallen from God’s original intention due to sin,
  • God loves us so much He sent His son to rescue us,
  • Jesus came here and lived among us,
  • He suffered and died as an innocent man to pay the price for our sins,
  • He was raised from the dead on the third day and now rules in heaven,
  • Folks who repent and turn from their sinful ways, and believe in Jesus as their lord are transformed in this life and will get to spend eternity with Him in heaven, and
  • Folks who choose to ignore or reject Jesus and remain separated from God in this life will spend eternity separated from Him in one of the hells.

There are many reasons folks choose to reject Jesus. Some claim the bible is only a collection of myths and that Jesus either was a fictional character and never lived.  Some argue that he lived but didn’t die on the cross, or if He did die, he was never raised from the dead.  Contrary to those claims, there is convincing evidence from multiple sources that

  • Jesus was a very real historic person,
  • He died by crucifixion at the hands of the romans, and
  • He appeared alive to many after being buried in a sealed tomb for 3 days.

 I encourage you to review this evidence to become convinced and further deepen your commitment to Jesus in faith.

Jesus WAS a real person

Let’s start with establishing Jesus as a real historic person.  No serious historian doubts that Jesus was a real historic person who lived in Judea during the reins of Pontius Pilot and Tiberius, and that He had followers called Christians who truly believed he was raised from the dead.

Extra Biblical Writing:

Some of the key ancient documentation of Jesus existence from outside the bible are:

  • Flavius Josephus: The Jewish historian and military leader wrote about Jesus in his 20-volume history of the Jewish people, Jewish Antiquities, around 93 AD. This included discussion of Jesus doing surprising deeds and being crucified by Pilot. He mentions that He had a following of believers called Christians. He also writes of Jesus’ brother James who he identified as “the brother of Jesus who is called Christ” being brought before the Sanhedrin as a follower of Christ and being sentenced to death by stoning.
  • Tacitus: The Roman senator and historian wrote about Jesus and His execution by Pontius pilot during Tiberius’s reign in book 15, chapter 44, of his history of the Roman Empire, “Annals of Imperial Rome”, published around 116 AD.
  • Pliny the Younger: The Roman governor wrote to Emperor Trajan in 112 AD seeking guidance on how to proceed regarding putting Christians on trial. In one letter he stated that the early Christians would “sing hymns to Christ as to a god”.

Early Jews:

The ancient Jewish community embraced Jesus as a real person during his life and after his death. He was widely recognized as being an excellent teacher. Their issue was that He claimed to be God but did not fit the image they had of a conquering warrior king who would set them free from the romans. They accused him of being born illegitimately, of doing miracles by using evil magical forces, of making a false claim that He was God, and leading folks astray from the latest doctrines of the Jewish leaders. They disliked what he was doing but never doubted his existence. They believed he lived and was crucified, but that his body was stolen from the grave.

  “Jewish rabbis who did not like Jesus, or his followers, accused him of being a magician and leading people astray, but they never said he didn’t exist.” Lawrence Mykytiuk, associate professor of library science at Purdue University. Did Jesus Exist? Searching for Evidence Beyond the Bible – 2015

Early Christians:

The disciples and others provided eye-witness accounts of Jesus life which are recorded in the Gospels of Mathew, Mark, Luke and John which were written down within 30-60 years of the events. These are well preserved to this day.

Early Muslims:

The Muslim community has always revered Jesus as a prophet and messenger from God. The Quran mentions Jesus numerous times (Isa in Arabic). It details his life story including his virgin birth to Mary, his prophetic role, and miracles he performed. Muslims consider Jesus to be one of the major prophets sent by God, following the line of Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Solomon, David. The twist comes when the Quran says that Jesus avoided crucifixion and was raised directly to heaven. The Quran teaches that God (Allah) is the only true God, Jesus was not God because He was just a prophet. The Quran provided different guidance on who He was and how to deal with him, but it does not question that Jesus was here.

Surah Al-Imran (Chapter 3, Verse 45): “And (remember) when the angels said, ‘O Mary! Verily, Allah gives you good tidings of a word from Him, whose name will be Messiah Jesus, son of Mary, held in honor in this world and in the Hereafter, and of those who are near to Allah.

Jesus Died By Crucifixion

Jesus died by crucifixion at the hands of the romans. Several of the ancient documents that document his existence, specifically state that he was crucified.

The medical community has reviewed the process of roman crucifixion and concluded that anyone that undergoes this process will surely have died.

 “Clearly the weight of evidence suggests that Jesus was dead even before the spear was thrust into His side.” Journal of the American Medical Association

Jesus was Raised from the dead

Jesus was observed alive after His burial by various groups. There are 9 eye-witness accounts of the resurrected Jesus, some within, some outside the bible. He appeared to over 500 total witnesses. None of these witnesses received any earthly benefit from claiming they saw him, the only risked persecution, excommunication from their community, punishment, and torture, up to and including death.

Individual accounts of encountering the risen Jesus are provided by Matthew, John, Peter, Mary, Mary Magdalene, and the other disciples including Thomas and are recorded in the 4 gospels.

Eyewitness accounts were integrated into a Creed used by the early church. This creed was written very shortly after the resurrection. Paul learned of this creed when He visited Jerusalem 3 years after the resurrection.  Paul included this creed in his first letter to the Corinthians:

“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve”. 1 Corinthians 15:3-8

We have solid evidence that Jesus was real and that He died by crucifixion. It was common at the time, to believe that the tomb is empty 3 days after He was burried. Critics of the resurrection theory suggest the body was stolen, they do not debate that tomb was empty. Well, how else would the tomb become empty with roman guards on it 24/7.

The most compelling evidence for the resurrection is the conviction of the disciples. 12 humble disciples were willing to suffer torture and be put to death for testifying they interacted with Jesus after He was raised in the flesh. This is remarkable and very unlikely if His resurrection was a lie. For example, The Watergate perpetrators were some of the most powerful men in the world and they could not maintain their lie for just 3 months. These 12 men endured great suffering and went to the grave confessing that Jesus was raised from the dead.    

Why would 500 other eyewitnesses be willing to be excommunicated from society and possibly be stoned to death for claiming they saw Jesus resurrected in the flesh if it was a lie.  It wouldn’t happen.  

Would you be willing to give your life for something you believe in? Each veteran does just that. God loves us so much He sent His only begotten son to rescue us, to restore that which was lost through sin. Jesus loves us so much He was willing to bear the burden of our sin on His back to the point of death, trusting in faith the Fathers’ promise to resurrect Him in glory on the third day.  That is some serious faith, that is some serious love.

He is still alive, Just Ask Him

If you still don’t believe, Just ask Him.  Say: “Jesus if you are who the bible says you are, the Lord of the universe, the Creator, the Sustainer, the Redeemer, the Savior, please reveal yourself to me in some meaningful way. I truly want to get to know you.” You must be serious about it though. If you ask with all your heart you will find Him.

Believe!  He is risen. Acknowledge Him, Invite Him, Let Him lead you into the life He intended for you and then enjoy eternity with Him.

If you want to review in more detail, here are a couple links

 

 

Deny Yourself, Pick Up Your Cross Daily, Follow Jesus

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

Deny Yourself, Pick Up Your Cross Daily, Follow Jesus

We are called to Follow Jesus. Jesus is the shephard, we are His flock. We are to hear His voice and follow Him. We are called to follow in His footsteps and walk as He walked.  We are to imitate Him and become like Him. 

Jesus came here in the flesh as the expressed image of the Father. That means HE is Love. We are to imitate Him, and become love.

In order to imitate Him you need to open your eyes and begin to see things from His perspective. You need to look at how He lived His life and understand what He was trying to do.  You then need to figure out how to apply that understanding to your life. As you do this, you will get to “know Him” and He will get to know you.

He provides very direct instructions in how to do this in a robust way: Deny Yourself, Pick up your cross daily, and follow Him.

Deny yourself means to set aside your own self-conscious identity and cut off the selfish agendas that drive us. We need to realize this life is not all about ME and my ego, it is about allowing God to operate through ME to flow His love to others. God’s love is perfected when it flows through us to others. Self-centeredness gets in the way of this flow, it diverts and hords God’s love in ourselves rather than letting it flow through us to others. We need to flow God’s love through us, you can dable in this by finding ways to helping others. This, at least, gets you moving in the right direciton.  

Deny yourself is a critical step to truly becoming love.

Love does not try to draw attention to itself. It does not brag about how good things are going or complain about how bad things are going. It remains focused on how best to serve and help others.

Love does not try to build itself up or parade itself around. It does not seek credit for what it has or what it does. It doesn’t matter what your car looks like, it doesn’t matter how big or fancy your house is. It doesn’t matter if anyone notices when you spend time or money doing something nice. You need to shut down your ego and get it out of the way for God’s love to flow through you to others.

Love does not build itself up by putting others down. We are each God’s children and deserve to be treated with love. He promises to treat you exactly as you have treated others. Don’t build yourself up at the expense of others.  Don’t tear others down just to build yourself up. Find ways to lower yourself and serve others; the last will be the first in His kingdom.

Love is not focused on money or material  things. Love is focused on using our gifts, talents and resources to do good works for other people. Find ways to be nice to people, loving others, helping those in need physically, mentally, and spiritually.  

Love does not worry about what others think or say or do to it. It does not get puffed up when people say nice things, it does not take offense when someone treats it badly. Don’t seek credit for doing good; Don’t let the left hand know what the right hand is doing.

Love is content.  It does not envy what others have or take actions to maliciously pursue or take it.

Picking up your cross challenges you and helps you become Love:

Love is willing to sacrifice and suffer for a good cause. God sent His son even while we were rebelling against Him as sinners. Jesus was willing to suffer and die on the cross for us, even while He was being rejected by the very people He came to save. He not only was willing to suffer for us, He said nothing while it happened and forgave those who did it to them.  God knows exactly what has happened to you and what you think, say, and do to others. He promises rewards in heaven for suffering wrongs in this life without retaliating.  

Love forgives and does not hold grudges. Love sees the best in people. Love sees each of us as God’s children struggling in a fallen world.  Love forgives them of misguided actions and is willing to move forward. You are called to absorb wrongs and forgive 70×7 times. You are even called to love your enemies, pray for them, and bless them. You are to overcome evil with good.

Follow Jesus and love will blossom into faith and bring Him glory:

Love is focused on the hope of eternal things rather than the trials and tribulations of our individual earthly life. Jesus focused on the Fathers work, and He did the Fathers will. Stay focused on God and His purpose for our life. We are here to bring God glory. What can we do to serve Him and bring Him glory in our earthly life and how can our earthly lives help others gain an eternal life with Him.

Love has hope and high expectations for God’s divine purpose and plan, Jesus was willing to pick up his cross and die for us on the promise of resurrection on the third day. We trust in Him and His plan even when things are not going well for us in this life.

Please take seriously the opportunity to deny yourself, pick up your cross daily, and follow Jesus. Imitate Him and become love. Walk as He walked, Become the light as He was in the light.  Become a bright beacon for His kingdom. Stand boldly on judgement day because you have become like Him in this life.

Hope this helps.

 

Give Your Problems To Jesus

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

Give Your Problems to Jesus

Anxious? Worried? Stressed? Those are emotions based in the physical life you are experiencing. Jesus made it very clear that He wants you to shift from a physical focus to a spiritual focus, and when you do that He can help you. He actually wants you to Give your problems to Jesus! So how do we do that?

1) Awaken your spiritual body

Acknowledge God and His Key Roles – Creator, Provider, Protector, Father,

2) Humble Your Self

I am a sinner in a sinful world. I was born with the sinful nature I got from Adam. I have been selfish and self-centered. When I am being self-centered, I love myself more than I love God. When I am being self-centered, I love myself more than I love others. My ego has played a very strong role in my life: What people think of me, What they say about me, What kind of car I drive, What kind of house I live in, My work life/title/role and My education status. God asks us to love God with ALL my heart – I have not, God asks us to love our neighbors more than ourselves, I have not. I am a sinner. The wages of sin are death. Per God’s righteous Law I am destined for hell, I need a savior.

3) Acknowledge Jesus is The Christ.

The old testament makes at least 47 predictions about a savior coming, He would be born to a virgin woman in Bethlehem. He would come from the blood line of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, David, He would be exiled to Egypt, He would be called the son of God and the son of man. He would enter Jeruselem on a donkey. He would bear the burden of our sins on His body and be a sacrifice for our sins, He would be blameless, yet suffer and die via crucifixion with criminals, He would be resurrected and ascend to heave to be seated at God’s right hand. He would reign as king forever. Jesus did all of this and more. The odds of a single human accomplishing only 8 of the 47 predictions is 1 in 1 to the 1017.

4) Accept Him as Lord Of Your Life

Repent of your sins and your sinful nature, Turn from sinful ways. Reject self-centered agendas and self-conscious emotions, Deny yourself – This life is really not about me, it is about God and His kingdom. I am just a servant, a vessel for His use. Arms and legs to do His work. Invite Him to come and live in you. To teach you and guide you. To form in you. To help you put off the old you, and put on the new you. Submit yourself completely to Him.

5) See Things from God’s Perspective

Transform your mind to see things from God’s perspective. Focus on the spiritual dimension. What does God want to happen: We are all His children, He loves each of us, He put each of here with a purpose, That purpose is corrupted by sin, He sent His son to save us, His son wants to live inside us and help us become the person God intended when He made us. He will heal any damage inside us and empower us to thrive. We need to get ourselves (our selfish agendas) out of the way and trust in Him to do all that.

Talk to God daily; Read His word, Meditate on it, Seek to usnderstand Its message for your life

Talk to Him, Listen to Him. Become friends

Ask the why for your thoughts and actions.  What is driving you.  Is it Love of God and Love of neighbor?

Become love in action. His love is perfected when it flows through you to others.

6) Understand God’s will

He wants each of us to come to repentance and find Him.

He wants to come and form inside each of us to restore the original Image of God that was tarnished by Adam.

He wants each of us to live life in abundance with Him shining through us.

He wants each of us to become a bright shining light in a dark world. Examples for others to see the kingdom in aciton

When In Doubt of the details of Gods will in a situaiton, Humble yourself and Ask Him to guide your understanding.

7) Pray God’s will into place.

Speak Out loud. The power of death and life is in the tongue. God created the heavens and the earth by speaking. He SAID let there be light.. and there was.

Speak God’s will into place on earth. Grant your permission for God’s will to flow into place.

Pray fervently, boldly.  Pray as if you were a field commander instructing an army of angels in front of you to come in and engage in a life or death battle to execute this assignment from God.

8) Believe what you pray and you will receive it.

When you understand God’s will and are aligned with it, You can pray with confidence.

You must believe In your heart, that what you are asking for IS God’s will. When you do this, you can put all of your trust in Jesus to make it happen.

It is His Will, You are aligned with God’s will, and you are asking in Jesus name. When you believe it will happen, you can put your trust in Jesus with expectations of success. This defeats anxiety, worry and all those other physical emotions.

Supporting Scriptures:

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved. Psalm 55:22
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Philippians 4:6

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

Example Prayer:

Heavenly Father, Thank you for this life and for all you have done for me. Jesus thank you for coming here and doing your amazing work for us 2000 years ago. You are the Christ, you fulfilled the prophesy, Your body paid the price, your blood forgives our sins, and you are now at the right hand of the Father as eternal king..  I am a sinner in a sinful world. I confess my sins; I acknowledge that I have fallen short. I turn from my sinful ways and choose to follow you and your call to love God with all my heart and my neighbors as my self. I accept you as Lord of my life and invite you to come into me and lead me. Open the eyes of my understanding so that I see things from your perspective and understand your will. I know you want each of us to come to repentance and to follow you as Lord. I know you want to form inside each of us and to restore the image of God in us so that we can fulfill our purpose and flow your love to others.  I speak your will into place. I submit myself to you. I am clay, you are the potter. Transform me so that I can be of service to you.  I speak your will into place for my family and friends. May the eyes of thier understanding be opened to you and your purpose. May they feel your love. May they find your truth. May they reach repentance and submit to you as lord and savior. May they transforma and align with your will for thier lives and overcome this fallen world. I have faith that your will is good and true and I believe I am aligned the same intention. I put my trust in you.  I do not need to worry or be anxious, because I love you and you work all things to the good of those who love you. I speek this in Jesus name.  AMEN..    

You can’t do it, Only He Can!

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

You want to become your best self? You can’t do it, Only He can!

Opportunity:

I have come to appreciate the power of God to change things inside us. It is amazing to see how dramatically and how quickly He can make changes if we give Him permission and some space to work. He can change what we notice, how we think, what we want, what we do, and how we do it; And He can do it practically overnight. We each have an opportunity to leverage this powerful force in our lives.

We were put on this earth to manifest Gods love. The sinful nature introduced by Adam and Eve’s rebellion in the garden has gotten in the way of that purpose; We all struggle in a fallen world as a result. We are each called to transform from being “Self”-centered to becoming “Love”-centered so that we manifest Gods love to others on this earth. 

Self Improvement Approach:

Some folks try to do this themselves in self-improvement or self-help mode: Try to understand the rules, Apply the rules to our lives when practical, Do our best to control our urges and emotions, and strive to be a good person. This approach can achieve decent results in outward behavior, but it does not address the root issue driving undesired thoughts, motivations, and feelings. This approach is prone to failure, and It can gernerate internal struggles and extreme levels of frustration. It also misses the opportunity for Grace to come in and help make change.

God Powered Approach:

The alternate approach is to submit yourself to God and invite the Holy Spirit to come in and change you. If you give Him permission, He will replace the sinful nature deep in your soul with the loving nature He originally intended. That will remove the driving force for self-centered agendas (thoughts, motives, emotions) that you otherwise will have to continuously fight against.  If you continue to give Him permission, He will work in you to rewire thought patterns and emotions built up around your old sinful nature and help establish improved patterns where you start to see things from His perspective, see His love in action in your life, see the opportunities He presents, find ways to flow His love out to others with your unique gifts and talents, and feel the Joy of being part of His kingdom.

These are very different process with very different results. The “you” that results from your best efforts is limited by your ability to continuously deal with your sinful inner nature. The “you” that results from transformation by God’s grace, is freed from that inner constraint and is limited only by your own imagination of what is possible and your willingness to release yourself to the Holy Spirit.

If you want to expeirence your ultimate God powered transformaiton there are a few things to consider.

1) Free Will: You have free will to decide how you want to proceed with your life. God wll not force anything on you. You have to decide to make a change before He can change it. 

2) Your inner love: God will continue to give you what you love deep in your heart. This sounds great, but you have to understand what you really love. If you still love your self-centered self, He will not take that away from you. If you want to give Him permission to make changes, you must recognize in your mind that you are creating undesired consequences with your current approach and you must become committed in your heart that a change is necessary. It is only after these two steps then you have actually given Him permission to make changes in your life.

3) Grace: Grace is the free flow of blessings from God to those who believe. Grace works through Faith.

4) Faith:  Faith is when you believe and hope for something to happen in the future before you see any of the tangible results. For example, when you agree to mow a lawn for the first time, you are acting in faith that you will get paid when you are done. You are willing to work now and get paid later based on an understanding established up front. You mow the lawn, i’ll give you $20. If you trust the agreement and mow first, you create tension which pulls the pay into your wallet. God works in sort of the same way. The bible makes promises of good things that can flow into you and it describes expectations for you to align yourself to recieve them. If you position yourself properly with God,  claim one more of the promises He makes to believers, believe that it is already happening for you based on proper understanding, and it will flow into you. You must act (think, speak, act) in faith to make space for His grace to flow in.

ex: Father God, You call me to see things from your perspective. You call me to see my enemies as children of God stuggling in this fallen world. I thank you for working this in me so that I can let your love flow through me and shine like a beacon for your kingdom..     

How:

So how do we give God permission to make changes in you, and how do you make space for Grace to move and do its work?

  • Submit yourself to Jesus, Make Him Lord of your life
    1. He has full authority over heaven and on the earth
    2. He came here and paid the price to restore what was lost
    3. He is the way, the truth, and the life
      • He is the ONLY way to the Father
      • The truth WILL set your free
      • Knowing Him IS eternal life
  • Submit your old inner nature to God, condemn it, crucify it.
    1. My sinful nature came from Adam and is rooted in evil
    2. I am no longer interested in self-conscious or self-serving agendas in my life
    3. I hereby crucify my old self with Jesus on the cross
    4. I am putting off the old man, and putting on Jesus
  • Raise yourself in the resurrection with Jesus
    1. I am raised into life with Jesus
    2. I am born again – My spirit is renewed – I am a child of God
    3. Jesus is the first born of many – I am one of the many
    4. The Image of God is restored in me – I am a new man
  • Receive the Holy Spirit
    1. Holy Spirit please come and live in me.
    2. I present my body as a temple worthy of your presence.
    3. Fill me overflowing with your living water.
  • Give Him permission to work in you
    1. I draw near to You – please draw near to me.
    2. I seak you – Please help me get to know You.
    3. Guide me into all truth and righteousness.
    4. Open my eyes to see things from your perspective.
    5. Open my ears so I hear and understand your words.
    6. Transform my mind so I think your thoughts.
    7. Change my heart so I know and do your will.
  • Give Him glory
    1. I am saved by Grace througb Faith; It is not me but you that does this work.
    2. You are the vine, I am the branch; I can do nothing without you
    3. I ask all things in Jesus name, to bring glory to the Father through the son.

I am a work in progress, This is a work in progress, Hope it helps.

 

You make a choice each day – and it matters

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

You make a choice each day – and it matters

 

You have a choice every day: choose to follow God and His commandments and receive blessings, or don’t and suffer the consequences. (Duet 30:15) This is both a threat…and a promise.

We live in a fallen world and need God’s help to get through it. You can limit God’s ability to help you by how you live your life: your thoughts, your words, your actions matter. Sin separates us from the father, His protection, and His blessings. (Isaiah 59:2)

What is He expecting ?

Love God first and foremost – He is the source of everything Good. He put you here. He loves you. He gave is only begotten son to save you. Learn about Him. Get to know Him personally. Talk to Him. Listen to Him. Do what He says. Follow His commandments. Let Him lead you.

Love thy neighbor – Think of every other person on this planet as a beloved child of God, each struggling in a fallen world. Be kind, be patient, bring love and forgiveness into every situation. He put you here for reason. He wants you to be a living example…to shine as a beacon for the kingdom. Become His love in action, His arms and legs on this earth. You are the body of Christ, Let Him live through you.

Deny yourself – Remove selfish / self-serving agendas. This life is not about you, it is about how you can get over yourself and become of service to others. Put the old self behind you and put on the new self. Die to sin, be born again into life. Present yourself as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable. Focus your thoughts and actions around how to be useful to others. It is not about having things, it is about how you can use what you have can be helpful to others.

Pick up your cross. Don’t let sin against you become sin in you. Forgive them for they know not what they do. Live this life worthy of the price Jesus paid for it.

Remember you will stand before Him and be held accountable for how you chose to live this life: your thoughts, your words, your actions, how you spent your time.

How do you treat others? Do you build them up, or tear them down in your mind and through your words. Your words matter.

Do you let issues from the past linger and bog you down or do you focus on today and find ways to be a blessing to others. Forgive and forget. He forgives you so you can forgive others. Move forward!

How are you leveraging the gifts and talents He gave you, are you squandering them or nurturing them and leveraging them to help others. What you do with your life matters.

You have a choice today. Make the most of it!

My two cents for what it is worth.

Supporting scriptures:

Your actions can limit God’s ability to help you.

“How often they provoked Him in the wilderness, And grieved Him in the desert! Yes, again and again they tempted God, And limited the Holy One of Israel. They did not remember His power”. (Psalm 78: 41-43)

Sin separates you from God – and his ability to help you

“…your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.” (Isaiah 59:1-2)

You have a choice every day – Put God first and follow His commandments or suffer the consequences

“See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil, in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess. But if your heart turns away so that you do not hear, and are drawn away, and worship other gods and serve them, I announce to you today that you shall surely perish; you shall not prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to go in and possess. (Deut 30:15-18)

Put sin behind you and become a living sacrifice to God

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.” (Romans 12:1)

You are not saved by faith alone… how you chose to live your life really matters

“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.” (Revelation 21:12)

 

Example Prayer

Heavenly Father, Thank you.  You are the source of everything good in this world. I thank you for this life and for never giving up on me. Thank you for forgiving me so i can focus on the future. I thank you for filling me with your holy spirit. I thank you for fathering me, for teaching me, for coaching me. I thank you for helping me find the path you set for me. Thank you for continuing to help me remove my selfish sellf-centered agendas.  Thank you for helping me get ME out of the way so your love can flow through me. Thank you for helping me forgive others and moving forward. Thank you for helping me be a blessing to every person i come in contact with today. Thank you for helping me find more and more ways to be useful and to be of service to others.  Thank you for helping me shine in the darkness of this fallen world. AMEN.

 

 

Belief Framework for Healing

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

Set yourself up for Divine Healing – Key Beliefs to Hold

 

The promise of Healing

Jesus’ ministry involved teaching people about God and the kingdom, casting out devils, and healing the sick. He commissioned followers to continue His work and make disciples of all nations. He gave us the Holy Spirit to help us, full authority over the devil, and permission to use His name. He told us believers would do the same works He did: casting out devils and healing the sick. Sadly many suffer today, and few actually realize this scriptural promise.

I have seen two primary causes for this missed opportunity:  One is lack of knowledge or understanding and the other is unbelief; people either never got much Christian education in the area of healing, or their education was biased by selective interpretation of the bible. The devil has been very effective at getting the Christian population divided into segments with different interpretations of the bible. Many church leaders and devoted followers are so emotionally committed to defending their version of teachings and traditions they struggle to read the Word of God objectively and they miss out as a result.

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” (Hosea 4:6)  

It doesn’t help that the original works have been translated and the original intent is sometimes obscured.  The good news is you have the tools to figure it out. And the Holy Spirit will tell you in your “knower” when you get it right.   ex: Look up how the Greek word “Sozo” is used in the new testament.

Many read the bible as a collection of stories but fail to glean a deep understanding of the nature and will of God. This is most critical. Without confidence in your heart of Gods will and intention, you will be filled with doubts and will be unsteady when confronted with challenges in your life. If you do not know God’s will for your life, you can not act in faith.

“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.” (Ephesians 1:17)

Since the day Jesus ascended to heaven, the devil has been working overtime to get people distracted from what Jesus actually did for us. People have become focused on superficial messages, dependent on unending forgiveness for ongoing transgressions, and pursuing wonderful worship music and a happy feeling once a week to offset the mess they live every day.  Many are not doing the serious work of repentance and transformation He intended when He died to get us out of sin. Many cling to superficial soundbites rather than being rooted in the actual Word of God. Many of those superficial soundbites are actually lies.  Here are a few common lies that lead to unbelief and can stand in the way of divine healing.

Common lies and sources of unbelief

  1. Some believe miracles are not for today, They claim Jesus was not human but was God so only he could do miracles, and the 12 apostles and the initial 70 were specially anointed men so only they could do miracles. Things are somehow different now so miracles can not happen.  These folks don’t believe John 14:12 – Jesus expects “Believers” to do the same works as He did …and more. 
  2. Some believe healing only comes through those with a special gifting.  They do not believe Mark 16:17-18 – “Believers” will cast out demons and heal the sick.
  3. Some think illness is normal, they don’t believe illness is of the devil.  They do not believe Ephesians 6:4 – We do not struggle against flesh and blood but against powers and principalities.
  4. Some believe illness and even death is God’s will for them. They do not believe  2 Peter 3:9 – The lord does not will any to die but that all should come to repentance and live, or John 10:10 – The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. Jesus comes that they may have life, and life in abundance.
  5. Some believe God works in mysterious ways and you can not possibly know His will. They do not believe Ephesians 5:17 where he bluntly tells us not to be foolish and to understand the will of the Lord. And John 14:7 where Jesus revealed the Fathers will through His life and actions, if you know Me you know the Father.

My personal testimony refutes each of these lies and confirms the truth in the Word of God. Healing is for now and you can have it if you actually believe the truth in the Word of God, and act in faith.

I have come to appreciate a series of fundamental beliefs that form a foundation for divine healing. We need to get each of these fundamentals square in our mind, convert them to beliefs we hold deep in our heart, and then act on them in faith so that God’s grace can flow into our situation.

Moving from Understanding to Belief to Faith to Grace.

The Holy kingdom operates on Faith. You recieve faith when you understand the promises in the bible and decide to act on them (Thinking, Speaking, Doing) before there is any tangible physical evidence to support them.  When you act on a promise in faith, you create space and the tension for Grace to flow in.

Example: When you wake up feeling tired but proclaim “Good morning Jesus, Thank you for another day, It is going to be great having you with me all day and we will shine!” … you are ignoring your current reality, proclaiming a promise, and making space for God’s grace to flow in to your day.  If you had said: “Boy I feel like crap…this must be another Monday and it is really going to suck.”  there is no room for God’s grace to do anything positive for you.

Another example: When someone prays for healing, and at the end they say – “Lord, heal me if it is Your will”, or “Thanks for praying for me, prayer cant hurt, I’ll let you know if anything changed…”,  they have removed all faith from the situation. There is no sincere belief in a promise, no clear expectation for results, no acting in faith, no room for God’s grace to flow in.   

God’s solutions flow into your life by Grace. You make room for grace when you act in Faith – Thinking , Speaking and Doing. If you are not acting in faith in anticipation and expectation of God’s miraculous move, there is no pathway or space and no tension for His grace to flow in.

The first thing we need to do to get this started is to establish some solid beliefs. Beliefs start with gaining understanding in your mind.  We read or hear a piece of scripture, research it, figure out what it means,  how does it fit in context, how does it fit with the overall narrative, what are its implications, do I believe my interpretation is truth, what do I need to do differently based on my new understanding.  When working though a topic It helps to try to explain it, reflect on it, and even defend it in discussion.  As we begin to see how each one fits and how they bring merit and value, they become established as truths in our mind and beliefs in our heart. When we are willing to act on those beliefs by speaking or doing we are building faith. Divine healing comes only through acting in Faith, so we need to get these key beliefs in place and build faith.

The key belief foundation for divine healing

Work through the following chain of beliefs.  Do you fully understand the point? Can you explain it? Can you defend it?  Do you fully embrace it? Are you living your life by it?  Would you bet your life on it? We need to get to the level where we are living our life believing in our heart that each is true and expecting the results they promise.    

  1. Believe God is pure love, He loves you, and His will is for you to live a long life and bear fruit for the kingdom under His protection.
  2. Believe Illness is of the devil and he is stealing life from you.
  3. Believe Sin separates us from God’s protection, and opens the door for the devil – Adam’s sin, Your sin, Sins of prior generations.
  4. Confess your sins (Known and unknown), Repent (regret causing the damage you have caused), and Turn from them – commit to avoid them (Sins known and unknown, including unbelief in the written word).
  5. Believe in the Gospel story, (virgin birth into sinful flesh, resisted temptation and lead sinless life, blood shed as an innocent sacrifice, body becoming sin cursed on a pole, resurrection in the flesh bringing eternal life for all who believe)  Confess your belief and Accept Jesus Christ as your lord and savior.
  6. Accept His love, the gracious forgiveness through His blood, and the merciful salvation through His resurrection.
  7. Accept redemption and righteousness through Jesus’ intercession – reunion with the Father as before Adam’s sin.
  8. Believe your spirit is born again, and you are now an adopted son of God – heir to the kingdom and all its’ promises.
  9. Transform your life by transforming your mind – so you can follow Jesus as lord and live a life worthy of the price He paid.
    • Deny yourself: Stop purely self-centered interests – Focus on Jesus and flowing His love through you to others.
    • Pick up your cross: Separate yourself from the world, Resist temptation; Think, Speak, and Act righteously; Expect to suffer persecution for the cause.
    • Follow Him: Humble yourself, Know the Word, Get to know Him, Come into union, Live by the spirit, Continue His work.
  10. Accept the commission to continue His work as the body of Christ – Become the light in the darkness, Find the lost, Testify ot the truth, Defeat the works of the devil.
  11. Ask for and Receive the Holy Spirit – to help you, teach you, and correct you. Believe the resurrection power that raised Jesus is in you, the power to heal your flesh.
  12. Believe any believer with the Holy Spirit can do today what Jesus did then – know the will of the father, cast out demons, heal the sick.
  13. Believe and use the Word of God as the sword of the spirit – Truth, Permanent and Unchanging,  Purposeful and Powerful, Seed that must be sown and nurtured, Becomes Alive and Active in us, Forms building blocks of our faith. Legally binding in spiritual world, we must enforce it. 
  14. Believe you are seated in heavenly places and have full authority over the devil.
  15. Believe the devil no longer has a legal right to you – your sins are forgiven, your consequences have been paid, you are righteous through Jesus.
  16. Believe you are righteous. Jesus paid for it, enforce the Word of God, rebuke the devil, and cast him out on your authority in Jesus Name.
  17. Believe God’s will is for you to be healed right here and right now. “Jesus did the Fathers will” “Jesus healed all” “Jesus does not chage”
  18. Claim the promise of healing – “Confess your sins, Prayer of faith heals the sick”, “He sent His word and healed us”. “By His stripes I WAS healed”
  19. Speak God’s will into place – “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. This is your will. “I was healed”, “I am healed”, “It is written”.
  20. Enforce the word of God in faith – “ask anything in Jesus name”, “I believe and I receive”  “All promises are yes and AMEN”.

Supporting Scripture

  1. Believe God is love, He loves you, and His will is for you to live a long life and bear fruit for the kingdom under His protection.

“…God is love” (1 John 4:7)

“In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.”(1 John 4:9)

“You shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess. (Deuteronomy 5:33-33)

“If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians….” (Exodus 15:26)

“But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one.” (2 Thessalonians 3:3)

  1. Believe Illness is of the devil and he is stealing life from you.

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12)

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” (John 10:10);

  1. Believe Sin separates us from God’s protection and opens the door for The devil – Adam’s sin, Your sin, Sins of prior generations.

“But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” (Isaiah 59:2)

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)

“For the wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23)

“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned”. (Romans 5:12)

“ … For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,…” (Deuteronomy 5:9)

“Like a flitting sparrow, like a flying swallow, So a curse without cause shall not alight.” (Proverbs 26:2)

  1. Confess your sins and Repent (Sins known and unknown, including unbelief in the written word).

“Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19)

“Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.” (Acts 3:19)

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” (James 4:8)

“For the Lord your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn His face from you if you return to Him.”(2 Chronicles 30:9b)

“For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord God. “Therefore turn and live!” (Ezekiel 18:32)

  1. Believe in the Gospel story, (virgin birth into sinful flesh, resisted temptation and lead sinless life, blood shed as an innocent sacrifice, body becoming sin cursed on a pole, resurrection in the flesh bringing eternal life for all who believe)  Confess your belief and Accept Jesus Christ as your lord and savior.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”(John 3:16)

“Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.” (Mark 16:15-16)

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”(Mark 1:15)

“…if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.  For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” (Romans 10:9-10)

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:18)

  1. Accept His love, the gracious forgiveness by His innocent blood, and the merciful salvation and eternal life through His resurrection.

“In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.” (1 John 4:9)

“Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).

“Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven” (Mark 3:28).

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26)

  1. Accept the redemption He paid for, and the righteousness He provides through intercession – reunion with the Father – perfect union as it as before Adam’s sin – Access to the Holiest of Holy Places – The throne in Heaven – The veil is removed.

“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7)

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

“…the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe..” (Romans 3:21-23)

 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)

 

  1. Believe your spirit is born again, and you are now an adopted son of God – heir to the kingdom and all its’ promises.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Peter 1:3)

“Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:6)

“For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’  The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” (Romans 8:15-17)

  1. Transform your mind so you can follow Jesus as Lord, and live a life worthy of the price He paid.

“…do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:2)

“For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15)

“For it is the 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.” (2 Corinthians 4:6-8)

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. (Matthew 16:24)

      • Deny yourself: Stop purely self-centered interests, Focus on Jesus and flowing His’ love through you to others.

“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves” (Philippians 2:3)

“But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.” (James 3:14-16)

“but to those who are selfishly ambitious and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, wrath and indignation.” (Romans 2:8)

“…and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Romans 8:8)

“And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32)

“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. (Matthew 6:14-15)

      • Take up your cross: Seporate yourself from the world. Resist temptation; Think, Speak, and Act righteously; Expect to suffer persecution for the cause.

“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.” (Galatians 2:20)

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.” (Romans 12:1)

“But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” (James 1:14-15)

“No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.” (1 John 3:9)

      • Follow Him: Humble yourself, Know the Word, Get to Know Jesus, Come into union, Live by the spirit, Continue His work.

“For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: ‘Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth’; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.” (1 Peter 2:21-24)

“I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.” (John 17:20-23)

  1. Believe you have the Holy Spirit operating inside you – and the resurrection power will heal your flesh

“If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” (Luke 11:13)

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” (John 14:26)

“…if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Romans 8:11)

  1. Believe any believer today can do what Jesus did then – cast out demons, heal the sick

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” (John 14:12)

“And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” (Mark 16:17-18)

  1. Accept the commission to continue His work as the body of Christ – Become a light in the darkness, Find the lost, Defeat the works of the devil.

“…As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).

“I am the light of the world”(John 8:12)  now “You are the light of the world.” (Matthew 5:14)

“for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”(Luke 19:10)

“… For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”(1 John 3:8)

  1. Embrace the Word of God as the sword of the spirit – Truth, Permanent and Unchanging,  Purposeful and Powerful, Seed that must be sown and nurtured, Becomes Alive and Active in us, Forms building blocks of our faith. Legally binding in spiritual world, we must enforce it. 
  • It is part of God, permanent and unchanging

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1)

 “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

“Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.” (Matthew 24:35)

“For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.” (Matthew 5:18)

“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.”(Isaiah 40:8) 

  • It is pure truth

“Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.” (Proverbs 30:5)

“Your word is truth.” (John 17:17)

“The entirety of Your word is truth, And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.” (Psalm 119:160)

“For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.” (Proverbs 2:6)

  • It has a purpose and will accomplish its purpose

“So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11) 

“If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32)

“He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction.”(Psalm 107:20)

  • It is spiritual food, we must eat it, sow it into our mind and heart

“It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4)

“As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.”
(1 Peter 2:2)

“My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart; For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.” (Proverbs 4:20-22)

“Therefore hear the parable of the sower: When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” (Matthew 13:18-23)

  • It becomes alive and active in us

“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

“Since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God” (1 Peter 1:23)

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” (Colossians 3:16)

“The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul” (Psalm 19:7)

  • It forms the building blocks of our faith

“So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”(Romans 10:17)

“And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.”(Acts 20:32)

  • We must hold fast to the word in order to shine in a fallen world 

“Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life. ( hilippians 2:14-16a)

“Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.” (Proverbs 4:5)

“I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth More than my necessary food.” (Job 23:12)

“…blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” (Luke 11:28) 

  • It is binding, enforced

‘“None of My words will be postponed any more, but the word which I speak will be done,” says the Lord God.’ (Ezekiel 12:28)

  • We are to actively wield it as a sword to stand against the devil and hold him accountable.

“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. (2 Corinthians 10:3-6)

“…be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” (Ephesians 6:10-13)

“Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints” Ephesians 6:14-18)

  1. Believe you are seated in heavenly places and you have full authority over the devil.

“By the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh” (Hebrews 10:20)

“But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.”(2 Corinthians 3:16)

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus” (Hebrews 10:19)

“Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” (Luke 10:19)

  1. Believe the devil no longer has a legal right to you – your sins are forgiven, your consequences have been paid, you are righteous through Jeus

“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.” (Colossians 1:13-14)

“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5)

“Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)

  1. Stand in the righteousness Jesus paid for, positioned in heavenly places and enforce the word of God, cast out the devil on your authority, in Jesus name

“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:16).

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:4-6)

“Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. (Matthew 18:18)

“Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11)

  1. Believe God’s will is for you to be healed right here and right now. “Jesus did the Fathers will” “Jesus healed all” “Jesus is unchanging”

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” (Colossians 1:15)

“He made known to us the mystery of His will…” (Ephesians 1:9)

“For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” (John 6:38)

“If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.” (John 14:7-9)

“…And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick…” (Matthew 6:16-17)

“And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.” (Luke 6:19)

“Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well.” (Mark 6:56)

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)

  1. Claim the promise of healing – “Confess sins, Prayer of faith heals the sick”, “By his stripes I was healed”, “

“He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions.” (Psalm 107:20)

“…I will restore you to health and heal your wounds,’ declares the LORD” (Jeremiah 30:17)

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, Who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases” (Psalm 103:23)

“If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. (James 5:14-16)

“But to you who fear My name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings” (Malachi 4:2)

“…by whose stripes you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24)

  1. Speak God’s will into place – Your word is truth, Your will is healing, “It is written”, I will pray it into place.

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverbs 18:21)

“The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:16)

“Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10)

“Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.” (James 5:17)

“I will worship toward Your holy temple, And praise Your name For Your lovingkindness and Your truth; For You have magnified Your word above all Your name.” (Psalm 138:2)

  1. Act in faith: “ask anything in Jesus name”, “I believe and I receive” “All promises are yes and AMEN”.

”And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” (John 14:13)

“If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” (John 14:14)

“Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” (Mark 11:24)

“Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.  And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.” (1 John 5:14-15)

“For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.” (2 Corinthians 1:20)

God wants you well

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

 God Wants You Healed – NOW!

What is Gods will for you?  Does He want you healed of your afflictions? He certainly CAN can heal,  you but is it HIS Will to heal you? The answer is YES!  

One of the critical aspects of divine healing is understanding that it is God’s will for you.  If you are suffering from illness or disease, He wants you healed so you can do good works to bring glory to the kingdom. God is invisible, but He reveals Himself and His will in the written word (Bible), the life of Jesus, and through the Holy Spirit inside you.  The following are some key threads to consider in your mind.  Please work throught them and let the Holy Spirit inside you help you settle the truth into your heart so that you can act in faith and receive the full blessings He promises us.

We can and should understand God’s will.

There is no cripture that says “He works in mysterious ways” –  That common saying is a lie and a work of the devil. There is no scripture that says you can not understand God’s will.  In fact scripture says you can and should, and you are being foolish if you don’t.

“So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” (Ephesians 5:17)

“… be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,” (Colossians 1:9)

We need to change how we think in order to understand God’s will.

He thinks differently than people of the world do, He thinks with a larger purpose and an eternal mindset.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)

We can and should strive to see things from His perspective and project His intention into a situation. We need to lif ourselves form this earthly physucal mindset and look a things from God’s eternal spiritual perspective. That is how we start to understand and then execute His will. Does your current situation reflect God’s stated intentions? Does it line up with His promises? Am I experiencing curses or blessings? Am I experiencing life in abundance or is the devil stealing, killing, or destroying my life.   

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:2)

Healing is His very nature

“I am Jehovah Rapha” –“I am the God who heals you.” (Exodus 15:26 Hebrew / NKJV)

“He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds.” (Psalm 147:3)

“For by Me your days will be multiplied, And years of life will be added to you.” (Proverbs 9:11)

God made a promise to forgive us and heal us if we diligently seek Him and repent from sin

“…I will restore you to health and heal your wounds,’ declares the LORD” (Jeremiah 30:17)

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, Who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases” (Psalm 103:23 )

“But to you who fear My name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings” (Malachi 4:2)

“If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

“He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions.” (Psalm 107:20)

Jesus revealed God’s will:  His will is to heal all who are afflicted.

Jesus is the expressed image of God.

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” (Colossians 1:15)

We know God the Father through the recorded life of His son Jesus.

“If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.” (John 14:7)

Jesus revealed God’s will, He only did the Fathers Will.

“He made known to us the mystery of His will…” (Ephesians 1:9)

“For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” (John 6:38)

Jesus demonstrated God’s will for Healing – He healed ALL who came to Him

“…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)

Jesus never left anyone ill – He healed all who came 

“When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick.” (Matthew 8:16)

“And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.” (Matthew 14:14)

”And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.” (Matthew 19:2)

“And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all.” (Matthew 12:15)

“Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well.” (Mark 6:56)

“When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them.” (Luke 4:40)

“And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.” (Luke 6:19)

“But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing.” (Luke 9:11)

Most were healed through acting in Faith

Then Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the road. (Mark 10:52)

“Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.” (Mark 5:33-34)

“But when Jesus heard it, He answered him, saying, “Do not be afraid; only believe, and she will be made well.” (Luke 8:50)

Jesus expects believers to use the Holy Spirit to continue this same healing activity today.

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)

 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” (John 14:12)

Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.  And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. (James 5:14-16)

God the Father and Jesus are both unchanging

“For I, the Lord, do not change” (Malachi 3:6)

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. (James 1:17)

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)

If Jesus is the image of God and He only did the Father’s will, and He healed all who came to Him, then His will was to heal.  If God and Jesus are unchanging, then God’s will is to heal you right Now! 

Testimonies

God’s will for healing those who diligently follow Him has been born out in my personal experience working with various folks: 

Accelerated surgery recovery, Osteoarthritis pain relieved, Torn meniscus healed, each after prayer of faith

Gall stone pain gone after prayer of faith.

Shoulder pain gone after prayer of faith.

Back healed after prayer of faith

Brain cancer gone after receiving “resurrections” as word of wisdom and then prayer of faith.

Metastasized Lung cancer in Brain healed through radiation treatment – after receiving image of “radiation exposure” as word of wisdom and then prayer of faith

Metastasized Ovarian cancer healing in progress without surgery after receiving “The Healer” as a word of wisdom and a very distinct sign of eagles which was interpreted as “Psalm 103 – Bless the lord – He heals all your diseases  – Your youth renewed like eagles”

My experience shows the opposite to be true as well.  Folks who do not chose to seak and understand Gods will to heal will continue to be victims.

Folks who selfishly stick to long held traditions and selective doctrines and/or do not diligently seek and apply God’s actual written word and act in faith will miss out on His promises of Life in abundance in this world.  

Positive Confession / Confirmation:

Heavenly father. Thank you for revealing your will for Healing though your name, through your word, and through the life of Jesus. You are Jehovah Rapha – the God who heals us.  You promise to heal us if we diligently follow you and truly repent from sins. You sent your word to Heal us, I cherish your words and seek to understand them in my mind, and hold them deep in our heart – I believe they bring health to my flesh.

Jesus is Your word made flesh. You are invisible, but Jesus is your expressed image in the flesh. He did only your will, Not His own. When we see Him, we see You; When we know Him, we Know you.  Jesus taught, did good works, cast out demons, and healed all who were afflicted. Based on Jesus life, your will is for people to find You through Jesus, repent and turn from their sins, be healed of their afflictions, and live a long life worthy of the price Jesus paid.

He came here as the Son of Man and was baptized with the Holy Spirit and power. Jesus used the Holy Spirit to heal ALL who were afflicted. He did not heal some of them, He healed all of them. He did not pray and Hope they were healed, He Healed them. He taught them about You, build faith in their hearts, cast out their demons, and healed them of their afflictions. Some were healed as a sign for unbelievers, like the man born blind from birth. Most were healed as believers acting in faith like the woman with the issue of blood who reached out and touched His garment. Either way, they were ALL healed.

Jesus never inflicted illness on anyone, He never told them to come back when they had more faith, He healed them on the spot.

You are unchanging; Your will is unchanging.   You wanted everyone healed back then, you want everyone healed now. Your will is healing, You want me healed.

It is up to me to align my will with Your will and act in faith to receive healing.

Scripture case for healing

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

Scriptural Case for Divine Healing

Are you interested in recieving Divine Healing? There are several scriptural principles you need to get straight in your mind, sew into your heart, and act out in faith. I have grouped them into a logical series of categories as follows. 

God is the source of everything good

God is love; God loves me; He loves me so much he sent His son to suffer and die for me

“God is love” (1John 4:8)

“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” (John 3:16).

“In this the love of 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 for our sins. (1 John 4:9-10)

Illness is of the devil

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12).

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” (John 10:10-29)

“…the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.” (1 John 5:19)

“…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)

We live in a fallen world 

We were originally created in Gods image – Perfect, Innocent, and  Immortal

“So God created man in His own image” (Genesis 1:27)

He gave us dominion and authority over all the earth

“Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26)

Adam and Eve sinned  – they listened to the lying devil and disregarded God’s only command – They ate of the forbidden tree of knowledge of good an evil. 

“The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” (Genesis 3:13)

That act of sin changed their nature, It tainted the original perfect image in thier soul. They got to know evil and became self-conscious (ex: knew they were naked and hid) and self serving (ex: blaming others); and they suffered consequences: Eviction, Toiling, Struggling, Pain, Death

“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. (Genesis 3:7)

Adam blamed God and Eve: “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” (Genesis 3:12)

Eve blamed the devil: The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” (Genesis 3:13)

Adams’ descendants inherited his sin-tainted image.

“…In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God….And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth” (Genesis 5:1-3)

We inherit Adams’ image and propagate it through the bloodline

“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.” (Romans 5:12-21)

Jesus came here to save us

Jesus came here to save us from sin, to redeem the image of God which was lost through Adam.

“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:10)

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45)

“Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.” (Matthew 10:34)

Jesus came here in the flesh, resisted the devil and his temptations to the point of death as a sinless man, and defeated the devil and His power over death with His resurrection.

“Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Hebrews 2:14)

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Jesus ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father with all power over heaven and on earth.

“So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.” (Mark 16:19)

“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18)

He intercedes for us – He blots out our sin, God sees us Holy and beyond reproach through Him

“And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight.” (Colossians 1:21-22)

We need to Accept Jesus as our Lord and savior and then actually follow Him.

When we accept Jesus and follow Him, our spirit is born again into the original perfect image

“And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.” (1 Corinthians 15:49)

“For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.” (Romans 8:29)

We become adopted children of God, We are entitled to inherit the promises of the kingdom

“Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, everyone who hangs on a tree is cursed), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3:13-14)

“To redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.” (Galatians 4:5-7)

Follow Jesus

God gives us a choice – Follow Him and get blessings, or try to go it alone become a victim of the devil and his curses.

“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; that you may love the Lord your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days..” (Deuteronomy 30:19-20)

In order to receive the blessings we need to truly Follow Jesus. Deny your self-centered interests, take up your cross (Resist temptation to sin when suffering for God), and Follow Him (Apply Commandments)

“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me”(Luke 9:23)

Become committed to living a life worthy of the price He paid

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. (Romans 12:1)

“You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.”(1 Corinthians 7:23)

Repent of our sins, accept His forgivness,  and forgive those who sin against you.

“Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'”(Acts 2:38)

When we are baptized into the new life – the old life dies with Jesus in the grave, the new life rises with His resurrections

“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. (Galatians 2:20)

We are expected to transform our mind and execute Gods will, in alignment with His commandments.

“…do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:1-2)

When we repent and transform our lives, The devil will have nothing in US

We need to stop sinning – Sin opens the door to the devil

The devil lurks just waiting to pounce; He comes to steal, kill and destroy

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy…” (John 10:10)

God protects us from the devil when we follow Him

“But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.” (2 Thessalonians 3:3)

“The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all” (Psalm 34:19)

Sin separates us from God and His ability to protect us

“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.” (Isaiah 59:2)

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I (Jesus) have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).

Jesus gives us power over the devil

Jesus came here to destroy the works of the devil:

The Son of God (Jesus) appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8).

Jesus defeated the devil: 1) Denying himself; He gave up his status as a God and came here as a man in sinful flesh, 2) He suffered and resisted temptation to sin, to the point of death, 3) He overcame the power of death by His resurreciton 

“Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself (Jesus) likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil.” (Hebrews 2:14)
“Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it” (Colossians 2:15).

Jesus received All power from the devil.

“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,” (Matthew 28:18-20)

Jesus suffered and died for me, by his stripes I am healed:

“… He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).

When I accept and follow Jesus, My sins are forgiven, All my sins

“Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).

“Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven” (Mark 3:28).

Jesus redeemed me, He reconciled me with the Father, He makes me Righteous:

“And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight” (Colossians 1:21-22).

“This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe (Romans 3:22).

I am born again, All old things are gone, All things are new in Jesus:

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Jesus commissioned us to continue His work

“…As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).

Jesus delegated His authority to you

“Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” (Luke 10:19)

He expects all of us to use that authority

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” (John 14:12)

“And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” (Mark 16:17-18)

I AM the body of Christ, His arms and legs on earth, and I will continue His work

“Now you are the body of Christ” (2 Corinthians 12:27).

The Power that raised Jesus from the dead is working inside me right now!

“…He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11).

Jesus name is power. He is the name above all names, all must kneel to His name

“… God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth” (Philippians 2:9).

The prayer of a righteous man is powerful:

“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (James 5:16).

You are actually fighting a spritual battle against evil

I rebuke the evil spirits affecting me. I command you to leave in Jesus name!:

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)

You must speak healing into place

I speak to this mountain, and it is moving!:

“For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says” (Mark 11:23).

God wants me well. His word is truth and unchanging, As it is written, so let it be done:

“My son, give attention to my words; … For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh. (Psalm 4:20-22)

“He sent His word and healed them” (Psalm 107:20).

“Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed” (Jeremiah 17:14).

When you move forward in faith, you make room for God’s grace to flow in.

“The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.”(Romans 16:20)

You must truly repent of your sins.

“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”(James 5:16)

You must pray God’s will into place.

“Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

You must believe to receive.

“Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”(Mark 11:24)

 

God is waiting for you

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

God is waiting for you to act in Faith!

 

One of the challenges of divine healing is understanding that we have to take the initiative. God has already done all He needs to do to set you up for success. He has now handed the ball to us and He is waiting for us to pick it up and run with it. 

Exodus 15:26 is powerful – The closing sentence is one of the building blocks for faith for divine healing:  “I am the Lord who heals you.”

The front end of the verse makes it clear that we have a role to play. “If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes…”.  Based on that, we need to understand what God said, what He wants us to do, and then we need to do it. 

The Bible, or The Word, captures the word of God and forms the foundation to understanding His commandments, and what is right in His sight. The Word of God is described as the sword of the spirit and is a powerful weapon for fighting the battles we encounter in this life.

Once piece of the divine healing puzzle becomes clear as you understand what God tells us in the word: He handed us the ball and is waiting for us to run with it. If we are sitting back assuming “He is in control” and/or He can heal me “If it is His will”,  we will be disappointed.

Follow this chain of logic:

  • God told us Why we get sick (Sin opens the door to the devil, We are all born as sinners)
  • God told us Who causes illness (We struggle against powers and principalities; The devil lies, steals, kills, and destroys)
  • God sent Jesus to save us
  • Jesus showed us how to heal (Repent and Kick out the devil)
  • Jesus paid the price (Shed innocent blood, Bore sin on His back)
  • Jesus gained all power by defeating death
  • Jesus delegated His power over the devil to us (ALL power over the enemy)
  • Jesus told us to continue His work
  • Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to help us
  • Jesus sat down on the thrown and is waiting for us to do it
  • He will not go against his word (God is unchanging)
  • He told us how to receive healing (Repent, Believe, Act in faith, Receive) 
  • He told us we must pray His will into place on earth as it is in heaven

Jesus showed us the way. He paid the price, and then handed us the ball.  We need to pick up the ball and follow the path He made for us.

He has already done His part, He gave us the keys and will not take them back. He is waiting for us to do our part, believe the word of God, act in faith,  follow Him, and receive His promises.

Suggested prayer:

Heavenly father, I thank you for all you have done for me, You are the source of everything good in this world..

Thank you Jesus for coming here to save us: By your blood we were saved, by your stripes we were healed. I believe in you, I choose to follow you as my Lord and savior. I stand in the redemption you paid for, I receive the forgiveness you provide, and I flow forgiveness to all who sin against me.  I am the righteousness of God through You,  and I thankfully receive your gracious blessings.

Thank you Lord, for sending your word. It is alive, it is powerful, It is truth, and when I hold it close in my heart it sets me free. I thank you for helping me be receptive to your word, and for gaining more understanding as i study it. Give me eyes to see all things from your perspective, ears to hear and understand your messages, and a heart to believe and act on your truths.

Lord, Thank you for forgiving my sins – those I recognize and those I do not yet recognized. It is clear that I still have much to learn about you and your kingdom. I am committed to follow your ways as i learn and understand them. You paid a high price to free me from the burden of sin; I will live my life worthy of the price you paid.

I believe Illness is of the devil and I refuse to accept it. I am a born again son of God. I am following Jesus and He presents me as Holy to the Father. I have repented and confessed my sins, they are forgiven by the blood of my Lord and Savior. I have authority over the devil and he has no claim on me.  I herby rebuke the evil spirits affecting me; I command you to leave me now in Jesus name.

The power of life and death is in the tongue. I speak healing into this body in Jesus name. You are the God that heals; By your stripes I am healed; I believe in your promises of Life in abundance; I believe and I receive the truth of your love and your promises in Jesus name. As it is written, so let it be done.

Thank you Lord, for all you have already done for me, and thank you for healing me here and now.  May my life be of greater service to your kingdom, and may my testimony be a bright light for others to see the power in the kingdom of God.   I ask this In Jesus name. AMEN

Supporting scripture:

Scripture as the written word of God, it is truth, it is unchanging.

“it is truth” (John 17:17)

“it is impossible for God to lie” (Hebrews 6:18)

Jesus is the word in flesh, and does not change

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:4)

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)

“For I am the Lord, I do not change” (Malachi 3:6)

We are to live by the word of God.

“It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”(Matthew 4:4)

We are born sinners, and all have sinned

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23)

Sin separates us from God and His promise of protection

“…your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.” (Isaiah 59:2)

Our physical struggles are actually against the devil

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. ” (Ephesians 6:4)

The devil administers the consequences of sin

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10)

“Deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh” (1 Corinthians 5:5) 

Jesus healed by kicking out devils

“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)

Jesus defeated the devil by dying as an innocent sinless man on the cross.

“Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.” (Colossians 2:15)

He disarmed the devil, removing the power of sin over us

“…having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing (Colossians 2:13-16)

Jesus received all power in heaven and on earth by defeating death on the cross. 

“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.’ ” (Matthew 28:18)

He delegated His authority over the enemy to us. All of it!

“Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.”(Luke 10:19)

When we repent and turn from sin, and follow Jesus, we are released from the power of Satan and aligned with the power of God. Our sins are forgiven and we inherit His blessings.

“…open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’(Acts 26:18)

Once He delegated, He sat down and is waiting for us to act.

“But this Man (Jesus), after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. (Hebrews 10:12-13)

He commissions us to continue His work

“As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” (John 20:21)

He gives us the Holy Spirit to help us and teach us

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.(John 14:26)

He expects us to do what He did

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.(John 14:12)

He directs us specifically how to address illness: repent of our sins, pray the prayer of faith, receive forgiveness, and be healed. 

“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:14-17)

The spiritual world operates entirely on faith

“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is (That He exists and Is God), and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”(Hebrews 11:6)

Faith is a thing – it is a substance. Faith requires belief in your heart for things you can not yet see, and action based on that belief. 

“…faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

Faith is built by diligently seeking God, studying the word of god and listening to His voice inside you.

“So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17)

We must believe to receive His promises

“Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” (Mark 11:24)

Hope this helps.  Leave a comment.  Happy to discuss.  

 

Key Beliefs For Healing

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

 Key Beliefs for Divine Healing

 

I have been involved in this informal ministry for about 5 years. My focus has been split between learning how spiritual processes work and helping people become healed from physical ailments.  A vast majority of my encounters with healing have bad two aspects: spiritual development, and healing execution. While in some cases there was an instantaneous and miraculous healing flow, In most cases the healing flowed in after a period of spiritual development. Spiritual development is a learning process and can take a while depending on how aggressively you approach it. This blog post is intended to facilitate the teaching / learning / growth aspect of this process and accelerate believers on the path towards healing.

The first part of the blog is a discussion on belifs and the process of establishing beliefs and developing faith; the second part is a listing of key beliefs which provide a foundation for Divine Healing. Ground yourself on the learning process then run through the list of beliefs and see where you are on each one. I have scripture and process logic to support exploration and discussion for each one to help you on your journey.

Some definitions:

  • Truth: A principle that flows from God, All truth flows from God. God is truth.
  • Belief: Something you know in your heart to be true.
  • Faith: Acting on something you Believe to be true, even if you do no evidence for it

Establishing Beliefs / Building Faith

Spiritual knowledge must be revealed to us; We are not born with it, and we can not derive it by observation in the earthly world. Spiritual knowledge can come a variety of sources including preachers, teachers, writers, friends, and most is rooted in holy scriptures.

Learning is a process that goes through progressive stages:

  • Exposure to new information leads to Awareness
  • Gathering and reviewing more information leads to familiarity and Knowledge
  • Investigation, study, and rationalization in your mind leads to Understanding
  • Application to various situaiotns leads to practical experience and Wisdom.

Learning is an active process; You must invest some mental energy to work through the learning stages. The level of understanding we develop on a topic depends on how much energy we are willing to invest gathering, contemplating and rationalizing. How much energy you put into something is related to how important it is to you. It is either already important because you intrinsically value it and you want to fully explore it, or it becomes important because you discover the topic has consequences and you want to better understand how it works. You can learn quite a bit on most topics if yo put your mind to it. You can learn even more if you apply what you are learning as you go.

Think about how you go about any sort of serious learning, whether for school, or problem solving at home or at work. We think through a topic; What are we seeing in front of you? What do we know about it? How does it fit with our experience? How does it fit with our understanding of how things work? If it fits, we log it in our mental database of experiences and move on.  If it is different, we rationalize it: Either dismiss it as a special case we are not going to worry about, or choose to spend the time to figure it out in detail so we are prepared to deal with it again in the future. As we dig into it, we try to figure it out ourselves, we look for published information, we talk to friends with experience in this area, we pursue friends of friends and even track down experts. Once you convince yourself you understand something, you then figure out how best to deal with it:  What are the options, what are the likely outcomes, how would I pursue them, what are the risks. You select a path forward based on your best reasoning. You proceed down that path and check to see if you are getting the results you expect and adjust as necessary.

Once you are moving forward, you have established at least two beliefs:  1) What you are facing,  and 2) how best to deal with it. The criticallity of those specific beliefs depends on the significance of the results… is it a life or death situation or are you choosing whether to eat your picnic supper on a real plate or a paper plate. 

Firm belief and a sense of urgency lead to commitment

At some point in your lives, we learn to power through difficult situations with determination, commitment, and perseverance.  We act with more confidence and conviction when we have established truly solid beliefs. You believe you understand the situation at hand, and you believe the path you have chosen will get you to a better situation if you apply enough energy and drive through it. You will not commit the energy necessary to make much progress on serious issues unless you firmly believe you are on the right path to success.

The other piece of the conviction puzzle is a sense of urgency. You must believe it is more important to act to change the course you are on than to let it take its course. There are plenty of potential sources of urgency, you just need grab on to one to drive you forward: 1) You are going to die someday, Where are you going to spend eternity? , Eternity in Heaven is better than eternity in hell; Peace, Joy and Love in this life is better than Hate, Angst, and Fear; Divine healing is better than continued illness;  I better get to know Jesus before I have to stand before Him.

You have likely spent significant time and energy understanding this earthly world and your physical body. How it all works, what to feed it, how to keep it active and strong.  Most of us will spend less than 100 years in our physical body but we will all spend eternity in our spiritual body. Where and how you get to spend eternity is a direct result of how you choose to spend this life. How much energy have you put into understanding how the spiritual world works and how to develop your spiritual body to be ready for it?  How long does it take to develop muscle? How long does it take for muscles to atrophy if you stop being active?  How quickly does it take to build a healthy lean body through diet, how quickly does it deteriorate into disfunciton and disease if you have a poor diet? It is the same for your spiritual body – it needs food and exercise to be vigorous. The consequences of your spiritual development are significant and eternal. It is well worth the investment of some energy here and now while you can still impact your eternal path. 

The key to commitment and conviction is solid belief and a sense of urgency. This is just as true for physical earthly things as it is for spiritual things.   

Knowing in your “knower”

Engineering is a practice of making progress by applying truths that you can verify by physical evidence.  Faith is the practice of making progress by acting on truths you do not have earthly evidence for. You ca only verify those truths in your internal  “knower”.  They are very similar but also very different.

One of the amazing design features of our soul is a pair of sensors. One detects acts of divine love, the other detects elements of divine truth. The first one manifests as a warm feeling in your heart when you see a fireman risks his own life to go into a burning building to rescue a baby. The other one is less obvious, but it is a sort of resonance in your mind when you know in your “Knower” when something is true. It is a cousin of the sense you get when your conscience is telling you something you are thinking about doing is wrong. For this exercise you will need to tune in to your knower!

Establishing beliefs

The first step toward a belief is to establish something as True in  your mind. If we intellectually “Believe” something is true then we perceive and acknowledge that “it is so”; yes, indeed, that is the way the world works. Once we acknowledge something as a truth, we hold it as a belief, and we can choose to act on it!

We “Hold” beliefs. We “Act in faith” on our beliefs.

Truth: a properly rigged parachute will allow a skilled operator to descend from altitude and land safely.

Beliefs: Parachutes work, This one is packed correctly, I have been trained and know how to use it. 

Faith: Jumping from the plane trusting your belief in the parachute to work.

So the basic flow is, lock in the truths, establish the beliefs, and then build faith.  Faith is build by practice and experience. 

Love of Truth

“Love of the truth” is key to opening spiritual doors. When you choose to be inquisitive and seek the spiritual truth, you are using your free will to consciously invest energy to explore the spiritual dimension. Reading, Listening, Watching, Talking, Thinking, Meditating, Praising, and Worshiping are each conscious acts of free will aligned with the love of truth. As you purposefully seek the truth with your outer mind, your inner mind becomes open to receive inflow from heaven. This is a crirtcal step to transition from knowledge and “intellectual truths” to perception of “spiritual truths” and beliefs you will become willing to act on in faith. 

Divine Healing

Each of us is a three part being:  We have a physical body, we have am eternal soul which includes our conscious thoughts and emotions, and we have a spirit which connects us with the Lord. Divine Healing flows from the Holy Spirit, through your spirit, into your soul/mind, and then into your physical body.  To optimize this flow we want to develop your spirit or “spiritual body” so it can function effectively and fill this role, overcome the inherent resistance in your soul/mind, and flow healing into your physical body.  

Beliefs for Divine Healing

There are a series of beliefs that form a foundation of truth for receiving healing. We can become familiar with them and develop understanding of each through reading or listening. We should be able to rationalize each through a combination of scripture and logic and they should resonate in our knower. The next step will be to practice acting on them in our life. 

Key beliefs for divine healing

  1. God is Love, His love powers the universe and everything in it.
  2. God is Truth, His truth provides structure and order so His love can produce usefulness.
  3. God created us in His image, put us in eternal paradise, and gave us dominion over the earth.
  4. All sin is against God – It happens when we choose to ignore His rule and put our agenda first.
  5. When we sin we separate ourselves from God’s protection, we become exposed to consequences from the devil. The wages of sin is death.
  6. Adam sinned, got separated from God and paradise, gave authority to the devil, we inherit our sinful nature from Him
  7. We live in a fallen world: Bad things happen, The devil creates them, We suffer the consequences of sins from others, and we make things worse by our own sins.
  8. The devil is real and we struggle against him. He lies, steals and destroys. Illness is work of the devil, Jesus came to defeat the works of the devil and to bring light and life in abundance.
  9. The Hebrews sacrificed a perfect lamb every year to atone for their sins. Jesus was an innocent man and sacrificed himself as a lamb for the sins of all of mankind.
  10. God loves us so much He sent His son to suffer and die for us
  11. Jesus sacrifice provides the path of “redemption” for followers – it reunites us with the father, restores His image in us. What we lost through Adam, we regain through Jesus. He is the way back to the Father.
  12. His blood cleanses the act of sin from our mind – it is represented in the communion wine. We must receive it, and we most flow forgiveness to others.
  13. His body was broken to bare the consequences of sin for the world – it is represented in the communion bread broken at the last supper
  14. When we accept Jesus as lord and savior, we are born again – sins are forgiven, our spirit is renewed
  15. When we ask, the Holy Spirit comes to live in us – the spirit that raised Jesus from the dead
  16. We are the body of Christ – His arms and legs on this earth – We are to become love in action – People are to see Jesus through us.
  17. We have a commission to continue Jesus work on earth – Defeat the works of the devil – as the father sent me, I send you
  18. We have authority to use His name, and do the works He did while on this earth.
  19. God’s will is healing, Jesus is the expressed image of God, Jesus healed all, God’s will  is unchanging
  20. We need to pray God’s will into place; God gave us dominion, He will not violate it, we must give him permission to act.
  21. The word of God is a powerful sword. The Word of God is perfect and permanent. The spiritual world operates as a legal case –- as it is written, it is done.
  22. God works all things to our advantage: Each challenge is a growth opportunity – You will get increasingly challenging opportunities until He gets your attention.
  23. God created you with a purpose. Our purpose is to apply the gifts and opportunities He provides to become useful to others in our sphere of influence. We are to become His love and His truth in motion.
  24. In order to accomplish His purpose, we must transform our mind, see things from God’s spiritual perspective, overcome the physical world with the help of the Holy Spirit, and shine in this fallen world so that others can find Jesus through us.
  25. We need to develop and care for our spiritual body just like we care for our physical body
      • Eat spiritual food (Word of God), We do not live by bread alone but by every word of God.
      • Exercise spiritual muscle (Build Faith)

Exercise:

Work through each of the 25 items one by one.

Do you understand it? Does it make sense?  

Can you explain it in rational terms – how it works / how it fits / why it is important?

Can you identify scripture that supports it?

Do you “Know ” it is truth in your heart? Do you believe “it is so”? 

Can you apply it in a prayer ? for a real situation?

Are you willing to stake your earthly life on it? Would you stake your eternal life on it? 

Supporting scripture:

I will build a catalog of supporting scriptures as next step 

Prayer:

Use your reading/watching pursuit of this topic as an opportunity to get close to Him. Start it off with … 

“Lord,  Thank you that you have put me on this journey.    Lord, you said ‘seek and ye shall find’ : Guide me to the right information to start me off. Help me find you, your love, and your truth as I engage with this material.  Lord, you said ‘ask and it shall be given’ ; Give me eyes to see things from your perspective so I can understand your messages. Help me apply what I learn. Help me develop my spiritual body with the proper beliefs so I can act in faith to overcome this fallen world and become more effective for others in your kingdom. I ask this in Jesus name”

 

Get your hopes up

Posted on by jakirkgasser10439

Get your hopes up!

 

Facing a difficult situation or a significant challenge?  Have you ever heard: “don’t get your hopes up, you will just set yourself up for disappointment!”  Well that is a lie the devil uses to keep you a slave to your current situation.  You need to do just the opposite; Latch on to God’s promises, Get your hopes up, and press forward in Faith so God can help you realize your full potential.

The following is a discussion of how Hope plays an essential role in your success.

We are spiritual beings

We are a spiritual being born into a physical body. Our job in this earthly life is to develop our soul (Mind, Emotion, and Will) which will live on in a spiritual body.

“…There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.” (1 Corinthians 15:44 part 2)

“…and [I pray God] your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless…” (1 Thessalonians 5:23)

“Physical life comes first, then spiritual” (1 Corinthians 15:46)

Things related to the physical world are visible but they fade away when we die;  Things related to our spirit are invisible but they last forever.

“…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.” (2 Corinthians 4:18)

“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” (John 3:6)

“For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” (2 Corinthians 5:1)

The physical world is designed to work in tension against the spiritual world.  We are born entirely dependent on others for survival. The physical world continues to reward us for pursuing our self-interest, and it plays into our sinful nature which wants more and more for ourselves.

“For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.” (Galatians 5:17)

Our spiritual development involves learning that there is more to this life than this physical world, and how we choose to live this life has eternal consequences. We are to transform from being  earthly oriented and dominated by our sinful nature to becoming spiritually oriented and dominated by a love of God and pursuing things that help his Kingdom.

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romns 12:2)

We must learn about God,  come to love Him as He loves us, and decide to subordinate our self centered interest (Wants) in favor of pursing things that help Him and His Kingdom. We build our soul through beliefs, praise/worship, acting in faith, subordinating our own self-interest, and doing good for others. These things last forever in our spiritual body and in the soul of those we have impacted (His Kingdom).

“For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.” (James 2:26)

Faith is the spiritual substance that connects us to God and his kingdom.  It is created when we put our trust in God and act on our beliefs, even when we can not see evidence to support them.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

Faith = Belief in your head + Hope in your heart + Taking Action

Faith is built from a combination of belief in our head, hope in our heart, and a conscious decision to take action from our will:

Belief in God, Understanding His unwavering love for us, His promises for us, and the role of Jesus Christ as our savior;

Hope in God to provide a bright future, Loving Him as He loves us, building Anticipation strong enough to motivate us to relentlessly pursue Him as our only path of success for this life and the next;

Both brought together by a conscious decision to take action with our physical body, publicly confessing our faith, praising the lord for His role in our life, spending time building a relationship with Him through prayer, investing time to learn more about Him through scripture or bible study, committing to turn from sin, doing things for others, choosing to have patience while you believe for a better path in life.   

“Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God… For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.” (1 John 5:4)

“Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, On those who hope in His mercy, To deliver their soul from death, And to keep them alive in famine.” (Psalm 33:18)

“Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart shall rejoice in Him, Because we have trusted in His holy name.  Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us, Just as we hope in You.” (Psalm 33:16-22)

God is the source: You can do nothing without Him

We need to get a couple of beliefs straight in our head: We need to become humble and recognize God is the source of all success. He provides everything for us. We are entirely dependent on Him. We can do nothing useful without Him. We need to put our trust in Him, and pin all of our hopes on Him.

“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19) 

“I (Jesus) am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

“Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust. O my soul, you have said to the Lord, “You are my Lord, My goodness is nothing apart from You.” (Psalms 16:1-2)

“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I hope in Him!” (Lamentations 3:24)

Reconnect with God: Repent and Get rid of your baggage

We need to put our past behind us and get rid of our emotional baggage: Recognize our history of self-serving actions as sins against God; Sins have separated us from God; Turn from those sins and ask His forgiveness and you will be reunited with Him; God’s love washes them away so we are no longer burdened by them; As God forgives you for sinning against Him, you must forgive all who have sinned against you. He will not let you move forward until we have processed the past. Once we have processed the past, we can put our hope in God as He builds a path for us to move forward into the future.

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”(Acts 3:19)

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

“(Like the shepherd who) calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”(Luke 15:10)

“For the Lord your God is gracious and compassionate. He will not turn his face from you if you return to him.”(2 Chronicles 30:9)

“‘Return to me,’ declares the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the Lord Almighty.” (Zechariah 1:3)

“Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.”(Proverbs 28:13)

“…if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:15)

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43:18-19)

It is not all about “You”

Moving forward, We need to subordinate any purely self-centered agendas and bring more love and goodness into Gods kingdom in how we choose to act, and how we choose to use our time and resources. When we finally make this shift, we will be rewarded in this life and the next.

“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Matthew 22:37-39)

“Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.  Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this:  He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.” (Psalm 37:3-6)

“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” (Philippians 2:3)

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20-22)

“To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.” (Romans 2:7)

Latch on to His promise

Life has plenty of challenges, Each challenge creates an opportunity to build our spiritual foundation, and Hope is one of the key building blocks in the process.

“…glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.” (Romans 5:3-4)

We need to grab onto God’s promises of a bright future for believers no matter our past or our current struggles.

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

“…he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion…” (Philippians 1:6)

Build Hope in your Heart

Hope in God to deliver on His promise is an essential element for you to move forward.

“Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, The help of my countenance (composure) and my God.” (Psalm 42:11)

Hope is about setting high expectations in your heart; yearning deeply for something beyond what you can see with your physical eyes; believing for it with enough conviction that you pursue it fervently; and you are diligent, relentless and persist until it finally happens.

“But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.”(Romans 8:25)

The Holy Spirit will help you build hope in your heart

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)

“Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the Lord.” (Psalm 31:24)

“…I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love. ” (Ephesians 3:15-17)

Embrace God’s love for you, have confidence in His promise of a bright future, and maintain hope

“Love suffers long and is kind; It… rejoices in the truth;  bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

Become committed: Pin your Hope on God 

Being steadfast in your hope taps into Gods love and builds strength in us

 “… those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

“Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” (Romans 5:5)

It helps to find a specific scripture promise that resonates and focus on it as a promise for your situation.

“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, And in His word I do hope.” (Psalm 130:5)

Hope in the Lord becomes an anchor for us, Centering our focus on God as an immovable force we can take shelter under or tie ourselves directly to as we face turbulent times.  

“This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” (Hebrews 6:19-20)

Commitment builds Faith

By hoping for something you do not yet see, you begin to build faith

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

We are saved through Faith

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God…” (Ephesians 2:8)

If you remain committed to God, He will deliver on His promises

“The hope of the righteous will be gladness, But the expectation of the wicked will perish.” (Proverbs 10:28) 

Hope leads to the tree of life, so do not defer it!!!

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But desire fulfilled, it is a tree of life.” (Proverbs 13:12)

“To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God.’(Revelations 2:12)

Go ahead and get your hopes up, Pin your hopes on the Lord to help you in this life and and the next.

Hope this helps.  (Pun intended)

Leave a comment, Happy to discuss.