Pondering the Impossible

On October 8, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Acts 2: 1 – 8

And when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent, rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.

Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem devout men, from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were bewildered, because they were each one hearing them speak in his own language. And they were amazed and marveled, saying, “Why, are not all thee who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we are born?”

So this is that pouring out of the Holy Spirit which we have been discussing and which the Father promised and Jesus foretold. This is the Spirit’s great debutante ball, if you will, His debut. Since this great event, the third person of the trinity has come to us. Glory!!

Doesn’t this event sound a bit like when God put His Spirit on the seventy elders (see the Word of the Day from Tuesday, October 6, 2015 at www.iveyministries.blogspot.com)? The Spirit is the power of God and through him we can do things which we cannot do in our own abilities. He is empowerment, strength and wisdom. When we allow our spirits to connect with the Holy Spirit, truly nothing is impossible to us.

Just think about it for a moment. This is the power that created the earth. He was hovering over the void and then God said, “Let there be” and there was. The Holy Spirit brought into existence everything the Father said. Amazing! That same power, that same force which was hovering over the void is now living inside you if you have invited him in. What does that say for who you are now? What can the two of you do? Ponder that for a while and then start doing the impossible.

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Seek and Find

On October 7, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Ezekiel 39: 29

“And I will not hide My face from them any longer, for I shall have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,” declares the Lord.

Wow! You have God’s promise that He will show you His face. Isn’t that what He says? As you think on this verse, don’t get hung up on the language “the house of Israel” because we have seen in Joel 2: 28 that God said he was going to pour out His Spirit on all mankind. Besides, if you want to know the whole truth, you have been adopted into the family of Abraham so this definitely applies to you.

I really love how God had this all planned and how He was anticipating the pouring out of His Spirit. I can almost sense His eager anticipation. The sending of the Holy Spirit really was a huge deal. I often think that the modern church does not understand what a major event this really was. I have said it before – I believe we are living in the age of the Holy Spirit. The Old Testament was mostly about Yahweh, God the Father. It looked forward to the coming of the Messiah and foretold that happy event. The New Testament is mostly about Jesus and the effect of His coming. Jesus foretells of the coming of another. He is looking forward and telling us of the new age to come. In fact he said, “It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to you but if I go, I will send Him to you (John 16: 7). I can well imagine myself disagreeing with Jesus if he told me it was to my advantage that he go away. None the less, Jesus understood these things and knew the huge effect sending the Holy Spirit into the world would and could have.

This, then, is the age of the Holy Spirit. There is so little we know about him, so much we can learn. We don’t teach, preach or talk about him nearly as much as we should and there is such huge revelation just awaiting those who will seek it. God said He wouldn’t have to hide His face from us anymore because of the poured out Spirit. How huge is that? It is bigger than I can teach because I certainly have not grasped the enormity of God’s statement and the truths behind it.

I want to encourage you to seek the Spirit of God. He is the third person of the trinity so he is God. You can pray to him, you should talk to him. Invite him to fill your home and your body. Invite him to permeate your workplace. Let’s all invite him to be with us and to teach us. There is a great awakening, a mammoth revelation just waiting for us. Seek and find.

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The Promise

On October 6, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Numbers 11: 16 – 17

The Lord therefore said to Moses, “Gather for Me seventy men from the elders of Israel, who you know to be the elders of the people and their officers and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. Then I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take of the Spirit who is upon you , and will put Him upon them.

This “Spirit” spoken of is the Holy Spirit of God. God reveals to us in this passage that His spirit was “on” Moses. That is a powerful revelation for anyone who has ears to hear. 

Moses did gather the seventy elders and God did put His Holy Spirit on them too so that they could help shoulder the burden of caring for the Israelites. When God put His Spirit on them, the Bible tells us that they began to prophesy (v. 25). That is the power of the Holy Spirit.

This is the same spirit which was spoken of in Acts 2. God promised in Joel 2: 28 that He would pour out His Spirit on all mankind. This outpouring was a monumental occurrence, the fulfillment of a long awaited promise. In fact, if you study all the verses which speak about the Holy Spirit you will see numerous references to the promise of his coming. Then in Acts 2 we get to witness the outpouring of the Spirit. 

In the Old Testament the Holy Spirit came “upon” people as was the case with Moses and the seventy elders. This resting of the Holy Spirit upon people gave them tremendous ability and power. Jesus told the disciples that when he left he was going to send the Holy Spirit (John 16: 7). He also told them that the Holy Spirit was coming to live IN them (John 14: 17). 

This is a new dispensation, if you will. We are talking about the same Holy Spirit which brooded over the waters in Genesis 1: 2. However, a new thing was happening. Jesus was sending the Holy Spirit into the world to stay. Not only that, but importantly, the Holy Spirit was sent to us individually rather than collectively. That is an important distinction. The Holy Spirit was with the nation of Israel as they sojourned to Canaan but He did not live “in” them. Jesus has now sent the Holy Spirit to each of us, to live in us and to be our constant companion. He said the Holy Spirit would be to each of us a go along, a teacher, a guide and a helper (John 16: 7, 13, John 14: 26).

Certainly there is an aspect of our own responsibility. We must each receive the Holy Spirit personally. He is not going to set up house within you without your permission. However, when you invite Him in, the power, authority and ability that was with Moses comes and takes up abode IN you. You become the vessel, the carrier of the power of God. This power and authority does not just rest on you and then remove Himself, He is with you and in you all the time. That is a much better arrangement than the Old Testament saints had.

I invite you to meditate on today’s verse and ponder the role of the Holy Spirit in today’s world but most importantly, in your own life. I pray that the Spirit who was upon Moses will come rest in you and with you today.

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Quail Quandary

On October 5, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Numbers 11: 23

And the Lord said to Moses, “Is the Lord’s power limited? Now you shall see whether My word will come true for you or not.”

Okay, so who knows the end of the story? We all do, don’t we? God’s word carried the day and Moses witnessed miracle upon miracle. I wonder, though, how Moses felt or what he thought when God posed that question to him. Honestly, it makes me a little uncomfortable.

What preceded God’s question was Moses’ doubt. The Lord seems to be calling Moses on his lack of belief. I find myself feeling guilty as I read this because I feel that doubt in my own soul. How many issues have I faced, prayed over and still carried doubt in my heart?

The people of Israel were on their protracted journey to the Promised Land. They complained about the lack of water and God gave them water gushing forth from rocks. They complained about not having bread so He gave them manna from heaven daily. Then, not satisfied with the manna, they complained about not having meat. So, God promised to give them meat enough for a whole month. Moses questioned God about how He was going to feed 600,000 people with meat enough for a month. Today’s verse was God’s response.

The story is fulfilled when God sent enough quail to the Israelites that there was literally quail on all sides of the camp three feet deep. It took the Israelites two days to gather it all.

That is the way I want us all to live with God. I want us to experience His bounty. More importantly, I am sure that God wants us to live in His abundance and in the constant expectation of the miraculous. If we can learn to believe in God’s ability and willingness even against overwhelming odds, we can see these kinds of outlandish miracles in our lives too.

The thing you must know about this story, though, is that Moses shifted out of doubt into belief. When he left God’s presence he went to the people and proclaimed God’s promise. There is our key. We must believe if we are to receive. Practice today believing the Word of God. The Bible is loaded with personal messages to you. Let God fill you up as He did Moses and receive your bounty.

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Diverging Strategies

On October 2, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   2 Comments

Isaiah 55: 8

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.

This might go without saying but it is probably good that it was stated so that we can consider it. Of all the doctrines and all the interpretative opinions we hear, surely there is little disagreement over this passage. However, I wonder how much we actually pay attention to the deep revelations within.

I searched my database to see how many times I have written on this passage and was astounded to find the answer to be none. I have referred to it in other Words of the Day but it has never been the subject of its own devotional. Let’s correct that today. My part is to write what the Father is telling me, yours is to meditate on these words but specifically this scriptural passage and determine how the application of its wisdom can (and should) impact your life.

 I have been thinking about today’s verse in relation to Jeremiah 29: 11 which says, “I know the plans that I have for you.” When I put them together I get – Diverging Strategies. Our plans are not His plans because His thoughts are not our thoughts and His ways are not our ways. His ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts (Isaiah 55: 9). When you intellectually connect these dots, it changes everything. And I find that it points out a major flaw in our prayer life and our relationship with Him.

One of the major purposes of Ivey Ministries is to teach believers how to operate in the realm of God, the Kingdom of God. Today’s verse and devotion is a key cog in that curriculum and part of the Ivey Ministries Foundation Series. It is too big for one devotional but I will try to develop it over time.

One of the loudest conclusions of this study is that we need to allow our Father to be the author of the strategies for our success and fulfillment. He knows what will fulfill us and He is leading us on that path. His plans are for our well-being, not for calamity (Jeremiah 29: 11). Since He knows the way, we would be well served to follow His leading instead of stumbling around in our ignorance. Most of us, however, have learned to ask God to bless our plans. Few ever really take the time to discern God’s plans. This is a major failing in our individual lives as well as in the body of Christ. 

The shift we all need to make is to spend our time and prayers inquiring of God rather than petitioning Him to do what we want. If we will do this we will find ourselves in the promised land instead of the quagmire that so many of us are forced to deal with on a daily basis. Take the time, please, to ask Father what He wants, what His desire and plan is for you. His path and plan leads to a land flowing with milk and honey where he even gets water from rocks on your journey there. His blessing is in His plan, His plan for goodness. Your blessing and abundantly blessed life is right here in today’s devotional. Please don’t miss it.

Send your questions and responses to www.iveyministries.org or use the comment section below.

 

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Storm Preparedness

On October 1, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Luke 6: 49

But the one who has heard, and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house upon the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed and the ruin of that house was great.

Jesus was imploring his followers to not only listen to His words but also to act upon them. He tells us that by listening and acting upon his words, we build a strong foundation for our lives; a foundation so strong, in fact, that it can withstand all of the storms of life. Those who don’t listen at all and even those who listen but never put Jesus’ words to work in their lives will experience great ruin when the storm comes. What words is Jesus specifically talking about? The first is his commandment to love. We are also taught to be merciful and to forgive, to plant seeds. All we need do is read all of the type which is in red in the New Testament and we will have a great synthesis of the actions that should be evident in our lives. Jesus teaches us how we should behave. His teaching is designed to help us withstand the storms. In other words, it is for our own good that he teaches the things he does. He is not trying to take anything away from us. He is trying to give us life and that more abundantly.

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Believer Receiver

On September 30, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Mark 11: 24

Therefore, I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you.

If you want to receive, then you must believe. I was imagining a football wide receiver running down the field anticipating a reception. You know, those guys want to catch the football, they want the quarterback to throw it to them. They are eager and they believe that if the ball is thrown to them, they will receive. I imagine, though, that if they ran down the field not expecting the ball, not believing the quarterback will pass to them, that it would be quite difficult, if not impossible, to receive. There is a direct connection between believing and receiving. Jesus certainly makes that point in today’s passage.

There are three words in this verse that stand out to me. They are pray, believe and receive. That is basically the formula. There is, however, another word which is perhaps the most important in the verse. That word is “have”. Jesus said that as we pray we should believe that we HAVE received. In other words, we should believe that we have already received that for which we petition him. If we want our petitions granted then we must believe that we have received. 

This is a very radical way of thinking. It certainly is not the way we were taught as we grew up. We were taught, at least most of us, that seeing is believing. What you see is true. It is reality. Unfortunately, that logic does not hold in the Kingdom of heaven. If you wait to see it in order to believe it, you will be waiting a long time.

A pastor friend of mine was accosted this weekend by a “believer” (complete misnomer) who was perplexed about a prayer of his. He had prayed for someone to be healed and that person was still exhibiting symptoms. He questioned why his prayer had not been answered. There are two faith answers to his question. First, who says it hasn’t been answered. If you prayed, believing then Jesus said your petition will be granted. Secondly, I want to ask, “Where is your believing?” Is he praying believing or praying hoping? He looked at the evidence from the world and concluded that his prayer had not been answered. Well, he is going to have a hard time because clearly he is not in belief. That is big time doubt. Jesus didn’t say to look to the evidence of the world for ratification. As a matter of fact, that is the absolute worst thing you can do. Where, do you suppose, that information comes from? Well, from the world at best, so it is carnal not of faith and certainly not of the Kingdom. Worst case scenario, it is the evidence that the devil is presenting. Why do want to believe that? No, you can’t believe what your eyes see, you must believe what the Word says. You have to let that Word from God issue from your heart and overwhelm your believer. Then if the worldly evidence does not agree you get to choose who to believe. If you stick with Jesus then he will grant your petition. If you choose to side with the world’s view of circumstances then that is the result you have selected.

The one thing that seems to trip up people the most is the duration of belief. We stand in prayer and during that time we confess our belief. We screw up our faith and commit our hopes and prayers to Jesus. Then here comes the problem – after we pray, we run out to the world to “see” if our prayer has come true. So, we are letting the evidence of the world validate the Word of God. Instead, your belief needs to survive beyond the duration of the prayer. If you believed, then keep on believing. So when you see that friend still sick your response is, “No, I have believed he is healed so I receive that healing and will not be talked out of it.”

Christians are often called believers. I think we need to make that a true declaration of how we interact with the world and with the Kingdom of God. Believing really is not some big “faith” thing, it is a obstinance thing, a decision really. Just refuse to be dissuaded. You have all the faith you need. Now, do you have all the resolve you need? Believe and keep on believing. Pray, expect and receive. It is time for you to look back up field for the ball coming towards you. Open your eyes, open your heart and receive.

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