Word of the Day Archives - Page 255 of 292 - Ivey Ministries Ivey Ministries

Vanishing Enemies

Ivey Rorie On March 24, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Isaiah 41: 11

Behold, all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored; those who contend with you will be as nothing, and will perish.

Trouble comes. You know that. Even for Christians there are challenges. Sometimes I think we ought to be able to live charmed lives where nothing can touch us but that is fantasy. In reality problems affect everyone. The secret is in how we deal with those issues and how we let them affect us. We really can live above the fray, above the chaos if we will let Jesus be Lord of our entire day rather than just our philosophical Lord. What do I mean by that? We have all given our lives and hearts to Jesus. We have asked him to be Lord of our lives and we are sincere in our surrender to his lordship. However, Monday morning always comes and in the clamor of all that must be done we lose sight of our position with Christ. That is why it is so good to give the Lord even just a few minutes in the morning before you are confronted with the tasks of the day. We need to re-establish first thing in the morning Jesus as Lord over our lives and, significantly, over every minute of our day. Then throughout the day when issues and questions present themselves we take them to Jesus. If he is Lord then he ought to have a say in what goes on. When we systematically apply Jesus’ lordship to everything we do and to everything that invades our lives then we can move from the center of the tumult. Jesus fights the battles, completes our task lists, multiplies our time and does everything else we need.

You can’t fight the battles on your own because your detractors will lie and cheat. You need the supernatural power that the trinity can provide. If you want to look around and find the enemy just gone, then you need to put the problem in Jesus’ hand and leave it there. Sometimes that is a minute by minute process but when you allow the lordship of Jesus to prevail over the problems of your life then it becomes his problem rather than your own. That is when you will look around and find that those who contended with you are as nothing. We don’t pray against them, of course. We don’t have to. And if you truly understand today’s verse you will understand very clearly why Jesus told us to pray for our enemies. Those who attack, criticize and condemn us are walking into a hornet’s nest of their own making. The bad seeds they are sowing are going to sprout and produce a bountiful crop of trouble for them. We need to pray for them because if they mess with you they are going to be shamed and dishonored, be as nothing and perish. Okay, not a good forecast.

God is on your side. He is in your corner. Let Him be your fight manager. Let Him be the boss, the Lord and then the outcome is assured. You will arise and your enemies are going to suffer. Pray for your enemies because they have signed a destruction order over their own lives. Get a big revelation of Jesus as Lord of your challenges and step out of the turmoil and into his glorious victory. Amen.

No Fear Here

Ivey Rorie On March 23, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Isaiah 41: 10

Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you. Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

How many times do we need to have God say to us, “Do not fear?” Probably at least once a day. So here is today’s dose. Our Father wants us to know that He is on the job. He is paying attention to us and we should not fear. He isn’t begging us not to be afraid, though. This really appears as a command. And now that I look at the situation from His perspective, it is a bit insulting, isn’t it, that He is our God, our Father and yet we are running around in high anxiety and fear. Our God is Yahweh, He that is and ever will be. Why should we be afraid?

Father goes on to assure us that He is with us. We don’t have to anxiously look around us. We can go with confidence knowing that He is with us always, that He will never leave us nor forsake us. He is strength for us so that we need not try to be strong in ourselves. In fact, Paul taught us that in our weakness is strength (2 Corinthians 12: 10).

How do we convince ourselves that our Father is with us; that He will strengthen us and uphold us? I really believe we learn it through the most frightening mechanism of all; letting go. We have to let God be God. We have to relinquish a bit of the control to Him. I like to say that we have to let go of the reins because that paints a picture for me that I can relate to. I really think that for most of us we have to take God out for a test drive. We trust Him with something small and see that all works well when we put situations in His hands and then the next time we are able to trust Him with something a bit larger. The other situation is that get to the point that we are so exhausted that we have nothing left but to trust God. And then, Eureka! It works.

I really wish one person could experience this for everyone and then that we could all just believe that person, subsequently taking this verse as truth on its face. If we could only believe that God and Isaiah actually knew what they were saying. Unfortunately, it rarely works that way. So, instead of asking you to believe me or to believe this verse, I am asking you to give it a try. Take it around the block, kick the tires and see for yourself. God is worthy of our trust. He will uphold you, guard you and protect you. He is your shield and your refuge. Invest a bit of your trust in Him and let Him show you that you have no need in being anxious ever again. Think about it, to never fear again. Now that is a good way to live.

The Battle Is Won

Ivey Rorie On March 20, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Isaiah 54: 4

Fear not for you will not be put to shame; neither feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced.

This week you are receiving many of my favorite scriptures. I haven’t used many of them for the Word of the Day and even those I have used I haven’t written about in a long time. But this is like a walk down memory lane for me because several of this week’s verses come from Isaiah. Not only is the book of Isaiah my favorite Old Testament book but it is also the book that got me through a time of intense spiritual warfare. These verses helped me to stand when there were attacks from every quarter. If you are having one of those periods in your life, let me encourage you. Have no fear, nor feel ashamed or humiliated. Your Dad is going to make it right. The truth will be seen. Those people who are lying about you – they are the ones who will be put to shame. Believe me, I know. I have been there. The good news is that I have been “through” it. I didn’t pitch a tent and stay there. God doesn’t expect you to set up camp in the valley of the shadow of death either. He has strong weapons of warfare and mighty warriors. He intends for you to win.

I just love Old Isaiah and when I get to heaven I am going to tell him how much I appreciated his book. He had a revelation of warfare. He knew then that the devil was going to get in our faces. He also knew, however, that God had foreseen it too and prepared armies and weapons of His own. There is no battle that you can’t win. Think about it, this was even before Jesus came and won the victory for us. You see, Dad never left His kids out in the cold. He always had plans for our protection and our welfare.

So if you are under the gun right now do not fear. There are scores of angels, legions even, at your beck and call. You have the power of God in the person of the Holy Spirit. And you have the victory medal from Jesus’ campaign. Do not fear! Do not take the trouble into your heart. Your Father will stand for you. Just hang out in the Lord’s presence until the battle is won.

The Age of the Spirit

Ivey Rorie On March 19, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

John 14: 26

But the helper, the Holy Spirit …, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

Throughout history God has been with humanity in one form or another. During Old Testament times God’s presence was with the people but there was little known about the son. The Israelites learned that a Messiah would come but besides a few prophets they knew very little about who to expect. Then the Messiah came and the New Testament is primarily about him. There was almost nothing known about the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament. As Jesus prepared to leave earth he began teaching people about the Holy Spirit and telling them what to expect. In verse 18 of this chapter Jesus promised that he would not leave us as orphans but that he would come back to get us. In the interim he sent the Holy Spirit to us as a gift. God sent Jesus. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit. We are living in the age of the Holy Spirit and yet I find that we know very little about him. I believe it is to our advantage that we learn about him.

The Holy Spirit has many roles in our lives. In this one verse today we see several of the important ways the Holy Spirit aids us. He is a helper, a teacher and a reminder of all that Jesus has said. He will bring to your mind scriptures whenever you need them but he is so much more. He is the power of God, a pledge of promises yet to come, a promise himself and a gift but the role that is perhaps most significant is that he is a comforter. Jesus sent a comforter to be with us at all times. He is called the stand beside because he comes along beside us at all times. We use the expression, “I’ve got your back.” Imagine one of the three aspects of God with you side by side all day, every day telling you that he has your back. He is a protector. He does all the heavy lifting for you in all things. He is like that perfect best friend. You are sealed in him and his presence with you is a sign that you are a valued child of the Most High.

You can also get to know the Holy Spirit. He is the third person of the trinity so if you can know God; if you can know Jesus, then you can also know the Holy Spirit. He may even have a name, probably does. Jesus is part of the Father but he has his own name. Perhaps you can get the Spirit to reveal his name to you. Think about that for a moment. God has a name, Jesus has a name and even your angels have names. How is it that we have not inquired of the Spirit that is with us day and night as to his name? But we can.

We are the people that God spoke of in Joel 2: 28: “And it will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind.” We are the children of promise. I think we should take our inheritance seriously and find out what benefits we are entitled to under this promise from God. You know how God loves for us to exercise our rights. I believe that there is an enormous blessing in our relationship with the Holy Spirit of God and that it is just waiting to be revealed. Pursue God the Father; pursue God the Son but do not fail to seek out God the Holy Spirit.

Humpty Dumpty

Ivey Rorie On March 18, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Isaiah 54: 17

No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper; and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn.

This passage always reminds me of my former pastor. Some years ago when I was being challenged on almost every front he reminded me of this verse during a telephone conversation. Sure, I knew this verse before then or I should say, I knew of it but after we hung up I got out my Bible and read it anew. Something went off in me that day and I gained an entirely new perspective on my situation. I saw the verse perhaps for the first time and it changed my experience. From that time the parade of challenges began to recede. I got a revelation that I did not have to be trod upon by every wind of misfortune. I had something to say in these situations and even more importantly, my Father had already spoken. Nothing has authoritative power over us except the authority we give it and I chose to take back my power.

Jesus has already conquered every challenge, demon and obstacle. He has already won! He defeated every single weapon the devil had. The thing I so love about the prophet Isaiah is that he had such clear vision of the coming Messiah. He understood that no weapon formed against us could prosper because he knew that all authority in heaven and earth was given to the son. Father is our refuge but Jesus is our defender. He is our advocate and he will reveal the truth about those who accuse us. When someone speaks ill of you, back bites you or condemns you they have just signed their own prosecution. Since I have come to understand this verse I actually sometimes feel sorry for people who say bad things about me because I know what is coming. The conclusion is already written in the physical and spiritual laws of the universe. They are like Humpty Dumpty who had a great fall. You can see it coming; you can hear the plop as they hit the pavement. Dad doesn’t even have to do anything. It is already pre-programed. Any weapon that is formed against you, that is pointed at you will back fire. It is going to blow up in the enemy’s face. You’ve just gotta feel sorry for the fools sometimes. Well, we can pray that they get a clue and step into the grace that Father has prepared for us all.

So, if someone has a bazooka leveled at you right now, just grin. Get out your book of Isaiah and read to them. Carry your 3 X 5 card with you so that you can deflect those shells all day long. They have no power over you. You have already won. Now that is what I call Good News!

Knowing God’s Will

Ivey Rorie On March 17, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Colossians 1: 9

Be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.

Don’t you suspect that if you were filled with the knowledge of God’s will for your life, for today, that life would be easier? What if you were filled with the knowledge of God’s will for those things beyond your immediate life? Now that is what I call perspective.

Let’s think about this for a moment. This was Paul’s prayer for the believers in Colossae. We know about Paul’s close walk with the Lord so I have to think that Jesus routinely guided Paul’s prayers. I would think this was especially true when he prayed for the saints. Moreover, wouldn’t we expect that the Holy Spirit guided Paul when he wrote the letters to the churches? 2 Timothy 3: 16 tells us that all scripture is inspired by God. So what is my point? My point is that this prayer and its inclusion in the scriptures was inspired by God for us today and furthermore, that God would not have inspired this prayer for us unless it was possible for us to receive and be filled with the knowledge of His will. However, as big a revelation as that may be that is only a portion of it. Paul prayed, or perhaps God intoned, that this knowledge of God’s will would be accompanied by all spiritual wisdom and understanding. That is hard to wrap your mind around. Since Paul prayed it and since God inspired it then receiving the idea and concept as well as the actual infilling is exactly what we are meant to do.

It is easy to read this verse or today’s devotional and blow right on by. I am hoping, however, that you will stop and think about it for a few moments. Do you agree that yes, this is the inspired Word of God but think that this passage was not meant for you? Perhaps this passage is meant for the really spiritually mature or perhaps this is for pastors. Well, let’s see to whom the letter is addressed. In verse 2 Paul writes, “… to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae.” Those are just regular folks then. Just believers like you and me.

I wish for you, each of you, to receive into your spirit that Father God is speaking to you today. You may think that you are the least in the Kingdom of God, and maybe you are, but even still, God wants to reveal His will to you. No, actually that is too weak. The truth is that he wants to fill you with the knowledge of His will and He wishes to do it with all spiritual wisdom and understanding. You, the least in the Kingdom, have this awesome initiative from God. So, this is for whomever will receive. You do not have to be someone special. You do not have to be in a full-time ministry position. This promise of God, for that is what it is, is for whomever. Just tell the Father that you are a “whomever” and you wish to be filled.

Perfect Faith

Ivey Rorie On March 16, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Hebrews 12:2

Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith.

There is much talk and teaching about faith. Jesus talked about it a lot. One reason there is so much discussion about faith is because without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11: 6). Another reason, I believe, is because it can be a hard concept to really get your hands on.

Once we accept that we are to live by faith, the question becomes, “Just how do we do that?” You have, I am sure, heard sermons on how to increase your faith, how to walk in faith, and about every other facet of faith. As I read this verse recently, though, I saw it and faith in a whole new light. If Jesus is the author of faith and if he is the perfecter of faith then what am I so worried about? I came away with the perception that my faith is perfect now. I don’t have to work it up. I just turn to the master and he authors my faith. Sounds simple doesn’t it, easy even. And you know, maybe it is. I am finding that we complicate so many of the spiritual principles. When we take the Bible at face value and don’t try to twist it into something complex then it seems everything comes together for us. In this case, the case of faith, why am I trying to massage my faith into something functional if Jesus authored it in the first place? I mean, what can I do to improve upon something that Jesus has authored? And, if he perfected it then why does my faith need any help at all? No, the secret here seems to be in turning to the author for his insights. I can just see Jesus on a book signing tour being interviewed about this great book he has written. Perhaps one interviewer really digs into the chapter on faith. Well, who better to answer those questions than the author of the book?

So, here is my point. Perhaps faith doesn’t have to be so difficult to understand afterall. We have the author living within us. He has already created a perfect work within us. Just turn to him and allow him to show you how to operate that which is already perfect. Don’t worry any longer about making your faith something viable. That is not your job. Just let the master walk you through applying it. You don’t need any more of it than you have right now either. Jesus said a mustard seed’s worth is all you need and you’ve got that because he gave it to you. Relax and let Jesus be the author and perfecter of your faith.

Archive for the Word of the Day Category