Loaves and Fishes

On July 10, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   2 Comments

Matthew 14: 15

And when it was evening, the disciples came to Him, saying, “The place is desolate, and the time is already past; so send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!” And they said to Him, “We have here only five loaves and two fish.” And He said, “Bring them here to Me.” And ordering the multitudes to recline on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food, and breaking the loaves He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave to the multitudes.

There are any number of observations to be made from this text but you will have recognized it from when Jesus fed the five thousand. The first point to pull out of this passage is the recognition of who Jesus expected to feed the multitude. He told the disciples, “You feed them.” Then recognizing that their faith and understanding limited them he took on the task of feeding the five thousand, which, by the way, scholars tell us was more like twenty-thousand because the five only represented the number of men as it did not include women and children. Anyway, the point is that Jesus fully expected the disciples to feed the multitude. This goes right along with what Yahweh spoke to Moses. “You lift up your hand and do what is needful,” is the message the Father and Jesus communicate to us. You are seeing this, right? The workers of miracles are you and me.

However, we do see a difference between this story and Friday’s recounting of Moses and the Red Sea. When directed by God, Moses stepped up and performed. The disciples did not respond with the same trust and courage, so Jesus had to do it for them. Notice, though, Jesus’ actions. He did not hold the bread up to heaven and pray, “Oh heavenly Father, multiply this bread so that we may feed this great multitude.” In fact, he did not pray at all. Isn’t that just a bit mind blowing? He blessed the food and he multiplied it.

Now, if you ask Jesus right now if he multiplied the food and fed the twenty-thousand in his own strength and power he will answer with a resounding, “No.” He performed the miracle but he did it in the Father’s strength and power.

This is not an isolated instance. It was Jesus who changed the water to wine. He didn’t stop to pray. He didn’t ask God to produce wine from water. He just told the servants to fill the wash pots and then dip some out and take it to the head steward. Read through the gospels and you will see that He didn’t pray for healing; he healed. He rebuked the waves (Matthew 8: 26) and seemed perturbed that the disciples didn’t handle the problem themselves. To the leaper he said, “I am willing,” and he healed him (Matthew 8: 3). Again, He didn’t pray asking God to heal the leper.

Jesus didn’t stand around waiting for God to do something. He did it himself and we are supposed to do the works he did and even greater works according to him (John 14: 12). If we will meditate on Jesus’ life in this context, I believe we can experience a great breakthrough. The healing power of God is in your hands. The miracle working power of God is in your hands. What will you do with it?

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The Red Sea

On July 7, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment


Exodus 14: 15 – 16

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the sons of Israel to go forward. And as for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it.”

I want to share something important today, something we don’t talk about often. Who was it that divided the red sea? When confronted with the Red Sea in front of them and the Egyptians chasing behind them, the Israelites cried out to God. Take a close look at God’s response to Moses. Yahweh told him, “You reach out your hand.” This is a critical point. Most of us think that God parted the sea but it isn’t true. Moses divided the sea per the Lord’s instruction.

Jesus said, “Nothing will be impossible to you” (Matthew 17: 20). What he did not say is that nothing shall be impossible to God. While that is true, it is interesting that Jesus did not tell his disciples to pray because everything is possible with God. He told them their failure was due to their own lack of faith, because if they had even a modicum of faith nothing would be impossible to them. Another time he said, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19: 26). The key word in this quote is “with.” God was with Moses as He is with us but it was Moses who had to step out and part the sea. God wants to do amazing things “with” us too.

I truly believe this is a major principle in Kingdom dynamics and one we have mostly overlooked. There are revelations embedded in here that if we were to flesh them out would change the body of Christ overnight. We believe we are awaiting God but the truth is that He is waiting for us. I have written before about Christian bravado and I believe this is where it comes into play. Sometimes we have to act in boldness. We have to take a chance and take God very simply at His word. It takes a person of courage and faith to boldly believe God and act on it. Wouldn’t we rather God show up of His own accord and work miracles in our lives? Apparently, that is not how it works.

The real wake-up call for me is that Moses lived in the Old Testament Age. The Holy Spirit, who is the power of God, had not yet been poured out. So, in truth, we have more than Moses had. We have the life of Jesus, both the historical record and his life within us, and we have the Holy Spirit. All that Moses did, we ought to be able to likewise do. We must inquire of the Lord and allow Him to lead us in these miracle producing acts. Nothing is impossible to us because we have God. It is just a matter of are we “with” Him. Seek the Lord; seek His counsel. I believe He will give you good advice and lead you into a victorious daily existence.

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Greater Works

On July 6, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 14: 12

Truly, truly, 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 the Father.

I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with this verse. I love the idea that we can do the same things Jesus did. All the miracles, all the victory he walked in continually is available to us. Not only can we live the life of Christ but also we discover that we should. I hate that I am falling so short. Sometimes when I read this chapter of John, I want to skip over this verse.

We all know that Jesus is our example; that we are supposed to walk in the earth as he did. When it comes to his miracles, though, we usually, in humble tones, say, “Oh, but that is Jesus.” We make him the exception when it comes to the power of God in operation even though we readily admit that our lives are supposed to mirror his and that he himself has said that we should do even greater works than he.

Jesus did not live on earth as God. “Instead, he emptied himself by taking on the form of a servant, by becoming like other humans,” (Philippians 2: 7). Jesus’ humanity is very significant. He could not have taken humanity’s sin to the cross without being human himself. Of course, the other side of the coin is that the miracles which occurred all around him were not a result of his deity. Then he says that we should do the same and even better. That seems to be a tall order but he also told us that his leaving allowed him to send the Holy Spirit. So, Jesus exited the earth taking our sin with him and arriving in his father’s house, he sent the Spirit to us who is the power of God. Now we have the Holy Spirit with his attendant spiritual gifts so we have all we need to live a victorious life. We have miracle working power living right within us. We have all we need in order to do the works of Jesus and even greater.

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The Power’s Out

On June 30, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

1 Corinthians 2: 4 – 5

My message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.

A friend of mine helped me to see that the church of God, the body of Christ has a problem. That problem also expresses itself in our evangelistic attempts. The problem is that we have lost the power. Unlike Paul, we do come in persuasive words trying to talk people into being Christians. As pastors, perhaps we spend too much time talking and not enough time actually letting God move by His power. Although Jesus was a great miracle worker, we have divorced ourselves from miracles and the display of God’s power.

All of us, every single Christian, are supposed to walk in the sustaining victory of Christ. Perhaps you, like me, look back at the Israelites and think we could and would do better but as I look around I see that we are not where we should be. Are we the victorious church? We were destined by God Himself to live in the fullness of the blessing. Our lives are supposed to be full of everything Christ is and yet I see us sick and broke, our relationships are a mess and we have become the disfavored stepchild instead of kings and princes. What happened to us? What happened to the glory of Christ? Where is this power that the Bible tells us about? We are not casting out demons and healing the sick. Jesus said that the things he did we should do even greater yet I certainly haven’t walked on water or fed 5000 people. Sometimes it’s hard to feed myself.

Every one of us is meant to walk in the spiritual power of Jesus. We are supposed to see Jesus’ miracle working power daily. Where is the power of God in our lives? How is Jesus’ victory being experienced or demonstrated in our lives? There are dozens of verses on prosperity. Are we enjoying the prosperity God set aside for us? There is an equal number of scriptures on healing but how is our health?

The heathen look at us and scoff the way we have belittled the Israelites. They don’t want any part of our God because they don’t see any victory in our lives. They see weak, mealy mouth people instead of the giants we should be. Why, even most Christians these days are not discernable as such. We live the same worldly lives as our pagan friends. We too have lost the allure of a mighty God. Sure, we pray when the chips are down but that is about the end of it. Where is the power? Where are the miracles? Where is the overcoming victory that Jesus promised us? Is he a liar? We certainly aren’t living it so something is clearly amiss.

I wish I had the answers. I don’t but I sure don’t like the way our Christianity has become a watered down version of faith. I don’t see us standing like Stephen or delivering people. We are supposed to be living a life in Christ but this certainly does not look like a Christ experience to me. And how did we get here? How did we fall so far?

You are the body of Christ. Are you satisfied? Do you want a whole lot more of Christ than you are currently experiencing? Are there things in your life which a touch from Jesus would resolve forever? I believe, I truly do, that we are meant for much more. I believe in my heart of hearts that there is power in the name of Jesus, that devils must flee, bodies must be healed and I believe there are angels all around us just waiting for something to do. I say again, you are the body of Christ and I am the body of Christ. We are Christ in this earth now. What must we do in order to walk in the earth as he did? What are you going to do about it? What are any of us going to do about it?

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Confidence

On November 23, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Hebrews 10: 35

Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.

When your confidence is in God and in His promises, it yields its own great reward. Why? Confidence in God by another name is faith. When you are living in faith that He is well able to perform all of His promises, then you are actually exercising spiritual power. Your faith and trust in God’s ability will move mountains. One of the things that happens when you are living in your confidence is that you automatically get out of God’s way. When you do that, there is room for Him to work. He cannot work on something until you let go of it and give it to Him. Your trust and confidence in His word is the spiritual material God uses to fashion the miracle you need. And by the way, they are not miracles to God. What is a miracle to us is just everyday business to him. So put your confidence in Him and in His word because that confidence is the substance of your breakthrough and it will bring forth the answers you need. When you are tempted to worry, just remember this verse and get yourself back over into trust.

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The Facts Don’t Count

On September 12, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Romans 4: 19

And without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb.

If you want to know one of the secrets to living successfully in the Spirit it is this, don’t let the facts interfere with the truth. Abraham had a promise from God that not only would he and Sarah have a child but that he would be the father of nations. How does an old man whose body is as good as dead and whose wife is not only elderly also, but who has always been barren, have a child? Well, in the natural, and according to the facts, they don’t. But, you see, that is where we must depart from the reasoning of this world and move over in to Jesus thinking and Jesus faith. 
Abraham did not become weak in his faith. Now what is faith really? Sometimes I think we make it too hard a concept. Here is a simple illustration. If I tell you that I am going to give you a pen when I see you will you be expecting to receive a pen? How confident are you that you will be given a pen? That is the measure of your faith in me? If you have a high expectation, even an assurance, then you have a lot of faith in me. That is all faith is, believing. You believe that what I say, I will do. Now, how assured are you that Dad is going to do what He has said? Somehow, Abraham was able to believe God’s word over the evidence which he saw in the world. Which one do you think you would have a tendency to believe? When you believe God, then that belief turns into trust. In the example of the pen, do you trust me to give to you what I promised?

Verse 18 says that Abraham believed even though there seemed no cause for hope. He saw the evidence that the world presented to him and chose to instead believe what God said. That is so hard for us to do but it is a super-key to living in the supernatural blessings of God. If we want to walk on the water, and who doesn’t, then we have to renew our minds with this kind of thinking. We have to ignore the facts. We don’t deny their existence we just deny their power. Abraham decided that God’s word was the final word, that it superseded the physical facts. That is the way we need to be, the way we need to think if we wish to walk in the kind of miracles that Abraham did, the kind of miracles that God wants to be our everyday experience.

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Sunshine

On August 23, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Job 11: 16 – 17

For you would forget your trouble, as waters that have passed by, you would remember it. And your life would be brighter than noonday; darkness would be like the morning.

This is how I think it is best to conclude our thoughts and musings over Psalm 35. We have a vindicator. Better still, we have a father who loves us with an infinite love. In the end, we win. There may be sorrow today but the sun will arise in the morning. Then your grief, your woe will be as the waters of the river. Yesterday’s water is long gone and with it your remembrance of yesterday’s distress. The sun will shine on you again. So bright will your life be that even your darkness is as bright as the morning sun.

This is God, the Father’s will for you. He wants to be light in a dark place for you. He wants to rescue you from your deepest depression. He wants to give you wings to that you can change your plight to flight. He will give you wings of eagles with which you cease flapping and learn to soar.

For our part, we have to increase in trust and decrease in control. There is ultimate power in surrender but oh, what a strong person it takes to surrender their will to God. Ego is a sounding death knell and that bell tolls for us.

What does it take to actually install God on the throne of our lives? How do we surrender our will and our brilliance to the degree that there is room for Him to work in our lives? Our miracles are in our cessation of managing our lives. Once we finally learn how to let go and allow Yahweh to actually function as the God of our lives, then we will live in peace, power and harmony. This is my prayer for you today.

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