Living By Faith

MAKING YOUR FAITH EFFECTIVE

…the acknowledging of every good thing… (Philemon 6)

God likes people to brag about who they are in Him.
Mark Hankins

There are good things in you in Christ. The apostle Paul said to “acknowledge every good thing” For your faith to become effective, you need to continually acknowledge who you are in Christ. This is not something you have acknowledged; it is something you are acknowledging. It is a continual process. Acknowledging is essential if you want your faith to work properly.

To acknowledge means to recognize, to think about, and to be conscious of. Acknowledging means to daily declare who you are in Christ and what you have in Christ. It also means to walk and live in the light of who you are in Christ.

God likes people to brag about who they are in Him. Paul boasted in the cross because of what God had done for him in Christ. This is not boasting in yourself, but in what God has done for you and can do through you because of your union with Christ!

Confession: I was crucified with Christ. I died with Him. I was buried with Him. But on the third day, I was made righteous, made alive with him, raised with Him, seated with Him, and made triumphant with Him!

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HAVE A BOLD CONFESSION

…full recognition and appreciation and understanding and precise knowledge of every good [thing] that is ours in [our identification with] Christ Jesus. (Philemon 6 Amplified)

Never run at your giant with your mouth shut!
Mark Hankins

You need a bold confession of who you are in Christ. Faith must have a bold confession in order to work properly. E.W. Kenyon said, “The reason that the majority of Christians are weak, though they are earnest, yet they are weak, is because they have never dared to make a confession of what they are in Christ.”

In 1 Samuel 17, David made some bold declarations as he ran toward Goliath. He was no longer just thinking of himself; he had identified with Almighty God. He had declared his covenant with God. David did not go to the battlefield and say, “I am going to see what will happen today.” No, David declared ahead of time that the victory was his.

You must acknowledge who you are in Christ for your faith to work. Just like David, you too can declare ahead of time that victory is yours in Christ!

Confession: Victory is mine in Christ! I am identified with Christ, the triumph of Christ, the risen Christ. I reign in victory with Him!

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ACKNOWLEDGING EVERY GOOD THING

That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.
(Philemon 6)

Your life becomes a great testimony to others as they see the wonderful benefits that belong to the believer!
Mark Hankins

No good thing comes from walking or following after the flesh. On the other hand, every good thing is available to you as you follow after the Spirit in Christ. Believers should acknowledge every good thing that is in them in Christ.

There are many benefits that are ours in Christ. The Fenton translation of Philemon 6 says, “so that your advance in the faith may become energetic by recognition of every benefit there is for us in Christ.” Would you like to advance in faith? You do not want to be the same next year at this time or next month at this time, do you? You need to take some steps forward by acknowledging who you are in Christ!

Confession: I am righteous in Christ. I am blessed in Christ. Victory is mine in Him. I am not trying to get it or hoping to get it, it is mine now! I am in Christ and Christ is in me!

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MASTER YOUR BODY

But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
(1 Corinthians 9:27)

You are a spirit; you have a soul, and you are living in a body.
Mark Hankins

The Bible says your spirit pulls against your flesh, and your flesh pulls against your spirit. There are things your body wants to do that your spirit knows are not right. The Bible calls that “the lust of the flesh” in Galatians 5:6. Throughout the fifth chapter of Galatians, Paul lists the works of the flesh. Your spirit desires to seek after God, to walk with God, and to know God.

Your body will dominate you if it gets a chance. Sometimes your body does not want to go to church. Your body might be saying, “Let’s stay home. I am tired. I don’t feel good.” You have to say, “No, body, you are going to church. Get up right now!” You need to get your body moving! Paul said, “I keep under my body and I bring it under subjection.” In other words, he said, “I master my body. I control it.”

Confession: I keep my body under and bring it into subjection. I am going to church, I am going to read my Bible, and I am going to pray!

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NEW PLACES TO WALK

Thus says the Lord of hosts: If you will walk in My ways and keep My charge, then also you shall rule My house [That is authority right there] and have charge of My courts, and I will give you access [to my presence] and places to walk among these who stand here. (Zechariah 3:7)

In your authority as the believer, God has given you access to walk in places you have never been.
Mark Hankins

God is saying, “If you will walk in the light of what I am telling you right now, and if you will live in the reality of who I say you are and what I have done for you, I will give you new places to walk.”

God has some places for you to walk where you have never been before. Jesus said, “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” (Luke 10:19)

There are new places that include miracles, signs, and wonders. That means walking among angels in the glory of God. When you start walking in that atmosphere, you will learn the keys that unlock miracles, signs, and wonders!

Confession: I am in this world, but I am not of this world. The devil is under my feet. All the power of the enemy is under my feet. I am walking in new places!

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