Living By Faith

THE WHOLE ELEPHANT

That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints. (Ephesians 1:17-18)

The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. Albert Einstein

When I think about revelation, I often think about the story of the four blind men that were each holding on to a different part of an elephant. One held the tail and said an elephant was like a rope. One held the leg and said an elephant was like a tree. One held the trunk and said an elephant was like a snake. One felt the side of the elephant and said he was like a wall. Each man’s revelation was limited to the part of the elephant he experienced.

Many of us are like that today with our relationship with God. God wants to open our eyes to see the whole elephant. There is more that God has for us. Revelation opens God’s goodness and power to us and through us!

Confession:  I  know the love of Christ which passes knowledge that I may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:19)

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HIDDEN TREASURES

In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (Colossians 2:3)

Man does not discover God. God reveals Himself. William Barclay

There are things that are hidden for us InChrist. We sometimes think so much is hidden from us, yet God has chosen revelation as His way. God seems to play “hide and seek” with us. When we seek Him, we will find Him, when we search for Him with all our heart. God actually enjoys revealing Himself. He chooses to reveal Himself. Today we are at the threshold of an increase in the revelation of God that will launch a revolution that will change this generation.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is not a human discovery; it is a revelation from God. The fact that God is as Jesus showed him to be is not something which a man could have discovered by intellectual processes. Man does not discover God. God reveals Himself. ~William Barclay

Confession:I will call upon the Lord and pray, and He will listen to me. I will seek the Lord and find Him, when I search for Him with all of my heart! (Jeremiah 29:12-13)

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GUARD YOUR HEART

Guard your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. (Proverbs 4:23 NKJV)

Watch out for unforgiveness as if it were a rattlesnake! Mark Hankins

Jesus said, “When you stand praying, forgive.” (Mark 11:25-26) This means while you are standing in prayer, you can quickly make an adjustment in your heart. People often let things eat at them for years and years, but you can make a decision to forgive right now. Forgiveness is not a feeling; it’s a choice. You may still have feelings of hurt, but the decision has been made! You can forgive by faith.

Faith is of the heart; therefore unforgiveness is a disease of the heart. That spirit will get inside of you and make your heart callused so your faith won’t respond or work properly. Then you will get cynical, and you won’t be able to receive from God.

Unforgiveness – offense and bitterness – is the primary thing you have to guard against. You must watch out for unforgiveness just as if it were a rattlesnake. When you see it come around, avoid it!

Confession: I stand watchful and ready to quickly forgive. For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee. (Psalm 86:5)

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FREEDOM FROM GUILT AND SIN CONSCIOUSNESS

Now thanks be unto God, which always cause thus to triumph in Christ and maketh manifest the savour of His knowledge by us in every place. (2 Corinthians 2:14)

God is your heavenly Father, and He is glorified when you reflect His life, joy, and victory! Mark Hankins

God does not want His children to live with a continual consciousness of sin, failure, defeat, weakness, guilt, and inferiority. As a father of two children, I know I don’t want my children to live that way.  This does not mean that you won’t have challenges. You live in a world that is full of adversity, but you are overcomers because you are born of God. (1 John 5:4) Instead of a sense of sin or guilt, you should have a sense of righteousness and triumph.

The Apostle Paul was shipwrecked, snake-bit, beaten in the head, and left for dead, yet he came out saying, “I am more than a conqueror in Christ.” (Romans 8:37) He came out smelling like a rose with victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil. Paul saw himself in Christ.

God wants you to smell like the triumph of Christ.  This means you have to live in the consciousness and with the confession of who you are in Christ.

Confession: I am more than a conqueror in Christ. I have victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil! 

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MAKING ADJUSTMENTS

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.(Philippians2:13)

When you are born again, you move out of the devil’s territory and you are relocated to a new place in Christ. Mark Hankins

Throughout the Bible, we see God moving men and women into the proper orbit to be used by Him. You can see this in the life of Abraham. Abraham had to do some moving. He had to make some adjustments so he could receive and transmit. God is constantly working with people to change their thinking, speaking, and acting, in order to open up the miraculous for them.

God wants to bless you. He wants to make you a blessing. He has some “rockets” to help you move into position to see His glory. He has given His Word, the Holy Spirit, and the five-fold ministry gifts to help you make adjustments. It takes some changes to get the glory, and it takes the glory to get some changes. You are being changed so you can fit and function in the proper orbit and realize your full potential in Christ.

Confession: It is God that is working in me both to will and to do of his good pleasure. He is changing my thinking, speaking, and acting. I am being changed so that I can realize my full potential in Christ!

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