REDEEMED

 

SERVANT POWER :

Mark 4:41, "And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?"

When God created this physical world and all of its inhabitants, He gave mankind authority to rule and subdue His creation. Although God still owned the universe and all that was in it, He gave control of the earth to man.

When man sinned, he began to use this power against God's wishes. God did not ordain all the terrible things that have happened throughout history, and yet He did not take back man's right to dominate the earth. Instead, He became a man and took back that authority to Himself by conquest. After Jesus' resurrection, He said in Matthew 28:18, "...All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth," and then He gave the great commission to His disciples, thereby conferring that authority upon them, also. Jesus becoming flesh was absolutely essential for gaining all power (or authority) in heaven and in earth. Jesus was a "God-man." As stated in 1 Timothy 3:16, He was God manifested in the flesh, which is a great mystery.

Jesus came in the power and authority of His Father to point men to the Father God. Jesus existed before His advent on this earth in the form of God and was equal with God; yet, He humbled Himself and became a servant while here on earth. He did not come to promote Himself but to give Himself as the way unto the Father.

This is radically different from the way so called "great men" present themselves. The Roman Caesar of Jesus' day proclaimed that he was God and demanded worship. Lesser leaders ruled by exalting themselves over the people they governed. But, Jesus showed us that "whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; and whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many" (Mt. 20:26-28).

DIVORCE IS NOT GOD'S BEST :

Mark 10:2 "And the Pharisees came to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? tempting him."

The Pharisees didn't really want to know what Jesus taught on divorce and remarriage. They didn't value His opinion but were tempting Him and desired to get Him mired in the big dispute of their day between liberal and conservative views on divorce. This was a very emotional issue then, just as it is today, and they thought they had Jesus in a "no win" situation.

However, as always, Jesus proved to be more than their match and He gave them much more than they asked for.

The Pharisees didn't question whether or not divorce was right. They took the right to divorce for granted. But Jesus, instead of expounding on acceptable grounds for divorce, went to the very root of the problem and showed that God never intended there to be any divorce at all. If they really understood the extent of the one flesh covenant between a man and his wife, they would not be looking for an excuse to get out of marriage. This approach amazed the Pharisees and brough forth the question "why did Moses in the law make provision for divorce?"

Once a person begins to question, "How can I get a divorce?" instead of, "How can I keep this marriage together?" indicates, that there is already a serious breach in the marriage, that Jesus calls a hardened heart.

Jesus answered that divorce was permitted but never intended. God allowed something that He hated because of the hardness of people's hearts. This was also true of polygamy and slavery. Jesus came to remove our stony heart and give us a heart of flesh so that we could walk in God's best for us.

GOD HEALS

Not only does God always heal; He has already provided healing for every person on the earth, just as He has provided forgiveness of sins and redemption.

God does not change. He is the Lord that heals us (Ex. 15:26), the Lord who sent His Word to heal us (Ps. 107:20), the Lord who forgives all our sins and heals all our diseases (Ps. 103:1-3), the Lord who bore our sicknesses on the cross (Isa. 53:4-5), the Lord who healed all who came to Him (Matt. 8:16), the Lord who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed of the devil for God was with Him (Acts 10:38), the Lord who set the church against sickness and commanded us to go and to heal the sick (Matt. 10:8), the Lord who told us that greater works would we do (John 14:12), the Lord who gives us power to lay hands on the sick and they recover (Mark 16:18), the Lord who confirms His Word with signs following (Mark 16:20), the Lord who healed the sick in the early church through the ministries of Peter, Paul and other believers (Acts), the Lord who gives gifts of healings to the church for the church age (1 Cor. 12:9), and the Lord who asks through James if there are any sick among us (James 5:14)
God’s Word shows us that as Children of God, divine health is our inheritance because Jesus died to take away our sicknesses. Isaiah 53:5 says “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”

Every day, declare you are strong, declare you are healthy and declare that the life of God is at work in your body. Declare that sickness will have no place in your body. As you continually study the Word and proclaim it, your faith will be strengthened daily and you will find yourself living as God planned for you; in perfect and divine Health.

May God’s Spirit rest upon you and cause you to bask in favour always, you will come out victorious always

MOVE YOUR MOUNTAINS

And Peter, remembering, said to Him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.” So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.” - Mark 11:21–23

Like many believers, you may have heard the teaching on mountain-moving faith based on Mark 11:22–23. I don’t know about you, but it always intrigued me: Why did Jesus curse the fig tree before He taught on mountain-moving faith?

The first time fig leaves are mentioned in the Bible, they speak of self-righteousness—after Adam sinned, he covered himself with fig leaves. Adam’s covering was a bloodless one, and without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins (Hebrews 9:22). That’s why God had to clothe him with animal skin instead, which meant the shedding of innocent blood. One speaks of righteousness by works, while the other speaks of righteousness by the shed blood of the Lamb.

So the fig tree here is a picture of self-righteousness. And what Jesus was saying is that before your faith can flow like a river, you have to curse (or get rid of) self-righteousness in your life and embrace His gift of righteousness!

Beloved, keep believing, meditating on and declaring that you are righteous in Christ apart from your works. This revelation is what causes faith for every breakthrough you need to rise effortlessly in your heart, and the mountains in your life to move!

SEE YOURSELF RISEN WITH JESUS :

Constantly keep in mind Jesus Christ, the Messiah, [as] risen from the dead. – 2 Timothy 2:8

This is the key to holding onto the blessings of God. When pressure comes, when troubles and trials are bearing down on you, remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead!

Remember that when Jesus arose, you arose. When He came out of hell and defeated the enemy, you came out of hell and defeated the enemy. His victory is your victory because you're in Him.

In the hard places, remember that. When the devil tells you you're not going to get your answer this time, remember that. When he tells you there's no way out, you remember Christ, the Anointed One, the Victorious Conqueror, risen from the dead and seated at the right hand of the Father!

If there's an image Satan hates more than any other, it must be that image of Jesus, rising from the dead, stripping him forever of his authority, and openly displaying his defeat to all of heaven and hell. That's the picture you need to keep in the forefront of your mind. Think about it until it's etched into your heart so deeply that nothing Satan says or does can get it out of you.

That's when the gifts of God will be established in your life. That's when the devil won't be able to talk you out of your inheritance with trials and tribulations. Keep in mind Jesus Christ, risen from the dead!

THE LORD IS YOUR REFUGE :

1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust.” - Psalm 91:1–2

Every day, we are bombarded with news of conflicts, natural disasters, diseases and new strains of drug-resistant viruses. We also hear of people losing their loved ones in freak accidents. And we ask ourselves, “Is there a place where I can take refuge from a world gone mad?”

Yes, there is! God foresaw all these things and He has promised in His Word protection from every evil known to man. There is no trap set by the devil that our Father cannot deliver us from, if we trust in Him and take Him as our refuge. That is His promise in Psalm 91.

Whether it is an earthquake at midnight, a crazy sniper, an unknown virus or a terrorist attack, God says, “You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day, nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.” (Psalm 91:5–6)

Because you have made Him your dwelling place, angels are watching over you right now. (Psalm 91:9–11) They give heed to the voice of God’s Word, so you should give voice to God’s Word. This means that you should agree with and speak what God’s Word says about His preserving and protecting you. Then, angels are sent to minister for you. (Hebrews 1:14)

My friend, don’t say, “If it can happen to them, it can also happen to me!” Say, “A thousand may fall at my side and 10,000 at my right hand, but it will not come near me!” (Psalm 91:7) The world says that you cannot but expect danger all around. God says, “You are in this world but not of this world. You have My protection because you are of Me and in Me.” (John 17:14–23)

You have access by faith into the secret place of the Most High where no evil can touch you. There is no need to fear living in the end times because the Lord is your refuge and fortress. His Word says so. And those who trust His Word completely find His Word completely true!

Thought For The Day :

The Lord is your refuge from every evil known to man.