The Love Inside

"Change ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Master....

Whom the heavens must receive until the times of Restoration of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."

~Acts 3:19, 21

The beautiful thing about Yahshua's life is that refreshing has come.  Refreshing takes us on further. We must be refreshed and let God love us into existence - true existence, where we are awakened to Him and to us, to how we should see Him and to just how He sees us.  Christ wants to shine brighter on you (Ephesians 5:14)!

Our Heavenly Father wants a culture shift.  He wants our own personal refreshment to trigger widespread restoration.  He wants us to realize that Christ in us (Colossians 1:27) is the Kingdom Leaven (Matthew 13:33).  He wants us to realize that we, by virtue of His presence, are contagious. We are the carriers of His Glory; we are those He's entrusted to changing the world. One step at a time and one person at a time - from the inside out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Vanessa posted a musical project this past week detailing Yahweh's movement in her life.  And He's shone us that this video will produce a massive cultural shift in the perception of the Love of God. He's shone us that this video is going to change our lives, so that we in turn can be positioned to change the lives of others and work for their good.

I was praying about this project recently, asking God to bless it and send revival.  And He told me not to pray for that.  He told me to pray for a culture shift instead!  He showed me that in past times and seasons, culture has not supported revival!  Instead, revival has fizzled out under the oppression of a dark, godless society and culture.

A widespread, unquenchable cultural change must occur first.  We're just on the brink of it.  If culture is inclined to our Heavenly Father, then and only then can we have lasting change.  If our culture loves and is Loved by Yah, then we can have His presence abide. Then He can teach all of us all things (Hebrews 8:11); then He can produce lasting goodness in this world (John 15:16).  Messiah will be all in all (1 Cor. 15:28).

So, here is Vanessa's video - or rather, Yahweh's video presented by Vanessa.  It's essentially her personal testimony with one or two dramaticized parts (she never did heroin).  There are a few twists in there...enjoy, and may you come into contact with the presence of God like never before.

Resurrected into Eternity

Yahshua said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies."

~John 11:25

Everyone who believes has already been born again.  Born from where?  Born from above, into God's family, into the Heavenly realms.  Anyone who believes is, spiritually speaking, existing in two places at once - both here and in Heaven.  

We've been instructed to pray that way: "on earth as it is in Heaven".  Our new birth is a reason for that!  Don't you know who you are?  You are a perfected, forgiven child of God.

From the first moment of belief onward, you've been hidden away.  You've been hidden with Messiah, hidden within God - hidden in a place of shelter and peace.  You've been born into the most secure place possible. From the moment you first believed, you've been resurrected.  

Every believer has entered into resurrection life.  You have entered into an inescapable God.  The evil one, the accuser, "touches you not". And he can't touch you, because there's endless amounts of God between the two of you!  There's no more pain for you after this new birth, only the appearance of punishment.  

In this new life, the passing of time loses much of it's meaning.  We're free to live in the now.  We're free to be instead of do; being instead of doing.  The past doesn't hold us down, and the future doesn't worry us.  Instead, both the past and the present and the future give us hope.  

Life becomes timeless, and we find ourselves on a very "ancient path" without really knowing how we got there.  We find ourselves in a place that feels at once very old and very new - a place that's being renewed daily.  Eternity is now.  

Sometimes we forget that Yahshua was our bridge into, well, everything, in this new life that He payed the price to provide.  Yet it is the Son of God Himself that becomes our marker of events, and all of time is bound up in a single moment where we realize that we know Him.  The passing of time grows strangely dim, and we may no longer perceive it like we once did.  

"To live" ceases to become measurable by our cosmic props of times and seasons.  "To live" becomes a person - Jesus.  To live is Christ, and to die is even better.   Time becomes swallowed up by the limitless, unchanging essence of God.  

Heavenly Father, set us free from the perceived constraints of time, from the constraints of our habits and schedules, and let us enter in to unbroken fellowship with You today. 

"Now this is eternal life: that they know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent."

John 17:3

Freedom: It's Contagious

"...That the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God."  

Romans 8:21

Based on this verse, our freedom goes out from us.  It begins within, in Yah's presence, and is released through us.  Freedom is contagious,more contagious than sin or disease.  Our Freedom has the ability to purify our natural environment.

When we are experience fullness of freedom as children of God, when we are celebrating who we really are -- that's when the Kingdom advances.  It's just like the implanted word (James 1:21) and the mustard seed (Matthew 13:31). Your Heavenly Father wants this presence within you to grow and grow and grow until others find shelter with you!  He wants to expand your tents and increase your authority (Isaiah 54:2).

The truth is that we are so free that our freedom liberates our surrounding -- even nature.  The creation itself will be set free from the natural order of things by coming into contact with His offspring.  By coming into contact with YOU!  This is the "Kingdom Leaven" that Yahshua spoke about (Matthew 13:33).  He wants to bless others through you.  He wants purity, holiness, and conviction to flow out through you.  He wants you to cause atmosphere shifts. Like a peacemaker (Matthew 5:9)

How many of us have really experienced this?  Vanessa and I have experienced weather miracles many times now.  We've seen how our Father is is control of the climate and the wind and even all the creatures He's made.  We've seen how animals respond to the good news of Messiah (Mark 16:15)-- it's fun talking to birds and cats and bunnies!  But have we made this confidence in God a way of life?

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Yahshua Messiah took hold of me."

~Philippians 3:12

FREEDOOOOMMM!

Last night God gave me a dream where I was undergoing a teaching.  It was on freedom.  In the dream, the Holy Spirit showed me Romans 8:21:

"...that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God."  

Glorious freedom.  Thank you Father.  Do any of us really know what that's like?  Do we understand what it means to possess glorious freedom?  I don't think so, not yet.  Not with a full measure, yet this is exactly what Yahshua has promised (Luke 6:38).  He wants us to know; we're His family, kings in His kingdom (Proverbs 25:2)!

In my dream, there was such a liberation.  I instantly knew that God had just given me a key to abide. When I heard Romans 8:21, it was written on my heart in a new way.  It was so powerful, and the power was there to effortlessly provide.

That's what our Heavenly Father gives us power for -- to get closer to Him.  It's not for our giftings or callings so much as it was for Him.  From Him for me for Him!

It was an awesome experience of peace and contentment.  If you haven't already, ask Elohim to give you heavenly dreams!  He is faithful, and He will do it (1 Thessalonians 5:24).  Let's all taste and see that Yahweh is good (Psalms 34:8).

You Have Received

A few days ago, the Spirit spoke to me, saying,

"Thomas, you have to realize that Christianity is a religion of receiving, not of giving."

Huh.  That was an interesting way to put it; there was some context involved here! Recently I've been studying the major differences between Christianity and other belief systems.  While the differences seem clear (and are!), it's been a good, important review of things.

We need to remember that Yahshua said, "freely you have received".  We tend to overlook this message in our impulsive attempts to overemphasize the second half of it.  We make His command more a message dictating us than an essence pointing to Him.

It's not about us, it's about Him (though He thinks you're wonderful, and you should too)!  However, for things to be about Him, blessings must also be directed to you.  Don't you realize that you're an extension of Him?  It's about getting ourselves aligned with the perspective of God.

Once we're aligned, we'll realize that this reception of Yah's goodness will lead to thankfulness, joyfulness, happiness, peace, love.  His mind couldn't lead to anything else.

If we focus on the receiving of Heaven from Him, then we'll be able to freely give.  Why?  Because we won't even think of it?  We'll be so distracted by God that we can't help but give.



Other religions might be summed up like this:

Give to others, so that you may receive from God.

Or,  Become Holy, so you can be like God.

Or,  Pray as much as you can, so you can be near to God.



In true Christianity, this trend is reversed.  It's time to take our focus off of ourselves and be overwhelmed by our Heavenly Father.  It's time to focus more on receiving -- all that we have, will, and want to receive -- so that we can believe enough to have an overflow to give from.  Christianity says

You are like God, so be holy.

Or,  You are near God, so pray to your heart's delight!

Or,  You have received, so continue receiving even while you give.  It's not about your efforts, it's about His.

Obligations

"Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do..."

~Romans 8:12

Today I've been looking over my own life and realizing that I do more things than I should under the power of obligation.  Meaning I feel obligated to do mundane, day to day stuff...instead of feeling freedom, I've been feeling pressured to compulsively perform.

The truth in Christ though, is that there is no obligatory work.  There is no obligation to sin and mess up; you've been set free from sin!  You don't have to do it anymore.  Sin is not your nature.  Why not?  Well, look at the preceding verses and you'll see that it's because Christ is in you.  And His work in you overcame the world and all of it's sin along with it.

The only obligatory work we need to do is believe.  We must believe at all times; we must not fall out of faith.   Paul instructed the Corinthians to inspect themselves, by their fruit, to determine if they really believed.  Having the faith of God is important.  It's His faith that binds us together and raises us with Him.

The only obligation we have is to enter His rest.  Many Christians miss this -- the book of Hebrews says that so did the Ancient Israelites.  And until we really believe, there will be warfare, there will be ups and down, and there will be very difficult points.  It's in focusing on Him that these kinds of battles are won.

"...For if you live according to flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live."

~Romans 8:13

The only way to stay in belief is to remain in the Spirit.  If you set up your tent with God, if you give Him your heart, He'll give you His feelings towards you and inspire you to trust Him.  It's the Holy Spirit who inspires belief and points us towards Yahshua, the Son of God.

When we believe, we pave the way for the reality of God to become greater, in our lives, than anything else.  Our activities get drowned out.  Our attentions and distractions get forgotten.  Our obligations get burned away.  We don't have to do a thing but believe in what Messiah's done!

This is a belief that will make you joyful and give you energy.  It will quicken and electrify your physical bodies.  It will cause you to do stuff because you want to...not because you're scared of man. There will be no fears and no thoughts of feelings in the things you do, because you've made God the most important thing.

The only obligation we have is to live for God.  And living for God flows out of belief in His goodness and love!  The only fight we fight is the fight of faith.  And when faith comes, we are no longer supervised and micromanaged by the law.  We are free to do everything, or free to do nothing! The nature of self-worth through what you're doing will be gone; you'll be set free from yourself.  It feels good to follow God; it feels good to have a light burden and have Hims simplify your life.

Works of Righteousness?

Or works for righteousness?  There is a subtle, but very important difference.

"This living flame of love is so untouchable, so unquenchable, that it is virtually impossible for us to ever draw near without being consumed. This is why it is ultimately necessary that God Himself becomes our righteousness. We are incapable of reaching that place of purity and perfection which He requires of our own accord. And so Christ must positionally become our "right living" so that we can freely enter the love of God."      ~John Crowder

This has been a theme that's really been impressed on me in the last couple weeks.  I've been holed up at home, cleaning, organizing, sweeping, building, planting, vacuuming...you get it.  But there's been a lot of seemingly 'mundane' activities going on.  How to stay content?

Remember that Yahweh has gifted us fruit that remains (John 15:16).  And this fruit of peace, love and joy is found in His son.  It's found in focusing on Jesus.  

To 'do' works of righteousness, you need to abide.  And to abide in divine Love, you need to believe. That's why Jesus stated that the work of God could be boiled down to the effort of believing.  If we fall out of communion and try to earn our own righteousness, then we've fallen from grace (Galatians 5:4).  We've started to work for something we already have.  How crazy is that?

God wants us to be working into a labor of love.  He wants us to have such a divine sense of purpose in our lives that even sweeping the floor is fun.  There is a pleasure found in partnering with Him in even the smallest task.  You life may look pretty similar to that of an unbeliever.  The difference is that you are a friend of God within your mind (Colossians 1:21)!  The difference is that your joy can always be complete (John 15:11).  

Having your heart fixed on God, overwhelmed in Him, is enough to call the Glory down.  Staying in the Love of God is a training process, and we've got out entire lives to fully learn it (Luke 6:40).  I know I mess up sometimes.  But even our own failures ultimately point us to a greater reality, which is the limitless, immeasurable, too-good-to-be-true grace that we must be reminded to rely upon.  

"For we are Yahweh's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Yahsua Messiah, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."       ~Ephesians 2:10 

 

The Tree of Life in You

In the garden of Eden, there were two trees.  One was permitted and beneficial; one was off limits to Adam and Eve.  The One tree gave truth; the other gave knowledge.  The One gave freedom; the other gave religion.

Anyways, this post is about the Tree of Life!

"After I was baptized with the Holy Ghost the Lord gave me a blessed revelation. I saw Adam and Eve turned out of the garden for their disobedience and unable to partake of the tree of life, for the cherubim with flaming sword kept them away from this tree. When I was baptized I saw that I had begun to eat of this tree of life and I saw that the flaming sword was all round about. It was there to keep the devil away."     ~Smith Wigglesworth

Isn't that wonderful?  Jesus is the tree of life.  And He's on the inside know. We've left the covering of the Law (Gal. 3:25) and entered into the covering of the Almighty, the Garden of Eden.  In a sense, the believer embodies the garden of Eden; and Yahshua walks amongst us within.

Wigglesworth also said that he was a thousand times bigger on the outside than on the inside.  It took me a while to get a grasp on that.  But God wants us to be on the inside, looking out.  Yahweh wants us to understand just how overflowing the fullness of God can get (Ephesians 3:19).

So, what was Wigglesworth referring to when he said that?  The Tree of Life, that's what -- the expansion of the Kingdom (Matthew 13:32), the vibration of life within.  This is the tree that Yahweh prunes (John 15:1), the Tree in which we are commanded to abide (John 15:4).

See, the word starts in your spirit, planted as just a seed (John 15:4). The Holy Spirit may scatter more than a few seeds into your heart before you accept it, and that's OK ()!  Eventually, though, hearing is mixed with faith, and you've got a little tree (Romans 10:17)!

And God takes that tree and cares for it.  He protects you from spiritual warfare (Psalms 105:15).  He shelters you and allows you to grow.  And the more you grow, the more exposure there can be to the elements. Some of your spiritual 'branches' may fall outside the protection of those angels with flaming swords.

It's about when the operation of the Spirit works in you and through you that you've reached maturity. If nourished, those little branches will grow up, out, and provide a resting place for others!  If left to the Father's care, He'll cause such growth in you that your influence far exceeds yourself.

Allow God to prune you.  Allow Him to prune off the bad parts; allow Him to burn them away. Allow the cherubim to guard you (Gen. 3:24).  If you go past His instruction, the same fire that's designed to protect you might just singe a little.  Allow Yahweh to be your purifying fire (Hebrews 12:29).

It feels good to feel that burn.  Allow Him to sift through your life and make you more and more fruitful (John 15:2).  There's always room for improvement!  There's always room to grow.  God wants to give you greater territory, greater gifts, greater responsibilities.  Are you ready for it?

Peace I Give to You

"Peace I leaue with you, my peace I geue vnto you. Not as the world geueth, geue I vnto you. Let not youre hertes be greued, nether feare."       ~Yahshua (John 14:27)

Jesus has given you peace.  But have you received it?  Have you accepted His peace into your reality?  Did you feel peaceful reading this almost unreadable 1540 'Great Bible' Miles Coverdale edition?  You certainly can.  All it takes is a little faith.

Yahweh wants us to have peace like a river, peace like the ocean, peace like He has.  He wants you to have peace all the time.  He wants you to have so much peace it's impossible.

God was speaking to me about this today.  His truth is that there has not, is not, and will not been a valid reason to lose peace.  Nothing is so important as to make you break the faith (Romans 11:20).  That's really what the loss of peace implies -- it's a temporary loss of belief.  The two go hand in hand.  God is bigger than your problems!

Peace is also tied in with patience.  Peace recognizes and rest in the truth that Yahweh is not slow in keeping His promises (2 Peter 3:9).  The battle is His (2 Chron. 20:15), and when it comes, you'll win with Him.  Belief is peace.

The Revelator: The Kingdom Within

"From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and forceful people lay hold of it."  

~Matthew 11:12

We have the Kingdom within us.  You have the Lion of Judah, the source of all revelation and understanding, living and breathing in you.  It's a heavy, glorious thing to lay hold of that!  It's an enormous thing to get a grasp on.

A camel may not pass through the eye of a needle, but Jesus has entered through the passageway of your heart. He's unlocked the Kingdom in you, from the inside out.  He's given you life, love, energy; He's given you faith and works.  He's given you understanding.  He's given you an endless, effortless supply of resources needed for the life He's called you to.  

This Kingdom has met some opposition along the way -- but it's here now.  There was a lot of clashes in the spiritual realm just prior to Yahshua!  The enemy knew what was coming.

In the same way, there's warfare around us now.  The kingdom within is bombarded with lies, deception, doubts, and attacks from the enemy.  There's outside darkness.  Yet the Holy Spirit within is greater.  The Holy Spirit within carries us onward -- whatever it takes.  The Kingdom of Heaven has been gotten hold of, and it continues to be received by those who long for it.

And it continues to be received by you!  There will be turbulence, but God's momentum within is forcefully advancing.  You are the Tent of Meeting, and He's enlarging your borders, enlarging your tents.  He's taking back ground, He's renewing you.  He's the only reason that you've already arrived.

The Revelator: The Lion of Judah

And one of the elders says to me, "Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has overcome to open the scroll and its seven seals."

~Revelation 5:5

There's a reason that it was the Apostle John who was given the book of Revelation.  John already understood the revelation of Love.  He was able to be entrusted with bigger things, like this vision of Revelation, because the Law of Love had already been fulfilled in him.

"There was reclining on Jesus' bosom one of His disciples, whom Yahshua loved."

~John 13:23

John got it.  There's a reason why he always referred to himself as "the one Jesus loved".  Ever think about that?  I always thought it was kind of self-serving for John to title himself that.

Surely, all the disciples loved Yahshua.  Yet John was the one from among them that highlighted the Master's love, rather than his own.  He understood one of the greatest revelations -- that God's love is bigger, that His love is purer, that His love came first (1 John 4:19).  John was the one who Jesus loved because he recognized the truth in this.  Now, Yahshua didn't love him more than any of the other disciples. Yet John was acquainted with His Master's heavy, lovely presence more than the rest. His namesake was only an accurate byproduct of that.

Anyways...John had the book of Revelation unlocked to him.  He had it unlocked, for him.  All he had to do was participate in the life of the Spirit (Rev. 1:10).  Yahshua took over from there.

There's a big concept to grasp here.  In your own life, understand that being loved by God is greater than loving God.  He's the all consuming fire; you're the one who has to be consumed (Heb. 12:29). You're job is more passive than you might think.

Let the Lion of Judah do the heavy lifting.  He's the One worthy to open the scroll.  He did it for John, He'll do it for you!  Don't try to go randomly digging for understanding on your own.  Just trust for it, and rely on your Father to bring it forth.   The only thing for you to understand is that it's not your efforts that ultimately count.  It's what He's done -- it's His Life, it's His battle (2 Chronicles 20:15).

Our only work required is to trust.  There's a humility and reverence here (Proverbs 9:10); that's the whole point!  He's your representative; He's the One who opens the whole mystery of Heaven up.

On Keeping the Sabbath: A Restful Life

"So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of Yahweh. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as Yahweh did from His..."       ~Hebrews 4:11

The Holy Book says that there is a rest that remains.  What is this?  It's something different than the Old Testament's Sabbath Day commandments.  It's something that rendered the Old obsolete.  It's a Rest that transcends practical judgement, because God wants to have our hearts (2 Cor. 5:16).  Rest is a state of being that remains.

Why did God rest from His works?  Because Jesus was telling the truth when He cried out on the cross: "IT IS FINISHED" (John 19:30).  And If God is still resting, content with the fulfillment of His Redeeming plan, then we should follow His example and rest too!

"...Let us make every effort, therefore, to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following the same pattern of disobedience."      ~Hebrews 4:12

Entering God's rest, truly, constantly and unconditionally keeping it, may take a lot of effort.  It may take a lot of faith.  But what are we, that we could have "a lot" of anything?  What are we, that Yahweh is mindful of us (Psalms 8:4)?  Remember that it's His Work that gets us there, and not our own.  Apart from Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5).

Our only work, our "every effort", should only be made concerning our belief.  That's the work that God expects, demands from us.  Are we really believing?  Hopefully so --cause that's all that Yahshua wants (John 6:29).  Everything else will flow out from that -- the rest is up to you.  Faith + trust = Rest.

Now, I'm not contradicting my previous post on the Sabbath.  The commandment has been good, and it continues to be good (Romans 7:12).  Keeping a physical Sabbath may well just be an intermediate tool; a way to ensure that we are doing everything that day with intention and joy.  It might serve as a wonderful stepping stone that helps you grasp the spiritual symbolism involved.  The Sabbath provokes internal inspection...are we doing things out of obligation, or are we seeing our time as being redeemed by God?  Don't be enslaved by your own business (Gal. 5:1). That's not God's best for you.  I think observing a Sabbath that excludes any compulsive act (2 Cor. 9:7) is a great idea.

The next question is...On what day? Should you observe Saturday, Sunday, the Jewish lunar calendar, or the lunar-solar calendar?  There are fringe groups out there who would claim that their approach to all this is the only way.  Who cares?  Paul called such topics "disputable matters" (Romans 14:1).

Like I said, there remains a Sabbath that transcends physicality.  God wants you to be so thankful for every moment, that even the hardest work you do is still purely Rest.  He wants you to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17).  He wants you to carry such a heavy awareness of Him that any of your own efforts are blotted out by His monumental Light.

It's OK to be blinded by love.  Yahweh wants us to take our eyes off ourselves so we can enjoy Heavenly, blissful rest.

You Died on the Cross

Freedom from sin has been on my mind recently.  The greatest freedom we can achieve on this earth, ultimately, is freedom from ourselves.  God doesn't want our mental constructs, paradigms, or limitations to hold us back! He doesn't want sin bogging us down.  We are free to enjoy and fulfill unity with Christ.  Romans 6 says a lot about this, and I believe that there is an important revelatory key to be found here, in the first 7 verses:

"What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase?"

The passing of the Law does not license sin.  It doesn't legalize it or anything.  The presence of grace does not permit sin; though the presence of sin permits grace to act.

"May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?"

Grace is for gifting, not for sinning (Acts 4:33).  We are not to live in something that Jesus died to eradicate.  Sin is still self-harming and separates from God.  Sinfulness in the life of a believer will always lead to the illusion of punishment.  It gives satan an open door to work.

"Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?"

Baptism is symbolic of death.  Did you know that death can be joyful?  That death can be pleasurable?  Well, it is, if for no other reason that because baptism is.  Dying to self is a holy thing.  The old has been buried, forgotten, rendered obsolete. That means the shameful parts of you!

"Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life."

Newness of life is an everyday thing.  It has been you state of being since the first moment you believed, and it will continue to be your state of being forever.  You death to self has been sealed for a while now.  It's not something you have to work yourself into every morning.  It's just something that you have to remember and believe.  You new nature is natural.  

"For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection,"

We were united with Him in the likeness and heavenly substance of His death.  We were right there! A few days ago, I was given a vision where I saw our Master being crucified.  I was an onlooker. I gazed on this scene for a while, and it was somber.  I didn't want to be far off.  And then things changed.  I was transmitted onto His broken body!  I was right there on that cross with Him; I was part of Him.  I shared in His sufferings (Romans 8:17).  He was broken so I could be broken, so that I could get out of my own way.  And the entire penalty, the one I deserved, was taken away from me.  The entire transaction was a beautiful, mystical thing to witness.

And, going back to the last verse, We have been raised through glory, through the glory of our Glorious Father.  When we remember His death, we remember our resurrection.  It's been a past tense thing.  Knowing you've died is freeing.  Knowing that you're now living in "the likeness of His resurrection" is even better!

"knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;"

See, we are free from sin.  Our sin nature has be crushed.  It's a part of us that didn't, hasn't, and won't come back.  We are slaves to righteousness, love slaves!

"for he who has died is freed from sin"

We have died to human desire, temptation, and sin, and all we need to do is remember it.  That's where the current manifestation comes in.  The punishment for sin has also lost it's hold on us.  A dead person doesn't need to fear the law!  And neither do we.

We died with Him.  We were resurrected with Him.  We are constantly being regenerated with Him. We are free to live with Him.  That means life to the fullest.

No longer do we have a predisposition to be angry, or to be worried, or to be sad.  We may go through those things, but negative emotions should only be the exception that proves the rule.  Life is beautiful and fun, it's holy and free.  That's how Yahshua meant it to be!

#77

I've been seeing the number 77 a lot recently.  Not only seeing it, but receiving it, hearing it, and accidentally typing it!  One of the more unique ways that Yahweh speaks is through numbers. These messages often point to future acts--so their delivery usually have prophetic significance.  God wants us to know what's going on!

John Paul Jackson on Numbers

Numbers typically relate to symbolism.  For example, this "77" theme was confirmed through a friend, who prophetically delivered Genesis 41 to me:

And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it.
And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.
And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank of the river:
And, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fatfleshed and well favoured; and they fed in a meadow:
And, behold, seven other kine came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and leanfleshed, such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness:
And the lean and the ill favoured kine did eat up the first seven fat kine:
And when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke.
 And I saw in my dream, and, behold, seven ears came up in one stalk, full and good:
And, behold, seven ears, withered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them:
And the thin ears devoured the seven good ears: and I told this unto the magicians; but there was none that could declare it to me.
And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do.
The seven good kine are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one.
And the seven thin and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven years; and the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of famine.
This is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh: What God is about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh.
Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt:
And there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land;
And the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous.
And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.

There's a lot of symbolism here!  But what is the message for me, at this point of this current season? Basically, it's to save money!

That's the main message, but not the only one.  God often weaves several elements into one message, into one symbolic theme.  Notice that He gave Pharaoh a very multifaceted dream that delivered one prophetic instruction.  Several things converged to give one main instruction--one main call to action.
77 is also one of the numbers representative of Yahshua.  Why?  Because He was born of the 77th generation after Adam.  Redemption complete!  Fittingly, Jesus Himself instructed us to forgive our brother 77 times (Matthew 18:22).  That's an appropriate command to be given by the One who brought forgiveness to all!  Yahshua's command here is one of just many that subliminally pointed to Himself

Our Heavenly Father gives us numbers to speak holistically to every arena of our lives.  He uses numbers as a sort of comprehensive prophecy, to meet us where we're at right now.

God will speak to you through numbers, if you're open to it.  He'll give you a sign.  He'll show you and re-confirm to you the Spirit's streams of teaching in your life.

Contentment

"But godliness with contentment is great gain."  

~1 Timothy 6:6

There is a contentment out there that only comes from God.  This expression of contentment comes when we live in the reality that Jesus is enough, when we live in peaceful union with Him.  Godliness and contentment go hand in hand, because being like God means being with God.  And being with God is always enough!

Contentment is knowing that there is always something to be thankful for.  There are so many precious promises that God has made known to us.  We may not know the future, we may only see in part (1 Cor. 13:12), but we do know that the word of Yahweh stands forever (Isaiah 40:8).  

"He will cover you with His feathers; you will take refuge under His wings. His faithfulness will be a protective shield."          ~Psalm 91:4

It's worth being knit to God.  It's worth constantly feeling His peace, His presence.  He's the Comforter, and He makes everything easier.  He makes it easy for us to draw near and experience Him.  He makes it easy to feel safe and secure.  

We were made to crave this sense of togetherness, where the Holy Spirit has hemmed us in on every side (Psalms 139:5).  We were created to feel swaddled!  This is what our Heavenly Father wants us to want.  He wants us to experience true security.     

Contentment is eternal life, and eternal life is to know Yahshua (John 17:3), to enjoy His protection. He'll give you just as much joy as you want, and He'll give you peace along with it.    

You are on the ancient path (Jer. 6:16); you have arrived in the promised land (Hebrews 4:9); you were known since before the world began (2 Tim 1:9).  Isn't that wonderful?  Enjoy it today.  

Living in Thanks

"I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of Yahweh"   ~Psalm 107:22

So many things in our lives can be sanctified by thanksgiving.  Whether we are waking up in the morning, working, or folding laundry doesn't really matter--we can experience the holiness weaved into each moment by awakening to a state of thanksgiving.

When we call on the name of Yahweh, we're really also calling on all that goes with it.  We are calling on a force greater and more noble than ourselves.  We are calling for a spirit of thankfulness and gratitude to overtake us.

So many rituals in the Old Testament point to future spiritual parallels found in the New (Colossians 2:17), It's our job, not God's, to become appropriately thankful for all the things He's already done.  Thanks offerings are still a part of the righteous person's walk.

"And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful."

We're no longer on the other side of the fence, offering sacrifices to a distant, overarching God. Yahshua has come!  Instead, we can let Christ in us commune with the Father in the same way He did while on earth in bodily form.  We're one with Him, and He's one with us, even One with all who believe.  Thankfulness can be our natural state of being.  It's part of our calling, and it's a medium through which more specialized aspects of our Father's plans are directed.  God doesn't always make things easy, but He does make things easier.

The Faith of God

"Yahshua answered and he said to them, 'May the faith of God be in you.'"                      ~Mark 11:22

Most translations of the above verse say 'faith in God', but that's not the most accurate translation. See, in recent times scholars and translators have discovered that the many verses that talk about our 'faith in Jesus' should really be translated as 'faith of Jesus'.  It's more about what God thinks about you!

This is one thing that I've been learning recently.  Our Heavenly Father wants us to be able to conceptualize what it would look like to have His faith--the faith of His Son.

If we constantly rely on our own faith in God, we may get burnt out.  Having faith in you own faith is not enough.  That leads to striving and pressure!  God wants us to experience His faith overwhelming and swallowing up our own.  This is what Reese Howells referred to as "the grace of faith" (Reese Howells: Intercessor

Just Imagine how situations would break out and how lives would change if we could just get out of the way and come to know the Faith of God.  What would Jesus do?  That's what Yahweh would like us to walk in.

It helps to see people as He sees them--as true sons and daughters who have wandered away from ever coming to know their true potential.  Jesus was moved with compassion (Matthew 14:14), and you can be too!

Check out how this verse flows when translated more correctly:

"Nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through the faith of Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law shall no flesh be justified."

~Galatians 2:16

Just an Update: Rest

Back to the blog.  Vanessa and I have both been busy since my last post back in September!  She's working on a music video, and I'm trying to learn guitar, so I can play with her in the future.  Fun!

God's been teaching us to rest.  He's showing us that what we do doesn't really matter--at least not compared to what He did.  It's a fresh measure of grace.  He's showing us how to switch from a work mentality to a rest mentality.

"Yahshua answered:  this is the work of Elohim: to believe in the One He has sent"

John 6:29

That's the work of God!  See, the only work we do is having faith in His Son.  And at the point that we have faith, we can enter into His rest (Hebrews 4:1).  The only work we have to do is enter into the promised land, and since we're already there in God's eyes, all we have to do is believe it. Anyone who chooses to believe can live in Heaven on earth.  You have already arrived.

I'm not saying that life is easy or perfect.  I've had a very up and down last few months.  There have been times when I'm not joyful, when I don't feel like praying, or when I feel depressed.  And those things are unusual for me.  But the difference is that the pressure is off.

Yahweh has been luring me back in (Hosea 2:14).  Even though many days I haven't tried to 'press in' or pray in tongues all day, God is still there. He's speaking to me more clearly than ever, showing me things to come.  He's giving me beautiful dreams and visions.   

All this is not because of me.  All I've done is get bogged down in my weaknesses.  But God sees His Son in me.  I don't have to impress Him; I get to be impressed by Him!

The future is still bright.  It's brighter than ever!  Our hope is in His Glory--which is Christ in us. (Colossians 1:27)

From now on, I'll continue updating the blog.  Hopefully almost every day.  God's always doing something amazing, so I'll try to document some of that!