| Newsletter for September 2007
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Dear Friends, Throughout my life I have heard Christians speak of problems and challenging situation in their lives and that they were praying for answers. Many times they, or others around them, would make a statement such as, “Well, you never know what God is going to do.” I used to subscribe to such a theory until I gave more diligence to studying the Bible. What I discovered is that throughout both the Old and New Testaments, God was constantly doing His best to reveal His methods of operation to humanity. Instead of hiding Himself and His ways, He has always wanted man to know Him and how He moves. If we accept this truth, we do not have to live our lives “never knowing what God is going to do.” Let’s think a little closer about the statement, “You never know what God is going to do.” Why would people believe such a thing? In part, it’s because in their minds they have equated God with the ever-changing world around them. Consider the following: Why do we have an entire television channel dedicated to nothing but the weather? Because the weather is constantly changing; in some cases, it changes drastically within hours. Taking this idea further, our cars can run great today, and then tomorrow fail to start; people can feel physically great today, then tomorrow be in bed sick with the flu. The point I’m making is that so much around us is undependable and constantly changing. The result is that people seem to transfer this attribute of unreliability to what they believe about God. Instead of recognizing and accepting His pattern of consistency as revealed in His word, they ascribe to Him the inconsistencies revealed in the world. God is a spirit and He has told us, “For I am the LORD, I change not…” (Malachi 3:6). Since God doesn’t change, then His word will not change. This, too, is revealed to us in the Bible, “For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven (Psalm 119:89).” What we have, therefore, is the fact that there are spiritual constants in a changing world. I’ll give you some examples of what I mean. In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. (Genesis 1:1-2) Many people have believed that the word “earth” in these verses refers to the planet on which we live. But if you study Genesis chapter one further, you will discover that our planet did not “come forth” until after the first day of creation, revealed in verses six through thirteen. This word “earth” comes from the Hebrew word “erets,” which is translated as “earth” in verses one, two, ten, eleven, and twelve. In verses ten through twelve, God adopts the word “earth” as a proper name for the dry land, which is not the case in verses one and two. In verses one and two, the definition of the Hebrew word “erets” is, “the basic, elemental, fundamental particles of matter.” This goes beyond what we call the elements (oxygen, hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, etc.) or the protons, electrons, and neutrons which make up the atoms which make up the elements. It is literally speaking of the infintessible, minute particle which compose the protons, electrons, and neutrons. Genesis 1:2 tells us that these particles of matter were “without form and void.” Very briefly, this phrase means that what we refer to as the “universe” was filled with these particles and that they had not yet been coalesced into what we would call definable structure. To illustrate, think of a beach full of sand: the grains of sand represent “erets”; when someone comes along and builds a sand castle, the erets have now been coalesced into a definable structure. Genesis 1:1 tells us that God “created” the heaven (what we call outer space/the universe) and the erets. This word “created” comes from the Hebrew word “bara” and is a word which can be precisely and correctly used only when it is referring to a work of God. “Bara” means “to bring something into existence out of no pre-existing material.” In other words, when God created the erets (which are natural and relative to our created universe), there were no previously existing erets to use for such a creation. This being true, how, then, was God able to create “something out of nothing”? The answer is given to us by David, By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. (Psalm 33:6) God is a spirit, living in the realm of the spirit. He used His power in the spirit to create what had never existed and He did it simply by speaking. He released His power through speech and His words brought things into existence. He first spoke into existence a universe of space, and then the sub-molecular sized erets. As He continued to speak, His words caused the erets to coalesce into discernable form as they bonded into protons, electrons, and neutrons, which then joined together to form atoms, then molecules, then periodic elements, then our planet and its oceans, then the other planets and stars (verses 6-10, 14-19). Now consider Genesis 1:11-12, And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. Even though no seed had yet been planted, plant life began growing. This is because as God spoke, the now-existing atoms, molecules and periodic elements literally began rearranging and restructuring into grasses, herbs, trees, and everything else that grows, all in one day. Now look at Genesis 1:20-21, And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. God began speaking and the power of His words caused the atoms, molecules and periodic elements to again rearrange and restructure so that specific types of living creatures literally came forth out the seas, once again, all in one day. (Have you ever wondered where Satan got the idea for the ungodly, evolutionary teaching that life came forth out of the primordial oceans millions of years ago?) Next, in verses 24-25 we read, And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good. Again, we see God speaking and the power of His words causing atoms, molecules and periodic elements to come together in a spectacular fashion so that animals “appeared” out of the “ground.” (Yes, I know this all sounds fantastic, but have you ever really studied Genesis and accepted what it says without letting secular science dictate your course of belief?) These atoms, molecules and elements that God produced with the erets have existed for millennia. But is has only been in the last couple of hundred years that man has begun to figure out what has been here all this time. The result is what we now refer to as the Periodic Table of Elements. Using these elements, the science of man finally figured out (among many other things) that if we take two parts hydrogen, mixed with one part sulfur and four parts oxygen (H2SO4) we can produce an amazing fluid known as sulfuric acid. The realm of the natural that God has created is limited. Even though it had, and has, within itself incredible, inherent potential, that potential was never tapped until God spoke. The realm of the natural exists surrounded and permeated by the realm of the spirit. From the spirit, you can see into the natural; but from the natural, you cannot see into the spirit, unless there is a supernatural act by God. Thus, what we have are both natural laws and spiritual laws. God created spiritual law first and, as witnessed in Genesis, spiritual law will always trump natural law. When we are born again, we become citizens of the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is spiritual and the laws of its operation can alter the natural. The Bible is a revelation of an eternal constant, not a universal constant, because our present universe is not at all constant, but ever-changing and degenerating into greater corruption due to the sin and death released into the universe by Adam’s transgression. The unchanging nature of the heart of scripture is the standard of life as God originally intended. The Bible is a narrative as God reveals Himself, His plan and His Kingdom. The more we study His word, the more we will recognize His patterns and methods of dealing with man. Jesus said “…he that hath seen me hath seen the Father…” (John 14:9). Therefore, by examining the life of Jesus as revealed in the four Gospel, we can know for a certainty what God will do. Likewise, one of the very first tenets of spiritual law that God shows us in scripture is that His word has the power to alter natural conditions. Four cases in point: Ø John 6:16-21, spiritual law enabled Jesus to walk on water Ø John 5:5-9, Jesus spoke, implemented spiritual law, and a lame man walked Ø John 20:19, spiritual law enabled Jesus to “appear” in a room where the doors were shut Ø Matthew 20:29-34, Jesus operated by spiritual law and blind men received sight. The natural laws around us are rife with instability (metal rusts, weather changes, living things die) and most Believers seem to focus on the instability as the way the must live their lives. But if we look at Jesus, we get a completely different picture of how a citizen of God’s Kingdom can live. For example, the instability of weather was no challenge to Jesus; He simply followed the pattern of God and spoke “peace, be still” and the weather calmed (Mark 8:35-39). Likewise, the instability of the human body was not a challenge to Jesus as He spoke and the instabilities were made stable (the sick and maimed were healed and made whole). Again, the biggest mistake made by so many Christians is allowing the corrupted, ever-changing world around us to distort our perception of God. What we need to do, and the thing which seems to be a great challenge to so many, is to blindly and unwaveringly accept the never-changing consistency of God and His word as revealed in scripture. The truth is, if we study God’s patterns enough, we can get to the point of anticipating what He will do, instead of just hoping that He does something. Keep in mind what Jesus said in Matthew 6:10, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.” God’s word is a revelation of His will; when we know His word, we know His will and can live with an expectation of how He will move. Since God is the originator of spiritual law, then God’s word is also a revelation of that law and how it works. God’s will and spiritual law came from Him, but did not become “active” as we understand it until He spoke. Again, this key principle is first revealed in Genesis chapter one. God spoke and an anticipated result took place. The Bible is God already having spoken to us. It is a record of His will and what He does. Neither He nor what He has spoken will change. Does it not, therefore, stand to reason that if He spoke and got the results He desired it is in our best interests to speak as He has spoken? Could it be that a lot of Christians are confused about what God will do because what they persistently speak contradicts God’s will, His word, and spiritual law? Consider what David wrote, Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14) What words and meditations would be acceptable to God? Only that which lines up with what He has already spoken. What can I do to be sure that the meditations of my heart line up with what God has already spoken? This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. (Joshua 1:8) The more I meditate in His word, the more the meditations of my heart line up with His word. The more the meditations of my heart line up with His word, the more the word of my mouth will be acceptable in His sight, for out of the abundance of our heart our mouth will speak (Luke 6:45). The result is that I can come to the place of being confident of how God will move in my life; though I may not know the precise details, I will know the essence of what He desires. The more I speak in line with what God has spoken, the more I can expect His results in my life. The “faith and confession” message has taken a lot of criticism, but the undeniable truth as revealed in scripture is that spiritual law will always supercede natural law, and spiritual law is released through what is spoken. I encourage you to spend time in the Bible. Get to know God and the way He moves through His word. Fill your heart with the knowledge of His word, His will and His spiritual law. Consistently apply the scriptural principle of speaking as God has spoken. Do this and begin growing to the place of having a strong, spiritual confidence in knowing what He will do in your life. He love you deeply and only wants His best for you! Your fellow laborer, Jim |
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