"It's A Matter of the HEART!"

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

Most of the problems we have, no matter what realm they may occupy, are not a function of our heads but of our hearts.

In our hearts we MUST set "boundaries" because of the heart is an emotional organ and it has the ability to run after EVERYTHING it SEES!

(Jer. 17:9) declares that the heart is desperately wicked and begs the question, "Who can know it?" You are not contaminated by what you take in,you are contaminated by what's already there (from birth, we are burdened with a wicked heart).

(Jer. 17:10) tells us that your wicked heart will produce wicked fruit of all you do that is wicked. It makes sense doesn't it? Our daily routine of "ignoring and forgetting God" are tied to directly to our blatant defiance of making God the center of our lives. "A heart of wisdom creates great strength (Psalms 90:12). 

There are two (2) ways of Gaining Wisdom:

1. Hindsight: which is 20/20 and usually leads to REGRET; and,
2. Foresight: wisdom that comes when we take the time to anticipate the heart of God and follow (obey) the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit into truth and righteous living. This is called the gift of "discernment" (the ability to see what God sees and then do it).

One of the many things about God that I love is that "HE ALWAYS WARNS US!" Don't ignore the "red flags." 

"And then He said, "He who has ears to hear let him hear." (Mark 4:9)

"A MIND FULL OF GOD'S WORD!"

Ever imagine what a human mind full of God's word would "look" like? What the voice and the heart of the person would "sound" like?

"...For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will imprint My laws upon their minds, even upon their innermost thoughts and understanding, and engrave them upon their hearts; and I will be their God and they shall be My people." (Heb. 8:10) 

Pretty clear huh? The Word of God never fails in its simplicity. The critical factor in this equation is the "Believer's Will" to receive the Mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16). The "will" is the organ we use for decision making and it represents a man's true self. Our will is our "volition" or our "desires driven by emotion." 

• Our emotion expresses how we feel;
• Our mind tells us what we think; and,
• Our will tells us what we want.

Our will is the most influential component of our entire being!

The original intent of religion was not crafted as a matter of human emotion. Its aim was to impart "life" into a man's spirit and to connect his will with the Will of God. Perfected salvation is manifested in adversity, trials and tribulation and thereby saves a man's will from perversion, corruption and selfishness. The joining of "wills" is the only true union we can have with a Holy God; everything else is merely superficial.

In order to receive the benefits of a will, someone has to die. In this instance, Jesus Christ died so that we would have complete and unfettered access to the will of the LORD GOD; which is His Word...which is Christ! (John 1:1-5) His Will is His Word. His Word is Christ. Therefor, His Will is Christ!

I can do whatever I want to do (that is, whatever "I will" myself to do). God's perfect Will (Jesus-life) and His permissive Will (Adam-death) are ever present. Chose you this day, life or death.

Simply stated, "A mind filled with the mind of Christ is a what a mind full of God's Word looks like!" Selah...

____________________________________________________

Meditate on these scriptures: (1 Thess. 4:13) *(Rom. 12:2) (2 Tim 1:9) (Ephes. 1:9) (Ephes. 5:15-17) (1 Cor. 12:11)

"What THE FEAR OF THE LORD Looks Like!"

Inherent in the implication of the discussion about what the Fear of the Lord looks like is the true and deep revelation of God's GRACE and MERCY! There is a profound difference between my receiving death (grace) and deserving death (mercy).

The hard truth is that too many Christians have absolutely NO FEAR of God! Nie. Ni. Nein. Ohee. Lo. Nee. No. No matter what language you speak, the answer is the same! Before you bristle at this statement and hit the delete button on your smart phone, hear me out. How can I make such a bold declaration? Here it is:

We have often heard the scripture, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; but fools despise wisdom and instruction." (Proverbs 1:7)  Two things are worth noting here, 1) In this instance the "fear" being referenced in this passage is not "reverence or respect" and although it is an aspect of fear, I contend the intent is for us to be literally "afraid" of God and 2) The LORD in this case is GOD ALMIGHTY, not Jesus and not the Holy Ghost!

This brings me me to my main point for this writing. "Respect or reverence does not denote fear or convey that an individual or group is afraid." Christians live their lives recklessly with dalliances in adultery, drugs addiction, bribery, etc. all the while conducting their nefarious activities in the dark from their wives, husbands, children and co-workers. We cannot be stopped until we achieve the "feeling" we are after. Isn't it comical that we do our dirt at night? The sinner thinks that GOD cannot see him in the dark! Is He even a consideration unless we fall prey to danger or get exposed? Of course at that time we utter those remorseful words, "Oh God!" But remorse is not repentance. Remorse is not being afraid of God. Remorse is simply getting caught.

One thing I know about the truth is that the "truth is invincible." The main opposition to the truth in God's Word is our mental resistance to change because, frankly speaking, "we love our sin too much!" There is a sociological term for this behavior. It is called "cognitive dissonance (CD)." CD is the "art of lying to yourself." It exists when an individual has a false belief system challenged by the truth and scrambles to defend that belief system by "rationalizing" certain behavior. The defense of that belief system is more important than the truth and thus the construction of the wall of "mental resistance" begins. We often see this in Christianity with any revelation of false teaching, corruption in church politics or questionable or illegal behavior in church leadership. I always say, "people will believe what they want to believe no matter how compelling the evidence may be to the contrary."

The fear (being scared, terrified) of the LORD will keep you alive! The Apostle Paul talked about his "thorn" in the flesh in 2 Cor. 12:7. I contend that the thorn Paul was referring to was the "fear" of the LORD. You see friends, God has absolutely zero concern for our mortal bodies. He simply states to us, "Watch my reaction to My Beloved Son's execution on the Cross; I didn't lift a finger to stop it!"

His Word says that, "God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power and of love and of a sound mind." (2 Tim 1:7) There is a profound truth here I don't want you to miss. At the beginning of this writing I submitted to you that the "fear" of the Lord is the...." and God said He did not give you the "spirit" of fear. Here is the revelation:

"The spirit of fear (from the devil) is rooted in uncertainty and the fear (of the LORD) is certain!" Selah...

"THE LION'S DEN: It's not the PLACE, It's the PRESENCE!"

It is amazing how "relationship" has a direct correlation to "revelation" from God! It doesn't matter where you are physically in time and space, the Lord God will manifest His Presence!

An excellent example of this profound relationship between a man and God can be found in the Book of Daniel as the prophet encounters several trials on his road to truth. The fundamental premise needed to establish God's trust is your "obedience" to His Word. As you obey God consistently, He will establish you. This does not mean you won't experience any trouble, hardships or adversity; but it declares definitely that "He will be with you in trouble!" (Ps. 91:14-15) (Josh. 1:5)

Just think for a moment about your own personal "Lion's Den" experience when the adversary seemed to have you cornered with no way out and you were facing certain destruction. Yet you didn't faint (quit) or stay in fear, but you stood flat-footed on the foundation of faith and He delivered you! Do you remember? It wasn't the place, it was the Presence!

God will give you favor (peace) in a hostile environment. Favor is not always good fortune, riches or promotion. But it is most certainly rooted and grounded on the paradigm of PEACE continually! The Presence of God manifests PEACE in the life of the Believer! No matter what; DON'T PANIC. He is there!

This is what real PEACE looks like:

You will be tested in the midst of your trials. He will surround you with allies in the natural (brothers and sisters in the faith) and spirit (angels to have charge over you) realms.He will not withhold any good thing from you as you press in to His Presence. He has given us the example of Daniel on how to "resist the food and drink" (deception of the enemy) of the Babylonian (world) system through radical faith and no fear of death.

You will be rewarded by God with unyielding faith and ever increasing wisdom. Your "spiritual gifts" will make room for you and bring you before great men and women. The beauty of the adversity we experience in the Lion's Den leads to a promotion in the spirit realm whereby we receive the privilege to serve God in the marketplace.

It's all about getting "clean" (seeking holiness and righteousness) inside and the place doesn't matter; but the PRESENCE does!

"SEEING the INVISIBLE!"

"Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal."
                                                                                               
                                                                                                        2 Corinthians 4:16-18

This message is all about being restored and not being condemned. I beseech you my brethren to not forsake or frustrate the Grace of God. As I have said many time before, it's all about the process (of repentance) and not about your sin. Being a Christian/Believer does not exempt you from suffering. Trials and suffering develop trust, faith and character in the life of the Believer. Tell me, "what do you see?"

Adversity moves you into a place of strength or vulnerability contingent upon "what you see." Faith is the currency in the Kingdom of God. It is your "get out of jail free card" no matter what the circumstances! The enemy will try and force you to cooperate with the spirit of fear, depression, hopelessness and despair. Please be assured, hardships do not make you a failure and they do not mean you are not living right! Tell me, "what do you see?"

Meditate on this, "I am NOT what I do; I am who GOD says I am!" Condemnation is a personal choice. If you don't believe (have faith in God), then there is no need for you to come into the house of Peace out of the storms of life. It is imperative for the Believer to walk out the Word of God. Condemnation is that which is unfit for use in the Kingdom of God. Really, "what do you see?"

Our fear creates a wall between us and our ability to achieve intimacy with God. Worship (service to God's people in the marketplace) propels us into fellowship with the Lord God. Our inability to grasp the knowledge of Christ (spirit of peace, vision and freedom) will keep the individual in the midst of Adam (fear, sight and bondage) which results in condemnation and leads to distance from God and a spirit of uselessness and "spiritual blindness" for the man or woman in the KOG. 

Staying focused on Christ in the midst of your trials and tribulations will allow you to see the invisible. (Acts 7:54). Selah...

'The POWER of INTERCESSION!"

"He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor."                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Isaiah 59:16

The is an incredible dynamic within the Kingdom of God (KOG) whereby God allows those willing souls to fully participate in boldly advancing His Kingdom in the earth. The many facets of application to these principles are limitless, but one thing that comes to mind that rises to the top is the power of intercession.

For many Believers, intercession is simply prayer and it's true; however, I submit to you that intercession is much more than simply prayer.  One can only imagine what God must have been thinking when He canvassed the entire earth and couldn't find ONE INDIVIDUAL who was willing to "come close" enough to HEAR Him and take His message to the people in the marketplace.

We are experiencing much of the same arrogance from the people of God today that He witnessed in the time of the Prophet Isaiah. There is too much religiosity and too much "hocus-pocus" in today's church. The main issue is that we have the "same heart" toward God. Our hearts are desperately wicked and our motives are not pure. We are lazy and have a spirit of entitlement that makes God want to vomit! 

Who among us has faith enough in His power to deliver us? Who is willing to sacrifice their reputation to stand flat-footed in the face of the enemy and proclaim that he is a son of the King of Glory? Isn't it a wonder that the Lord God would give man the power and authority to extend His love in the earth? But we do not have to "wonder" because we have the living example of Christ in the earth embodied through the person of His Holy Spirit which He has given freely to ALL BELIEVERS!

So what do we make of this? It is very simple. WE ARE TO PRAY HIS WORD! In this sense, pray=do. In other words, WE ARE TO DO HIS WORD! Our intercession will show God the preparation of our hearts...or rather, how much of His spirit we are ready to receive. In short, intercession is prayer that turns into ACTION! We are to enter into His Presence, seek instruction, receive it and then go and do it!

His work in the marketplace is dependent upon those called to do His Word...

"HELP MY UNBELIEF!"

(2 Cor. 2:8-10) ...His Grace is sufficient!

In order to exercise true faith, I must understand and BELIEVE that God is with me. One of the fundamental mishaps that many Christians have is that they carry the relationships they have with other people into their relationship with God; That is a BIG MISTAKE!

There is no room in your "closet" for anyone or anything else but you and God. We need more time with God and less time with people. Newsflash: "There is absolutely nothing wrong with being by yourself!"

                                                         
                   Thomas looking for "proof" Jesus was pierced in his side


The next level in God leads to "isolation" (We must run to God versus running away from God. It is His expectation that we will change or "morph" into radical Believers!). (John 20:24-29) begs the question, "Can you believe when you cannot see?" This is where too many Christians break down. They use their EYES more than their EARS! 

Faith comes by hearing (using your ears) and hearing (the ability to hear God) comes by (hearing) the "Word of God." [Romans 10:17 -Emphasis mine.] When faced with hardships, trials and tribulations, the Believer must always ask the question, 'What does God say about this situation in His WORD? Two keys words for any Believer are, "DON'T PANIC!"

An increase in faith is directly correlated to a decrease in your need for "evidence" in order to believe!

Doubting is not evidence of disloyalty. On the contrary: (--> = "leads to"):

                                      doubting --> questions --> answers -->Christ!

We must leave the place of doubt before we can move to the place of belief. What we "think" about, we "empower." Meditate on God's Word for guaranteed results of faith, power and authority in your life as a Believer! Selah!