Wisdom From the Word

¹⁰  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV)

How do we view these good works? Are they grand and powerful encounters with other people where they stand in awe of the power of God? At times I believe they are and I have had some experience in that regard. Yet, most of the time for most of us; whether we are a school teacher, homemaker, plumber, accountant, or fall anywhere else in a long list of callings and responsibilities, the opportunities arise in the context of our daily lives.

In essence, God in His sovereignty has woven these opportunities into our day to day lives and they may take a variety of forms. I exercised an opportunity this past Sunday afternoon. A couple of young Mormon missionaries had been around so I arranged to meet with them the Sunday afternoon. They asked if they could bring a fellow named Keith and said he was a recent convert. Turned out he was the head of their missions program for the area and has been a Mormon for almost four decades, not sure how they define ‘recent.’

This experience stirred in me questions around the need for revelation in our interactions. In spite of their allegations of ‘changes’ to the scriptures and related things I used evidence to get them to agree the scriptures we have today are accurate. What was interesting in this was that at the end of our hour together the following things; history, logic and facts, had no discernable impact on them. They still wanted me to read the book of Mormon and pray to know it was true.

As I reflected on the encounter I wondered if words of knowledge would have moved them. Yet as I sought to listen I didn’t have anything specific from the Holy Spirit to share with them, I simply spoke truth to them and was saddened by the level of deception they operated from.

So, was this a ‘good work’ my Father had prepared beforehand for me to walk in? I believe it was. I sought to walk in obedience and shared truth with them in a gentle and respectful way. The fruit of it was not their salvation at the time (my hope) but it doesn’t mean it won’t be for one or all three of them down the road.

Where the ‘prophetic possibilities’ part comes in is that I had a spiritual burden for one of the young men. When they first came to my door and a couple of week later when we met I could discern a calling on his life so I spent some time praying for him before and after we met because I believe that is why the Holy Spirit showed me. The rest I leave in His hands.

Lately the Holy Spirit has again been drawing my attention to my words in my interactions with others. For example, I recently had a conversation with a neighbour after I returned from walking the dogs early in the morning. A short time later the Holy Spirit took me back through parts of this brief conversation and showed me how I could have spoken more life and encouragement into this mother’s life (Later in the day I was able to do this but felt I had missed an opportunity earlier that would have had more impact.) He then encouraged me to look more to Him throughout the day as I encounter people so He can release more life in my interactions.

So what do I mean by ‘life and encouragement?’ To answer that question I will look at Barnabas in scripture and the meaning of his name, and other scriptures that relate to this concept. The first reference to Barnabas is in Acts 4:36.

³⁶  And Joses, who was also named Barnabas by the apostles (which is translated Son of Encouragement), a Levite of the country of Cyprus, Acts 4:36 (NKJV)

Here we discover that his actual name is Joses but due to the impact he had in the lives of others the apostles named him Barnabas, Son of Encouragement and that is how he is addressed in the rest of the NT. Later, Barnbas, along with Paul, became an apostle (Acts 14:4, 14).

Barnabas was known as an encourager and if you are familiar with the NT you see this played out in Barnabas seeking out Paul (still Saul at that point) the former persecutor, and advocating for his acceptance by the first apostles. We also see Barnabas supporting John Mark after a significant failure. The same Mark who later wrote one of the four gospels. Barnabas had a significant impact in the formation of the early church, in fact from the scriptures we know more about Barnabas than most of the original 12 apostles.

So what does Barnabas mean? Acts 4:36 tells us it means Son of Encouragement. The biblical dictionary meaning is below.

Barnabas, of Chaldee origin [<H1247> (bar) and <H5029> (nebiy’)]; son of Nabas (i.e. prophecy); Barnabas, an Israelite :- Barnabas.

Strong’s Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary.

Given Barnabas could be translated Son of Prophecy just as easily as Son of Encouragement. What else does the NT tell us about this? Paul said the simple gift of prophecy is available to all of us (1 Cor. 14:31) and when we use it correctly (motivated by love, 1 Cor. 13) it does the following.

³  But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men. 1 Corinthians 14:3 (NKJV)

This connection to Barnabas is twofold. The Son of Encouragement is the same as the Son of Prophecy and the Greek word translated ‘exhortation’ in 1 Corinthians 14:3 is the word translated ‘encouragement’ in Acts 4:36 (some English bibles translate it as encouragement in 1 Corinthians 14:3. So if NT prophecy is primarily for edification (building people up), exhortation (encouragement) and comfort, when we are speaking life into people we are functioning in a prophetic way.

The mother I spoke of in my introduction is not a believer but we aren’t called to be insular and encourage only one another, we are called to reach the world and many people around us need encouragement. Encouragement is one tool to move them closer to the cross and seeing the need for Jesus.

This raises another point, to speak prophetically we don’t need to quote scripture. Spend some time studying how Jesus spoke into people’s lives in the gospels. The bulk of His interactions were not quotations of the OT, they were words that spoke to hearts. In the same way the Holy Spirit wants to anoint our words so that we speak to hearts in our interactions with others, believers and non-believers alike. I think Toby Mac addresses it well is his song Speak Life.

In future posts in this series I will build more of a scriptural foundation for interacting in this way and talk about various ways to hear His voice. In the meantime, ask Him to make you like Barnabas and release life wherever you are.

Speak Life by Toby Mac

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZeBv9r92VQ0

As I close this series I want to do what I said I would do in Part 1. There I spoke of a 25 year journey. This journey began in the summer of 1993 when I stepped out of a leadership role in a church. My friend Bernie had a prophetic dream about me and I knew that it meant I was heading into a season of testing. I thought it would last a few weeks! However, 25 years later I believe I am coming out of that season.

This is not to say that I have had 25 years of barrenness. I have led small groups, taught, preached, and written. Yet I have had 25 years of a sense of something more. Over a decade ago I, along with a few friends, organized a conference on the connection between Israel and the Church. We called it ‘Prepared for His Purpose.’ For me it feels like in spite of what I have accomplished the last 25 years have been a season of preparation for His purpose.

Why do I believe change is coming, and to some extent has arrived? A couple of reasons. The first is my transition out of work. I have had an inner sense for years that retirement from my secular job was actually about a transition more into ministry. The second is something that happened to me recently connected to this transition. A few times while teaching in a church context I have had the experience of sharing something and as it was coming out of my mouth thinking, ‘that is interesting, I never knew that.’ At those moments there is a download from the Holy Spirit where He is clearly the one teaching. In mid-June I was in Edinburgh and praying early in the morning and this happened. I prayed something I had not planned and as the words came out of my mouth I had a further encounter with the Holy Spirit.

At present I have not experienced the full release of what happened. To me this prophetic experience and promise need to be believed and will manifest over time. It is like what I saw the evening before writing this. I was kayaking in some wetlands in the mountains and watching two families of ducks with half grown ducklings. They were both swimming ahead of me when one suddenly and quietly disappeared into the reeds. While I could not see them, they were still there, and had I stayed and waited they would have reappeared in time. The same is true of His promises in our lives. While we may not see the immediate manifestation if we are faithful we will see the fruit of what He promised.

Why am I sharing this? I think we all go through seasons, some are short and some are long. Yet, in them I believe we need to truly embrace Romans 8:28 to walk through whatever season we are in. In fact I have had a great struggle in writing this because a voice has whispered in my ear things like, “You are just being presumptuous.” “What happens if nothing happens? What will you say then?” What is taking place is the testing of His word. Many times in scripture what we see is a prophetic word then the exact opposite in the experience. Think of Abraham, Joseph and David. In fact it happened to Jesus.

¹⁰  And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. ¹¹  Then a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” ¹²  Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. ¹³  And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. Mark 1:10-13 (NKJV)

Jesus was baptized and the audible voice of His Father spoke so the crowd could hear the affirmation. What was the immediate outcome? Wilderness and testing. If we want to see the fruit of His promise we need to continue to believe it. In fact scripture says there are two conditions to seeing His promises revealed.

¹²  that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Hebrews 6:12 (NKJV)

He requires that we exercise both faith and patience. Yet while we wait there is another promise.

¹  He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. ²  I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.” ³  Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence. ⁴  He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler. Psalm 91:1-4 (NKJV)

If we learn to abide in Him while we wait we can be in a place of safety and rest. I remember many years ago when we lived on an acreage. We had a few different critters over time. One summer I had a couple of Bantam hens and a rooster. One of the hens had 9 or 10 little chicks. One evening they didn’t return to the chicken coop so I went looking for them. I found the hen perched about 4 feet off the ground in a dogwood bush. There was no sign of the chicks. When I reached out to pick her up I found all the chicks were on her, hidden in her feathers. Just so, as we wait in faith and patience we can be found in Him.

In this post I have shared a lot about myself. My purpose is illustrative rather than prescriptive. Whatever season you are in I encourage you to find that place of rest in Him to go through it. Lastly, I encourage you to listen to this encouraging song by Third Day and believe this line – “I will lift my voice to worship you my King and I will find my strength in the shadow of Your wings.”

Your Love Oh Lord by Third Day https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEF7IoQ3eUk

I am sure most of us are familiar with the oft quoted Romans 8:28, but we tend to focus on the ‘all things working together for good’ part. We believe this is a blessing externally poured out upon us and we seldom consider that there is a pursuit inherent in the verse.

²⁸  And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28 (NKJV)

²⁸  We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose. Romans 8:28 (AMP)

Over 20 years ago, I preached a sermon on Romans 8:28 and talked about how radically different our lives and communities would be if we actually embraced and lived out this verse. Think about it. We would exude peace because we would actually be living out of faith that He is shepherding our lives for our ultimate good, and more importantly, the furtherance of His kingdom. The two qualifiers are loving Him and pursuing His call upon our lives. If we lived this way we would not worry about anything because our hearts would be at rest in His presence and purpose.

Given the importance of our trusting in Him and manifesting His peace as a result, I want to look at an OT counterpart and then more of Paul’s writing. Paul was a theological expert in the OT thus the OT conception of peace would have influenced Paul’s thinking and writing on the subject.

Let’s compare two translations of the same scripture.

³  You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. Isaiah 26:3 (NKJV)

³  You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You. Isaiah 26:3 (AMP)

While the Amplified expands our understanding, what neither translation brings out is that the words ‘perfect’ and ‘peace’ are both the Hebrew word shalom. Isaiah 26:3 literally says, “You will keep him in shalom, shalom….” This transliteration of ‘perfect shalom’ is accurate. It carries the idea of a fullness of shalom, peace. Importantly, shalom is not the absence of conflict, it is His presence active upon our lives. After all, Isaiah said the Messiah would be the Prince of Peace and that is who Jesus is.

In Numbers Moses told the Israelite’s how Yahweh would rest upon their lives.

²²  And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: ²³  “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them: ²⁴  “The LORD bless you and keep you; ²⁵  The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; ²⁶  The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” ’ ²⁷  “So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.” Numbers 6:22-27 (NKJV)

The result of what Moses described was peace, shalom. This concept carries forward into the NT because when we submit to Jesus we take His name upon us. Thus, when we receive Jesus the peace inherent in His name rests upon us. This is a theme in Paul’s writing. As an Israelite, even if Paul wrote in common Greek to accommodate his audience, when he used the word for peace, based on his Hebraic training and thinking he would be reflecting on shalom as he wrote.

¹⁹  Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. Romans 14:19 (NKJV).

⁶  Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷  and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 (NKJV)

In essence, whether or not we believe it, we have His peace because the Prince of Peace is within us. If we want to experience this peace, as the Amplified notes, let us incline our hearts and minds to trusting in Yahweh’s plan and purpose so His peace may rest upon our lives, no matter our circumstances.

 

 

I believe He calls all of us to pursue His heart. I also believe that a key to this is recognizing that engaging with His presence is the doorway to intimacy, not the outcome. On the surface that may not make a lot of sense but I will explain.

I wrote about this last year (Intimacy Opportunities Part 1 http://wisdomfromtheword.ca/intimacy-opportunities-part-1/ ). In that post I talked about how the Angel going before the Israelites into the Promised Land (Ex. 33) could be translated as the Angel of His face or the Angel of His presence. The key point was that Moses, in spite of all the time he had spent in Yahweh’s presence, didn’t really know Him and prayed for a revelation of His glory (Ex. 34), which he received. This is what resulted in Moses’ understanding of Yahweh’s character and his face glowing with Yahweh’s glory.

There is another aspect I saw recently. We partake of communion on a regular basis in most churches. I don’t know how many of us think about the fact that it is a small part of the Passover meal, a time of fellowship, intimacy and celebration of deliverance. In addition to Passover/Communion, there is another aspect of eating with Him. Jesus issued the invitation below to believers because in addition to being in us He wanted to deepen intimacy and share His heart with us. Consider Jesus invitation.

²⁰  Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. Revelation 3:20 (NKJV)

To help us respond to Jesus invitation, a call to spend time with Him and get to know Him in a deeper way, I have included a long excerpt from a Hebrew dictionary about pānîm the Hebrew word used in Exodus 33, and many other places, which refers to Yahweh’s face or presence.

The noun pānîm, “face,” “countenance,” is derived from the verbal root pānāh (HED #6680), “to turn toward,” and is found in the OT only in its plural form. The noun is well attested throughout the Semitic languages. When combined with le (HED #3937), the term may also function as a preposition, literally meaning “facing,” and often translated “before” or “in front of.”

Pānîm frequently refers to the literal face or head of a living creature. It can denote the face of an animal (Gen. 30:40; Job 41:10; Ezek. 1:10; 41:19), a heavenly being (Exo. 25:20; Isa. 6:2; Ezek. 1:8, 11) or a human being (Gen. 9:23; 43:31; 2 Sam. 19:4; 1 Ki. 19:13; Dan. 8:18; 10:9, 15).

The face of a person provides a window into his or her emotions and inner feelings. For example, Jacob noticed that Laban’s attitude, or literally, “the face of Laban,” had changed toward him (Gen. 31:2), and Cain’s face became downcast because God rejected his offering (4:5). Further, a face may become flushed with terror (Isa. 13:8), turn deathly pale due to intense fear (29:22; Jer. 30:6), display tears of sorrow (Job 16:16; Isa. 25:8), show sadness (Gen. 40:7; Neh. 2:2f) or happiness (Prov. 15:13). A fallen face indicates anger or sadness, while the opposite, the raising or lifting of the face, shows joy or happiness.

To “fall upon one’s face” displayed reverence and submission (1 Sam. 5:4). God’s lifting or turning his face upon someone was a sign of blessing and favor (Num. 6:25f). But the withdrawal of such favor was expressed by the Lord’s hiding his face (Deut. 31:17) and turning his face away (Ezek. 7:22).

Pānîm also can depict more than just a face—more broadly, the “presence” of a king or God. “To see the face of a king” meant having an audience in his direct presence, but not seeing his face meant the absence of such a privilege. Seeing the “face of God” had similar connotations of entering his direct presence. To actually see God “face to face” and live (Exo. 33:20) was rare (Gen. 32:30; Deut. 34:10; Judg. 6:22). God told Moses that his “face,” or his “presence” (Exo. 33:14, NIV), would go with him, meaning that God himself would be with Moses and Israel (cf. Deut. 4:37; Isa. 63:9; Lam. 4:16). The face of God is also associated with his power as the instrument by which He did his awesome deeds.

During the wilderness wanderings, the presence of God was made specific through Israelite worship with the “bread of presence [pānîm].” A loaf of bread was always to be left upon the table of the Presence symbolizing the Lord’s continual presence within the community (Num. 4:7).

The Complete Biblical Library Hebrew-English Dictionary

A key thing mentioned in this long explanation of the meaning of the word ‘presence’ is that the showbread from the tabernacle or temple, is literally the ‘bread of presence.’ The bread was made fresh daily. If we tie this back to Jesus invitation in Revelation 3:20 we see that Jesus is calling us to partake of His face/presence every day. While the phrase ‘give us this day our daily bread’ (Matt. 6:11) is primarily focused on material provision, what happens if we also see it at a deeper level as an invitation to daily partake of knowing Jesus? What if we sit with Him, encounter His presence, and then invite Him to share what is on His heart? Do you think we will be changed?

In this series I am beginning with what I shared in closing my last post then I am going to comment on what happened as I did what I said I would do.

NOTE: On a personal note, I am taking a short hiatus from my posts, likely 2-3 weeks. I have received many words in recent years about the need to slow down/rest, which I did not heed. With my recent retirement (which I think of as a transition more into Kingdom work) I recently received four independent prophetic words about being in a season of preparation and the Lord calling me to a deeper place of rest and intimacy with Him as the key to that process. In fact when I looked back at my prayer notes I realized these prophetic words were a clear answer to a prayer I prayed and recorded on May 18. The prayer came out of an encounter with the Father that morning. So, while I trust I won’t be gone long, I currently need to be obedient (finally) and focus on going deeper in my relationship with my heavenly Father or miss what He has prepared for me to walk in. ¹⁰  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV)

As I write this I am physically worn out from jet lag yet I am very conscious of refreshing and life in my spirit. My trip to Scotland and Paris was not physically restful but it was deeply spiritually refreshing. My awake time was primarily walking, biking, walking, did I mention walking – we did a lot of that! There was also time standing in lines and time on trains and there and back quite a bit of time on planes. My point being that I wasn’t locked away somewhere deep in prayer. What happened spiritually came from a shift in focus. I will explain.

The spiritual refreshing came mainly in Scotland. Part of that was praying much of the time throughout the day as we toured historic sites. My friend Evelyn stepped from time into eternity just over 18 months ago. In her almost 91 years on earth she had learned to spend much of her time there and brought much back. Though she is no longer here the Holy Spirit is still reminding me of things she shared and applying some of them was key to the spiritual refreshing I experienced.

Evelyn had spoken to me more than once of the importance of breathing His thoughts across the land. As we walked and toured I sought to connect to His heart and come into agreement for His purposes for the land and people. Another key factor in experiencing refreshing was reading some prophetic books on deeper encounters with Jesus and in prayer, sometimes gently, sometimes vigorously, asking Him to draw me into His heart and purpose. Doing this wasn’t about seeking to ‘minister.’ In fact a primary decision in not doing my blog in recent weeks, or other ministry, was to ‘not’ do something and replace it with the pursuit of Him. My focus was seeking to commune with my Father and agree with His heart.

Part of the refreshing was my Father revealing things to me in the night seasons and inviting me into intercession in these times. It left me physically tired but spiritually strengthened. In future posts I will share more about this pursuit and fruit and will talk about a 25 year season I believe is now drawing to a close as transition takes place in my life. My goal and hope in sharing this is that it will point us to Jesus. Hence my attention to the importance of my shift in focus and using my own experience as an example.

Lastly, I do not see and encounter things as some do who have sweeping visions, ecstatic encounters or similar visitations. However, I have committed myself to dig into His word, connect to my spirit, and gaze upon Jesus. This leads to regular times of gentle encounter and at times a sense of being overwhelmed by His presence on and within me. Over the years I have simply done what I believe all of us as Christians are called to do.

Have you ever decided to diet, exercise, or both to ‘get in shape?’ A great many of us have done this. Generally our resolutions don’t really bear fruit until we shift from hope, or longing, to a committed practice. Once we transitioned to practice we develop a growing ability to help others through the same process. So let’s explore the same concept in relation to getting in shape, spiritually, so that we can disciple others.

To apply getting in spiritual shape let’s examine this familiar passage written by Paul.

¹  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. ²  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Romans 12:1-2 (NKJV) 

Do we generally notice that implicit in this passage is the idea that conformity is not an option? The option is only in relation to what we are being conformed to. The warning is to not be conformed to the world, because Paul recognized that our calling is to be conformed to Jesus. We are always being shaped by something. Our culture sends us messages all the time, messages about what to believe, how to act, or who to listen to and in the age of social media can be particularly cruel.

The way to “not be conformed to this world” is to train our hearts and minds to filter these many cultural messages through the truth of scripture. This is the how: it requires knowing the key principles and concepts in His word so that we choose truth and reject lies (think of the belt of truth girding our walk as seen in Ephesians 6). Examples in our culture abound. Some big ones are the sanctity of life and marriage between a man and a woman. Scripture is clear on both.

Simpler examples of using the belt of truth are honesty and integrity. I remember from many years ago working with a lady who let everyone know she was a Christian but had no qualms about lying to get what she wanted. They were mainly very public ‘white lies.’ Our colleagues all knew we were both Christians so I felt I needed to address this with her given her poor public witness. When I did she simply accused me of being a legalist. For her scripture was an option to apply when convenient, not a standard. For believers being conformed to the image of Jesus it is the standard. This is who we are.

When we train our minds and hearts to habitually embrace the truth of scripture and filter cultural messages through truth we move into a position to help others do the same thing because we can pass on both what we know and what we are becoming. Our experience establishes a solid foundation to stand on (think of the shoes of the gospel of peace in Ephesians 6) so we can be victorious and help others how to be the same.

So, are you in shape and being conformed to His image?

NOTE: On a personal note, I am taking a short hiatus from my posts, likely 2-3 weeks. I have received many words in recent years about the need to slow down/rest, which I did not heed. With my recent retirement (which I think of as a transition more into Kingdom work) I recently received four independent prophetic words about being in a season of preparation and the Lord calling me to a deeper place of rest and intimacy with Him as the key to that process. In fact when I looked back at my prayer notes I realized these prophetic words were a clear answer to a prayer I prayed and recorded on May 18. The prayer came out of an encounter with the Father that morning. So, while I trust I won’t be gone long, I currently need to be obedient (finally) and focus on going deeper in my relationship with my heavenly Father or miss what He has prepared for me to walk in. ¹⁰  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV)

In my last post I introduced the idea of a spiritual GPS (God’s Positioning System). I think there are some two key functions of this GPS: one function about identity, the other about location.

What about identity? Who are we? We need to know from His word that we are His children by virtue of receiving Jesus in the new birth.

¹²  But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: John 1:12 (NKJV)

In our language rife, with cultural baggage, we tend to say we ‘accepted’ Christ. In reality He accepted us and enacted our salvation when we submitted to His Lordship. At the moment of our conversion we became a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17) and were moved from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light.

¹²  giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. ¹³  He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, ¹⁴  in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:12-14 (NKJV)

However, most of us still struggle with identity after conversion. Our battle is in our mind and heart. When we use God’s Positioning System we can embrace and believe the reality of what happened, no matter how we feel, and declare this truth to ourselves – ‘I am a new creation. I have been bought with a price and live in Jesus kingdom under His love.’ When this declaration moves from our minds to our hearts it becomes reality in our lives. If/when this reality begins to fade in our lives we simply return to declaring this truth to ourselves.

Speaking God’s truth into our lives is well established in scripture. Moses commanded the children of Israel to do it, Yahweh commanded Joshua to do it, David practiced it and Paul called us to practice it (Eph. 5:19, Col. 3:16).

What about location? Where has He placed us? Just like identity, we use His word to locate ourselves in Him. Look at the words of Paul and his desire to ‘be found in Him.’

⁹  and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; Philippians 3:9 (NKJV)

We need to be found in Jesus (for example there are many ‘in Him’ references in Ephesians). Where we are physically is far less significant than Who we are in spiritually! While physical location and many other things are important we are called to discern these areas of our lives from the place of being in Jesus. When we get Identity and Location right we have a solid foundation for the rest of our walk. How is your GPS working?

Recently I was in the locker room at the fitness centre and another patron was getting help from a staff member to open his locker. He commented that he always used the same locker so he would know where he was. Some interesting phraseology. However, it started me thinking. We have a lot of GPS (Global Positioning System) devices that tell us where we are and that help us to locate things or locate ourselves in relation to other things. I wondered about a scriptural GPS, God’s Positioning System, a system that would help us locate who we are!

I think there are a couple of factors at play in the area of identity. Someone once said, “Both the Lord and Satan are asking you the same question. Who do you think you are?” I think that is a crucial question. I think there is another aspect as well. If we know the truth do we believe it?

As I was thinking about writing this some lines from an old Paul Simon song came back to me, “When I was a little boy, and the Devil would call my name. I’d say, ‘Now who do, who do you think you’re fooling?’” The song is “Loves me like a Rock” from the early 1970’s. In the song Paul’s stability was found in his mother’s love for him. While that is admirable we have something much greater as an anchor. Yet I ask again, do we believe it?

Here is some basic scriptural truth.

¹³  He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, Colossians 1:13 (NKJV)

²⁷  To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Colossians 1:27 (NKJV)

⁶  As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, ⁷  rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. Colossians 2:6-7 (NKJV)

So, if we are discouraged, downcast, or wondering about our meaning and purpose how do we use these verses? I suggest turning them into prayers of thankfulness and speaking the truth of them out loud to ourselves. When we do the power in His word is activated in our lives. Practically I could take the first verse and say as a declaration in the spirit realm, “I have been delivered from the power of darkness and placed in His kingdom under His love!” As a prayer I could say, “Father, thank You that You have delivered me from the power of darkness and placed me in Your kingdom under Jesus love!” In fact, to change how we ‘feel’ we only need to apply this first verse of the three. As we exercise the faith to declare it the grace inherent in His word empowers our lives and brings the needed change in our disposition. If we are not in this condition we can apply this truth to our lives so we do not end up in this condition. There is life in His word!

If I have sounded repetitive here it is only because I deliberately am. So, the question to each of our hearts, “Who do you think you are?”

Over 25 years ago I read something by A. W. Tozer that has stuck with me. He said, “Religious externals may have meaning for a God inhabited soul, but to all others they are a snare and a trap.” What was he talking about? Our tendency to value various practices over the reality of His presence. We need His presence and purpose. I started this series on Hidden Things with this verse.

²  It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter. Proverbs 25:2 (NKJV)

Do we understand the concealment inherent in this verse? How do we search it out? A principle Jesus laid out on the way to Gethsemane was the need to understand Him in us and us in Him.

²⁰  At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. John 14:20 (NKJV)

In reading this verse it seems important to understand the ‘day’ Jesus was referencing. For this group of apostles that day was the day of Pentecost that we read about in Acts 2. We can get caught up in the vision of tongues of fire, prophetic expression and eternal manifestations. Yet they were stirred by something greater. John 14:20 came alive in them! Think about this, on the ‘day’ we were born again the Creator of the universe infused His life and nature into our spirit. He made a Holy of Holies inside of us and took up residence.

So, if we want to search something out why not search out this hidden thing. Christ in us the hope of glory (Col. 1:27). We can gaze into the spirit realm and by faith look upon the Father seated upon His eternal throne (which I practice and advocate), yet do we understand Him in us? How many of us realize this reality drove the early apostles, it drove Paul, as it has driven many down through the last 2,000 years of church history. Why not let it drive us? Why not seek out how to look deep within to encounter the King of glory?

We can develop a sensitivity to His presence within us. Many years ago I wrote a song and one of the lines was, “I’m moved by Your moving within.” We can seek and find the reality of Jesus by His Spirit moving within and upon us. Isn’t this a worthy discovery?