dickbraswell

This is the season that the whole world recognizes and celebrates the Miracle of the Ages.  Nothing in time or eternity can match the significance of what happened on a Judean hillside nearly two thousand years ago.  All of time has been divided into “before” and “after” because of this Divine Visitation.  Jesus came.  Jesus came from heaven.  Jesus was sent by God into the earth.  He came in the form of flesh and was born of a virgin.  This had never happened before and it will never happen again.  This is the Miracle of the Ages.  God became Flesh.

John 1:14   And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

            The Incarnation is the most significant and awesome and overwhelming work of God since the Creation of all things.  It (the Incarnation) is the crowning achievement of the Work of God and is the most complete expression and revelation of His Nature and Character.  God became flesh.  And He dwelt among us. 

            He came to earth because of sin.  Sin had separated God from His Children and God wanted them back.  Jesus came to redeem the human race from the fall of Adam.

Rom. 5:19   For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

Jesus came to earth from heaven for your benefit and for mine.  He came in obedience to His Father.  As we begin this message, let’s notice at least six reasons why Jesus came to earth:

1. Jesus came because God said He would .

Num. 23:19   God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

Isa. 7:14   Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

The heart of revealed Scripture is prophetic and Messianic in nature.  God promised our deliverance from sin’s control and dominion in the first Book of the Bible.

Gen. 3:15   And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

The moment Adam sinned, God set in motion a Plan to redeem His Dream.  Here God promises to do Something to bruise the head of satan.  The “It” that will bruise satan’s head is the seed of a woman.  That Seed is Jesus.  The bruise that satan renders to the Seed of woman is the Crucifixion of Jesus.  Here in the very beginning of the written Word, God accurately prophesies that Jesus will come to earth and do something about the devil. 

2.  Jesus came to heal hurting hearts.

            For five hundred years there had been no Voice from God.  No prophet.  No Divine visitation.  No miracle.  Human hearts were stricken with barrenness.  The whole earth was held in the bondage of a Spiritual drought.  Men were desperate.  The world was waiting in great need for something to happen.

            Godly people were kept in slavery by a fierce anti-God government.  Rome.  This Empire was governed Caesar’s who considered themselves gods.  Humanistic philosophers deceived the masses through reason and rhetoric.  The armies were cruel, sadistic, savage, and merciless.  Injustice prevailed.  Slavery was enforced.  Oppression was unbearable. 

In this harsh setting, there was a cry for God.  No visitation.  No miracle.  No voice from heaven.  No prophet.  No touch from God.  The sick remained sick until they died.

The lame could not be healed.

The blind, deaf, and dumb had no hope of a cure.

The oppressed had no escape.

Men were burdened.  Bruised.  Broken.  There was no answer.

The world was in great need for a Spiritual Awakening.

Jesus came from heaven to answer the cry of a needy world.

3.  Jesus came to break the bondage of dead religion.  

            In spite of the horror of a world without God, Religion flourished.  Religion does not need God to flourish.  Most religion is without God anyway.  It is true today and it was true two thousand years ago.

In the Interbiblical Period, the Judiastic System continued its path of rule, regulation, and legalism.

            Jesus sets men free.  Free from dead religion and man’s traditions and denominational customs.  Free from laws, rules, and regulations.  Free for bondage to carnal deacons and ungodly church leaders and unscriptural church government.     Jesus said that we would and could know the TRUTH (the Gospel) and the TRUTH would make us FREE.

            The Jews in Jesus’ day lived in total subjection to (1) The Law of Moses  (2) the sayings of the Prophets and (3) the Writings that had been handed down from generation to generation.  There were 613 separate laws and commandments and rules and regulations that every Jew was required to obey and keep.  That is why Jesus said of the Scribes and Pharisees:  “They bind heavy burdens and grievous to be born and lay them on men’s shoulders: but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers…”  (Matt. 23:4)

            Jesus came from heaven to earth to break the shackles of dead religion.  Religion builds walls.  Jesus tears them down.  Religion separates.  Jesus joins together.  Religion kills.  Jesus gives Life. 

            The Jews kept God shut up in the Holy of Holies, behind thick curtains and unreachable by man.  But when Jesus was Crucified the veil of the Temple was “rent”….

Matt. 27:51   And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;

And God got out!  Jesus sets the captive free.  Just like He did for you and for me.

4.  Jesus came to Reveal the Nature of God.  To show us what God is like.

            Jesus came from heaven to earth to answer the question:  “What is God like?”  Jesus is the Perfect Revelation of God.  Jesus “condescended” and “made Himself of no reputation…” to reveal to you and me and all creation what God is really like.  The Incarnation of Christ is the greatest miracle of all time.  This is the season of that celebration.  All the world can now know what God is like. 

Phil. 2:5   Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

Phil. 2:6   Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

Phil. 2:7   But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

Phil. 2:8   And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

Phil. 2:9   Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

Phil. 2:10   That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

Jesus reveals the Nature of our Father God.  He said:  “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father…”  Jesus “condescended” to this earth and “made Himself of no reputation”   (He laid down (1) His equality with God  (2) The Glory He shared with the Father in Heaven  (3) His Authority in Heaven  (4) His Divine attributes and outward powers)  in order to reveal the Nature and Character of God.  Jesus is the Perfect Revelation of God.   Jesus “put a Face on God.”

            Jesus came from Heaven to earth to Reveal the Nature of God.

5.  Jesus came from Heaven to earth to put away sin and destroy the works of the devil.  To deliver us from sin’s control and dominion.

Hebr. 9:26   For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

 athetesis {ath-et’-ay-sis}    1) abolition, disannulling, put away, rejection

1John 3:8    …..For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.

Jesus came from heaven to earth to undo the works of the devil.  He came from heaven to earth to put away sin… once and for all.  Under the OT system, the blood of bulls and goats, sheep, and lambs was only a temporary solution to the sin problem.  Once a year on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies and sprinkle the Mercy Seat with the blood of an unblemished lamb.  This act of sacrifice took care of the sins of Israel for one year.  Then the procedure had to be repeated.  But Jesus came “Once for all…” and “put away sin”… Jesus’ sacrifice did not postpone sin’s judgment, Jesus’ sacrifice did away with sin… once and for all forever!

6.  Jesus came from Heaven to earth to Birth a Powerful, Overcoming, Victorious Church.  To build a Church.

Matt. 16:18   And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church;  and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Matt. 16:19   And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

Acts 1:8   But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Luke 10:19   Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Mark 16:17   And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;

Mark 16:18   They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

The Miracle of the Incarnation:

            Jesus is more than a Babe in a Manger.  Jesus did not come into being at His birth.  He is and has been co-existent with God and is without beginning and without end.  He is Eternal.  He was with God in the Beginning. 

John 1:1   In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:2   The same was in the beginning with God.

            He was and is the Agent of God in Creation. 

John 1:3   All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

            He is the Power of God that holds all Creation together.

Col. 1:17   And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

            He is the Living Word. 

            He is the Light that John the Baptist bore witness of.

            He is Lamb of God.

            He is the Suffering Servant.

            He is the Living Water.

            He is the Bread of Life.

            He is Son of Man and the Son of God.

            He is the Alpha and Omega.

            He is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.

            He is Messiah.

Rev. 1:13   And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.

Rev. 1:14   His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;

Rev. 1:15   And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.

Rev. 1:16   And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

Rev. 1:17   And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:

Rev. 1:18   I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore.  Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

The Reason for the Season….

Do You Know HIM?

Jesus made SEVEN STATEMENTS as He hung on the Cross.  Through these SEVEN STATEMENTS we can catch a glimpse of the KIND OF MAN JESUS REALLY WAS.  We can see how He responded to adversity and suffering and injustice.  We can learn how we are to react to situations that satan throws in our face and to trials and tests that come in our lives.

STATEMENT ONE:  “Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do…”  (Luke 23:34)

Then…. after He was REJECTED and FORSAKEN by His friends and BETRAYED by His disciples… his closest followers and students and fellow ministers. 

How do YOU deal with REJECTION?  With BETRAYAL?  With UN_FAITHFULNESS?  What is your reaction to injustice and unfairness and false accusations?  How do you feel toward those who LIE about you and GOSSIP about you and PLOT for your DOWNFALL?  What would you do in similar circumstances? 

Then… after He was taken to six illegal trials and hearings throughout the entire night?  The legal and religious structure was bent in favor of His Enemies and lies and false accusations were cast in His Face.

Then… after He had been scourged (beaten and whipped mercilessly) with whips and rods.  (12 thongs on the whip and each thong was tipped with bone, metal and glass fragments)  Isaiah said His Visage (appearance) was so marred (disfigured) more than any man and His form more than the sons of men that many were astonished (shocked at the way He looked) at Him  (Isaiah 52:14)  His flesh had the texture of ground meat and yet He prayed:  “Father, forgive them… they don’t really understand what they are doing…”

CAN YOU FORGIVE?  HAVE YOU FORGIVEN?  Do you have a grudge or grudges?  Do you have bad feelings toward others?  Are you not speaking and refusing to communicate?  What right do you have to stay in strife and bitterness and unforgiveness?  Has anyone done to you WHAT THESE DID TO JESUS?

Jesus looks beyond the OUTWARD ACT into the INTENTS of the HEART.  “They do not know what they are doing…”  In essence, Jesus is saying “They are not responsible for what they are doing… they are being driven by a force they do not understand… it is the nature of the devil in them… Father, be merciful to them… they do not realize what they are doing…”  “O Father, see their POTENTIAL FOR GOOD not the visible actions of evil!!”

Lack of forgiveness hinders prayers and causes strife.  It is the foundation of backsliding and the cause of bitterness.  It wrecks homes and families and businesses.  It keeps Divine Forgiveness from coming your way.  Only as you FORGIVE can you be FORGIVEN.  It breeds sickness and disease and hinders ministers and ministries.  JESUS TAUGHT us HOW TO FORGIVE.  Forgive those who despitefully use you and persecute you and speak all manner of evil against you falsely.  Pray for them and Love them and Forgive them.  FORGIVNESS is a CALVARY ATTITUDE and it is learned at the CROSS. 

STATEMENT 2:  “Today thou shalt be with Me in Paradise…”  (Luke 23:43) 

A guilty, tried and convicted common criminal simply asks for Mercy.  “Remember me when you come into your kingdom…”  REMEMBER ME.  REMEMBER ME!!  He was not a church member and had never been.  He was not a disciple or a follower of Jesus.  He had no character and no reputation and no good intention.  He had run with the wrong crowd and justice had caught up with him.  NOW… this common, uneducated, unwanted and guilty criminal RECEIVED and UN_DERSTOOD what the Jewish Nation and Organized Religion was BLIND to COMPREHEND.  GOD is no RESPECTER of PERSONS!!  He loves the unlovable and the unlovely.  He cares for the criminals and the pimps and the prostitutes.  He is compassionate toward drunks and the homosexuals and the thieves and the robbers and the rapists and the murderers!!    JESUS is COLOR-BLIND!!  JESUS is not just a WHITE, BLACK, YELLOW, BROWN, RED or AMERICAN JESUS!!  HE IS GOD!!  He is LORD OF ALL!!  He is GOD of the UNIVERSE and all the INHABI_TANTS THEREOF!!  He is committed to saving all who will call upon His Name!!  “For whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord shall be Saved…”  (Rom 10:13)  His Kingdom is OPEN to WHOSOEVER WILL!!  How strange that a CRIMINAL was the FIRST TROPHY of DI_VINE GRACE!!  Cleansed and Restored and Forgiven and Made Acceptable by the BLOOD!!!  The Cross is the PLACE OF MERCY and GRACE!! 

STATEMENT 3:  “Woman, behold thy son!  Then saith He to the disciple, Behold, thy mother!!   (John 19:26-27)

Even in the time of such great agony and suffering, JESUS was thinking of OTHERS.  OTHERS who were hurting and lonely and wounded and bruised and sad.  Jesus always CONSIDERS OTHERS!!  That is the essence of the CROSS.  OTHERS!!  The NATIONS and KINDREDS and TONGUES and PEOPLES of the earth.  The hurting and the wounded and the bruised and the broken.  The sad and the grief-stricken and the hopeless and the forsaken.  OTHERS.  That is MISSIONS.  That is the PURPOSE of the CHURCH.  We are commanded and mandated to “PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR…”  Jesus was thinking of OTHERS as he hung on the CROSS.  His mother.  Her hurt and disappointment.  Her shattered hopes and dreams.  Her broken heart.  He committed her into the care of the disciple standing at the foot of the Cross.  “From now on, she will be your mother… you must care for her and provide for her and comfort her.  She needs help.  She is now ‘your mother'”!!

Did you know that JESUS CONSIDERED YOU in His Death?  He was thinking about YOU in His agony and suffering.  His heartbeat was always for OTHERS.  That includes YOU and ME!!    “For the joy that was set before Him He endured the Cross…”  (Heb 12:2)

STATEMENT 4:  “I thirst…”  John 19:28

Thirst is one of the most agonizing demands of the human body.  It is compounded by the physical torture inflicted by Crucifixion.  The body fluids are depleted.  The fever rises and the tongue swells.  The lips are dry and parched.  Here we see the absolute Humanity of the Lord Jesus.  He limited himself to the confines of human flesh.  He was weak and vulnerable.  He was hurting and He was thirsty.  He Who was the LIVING WATER is now EMPTIED because of the sin of the human race.  He suffered that we might reign.  He was wounded that we might be healed.  He was thirsty that we might drink of Him and “never thirst.”  He is the Fountain but He allowed Himself to become dry so that we can be forever refreshed.  His cry for water was a fulfillment of a prophecy in Psalm 69: 20-21:  “Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none.  They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink…”  He became in totality what lost humanity was that we might become in totality what GOD MADE HIM TO BE.

Jesus is LIVING WATER.  Jesus is REFRESHMENT.  Jesus is LIFE.

STATEMENT 5:  “My God, My God why hast Thou forsaken me?   Mat 27:46

No sadder words are recorded in the Bible than these.  Here we are confronted with the real cause of the Death of Christ.  He died of a broken heart.  A heart that was broken because His Father could not “look on sin” and was therefore forced to “forsake” His Only Begotten Son.  God the Father turned His Back on Jesus because Jesus was made Sin for us.  “For He (God) hath made Him (Jesus) to be sin for us…  (2 Cor 5:21).  The eternal Fellowship and Communion that they enjoyed was broken and breached because of my sin and yours.  Jesus died of a broken heart.  He was accustomed to being forsaken by friend and foe.  He was accustomed to being forsaken by His Country and His Religion.  He was accustomed to being forsaken by his own family.  He had never… not one time…. ever…. been out of fellowship with the Father.  And now that eternal relationship is severed by sin.  He cried in agony “Father, why have you left Me?  Why have you deserted Me?”  No one will ever know the loneliness and emptiness Jesus experienced in order that we might NEVER BE FORSAKEN or LEFT ALONE or DE_SERTED.  He became what we were (without God) in order that we can BE AS HE IS RIGHT NOW.   “Hallelujah!  What a Savior!!”

STATEMENT 6:  “Father, into Thy Hands I commend My Spirit…”  Luke 23:46

Jesus had declared earlier that: “I lay down my life for the sheep… no man taketh it (My Life) away from Me, but I lay it down of Myself…”  John 10:15,18.

Jesus’ death was no accident.  Contrary to the Hollywood hype, Jesus was not a wimp, and He was not confused or disillusioned.  He came to die.  He was Born to Die.  Yet, He exercised total and complete authority over death by the Power of the Holy Ghost in Him.  Death could not come to Him unless He allowed it to.   No man could take His life from Him.  He had the power of life and death.  He willingly laid down His life… He voluntarily gave His Life, it was not taken from Him and satan did not kill Him.  He chose death in order to give us Life.  “I am come that you might have Life and have it more abundantly…”  John 10:10.  The Abundant, God-Kind of life comes out of His Death.  He died that we might Live.

STATEMENT 7:  “It is finished…”  John 19:30

Jesus declared that IT is completed.  IT is fulfilled.  IT is accomplished.  What is finished?

            1.   The fulfillment of Scriptures referring to His suffering and death

            2.   The defeat of satan and the powers of darkness

            3.   The breaking down of the “middle wall” of partition

            4.   Provision for personal access to God the Father

            5.   The cancellation of the reign of death

            6.   The cancellation of sin’s power and dominion

            7.   The demonstration of Love and Obedience of Jesus to the death

            8.   The Perfection of Jesus as the Sacrificial Lamb

            9.   Salvation and deliverance from all sin

            10. Restoring of Peace between Man and God

            11. The penalty of Death full paid

            12. Man released from the kingdom of darkness

            13. Satisfaction of the full justice of God in payment for sin

            14. Physical Healing for all through the Blood

            15. The way for the full anointing of the Holy Ghost

            16. The establishment of the New Covenant

“It is finished”  means that man has nothing to do but believe and accept.  It means that it is not of works, lest any man should boast.  It means that God and Jesus and the Holy Ghost have done all that is necessary for the full restoration of the Image of God in fallen humanity.  It means that Jesus is the Perfect and Final Sacrifice… “once for all” He has entered into the Holy of Holies and sprinkled His Blood on the Mercy Seat perfecting Salvation for “Whosoever shall call on the Name of Jesus…” 

Hallelujah!! 

Word for Today:  December 3

The Word was made Flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth… John 1:14.

He is more than a HELPLESS BABY wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

He is more than a once-a-year Christmas celebration.

He is more than a mere Carpenter’s Son.

He is more than an itinerant wandering Preacher.

The world saw Him (and still does) as a religious radical.  A revolutionary fanatic.  A miss-guided dreamer.  A disillusioned Jew and a false messiah.

Religion sees Him as a handy Crutch to lean on.  A “last minute” and last resort for panic and pain.  A “security blanket” to embrace when times are tough.

He is greater than Adam.  He is greater than Abraham.  He is greater than Moses.  He is greater than the angels.  He is greater than the prophets.  He is greater than the apostles. He is the Epitome of Perfection.  He is GOD.

• He is the BREAD of LIFE
• He is the LIGHT of the WORLD
• He is the DOOR into the FOLD
• He is the GOOD SHEPHERD
• He is the PRINCE of PEACE
• He is the MIGHTY GOD
• He is the EVERLASTING FATHER
• He is the ROSE of SHARON
• He is the BRIGHT  and MORNING STAR
• He is the LILY of the VALLEY
• He is the RESURRECTION and the LIFE
• He is the TRUE VINE
• He is the INTERCESSOR and ADVOCATE
• He is the WAY the TRUTH and the LIFE
• He is the ALPHA and the OMEGA
• He is the GREAT I AM
• He is KING of kings and LORD of lords

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.   Isa 9:6

THANK GOD for JESUS

“Behold the Lamb of God Which taketh away the sin of the world!  John 1:29

See!!  Behold!!  Lo!!  Look!!  An utterance of one who wishes that something should not be neglected or ignored by another.

Lamb. 

Not just a lamb, but a Sacrificial Lamb.  A “sin-bearing” lamb.

Of God.  Lit.  “The Lamb provided by God…”

Taketh away.  (1) to raise or lift up (2) to bear or carry (3) to remove or take away.

Sin of the world. 

            When we Behold Him we become Like Him.  The more we Behold Him the more we become like Him.  I want to be like Jesus. I want this church to be like Jesus.  I want you to be like Jesus.  I believe all who hear me today sincerely desire to be like Jesus.  He is our Pattern.  No man or movement can replace Jesus as our Example and as our Pattern.  Our lives are to conform to Him.  Our ways are to conform to His Ways.  Our desires and ambitions are to conform to His.  Our Will must be His Will. 

            This message is birthed to bring us to a higher Revelation of Him.  We have learned about His Acts and His Ways… it is now time for us to Behold His Glory!!  And when we do:  “but we all with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord are changed (transformed) into the same image from glory to glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord…”  II Cor. 3:18 

            Most are tired of the rigors or religion.  Many are frustrated with the shallowness and emptiness of Methods, formulas, and quick-fix programs.  Some have become disillusioned and disappointed by the merchandising and man-management of the Gospel.  Preachers have become Spiritual Super Stars and Ministries have become Kingdoms that cater to the carnal.  Where are the Prophets?  Where are the Elijahs and the John the Baptists?  Where are the Pauls and the Silas and the Stephens and the Mary Magdlines?  Where is the Simple and Straight forward presentation of Gospel of Christ which is the Power of God unto Deliverance?  We can worship ministries.  We can worship methods.  We can worship ministers.  We can worship music.  We can worship Praise.  We can even worship worship.  I want to Worship Jesus.  I want to Behold Him and His glory.  “And we beheld His Glory, the Glory as of the only begotten of the Father…”  John 1:14.  Let’s minimize the methods and maximize the Master.  Let’s look to Jesus!!

I.  LET’S CONSIDER HIM AS EQUAL WITH THE FATHER.

            His is glorious in His Pre-existence.  He was, is, and forever will be equal to and Eternal with the Father.  “Let us make man in our image…”  Gen. 1:26  “In the beginning God (Elohim) Created…”  Gen. 1:1.  ELOHIM is a plural Noun used with a singular verb and this name indicates the Trinity at Work in Creation.

            There was a Divine Counsel in Heaven regarding Creation.  It was a cooperative Effort involving the Sovereign Will of each Member of the Godhead.  Jesus was there.  The Holy Ghost was there.  God the Father was there.  Let us see Jesus clothed in the Splendor and Glory of the Omni powerful God.  He shares co-equally with Him in all things.  He is Omniscient and Omnipresent as well as Omnipotent.  He is not a “babe born in a stable and wrapped in rags”… He is God.  He is the Eternal LOGOS.  He is the Creative Agent of all that came into being as God Spoke:  “Let there be…”  Jesus is the Force and the Power behind Creation.  John tells us that “He was in the world, and the world was made by Him…”  John 1:10.  He is LIGHT.  He is POWER.  He is ENERGY.  He is AUTHORITY.  Heaven is His Domain and the earth is His footstool!!  By Him and through Him all this consists (hold together).  “Without Him was not anything made that was made…”  John 1:3) 

            For us to BEHOLD His Glory, we have to graduate from our “Bible Story” concept of Jesus…  “Meek and mild…”  as a “Helpless child…”  Our early concept of Jesus has for the most part remained unchanged.  We have greater revelation therefore we must leave the “principles” and move on into the “Perfection” of our knowledge about Jesus. 

            Some see Him as broken, bleeding, and dead… impaled on a cross… the victim of hatred and religious prejudice.  Some can only behold a Dead Jesus.  They see the Crown of Thorns and the Bleeding Side and the Beaten Back.  They are moved to pity Him and feel sorry for Him.  They have developed a concept of His Human Limitations and see Him as weak and helpless.

            The Jesus of the Bible is ALL-POWERFUL.  He is Deity Personified.  He is the Face of God.  He is Majestic, He is Awesome, He is Full of Power.  He is Originator, Creator and Sustainer… He is the All in All… the Great I AM!!

II.  LET’S CONSIDER HIM AS A PERFECT MAN

            “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us (and we beheld His Glory as of the only begotten of the Father) full of grace and truth.”  John 1:14

            “(Jesus) Who existing in the Form of God thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made Himself of no reputation and took upon Him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross…”  Phil. 2:6-8 

            Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign; behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son and shall call His name Immanuel…”  Isa. 7:13 

            The KENOSIS of Jesus is a Foundation Truth many have failed to grasp.  KENOSIS or “self-emptying” simply declares that Jesus willingly “emptied” Himself of His God Characteristics and condescended to the stature and state of a man… a human being… born of a woman… and came to earth to live and die as part of God’s Plan to Redeem Man from Adam’s failure.  Jesus laid down and left in heaven certain characteristics and privileges He exercised as God.  He willingly emptied Himself of His God Form… His God Power… His God Knowledge… His Eternal Life.  He became subject to sickness, disease, death, failure, sin and any and all human liabilities and limitations imposed by Adam’s sin and failure.  The Scripture tells us that He “was in all points tempted like as we are yet without sin…” (Heb. 4:15)

            We must BEHOLD JESUS as a PERFECT MAN.  Therefore ALL the miracles that Jesus performed while He was on earth were performed by a Human Being Full of the Holy Ghost and Power!!  What He did… we can do!!  What He accomplished as a Man… we can accomplish as men and women full of the Holy Ghost and Power!!  He spoke to storms and they stopped!!  He spit and made mud from it. put it on blind eyes and they were opened!!  He confronted demon powers and they feared and trembled and begged for mercy!!  He touched crippled and broken bodies and they were made whole.   He spoke healing to the sick and diseased and they were healed.  He forgave sinners and had mercy on the guilty.  He loved the unlovable and had compassion on the masses.  He raised the dead… cleansed lepers… resisted the devil… opened graves… interrupted funerals and restored the dead to their families!!   He made wine out of water… friends out of enemies… peace out of confusion and torment… joy out of sadness and Heaven out of hell!!  And then He told us that:  “greater works than these shall ye do; because I go unto my Father…”  John 14:12.

            Jesus is our Example.  Jesus is our Pattern.  Jesus is the guarantee that we can Overcome the devil and take dominion over the powers of darkness.  What He did… we can do.  We must BEHOLD JESUS as A PERFECT MAN!!

The Pre-Existence of Jesus

Jesus existed with God before Creation.  “In the beginning (arche) was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God…”

*Jesus did not “come to be” He has always been!!  He calls Himself “Alpha and Omega”  the “First and the Last”. 

*He was with the Father in Creation:  “In the beginning Gods (Elohim: a plural noun connected with a singular verb) created…” (Gen 1).  “Let US make man in OUR image…”  (Gen 1:26) 

*The Gospel of John declares that Jesus is the Agent of Creation… “all things were made by Him and without Him was not anything made that was made…”

“For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers:  all things were created by Him and for Him: and He is before all things and by Him all things consist…”  Col 1:16-17.

Seventeen times in the Gospel of John it is declared that Jesus was sent forth from the Father and came to the earth and that He again left the earth and went unto the Father.

Jesus  in  the  Old  Testament

Jesus was present in the OT

Jesus is described as the “Angel of the Lord and the Holy One of Israel” 

He appears many times in the OT and is seen as:

The Captain of the Host. 

The Lord of Glory. 

The Lion of the Tribe of Judah.

He is the Sun of God that rises with healing in His wings.

He is the Serpent of Brass that delivers from death  “LOOK AND BE SAVED!” 

He is Typified and Symbolized by the animal skins that covered the nakedness of Adam and Eve,

the ROCK that was smitten and produced life-giving Water,

Manna that came from heaven,

the Ark that Noah built,

the Tabernacle in the Wilderness,

the Sacrificial Ram substituted by Abraham for Isaac,

the OT High Priesthood,

The Passover Lamb,

The Ark of the Covenant,

Jonah in the Fish,

David’s Throne,

Solomon’s Wisdom,

Job’s Redeemer,

Kinsman Redeemer in the Book of Ruth,

Hosea’s Forgiveness,

Elijah’s Ascension into heaven, 

Joshua as Israel’s Deliverer

The Fourth Man in the Fiery Furnace

He was Prophesied by:

            God in Gen 3  “I will put enmity between thee and the woman…”

            Isaiah  “For unto us a child is born…”  9:6-7; 7:14 “a virgin…”

            Joel  “I will restore…”

            Micah   “But thou, Bethlehem…”  5:2

            Daniel  Chapter 9 and the vision of weeks

            Hosea  Chapter 6  “in the third day He shall raise us up…”

            Zechariah  (The BRANCH)

            the Psalmist  Psalm 22  “My God why has thou forsaken me?”

Jesus  the  Incarnation  of  God

“When the fulness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman..”  Gal 4:4

The Interbiblical Period:

Five hundred years without a revelation from God.  Dead religion.  Form but no fire.  Legalism and Law and condemnation and death.  No miracles.  No visitation from God.  Sick remained sick.  Lame remained lame.  Burdened remained burdened.  

Rome became a world power.  One language became the language of the people:  Greek.   For the first time, revelation could be communicated on a world-wide basis.  The most beautiful, flexible, expressive language the world had ever known…  The PLAN OF GOD to communicate the Gospel.

Rome had conquered and united under a single government all the Mediterranean empires.  Roads were built, shipping lanes developed and the stage was set for the appearance of the MESSIAH.

Phil 2:7-11:

            “But made Himself of no reputation (ekenosen from Kenosis: to make empty, to make of no effect) and took upon Him the form (morphe: outward appearance) of a servant (doulos: slave) and was made (lambano: took upon Himself) in the likeness (homoioma: resemblance) of men:

            And being found in fashion (schema: outward appearance.  The word was used of a king who exchanges his kingly robe for sackcloth) as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death even the death of the cross…”

EMMANUEL:  God with us

Word for Today:  December 2

Today thou shalt be with me in Paradise…  Luke 23:43

Here a guilty criminal simply asks Jesus to:  “Remember me when You come into your kingdom…”

• He was not a “church” member.
• He had not been baptized in water.
• He had no character and no good reputation.
• He had run with the wrong crowd.
• He had broken the Law.
• He had violated decency and destroyed that which was innocent and good.
• He was guilty.
• He was worthy of death.

And justice had caught up with him.

Now… this common criminal understood and received what the Jewish Nation and organized religion was blind to comprehend.  Jesus is no respecter of persons!  He loves criminals and drunks and prostitutes and homosexuals and thieves and robbers and murderers… He is color-blind!  He is LORD OF ALL!  He is compassionate and kind and loving and forgiving.  His kingdom is open and available to “whosoever shall call on the Name of Jesus…”

How odd that God would choose a murderer as the initial trophy of His Divine Grace… cleansed, restored and made acceptable by the Blood of Jesus.

“Grace, Grace, Marvelous Grace…”

I.  BASICS

1.  God is a GIVING GOD.  He is a GOOD GOD.  He does GOOD THINGS.  He can do no evil (poverty is evil).  He is a FATHER, He is a LOVER, and He is a GIVER… His actions respond accordingly.  It is the devil who is the thief, who comes to steal, kill, and destroy… not GOD..  Do not confuse what God does with what the devil does..  We must understand the BASIC NATURE of God is we are to come into PROSPERITY and FINANCIAL BLESSING.  Most theology complicates God.  Jesus came to SIMPLIFY HIM.. 

2.  The KINGDOM of GOD is a KINGDOM OF SUCCESS and PROSPERITY.  The Church is a PREVAILING CHURCH and not a succumbing church.  Since the Kingdom of God is PEOPLE, Kingdom People are to possess the same characteristics that the Kingdom Possesses… SUCCESS… PROSPERITY… VICTORY… STRENGTH… WEALTH… HEALTH… INCREASE… POWER…

Paul declares that Kingdom People are JOINT HEIRS with CHRIST.  This means that we are “equal-sharers” with Jesus of all that HE OWNS.. 

The Kingdoms of this world will soon become the kingdoms of our God and of His Christ and we will rule with Him for ever and ever… We will oversee and supervise the Work of God on this earth and we will reign with Him..

3.  The PROMISES of the WORD regarding PROSPERITY  (See Scriptures)

4. The BIBLE TRUTH of SELF-WORTH.  You are SOMEBODY not NOBODY..  Kingdom People must understand the principle of SELF-WORTH.  If God takes notice of every sparrow that falls to the earth… surely He cares for and notices those who are created in His Own Image..

Inferiority… weakness complex… rejection… guilt… condemnation… sin con-

sciousness… unworthiness… all these sound righteous and religious, but they are foreign to the Bible concept of Self-Worth.  If you cannot value yourself (love yourself) you cannot come into Prosperity and Success.  What do you think of yourself?  Many are concerned about what others think.  What does GOD think of you??  What does the Word say???

5.  The “tense” of REDEMPTION.  “Christ HATH REDEEMED us from the curse of the law…”  (Gal. 3:13)

(1) “Hath”  Redemption has already been provided and completed.  It is not conditional or “going to be” but it is NOW. 

(2) “Redeemed”  (ex-ag-or-ad’ zo)  “ransomed”  “rescued”  “purchased”  Action already taken place.

(3) “Curse”  the curse is threefold: (1) sin  (2) sickness  (3) poverty

We do not struggle and fight to get… we fight the good fight of FAITH to KEEP what GOD HAS ALREADY GIVEN..   If we are not enjoying prosperity it is because we have allowed satan, the thief to come in and steal it away from us.  (It may have happened to your parents and grandparents and  their poverty may have passed on down to you)  YOU CAN STOP IT..  You can take back all that the devil stole and seven times more…  You will if you act on this teaching and do what I tell you to do..

II. WHAT BIBLE PROSPERITY IS

“Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health even as thy soul prospereth…”  III John 2

“And He said unto them, take heed and beware of covetousness:  for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth…”  Luke 12:15

To understand what Bible Prosperity is,  we must first learn what Poverty is.   POVERTY is a spirit.  POVERTY is a demonic force.  POVERTY is a satanic spirit that STEALS, ROBS, and DESTROYS.  It takes away what God has given.  It causes CONDITIONS that are below those of ease and comfort in living.  It brings about WORRY and FRUSTRATION.  It robs believers of peace, stability, and confidence.  It is NOT EASY when there are more BILLS coming in than there is MONEY to PAY THEM..  POVERTY creates PRESSURES:  Physical– Mental– Emotional.  Most FAMILY PROBLEMS are stem from FINANCIAL PRESSURES.

PROSPERITY is a PROMISE given by GOD to HIS FAMILY.  PROSPERITY is a QUALITY OF LIFE that is marked by SUCCESS and VICTORY.  PROSPERITY is having ENOUGH to meet all your LEGITIMATE NEEDS with sufficient left over to INVEST in, SUPPORT and FINANCE the KINGDOM OF GOD..  PROSPERITY is THRIVING in all AREAS OF LIFE ..

Prosperity is not MATERIALISM.  Prosperity is more than having money and things.  Prosperity is more than possessing wealth and riches.  Prosperity is more than being able to pay your bills.  Kingdom Prosperity is much more INCLUSIVE than materialism..  There are four areas in which God promises prosperity for His People:

(1) God promises Prosperity in the PHYSICAL REALM.  This means that God has continually provided  health and strength for you… ALL THE TIME..  If we prosperity physically, then we live above sickness, disease, and weakness.  God’s Word promises PERPETUAL HEALTH and SOUNDNESS of BODY and MIND.  That is PROSPERITY.

(2) God promises Prosperity in the MENTAL REALM.  God promises us the ability to live above Fear, Anxiety, Worry, Depression, Despondency, Despair, Anguish.  We can possess the Mind of Christ.  We can Think God’s Thoughts and Dream God’s Dreams..  Unhappiness, boredom, dread, sadness, and unchecked grief are all a part of the curse and the curse has been cancelled..  Hallelujah..

(3) God promises Prosperity in the SPIRITUAL REALM.  God wants you to grow and mature and develop Spiritually.  He wants you to hear the Word and receive the Word  and feed on the Word..  He wants you to conform more and more to the Image of His Son Jesus Christ..  He wants your Spiritual Man to dominate and control your Mind and your Body.  If we Live on and by the Word we will prosper Spiritually..

(4) God promises Prosperity in the FINANCIAL REALM.  God wants His People to possess enough money to pay their Legitimate Debts and have sufficient reserve to give generously and regularly and cheerfully into the Kingdom of God..  Giving is activating one of the Basic Characteristics of the Nature of God that is in every Believer..  “For God so loved, He GAVE…”  Financial prosperity carries two very important qualifications:  (1) Responsibility to man and (2) Accountability to God.

III.  WHERE TO BEGIN

Where do we start?  Why are some who are in the Kingdom not prospering?  Why are many of God’s Own People in financial need?  Poverty is a curse and should never be considered a virtue..  If God wants us to prosper, then why are some Believers living in lack?  Remember: POVERTY in any of the four realm we mentioned (physical, mental, spiritual, financial) just “doesn’t happen”… IT IS CAUSED..

A.  We Begin through KNOWLEDGE.  (“Information”)  We MUST KNOW what GOD HAS PROVIDED for us and WHAT GOD WANTS for us.  We make this discovery through the study of God’s Word. 

If God wants us to Prosper and Wills for us to Prosper and has made a way for us to Prosper THEN WE SHOULD PROSPER..  If we are not PROSPERING then SOMETHING is causing our poverty.

(1) Some are poor because God cannot trust them with finances.  (They would “eat the fish.”)  Some will never be rich and prosperous because the first thing they would do with a windfall financial blessing would be to rush out and spend it on themselves..  New cars… homes… boats… vacations… clothes… things…  God wants us to FINANCE THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL…

(2) Some are poor because they are Spiritually Ignorant.  (They do not know “how to fish.”)   They are  not aware of the Will of God or the Ways of

God or the Word of God.  They have been influenced by years and years of faulty denominational  or doctrinal  teaching that does not line up with the Word.  They are victims of RELIGION..  They REFUSE to get out from under the ministries that major on doubt and unbelief.

(3) Some are poor because of carelessness and bad financial habits.  (“They  have holes in their nets.”) According to the Bible, here are the root causes of poverty:

     a. Laziness—————————– Proverbs 6:10-11

     b. Dishonesty————————– Proverbs 10:2,4

     c. Lack of Ambition——————– Proverbs 12:11

     d. Selfishness————————– Proverbs 19:17

     e. Unwise Spending——————– Proverbs 32:16

     f. Gluttony and Drunkenness———– Proverbs 23:21

     g. Stubbornness and lack of Discipline–Proverbs 13:18

(4) Some are poor because they disregard the TITHE.  (“They are stubborn..)  God instituted the TITHE (one tenth of all our increase) not because He needed it but as an invitation for His People to become partners with Him.  Malachi called withholding the tithe as STEALING FROM GOD.  (Many are living in houses that were bought with God’s Money and ride in cars that were purchased with God’s Money).  When Believers (regardless of their circumstances) withhold the tithe, they rob themselves of God’s Blessings and Poverty is the result.

B.  We Begin THROUGH ACTING ON WHAT WE KNOW.  “Faith without works (corresponding action) is DEAD…”  KNOWLEDGE without ACTION = DEAD FAITH..  KNOWLEDGE with CORRESPONDING ACTION =  LIVING FAITH.  To PROSPER it is necessary to DISCERN between the NATURAL way of LIFE and the SPIRITUAL way of LIFE.  Sometimes BIBLE PRINCIPLES will “overload” and “short circuit” your Computer..  The WORLD says:  “Pay your way out of debt..”  The WORD SAYS: “Give your way out of debt..”  Everything in the Spiritual Realm is 180 degrees away from the Natural Realm..  “Die and you shall LIVE..”  “Surrender and you shall be FREE..”  “GIVE and you shall RECEIVE..”  “Humble yourself and you shall be EXALTED.. 

To OVERCOME and BREAK the Spirit of Poverty, you must ACT on WHAT YOU KNOW.  You know much more than you are acting on..  You Know more than you are DOING right now..  Couple your KNOWLEDGE with ACTION and you will release the flow of PROSPERITY in your life.  WISDOM is the PROPER USE of KNOWLEDGE..  If you KNOW IT then DO IT..  Don’t talk about it… look at it… consider it… think about it… DO IT…

C. We Begin Through MODIFYING our PRESENT SITUATION.  You may need to change some things and modify some situations in your life.  Notice the following:

     (1) Your attitude about DEBT and UNDISCIPLINED CREDIT may need to be changed..  Remember:  every BILL you pay is the RESULT of a DEBT YOU MADE..  Guard against excessive indebtedness..

           a. Excessive indebtedness can prevent people from serving the Lord.  “I can’t… I have too many bills to pay….”

          b. Excessive indebtedness causes DISCOURAGEMENT and DISTRESS.  Take a look at your payment books… 

         c. Excessive indebtedness can cause FAMILY PROBLEMS.  “We can’t afford to go out to eat….”  “Yes, but what about that fishing trip you took….”

    (2) Resist IRRESPONSIBLE SPENDING.  God entrusts us with resources and He expects us to be GOOD STEWARDS of what we have. 

          a. IMPULSE BUYING.  “Borrowing the money you don’t have to buy something you don’t need to impress a neighbor you don’t like.”

           b. CARELESS MANAGEMENT.  If you are going to be a good steward of your GOD-GIVEN resources, then DO NOT ASK WHERE THE MONEY WENT at the end of the month… rather, YOU TELL IT WHERE TO GO..

God’s Plan for Prosperity is not dependent on the economy of the world system.  God’s way is a BETTER WAY a HIGHER WAY and a SUCCESSFUL WAY.  His Way never fails..  It is not related to the value of the dollar or the balance of trade…  it is not affected by DEPRESSION, RECESSION, or INFLATION..  The realm of the SPIRITUAL is never effected by the realm of the NAUTURAL.  The realm of the SPIRITUAL always effects the realm of the NATURAL. 

PROSPERITY has been misunderstood and improperly taught.  Prosperity is not an END in itself… Prosperity is a BY PRODUCT.  Kingdom People do not become prosperous by seeking prosperity.  Kingdom People become prosperous as they continually SEEK GOD FIRST.  When we (the Body of Christ) get our PRIORITIES right, prosperity overtakes us.   Prosperity does not come by a FORMULA or a SET OF RULES or a SYSTEM of FINANCE.  However, prosperity is PREDICTABLE.  Prosperity is TANGEABLE.  Prosperity is SPIRITUAL.  Money and Wealth are not sin.  Having great financial resources does not necessarily mean that you are wicked or dishonest.  It is the “love of money” that is the root of all evil..  Many who are far from rich suffer from this sin..

The Church (Kingdom People) is coming into GREAT WEALTH.  This is the final break-through for us before the great end-time revival and restoration and renewal.  This teaching will help you to come into the place of understanding how to use GOD’S POWER to MEET EVERY NEED IN ALL REALMS OF LIFE..   

Word for Today:  December 1

The Word declares:

Looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith:  Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God…  Heb. 12:2

How could Jesus possibly have “joy” before Him in the midst of such torture and agony?  How did this “joy” give Him strength to “endure” the cross and bear the shame connected with it?

Why did He not call for “10,000 Angels” to come and loose Him and rescue Him from such pain and shame? He could have!  He willingly laid down His life… for He had declared that

…no man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself…  John 10:18

Why?  How?  Because Jesus looked through His Eye of Faith and saw into the future… He saw the time when you and I would hear the Word and Believe it, Act on it, and make it a part of our living and our breathing.  He knew by His death and obedience to the Father, that He would become the Firstborn of many Brethren… that He would establish a New Race and New Breed and New Creation that would crush the head of satan and trample demon powers underfoot.

That is the reason for His Joy in the midst of His suffering, His agony and His death.