dickbraswell

Nothing in time or eternity can match the significance of what happened on a Judean hillside nearly 2000 years ago.  All of time has been divided into “before” and “after” because of this Divine Visitation.  Jesus came.  Jesus came from heaven to 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.    

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 of Christ is the most significant and awesome and overwhelming work of God since the Creation of all things.  It 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. 

Sin had separated God from His Children and God wanted them back.  Jesus came to redeem the human race from Adam’s sin and transgression.

As we begin this message, let’s notice some reasons why Jesus came to earth:

1. Jesus came because God said He would

 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.

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,  God  prophesies that Jesus will come to earth and do something about the devil. 

2.  Jesus came to heal hurting hearts.

500 years passed between the OT and the NT   During that time there had been no Voice from God.   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 by Ceasars who considered themselves gods.   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.  For 500 years there had been No visitation from God.  No miracle.  No voice from heaven.  No prophet.  No touch from God.   

• The lame could not be healed.
• The blind and 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.  And He is here today for that Same Reason.

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

During this time of the horror of a world without God, Religion flourished.  Religion does not need God to flourish.   

                                                                                                            Jesus sets men free.   Free from laws and rules and regulations.  Free from bondage to 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 were required to obey and keep 613 separate laws and commandments and rules and regulations.

 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. 

4.  Jesus came To show us what God is like.

Joh_14:9  Jesus saith unto him… he that hath seen me hath seen the Father;  

Jesus came from heaven to earth to answer the question:  “What is God like?”  Jesus is the Perfect Revelation of God.  Jesus came to earth to reveal to you and me and all creation what God is really like.  All the world can now know what God is like. 

Jesus is the Perfect Revelation of God.   Jesus came to earth and “put a Face on God.”

5.  To deliver us from sin’s control and dominion.

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 what the devil did.  He came from heaven to earth to put away sin… once and for all.  Under the OT system, the blood of bulls and goats and sheep and lambs was only a temporary solution to the sin problem.   But Jesus came “Once for all…” and  forgives and forgets our sin forever.

6.  To give Birth to a Powerful, Overcoming, Victorious 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.

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.

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 1:1-3   In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

Col. 1:17   And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.  (Are held together)

John’s description of Jesus in the Book of Revelation:

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.

All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name!

MOST IMPORTANTLY….

Jesus not only came to earth for you, He also died on the Cross for you.  Do you know Him?  Have you received Him into your life as your Savior?  Have you called on Him to forgive your sin and save your soul?   Will you receive HIM TODAY?

Word for Today:  May 3

See what you are believing for.

The farmer wants to harvest a crop.  So he begins with seeds.  The farmer will look at the seed package. The seed package has a picture of a healthy, fully matured, producing plant on it. That is the goal the farmer is shooting for…. a healthy, fully matured, producing plant.

When he plants the little seed, he can already see in his heart what the healthy, fully matured producing plant looks like. He sees hundreds of them. They are all lined up in neat rows and they are unrestrained and unrestricted … no fungus, no bugs, no imperfections … he sees the PERFECT FINISHED product IN HIS HEART.

To increase your crop see what you sow.  See it in its COMPLETED, GOD-CREATED form. See it with your eye of faith.

“Take heed (blepo: to see) what you hear, with what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you; and to you that hear shall more be given. For he that hath (the Word) to him shall be given, and he that hath not (the Word),from him shall be taken even that which he hath … And He said, So is the kingdom of God… Mark 4:24-26.

We are told to walk by Faith (believing) and not by Sight (reasoning).

When we walk by Faith, we see with our Faith Eyes the finished product.

Just like God created it to be

Word for Today:  May 1

It’s time.

“IT is finished!” It is done. It is settled. It is established. It is accomplished. It is MINE. God says so. The Word declares it. I believe it. Therefore I will be glad and rejoice in it. I will praise Him. I will worship Him. I will thank Him. I will show Him my appreciation.  It is Done.

Now, it’s time. It’s time for you and me to move out of our complacency and comfort and begin to take back what the devil has stolen. It is time for us to be aggressive. To be on the offense. Not the defense, but the offense. If we are satisfied to remain in our comfort zone… in the place we now are, we are turning our back on God.   We are limiting the Holy One of Israel.  We are slandering God and His divine purpose and plan for us.

Are you ready?

Will you demonstrate the Power and the Glory of God?  Will you do whatever it takes?

Where do you start?  Right where you are.  When do you start?

NOW

Word for Today:  April 30

Develop an Expectancy in your heart.

See it.  Imagine it.  Think it.  Keep it before your eyes.  See it with the eyes of faith.  “See the invisible and expect the impossible.”     Moses “endured” this way.  When it seemed that nothing was ever going to happen, he “endured” as “seeing the invisible.”   He developed an expectancy in his heart.  He “saw” it before he really saw it.

By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.  Heb 11:27

Everything and all things that have ever manifested in the natural had their birth in somebody’s heart.  Somehow and some way somebody “saw it.”  Dreams come true because dreamers see the dream.   It is in the world of Faith-Seeing that Reality is created.  What you can “see” is what you can get.

God saw before He said.  When He SAW then He SAID.  He had the image in His Heart of Faith before He spoke the Creative World into existence

See it.  Say it.  Expect it.  Receive it.

Word for Today:  April 27

What God wants.

God wants His Kingdom to come in the earth.  God wants His will to be done in the earth.  God wants the same things that are happening in heaven to happen on earth.  This is the prayer that Jesus prayed in Matthew chapter 6:

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name, thy Kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven…

This is what God wants.

This is why you have a purpose in life.  This is why you can do all things through Christ.  This is the reason for the existence of the Church.  The Church is here to bring God’s Kingdom from heaven to earth.  If we are not bringing God’s Kingdom from heaven to earth we are not doing what we were born again to do.

The Christian Faith is not a salve for the guilty conscience.  The Christian Faith is not a passive religious experience to make people “feel” good.  It is a dynamic declaration of victory to the powers of darkness and a furious fight to take enemy territory.  The Christian Faith… especially the Spirit-Filled Christian faith is Warfare. We are fighting the Good fight of Faith.  The battle is the Lord’s and the Victory is ours.

Any time. Every time.  All the time.

Word for Today:  April 26

Develop an Expectancy in your heart.

See it.  Imagine it.  Think it.  Keep it before your eyes.  See it with the eyes of faith.  “See the invisible and expect the impossible.”     Moses “endured” this way.  When it seemed that nothing was ever going to happen, he “endured” as “seeing the invisible.”   He developed an expectancy in his heart.  He “saw” it before he really saw it.

By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.  Heb 11:27

Everything and all things that have ever manifested in the natural had their birth in somebody’s heart.  Somehow and some way somebody “saw it.”  Dreams come true because dreamers see the dream.   It is in the world of Faith-Seeing that Reality is created.  What you can “see” is what you can get.

God saw before He said.  When He SAW then He SAID.  He had the image in His Heart of Faith before He spoke the Creative World into existence

See it.  Say it.  Expect it.  Receive it.

Word for Today:  April 25

My most challenging job is to convince people to believe what God says.

Most are so influenced by what is happening in the world they are oblivious to what the potential is within them.  God tells us some awesome stuff.  Stuff that is truly hard to believe.  Since it is easier to disbelieve than to believe, most are held captive by their unbelief.  No faith.  No confidence in God.  Convincing the Body of Christ to REALLY BELIEVE is our greatest challenge.  However, it is the same problem that folks have had throughout the history.  Isaiah said:

Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?   Isa. 53:

We must come to the place of BELIEVEING what the WORD SAYS instead of what the WORLD SAYS.  Some of the things the WORD SAYS are so “unreasonable” and so “radical” and so “impossible” that it is a real chore to believe them.  It is probably not what we have been taught in our Religious Environment.  It is probably not what is considered “traditional” or even “normal” in the Christian Walk.

Vance Havner once said concerning the Church:    “We have been subnormal so long, that once we become normal, folks will think we are abnormal…”

Man’s “religion” will keep you in bondage.  It will put burdens on you that God never intended for you to bear.  It will ultimately kill you.  Likewise, unchanging Religious Tradition will keep you in bondage.  A refusal to change, simply because you have “always” been this way or have “always” done it like this is dangerous.  It limits the ability for one to receive fresh revelation.  Organized, Mechanized, Man-Managed, church programs will sap your strength, wear you out, do you in and leave you empty.

Be unreasonable.   Believe God.

Word for Today:  April 24

Life at its BEST.

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. John 10:10

“Life” in this verse is the word “Zoe,” a Greek term that describes a quality of life, not a quantity, but a quality of life.  It is the word that describes the very same kind of life that God has.  Jesus is saying here, “I have come that you might have life and that life will be the same kind of life that I have and the same kind of life that God has… ”

This is the abundant life that Jesus has given to you and to me.  It is not simply “living and breathing” or “natural, physical” life, but it is the same quality of life that God has.  The same type of Life God has.  It is the “God Kind” of life.

Can you imagine God being worried?  Can you imagine God being afraid?  Can you imagine God being sick?  Can you imagine God being in a bad mood?  Or having a “bad hair day?”  Can you imagine God being poor?   Can you see God being depressed or stressed?  Or sad, or melancholy or “blue?”

God is not saving up for a rainy day.  God is not getting ready to go to the hospital.  God is not tired out or “wore” out… God is not planning on anything bad happening to Him.  He never has and He never will.  God is just fine.

If God is OK then you are OK.

Regardless

Word for Today:  April 21

Seize the opportunity you have TODAY.

Jesus was leaving Jericho headed for Jerusalem.  He was on His way to die and He would never again pass that way.  Blind Bartimaeus did not know that, but it was still the truth.  Who knows when our last opportunity will come?  Who can tell when our Day of Visitation will expire?

If all the blind and halt and lame had known that Jesus would never pass that way again, they would have lined the streets and pressed in and mobbed Jesus as they sought for their miracle.

I wonder how many have missed their miracle because they ignored a present day opportunity.  I believe that God has prepared this brief message just for you.   And He has purposed that you would read and heed it today.

Some need forgiveness.  Some need healing.  Some need deliverance from sin.  Some need the Baptism in the Holy Spirit.  Some need fellowship with other Believers.  Some need to get to a place where they can hear from God.  Some need a miracle to deliver them from a desperate situation.

Jesus is passing your way.   Right now. I want to believe He will pass your way again, but I have no guarantee of it.  Nor do you.  Don’t be like the hundreds that missed Jesus while He journeyed through their city.

 Seek ye the Lord while He may be found… call ye upon Him while He is near…  Isa 55:6

That is NOW

Word for Today:  April 20

Speak to your mountain.

For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith…  Mark 11:23.

Your mountain may be your circumstances.  Your situation.  Your sickness.  Your marriage.  Your finances.  Your children.  Your job.  God has equipped you so that you can actually talk to your problems in Jesus’ Name and when you do so in faith, they must obey your command.  Jesus went around talking to things that had no ears.  He talked to a storm.  He talked to a fig tree.  He talked to certain sicknesses and diseases.  He called them by name.  He even talked to dead corpses.   He set the precedent and paid the price so that you and I can do what He did and expect the same results that He got.

demons, devils and bad situations are subject to your “saying.”  Whatever you say to them in Jesus’ Name they must do.  Every knee must bow to the majesty and might of that Name.

There is absolutely no reason for anyone to “feel sorry” for believers who are in trouble.   Do you know why?   Because if they are in trouble, more than likely, they do not know the Truth or have ignored the Truth or disobeyed the Truth.

There is no such thing as “I can’t” in the life of a Spirit Filled, Faith Filled, turned on Believer.  God expects you to take advantage of what Jesus has done for you through His suffering and sacrifice on the Cross.  Have you?  Are you?  Will you?

Your mountain will move over and make room for the Will of God in your life.

If you speak to it