It's Here Now!
I wonder how many of you are constantly sitting around waiting for God to do something new in your life. I think I've been that way since I became a committed Christian. I'm sure the Church is partly to blame. We always hear that God's going to show up, God's going to do something, or God's going to change our situation. I'm not saying those things aren't true, but I believe God has showed me that I need a fundamental mindset change in this area. If you've read these posts at all you know that we are looking for mental renovation. Mental renovation is key to personal transformation which is key to living out God's perfect will for our lives (Romans 12:2). And on this New Year's Day, I've got a mindset change for you that will truly help you start fresh.
I'm not going to bore you with more of my personal history, but basically from birth people have said God is going to do great things in my life. He has, but I think these well-meaning people meant more visible or ministry-related things. When I committed my life to Christ eight years ago, I did make some important changes, but I've always been waiting for God to make some drastic changes or somehow radically change my situation. I guess I thought one day I would wake up and really be an adult in some high powered job or world wide ministry. I would be spiritually mature in every area and always make the right decisions. God would be using me continually to impact the world as I experienced the fullness of His blessings. I daydream about this and as I've gotten older it still seems just as far away.
But the other day, while in fellowship with the Holy Spirit, God spoke these words to my spirit, "It's here now." I am going to say more about this, but let me just say that I believe God is saying those same words to you now too. It can be your "now" time too. God wasn't telling me that everything I've been expecting was going to happen in an instant, God doesn't work that way. God was showing me I have a fundamental problem with my thinking and with my faith. And if you have been constantly looking to the future like I was, you are probably having the same problems.
Faith is now. You need to understand that to understand God's words to me "it's here now." It took me a long time to grasp this concept but let me try to show you this fundamental premise of faith. You see, faith is not hoping that something will come to pass. That's what most people think faith is, but actually that is nothing more than hope. (Even the Biblical definition of "hope" is "confident expectation" which is stronger than our natural word "hope" which basically implies that you want something to happen but don't know if it will.) Biblical faith is believing that something is so now. I have faith that God is alive in Heaven now. I have faith that I am saved now. I have faith that I am righteous before God because of Jesus' sacrifice now. I hope (confidently expect) to see God in the future. But I have faith that I am already His child now.
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1) We have faith now. We confidently expect (hope for) certain things to come to pass, but we (in the form of faith) have the substance of those things now. We can't see certain things (like Christ on His Throne) but our faith is the evidence of those things. We have the faith now. I don't have the thing, but I have the faith, so for me the thing is reality now.
Paul writes about Abraham using faith this way in Romans 4. "As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations, before Him (God) who he (Abraham) believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were." This shows how God uses faith. God calls things that be not as though they were. Why does this apply to Abraham? God named him Abraham, which means "father of a multitude" before Abraham had any children. God was calling Abraham a father long before Abraham was a father. And as Romans 4 shows us, Abraham was strong in faith and believed that which was spoken.
Jesus explains this principle clearly. "Have faith in God . . .Therefore I say unto you, what things soever you desire, when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them." (Mark 11:22-24) You need to see that in the original Greek the word "in" doesn't appear. The word "in" appears in many other places as a word of location or position, but not here. So it doesn't really say to have faith "in God," it says to have the faith of God, or God's kind of faith. If you read the King James Version then you may see a footnote stating just that. So this is the God kind of faith. You pray for something, you believe you receive it, then you have it. Your faith is the substance of what you are hoping for. You have it now by faith. Your faith brings it to you.
And you must remember that faith is not just a state of mind or a thing to be held, faith is a force. Faith is the most powerful force in the universe. Faith is how God created the universe (Hebrews 11:3). Faith is the force that brings God's promises into the natural world. If I have faith for physical healing, for example, I may still feel bad this second, but I already possess the healing by faith, and my faith will cause my healing to manifest. It may sound crazy, but that's exactly how it works.
So I can basically say that in all my thoughts about my future I wasn't using my faith correctly, or at all. It's time I use my faith correctly over my life. Whereas I was hoping to one day be in the right job and the right place and be the right kind of person, that wasn't getting me anywhere. Using my faith, on the other hand, will ultimately bring me exactly where I need to go.
So think of everything you are hoping for in your Christian life. Think of God's promises you want to manifest. Think of the prophecies over you and the dreams God has give you. Now say it with me, "In Jesus' Name, they are all here now." Don't just say it once. Let it sink in. We have to build our faith. Say it over and over. Those words haven't left my spirit in two weeks now. Keep saying them, build your faith, get excited.
IT'S HERE NOW! I'm spiritually mature now. I exercise and eat right now. I'm full of God's wisdom now. The windows of Heaven are open over me now. I'm a blessing to God's kingdom now. I'm walking in the ministry God has for me now. My family is walking in divine health now. My family and friends are all saved now. Glory to God!!!!!
Get your verses out. Get your confession out. Begin confessing that everything is here now. It's time we activate our faith forces to bring God's promises to our reality. God's not keeping them from us. Just read the Gospels man, Jesus held nothing back from those with faith. I admit my faith failures. Now admit yours and let's get going. IT'S HERE NOW! I may not see everything yet, but my faith is in the right place now and I'm ready to receive.
Let me end by discussing this principle in terms of your personal spiritual growth because I feel God reminding me about this. Remember that we are supposed to spiritually mature and grow up into Christ in all things (Ephesians 4:15). Chances are most of you are like me and you wish you were better in some areas. Well that is here now too!
My father tells a story about my uncle that God reminded me of when considering all these issues. They were CPA's together and they both smoked. They had tried to quit many times with no success. One day to my father's astonishment my uncle had suddenly quit cold turkey. He asked my uncle the secret to his success and my uncle answered, "I had to see myself as a non-smoker."
My dad probably told that story 100 times and I'm just getting it. (It's like that when God brings something back to you.) There is powerful revelation there that I am just glimpsing now. I see myself as a fully matured Christian. Say that to yourself right now. If you can build that inner image of yourself in your mind and in your heart, you will begin to walk in that image. If I see myself as a sloth or a glutton, I'm going to act like one. If I see myself as a powerful man of God who lives for God's Kingdom, then that's who I will be. I can have faith in who I am (in Christ) right now. In fact, God sees me in Christ now too, but that's another writing. I see myself in Christ. I see myself mature and conformed to His image. My spiritual maturity is here now.
I love you and I pray that 2013 is the year you truly see the manifestation of all God's promises in your life. They belong to us now because of Jesus' sacrifice for us. The only thing blocking them is our lack of knowledge and lack of faith. Use your faith correctly, confess God's promises and believe that you receive them now. You will surely have them. IT'S HERE NOW!
I'm not going to bore you with more of my personal history, but basically from birth people have said God is going to do great things in my life. He has, but I think these well-meaning people meant more visible or ministry-related things. When I committed my life to Christ eight years ago, I did make some important changes, but I've always been waiting for God to make some drastic changes or somehow radically change my situation. I guess I thought one day I would wake up and really be an adult in some high powered job or world wide ministry. I would be spiritually mature in every area and always make the right decisions. God would be using me continually to impact the world as I experienced the fullness of His blessings. I daydream about this and as I've gotten older it still seems just as far away.
But the other day, while in fellowship with the Holy Spirit, God spoke these words to my spirit, "It's here now." I am going to say more about this, but let me just say that I believe God is saying those same words to you now too. It can be your "now" time too. God wasn't telling me that everything I've been expecting was going to happen in an instant, God doesn't work that way. God was showing me I have a fundamental problem with my thinking and with my faith. And if you have been constantly looking to the future like I was, you are probably having the same problems.
Faith is now. You need to understand that to understand God's words to me "it's here now." It took me a long time to grasp this concept but let me try to show you this fundamental premise of faith. You see, faith is not hoping that something will come to pass. That's what most people think faith is, but actually that is nothing more than hope. (Even the Biblical definition of "hope" is "confident expectation" which is stronger than our natural word "hope" which basically implies that you want something to happen but don't know if it will.) Biblical faith is believing that something is so now. I have faith that God is alive in Heaven now. I have faith that I am saved now. I have faith that I am righteous before God because of Jesus' sacrifice now. I hope (confidently expect) to see God in the future. But I have faith that I am already His child now.
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1) We have faith now. We confidently expect (hope for) certain things to come to pass, but we (in the form of faith) have the substance of those things now. We can't see certain things (like Christ on His Throne) but our faith is the evidence of those things. We have the faith now. I don't have the thing, but I have the faith, so for me the thing is reality now.
Paul writes about Abraham using faith this way in Romans 4. "As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations, before Him (God) who he (Abraham) believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were." This shows how God uses faith. God calls things that be not as though they were. Why does this apply to Abraham? God named him Abraham, which means "father of a multitude" before Abraham had any children. God was calling Abraham a father long before Abraham was a father. And as Romans 4 shows us, Abraham was strong in faith and believed that which was spoken.
Jesus explains this principle clearly. "Have faith in God . . .Therefore I say unto you, what things soever you desire, when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them." (Mark 11:22-24) You need to see that in the original Greek the word "in" doesn't appear. The word "in" appears in many other places as a word of location or position, but not here. So it doesn't really say to have faith "in God," it says to have the faith of God, or God's kind of faith. If you read the King James Version then you may see a footnote stating just that. So this is the God kind of faith. You pray for something, you believe you receive it, then you have it. Your faith is the substance of what you are hoping for. You have it now by faith. Your faith brings it to you.
And you must remember that faith is not just a state of mind or a thing to be held, faith is a force. Faith is the most powerful force in the universe. Faith is how God created the universe (Hebrews 11:3). Faith is the force that brings God's promises into the natural world. If I have faith for physical healing, for example, I may still feel bad this second, but I already possess the healing by faith, and my faith will cause my healing to manifest. It may sound crazy, but that's exactly how it works.
So I can basically say that in all my thoughts about my future I wasn't using my faith correctly, or at all. It's time I use my faith correctly over my life. Whereas I was hoping to one day be in the right job and the right place and be the right kind of person, that wasn't getting me anywhere. Using my faith, on the other hand, will ultimately bring me exactly where I need to go.
So think of everything you are hoping for in your Christian life. Think of God's promises you want to manifest. Think of the prophecies over you and the dreams God has give you. Now say it with me, "In Jesus' Name, they are all here now." Don't just say it once. Let it sink in. We have to build our faith. Say it over and over. Those words haven't left my spirit in two weeks now. Keep saying them, build your faith, get excited.
IT'S HERE NOW! I'm spiritually mature now. I exercise and eat right now. I'm full of God's wisdom now. The windows of Heaven are open over me now. I'm a blessing to God's kingdom now. I'm walking in the ministry God has for me now. My family is walking in divine health now. My family and friends are all saved now. Glory to God!!!!!
Get your verses out. Get your confession out. Begin confessing that everything is here now. It's time we activate our faith forces to bring God's promises to our reality. God's not keeping them from us. Just read the Gospels man, Jesus held nothing back from those with faith. I admit my faith failures. Now admit yours and let's get going. IT'S HERE NOW! I may not see everything yet, but my faith is in the right place now and I'm ready to receive.
Let me end by discussing this principle in terms of your personal spiritual growth because I feel God reminding me about this. Remember that we are supposed to spiritually mature and grow up into Christ in all things (Ephesians 4:15). Chances are most of you are like me and you wish you were better in some areas. Well that is here now too!
My father tells a story about my uncle that God reminded me of when considering all these issues. They were CPA's together and they both smoked. They had tried to quit many times with no success. One day to my father's astonishment my uncle had suddenly quit cold turkey. He asked my uncle the secret to his success and my uncle answered, "I had to see myself as a non-smoker."
My dad probably told that story 100 times and I'm just getting it. (It's like that when God brings something back to you.) There is powerful revelation there that I am just glimpsing now. I see myself as a fully matured Christian. Say that to yourself right now. If you can build that inner image of yourself in your mind and in your heart, you will begin to walk in that image. If I see myself as a sloth or a glutton, I'm going to act like one. If I see myself as a powerful man of God who lives for God's Kingdom, then that's who I will be. I can have faith in who I am (in Christ) right now. In fact, God sees me in Christ now too, but that's another writing. I see myself in Christ. I see myself mature and conformed to His image. My spiritual maturity is here now.
I love you and I pray that 2013 is the year you truly see the manifestation of all God's promises in your life. They belong to us now because of Jesus' sacrifice for us. The only thing blocking them is our lack of knowledge and lack of faith. Use your faith correctly, confess God's promises and believe that you receive them now. You will surely have them. IT'S HERE NOW!
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