Knowing Jesus vs. Understanding Principles

Many may grasp a strong understanding of kingdom principles. They may know the power of the name of Jesus. Even the demons understand the power of His Name. But understanding Jesus and kingdom principles is not the same as knowing Jesus. To those who understand but do not know, He will say, “Depart.”

How do we know Jesus? We worship Him, declaring His goodness. Worshipping a God who we believe chooses to do good and bad in the name of sovereignty is not Jesus. The “Gospel” is translated: the too good to be true news. Believe it or not, God is good all the time despite what some people think. He doesn’t shift with our opinions and isn’t moved by our theology.

Another way we can know Jesus is by love. Without Jesus, we don’t know love. Love is a cycle of loving others as you love yourself. Unhindered, unselfish, persistent, unconditional love. Jesus is the source of love that we tap into. From that love, power flows out. Out of our love for Jesus we are quick to receive what He has for us.

What if God rejected our best? How insulting! We can be so quick to insult the Lord by refusing to accept, whether by stubbornness, shame, religion, or ungodly beliefs, the gifts that God has for those who love Him. Be thankful, receive, and when you feel nothing but disgust with personal encounters with others and discomfort in your circumstance, go back to love. Love is more than feeling and emotion. It is beyond your senses. Love is Jesus. Against all odds, love never fails.

In the Soup

The finished work of the cross did not manifest on the day of Jesus’ death, nor did it come into fruition on the day of His resurrection. The finished work launched on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came. Jesus said it was expedient for Him to leave so that He could send what the Father promised. Enter Holy Spirit. He could not have sent Holy Spirit without His death and resurrection.

To have a God who is so slow to anger, we can be so quick to insult Him by substituting His Holy Spirit with programs, events, strategies, or seeker friendly methods for growing His church. In this place of comfort, religion, and man made authenticity, the church has been receiving its affirmation from man rather than from God.

“Why do I need the gifts?” some may ask.

To serve people and to show them that Jesus loves them.

“I don’t need supernatural healing. There’s medicine for that. I don’t need to speak in tongues. God can hear my prayers in my language.”

As true as that may be, it is the ministry of a believer to speak with new tongues and to heal the sick. We cannot limit God to our state of natural because when we do, we lose a generation to hell. The baptism of the Holy Spirit has nothing to do with your salvation, but it may have everything to do with someone else’s.

What happens when you’re in the soup? In trouble? When there are no natural means necessary and it’s either going to take a miracle or bust. Many cross a situation of this kind, leaving their true character exposed. What is revealed is often very ugly as ungodly beliefs make their way to the surface. Ungodly beliefs were not produced by these events, but they were revealed. This is why we must build ourselves up in our most holy faith by praying in the Holy Spirit, keeping ourselves in the love of God.

One man, Jason Westerfield, founder of Kingdom Reality Ministries in New Haven, CT, is a believer who loves Jesus with His whole being. He is married with three children, two sons and a daughter. On his oldest son’s fifth birthday, his youngest son drowned. It was a time where flesh cannot overcome Spirit, where doubt cannot overtake faith, and where death cannot steal life. An emotional time of speaking life, praying in the Spirit, and believing the Word of God says that we, as sons and daughters of God, can raise the dead with the authority of Jesus Christ. His son was raised from the dead. When the unexpected hits, we are to be ready in season and out of season. We need to be equipped to believe that nothing is impossible with God. We do this by living a Spirit-filled life where know the Word of God, believe it’s Truth, train our ears to listen to God, pray in tongues, and respond to what He says.

Think about this. Jesus' disciple Luke was a doctor. How many times did Jesus look at Luke and say, "What do you think this guy's condition is? Do you think you can sow him up? What kind of treatment does he need?" Of course not! Jesus gave Luke power and authority to heal all sicknesses and to cast out demons! Not by natural means but by imparting that supernatural power and later by baptizing Luke in the Holy Spirit! Luke not only wrote the "Gospel of Luke" but also the Book of Acts! God's Supernatural > Natural and Luke knew it.

Relationships, Marriage, and Simple Advice

Everybody wants companionship. Those who deny it are in denial of a God given desire. Adam was made in the image of God. Then Eve hit the scene. When they became one flesh, they had returned to the full image of God. We too have a desire to return to the full image of God by becoming one with our spouse. In this (different) blog, I am going to get to the heart of the matter and answer some questions that have kept many humans awake at night.

Is there such a thing as “the one”? Yes. His name is Jesus. In context to this topic, outside of marriage, I don’t believe so. When you enter into a marriage covenant, then, yes, that person is the only one. Sound strange? Maybe. But once you're in it, you're in it. There is no plan B. Make sure you love the person and understand this bit of revelation: You will spend the rest of your life with them and must reconcile your differences-oh my!

Too many couples are miserable in their first year of marriage. Here are some things to help avoid misery.

Move out of your parents’ house. Husbands, sacrifice some things you love in order to spend more time with your wife. Wives, leave the parents out of the picture so your husband can get to know you. Fly far, far away from the nest if that’s what it takes.

Budget effectively. There’s no formula to this but wisdom is required in order to budget successfully. As you budget, give your first fruits, tithes and offerings unto God. He will multiply it back.

Don’t leave the other person behind. If you travel, or have a ministry, do it together. Recognize, nurture, protect, defend, and charge the call of God on your spouse’s life if it’s the death of you. Too many ministers travel abroad as half a person.

Date and rest together. Do not ware yourselves out, even if it is doing the Lord’s work. Set an example for younger generations to see that you cannot exhaust yourself with ministry.

Keeli and I hosted the worship team at our house every Tuesday night. Being a college student means late nights, no curfew, and countless energy. Late one worship night, I approached my friend and said,

“When I married Keeli, certain things changed. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

I didn’t say it out of rudeness but out of love. Not just love for my wife, but for the students. They will have spouse of their own one day and need to see a husband set a good example of purposing to spend time with his wife. Such standards get ingrained and woven into their desires for good mates. Ever since, our friend has kept a close eye on the clock and, before the hour gets too late, he’ll begin packing everyone’s instruments and gear. With everyone’s attention, he cheerfully reminds them,

“When Keeli and Jonathan got married, things changed. It’s time for us to go!”

I have heard the tired tale of wanting to stay single so that one day they can be martyred for the Lord. While this can spark a new topic on the purposes of God and His desire for us to have life in abundance, long and fruitful, He said it was not good for man to be alone.

An instant deposit of favor is given to a man who finds a wife. A man who finds a wife finds a good thing. Since being married, greater opportunities and more open doors have been presented before us. It’s favor from Jesus!

In closing, one item that I want to be addressed is mixing the prophetic and relationships. I have seen the prophetic abused too often when dealing with relationships. The root of this is idolatry. When people pray and see that special person’s face they tend to believe the Lord is speaking to them. It can end in heartache when the discovery is made that the person does not feel the same way. Remember, love between two people is what it is… between two people. Effective love is not a one way street. Love towards one person that is not returned hurts and God’s heart is for ours not to be broken.

God loves marriage and we want to see fruitful marriages that multiply the kingdom of God around the world!

Transformation > Revival

Revival has a starting point and a stopping point. Transformation doesn't fall into the old form. I don't want to say we are looking for transformation. The kingdom of heaven does not come with close observation. Many expect a "move" of God, inferring that the responsibility is no longer ours, as believers. However, God has reconciled us back to the place where dominion is ours on the earth, to multiply what is godly and subdue what is evil. We are not looking for transformation... Rather, we are bringing transformation with Holy Spirit.

Let's go to square one for a moment. What does the transformation we are bringing supposed to look like? The answer: Heaven on earth. Heaven isn't gained by good sermons, programs, events, or cover dishes. Heaven is Jesus and Jesus is love. His love is transformation... totally supernatural, yet somehow tangible; tangible, yet supernatural. Transformation is a cycle of Christ’s love.

The Lord operates in cycles. The greatest commandment is a cycle. Love God. This is the source of all love because God is love. Then love your neighbors as yourself. It’s impossible to accomplish one without the other. You can’t give away what you don’t have. Edify yourself (by praying in tongues) and edify others (by prophesying). Cycles don’t end.

Transformation is heaven on earth, where the sick are healed, the dead are raised, people are liberated from the trauma of a past they don’t wish to remember, and where they are loved unconditionally with the everlasting, powerful love of Jesus.

It Doesn't Make Sense!

"It doesn't make sense!"

These famous last words haunt skeptics and excite believers! The human mind cannot contain God, nor can we understand why He does what He does. We were given the option to know Him, not understand Him. He cannot be confined to a book, restricted by our theology, or held at arm’s length from people. No matter how advanced we believe our understanding is of God, He seems to take pleasure in leaving us speechless by appearing outside of the box we thought we had Him trapped in.

There would be nights that I would wait on the Lord. His response would often come in gold dust. As I would retract my hands, I would see gold sparkling across them. I, then, would begin to cry and wonder, “Why is God mindful of me?” Then I begin to ask, “Why gold dust? It doesn’t make sense!” As if God was worried about being too materialistic by giving gold. Mark it as a sign and a wonder to show His tangible love.

There have been three times my wife and I have seen the Lord supernaturally put arches in flat feet. In one meeting where this happened, one lady had cancer. She wasn’t healed of the cancer but she wasn’t resentful that her friend received a healthy set of supernatural arches in her feet. She rejoiced with her friend! Our response to God, why He does what He does, and His timing should never be in anger. He isn’t second guessing what He does or who He is, even if we react bitterly towards Him.

Why does He shower people with gold dust? Why did He put arches in our friend’s feet in a meeting where someone else had cancer? Nobody can say why. It doesn’t make sense… to us! There’s no formula to God. He is moved by faith, hope, and love because He is faith, hope, and love.

Healing Prayer Template

We have access to multitudes through social media, email and video chatting. While there are benefits and backfires to these technological interactions, we can communicate the same powerful love of God to a virtual world in which these multitudes have settled. As communication methods are on the rise, mediums of ministering, encouraging, edifying, and releasing the kingdom are now at our fingertips.

I have seen emails come in the system asking for prayer for those who are in critical condition. I typed a prayer for healing in response. The next day, the first email I read was uncharacteristically joyful and began with: GOD IS A MIRACLE GOD! Both men were healed and doctors were stunned, baffled, and in awe of the sudden recovery!

Without faith, it is impossible to please God. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word. God's Word is Spirit and can bend reality to conform to His perfect will, so that all men can know salvation (Greek: sozo; saved, healed, and delivered). These New Covenant rights reflect the completed work of the cross. Sins, like our sicknesses, have been forgiven, as our bodies have been healed. All bought, once and once for all, by the Blood of Jesus: the God-man!

Below is a template for a prayer of healing you can email or message those who are sick. There is no formula... Just faith! Feel free to adjust for personal prayer, like the name of the victim of infirmity and the condition of which they suffer. Whenever Jesus commissioned someone to preach the gospel, He commanded them to heal the sick. You are called to do the same out of love!

Healing Prayer Template

Dear Lord Jesus,

We thank you that You are the Word (John 1:1-5, 14) and You are the same yesterday, today, and forevermore (Hebrews 13:8). You didn’t do anything without seeing the Father do it first (John 5:19-20), and, by that, you knew the kingdom and will of God. You demonstrated that kingdom by healing all those that were sick (Matthew4:23-25, 15:30-31, Acts 10:38). You commissioned Your disciples to do as You did (Matthew 10:7-8, Mark 16:15-20, John 14:12). As You endured the cross, You not only took our sins, but by Your stripes we were healed (Isaiah 53:4-5, I Peter 2:24).

Your unchanging Word says that the prayer of faith shall save the sick (James 5:15) and that when two agree on earth concerning anything we ask, the Father in heaven will do it (Matthew 18:19).

We agree for complete healing in Jesus’ name! We command the body to come into perfect alignment just as you created it to be and we bind all sickness and pain in the name of Jesus Christ (Matthew 18:18).

You established these promises in the Word. We thank you for complete healing and the testimony to follow! We thank you for the New Covenant that you have given Your people through the finished work of the cross and Your resurrection! We thank you that your kingdom is empty of sickness, infirmities, diseases, and illness. We thank you Your kingdom is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17). You came to give life and life in abundance (John 10:10).

Just as you said, “It is finished,” we receive the complete work by faith in Jesus’ name-

Amen