By Every Word

Ham’s Sin

Oct 152010

I hope this short lesson will help those with a passion for studying God’s word identify some techniques I use when studying. Let’s look at this.

Noah had 3 sons- Shem, Ham and Japheth. In chapter 9 of Genesis, Ham had committed a sin. This sin caused Noah to be so angry that one of Ham’s seeds, Canaan, was cursed… the entire lineage of people from the seed of Canaan. What was Ham’s sin?

Genesis 9: 18-29
18. And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan.
19. These are the three sons of Noah: and of them was the whole earth overspread.
20. And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
21. And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
22. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
23. And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness.
24. And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him.
25. And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.
26. And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
27. God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
28. And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years.
29. And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years: and he died.
KJV

First off, in verse 18 there is something significant.
“18. And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan.”

Noah had three sons and Noah’s three sons each had children. So what made Ham’s seed significant enough to mention. A quick look at chapter 10 will reveal that this was not Ham’s only son…

Genesis 10:6
6. And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan.
KJV

We never want to just read over something so quickly in the bible and disregard anything as just “flavor text” or filler- everything written actually means something. So why if Ham had 4 sons is Canaan mentioned in verse 18? Why is this seed significant?

Look at verse 22
“22. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.”

In this verse Ham is, again, identified specifically as the father of Canaan. So we need to dig a little deeper with this text at this point and find out what is going on here. What does this verse mean by “saw the nakedness of his father“? By reading verses 20-21,

20. And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
21. And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.

-we could easily assume this was talking about Noah being naked and move on- but that would not explain the anger of his father and the cursing of an entire seed. There is something missing…

Well something we often overlook, especially those of us who live in the western world, is that when a man and a woman get married they become one flesh. They are no longer two, but one the bible says. So we overlook the fact that Noah had three sons and therefore had to have a wife to bear him these children. Sometimes you may see on an announcement about, or a letter to a married couple- addressed as “Mr. and Mrs. John Doe”. We know because they are married that this includes John Doe’s wife even though her name is not mentioned. When in verse 21 it says “and he was uncovered within his tent” this is referring to Noah’s wife.

Now back to verse 22- what does “saw the nakedness of his father” mean? Well a quick trip through the book of Leviticus will open up revelation to us on this…

Leviticus 20:11
11. And the man that lieth with his father’s wife hath uncovered his father’s nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.
KJV

Whoa! Now Noah’s anger is definitely understandable! Now let’s seal this fact.

25. And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.

I like the term used in the NASB which helps us to really understand who Canaan’s brethren are.

25. So he said, Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants He shall be to his brothers.
NASB

Well we know that Ham is Canaan’s father, so who are Canaan’s brothers? well… read on…

26. And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
27. God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.

Wait a minute… Canaan shall be the servant of Shem and Japheth- so Shem and Japheth are his brothers… but that’s Ham’s brothers. So how can Canaan have the same brothers as his father? Only if Canaan’s mother is the mother of Shem and Japheth.

And there you have it. Canaan was a seed that was not supposed to be. The land should have been inhabited by the three sons of Noah, but because of Ham’s sin a fourth was added that would cause much issue for Abraham’s seed that was unnecessary. The promised land was the land of Canaan, that Abraham was sent into, which is where the descendants of Canaan dwelt. Canaan’s curse was so important to identify, that Abraham gave important instruction to his son Isaac not to take a wife of the children of Canaan- as did Isaac give instruction of this to Jacob. Esau in his rebellion to his father, took wives of this lineage from Canaan through Ishmael.

It never pays to break God’s laws- it only makes things harder. God has given us specific instruction about life- and it’s all for our good. He is the manufacturer of all creation and knows what is best for His design.

Praise God for His instruction, I will delight myself in His laws and in Him will I trust and obey!

-For the Kingdom!

It Is Good

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Oct 072010

Genesis 1:1-2
1. In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
2. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
KJV

Genesis 1:9-12
9. And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
10. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
11. And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
12. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
KJV

In these few short verses we see the beginning of creation by God. We see God’s intentions for the earth and His creation. But something that I notice that is comforting to my spirit… when God starts a work in something He doesn’t quit until “it is good”. His desire is to conform us to the image of His son, Jesus. Anything the Lord has under His responsibility, He takes care of it and nurtures it, until “it is good”.

But if we resist, if we reject, if we disobey- then we’re not His, and we’re like the mulberry tree that didn’t bear fruit… and we all know what He said to the mulberry tree- “Be withered away.”

-For The Kingdom!

Order Gives Fulfillment

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Sep 202010

Alright, so here is a very well known scripture- but one we must remind our self of constantly.

1 Corinthians 14:40
Let all things be done decently and in order.
KJV

How many successful businesses do you know of that are in complete disorder when it comes to their bookkeeping, inventory, staffing, tax filing or other important areas. I’m not talking about “John’s Peaches” on the side of some random road. I’m talking about a proven business that has went through the ups and downs of the market and has sustained profitable results through these trying times. Probably zero or very few… and of the few they are most likely borderline bankrupt. It just doesn’t happen.

One of the greatest feelings in life is going to work or your place of business and fulfilling a needed duty for which you receive compensation in the form of green paper. That little green paper is earned for providing a service or skill that benefited others. When at work most of us enjoy that feeling of doing something important while earning those monetary notes- But there is also something we may not realize or be constantly aware of while doing our jobs that is a reward in and of itself, and that is the order of our environment. We often don’t give much thought at work about where to find a pen, pad of paper, find a proper place to work on a laptop, or other trivial necessity. We need a pen, it’s in the desk- need a pad of paper, on the left side of the desk… For some reason it just isn’t as smooth at home all the time. I don’t know how many times I have found myself yelling to my wife in desperation “Where’s a pen!?! I need a pen !?! …oh thanks… Where something to write on?!?”

I cannot always control where things are in the house, as there is usually more than one hand on them in any given day, but something far more important I can control is my time. God is a God of order and we being His creation in His image should realize we need to act in like manner. If we’re His children, why do we think we can go without having order in our life and expect successful results? I mean… He’s GOD! He does everything decently and in order. He does everything in proper time. Even Jesus came “when the time had fully come”.

Just so there is no confusion, I am not talking about scheduling every minute of a service down to the final 2 minute warning with prayer before the buzzer and we all leave and go eat chicken. No, no, no- that’s programming God out of our service and that’s another writing for another day.

But God does expect us to make the best use of our time as His citizens.

Hebrews 9:27
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
KJV

Judging from this scripture, I have so much time on earth while I am in this body. I know I have purpose to fulfill and I need to be about my work and getting things done. I don’t have a “heavenly slot machine” by which I can win life tokens for extra years, I don’t have a pause button for life, and God doesn’t plan on rewinding what has passed just so I can get a do-over for time wasted. So I have to do the best with what I have. But how many times do we come home from our orderly jobs, with our tightly knit agendas that use every ounce of time to its fullest, only to sit down on the couch and think about all the things we need to get done but become tired just thinking about it? Uncompleted tasks, projects, potential ideas keep piling up… but the only thing we succeed at is FAILING TO ACT! Sometimes we try, but we start one thing only to get scatter brained while thinking about the other things we need to do… and we often go to bed thinking “I just can’t get caught up around here.”

Well remember who you are- you were made in His image AND in His likeness. It is not natural for you to be disorderly. You cannot run a company like this, so why do you think you can get positive results in your life without order? I had someone recently tell me “I just can’t find time to read… I’m too busy” The reason we can’t find time to read is the same reason we can’t find time to pray, we don’t make time. We have to appoint times and bring order to our life. Prayer is the most important thing a citizen of the kingdom can do each day… yet it is often neglected… and we wonder where is God and why can I not get anything done. Because your life is out of order.

King David was bringing the Ark of the Covenant to his place and decided to have it brought on a cart, which was not the way God had told them to transport it. When the ark began to fall, Uzza tried to stop it and touched the ark and he died. After a few months of leaving the ark at Obededom’s, David acted differently in his approach to this task…

1 Chronicles 15: 12-13
12) And said unto them, Ye are the chief of the fathers of the Levites: sanctify yourselves, both ye and your brethren, that ye may bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel unto the place that I have prepared for it.
13) For because ye did it not at the first, the LORD our God made a breach upon us, for that we sought him not after the due order.
KJV

Sometimes God will allow affliction to come on you, because it’s the only way to get His stubborn children in line with His plan. So prayer is a daily necessity in bringing complete satisfactory order to our day. Notice I did not say just “order” but “satisfactory order”. That’s because you may get results because of a well structured plan, but you’ll be missing a key component to your personal satisfaction and any results can only be sustained temporarily with a “no prayer agenda”. And yes, you need to assign times for prayer. I love God with all my heart and have seen great and mighty things, but I have yet to have the Holy Spirit in the form of a cloud pick me up out of my bed, float me out of my room to a solitary place, wake me up gently and say “Please pray…” I have times He gets my attention but the majority of the time it is a discipline… and one we definitely need to work on.

So make time be what you want it to be, grab a hold of it and bring order to it. Assign tasks to your morning and evening and you will see great rewarding results and feel accomplished at the end of the day. I am convinced that the primary reason for this feeling of accomplishment is because you are in right standing with the kingdom and in the King’s favor when you dominate your life. (Genesis 1:26). You’re acting just like your Daddy… in Heaven.

Start today, get a pad of paper and assign what you will do each day. It doesn’t have to be perfect- AND don’t just “think” what you want to do because that’s why we’re doing this exercise in the first place. Your mental agenda has a way of rescheduling indefinitely. So WRITE IT DOWN, and you can adjust as needed after a few days. An example would be…

6:00AM: Wake up / Pray
6:30AM: Get Ready
7:00AM: Leave for Work – School – Etc
–Blah–Blah–Blah–
6:00PM Arrive Home – Relax
6:30PM: Cook
7:00PM: Exercise – Shower
8:00PM: Read Book
8:30PM: Study Bible
9:00PM: Free Time

This is just an example and time durations for certain things will vary but- TRY IT! Write it down, commit to it, and follow through for 21 days so it becomes a habit. If you don’t like it, you can always go back to procrastinating- it will welcome you with slothful arms.

But kingdom citizens are not lazy, they ACT, and their diligence brings reward.

For The Kingdom!

Purpose of Prayer – Lesson 2

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Sep 062010

Continuing with the study on the purpose of prayer, we dive into scripture that will bring understanding to God’s purpose for mankind for communication through prayer. This lesson will help you to begin understanding, why should we pray?

It’s Your Mentality

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Aug 242010

Proverbs 23:7
For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.
KJV

We must be careful what to call things in life. What we call something determines how we respond to it. When an emergency vehicle comes down the street, we move over in our cars and let them through, why? Because we know there is an emergency, whether a fire or a medical emergency, and they are trying to get to the scene in order to help- so we call those vehicles emergency vehicles. We respond to them because of what we know them as and we move so they can get through. We don’t do this for any other car.

Depending on the person and the need, cotton may be responded to differently. For one person, their mind being on designing, they may make clothing out of it. For another person, their mind being on mechanical work, they may grab it and think “shop towel”.

We must be careful in what we call things in life, because it determines outcome. If the doctor says “You are sick and you’ll be dead in six months.” If we make ready our will, tell everyone goodbye, get comfortable in a place to pass away, and give up fighting all together- then they’ll die. Their mind has determined this is the end. But if that person fires up and says “I shall not die!” and they start making future plans, pray unto God claiming His word for healing, exercising, and believing this is not the end- then they have activated their faith and they will live! They have chose to believe God’s word more than the doctor’s report.

Let’s look at Jesus and what He did. Lazarus was sick unto death, they said, and they sent word to Jesus. Jesus’ reply, “This sickness is not unto death.” Then Lazarus died and they sent word to Jesus. Jesus responds, “He is not dead, but asleep.” See if He called it death then that’s the end, but if he’s only asleep then all you have to do is wake him up. The disciples didn’t understand and so He told them “Lazarus is dead.” But He did this to teach us something. What we call a thing determines how we respond to it. So you know the rest of the story. Another time Jesus did the same thing with a young girl. He goes into the house and says “She’s not dead but only sleeping, child arise.” THIS IS POWERFUL!

Our mentality has to change about our situations. Another good example is in the beginning when God created the earth. The bible says the earth was dark and without form. You don’t see God say “Man, it’s so dark…” He just spoke what He desired of the situation, “Let there be light.”

As a man thinketh in his heart so is he. So when your boss or co-workers come against you at work, your normal reaction may be “Oh no, trouble!” But stop this cycle there! Remind yourself of who you are! Say this and claim it…

I am not from this place, but was placed in this place for a purpose! My Father in heaven sent me to do a work and has called me according to His purpose. No weapon formed against me can prosper. I was made in the image of my Creator and given power and dominion over the earth in His like manner over all creation. I am never alone and He always hears me, because I am His child and a citizen of His kingdom. The kingdom is in me and is never desolate of ideas, never bankrupt, never breached. I overcome every obstacle put before me, because my God can never let me be destroyed, for His namesake. Nothing is trouble unto me, but rather and opportunity. Every trial is an opportunity for my increase. Every battle has been allowed by God for my growth and my strengthening in Him. I will not fear for I trust in my deliverer, my shield, my buckler, the LORD! He is the Owner over all the earth! I will praise His name in the midst of any circumstance because through Him, I am guaranteed to win!

Now believe that and walk in it!

For The Kingdom!

I’m Doing Great…

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Aug 122010

I went into a restroom today and ran into a young guy who had a walking stick with him. He was completely blind. He had some hearing devices attached to his ears which were fairly large in size. I know technology has made huge advances in hearing equipment and the sizes of them have become incredibly small. My own grandfather is deaf without his, and even his is not noticeable unless looking directly into his ear canal. So I was aware that this guy’s hearing was severely impaired.

As I went to wash my hands I said “How are you?”

His reply “I’m doing great!”

…wow

I couldn’t help but think about the times I had complained in my mind about trivial bothers… Makes me think to myself- “Shut up with your complaining!”

This guy- who cannot see the colors of the sun, the flowers, the bright and dark greens of plants, the blue skies and white clouds, nor hear without all this equipment attached to his ears- yet he can still reply “I’m doing great!” with enthusiasm- what do I have to complain about. How blessed so many of us are that take for granted our senses.

I began to pray “Lord, if I pray for him, will You heal him?” Now I know God’s will is for him to be healed- but sometimes in the moment I can lack the faith to commit. The enemy will plant a thousand “What Ifs”. The Ifs don’t matter, for faith is believing God’s word, laws and promises regardless of circumstances. The evidence of the unseen hope is in God’s word. But before I could finish this thought, he had left.

I will see him again soon. Will those who read this do something for me, right now? Pray for this young man’s eyes and ears to be opened. Pray the Lord will heal him when I see him again and I pray for him… or before then is great too!

How am I? I’m doing great!

The Lord’s Prayer 09

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Aug 102010

Luke 11:4
And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us.
KJV

Now let’s get a couple of things clear first. When you enter into prayer you need to be prepared to enter His courts before you begin your petitions. Remember this scripture…

Psalm 66:18
If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:
KJV

We don’t need anything to hinder us in our prayers- so we must make sure to take prayer seriously. Now we’re not doing this for show or to be religious by any means. We take this seriously because we are showing the sincerity of our hearts. Roy Porter, a good pastor friend of mine, said something in a message recently that I really liked. He spoke about Abraham building altars everywhere he went to pray. He said prayer should take time and have a commitment made to it.

I started thinking about this. When Abraham got ready to pray, it wasn’t just jump in the car and talk along the way, though I do this sometimes and that’s fine- he had to prepare. It took something from him to pray. It took a commitment. He had to lug rocks into one place and build them up to form an altar. Most of us after all that work would think “Man, I’m tired- time for a glass of tea.” But it was part of the process- to carry rocks into one place, form them into an altar, then to make petition to God. He was showing him he was serious about what he was doing. Now I’m not saying to get out in your yard and start piling rocks together, but at least prepare yourself to be presentable before the Holy God before entering into prayer. We’re His children, but even children have to show respect and honor their fathers. How much more honor is our Father in heaven deserve from His earthly children?

So we love Him by showing Him the honor He deserves in our preparation for prayer. Reminding Him of His word which shows we understand the foundation of His word that we stand on.

‘Lord, you said, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me“- so Lord remember thy word “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) So Lord as I prepare myself to enter into your presence prepare me with your forgiveness- so that you can hear me according to your word.’

Now we are showing God we are serious about our requests and petitions and about Who He is. Do you think this sounds too heavy? Unreasonable? Look at the priests of the time during the Ark of the Covenant. They had to tie a rope around the priest’s leg before entering the Vail where the Ark was. If they had sin upon them, they would drop dead. They had bells on the bottom of their robes and if the bells quit ringing, they would yank them out with the rope and ask the next priest if he was ready to go in. Still want to be in ministry? Has this changed today? Well, many of us have prayed, or been singing in service, or trying to worship and God had pulled our rope as soon as we entered the door. We’re clapping, singing, even shouting but no presence of God. Has your rope been pulled? Prepare to enter His presence and don’t take it lightly. God honors those whose heart is sincere and who has shown up to worship Him in spirit and in truth.

Wow, I’m going to have to continue on this part tomorrow…

For The Kingdom!

Water, Food, Gold, and Stone

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Aug 062010

Genesis 2
9. And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
10. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.
11. The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;
12. And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
KJV

Four things God shows us of being good and of value here. Water, food, gold and stone.

We get these priorities mixed up sometimes. But when there is a lack we quickly adjust back to necessities first. I came across this article today on Yahoo!. Because of a drought, Russia has put a ban on all exports of wheat for four and a half months. Russia is the third largest exporter of wheat in the world. If you have nothing to eat, oil becomes less important. If you have nothing to drink, diamonds become worthless.

We see in the bible with the story of Joseph who revealed a dream to Pharaoh about the seven good years and seven bad years. Joseph was put second in command over the entire land because of his plan to provide for the years of lack that would come. During the seven good years the other nations would have no need in parting with any of their riches and treasures. But during the seven bad years, they told Egypt take everything we have, even our land and we will be your slaves just give us food. See, when you’re perishing, gold becomes of no value.

Sometimes we put value in electronics, cars, houses, or as the nations get so involved with sometimes, oil. But God showed us in the garden of Eden the things of value and their order of priority. We have to keep our priorities in order and balance out necessities with wants. You can’t spend your paycheck on shoes when you don’t have food in the house and then come to God wanting a miracle. Sometimes we think miracles are to make-up for what we don’t have because of our waste or mismanagement of resources.

Look at this in closing. In the gospels we read about Jesus telling His disciples to feed the 5000 rather than to send them away. The disciples said all we have is 5 loaves and 2 fish. Jesus took the baskets and raised them up and thanked God for them. They fed every person that was present. Now if He can do this miracle, why worry about keeping account for what was left? I mean why not just carry around 1 loaf and 1 fish and just multiply it when everyone is hungry? But they didn’t, they had to collect all of the baskets of food and had 12 baskets left. We see this in the scriptures. It was showing accountability for their resources. Jesus was teaching us the importance of maximizing the minimum, of giving account for resources. Just because He could turn a few into thousands didn’t mean it was OK to waste- they still had to collect the baskets.

We have to give account for what resources God has given to us. When we’ve done all we can and managed responsibly, then God brings increase into our life. Praise God for the King and His awesome Kingdom!

The Lord’s Prayer 06

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Jul 222010

Luke 11:2
…Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.
KJV

Luke 11:2
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
NKJV (Emphasis Added)

Oh this is my favorite part! We want the kingdom of heaven to come and His will to be done- where? On Earth- how? Just as it is in heaven! Look at this powerful statement in the bible! We’ve read this, we’ve prayed this prayer- but we didn’t understand what we were saying most of the time. We thought it was just a nice simple prayer we would quote- but this is a HUGE petition. Remember the disciples had asked Jesus to teach them how to pray and so, Jesus made sure to teach them this.

There is a reason God put us on earth. There is a reason He made you and then made you a body and then put you in the body and breathed life into you. The bible says all things came out of God (John 1), so if He wanted you to stay in heaven he would not have put you in a body on the earth. God put you here for a reason, and gave you dominion over the earth for a reason. (Genesis 1:26) He wanted earth to become just like heaven. He wanted earth to be impacted with the culture of heaven. Lord, let your kingdom come on earth, let your will be done on earth, just like it is in heaven let it be so in the earth!

That was God’s original desire. He gave man dominion over the earth and He walked and talked with man- but then man (Adam) disobeyed and rebelled against God and declared independence from heaven. So we became a corrupt and self destructive kingdom. But God’s plan didn’t change. Look at this!

1 Samuel 8
4. Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah,
5. And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.
6. But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the LORD.

They still didn’t get it! God had not changed His purpose, but the people still rebelled against God’s plan. Look what God says.

1 Samuel 8:7
And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them.

They chose to learn the hard way. Look at the people’s comparison of why they wanted a ‘man’ king to judge and rule over them… “like all the nations“.

My God, we have not drifted far from this mentality today. We try to compare what we think we need with what we see others have… even though what they have isn’t working. Am I talking to anybody out there? Man rejects God for His own destructive independence. I pray it not be named among you from this day forward.

We need His kingdom to come- to earth! What does religion teach? “Let us leave earth and go to the kingdom of heaven.” Is that what you believe? Now, does that line up with how Jesus taught how to pray? Let Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done- on earth just as it is in heaven. So God wants us to pray heaven down to earth. He wants earth to become just like heaven.

In the Caribbean there is an island called Hispaniola. Christopher Columbus landed on Hispaniola on his voyage between 1492 and 1493. Columbus took possession of the land and named it “La Isla Española” which means “The Spanish Lady”. The name was later shortened and re translated as “Hispaniola”. Spain’s interest in the island was not priority and became increasingly under attack by pirates. As the colonies of Spain were ordered to draw in closer to the area known as Santo Domingo this gave way to pirates making establishments on the island. In 1665 the French colonization on the west side of the island was recognized. Spain ceded the land to the French and the west side became known as modern day “Haiti” while the east side of the island became known as modern day “Dominican Republic”. For comparisons sake, Hispaniola is roughly a tenth of the size of the state of Texas in the U.S. …only a tenth. Yet it is split into two countries.

Why is this significant to the Lord’s Prayer? The history and current state of this island shows you the impact of a government on a place. Regardless of its size- because it was colonized by two different kingdoms- they are completely different in every way. When I was there in January of 2010, we went into Haiti about two weeks after the earthquake, into Port-au-Prince. We stopped at one point to confirm directions to the place we were dropping off the food. A boy come up to us and started talking to our friend and interpreter, Junior. Junior was born and had lived in Dominican his whole life. I asked him what the guy said and he said he can’t tell- he’s speaking Creole. One small island, a tenth the size of Texas, yet they are worlds apart from each other. Two different languages, two different cultures, two different ways of life. Because of the impact of culture from the French and from Spain almost 400 years ago, these two countries are totally different from each other today. If the king of Spain had not made the colonies settle close to Santo Domingo, but secure the whole island- they would all be speaking Spanish today. But because of this incident in history, two different kingdoms affected the culture of the island differently… and it can still be seen today.

Look at this world… economies collapse, people are hurting, people are in poverty, people are lacking resources… we need the kingdom of heaven to impact the earth. We need heaven’s culture, God’s ways, to become our culture… our ways. In Haiti they still drink wine and eat cheese as a social norm because the French did. They speak French and Creole because the French did. In Dominican Republic they speak Spanish because Spain did. When a place is colonized by a kingdom, it takes on the nature, characteristics, and culture of that kingdom. The earth needs to be filled with God’s nature. As it is in heaven, let it be in the earth.

There is no sickness in heaven, let it be in the earth-
There is no disease in heaven, let it be in the earth-
There is no lack in heaven, let it be in the earth-
There is no poverty in heaven, let it be in the earth… just as it is in heaven.

When we understand this concept of prayer and what these words mean- we then understand the impact our prayers have on the earth, because we actually pray heaven down to earth, colonizing the earth, his citizens infiltrating the earth until earth becomes just like heaven. That’s why God said “whatever we bind on earth, now heaven can bind- and whatever we loose on earth, now heaven can loose.” We’ve been put here as representatives, ambassadors of heaven, impacting the earth with the culture, purpose, intent and ways of the king. This is why we are “in the world but not of the world” (John 17:16-18). We’re from another place, placed here to colonize the earth. Pray heaven down! Pray His kingdom come, His will be done- on earth just as it is in heaven.

“New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved.”
“Bible text from the New King James Version® is not to be reproduced in copies or otherwise by any means except as permitted in writing by Thomas Nelson, Inc., Attn: Bible Rights and Permissions, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, TN 37214-1000.”

The Lord’s Prayer 05

Articles, Embassy Epistles Comments Off

Jul 212010

Luke 11:2
…Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done.
KJV

We’re wanting His kingdom- not man’s kingdom- but His kingdom. To what?… to come! We need it! Our kingdom’s have failed, our kingdom’s become corrupt without His influence. Without the influence of heaven’s government we self destruct.

Not only His kingdom, but His will. We want what He wants. This is another area we get off in sometimes and miss the mark. We don’t know His word and so we can’t pray effectively according to His word and we wonder why we don’t see results.

1 John 5:14
This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
NASB

See, we’re praying “Lord give me some money. I need some things. Give me a new job.” But we don’t have God’s word in order to back us up. We have to know HIS word and ask Him according to His will. The good thing about God though is that when He speaks it becomes law and God cannot go against His own word. So all you have to do is read and understand His word and then ask Him according to His will.

[Ineffective Prayer] “Lord, bring me some money.”

[Effective Prayer] “Lord, you see our financial situation, but you always take care of us. You said in Your word Lord- that we are to be lenders and not borrowers and that we’re to be above only!”

What’s the difference in these two prayers? The second puts pressure on God because it reminds Him of His word and His promise. To some who still have religious roots they’re trying to get rid of this will sound slightly shocking… “pressure…. on God?”

God said in His word “prove me”. He is waiting for His people to realize who they are- that they are His children, and He is their Father- and a good Father always takes care of His children. Those that truly call Him Lord, do what He says. Look again at Jesus prayer- “thy will be done”. It’s not your will- it’s His will- so we need to find out what His will is and line up with it and ask according to His will. Search the scriptures and remind God of His word.

Have you ever read in the bible many times where God says “I remembered my covenant with my people“? Does God forget? Of course not- someone is praying and asking Him according to His will! God hears us when we ask according to His will. (1 John 5:14) There is a scripture for every prayer you can possibly pray- we just have to know His word and His promises and then say “Lord, this is what you said- not me.” God wants us to trust His word so much that we live and die by it and expect His word in our life to be fulfilled because He said it. We have to understand His word is law and His promises are rights!

The first amendment in the Bill of Rights of the U.S. says this
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

This is a right! We have freedom of religion and the freedom to exercise it. If we were unsure about being able to exercise our freedom- and had to ask permission to do so, and even then our request might be denied- we would not put faith in this statement. But because it’s a right we fight for it because it’s the right of every citizen of the United States to have freedom of religion and to exercise it. We don’t even question it- it belongs to us.
My question to you then is… why do we not understand the rights our God has given us in His word? Now God’s rights are unwavering, His promises never fail, What He has said He will perform! No one can have God’s rights changed in court- there is no amending His word because you don’t agree with it anymore. As a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven you need to believe in His words and trust them- and know they are for you- for your benefit and pray according to your rights- which is His will!

I’m not supposed to be in debt, because God says in His word we’re not to be borrowers!

My status in life is not where God would have me to be because the bible says I am supposed to be above only!

I’m not supposed to be destitute because the bible says I’ve never seen the righteous forsaken!

This poverty is a curse and is not supposed to be so in God’s kingdom because He said He would have me to prosper, even as my soul prospers!

It doesn’t look like I have any choices on which way to go, but I know my God said in His word He shall supply all my need according to His riches in glory!

Get in His word, understand His word, understand His promises- your rights in His kingdom. He said them for a reason! If you don’t grab a hold of the promises God has had for you- you will be like the prodigal sons brother. He was always in the house, never left, but didn’t use what his father had for him in his kingdom. So when the prodigal son returned- the other son who stayed said “Father, I never left. Why have you not given me a robe? Why didn’t you kill the fatted calf for me? Where is my ring?” His father said “Son, you have always been with me.” What he is saying is – you had access to these things all along but never used them, never asked for them- so ‘shut-up!’ my son who was lost is home and we’re going to celebrate! Look at God’s word- let His kingdom be effective in your life!

Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible^®,
Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973,
1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Used by permission.” (www.Lockman.org)

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