Everything in life must have a Genesis, or a beginning so here we go.
We are going to begin a blog to dive deeper in to the study of God's word and the direction of the Spirit. After a weekend of true inspiration, impartation, and revelation Justin and I have decided that we need to have a continual communication about the word.
INPUT is what we all need. I look at the forest and see a tall tree, while you see the blue bird. Adding to each other is a way to open our eyes. This blog will be to edify and lift up the word, not argue theological points back and forth. The purpose is to add a brick to the brick before and build a house.
I hope you will join us in our journey. If you have any questions please contact me direct.
Tim
13 comments:
I'm in and will contribute. Thanks for the notes. Sounds like you guys had a good time.
Of course when I hear the word strength I think of the strong man and the physical. So I looked up the definition as always. The definition was the normal but below the definition it talked about an individual’s strength. If we look at this as the spiritual we can find some answers.
An individual's physical strength is determined by two factors, their genetic inheritance of muscle fiber types and their degree and type of strength training they may undertake.
So first the genetic inheritance of muscle fiber type sets the outermost boundaries of physical strength possible. The Bible reads in Romans 8:16The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 17And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. 18For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
If we are heirs, than our inheritance is the strength of God which as we know is immeasurable. So our starting point of being born to be strong is in place. However, looking at the second step we may have the inheritance of strength, or a measure of faith, but we need to be able to enlarge the spiritual muscles.
The second and I think most important in strength development is the ability to gain muscle and maintain or keep muscle based upon genes dictating the amounts of hormones secreted, adequate nutrients in the diet, and training or exercise.
If we continue to “work out” by studying the word, hearing the word, and living the word than we will build stronger spiritual strength and thus become stronger. Every time we are in the presence of God and feel the power moving inside of us that is equivalent to an adrenalin boost in the spiritual. Our diet also has to consist of the right foods for spiritual strength growth. A diet of sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll is not going to support the strength we are striving for. Our diet should be a feast on the Spirit and the word.
I spent 3 days feasting on God’s word and today feel like I am stronger spiritually than before. That is because my diet and exercise was nothing but God. No cell phones, cares, concerns, just God.
Let us continue in strength together that we may be the trainers to the weak. Wow that hit home right there. AHHH.
The word "strength", for me, evokes the image of a weight-lifter. And I wondered, "How does that apply spiritually?"
Physical muscles are the same as spiritual muscles; in order for them to grow, you must work them out. If you do not, they will atrophy.
Obviously our spiritual strength comes from the Lord, but how do we obtain that strength? Of course, just as Timmy said, "by studying the Word, hearing the Word, and living the Word." Living the Word necessitates you doing the first two (and more). You can read the Word, study the Word, and hear the Word, but unless you are putting the Word into action in your life, you are not living the Word.
Just as different machines or exercises build different muscles, so do various works build different areas of our spirit. We've all seen the guy with the huge chest and bird legs. An unbalanced spiritual regimen will lead to an unbalanced christian. Which is more important, prayer or fasting? Charity or witnessing? Who are we to say? How could you have one without the other?
I also think the acquisition of strength is a continual and never-ending process. If you stop working out, all the muscle mass you have acquired will atrophy. If we don't work out our spiritual strength, the gifts of the Spirit will diminish in our lives.
Great Word.
A couple of scriptures that are thought provoking because they are outside the normal thoughts of strength are below. I thought I would share them with you guys as I study them as well.
Genesis 4:12 - "When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth."
This was told to Adam after the fall. How many of us have fallen and are working but no longer receiving the strength from our work?
Job 36:5 - "Behold, God is mighty, but despises no one; He is mighty in strength of understanding.
As physical strength goes, if you the the best work out regimens, techniques and strategies then you can build more muscles with less work. If you have bad technique, don't adjust your routine or son't really push yourself you will not make much progress or development like you would like to see.
Also, going back to a thought about genetics and inheritance I thought of the Jesus and when he died. There was a will in place. Until there is a death a will is just a piece of paper. When jesus died the written will became executable and his word came alive within us.
More later...
I love the inheritance part. He had to die for us to receive. I just read in Genesis "I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee" (Genesis 17:7). To be a God unto thee. He is going to agree or promise to be there for us, but he had to die firts.
Great word.
I just can not get out of my mind a couple of things since last weekend. Maybe it is elementary but it has been burning in my brain over and over.
God is a spirit and sees our spirit. Through the holy ghost God is within us and not necessarily out in the cosmos preparing heaven. We are what he is preparing!!! If we want others to see God we need to be transparent (a window) so that they can meet Jesus through us.
My thoughts are we start off dirty and full of sin. God cleans us and makes us perfectly clean, clear and transparent.
We cover our spiritual window with sin spots or habit curtains or just flat pull the shades down altogether for whatever reason (can not humble ourselves, overcome lusts, free our minds, fear, inhabitions, faith, etc...)
But for those that truly love their brothers as God has loved them they don't just open their windows and do their best to keep it clean for the world to see but take it to a whole nother level.
They become magnifiers. An ant can walk across the concrete in the middle of a hot day with no problem. If you take a magnifying glass and direct the SUN on the ant it will burn him because the power from the sun becomes concentrated on that object.
I have just been praying Lord let me be a magnifier and help others to do the same. Not to the point of burning people (As religion or judgement does) but target them with light and love from my wonderful God.
If I can humble myself enough, open my ears, mind and heart enough and overcome the fleshly covering of my spirit. Through prayer, devotion, knowledge and all of the gifts of the spirit that are within me wnating to shine out I can become not only a clear, clean window but begin to bend myself and my own personal spiritual glass (as a magnifying glass is bent) and target Gods wonderful light of love on people and needs and situations.
***Then just as a microscope or telescope which both use multiple lenses working together in one accord to multiply the light and create greater vision, greater power and work far better than the single magnifying glass alone!!!
I think that is how a mountain can be moved. It has put joy in my soul to really be grasping this concept. That sounds cheesy but it is my real true feelings. I don't know what it is, where it is or how it is but something phenominal IS going to and about to happen!!!
Matt 5:16 - "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
II Cor 4:6 - For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus
Colossians 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
Are you going to elaborate on that scripture?
Sure - This is the slogan of C28.com clothing. When I read this I loved the direction for freedom from mans law, pleasing man, "legality" and just to be after Christ.
“Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit.”
Philosophy in the Greek is broken to be lover of wisdom. The definition is about how one should live. But the philosophy is mans direction.
Vain is having no real value.
So in essence don’t be spoiled by the direction of men because that means nothing when it comes to God.
The last part of rudiments was really awesome to me. When you think of “rudiments” I think of the drummers. Rudiments are beats and rhythms that all the drummers played at the same time in order. Basically the goal was to be the same as all the other drummers. The goal is to attain the same beat, timing, and hand motion, all to look and sound the same. Today’s preachers train to sound and look the same. How can we save a world of different people if we are all the same in the church?
Adam and Eve hid from God because of the sin. They hid because they realized they were naked, a physical attribute. So many times we hide from God because we do not live up to man’s idea of how we should live. When truly He just wants us to worship and find him.
Acts17: 27That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: 28For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.
Consider me enlighened. I think I have finally found my ministry: a 'different' preacher reaching out to different people.
Hey guys just had a thought.
The Bible says that John 4: 23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
SPIRIT and in TRUTH. I think we know how to worship Him in the Spirit. Weseem to have that down and do pretty well in the flow of things. But what about in TRUTH or is it IN TRUTH?
Tell me what you think.
Tim
So we
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