Phil 4:6-7
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
I believe with all of my heart that every insight and every revelation brought by the Holy Spirit is a journey that is meant to bring change and the ability to reach greater heights in the Lord Jesus Christ.
I also believe that the journey is meant to influence us so that we may become all that we are meant to become in Him through the Kings position.
1 Pet 5:6-7
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
We are in difficult times, we are in trials and tribulations but yet these things are a part of living in this world.
Hear the words of the Lord Jesus Christ as He gives us instruction concerning these difficult times.
John 16:33
These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
2 Tim 3:12
Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
Acts 14:22
Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
Even though we shall have trials and tribulations and difficult times and though all of hell will assail itself against us and we are caught in the middle of our flesh and the world wants to see us fail and fall short of His glory,
We still are in the Kings position and we still have the upper hand.
The Lord wants every one of his children to know that He has provided a way for us to enjoy and to live in abundance and peace in the midst of these hard and trying times.
Hear the word of the Lord
John 14:27
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Why is it that we as children of the Most High God deal and live with restlessness when He has told us that He has given us His peace?
Why do we have fears and apprehensions that we live with all of our lives when He has told us not to be afraid, when He has told us not to worry and let not our hearts be troubled?
Why do we live in the place of negativity that has been birthed and spawned by these same fears and apprehensions when He has given us His peace which is not of this world?
And why is it that we continue to live and to be affected by these same standards that are of this world when He has given us His peace which is not of this world which can take us to a new level where His peace and His joy can abound in our lives.
Why do we continually stay in this place of bondage when there is a better place we can arise to?
I believe that we stay in this place of bondage for two reasons
#1 because we have no deep set desire to rise from the ashes of that bondage and
#2 we have not been taught how we can get out of that bondage.
1 Pet 5:6-7
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
Let me make a statement that is reality and yet very few of Gods children find this truth that makes them free,
The peace of God is supposed to be a normal condition for you and me as children of God and yet there are very few of God’s people who are living and enjoying the peace of Christ as a daily part of there lives.
The word of God tells us that we are to be careful or anxious for nothing
Is that really what He says and is that really what He means
Luke 12:29
And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.
Matt 6:25
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
Luke 10:41
And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha; thou art careful and troubled about many things:
How many of us are playing the role of Martha as we follow after Christ
Martha thou art anxious and troubled and worrisome about many things.
Now notice what the word of God tells us in
Phil 4:6
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
The book of Philippians is telling us to be anxious for nothing; be troubled about nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving.
Why have we as children of God been instructed to be free from anxiety and worry?
Because of the effects that anxiety and worry have upon our life.
Luke 21:34
And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.
Mark 4:19
And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.
Anxiety will choke out the word of God and make it unfruitful.
We as children of God place very little emphasis on the reality of truth and that is for the most part we respond and react to situations and circumstances just like the unbeliever does, we experience life just like the unbeliever does, walking along in worry and confusion instead of enjoying life in the abundance of joy and peace that Christ has given to us.
Look at this scripture once again,
John 14:27
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
The statement that Christ makes in this scripture is worded as though He has willed to us His peace,
This is very important; the reason that the scripture has been worded this way is for the purpose of showing us that it is abnormal for the child of God to live in anything other than the peace of Christ
Do you have understanding?
That means that turmoil, anxiety, worry and frustration is abnormal and is in total conflict with the word of God.
So then if this is abnormal behavior for the child of God what then is normal behavior?
First of all,
If we are going to live free from worry frustration anxiety and turmoil then we must believe that we are protected and secure from the powers of darkness and anything that would want to come against us to destroy us.
Let me show you the protection,
Ps 91:1-16
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;
There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.
With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.The Lord wants to bless us and He wants to bless us abundantly
John 10:10
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.
Now if He desires to bless us and give us life abundantly then He is constantly looking for ways to stretch us and to enlarge us so that we can be more open to receiving the blessings that He wants to bestow on us.
2 Chr 16:9
For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.
Eph 3:20
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
Just because we are protected and just because He wants to bless us exceedingly abundantly above that we ask or think, we still are not quarantined a trouble free life, we still are not guaranteed the sun with out the storms.
We as children of God are told to expect tribulation, to expect persecution, expect valleys and the burdens and the cares of the brethren, we are told that sorrow and weeping will endure for a season but to be of good cheer because our Lord and Savior has overcome the world.
John 16:33
These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
Now let me to show you something
John 14:1
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
When did the Lord leave us these verses of scripture,
Just before He departed from this world to go be with his Father?
And this is in essence what he said
Do not let your hearts be troubled, do not let your hearts be agitated, do not let your hearts be distressed
You believe in God, then believe in, adhere to and trust and rely on me as well
Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed, stop allowing fear, intimidation and your thoughts to be unsettled.
Rom 14:17
For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.
Now listen to
Luke 17:21
Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.
If the kingdom of God is within us and the kingdom is righteousness peace and joy in the Holy Ghost,
Then when were we made righteous
When did we enter into right standing with God?
It was when we accepted Christ into our hearts, when we became born again.
Now follow me,
In that righteousness came the fruit of the Holy Spirit
Love peace joy longsuffering, gentleness goodness faith meekness and temperance
Peace and joy are part of the fruit of the Holy Ghost
If you are born again through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ then the kingdom of God is just waiting to be released within you.
And how is the kingdom of God released in you.
BY BELIEVING
Now watch this,
Rom 15:13
Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.
Now the author of the book of Hebrews tells us that those who truly believe may enter into the blessed Sabbath rest of the Lord
Heb 4:9-11
There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.
In the Sabbath rest of the Lord we are told that we can cease from weariness and the pain of human labors,
Now let us take a another step
To enter into the Sabbath rest of the Lord it takes believing and what else?
Mark 10:15
Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.
Believing and childlike faith
What is childlike faith?
What are the characteristics of child like faith?
A child does not try to figure things out; they do not need specifics of exactly how they are going to be delivered or how that deliverance will come
Childlike faith does not need details of how they will be taken care.
They simply believe there parents when those same parents tell them that they will take care of them and there problems.
What takes place in the life of a child when he starts to grow up and he begins to doubt and to have reservations concerning his parents taking care of him?
He or she loses the joy of being in that family and it is the same within the spiritual family of God, when children of God begin to doubt and to disbelieve that the God of heaven is going to take care of them through His Son who redeemed and saved them, when there joy is replaced by doubt and unbelief they lose the joy of being part of the family.
Let me show you something,
Luke 10:20
Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.
The Lord tells us not to rejoice because we have power over demons, not to rejoice because we have power over circumstances and situations in life but we are to rejoice because our names are written in the Lambs book of life
Hab 3:18
Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.
The joy of our salvation comes from the greatest gift of all,
God’s love expressed to us through the giving of His most blessed Son the Lord Jesus Christ.
As believers,
Our joy and our peace are not based in doing and achieving
Our joy and our peace are based on our believing.
Ps 16:11
Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
We experience peace and joy in our lives by being in His presence and receiving from Him and acting in response to His direction.
Joy and peace come from believing, knowing, trusting and relying on the Lord with simple childlike faith.
John 14:27
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.