THE LIFE OF FAITH AND THE GLORIOUS CHURCH - 2009
                                                       january 28th

IF WE REJOICE IN THE LORD CONTINUALLY AND FOCUS OUR ATTENTION ON THE WORD OF GOD THEN WE - THROUGH THE POWER OF GOD - WILL HAVE OUR UNFAVOURABLE CIRCUMSTANCES CHANGED


          ...."Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your forbearing spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally brethren whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things"....
                                                                                                                                                                                                              Philippians 4:4-8 NASB


          The above scripture is one that EVERY believer needs to have a strong and deep revelation of in their heart! This portion of the Word clearly expresses the will of God on the whole subject of fear, and casting our care upon Him. They also express His heart-desire to be in "absolute control" of our lives [this being the result of our will continually aligned with His will for our life and ministry - a "control" [holy constraint] that directs us and leads us into the experience of the "fullness" of our inheritance in Christ]. The scripture here does not call for us to rejoice in our circumstances, but rather in the Lord [the Word] and the fullness of the salvation ["soteria" - deliverance from every temporal evil] He has provided for us. If we rejoice in the Lord continually, and focus our attention on the Word of God THEN we - through the power of God - will have our "unfavourable" circumstances changed. As we truly cast our care upon the Lord we have the assurance that He is near - and that His "perfect" deliverance is coming soon. As we confess with our mouth the words that express our belief in the things that the Father has already done for us in Christ, we shall "know" that He is near, and that He is indeed watching over His Word to perform it.

AS WE CONTINUALLY EXERCISE FAITH IN GOD EVEN WHILE WORRY AND FEAR AND ANXIETY ARE GOING ON AROUND US, THEN ALL THOSE AROUND US SHALL INDEED SEE THAT WE HAVE SOMETHING THAT THEY LACK

          The word "forbearing" in verse 5 is the Greek word "epieikes" and it means a gentle or a yielding or a sensitive spirit before God. It is important to realize the fact that as we continually humble ourselves before God [depend on Him completely] that people will see in us a supernatural "unselfishness", and they shall see clearly the love of God being poured out through us, and the fruit of the Spirit being continually manifested in our lives. As we continue to walk in love - regardless of our circumstances - they shall see our faith and, ultimately, the "deliverance" that that faith has brought about and, thus, we shall be a sign and a wonder to all those around us. We must realize that the world is "geared" to worry, but that we, as born again children of God are "geared" to faith. As we continually exercise faith in God even while worry and fear and anxiety are going on around us, then all those around us will indeed see that we have something that they lack. But if we allow ourselves to fall into the same trap as those in the world do - that is, believing the lies of Satan through fear rather than the Word of God - then we shall not be, in any way, "distinguishable" from the non-believer. This is why it is such an abomination to the Father when his children worry - and, thus, allow themselves to be controlled by fear. For, in doing so, their allegiance "remains" with the lies of Satan rather than the Word [Will] of God! The Word commands us to have no anxiety about anything! Again, we must remember that if the Word commands us to have no anxiety, fear or worry THEN, in reality, there is nothing to be anxious for or worry about or fear! So let us realize that anything that attempts to cause us anxiety is a lie of Satan, and let us replace it immediately with "utterances" that are in perfect correspondence with the revealed knowledge of God's Word.

Related Scriptures: 1 Peter 5:5b-7; Jeremiah 1:12;


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