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Monday, October 1, 2012

Awake


Awake! After God puts His word in our mouth we can awaken to the abundant life Jesus promised!
Romans 12:1  Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship.

I put this verse in the NIV because it is so beautiful.  In view of God’s mercy…  The empowering of this new covenant comes only when we have God’s mercy in full view.  We can only offer our bodies as living sacrifices when we have God’s mercy in full view.  Consider Jesus the Author and Finisher of your faith.

Ephesians 5:14  Therefore He says: "Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light."  15  See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,  16  redeeming the time, because the days are evil.  17  Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.  18  And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,  19  speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,  20  giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21  submitting to one another in the fear of God.

Awaking to righteousness, and holiness is a lifestyle.  Christ will shine on us.  Being filled with the Spirit of God is more than just a good idea; it is a direct command by the Spirit Himself.  Awaking to righteousness and being filled with the Spirit of God will put psalms and hymns and spiritual songs in our mouth.  We are commanded to sing and make melody in our heart to the Lord.  So much revelation is tied up in this small passage.  Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Can you see the divine order of God.  What if we have a praise in our mouth and a song of thanksgiving?  It is the divine order of God to enable us to walk in the victory He has provided.    

Romans 13:11  And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.  12  The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.  13  Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy.  14  But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

Believers need to awake out of sleep.  Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will have no room to make provisions for the flesh.  Divine order calls for us to reckon ourselves dead to sin and alive unto God.  How do we awake out of our sleep?  Remember last weeks opening passage?

Isaiah 53:1  Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

The answer to the questions asked are in the questions themselves.  The ones who will believe the report of the Lord are the one who will receive the revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ.  The prophet Isaiah writes further…

Isaiah 53:2  For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him.

Some call the time between the last book of the old testament and Jesus' coming as the 400 silent years.  Indeed Jesus' coming was a root out of dry ground.  It is not that there were none of God’s men and women around.  They were indeed there when Jesus' parent’s brought Him for His circumcision.  In fact there was always a remnant, but as a whole the nation had no prophet, king or judge that God assigned to them.  When Jesus did come there was a remnant that believed but the nation as a whole rejected Him, just as the prophet declared.  However for those who will believe the report of the Lord, for those who will receive the revelation that Jesus Christ came full of grace and truth, there is a freedom and liberty that was never manifested before.  Let the Lord be magnified!

Psalms 40:16  Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; Let such as love Your salvation say continually, "The LORD be magnified!"

The awaking comes by putting His word in our mouth.  God’s intention is for the body of Christ to walk in victory!  Those who seek Him can rejoice and be glad in Him!  Let such as love Your salvation say continually, “The LORD be magnified”  Put it in your mouth!  “The LORD be magnified”  Continually say it!  When our hearts become unified to see the Lord magnified the glory will rise and shine on an awakened church!

Isaiah 53:3  He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

What you think of Jesus Christ determines your destiny, the quality of life here and now,  and for all eternity.  To not esteem something is to give it little or no value!  It is time for the church to arise and esteem our Savior as never before!

Matthew 16:16  Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  17  Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  18  "And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

Matthew 16 is a well rehearsed and preached text; however, consider the words of Jesus! “On this rock I will build my church.”  The confession that Jesus is the Messiah is the word we need to rise up and preach.  What you value the most is your pursuit!   When you get the word of God in your mouth, that Jesus is your Messiah, there is nothing all of hell can do to prevail against it!  Awaken, speak it, and the Messiah will shine on you!

Isaiah 53:4  Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted.   5  But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.  6  All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

The arm of God has revealed Jesus the Messiah is the One wounded for transgression; let the value build.   Jesus our Messiah was bruised for our iniquities; let the value build.  The punishment of our peace was upon Jesus the Messiah; let the value build.  By the stripes of Jesus the Messiah we are healed; let the value build.  The LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all; let the value build.  Awaken to the greatness of our Messiah and He will shine on us!  Put the word in your mouth, say it, say it, say it…

Ephesians 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.  14  For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation,  15  having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace,  16  and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.

I have heard some say how far away we are from God!  I want to declare by the authority of the Word of God, “We have been brought near to God by the blood of Christ.”  Esteem the Messiah higher than you have ever before; awaken to the goodness of God!  Abolished enmity and enmity put to death!  Put the word in your mouth.  Jesus' blood has ended the hostility between God and man!  Let the LORD be magnified!

Hebrews 7:22  by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant.  23  Also there were many priests, because they were prevented by death from continuing.  24  But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood.  25  Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

Have you awaken to the truth that Jesus brings us into a better covenant based upon better promises.  Consider Jesus the one who saves to the uttermost!  Put the word in your mouth Christ will shine on you!

John 10:27  "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  28  "And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  29  "My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  30  "I and My Father are one."

What a strong covenant we have with God!  Do we believe these strong words of Jesus or do we allow religious tradition to keep us from awakening and Christ shining on us?

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