I return often to the passages concerning the crucifixion of Jesus for nothing concerning Jesus has been made more religious. The victory of the cross is minimized by the religious attitude toward the cross. People in total control of their lives and who seek to control others as well make a mockery of the cross. Yes, the cross is a symbol of a shameful death but that is exactly what human nature living in opposition to all God has provided deserved. It is the curse of broken covenant. (Deuteronomy 21:23) Jesus took what we deserved and suffered in our place. Exchange is the heart of covenant. II Corinthians 8:9 (NLT) You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty he could make you rich.
Philippians 2:6-8 (NLT)6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
On the cross Jesus was doing a tremendous work. Here the Law, which He had fulfilled by walking it out as a man, was totally completed as He took the curse of the broken covenant in our place. Now we can live in the righteousness of the Law in Christ Jesus Whose righteousness is imparted to us by faith. II Corinthians 5:21(NIV) God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. The words Jesus spoke on the cross have great significance for us. Not as words repeated by a dying man, but words that give the New Covenant power to change this realm. I want to take just one thing He said and show you this significance. Luke 23:34 (NLT) Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” And the soldiers gambled for his clothes by throwing dice.
This phrase has sometimes been said to be for the Roman soldiers as the ones doing the actual work of the crucifixion and who gambled for his clothes. But it was the religious rulers who were witnessing this scene, sneering and mocking him, who had heard His words and seen His deeds and had tested Him many times, yet now they were taking pride in their control over Him by "getting rid of Him." It is the ignorance in this religious control over God's work that is continuing today. But on the cross, Jesus completed God's work to assure His purpose to make us in His image by forgiving that ignorance and was able to proclaim the work finished. His forgiveness of the entire process to crucify Him is significant.
There is the ignorance of people just doing what they are told (as those soldiers) without any thought of the underlying consequences involved. Just living out their lives in an accepted manner. But even though the rulers of religion were acting to protect their "place" and were deliberately getting rid of Jesus, there was the same ignorance. When we take this realm at face value and do not seek to know of God's purpose, we act in ignorance. I have seen people do things with the same motive of the religious rulers who crucified Jesus, who have no idea of what they are doing. They think they, like Saul of Tarsus, are doing the "work" of God. They gossip, criticize and belittle, sneering in their own way, and feeling justified when they can get someone to agree with them against those who seem to "threaten their place". Underlying motives as well as visible action came under God's control by the righteous act of forgiveness in the words of Jesus on the cross. Man's control will never threaten God's destined plan for His Church. The victory over man's scheming was won on the cross. Less than 40 years later the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple were complete and the "place" so desperately defended was gone.
God moves steadily forward toward His goal. Like waves sweeping onward, like the destruction of a tornado, like the sun rising each morning, God moves according to His purpose. Our protection and reward is His covenant with us. Jesus is our "shield and exceeding great reward!" We move under His victorious finished work of the cross.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Covenant understanding/making straight paths.
New International Version (NIV)Proverbs 3:5-6 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
(NIV)Proverbs 4:25-26 25 Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. 26 Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm.
English Standard Version (ESV)Hebrews 12:12-13 12Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, 13and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed.
(NIV)Isaiah 40:3-5 3 A voice of one calling: "In the desert prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level the rugged places a plain. 5 And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
Having heard or read the Word of God all my life, I got in the habit of passing over what I did not understand and accepted the words in a religious context. "Making a straight path" was not something that was easily explained especially when it came to John the Baptist making a straight path for Jesus. But in coming to understand covenant and the need for a covenant response to the One making the "expectation" of covenant, I began to understand how man had twisted the Word of God into something they could control. The paths the people were "walking" were what the rulers of the Sanhedrin wanted them to do. This increased their control. Any authority of mankind can be twisted to a control, especially when that control enhances the advantage of the position.
The question is how does one straighten a path? John simply preached repentance and baptized those who sincerely repented. His message hit the deceit and arrogance of the religious rulers and put the weight of choice on those who heard him. If they wanted God they would repent and not trust in learned responses to man's edicts, but produce the fruit of repentance. You have heard people say they are Christians because they live in a Christian nation. It is heard less often now as our nation turns away from God. But being a Christian will have more meaning as the term becomes more despised.
So how do we make our paths straight? First, recognize what makes your path dangerous. Darkness hides the pitfalls, so let the light of repentance reveal the hidden motives. Give a covenant response to His Word. Let the Word of God live in you by meditating on it and obeying. Proverbs 4:18-24 New Living Translation (NLT)18 The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, which shines ever brighter until the full light of day. 19 But the way of the wicked is like total darkness. They have no idea what they are stumbling over. 20 My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. 21 Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, 22 for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body. 23 Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. 24 Avoid all perverse talk; stay away from corrupt speech.
Proverbs 4:10-15(NLT)10 My child, listen to me and do as I say, and you will have a long, good life. 11 I will teach you wisdom’s ways and lead you in straight paths. 12 When you walk, you won’t be held back; when you run, you won’t stumble. 13 Take hold of my instructions; don’t let them go. Guard them, for they are the key to life. 14 Don’t do as the wicked do, and don’t follow the path of evildoers. 15 Don’t even think about it; don’t go that way. Turn away and keep moving.
Second, recognize the outcome of a crooked path and the healing of a straight path so that the necessity of heeding this warning is a part of your life. Over and over in almost every verse that speaks of a straight path is reference to the lame or to stumbling. In the above reference from Hebrews the warning is that what is lame might be put out of joint but the promise is that the lame will be healed. The path you take will influence others also. Your walking on a firm path will be a wake up call for many on a path of destruction.
(NIV)Proverbs 4:25-26 25 Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. 26 Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm.
English Standard Version (ESV)Hebrews 12:12-13 12Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, 13and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed.
(NIV)Isaiah 40:3-5 3 A voice of one calling: "In the desert prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level the rugged places a plain. 5 And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
Having heard or read the Word of God all my life, I got in the habit of passing over what I did not understand and accepted the words in a religious context. "Making a straight path" was not something that was easily explained especially when it came to John the Baptist making a straight path for Jesus. But in coming to understand covenant and the need for a covenant response to the One making the "expectation" of covenant, I began to understand how man had twisted the Word of God into something they could control. The paths the people were "walking" were what the rulers of the Sanhedrin wanted them to do. This increased their control. Any authority of mankind can be twisted to a control, especially when that control enhances the advantage of the position.
The question is how does one straighten a path? John simply preached repentance and baptized those who sincerely repented. His message hit the deceit and arrogance of the religious rulers and put the weight of choice on those who heard him. If they wanted God they would repent and not trust in learned responses to man's edicts, but produce the fruit of repentance. You have heard people say they are Christians because they live in a Christian nation. It is heard less often now as our nation turns away from God. But being a Christian will have more meaning as the term becomes more despised.
So how do we make our paths straight? First, recognize what makes your path dangerous. Darkness hides the pitfalls, so let the light of repentance reveal the hidden motives. Give a covenant response to His Word. Let the Word of God live in you by meditating on it and obeying. Proverbs 4:18-24 New Living Translation (NLT)18 The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, which shines ever brighter until the full light of day. 19 But the way of the wicked is like total darkness. They have no idea what they are stumbling over. 20 My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. 21 Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, 22 for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body. 23 Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. 24 Avoid all perverse talk; stay away from corrupt speech.
Proverbs 4:10-15(NLT)10 My child, listen to me and do as I say, and you will have a long, good life. 11 I will teach you wisdom’s ways and lead you in straight paths. 12 When you walk, you won’t be held back; when you run, you won’t stumble. 13 Take hold of my instructions; don’t let them go. Guard them, for they are the key to life. 14 Don’t do as the wicked do, and don’t follow the path of evildoers. 15 Don’t even think about it; don’t go that way. Turn away and keep moving.
Second, recognize the outcome of a crooked path and the healing of a straight path so that the necessity of heeding this warning is a part of your life. Over and over in almost every verse that speaks of a straight path is reference to the lame or to stumbling. In the above reference from Hebrews the warning is that what is lame might be put out of joint but the promise is that the lame will be healed. The path you take will influence others also. Your walking on a firm path will be a wake up call for many on a path of destruction.
Friday, September 18, 2009
The fulfillment of Covering
We are moving forward in our study of covering. Today, I want you to see the fulfillment possible where there is covering. John 14:12 New Living Translation (NLT) 12 “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.
While in this realm in the likeness of man, Jesus stayed under the covering of the Father and the Holy Spirit. He told His disciples He was going to the Father. Then He explains the advantage to them His going will be to them. John 16:7(NLT)
But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you.
These two verses show Jesus preparing His disciples for the shifting of the covering by returning to the Father with His mission of redemption completed in this realm. His ministry to this realm is not over but His earthly presence in a body was almost complete. Earthly bodies are necessary to do the work of ministry in this realm. With the coming of the Advocate, a new level of ministry would be possible for these disciples. They would be an extension of the works Jesus had been doing but now they would be under the covering of the Holy Spirit Who had a new level of work (ministry)for this realm.
I used to wonder how Jesus could leave the new Church He had purchased at such a great price in the hands of untrained men. But He did not. He had personally trained in constant daily contact men He was discipling. His commission to them was to disciple others. This is what they did. Each one discipling others. We wonder that the apostles of the new church all lived together with such a great group of people, but this is how they had learned. They lived with Jesus. They ate what He ate and walked with Him and listened to Him as He listened to them. They discussed together and learned of Him.
But Jesus gave them an explicit command at the very last of His time with them.
Acts 1:4-5, 8 (NLT) 4Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, "Which," He said, "you heard of from Me; 5for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
The disciples became the hands and voice of their covering. God has committed the authority of this realm to mankind. That authority was usurped from Adam by Lucifer. God is the author of authority and He did not give it to Lucifer. Satan only has usurped authority so he must do his deeds through man. But because God gave the authority to man, He must use man for the work of His ministry. He respects the authority He has given to man and does not fail to use the voice of His prophets to speak of His purposed plan of action. Man is raised up to carry out His Will. Mary was a chosen vessel to give birth to our Savior. He came into this realm the same way we all do--through birth. He lived out a life in stages as we all do. He has the legitimate right to defeat Satan and take back the full authority of this realm. When He says He has the authority of this earth and commands us to go in His Name, He has earned the right in a flesh body.
Our flesh cannot be an obstacle. We cannot look at our frailty as an excuse. The power and authority is in our covering and it is not about us, it is all about Him. An obscure maiden from a poor background could be chosen by a King to become his Queen and she would have the authority to command respect of her position. We have a position we have not deserved nor earned. We are co-heirs with Jesus Christ of His Kingdom.
We can do whatever God wants us to do. "Miracles" are simply doing the will of God in a realm that has chosen to not have God in their daily lives. Whatever God does in this realm seems to be a "miracle". We live with miracles every day. His watchful care over us is often necessarily a supernatural intervention to protect us and keep us moving in the right direction. We pray for family, friends, requests that come to us from others, our nation, our sport teams, our schools and our church and often forget the prayers soon after they are uttered. But God hears our every word and knows every tear and heartache. He listens when we speak. He has a different aspect of our prayers than we do. He sees the complete picture and weighs it with His Purpose. He always answers our prayer but we do not always understand the answer. If it is exactly what we asked Him to do, we call it a miracle. But His answer in our realm is always a "miracle" for it is His hand at work. Sometimes He uses our hand to extend but it is always His power working in us. He is in control. He has chosen us to be His vessels and we become one with Him. That is the fulfillment of covering.
While in this realm in the likeness of man, Jesus stayed under the covering of the Father and the Holy Spirit. He told His disciples He was going to the Father. Then He explains the advantage to them His going will be to them. John 16:7(NLT)
But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you.
These two verses show Jesus preparing His disciples for the shifting of the covering by returning to the Father with His mission of redemption completed in this realm. His ministry to this realm is not over but His earthly presence in a body was almost complete. Earthly bodies are necessary to do the work of ministry in this realm. With the coming of the Advocate, a new level of ministry would be possible for these disciples. They would be an extension of the works Jesus had been doing but now they would be under the covering of the Holy Spirit Who had a new level of work (ministry)for this realm.
I used to wonder how Jesus could leave the new Church He had purchased at such a great price in the hands of untrained men. But He did not. He had personally trained in constant daily contact men He was discipling. His commission to them was to disciple others. This is what they did. Each one discipling others. We wonder that the apostles of the new church all lived together with such a great group of people, but this is how they had learned. They lived with Jesus. They ate what He ate and walked with Him and listened to Him as He listened to them. They discussed together and learned of Him.
But Jesus gave them an explicit command at the very last of His time with them.
Acts 1:4-5, 8 (NLT) 4Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, "Which," He said, "you heard of from Me; 5for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
The disciples became the hands and voice of their covering. God has committed the authority of this realm to mankind. That authority was usurped from Adam by Lucifer. God is the author of authority and He did not give it to Lucifer. Satan only has usurped authority so he must do his deeds through man. But because God gave the authority to man, He must use man for the work of His ministry. He respects the authority He has given to man and does not fail to use the voice of His prophets to speak of His purposed plan of action. Man is raised up to carry out His Will. Mary was a chosen vessel to give birth to our Savior. He came into this realm the same way we all do--through birth. He lived out a life in stages as we all do. He has the legitimate right to defeat Satan and take back the full authority of this realm. When He says He has the authority of this earth and commands us to go in His Name, He has earned the right in a flesh body.
Our flesh cannot be an obstacle. We cannot look at our frailty as an excuse. The power and authority is in our covering and it is not about us, it is all about Him. An obscure maiden from a poor background could be chosen by a King to become his Queen and she would have the authority to command respect of her position. We have a position we have not deserved nor earned. We are co-heirs with Jesus Christ of His Kingdom.
We can do whatever God wants us to do. "Miracles" are simply doing the will of God in a realm that has chosen to not have God in their daily lives. Whatever God does in this realm seems to be a "miracle". We live with miracles every day. His watchful care over us is often necessarily a supernatural intervention to protect us and keep us moving in the right direction. We pray for family, friends, requests that come to us from others, our nation, our sport teams, our schools and our church and often forget the prayers soon after they are uttered. But God hears our every word and knows every tear and heartache. He listens when we speak. He has a different aspect of our prayers than we do. He sees the complete picture and weighs it with His Purpose. He always answers our prayer but we do not always understand the answer. If it is exactly what we asked Him to do, we call it a miracle. But His answer in our realm is always a "miracle" for it is His hand at work. Sometimes He uses our hand to extend but it is always His power working in us. He is in control. He has chosen us to be His vessels and we become one with Him. That is the fulfillment of covering.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Covering/fulfilling expectation
Acts 10:37-38 (NLT)37 You know what happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee, after John began preaching his message of baptism. 38 And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.
The subject of covering seems inexhaustable for we see covering in action all through the Bible. Jesus lived and ministered in this realm under covering. Joseph was selected and anointed to be the covering of the family unit that would minister to Jesus in his early life. John was selected to prepare the people for Jesus' ministry. The Holy Spirit came on him at His baptism and Jesus came out of the wilderness full of the Holy Spirit. This is covering in action. Everything Jesus did was under the protection of covering and the energy of anointing that covering can bring. I want to show you today the covenant response that protects the covering. I can do that best by showing the lack of covenant response that removed the covering.
The first Adam was created by God and covered in Light. All creation was created and in Light. The covenant of Light is the first covenant with this realm. (Genesis 1:3) Not until Adam failed to be the covenant covering for his wife to protect her from Satan's deception, and disobeyed God by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, did he lose the covering of light and know he was naked. The knowledge he gained by taking the control of knowledge into his own hand had to be his guide from that time. Jesus, the second Adam, came guided by the Holy Spirit so that He only said what the Father was saying and did only what the Father was doing. His source of knowledge was the Holy Spirit. In John 14, 15, and 16, Jesus lays out the life you can have led and guided by the Holy Spirit given by God to be your teacher and guide. The Holy Spirit will guide you into all Truth.
God has provided us with every covering we will need to become what God desires us to be. From conception to the time we stand before Him to hear Him say, "Well done good and faithful servant, enter now into the Joy of the Lord," we can walk under covering. All that is required of us for this privilege is covenant response. I teach the children that their response is to honor their father and mother. Not so simple for human beings born in sin and with rebellious feelings but to choose to obey and be covered by that familial covering is to be blessed. To accept that God provided the Way to leave our inheritance of sin and death and to believe that Jesus became our substitute to take our punishment so that we can take His Life and Righteousness and so enter into the covering of Light is a privilege beyond words. This alone is cause for continuous joy and worship. Contemplating what we have in God is to respond in praise and walk in thanksgiving. I have found that worship is a covering and allows me to respond with a thankful heart to daily living. When I leave that covering of worship, I find stress ready to offer its own blanket. We live with choice.
The subject of covering seems inexhaustable for we see covering in action all through the Bible. Jesus lived and ministered in this realm under covering. Joseph was selected and anointed to be the covering of the family unit that would minister to Jesus in his early life. John was selected to prepare the people for Jesus' ministry. The Holy Spirit came on him at His baptism and Jesus came out of the wilderness full of the Holy Spirit. This is covering in action. Everything Jesus did was under the protection of covering and the energy of anointing that covering can bring. I want to show you today the covenant response that protects the covering. I can do that best by showing the lack of covenant response that removed the covering.
The first Adam was created by God and covered in Light. All creation was created and in Light. The covenant of Light is the first covenant with this realm. (Genesis 1:3) Not until Adam failed to be the covenant covering for his wife to protect her from Satan's deception, and disobeyed God by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, did he lose the covering of light and know he was naked. The knowledge he gained by taking the control of knowledge into his own hand had to be his guide from that time. Jesus, the second Adam, came guided by the Holy Spirit so that He only said what the Father was saying and did only what the Father was doing. His source of knowledge was the Holy Spirit. In John 14, 15, and 16, Jesus lays out the life you can have led and guided by the Holy Spirit given by God to be your teacher and guide. The Holy Spirit will guide you into all Truth.
God has provided us with every covering we will need to become what God desires us to be. From conception to the time we stand before Him to hear Him say, "Well done good and faithful servant, enter now into the Joy of the Lord," we can walk under covering. All that is required of us for this privilege is covenant response. I teach the children that their response is to honor their father and mother. Not so simple for human beings born in sin and with rebellious feelings but to choose to obey and be covered by that familial covering is to be blessed. To accept that God provided the Way to leave our inheritance of sin and death and to believe that Jesus became our substitute to take our punishment so that we can take His Life and Righteousness and so enter into the covering of Light is a privilege beyond words. This alone is cause for continuous joy and worship. Contemplating what we have in God is to respond in praise and walk in thanksgiving. I have found that worship is a covering and allows me to respond with a thankful heart to daily living. When I leave that covering of worship, I find stress ready to offer its own blanket. We live with choice.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Names as a part of covering
In the Old Testament (Covenant) we learn the value of names. In the revelation of each Name that God gave to different men at different times, we see the power in each Name of Jehovah. In the practice of covenant making we have seen the exchange of names. Today I want us to see names as an aspect of covering.
As Satan has fought the knowledge of covenant by destroying the practice of covenant or at least the distortion of the practice, man has lost much of his faith in the power there is in this way God ordained to relate and move in this realm among men. When we, as humans, know only the result of eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, we have faith only in what we can do and produce because we really only "know" what our control can produce. Everything God does is a "miracle" and His Word is dissected into different "philosophies". Without understanding that God will interact and commune with us through His covenants with us, we desperately grasp for enough faith to "make" Him answer our prayer.
Matthew 28:18-20 New Living Translation (NLT) 18 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
First, Jesus established that His authority was now (because of the cross and His resurrection)the joining of the authority of heaven (God's realm of Spirit) and the authority of earth (the authority given to Adam over all this realm). Second, He used the connective word, therefore, to show that the covenant command (expectation) hinged on this authority. Third, the action of fulfilling this expectation on earth was to be under the Name of the Authority of Jehovah, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We call this the Great Commission but it is the response the Church is to give to the Covenant Jesus made for us. Making disciples is a response everyone of us can do, but that is another lesson for another time!
Mark 16:15-18 (NLT) 15 And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. 16 Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned. 17 These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. 18 They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”
This portion takes the mystique out of moving in ministry. "These signs will accompany those who believe..." "IN MY NAME..." Jesus left all He earned for us in the power and authority of His Name.
Philippians 2:9-11 (NIV) 9Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus is the name of covenant that is our covering. Nothing can withstand the power in that name.
In marriage a man gives his name to his wife. All that he is and all that he has accomplished and earned is in his name. She is responsible for protecting and enriching that name by her life under his protection. It is the same for the Church that Jesus died to create. We are responsible for how we live under the protection of His Name. We magnify His Name by our response.
As Satan has fought the knowledge of covenant by destroying the practice of covenant or at least the distortion of the practice, man has lost much of his faith in the power there is in this way God ordained to relate and move in this realm among men. When we, as humans, know only the result of eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, we have faith only in what we can do and produce because we really only "know" what our control can produce. Everything God does is a "miracle" and His Word is dissected into different "philosophies". Without understanding that God will interact and commune with us through His covenants with us, we desperately grasp for enough faith to "make" Him answer our prayer.
Matthew 28:18-20 New Living Translation (NLT) 18 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
First, Jesus established that His authority was now (because of the cross and His resurrection)the joining of the authority of heaven (God's realm of Spirit) and the authority of earth (the authority given to Adam over all this realm). Second, He used the connective word, therefore, to show that the covenant command (expectation) hinged on this authority. Third, the action of fulfilling this expectation on earth was to be under the Name of the Authority of Jehovah, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We call this the Great Commission but it is the response the Church is to give to the Covenant Jesus made for us. Making disciples is a response everyone of us can do, but that is another lesson for another time!
Mark 16:15-18 (NLT) 15 And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. 16 Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned. 17 These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. 18 They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”
This portion takes the mystique out of moving in ministry. "These signs will accompany those who believe..." "IN MY NAME..." Jesus left all He earned for us in the power and authority of His Name.
Philippians 2:9-11 (NIV) 9Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus is the name of covenant that is our covering. Nothing can withstand the power in that name.
In marriage a man gives his name to his wife. All that he is and all that he has accomplished and earned is in his name. She is responsible for protecting and enriching that name by her life under his protection. It is the same for the Church that Jesus died to create. We are responsible for how we live under the protection of His Name. We magnify His Name by our response.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Examining the covering in the Covenant of Marriage
Last time we were looking at the misuse of covering because of man's interpretation. Let us look for a moment at God's perfect covering. Jesus walked under the covering of His Father. Was it protection? Yes, it was the protection to perfectly do the will of God which was the reason Jesus came to this realm. But I see that it was more than protection to do God's will. It was also enablement which is Grace. In the ministry of God to us in this realm there is a flow of enabling grace. There is the grace of the Father Who calls us and places us to do His Will. There is the grace of Jesus Christ Who provides not only saving grace but to be in His Church His ministry to the church. His is an administrative grace as He is to the church all the ministries of the church and so His grace enables us to fill the role ascribed to us according to our faith in His Name. (I Timothy 1:12 (King James Version) And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry;...) There is the grace of the Holy Spirit who enables us to do God's will and this grace we often interpret as "gifts". The enabling grace of God is also protective so we can minister in the face of Satan's hatred and walk unscathed in the evil day of man's rule on this earth. By His grace we are not of the world while we are in the world.
How does this translate to the covering of the marriage covenant? By the positioning of God, the Father, and the identification by the grace of God, the Son, and the enabling grace of God, the Holy Spirit, God participates with us in our marriage. All of this energy for our marriage covenant? Yes, because the marriage covenant is not only the first covenant we have with God but it is, as much as our sight can now encompass, the last covenant, the marriage with the Lamb. So the marriage covenant is more than an earthly provision but is in itself a preparation for a greater, eternal covenant yet to be revealed.
This is why Paul warns us not to be unequally yoked together. (II Corinthians 6:14-18) I know that portion of Scripture is for more than marriage but it does apply to marriage. You spend a great portion of your life in marriage and it is the most intimate and invasive relationship you will know on earth. To be out of God's will in the choice of a mate is a lifelong sentence. It is not without remedy but it does take a great amount of travail in prayer and faith that will not let go to see the change that will be the blessing God intends marriage to be to us. Faith in God to be the source of that remedy means you accept without complaint His action to bring the answer. I know this is a digression from the subject of covering, but it is one of the causes of most marriages failing to exercise all the blessings of the covenant of marriage and I believe "covering" is one of those blessings.
Now let us look at some of the aspects of that blessing. It is the release for a man and a woman to live under the covering of Jehovah. To accept the position in Christ as a husband, puts that man under a special covering of Jesus Christ. His ministry to his wife and to his children will have that special anointing and allows each husband to know the flow of the Holy Spirit ministering in a personal way, the provision of God for mankind to become one with Him. For the wife, the covering of her husband is a release to the freedom from deception as long as she remains under that covering. She can move freely in prayer and any ministry God appoints her, for her covering is her protection as long as she gives that covenant response of recognizing the position God has given to each her husband and herself. As a mother, she will have full authority to minister to her children. As a wife, she will have full authority to minister to her husband. She moves in the authority of the church under the covering Jesus gives to the church when she lives in respectful submission to the "expectation of the covenant of marriage." Ephesians 5:31-33 New Living Translation (NLT) 31 As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.” 32 This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one. 33 So again I say, each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband. Because the family is an important cell of the church, the covenant response to marriage becomes a blessing to the life of the church.
How does this translate to the covering of the marriage covenant? By the positioning of God, the Father, and the identification by the grace of God, the Son, and the enabling grace of God, the Holy Spirit, God participates with us in our marriage. All of this energy for our marriage covenant? Yes, because the marriage covenant is not only the first covenant we have with God but it is, as much as our sight can now encompass, the last covenant, the marriage with the Lamb. So the marriage covenant is more than an earthly provision but is in itself a preparation for a greater, eternal covenant yet to be revealed.
This is why Paul warns us not to be unequally yoked together. (II Corinthians 6:14-18) I know that portion of Scripture is for more than marriage but it does apply to marriage. You spend a great portion of your life in marriage and it is the most intimate and invasive relationship you will know on earth. To be out of God's will in the choice of a mate is a lifelong sentence. It is not without remedy but it does take a great amount of travail in prayer and faith that will not let go to see the change that will be the blessing God intends marriage to be to us. Faith in God to be the source of that remedy means you accept without complaint His action to bring the answer. I know this is a digression from the subject of covering, but it is one of the causes of most marriages failing to exercise all the blessings of the covenant of marriage and I believe "covering" is one of those blessings.
Now let us look at some of the aspects of that blessing. It is the release for a man and a woman to live under the covering of Jehovah. To accept the position in Christ as a husband, puts that man under a special covering of Jesus Christ. His ministry to his wife and to his children will have that special anointing and allows each husband to know the flow of the Holy Spirit ministering in a personal way, the provision of God for mankind to become one with Him. For the wife, the covering of her husband is a release to the freedom from deception as long as she remains under that covering. She can move freely in prayer and any ministry God appoints her, for her covering is her protection as long as she gives that covenant response of recognizing the position God has given to each her husband and herself. As a mother, she will have full authority to minister to her children. As a wife, she will have full authority to minister to her husband. She moves in the authority of the church under the covering Jesus gives to the church when she lives in respectful submission to the "expectation of the covenant of marriage." Ephesians 5:31-33 New Living Translation (NLT) 31 As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.” 32 This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one. 33 So again I say, each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband. Because the family is an important cell of the church, the covenant response to marriage becomes a blessing to the life of the church.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Examining Covering
“Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.”- Psalm 143:10
Hebrews 12:13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.
(New Living Translation (NLT) Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong.) The ministry of John the Baptist was to make the path straight for the Lord. (NASB)Matthew 3:3For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said,"THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS,'MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!'"
We are studying covering so what does "level or straight paths" have to do with our subject? As I was praying and meditating on some of the many scriptures concerning "covering", I was led to the verse in Psalm 143. At first I did not realize what the Spirit was showing me. But another scripture was brought to me to show me. Luke 7:29-30 (NLT) 29 When they heard this, all the people—even the tax collectors—agreed that God’s way was right, for they had been baptized by John. 30 But the Pharisees and experts in religious law rejected God’s plan for them, for they had refused John’s baptism. The religious rulers at the time Jesus was teaching were skilled in man's method of interpreting the Law. They did not have Moses' experience with God nor did they know God. Jesus knew the heart of God in giving the Law. He was also revealing a further step toward God that the Law had only pointed toward. John the Baptist had cleared the path for Jesus to come and lead the people in taking that step. Jesus took what the people had been taught from man's interpretation into understanding what God wanted as a response to His Covenant with them.
This is basically the problem we have in understanding covering. I see covering more in the light of positioning. Where we stand and how we walk is a very important part of "covering". To not understand the positioning before God that is involved is to leave us to man's interpretation of the subject of covering. Some require a literal natural covering to symbolize a covering that is either ignored or twisted to fit individual demands. Some make it purely spiritual while others simply pass over it as not pertinent to our day. This is much as we see in the different stands of interpretation the Pharisees and Saducees were taking such as the resurrection of the dead which the Law was preparing the people to embrace. Jesus came as the exact representation of God and thus John saw Him clearly as The Word. Jesus is our clearest example of "covering" and in Him we can see what God wants as our response to His covenant. He was positioned in the Father and led by the Spirit to do the Father's will. He was totally submissive to the Father in that He refused His own will to do the Father's. He did not rely on His response to a circumstance to act but did only what He saw the Father doing. He saw by the Holy Spirit just as we can when we are completely led by the Spirit as Jesus was led.
Let us go back to the Garden of Eden and to Adam and Eve when the covering was lost. They were "covered" by Light. They lost their covering and knew (by the knowledge they had attained by eating of the forbidden fruit) that they were naked and they proceeded by the same knowledge to make a covering for themselves. Mankind has acted on that knowledge ever since. I believe the difference between Enoch and the people of his day was his source of knowledge. He had found the way back to the tree of Life by refusing to eat of the fruit of that tree forbidden to Adam. Adam lived to see Enoch walking in and responding to the same Source he had turned away from to his own sorrow. One of the children I teach asked me if that tree was still here today. Yes, it is very much with us. We search the Scriptures to receive knowledge of good and evil. But we are very much in control in the searching. It is that control that Adam achieved. He took the control of knowledge out of God's hand and took it to himself. The fight for control has been the result. If you can get the control of the knowledge people receive, you can control the people. Witness our media and politicians who fight to sway people to their own "knowledge."
Covering has been the excuse for man's control. Marriages have suffered, churches have suffered, schools have suffered and nations have suffered under the control that stomps on those under them. When the Word of God is not held in righteousness it becomes the excuse for man to do what he chooses.
We are going to go deeper in the covering in marriage and see how much a part it is in the covenant of marriage and how it relates to and helps build the Church of God in the lessons to follow.
Hebrews 12:13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.
(New Living Translation (NLT) Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong.) The ministry of John the Baptist was to make the path straight for the Lord. (NASB)Matthew 3:3For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said,"THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS,'MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!'"
We are studying covering so what does "level or straight paths" have to do with our subject? As I was praying and meditating on some of the many scriptures concerning "covering", I was led to the verse in Psalm 143. At first I did not realize what the Spirit was showing me. But another scripture was brought to me to show me. Luke 7:29-30 (NLT) 29 When they heard this, all the people—even the tax collectors—agreed that God’s way was right, for they had been baptized by John. 30 But the Pharisees and experts in religious law rejected God’s plan for them, for they had refused John’s baptism. The religious rulers at the time Jesus was teaching were skilled in man's method of interpreting the Law. They did not have Moses' experience with God nor did they know God. Jesus knew the heart of God in giving the Law. He was also revealing a further step toward God that the Law had only pointed toward. John the Baptist had cleared the path for Jesus to come and lead the people in taking that step. Jesus took what the people had been taught from man's interpretation into understanding what God wanted as a response to His Covenant with them.
This is basically the problem we have in understanding covering. I see covering more in the light of positioning. Where we stand and how we walk is a very important part of "covering". To not understand the positioning before God that is involved is to leave us to man's interpretation of the subject of covering. Some require a literal natural covering to symbolize a covering that is either ignored or twisted to fit individual demands. Some make it purely spiritual while others simply pass over it as not pertinent to our day. This is much as we see in the different stands of interpretation the Pharisees and Saducees were taking such as the resurrection of the dead which the Law was preparing the people to embrace. Jesus came as the exact representation of God and thus John saw Him clearly as The Word. Jesus is our clearest example of "covering" and in Him we can see what God wants as our response to His covenant. He was positioned in the Father and led by the Spirit to do the Father's will. He was totally submissive to the Father in that He refused His own will to do the Father's. He did not rely on His response to a circumstance to act but did only what He saw the Father doing. He saw by the Holy Spirit just as we can when we are completely led by the Spirit as Jesus was led.
Let us go back to the Garden of Eden and to Adam and Eve when the covering was lost. They were "covered" by Light. They lost their covering and knew (by the knowledge they had attained by eating of the forbidden fruit) that they were naked and they proceeded by the same knowledge to make a covering for themselves. Mankind has acted on that knowledge ever since. I believe the difference between Enoch and the people of his day was his source of knowledge. He had found the way back to the tree of Life by refusing to eat of the fruit of that tree forbidden to Adam. Adam lived to see Enoch walking in and responding to the same Source he had turned away from to his own sorrow. One of the children I teach asked me if that tree was still here today. Yes, it is very much with us. We search the Scriptures to receive knowledge of good and evil. But we are very much in control in the searching. It is that control that Adam achieved. He took the control of knowledge out of God's hand and took it to himself. The fight for control has been the result. If you can get the control of the knowledge people receive, you can control the people. Witness our media and politicians who fight to sway people to their own "knowledge."
Covering has been the excuse for man's control. Marriages have suffered, churches have suffered, schools have suffered and nations have suffered under the control that stomps on those under them. When the Word of God is not held in righteousness it becomes the excuse for man to do what he chooses.
We are going to go deeper in the covering in marriage and see how much a part it is in the covenant of marriage and how it relates to and helps build the Church of God in the lessons to follow.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Covenant of marriage/covering
When Satan could not destroy covenant relationship because of its very nature, he used ignorance of covenant nature to destroy its effectiveness in people's lives. There is such strength in the nature of covenant even when employed by two human beings that when that covenant is instigated and blessed by and even participated in by the Almighty Power and Omnipresence and Omniscience of Eternal Jehovah, you have tremendous energy present. The covering in marriage was and is a very viable force even though unseen and not always sensed. So let us look at this subject of covering.
The Patriarchs of the first 2000 years were a covering that protected the inheritance of blessing and teaching of their descendents. They passed on a birthrite that was very valuable and Jacob saw it as a spiritual inheritance and he valued it. As I have studied the effects of covering, I realize God gives the covering that protects what He is doing at the time and protects the revelation of the projected action. God is always moving mankind forward toward His goal. The cultures of the past and the civilization we have inherited and in which we live at the moment reflect God's action and Satan's counteraction. All history reveals God's progressive unveiling of His purpose and the revelation of Himself to mankind and man's rebellion toward it. The "covering" of covenant protects and keeps pure the ribbon of His unveiling Plan through all the generations of man. His righteous people live and mature into His purpose for them right in the presence of evil and Satan's hatred and persecution.
The covering allows every generation to be righteous and effective in the time they live. For 4000 years before the cross and the ministry of the Holy Spirit to dwell within us, mortal man has been used of God according to His purpose. We have been living in the time of the "big sleep" but the call is going forth of the Bridegroom's approach and the "awakening" is happening. Yet, all this time we have been protected by the covering of covenant and able to minister and do God's will.
The covering is invasive in all areas of our lives. The husband is the covering in the family unit. The pastor is the covering in the church unit. All authority no matter where it is found is a covering against rebellious activity and is answerable to God Who gives that authority. When authority is corrupted it is still authority but God keeps a very close eye on authority for it is a covering. All will give account to God for the way each one is faithful to what is entrusted. When people do not have a respect for or a knowledge of the One to Whom they will give account, they blindly slide toward a very fearful Day.
What happens when a person loves and fears and obeys God and is subject to an authority that has no respect for God? Children with the touch of God on their lives living in homes where no glimmer of righteous behavior is ever known, wives subjected to the cruelty and degradation of a selfish and unholy man, citizens subjected to the whims of evil dictators and churches held in the bondage of unrighteous leaders are cause for us to ask that question. This is the evil that this realm produces and this is the realm we live in. This is the realm to which God sent His Son and this is where He will return to rule as King over all the nations with a rod of iron in Righteousness. The covering of covenant is the protection that allows each one to walk in the Way that Jesus revealed. That does not mean that persecution and tribulation does not come but it cannot touch our spirit. God will reward each and every cry and effort to follow Him. There will be the martyrs' crown and there will be eternal blessing for every pain suffered because of the reaching toward Him in the midst of man's rebellion. This is the capsule of "time" when man has choice. Here we choose if we will give God a covenant response or go our own way. Many have lived lives of degradation because of the violence that twisted authority displays. But this "time" is a tiny capsule in a vast eternity.
Jesus was very aware of the what this realm produces. He lived with us here and knew the full measure of man's evil. But He walked among us with a perfect union with the Father. This is the Way. He did not come to this earth to walk in the fullness of the Spirit and in union with the Father for His own sake--He did it for us. We can have what He revealed. He paid the price so anyone in this realm can have what He displayed. He will be with every husband who is willing to walk in the Way and will be that husband's covering so he can be to his wife what Jesus is to His Church. Every pastor that is willing to walk in the Way will have the personal covering of Jesus the Head of the Church so he can be to the people in his care the protection for their daily walk in the Way. God is not unmindful of what we endure but He knows the plans He has for us. His love surrounds us and He has provided the covenant covering under which we walk. Our response of love, worship and perseverance will not go unrewarded.
The Patriarchs of the first 2000 years were a covering that protected the inheritance of blessing and teaching of their descendents. They passed on a birthrite that was very valuable and Jacob saw it as a spiritual inheritance and he valued it. As I have studied the effects of covering, I realize God gives the covering that protects what He is doing at the time and protects the revelation of the projected action. God is always moving mankind forward toward His goal. The cultures of the past and the civilization we have inherited and in which we live at the moment reflect God's action and Satan's counteraction. All history reveals God's progressive unveiling of His purpose and the revelation of Himself to mankind and man's rebellion toward it. The "covering" of covenant protects and keeps pure the ribbon of His unveiling Plan through all the generations of man. His righteous people live and mature into His purpose for them right in the presence of evil and Satan's hatred and persecution.
The covering allows every generation to be righteous and effective in the time they live. For 4000 years before the cross and the ministry of the Holy Spirit to dwell within us, mortal man has been used of God according to His purpose. We have been living in the time of the "big sleep" but the call is going forth of the Bridegroom's approach and the "awakening" is happening. Yet, all this time we have been protected by the covering of covenant and able to minister and do God's will.
The covering is invasive in all areas of our lives. The husband is the covering in the family unit. The pastor is the covering in the church unit. All authority no matter where it is found is a covering against rebellious activity and is answerable to God Who gives that authority. When authority is corrupted it is still authority but God keeps a very close eye on authority for it is a covering. All will give account to God for the way each one is faithful to what is entrusted. When people do not have a respect for or a knowledge of the One to Whom they will give account, they blindly slide toward a very fearful Day.
What happens when a person loves and fears and obeys God and is subject to an authority that has no respect for God? Children with the touch of God on their lives living in homes where no glimmer of righteous behavior is ever known, wives subjected to the cruelty and degradation of a selfish and unholy man, citizens subjected to the whims of evil dictators and churches held in the bondage of unrighteous leaders are cause for us to ask that question. This is the evil that this realm produces and this is the realm we live in. This is the realm to which God sent His Son and this is where He will return to rule as King over all the nations with a rod of iron in Righteousness. The covering of covenant is the protection that allows each one to walk in the Way that Jesus revealed. That does not mean that persecution and tribulation does not come but it cannot touch our spirit. God will reward each and every cry and effort to follow Him. There will be the martyrs' crown and there will be eternal blessing for every pain suffered because of the reaching toward Him in the midst of man's rebellion. This is the capsule of "time" when man has choice. Here we choose if we will give God a covenant response or go our own way. Many have lived lives of degradation because of the violence that twisted authority displays. But this "time" is a tiny capsule in a vast eternity.
Jesus was very aware of the what this realm produces. He lived with us here and knew the full measure of man's evil. But He walked among us with a perfect union with the Father. This is the Way. He did not come to this earth to walk in the fullness of the Spirit and in union with the Father for His own sake--He did it for us. We can have what He revealed. He paid the price so anyone in this realm can have what He displayed. He will be with every husband who is willing to walk in the Way and will be that husband's covering so he can be to his wife what Jesus is to His Church. Every pastor that is willing to walk in the Way will have the personal covering of Jesus the Head of the Church so he can be to the people in his care the protection for their daily walk in the Way. God is not unmindful of what we endure but He knows the plans He has for us. His love surrounds us and He has provided the covenant covering under which we walk. Our response of love, worship and perseverance will not go unrewarded.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Covenant Covering
When God approached Abraham in Genesis 15:1 with covenant language He said, "I am your shield...." Covering is perhaps one of the major reasons for covenant for it is the protection offered. It is difficult for us to understand perfectly what covenant meant to past times because we do not "practice" covenant. You understand best what you live. For 2000 years God did not attempt to approach man with a covenant for it took generations of covenant practice to absorb it as a way of life. "A way of Life" is exactly what God wants to teach us through the covenant He has made.
Let us start with the first covenant, the marriage covenant. To show Adam what he had in the protection God gave him in covenant, God gave Adam a helpmeet to be covered. His covenant response to God was to be a covering for his helpmeet. When he failed to give this covenant response to God, sin entered the world.
In the marriage covenant, protection is very important. The man is protected for he is to the wife what Jesus is to the church. His covering is spiritual. In I Corinthians 11 we see that the man prays uncovered. He does not need a covering other than the Lord, just as Adam was covered by the Lord and his response was to the Lord. The man's response is to the Lord. If he fails in his protective, covering role, he sins against God.
The woman represents the church in her role as wife. She responds to her husband as the church is to respond to the Lord, the head of the church. She submits to her husband as to the Lord. Why? It goes back to the first deception. It is easier for a woman to be deceived and she needs a covering to protect her. It is actually a blessing to be a woman and walk under a covering that protects and shelters her. She can receive from God for in Christ there is neither male nor female. But she is protected from Satan's deceptive darts when she is respectfully seeing her husband in the role God has put him. Outside the covenant concept, men become critical of their wives and lose that protective love that they receive from God when they walk in their role by faith. Women become critical of their husbands when they see them as men. They lose not only their submission to their husbands, they become deceived and lose the respect they should have for the Head of the Church. They become controlling not only in small things but a spirit of controlling takes over and they cannot lose that control. Instead of the prayer that Jesus showed us was the only way to follow Him and that He prayed in Gethsemane, "Not my will but Thine," the wife becomes insistent that things be done her way. The farther the church goes from seeking the will of the Head, Jesus Christ, the more marriages see this problem. The two seem to go hand in hand. My husband has often said as marriages go so goes the church. It can be reversed also, in that as the church fails to uphold the will of God as the ruling authority, marriages get in trouble.
There is also the problem of divorce. The pain of divorce is not only in the natural but in the spiritual. The wife has suddenly been cut off from her covering.
If the wife is a Christian and the husband not, she has had to have faith for her husband to be her covering even if he does not understand. But in divorce that is not possible. She has to come prayerfully to the Lord and ask that He become her covering as He would if she were a widow. When she prayerfully repents of anything in which she may have contributed to the divorce, the Blood of Jesus covers all unrighteousness. There is a special tearing that must by healed for what was once one is now torn into two parts. Feelings and hurts must be repented of to be healed. Only Jesus can bring into your life the Peace you need. But you do not ask for His work in your life and ever be denied. He hears the cry and He answers. The covenant response necessary in this broken covenant is forgiveness and a trust in God to bring the healing. Jesus is the covering of His Church and when we humbly follow Him, we are His Church, no matter what natural label of denomination we might have. If you are no longer under the covering of marriage, you are, as a member of His Church, under the covering of Jesus, our Head.
This is not meant to be a complete answer to this problem for each divorce has many individual aspects, but it should arouse questions to be brought to the Lord. If you have questions of what I have said or if you do not understand some of the references I made, please ask. Or if you just want me to pray for your situation, I will certainly do so. I take this subject of covering very seriously and have a great appreciation for the blessings a covering provides.
Let us start with the first covenant, the marriage covenant. To show Adam what he had in the protection God gave him in covenant, God gave Adam a helpmeet to be covered. His covenant response to God was to be a covering for his helpmeet. When he failed to give this covenant response to God, sin entered the world.
In the marriage covenant, protection is very important. The man is protected for he is to the wife what Jesus is to the church. His covering is spiritual. In I Corinthians 11 we see that the man prays uncovered. He does not need a covering other than the Lord, just as Adam was covered by the Lord and his response was to the Lord. The man's response is to the Lord. If he fails in his protective, covering role, he sins against God.
The woman represents the church in her role as wife. She responds to her husband as the church is to respond to the Lord, the head of the church. She submits to her husband as to the Lord. Why? It goes back to the first deception. It is easier for a woman to be deceived and she needs a covering to protect her. It is actually a blessing to be a woman and walk under a covering that protects and shelters her. She can receive from God for in Christ there is neither male nor female. But she is protected from Satan's deceptive darts when she is respectfully seeing her husband in the role God has put him. Outside the covenant concept, men become critical of their wives and lose that protective love that they receive from God when they walk in their role by faith. Women become critical of their husbands when they see them as men. They lose not only their submission to their husbands, they become deceived and lose the respect they should have for the Head of the Church. They become controlling not only in small things but a spirit of controlling takes over and they cannot lose that control. Instead of the prayer that Jesus showed us was the only way to follow Him and that He prayed in Gethsemane, "Not my will but Thine," the wife becomes insistent that things be done her way. The farther the church goes from seeking the will of the Head, Jesus Christ, the more marriages see this problem. The two seem to go hand in hand. My husband has often said as marriages go so goes the church. It can be reversed also, in that as the church fails to uphold the will of God as the ruling authority, marriages get in trouble.
There is also the problem of divorce. The pain of divorce is not only in the natural but in the spiritual. The wife has suddenly been cut off from her covering.
If the wife is a Christian and the husband not, she has had to have faith for her husband to be her covering even if he does not understand. But in divorce that is not possible. She has to come prayerfully to the Lord and ask that He become her covering as He would if she were a widow. When she prayerfully repents of anything in which she may have contributed to the divorce, the Blood of Jesus covers all unrighteousness. There is a special tearing that must by healed for what was once one is now torn into two parts. Feelings and hurts must be repented of to be healed. Only Jesus can bring into your life the Peace you need. But you do not ask for His work in your life and ever be denied. He hears the cry and He answers. The covenant response necessary in this broken covenant is forgiveness and a trust in God to bring the healing. Jesus is the covering of His Church and when we humbly follow Him, we are His Church, no matter what natural label of denomination we might have. If you are no longer under the covering of marriage, you are, as a member of His Church, under the covering of Jesus, our Head.
This is not meant to be a complete answer to this problem for each divorce has many individual aspects, but it should arouse questions to be brought to the Lord. If you have questions of what I have said or if you do not understand some of the references I made, please ask. Or if you just want me to pray for your situation, I will certainly do so. I take this subject of covering very seriously and have a great appreciation for the blessings a covering provides.
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