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6 Keys to Living the Life God Planned for You

by Gloria Copeland

“You don’t owe anything. Your bill has already been paid.”

Sometimes Ken and I hear those words in a restaurant when we start to pay for our meal. Usually it’s because one of our Partners was there and decided to bless us. That’s such a nice feeling—it always touches our hearts.

When I think about what Jesus did for us when He gave His life on the cross, I’m reminded of those times and I realize God has said those same wonderful words to us: You don’t owe anything. Your bill has already been paid.

Without our asking Him to do it…while we were still living in sin and rebellion…Jesus paid the price for our forgiveness. With His own blood, He paid the debt we owed to God for every sinful thing we have ever done…or will ever do. He set us free from sin, sickness and pain. He paid the bill so we can be whole—spirit, soul and body.

Isaiah 53:4-5 says it this way:

Surely He has borne our griefs (sicknesses, weaknesses, and distresses) and carried our sorrows and pains [of punishment], yet we [ignorantly] considered Him stricken, smitten, and afflicted by God…But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole (The Amplified Bible).

The last phrase of that verse means a great deal to me. I love the fact that it says “we are healed and made whole!” It doesn’t say that one day we will be healed and made whole. It doesn’t say that possibly, if it’s the will of the Lord, we might be healed and made whole. It says we already are!

#1 – Don’t Argue With God

If you have sickness in your body today, you might be tempted to argue with me about that. You might say, “Hey, I’m hurting right now. I’ve been to the doctor and he says I’m sick. I even have x-rays to prove it. How can you say I am healed?”

I’m not the one saying it. God is the One Who said it in His Word—I’m just quoting Him. He’s given us the good news that the price for sickness (which entered the world through sin) has been paid! So if you’ve given your heart to Jesus, you don’t have to pay the price of sickness anymore. Your healing has already been provided. You can simply receive it by faith and go!

If you’re wondering how to do that, think about what Ken and I did when we learned that somebody had paid for our meal. We didn’t sit around waiting until we felt like the bill was paid. We didn’t argue with the cashier and say, “Well, I’m just not sure about this. After all, I didn’t actually see anybody pay it so how can I be absolutely certain it really happened? It just seems too good to be true.”

No, we didn’t say any of those things! We just took the cashier’s word for it and accepted the fact that our bill was paid. “Thank you very much!” we said. Then we acted on our faith by walking happily out the door.

As simple as that may sound, we receive healing from God in just the same way. We take Him at His Word. We believe we are healed, not because we feel healed or look healed at this moment but because God said we are. By faith, we start talking like we’re healed. We start acting like we’re healed. Before long, our bodies line up with God’s Word and it becomes apparent to everyone that we truly are healed!

#2 – Receive It by Faith

Some people are reluctant to receive their healing by faith. They think it’s too hard to do. So they just go to the doctor or wait around hoping someone will lay hands on them and zap them with the power of God in spite of their unbelief. Now please understand that I’m in favor of laying hands on the sick and I love it when the gifts of healing operate. And I think doctors are wonderful and a great blessing to mankind. But too often people just rely on medical doctors to help them.

The truth is even if someone lays hands on you, or the doctor gives you medicine and you get healed this time, one of these days you’ll still have to grow up spiritually and learn to operate by faith if you want to live a victorious Christian life.

Why? Because the Bible says very clearly in three separate verses, “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11, Hebrews 10:38). We are born again by faith. We fulfill the will of God in our lives by faith. If we’re sick, we receive healing by faith. If we are broke, we get financial increase by faith. If our kids are in trouble, we get them back into the fold of God by faith. We receive anything and everything that we need from God…by faith!

Faith is simply believing what God says in His Word. It is trusting what He says more than we trust our natural senses or what other people say. Faith is believing God enough to talk and act as if His Word is true even when circumstances around us would seem to indicate that it’s not.

How do we get that kind of faith? Romans 10:17 tells us “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” So if you want to get stronger faith, spend more time in the Word of God.

That’s exactly what Ken and I did 35 years ago when we were just finding out about these things. We didn’t have time for television or newspapers. We read our Bibles instead. We listened to preaching tapes day in and day out—whenever we could. When Brother Hagin would have a 10-day meeting, we’d be there every single night. It didn’t matter to us whether we had to go in rain, ice or snow…we went because we wanted to have faith and we knew that faith came from hearing the Word.

Actually, we’re little different today. We still keep a steady stream of God’s Word flowing into our hearts. We keep ourselves spiritually fed. Although we go regularly to meetings where we hear the Word preached, I’ve found that’s not enough for me to live on. Just like I need to eat physical food every day (several times a day!) to keep going, I need to eat spiritual food every day too. I can’t wait until somebody comes and spoon-feeds me the Word and neither can you.

If I’m going to live every day by faith, I need to be strong in the Word every day. If I don’t, my faith will dwindle and I can’t afford that. I can’t afford to be a lazy Christian because the devil is out there waiting to get a shot at me. He’s looking for an opportunity to steal away the blessings Jesus bought for me and I don’t want to give it to him.

#3 – Resist the Devil

Actually, if it weren’t for the devil, living by faith would be a cakewalk. There would be hardly any effort to it at all. God’s Word about everything He’s done for us through Christ Jesus is so wonderful that it’s easy to agree with. The first time we hear it, we’re usually so happy about it that we want to shout all the way home from church. But after a few days have passed and the devil starts pressuring us with symptoms, circumstances and discouraging lies, we find that some effort is required to continue to believe God.

That’s why it’s so vital for us to keep our hearts full of God’s Word. By keeping it before our eyes and going in our ears, it will be in our hearts in abundance and come out of our mouths in faith. Because when pressure comes, what comes out of us will be what is in us in greatest abundance. As Jesus said, “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45, New International Version).

If God’s Word about healing is abundantly stored in your heart, then when symptoms of sickness come, you’ll begin resisting those symptoms and speaking faith. Almost without thinking about it, you’ll say, “Oh, no you don’t devil. You’re not putting that sickness on me. I’m the healed of the Lord. Jesus paid the price for me to be well and I intend to be well so you just take your symptoms and get out of here!”

However if you’ve spent more time thinking about natural things than you have the Word, it will be a different story. You’ll probably just lie down and take it when the devil uses sickness to put the squeeze on you. You’ll say, “Oh, dear. I feel terrible. I believe I’m getting sick. I’d better go to bed.”

Like it or not, that kind of pressure comes to every Christian because—for the time being—the devil is still operating in the earth. He is a thief and a liar who comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10). He wants to rob us of the abundant life that Jesus has provided for us and he does it by challenging our faith.

How should we respond to that challenge?

By holding fast to the Word of God and absolutely, positively, refusing to give up until we see His promises manifested in our lives.

#4 – Know Within Yourself

There are no two ways about it, sometimes that can be pretty tough. Not because the devil is so strong and powerful—He’s not. The Bible says he’s already been disarmed. He has been brought to nothing! Even so, he is still a very good liar. He can really paint a bleak picture. He can whisper negative thoughts in your ear and make your situation look so bad that you may find yourself wanting to quit.

When that happens, we must follow the instructions given to the early church when they were facing great persecution for their faith. Unbelievers were literally plundering their houses and stealing their possessions in an attempt to get them to renounce Jesus. Yet the writer of Hebrews says to them:

Ye…took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance. Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul (Hebrews 10:34-39).

According to these verses, in order to receive what God has promised us—whether that be healing or any other scriptural blessing—we must know within ourselves what we have been given in Jesus. That means we must know it not just with our head but with our heart. We must have His Word rooted so deeply and firmly within us that when we hear lies to the contrary, we don’t buy them. We must be so fully persuaded of what God says that we act as if it’s true even when natural circumstances look like it’s not.

We can’t quit when the going gets tough. If we quit, it’s over. If we lay down our faith and give up, the devil can keep us in permanent defeat. On the other hand, we will win if we don’t quit. It’s absolutely guaranteed.

I like the way verse 36 reads in The Amplified Bible—it makes that very clear. It says “For you have need of steadfast patience and endurance, so that you may perform and fully accomplish the will of God, and thus receive and carry away [and enjoy to the full] what is promised.”

Notice it doesn’t say you might possibly receive what God promised. It says that if you don’t cast away your confidence you will receive and enjoy it to the full!

#5 – Forget About the Past

I’ll warn you right now, one way the devil will try to steal your confidence is by tempting you to look at the past. He’ll draw your attention off God’s Word by reminding you of yesterday’s failures, pains and disappointments.

“Before you get so carried away with this faith stuff,” he’ll say, “just remember that the pastor laid hands on you two days ago and you didn’t feel a bit better afterward. And don’t forget Sister Saint. She said she was believing God for healing last year and she died. What’s more, you’ve been talking this healing business for two weeks now and you still have most of the same symptoms you had when you started. You felt bad yesterday. You feel bad today and you’re going to feel the same way tomorrow.”

When the devil starts telling you things like that, remember this: Faith always looks forward. It doesn’t dwell on the past. It faces the future full of expectancy with faith in God.

Looking back is not the way to get ahead in the kingdom of God.

“But Gloria,” you may say, “I’ve made some bad mistakes. I’ve done some terrible things. I think I’ll just have to accept this sickness and pay the price for what I’ve done.”

No, you don’t! Jesus paid the price, remember? If you’ve made a mistake or done something wrong, repent and let it go because God has forgiven you. First John 1:9 says He is faithful and just to forgive your sin and cleanse you of all unrighteousness. As far as heaven is concerned the past record of your sins has been wiped out. It’s gone. It’s under the blood of Jesus. So don’t let the devil talk you into looking back!

Don’t listen to him when he comes to you with his dark cloud, telling you lies. Don’t let him take your past and project it into your future. Cast him out! Get rid of him!

#6 – Look Ahead to the Future

One way to defeat the devil is by getting out your Bible and telling him just what God says about your future. He says you’re the healed—so enjoying a healthy body is in your future. He says you’re more than a conqueror—so victory in every area of life is in your future. You have a good and glorious life ahead of you right here on this earth. And what’s even better is the life that’s waiting for you after that!

Remember this earthly life we’re living is not a permanent thing. This is just a temporary situation. If we live to be 100 years old, that’s just a moment in eternity. We are on our way to heaven! I think we ought to live healthy, blessed and prosperous lives while we’re here because that’s the will of God. But even so, we need to remember we’re just passing through.

We always need to be aware that during this lifetime we’re on temporary assignment for God. We’re here to work for Him and build His kingdom on the earth. Right now we’re laying up rewards for heaven. We won’t be able to earn the same kinds of rewards once we get there because there won’t be any pressure to resist up there. There won’t be a devil trying to knock our heads off, make us sick and steal our resources.

Right now we have a fleeting opportunity to give glory to God by standing strong on His Word right in the face of all the pressure and lies the devil can bring. We have the opportunity to say, “Go ahead devil, give it your best shot. When you’re finished, I’ll still be standing here believing God’s Word. I’ll still be praising Him and saying, ‘By His stripes I am healed!’ Because I’m not one of those who draw back. I’m one of those who believe and by faith I receive the promise!”

If we’ll start thinking like that we’ll be able to stand more successfully against the pressures the devil brings against us. When he tries to block our blessings by reminding us of the debts and defeats in our past, we’ll just keep looking forward in faith. We’ll confidently put the devil under our feet where he belongs, knowing that in Jesus “our bill has been paid.” And we’ll step boldly into a future full of the promises and provisions of God!

Unlock God’s Master Plan for Your Life

by Gloria Copeland

Have you unlocked God’s master plan for your life? When God created you, He designed you for a purpose, and He has the master plan for you to fulfill that purpose. No one else has the plan or can carry out the plan because He created it just for you. It’s your responsibility to seek the Lord and unlock the plan. To unlock the plan, you must have a key, and that key is faith…specifically, your faith. Without using your faith, you will never tap into all the plans God has for you in this life.

The power of faith will not only launch you into the promised land of God’s master plan for your life, it will also give you the power to conquer the giants once you get there. It will move every mountain that tries to stand in your way.

Faith will bring God’s power on the scene to do whatever needs to be done in your life. It will heal your marriage and straighten out your children. It will fill your bank account. Faith in God’s Word will do whatever it says in your life. “And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith” (l John 5:4).

That’s why, when Ken and I moved to Tulsa and began hearing the message of faith, we just couldn’t get enough of it. We wanted to hear it…and hear it…and hear it. We’d drive through ice storms, slipping and sliding, to Kenneth E. Hagin’s meetings just to hear him preach—morning and evening for three weeks straight. I think every meeting he would teach faith from Mark 11:22-24. We received it and WE GOT IT!

In those verses, Jesus said:

Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

When Ken and I first started studying those verses, we had more mountains in our lives than we knew how to climb. We were defeated in almost every area. We had countless questions and very few answers. So when we heard that faith would move mountains, we were eager to find out more about it—and we’ve been learning about it ever since. Even now, we don’t know everything there is to know, but we know a lot more than we did when we started. We know not only from the Word but also from experience that it doesn’t matter what kind of problem we run into, faith in God’s Word will always fix it.

Actually, I learned early on that faith would fix even me! That was an important discovery because I had some natural weaknesses and shortcomings that could have kept me from fulfilling God’s plan. I didn’t possess the natural talents and inclinations necessary to do what He had called me to do. Like everyone else who sets out to do God’s will, I had what you might call an ability gap.

That was demonstrated quite clearly when Ken preached his first meeting. Before Ken spoke, the pastor of the church hosting the meeting asked me to stand up and say a few words to the congregation. (Traditionally, that’s what preachers’ wives were expected to do.)

My response was, “No.”

That’s all I said. I didn’t add, “I’m glad to be here” or “God bless you.” Nothing else. I didn’t intend to be rude, but, I felt very uncomfortable speaking in front of people and I didn’t want to do it. That was the sad shape I was in when we went into the ministry.

Of course after the service, I repented. “Lord, I’m sorry about that,” I said. “The next time someone calls on me, I will jump up, open my mouth by faith, and expect You to fill it.” I’ve done exactly that ever since. Little did I know then how thoroughly the Lord would take me up on that promise.

The Ability to See His Plans Through

In the years since, I’ve preached to thousands of people again and again. How have I done it? With the ability God provides. When I tap in to His grace by faith, it is always sufficient for me. God’s strength truly is made perfect in my weakness.

That’s a fact you’ll want to remember because as you step into God’s Master Plan for your life, one of the first things you’re sure to realize is that you don’t have the ability to do all God is telling you to do. When He unfolds His plan before you, you may be tempted to say, “Lord, You’ve got to be kidding. Have You looked at me lately? Have You checked the balance in my checking account? Are You aware that I have a track record of failure in that area? I don’t think I’m Your best choice to carry out this plan!”

If you’ve ever had thoughts like that, don’t be discouraged; you’re in good company. Abraham, the famous Old Testament father of faith, felt the same way when God told him he and his barren, old wife were going to have a baby. Although that was part of God’s Master Plan for him and for the nation of Israel, Abraham thought the idea was so far out he actually fell over laughing. When Sarah heard God’s promise, she had the same reaction. She “laughed within herself, saying, ‘After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?’” (Genesis 18:12, New King James Version).

Why did Abraham and Sarah consider God’s plan so outlandish? Because they looked at themselves and each other every day. They were old! They knew their history of barrenness. Physically, they had absolutely no ability to have children. So the idea that they were about to become the father and mother of nations seemed ridiculous.

But when Abraham and Sarah realized God was serious, they stopped laughing. They got serious and did exactly what Jesus said we should do. They had faith in God. They began to speak His Word and believe His promise would come to pass in their lives.

Sarah and Abraham proved that faith works! They demonstrated it can overcome every obstacle. It can even turn barren, wrinkled centenarians into the beaming parents of a new baby boy.

Developing the Faith That Takes

Abraham and Sarah believed they received God’s promise, just like Mark 11:24 says to do. Exactly what does it mean to believe you receive? I can tell you what it doesn’t mean. It doesn’t mean we just sit back and say, “Well, I’ll accept whatever happens. I’d like to have God’s promises fulfilled in my life but…I’ll just leave it all up to the Lord.”

Although that may sound very spiritual, it’s actually unscriptural. Some people have the idea that if God wants to give them something, He’ll do it without requiring any action on their part. So when they fail to see God’s promises come to pass in their lives, they assume God just didn’t want to fulfill those promises in their particular situation. But they’re mistaken. God always fulfills His promises when His conditions are met. He is a promise-keeper, not a promise-breaker.

Mark 11:24 clearly commands us to believe we receive what we ask for when we pray. We can’t leave up to the Lord what He has left up to us. And He has given us the responsibility not only to believe, but to receive the things He has promised us in His Word.

The Greek word translated receive in Mark 11:24 is a strong, aggressive, action word. It means “to take, to get hold of,” “to receive to oneself,” “to take back.” It is an action word. I think seize would be an appropriate word to describe it.

If we don’t seize by faith what God has offered to us in His Word, it’s not His fault—it’s ours. God has already done His part. He has provided every blessing, every good gift we could ever need, and has extended those gifts to us through His Word. But that by itself does not complete the transaction. For a gift to be exchanged there must be a giver and a receiver.

We all know that’s true in the natural world. Imagine, for example, it was your birthday today and I walked up to you with a lovely gift. I could say, “Happy Birthday!” and offer it to you. But if you just stood there looking at it with your hands at your sides, that gift would never do you any good. Even though it belonged to you, and I had already bought and paid for it, if you didn’t reach out and take it, you’d go home empty-handed.

On the other hand, if you would take hold of that gift, you’d take possession of it. You could open it up and enjoy it. When you did, both you and I would be greatly pleased and blessed.

We must do the same thing with God’s promises. To enjoy their benefits, we must receive them. We must say, “Thank You, Father, for that promise. I believe it’s mine and I take it by faith right now.” We must begin to think, speak and act as if that promise is already ours. That’s just how faith works.

Then, when the devil tries to talk us out of that promise, we refuse to give it up. We rebuke the devil and tell him to get his hands off our situation, in the Name of Jesus. When we do that, we’ll experience victory.

Let Your Mountains Hear Your Voice

Another important lesson about faith we can learn from Abraham and Sarah is that they imitated God’s example by calling “those things which be not as though they were” (Romans 4:17). God Himself convinced them to do that by giving them new names. A year before Isaac was born, He changed Abram to Abraham, which means “father of many nations,” and Sarai to Sarah, which means “mother of multitudes.” So Abraham and Sarah made a confession of faith every time they said their names.

Why is that important? Because, according to Mark 11:23, one primary characteristic of faith is that it speaks the Word of God and believes those things it says will happen. Real, Bible faith is never silent. It continually speaks God’s promise. Faith has a voice—the voice of victory!

Many Christians don’t realize that. They diligently study the Word, and faith arises in their hearts, just as Romans 10:17 says it will. Faith comes to them as they hear the Word. But because they never open their mouths to speak by faith, their faith never bears fruit. It dies unborn!

Remember this: Faith comes by hearing, but faith goes into action by saying! It is applied to the situation by words of faith. “Well, I just don’t think my faith is big enough to get the job done,” someone might say. “I think that’s my problem.”

If so, that’s no problem at all because Jesus told us what to do about that. When the apostles came to Him and said, “Lord, increase our faith,” He answered:

If you had faith (trust and confidence in God) even [so small] like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, Be pulled up by the roots, and be planted in the sea, and it would obey you. Will any man of you who has a servant plowing or tending sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, Come at once and take your place at the table? Will he not instead tell him, Get my supper ready and gird yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; then afterward you yourself shall eat and drink? (Luke 17:6-8, The Amplified Bible).

According to Jesus, it doesn’t matter how small our faith is, if we’ll plant it by speaking out what we are believing, it will grow up and get the job done. When we release our faith with the words of our mouth, it goes to work for us like a servant and does what we send it to do.

That’s one of the first principles Ken and I learned when we began to study faith. I’ll never forget the day the revelation of it fully dawned on me. I had been listening to Kenneth E. Hagin’s tape You Can Have What You Say on an old, 6-inch, reel-to-reel tape recorder. I had taken copious notes and was excited about what I was hearing. Revelation was coming to my heart and mind.

In Mark 11:22-24, Jesus clearly put a great emphasis on the words we say. As I took notes and listened to Brother Hagin preaching from this scripture about faith and the power of our words those many years ago, suddenly, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart. He said, In consistency lies the power.

That’s when it hit me. It’s not just what we say in prayer or in church, but what we say continually that makes the difference. What we say consistently will come to pass in our lives because that’s what we really believe in our hearts. Jesus said, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34, NKJV). What you say continually is what is abiding in your heart. If you want to know what is in your heart, listen to your mouth. It’s very revealing. Most of the time, it’s too revealing for comfort.

At that moment, sitting in our shabby, little rented house back in 1967, I decided I had to take control over my words. I made up my mind to start speaking words of faith not just in church or when reading my Bible, but all the time. I saw it wouldn’t work for Ken and me to speak faith words for a while, then quit when results didn’t come right away and we felt discouraged. We couldn’t afford to lie in bed and murmur to each other about our problems at times like that. We couldn’t declare a faith timeout and say, “Why isn’t the Word of God working for us?” “Why aren’t we getting any results?” “What is going to happen to us?” “How will we make it?” “What are we going to do now?”

Those negative words would undermine the whole faith process. We literally could not afford to say them at any time. Every word we said was important.

I’m absolutely convinced that had Ken and I not followed Jesus’ example and begun confessing God’s Word over our lives, rather than words of unbelief, we could never have connected with God’s Master Plan. We would have remained stuck in our old patterns of defeat and inadequacy. Instead of stepping into the bright, new future God had planned for us, we would have continued walking around and around the paths of the past.

The same is true for you. To successfully walk out God’s Master Plan for your life, you must start saying what God says about you. You must come into agreement with God. That will put you where you need to be!

The Miraculous Realm of God’s Love

The Miraculous Realm of God's Love

by Kenneth Copeland

The entire new covenant—all that it involves—is wrapped up in love.

According to God’s WORD, we can walk in perfected love while we are here in this earth. God is love so love itself is already perfect; but we have to allow God to express His perfection in our lives. We do that by keeping His WORD.

The world’s systems and ideas are accepted as the norm, but they are not. God’s WORD is the norm and the standard of life we are to maintain. Man was created to function on God’s level. Adam walked on that level in the Garden of Eden; but when he disobeyed God, he fell from his position of fellowship and oneness with God. It took Jesus coming to earth as a man to reclaim the authority that Adam gave over to Satan. Today, every born-again believer can live on that supernatural level through the power of God’s love, by the Holy Spirit.

I’ve heard the love walk described this way: “To walk in love, to live in this God kind of love, is like a man walking in a dense, early morning fog. He walks in it until his clothes are saturated with moisture, until the brim of his hat drips with water.” You can walk in the love of God to the point that your whole being is saturated with love. Every word you speak drips with love and everyone you come in contact with is affected by that love. Hallelujah!

I have set myself and am determined to be “Holy-Spirit-possessed.” I have made up my mind to come to that place in love—to be totally and completely filled with the Holy Spirit in every area of my being.

Become Love-Conscious

In studying the love of God, you must remember this: Walking in love is not just “being nice.” Jesus was Love manifested in the flesh, but there were times when He didn’t appear to be “nice.” One time He called the people snakes. He said, “Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers” (Matthew 23:33). Another time He called a Syrophenician woman a dog (Mark 7:27). It didn’t sound very sweet, but His words were effective. They got her attention and penetrated her unbelief. When He got through to her, she quit begging, looked Him straight in the face, and said, “yet the dogs under the table eat of the children’s crumbs” (verse 28). She let Him realize she wasn’t leaving there without the deliverance of her daughter. Jesus then said, “For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter” (verse 29).

Love is a way of life—a life of being love-conscious instead of self-conscious. If you are not being love-conscious, you will always take the selfish route. Being love-conscious does not come automatically; it requires training. The WORD says we are to practice love. If we love one another, God dwells in us, and His love is perfected in us (1 John 4:12). As we love one another, God’s love is perfected in us. Now you can see why walking in love is walking in the highest spiritual realm of existence—you are walking in God and God is walking in you.

Human beings are supernatural beings. Every person has a deep desire to walk in the supernatural. It is that desire which motivated you to reach out to God.

The First Step

The first time you ever touched the realm of the miraculous was when you were born again. Someone preached The WORD of God to you. You called on the Name of Jesus and reached out into that realm. The experience of the new birth is the most miraculous event that will ever occur in your life. You were reborn from a death of trespass and sin and made alive to God. You were re-created and made to be righteous—a spotless child of the God of heaven and earth. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). You instantly became a new creature. One translation says you became “a new species of being that never existed before.”

Some people have experienced only the new birth, not realizing God has provided much more. Many have taken a step further and experienced the infilling of the Holy Spirit with evidence of speaking with other tongues. “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:1, 4). With the Holy Spirit active in you, you have the ability to witness to the world of God’s great power and love.

The Commitment

A few have decided to live in that realm, renewing their minds with The WORD and separating themselves from the carnal ways of the world: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:1-2).

This is the committed believer—one who has made the decision to be a holy vessel of honor, sanctified and meet for the Master’s use, prepared unto every good work (2 Timothy 2:21). A born-again child of God is bone of His bone and flesh of His flesh, joined one spirit with The LORD (Ephesians 5:30; 1 Corinthians 6:17).

Standing in Full Measure

This is the ultimate realm of God’s power and love—the place where all phases of ministry come together and operate at their fullest capacity.

God has been dealing with me about walking in the fullness of the gifts of the Spirit. In my estimation, the best I have seen of spiritual gifts in operation has fallen short of what God wants to do.

I have been very blessed to see great and miraculous happenings, both in church congregations and out in the streets. I have seen the power of God in operation, but I have never yet walked away satisfied that God did everything He wanted to do. The time is coming and now is at hand for the fullness of the gifts of the Spirit to operate, for God to do what He has been wanting to do all these years. Jesus said, “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father” (John 14:12). The things I am going to share with you now are the things that will put us in a position to walk in that fullness of greater works.

We haven’t reached that place yet, but we are headed that way now. Glory to God! We have finally come to the place where many of us are joining together and worshiping God in unity, “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of the Christ” (Ephesians 4:13). That is one of the most important steps that has to happen.

“(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:9-12).

God said this to me: “The time is coming and even now is, for people to walk in the fullness of their callings.” No, the day of the apostle is not over. The day of the prophet is not over. The evangelist and the pastor are not the only two ministries left in operation. The day is coming soon when we will see people walk in apostolic and prophetic power in full measure. We will see people walk in the office of evangelist in such a way that it will shake and startle the world.

First Corinthians 12:28 refers to other ministries that have been set in the Body of Christ; “And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.”

Some people are called primarily to one office of ministry, such as miracles or gifts of healings. There are offices where people are called just to do miracles. There are people set in the Church to do nothing but minister healing to the congregation. Kathryn Kuhlman walked in that ministry. She preached to people who didn’t know much about The WORD. God called her to minister in the gifts of healings; and thank God, she accepted it!

There is an office of governments and an office of helps. The office of helps is the most underdeveloped ministry in the Body of Christ today. It is a vital ministry, just as real and necessary as the office of pastor. God is raising up men and women in these last days to walk in the fullness of helps and governments. He said to me, “I will bless them for their commitment to see My covenant established in the earth. They will be there watching as the dead are raised and the blind see and the lame walk!” Praise God! Think about it—you and I seeing ministries operate in full measure.

The New Breed

Our job is to walk in love toward one another and walk in this magnificent realm of the miraculous.

“Speaking the truth in love, [we] may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: from whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:15-16).

In the Greek text, the word edify means “to charge,” as you would “charge” a battery. As we edify one another in love, we pump one another full of power! By speaking the truth in love to each other, we grow up into Him in all things and walk the earth in full stature as believers continually building each other up with The WORD.

Jesus is not coming back for a weak, sickly Church that has been defeated and beaten down by Satan. No, praise God, we are going out of here in a blaze of glory!

You can walk in the realm of the miraculous, using the authority of God; but you will never do it until you put God’s WORD first place in your life and walk in love. That is the realm of the miraculous!

In Deuteronomy 28, The WORD says, “And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments [now there is only one to observe and do] which I command thee this day…all these blessings shall come upon thee and overtake thee…” (verses 1-14). Then you will be walking by faith on the highest level there is. God’s miraculous power will operate in you and you will see great and mighty things take place.

You will be counted among “the new breed” that shall go forth to the world. You shall no longer walk as other gentiles walk in the vanity of their minds; but you shall walk in love even as Jesus walked—men and women knowing their full rights and privileges in Christ Jesus. You shall rise up, proclaiming the mighty Name of Jesus, and prepare the way of The LORD’s coming!

Go From Sickness to Health

Go From Sickness to Health

5 Steps to God’s prescription.

by Gloria Copeland

My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee (Proverbs 4:20-24).

This passage of Scripture reveals God’s prescription for life and health. It contains instructions that, if properly followed, can literally change your life and your physical condition from sickness to health.

So, let’s look closely at what God is saying.

1. Attend to My Words

“My son, attend to My Words….” That means you must give your undivided attention to God’s Word and pay heed to what He says. When you attend to something, you give your attention to it. Give your time to the Word. Give thought and meditation to the Word. Give action to the Word. Continually give the Word first place in your life.

Isaiah 26:3 says, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” Your mind will be free from doubt when you keep your attention on God’s Word. When you are trusting in His Word, you are trusting in Him.

God’s Word will keep you in perfect peace.

2. Incline Thine Ears

Next, God said you must “incline thine ear unto my sayings.”

You do that when you desire and go after the knowledge of God’s Word and open your understanding to His Word. Attending meetings where the word of faith is being preached and listening to faith-filled tapes are ways to “incline your ear” and get the Word in your heart. Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Faith comes by hearing the preached Word.

As you listen to what is being preached, listen with your spiritual ears as well. In Mark 4:23-25, Jesus tells us:

If any man has ears to hear, let him be listening and let him perceive and comprehend. And He said to them, Be careful what you are hearing. The measure [of thought and study] you give [to the truth you hear] will be the measure [of virtue and knowledge] that comes back to you—and more [besides] will be given to you who hear. For to him who has will more be given… (The Amplified Bible).

Every man to whom Jesus was speaking had physical ears. He was referring to receiving God’s Word in the heart by listening to the Holy Spirit speak revelation knowledge.

You must listen with your spiritual ears as well as your physical ears.

Jesus was not talking about passively hearing. He said to listen, perceive and comprehend, and even be careful how you hear. The time you give to digesting the Word you hear will measure the return of the virtue (power) and knowledge that will come back to you through the Word.

The man who hears (or receives revelation knowledge) will be given more. If you desire to grow in the knowledge of God, be careful how you hear His Word.

3. Let Them Not Depart From Thine Eyes

It’s also vitally important to keep your eyes on the Word of God. Don’t look at circumstances or give your attention to feelings that are contrary to your healing. Look at and consider (or give thought to) the scriptures instead of your body. “Let them not depart from thine eyes.”

Jesus said, “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light” (Matthew 6:22).

The eye is the gateway to the body. Keep the Word in your sight.

If your eye, or your attention, is on the darkness—the sickness—in your body, there will be no light to expel that darkness. If you focus on darkness, your eye will be unsound; therefore, your body will be unsound.

But if your eye is single, focused on the Word of God, your whole body will be full of light. The single eye allows no darkness to enter.

Looking at and giving your attention to sickness brings death. Looking at and giving your attention to God’s Word brings life! In some cases, what you give your attention to could mean the difference between life and death.

4. Keep Them in the Midst of Thine Heart

Allow God’s words to abide in you. “Keep them in the midst of thine heart” by meditating on the Scriptures and acting on what you hear. The portion of God’s Word you act on is the portion of His Word that is living in you. Continually feed yourself with God’s Word in order to keep the Word producing the force of faith.

Inclining your ear and refusing to allow the Word to depart from your eyes keeps God’s Word alive in your heart. Proverbs 4 says, “For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.”

The Word is God’s medicine.

Jesus said, My words “are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).

Attending to the Word with your ears, your eyes and your heart will cause you to live in divine health. It will become as hard for you to get sick as it once was for you to be healed! The power of the Word will be made life and health to your body continually.

So “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23). The forces (issues) of life come from the midst of your heart. The Word in your heart produces life and health in your body.

5. Put Away a Froward Mouth

Once your heart gets full, it begins to overflow. Then “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matthew 12:34).

The last step in taking God’s divine prescription is to speak, not words of sickness and disease, but rather words of healing and life, faith and hope. “Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee” (Proverbs 4:24).

For faith to work, it must be in two places: in your heart and in your mouth (Deuteronomy 30:14; Romans 10:10). You must speak God’s Word!

Several times since I have learned to walk in faith, almost before I realized it, I became too sick to stay on my feet. (I have learned since to go to the Word at the first sign of a symptom and immediately take a dose of God’s medicine!) I got my Bible, turned to 1 Peter 2:24, read it aloud, and by faith received my healing. I also played the New Testament on tape. Usually, I went to sleep listening to the Word. In a few hours or by the next morning, I was completely healed.

God’s medicine effected a healing and a cure in my body.

To be sick and receive healing was not God’s best for me. To receive healing is good, but to live in divine health is better.

To fill God’s prescription for life and health, you must diligently attend to His Word. Give the Word the place of authority in your life and spend time in it every day. The forces of life and power that come out of your heart will be in direct proportion to the amount of Word that goes into you.

You can’t overdose on God’s medicine. In fact, the more Word you take, the stronger you become. You have nothing to lose but sickness and disease.

So, today, begin taking God’s medicine and putting His Word to work. It’s your personal prescription for life and health!

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Remembering the Fourth of July— America’s Day of Deliverance

by David Barton

This Fourth of July America celebrates its 246th birthday! The Fourth of July is one of our most-celebrated holidays, a fact confirmed by a very elderly John Quincy Adams in a speech he delivered on July 4 in 1837, America’s 61st birthday.

John Quincy Adams properly reminded the crowd that one of the most important elements of the American movement for independence had been its spiritual underpinnings. He asked:

Why is it that, next to the birthday of the Savior of the World, our most joyous and most venerated festival occurs on this day? And why is it that thousands and tens of thousands among us year after year celebrate the birthday of the nation? Is it not that the birthday of the nation is indissolubly linked with the birthday of the Savior? That it forms a leading event in the progress of the Gospel dispensation? Is it not that the Declaration of Independence first organized the social compact on the foundation of the Redeemer’s mission upon earth? That it laid the cornerstone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity?

The fact that there was a spiritual emphasis at the birth of the nation was confirmed by numerous others. For example, Benjamin Kent, in a letter to Samuel Adams, declared: “It is God’s doing!”

So clearly did John Adams see God’s hand in America’s independence, he even believed that to help America achieve her independence was the single reason God had created him. As he told his wife, Abigail: “The Colonies must be declared free and independent States…. When these things shall be once well finished, or in a way of being so, I shall think that I have answered the end of my creation.”

In a similar tone, John Page (later a Virginia governor) told Thomas Jefferson, “I am highly pleased with your Declaration. God preserve the United States! We know the race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong (Ecclesiastes 9:11). Do you not think an angel rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm?”

Yet, declaring independence was only the beginning. Much sacrifice, patience and reliance on God would still be required. As signer of the declaration, Abraham Clark explained: “This seems now to be[gin] a trying season; but that indulgent Father who hath hitherto preserved us will, I trust, appear for our help, and prevent our being crushed; if otherwise, His will be done.”

Our founders knew that without God’s help—or, as they announced in the declaration itself—“a firm reliance on…divine Providence”—they would never achieve their objective.

While we celebrate our liberties this year, let us not forget that those liberties came only through great, personal sacrifice: Nine of the 56 signers of the declaration died during the war. Five were captured by the British and tortured before their death. Twelve had their homes destroyed by British troops, and three lost their sons to the enemy. Such sacrifices remind us that liberty is never free—every generation must defend it anew.

The possibility that we might forget the sacrifices necessary to preserve liberty was something which troubled our founders. This was made clear in a letter from Dr. Benjamin Rush to John Adams after witnessing the celebration surrounding America’s 35th birthday in 1811. Dr. Rush told Mr. Adams:

The 4th of July has been celebrated in Philadelphia in the manner I expected. The military men, and particularly one of them, ran away with all the glory of the day. But scarcely a word was said of the solicitude and labors and fears and sorrows and sleepless nights of the men who projected, proposed, defended, and subscribed [signed] the Declaration of Independence. Do you recollect your memorable speech upon the day on which the vote was taken? Do you recollect the pensive and awful silence which pervaded the House when we were called up, one after another, to the table of the President of Congress [John Hancock] to subscribe what was believed by many at that time to be our own death warrants?…

While we should remember the sacrifices, it is more important that we remember the proper manner to celebrate the Fourth of July. What is the proper manner? The answer was given in a letter that John Adams wrote Abigail on the day they approved the declaration. He forecast: “I am apt to believe that [this day] will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the ‘Day of Deliverance’ by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty!”

Celebrate the Fourth of July with fireworks, festivities and parades. But also celebrate it by setting aside a time to thank God for His numerous blessings upon our country.

David Barton, nationally known author and public speaker, is the founder and president of WallBuilders, a pro-family organization which seeks to educate grass-roots society to rebuild America’s constitutional, moral and religious foundations.

For more information go to wallbuilders.com, call 1-817-441-6044 or write to WallBuilders, P. O. Box 397, Aledo, TX 76008-0397.

7 Facts About Your Authority as a Believer

7 Facts About Your Authority As a Believer

by Kenneth Copeland

As new creations we have been put in a position of power and authority– a position delegated to us by God through Jesus Christ. Along with that authority come certain responsibilities. I want us to examine God’s Word concerning that position and the authority we have in Him.

When you made Jesus Christ the Lord of your life, Colossians 1:13 says you were delivered from the power of darkness. The word power is literally translated authority. You have been delivered from the power, or authority, of darkness and placed into God’s kingdom. Jesus said, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore…(Matt. 28:18,19). That power was given to you as part of your inheritance in Christ Jesus. You have entered into this position of authority because you are in Him.

The Word says that righteousness has come upon all men (Rom. 5:18). You may ask, “Then why don’t all become righteous?” Because in order to receive it, you have to act on righteousness from the point of authority.

On November 2, 1962, I used my authority as a human being and made a choice. I made the decision to receive Jesus as Lord of my life. At that moment, the righteousness that had been upon me came inside me. I was made the righteousness of God in Christ. Second Corinthians 5:21 says, He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

#1 – JESUS SECURED OUR POWER AND AUTHORITY

Jesus succeeded in securing all power by going to the cross, dying a horrible death, suffering the penalty for sin, and defeating Satan in the pit of hell. He came to earth as a man for one reason: to re-capture the authority that Satan had stolen through Adam’s disobedience in the garden. Jesus was called the last Adam (1 Cor. 15:45). After securing that power and authority, He freely gave it over into the hands of those who would believe on Him–you and me.

It is not enough for us to simply accept Jesus’ work at Calvary. We are held responsible for much more. Jesus’ words in the 16th chapter of Mark were not intended for the early church alone. His words are just as vital and real today as when they were first spoken.

Jesus appeared to His disciples after His resurrection from the dead. His words to them form the basic foundation for the work of the New Testament church. It was at that time that He delegated the authority to carry out that work. Beginning in verse 15, Jesus said:

Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

#2 – WE HAVE AUTHORITY TO PREACH THE GOSPEL

Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. Every born-again believer has the authority and responsibility to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ in this earth. If you can’t go, then you can send someone in your place.

And these signs shall follow them that believe….I want you to notice who is to do all these things: them that believe. The signs will follow the believers who act in faith and boldly speak in Jesus’ name. THEY shall cast out devils; THEY shall speak with new tongues; THEY shall lay hands on the sick, etc. The believer is the one with the power and authority to do these things.

Verse 20 says, They went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. God will confirm His Word, but first it has to be put forth. That is where you and I come in. God does not preach; He has given us the authority to do the preaching. God will not lay hands on the sick. He will bring the healing, but you and I as believers must lay hands on the sick by faith, believing that God will perform His Word.

#3 – WE HAVE AUTHORITY TO STAND AGAINST SATAN

One of the most vital areas of the believer’s authority is his power to successfully stand against Satan. Ephesians 4:27 says, Neither give place to the devil. In the sixth chapter of Ephesians, the Apostle Paul describes the armor that we as believers are to wear in combat against Satan. He explains each piece of that armor. It is the armor of God. But not once does he say that God will put the armor on you or that God will fight the devil for you. YOU is the understood subject of these verses. He says, “YOU be strong in the Lord. YOU put on the whole armor of God that YOU will be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. YOU take the whole armor of God that YOU may be able to withstand in the evil day; and having done all, YOU stand.” God has given you the power and the authority to stand against Satan and his destructive works. He has provided the armor, but it is your responsibility as a believer to put on that armor and stand against the devil. James 4:7 says, YOU resist the devil, and he will flee from YOU. The armor and the weapons are at your disposal. God is there with you to back His Word; but all is worthless unless you take your position of authority and assume the responsibility to use what He has provided. You have the power and the authority to take the Word of God, the name of Jesus, and the power of the Holy Spirit and run Satan out of your affairs. Don’t pray and ask God to fight Satan for you. You are the one in authority. Take your responsibility and speak directly to Satan yourself and stand your ground firmly. He will flee!

#4 – WE ARE SEATED WITH HIM IN HIGH AUTHORITY

In the first chapter of Ephesians, Paul prayed a prayer for the body of believers in Ephesus. One part of that prayer was that they know the exceeding greatness of his power to those who believe (Eph. 1:19). That exceeding great power is the same power that God used to raise Jesus from the dead and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenlies. Ephesians 1:21 tells us that Jesus is seated far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named.

The work God did in Jesus was supreme. He raised Jesus from the dead and set Him far above all other authority–not only in this world, but also in the heavenly world. Then verse 22 says that God has put ALL things under His feet and made Him head over the church which is His body. Where are the feet? They are in the body. As believers, we are part of His body and we are seated with Him in that highly exalted place of authority. Praise God! Look at Ephesians, chapter two:

And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins…Even when we were dead in sins, (God) hath quickened us together with Christ…And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Eph. 2:1,5,6).

We are seated together with Him. Where? Far above all principality and power and might and dominion. As a believer, you have accepted the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus at Calvary. Therefore, you are a part of His body and are seated with Him in that heavenly place, equipped with the same power, the same authority that He has.

The great power that God worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead is the same creative power of God that worked in you to make you alive when you were dead in your trespasses and sins. The moment you made Jesus Christ the Lord of your life, that same power was exercised on your dead, unregenerate spirit, causing it to be reborn in the likeness of God Himself. Any man who is in Christ Jesus is a new creation: old things have passed away, all things are new, and all things are of God (2 Cor. 5:17).

“As believers, we are part of His body and we are seated with Him in that highly exalted place of authority.”

#5 – WE HAVE THE POWER OF GOD’S WORD TO EXERCISE OUR AUTHORITY

And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side.

And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awoke him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

And he said unto them, Why are you so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? (Mark 4:35-40).

Jesus spoke the words, Let us pass over unto the other side, and there was enough power and authority in those words to accomplish the job. One thing I want you to notice is that Jesus did not take command of the ship to see that His words were carried out. He walked to the back of the boat and went to sleep. Jesus delegated the authority to His disciples and they accepted it. But when the storm came, they were filled with fear that the boat would sink. Jesus had to carry out the responsibility of authority that he had delegated to them by rebuking the wind and the sea.

“You have the power and the authority to take the Word of God, the name of Jesus, and the power of the Holy Spirit and run Satan out of your affairs.”

I want you to see the parallel here. You are the captain of your ship. You have control over your own life–your spirit, your soul, and your body. Jesus has delegated power, or authority over Satan to you as a believer. You are to give him no place in your life. You are born of the Spirit of God. You are filled with the Spirit of God. You have been given the Word of God. Those three elements are enough for you to carry out your spiritual authority here in the earth. You don’t need any more power. You have all the power necessary. You simply have to exercise your authority. Jesus has already done everything necessary to secure the authority and power over sin, sickness, demons, and fear. You have to employ the faith action to receive that authority and join forces with Him in this earth. You are the one to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

#6 – WE HAVE AUTHORITY TO ACT AS NEW CREATIONS

Hebrews 2:14 says, Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same. Jesus partook of flesh and blood, so that you could partake of spirit and life. For you to partake of that spirit and life, you must take the responsibility of standing in the place of authority as the new creation in Christ Jesus that you are. You are born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God (1 Pet. 1:23). It was the Word of Almighty God that was injected into your spirit man to bring about the new birth in your life. When the church was first beginning, Acts 12:24 described it as the Word growing and multiplying. The Word is in you, but you are the one who must be willing to allow it to work in you.

Ephesians 4:21-24 says, If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

You are the one in authority. It is your responsibility to put off the old man–the unregenerate man that you were before you accepted Jesus. The Holy Spirit does the actual work in you, but you must make the decision to allow Him to do it. God has never forced His will on any person. YOU put off the old man. YOU use the Word of God to renew your mind. YOU put on the new man, which is created in righteousness and true holiness.

#7 – WE CAN MINISTER AND WALK FROM A POINT OF AUTHORITY

God’s power is in His Word. He is upholding all things by the word of His power (Heb. 1:3). You need to learn to minister and walk from a point of authority. In His earthly ministry, Jesus said such things as “Be thou made whole.” “Take up your bed and walk.” Then to a lame man Peter said in Acts 3:6, “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.” He too ministered and spoke from a point of authority.

“He came to earth as a man for one reason: to re-capture the authority that Satan had stolen through Adam’s disobedience in the garden.”

It’s time for you as a believer to begin to act that way. You have obtained an inheritance, and in that inheritance you have been given all authority. The God of the universe lives inside you! He lives and walks in you. Become God-inside-minded and you will begin to walk in this point of authority.

Keep right on building yourself up in your inheritance. You live in a world that is full of evil influences. Satan wants to see to it that you forget the reality of being born again. He wants to see to it that you never realize your place of authority in Christ Jesus, because if you do, that power you walk in makes you absolutely dangerous to him. He has no defense against you when you walk in the power of God’s Word.

When you see in the Word that you are in Christ Jesus, that you are in Him, then confess it with all of your heart. Then you will be strong, standing in a point of authority and operating in your inheritance in Him. As you do this, the power of God will always be available to work in your behalf. Praise God!

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5 Principles of Prayer

5 Principles of Prayer

Over the years I have learned some truths about prayer. I don’t know all there is to know about it, but I have learned key principles from the Word that have helped me walk in victory. These principles will work the same for you.

Before I go further, understand that I’m not saying you will never have any problems or challenges. Ephesians 6:12 says, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Challenges will come. But the problem is never with God. Nor is it with people. The problem is in the area of receiving. We also must wrestle with the forces of darkness—the devil.

By the grace and mercy of God and the power of your faith, you can overcome those obstacles and receive prayers answered. Thank God you have the Name of Jesus, God’s Word and the power of His Spirit—“the weapons of our warfare”—that guarantee results when you pray (2 Corinthians 10:4).

In the many situations my family and I have had to pray our way through, we have learned that believers can live victoriously in Christ Jesus, overcoming the problems. If Jesus is your Savior and Lord, you have victory in Him.

#1 – God’s Will Is Heaven on Earth

But first, you must establish your thinking in the truth that when you were saved, you were set free from the curse and all its effects listed in Deuteronomy 28. Galatians 3:13-14 says, “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ.”

You may wonder why the effects of the curse are still on you if that’s true. They are on you because you haven’t cast them off. You haven’t believed and received what is yours.

The effects of the curse are here on the earth, but they don’t have any right to dominate you or have any power over you unless you yield to them and don’t take advantage of what is yours in Christ Jesus. James 4:2 says, “Ye have not, because ye ask not.” Verse 3 goes on to say, “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss.” Just like a bank has set procedures for withdrawing money, God has given us a proper way to pray so that we will see results.

When you begin to see that, you will realize the world’s idea of prayer is not prayer at all. Prayer is not trying to get God’s attention. Prayer is not trying to get God to do something. He has already done it. He sent Jesus to the cross.

Prayer is communication with God, believing and receiving what He has already given you in Christ Jesus. Everything you will ever need is in Jesus, and when you made Him Lord of your life, it was given to you. All that remains is for it to be received. It has to be brought from the spiritual realm to this natural, physical realm. Philippians 4:19 declares, “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

God’s plan for answered prayer is what Jesus was telling us when He prayed, “Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). God created the earth for man as a copy of heaven, a place to live like God lives. But because of the curse that came on the earth, not everything here is in line with God’s plan. God didn’t create man to be burdened with the effects of the curse like sin, sickness, fear, unbelief or evil spirits. His will is that heaven and earth run parallel to one another.

#2 – Live a Life of Prayer

So prayer—real Bible prayer—must be a lifestyle, not just a backup plan. In Luke 18:1, Jesus taught in a parable that “men ought always to pray, and not to faint.” He wasn’t talking about using prayer and faith as an escape hatch after everything has come apart. He was saying that your entire life should be built around prayer.

The Apostle Paul agreed. He said, “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Don’t leave it up to your pastor to do your praying for you. Don’t wait until things become bad to pray. Build a communication with God every day. Listen to Him. Learn how He talks, what He does, how His prayer system works.

Prayer is always available to everyone. There is no situation that disqualifies anyone from prayer, because God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). Acts 2:21 declares that “whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

According to Galatians 3:28, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” God is an equal opportunity blesser. He doesn’t just hear “good” people. The deepest of sinners in the deepest sin can pray the prayer of repentance and receive Jesus as Lord. From that point on, he is qualified to continue in the other fields of prayer.

The only situation from which there is no deliverance is the rebellious refusal to pray at all. “Ye have not, because ye ask not” (James 4:2).

Don’t let that be you. Instead live a life of prayer, receiving what God has for you.

#3 – Come Boldly…Through Jesus

When you pray, you don’t have to get God’s attention. You already have it. According to Hebrews 7:25, Jesus ever lives to make intercession for us. Hebrews 4:13 says, “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.”

God knows all about you and your situation. That is vitally important to your prayer life. Verses 14-16 go on to say:

Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

When you make Jesus the Lord of your life, then your prayer life, your approach to God, is through Him. You pray to the Father, in Jesus’ Name. It’s in His righteousness, in His Name.

You pray in His “new and living way” as Hebrews 10:19-20 says: “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh.”

Why can you come so boldly to the throne of grace? Because Jesus is your High Priest. You don’t come based on how good you are. Jesus’ blood has put you in right-standing with God. You’ve been made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21). First Peter 3:12 says, “For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers.”

You have a right to pray and expect results. Jesus made this promise: “Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you” (John 16:23).

#4 – You Have a Right to Believe and Receive

It doesn’t matter who you are or what you have done, you have a right to believe.

John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Jesus died for the whole world. If you are a human being, you have a right to believe that Jesus is Lord.

Once you step over into the realm of declaring Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you have every right before God that Jesus has when it comes to praying, believing and walking with God. You share with Him in every privilege of having God lead, teach and develop you, keep you well and keep your family.

Galatians 3:29 says, “And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” If you have made Jesus Lord, you are the seed of Abraham, and you have a right to believe and receive the promises of God.

Romans 4:16 says, “Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all.” If you are the seed of Abraham, God’s promises are sure in your life. A sure promise is one that comes to pass when you stand on it.

The Word of God is a concrete foundation you can stand on. It undergirds all effective prayer. So make it final authority in your life. Jesus said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Matthew 24:35).

#5 – Always Start at the End

Base your prayer life on what God has already said and done. God’s Word—the sword of the Spirit—is His part of your prayer life, and it’s available to “whosoever will.” The Word is a copy of your covenant with God, signed in Jesus’ blood between God the Father and Jesus His Son. There is no failure in either of them.

It’s easy to believe God if you know what He said. Faith comes when you know what is His will for you to have. And His will is His Word. Find promises in the Word that cover your area of need, and pray based on those promises. When you do that, you are starting with the answer. You are starting with the truth.

Always go to God based on the answers you find in the Word. When you have faith in God and what He has said, faith will begin to grow up on the inside of you. Once you know what God said about something, believe you receive it. Believing is an action word, so praise and thank God for the answer.

Praying in the Name of Jesus, based on what God has said, puts you in position to receive from Him. It licenses Him to function in your life. It isn’t based on feeling. It’s based on believing what God said—believing is the key.

Remember, you have a right to pray and you have a right to believe. Jesus died for the whole world so whosoever believes can receive the victory He has paid for. God is no respecter of persons, but He does respect faith.

Learn to pray and stand on His promises for your every need. When you take God at His Word, He will answer.

Related Articles:

A Confession for Getting Your Prayers Answered

How to Pray the Prayer of Faith

3 Ways To Improve Your Ability To Hear the Holy Spirit

3 Ways to Improve Your Ability to Hear the Holy Spirit

by Gloria Copeland

One of the questions people ask the most is, “How do I hear the Holy Spirit?” They think there must be a magic formula involved—and while there isn’t a 1-2-3 magic formula, there are disciplines that you can implement to put yourself in the place of hearing the Holy Spirit more clearly. Remember, He’s always speaking; it’s just a matter of opening your spiritual ears to hear Him. Let’s look at three ways that you can improve your ability to hear the Holy Spirit.

#1: Hear the Holy Spirit when you Focus on the Word

One of the most effective ways to improve your ability to hear the Holy Spirit is by focusing on God’s Word. In John 15:7, Jesus said, “But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!”

How do you know when you have been focusing enough on the Word? The Holy Spirit talks to you through it! He directs your thoughts as you go about your day. He brings it to your mind when challenges arise, and helps you know what to do.

You focus on the Word by spending time in it. You can’t just read it casually every now and then. You have to be diligent to read your Bible and reflect on it every day and obey it. Treat it like the priceless treasure it is.

#2: Hear the Holy Spirit when you Listen to God’s People

The Holy Spirit isn’t only speaking to you; He’s speaking to all of God’s people. Sometimes those people have received a message from the Lord for the church, like when the Lord spoke through the Apostles or when the Lord gives Kenneth Copeland a prophecy. Other times, the Holy Spirit uses those people to share a special message specifically for you. By listening to trusted faith ministers and even Spirit-led friends and family members, you can hear the Holy Spirit’s direction.

Now, that doesn’t mean you should listen to every person, or even every Christian, who believes that God wants them to tell you something. Make sure those people are Spirit-filled, Spirit-led and full of faith. Watch the Believer’s Voice of Victory broadcast, read the Believer’s Voice of Victory magazine, attend a faith-filled church, build friendships with believers in those churches, and join KCM’s faith-filled online community and build relationships there.

#3: Hear the Holy Spirit when you Listen in Prayer

Do you find yourself doing all the talking in your prayer time with the Lord? If you never get quiet enough to listen, how will you ever hear what the Holy Spirit is speaking to your heart?

When you pray, spend some time praising God for His goodness and thanking Him for all He has done for you (Psalm 100:4). Then ask Him for what you need (Philippians 4:13). After that, get quiet. Prayer is not a one-way conversation. Make sure that you give the Holy Spirit a chance to speak. He may bring a scripture or song to your mind. He may bring a person to mind that needs prayer. Or He may give you direction for your day or even an answer for a prayer request.

Keeping a prayer journal is another great way to identify the Holy Spirit’s voice. Write down what you’ve asked the Lord for and the different ways He has answered those prayers. Write the thoughts He brings to your mind. As you put this into practice, you’ll begin to understand how the Holy Spirit works in and through you. You’ll begin to hear (and read) His answers.

The Holy Spirit is talking. It’s up to you to hear Him clearly. By putting these three keys into practice, you’ll improve your ability to hear the Holy Spirit, and you’ll have the joy of living a Spirit-led life!

Related Article:

3 Prayer Secrets From Gloria Copeland

How to Develop a Christian Worldview of Faith

How to Develop A Christian Worldview of Faith

by Gloria Copeland

Worldview. While not a new word, it’s a concept gaining popularity in the Body of Christ. It asks the question: How do you view your world? What defines you, your perceptions, your opinions and your belief system? Many Christians promote having a Christian worldview—or a biblical worldview—but I want to challenge you to have a Christian worldview of faith, one that trusts in Jesus and God’s Word to answer every question you’ll ever have and to help you through any situation you’ll ever face.


Why a Christian Worldview of Faith?

God framed the worlds by faith. Everything God made, He made by faith. Everything He does, He does by faith. For you and me, it’s no different. What works for God will work for us.

The key to shaping our everyday world is understanding faith—and living by it. We must know what it is, how to get it, and how to use it.

By faith, we choose to receive the promises of God. We receive financial prosperity by faith. We receive divine health and supernatural healing by faith. We receive our spouses, our children, our homes, our food—all our earthly needs and desires—by faith. Our faith is an opening through which God can save us, deliver us, baptize us in His Spirit and anoint us for ministry.

In short, faith is heaven’s window into our lives.


Where Do You Find a Christian Worldview of Faith?

Given the right conditions, faith always comes, and it is the only way to have a Christian worldview that pleases God (Hebrews 11:6). Faith is always available when we need it. It’s “on call” to anyone who will give attention to the Word of God (Proverbs 4:20-22).

We receive God’s Word into our hearts by reading it, speaking it, hearing it, meditating on it and acting on it. His Word causes faith to rise up within our spirit to draw the promises of God into the natural realm (Romans 10:17).

So faith comes by hearing the Word of God—and when it is released from our hearts with our mouths, it brings the fulfillment of God’s promises. Faith gives the blessings of God natural reality or substance. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).


A Christian Worldview of Faith Acts!

Looking to God as our Guide, we find in the book of Genesis that faith is released with words. Faith words demand results.

In Genesis 1, we read an account of Creation that goes something like this:

“In the beginning God said, Let there be light…and there was light. God said, Let there be a firmament…and it was so. God said, Let us make man….”

Do you see the pattern?

“God said…and it was so. God said…and it was so.” God literally spoke all of Creation into existence. Hebrews 11:3 says that the worlds were framed by the Word of God. That is the very same way we frame our world. We are created in God’s image to live like Him!

Notice that Genesis doesn’t say “God thought…and it was so.” No, God spoke. That’s how He operates. That’s how faith operates. What’s more, God has never stopped speaking.

Down through the Old Testament and into the New, we see how God continued to pour His Word into the earth, primarily using prophets to speak His Word. The reason God released all that Word into the earth was to give substance for when the time came for Jesus—the ultimate Word given by God—to appear in the flesh. He brought Jesus into the earth by His Word!

Hebrews 11:1 tells us that “faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.” Faith is the heavenly materiality, or tangibility, of those things for which you and I hope. But now, here’s where we need to be aware of being deceived.

Oftentimes, believers think they’re walking in faith when in reality they’re not. They’re actually walking in unbelief. In the first place, they really don’t have true, Bible hope. All they have is a wish list. They’re wishing God would do this for them, and wishing He would do that. They heard how He did it for Brother and Sister So-and-So. And now they’d like Him to do it for them.

I cannot tell you how many people I’ve known in 45 years of ministry who thought they were “faith people.” For years, I watched them hang around the faith teaching, yet never did I see any substance, and never did they see any real changes in their lives and circumstances. What was wrong?

Well, I’ll tell you. When it came to God’s Word, they didn’t use any faith. They merely gave mental assent to it. They didn’t put faith in it enough to act on it. They only agreed with what they read in the Scriptures. (Read James 1:22-26.)

Remember, “God said…and it was so.” God’s act of speaking released faith to that which He believed. When He said, Light be! He fully expected light to be. His faith took action. It spoke.

Likewise, our faith must take action, and it must take action based on the Word of God.


A Christian Worldview of Faith Speaks!

I like to describe faith like this: Faith is movement. It’s a mouth in motion.

To illustrate this, imagine my body is being attacked with symptoms of sickness.

Thousands of years ago, God spoke a promise about healing into the earth. He spoke through His prophet Isaiah and said: “Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.” (Isaiah 53:4-5).

Many years later, Jesus came—God’s promise in the flesh—to fulfill that Word. Galatians 3:13 describes the results of Jesus having come to this earth: “But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”

Looking back on Jesus’ ministry, the Apostle Peter also wrote, “He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed. (1 Peter 2:24).

Now, here I am with symptoms of sickness attacking my body. What do I do?

Remember, faith is what gives substance to that for which you and I hope. In this case, I’m hoping to be delivered from this sickness.

Faith also gives God the opening necessary for Him to pour His favor and blessing into our lives, bringing the manifestation of that promise from the spiritual realm into the natural realm—which is where my body needs it at the moment.

But now, how does faith make that draw on God’s Word?

By taking action.

And how does my faith take action?

By speaking the Word and then acting as though it is done.

Romans 10:6-10 describes the process like this: “But faith’s way of getting right with God says, “Don’t say in your heart, ‘Who will go up to heaven?’ (to bring Christ down to earth). And don’t say, ‘Who will go down to the place of the dead?’ (to bring Christ back to life again).” In fact, this passage is telling us, “The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart.”

And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.


A Christian Worldview of Faith Gets Results!

The provision for all that God has promised us—health, healing, salvation, protection, prosperity—has already been established in heaven and earth. The work was completed 2,000 years ago. It is like having money in the bank, but to spend it, you have to make a withdrawal. Receiving that provision is up to us. That’s where mouth and motion come into play.

In Isaiah 55:10-11, we read, “The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.”

Our new hearts, like the earth, are good ground for the Word of God. They are the abiding and functioning place for His Word.

Likewise, our mouths are the implements of faith that speak the words out of our hearts to enable us to reap the harvest we desire. We reap that harvest by believing and thus speaking the promises of God into fulfillment. That’s why we read in James 2:14 and 17, “What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.”

Our faith must act. The faith stored in our hearts must come out. Otherwise, it is dead and of no use. You release faith with your words.

When the Pharisees tried to back Jesus into a corner concerning His true source of supernatural power, He told them, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things…” (Matthew 12:34-35).

Then, as Jesus explained faith to His disciples, He said, “I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.” (Mark 11:23-24).

You and I have the responsibility of getting our hearts and mouths in gear, speaking and acting as though we’ve already received the fulfillment of our desire. We believe we receive when we pray. From the moment we release our faith, we must talk and act as though it is done. We must take action by speaking as God spoke and give substance to His promises. As we do, we give substance to something we can drive, something we can eat, something we can wear, something that can heal our bodies. We give substance to our world. That’s when our Christian worldview of faith gets results!

A Christian Worldview of Faith Forgives!

The final principle you and I must understand about developing a Christian worldview of faith is that it works by love—that is—faith forgives.

Returning to Jesus’ teaching on faith in Mark 11, let’s read the rest of what He told His disciples on the road to Jerusalem.

“I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.  But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too” (Mark 11:24-25).

Now, I understand that when we’ve been hurt and the Holy Spirit reminds us of this verse our flesh wants to say, “Yes, but, Lord, You heard the terrible things those people said about me…. Yes, but, Lord, You know how that person abused me….”

While the hurt we suffered may have been a cruel and ungodly act against us, nonetheless, we have to walk in love toward those people. After all, God had to forgive. Jesus had to forgive. You and I are no different. We must forgive if we want to walk in faith and in the full favor of God.

Besides, if someone is against you, why do them a favor? Why let them ruin the rest of your life by short-circuiting your faith through unforgiveness?

Don’t let anyone keep you sick, broke, mentally tormented and without joy because of unforgiveness. Don’t help people close the door to God’s blessings in your life and open the door to every curse loosed in this world. No, forgive them. Stay in the flow of God’s love.

So as you commit to developing a Christian Worldview of faith, remember to avoid taking or living with offense. Don’t carry around hurts. Release them to the same blood of Jesus, which cleansed you, redeemed you and set you free. As you do, you will free yourself to live out your Christian worldview of faith successfully, completely and happily!

Watch Kenneth and Gloria Copeland discuss how Faith Is NOW.

3 Ways to Choose God’s Protection

3 Ways to Choose God's Protection

by Gloria Copeland

The Bible is filled with accounts of supernatural protection for God’s people. It’s no problem for God to bring you out of a fiery furnace or shut the mouth of a lion. He has proven time and again He’s well able to get the job done no matter what the circumstances.

But God’s protection is not automatic. There are things you have to do in order for God to be your refuge. There are choices you have to make.

If you choose to live in sin, you probably won’t live a long and healthy life. If you choose to follow the devil, you will receive the same reward he does. And that’s not something you want.

Instead you desire to be like the person in Psalm 91. He has made the choice to dwell, or abide, in the secret place of the Most High. He makes his abode there in order to receive the protection that Psalm 91 promises. His dependence is on God. And he stays stable and fixed under God’s shadow by being obedient.

The good things of God—the blessings and deliverance from the curse—are only for the obedient. They are not for everybody.

The good things belong to those who do what God says—to those who seek Him.

That reminds me of something the Lord told me several years ago. He said, Separate yourself and you’ll be separated. When you do what you know is right, follow God and separate yourself from evil—you will be separated from evil.

Living on purpose in God is the only safe place to live.

You see, people who are obedient are the ones who will receive the promise of protection. Protection is for the resolute—those who have resolved to walk with God.

I have gleaned some great information about protection and seeking God from a set of books called the Tehillim. It is a special translation of the Psalms with commentaries by Jewish scholars. One commentary in the Tehillim says, “When a person is resolute [determined, sold out, dedicated, single-minded] in his faith and recognizes God’s Presence everywhere, he is protected from all sides.”

That shows just how powerful God’s promise of protection really is!

1. Choose to Speak by Faith

Another important thing to notice about Psalm 91 is that the writer speaks his faith. He declares, “I will say of the Lord, He is my Refuge and my Fortress, my God; on Him I lean and rely, and in Him I [confidently] trust!” (verse 2, The Amplified Bible).

Faith has to be in two places—in your heart and in your mouth. First you must agree in your head with what the Word says in order to get it into your heart. Then it has to be in your heart to such a degree that it overflows. That only comes by spending time seeking God and His Word. Then as Jesus said, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matthew 12:34).

Making God the One on whom you depend for your security has to get into your heart to come out of your mouth with power. You have to be able to say in faith, “He is my refuge and my fortress!” You have to trust God for your protection and say so!

When you dwell in the secret place, declare God is your refuge, and lean and rely on Him, this is the result:

For [then] He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. [Then] He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings shall you trust and find refuge; His truth and His faithfulness are a shield and a buckler. You shall not be afraid of the terror of the night, nor of the arrow (the evil plots and slanders of the wicked) that flies by day (Psalm 91:3-5, The Amplified Bible).

Notice when you know the truth and put your trust in God, “You shall not be afraid.” Fear has to go.

2. Choose to Research God

These are serious days. It’s no time to be sitting on the fence being double-minded. You must decide where you are going to dwell—where you are going to put your trust and dependence.

Your dependence is not going to be on God without spending time with Him and His Word, because faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. By spending time in the Word, you will become fully persuaded that God is faithful. Assurance comes in your heart that gives peace instead of fear.

It’s good to seek God first thing in the morning. You’ll find you are able to hear a lot in a short time. If for some reason you think you don’t have the time, then try watching less television so you can go to bed earlier and get up earlier. It will be well worth the effort.

Our responsibility in life is to seek God—always. The Hebrew word for seek (doresh) comes from a root word that means “to tread or frequent.” In Hebrew seek means “to ask, diligently inquire, require or search.”

Joshua 1:8 says to meditate in the Word day and night. That means apply it to yourself, think about it, say it.

Rabbi Isidor Zwirn, in his book The Rabbi From Burbank, explained that doresh could be translated “to research.” When I saw that, I thought, That is exactly what it takes to stay in the will of God, to grow in God and to get God involved in all your affairs. It is the best word to describe how we ought to live. We should always be researching God.

That’s what I do in my life.

That’s how I receive messages to preach. I don’t remember ever saying, “I have to preach at this place Sunday, so I’ll put together a sermon.” No, spending time with the Lord in His Word is a vital part of my normal life. As I do this I receive insight and understanding. The revealed Word gets into my heart and when I stand up to minister, it comes out.

We need to continually research the Word to know more about God and His way of doing things. We should always be researching God. Constant victory comes as we do this.

Remember what was necessary to write a term paper? Research! The more the research, the better the paper! I believe if we desire to experience the best in life, then we must spend time researching God.

 3. Choose to Trust God’s Protection

David researched God. He knew he could put his trust in Him.

In Psalm 3:3 David said, “But thou, O Lord, art a shield for me….” The Tehillim reveals that when you look at David’s battle history, he did not find security in any armor or shield. He only found security in God.

This is one reason the six-pointed Star of David, also called the Shield of David, is associated with his life. In God, David saw himself “enveloped, invulnerable from every side”—north, south, east, west, above and below—all six directions. So the six-pointed symbol represents David’s true shield—God.

The Tehillim also says David often repeated this plea, “ ‘Protect me, O God, for in You I take refuge,’ until it enveloped and encircled him like a crown.”

The protection of God is a tangible force. The recognition of this tangible reality, the recognition of the power of God, the recognition of the protection of God “constitutes a dynamic force which fortifies those who possess it and protects them from evil.”

This concept is seen in the Word over and over when it talks about protection. When we walk with God, we are said to be encompassed, encircled, covered and overshadowed by His goodness and protection.

Psalm 25:12-13 in The Living Bible says, “Where is the man who fears the Lord? God will teach him how to choose the best. He shall live within God’s circle of blessing….”

That is such good news!

When the enemy comes, we should be rejoicing because we have a refuge. Psalm 5:11-12 in The Amplified Bible says this:

But let all those who take refuge and put their trust in You rejoice; let them ever sing and shout for joy, because You make a covering over them and defend them; let those also who love Your name be joyful in You and be in high spirits. For You, Lord, will bless the [uncompromisingly] righteous…as with a shield You will surround him with goodwill (pleasure and favor).

Your circle of blessing goes with you wherever you go. It surrounds you and protects you when God is your refuge.

Psalm 27:1, 5 in The Amplified Bible says, “The Lord is the Refuge and Stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? In the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter; in the secret place of His tent will He hide me….”

God surrounds you and hides you like a tent.

Ephesians 6:13-18 charges us to put on the whole armor of God. As one commentary points out, a shield only partially protects its wearer on three sides, while armor completely surrounds its wearer. The Hebrew word for armor implies circle. You’re completely covered!

Ephesians 6 lists the whole armor of God and verse 17 says, “And take…the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God” (The Amplified Bible).

Psalm 91:4 also says: “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.”

I love what the Tehillim says about the Word: “Torah, which is God’s truth, is a shield and a weapon for those who study it. But casual Torah study is not sufficient.”

That goes back to the importance of researching the Word.

This commentator goes on to say, “The diligent student must treat Torah as precious merchandise.” That is what the Lord taught me to do. The Word is not a casual thing for me. I live by it. When I say that, I don’t mean that I just obey it. I stay alive by the Word of God.

In order for the truth of the Word to become your shield and buckler (armor), you must have more than just a knowledge of what the Word says. You could have the whole Bible memorized and still be living a totally defeated life. The Spirit of God has to reveal the truth to you for you to actually walk in that truth. It takes revelation from the Holy Spirit.

So start digging into the Word like precious treasure. Spend time studying the promises of protection, and allow the Holy Spirit to reveal them as truth in your own life.

Be diligent to declare that the Lord is your refuge.

When you determine to continually dwell in the secret place of the Most High, you will step into God’s circle of blessing and protection.

You can’t see your circle but it’s there. You may not be able to see your angels either, but when you truly walk with God, you never walk alone. You walk surrounded by His protection—above, below, north, south, east and west! See yourself in your divine armor.

Watch Kenneth Copeland speak on The Power of Psalm 91 for Protection and Healing.