Tuesday, March 31, 2009

The Book of Acts

"The most lyrical book in the world! Live in that book I exhort you!".

Reference: Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones - "Quenching The Spirit (1)" - Martyn Lloyd-Jones Recording Trust CD.

Monday, March 30, 2009

Galatians 3:15-17

"Brethren, I speak after the manner of men; Though it be but a man's covenant, yet if it be confirmed, no man disannulleth, or addeth thereto. Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect".

"Galatians 3:15-17 brings good news however! When the law was introduced - the covenant of Moses did not nullify the covenant that God made with Abraham which is grace and faith. So now God has got two covenants that Israel can relate to Him through. 1. A covenant of grace and faith and be blessed along with Abraham with faith like Abraham that God is good all the time. 2. The law. (Israel) chose primarily to relate to Him through the law. Every now and then you see prophets of faith rising up and you see seasons of revival - temporary seasons but then a whole long period of low level anointing. You know what little seasons of revival are? Not the fasting that they went through or the warfare and the beating themselves up. Somewhere in the middle of that they got a glimpse of grace and they believed in the goodness of God and that pulled heaven down and for a year or two there were miracles and you then you watched while every revival STOPPED. It was because legalism came in. The law is not based on faith and without faith it is impossible to please God".

Reference: Rob Rufus - "Established in the Gift of Righteousness - Part 3" - City Church International, Hong Kong - Sunday 18th January.

Galatians 3:9

"So those who have faith"

"What is faith again? Faith is a recognition that God's whole being and desire is one of TOTAL goodness to you and His desire is to heal you, give you blessing, give you health, establish you, strengthen you and give you success in the destiny that He has called you for".

Reference: Rob Rufus - "Established in the Gift of Righteousness - Part 3" - City Church International, Hong Kong - Sunday 18th January.

Galatians 3:5-6

"Does God give you His Spirit"

"The Greek word there is "supply" which is the present, continous tense. "Does God continually keep moving in power by His Spirit and work signs and wonders among you - because you observed the law or because you believed what you heard?". This faith currency in grace and not being under law is about the moving of the Spirit andthe working of miracles that God KEEPS (present, continous tense) supplying. We shouldn't have occasional miracles! There should be daily healings of the sick, daily miracles of financial provision, daily deliverance from depression, daily miracles in marriages, daily miracles of people being saved, of people living in joy, of acts of love and kindness and service! But when you go back under law then it is not based on faith and without faith it is impossible to please God".

Reference: Rob Rufus - "Established in the Gift of Righteousness - Part 3" - City Church International, Hong Kong - Sunday 18th January.

Deuteronomy 28:1,15

"If you obey these laws and commands THEN I will fully bless you ... IF ... all these curses will come and overtake you".

"It is not about how much you try or how good your intentions are. It is to FULLY obey. That is 100% and there is no room to drop! (Galatians 3:10); "All who rely on observing the law are under a curse". ONE fully obeyed on our behalf. One fully did it as last Adam on our behalf. One FULLY redeemed us from the curse of the law that the blessing given to Abraham can come tous. That means that NONE of the curses in Deuteronomy 28 belong to us - not even one. Christians should not be living under any curse of poverty, sickness, disease or broken relationships. Many Christians are living under the curse as people not in Christ because they are trying to pursue righteousness rather than submitting to the gift. None of the curses belong to us but ALL the blessings belong to us because in Christ we have FULLY obeyed the law! God wanted to relate to His people on grace and faith - not on our performance but HIS!".

Reference: Rob Rufus - "Established in Righteousness - Part 2" - City Church International, Hong Kong - Sunday 11th January.

Colossians 3:13

"Forgive one another just as Christ HAS forgiven you!".

"He has TOTALLY forgiven you past, present and future and it is not conditional on you forgiving others - it has already taken place at the Cross! You can't mess it up! You have got full forgiveness! And because I know that even if I don't forgive them I am still already forgiven past, present and future then that empowers me to WANT to forgive them. People fear; "If I don't forgive them then God will not forgive me and He will hand me over to the tormentors". That is Jesus preaching before the Cross and before the New Covenant! That is a terrible motive! I forgive so easily because I have been totally forgiven by the Father and nothing bad I am sowing out there can get me to reap bad stuff today".

Reference: Rob Rufus - "Established in Righteousness - Part 2" - City Church International, Hong Kong - Sunday 11th January.

Ephesians 3:20

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than we could ask or imagine according to His power that is at work within us".

"The Bible has just said that God is able to do immeasurably more than our greatest prayer meetings could ask or think or imagine according to the power that is at work within US! Not at work just within a prophet or an apostle! But is at work within US! The Church! US! The Bible is saying that this power that can do immeasurably more than we can ask is not going to work from heaven. There is a power at work within us that is going to do immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine!".

Reference: Rob Rufus - "The Authoritative Command for Healing - Part 2" - City Church International, Hong Kong - 17th September 2006.

Ephesians 3:14

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from His family in heaven and on earth derives it's name. I pray that out of His glorious riches, He may strengthen you with power by His Spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith and I pray that you being rooted and established in love, may have power with all the members of all the saints to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ and to know this love that goes beyond knowledge - that you may be filled to all the measure of all the fullness of God".

"Not just for the early church! "Throughout all generations for ever and ever!". It says height, length, width and breadth of the love of God! A four-dimensional understanding of God's love! Why does he use all four? Hebrew people understood what a cube was! They understood that a cube represented perfection in all dimension! When God told Moses how to build the Holy of Holies He gave him the exact dimensions. 10 metres by 10 metres by 10 metres. When Solomon built the Temple he built it as a cube but expanded it to 20 metres height length and depth. The New Jerusalem in Revelation is 200, 000 km in a perfect cube! What does it represent?

It means that the love of Christ is not short in one area towards you. It is a PERFECT cube - a full perfect total love towards you! In other words in some area in your life you are more holy and have got success in that area - you are tempted to believe that in that area God's love for you is a bit longer but in that area where you are still struggling with sin or failure or problems - in that area God's love is a bit shorter. What Paul is saying by revelation is that the love of God for you has to surpass knowledge and you have to get revelation that He has a perfect cube of love for you. He loves you in all four dimensions and His love for you is not short in one area towards you! He loves you unconditionally!".

Reference: Rob Rufus - "The Authoritative Command for Healing - Part 2" - City Church International, Hong Kong - 17th September 2006.