A pastor friend of ours, Jody Ray, gave a message at Rekindle the Flame last year which was very powerful, and I want to share some of the points I got from it with you (Rekindle the Flame is an annual spiritual growth conference hosted by Rick Bonfim Ministries, out of Athens, GA)
He used Joshua 5:13 – 6:7 as his text. This is the encounter of Joshua with the Angel of the Lord, prior to the Hebrews’ attack on Jericho. The key phrase, in this case, is the phrase spoken by the Angel of the Lord, “I have given Jericho and its king and all its soldiers into your hands.” The point being the tense of the phrase – “have given”, past tense. The angel was letting Joshua know this was already done, even though the Hebrews had not yet approached the city.
God’s promises have no expiration date, and they are already accomplished! But taking possession of those promises is up to us. It takes movement on our part, action, and there will be a battle – it takes more than lip service to take possession – but God sees it as done, the ‘title’ already given.
Another of Jody’s point in this message was that in order for us to take possession, we also need to see – to visualize – what could be, what God’s best for us might be. If we can’t see something, it is very difficult, if not impossible, for us to take possession of it – if you can’t see it, you can’t have it. If we can’t see something, most of the time, it isn’t real to us. And if something, isn’t real, how can we take possession of it? I know this is a real problem for me, perhaps it is for you too. I have a great imagination, I can imagine all sorts of things – it’s one of the reasons I think I enjoy novels so much. When I’m reading, I’m not seeing the words on the page, but the world and environment I’m reading about. However, when it comes to seeing God’s promises for me as real, it’s somehow a different story. When something is in the future, has no tangible form, something I can’t see or touch, or see how it is going to come to pass, I have a hard time “seeing” it and truly expecting it to happen – for me. Maybe you can relate.
Let’s talk to God about that. Father God, I know Your promises are true, and that I am Your child and heir to those promises through Christ. Please help me to see the reality of Your spiritual world as more “real” than the natural world that surrounds me. Help me to truly see that Your promises for me and my life are already accomplished, by Your will and word. Help me to see the steps, even just the first few, that I need to take to take possession of what is already mine, because You say so – regardless of what I see or don’t see with my natural senses and my intellect. Thank You, Abba, for Your love and patience for this slow and often stubborn daughter! In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Yours in Christ,
Kathy
