Living Today Preparing for the Return of the Lord

Transcription

1 Living Today Preparing for the Return of the Lord The Positive Power of the Human Tongue 18 March 2018 Class 7 Facilitator: Woody Glass Unless otherwise specified, all Bible quotations are from the NKJV Spirit-Filled Life Bible, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

2 Preparing Now for the Future We Know is Coming for the World This course is a study and discussion of biblical prophecy as it pertains to preparing now for the future we know is coming to the Earth, and specifically to include the second coming of Jesus Christ. Now is the time we have to prepare for the last days of our lives on this Earth, and thus for our eternity. A key text is: Titus 2: For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. In broad terms, there are four things that we each need to do to prepare for the Lord s second coming: receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, walk in the power of the Holy Spirit, bear fruit according to God s calling and anointing on each of our lives, and endure to the end of our lives here as His faithful servant-disciples. We need to prepare for our departure from this Earth now, while it is yet day for in John 9:4, Jesus says, We must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. 2

3 Segue from Recent Classes In the last three classes, we have addressed the topics of: o Your Spoken Word and Positive Spiritual Warfare (LTP class 4), in which we discussed the power of the spoken word through three of the items of the armor that God has given to each Christian for positive spiritual warfare: truth, the shield of faith, and the sword of the Spirit. o Hearing from God and Positive Spiritual Warfare (LTP class 5), in which we discussed why the topic of hearing God s Rhemata words to us is so vitally important to each of us personally given the different kinds of biblical Faith, and given the innate resistance of our respective evil carnal natures to God s Rhemata words to us personally. See Phil 3:3 regarding the carnal nature. o Graphé, Rhema, and the Great Commission (LTP class 6), in which we discussed that it is as important for us to obey the graphé words of God (the written text of the Bible; see 2 Tim 3:16-17) which provide spiritual principles and general guidelines to us about loving God and loving our neighbor as it is for us to obey God s specific Rhemata words to us (see 1 Sam 15:22; Matt 22:36-40). The Rhemata words of the Logos complement the graphé and the logos words of God, which, when accurately understood, are not contradictory. 3

4 The Weapon of the Words of the Human Tongue In conjunction with the whole armor of God (see Eph 6:10-18), God has also cited the weapons of our warfare in 2 Cor 10:3-6 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 6 and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. Today, as we pursue our course on Living Today Preparing for the Return of the Lord, we are to focus on one of the key weapons of our warfare as servantsoldiers of Jesus Christ the words of the human tongue. Given the breadth of this topic, we will limit our discussion today to the obedient use of the human tongue in positive spiritual warfare (i.e., spiritual warfare that accomplishes the will of the LORD God.) Whether or not we address the misuse of the human tongue in negative spiritual warfare (i.e., spiritual warfare that supports the will of the devil) at a later date remains an open question before the Lord. 4

5 Foundational Truths about the Tongue The title of today s class is thus The Positive Power of the Human Tongue. The purpose of today s class is to emphasize for you the unlimited potential of God s positive power that He has ordained for your tongue to birth in the words you speak in obedience to His Rhemata words to you. Given our recent discussions about spiritual warfare, please keep these positive truths in the forefront of your thinking during today s class on the positive power of the human tongue: o Isaiah 55:11 So shall My word [Rhema in the LXX, the Septuagint, the translation of the Hebrew OT into Greek] be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. We get to obey God s Rhema word and so return it! o As one illustration of Isa 55:11, the words that you speak and the things you do in obedience to the Rhema Faith you receive from God (Rom 10:17) are one weapon of your spiritual warfare that collectively are 4 mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, thus enabling you to bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ! See 2 Cor 10:4-5 5

6 Foundational Truths about the Tongue Here are some foundational truths about the tongue of each human being: o How powerful is the human tongue? Prov 18:21 says, Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit. Consider: In the Bible, the word tongue is often a poetic way of referring to the words that we speak as human beings (whether logos or rhema, or Rhema for God). o How important are the words that we speak? Jesus says in Matt 12:36-37, 36 But I say to you that for every idle word [rhema] men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. 37 For by your words [logos] you will be justified, and by your words [logos] you will be condemned. How could your spoken words be that important to God and to your eternity? Because God created all things in the beginning by His spoken word (Rhema). See Genesis 1 (e.g., Let there be light, and there was light. ) Because God created mankind in His own [spiritual] image (Gen 1:27) Because God delegated a measure of His authority and power to mankind in the beginning to have dominion (the right to rule as His stewards over everything that moved about on the Earth) (Gen 1:28; see Rom 12:3 re today) Because Adam began exercising that dominion by speaking words in naming all the animals on the Earth (Gen 2:19-20). 6

7 Two Biblical Precedents for the Potential for Good through the Tongue What is the biblical precedent for the potential for good that God has provided to us to use our tongues to speak words inspired by the Holy Spirit? o In John 6:63, Jesus says, It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words [Rhemata] that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. Here are two illustrations of the early application of the above powerful principle: o Gen 1:27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. How did God do that? o Gen 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. The breath of God and the Rhemata words of God are both full of creative power! Given the above texts and the texts in John 3:1-8 and Acts 1:4-8, God has chosen to re-create spiritually as many of mankind who will choose to receive the gift of spiritual life through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit and to receive the baptism with the Holy Spirit, so that they can have power to be His servant-disciples and witnesses. In doing so, God has through the last Adam (Jesus) re-created us in His image to partner with Him in His creative works on this Earth through the power of the spoken word using our tongue. 7

8 A Quintessential Example of the Power of the Mortal Human Tongue Note the Rhema word that the LORD spoke to Joshua as recorded in Josh 1:5-7 5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. 6 Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. o What was the first result of Joshua s receiving the LORD s Rhema word here? From our view, Joshua received Rhema Faith to engage in physical warfare. o What else did Joshua receive when he received the LORD s Rhema? Strength, and courage o Why was that important? Because Joshua had received the Rhema commission to continue what Moses had started leading the Israelites into the Promised Land and that was going to require some (7-14) years of doing intense physical warfare with the people already living in the Promised Land. Joshua would thus need much strength and very great courage to lead the army in many victorious battles. 8

9 A Quintessential Example of the Power of the Mortal Human Tongue After the victory at Jericho and at Ai, and after the surrender of Gibeon and its cities, four kings joined with the king of Jerusalem to attack Gibeon for making peace with Israel. In response to the men of Gibeon s cry for Joshua to come and save them, the LORD said to Joshua, Do not fear them, for I have delivered them into your hand; not a man of them shall stand before you. Josh 10:8 o What was the result of this creative Rhema word of the LORD to Joshua? Joshua must have received great courage from the LORD s Rhema, for we read in Josh 10:9 Joshua therefore came upon [the armies of the five kings] suddenly, having marched all night from Gilgal. o In Josh 10:12-13, we find the historical record of a very noteworthy battle involving the power of the obedient tongue of a just one human being: 12 Then Joshua spoke to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel: Sun, stand still over Gibeon; and Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon (ah-yaw-lone ). 13 So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the people had revenge upon their enemies So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day. 9

10 A Quintessential Example of the Power of the Mortal Human Tongue Note that it was not the LORD but Joshua who commanded the sun and the moon to stand still, and that the sun stood still and the moon stopped in response to Joshua s words. Therefore, consider that there must be a detail that is not in the graphé of Josh 10:12 that occurred between the time that Joshua spoke to the LORD and the time that Joshua spoke for the LORD to the sun and the moon. Why so? And what could that missing detail be? Why? Because it is impossible for a mere mortal alone to successfully command the sun and the moon to stop in their assigned orbits! Consider that the missing detail is that after Joshua spoke to the LORD, the LORD gave a Rhema word to Joshua to command the sun and moon to stop at the Rhema of the LORD, and that s exactly what Joshua did for the LORD. Consider that God s apparent Rhema to Joshua and Joshua s explicit obedience in Faith to do what the LORD told him to say to the sun and the moon were the crucial elements for Israel s victory in this battle, as we know that: without Faith it is impossible to please God (Heb 11:6); Faith comes by hearing a Rhema of God (Rom 10:17); and Faith without works is dead (James 2:17, 20, 26). These principles are God s principles, and they do not change, for God does not change (Mal 3:6), nor will they pass away (Matt 24:35)! 10

11 The Mortal Human Tongue and Positive Spiritual Warfare So, what does all of the above have to do with you and me in positive spiritual warfare today? In Josh 10:12-13, we have an OT example of the NT truth about the power of the spoken word of the tongue in obedience to the Rhema of God: In John 15:7, Jesus promised His disciples, If you abide in Me, and My words [Rhemata] abide in you, you will ask [aiteo] what you desire, and it shall be done for you. To emphasize what we have discussed in past classes in this course (see ETP class 341 et al, and LTP class 4), the power of your spoken-out-loud, Rhematabased, aiteo words, to include in positive spiritual warfare, is released primarily through either one of two ways (as Faith without works is dead [Ja 2] ): o By your speaking a pay-on-demand aiteo request to God against some attacking internal aspect of your carnal nature, per Col 3:5 (such as requesting the Holy Spirit to enable you to mortify/disempower that aspect of your carnal nature), or o By your speaking an obey-on-demand aiteo command for God by speaking or doing whatever God commands you to say or do by His Rhema word (as Joshua did when he commanded the sun and the moon to stop), or by commanding an external evil spirit (such as Jesus the Son of Man commanded the devil in Matt 4:10a, Away with you, Satan! ). 11

12 Confirmation of the Supernatural Power in God s Rhema Word Luke 1:37 reinforces the overarching truth about the supernatural power of the Rhema word and the Rhemata words of God as illustrated by Josh 10:12-13 o The NKJV of Luke 1:37 reads, For with God nothing will be impossible. o The LET version reads, Because will not be impossible with God every word. o Merging the Greek NT text into the flow of today s English, this text can be read, With God, every Rhema is possible. o Thus, the sense of Luke 1:37 is, Every Rhema of God is pregnant with all the divine supernatural power needed to conceive and birth its fulfillment, as through the obedience of His servant-disciple. This is exactly what happened when Mary responded to the angel Gabriel (and thus to God Himself) in Luke 1:38 Let it be to me according to your word [Rhema] as Mary thereafter conceived and in due time gave birth to Jesus, the Son of Man! o Thus, even in extraordinary circumstances, our obedient works or words need not be all that complicated: the essence of Mary s obedience to God s Rhema was to say, Yes (see Luke 1:38). Her obedience resulted in the release of God s supernatural, creative power in her womb as the Holy Spirit came upon her. There s a positive and encouraging message here for you and for me! 12

13 Confirmation of the Supernatural Power in God s Rhema Word To reinforce your Faith in God Himself (Rom 1:19-20, Acts 14:17), in the graphé of God (John 2:22; Rom 1:16), and in the truth of Luke 1:37 that we just discussed, here are more than the required two or three Scriptural witnesses (Matt 18:16; 2 Cor 13:1) to the truth of Luke 1:37 o Gen 18:14 Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son. o Num 11:23 And the LORD said to Moses, Has the LORD s arm been shortened? Now you shall see whether what I say will happen to you or not. o Jer 32:27, Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me? In context, the v. 17 answer is, Nothing is too hard for God! o Matt 19:26 With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. o Mark 10:27 With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible. o Luke 18:27 The things which are impossible with men are possible with God. o Phil 3:21 [The Lord Jesus Christ] 21 will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself. 13

14 Summary Points for ongoing Meditation and Application The purpose of today s class was and remains to awaken you to the unlimited potential of God s positive power that He has ordained for your tongue to release in the words you speak in obedience to His Rhemata words to you. Remember, Joshua was a human being like unto us today yet look what God did through Him when Joshua spoke the few words recorded in Joshua 10:12-13!! When you use your tongue to speak in obedience or you act in obedience to even a single Rhema word of God to you, there is absolutely nothing that can prevent the omnipotence of God s sovereignty over the entire universe from birthing into reality all that God chooses to accomplish through you in obedience to His Rhema. Let your Faith be first and foremost in God (Mark 11:22) God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, for they are One God (Deut 6:4; Gal 3:20) and in His power (1 Cor 2:5). Then let your Faith next be in the Rhema word and Rhemata words that God speaks to you personally and then act in prompt obedience to whatever He says. Note: When God gives you a Rhema for a what, the obedience may first be in your waiting until God gives you a supplementary Rhema for the how and when! (See God s Rhemata to David in 2 Sam 5:23-24 with what, how, and when instructions for victory in physical warfare and note the relevance of God s Rhemata to us today in spiritual warfare.) 14

15 Summary Points for Reflection, Discussion, and Application On reflection, you might ask, How could Joshua have been so bold as to speak the words of command to the sun and the moon that he did? o Remember that Joshua had been Moses assistant for about 40 years, at least since their experience with the LORD at Mt. Sinai (see Ex 17:9-13, and Ex 24:13). Thus, Joshua was mentored by Moses for some 40 years through a variety of challenging circumstances with the Israelites, and was an apt student-disciple of Moses. Given the LORD s choice of Joshua to succeed Moses as the leaderwarrior of the Israelites, consider that Joshua exemplifies the principle that Jesus spoke in Luke 16:10 he who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much. This principle is just as relevant to us today as it was to Joshua! o What does this have to do with you? Consider that your whole life to this point God has been mentoring you, training you, testing you, giving you opportunities to be faithful in obeying Him in small things, and then giving you opportunities to be faithful to Him in bigger things. Obedient Faith in small things precedes obedient Faith in great things. Your obedience to God in the typical affairs of each day will greatly enhance your obedience to God in the atypical affairs of the tomorrows that are yet to come. Focus on preparing by being obedient today. 15

16 Summary Points for ongoing Meditation and Application Points of significances regarding God s Rhemata and your tongue: o Every member of the flock of Jesus Christ knows the Good Shepherd s voice, for, 4 the sheep follow [the shepherd of the sheep], for they know his voice. 5 Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers 27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. John 10:4, 27 This principle applies to God s Rhema. o Therefore, whatever the Good Shepherd says to you, you can do exactly what He says without questioning Him about the details, for He is absolutely trustworthy. Note what the servants of Naaman advised him: 13 if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you [something small, like], Wash, and be clean? 14 So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean. (2 Kings 5:13-14) Here s the point, as Mary says in John 2:5 Whatever He says to you [which will be a Rhema word to you], do it. o Be encouraged: All you are responsible for is doing your part in obedience. God will always do His part, no matter how difficult it may seem to you. 16

17 Supplemental Information on the Rhemata Words of God The LORD/Lord said to occurs 187 times in the Bible (176 in the OT, and 11 in the NT). God said to occurs 25 times in the Bible (24 in the OT, and 1 in the NT). Jesus said to occurs 114 times in the Bible (all in the NT). Consider that each of these 326 times total cited above is an instance of a Rhema word of God to one or more people! God wants you to hear His Rhemata words for you so that you have Rhema-based Faith to obey Him, to His praise! Note the blessing of the rhemata words by the tongues of the patriarchs, as in: o Isaac s blessing Jacob in Gen 28:3-5. o Jacob s blessing of Ephraim the younger over Manasseh the older (Gen 48) o Moses blessing for Aaron to speak to the children of Israel in Num 6: Consider that the blessings by the anointing and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, like those of the patriarchs above, are in essence the Rhemata words of God spoken through a human vessel. Such blessings are thus prophetic, and they shall come to pass. Similarly, there is unlimited potential in God s positive power when you use your tongue to speak in obedience to His Rhemata to you. 17

18 Living Today Preparing for the Return of the Lord The Positive Power of the Human Tongue Concluding Comments 18

19 Signs of the Times Nostalgia Grows for Dictatorship Again in Brazil The military dictatorship that ruled Brazil from 1964 to 1985 maintained law and order through systematic brutality. However, near Sao Paulo last week, the air was thick with nostalgia for a return to a military dictatorship. As a crime wave rocks some of Brazil s largest cities and a corruption scandal engulfs its political elite, some Brazilians see the military as the last champion of public order. Based on a 2017 poll, an estimated 43% of the population supports a temporary return to military control. The figure is especially high among young people, many of whom say they are disillusioned with democracy and with Brazil s scandal-tainted politicians. And Brazil isn t the only country where democracy is losing its glow. Among people born in the USA before World War II, 72% of the people in 2016 believed it is essential to live in a democracy, as opposed to just 30% of the people born in the USA in the 1980 s. Last month, Brazil s President Michel Temer ordered the military to take over security in Rio De Janeiro after a spike in crime there. A public policy professor in Sao Paulo has observed, Depending on how the intervention goes, if it succeeds in even appearing to reduce crime, it could generate a dangerous wave of militarism. Jair Bolsonaro, an outspoken senator from a fringe party who supports Judeo-Christian values, appears to be one of the few viable candidates to be the next president of Brazil. - Lopes, Marina. Nostalgia grows for dictatorship in Brazil. The Washington Post, March 16, 2018, A6: Print. 19

20 Class Web Site as a Resource of Interest Our class website is available at the URL if you would like to: Continue a class discussion online Ask for prayer or document a praise Download and read or print notes from previous classes in this course (free and in PDF format) For instructions on how to add postings or comments to the rhemaoats site, click on the Participate menu at For more information, contact Chuck Lohmeyer or Woody Glass. 20