Dear Friend in Christ;
Until you receive the revelation of who you are in Christ and know certain truths, you aren't going to experience the victory God intends for you.
People don't like to hear this because it makes them responsible;It’s all about knowing the revelation of our spirit, soul, and body.
Everything I teach is based on the revelation of who I am in Christ--who I am in my born-again spirit.
I want to make sure everyone knows that this truth holds the key that will unlock God's blessings. Once you understand this, the Bible comes alive.
Every born-again believer has undergone a complete inner transformation.
Our Church’s foundational verse-
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:17-18
It doesn't say that all things are becoming new or have the potential of becoming new--they are new the moment we are born again.
To understand that we are totally new requires us to understand how God put us together.
What part of us did God make new?
It's obviously not our bodies, because we are still shaped the same as before.
It's obviously not our minds, because we still think the same and have the same emotions. So what is it? It's our spirits.
We are all made up of three parts, which some don't know.Something that helped me make sense of this is that God is three parts too, and we are made in His image. First Thessalonians 5:23 makes it clear: "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ."
It’s easy to figure out that the new part isn’t your body or soul (mind, will, emotions, conscience), it’s your spirit. His Word confirms this again in 1 Corinthians 6:17: "But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit." Similar to the way that physical relationships produce a physical union, the born-again experience creates a spiritual union. Our spirits become one with God's. Since it's in His Word, we need to believe it, even if we don't quite understand it yet.
This brings up the tough problem of figuring out how to apply what's true in God's Word--our new spirits are one with Him--to our old bodies and souls. It's easy to understand both our bodies and our souls. We are receiving information from them all the time.
For example, if I put my hand on someone's shoulder, they would know that I touched them. I could also make people feel happy or sad, or I could even hurt them without any physical contact, simply by the words I speak. Those words are processed by the mind and felt in the emotions.
However, you can't feel your spirit that same way. If you don't understand that the spiritual reality can't be felt, then you'll be confused when God's Word declares that you have the same power living in you that raised Jesus from the dead (Eph. 1:19-20).
If you think truth can be discerned through your natural senses, you'll be baffled when the Bible says you're a brand-new creature who can do the same miraculous works that Jesus did--and more (2 Cor. 5:17and John 14:12).
God's Word reveals spiritual reality. If you want to know what your spirit is like, you must find out from the Word, not rely on emotions or other perceptions. God's Word is spirit and life.
This revelation of the relationship between the spirit, soul, and body will transform your life. It will set you free when You realize that God has already given you everything You needed and it's all contained in my spirit--all You need to do is release it. That simple understanding changes everything.
The Christian life isn't a process of "getting from God"; it's a process of renewing your mind and learning to release what you've already received.
2 Peter 1. verse 3&4 says; “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may be partakers of the divine nature...”
If you don’t understand that at salvation you have already received in your spirit all that you will ever need, there will always be doubt.
You may know it's possible, or even promised in the Word, but you'll be trying to perceive it in the mental, emotional, or physical realm.
That's a recipe for failure.
That misconception can also result in a performance-based relationship with God:
"If I'm good enough, if I read the Bible enough, if I pay all my tithe . . ." and on and on it goes, in an attempt to motivate God to give you what you need.
It's wrong to think that God hasn't already given you everything, and that somehow you have to make yourself worthy enough to get it.
You're already worthy because of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice. He paid the price for everything you will ever need.
In fact, you've already got it! It's just a matter of understanding the relationship of the spirit to the soul and body.
Understanding spirit, soul, and body is critically important to every believer.
It's the key to receiving God's grace. It could be a matter of life and death. And it's the foundation to understanding the rest of Scripture.
As your Pastor it’s my passion for you to get this so you will be in a constant outlook of Victory!
Love In His Grace, Pastor Joe-