In Matthew 11:27, Jesus says something incredibly powerful and important to us:“You (Father God) have entrusted Me (Jesus) with ALL that You are AND all that You have.”

As I read, prayed, and mused on the Word, I was challenged to believe big and expand my understanding of who we are in Christ. Let the words of our text soak in!  God entrusted Jesus with ALL God is and ALL God has.  Muse on that a moment.   Jesus was the expression and demonstration of ALL God is and has.

We are IN Him, and He is IN us.   Jesus said in Luke 10:19 that He has given us ALL authority (the authority He has).  Paul said in Romans 8:17 – that we are Joint heirs with Jesus.  That means we have been entrusted with ALL Jesus us and has, and He is entrusted with ALL the Father is and has.

The declaration of Matthew 11:28-29 empowers us and reveals the incredibleness of that promise.   “Are you weary, carrying a heavy burden?  Come to Me.  I WILL refresh your life (not just you momentarily but your life), for I AM your oasis. 29 Simply join your life with Mine (die to self and become one with Jesus).  Learn My ways and you WILL DISCOVER that I’m gentle, humble, easy to please.  (Most people don’t believe that. They think that God is hard to please).  You WILL find refreshment and rest in Me.  For all that I require of you will be pleasant and easy to bear.”

Whatever we need, whenever we need it, is embodied in Jesus, and we are IN Jesus.  That is cause to rejoice!   My shouting shoes are on, and my hands are in the air, rejoicing in gratitude!

We need to develop spiritual eyes to see, ears to hear, and minds open to His revelation.   Matthew 13:12 – “For everyone (how many?)  Everyone who listens with an open heart WILL RECEIVE progressively more revelation UNTIL he has more than enough.”

It is time we stopped begging God to do what He gave us the authority to do, and we stopped making excuses and offering justifications for our lack. All things are possible with God, and that means ALL things are possible with us.

• Who does God say we are? 
• Who does the devil, the world, other people, and our minds say we are?  

We have to believe one report; which one do we choose?  Remember making that decision is step one.  Learning to believe and live it is number two.

We can’t become until we decide to be.  God does not, cannot, and will not lie.   Therefore, He says we have authority and are joint heirs with Jesus today. We are more than conquerors, and nothing is impossible.   What do we say?  Our answer determines our future and could mean life or death to many.

Be who He said.  He will take every step you take in the process of becoming.  The prize is ours IF we will make the trip.

Have a fantastic day, and remember Jesus is coming soon, and we will win in the end!

1 John 4:7-12 – “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. ⁸ Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. ⁹ In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. ¹⁰ In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. ¹¹ Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.”

As I read, prayed, and pondered the Word, my heart was moved to cry out for grace.   The kingdom operates from love.  All God is, all God does, and all God has flows from Love.   It is who He is.  

Love refuses to be complacent and fights to complete its object. 

The incredibly simple but enormously complex directive of Matthew 18:15-35 is only possible through the power of love.  We tend to make Matthew 18:18-20 separate from vv. 15-17.  That robs us of the spiritual.

Out of the overflow of love comes the unrelenting desire for restoration.   We forbid bitterness of heart and release love and miracles into our lives.  Healing comes.  Restoration comes.  Power manifests itself.  Lives are transformed beyond those directly involved because love is the most powerful witness on earth.

The example Jesus used on debt makes the necessity of unrestricted forgiveness clear.  When we consider what He has forgiven us of, we are forced to compare that to any offense that comes to us. 

If we are faced with impossible situations and no answer seems forthcoming, we need to ask ourselves a penetrating question: Is there any hint of unforgiveness in our hearts toward anyone?

Do not justify it, gloss over it, or deny it.  Have we fully released that person?  Can we be around them without bristling inside or feeling the pain all over again?   Is the wound still sore?  Do we have an inner sneer when they speak?  If so, maybe we have not forgiven fully from the heart.

Matthew 18:19 – “…If two of you ask God for something in a symphony of prayer, My heavenly Father will do it for you.”

Can you pray for and with the person you forgave?  Can you agree with them in prayer?  Can you manifest the love of God to them and for them?

I want nothing to be allowed to stand between me and God.  I want nothing to hinder my access to the throne.  I want nothing to hinder the Gospel.   Love heals, but unforgiveness produces festive wounds that hinder faith and freedom.

When we stand before Jesus, and He asks, “Did you learn to love?”  What will we be able to say?   Love is demonstrated, and if our attitudes, thoughts, words, and deeds do not agree with our profession, we won’t be able to say, “Yes, Lord!”

We have authority, but Love must prevail for it to function fully.  Love releases power that would be tyrannical if released outside of love.  The Isaiah 61 anointing only comes through love!   Father, forgive me for not loving as You love, and help me to begin now!  Nothing is impossible in Him!

Keep looking up and expecting; God never fails!

Matthew 21:22 – “Everything you pray for WITH the fullness of faith you WILL receive.”

As I read, prayed, and pondered the Word of God today, several things gripped my heart.   I will attempt to capsulize what I saw and heard.   In Matthew 21, we have the account of the instantaneous withering of the fig tree.

Jesus used it to illustrate the faith exhibited in the kingdom realm.  The words “speak out of faith’s fullness” arrested me.  (v21).  Matthew 21:22 –“Everything you pray for WITH the fullness of faith you WILL receive.” Do any of us live at that address and see that consistently in our lives?  If not, why not?  There has to be a reason beyond the escape clause: “Well, God is sovereign.” 

Let me ask, “Could Jesus’ interaction with the religious crowd be revelatory?”   Matthew 22 gives us possible insight. The invited guests to the wedding feast did not come.  Matthew 22:5 is powerful: “But the invited guests were not impressed. One was preoccupied with business…”

Likewise, the instructions of Jesus about responsibility and allegiance in that chapter also give possible insight.  The Roman coin bore the image of Caesar.  Jesus said, “You give Caesar what bears his image, and because you bear the image of God, give Him all that belongs to Him.”  What are we to give to God?  Ourselves!

Later, Jesus revealed the importance of love—love to and for God and others. In Matthew 23, Jesus addressed performance vs. motive. His message was about doing vs. being.

In Matthew 25, the ten virgins, five wise and five foolish, we see another dimension of why we do not consistently manifest the fullness of faith in our daily lives. The oil supply has to be adequate for darkness and light. 

Here’s what I heard in my heart:

• There must always be quick, total surrender and obedience to Jesus, regardless of what He asks.
• There must always be love without restrictions for God and man.
• We are to always be filled and stay full of God’s oil (Holy Spirit).
• We are to live daily with unshakable expectation that God will do what God said He would do.

Never deflect our lack by saying, “God is sovereign, or He knows best or in His timing.”  Those are true, but they can become escape pods to deter us from pressing into permanent residence in His presence, where we see what He is doing and hear what He is saying.  In that place, we never question, “Is this the will of God?”  We know the will, and 1 John 5:14-15 becomes a demonstrated reality for us.

The fullness of Faith is available NOW! 

Have a fantastic day, and keep expecting a miracle!

1 Samuel 9:21 – “And Saul answered and said, “Am I not a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel, and my family the least of all the families of the ^[c]tribe of Benjamin? Why, then, do you speak to me in this way?”

Several truths are preeminent today for anyone desiring to be used by God.  I want to remind you of some that have largely been forgotten or not maintained.

Humility – In 1 Samuel 9:21, Saul questioned how God could use someone as insignificant as he was.  Then, in 1 Samuel 15:17, Samuel informed him how pride had brought him into disfavor.   He had gone from being little in his own eyes to being preeminent in his own eyes. When the angel called Gideon, he used almost the same words as Saul: humility trusts and depends on God, while pride trusts self.

Part of Jesus’s statement to the 70 as they rejoiced over the power they had been given was to remind them of the devil’s fall.  Pride brought the devil low.  When God blesses us or uses us in the gifts and power, we must remain little in our own eyes.  It’s not about us, but Him.

Luke 11:35 Jesus made an interesting statement.   “Take heed, therefore, lest the light which is in you is darkness.”  How can light be darkness?  Through Pride and Deception!

Verse 36 – “If your whole body is lighted and there is no part in it dark, the whole of it will give light…”

The objective is to have our body, soul, spirit, strength, and mind be light.  Pride is like leaven and corrupts.  Humility is like leaven and touches every dimension of our lives. We must always be little in our own eyes (humble) and trust God completely.   He will bring us to His greatness so we can minister, not so we can brag.  Nothing is out of reach for the one who walks in humble obedience.   The provision and the power are yours. 

Today is your day of new victory!  Seize it.