Tag Archives: Power

The Blood

3 Jul

Christ with cross

 “And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood
crieth unto me from the ground.”    (Genesis 4:10  KJV)

 

The Blood of Jesus pools at the soldiers’ feet surrounding the whipping yard, spraying those nearby, spraying those ripping His flesh.  Were they ever the same?  Did Jesus’ drops of blood that touched them heal the afflictions of those who wielded the Cat of 9 tails, destroying His body?

When the soldiers ripped at His beard and slapped His face, when the blood transferred from God to Man, did they feel the change in their spirits?  Were they startled?  Were they ashamed?

Every step along the Via doloRosa was stained with blood.  Those who screamed “Crucify Him!” surrounded and followed after Him.  As their feet stepped on the bloody droplets on the ground did miracles change their lives?  Did the blood burn their skin?  Did it tingle?  Did it warm them to their souls? Did they understand what was happening?

When Simon of Cyrene lifted the cross, put it on his own shoulder and Jesus’ blood covering the cross transferred onto Simon’s face, were his eyes opened? Did he still see the battered face of a condemned man, or did he now see the face of God?

When the soldiers pounded the nails through Jesus’ wrists and they were sprayed by gushing blood, did they stop, even for a moment?  Did they feel the touch of anticipation in the dampness? Did they recognize that something was different?

When Mary and John sat at the foot of the cross, praying and weeping, the precious blood of Jesus was trailing down the wooden cross – dripping from His arms, dripping from His feet onto their clothing, onto their faces – did they feel the new life that was about to birth, or were they so torn by grief that they couldn’t see that each precious drop would birth to a new nation, strong in miracles and power?

Did Jesus’ last words pierce the sky like lightning, capturing the soul of anyone who heard?

When the soldier pierced Jesus’ side, being sprayed with water and blood that flowed from Him, did he feel the hand of God?  Did he step back and recognize that this blood, this water, wasn’t the same as the hundreds of other men’s that he had seen before?  Did the water of the spirit flow over him?  Did he hear the voice of God?

When the sky turned dark and the earth trembled, did they feel God step down to touch the body and soul of His precious son?

When they lifted Jesus’ body down from the cross, did the last few drops touch the hands of the called?  Did they feel the burning and stirring inside of something miraculous about to happen?

Are there yet drops of His blood that have seeped deep into the soil at the place called Golgotha, that by its very presence makes the city Holy, not for what it is, but for who left His blood along a pre-ordained path?

Are my hands stained with Jesus’ Blood when I walk away from the path He pre-ordained me to, like the many who strayed back then, and in their ignorance and anger, drained the miracle giving, life healing, Blood of Jesus out onto the ground?

Do I stand on hallowed ground and cry “No, it’s too hard” or like Simon of Cyrene, do I pick up the cross and wrap an arm around my beaten circumstance and walk toward the word God spoken into my life?

If I had held one drop of Jesus’ blood in the palm of my hand, could I have seen the eternal face of God in its reflection?

Thank you God for a sacrifice I may never truly understand the ramifications of, for a gift of which I may never realize the full preciousness.

 

By Linda J Humes

Written 3-28-2009

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His Workmanship

21 Aug

fruit of spirit

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God afore prepared that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 (ASV)

We are God’s workmanship. Whether we are white, brown, black, yellow or red – we are God’s workmanship. Whether we were born in a perfect body or an imperfect body, with a perfect mind or a mind that few can break through to, we are God’s workmanship. We were created for a purpose and a call within the specific parameters of our birth, we were not born by accident, we were not shaped by a curse, we are all God’s workmanship.

Psalm 139:13-14 states clearly: “For thou didst form my inward parts: Thou didst cover me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks unto thee; For I am fearfully and wonderfully made: Wonderful are thy works; And that my soul knoweth right well.” God knew us before the beginning of time (2 Timothy 1:9). He knew the hour we would be born, the challenges we would face and the path that He set before us. He (God) created us in His image, male and female both (Genesis 1:27), no man can take away that image for it is God created (Genesis 9:6). He predestined us to be who we would be, foreordained to a call, conformed to the image of His Son (Acts 1:8). In fact in Romans 8:30 God states: “Moreover whom He did predestinate, them He also called: and whom He called, them He also justified: and whom He justified, them He also glorified.”

So how can that be?? Can we believe that ALL are created in His image, regardless of physical and mental abilities? Are we to believe that all races and creeds and colors are made in His image? ALL? Romans 8:28 states: “And we know that to them that love God all things work together for good, even to them that are called according to His purpose.” In 2 Timothy 1:9 it says that these perfect gifts were given to us “in Christ Jesus before times eternal.”

What is His Image? How can every person, every living human being, be made in His Image? The answers come in the scriptures themselves. The Image of God is not the outward appearance, it is the Spirit, the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). “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 soul” (Genesis 2:7 KJV).

God formed Jesus and gave Him the looks of an average man for a reason. “For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him” (Isaiah 53:2). God did not want people to follow Jesus because of his outward appearance, for it is only temporal. God wanted people to feel the depth of Jesus through His Spirit, His Soul. He was of “no reputation” (Philippians 2:5-11). Paul states that we should not look on the “outward appearance” as we can be deceived by charismatic leaders. But we are to look for Christ’s attributes (2 Corinthians 10:7).

To be in God’s Image we must emulate His behaviors and patterns. Jesus stated that we will receive the “Power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you,” then we would be able to take the gospel to the world (Acts 1:8). Once we have the “power,” we will be able to do “greater works” than Jesus did when He walked the earth (John 14:12). To get there Jesus shows us that we must learn to pray, pray until you hear from Father God (Romans 15:30; 1 Philippians 1:19; Colossians 1:3; Matthew 6:6; Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 18:1-8). We are to pray in groups for strength in prayers (Deuteronomy 26:7-8; Isaiah 56:7; II Chronicles 7:14), but there are also times that we are to pray in solitude, a simple time of relationship with Father God (Matthew 6:5; Matthew 14:23). The power through prayer is given to those who commit their lives to following Christ and receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, at that point their faith and their understanding begins to grown (Matthew 11:25-26).

To be seen in the Image of God, we must walk in the fruits of His Spirit (Galatians 5:22-25), we must walk in the fruits of His Righteousness (Ephesians 5:9; James 3:18; Philippians 1:11), we must walk in the Spirit of Truth (John 16:13), and in the Fruit of Holiness (Romans 6:22). Then we will honor God with the fruit of our lips (Hebrews 13:15), speaking to Him and listening to Him through the gift of relationship through prayer.

We walk daily in His Image. How clearly He is seen in us depends upon our decision to be more like Him. Jesus was “attractive” not because of His outward appearance, but because of the love, peace, gifts and fruits that shown through Him. The people could look into His eyes and see the Spirit of God. We are made in His image, but we make the decision on how much of God we want to look like. Hallelujah! Will you share “Christ in You, the Hope of Glory” (Colossians 1:27)? Will you humbly and powerfully show that you are made in the Image of God? Will you be an excellent example of the Workmanship of God?

**A Journey Through Ephesians – Chapter 2, Part 5

Written by Linda J. Humes

12-28-2014

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At The Right Hand Of The Father

4 Aug

blessing hands

(the strength of His might) . . . “which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and made him to sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:” Ephesians 1:20-21 (ASV)

There are very few people, that I have met, who don’t appreciate being recognized for their accomplishments or for doing a great job at their daily duties.  A word of recognition or a note of thanks can turn a dark day completely around, and negative words can take a person to a whole different level of dismay and depression.  I wonder what thoughts went through Jesus’ mind as He suffered and died on the cross that day.  He had been betrayed by the very people He loved and spent years teaching and mentoring.  He was abandoned and faced that horrible circumstance alone, except for the Father who watched from afar.  I wonder if Jesus had thoughts of abandonment.  I wonder if He felt betrayed, even for a moment.  I wonder if He contemplated the work that He had done on earth and if it was good enough.  I wonder if He rose above all of that, knowing the facets of human nature and the fear, shame and pain, that those He loved must have been feeling.  I wonder.

God used His strength and might to raise Jesus from the dead.  His spoken word broke off the tomb of death and called His son to His very arms.  Did God hold Jesus like a mother or father holding an injured child, loving away the pain and the memory of the event that caused it?  Did He speak life and strength back into His son, knowing that Jesus’ journey on earth was far from over?  Or, did Jesus just know?

After Jesus’ work on earth was complete He joined the Father, sitting at the Father’s right hand.  Scripture has many references to the right hand and the blessing that the right hand brings (Matthew 22:44).  It also speaks of the power of God that comes through the right hand (Exodus 15:6).  When children were blessed by the head of the family, giving them inheritance and power in the lands the family owned, and sometimes those blessed were not the children expected to receive the blessing, as in Genesis 48.  And in those times when people called on God for protection and comfort, He reached down His right hand to take care of them (Isaiah 41:13).  I find it very comforting to know that in my time of need, I can call on God and not only can He reach out with His right hand to send His blessing, but at His right hand rests His very son, Jesus Christ, making intercession for my every need (1 John 2:1).

But our reference doesn’t stop with the right hand, the blessings, the protection, the intercessions, or the care and love Jesus has for each of us.  The reference goes on to say who this man named Jesus is and what God has bestowed upon Him for the wonderful work He accomplished while on this earth.  After the sacrifice of the cross and Jesus’ time on earth with the apostles and disciples, God took Jesus to His right hand – above all rule, authority, power, dominion and any other word to describe that thought.  God took Jesus above every name that is named, not just on earth, but in all physical and spiritual locations unknown to man.  He took Jesus above all things known and all thing that are to come that we cannot even fathom.

This should bring us all great comfort, it does me.  For in the heart of Jesus, and on the palm of God, is your name and mine (Isaiah 49:16).  Their love for us is far beyond any rule, authority, power or dominion in worlds we understand, and in worlds we cannot fathom.  We are there, safely held in the arms of a precious and powerful savior, at the right hand of God.

*A Journey Through Ephesians:  Ephesians 1 – Part 12

Written By Linda J. Humes

10-19-14

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Exceeding Greatness

3 Aug

CreationLaura Sotka 2008

“and what the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to that working of the strength of his might.” Ephesians 1:19 (ASV)

I love walking out at night into the backyard, and looking up into the vastness of the star lit sky.  Truly amazing and beautiful.  I am in awe of the incredible God who put it all together, with the spoken word, in a moment’s time.  I am always speechless.

It is difficult for people to understand the “exceeding greatness” of God.  We may hear the stories, as a picture is painted in Genesis, and fully believe it as the truth, but do we understand the intricacies of creating something from nothing (Genesis 1:1), setting the stars in the sky (Genesis 1:16) before creating the sun to rule it (Genesis 1:14-16)?

In His exceeding greatness God created man and women (Genesis 1:26-27), all people specifically similar physiologically and yet all specifically different in appearance, emotions, intellectualism and spirituality.  He created man so intricately that every cell of his body and hair on his head is specifically aligned to each other to maintain perfect oxygen levels and heart/brain/lung function to sustain life; no portion of the body is without purpose (1 Corinthians 12:12).

In this chapter and verse “Greatness” means mighty, explosive, beyond measure.  It is the word from where we get the English word Megathon, which is what they measure atomic explosives with.  “Exceeding” means greatly enlarged, flourishing or to grow beyond measure.  Putting it together we have an event that is compared to an atomic explosion which grows beyond measure.  And that explanation doesn’t even touch the completeness of it, we can only compare it to an example that we understand; it is so much less that what God’s Exceeding Greatness truly is.

In this chapter and verse, “Power” relates to His authority, power and sanction.  It is far beyond Governors, Presidents, Kings and Queens.  It is far beyond anything we could possibly imagine.  He has the power to turn words into life.  With His spoken word animals, fish, gardens, earth itself, and man/woman came to life from nothingness (Genesis 1:1-3).  Nothingness.  Followed by the “Strength” of His Might.  “Strength” means His sovereign unlimited power and dominion over all.  And He invited me to be a part of it.  He invited you to be a part of it.  I am so overwhelmed trying to make sense of all of that.

I don’t know why God cares so much about us, why He loves us with unmerited grace; but He does.  I don’t know why He trusts us with His saving message, directing us to share it with all who will listen.  I don’t know why He chooses the most unlikely people to give the strongest anointing, to reach the hurting and the sick.  I don’t know why a God of such Exceeding Greatness would use His Power toward us, to give us encouragement and strength and hope to do the things He has called us to do, when He could just speak what He wants and it would come to fruition.  But, He did!

God cares so much about us. We must believe that He has the Power to bring supernatural healing, cleanse the drug addict, and banish depression; and He will.  He has the Strength to restore a broken marriage, bring families back together in complete harmony, and return the heart of the children to the parents; and He will.  He has the Might to make a Moses, a Peter, a Paul and a David, a witness of His kingdom, in a way that only a simple and imperfect person can do; and He did.

Lord, help me look into Your eyes and see my value, in its finished and perfected form.  Help me to remember the love you have for each and every one of us, so that none of us will look upon another with disdain.  Help me to maintain Hope for the circumstances that surround me, knowing that it is all being held in the palm of Your hand.  Help us all to stay thankful.

** A Journey Through Ephesians:  Chapter 1, Part 11

Written by Linda J. Humes

10-11-14

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REVOLUTION

16 Sep

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)   2 Corinthians 10:3-4 KJV

✝

Firmly we stand,

with pure hearts,

and cleansed souls,

fire coursing through our veins,

exuding the power,

of the anointing within.

✝

Are you ready for a Revolution?

✝

At battle status,

with sword and shield,

we take our positions,

as warring spirits,

in the battle ground,

for man’s soul.

✝

The army of God,

is cleansing a path,

for the graceful steps,

of the Bride of Christ.

✝

No enemy can draw near,

no dart can reach its mark,

for the strength of David,

the wisdom of Deborah,

and the faith of John,

take authority,

over all principalities,

and powers of darkness.

✝

Stand up, child of God,

renew your mind,

take your place,

as a Christian heir,

in the righteous army,

called to demand peace,

at all costs.

✝

REVOLUTION!!

Written 10/23/1999

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Forsaking the Call

5 Apr

But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.   Matthew 18:6

…

There are times in every person’s life when difficult decisions have to be made, knowing that those decisions will affect the lives of many others. When we are called to the faith we are to prefer others above ourselves and accommodate others, knowing that God will accommodate us.

…

Most recently I have observed brothers of the faith making decisions that were intended to destroy the character of another strong Christian. False truths and innuendo have been stated and spread to cover the true reason behind the attack – financial gain and career advancement.

…

I was contemplating a way to expose the ploy and show the true colors of those involved, but I hear the voice of God very clearly . . . “vengeance is mine.”

…

It is bad enough that friendships have been destroyed and jobs have been lost for others to gain power and finance. It’s terrible that integrity has been tarnished and respect destroyed. Now, when they least expect it, God’s anger and punishment will fall. What sacrifice this? Will there be restoration? Will trust ever be regained? Will opportunities be lost forever?

…

As believers, we are called to a higher standard of integrity, a higher obligation NOT to walk in worldly ways. When taking on the mantle of Pastor, that obligation massively multiplies. People are watching. Christians are disdained in general for the faults of a few. Shame falls on the family of God.

…

Lord, let me always be aware of the people and circumstances around me that I might not make a choice what would push others farther away from You. I never want to experience your vengeance; only your grace and love.

 

 

Written 10/26/2010

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KNEEL WITH US

22 Dec

“O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker.” Psalm 95:6

—

As we come to You,

We seek the truth,

Our open hearts we give.

—

We lift our hands,

And take a stand,

in righteousness to live.

—

Help us speak for You,

In all we do,

Your words of peace we share.

—

Please hold us near,

And calm our fears,

And kneel with us in prayer.

—

Lord, we teach Your word,

Your truths are heard,

We walk in love and faith.

—

We share Your ways,

For strength we pray,

We’ve learned to kneel and wait.

—

Keep us in Your will,

Our own thoughts stilled,

Our old ways changed to new.

—

Please keep us close,

At any cost,

Our mind on only You.

—

 Lord, we lift our hands,

In love we stand,

A shout of faith we raise.

—

We reach to You,

Your touch renews,

Our words are songs of praise.

—

Seeking to be filled,

To know Your will,

Fills every waking hour.

—

Please touch our souls,

And let us know,

Your mercy, strength and power.

—

—

Written in 1991 as a song

 

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To Know

2 Nov

As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.    Ecc 11:5

The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.    John 3:8

—

At the breath of dawn

I raise my life to You.

—

I feel your warmth,

caressing the weary lines

that etch and pull

at the curves of my face.

—

Your light tenderly penetrates

the closed lids

of my eyes,

beckoning me to see,

far past the visible realm.

—

I raise myself up,

straight and tall,

pleading to you for the strength

I once had

of my own ability.

—

My own strength fails,

as it always has,

but Your strength overcomes

my weakness

as I step out for You.

—

I remain in sweet communion,

our spirits touch through

the gift of Your precious Spirit.

—

I absorb and regenerate

from the power of joining with You.

—

Your anointing oil pours

from the cup of Your desires

to the hope of my will.

—

I see what you have called me to,

but understand not.

—

I touch the oil that flows

down my garments

and wonder “Why”?

—

The oil glistens on my fingertips

as I take it to its appointed work.

—

I question and doubt,

every step of the way,

at why I was chosen for this work;

whether I could truly

make a difference.

—

As I reach the appointed place,

I reach out and touch the life

I’ve been sent to heal.

—

The anointing and the Spirit become one,

coursing through this vessel.

—

The Spirit speaks forth

as virtue flows out

through these fingertips

and into another called of God.

—

After the evening passes

and the shadows of doubt diminish

I return to the dawn

to seek You once again.

—

I so desire to know You,

to understand the plans

You’ve set in motion,

a plan that only you

can comprehend.

—

Forgive me, Lord,

in the dusk of doubt.

—

Help me to know that

my greatest mission

is to carry forth the touch

You have put in my hand,

And to take the steps,

You have placed in my feet.

—

Help me to realize that

all I need to know,

all I need to understand,

is that every move I make

is completely in Your will.

—

Written 6-17-99

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