Tuesday – August 16, 2016
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior. Today be reminded to pray for the governments of these United States and as we have for the past few weeks our friends to the north in Canada. Today I am highlighting Manitoba, Canada. I have posted a map locating Manitoba within the Country of Canada. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Ephesians 1:1-2 (KJV)
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Yesterday I left off after a lengthy discussion about the word “be” which is not in the source documents but added by the translators for continuity and clarity. In this case the word they have added seems to be a good fit. I also talked about the word “grace” which is also translated favor at times. We commonly hear the favor of God talked about in the context of a favor or good thing received from God. Focusing on the grace of God, the thing received, is like focusing on the hand of God and not on the face of God. Consider the following text.
Psalm 103:7 (KJV)
7 He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.
Moses wanted to know God and sat face to face with Him. Moses wanted to know how God operated and by learning that walked not only in the Ways of God but witnessed many mighty acts of God which came by way of his (Moses) hand. Children look for the favor, the graciousness of God, the acts, the manifestations of God. They are likely to say: “I’m going to Church to be or get blessed”. Brother and sister we are already blessed (have the Blessing) if we are in Christ Jesus and we exist to bring The Blessing into others’ lives. Sons (and daughters) of God know they have authority and The Blessing and they are looking to be a blessing. Mankind has been given authority in the earth, for the born again believer that authority or dominion over the earth has a supernatural component (forces of Heaven). Elohim (pleural God) made us to look and act like Him. He then gave us The Blessing which is the Holy Spirit and the Power of God. With that combination of our authority and His power we are to be fruitful, multiply, replenish the earth, subdue the earth, be good stewards, guard all that we have, and not mix the knowledge of good and evil.
Ephesians 1:1-2 (KJV)
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
As we continue to deal with the second verse I will now examine the word “peace”. We have talked about peace recently but it is good to cement these things into our thinking because most of us are filled with the traditions of men which are error and without power. Peace is the knowledge that we possess and operate in the reality of God in Christ Jesus. As you may recall, peace is one of the three legs of the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy. The peace of God that we have from the God of peace is more than a comfortable feeling. It is a knowledge of who we are in Him, with Him, and in His will. There are six attributes or realities of the peace of God which we possess in Him because we are in His image and likeness.
- We are joined with God.
- We have the same prosperity as God.
- We are one with God.
- We can work in quietness just as He does, unaffected by circumstance.
- We have entered into the rest (provision) of God.
- We are set at one again, we are whole spirit, soul, and body.
I am sure we all recognize right away that this is a wonderful thing that the Apostle Paul is speaking into their lives.
By Dr. David Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
