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DON’T BE ENVIOUS

Rodney Howard Browne

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. “About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, `You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. “He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, `Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ “`Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. “He said to them, `You also go and work in my vineyard.’ “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, `Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’

“The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. `These men who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, `and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’ “But he answered one of them, `Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” Matthew 20:1-16 NIV

God is calling for laborers to work in His vineyard. He even tells us to pray for laborers in Matthew 9:37-38. “Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” There is plenty of harvest waiting to be reaped. The Lord needs more of us to hear and heed the call to be His voice and His hands in the earth today.

We are each a part of the body of Christ. Even though we have differing functions, we are all equally important in the grand scheme of things. We all have a place in this world and it is important that we do what God asks us to do – that we perform our function and meet our responsibilities. We need to forget about who gets paid what and we need to concentrate on pleasing God and doing only what He has asked us to do.

The Lord rewards us for whatever we do that He has asked us to do. He does not judge one ministry as better or more important than another. He rewards us according to our obedience, not according to the size of our ministry. He is not a respecter of persons. Romans 2:11 says that, “there is no partiality with God.” God is impartial. He treats us all the same. If we labor in His vineyard, He will bless us all the same.

In Matthew 20:11-12, the laborers who were hired first, grumbled against the landowner because, at the end of the day, he paid everyone the same wage even though they had worked all day and others had worked a shorter time. Some of them had only worked for an hour! They had agreed to the wage and had no right to complain. They were envious because the landowner was generous!

We have no right to be envious just because God is generous. God rewards us all the same. As we obediently work to do what He has asked us to do – He will reward us accordingly.

GOD LOVES A CHEERFUL GIVER WHOSE HEART IS IN HIS GIVING

2 Corinthians 9:1-15 NIV

Verses 1-5 There is no need for me to write to you about this service to the saints.

2 For I know your eagerness to help, and I have been boasting about it to the Macedonians, telling them that since last year you in Achaia were ready to give; and your enthusiasm has stirred most of them to action.

3 But I am sending the brothers in order that our boasting about you in this matter should not prove hollow, but that you may be ready, as I said you would be.

4 For if any Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we-not to say anything about you-would be ashamed of having been so confident.

5 So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you in advance and finish the arrangements for the generous gift you had promised. Then it will be ready as a generous gift, not as one grudgingly given.

 

We must adjust our attitude about our giving. Our gift (offering) must be given generously and willingly – not extorted, not wrung out of us.

Verse 6 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.

 

If we sow sparingly and grudgingly, we will also reap sparingly and grudgingly. If we sow generously – in order to be a blessing – we will also reap generously and with blessing.

Verse 7 Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

 

Make up your own mind – purpose in your heart to give. You decide – you choose – when, where and how to give. Not reluctantly, not sorrowfully, nor under compulsion. God loves, takes pleasure in, prizes above other things and is unwilling to abandon, or to do without a cheerful, joyous, prompt to do it giver, whose heart is in his giving. God is not pleased with a grumpy, selfish minimal giver.

Verse 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

 

For the generous cheerful givers – God is able to make all grace – favor, earthly blessing – come to you in abundance. So that you may always, under all circumstances and whatever the need – be self-sufficient. You will possess enough to require no aid or support and you will be furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation. When you are a generous, cheerful giver – you will lend and not borrow. You won’t need anyone to help you, but you will be the one who has and who gives to those who have a need.

Verse 9 As it is written: “He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” 

 

The benevolent person scatters abroad – he has a lot to give to a lot of people. He thinks of others and gives to the poor. His giving amounts to deeds of goodness, kindness, benevolence and justice. His giving has eternal consequences – the results of his giving go on and endure forever.

Verse 10 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.

 

God provides seed for the sower and bread for the eater. God will provide seed and also multiply your resources for giving. If you are a giver – God will get stuff to you to give. He will increase the fruit of your righteousness. The fruit of your righteousness is active goodness, kindness and charity. The more you give – the more good and kind and charitable you become. The more good and kind and charitable you become – the more you give. It’s a wonderful cycle of blessing and increase in every area. Giving will change your heart for good. Make a decision to give and keep on giving – you will get free – you will begin to enjoy your life!

Verse 11 You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

 

God will bless you and enrich you in all things and in every way so that you can be generous. Your generosity glorifies God – it brings forth thanksgiving to God.

Verse 12-13 This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else.

 

People will glorify God for your loyalty and obedience to the Gospel of Christ and for your generous-hearted liberality to them. You can say that you believe the Gospel, but your giving proves that you do.

Verse 14-15 And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

 

God’s gift – Jesus – eternal life – is free. But we Christians must decide to be a part of bringing this Gospel – free – to all those who have yet to hear!

DO NOT ALLOW A ROOT OF BITTERNESS TO SPRING UP

Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. 

 Hebrews 12:14-15 NIV

 

Other people may do and say things that we don’t like, but we are not responsible for them. We are not accountable for other people, but we are accountable for ourselves. We are accountable for our own behavior and attitudes. We are responsible for our own responses. We cannot change other people, they must change themselves, but we cannot allow them to affect or influence us negatively either. We must choose to walk in peace, no matter what choices the other person makes. If you allow someone else to make you angry and if you fight with them then you have given them power over you. They have the power to provoke you and get a response out of you. But if you refuse to respond in anger and you keep your emotions under control, then you will have the power and be in control of the situation.

 

The grace of God is extended toward you and others, alike. If you think that other people are your problem, then you will become angry toward them and if you do not deal with those emotions, you will become bitter toward them. Realize that your emotions are your own responsibility. Most times other people don’t even know that they have done anything to you to offend you, but you have allowed yourself to be angry with them and then this anger turned into bitterness. Bitterness is a root that will grow into a tree that will cause trouble for you and will cause you to be defiled. Ultimately, bitterness will bring destruction to your own life – not to anyone else’s.

 

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.  Ephesians 4:22-32 NIV

 

Bitterness is listed here with rage, anger, brawling, slander, and every form of malice. God tells us to get rid of it. There are people who are angry and bitter against someone. They never miss an opportunity to tell others what this person did to them. They continually sing the “somebody done somebody wrong song”. But the problem is that they are the only ones who are all messed up. The bitterness on the inside of them is destroying them. They have opened the door to sin in their own life, while they criticize the other person. Your bitterness eats you up on the inside and it opens the door to the devil in your life.

 

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck out of your brother’s eye.  Matthew 7:1-5 NKJV

 

Bitterness, criticism and a judgmental spirit go together. You are in dangerous territory when you judge another person, because you are setting a standard by which you will be judged. Critical, judgmental people always have big problems of their own. Either they are sinning themselves, or they open themselves up for sin to take control of them. Even if we are in a position where we have to help another person straighten themselves up, the Bible tells us to be very aware and careful of our own attitude even as we bring a correction to theirs.

 

Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.  Galatians 6:1 KJV

 

You need God’s grace in your life on a daily basis. Don’t hinder His grace by allowing bitterness to have control of you. Stop the cycle and forgive and release whomever it is that you are bitter against. God will forgive you and His grace will be extended toward you.

 

HEALING SCRIPTURES

Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed ? 2 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. 3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4  Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows.  Isaiah 53:1-4 KJV

 

Yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.  6  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.  Isaiah 53:4-6 KJV

 

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.  8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.  9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. 10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.  Isaiah 53:7-10 KJV

 

He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. Isaiah 53:11-12 KJV

 

When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: 17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses. Mathew 8:16-17 KJV

 

Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.  I Peter 2:24 KJV

 

God’s Word is spirit and it is life. God’s Word brings healing to every aspect of our lives. God’s Word will only work in us when it is IN us. We must meditate on His Word and we must confess His Word. His Word must become real on the inside of us and then it will work in and through us.

 

But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.   Romans 8:11 KJV

 

If you need healing in your body you need to meditate on God’s Word. Even if your body is healthy and strong, you need to build up your faith in the area of healing. Take these scriptures and meditate on them every day. Read them, think about them, speak them out loud, and God’s healing power will begin a work in your body.

 

 

CHILDREN ARE A HERITAGE OF THE LORD

Blessed are all who fear the LORD, who walk in his ways. You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your sons will be like olive shoots around your table. Thus is the man blessed who fears the LORD.  May the LORD bless you from Zion all the days of your life; may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem, and may you live to see your children’s children.

Peace be upon Israel.  Psalms 128:1-6 NIV

 

The man who respects, honors and reverences the Lord and walks in his ways is blessed, his wife is blessed and his children are blessed. He and his wife are blessed with many children and they also live long enough to see their children blessed with children.

He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the LORD.  Psalms 113:9 KJV

 

God is the One who blesses us with children. If we want children, we can stand on His promises that say that He will bless us with children. Not only does He promise to bless us with children and make us mothers, but He will make us joyful mothers as well. Bearing children and raising them is a joyful experience if it is in the Lord.

Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.  Psalms 127:3-5 KJV

 

God gives children to us. They are a blessing, a reward and an inheritance (birthright) from the Lord. We should always value and treasure them as God-given. Ultimately, they belong to God – He gives them to us for a season and He expects us to fear Him and to raise them to fear Him. He expects us to raise them and to teach them so honor and serve Him. He expects us to love them, to teach them that He loves them and to teach them to love Him. We are to teach them, train them and prepare them for a godly life and then to launch them out as arrows from a bow.

 

If you want your arrow to fly straight and hit the target, you must take time to prepare it perfectly. You cannot rush it. The arrow must be perfectly straight, with no cracks or splinters. The point must be sharp and the feathers must be perfectly placed and attached. When it is ready to fly, the bow must be pulled back all the way. The arrow must not be released before its time or it will fall short of the mark. We must carefully nurture and train our children and release them only when the time is right. Feeding them, clothing them and housing them are not enough. We must teach them about God, about life and how to live godly lives.

 

When they are fully taught – we must not hang onto them, but release them to fly into the future that God has planned for them. If we do not teach them properly and if we send them out before their time or unprepared, they will not go very far or do very much good with their lives. How can you help others when you can’t help yourself? If we do teach them properly and if we send them out prepared, they will go far and they will be a blessing to many wherever they go. Their lives will count for God and they will make a difference in eternity.

They will not be put to shame when they contend with their enemies in the gate.  Psalm 127:5 NIV

 

A righteous man, by raising godly children, strengthens not only his family, but also his family’s position in society. There is unity in a godly family and therefore there is strength. The enemy that tries to contend with them is confounded and defeated.

“And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.  Matthew 18:5-6 NIV

 

God holds us responsible for the spiritual welfare of our children and we should not take that responsibility lightly. Father God blesses us with our children and we are responsible to raise them in such a way that we can present them back to Him with joy.

 

The blessing of children 

Great Awakening Tour Phoenix Arizona Day 5

People’s hearts are being turned to Christ then turned to seek and save that which is lost as Rodney Howard Browne preaches the word. 

We still have 9 more Holy Ghost and Fire Meetings left. With 1301 harvesters we have seen over 20,600 decisions for Christ.

 

GREAT AWAKENING TOUR PHOENIX PASTORS MEETING

October 6, 2008 – October 10, 2008

Rodney Howard Browne invites pastors and leaders to attend a special meeting at the Desert Rose Community Church Glendale Arizona on Saturday October 11, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. Saints across America are invited to these events. Dr. Rodney Howard Browne will be addressing the week’s itinerary including Pre-Crusade Evangelism Training and Street Evangelism. Everyone attending will be ignited with the fire of God as the Holy Spirit prepares their hearts for these exciting, life changing events to unfold throughout the week.

Speaker: Dr. Rodney Howard-Browne
Desert Rose Community Church
4445 West Olive Ave.
Glendale, Arizona 85302
United States
(602) 993-5353

Rodney Howard Browne THE KINGDOM OF GOD

Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. One man’s faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone.
Rodney Howard Browne
shows us that if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.’” So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God. Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way. As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died. Do not allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil. Rodney Howard Browne shows us that the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men. Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall. Rodney Howard Browne teaches us that whatever we believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and
everything that does not come from faith is sin. Romans 14:1-23 NIV

The Kingdom of God is about spiritual things. It is about righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. It is about our heart attitude and not the outward rituals and observances that we think are so important. It is much more important to God that we
love each other and that we are kindto each other, than that we observe rules and regulations. People try to impress God with their religion, whilst they sacrifice people and relationships. They are prepared to destroy another person to uphold a belief or an opinion. But to God – PEOPLE are the most important thing. We are all connected to each other because we are all connected to God. We need to love and take care of one another. Through the ages, people have killed each other because their beliefs and practices differed, but God says that it is not our place to judge or condemn or pass sentence on another person. We are all God’s servants. We are each accountable to Him alone and must answer to Him alone. God always asks us to check out our own heart and not to judge others. He tells us how to live our own lives according to His word and not to regulate the lives of others. We must do the right thing no matter what anyone else is doing. We must do the right thing because it is the right thing. We must trust God and know that He has everything under control and that He sees all and know all and that He knows what He is doing. He will take care of all the wrong and the right. We need to mind our own business and make sure that we walk right, talk right and do right ourselves.

The Kingdom of God is about righteousness – being acceptable to and accepted by God, not man. It is not what man thinks of us, but what God thinks about us, that counts in eternity. If we are in right standing with Almighty God then we have nothing more to fear.

The Kingdom of God is about peace – heart peace. It is about having peace with God. The peace that passes understanding. The peace we have, knowing that Jesus paid the price and that there is nothing more we can do or need to do to earn God’s grace.

The Kingdom of God is about joy –
relaxing in God’s love and acceptance and enjoying the life we have in Him. It is time to forget about what everyone else is doing and to forget the things that are unimportant in God’s eyes and in eternity.
It is time to enjoy this life we have in Jesus!

Rodney Howard Browne: LIVE IN THE LIGHT

The River at Tampa Bay.

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:9-14 NIV

 

Rodney Howard Browne shows us that several things happened to you, at the same time, on the day that you repented of your sins, accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior and were born-again. You were redeemed by the blood of Jesus and forgiven of your sins. You were made a saint of God and qualified by God to share in an inheritance in the kingdom of light, together with all the other saints. And on top of all that your Father has delivered you and drawn you to Himself out of the control and the dominion of darkness. Sin has no more dominion over you. The devil has no more authority over you. You have been delivered from the power and control of sin and the devil. So many Christians live below the standards that God has ordained for them because they are ignorant of His will and His plan for them. They have no idea what He has already done for them and in them.

 

Rodney Howard Browne teaches us that Paul prayed that the Colossians would be filled with a full, deep and clear knowledge of God’s will in all wisdom and a spiritual understanding. Many people think that God’s will is unknown, but if God wanted His will to be hidden then why does Paul pray for us all to know it? You can know the will of God. His will is His Word. The Spirit of God will instruct you and reveal God’s will for your life. As you walk worthy of the Lord you steadily grow and increase in the knowledge of God. You must live and conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the Lord – fully pleasing to Him and desiring to please Him in all things – bearing fruit in every good work.

Rodney Howard Browne shows us that you cannot please God if you yield to sin or the devil in any way. The tragedy is that it is the devil who harasses and torments Christians and then gets them to believe the lie that it is God’s will when all along God is telling them that He has delivered and saved them from all the devil’s power and authority. The devil’s influence over you ended on the day you were washed in the blood of Jesus.

And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.Ephesians 2:1-10 NKJ

 

The disobedient (sinners) are subject to the devil and his evil influence, but not the children of God. You were once in bondage to the devil, but now you have been saved by God’s grace and His great love and rich mercy. You are raised up and seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Live and walk worthy of His great love and the grace and mercy that He has lavishly poured out on you. Don’t treat His salvation as a weak, ineffective force. You are saved and redeemed from the darkness and all the power of the enemy. Walk as a child of the light. Walk free from sin and darkness and walk all over the devil. Don’t give him any place or any attention. Take authority over him and walk in the light of the fact that Jesus already defeated him. All you have to do is enforce his defeat by reminding him of what Jesus already did. Live in the light of God!

Rodney Howard Browne: LIVING IN GOD’S ABUNDANT LIFE

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. John 1:1-4 NKJ And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God. I John 5:11-13 NKJ

Godshows us that the word “life” used in these scriptures is the Greek word “zoe”. Zoe is used in the NT to mean life as a principle and life in the absolute sense. Zoe is life as God has it, that which the Father has in Himself, and which He gave to the Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Son, to have in Himself, Zoe is “life intensive”. Zoe continually expresses all of the highest and best, which the saints possess in God. Jesus was zoe manifested in the world. Man was cut off from that life in the fall and became a stranger to it. Adam was acquainted with this God-kind of life before the knowledge of sin entered his heart resulting in him becoming more acquainted with death than life. In the fall, man was cut off from God, who is the source of all zoe life. However, man became a partaker once again of this wonderful life through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Author of life to everyone who trusts in Him. Jesus is the life of every believer and the life that He gives He also maintains and sustains. The word “life” refers to more than physical existence. It refers to the spiritual life those results from man’s relationship with God. Eternal life means more than eternal existence. Eternal life refers to eternal fellowship with God. Eternal life is the highest quality of life you can have. According to the apostle Paul, eternal life is freedom from sin, holiness, and a positive relationship with God. Before we knew God’s Zoë life we were in a state of spiritual death – cut off from the life of God – which results from a life of sin. Eternal life belongs to every believer right now, because of his or her relationship with Christ. You are not waiting to become a partaker of life as God knows it – you have it as your possession now. We have this hope and look forward to this life filling up and changing our bodies when we receive our glorified body as Jesus did when He was resurrected from the dead.“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”John 10:11 NIV The “life” that Jesus laid down is the Greek word “psuche” Besides its meanings, “heart, mind, soul,” this word denotes “life” in two chief respects. It means “breath of life” or the “natural life” and “the seat of personality”. Generally speaking, psuche means “the individual life” or the “living being”, while zoe is the life of that being. Jesus, Good Shepherd, laid down His life (psuche) for the sheep so that they can have life (zoe) and have it in abundance.“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”John 10:10 NKJ We can life the “high” life – God’s higher life – if we our life in God and for God. God does not only remove the curse and the fear of death and separation from God from us, but He actually gives us His life. Life as He lives it! We can live our lives – not just barely making it – but we can live in the abundance of peace and joy and blessing that He lives and walks in. He lives and walks in.