COMING INTO ALIGNMENT
We need to learn how to come into alignment with the word God has spoken to us. We are to live by every word that God speaks to us.
As the Holy Spirit reveals the word to us, it changes us, and then when we walk in it, it becomes written on our heart, we become that Word.
The Spirit of Christ in us is greater than the spirit of the world that opposes our spiritual growth. When we are born of God, if we learn how to activate our spirit so that it will expand and grow, we will overcome everything in the world. As He is, so are we in this world when we come into alignment with His Spirit.
Our alignment with His Spirit comes about through our focus upon His magnificence (the impressive beauty or grandeur of God, His great richness and splendor and wealth). It is our connection with the Spirit of God that gives us the ability to overcome. We can differentiate the wealth of our inheritance, and the foolishness of living for anything else.
We must have a revelation of Jesus’s identity- who He is, so that it can be transferred to us. Before we can add to our identity, we must fully understand His. We must embrace and fully experience the power of His identity in our lives. We need to be aligned in all respects to Jesus.
INDWELLING FULLY
As He fully indwells us His fullness makes us complete and inflames us into a place of authority and rule over the enemy.
As we learn how to walk with God, in our journey we become aware of the life and power that He imparts to us. We need a revelation of the abundant life He offers to us.
A walk with God is a journey into the fullness of His indwelling us. We are His inheritance, and He is ours.
We inherit the divine nature and unless we begin to experience it; we will never possess it in the level that God desires. As we begin to walk in the divine nature, the gifts of the Spirit will begin to operate in our lives.
There is strength in alignment that repels the enemy and lifts us up into the heavenly places in Christ. A right spirit keeps us in the atmosphere of abundance. Our expectation of God is so strong, that the enemy will back away from an encounter of Christ in us.
LIVING IN THE ATMOSPHERE OF HIS PRESENCE
Alignment is atmospheric; it lifts us up to the place of majesty. The eyes of our spirit are enlightened so that we can behold His glory. We begin to see what God sees; we are swallowed up in victory. When we experience the majesty of God, we begin to understand what it means to be His body in the earth.
It is through our focus of worship, where we are drawing His Spirit, that we are enabled to live in an atmosphere of abundance. We live in the spirit of expectancy.
It is through the infilling of the Spirit that we experience God’s magnificence. We are no longer battling the downward pull of the world but are lifted above our problems and circumstances. His majesty introduces us to the power that can bring everything into subjection.
It is through alignment that we experience His authority. Our inheritance springs forth from this place. It becomes a river of life, flowing up out of us like a snowplow pushing back all that would hinder its influence. It is through the infilling and outworking of the Spirit that we taste of the powers of the age to come.
The surpassing greatness of the attributes of God being manifested in our lives becomes the normal experience of a spiritual warrior, one who has entered into appropriating their inheritance in Christ. A spiritual warrior whose heart is set on alignment, experiences the greatness of God in their life.
FULLNESS
Fullness relates to all that God is and wants to become in our lives. This level of spirituality is very rare and sets us apart from those who do not know the Lord in a relationship where they constantly communicate back and forth. We talk to the Lord and He talks to us. Only fullness can truly glorify the Lord. Only the majesty of the Lord can perfectly reveal His nature.
We need a clear revelation of His supremacy, of His authority in heaven and earth. When Jesus was raised from the dead, he became the firstborn of a new creation and inherited all authority in heaven and earth.
Before this He was limited to exercising authority on the earth and could not displace the spirits in the heavenly places permanently, where there was an open heaven over Jerusalem.
After three and a half years of Jesus’s ministry on the earth, Jerusalem was worse off that it was when He started His ministry.
It was only after the day of Pentecost that the disciples turned the world upside down. But eventually the lampstand was removed when the next generation left their first love.
The greater works have to do with entering into the new heavens and earth, where we will loose all creation from futility and the curse of not loving God with a whole heart. Advancing the kingdom brings all things into subjection, once God’s love is perfected in us.
It is in our point of contact with the Spirit of God where we are walking in the present level of light, that we are enabled to take authority over that which He directs.
As we walk in the light of His Spirit, we will begin to experience His majesty and become lost in the spirit and elevated by His glory. Jesus shares His glory with His beloved, and we are lifted into oneness with Him.
We need a revelation of His nature to become the center of our attraction. In this point of alignment His love takes over, it conquers us fully. His majesty becomes our point of contact, the radiating of His nature the center of our attraction and desire.
The glory of alignment is that we can begin to understand all that God is to become to us and become in us. God desires to invade every area of our lives. Every part of our being is to be touched and infiltrated by His presence. Our entire being is to be permeated by His Spirit.
To enter into the transference of His Spirit is to be taken up to the mountain, where God’s glory is revealed to us. God proclaims His nature to us, and in the revelation of it we partake of it, it enters us.
The interpenetration of His Spirit expands our heart and minds so that we can grasp more of His Spirit. The infilling of His Spirit expands our capacity to receive more of His essence into us.
Measure limits us, it diminishes our thinking, believing and experiencing. We are to be experiencing the abundant life, more than enough, more than we can handle or assimilate at the moment.
There are too many things in our heart that are hindering the fullness of His Spirit manifesting in us, we must learn how to properly focus our attention so that we are not limiting our appropriation of the Spirit. As we learn how to come into proper alignment, we will begin to experience the overflow of His Spirit.
It is the abundance of God that brings us into maturity. Abundance and exuberance (joy, enthusiasm, excitement, energy and vitality) go together. They empower us into a place of maturity where the stature of the fullness of Christ is revealed to us.
SPIRITUAL WARRIORS
The example of Jesus’ earth walk, shows us what is possible for a righteous person to be and do in God. The gospel gives us a visual aid to show us what we can walk in. Jesus said the things that I do, you can do and even greater because I am ascending to the father and will pour out my Spirit who shall come upon you.
His indwelling presence brings the reality of heaven into our heart. As it is in heaven, so it should be upon the earth. The prayer of the disciple is to bring it down into the earthly realm.
When we become a spiritual warrior, we learn how to submit and yield to God’s Spirit and resist all that is of the enemy and the circumstances that are in the way. We learn how to release the atmosphere of heaven by speaking peace and blessing over everything and everyone around us. We develop the ability to contribute positively to the spiritual atmosphere.
The enemy is the prince of the power of the air, he lives in the atmosphere. When we become a spiritual warrior by coming into alignment with His Spirit, we enter His perception. When we encounter a wrong atmosphere the Spirit of God rises up in us and reveals the source of it.
When we are walking with God and we hit a bring wall in the spirit, we need to take a step back in our spirit and reposition ourselves. Repositioning is one of the attributes of alignment. When one moment we are full of joy and the next moment something contrary hits us we need to backtrack.
We are to walk in the light, and when we are not seeing clearly we have to look to the Lord for direction. We need the Holy Spirits permission to go to certain places, because of the atmosphere in which the enemy operates. Partnering with the Holy Spirit is another attribute of alignment. It is a partnership that is relentless against the enemy.
When we enter an atmosphere that is contrary to the Spirit, we need to pray in the spirit and worship His majesty. We do not want to draw attention to ourselves. Our job and joy is to penetrate the atmosphere and bring down the controlling power. We can bind the spirit so that it is no longer free to operate.
Spiritual warriors are constantly on assignment towards the enemy because they are aligned with majesty. Unless we have specific permission from the Spirit of God, we do not go looking for the enemy. Whenever we encounter the enemy in life we have the freedom to move in our alignment. This means we are not touched by what He is doing because the manifest presence of God is occupying our inner space.
Spiritual warriors are subject to wisdom especially when it comes to warfare strategy and tactics. We automatically know when our internal power can overcome the atmosphere. We also know when it is prudent to step back and listen to the Holy Spirit. Some situations require more warriors.
We first must push back the enemy in our own inner space. When the enemy comes, he can find nothing in us. Alignment maintains a clean and pure heart. From this place of freedom, we can dispense freedom. It is vital that we are overwhelmed by the freedom of the Lord. That we become preoccupied with His greatness and majesty. As the Holy Spirit reveals His glory, we are enabled to position ourselves correctly before His throne. Our intercession then will not be concerned with the power of the enemy but focused on the ascendancy of the Lord.
We can then begin to determine what it feels like to have an ascended lifestyle in the Lord. We pray from a position of rest seated with Christ in the heavenly places far above earthly dominions. The power of constant subjection is realized through the authority of the Lord.
Warriors must deal with majesty. The fullness of the splendor of the Lord must take root in our hearts and bear fruit in our minds. When our believing and thinking are fully engaged in majesty, we will rise up effortlessly and occupy the place of our inheritance. Our thinking must come into alignment with His Spirit.
ALIGNMENT CAUSES BREAKTHROUGH
There are two battles we face in any personal issue. The first is to become free; the second is to stay free. There have been many who have received a breakthrough but have not maintained it and have become worse off. There is no real breakthrough without follow through. This is a spiritual principle we need to learn.
2sam 5: 17 But when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines came up to seek David; and David heard of it, and went down to the hold. 18 The Philistines also came and spread themselves in the valley 19 And David enquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go up to the Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into mine hand? And the LORD said unto David, Go up: for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into thine hand. 20 And David came to Baalperazim, and David smote them there, and said, The LORD hath broken forth upon mine enemies before me, as the breach of waters. Therefore he called the name of that place Baalperazim 21 And there they left their images idol, image, and David and his men burned them. 22 And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. 23 And when David enquired of the LORD, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees. 24 And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the LORD go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines. 25 And David did so, as the LORD had commanded him; and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gazer ( Gezer = “portion”).
The valley of Rephaim is one of the places occupied by the sons of anak, who were giants, the Nephilm spirit. Rephaim is a place of stubborn resistance. It represents fear, intimidation, unbelief and poor self image. It is a place of past defeats and agreements with the enemy. It represents the areas of our heart that still resist the grace of God, constant areas where we still give way to sin. It is where we are not reflecting Christ, so that others do not take us seriously.
Rephaim symbolizes where we have little or no self-control. Where we miss it on a continual basis, this is also the place the Lord has chosen for our breakthrough. It is the opportunity for us to believe God in the battle for personal territory.
The first rule of warfare is that we cannot take ground from the enemy if he has ground in us. We are to give no place to the enemy, if he comes to tempt us he cannot if there is nothing in us that will respond to him.
John 14: 30Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.
When we are totally submitted to the Lord, the enemy will flee from us when we resist Him.
Rephaim also typifies the life of a believer who has stopped responding to the Lordship of Christ. They learn to live with their weakness and sin.
Warriors fight unbelief, they will not accept defeat. They are committed to a relationship that trusts and a lifestyle of faith. Warriors love people enough not to settle for anything but overcoming.
Warriors recognize that they have a spirit that breaks through every obstacle, and impart that spirit to others. When our spirit is right with God we pursue the certainty of victory. They have practiced, fixing their eyes upon Jesus and drawing His strength. They have a heart after God like David’s that is fixed.
In warfare it is one battle to take the ground and another to keep it. Jesus said to occupy until He comes.
Luke 19: 13And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.
It is a parable of about being fully engaged and totally occupied with the matter at hand, and rule over cities in the age to come. Once we have taken territory we must be about the business of keeping it and occupying it wisely. If we give in to the enemy, then he re-occupies it for his own purposes.
Jesus must take up residence in our hearts, or we will lose His presence by default (failure to act; inaction or neglect: failure to meet obligations).
By His death and resurrection, Jesus has broken the power of the enemy once and for all. Now He must take up occupation of our lifestyle. Our ongoing obedience is the key.
Each battle has different strategies, objectives and tactics. In the first battle at Rephaim, the enemy controls the ground, and there is need for direct confrontation. In the second battle David controlled the ground and could fight in a different way as the Lord led Him.
A breakthrough means to force a passage through a barrier or restraint and to open the way for new development to occur. There is a breaking out and a breaking in.
We break out of things that bind us and hold us back. We push through areas of defeat and overcome. We take on the issue of a poor self-image and develop a new identity.
We break into an anointed lifestyle that provides us with the power and the victory to live as God intends. Our relationship with God goes to a new level of love and intimacy. We begin to develop gifts anointing and presence that not only empower us but impact others.
The purpose of warfare is that the majesty and the supremacy of Jesus can be realized. Warfare empowers us to demonstrate the power of God because the enemy should bring out the best in us. Conflict whether it is human or spiritual will always release the anointing.
Warriors have developed an internal fortress where Jesus reigns. God empowers us to fight every battle.
God is not reluctant to bless us; He is our place of refuge and shelter. When we are placed in warfare situations, we must always return to our source in God. Our refuge is the secret place of the Most high.
Warfare is the test of our resolve, determination, steadfastness and capacity. When the enemy attacks our weaknesses, the Father is teaching us to live in our strengths. He is our stronghold; we are learning how to fight His way.
The issue in each battle is how we fight in this particular conflict. What are the weapons of warfare that we should be using? Sometimes the weapons are simple rest and peace-not allowing ourselves to become anxious or worried. Sometimes we must press into worship and become occupied with God in the face of the enemy. It is always the truth of who God is in Himself and who He is choosing to be for us in that particular moment. He fills all things with Himself.
God loves to restore and to rebuild. He loves to teach us to rise up in our inner man. He loves to prove that He is with us.
This is where the Holy Spirit comes in; He excels at what He does. He does everything with such grace, kindness and inherent cheerfulness. His exuberance for life and outrageous enthusiasm for us makes Him the ideal companion, teacher and friend.
What is established in us regarding the truth through confrontation and contesting now forms the base of operations launched against the enemy.
Warriors love the Holy Spirit; they receive him as He is meant to be received, as Lord. Jesus is Lord over the church and the Holy Spirit is the Lord within the church. He is a warrior who has never tasted defeat. We learn from the Holy Spirit the ways of war.
All public victories are preceded by private ones. The Holy Spirit shares in all our life events to make us like God. We are made in His image so that we can face each day like He does, joyful, peaceful and powerful.
Warriors know what it means to break through first in their own lives, and then in their ministry to others.
War is concerned with taking territory. First we must reclaim our inner territory. Secondly we must retake our cities. We bring heaven down into earth.
Our self esteem needs to be on the same level as the Holy Spirit’s confidence.
The key to any spiritual victory is to think like the Lord. Perception is everything. Spiritual warriors need to be God conscious.
We can see the difference between Elisha and his servant. One was focused on earthly issues and the other was concerned with what God was doing. Elisha saw beyond the natural realm, his perception was the difference between death and breakthrough.
As we become God conscious, our spiritual awareness will expand our perceptions in the spiritual realm. This is vital in our ministry to others. We work with the Holy Spirit; we are doing whatever He is doing, our actions our aligned with His intentionality. Our speech is to reflect His heart.
Alignment is about developing a relationship with the Holy Spirit based on His affinity (love and compassion, sympathy marked by a genuine interest, an attraction to or liking of someone) for people. The Holy Spirit has a natural liking for people. He is brilliant at understanding people. He knows their longings and desires. He sees the thoughts and intentions of their heart. He is familiar with their struggle, weakness and yearning to be better.
Because Jesus has so thoroughly dealt with sin on the cross, the Holy Spirit is released to support our journey from the present to the future. He is happy and willing to apply the cross to any present-past dilemma that we may face as we proceed towards breakthrough. It is in the matter of whom we are becoming that He excels in.
He knows who we are now in the present and He links that person with or future destiny and identity.
Because of Abrahams future destiny the Lord included him in what He was going to do in the present concerning judgment.
The Holy Spirit is a genius for present-future living. One of His gifts is prophesy the art of encouragement for the present and empowering for our future destiny.
We have two relationships with God. Who we are in the present and who He says we are in the future. Jesus occupies the space between those two identities as He stands in the gap interceding for us before the throne. We are so much more beautiful than we know and more powerful than we realize.
We can become to occupied with the present, that we lose sight in what we are becoming and where we are going. We get caught up in negatives, and focused and burdened on our sense of lack. We need to be reminded of our true identity, who we are in Christ, who Christ is becoming in us. we need to see the treasure and not just the earthen vessel. We need to hear prophesy over who God see’s us to be.
The answer to our present is our future. Most of our current situations have a bearing on our future development. They are about training for reigning, learning about authority and power, gaining in wisdom and character. Putting off the self and putting on Christ, Developing gifts and Christ abilities.
Life in the Spirit is different from life in the natural. Life in the natural is concerned about future goals and how we move towards them. We try to upgrade our performance so that we become someone.
Life in the spirit works differently. We already are someone in Christ. We are not trying to extricate (to release somebody with difficulty from a constraint or an unpleasant or complicated situation) ourselves from an old lifestyle. Jesus has already done that. We are dead in Him to our past. Life in the Spirit is simply about letting go of a life that no longer works.
We are a new creation, a new person already in Christ. We are in the process of discovering who we already are in Him. We do not become a new person by changing our behavior. We discover the person we all ready are in Christ and behave accordingly.
The Lord knows who we are now and who we will become. The prophetic voice of the Lord declares how He already sees us, perfect in Christ.
Who we are starts out with our natural personality. Our personality is the integrated (made up of aspects or parts that work together) relationship of soul and body. It is the combination of psychological, intellectual, emotional and physical attributes that have shaped our upbringing, training environment and modeling into a learned behavior that is both positive and negative.
When the lord shows up in our life He tells us who we are becoming. Our true identity is made up of our personality and our spirit-person, the new creation, our persona, who we are in Christ, the new man. Our persona is how we are known in heaven. Persona is linked to the journey of our relationship with God.
The Lord did not deal with Gideon’s personality, but his person. Gideon was hurt angry and afraid. When the Lord showed up, He doesn’t speak to any of those things. He did not deal with Gideon’s personality but introduced him to his persona. Our persona is how we are known in heaven.
The Lord is with you, you valiant warrior. Gideon responded in His personality. Why has this all happened? The Lord does not respond to His personality, counter’s with more persona. Go in this strength and deliver Israel, have I not sent you. He responds with his personality, and the Lord ignores it, surely I will be with you and you shall defeat Midian as one man.
There are three levels to our persona, Elevated status, legal authority, and permission to overcome. We are known in heaven. Our identity as God sees it, gives us authority over any opposition. We are resourced in our persona and are given permission to overcome any obstacle. We are children of God learning to become sons.
Our persona is given so that we can grow into maturity. Inheritance is attached to persona.