Everything that we have is given to us by God first.
John 3: 27 John answered and said, a man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven.
Romans11: 35 or who has first given to him that it might be paid back to him again? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen.
James 1: 17 every good thing they stalled and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.
1 John 4: 19 we love because he first loved us.
We are not given anything because of who we are or because of the quality of our performance. We receive from God because of who Jesus is and because of his relationship with the father. We’re not given anything because of our performance but because of our placement in Christ.
Whatever the father is to Jesus, he is to us. The father has put us into Christ so that he can enjoy the same relationship with us as he does with Jesus!
We are blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). This favor in Christ is not an event or merely an outcome of making a request. It is primary a relationship that we have with the Godhead in Christ.
1 Corinthians 8: 6 Yet for us there is one God the father from whom are all things and we exist for him and for us there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through him.
Everything comes from the father and our very existence is for his pleasure and glory. He lives and loves to pour out on us all that we need to love, worship, know by experience, and serve his presence.
Everything that comes to us from the father comes because of Jesus. By his death and resurrection, we are a purchased possession. Life in Christ is surely about upgrading our capacity to live as he lives. We have a life that is solely and completely lived through his indwelling life and nature.
The faithfulness of God is established in and through the person of Christ. Heaven is open to us. Performance is dead. Placement is everything. As we live up to our position in Christ, we will receive every blessing available in him.
Too much emphasis on a negative prevents us from receiving all the promises and benefits of being in Christ. A life primarily focused on the avoidance of sin cannot receive fullness of blessing. A life focused on enjoying righteousness will inherit everything.
We do not give to God anything that originates in us. Everything comes from the father, through the Son into our lives and then returns to the father in praise, worship, adoration and glory by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit.
Only God can love God. We love him only because he first loved us. He fulfills the first commandment himself in us. Because he loves us with all his heart, soul, mind and strength, we are fully empowered to return what we have received. The two biggest disciplines that we must learn are 1- to receive love from God daily and 2- how to abide, stay, dwell, and remain where he has placed us in Christ.
It takes God to love God. His love in us will free us to adore him, serve him, live for him. Faithfulness works in the same way. He is faithful to us, and we return that devotion. Because of the quality of his dependability, we can learn to be constant. Because of his unswerving reliability we can become steadfast. His unchanging Presence empowers us to become constant in how we show up in Christ. Faithful is he; Faithful are we.
We must prize his faithfulness and develop a significant trust in this most beautiful attribute of the father. We must rest in his faithfulness and never question it. Doubt provokes indecision. It causes us to be hesitant when we need to be confident. That is the crack in the door that eventually leads us into misgiving, mistrust, apprehension, skepticism, and fear.
When we relax into his faithfulness, his nature promotes assurance. We know that we know. Our hearts are lifted in humble gratitude. Thankfulness produces appreciation. Confidence is the language of prayer. It leads to conviction of heart in a perspective rooted in certainty.
When we speak prophetically, we do so from a place of assurance, deep in God’s heart. His faithfulness is tangible. Faithful see you calls you, and he will also bring it to pass (1 Thessalonians 5: 24). We are called into fellowship with Jesus through the faithfulness of the father ( 1 Corinthians 1: 9). Prophetic people must operate out of a place of faithfulness received rather than just faithfulness perceived. We need an encounter and experience of faithfulness rather than just a concept.
Faithfulness changes our heart. It guarantees both our humility and our confidence. Our prophesying is more heartfelt; We can impart his Presence rather than just a form of words, however significant. I’ve lost count of the times I’ve heard powerful prophetic words delivered without a heart. The initial impact of a prophecy is vital. The words that reach the head get put into a drawer. Those that impact our heart, we carry everywhere like a letter from a loved one.
When we bask in the faithfulness of God, we can impart assurance, a confidence that God is with us. People relax around us. They discover God in the ordinary. The atmosphere we create is saturated with God’s goodness, kindness, and favor. When the faithfulness of God is present everyone can receive.
Faithfulness opens us up to the process that comes next. It provides us with an assurance of God’s intent regarding the outcome. He will do it. As we partner with him the outcome is guaranteed. The declaration of the Spirit places the promise in our account. Faithfulness will bring it about. His faithfulness empowers us to stand and cooperate with the process. Process is the work of the Holy Spirit in making the prophecy become a reality.
Faithfulness generates the outcome in God’s heart. Faithfulness guarantees the process in ours. He gives us his faithfulness so that we can develop what needs to be cultivated in our hearts. The word is a seed that grows within. The faithfulness of God waters and nurtures that seed. When our devotion to personal change matches the faithfulness of God there is only one outcome. The Holy Spirit works towards that end.