April 2010

Dear friend in Christ,

2 Corinthians 4:3-4, "But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost; in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe NOT, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them." (KJV)

Satan is an imposter! The dictionary defines an imposter as "one who assumes an identity or title that is not his own for the purpose of deception." Satan is the Arch Deceiver, and Jesus described his true character and nature when He called him, "the father of lies..." in John 8:44, "He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature; for he is a liar, and the father of lies." And the scripture in
2 Corinthians 4 tells us very clearly that as the god of this world, he has blinded the minds of those who don't believe the Word. Satan uses deception to defeat Christians and pervert the Truth, and the weapon he uses against the children of God is the very weapon the Father has given to us to defeat Satan! He uses the Word of God.

In the Garden of Eden, Satan used the Word against Eve. He deceived her into thinking that God's Word was a lie and caused her to doubt what God had spoken to them. But you and I have the Holy Spirit living in our spirit man; the Spirit of Truth Who leads and guides us into all truth and leads us in paths of righteousness. We are told to transform our minds by the renewing of our mind with the Word of God so that "we can prove what is that good and acceptable, and perfect will of God."(Romans 12:2)

This scripture in 2 Corinthians 4:3 calls Satan the god of this world. Not because he is a god, but because people follow him like he is. He wants to keep us in the dark, and gross darkness covers the earth where the things of God are concerned. The people in the world cannot receive the things of the Spirit because the Bible tells that they are "spiritually" discerned and hidden to "natural man".

Friend, you cannot be in faith and be depressed at the same time. It is impossible. When you are IN faith, you're not looking at the circumstances around you that will depress you. With faith, you are able to look at the eternal realm. Jesus told us that "all things are possible to them that believe." But faith does not ignore the problem or pretend that it doesn't exist. Faith recognizes the problem and then presents it to God, acknowledging Him in the face of the circumstance and then declaring that His Word and His Truth and His promises are greater than any circumstance.

Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of things we hope for, being the proof of things we do not see, and the conviction of their reality (faith perceiving as REAL fact what is not revealed to the senses)." (AMP) This tells us that faith is the "title deed" of what we have asked for. In other words, we are holding onto "nothing" until the manifestation takes place, with the "guarantee" that we already have it.

Proverbs 3:5-6, "Lean not to your own understanding, but in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths." In other words, we are to put our trust and our confidence in God, and not in our own ability and natural strength. Jesus has already paid the price in full for everything you need. All you have to do is get the Word down in your spirit man, in abundance, and then begin to confess that Word out of your mouth. We don't have to talk Jesus into doing anything else! The answer to all of our needs is having the Word of God in our heart and in our mouth, and take for our self what He has already provided. But it has to be more than just speaking words; it has to be a living reality in your life.

Faith has to be in two places; it has to be in your mouth and in your heart according to Romans chapter 10:8, "But what saith it? The Word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thy heart; that is, the Word of Faith, which we preach.", and in Deuteronomy 30:14, "But the Word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it." (KJV) And if you were to read both scriptures in detail you would find they go on to say that the Word, which is Christ, is not far off. It (He) is not in heaven nor is it (He) in the abyss (sea), but it (He) is very near you...in your mouth, and in your heart.

That means that everyone can take the Word of God and receive whatever they need. God has already established it and agreed to it. And that means we don't have to talk God into doing anything for us if we can find it in His Word. So, why would anyone do without? Only because they're lazy! Only because they couldn't be persuaded to believe what God has promised. Having an unteachable spirit is the same as walking in unbelief and doubt; it's also the same as walking in stubbornness and pride, arrogance, and rebellion. And those things, the Bible tells us are like "unto witchcraft." As a born again Christian, the only reason to do without in any area of life is because we refuse to honor God and trust His Word, because His Word will produce in our life anything He tells us.

Under the Old Covenant, God required 100 percent obedience, and he gave Israel a choice to obey Him and reap His blessing, or to walk in disobedience and reap the curses. But the enemy has deceived Christians into thinking that God no longer requires the same obedience. DO NOT BE DECEIVED! God has never changed! Without obedience to God, there can be no covenant relationship with Him. Disobedience breaks our fellowship with God. Jesus said, "If you abide in My Word, and hold fast to My teachings, and live in accordance with them, you are truly My disciples." (TAB John 8:31)

You act on what Jesus told us and you keep putting the Word down in your heart until it's in there in abundance. Make deposits of the Word until it's in there more than anything else, and when it becomes abundant, that's when it will come out of your mouth; it is the overflow of what you have deposited.

Love,

Paula