This is that…
July 2023
“Multiplication”
Highlights from 1 Peter 1:1-10
“To the pilgrims…
elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit...Grace to you and peace be multiplied…His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled…reserved in heaven for you…kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith…though it is tested by fire, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls. Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you…”
The prophets of the First Covenant were curious of the grace that would come— the Old Covenant being a precursor to the New Covenant. Strict rules and regulations were laid down to teach God’s people from right and wrong behaviors. But remember that both covenants were established by people who had faith in what God said:
The Old Covenant
Abraham and Sara believed what God promised them would come to pass even when in their 90’s. They believed God would give them a son, and He did! That’s impossible but that’s faith!
The New Covenant
A young Jewish girl named Mary believed what the angel said and in the Old Testament scripture: “Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: ‘Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.’ ” (Isaiah 7:14) That’s impossible but that’s faith in God!
The Apostle Paul said, “The Law was our tutor to bring us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.” (Galatians 3:25-26)
That’s because Jesus fulfilled The Law! (Matthew 5:17)
Two Covenants Born of Faith
Abraham and Sara’s son Isaac multiplied to become the Nation of Israel.
Mary’s Son Jesus multiplied into the living Body of Christ.
Both were born from faith in what God said.
We have been assigned the ministry of multiplication!
In other words: go into all your world and scatter the seed of the Gospel wherever you go. The earth is ripe for harvest!
Grace to You and Peace be Multiplied
Vines Dictionary: Grace
“that which bestows or occasions pleasure, delight, or causes favorable regard; as in the case of God’s redemptive mercy, and the pleasure or joy He designs for the recipient; thus it is set in contrast with debt; on the part of the receiver, grace is a sense of favor bestowed, a feeling of gratitude; being thankful”
Peace: serenity; freedom from disagreement or quarrels; harmony; calmness, quietness
(Note: every definition I found on grace does not fully express what I sense in my spirit. Why? I don’t believe grace can be entirely defined by man’s words. Words tend to restrict the fullness of grace, like putting it in a box. Is grace not the gift of Himself to His beloved children? Every morning brings us a new opportunity to experience His grace as we embrace Him in studying His Word. Thus, grace and peace multiply! And that joy cannot be contained…)
Multiplication that is Unseen
Every day, as you are growing in the Lord, you are enriching other Believers you do not see. Just as God made the physical body divinely designed so that all the parts work together to produce health, so also is Christ’s Body, His Church. When you are healthy and prosperous, fulfilling your ministry calling, you are extending life and spiritual nourishment to other parts of His Body that you don’t even know.
Things of the Spirit are magnificent!
Praying in tongues opens the door to the spiritual so that we may understand mysteries and be strengthened with might.
I am just reminded that we should all be praying in tongues more for apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. Why? They are sent to equip the saints for the work of ministry...to edify the body of Christ. This is how the church grows to a perfect man.
If our leaders become depleted of God’s Word it weakens His church! They need our prayers of intercession...so that they can help us!
Read Ephesians 4:10-16.
Holy Spirit is the Source of All Life
All various parts of His body are uniquely designed and fitted together. Every part is absolutely necessary! Just like a car cannot start without a battery, every one of us need Holy Spirit and praying in tongues to prosper the Kingdom of God to take it to its high place to bring in the harvest! Intercessors, this is where we operate: seated in heavenly places in Christ, armor on and a two-edged sword of dominion going forth to release the power of the gospel to bind up lying, perverse devils of Antichrist in the heavenlies. Remember, the keys and power of the Kingdom are in your mouth! (Matthew 16:18-19)
So why does Peter begin his letter to the church with grace and peace be multiplied to you? Is it just another way to say, “Hi, how are you?”
Grace and peace are spiritual empowerments.
They were meant to be received from Peter’s letter as you read them! Especially in these end days, grace and peace, along with joy, are a great witness to people living in fear and turmoil, without Jesus and without peace.
What happens when grace and peace are drained from a Believer?
He just might be a cranky complainer who is irritable and ungrateful, just like the world. Will his ministry be affected? Yes, of course.
If millions of Christians are cranky complainers, they will have an effect not only on other Believers, but their heart will harden and have nothing to give to the lost. Faithlessness is darkness that inhibits God’s Kingdom from producing fruit. Have you ever seen fruit from a diseased orange tree? It’s orange with black marks, so ugly no one would eat it.
Let’s remember what Jesus said:
“Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.’ ” (John 8:12)
The Big Picture!
“For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For in fact the body is not one member but many…Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.” (1 Corinthians 12:12-14 & 27)
You are the body of Christ! That’s amazing isn’t it, and good to think about.
Also, I hear from the Lord that grace and peace will open the door to creativity in you…
Saints, we’re never ever alone. Stand firm in the Word of God. Guard your heart. As you grow, I grow!
And as I grow, you grow! That’s multiplication!
Powerful, anointed songs to charge up your battery!
“We Will Dance” (The Bridegroom is coming!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTVKrM6V0Ak
“God and God Alone” Steve Green
https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=song+God+and+God+alone
July 2023
“Multiplication”
Highlights from 1 Peter 1:1-10
“To the pilgrims…
elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit...Grace to you and peace be multiplied…His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled…reserved in heaven for you…kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith…though it is tested by fire, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls. Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you…”
The prophets of the First Covenant were curious of the grace that would come— the Old Covenant being a precursor to the New Covenant. Strict rules and regulations were laid down to teach God’s people from right and wrong behaviors. But remember that both covenants were established by people who had faith in what God said:
The Old Covenant
Abraham and Sara believed what God promised them would come to pass even when in their 90’s. They believed God would give them a son, and He did! That’s impossible but that’s faith!
The New Covenant
A young Jewish girl named Mary believed what the angel said and in the Old Testament scripture: “Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: ‘Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.’ ” (Isaiah 7:14) That’s impossible but that’s faith in God!
The Apostle Paul said, “The Law was our tutor to bring us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.” (Galatians 3:25-26)
That’s because Jesus fulfilled The Law! (Matthew 5:17)
Two Covenants Born of Faith
Abraham and Sara’s son Isaac multiplied to become the Nation of Israel.
Mary’s Son Jesus multiplied into the living Body of Christ.
Both were born from faith in what God said.
We have been assigned the ministry of multiplication!
In other words: go into all your world and scatter the seed of the Gospel wherever you go. The earth is ripe for harvest!
Grace to You and Peace be Multiplied
Vines Dictionary: Grace
“that which bestows or occasions pleasure, delight, or causes favorable regard; as in the case of God’s redemptive mercy, and the pleasure or joy He designs for the recipient; thus it is set in contrast with debt; on the part of the receiver, grace is a sense of favor bestowed, a feeling of gratitude; being thankful”
Peace: serenity; freedom from disagreement or quarrels; harmony; calmness, quietness
(Note: every definition I found on grace does not fully express what I sense in my spirit. Why? I don’t believe grace can be entirely defined by man’s words. Words tend to restrict the fullness of grace, like putting it in a box. Is grace not the gift of Himself to His beloved children? Every morning brings us a new opportunity to experience His grace as we embrace Him in studying His Word. Thus, grace and peace multiply! And that joy cannot be contained…)
Multiplication that is Unseen
Every day, as you are growing in the Lord, you are enriching other Believers you do not see. Just as God made the physical body divinely designed so that all the parts work together to produce health, so also is Christ’s Body, His Church. When you are healthy and prosperous, fulfilling your ministry calling, you are extending life and spiritual nourishment to other parts of His Body that you don’t even know.
Things of the Spirit are magnificent!
Praying in tongues opens the door to the spiritual so that we may understand mysteries and be strengthened with might.
I am just reminded that we should all be praying in tongues more for apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. Why? They are sent to equip the saints for the work of ministry...to edify the body of Christ. This is how the church grows to a perfect man.
If our leaders become depleted of God’s Word it weakens His church! They need our prayers of intercession...so that they can help us!
Read Ephesians 4:10-16.
Holy Spirit is the Source of All Life
All various parts of His body are uniquely designed and fitted together. Every part is absolutely necessary! Just like a car cannot start without a battery, every one of us need Holy Spirit and praying in tongues to prosper the Kingdom of God to take it to its high place to bring in the harvest! Intercessors, this is where we operate: seated in heavenly places in Christ, armor on and a two-edged sword of dominion going forth to release the power of the gospel to bind up lying, perverse devils of Antichrist in the heavenlies. Remember, the keys and power of the Kingdom are in your mouth! (Matthew 16:18-19)
So why does Peter begin his letter to the church with grace and peace be multiplied to you? Is it just another way to say, “Hi, how are you?”
Grace and peace are spiritual empowerments.
They were meant to be received from Peter’s letter as you read them! Especially in these end days, grace and peace, along with joy, are a great witness to people living in fear and turmoil, without Jesus and without peace.
What happens when grace and peace are drained from a Believer?
He just might be a cranky complainer who is irritable and ungrateful, just like the world. Will his ministry be affected? Yes, of course.
If millions of Christians are cranky complainers, they will have an effect not only on other Believers, but their heart will harden and have nothing to give to the lost. Faithlessness is darkness that inhibits God’s Kingdom from producing fruit. Have you ever seen fruit from a diseased orange tree? It’s orange with black marks, so ugly no one would eat it.
Let’s remember what Jesus said:
“Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.’ ” (John 8:12)
The Big Picture!
“For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For in fact the body is not one member but many…Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.” (1 Corinthians 12:12-14 & 27)
You are the body of Christ! That’s amazing isn’t it, and good to think about.
Also, I hear from the Lord that grace and peace will open the door to creativity in you…
Saints, we’re never ever alone. Stand firm in the Word of God. Guard your heart. As you grow, I grow!
And as I grow, you grow! That’s multiplication!
Powerful, anointed songs to charge up your battery!
“We Will Dance” (The Bridegroom is coming!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTVKrM6V0Ak
“God and God Alone” Steve Green
https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=song+God+and+God+alone