Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:17)  That verse is more than a song we sing or a scripture we speak or read. We are saved because we believe in God and the fact that His son came and died for us. When I was a child I was saved because I heard the word of God preached, though, it may have been conveyed through a man; it was the word of God, to me.

 When God’s word becomes your word, then, it produces faith. It is important that we hear God’s word. His words are not just words written on a page, they are words that have the breath of the Holy Spirit in them, words that come from the heart of the Father. We have spiritual freedom in this country today, there is preaching and teaching on TV and in churches throughout this land. We must take the time to hear His word preached and read the word of God so that our faith will grow.

     Paul said every word of God is inspired by God.  In the story of man’s creation there is a beautiful illustration.  God drew a man on the ground, then, blew into him, the breath of life. He formed man in His image and His likeness. He fills us today with His Holy Spirit, so we may receive all of His fullness. (Col. 2:9-10)

 The Word of God is like a seed full of life.  It is like the tiny buds on the trees bursting forth with the life of God.  Let’s not take the Word of God for granted, but receive it as His word, which produces faith, faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.  Read it, feast on it, hold it dear to your heart, God has invested His life in His word.

                                                                                      Pastor Danny

For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.   every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at His coming. (I Corinthians 15: 22-23)

In Adam all die, in Christ all were made alive.  The first Adam came into being as a living existence, yet the last Adam our savior, Jesus Christ came into our world a life giving Spirit. The first Adam forfeited paradise and the increase God gave in creation, He forfeited holiness, heaven and eternal life. All of those things and more have been restored to us because of Christ and now we walk in newness of life.

Everyman in His own order, (verse 23) Christ the first fruits and after that the body of Christ, thank God He has come and verse 24 makes the statement, then cometh the end of the devil’s rule, the kingdom delivered to the Father, all rule, authority and powers of darkness have been laid aside with absolutely no relevance.

He reigns until every enemy is under His feet, We are the body of Christ, He is the head. The way I read that is - we are everything from the neck down and we derive all our strength and power from Father God and His Son Jesus Christ and we are empowered by the Holy Spirit. Since that is so, lucifer is under my feet along with every spirit that is aligned with his malignant plan.  Verse 26 explains that the last enemy, physical death, has not been destroyed. I have good news; our spirit man on the inside will live forever in the very atmosphere of Heaven which is called eternal life.

One day we will lay this old body down and life will get better and better. Today we are living in the glory, filled with His Spirit and sometimes I am so excited about the Word of God that I can’t even talk. However, upon exiting this old body and entering heaven we will receive a glorified body and wake up to the living light of heaven where there will be no darkness and we will experience the glory from the throne of God with no encumbrance or limitations of the flesh.

I need to finish my little homily. I am reminded of I John 4:17 where at the close of the verse John said “as He is, so are we in this world.” Allow me to paraphrase, as Jesus is in our world and in heaven, as He is, so are we, the saved, filled with the Spirit of God in this world, not in the world to come, but in this world now. What a God we serve.

Pastor Danny

“But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” (John 11:1-44 NIV)

“Your brother will rise again”, were the words which invaded Mary and Martha’s world. As soon as their brother Lazarus became sick, they sent for Jesus. It seemed He was no different from other preachers – too busy to come. Lazarus had been dead four days; grief stricken friends and relatives had gathered to mourn his death. When Martha heard Jesus had come, she ran to meet Him. “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Martha exclaimed, “But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”  With tender compassion Jesus answered, “Martha, your brother will rise again.” Martha, still caught up in the events of the last few days responded, “I know He will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” The Jewish world knew about the resurrection of the dead and for four long days probably everyone there had attempted to console her by telling her she would see him again in the resurrection. That was “pie-in-the-sky.” She wanted her brother now.

In reality, Martha was saying she knew it would happen in the future.  Isn’t that just like most of us, continually putting something off into the future! Jesus says, “I Am – I am the author of eternal life, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” He continues to say, “I Am – I am the beginning of your life in the Kingdom; I am all you need and all you will ever need.”

Jesus’ response to Martha was positive: “I am the resurrection and the life.” Martha was looking at the Resurrection and didn’t know it. She believed He was the Christ, the Son of God. She believed whatever He asked God to do, God would do for Him. She believed her brother would rise someday, but she was looking Resurrection in the face and talking to the Eternal - I Am, and she could not relate it to her present need.

Lazarus, I’m sure, was a very important part of Martha’s life. Their relationship seemed to be one she cherished dearly. Like Martha, there have been occasions in my life when a relationship or something the Lord had given me to do had died. I seemed helpless. When I turned to Jesus I didn’t hear Him say, “I Am.” It seemed all I could see was death and all I could hear was the mourners’ wail. I would say, “I believe He is the Son of God, the eternal resurrection, the beginning and the end”; yet, I could not perceive Jesus as the answer to my immediate dilemma. Faithfully, however, the same Jesus, tender and compassionate, came on the scene saying, “It will live again, Danny, for I am the resurrection.” Can you hear Him say to your dilemma, “I am the resurrection; I raise dead things and give them life”. Regardless of how long they have been buried.  He declares, “I am the resurrection.”  When Jesus said, “I am the Resurrection, I am the Bread of Life, I am the Truth, I am the Light of the World,” I believe He was endeavoring to get a point across to us – whatever we need and all we need. He is!

When Mary confronted Jesus – the great I Am – her response was not much different, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”  I can almost feel the groan in Jesus’ spirit and the tug on His heart as He said, “Where have you laid him?” Is Jesus asking a similar question today? Is Jesus asking, “Where have you laid that relationship, that talent, the gift of God?” What is your “Lazarus?” Mary and Martha’s Lazarus had been tightly wrapped in grave-cloth and placed in a cave which was securely sealed with a stone.

“Take away the stone” was Jesus’ command, “and uncover the Lazarus that you have buried; take away the seal from the grave.” His injunction continues to echo through time to those who have sealed things up and at times, forgotten them – abilities, talents, relationships, even the call to ministry. We have anointed them with our tears, wrapped them in cloths of hopelessness, despair and discouragement; then buried them down on the inside so far back in darkness that only the Holy Spirit can find them. When Jesus arrives at your grave site, He says, “Take away the stone, for it is important to uncover what you want to live again.” Then He cried out, “Lazarus, come forth” – three words which shook Heaven to its core and set the dynamic flow of the power of God into motion. Three words which caused a dead body to be penetrated with the Life of God. Let Jesus “rattle your cave” with those same three words. Respond in faith today, as Jesus Christ, the author and finisher of our faith, says to your Lazarus, “come forth.”

Lastly, until unwrapped, Lazarus could do nothing. “Take off the grave clothes and let him go” was Jesus’ final directive. It is a directive that constrains us today to be free and strip away the cloths of hopelessness, despair and discouragement. For these would keep us from the free flow of the life of Christ and in doing so, hope rises anew and that which has been dead for so long begins to live in all of its intended beauty. And God’s power and glory will be poured forth in you and the power of death will no longer hold you in its sway, be free my friend!

Pastor Danny

This article was written for the Advance Magazine by

Pastor Danny Borrell which is a publication of the

International Church of the FourSquare Gospel and

edited for www.faithcenterchurch.org

This Easter Season brings us back to the crucifixion and to our great sustainer, helper, caretaker and keeper. Remember that while you are identified with Jesus on His Cross, He is identified with you today in bearing His cross. The cross of Christ has given us redemption; His cross was the defeat of satan and his kingdom. In the book of Hebrews it is said of Jesus that He partook of our flesh and blood, our very nature and in sharing in our humanity He took death, defeated it and all the power of the devil. (Hebrews 2:14) Jesus disarmed every principality and power, He made a public spectacle of them triumphing over them in it. (Colossians 2:14-15)

I am always reminded at this time of the year, the problems that seem to weigh us down and impede our progress, if brought boldly to the cross, we will find the same victory that Jesus experienced at the cross, satan is exposed, laid bare and defeated.

You will not find Him on the cross today.  He need not die again and again, Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. (Hebrews 9:28) He is risen and seated at the right hand of our Father. The cross has become a place of victory and it may be just the place you and I need to go back to, a reminder that Jesus took that cross and turned it into a weapon of defeat and totally conquered the whole host of hell. Jesus defeated satan and now we are sharers together in His victory.

Pastor Danny

Just as the Spirit of God brought order and light to the first creation through His Word, so the new creation is introduced by the Holy Spirit and God’s eternal Word.  The Word and the Spirit are bringing order and life.Jesus Christ the Son of Righteousness is being revealed through this new creation, the church. The culmination or the grand finale of God’s work is “the new man” so that we stand complete in the glorious image of Jesus the Author and finisher of our salvation, unto all them that obey Him. (Hebrews 5:9) As the Author, He is creating you, an original work. As Paul said in Ephesians, Chapter two, verse ten, you are His workmanship. And as His creation we reveal the wisdom and power of the Creator so that there is a supernatural knowing in our spirit of the things God wants  to communicate to His people.

In the Hebrew culture the verb, bara, is used in the sense of new, to create a new thing. Bara, emphasizes the initiation or the beginning of an object or thing, however, as it relates to believers, we are a new creation, not reworked, but a creation never before seen, or never before in existence You were not left to remain the seed of Adam, dominated and ruled by your flesh, by the old man. You were born again, created as it were, a child of God, a precious saint, for Paul calls us saints. We are Holy children of God, brothers and sisters of Christ, who listen, and obey His voice.

 So God rests today, the Son is seated at His right hand, the enemy has become His footstool, and again He rests from all His labor.  We must learn to enter into the rest of faith where the soul ceases to struggle and where God rejoices in His new creation. May I suggest, since that is so, He likes you a lot!

 Pastor Danny