Continual deliverance & blessings
Continual deliverance & blessings
2Sa 6:11 And the ark of the LORD continued in the house of Obededom the Gittite three months: and the LORD blessed Obededom, and all his household. 2Sa 6:12 And it was told king David, saying, The LORD hath blessed the house of Obededom, and all that pertaineth unto him, because of the ark of God. So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obededom into the city of David with gladness.
There is something to be said about continuity in God which can be like the willow of the wisp at times. It is there and then it is not. Children of God find it hard to understand how to maintain the presence of God as a habitation rather than a visitation. Are they to be blamed for this? I think so. Apostle Paul puts it this way. 1Co_6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? You can see from this question that is posed, we lack knowledge of the presence of God in our bodies. God does not occupy temples made with hands but only occupies places that are cleansed and kept clean, otherwise, He leaves. 1Sa_4:21 And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband. The glory had left the inner most sanctum of God’s temple because of the sins of High Priest Eli and his two sons.
We must recognise that God’s ark rests in our hearts (inner most sanctum) and God blesses those who will allow Him to rest there; His home. To gain this continuity of habitation, our hearts must be without sin. This requires an effort on our part to allow this to happen. When we remain holy the blessings of the Lord are continual. Deliverance on all fronts follow God’s habitation because God fights for us. However, the ways of the Lord need to be understood. He can give what is most holy into the hands of our enemies the moment we fail to recognise His Lordship over our lives. This happened on many occasions in the Old Testament when Jews were taken captive by their enemies. New Testament Christians on the other hand are given over to demons who make our lives miserable. Once God’s presence is lost, it leaves us bewildered as His children because, confusion sets in. This is what happened in the Garden of Eden through sin. Adam & Eve hid in the bushes realising their own nakedness through sin. The glory covering had departed. How can a loving God who calls Himself our Father do this to us? We find the answer in the Bible as always. 2Co 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 2Co 6:18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
Please mark the emphasis on temple and sons and daughters. It looks like sons and daughters need deliverance from idols that are polluting the temple. If such things take place in sons and daughters and they are judged, what chance do the heathen have? It is evident that in order for blessings to flow (as we have seen in the case of Obededom), we have to allow the ark of God to rest in our hearts, which are the temples of God. Many seek blessings without holiness and righteousness in their lives. They mistake the continued blessings of God in spite of deliberate sin, as the approval of God. This erroneous thinking is destroying the church today, just like it did the Jews in the wilderness. The Jews received manna from heaven, fire by night to keep them warm, cloud by day to keep them covered from the sun and many such miraculous blessings. They mistook it for God’s approval of their ways and continued to deliberately sin. Many died in the wilderness and others were severely rebuked.
In order to keep the flow of God’s blessings and deliverance in our lives, we must surrender to the will of His habitation in our lives. The people of God found that out when they fell out of His will. They suffered tremendously at the hands of their enemies. On the other hand, keeping in His will brought blessings to the land and to the people. 1Ki 8:63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto the LORD, two and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep. 1Ki 8:65 And at that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days. 1Ki 8:66 On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.
What happened here was just incredible. God had allowed King Solomon to build Him a temple that He would inhabit in the midst of His people. This would establish God’s presence amongst His people. This was important because of the enemies of Israel. Once they knew that God favoured His people, they feared Israel. Solomon and all of Israel offered sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving at the dedication of the temple resulting in blessings for the people and the land. No one had ever had a reign of peace like King Solomon because God had chosen him to build the temple. We too have been chosen to build His temple (our hearts) and offer sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. If we can only understand that, we would not pollute His temple. We know from history, that later on in the journey of Israel’s faith they failed God and ended up us slaves and the temple was destroyed. This is a stark reminder to us to be wise. 1Co_3:17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.Heb 12:25 See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:
It is unimaginable for many that God who is love can speak in this way. What many do not understand is, eternity is a place in God that is without spot or blemish. The opportunity is now, for the cleansing of the temple. 2Ti 2:20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. 2Ti 2:21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work. The great house is the temple of the Lord. There is a lot of purging going on by those who know what it means. It is the process of fixing up a man’s heart and his mind. God who looks on the heart blesses the righteous heart more than the unrighteous heart. The world and all who are wicked receive some sort of blessings from the Lord by the air they breathe, the food they eat and the atmosphere over them. However, the sanctified of the Lord are set apart for greater blessings. The following are the continual blessing and deliverance a righteous person has been given. They enjoy, eternal life, security, soundness of mind, good health, financial prosperity and favour of God and man. This may not always be evident in a Christian’s life when we look with natural eyes but the continuity of God’s presence in the midst of crisis and blessings are evident when we see the impossible in a Christian’s life being achieved without the efforts of that Christian. The simple answer is; they are blessed for all times.
When Abraham was blessed of the Lord, he was quite well off in every sense. However, when he offered up the sacrifice of Isaac to God, he was blessed with blessings upon blessings. These are increased continual blessings or unlimited blessings of the Lord. When people think of blessings, they usually equate it to something in the natural. However, when God equates blessings to us, it is both natural and spiritual. We see this in the two following verses. Gal 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: Gal 3:14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Eph 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
Continual blessings are in every sense a necessity because of the evil world we live in. To achieve this, God gives us peace that remains with us continually if we keep focussed on Jesus. Added to this, God blesses us with everything pertaining to life and Godliness. It is a fact that there are abundant blessings stored up for us which we can receive, if we believe. I am convinced that these have to be appropriated by faith in order to receive more than we have done thus far.
Let us keep the faith in newness of understanding that is in Jesus whilst regarding the temple (our hearts) requirements of God. Let us come to the faith in God of what He is building in us. Blessings depend on us walking in His will. God is not mocked; He knows who are His own. He will never let His children be without His protection and provision. This is also part of continual blessings. I am convinced, we only survive by His blood that covers us. The devil can do no more than what is allowed. However, those who are out of God’s will are victims without restraint. To stay out of the clutches of the devil and keep receiving the blessings of the Lord, we need to understand what the covering of the Lord and the boundaries are. We must at all times to* receive His blessings and keep them. The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy but Jesus came to give life more abundantly and continually.
Lots of love
Pastor Noble
08/07/2018