Heaven & Earth
Mat 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
The concept of heaven and earth is a striking revelation of what God has created. Two worlds that are interlinked with each other but operating on two totally different paradigms. Heaven remains invisible to us but it seems that earth is visible to many in heaven. How much visibility they have is unknown but we know that there is enough for heaven to know what is going on in earth. The Bible speaks of Watcher angels who are designated for the purpose of keeping an eye out for Earth. Then there are the cloud of witnesses who have gone before us who seem to have some access to earth but it is not clearly defined as to how much.
All this knowledge of these two worlds gives us an appetite to know more of the world that is in the invisible supernatural realm. The more we hunger for heaven and the things that are located in heaven, the more we will understand the relationship between the two. We know that we can have a relationship that is very powerful for us when we access what is in heaven.
God’s throne is in heaven and earth is His footstool. This in itself connects both worlds to each other through God. Then there is the access we have been given through the blood of Jesus and the Holy Spirit to go into the throne room which is in heaven. We are welcome there by God and do not need an appointment to go in. God is waiting for us to access heaven so that we can have a relationship with Him not just on an earthly plain but on a heavenly plain.
The words of Jesus about how much power He has been given allude to the heavens as opposed to just one heaven. There seems to be three heavens but then there are scholars that speak of seven heavens. 2Co_12:2 I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven. Apostle Paul speaks of his travels to the third heaven from which it would seem he was receiving much revelation. The amazing knowledge and understanding he has given us on earth through the scriptures he wrote obviously came from God. More revelation continued to come to him after he visited the third heaven while he was on earth. This was because of the chosen relationship he had with Jesus.
This is the key to not only understanding scripture but all that God reveals before we understand scripture. Afterwards, it is revealed to us through scripture as well. This is essentially how salvation & the gifts of the Holy Spirit operate.
The interaction of God with this Apostle in particular has helped us for eternity to understand the Spirit realm which operates out of heaven on earth. The power that Jesus was talking about is operating on earth and in heaven through the word (scriptures) and through the Spirit of God who confirms the word. Each time we access the word in Spirit and in truth, it opens a gateway into heaven into what was decreed from heaven. Hence, the power and reality of the word of God operating on earth becomes extremely powerful because it carries with it the supernatural. It is not something that is formulated on earth by scholars; quite the opposite. It is knowledge from heaven for us to understand on earth to have access to the power given to Jesus.
Some of this power is transferred to us and we are given a commission to go into all the world and preach the gospel. The moment we believe and apply this knowledge, we see miracles, signs and wonders that could never take place by human effort. It is to this power that Jesus is alluding to us and for us to place our confidence and trust in. This power can be duplicated by the devil and is not true, so, one must be careful and wise in understanding when operating power as to which one is true. It is possible for someone who has come out of witchcraft to have some residue of that old power still in them and mix it in with the real power because they are forcing power to work for them by their efforts. By this, they become deceived again. God’s power is pure and cannot be compromised.
When God made Jesus the Head of all things, heaven was as much conquered by Jesus as Earth was. This makes Him Lord of all. Now, He is commissioning us to conquer the earthly heaven where the evil one resides and at the same time move the hand of God in heaven where God’s throne resides. This is powerful. When we do that we can shake the nations of this world.
Why does Jesus want us to do this? The answer is simple; He does not want anyone to perish. Yet, we need power to accomplish this work because of the evil one who attempts to stop us at every turn. Added to this, legitimacy with God is critical to success. If we do not do things according to the word, it will not work and in fact it will work against us. We must draw upon this power of Jesus to achieve breakthrough in our own lives and in the lives of others.
The journey of life on earth requires supernatural power because we have an enemy who does not want us to prosper. Our journey is fraught with real danger, much more than we can imagine (Hell is real). Even after being called and chosen of God, Apostle Paul had to suffer much in the way of direct attacks both by the devil and men who were motivated by the devil. Even animals were sent against him. Acts 28:3 And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. 1Co_15:32 If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? Let us eat and drink; for tomorrow we die. Furthermore, he needed power against the elements and people who were demonised. All this, he overcame because of the power he had received from Jesus and the approval of Jesus on his life as a minister of God. The part that Jesus played in Apostle Paul’s journey was to keep him preserved in every sense of the word. Paul did not lose his way in the word by revelation because he was kept humble by God, he was protected on his journeys by angels and furthermore, he received favour when needed. Yet, he received much beating and whipping and faced danger on a daily basis. This too was in the power of Jesus’ grace to allow and protect.
We must draw from the life of Paul because when we suffer, we too can depend on the power of Jesus which can preserve us. I am always intrigued by people’s testimonies of their close encounters with death or some other type of an end when Jesus came in and saved them from their end. His power to forgive sins on earth was tremendous in the face of the Law. This astounded the Legalistic priests who were so regimented about the Law. They did not understand the power of His grace and forgiveness. This is the power of Jesus, to forgive us. He is an Advocate with the Father and can intercede on our behalf so that we can be forgiven. This is awesome news. I am always amazed at how Jesus forgives even the vilest of sins and is able to carry that person to another dimension. It is imperative that we understand His power to forgive.
Our journey into the supernatural will take us out of this earth into a realm of power like we have never experienced before. God is awaiting us to arise and believe Him for it. When Jesus came to the earth and operated in Holy Ghost power while in the flesh, He had adopted supernatural power or rather had been endowed with power from on high. Now, He is the power from on high manifest in our lives through the Holy Ghost. 2Co_3:17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: The power that Jesus is now telling us that He has; has become unlimited by His sacrificial death and supernatural resurrection. He had this power before He came to earth but as Son of Man, He had to attain to this power.
This is the mystery of Christ and His glory. It is also the mystery of Christ in us and the power in us now operating through the Holy Spirit. The hour is upon us and is working powerfully to bring the end of the world to fruition. By this, God will have fulfilled His plan for all mankind and completed the work He began thousands of years ago. All this can be a mystery but is revealed to the discerning seeker. It is the ones who are given revelation that speak about it to us and direct our paths to seek these realms of both heaven and earth. The constant interaction between heaven and earth is described to us in the following verses. Mat_16:19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.Rev_1:18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.
The keys help us bring about an interaction between heaven and earth. For this to happen, Jesus had to first defeat satan and recover the keys to hell and death. After Jesus did this, He did not remove satan from the earth but rather gave us power over all the power of the enemy to bring him down. Now the interaction between heaven and earth takes place as passing through the heavens as in the atmosphere where satan resides over the earth. Though he has lost dominion, he seeks to keep what he had by creating ignorance of what Jesus did for us thereby rendering us ineffective. It is also wise to know when to battle with satan and when not to. This is because God has put all things in His own wisdom and we should be dependent on Him all the time to know.
Heaven awaits the glory of God to be manifest on earth and the earth awaits the manifestation of the sons and daughters of God on earth. We are given rights in heaven as the sons and daughters of God and we have been given power on earth to defeat the devil. We must live in victory not defeat.
Lots of love
Pastor Noble
13/05/2018