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A Symbol & A Source of Blessing By Bobbie Jean Merck
Do you mean that it is truly possible and also the will of God that we Christians are to be “a symbol and a source of blessings?” Yes, and an eternal yes, indeed! That has been the heart of God for His people from the beginning of mankind on this earth. And it is our inheritance in the Lord Jesus Christ. My heart leaps for joy every time I think of Redemption. The apostle Paul considered Redemption the greatest of all revelations and visions that he had received. Redemption was first and foremost in his life and in his thirteen epistles. His love and faithfulness to his Redeemer, Who made Redemption a living reality, was his most passionate desire and pursuit. He never left the priority of the wisdom, revelation, knowledge, and understanding about Redemption as he continued to receive other revelations. Redemption was the foundation, the center, and the ending of all his teachings. “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature” (Galatians 6:14-15). He knew that the creative power of Redemption comes through the preaching of the Gospel. And that is the reason he boldly declared, “For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work…” (Romans 1:16 The New Living Translation). Good News! POWER…AT WORK! Praise be unto the Living God! The Cross of Jesus Christ ~ Redemption ~ produces constancy and consistency in the Christian. The power and the glory of Redemption is that the Redeemer puts into the life of the Christian what is in Himself. Obedience to His will is the factor that makes His redemptive power work in you and in me. As it is written, “Blessed be the Lord God…for he hath visited and redeemed his people” (Luke 1:68). We have been released and rescued from slavery and bondage by Redemption. Redeemed in Luke 1:68 means to make; to endow a person with a certain quality; to qualify. This makes me want to shout unto God with a great voice of triumphant victory in Jesus! “Christ hath redeemed us….That the blessing...might come…” (Galatians 3:13,14). I remember playing the organ and singing many times in the Methodist Church, “Make Me A Blessing.” Perhaps I understood a tiny, tiny bit what that meant. And yes, it turned my attention and desire to be a blessing to others by doing good and helping them. But today…! “Make Me A Blessing” explodes within me in great joy and expectation in revelation and understanding of what being a blessing is all about.
Zechariah 8:11-13 The New Living Translation
As we consider these truths for us today, let us be reminded that everything in the Old Testament, the Old Covenant, must flow through the New & Better Everlasting Covenant of Redemption that we have in Jesus Christ. As this is done, some things in the Old Testament do not belong to the inheritors of grace and blessings. First of all, Redemption means the ceasing of God’s wrath. He is not mad or angry with us anymore. Today, God is planting seeds of peace and prosperity among us. Jesus Christ is our peace and He is our prosperity. If other seed is planted among us, it is not God! In Him we have the Everlasting Covenant of Peace with God Almighty. Peace, joy, favor, and blessings accompanied the announcement of the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Isaiah prophesied,
Isaiah 9:6-7 The New Living Translation
Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace. He is our Peace as some manuscripts read, “…and peace on earth for all those pleasing God.” Peace belongs to every born again believer. We can possess peace that passes all understanding, for it is part of our inheritance in Christ. I shall always remember the moment God guided my feet into the path of peace. I had been in mental and emotional anguish and turmoil for five years. Peace escaped me day after day, even though I was taking tranquilizers to calm my troubled soul. By His leading, April 12, 1969, I began the journey which brought me to His unfailing peace. His clarion call to me came loud and clear, “I am calling you to be the reconciler. Go….” That meant leaving the familiar pathway of worshipping in the Methodist Church and going to the Assemblies of God Church. Obedience to His voice was the first requirement to my ultimate peace. I did not realize it would be so when I stepped out to obey. This, then, was faith in action. I really did not find peace in this new way of worshipping God. In fact, I was miserable in the church services until I reached a point of desperation and then stopped trying. Indeed, I let go and let God. This was that present moment’s full surrender. Surrender to His tender love and watchcare in spite of all feelings and emotions was the second step required in arriving at His ultimate peace. On September 21, 1969, I was baptized in the Holy Spirit and my entire life began to change in a marvelous fashion. My soul did not experience peace, but my entire being exploded with new excitement, joy, and expectation. Revelation began to flow like a mighty river to and within me. The first time I received the Lord’s Supper after this, the pastor read Isaiah 53:4,5 to prepare our hearts to receive. For the first time in my life, I ‘heard’ with my spiritual ears and heart, “…the chastisement of our peace was upon him.” Something exploded in me. Hope burst within as a brilliant, inexpressible light. I determined to study this to its fullest. In my study, I found the word ‘peace’ also meant ‘tranquility.’ I began to see in my mind, ‘tranquility…tranquilizer?’ Then, ‘tranquility…tranquilizer!!!’ First in questioning, then in knowing! I then said to myself, “If Jesus is my Tranquility, then He is the greatest, biggest Tranquilizer I can take!” In that moment, I took Jesus as my Tranquilizer, and PEACE flooded my life. I took the bottle of tranquilizers from the shelf and flushed them down the toilet. Jesus has proven to be my ultimate peace thereafter! As you know, Jesus had been my peace all my life. But, I was not experiencing peace in those troubled years. Obedience, surrender, revelation knowledge, pursuit of the fullest meaning of that revelation, and faith and action (receiving Him as my tranquilizer, and closing the door to turmoil by flushing the tranquilizers down the toilet) made Lord Jesus Christ and the Word a lifestyle of peace for me. Yes, I have had to put faith and good works with this, but, His peace has never failed me! When I flushed the tranquilizers down the toilet ~ I did this only after the Word became real to me, and in conjunction with other acts of obedience that allowed the Lord to establish this work of faith in my life. We have all heard the testimonies of people throwing away medications in the heat of their emotions to ‘prove’ faith and ‘earn’ blessings which ultimately failed ~ because firstly, that is works based, and secondly, the true work of the Cross in that area must be real to us personally, and we must be cooperating with the Holy Spirit in the ways He has been leading in our lives, before we take that final step to put aside natural helps that God in His mercy has provided until faith comes. That is vital to the success of His Word working effectually in us! God has reconciled us to Himself by Christ Jesus. This is an overwhelming fact of His mercy, love, and goodness given to us. Reconcile means to change. It also means to change from a state of enmity to one of friendship. Jesus Christ has made us a friend of God, destined to enjoy His friendship! God is not mad at us! In Christ, His wrath ceased, and He sees us as His friends. Paul was addressing the Christians in Corinth and he commands, “…be ye reconciled to God.” These words literally mean, “return to your relationship of peace with God.” God’s anger has ceased, but, if we act like unfaithful wives, being the world’s friend and lover, we are making ourselves the enemy of God. Our wrath is stirred up against God, and we start blaming Him for “lack of blessings.” No, He is our friend. We need to leave the friendship of the world! The Lord Almighty says, “I am planting seeds of peace.” Those seeds truly are ripe for harvest, especially now in the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us consider "The Priestly Blessing." It is found in Numbers 6:22-24. These are some of the most powerful words in the Bible. As I share with you some of the things I have learned regarding the Jewish rabbis understanding of "The Priestly Blessing," be reminded to transfer this to your life.
The Priestly Blessing
The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
"The Priestly Blessing" was considered the crown and seal of the whole sacred order in which Israel was fully organized as the people of God for the march to the Promised Holy Land. "The Priestly Blessing" included material blessing and protection, as well as spiritual blessing. It's progressive petitions to God climaxed in what they considered God’s most precious and valuable gift, ‘shalom,’ or 'peace and welfare.' The 15 words of verses 24-26 contain absolute trust and faith in God. The Rabbis believed (and practiced) that only a priest was to pronounce "The Priestly Blessing." A stranger was not to pronounce it. The priest must pronounce it in a sincere and sober manner. A stranger cannot bless another; for blessing requires knowledge and loving understanding of the person or cause to be blessed. To bless others is a difficult task because it requires a willing readiness to sacrifice (if necessary) and pray for those you bless. Jesus is the ultimate Priest to bless us! “The Lord bless thee….” This was a prayer-blessing for the recipient to be blessed with life, health, and prosperity. Therefore, such expectation of blessing is not our generation’s exclusive revelation and inheritance. “…and keep thee….” This blessing was a petition that God would grant His divine protection against evil, sickness, poverty, and calamity. The Lord is our Guard and Keeper. "The Priestly Blessing" was to ensure His delivering of our souls from death, and that He would keep our eyes from tears of sorrow and remorse, and our feet from stumbling. The Rabbis believed these three Hebrew words meant: May God bless thee with possessions; and keep thee from these possessions possessing thee; and guard thee from sin and shield thee from all destructive influences that so often follow in the wake of earthly prosperity. They perceived the blessing, “the Lord bless thee and keep thee,” as the Guardianship of God. Verse 25 was regarded as the ‘Grace of God Blessing.’ “The Lord make His face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee.” “…His face to shine upon thee,” is better understood when we know that light in the scripture is the symbol not only of happiness and purity, but also of friendship. To cause the face to shine upon one meant to be friendly to him. What a joy this is! Paul addressed the Corinthian Christians saying, “…God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Christ Jesus…,” and he knew that reconciliation placed us in a position of being friends with God! When God’s face is said to be turned towards man/woman and to shine upon that one, it implies the outpouring of Divine love and salvation. Is it any wonder the psalmist cried out to God in prayer, “Hide not Thy face from me!” The Rabbis interpret the words “…make His face to shine upon thee” to mean that one is given Divine knowledge and moral insight. The rabbis bless their people with this powerful blessing: "May He give thee enlightenment of the eyes, the light of the Shekinah; may the fire of Prophecy burn in the souls of thy children; may the light of the Torah illumine thy home." “…and be gracious unto thee,” meaning, 'May He be beneficent unto thee, and graciously fulfill thy petition.' The Rabbis understand these words in the sense of "May He give thee grace in the eyes of thy fellowmen;" i.e., "May He make thee lovable and beloved in the eyes of others." One Rabbi said, “He in whom his fellow-creatures take delight, in him the All-present takes delight.” Verse 26 was known as the blessing for the peace of God. “The Lord lift up His countenance upon thee,” meaning, ‘turn His attention, His loving care unto thee.’ “And give thee,” literally means, ‘set thee,’ ‘establish for thee.’ “…peace….” in the Talmud reads, “Peace in thy coming in, peace in thy going out, peace with all men. Great is peace, for it is the seal of all blessings.” The Hebrew ‘shalom’ means not only freedom from all disaster, but health, welfare, security, and tranquility; it is "...the peace which alone reconciles and strengthens, which calms us and clears our vision, which frees us from restlessness and from the bondage of unsatisfied desire, which gives us the consciousness of attainment, the consciousness of permanence even amid the uncertainty and transitoriness of ourselves and of outward things." If the Rabbis could bless with such blessing, how much more can we expect this entire blessing to be ours in Christ Jesus?! Therefore, I bless you and I call you blessed; and my prayer-blessing for you and yours is…
Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all. 2 Thessalonians 3:16
GREAT IS PEACE, FOR IT IS THE SEAL OF ALL BLESSINGS!
Part Two
God is calling His people to a mandate in 2004, and that mandate is peace in Him. In the last edition of the Overflow, we explored the fact that God is raising up His people as a symbol and as a source of blessing to this nation, and throughout the earth. We began by establishing that it is not our works that earn God’s goodness and blessings, but all that our Lord Jesus Christ did on the cross. We are redeemed from curses unto blessings by the Blood of Jesus! We also examined “The Priestly Blessing,” and discovered that everything pertaining to “The Priestly Blessing” was consummated in God’s blessing of peace. Let us continue examining our lives in Christ as a symbol and a source of blessing in light of the power and place of God’s peace in our lives. The Rabbi’s wrote of “The Priestly Blessing,” that peace is the crown and the seal of all blessings. Bear in mind that God is not talking about inactivity, nor passivity, nor the cessation of troubles and tribulations, but of a quality of character and being that precipitates all that we do, and marks "Whose" we are. This peace allows us to rise above the fray and the turmoil into the atmosphere of the supernatural in which God works, and releases His work through us to establish His Kingdom in the earth, becoming indeed, His symbol and source of blessing! We are in a time of wars, and rumours of wars, earthquakes, famines, floods and plagues. God is getting us ready for the profound time to come to the supernatural! Such supernatural is coming up for us, and it is going to be so awesome as we exemplify Christ to the watching world. So we must be a people that know our God, and unequivocally know, and are established in the truth, that through Jesus Christ every provision for us that we have need of has been made. Luke chapter one shows us that this One, this Jesus, the same One of Isaiah 53, came to save us from our enemies, verse 71, “…we shall be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all that hate us…” and in verse 79, “…to guide our feet into the way of peace.” Peace here means completeness with nothing missing, and nothing broken. Absolute wholeness for our human spirit, emotions, minds, and physical bodies, to bring us into peace was accomplished through Christ’s suffering, crucifixion, and resurrection. God answered me in response to my seeking Him over a situation I faced in the early years as I was learning to appropriate healing by faith. He took me out in the spirit and showed me the back of Jesus. I saw what I did not know. Until then I had thought that the 39 stripes administered to Him prior to His crucifixion were like welts on the surface of the skin. But in actuality, Jesus’ flesh was torn and ripped down to his spinal column, the very skeleton exposed. What was left hanging on His frame was like ground hamburger meat. There were cuts in the bone structure of his back from the force of the whip. God said to me, “This was the price that was paid for your healing. You can accept it or reject it.” It broke me, and I wept uncontrollably and said, “Lord, forgive me, I receive it.” This vision was confirmed by the Word of God as I studied to examine this vision in light of God’s Word. They indeed hung the Master with irons around his wrists, where his feet did not touch the ground. They used the largest, strongest men, trained to wield the whip with great skill and maximum power. The whip was no ordinary whip, but one that had twelve leather strips extending from its end which were embedded with broken shards of glass and fragments of steel. The flesh was literally dug into by those strips like claws, and when retracted would literally tear the flesh off of the Lord’s back. It has been established by the scientific community that there are 39 categories of disease out of which all forms of sickness and infirmity originate, being classified under 1 or more of those 39 categories. It is no accident that our Lord and Saviour received 39 stripes, for our God knoweth all things, and God has declared all healing was provided for us through these 39 stripes. The torture and crucifixion of Christ, the perfect, sacrificial Lamb of God for the sins of the world was the price paid for all the blessings of God to come to us as a free gift through faith. God desires to establish His people in His peace, for, “The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5 The New American Standard), and “…the punishment that brought us peace was upon him…” (The New International Version). We have a choice, to receive these wonderful promises through faith, or to reject them. The Lord brought Jonah 2:8 to my attention. “If you observe lying vanities, you forsake your own mercy.” When we believe in symptoms or circumstances in our lives more than in the ultimate promises of the Word, we are observing a lying vanity. I cannot let lying vanities get my attention, for in doing that, I alienate myself from the help of God. Let this year of our Lord, 2004, be the year we align ourselves in agreement with the whole counsel of Almighty God, tolerating nothing within ourselves that rises up and argues with, or sets at nought His grace to us in any area of our living! As we are firmly established in confidence in God’s goodness towards us because of Jesus’ Blood, we also must be as firm in understanding that all the blessings of God through Christ Jesus flow out of peace. Colossians 3:15 instructs us, “...let the peace (soul harmony which comes) from Christ rule (act as umpire continually) in your hearts [deciding and settling with finality all questions that arise in your minds, in that peaceful state] to which as [members of Christ’s] one body you were also called [to live]. And be thankful…” (The Amplified Bible). Where there is lack of peace, there is lack of faith, lack of trust, and there is confusion. Conversely, where there is the peace of God, there is no confusion, “For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace…” (1 Corinthians 14:33). When we abide in God’s peace, our vision is clear, our thinking is right, we have confidence of attainment in those things whereunto we are called, and stability, even if things ‘outside’ are turbulent. “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee” (Isaiah 26:3). Dr. E. Stanley Jones often said, “What gets our attention gets us.” Think on that! We come under the power of what we focus on. We must know by now that worrying about a problem does not bring relief and release, but bondage, and it consumes our life and causes oppression. When God breathes His Spirit of life into a situation, all the corollary problems fall away and become irrelevant. We cannot afford to spend ourselves on that which is ultimately irrelevant! Paul addresses the Church of Corinth, those who were born again and full of the Holy Ghost, and says, “be ye reconciled to God.” As believers, if we lose our peace, we must turn instantly to the Lord, and be restored to our position of reconciliation with Him. Take comfort in Psalm 46, that surely God is your refuge and strength. A very present help in trouble: God is saying through the psalmist that when you are in trouble, God, as your loving Father, will run to you, and you will have His own personal, intense and complete attention until you are absolutely out of that trouble. ‘Present help’ emphasizes the completeness, the speed, and the might of the Lord’s help. Nothing can stand against the help of the Lord! Jesus is the Prince of Peace, and His Gospel is the Gospel of Peace. The government of peace will rest upon His shoulders, and divine order of governing in the Church will be in accordance with peace. As we recognize that our anointings, giftings, wisdom, indeed, all blessings flow from peace, we will appreciate the Lord’s instruction to us to make peace the major priority in our future, and allow His workmanship in our lives to cause us to increasingly be a symbol and a source of blessings! Dear saints, without such an anointing and demonstration of peace working within us and through us, how can God make us a symbol, and how indeed establish the flow of His blessings to and through us? God is fashioning His Church into a symbol and a source of blessing as He plants seeds of peace and prosperity among us, as in Zechariah 8:12. Other words for ‘symbol’ are ‘banner,’ or ‘flag.’ A symbol is that which represents something greater than itself. We are going to fly high as a banner of the blessings of Almighty God. To be a symbol of God’s blessing is to be blessed to such a degree that we stand for Someone greater than ourselves. In other words, the outstanding blessings are demonstrative that something is going on with you that you could not possibly have produced in and of yourself but by God Almighty! Before we received the Lord Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, we all lived under the banner, the flag, the very symbol of all that Satan stands for: sin, shame, fear, discouragement, poverty, sickness, disease, emotional and mental breakdowns, lockdowns, depressions, failure, loss and lack, vain pursuits (empty, not God-purposed), and ultimately death. But the moment we confessed Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives, that old flag of curses and death, sickness and disease was torn down, and raised in it’s place over our lives was another flag that indicated blessings, freedom from sin and fear, partakers of prosperity, wholeness, soundness, fruitfulness, well-being, success, and victory! Jehovah-Nissi! God our banner, our flag. God will make His people not only a symbol of His blessing, but also a source of blessing, as spoken of in Zechariah 8:13. Can you believe and receive? I saw a vision in 1983. There were two hands outstretched, open, always ready to help, representing people that live to give. I then saw two hands with clenched fists, representing self-centeredness and greed. God cannot pour anything into a clenched fist. If hands are open to give, God will fill them more and more and more. If thou canst believe and not be self-centered, but a distributor of the blessings of God to others, God will astound you with what He pours out through you! He says in Zechariah 8:12, “The grapevines will be heavy with fruit. The earth will produce its crops, and the sky will release the dew.” The dew in Zechariah 8:12 represents God’s care for us. In Christ Jesus, every need is met. He is the Vine, Christ Jesus, and we are the branches according to John 15:16. “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain…” (John 15:16). Even as the dew nourishes and causes much heaviness of fruit in the grapevines of Zechariah, so we will bear much fruit for God’s glory. For this we have been reconciled to God, that we might bear much fruit that others may partake of and come into this great peace with God. We are not just to escape hell and make it to heaven, but to glorify God by bearing much fruit so that others will see God! So that we become a mighty symbol and a source of blessing! I worship Him! Our God has not left one detail of our lives unattended to. He has made provision for every detail of our lives through One, Christ Jesus. And so we are set free to serve God and others! Only when we are established in this kind of peace can we follow God into the harvest fields of this world and do the work of God on behalf of this nation, and the nations to reconcile the lost to God and to establish His Kingdom on the earth. Reconciliation is a mark of the effectual working of peace, bringing the floods of God’s blessings through us for others. For God calls His own peace-makers, restorers of paths to dwell in, reconcilers, bridge-builders! The ministry of reconciliation is activated as we become a source of blessing to others. We must nurture this grace of being a blessing to others. We must think blessings, speak blessings, and be a source of God’s blessing! In Proverbs 11:11, God says, “By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted…” Instead of cursing the cities and communities we live in by speaking of how bad it is, we need to start speaking the truth of the living God, speaking good things over our cities, over our counties, over our states and over our nation. AMERICA SHALL BE SAVED! God’s desire is the nations ~ all peoples. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). You will have a world vision when you know God. You will have a fire to be a symbol and a source of blessing to others, pointing others to Christ, for you will have the people of all nations in your heart, and you will cry out for the nation in which you live. We all must pray for this nation. Peace will work in our lives in a very practical way when we obey the command given in 1 Timothy 2:1-2, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.” In the USA, ‘king’ is appropriately interchanged with ‘president,’ our Commander-in-Chief. We are to pray for those in authority over us, which includes the 535 members of Congress and the 9 Supreme Court Justices. In doing so, we shall live quiet, peaceful lives! The more we pray for our nation and the leadership of this nation, the more of God’s peace is going to prevail, individually and throughout America. Many people do not have peace because they never pray for their nation. They do not pray for those in authority over them, they do not pray for their leaders! God is looking for an intercessor, like unto the one spoken of in Ezekiel, where God says, “If I find just one man to stand in the gap, I will save the entire nation.” The man He is looking for in America is the Body of the Son of Man. God’s spirit of revelation opened my eyes to another factor in our being made symbols and sources ~ of His glory, which is the heaviness of Himself, His blessings, all goodness and mercy. He took me to Matthew 9:17, “And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. The old skins would burst from the pressure, spilling the wine and ruining the skins. New wine must be stored in new wineskins. That way both the wine and the wineskins are preserved” (The New Living Translation). Continuous change keeps one new, fresh, and adaptable; and only the new can stand the pressure. When the ‘new wine’ is poured forth from God, bringing us into the supernatural, and He does great and mighty things, it is the people who are continually changing with God who can stand the change. If we do not change ‘from glory to glory,’ we will be like the old wine skins, inflexible, and unable to adapt to the new things that God is doing! Know, also, that God is speaking according to Deuteronomy 15:2, that the Lord’s time of release has arrived. Deuteronomy 15:6 encourages you to be a symbol and a source of blessings, for, “The Lord will bless you as he has promised….” So be encouraged. Peace and prosperity are linked continually throughout the Word of God. As we abide in the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the seal and the crown of all blessings, so shall we prosper…for our souls shall prosper wonderfully in Him. We will sing with the psalmist in Psalm 40:3, “And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.” This year of our Lord, 2004, is the year of Resurrection, Restoration, and Restitution. Amen. So be it!
Be blessed in His Holy Name
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