The article below provides us with a picture of the spiritual decline in America. Notice the increase in the “ungodly”. The dark is getting darker but the light is growing brighter as we prepare for the fullness. In Matthew 24:
12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
My friend Alan continues his series on the sons of Jacob:
KJV Matthew 7:13 “Enter ye in at the strait (narrow; constrained) gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and many there be which go through it: 7:14 because strait (narrow; confined) is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leads unto life, and few there be that find it.”
In the ongoing competition between Leah and Rachel to produce sons for Jacob, God was continuing the revelations of mankind concerning our journey from adam’, and unto Christ. For that is a Spiritual journey that all who pursue God will experience. In the religion that calls itself ‘Christianity’, we have been deceived by ‘religious deceptions’ over the millennia through lack of Spiritual understanding, and for failing to rightly discern the words preserved for us from our forefathers. That ‘religious deception’ is not an indictment, but simply the results of failing to Spiritually discern messages that were intended to orchestrate our individual spiritual journeys. As believers, we were all too eager to take these scriptural messages as literal rules and commandments, rather than search for the Spiritual Life imbedded in these instructions.
And we have all failed. There is none that have not ‘missed the mark’. There is none that have not ever misunderstood scripture, and attempted to physically manifest a Spiritual understanding by applying our carnal interpretations and descriptions. This has been, and will continue to be, Our Father’s Plan. For in no way will God allow us to access or understand the Glory of God, nor the Kingdom of God, by observing and applying our carnal interpretations to His Spiritual Blueprint. His Glory He will not share with another (understanding). Yashua
answered them, “You do err not knowing (have Spiritual Understanding) the scriptures;” [Matt. 22:29] Unfortunately that still applies today, though many are now coming to understand the simplicity of the statement of Yashua, “God is Spirit”. [John 4:24]
In our last discussion we looked at the seventh son born to Jacob; Gad. And in the investigation of the name/nature that Gad represents, I tried to illustrate an understanding of coming to a point in our journey, from ‘adam’ to Christ, that we recognize a need to ‘separate’ ourselves from the wayward path that our journey had been taking, and realize a need for a ‘change of direction’. In the competition for preeminence in the role of wife to Jacob, Leah had produced four sons. And then she ceased conceiving. Rachel, desperate to participate in the family, gave
her handmaid Bilhah to Jacob as concubine, and Bilhah produced two sons for Jacob. But Rachel was as yet barren, and could not conceive. When Leah faced the reality that she was no longer conceiving, not to be outdone she gave her own handmaid, Zilpah, to Jacob. Zilpah produced a son, and Leah called his name/nature Gad.
KJV Genesis 30:12 “And Zilpah Leah’s maid bare Jacob a second son. 30:13 And Leah said, Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher (Happy).”
Upon the birth of another son for Jacob, through Leah’s handmaid Zilpah, Leah called the name/nature of this son Asher, proclaiming that she was now ‘happy’ (ah-sher), and ‘blessed’ (ah-sher). The Hebrew word ‘ah-sher’, which we pronounce simply as ‘asher’, Strong’s # H833 thru H838, has been very much misunderstood. And probably the most misunderstood use of this word has been when it has been translated as ‘happy’. The Hebrew ‘ah-sher’ is one of those
words, like Gad, which might take several paragraphs of discussion to grasp the importance of the use of this word.
One of the more valuable lessons I was taught as an early ‘convert’ to Christianity was the understanding that God had not called me to His kingdom to “…make me happy”. As I began to familiarize myself with ‘christian’ surroundings, I wanted to be ‘happy’. My Father, however, wanted to teach me to be Glad. While I wanted to be happy experiencing the newness of ‘christianity’, My Father wanted me to learn the Joy of His Presence, regardless of the circumstances of my surroundings. I had to learn the lesson that ‘happiness’ is the fleeting emotion of ‘being happy’; happy because what I wanted to happen was unfolding. ‘Glad’, on the other hand, is the heart that can still sense the Presence of God, even when having no control of
what is occurring. ‘Happy’ is being pleased with the ‘happenstance’ of what I wanted to transpire, while ‘unhappy’ is being emotionally deflated with the negativity of the moment.
Joy is the stability of knowing the presence of the Holy Spirit of God, even when the turmoil of chaos seems to reign supreme. So, how did the Hebrew word ‘ah-sher’ (asher) get translated so often as ‘happy’? The word ‘ah-sher’ is used many, many times throughout O.T. scripture. It is one of the most prolifically used
words in all of the O.T. Most times, however, it is translated as ‘which’, ‘that’, ‘whose’, ‘that which’, etc. The word is used most often as a relative pronoun, or relative particle, indicating a logical and accurate progression of thought or events. The word has the responsibility of pointing us, the readers, to the progression of events being described in these verses. Consequently, the most accurate definition of the word ‘ah-sher’, at least for my understanding, is as “…the straight progression”; or, “…the straight path”; or, “…the straight record”. Many
Bible students will be familiar with a particular use of this word ‘ah-sher’, for it is the basis for the word ‘Jasher’. ‘Jasher’ is referred to in Joshua and in 2Samuel as a ‘book of remembrance’ that the early ‘Israelites’ were familiar with; or at least aware of. ‘Jasher’, in this context, is referring to a ‘straight record’; or straight and reliable recording of events in the history of the descendants of ‘Adam’. While I have serious reservations about the ‘straightness’ of The Book of Jasher, there are many today that put much confidence in this ancient text.
So, how are we to best understand the use of the word ‘ah-sher’ as referring to the second son born of the union of Jacob and Zilpah, a word that Leah chose to describe the name/nature of the son of this event? What, if anything, was Leah prophesying in the birth of this son of Jacob? From the background evidence of the many uses and appearances of this word ‘asher’, it seems reasonable to conclude that this word is referring to a ‘straight forward path’; a straight forward and unwavering course of action, or intent, or expression. I believe this is what Yashua
was revealing to us in the verses we have recorded in Matthew 7: 13-14.
When we begin to recognize the need for a separation in our own life experiences from those things that continue to be distractions and hindrances to our ‘sanity’ and benefit, we then must begin to recognize a need for a straight forward direction in the patterns of our conduct. A life of reckless and wayward conduct (the ‘broad way’) is a prime candidate for a path of narrows, constrictions and straits, whether self-imposed, or imposed upon us by others. This is the very description of the Hebrew word ‘tzar-rar’, Strong’s # H6887, which gets translated into many aspects of difficulty, including ‘rock’, ‘distress’, ‘enemy’, ‘adversary’, ‘affliction’,
‘narrow’, ‘trouble’, etc. This word ‘tzar-rar’ is the very word used to describe the phrase ‘Jacob’s troubles’ as referred to in Jeremiah 30:7. But this word is also used to refer to God as ‘Rock’, and it is the root from which the word for Egypt is formed. Egypt has become synonymous with being “…between a rock and a hard place”.
It seems almost as if Leah, in the naming of the sons of Jacob of which she was in charge, was declaring a change of understanding, and maybe even a necessary ‘course correction’; a course of which Jacob was the progenitor, but of which God was orchestrating the events. The very names of these sons that Jacob was siring were declaring a correction of understanding in this tribal family that had begun in the most chaotic and reckless circumstances and activities. Jacob was being squeezed through straits and narrows and afflictions that were affecting his entire family, and affecting all in whom he came into contact. Jacob was experiencing the consequences of his actions. It was almost as if God, the Author and Finisher, was narrowing the path that this journey must take. Jacob’s journey, to this point, had been one that ‘allowed’ for the bending of the rules.
Jacob had demonstrated great confidence in his ability to manipulate events, and people, in order to get his own way. Jacob, ‘the supplanter’, demonstrated a willingness to abandon the ‘straight and narrow’ to satisfy his own carnal appetites. Let’s face it; you cannot desire to be ‘found’, until it is revealed to you that you are ‘lost’. The remainder of Jacob’s journey would require a return to a path of honesty, integrity and humility. Jacob would have to find that “…strait (constrained; restricted) is the way, and narrow is the gate that leads to Life”. On the journey from ‘Jacob’ to ‘Israel’, there would be many disappointments, and even tragedies, to have to endure. Asher would become a declaration of the need for the ‘straight (strait) and narrow path’ that leads to Life. ‘Asher’ is not the Life. ‘Asher’ is the path that leads us to Life.
Herein is Life; that you know God, and Yashua haMashiahk, whom He has sent. For ‘asher’ describes a ‘straight forward’ approach in relationship with self, and with others. Asher, as a ‘straight path of life’, would help to avoid many obstacles and self- inflicted difficulties. But more importantly, ‘asher’ is required for surviving and overcoming the tragedies which this journey imposes. Leah prophesied that in ‘asher’, her life would be called ‘Blessed’ (ah-sher). And she was correct, for Leah had more to give to this family than she could yet imagine.
Thank you to all who contribute to Servias Ministries. We trust the seed you are planting will produce an appropriate harvest in your lives.
Jesus spoke FATHER’S Words and disclosed HIS Divine Intent in Luke chapter 6:
38 Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”
My wife and I have stood faithfully on this passage for forty-seven years and FATHER has always blessed us and met all our needs. I pray HE does the same for you.
My friend Alan wrote the following concerning the word “face” expressed in Hebrew and used in the Old Testament:
Paniym, as you well know, is the Hebrew word we most often translate as ‘face’. The word, in all of its other forms, comes from an unused root ‘panan’, !np
which is unused in scripture, and therefore Strong’s Concordance did not give it a number, or description, at least that I can find. Gesenius’ Lexicon lists this primary root ‘panan’, and describes the word as “…to separate; to divide”. However, that itself is a very misleading description of the activity of this word; in my opinion. For the primary function of this word is to indicate a ‘change’ in personal focus, and/or a change in direction of pursuit. I hope that doesn’t sound too confusing. The simpler verb form of this word ‘panan’ is as ‘panah’, or ‘paneh’, both spelled in Hebrew as hnp. This word ‘panah’, Strong’s #6437, and its’ brother’ #6438, have a more distinct definition as being “…a change of direction”. Many times, this word ‘panah’ is used to refer to a corner; a place where two diverging directions intersect. A right angle is the most visible understanding of this idea, but it is not limited to that. This word is also used to indicate a change of understanding, or of taking action based on a different thought process; hence, a change of mind. Many times in scripture the word ‘panah’ is used to indicate where a person had a change of conviction, or of thought, or of dedication to, or desirous of a specific idea, or ‘god’. Sometimes it is translated as “…turn away” (Deut. 29:18), or “…turned unto” (Deut. 31:18). Sometimes ‘panah’ is translated as “…turn unto me”. From this, you can see that the verb is indicating a change of focus, or attention.
As you have seen, this word is most often spelled in the plural form, ‘paniym’, and translated many times as referring to the ‘face’ (or faces) of God, or of individuals or of self. From this idea it is often used to refer to something or someone being in front of your face. But as a noun, as in ‘face’, the word doesn’t necessarily refer to a specific portion of our head, like our face, but rather is more referring to “…the part that changes”. In Gen. 4: 5-6, we see the word panah, and in this case the plural form of ‘paniym’, translated as ‘countenance’. “Cain, why has your countenance (your faces) fallen?” How many times have I said or done something very stupid or cruel, and watched my wife’s ‘face’ change? Her countenance fell because of my harshness. Consequently, I can do something very loving, or pleasing, and it shows in her countenance; on her face. Many have relegated the ‘face’ (panah, paniym)) to the part that turns, as in turning your head, or turning a corner. However, I believe it is much more visible to understand that the face is the part that reveals ‘change’. And the letter ‘peh’, the first letter in ‘panah’, is representative of the mouth. While ‘panah’ is accurately describing a ‘corner’, as far as ‘turning’ is concerned, I believe it is more descriptive to understand this idea of ‘corner’ as more of a change of direction, focus or attention.
This concept, at least to me, dramatically affects our traditional understanding of certain important scriptures. One of the more obvious, to me, is the impact this word/thought has on Psalm 118:22, where the coming Messiah is referred to as “…head stone (in italics because this word doesn’t appear in this verse in Hebrew) of the corner. KJV. And in NKJ, “…the chief cornerstone”. The Messiah, in these western thinking translations, is prophesied as being the chief cornerstone; or the head of the corner. But I believe the more accurate translation of this idea is that The Messiah is described as being “…to head the turning”. And in this verse, as in many others, ‘head’ is not referring as much as a noun, but as a verb. To Head the body would be to lead, guide, inform, and give example to the body, all activities. The Messiah is where we find the right and ability to change; direction, thought, focus and attention. It is to Christ as the Head that we are encouraged to ‘turn’ our attention. Our ‘face’ (paniym, faces) would then be ‘face to face with God’. (Gen. 32:30) Or more literally, God on your Face(s). My theology, of course, but I am hooked on it. Michael Kelly Blanchard has a marvelous song which has a line that says this: “The Love of The Father, as seen on the Face of His Son”. As ‘Son of God’, Father is seen on your face. Sometimes, however, our ‘countenance’ falls, and we forget to be the Face of God to others.
Luke wrote by THE SPIRIT in chapter 5:
17 Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.
18 Then behold, men brought on a bed a man who was paralyzed, whom they sought to bring in and lay before Him.
19 And when they could not find how they might bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the housetop and let him down with his bed through the tiling into the midst before Jesus.
20 When He saw their faith, He said to him, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.”
21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
22 But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, He answered and said to them, “Why are you reasoning in your hearts?
23 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise up and walk’?
24 But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins”—He said to the man who was paralyzed, “I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.”
25 Immediately he rose up before them, took up what he had been lying on, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.
26 And they were all amazed, and they glorified God and were filled with fear, saying, “We have seen strange things today!”
Jesus did not cast out any demons so that the man could be healed. Neither did He appeal to FATHER. He displayed the highest level of authority and power when He healed the paralyzed man. Our sins are forgiven by this same power and authority yet many do not fully understand and embrace this authority available to us as Sons and Daughters.
Jesus did not cast out a demon to address this man’s paralysis but simply spoke The Word at Its highest level of authority which has preeminence over any sickness or disease. This is the same creative power which formed man in the first place. Our bodies are fully subject to this authority unless we resist it through unbelief.
The enemy comes to steal The Word from our hearts to render us powerless in the spirit realm. When this occurs, we look to worldly solutions when addressing our day to day problems for this is where the enemy wants us… for he is “the god of this world”. Jesus is showing us there is power and authority to overcome all issues we are facing in our daily lives. The Holy Spirit provides us guidance even in the smallest of details if we will walk daily with a willing heart.
Jesus spoke in Mark 11:
22 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God.
23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.
24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”
Jesus directed us to walk in the highest level on anointing which includes forgiveness of sins, healing the sick, and all challenges we face on a daily basis. However, it requires us to have complete faith in FATHER WHO provides us such an anointing. Additionally, we must remove any and all unbelief thus this power and authority is conditional based on us having a willing heart to accept such great anointing.
The old man will keep reminding us of our past in order to cause doubt concerning our righteousness and authority. This doubt must be cast down with The Word and we must not allow our minds to dwell on the past any longer. The old man has passed away, behold all things are new. Paul wrote by THE SPIRIT in 2 Corinthians chapter 5:
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
In order to walk in the fullness of power and authority granted to us through Jesus Christ, we must totally embrace this Truth. We must remove any and all unbelief which prevents this power from flowing in us and through us. We must trust in FATHER’S Word and no longer be moved by what we see and hear from the world. As we immerse ourselves in The Word, It will cleanse us of the unbelief. However if we immerse ourselves in “the world”, unbelief will take hold. It is our choice.
An Emperor is the highest power in the region he occupies. … While a King rules one fairly homogenous territory (called a nation or kingdom), emperors often wield power over a fairly heterogeneous territory (ruler of many nations). Their word or decree is final and there is no challenge or appeal for his decree is supreme over the region.
It is written by THE SPIRIT in Deuteronomy chapter 30:
11 “For this commandment which I command you today is not too mysterious for you, nor is it far off.
12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend into heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’
13 Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’
14 But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it.
15 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil,
16 in that I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the LORD your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess.
17 But if your heart turns away so that you do not hear, and are drawn away, and worship other gods and serve them,
18 I announce to you today that you shall surely perish; you shall not prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to go in and possess.
19 I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;
20 that you may love the LORD your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days; and that you may dwell in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”
In the above passage, FATHER decrees what will happen depending on the choice HE presented to the children of Israel. There is none other above HIM and HIS power. In Revelations chapter 4, those who reside in Heaven proclaim:
8 The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying:
“Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God Almighty,
Who was and is and is to come!”
This correlates to the verse in Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” thus both FATHER and Our Lord Jesus Christ share the same preeminence as having full and complete power and authority over all of creation, both the seen and the unseen. When we embrace this higher authority, we need not focus on any lesser power or authority for such power is subject to the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY and HIS Son.
As we align ourselves with the preeminent power of Our Elder Brother, we will no longer be subject to any lower authority. The power of death will no longer reign over us in any manner and we will be found worthy to join the KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS in bringing forth the Kingdom to the earth.
It is written by THE SPIRIT in Psalm chapter 37:
9 For evildoers shall be cut off;
But those who wait on the LORD,
They shall inherit the earth.
10 For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more;
Indeed, you will look carefully for his place,
But it shall be no more.
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth,
And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
And Zephaniah wrote by THE SPIRIT in chapter 2:
3 Seek the LORD, all you meek of the earth,
Who have upheld His justice.
Seek righteousness, seek humility.
It may be that you will be hidden
In the day of the LORD’s anger.
And Jesus spoke in Matthew chapter 5:
5 Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.
To be meek means: mildness of disposition, gentleness of spirit, suggesting kindness and unconditional Love toward all. Jesus spoke in Matthew chapter 11:
25 At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.
26 Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.
27 All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle (meek) and lowly (humble) in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
Jesus specifically directs us to learn from Him. Our focus should be on His acts and His ways for they reflect FATHER, fully and completely. The Holy Spirit keeps emphasizing this Truth in the writings He has led me to post. If we are to fully mature as Sons and Daughters, we must “learn from Jesus” Who is The Word made flesh. All other Scriptures should be studied in light of this directive.
When we learn of and from Jesus, we will slowly but surely become like Him. Our countenance will change as we become gentle and humble in heart. People will begin to be drawn to us just like they were drawn to Jesus. They will begin to see hope for their lives and find rest in their souls.
The less mature believers are focused on what Jesus can do for them and totally skip over this directive to learn of and from Jesus. They are in a hurry to fix the issues of their life without realizing that as we draw closer to Our Heavenly Father, HE will intervene on our behalf without us constantly petitioning HIM.
A yoke is something that attaches one to another. Jesus tells us to attach ourselves to Him and His Divine Intent for His yoke is much easier and lighter than the yoke of bondage. The world enslaves us to walk according to its principles which lead to death and destruction.
Many people like to quote “As He is, so are we” in 1 John 4:
17 Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.
If we are to be as He is, we must learn of Him and from Him. The result will be a meek and humble heart.
In 1984 I was walking in Divine health until suddenly I contracted Hepatitis from eating tainted shellfish. It was the worst case the local clinic had seen. When I asked FATHER why this occurred, HE said I was void of HIS Word in the area of healing. It had been a long time since I focused on HIS Word in this area. I then immersed myself in the Scriptures focused on healing. In eleven days I was back to normal. The doctor had projected a minimum of six to eight weeks before I would recover… if I didn’t die (as I found out later).
The following video may be of benefit to you who wish to keep these fifty healing passages at the forefront of your consciousness.
Mark wrote by THE SPIRIT in chapter 16:
9 Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.
10 She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept.
11 And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.
12 After that, He appeared in another form to two of them as they walked and went into the country.
13 And they went and told it to the rest, but they did not believe them either.
14 Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.
The disciples spent 3 ½ years with Jesus, heard His Words concerning The Kingdom, and saw a multitude of miracles, yet they continued to have a heart issue. Their unbelief and hardness of heart caused them to be rebuked by Our Lord Jesus Christ. In Acts chapter 9, it is written by THE SPIRIT:
3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven.
4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”
5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”
Paul later wrote by THE SPIRIT in 1 Corinthians chapter 15:
3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,
5 and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.
6 After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep.
7 After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles.
8 Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.
All of these men and women had face-to-face encounters with Jesus after His resurrection. Since then, many more have testified of their face-to-face encounters with Jesus. T.L. Osborn stated that Jesus entered his room and spent six hours with Him which changed his life and ministry forever. Others have seen Him and received both salvation and healing at the same time as The Word was being preached.
It is written by THE SPIRIT in Hebrews chapter 13:
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Is Jesus willing to appear before you and me face to face? Is He reluctant to have such an intimate relationship with us who desire to be called His brethren? Absolutely not! Why hasn’t He appeared to those who seek Him on a daily basis? I would suggest there is a lack of expectation in most cases. This is why I am directing your attention to the above passages where He appeared to many after His resurrection.
We are not told specifically who were included in the five hundred Paul mentioned but you can be assured they were not reluctant to testify of their encounter. Over the years, Jesus has appeared to many for various and sundry reasons. Before Paul was saved, he could not see the face of Jesus, but instead Jesus appeared in a bright light.
Unbelief and hardness of heart are the issues keeping us from having an intimate face to face encounter with Jesus. As members of The Bride, shouldn’t we long for and seek such a face-to-face encounter with The Groom? There are those who would have us believe that we must wait for some future date or season to have such an experience yet the above passages prove otherwise.
Unbelief and hardness of heart are corrected by the revelation of Agape Love. As we increase in this revelation, our hearts will become tender and pliable which allows for the intimacy with Our Lord. Our hearts must be circumcised and have the hardness removed. As we press into this revelation, all unbelief is exposed and removed so that we can present ourselves spotless for His appearing.
There are those who are always learning and listening to anybody who will teach them, but never able to come to the knowledge of the Truth (2 Timothy 3:7). Let us not be gullible to those who fall into this category. Let us seek the Truth in Love as we seek an intimate face-to-face relationship with Our Lord Jesus Christ.
It is written by THE SPIRIT in Hebrews chapter 12:
1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
We are to look away from all that will distract us and focus our eyes on Jesus who is the Perfecter of our faith. If He is the Perfecter of our faith, where should our focus be if we seek to have great faith? If we are to be included as The Bride, shouldn’t our focus be on the Groom? When my wife and I were engaged, we both wanted to spend every waking minute with each other. Our love being so intense, caused us to have only one priority… be together. All other priorities were at best a distant second.
There is a great cloud of witnesses in the spirit realm who are urging us on to the perfecting of our faith. Several of us have had encounters with some of those witnesses and their presence is occurring more often.
Our Beloved Brother Alan shared the following:
We are ‘surrounded’ by a great Cloud of Witness(es). Rarely, I believe, do we understand a ‘Witness’ when we first receive it. I have studied, some times at length, the aspect of ‘cloud’ in scripture. In the Hebrew, there are several different words used that get translated as ‘cloud’. But all of these words can be understood to be ‘an answer received’ from on High. One of the Hebrew words literally means ‘answer’. The Greek word used in Heb. 12:1 is only used once in the New Testament, though it is used in the Septuagint several times translating the Old Testament Hebrew. There seem to be some parallels we can discern if we recognize that Our Father can, and does, speak to us through different venues. But he is always ‘answering us’ by revealing to us the Christ He is calling us to be. I would like to think that Father is revealing to me that there are many, many ways He communicates to us, and through us, and most times we are unaware of what He is doing.
In Gen. 9, Noah is being taught what he just went through in ‘the flood’, and all that the flood represents. The word translated as ‘bow’, which we assume is a rainbow, in Gen. 9:14 is also translated other places as referring to an archer’s bow. I believe a better understanding could be had if the bow is seen as an arch. Noah was told, in Gen. 9:13 that God would ‘set’ his bow in the cloud. The word for cloud here is ‘ah-nan’, and is from the same root that we get ‘ah-nah’; to answer. ‘ah-nan’ can be seen as ‘ah-nah’, in plural form. Several times, this word ‘ah-nah’, which we normally think of as ‘answer’, is translated as ‘afflict’, ‘deal harshly’, and in Gen. 34:2 is translated as ‘defiled her’. In other words, sometimes the answer we receive is a harsh or punishing response. However, God told Noah, in Genesis 9:13 – 16, that He would set His “…bow in the cloud”. The word bow can be considered synonymous with ‘covenant’. And the word ‘ah-nan’ is also synonymous with answer, though sometimes translated as cloud. From this I believe that if we substitute the understanding of ‘bow’ as also being ‘covenant’, and the word ‘ah-nan’ as being cloud or answer, God is revealing that His covenant is revealed in His answer. Does God respond to sincere inquiries with harshness and cruelty? I don’t think so. Jesus never responded with harshness or cruelty.
When we look unto to Jesus as we study Scripture, we are able to keep the proper perspective as we ponder the Divine Intent found in the various stories. Let our faith be perfected by looking unto Jesus as our foundation for understanding The Word.