Hi Friends,

The Bible is the primary resource of instruction for living a life pleasing to God. It is not centered on our wants and desires, but on God’s purpose. He is our creator, and when we understand how we fit into His plan and purpose, we can see life from an entirely different perspective. Life is not just about eating, drinking, working and sleeping. The Bible is God’s instruction manual. The words on the pages are truth, and life. They are God’s will expressed in written form. When we find the Lord, we find peace, hope and love. As our relationship grows, we are able to hear his voice, and find contentment and joy in talking with him. But it begins with seeking him.

“You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13

The Vision - A Workbook

In this vision, I saw a workbook about 9 x 12 and 1/2” thick.  As I flipped through the pages from the back of the book towards the front, I noticed that on each of the right hand pages was a large printed purple block, with white letters.  This feature in most textbooks introduces a new chapter or topic. It can be a title block, or a means of calling attention to an important quote within the text. The two colors featured are purple, as the color of the text block and white as the color of the text itself.

In the days of antiquity, purple was a dye that was extremely expensive, so that only people of power and position could afford it.  So the color purple represents royalty, majesty and people of high position.  It also represents  wealth, prosperity and luxury.  The color white represents purity, and holiness.

The workbook is a study tool, used to enhance the primary book.  I believe that the Lord is showing us that we need to be diligent in our study of the Word of God, the Bible, which of course is the primary book. It is not enough to simply read, and make no attempt to understand the deeper meaning and revelation within its passages.  We are to apply the Word of God to our lives.  

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.   2 Timothy 3:16-17

The Bible contains the very words of God, and his teachings.  It contains the history of God’s relationship with his people.  It is the revealed will of God.  It contains the Law and the Old Covenant made between God’s people and himself.  It contains the judgments and the accounts of God’s faithfulness as described by his prophets.  And It contains the New Covenant and the Lord’s promises to his faithful people.  It is more than a book.  It is the heart of God.  It is our instruction book by which we live our lives.

For the word of God is alive and active.  Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.  Hebrews 4:12

 When we become born again, we are given a teacher, a counselor, and comforter, the Holy Spirit. He is the tutor for the Bible. He is the Spirit of God who leads us into all truth.  

“But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.  He will take from what is mine and make it known to you.  Everything that belongs to the Father is Mine. That is why I said that the Spirit will take from what is Mine and disclose it to you.”  John 16:13-15

The workbook had the purple block on every right hand page.  I believe that the purple has to do  with the kingdom of God, for many kings throughout the ages are clothed in purple.  Jesus is called the Word of God, and he is King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  He is also called Faithful and True.  So I believe that this purple block represents a quotation block. The quotation is of scripture, for the text is written in white letters, showing that the words that are written are holy, pure and true.  As we study the word of God truth is revealed, and we come into a greater understanding of the kingdom of God and God himself.

One of the most profound teachings is of the Holy Spirit living within the believer. We are created with a body, a soul (the mind, the will and the emotions), and a spirit. Our spirit is considered dead until we are made alive by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. We are also dead in our sins, until we are born again, and everything becomes new:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17

Another profound teaching concerns the kingdom of God. Even today, Christians are expecting the kingdom of God to come on this earth, when they do not understand the kingdom of God is already here. These are Jesus’ own words regarding the kingdom of God:

Jesus answered, “God’s kingdom is coming, but not in a way that you will be able to see with your eyes. People will not say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or, ‘There it is!’ because God’s kingdom is within you.” Luke 17:20-21

We are subjects of God’s kingdom right now. In fact, from a spiritual perspective (God’s perspective), we are ruling and reigning with Christ, right now.

But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved! And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus… Ephesians 2:4-6

Being human, and less aware of the spiritual dimension, we tend to think and believe only what we see.  Not everyone reads the scriptures for himself, but expects someone else to do it for him.  Because of this, and because there are churches that deny the gifts of the spirit, they will never expect or trust God for anything miraculous.  For they have accepted a lie that “the gifts and speaking in tongues are not for today.”  

Note:  the Bible does declare that “where there are tongues they will cease.”  But it is not because God takes them away.  It is because of apathy and leaders from long ago  who had became worldly in their thinking and less interested in pursuing God.  They could no longer hear his voice.  So, what were they to do?  They told others that ‘the spiritual gifts (miracles) are not for today.’   They gave up intimacy with the Lord, and the ability to pray in the Spirit.  They gave up the gifts that would have built up the church in its most holy  faith, and lost the presence and the power of God, for simply a pius demeanor.  One generation that denies the power of God, teaches the next.  So we have entire denominations that claim that speaking in tongues is “of the devil!”  I have spoken in tongues for 30 years.  I have prayed this way every single day of my life.  I am not an anomaly.  I am Spirit filled,  baptized in the Holy Spirit and able to hear the voice of God and pray and receive miracles.  I am merely a Christian.  We cannot afford to believe lies.  We have to set out in faith and believe God for signs, wonders, and miracles.  Let us not deny the power of God as others have:

“having a form of godliness but denying its power.”    2 Timothy 3:5

And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.   Hebrews 11:6

When we rely on God, putting our hope and all that we are, and all that we have, in the Lord’s hands, then our prayers and our declarations of truth found in scripture, will have a powerful effect in both the heavenly realm  and here on earth.  As true believers, our words carry spiritual authority. The word of God is the power of God. The Kingdom of God operates in conjunction with the Word of God. They are inseparable. Without the Word there is no power. Without faith there is no power. Without the knowledge of the kingdom of God and its empowerment by the Word of God, we are in the dark. Jesus expects us as his disciples to be effective.

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15

And when we understand the kingdom and know the word, placing our trust in the Lord we can do his will.

Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.  And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. John 14:12-14

Jesus and his disciples both raised the dead, healed the sick, cast out demons and performed many different signs and wonders. But when the Lord left the earth he sent the Holy Spirit to us, so that the power of God could be displayed in us. We have authority to affect things in the spirit realm so that things will manifest here, “on earth as it is in heaven!” Wasn’t that the Lord’s prayer? Isn’t that still his desire today, that his will is done on the earth as it is in heaven? When we are seated in heavenly places, in the spirit, while at the same time in the body on this earth, we are pushing back darkness with our prayers, and performing all the same miracles that Jesus did as he walked this earth. This of course takes faith. We have to trust God and believe that not only can he do miracles through us, it is his desire to do them, and in so doing, to bring glory to the Father.

“All things are possible to him who believes.” Mark 9:23

It was Jesus’ desire that his disciples would move in the power of the Holy Spirit. He wanted them to not simply believe that he could perform miracles, but that they could also. He did not just send out his twelve disciples. On one occasion, he sent out seventy two of them at the same time, giving them these instructions:

Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.  Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.

 “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you.  Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’  But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say,  ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’ I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.

“Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.”

The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”

He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.  I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.  However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Luke 10:3-4, 8-12, 16-20

What is also important to see is that his disciples were sent with a purpose: to preach that “the kingdom of God is near.” Jesus wanted all people to realize that He was the long awaited Messiah. The disciples were to demonstrate the power of the kingdom of God to confirm their message. People saw that even his disciples were able to show the power of God through miracles, healings and deliverances. By their words, the power of God was seen. The kingdom of God is not a physical government or authority, but a spiritual rule over all creation.

Jesus wants us to accept the authority we have been given and use it to the Father’s glory.

And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.  Luke 22:29-30

I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”  Matthew 16:19

Jesus spent much time teaching about the kingdom of God, (also known as the kingdom of heaven). Most often he taught through His parables:

• He likens the kingdom of God to a pearl of such great value that a man sells everything so as to obtain it. 

• He likens the kingdom of heaven to a mustard seed, which is exceptionally small but when planted, and fully grown, it becomes so large that birds can nest in its branches. 

• He likens it to yeast, that when kneaded into the dough it is able to leaven the whole batch.

• He likens the kingdom of God to a fisherman’s net which captures fish that are then sorted into two groups: those that are good are collected into baskets and those that are bad are thrown out.

“This is how it will be at the end of the age.  The angels will  come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”  Matthew 13:49-50

These parables concerning the kingdom of God, demonstrate the importance of understanding their full meaning.  At the conclusion of a series of parables, Jesus told his disciples:

“Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.  This is why I speak to them in parables: Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.  In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:

‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’

But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.  For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.” Matthew 13:11-17

The secrets of the kingdom of God were not made known to the prophets before Jesus came and revealed them to his disciples. Today, we are blessed to be able to read about the kingdom in his word. The Lord commanded his disciples before he departed from the earth, to go and share the good news of the kingdom of heaven. The Lord’s command to preach the good news is for our commissioning as well.

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20

The Lord wants none to be lost, so we need to be able to share the Word of God with others. How can we share the gospel if we do not know what we believe? How can we please him and have the assurance of salvation, if we are blind to his word, and have no genuine relationship with Him?

It is his word that convicts us of sin.  It is his word that reveals his heart towards us.  It is his word that tells us who we are in him.  It is his word that instructs us how to live to please Him.  It is the word of God that is truth, the very truth that sets us free.  And it is his word that tells us how the kingdom of God operates.  If we do not know his word, we will not know the power that it carries.  For the word has power to overcome our own flesh and the enemy: Satan and his demons.  

Jesus used the word of God to defeat the devil when he was tempted in the wilderness.  Over and over again, Jesus said “It is written…It is written.”  He quoted scripture to overcome the temptation to sin.

The devil, expecting Jesus to be weak after 40 days without food, tempted him to use his supernatural power to prove that he was the Son of God. The devil tempted him to turn the stones into bread.  Jesus refused by declaring:  

“It is written: Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”  Matthew 4:4 

Jesus not only negated the temptation, but he declared something that we all need to appreciate:  the Word of God is our very sustenance!

We should do as he did.  If we have the word of God, in our hearts and in our minds, then when temptation comes, the Holy Spirit will remind us of the word which in turn empowers us to do the right thing.

“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”  Psalm 119:11

The word is also important, for it is our weapon against the devil and his demons.  It is called “the sword of the spirit,” and it is what we use to defend ourselves.  It is our offensive weapon too.  

 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.  In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Ephesians 6:14-17

So the kingdom of God operates in power when we declare His word.  We wield the sword of the Spirit when we speak the word of God over our circumstances. If we do not know his word, our sword will remain in its sheath.  But when we know the word and declare it, the angels will hear the word and move to perform it. 

Bless the Lord, you His angels, who excel in strength, who do His word, heeding the voice of His word.  Psalm 103:20  

When we are fully submitted and under the authority of God, we will be able to move in power, bringing Him glory. It is the declaration of the Word which creates and brings our prayers into fruition.

Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit. Proverbs 18:21

So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:11

So if you have not as yet committed yourself to the reading and studying of the Bible, I am encouraging you to do so, for everyone needs to know God’s heart and understand the kingdom of God.  Let’s commit ourselves to knowing him personally, to seeking the kingdom and his righteousness.   Let’s commit to the long haul, not giving up or giving into the devil.  The Lord wants us all to overcome.  

“To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”  Revelation 2:7

Please share this with others. We want the kingdom of God to be well equipped and to prosper for the glory of God! God bless you and your family!