signs and wonders

"Why do so many people seek after signs and wonders?"

Answer: Our God is a God of wonders (Psalm 136:3-4). As the Creator and Sustainer of all that is, God has the power to suspend natural laws in order to fulfill His purposes. Miracles were a part of the ministries of Moses, Elijah and Elisha, and of course Jesus and the apostles, and their miracles primarily served the purpose of confirming their message as being from God (Hebrews 2:3-4). Today, many people still seek to experience the miraculous, and some will go to great lengths to have that experience. There may be many reasons for such a desire, and Scripture gives us at least five:

1. Some people seek after signs and wonders because they want confirmation of the truth of God. There is nothing inherently wrong with this desire. In fact, God willingly gave signs to Moses (Exodus 4:1-9) and Gideon (Judges 6:11-22) to confirm His word. Miracles can aid a person’s coming to faith, as in John 2:23, “Many people saw the miraculous signs he was doing and believed in his name.”

However, there comes a time when enough miracles have been performed—the truth has been proved—and it is time to exercise faith. When Moses hesitated to obey after a series of miracles at the burning bush, “the LORD’s anger burned” (Exodus 4:14).

Also, it is nobler in God’s sight to believe without needing a miracle. Jesus visited the Samaritans, and “because of his words many more became believers” (John 4:41, emphasis added). Just a few verses later, Jesus rebukes the Galileans: “Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders . . . you will never believe” (John 4:48). Unlike the Samaritans, the people of Galilee required signs and wonders.

2. Some people seek after signs and wonders because they do not believe the signs and wonders which have already been performed. The Pharisees of Matthew 12 were just such a lot. Jesus had been performing miracles for quite some time when a group of scribes and Pharisees came to Him with an insolent demand to see another sign. In response, Jesus condemned them as “wicked and adulterous” (Matthew 12:38-39).

They were “wicked” in that they refused to believe the signs and wonders Christ had already performed. “In spite of his wonders, they did not believe” (Psalm 78:32). Their hearts were hardened towards the truth, even after numerous public miracles. Nothing would make them believe; their hearts were as pharaoh’s, hardened after witnessing so many of Moses’ miracles in Egypt (Exodus 9:34-35).

They were “adulterous” in the spiritual sense, having left the true worship of God to follow a man-made set of rules and traditions. Not satisfied with the miracles Jesus was doing, they demanded something even greater. As commentator Matthew Barnes puts it, “They looked for signs of their own devising.” So entrenched was their rejection of Christ that, when later presented with the “sign of the prophet Jonah” (Christ’s resurrection, Matthew 12:39-40), they still would not believe.

3. Some people seek after signs and wonders because they seek an occasion to excuse their unbelief. There were people in Jesus’ day who “tested” Him by seeking a sign (Matthew 16:1; Luke 11:16). Since they specified that the sign be “from heaven,” they most likely wanted something spectacular, similar to Elijah’s calling down fire from the sky (1 Kings 18:38) or Isaiah’s causing the sun to reverse course (Isaiah 38:8). Probably, their “test” was designed to be something “too big” for Jesus to accomplish—they simply hoped He would attempt it and fail in the attempt.

4. Some people seek after signs and wonders because they are curious thrill-seekers. Like the crowds in John 6:2 and King Herod in Luke 23:8, they want to see something sensational, but they have no real desire to know the truth of Christ.

5. Some people seek after signs and wonders because they hope to get something for themselves. After Jesus fed the multitudes, a large crowd followed Him to the other side of Galilee. Jesus saw their true motivation, however, and rebuked it: “I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill” (John 6:26). The crowd’s desire was not to know Christ or even to see more miracles; it was simply to fill their stomachs again.

Better than seeking after a new miracle is taking God at His Word. Simple faith is more pleasing to the Lord than a reliance on a dazzling sensory experience. “Jesus told him, ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed’” (John 20:29).

KNOWING MORE ABOUT SPIRITUAL REALM_ well detailed

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. This was not just earth and sky. "The heavens" is the biblical name for the spiritual world that exists in parallel to the physical world. God created a multi-dimensional universe. We can only see the three dimensions of physical space plus time, so we assume that is all that exists. The spiritual dimensions consist of many more dimensions of reality beyond what we can see.
We cannot see into the spiritual world due to the effects of sin, so we think that the physical world we see makes up most of the universe. This leads us to assume that the authority systems that we see on earth are important, but we miss the parallel authority systems that exist in the spiritual realms and frequently interact with the authority system on earth. To understand the full working of authority, we need a thorough understanding of the way that authority functions in the spiritual realms, and how it affects events on earth.
Growing up in the modern world, we are taught that the physical world is all that is important. If something cannot be scientifically observed, it is not real. We all imbibe this materialistic understanding of the world during our education and daily lives. We think that the physical world that we live in is all that exists.

The physical realms consist of the earth, the sea and the sky. It includes people and the things they have made. This realm of life can be partitioned into two parts. The people who live according to Gods will are part of the Kingdom of God. Those who reject God's will belong to "the world" (1 John 2:15-17). In reality, these two groups are mixed up together and interact with each other all the time. I have only portrayed them separately for the purpose of illustration.

Spiritual Realms

Christians need a new worldview, that that sees the spiritual realms operating over and alongside the physical realms. We need an awareness of authority in the spiritual realms, if we are to understand the functioning of authority here on earth.
Part of the problem is that we see God as "way up there" far away from our world. We think of heaven as a distant place that we go to where we die. This is short sighted.

Heaven is not a distant place where God lives. Nor is just a place that we go to when we die. The Bible refers to the "heavenlies" as a label for the spiritual realms that exist alongside the physical world. The spiritual realms are just as real as the physical world that we can see. These two realms overlap and interact with each other.

We live in a multi-dimensional universe in which the spiritual dimensions exist in parallel to our three-dimensional physical world. The spiritual realms operate in continuity with the physical/natural world that we observe. Most humans cannot see into the spiritual dimensions, so we can only observe the physical side of existence. However, events in our physical world are shaped by activities in the spiritual realm. When we look at the physical world in isolation, we miss much of what is happening in the universe.
God operates in the spiritual dimensions of reality, but he also created and sustains the physical world. After the creation, the Holy Spirit remained close to the earth.

The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters (Gen 1:2).

The Spirit was not in a distant place. The spiritual realms where he operates hover over the earth. The spiritual dimensions of reality are not way out at the edge of the universe, they exist in parallel to the physical world in which we live. These two realms of existence interact with each other in ways that we often cannot see, and fail to understand.
I am not sure how many Christians understand these things. Three hundred years ago, almost everyone understood their world in this way. Many people in Africa still think this way, although they focus to much on the dark side of the spiritual. Now, under the relentless pressure of education and the enlightenment, interest in the spiritual dimension of life is labelled old fashioned and superstitious.
I also wonder how many Christians understand these things, but do not live them. How many live as if the spiritual realms are irrelevant?
Many Christians are looking inward to establish connecting with the Holy Spirit. This is good, but if we ignore what is happening in the spiritual realms that surround us, we will misunderstand much of what happens in the world. Most Christians need a vastly expanded worldview.
The previous picture correctly shows how the spiritual and physical realms overlap each other. However, in the remainder of the article, I will place the spiritual realms just above the physical realms so that the interactions between them can be illustrated, but we must always remember that these two worlds overlap and exist in parallel to each other.

Multi-dimensional

The spiritual realms are not limited to three dimensions like our physical world. The Bible does not tell us how many more, but the fact that it is more complex than our three-dimension world means that it is hard for our minds to understand. The spiritual aspect of life can be thought of as additional dimensions beyond the three core dimensions of length, height and breadth. The spiritual world is not another world in another place, but additional dimensions to the physical world we observe.
An even better way might be to think of the physical world as three additional dimensions tacked on to a multi-dimension spiritual world. The spiritual world is more real than the physical world, so this latter view is most likely correct, but it is very hard for us to handle, because our eyes are calibrated for a physical world. Our eyes are so attuned to seeing a three-dimensional world, that we find anything grander difficult to conceive.
Paul visited the spiritual realms in a vision. He was dramatically affected by what he saw, but he could not describe it (2 Cor 12:2-4). His problem was that human language is designed for describing a physical world, so it cannot cope with spiritual reality. He explained that,

Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, and no human mind has conceived (1 Cor 2:9).

We need spiritual insight to understand what is happening in the spiritual dimension. That is why Paul prayed that the "eyes our hearts may be enlightened' (Eph 1:18).

Seeing Changed

Prior to the fall, Adam and Eve could see into the spiritual world. They were able to walk with God in the cool of the evenings and speak directly to him. They were able to see the devil, when he came to tempt them. His activity in the spiritual dimensions, made him appear snakelike from a physical perspective.

This situation did not last longs. When Adam and Eve sinned, their sight was changed so that they could no longer see into the spiritual realms.

The Bible says their eyes were opened, and they realized they were naked (Gen 3:7). This statement is a huge irony. Their eyes were actually closed to the spiritual realms. When they could see the brilliant glory of the heavenly realms, their observation of the physical world was dimmed, and they did not notice they were naked. Once the light of heavenly glory was turned off, their view of the physical world was greatly intensified, so they realised for the first time that they were naked.
After his death and resurrection, Jesus gained a spiritual body, which enabled him to interact more freely with the spiritual world. After death, those who believe in Jesus will be given new spiritual bodies. This will enable us to interact with the spiritual dimensions in the same way that Adam and Eve did before the fall. We will be able to see the glory of the total universe that God created. We will be blown by the glory of the spiritual realms and the wonder of the physical world will be diminished.

Authority

Authority is the ability to give a command and be certain that it will be carried out. Originally, God has absolute authority in the spiritual realms. The angels all do his bidding instantly.

Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word (Psalm 103:19-21).

All the angels accepted the authority of God and followed the directions of his Spirit.
At some point, a third of the angels rebelled against God's authority. We do not know if this was before, or after, humans were created. Satan set up an alternative kingdom, under some semblance of his authority. I presume these angels grew tired of being subservient to God and wanted independent authority for themselves.
God created the earth and placed humans in it. He gave authority over the earth to the people he created, but kept authority in heaven for himself (Gen 1:26).
Satan wrested authority from Adam and Eve by persuading them to believe a lie. This gave his spiritual forces of wickedness a place in heaven and authority over the earth, but it was stolen authority. The devil also wheedled a place in the spiritual realms by acting as accuser /prosecutor of God's people before the presence of God (Job 1:6, Rev 12:10).

Sin and the fall destroyed the unity that had existed in the spiritual realms. God still dominates the spiritual realms, and two thirds of the angels remained loyal to him. However, Satan drew together the angels that had rebelled with him and squeezed them into an alternative power structure in one corner of the spiritual world.
Division in the spiritual realms extenuated the division on earth. The struggle between the Kingdom of God and the world became more intense. In places where the spiritual forces of evil gained control, darkness prevailed.
The spiritual forces of wickedness are not all viciously evil. A few have a real passion for evil, but most a just looking for opportunities to promote their own power and position. Many of them are deceivers and others specialise in producing anger or fear. Sometimes they actively do nasty stuff to good people, but most of the time the just produce chaos and disorder. There will be time when evil gets a hold in the world by working through an evil dictator like Adolf Hitler or Joseph Stalin. Mostly the effect of the fall is chaos and shambles. This contrasts with the peach and wisdom of the Kingdom of God.

Interactions

Interaction between the spiritual sphere and the physical world are critical to the operation of authority in both spheres. These interactions go both ways. (The picture describes a situation where the influence of the kingdom has increased beyond the dark days of the fall.)

The angels live in the spiritual dimensions, but have the ability to move between the spiritual and physical worlds. The spiritual forces of evil are fallen angels with the same ability to move between the spiritual and physical dimensions. They operate in the spiritual realm, but they can cross over into the physical realm to work evil.
Angels and evil spirits can touch our physical world in only once place at one time. This limits what they can do on earth. In contrast, the Holy Spirit is present everywhere on earth at any time. This gives him unlimited power and makes him far greater than any angel and much greater reach than the devil.

1. Spiritual to Physical

The battle in the spiritual sphere has a strong influence on events on earth. Paul explained this in his letter to the Ephesians.

Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Eph 6:11-12).

Paul reminds us that when we are dealing with people and events on earth, they are being manipulated by spiritual forces that we cannot see.
The spiritual powers of evil are attracted to authority and people with authority. If they can influence a person with authority, they can amplify their power on earth. When Daniel was praying about the situation of the exiles in Persia, God revealed that the power driving the situation was a spiritual being called the Prince of Persia.

But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia (Dan 10:13).

The spiritual power had to be defeated in the spiritual realms, before the situation would change in Persia.
Changes in government, whether by military coup or election, often change nothing. The reason is that nothing has changed in the spiritual realms.
Influences from the spiritual realms explain why economic crises occur, when economist's thing the situation is improving.
Spiritual influences explain why war breaks out when peace looks permanent, as in 1914.

2. Physical to Spiritual

Interactions between earth and heaven flow both ways. Events in earth often cause changes in the spiritual realms.
Daniels prayers released the archangel Michael to constrain the spiritual being called the Prince of Persia (Dan 10:13). This enabled the other angel to speak to Daniel on Earth. This changed the situation for the exiles in Persia and they eventually returned to the Promised Land.
Angels and evil spirits do not have unlimited authority to move on the earth. God has given authority over the earth to humans (Gen 1:26), so they can only get involved if humans with the relevant authority give them permission (and evil spirits will cheat when they can). This means that beings in the spiritual realms are constrained by people on earth.
I explain how people on earth influence events in the spiritual realms in Prayer and Authority.

Authority Struggle

John challenged Christians to avoid becoming entangled in the world.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them (1 John 2:15).

The Greek word for "world" is kosmos. It is not just the physical world. John used this word to describe the world system. It describes a system that is controlled by the devil and his forces of evil and the people and things under their influence.

The Kingdom of God is everyone and everything that freely submits to God's will, whether in the spiritual and physical realms.

History of Interaction between the Realms

The Bible tells the story of interactions between the physical and spiritual realms. During Old Testament times, the interactions were infrequent, because God did not have authority to get actively involved in the world. Following the cross and Pentecost the interaction between the spiritual and physical realms increased significantly.

Jacob

Jacob was given a clear view of this interaction at the place he called Bethel (house of God).

He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the LORD (Gen 28:12).

In his dream, Jacob saw a stairway between the spiritual realms and the physical realms. God was in the spiritual realm at the top. Jacob was in the physical world at the bottom. They seemed to be really close. The angels were travelling between the spiritual realms with God towards the physical world. They were not able to go out into the physical world, because no one had given them authority to act on earth. That is why they turned and went back up the stairway again.
Jacob did not fully understand what he saw. He assumed that heaven and earth were only close at this place, so he set up a stone pillar, so he could find it again. He promised to give a tenth of what he received to God (Gen 28:22). God did not need his wealth. He wanted him to understand that they spiritual realms are close all over the earth, wherever people seek God with open hearts. God wanted Jacob to pray, so his angels would have authority to go to work on earth.

Moses

Moses gained a glimpse into the spiritual realms, before God called him into his ministry.

There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, "Moses! Moses!" (Ex 3:2,4).

The Burning Bush was not a miraculous sign to dazzle Moses. God wanted Moses to understand that the spiritual realms were close to the world of a lonely shepherd. God was able to speak to Moses from the bush, because the spiritual realms touch the physical world. Learning this truth enabled Moses to hear God speak wherever he went. Hearing God's voice was critical for his ministry. This why he was a great prophet (Deut 34:10).
When Moses led the children out of Israel out of Egypt, God travelled in front in a cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night (Ex 40:36). He led Moses and his people to Mount Sinai.

Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently (Ex 19:17-18).

The people saw this intervention of the spiritual realms into the physical world. God came close and gave Moses the law. Before they moved into the promised land, god wanted the people to understand that the spiritual realm was close, wherever they went.

When Moses and the people had built the tabernacle, it became a place of connection between the spiritual realms and the physical realms.

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle (Ex 40:34-35).

The tabernacle was a place where the people of God could go to interact with the spiritual realms.

Job

The book of Job is really important, because it explains why evil occurs on earth. Innocent people often suffer, because the devil has a go at them to prove a point in heaven. When Satan left the presence of God to work his evil on earth:

• Fire came down from heavens and destroyed his flocks of sheep.
• The Sabeans attacked and stole all his oxen and donkeys.
• The Chaldeans attacked and carried off all his camels.
• A wind blew from the dessert and destroyed the house of his youngest son. His children, who were in the house, were also killed.

These events seemed to be natural disasters, so insurance companies would call them Acts of God. However, we know from Job 1 that they were the works of the evil one and his spiritual forces. When Job continued to honour God, the devil decided on a second attack. He afflicted Job with boils. A doctor would say that Job had caught an infection, because he was run down by his grief, but we know something different was going on. The sickness was a direct attack from the spiritual realms by an angry devil.

Prophets

The prophets are often perceived to be people who could predict the future, but this is a distortion of their true role. The prophets were called to act as intermediaries between the spiritual and physical worlds for people who could not see. Jeremiah said that prophets see in the spiritual realms and convey to the people what they are seeing.

But if they had stood in my council,
they would have proclaimed my words to my people
and would have turned them from their evil ways
and from their evil deeds (Jer 33:22).

The false prophets spoke for their own minds. The prophets could see into the spiritual realms and they explained to the people what they saw.
Ezekiel had an amazing vision at the beginning of his ministry. He saw wheels moving in unison.

When the living creatures moved, the wheels beside them moved; and when the living creatures rose from the ground, the wheels also rose. Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, and the wheels would rise along with them, because the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels (Ez 1:19-20).

Ezekiel did not have an encounter with a UFO of a piece of modern art. God opened his eyes to see into the spiritual realms. What he saw was so amazing, that he struggled to describe what he saw. He used words like jewels and spinning wheels to give his listeners and understanding of what he saw, but these words mostly failed him.
Isaiah's ministry began when he saw into the heavenly realms in a vision.

I saw the Lord, high and exalted seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were angels, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying (Is 6:1-2).

Understanding that the spiritual realm ran parallel to earth assisted Isaiah to function in his ministry as a prophet.
When their city was surrounded by an army of horses and chariots, Elisha opened the eyes of his servant so he could see what was happening in the spiritual realms.

Elisha prayed, "Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha (2 Kings 6:17).

The servant only saw the horse and chariots of the enemy army. He needed his eyes opened to see the huge army in the spiritual realms that was ready to support and protect Elisha. They blinded the army, so he could humiliate them by leading them into the centre of the city (2 Kings 18-23).
When Ahab and Jehoshaphat were planning to go to war against Syria, Miciah saw what was happening in the spiritual realms.

I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the multitudes of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left. And the LORD said, "Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there"... A spirit came forward, stood before the LORD and said, "I will entice him... I will go out and be a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all his prophets" "You will succeed in enticing him," said the LORD. "Go and do it" (1 King 22:19-22).

The false prophets believed that Ahab would win the war. Miciah had spiritual insight, so he realised that Ahab would die. He saw what was going on in the spiritual realms and knew that Ahab was in trouble.
When Elijah was on Mount Carmel, his prophesying released an intervention from the spiritual realms.

Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench (1 Kings 18:38).

The power to destroy the wood and the altar came from the heavenly realms. When Elijah fled to the cave on Mount Horeb, another intervention occurred.

The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by" (1 Kings 19:11).

Elijah went outside the cave and saw a great gale, followed by a fire, followed by a gentle whisper. He knew that God was not a fire or a wind, but understood that he had seen into the spiritual realms. God spoke to him and gave him instructions for the remainder of his ministry.

Jesus

When Jesus came to earth, he was constrained as a man to operating in the physical world. However, he had not fallen into sin, so he still had access to the spiritual realms while on earth (he is the one wearing a crown in the picture.)

• His baptism was an encounter with the spiritual realms. People watching saw a dove descending on Jesus. It was not a real dove, but an intrusion of the Holy Spirit from the spiritual realms. This was confirmed by the voice speaking from there (Matt 3:16-17).
• Jesus temptation was a different kind of encounter with the spiritual realms. The devil spoke to and tried to divert him from obedience to the Father. This was an amazing contest that ended differently from the original encounter with Adam and Eve. It resulted in the devil leaving and the angels caring for Jesus (Matt 3:11).
• Jesus regularly drew aside to commune with the father.
  

  Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed (Mark 1:35).

  He needed frequent interaction with the spiritual realms.
• Jesus ministry always originated in heaven. He only did what he saw the Father doing (John 5:19).
  

  The Father loves the Son and shows him all he does (John 5:20).

  He knew what to do because he could see into the spiritual realms.
• Jesus did not respond to what people said and did, but what he saw in the spiritual realms. He was able to tell Nathaniel what he had been doing.
  

  I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you (John 1:48).

• A different kind of spiritual interaction occurred when Jesus was crossing the lake in a boat. When they were in the middle of the lake, a terrible storm struck. This was not an ordinary. Mark describes it as a "great storm of wind" (Mark 4:37). Matthew says a great shaking (seismos) occurred in the sea. (Matt 8:24). The men in the boat were experienced sailors, but they were filled with terror, because they realised they could be destroyed.
  This was not just another storm. Most storms are caused by strong wind. This was caused by something stirring the sea. The forces of darkness understood that Jesus was a risk to them. Now he had started his ministry the risk was becoming clear. He was casting out demons, and they were powerless. He was healing the people they had inflicted with sickness. They knew that they had to deal with him, before he really got going. So they stirred up the sea and the wind in an effort to kill Jesus.
  When the disciples woke Jesus, he understood what was happening. He rebuked wind in the same way as he rebuked evil spirits that he was casting out. He spoke to the said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still" (Mark 4:39)! Speaking to an "act of nature" is a pointless waste of time, but Jesus knew the storm was demonic. He seemed to be speaking to the wind and the waves, but he was actually speaking to the evil spirits who were at work in both.
  The disciples just saw a storm. Jesus realised that in the spiritual realms, a host of evil spirits had stirred up the wind and the sea in an effort to destroy him. There were other boats on the Sea of Galilee that night (Mk 4:36), but the spirits focussed the attack on his boat. Jesus understood his authority, so he rebuked the evil spirits. I presume that when he spoke, a host of powerful angels forced the evil spirits off the lake. That is why the wind and the waves instantly calmed.
  Unlike a natural storm, this storm came without warning and ended suddenly. Much is made of the unpredictability of storms on the Galilee, but Jesus disciples knew how to read the weather signs (Luke 12:54) and would not have gone out if a storm was brewing. This storm ended as quickly as it started, because its source was demonic.
• At the Transfiguration, Jesus took Peter and John into the spiritual realms.
  

  Moses and Elijah appeared before them, talking with Jesus (Matt 17:3).

  It appeared to them that Moses and Elijah had come down to earth. The reality was that Jesus parted the curtain between physical and the spiritual realms, so could see were these men were living with God.
• Jesus had come from the spiritual realms, so he was familiar with their operation. He knew he could call for a spiritual intention into events whenever he chose.
  

  Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels (Matt 26:53).

  Jesus knew the spiritual powers could overwhelm the greatest power political empire on earth.
• When Jesus was on the cross carrying the weight of human sin, he was totally separated from good side of the spiritual realms. They evil forces in the spiritual realms were able to torment him. This was the source of his desolation.
  

  My God, my God, why have you forsaken me (Matt 27:46).

  Jesus' pain demonstrates the importance of understanding the spiritual realms.

Ascension

At the ascension, Jesus appeared to go up into the air and behind a cloud, but he was really moving back into the spiritual realms from which he had come

Because the eyes of the disciples were calibrated to seeing the physical world, he seemed to go into the sky and disappear. If they could have seen with spiritual eyes, they would have realised that he had simply moved across the divide into the spiritual realms.

Pentecost

Sin closed the spiritual realms off from human sight. Jesus death and resurrection dealt with the problem of sin. His ascension opened up the spiritual realms for those who trust in him. Jesus followers perceived by faith what he had seen naturally. The Day of Pentecost was a massive intervention from the spiritual realms.

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them (Acts 2:1-4).

The spiritual realms opened up and observers heard and saw a violent wind and fire. The believers were filled with the Holy Spirit, which gave them continuous access to the spiritual realms. They were equipped to speak languages that could be understood in the spiritual realms, but not by people on earth.
Spiritual gifts are an intervention from the spiritual realms into the physical world.

Now concerning spiritual gifts, I do not want you to be ignorant... There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work... All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines (1 Cor 12:1,4-6,11).

Paul said we should be informed about "spiritual gifts". However, the word gift is missing from the original text. A more precise translation would say, "I want you to know about the spirituals". Paul wants us to know about the spiritual realms, so we can facilitate intervention from there into the spiritual world by exercising them.
When I speak in tongues, I am speaking a language from the spiritual realms that other humans cannot understand. Receiving a word of knowledge is hearing words being spoken in the spiritual realms. I hear them because I am walking in the Spirit and he enables me to hear what is being said in the "room' next door. The people who are stuck in this room need me to tell them what is being spoken on the other side of the wall. A word of wisdom is insight received from the spiritual realms. These spiritual gifts support our interaction with the spiritual realms.

Early Church

Stephen was filled with the Spirit (Acts 6:5), so when he was about to be stoned, he described what he could see in the spiritual realms.

When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. "Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God" (Acts 7:54-56).

The Jewish leaders saw a man preaching. Stephen saw Jesus seated at the right hand of God. That was the reality that was shaping events on earth.
When Peter was in prison, he was released by a spiritual intervention.

Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. "Quick, get up!" he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists (Acts 12:7).

King Herod had locked Peter up. Something different was happening in the spiritual realms, so he was set free.

Unveiling

When John's life was drawing to a close, he was given a unique ability to see into the spiritual realms.

On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: "Write on a scroll what you see and send it"... I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me (Rev 1:10-12).

He did not have the words to describe what he saw, so he took words like emerald, crystal, rainbow, glass, sea, thunder, gold, lampstand, snow, that describe some of the most amazing things in this world, and jumbled them up to describe what he saw in spiritual realms. We should not assume these are literal descriptions. John was doing his best with words designed for describing a three-dimensional world, but he was actually describing the indescribable.
The Greek word translated "revelation" is "apokalupsis" (Rev 1:1). . It means unveiling or uncovering. Our focus on the physical dimensions of life hides the spiritual dimensions and gives us a false view of reality. The spiritual world was unveiled for John and he got a glimpse of reality as the angels see it. Jesus gave him this revelation to show that our view of reality is only half the truth.
The world assumes that a visionary person sees something that is half-real. The truth is opposite. The physical world that we see with our human eyes is only half of reality. The spiritual world unveiled to John in his vision is the other half that we usually miss. John struggled to grasp all that his prophetic eyes saw, but he carefully recorded everything for the benefit of those coming after him. The main purpose of the book of Revelation is to increase our awareness of the spiritual realms. To get a true perspective on reality, we must see things in heaven and things on earth together. Revelation gives us the other side of reality.
John gained a massive insight into what was happening in the spiritual realms, but he found it difficult to do justice to the beauty of the spiritual glory.

Parousia

When Jesus returns at the end of the age, the gap between the spiritual world and the physical world will be completely removed and everyone will be able to see into the spiritual realms. The appearance of Jesus will be a massive interjection of the spiritual dimension into our physical world.
Jesus return will bring a change of seeing. The spiritual realms that are currently hidden from the people on earth will be opened up for everyone to see. Paul wrote of the "manifestation of Jesus' appearance" (2 Thes 2:8). He was explaining that the spiritual dimensions will open and be visible to everyone on earth.
The limits of our human seeing make the physical world appear bright and real. The spiritual dimension seems distant and dim to us, as it must be perceived by faith. When our seeing is changed, the physical world will fade into obscurity. As the spiritual world comes into clearer focus, we will be stunned by its glory. Jesus does not come back to earth. He appears when the spiritual world is opened and joined with the physical world for everyone to see.

When our spiritual eyes are opened to see clearly, the spiritual dimensions of life will suddenly be real. When the curtain is pulled back, the indescribable glory of Jesus will be revealed. Once they can see reality clearly, everyone on earth will see Jesus seated on the throne at the right hand of the Father. He has always been there, but from a human perspective, he will seem to have appeared.
The appearance of the earth and sky will be totally changed. With the physical and spiritual dimensions merged, earth will seem much less grand. Physical things will not have changed, but we will be seeing them in correct perspective for the first time. We think that space is immense, but when we see the spiritual realms, it will suddenly seem small. As we see the glory of the spiritual realms for the first time, Jesus will be revealed, while earth and space shrink away.

Interaction Now

To do God's will on earth, we must understand what is being done in heaven. We do not need to indulge in occult practices to get this understanding. That would place us in bondage. We learn about events in the spiritual realms by listening to the Holy Spirit. He sees and hears everything spoken in the spiritual realms.

When he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. All that belongs to the Father is mine... The Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you (John 16:13,15).

The Spirit knows everything that is happening in the spiritual realms. An important part of his role is telling us what Jesus and the Father are saying and doing. Jesus promised that he would reveal it Gods will to us. Once we know his will, we can declare it and pray it into being.
Hearing the truth proclaimed in the spiritual realms is essential. For God's will to be done on earth, he needs humans living on the earth to give him authority to do his will here. Paul explains how the Holy Spirit teaches us God's will.

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person's thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us (1 Cor 2:10-13).

God declares his will in the spiritual realms. If we listen to his Spirit, he will tell us all that we need to know. The next verse is a key.

This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words (1 Cor 2:13).

This verse is important. Human wisdom misses half of what is happening in this universe. True wisdom results from being taught by the Spirit. He explains spiritual realities to us in Spirit-taught words.

The Holy Spirits speaks, an tells us what God is saying (John 14:25). He also shows what is happening in the spiritual realms (John 16:14).
People who reject the Holy Spirit's calling cannot understand the importance of the spiritual realms.

The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit (1 Cor 2:14).

They cannot be seen through human eyes. This is why the rulers of the world are blind to what is really happening.

None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory (1 Cor 2:8).

Herod and Pilate thought they were getting rid of a minor political nuisance. In fact, they were bringing about a massive victory in the spiritual realms that would change the direction of history. They were releasing the Kingdom of God, which would sweep away their kingdoms and continue forever.
Pauls concludes this bit of teaching by saying that we have the "mind of Christ" (1 Cor 2:16). That does not mean that we are theological educated, or even that we understand the truth. We have the mind of the spiritually anointed one, if we can understand the interaction between the spiritual and the physical realms. We receive this understanding by listening to the voice of the Spirit.
In his letter to the Colossians, Paul explained why this is important.

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God (Col 3:1-3).

We are easily distracted by things that happen in the world. That is mistake. We have been raised up with Jesus, so we should fix our hearts on the things that are happening in the spiritual realms. Paul goes on to explain why.

When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory (Col 3:4).

When Jesus appears, what we have established in the spiritual realms will be revealed. The houses and businesses that we have built on earth will wither into insignificance.

Kingdom Come

When Jesus was teaching his disciples to pray, he taught them how to pray in the Kingdom of God.

Your will be done in the earthly realms, as it is done in the spiritual realms (Matt 6:10).

In the spiritual realms, the angels rush to do the Father's will (Ps 103:20). The kingdom comes on earth when people rush to do his bidding in the same way as the angel in the spiritual realms. When the Holy Spirit prompts and people follow his guidance, the kingdom will come.
Paul said the same thing in a different way when he explained that God's goal for history is for there to be unity between the spiritual and physical realms.

He made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfilment-to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ (Eph 1:9-10).

When the times are fulfilled, things in both the spiritual and the physical realms will come into unity by being submitted to Jesus. His kingdom will have come when all authority in heaven and on earth has been brought back under him.
I often hear Christians say that they are going to change, because God has released angel of victory, or has opened the windows of heaven. Yet nothing really changes. These voices are confused, because they do not understand that God does not have a free hand to do what he likes on earth. He has given authority on earth to humans. He has provided everything we need through the cross and the Spirit. He needs humans with authority to release him to deliver what Jesus established.

"SURRENDERING TO GOD"

"What does it mean to surrender to God?"

Answer: This world is a battleground. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:17-19), the world God created has been in conflict with Him (Romans 8:20-22). Satan is called the "god of this world" (2 Corinthians 4:4), and due to Adam's sin, we are born on his team (Romans 5:12). John Bunyan pictured this conflict in his allegory The Holy War. Prince Emmanuel besieges the city of Mansoul to wrest it from the power of Diabolus. Unfortunately, the citizens of Mansoul are blindly committed to Diabolus and fight against Emmanuel, to their own detriment.

MUSTARD SEED FAITH

"What does it mean to have mustard seed faith?"

Answer: Faith is so vital to the Christian life that Scripture tells us that, without it, it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Yet faith is such a powerful gift from God (Ephesians 2:8–9) Christ told His disciples that, with just a tiny measure of it, the size of a mustard seed, they could move mountains. So, what does it mean to have “mustard seed faith”?

We see the reference to “mustard seed faith” twice in Scripture. First, in Matthew 17:14–20, we see Christ’s disciples unable to exorcise a demon from a young boy, even though Jesus had previously given them the authority to do this very thing (Matthew 10:1). When they inquired of Jesus why they were not able to drive the demon out, the Master replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there’ and it will move; Nothing will be impossible for you” (Matthew 17:14–20). Next, in Luke 17:6, Jesus tells His disciples, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.” By using the uncommonly small mustard seed as an example, Jesus is speaking figuratively about the incalculable power of God when unleashed in the lives of those with true faith.

We know that this statement about moving mountains and uprooting trees by faith is not to be taken literally. The key to understanding the passages is the nature of faith, which is a gift from God. The power of faith reflects the omnipotent nature of the God who bestows faith on His own. The mustard seed is one of the tiniest seeds found in the Middle East, so the conclusion is that the amount of faith needed to do great things is very small indeed. Just as in the parable of the mustard seed (Matthew 13:31–32), Jesus uses rhetorical hyperbole to make the point that little is much when it comes from God. The mustard seed in the parable grows to be a huge tree, representing the tiny beginnings of Christianity when just a few disciples began to preach and teach the gospel. Eventually, the kingdom grew to huge proportions, encompassing the entire world and spreading over centuries.

So, too, does the tiniest bit of faith, when it is true faith from God, grow to immense proportions in the lives of believers and spreading out to influence all they come into contact with. One has only to read histories of the great men of the faith, such as Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, to know that superhuman feats were performed by those whose faith was, at one time, only the size of a mustard seed.

THE WORD "FAITH"

"What does the Bible say about faith?"

Answer: Hebrews 11:1 tells us that faith is “being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Perhaps no other component of the Christian life is more important than faith. We cannot purchase it, sell it or give it to our friends. So what is faith and what role does faith play in the Christian life? The dictionary defines faith as “belief in, devotion to, or trust in somebody or something, especially without logical proof.” It also defines faith as “belief in and devotion to God.” 

JESUS FED FIVE THOUSAND WITH FIVE LOAVES

Question: "What can we learn from Jesus’ feeding of the 5,000?"

Answer: Aside from the resurrection, the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 is the only miracle recorded in all four Gospels. Obviously, the Gospel writers considered this a significant miracle. When Christ fed the masses that day, He began with only “five barley loaves and two fish,” borrowed from a boy’s lunch (John 6:9). To feed 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish is indeed miraculous, but the Greek term used in Matthew 14:21 specifies males, and Matthew further emphasizes the point by adding, “Besides women and children.” Many Bible scholars believe the actual number fed that day could have been 15,000—20,000 people.

Jesus’ disciples had wanted to send the people away because evening was approaching and they were in a remote place (Matthew 14:15). They knew the people needed to reach surrounding villages soon to buy food, find lodging, etc., or they would likely go hungry (Mark 6:36). But Christ had a better idea: “You give them something to eat” (Matthew 14:16). At this point, the disciples should have recalled the many miracles they had seen Jesus do. Perhaps some of them did, but Andrew asked, “What are [five loaves and two fish] for so many?” (John 6:9). And Philip exclaimed, ““It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” (verse 7).

Jesus called for the bread and fish to be brought to Him (Matthew 14:18). He then gave thanks for the meal, broke the bread, and gave it to His disciples to give to the crowd. Amazingly, the entire multitude was fed with that small meal. Jesus provided “as much as they wanted” (John 6:11), and “they all ate and were satisfied” (Matthew 14:20). Christ did not just meet the need; He lavished them with so much food that there were “twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish” left over (Mark 6:43).

God will shatter the pint-sized expectations of what His followers can do if they would learn to bring Him what they have already been given. “Little is much when God is in it.” When Christians are willing to offer their lives sacrificially, relinquishing their hold on whatever God has given them in terms of time, money, talents, etc., God will use these ordinary things to create extraordinary things. Christians must never believe their resources are too little to serve God. God delights in taking a humble, seemingly insignificant person and using him or her for His glory (see 1 Corinthians 1:27).

Philip’s mind immediately ran to the cost of the project. He quickly calculated how many man-hours of work it would take to feed all those people; he saw the task as impossible because he approached it as if everything depended on his own work. Jesus’ approach was different. Jesus bypassed all human effort and did the impossible. It’s “‘not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty” (Zechariah 4:6).

It is noteworthy that Jesus fed the people through the agency of His disciples. He could have simply snapped His fingers and caused everyone present to have a meal, but He didn’t. Instead, He “gave . . . to his disciples to distribute to the people” (Mark 6:41). In this way, the disciples had to trust the Lord for everything they distributed. They could only give as they received. Philip, Andrew, and the rest were put in a position of total dependence upon the Lord for the supply. God still uses people the same way today.

Christians should also be reminded that their problems are never too large (the “many” of John 6:9) for God to handle. Surely, Andrew was wondering, “What good are we going to do with only five loaves and two fish?” Of course, theoretically, believers know God can easily multiply whatever He wants, to feed as many people as He wants—He is God. The problem comes when we are faced with a practical outworking of the theory; we tend to doubt that God will want to meet our need.

There is a foreshadowing of Christ’s miracle in the life of Elisha in 2 Kings. Elisha told his servant to feed the people gathered there, although there was not enough food for the hundred men. One of the men said, “How can I set this before a hundred men?”(2 Kings 4:42–43) In the end, however, the men not only had enough to eat, but “they ate and had some left” (2 Kings 4:44). Isn’t that just like God? He says He will do more than provide for His people; He will give an abundance (Psalm 132:15).

Christians must bring their lives to God in a spirit of obedience and sacrifice, no matter how insignificant they may think their gifts or talents are (Romans 12:1). When doing so, expect God to do far beyond what can be imagined (Ephesians 3:20). Also, Christians should trust that God not only wants to meet the needs of His children, but He wants to lavish His children with spiritual blessings, even to overflowing (Psalm 23:5).

GLORIFYING GOD

Question: "What does it mean to glorify God?"

Answer: To “glorify” God means to give glory to Him. The word glory as related to God in the Old Testament bears with it the idea of greatness of splendor. In the New Testament, the word translated “glory” means "dignity, honor, praise and worship." Putting the two together, we find that glorifying God means to acknowledge His greatness and give Him honor by praising and worshiping Him, primarily because He, and He alone, deserves to be praised, honored and worshipped. God’s glory is the essence of His nature, and we give glory to Him by recognizing that essence.

The question that comes to mind is if God has all the glory, which He does, how then do we “give Him” glory? How can we give God something which is His in the first place? The key is found in 1 Chronicles 16:28-29, “Ascribe to the LORD, O families of nations, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength, ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name. Bring an offering and come before him; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness.” In this verse, we see two actions on our part that make up the action of glorifying God. First, we “ascribe” or give glory to Him because it is His due. No one else deserves the praise and worship that we give to glorify Him. Isaiah 42:8 confirms this: "I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols.” Second, we are to “bring an offering” to God as part of the worship that glorifies Him. What is the offering we bring to God to glorify Him?

The offering we bring to God as we come before Him in the splendor or beauty of His holiness involves agreement, obedience, submission, and rehearsing His attributes or extolling Him. Glorifying God begins with agreeing with everything He says, especially about Himself. In Isaiah 42:5, God declares, “I am the Lord God. I created the heavens like an open tent above. I made the earth and everything that grows on it. I am the source of life for all who live on this earth, so listen to what I say.” Because of who He is, holy and perfect and true, His proclamations and statutes are holy and perfect and true (Psalm 19:7), and we glorify Him by listening to and agreeing with them. God’s Word, the Bible, is His Word to us, all that we need for life in Him. Listening to and agreeing with Him, though, will not glorify Him unless we also submit to Him and obey the commands contained in His Word. “But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children—with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts” (Psalm 103:17-18). Jesus reiterated the idea that glorifying and loving God are one and the same in John 14:15: “If you love me, you will obey what I command.”

We also glorify God by rehearsing His attributes and His deeds. Stephen, in his final sermon before he was killed for his faith, retold the story of God’s dealings with Israel from the time Abraham left his country in obedience to God’s command, all the way to the coming of Christ, the “Righteous One,” whom Israel betrayed and murdered. When we tell of God’s work in our lives, how He saved us from sin, and the marvelous works He does in our hearts and minds every day, we glorify Him before others. Even though others don’t always want to hear our glorifying God, He is more than pleased by it. The crowd who heard Stephen hated what he said, covering their ears and rushing at him to stone him. “But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:55).

To glorify God is to extol His attributes—His holiness, faithfulness, mercy, grace, love, majesty, sovereignty, power, and omniscience, to name a few—rehearsing them over and over in our minds and telling others about the singular nature of the salvation only He offers.

HOW CHRISTIANS SHOULD STAND UP FOR THEIR FAITH

Question: "How should Christians stand up for their faith in such an anti-Christian world?"

Answer: As Christians, the two things we can do to stand up for Christ are to live according to His Word and grow our own knowledge of Him. Christ said, “Let your light shine before men…” (Matthew 5:16). This means that we should live and act in a way that supports the gospel. We should also arm ourselves with knowledge, both of the gospel (Ephesians 6:10-17) and of the world around us. First Peter 3:15 says, “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” All we can do is live and teach as Christ would and let Him take care of the rest.

Critics of Christianity have become more vocal recently. This is partly because there are many people who do not believe in God or understand the truth about Him at all. Yet the apparent increase of anti-Christians is also due to perception. As with many topics, those who truly despise Christianity are the loudest and most vocal of the non-believers. The vast majority of those who do not believe don’t care enough to bother believers. The few angry, vocal, bitter unbelievers make enough noise to seem more numerous than they are.

The typical insult from the non-religious crowd is to refer to believers as “ignorant,” “stupid,” “brainwashed,” or to otherwise suggest that those who have faith are less intelligent than those who do not. When a Christian stands up intelligently for his faith, the terms change to “bigot,” “extremist,” or “zealot.” When people who know that the believer is kind and loving hear this, the atheist starts to look like the fool that he or she is (Psalm 53:1). Most non-believers have no personal reason to see Christians negatively, but they sometimes hear so much from the loud anti-Christians that they just assume it is so. They need examples of Christ-like living to see the truth.

Of course, when someone claiming to be a Christian says or does something that is not Christ-like, the angry, loud crowd is there to identify him as a typical religious hypocrite. This is something we have been warned to expect (Romans 1:28-30; Matthew 5:11). The best thing to do is to cite a passage of the Bible that speaks against what the person did. And remind the atheists that just because a person says he is a Christian, and even if he thinks he is a Christian, that does not mean that he is. Matthew 7:16,20 tell us that true Christians will be known by their actions, not merely by their profession. And remind critics that absolutely no one lives without sinning at all (Romans 3:23).

An important thing to remember is that no one, no matter how persuasive, can force anyone to believe anything he doesn’t want to believe. No matter what the evidence, no matter what the argument, people will believe what they want to believe (Luke 12:54-56). Conviction is not a Christian’s job. The Holy Spirit convicts people (John 14:16-17), and they choose whether or not to believe. What we can do is present ourselves in a way that is as Christ-like as possible. It is sad that there are many atheists who have read the entire Bible looking for ammunition against Christians, and that there are many Christians who have hardly read the Bible at all.

It’s hard for the angry crowd to accuse a Christian of being a hateful, cruel bigot when that person demonstrates a life of kindness, humility, and compassion. When a Christian can discuss, debate or debunk secular arguments accurately, the label of “ignorant” no longer fits. A Christian who has read the secular arguments and can politely expose their flaws helps to deflate the stereotypes advanced by atheists. Knowledge is the weapon, and it is invincible when we let Christ direct us in how to use it.

THE AUTHOR AND FINISHER OF OUR FAITH

Question: "What does it mean that Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2)?"

Answer: Jesus is described as the author and perfecter, or finisher, of our faith in Hebrews 12:2. An author is an originator or creator, as of a theory or plan. The Greek word translated “author” in Hebrews 12:2 can also mean “captain,” “chief leader” or “prince.” Acts 3:15 uses the same word: “And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses” (KJV), while the NIV and ESV use the word “author” instead of “prince.” From this we can deduce that Christ is the originator of our faith in that He begins it, as well as the captain and prince or our faith. This indicates that Jesus controls our faith, steers it as a captain steers a ship, and presides over it and cares for it as a monarch presides over and cares for his people.

The Greek word translated “perfecter” in Hebrews 12:2 appears only this one time in the New Testament. It means literally “completer” or “finisher” and speaks of bringing something to its conclusion. Putting the two words together, we see that Jesus, as God, both creates and sustains our faith. We know that saving faith is a gift from God, not something we come up with on our own (Ephesians 2:8-9), and that gift comes from Christ, its creator. He is also the sustainer of our faith, meaning that true saving faith cannot be lost, taken away or given away. This is a source of great comfort to believers, especially in times of doubt and spiritual struggles. Christ has created our faith and He will watch over it, care for it, and sustain it.

It is important for us to understand that God in Christ is not only the creator and sustainer of our saving faith, but He is also the sustainer of our daily walk and the finisher of our spiritual journey. For if God in Christ is not the author of our new life, and if Christ is not the finisher and perfecter of our faith through the Holy Spirit's indwelling power, then we are neither born again nor are we a true follower of Christ. “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory” (Philippians 1:6; Ephesians 1:13-14).

FAITH WORKS WITH OBEDIENCE

Knowledge of obedience is not enough:
James 4:17 “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.”

It is not enough to know what you’ve heard or read in the word of God about what God wills for you. What matters is that if you know what to do, that you do it! Having the knowledge about God’s will is not enough. Knowing the necessity of obedience is not enough. These things are not the same as being obedient. Knowing what should be done obligates a person to do it. The advantage of being taught about obedience is not that we get an “outstanding grade” from God because we get the right answer. To believe in something is to act like it is so. Hence, the advantage of believing God’s word and specifically, God’s will is that we obey it because it is true, good, precious, and real.

Obedience is for our good:
Obedience is for our good. James calls it the “good” which means beautiful, excellent, noble, or right. Jesus is a King.  Jesus dictates and commands. But they are meant to make us well and happy. Every command is meant for our good. They are loving guidelines of an infallibly infinite and wise heavenly Father for the good of those He loves.

Abraham–faith in obedience:
Hebrews 11:8 “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.”

Abraham is mentioned ten times in Hebrews. The great progenitor of the Jewish people and his wife are now singled out as examples of faith. The Jews prided themselves on their descent from Abraham, and the great patriarch is mentioned in the New Testament as one who had faith and who acted on his faith. In line with this the author gives more space to Abraham than to any other individual on his list. Abraham accepted God’s promises and acted on them even though there was nothing to indicate that they would be fulfilled. This faith is seen in his acceptance of the promise of a child when Sarah was old and even more in his readiness to sacrifice that child– the one through whom the promise was to be fulfilled– when God commanded.

God demands obedience:
Micah 6:8 “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

The scriptures clearly teach us that God demands obedience from his people. We are responsible before God to obey His commands. Obedience to the commandments of God is utterly crucial in living the Christian life.

What God wants is a heart response to God demonstrated in the basic elements of true religion. God has told the people what is good. The Mosaic law differentiated between good and bad and reflected God’s will in their religious and social lives.

They were to act “justly”, here in the sense of true religion, i.e., the ethical response to God that has a manifestation in social concerns as well. “To love mercy” is to freely and willingly show kindness to others. “To walk humbly with your God” means to live in conscious fellowship with him, exercising a spirit of humility before him. It is not that sacrifice was completely ineffectual and that simply a proper heart attitude to God would suffice. Rather, God has no interest in the multiplication of empty religious acts.

These ethical requirements do not comprise the way of salvation. We are still called to the exercise of true religion because we are in a covenant relationship with God in which the law has been placed within their hearts not abrogated. Our obedience is inspired by the indwelling Holy Spirit, not by the letter of the law.

We are saved for obedience:
Romans 1:5 “Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.”

The desired response to the gospel message is “obedience that comes from faith”. Paul’s readers were not called, as he was, to apostleship; they were called “to belong to Jesus Christ” and to be “saints”, the common term designating believers. The scriptures teach us that we are saved for obedience. There are two beautiful truths balanced so wonderfully in Scripture. We are not saved by obedience. Salvation comes by grace through faith in Christ. But, we are saved for obedience.

The test of love for God:
John 14:15 “If you love me, you will obey what I command.”

Obedience to God is the proof of our love for Him. True knowledge of God does not end with speculative ideas but with obedience to the moral law and with the presence of God’s love in the believer.

2 John 1:6 “And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.”

The test of love is obedience to God’s commands, and the test of obedience is whether one “walks in love.” Love of God must result in obedience or it is not true love. Jesus’ own love for you and I was manifested by his obedience even to death.

By His Grace, for His Name, Through the Obedience of Faith

Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, 4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name's sake.

This morning we are going to focus on verse 5, and in particular the three phrases: "grace and apostleship," "obedience of faith," and "for his name's sake." We will try to see the nature of grace as a free and undeserved enabling for ministry, the effect of grace in the obedience of faith, and the ultimate goal of grace in the glorifying of Christ's name among all the peoples.

Grace – at the Heart

Grace is a very precious reality. I hope I can show you from the book of Romans what it is and why it is so precious. The word is used 155 times in the New Testament – over 100 of them in the writings of Paul, and almost a fourth of those in Romans (24 times). You cannot comprehend this book if you don't comprehend grace. We will see it again and again. It is at the heart of the book and the heart of the gospel and the heart of God.
But I don't assume the word communicates now the precious Biblical reality it was meant to. Today, I would guess that the average person would say grace is the beautiful movement of an ice skater. Then they might say grace is a short prayer before meals. And finally, they might say grace is undeserved kindness.
But what is the Biblical reality of grace? Let's look at Romans 1:5 and its connections. Notice that in verse one Paul began to introduce himself and speak of his being a bond-servant of Christ and of his calling as an apostle and his consecration for the gospel of God. Then in verses 2-4, he talks about what the gospel of God is: it's planned long before it happens; it's about God's Son; it's about the fulfillment of Old Testament hopes and the arrival of the Messiah, the Son of David; and it is about the risen Christ who came forth triumphant from the dead as reigning Son of God in power.
With that picture of a great, triumphant, reigning Messiah and Lord before us, Paul can now talk about grace on its proper basis. He says in verse 5, "through whom we have received grace." In other words, God's grace has come to Paul through the Lord Jesus Christ who was born as a son of David and was raised as Son of God in power. We may say from what Paul writes later that grace was obtained for us through the obedience and death of the incarnate Messiah (Romans 3:24-25; 5:18-21); and grace is poured out through the risen and reigning Son of God in power. There is no grace toward sinners apart from the life and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Verse 5 says plainly that God gives grace "through him," referring to "Jesus Christ our Lord" at the end of verse 4.
So grace is a reality that comes from God; and comes through Jesus and his work for us. It is not something we have a right to. Jesus obtained it for us. We get it freely because of the obedience and death of another.

What is Grace?

But what is it? Well, in this verse it is connected with Paul's ministry, his apostleship. "Through [Christ] we have received grace and apostleship." I take this to mean that his calling as an apostle was a gift of grace and that he fulfils that ministry by the power of this grace. So that grace is not just God's clemency toward Paul's sin, but is also a power to enable Paul to do his calling as an apostle.
I base this on what Paul says about the relation between grace and ministry in chapters 12 and 15. For example, in 12:6 Paul says, "We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us." And in 12:3 he says, "Through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you . . ." In other words, grace is God's enabling for various ministries through gifts he gives, and Paul's gift includes speaking as an apostle. Similarly in 15:15b-16 Paul says, "Grace was given me from God, to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles." So I conclude that when he says in 1:5, "Through whom we have received grace and apostleship," he means that God not only saved him from his sin, but he also gave him grace to be an authoritative spokesman for the risen Son of God in power.

How Do We Get Grace?

And how does that mean he gave it to him? Does it mean that he gave it in response to good works? No. Paul said that he was set apart for the gospel before he was born (Galatians 1:15; Romans 1:1). Grace is not God's response to our deserving or meriting. Grace is God's free gift before we do anything good, and his enabling of us to do anything good. For example, in Romans 4:4 Paul says, "Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited according to grace, but according to debt" (my translation). In other words, grace is not what you get when you work for somebody: that's what he owes you. Grace is never owed. It is always a free bonus from the overflow of goodness.
Therefore grace is always received through faith, not earned by works. You can only receive grace as a gift and acknowledge that it comes to you freely; you can't work for it or earn it. Romans 11:6 states the principle: "If it [election] is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace." Grace would not be grace if you earned it by your works. We receive it through faith. By simply welcoming it as a gift and relying on it.
This is why Romans 4:16 says, "For this reason it [= being an heir of the promise] is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace." This is Paul's way of saying that grace is absolutely free and cannot be deserved or merited. When grace comes to you it is through faith or not at all.
Grace has its own power. You don't work it up. It is, in fact, part of the power referred to in verse 4, where Paul says that Jesus "was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead." Grace is not just forgiveness of our sin and mercy on our misery, it is also a divine power that comes to us through Jesus absolutely freely for the sake of ministry. Paul says in Romans 5:21, "As sin reigned in death, even so grace reigns through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (my translation). Grace is the power of a king: it "reigns" and leads mightily to eternal life through Christ.
So we have seen that grace is a power from God for ministry (like Paul's apostleship). It is free and cannot be earned or deserved. It is received as a gift by faith, not merited by works.

The Effect of Grace

Now ponder the implications of this for a moment – for Paul and for you. I mentioned one of them last week. When Paul calls himself, in verse 1, a "bond-servant of Christ Jesus" and an "apostle," he means that he serves the risen Christ as an apostle. But now, from verse 5, we know something utterly crucial about that service: it is given and enabled by grace. He says in Romans 15:18, "I will not presume to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me [that's the power of grace], resulting in the obedience of the Gentiles" – which is the same aim as 1:5. Paul serves Christ by the grace with which Christ serves Paul.
I linger over this because if you get it early, the book of Romans will open to you like a flower. And if you don't get it, the book will not make sense. And I linger over it because this is the essence of how God means for you to live your life. God wants you to read verse 5 and in the end put your calling in the place of the word "apostleship." "Apostleship" is Paul's – not mine and not yours. You might put, "Through Christ I have received grace and the teaching role." Or: grace and singing. Or: grace and studentship. Or: grace and singleness. Or: grace and widowhood. Or: grace and motherhood. And what you should mean is: God has freely given me forgiveness and the power to do a calling, and fulfill a role which I accept by faith.
There is not a role in life that can be lived the way God wants it lived apart from enabling grace. Being a godly mother or being an apostle is impossible without the power of grace. So when Paul says, in 1 Corinthians 15:10, that all his apostolic labor is by grace, you insert your own calling: "By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me." The decisive, enabling power for all ministry and all service is God's grace.
Paul is tremendously jealous to exalt grace in his life and in yours. We should join him in this. Why this is becomes clearer as we look at the next two phrases in Romans 1:5.

"The Obedience of Faith"

"Through [the living Son of God risen in power] we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith." So grace is not just received by faith, it aims at faith. God gives gifts of grace so that we will be his instruments in bringing about "the obedience of faith. This is what I called the effect of grace.
Now what does the phrase "obedience of faith" mean? The two main choices are: "the obedience that comes from faith" (NIV), or the obedience which is faith, because faith is what the gospel demands." As you might say: "acts of courage" – acts which come from courage. Or you might say, "Block of wood" – the block is wood. Both of these goals (faith and obedience that comes from faith) are really Paul's goals in ministry. And it is very difficult to decide which he means to focus on right here.
But I am moved by Leon Morris's question: If Paul only means "faith," why use two words to say it (The Epistle to the Romans [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1988], p. 50)? In other words, if Paul only means, "We received grace and apostleship to bring about faith among all the gentiles," then why complicate matters and say, "the obedience of faith"? I think the answer is that he really does want us to think not only of the obedience which faith is, but also the obedience of love which faith produces (1 Timothy 1:5). We will see in chapter six that Paul cares a great deal about Christian obedience. And we will see in Romans 9:32 that obedience is "by faith and not as though it were by works." And we will see in 14:23 that "whatever is not from faith is sin." In other words, in Paul's mind, all true obedience is the fruit of faith.
Now why is this? Why does all true obedience come from faith? I hope you can see the answer if you compare what I have said so far about grace and faith. God gives grace as the power and the enabling for service, which means that grace is the power and enabling of obedience. So all true obedience is done in the power of grace, not our own power.
But how do we receive and rely on grace? The answer is "by faith." So you can see why all true obedience is the fruit of faith. It's the fruit of faith because God's grace is given to enable obedience, and faith is the way we rely on that grace, and so obedience is the fruit of that faith.
So what we have seen so far is that God wants to be the Giver in this relationship. God wants to be gracious. God wants to be the fountain and the source of our service and our obedience and our ministry – whether apostleship, or pastor, or student, or mother, or any other calling. God intends to be the source of enabling, empowering, sustaining grace. Our job is to trust him and act in reliance on him. This is the essence of the Christian life.

Why Is Everything Dependent on Grace, through Faith?

And the final question is, Why? Why does God set it up this way – with everything dependent on his grace through our faith? And the last phrase in Romans 1:5 gives the answer: "Through [Christ] we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles [= peoples] for His name's sake." The ultimate goal of all God's dealings is that his name (or the name of Christ, who is his image) would be known and admired and cherished and praised above all other realities.
Romans 9:17 puts it like this: "For the scripture says to Pharaoh, 'I have raised you up for the very purpose of showing my power in you, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.'" God's aim in history and in all that happens is that his name be known and worshipped. Verse 5 says that the aim of Paul's apostleship is "for the sake of the name" – that the name of Jesus (which stands for his character) might be known and loved and treasured and exalted and glorified.
Now this is why God makes all our salvation and all our ministry and all our obedience dependent on his grace and makes all our salvation and ministry and obedience the fruit of faith in grace – because the giver gets the glory. If our ministry and all our obedience is by grace through faith, then God gets the glory and we get the help. If Paul relied on himself to serve as an apostle, and if the effect of his ministry was to bring about the obedience of works, not the obedience of faith among the gentiles, then the name of Christ would not be praised, Paul would be.
The giver of the power, the enabler of the obedience, gets the glory. Here's the way 1 Peter 4:11 puts it: "Whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen." You see how clearly Peter makes the connection: God gets the glory for our service if God gives the grace for our service, and if we serve by faith in that grace, in the strength of that grace and not our own.

If God Aims for His Own Exultation, Is He Loving?

The final question that people often ask about this Biblical teaching is whether a God who aims at the exaltation of his own name is a loving God. The book of Romans gives two answers to that question. First, in Romans 10:13 Paul says, "Every one who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved." So yes, it is loving for God to push his own name and his own glory, because everyone who calls on that name will be saved. For him not to spread and exalt his name as our only hope would be unloving of God.
And the second answer is given in Romans 5:2b, where Paul says that while we stand in grace by faith "we exult in hope of the glory of God." In other words, the glory of God is our hope and our salvation and our exultation – our joy. We don't just call on the name of the Lord to get something else. We call on the name of the Lord so that everything that separates us from the Lord will be overcome by the grace of God and we will have access to the Lord himself. "We exult in hope of the glory of God." Therefore it is loving for God to make the name of God – that is, the glory of God – the goal of all his grace, because this is the goal of all our longings.
Is this – is he – the goal of your longings? If so, then the gospel of grace will make sense and you will embrace it. If not, call upon the name of the Lord so that he would open your eyes to see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, the image of God (2 Corinthians 4:4).