ted4leaders

Greetings;

This is a word that I have written in the past, but I feel it is an essential word for such a time as today. I want to challenge all of you as leaders to be leaders of grace. I want to challenge all of you as believers to be people of grace!

Both Jesus and the apostle Paul advocated the acknowledgment of the completion of an era of law and a time to embrace the power of grace. The old Adam was bound to law because of an administration of the knowledge of good and evil. That form of government was an administration of death. When Jesus died, old Adam died. When Jesus rose from the dead there was a testimony of an eternal Adam of life who is a life-giving Spirit with an administration of life through the power of grace. In Christ we died and thus the administration of law died. In Christ we also live by the power of an administration of grace (Eph. 1:7-10).

Jesus told the Pharisees that the death of the law had come and it was time to marry grace. We cannot be married to both law and grace. It is time to enter into God’s covenant of grace. The kingdom of God has come through Christ and it was time to press into it.

Luke 16:16-18 “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it. And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail. Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery.”

The Pharisees could not understand the ways of Jesus as a man of grace. Their paradigms of law could not comprehend the boundaries of grace. The boundaries of grace fall within the expanding liberty of God’s care for people, His value of them, His desire to include them in His purpose and celebration of life, and His desire to be in a relationship of friendship with men and women in life. As long as the Pharisees held on to the standards of law they could not embrace the paradigms of grace. Jesus made a way for the administration of the law to die so that all men can marry the administration of grace. Our old man must die in Christ so that we can embrace the inner life of God’s grace and His expanding paradigms of life.

Jesus was telling the Pharisees that the death of the law had come and it was time to marry grace. It was time to let the old heaven (an administration of law) and the old earth (a system of law) to pass away. They could not be married to both law and grace. It was time to enter into God’s covenant of grace. The kingdom of God had come through Christ and it was time to press into it. In order to receive the kingdom one must die in Christ and come alive again through a personal relationship with Him.

Jesus gave a further illustration of this reality in the story of Lazarus and the rich man. I believe that the rich man clothed in purple and fine linen represented the Pharisees and the system of the law. It was the testimony of the nation of Israel that had now become bound to a Pharisaic system of law. Lazarus represented the peoples and nations of the world that had not known the covenant of God. They had only known temporary comforts of things outside of God’s covenant life (the dogs that licked his sores in life represent un-covenanted pleasures). The name Lazarus means, God has helped – without me knowing it. God had always helped the nations, but they did not know whom He was or that it was Him who could care for them (Acts 17:23-30). The time had come for both Lazarus and the rich man to die. The time had come for all men to die in Christ so that all men could live in Christ!

Lazarus died and found himself in Abraham’s bosom, while the rich man died and found there was a great divide between him and Abraham. Jesus had told the Pharisees that their father was not Abraham, but that their father was the devil (Jn. 8:33-44). The law had not empowered them to change; only grace could change the heart. In the story of seven brothers who had died Jesus told the Sadducees that they were already dead and were not of the living (Mt. 22:23-32). If you die in Christ you will forever live, but if you die in the law you are forever dead. Lazarus’ death found him to be a child of faith, a child of God. The death of the rich man found him to be dead. The rich man died in a covenant of law, but Lazarus had found the covenant of grace.

I believe that Lazarus represents the hungry that are now able to get the crumbs that fall from the master’s table. Like the Canaanite woman who begged Jesus for the deliverance of her demon possessed daughter, the crumbs were spilling off of the table of Israel as an invitation to all the nations that deliverance had come through the power of God’s grace (Mt. 22:15-28).

Luke 16:19-23 “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be fed with the crumbs, which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.  And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

Jesus was revealing that one couldn’t have both law and grace. If we hold on to the system of law we cannot understand the covenant of grace. The rich man begged that Lazarus bring comfort to those bound to the law. Jesus revealed that there was a great divide between them and that law has no access to grace and grace cannot live where law remains. The rich man pleaded that Lazarus be permitted to warn his five brothers. Jesus testified that to have access to grace (the number five) you have to realize that grace is the true substance testified of in and through the law and the prophets. Those who try to come by the way of the law do not pass the test of being the true substance of life and that of living humanity. They are bound to a place of “torment”, the Greek word “basanos”, meaning a “touchstone” or a “basis” of testing. The “touchstone” is a rock used to test precious metals to see their true purity or not. If they do not make the correct mark, they are not the true substance of the precious metal. Those who do not see that grace is the true fulfillment of the law do not pass the test of being the true substance of life

Luke 16:27-31 “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ Abraham said to him, “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ And he said, “No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ But he said to him, “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”

Following the story of Lazarus and the rich man, Jesus addresses the fact that those who hold on to the law will prove to be an offense to those who embrace grace. They would be the ones who would resist and prevent children from entering into the kingdom of God. It would be better that those in the law be called no different than those who were in the world (the sea). The law was no longer the place of grinding. It was no longer the place of purpose and it could not produce children of the kingdom. It must be cast into the sea. If it is cast into the sea (the systems of the world) then it can be grafted in by grace. Grace would now prove to be the power of forgiveness and the entrance of the kingdom for all men.

Luke 17:1-4 Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, “I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”

Following these words Jesus continued to give details in regard to the removal of the Old Covenant system of the Law and the prophetic declarations fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70 A.D.

Jesus had instructed His disciples to pray for the old system of the law depicted in the religious mountain of Jerusalem to be cast into the sea (Mt. 21:21). They had caused the “little ones” to be hindered in entering the kingdom (Lk. 17:2; Mt. 18:6; Mk. 9:42; Jer. 51:61-64). The millstones destruction signified the end of the age, a symbol of the foundation of the world in grinding out peace, prosperity and the inheritance of God in the earth. The age that was to end was the age of law, for the eternal reality of grace had now come to all men.

We cannot have grace and law. Law is a tutor that testifies of our need for grace, but it is God’s grace that changes the hearts and minds of men. You cannot take a piece of grace and try to stitch it unto the garment of law. You cannot take the life of grace and try to contain it in a wineskin of law. The mercy, forgiveness, power, redemption, and life found in grace cannot be contained in an understanding of law (Lk. 5:33-39).

We have to choose. Do we want grace or do we want law? Grace cannot work where law abides and law cannot remain where grace reigns (1Cor. 10:23,24). Grace empowers us to live in a righteousness that empowers us to live for the Father and for the wellbeing of others in this world. Let’s be leaders of grace that empower God’s people to be people of grace!

Food For Thought,

Ted J. Hanson

Greetings;

In the process of overcoming is the testimony of standing. When we stand, we overcome! True standing is found in Christ and standing is for a purpose. God wants us to stand! We don’t just stand to defeat our enemies. Our standing defeats our enemies and dispossess them from the territory of our inheritance. As leaders, we must set an example of standing in Christ and we must equip others to do the same. Fathers in the faith empower young men and young women to overcome in the faith!

To stand is to possess the ground upon which we tread! God told Abraham to arise and walk through the land and God would give it to him as his inheritance (Gen. 13:17). He told Moses that every place the soles of his feet would tread would be his inheritance (Deut. 11:24). He also told Joshua that every place that the sole of his feet would tread would be given to him (Josh. 1:3). Standing is a posture of inheritance. Standing is a posture of possessing the earth.

Jesus came to this world to establish the inheritance of mankind in the glory of Christ. That inheritance is one of knowing the power of God’s peace and grace among men. It is a body of humanity that knows the testimony of living in God’s house and the testimony of God living in theirs. They are one with God and God is one with them and they bring His kingdom and will into all that they possess. The key to the testimonies of Abraham, Moses, and Joshua was found in the fact that God would be with them. There would be a manifested evidence of God loving them and them loving God. God would be with them and they would be with God. This is the power that would dispossess their enemies in the land of their inheritance. It wasn’t merely an act of obedience in entering the land. The testimony of inheritance would be revealed by them being carriers of the testimony of God in the land that they stood upon to possess.

When King David was old he made a simple, yet powerful prophetic act and he declared a profound prophetic statement.

1 Chronicles 28:2 Then King David rose to his feet and said, “Hear me, my brethren and my people: I had it in my heart to build a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and for the footstool of our God, and had made preparations to build it.”

King David wasn’t looking to establish a place where men could rest. He was looking to the day when God would rest among men in the earth. He was looking for the day when the manifest presence of God would rest in the hearts of men and the enemies of God would be made God’s footstool. He was prophetically professing the love of God among men and the destruction of the enemy because of God’s love made known to men. He was proclaiming the testimony and power of God’s grace in the earth.

Jesus has been exalted to the right hand of God the Father in heaven and He is waiting for His enemies to be made His footstool. This will be made known by the power of God’s love among men. It is a testimony of God’s peace and grace. Peace is the place where there is no gap between men and God. They have been given access to His house. The blood of Jesus has justified all men to live. Grace is the evidence that God lives among men. It is by the power of God’s grace that men reign in life. Peace is the evidence that men live in God’s house and grace is the evidence that God lives in the house of men. The enemies of God are not subdued because men are strong. The enemies are subdued because God is manifest in man’s house.

Hebrews 10:12,13 But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. 

The apostle Paul understood the power of being God’s place of habitation upon the earth. He prayed that the hearts of God’s people would see by revelation who they really are. He prayed that the church would know that they have a part in Christ’s calling, each member is an expression of His inheritance in the earth, and they are filled with His power to reveal His will and kingdom in the earth. That power is the power of God’s grace that subdues the enemies of God by the power of Christ’s love and life in all things.

Ephesians 1:20-23 …which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.  And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. 

The body of Christ is the place of the fullness of Christ. We are not the fullness of Christ individually, but corporately we reveal the fullness of His glory. It is by the corporate standing of Christ that the enemies of God are subdued. We are NOT to live our lives beneath the powers of our enemies. We have been given a place of authority and the life that comes from that authority. We are above all principality, power, might, dominion, and all names. The power of our standing is found in being the fullness of Christ. We are carriers of God’s presence in the earth. We are clothed in God’s grace. Grace is the manifest presence of God in our lives! It is not a skill learned by human reasoning, it is an overwhelming testimony of God’s love made known in our lives.

Psalms 60:12 & Psalms 108:13 Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies.

Zechariah 10:5 They shall be like mighty men, who tread down their enemies…

It was when the feet of the priests stepped into the waters of the Jordan that the waters ceased to flow and a path was made to enter into the promised land to dispossess the enemy and lay hold of their inheritance. The power that caused this to be was not the strength of the priest’s standing, it was in the fact that the ark of God’s presence was upon their shoulders. They were carries of God’s presence. There was a place where God’s presence could rest. It was a type and shadow of the power of grace. Grace is the evidence of God in our lives. It is the power of God that subdues the enemies of our lives. To be clothed in God’s presence is to be clothed in the power of God’s grace.

Joshua 3:13 “And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap.”

Let us all live in the power of God’s grace. God’s grace is the testimony of His presence in our lives. We are carries of God and where the soles of our feet walk it will be a testimony of God’s inheritance in the earth. We walk in the hope of His calling and that calling is to reconcile men to God and to destroy the works of the devil by the power of God’s grace. It is a testimony of God’s love for man and man’s love for God in all things. Seeing the answers of God in our lives doesn’t empower us to stand, standing in Christ empowers us to see God’s answers revealed.

Food For Thought,

Ted J. Hanson

Greetings,

We are the Bride of Christ and overcoming is the process by which we become revealed for who we really are. Another blog from my past is appropriate today for becoming who we are meant to be in Christ. As leaders, we must lead the community of God to be the community of God! We must embrace the process of Christ’s transformation in our own lives and then lead others to do the same.

The Bride of Christ is awake with Christ’s passion. She knows that God is the source of her life. She is awake with His presence. She knows that she is an expression of Him in the earth. The Body of Christ is awake with Christ’s purpose. She knows that God and her together bring a power to change the world behind her. She is the community of God in the earth and she is the place of invitation for the nations of the world to find the love of God in the earth.

The Bride of Christ exhibits the glory of a city, a community of heaven made manifest in the communities of the world.  Her gates are made of pearl, for in Christ she is empowered to take the irritations and afflictions of the flesh and turn them into precious testimonies of God’s love. She doesn’t allow the wounds of the flesh to become sources of bitterness, but chooses to allow God to work all things for good in her life. What would naturally be testimonies of bitterness have become testimonies of God’s love. Like the pearl, they are testimonies of great value (Rev. 21:12,13, Rev. 21:21).

A few years ago, I was in an Awake and Arise conference and the Holy Spirit spoke to me about several places in my life that could have been testimonies of bitterness. It was a time where the atmosphere had been created for the Holy Spirit to speak in regard to any judgments those in the room may have made in regard to the lives of others. As I sat there, the Holy Spirit showed me the face of a woman. As I looked at the face of the woman I saw her face changed to that of another woman, and then another, and another. I realized that she was Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Reformed, Baptist, Pentecostal, Non-Denomination – she was the church. The Holy Spirit said, “This is your mom, you need to thank her. She gave you material to work with. She did the best she could do with what she had.” In a moment I felt tremendous love for her. I could thank her for who she was. I don’t have much love for religion, but in that moment I could see past her religious ways into her heart. It was a revelation of her as a person free from the religiosity of her actions. The scene changed and I began to see the face of a man. It was the face of a church leader who in the past had hurt me bad. Then the image changed to another man and it was also the face of another church leader who had hurt me. The picture continued to change to several faces of church leaders who had hurt me in the past. The Holy Spirit said, “This is your dad, you need to thank him. He put a baton in your hand to run with. He did the best he could with what he knew to do.” I felt overwhelming love for him. I was able to thank this corporate expression of church fathers that had hurt me, because I was able to look past the actions of their wounding me to the substance of who they were. I realized that what was now in my hand had a direct connection to what had been in their hand. The picture then changed to a man who had put all kinds of conditions on my relationship with him. The Holy Spirit said, “You need to thank him. He gave you unconditional love, because he put all kinds of conditions upon your love for him.” I realized that what this man had done to me gave God the ability to grant me the grace to love him as he was. The picture changed to another man who had refused to forgive me. The Holy Spirit said, “You need to thank him. He gave you forgiveness, because he refused to forgive you”. Again, I felt love for the man and I realized that what he couldn’t do had opened a door for God to grant me grace to do on his behalf. There were twenty-six faces of men and women that God showed me that day. One was a person that empowered me to be a father, because they told me I wasn’t one. One gave me freedom from control, because they sought to control me. One freed me from rejection, because they rejected me. The experience was life changing and real. I have since made reconnections with many on the list in some way and I have been made free in my heart concerning them all. I love the church! I love the leadership of the church in its many forms! I love the members of the Body of Christ in a new way. What could have been irritations of the flesh and bitter wounds that keep people out of my life have become a part of the working of God’s love in forming the pearls of my heart. The gates of the community of God are made of pearl. They are the same material as Jesus Christ, the Pearl who refused to judge us by what we did to Him, but gave His life unconditionally for us all! Gates are a way into the community and it is the testimony of God’s love that creates the gates of entrance to God’s community of life. It is not everything working well that invites people to the community of God; it is everything working out for good.  When what was intended for evil works out for good we see the testimony of the pearl. The irritations of the flesh can become the very things that reveal the tenderness and the greatness of God’s love at work in our lives.

Romans 8:18, 19  For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 

Romans 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a  Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;  does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;  does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails…

John 13:35  “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

A pearl forms in an oyster when a piece of shell, flesh, or some other irritant gets lodged inside the soft part of the oyster. The oyster then secretes a mineral substance and a protein substance to prevent the lodged material from doing further damage, transforming it into a smooth crystallite substance that reflects a rainbow of light. The lodged substance is never removed; it simply becomes a testimony of beauty hidden within the oyster. If we will give God access to the wounded areas of our hearts we can find the grace of His love. Whether our wounds are from people or our wounds are from circumstances, God can take the irritations of the flesh and turn them into testimonies of great value. He can turn them into pearls that others can see. What could be so ugly can become so beautiful if we allow His grace to work in our heart. God doesn’t want us to escape the wounds of our past. He wants us to realize that the wounds of our lives are part of us, but they don’t define us. Who we are in Christ defines the testimony of the wounds we receive in life. What could be a marring of the flesh becomes a pearl of great price revealing God’s love.

Blessings,

Ted J. Hanson

Greetings,

Today I feel it necessary to post a blog I presented a couple of years ago. It is relevant to the topic of overcoming as sons and daughters of God. God’s grace empowers us to become who we are meant to be in Christ.

The Body of Christ wears the reflections of the Father’s heart, because she knows how to endure the pressures that oppose His character within her. When we face pressures in life, it is not a sign that the devil is having victory over us. The pressures of life are the very things that reveal the hidden truth within us. Christ in us is the hope of glory! If Christ is in us, then the pressures of life should manifest the testimony of Christ in us to the world around us.

Romans 5:1-5 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.  And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.  Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Tribulations are the pressures of life. At the writing of this Scripture by the apostle Paul, that tribulation was a matter of life and death. In some parts of the world this is true today. For those of us in the west it is not the tribulation of life and death, but the tribulation of life that challenges our faith in God. It is hardly a comparison, but it is true for most in the western church culture. In any case, the pressures of life lead to the perseverance of our faith. The Greek word used hear, implies two ingredients. It contains the ingredient of endurance and it also contains an ingredient of cheerfulness. It is cheerful endurance. Cheerful endurance is the key to activating the character of Christ within us. If we decide to be miserable while in the midst of our circumstances we appeal to the old nature of the flesh, but if we stand with cheerful endurance we draw on the life of Christ within us. This manifests the character attributes of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal. 5:22, 23). These are the substance of the fruit of the Spirit within us. When this happens, we manifest the testimony of Christ in a measure of His glory. This is the testimony of hope. Christ in us is the hope of glory.

We are members of the Body of Christ. Corporately we are the Bride of Christ. It is Christ within us and in our midst that makes us who we are. Like our husband, we display the family name. The Bride of Christ is a testimony of the City of God. The foundations of the wall of the City are adorned with all kinds of precious stones (Rev. 21:19, 20). Whatever is in the foundation is also meant to be revealed in its rising walls of testimony.

The Grace of God has empowered the Church to become the testimony of His passion and glory in the midst of every pressure and tribulation. The city of God reflects and refracts the many attributes of the nature and the likeness of God. It is filled with the many testimonies of the light of Christ’s glory. What is in the foundation of the Church is becoming the very substance that is revealed within the community of the City. If you do some research you will find that the stones in the foundation of the City likely represent the tribes of Naphtali, Simeon, Manasseh, Rueben, Asher, Judah, Zebulun, Gad, Issachar, Levi, Ephraim (the born-again of Joseph), and Benjamin. When presented in their order they imply that in the foundation of this city is the following testimony: Has wrestled to wrestle no more, hears God and responds, knows His forgiveness and the past is forgotten, is seen as a son, is fortunate and happy, has become a testimony of praise, dwells with God, is joined to others in God, is rewarded by God by seeing what God sees, is one with God, is fruitful in God, and is a testimony of His inheritance through His hand of resurrection life. This is a great foundation for the walls of an awesome community of life!

When we stand on the foundation of truth we stand in the place of life. We no longer wrestle in the flesh, but overcome by the power of His grace. We hear God in the midst of every situation of our lives and that hearing is enough to inspire our faith. The power of God’s mercy each day frees us from the strongholds of our past. We are children of God and in that we find the fortune of being His son or daughter and we know the happiness of being a part of His family. Our weaknesses are being transformed to testimonies of His strength. Our flaws are being redeemed by the reigning power of His grace. God lives with us and we live with Him. We are not alone. Being a part of God’s family is a daily reality in our world. God’s rewards outweigh the losses in our lives. Our perspectives are continually changing. We no longer see the world as we used to see it. We are increasingly looking at things through the eyes of God. He is forever with us in all we are and do. The fruitfulness of life is our portion even out of the ashes of death itself. Resurrection life is our portion, thus life can never be taken from us. God’s hand is upon us!

In the same way that God can take the irritations of the flesh and turn them into testimonies of His love, the pressures of life can prove to reveal the character of Christ within our lives. Even as God can take the things that could be most ugly and turn them into something beautiful when we allow His grace to work in our hearts, He can also reveal the brightness of His glory in the midst of the pressures of our lives. God doesn’t want us to escape the wounds of our past, nor does He want us to escape the pressures of our lives. He wants us to realize that the wounds of our lives are part of us, but they don’t define us; even so the pressures of life don’t destroy us, but prove to reveal the power of Christ’s character within us. Just as the wounds of our flesh can become a pearl of great price revealing God’s love, the pressures that appear to be against us can prove the power of the One within us who is greater than the things of the world.

The formation of precious stones involves a transformation of one substance to a more refined, purified, and hardened material. The dissolving of a certain substance, great pressure, and transformation by intense heat produces a translucent material of brilliant beauty. Gemstones of great value are formed deep within the earth and then found in higher-level rock formations as magma or other internal movements of the earth carry them towards the surface. There are various ingredients that make up the material of different precious gems, but the process is similar. It is the same in our lives. The dissolving of our old nature reveals the refining grace of God as Christ is formed in us through a baptism of fire in the midst of the pressures of our lives. The work of Christ within us causes a transformation through a metamorphosis in our thinking and the behavior patterns of our lives become changed through God’s conversion process within us.

In the Revelation given to John the street of the City was of gold and looked like clear glass. Streets signify destiny! There is a purpose to the City of God; it is God’s means of getting the earth to the place He wants it to be. Like the testimony of the City, the destiny (street) of the City of God is to bring the testimony of the likeness and the image of God into the earth (Gen. 1:26). God’s divine character, nature, way, power, and authority are to be revealed in the earth through the testimony of the City of God (street as gold). The living word is seen as an expression of the purpose of Christ’s City in the earth (street as glass). That living word is the testimony of Christ in the very fabric of those who make up the community of God. Every revelation from God is an invitation for each one to have an encounter with God, whereby they become a testimony of that revelation of God.

The community of God is filled with the testimony of the power of Christ’s life-changing character made manifest from within. It is a community that stands in the midst of the pressures of the world and reveals the nature, character, way, power, and authority of Christ to the communities of the world. Christ in us is the hope of glory!

Blessings,

Ted J. Hanson

Greetings,

Grace is the overcoming power of Christ’s life within us. Grace changes us and it affects our spirit, soul, and body. It is the grace of God that causes us to be born again. Without being born again one cannot even comprehend the truth of the kingdom of God within the heart of a man or woman. It is a miracle. It is as miraculous as the Virgin Mary conceiving the Christ child. Christ in humanity is not just some form of religion used to manipulate the thoughts of our minds. Christ in humanity is a revolution and it is a revolution of grace. Christ ‘in us’ is the true testimony of ‘us in’ Christ. It is different than any humanly inspired religion. It is different than any religion inspired by any spirit, human or from the dimensions of heaven. Christ in the human spirit of man is the ultimate miracle of heaven implanted in the human heart. It is the salvation of the human soul. It is the inspiration of change to the thoughts, reasoning, desires, emotions, and imaginations of men.

John 3:1 There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

Outside of Christ the human soul is susceptible to the influence of selfish desires, natural thinking, and even demonic forces. Every soul is motivated by spirit and when the human spirit is not empowered by the Holy Spirit of God from within, it is weak and vulnerable to the influence of other spiritual forces. Even with Christ in us we can become vulnerable to the foolishness of a soul disconnected from the Spirit of Christ within us. Christ in us is the hope of glory! It is not a knowledge about God that empowers us, but a knowing of Him each day in our hearts. This is the testimony of grace.

James 3: 13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. 15 This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. 16 For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. 18 Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

The governing of the human soul apart from Christ in us is the knowledge of good and evil. The Tree of Life can only be discovered through the power of God’s grace in our hearts. Mercy ends the old system of being informed with what is good and evil and gives us access to the place of transformation unto life. It is the power of grace in the human heart that transforms us from within.

As leaders we must set an example of walking in the grace of God and we must set an example as to the miracle testimony of Christ within us. We are not leading people in a form of religion based upon what is right and what is wrong. We are not the same as the religions of the world. Good and bad people are stuck in the governing systems of the world, but only in Christ can they be transformed to become testimonies of God’s grace. We are in the world, but we are not of the world. We are ambassadors of a kingdom inspired by grace. We are only resident aliens in this world, but we are citizens of heaven by the transforming power of Christ within us. It is a miracle! We must show mercy to those who are in the world and live as children of God empowered by His life-giving grace. Grace is the testimony of God dwelling in our hearts and we must choose to embrace Him. The blood of Jesus enables all people to receive mercy that ends the old system of information, but the Holy Spirit in the human heart empowers each one to find God’s grace that empowers God’s life-transformation power from within.

Ephesians 2:19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

We cannot measure people in the world by the standard of grace. We can only allow God’s grace to measure us in our hearts. We can then show mercy to those who are in the world and demonstrate what it looks like to be sons and daughters of God empowered by God’s grace. It is foolish to think that people outside of Christ cannot do good things, but it is also foolish to think that outside of Christ is the same as in Him. We must never measure good or bad people outside of Christ by the character of Christ. It is not in them. Even with one another the character of Christ is a work in progress by the power of Christ within us. We are new creations, but we are finding God’s grace to walk in the character, nature, way, power, and authority of who we are in Him.

To all who are leaders I say, “Lead as a leader of grace.” To every citizen of heaven I say, “Live as a person of grace.” To the family of God I say, “Don’t compare the miracle of New Birth in Christ with any religion of the world or any government of men. It is a thing of God’s doing and must be found by each one.”

Food For Thought,

Ted J. Hanson

Greetings;

I have been writing concerning being a community of children, fathers, and sons. As the family of God we must always be childlike in our expectations, faith, teachability, and understanding of God’s love. We must also desire to grow up into mature sons and daughters who are like our heavenly Father in character, nature, way, power, and authority. To do this we must find God’s grace to overcome in all things. In light of this, I felt to repost a segment of a blog I posted in the past. It involves being clothed in grace.

We are not standing in the earth defending ourselves from the enemy. The enemy is defending himself against us because we are dispossessing every power of death by the power of God’s grace. We are storming the gates of hell with the gate of heaven as the body of Christ in the earth. The influences of the realm of the dead are being eradicated by an invasion of the gate of heaven’s life. We must walk in God’s grace and be the people of God. The people of God bring the fruitfulness of God’s new covenant life and grace to the world. This involves standing, so that we will possess the inheritance of the earth beneath our feet.

The apostle Paul addressed the subject of standing in the sixth chapter of the book of Ephesians.

Ephesians 6:10-13 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

The full armor of God is the full clothing of His grace. The purpose of that armor is to empower us to invade the earth with life! We are transforming darkness to light, sickness to healing, bondage to freedom, and death to life in every form it is found. That armor of God’s grace is revealed throughout Scripture in many ways. The apostle Paul revealed it in the fourth chapter of Ephesians as 1) one Lord, 2) one Faith, 3) one Submersion, 4) one God and Father, 5) one God above all, 6) one God through all, and 7) one God in all (Eph. 4:4-6).  The apostle Peter revealed these same things through the attributes of a spiritual house with a testimony of being:  1) a chosen generation; 2) a royal priesthood; 3) a holy nation; 4) God’s own special people; 5) God’s people of praise – once darkness, but now light; 6) the people of God; and 7) the people who have obtained mercy and now reign in life (1 Pet. 2:9,10).

Being clothed in the grace of God empowers us to dispossess the enemy in the land of our inheritance. It is the power of the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of Wisdom, the Spirit of Understanding, the Spirit of Counsel, the Spirit of Might, the Spirit of Knowing, and the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord (Isa. 11:1,2). This is the power of the grace of God at work in our lives. It is the clothing of the manifest presence of God that dispossesses the enemy. The armor of God is the testimony that reveals God rests in our lives. Our standing is not a standing of defense, it is a standing of occupation and inheritance. As is written in the synthesis of Scripture, standing is a position of inheritance. The whole armor of God is a testimony of the fullness of God in bodily form (Eph. 1:22, 23). It is the empowerment of the sevenfold Holy Spirit of God in our lives.

Ephesians 6:14-18 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— 

The armor of grace is the testimony of God’s love in our lives. We know one Lord, one desire of heart that empowers us to be the generations of His testimony. He picked us! He loves us! Our future testimony and posterity is made known by the truth of His love. A revelation of His love is giving us a new ‘want to’ for the empowerment of our commitment to God in Christ. We can boldly come and say, ‘here I am’. We are the little ‘i ams’ in the big ‘I AM’ of Christ. We have been granted repentance unto life that frees us from every dead work of the flesh. We are alive in Christ!

We live from our hearts with works that speak of our faith toward God. Our wisdom is not found in the strength of our own works, but in the empowerment of works that testify of our love for God and witness to our faith toward God in all things. It is through a right relationship with and a dependency upon God that we live from our hearts with faith toward God. It is the grace of the Spirit of Wisdom that reveals our royal and priestly roles in life.

Something is dripping off of our feet that reveals our heavenly position in Christ. We were once submerged in the bitterness of life, but now there is a response to God from our hearts that overflows with a testimony of His Holy Spirit. We are submerged in the grace of His Understanding. We were once of the ungodly nations of the world, but now we are a holy nation before our God. We stand under His submersions with a grace of the Spirit of Understanding to bring His life to the world. The testimony of His house in heaven is the reality of peace that we bring to the world in which we live.

We are not alone, but each stand as lights and the fire of life to create a shield of faith empowered by the Counsel of His light. The Father of lights is revealing us to be His children of light. We are light to the darkness, healing to all sickness, and life to death in this world. The Spirit of Counsel reveals that we are ministers of fire (Ps. 104:4) and the little fiery darts of the enemy pale week in the flame of His presence upon us. We are His special people, each carrying the grace of His life-giving hands of blessing as we walk in submission to Him and one another as the body of Christ.

We wear the helmet of His salvation. There is no god above us for He is the God above all in our lives. He is our salvation in every situation for we are fully awake in Him. The apathy of flesh has been overwhelmed by the passion of His Might. The grace of the Spirit of Might is making us alive to Him in all things and we contribute to the cause of Christ as His people of praise in the earth. We wear the grace of the Spirit of Might to reveal that He is the God above all gods and that we have fellowship with Him and one another in the power of His resurrection life!

Something is flowing through us that is a weapon of life. The life-giving words of God flow as a piercing weapon of love to the hearts of men. We release the sharp quickening edges of sacrificial love as our lives confess a love for God and for men. The judgments we make are not judgments of the flesh. They are judgments for the poor from the equity of our lives. We make decisions for others based upon who we are in Christ, not what they deserve in the flesh. We are the people of God who walk as the community of God to bring the communion of God to all men. The word in our mouths is a word of His love, a judgment of eternal life for all who believe in Him. We are the people of God and we wear the grace of the Spirit of Knowing, intimacy with God and men through Christ’s eternal judgment of love for all people.

Our decrees are those of the life of the Spirit and not those of defeat. Our destiny is not Nirvana, dust, or the grave. We reign on a throne in Christ and we manifest the glory that He sups and dines with us and we with Him. There is one God in us and our children and our children’s children will reign with Him in life. We wear the grace of the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord, praying always in the Spirit with an awe of His presence and glory in all things. We are the essence of the prayer of God to bring forth the full harvest of His destiny in the earth. We have obtained mercy and now we reign in Christ!

God’s grace is not His favor without change. God’s grace is His change made known in our lives that testifies of His favor. We are clothed in the power of God’s grace and we are dispossessing the enemy of Christ’s inheritance in the earth. Where the soles of our feet walk it is becoming the inheritance of God in the earth. His enemies are being made His footstool because His presence rests in and upon our lives as the children of God.

Food For Thought,

Ted J. Hanson

Greetings,

The people of the Church of Laodicea were reprimanded for their lukewarm condition. They were neither cold as the world, nor were they hot as the living in Christ. They had adopted a form of godliness without the power or presence of God. The city of Laodicea was physically located between hot springs and cold springs, thus even the natural experience of ‘spitting something’ from your mouth brought to mind a real experience understood by those who heard the letter. The physical surroundings of the city of Laodicea prophetically exemplified the condition of the atrophy of religious Pharisaism. It was common to find a drink of water in Laodicea that naturally induced one to spewing it out. Exegetically this was like the period of the ‘last days’ of the Old Covenant nation of Israel, which was concluded in A.D. 30 – 70. This was the generation that Jesus said would not pass until the prophetic words of His mouth were fulfilled (Mt. 16:28; 24:34; Mk. 9:1; 13:30; Lk. 9:27; 21:32). This was the generation that had confessed they had no king but Caesar, yet professed to be servants of the Most High God (Jn. 19:15). They were neither fit for God or Caesar. They were an exegetical testimony to all forms of godliness that lack God’s presence and power in the generations of the past and in all generations to come.

Because of their lukewarm condition, Jesus said He would spew them out of His mouth. This is a Hebrew phrase that was part of the curse for breaking covenant with God (Lev. 18:24-28; Lk. 21:24). Israel was told that if they became like the nations of the world, the Promised Land would vomit them out. The people of Laodicea had become conditioned by the world to no longer be seekers of God, but simply lovers of themselves. They thought themselves to be rich and in need of nothing, but God saw them to be “wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked”. This is the description of the Pharisaic Judaism of the first century (Lk. 18:9-14; Rev.18:7). A fallen condition was disqualifying them from ministry (Lev. 21:18-21; Deut. 29:4; Mt. 13:13-15; Mt. 16:3; 2 Cor. 4:3, 4; 1 Jn. 2:11).

They were counseled by the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord to “buy gold refined in the fire”. This was a signification of their need to become faithful to God (1 Pet. 1:5-7; 1 Cor. 3:12-15). They were instructed to put on “white garments”. They needed to pay the price of putting on wedding attire, or be replaced (Mt. 22:11-14; Gen. 3:21; Rev. 19:8). They were instructed to put salve upon their eyes that they might see. That salve was not a salve of natural sight, but a salve symbolizing the receiving of the healing grace of God in Christ (Lk. 4:18; Acts 26:18; 1 Cor. 2:14, 15). That salve would grant them the ability to see by the Spirit of God and not the veil of the flesh. The Old Covenant veil was still present upon their eyes (2 Cor. 3:14). God wanted to deal with them as their Father. The Spirit of the Fear of the Lord would grant them the grace of honoring their Father in heaven. God had come to treat them as sons. He was ready to rebuke and chasten them that they might come to know the Father of spirits and live (Heb. 12:5-11; Mal. 4:1-6).

The key to the zeal of the Lord was being offered to them. Jesus was standing at the door and knocking. This was the entrance into the New Covenant and dominion with Christ (Eph. 1:20-23; 2:6; Rev. 1:6). The invitation was being given to them to come to the throne of Christ. This is the throne whereby Jesus rules, and will continue to rule, until His kingdom becomes a great mountain and fills the earth (Dan. 2:35, 45). Christ is the King in His kingdom already (Col.1:13).  We are already kings and priests in this world because of Him (Rev.1:6). He has defeated the enemy already (Col. 2:15). He reigns now (Acts 2:29-36; Eph.1:20-22; Mt. 28:18-20). He is presently engaged in putting His enemy under His feet (1 Cor. 15:25). All New Covenant Believers have the ability to manifest the glory of God (2 Cor. 3:2-18).

Revelation 3:14 “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: 15 I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.’ 17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked— 18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’

Laodicea was lukewarm. They thought of themselves as being rich, but were found wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked; a description of an impotent, fallen condition. They were told to become full of faith and do works of righteousness or be spewed out of God’s mouth. Those who repented would receive the presence of Jesus in their lives. All who enter the New Covenant are given the ability to manifest the presence of Jesus in their lives as His glory is revealed. They will sit with Him on His throne from glory to glory. The seventh aspect of the curse of the fall is that of returning to dust (Gen. 3:19). Jesus promises a promotion to glory! The corruptible can put on the incorruptible in Christ (1 Cor. 15:52-55). We can know one God “in all” (Eph. 4:6).

The seven letters of Revelation, chapters 2 & 3, were written to real churches of the first century with prophetic implications for the Church of all time. These seven letters revealed the syntactical testimony of God’s dealings with men in the past. These seven accounts also revealed the increasing grace of God released to the earth in the generations to come. The repeated term, “he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” implies an ongoing relationship with the Holy Spirit whereby the content of these seven letters is true for all generations. It must mean we can hear! These letters testified of the overcoming promise of knowing one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, one God above all, one God through all, and one God in all (Eph. 4:5, 6). These letters are a testament to the Revelation of Jesus Christ!

Food For Thought,

Ted J. Hanson

Greetings,

As the family of God we must always be childlike in expectations, faith, teachability, and understanding of God’s love. This is not the same as being childish in our attitudes. We are childlike in a way that inspires us to grow up into mature sons and daughters who are like our heavenly Father in character, nature, way, power, and authority. To do this we must find God’s grace to overcome in all things. We must overcome everything that resists a revelation of God’s love in our lives. We must embrace an overcoming grace of faith empowered by God’s love that eradicates all of our fears of death. We must respond to God with the transforming testimony of God’s Spirit that changes us inside and out. We must find God’s grace for life-giving connections of authority, so we too can be expressions of God’s life to the world. We must grow in an overcoming testimony of Christ’s resurrection life to be contributors to His fellowship of resurrection life in this world. We must grow in the grace of overcoming human logic and reasoning that resist covenant relationships and the testimony of being the people of God in the earth. We are to be a life-giving, light-shining, community of God’s love to the communities of the world around us.  We must also grow in overcoming through an awareness of God’s manifest presence and purpose in our lives. We were born to be loved by God, but because we are loved we also grow to become expressions of God to the world around us and by this the world is changed.

The final letter of Revelation was to the Church of Laodicea. The letter to the Church of Laodicea correlates to the completion of the Old Covenant with the judgment of the Pharisaic system and the sending forth of the Church to subdue Christ’s enemies in the earth. It is the beginning of the return of the Glory of God to the earth through Jesus Christ. It correlates to the power of prayer and the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord (Isa. 11:2), thus the angel of the Church of Laodicea is the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord (Zech. 4:10). This is the grace that brings about the full perfection of the Church (Heb. 6:1). It ultimately eradicates the seventh aspect of the curse of the fall. That aspect is the loss of dominion and the loss of the ability to put on the incorruptible (Gen. 3:19). Instead of a testimony of returning to dust, we become the increasing testimony of God’s glory in heaven and upon the earth. The Fear of the Lord comes from a face-to-face relationship with God in Christ. A face-to-face relationship with God will transform our lives and thereby change the world in which we live. The corruptible cannot contend with a face-to-face encounter with the incorruptible One. This seventh letter testifies to that end. We are destined to fully see Him, and to become like Him. This is that we might know one God “in all” (Eph. 4:6).

The name Laodicea means “just people”. This is a term that speaks of the Pharisaic day when Jesus was upon the earth. His own people had become absent of the glory of God and thus Jesus pronounced them desolate (Mt. 23:37, 38). That generation was self-righteous and thought themselves to be just without the power of God. We could look at this two ways: 1) they thought themselves to be “just” or; 2) without God they were “just people” (People without the power of God are just that – people). Either of these views will illustrate the point of a Pharisaic people.

The Laodicean letter correlates to the judgment of the Pharisaic system and the return of the glory of God to the earth through Jesus Christ. In this letter Jesus is seen as the “Amen”. This is a covenant term to a covenant breaking people and a term of blessing to those who have accepted the conditions of the New Covenant. To adhere to the Old Covenant in the day of the New Covenant was an act calling down all the curses of the Old Covenant upon their lives. The Old Covenant had been fulfilled in Christ, thus there was no more Old Covenant to hold on to. To adhere to the Old Covenant in the day of the New Covenant meant they would have to be as Christ was in order to endure its requirements. Law in the day of GRACE is nothing less than death according to the LAW.

Revelation 3:14 “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: 15 I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.’

In this letter Jesus is seen as the one who is “the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God”. “Amen” is a covenant term. To say “Amen” means to call down upon oneself the blessings and/or the curses of the covenant (Num. 5:12-21, 22; Deut. 27:15-26; Neh. 5:12, 13). It literally means “so be it”. For keeping covenant there is blessing, but for breaking covenant there is a curse. The “Amen” is a covenant term that invokes either action, depending upon obedience or disobedience to the covenant terms. To verify the covenant context of this letter, Jesus is called the “Faithful” and “True Witness”. These are terms revealing that Jesus is the source and enforcer of the covenant (Deut. 7:9-11). He is also called the “Beginning of creation of God” (Col. 1:15-18). This is the final establishment of Jesus as the preeminent one. The Spirit of the Fear of the Lord is the testimony of His perfections. Without accepting Him as the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord there can only be judgment according to the perfections of the Law. In truth, the curse is a consequence for not accepting what is now being given in Christ. It is the result of a human decision, not an act of God to destroy people. The blessing is the fruit of receiving all that is being given by grace in Christ. The blessing or the curse is a result of human decision, but the blessing is also a life-giving force now available to all who find Christ in them. He gives the ability to overcome and reign in life with Christ in the throne of our hearts!

Food For Thought,

Ted J. Hanson

Greetings,

The government of the kingdoms of the word are based upon the knowledge of good and the knowledge of evil. That Old Covenant government still exists in the kingdoms outside of Christ. Those kingdoms are made of individual lives as well as corporate or national entities. Those kingdoms have an administration of human lives based upon a knowledge of good and a knowledge of evil. It is based upon information and it can only control or restrain human lives, it cannot transform their hearts and minds from within. It only reveals the human need for the Spirit of God in their hearts. The administrations of conscience and/or law only serve to reveal that there is a God and humanity is in desperate need of Him. The only way out of the Old Covenant government of the knowledge of good and the knowledge of evil is to embrace the love of God only found in Christ. This is where one find’s the justice system of the New Covenant. The government of the New Covenant is based upon life. True life is the testimony of true love. When we know the love of God we know the life of God! God’s love creates a different justice system than that of the Old Covenant. The justice system of those administrated by a knowledge of good and a knowledge of evil is one based upon good and evil, right and wrong, or some perceived reality of such. Those bound to the family tree of this administration are bound to a justice system of vengeance, retribution, and forms of vindication for what is seen to be right or wrong in the eyes of those administrated by such systems. It can be a knowledge of what is actually right or wrong or a perceived knowledge of what is right or wrong. In either case, it is an administration of natural understanding and it is absent the supernatural transformation of God’s love.

Things are different for those who find the administration of the kingdom of heaven in their hearts. I believe that love is the testimony of the Tree of Life. Jesus lived as a human being empowered by love. The administration of His life was the Tree of Life, not the Tree of the knowledge of good and the knowledge of evil. One is a tree of grace, while the other is a tree that constantly requires mercy. Humankind is stuck in the system of law until they find a way out. In order to be free from the justice system of law, mercy must triumph! Mercy is the end of the law and the invitation to grace. Wherever grace abides, love reigns. The justice system of grace is scandalous. It is not a system of fairness, but one of love. Those who find the justice system of grace can show mercy to those who are bound to the system of conscience or law, but they cannot empower them with grace. Each and every one must come boldly to the throne of grace in order to get mercy for themselves and then be empowered by finding the grace that comes at a revelation of Jesus Christ in their lives. You cannot empower a kingdom that is still bound to the knowledge of good and evil with grace. You can only demonstrate grace by showing them mercy. You then invite them to find the source of grace for themselves, for grace is a changed life in Christ. It is testified by a changed heart and mind that then becomes empowered to be merciful to others. This is the testimony of becoming a changed community in Christ.

Revelation 3:7 And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, “These things says He who is holy, He who is true, ‘He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens’: 8 I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name. 9 Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—I will make them come and bow down at your feet, and make them know that I have loved you. 10 Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. 11 Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.”

When we live for the Father’s will, for the Father’s children, and for His life to the world – we are growing as expressions of true community. This was established by Jesus and in the firstfruit church of the first century Church. The seven letters of the book of Revelation pertain to the foundation of this New Covenant life set in the Church. The Greek word for ‘world’ in the sixth letter of Revelation is the word oikoumenē meaning occupied land. From the word oikeō meaning to occupy a house. That which is covenant would be described as “earth” (land), and that which is not covenant would be described as “sea”. The word ‘world’ would be better translated as the occupied earth or occupied land in this case. It was not the ‘cosmos’ (global world), but rather the world that professed a knowledge of God (occupied land). This hour of trial was to come to those who professed to be of God in order that those of the true temple of God might prevail. It was not a trial for the unsaved, but a trial for those who made a confession of being the house of God. I believe that the firstfruits fulfillment of this was in the first century persecution of the Church and the judgment of the apostates in A.D. 70. Jesus said He was “coming quickly”.  Those who were still bound to the knowledge of good and evil would be removed, but those who had embraced the Tree of life in Christ would remain.

The Church of Philadelphia (brotherly love) was told to hold fast to that which they had and they would be pillars in the temple of God. The firstfruits Church of the first century became the foundation for the Church throughout the generations to come. As pillars in the temple of God they were given the testimony of a love for God and a love for His people. The life of the Spirit was to overcome the life of the flesh and the City of God was beginning its established testimony in the earth. This was true exegetically for the Church of Philadelphia, syntactically true in the history of Ezra and Nehemiah, and true by principle of application in the generations to come. All who enter the New Covenant are given the life of community with God and one another. The provision, safety, government, strength, and community of God’s City will be given to them in increasing measures.

He who overcomes is granted to be made a “pillar in the temple of God”. This was syntactic language of the rebuilding of the temple. The pillars in the Old Testament temple were called platforms or shoulders (1 Kin.7:21 – HSRN 5982). They were the pillars of Jachin (he that strengthens and makes steadfast) and Boaz (in strength). This would be the testimony of the New Covenant foundation of the Church established for all time. The source of that strength would be “brotherly love” (Philadelphia). It would be the strength of loving God and loving the family of God. They will know the testimony of one God “through all” (Eph. 4:6).

God said a testimony would be “to write on him My new name”. Through communion with the Spirit of Knowing the Church would become the expression of the image of Christ (Ex. 34:29-35; Num. 6:25; 12:6-8; 2 Chr. 3:7-18; 4:6; Ps. 80:3, 7, 19; 2 Cor. 3:2-18; 1 Jn. 3:2). This is a full restoration of God’s people to His image (Ex 34:6, 7).

The testimony of those who overcome is that of being ‘left behind’. It is said that, “he shall go out no more”.  These are those who are made strong by the Spirit of Knowing (Jer. 1:18; 1 Tim. 3:15); as opposed to those who are cast out (Mt. 8:11, 12).

Revelation 3:12 He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name. 13 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’

The testimony of the Church of Philadelphia is that of being in intimate communion with God as the community of God. The name of God and the name of the city of God would be written upon them. This is the New Jerusalem. The Church is to be the true city of God (Gal. 4:26). The apostate counterfeit was to be destroyed and thus apostasy will be perpetually destroyed in every generation to come (Mt. 24:1, 2; Lk. 21:24). All New Covenant believers have the ability to enter into the full covenant and communion with God and one another (Gal. 4:23-29; 1 Pet. 2:4, 5). The bread of the sweat of the brow has been replaced with the life of God’s Spirit in the human heart (Gen. 3:19; 2 Cor. 13:14). We know one God “through all” (Eph. 4:6).

Food For Thought,

Ted J. Hanson