Blog In Audio:
Greetings,
We are not alone in our testimony of faith in Christ. Each of us stands as lights and a fire of life to create a shield of faith empowered by the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Counsel empowering us to be lights of our heavenly Father’s light. The Father of lights is revealing us to be His children of light. Light represents life. Life is authority, the ability to give life to others. It is the authority of life and our connection to one another in the authority of life that empowers us to move forward without being distracted by the fiery darts of power sent to distract and resist us in our path of life. 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 God’s presence upon us. We are God’s 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.
Ephesians 6:16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
This shield of faith is not a small hand-held refractor of darts. It is as tall as a man and it goes from head to toe as a life influencing shield testifying of our corporate testimony of faith in Christ. It is the kind of a shield that was used for the offensive moves of a skilled soldier. The soldier would get behind it and push his way in behind the enemy lines. The solders together would lock their shields together and move forward in their push beyond the enemy lines. It comes from two Greek words. One word means, “door shaped” and the other means, “portal” or “entrance.” Being connected to God and one another in faith is a door opener, not a door closer. Many times, we operate with the shield of fear in our lives and we think that it’s the shield of faith. A shield of fear seeks to provide a protection from the outside influences of the world. The shield of faith is like a door that opens our access to God, and it invades the territory of darkness and death to bring light and life.
The shield of faith is different than our individual sacrificial actions of faith that we do from our hearts as kings and priests with the breastplate of righteousness. This is a corporate connection that gives us the authority of faith. It is the faith of submission to one another as unto the Lord. It is a faith of receiving life from authority and giving life to others as a testimony of authority. It is the faith of being sent ones together to lay hands of life upon others to bring healing, deliverance, and all manner of life-giving authority. The first century church continued steadfastly in the way of life of the authority of the apostles. The “sent ones” (apostles) empowered each of them to be “sent ones” of life as a testimony of the faith. This shield of faith is made of our submission one to another as we seek to hear God in His corporate direction into our lives. Our submission one to another empowers us to be “sent ones” of life to our world. God wants us to be “sent ones” of life in connection with one another to be the light and life of Christ empowered by the corporate purpose of the Spirit of Counsel.
I love the positioning of each part of God’s spiritual armor! Remember, the belt of truth was around the procreative area of our lives. The breastplate of righteousness was around our heart relationship with God. The preparation of the gospel of peace prepares our feet to walk one with God in His peace that surpasses our understanding no matter where we are on the path of life. The shield of faith takes us forward to take back what the enemy has stolen in our lives.
As leaders, we have the responsibility of not only hearing God for our own personal walk of faith but also for hearing God in the corporate direction of Holy Spirit so that our sphere of influence is a door opening influence of life to change the spiritual influences of the territory of our planting. The authority of heaven is sent to transform the realms of the earth bound by the power of control. Authority brings liberty and life and it reveals the testimony of heavenly things in former territories of earthly limitations.
How does faith come? Faith comes by hearing and hearing God’s personal word to us. That is His freshly spoken word (the Greek word “rhema”) to us. We have to be able to take the door opening faith to stand against the wiles of the devil. We each have a responsibility to hear God for His corporate word of authority in our lives. We must each hear God for our own part in the life-giving authority of Christ for the sake of being sons and daughter of God sent to bring a specific measure of life to our world.
Food For Thought,
Ted J. Hanson
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