Living Light

Stirring The Deep

Tag Archives: Christ


by 9 Comments

Defeating Sin

Defeating Sin

1 Thessalonians 4:3-4 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor,

The same power that raised Christ from the dead is at work on those who believe in God. Ephesians 1:19-20 This power enables us to be sanctified; which is to live in righteousness. It frees us from the sin/death in our lives and brings us into abundant life here on this earth. John 10:10 Sin creates hardships, afflictions, pain, addictions, and suffering in our lives. Many feel bound by sin; even many professing believers. They know they are forgiven, yet still suffer bondages to sin and its consequences. There is a way out, the full gospel.

 Hebrews 4:2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.

 1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit.

We are no longer have to be slaves to sin/death; Christ made a way out of this bondage. He is the way, the door, the Word of God. The path out of sin/death in our lives is the narrow path, the path of truth. Its one few find because few truly seek truth from God Himself. Matthew 7:13-14  But for those who do travel the narrow way, they seek God in truth and learn spirit to spirit, He writes His truth on their hearts and it changes them, sanctifies them, He fills them and makes them into new creations. As a new creation, they have a new mind, new desires, new thoughts, and above all desire to be totally governed by God’s Spirit inside-out. 2 Corinthians 5:17 They walk the path of life, thus experience abundant life.

The purpose of going the narrow way of truth is receiving God’s spirit, which is the gift of life, eternal life, and abundant life. When He is directing us, He leads us to the fulfillment of the desires of our hearts as He intended to fill them. We experience joy, peace, rest, blessing, comfort, and righteous love because God’s spirit resides within us manifesting Himself in our lives.

Our part is to seek. Matthew 6:33 The lies and deception of the world has filled our minds, so we must seek for the truth and as we do it sanctifies us. John 17:17

Our part also is to cultivate trust in God above all things. Luke 14:33 We do this by trusting Him to be our Teacher and Counselor. We seek and listen to His instruction, act on it, and witness His faithfulness. In time, as we learn to trust His wisdom and will, we forfeit our self-will in every way and embrace His will. On this journey of the narrow path, we let go of our self-will and desire God’s will as He shows us His righteous love and goodness. Luke 17:33

This narrow path journey has been ignored by many. Ephesians 1:4 The doctrine of grace has been misunderstood. It’s by grace that we are able to live as new creations; a life we must seek and learn from God as how to walk. As we seek, He empowers us to walk it for it’s Him making His home in us. John 14:23 When it is Him working through us, His commands aren’t burdensome, but easy, a delight, and our desire. 1 John 5:3 They are how to live and are life, so we live an abundant life. In grace, we have tremendous power working for us and freeing us from the bondage of every sin. Ephesians 3:20.

1 John 3:24 Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

Many have been taught that the resurrection of Christ is the end. It’s just the beginning. His resurrection and life and the power it demonstrated are what God pours out on us. It’s the power that moves us from the pit of sin/death and into an abundant life here and now. Yes, it’s a journey, but every seeking step brings us more into life and out of death.  People aren’t living an abundant life because they are living in sin. They believe it is what it is until they die and go to heaven. Conversely, God is offering us His righteousness and His Kingship in our souls if we will seek.

Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

1 Thessalonians 5:23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.


by 9 Comments

Spiritual Sabbatical

Spiritual Sabbatical

This week God called me to give it completely to Him, so I’m unplugging from the routine (in case I’m slow on approving and responding to comments). It’s a time of celebration, a feast, of delighting in Him as He transitions/transforms me by His hand.  There is much going on spiritually, I pray you diligently seek Him this week above all else for He has the words of life.

 

Come Walk with Me

Take a break, come walk with Me
To feast from the living tree

Your spirit is ready to bloom
To destroy darkness and doom

It’s been a long journey of strife
Letting go of death and embracing life

Awakening as from a hazy dream
To become for all a gushing stream

All things are formed from a new cast
First fruits of love created to last

Steal away with Me into the stillness
In faith you’ll see manifestation of My fullness

This is My desire, let it be
Have no doubt, come walk with Me

~ Rachel DiPaolo
February 5, 2012


by 51 Comments

Don’t Forsake the Assembling of Yourselves

Don’t Forsake the Assembling of Yourselves

Any important video on the meaning of Hebrews 10:22-26 … and not forsaking the assembling of ourselves .. in otherwords, getting ourselves together for the coming Bridegroom.

Philippians 2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out YOUR OWN salvation with fear and trembling;


by 20 Comments

Hurried & Frazzled to Dazzled

Hurried & Frazzled to Dazzled

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 

Ephesians 1:19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power

As we buy and sell with God, which moves us to living by faith in Him in ALL things, we experience the manifestation of God in our lives …

For years, I’ve been buying and selling with God and as a result gaining deep rest and power in my life. One specific area I want to share with you (because it’s often overlooked for the death trap it is), is in the area of s l o w i n g down in life.

In my life a part of the old things was functioning as a Grand Master Taskmaster. I lived by lists, schedules and managing my time efficiently because I got a lot done (in my estimation) and felt internally & externally rewarded for it. Sure my body was tense and my life stripped of the rest, peace and enjoyment that could have been, but I was blind to all that. I didn’t realize there was truly a better way.

I would rush here and there … rush to relax. Letting the world govern what “needed” to be done, I was a slave to its demands that became my demands upon myself and my life. So who was I really serving? To accomplish all I “needed” to, I had to be efficient, highly productive and that meant being the ultimate taskmaster. But as I continued to buy and sell with God and gain faith in Him in all areas, this aspect of my life had to be purged for it was the world’s way of living, not His, thus a sin that manifested death in my life.

As a previous Master Taskmaster, this transformation was no small habitual rut to change because this mentality was deeply imbedded in me affecting most areas of my life in some form. When God first opened my eyes to this area, it seemed like a small issue, but as He showed me the ripple affect, the impact was vast and deadly. Obedience in the small things matters a great deal, because in reality what we may judge small isn’t when it plays out. If a plane is off course a few degrees from its desired endpoint, after miles of travel it ends up hundreds of miles from its destination. This was happening to me. The more I strived the further I got away from the abundant life God wanted to give me. Being in that state was the opposite of trusting Him.

In my alone time with God, He showed me how my spirit needs to remain in that same state that I am with Him in the morning; peaceful, trusting, connected and at rest so He could move through me as He willed. If I wasn’t at rest, I wasn’t in His will. The rushing around, as I use to do to fit in all my plans and lists, put me in a mindset of being focused on my effort instead of His. It’s a state where it’s difficult to hear Him, thus follow His lead. Did Jesus ever rush around? No, when you are walking in the power of God, you don’t need to.

As God showed me how my spirit needed to be in a calm state, I started to slow down, literally. On the flip side that meant I needed to trust Him with all that “needed” to be done.  When I started to rush, in faith I stopped and functioned according to His power. As I did it His way, He rewarded my faith. Not only did I get done what was truly needed, but I was in a peaceful and enjoyable state the entire time, I more deeply engage others instead of rushing off to the next task, and I was more productive and had more downtime because I trusted in His power moving through me and not my efforts.  …. But as you abound in everything–in faith  2 Corin 8:7

As I was faithful in one area God moved me to the next; to forfeit my extensive planning and lists and trust His guidance. Being encouraged by the result of His previous counsel, I had the faith for this next step, again buying and selling with God. I stopped with all the lists.  Again, He blessed my activities and time, and I accomplished more of what was important. Again, it seemed like a small thing, but I learned I was being driven by my will instead of His, which is HUGE.

A hurried and frazzled lifestyle, accepted as normal and even necessary in today’s world, is contrary to abiding in God’s rest, which is a central aspect of a believers life. God is Lord of our lives, not us. For this to be the case, we have to be in a state of trust which leads to a literal mindset of rest. It’s a state where we forsake our effort and let Him move through us as He wills in His power. In this state, God governs our thoughts desires, words and actions, which are paramount to living a life of faith in Him and having Him manifest Himself in our lives.

Hebrews 4:11 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience

Instead of being hurried and frazzled, I’m now dazzled by the perfection of His counsel and how His power moves through us when we trust Him and do it His way. When we do everything in faith (trusting in Him to performs all things for us and in His ways of working) then we find a life we’ve yearned for, we enter into His rest as He calls us to, and our lives glorify Him and His power.

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.


by 12 Comments

Fellowship: A Spiritual Matter

Fellowship: A Spiritual Matter

 2 Corinthians 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?

Fellowship is a spiritual interaction between two or more souls. It’s connecting with other similar spirits. There is only one of two spirits which we can be; a spirit of God or a spirit not of God, a spirit of truth or a spirit of lies, a spirit of light or a spirit of darkness. Which kingdom we belong to and foster faith in signifies what type of spirit we are, (see post). Because of this polarization, we can only connect with those of the same spirit; a spirit of light can’t connect with a spirit of darkness … And what communion has light with darkness?

Last week I talked about how we engage in “buying and selling” to increase our faith within the two different kingdoms. (see post)

We “buy and sell” with the kings of the kingdoms, but we also trade (A form of “buying and selling” in which two or more have something to offer and exchange; the beliefs they bought) with those who are in the kingdom, another word for trading is fellowshipping.

Matthew 25:16 Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.

We trade (fellowship) with those of the same kingdom as we are. For example, the man who has chosen to “buy and sell” faith from Christ can only trade with others who are “buying and selling” from that same kingdom because God’s truth and wisdom are contrary to the world’s. 1 Corin 3: 19, 2 Corin 1:12 As we commune with others buying from the Holy Spirit and we exchange what we’ve been learning, this exchange affects our faith.

James 3:17 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.

We increase our faith by 1. “buying and selling” with the king of the kingdom and 2. trading (fellowshipping) with others of the same kingdom. Following the example from my previous post, if we are trading with others who believe working 16 hours a day leads to the fulfillment of their desire, then our faith will be strengthened in that worldly belief. If we are trading with others who are following God’s wisdom and enjoying true rest and the power of God working in their lives, our faith in His wisdom will be strengthened.

Matthew 18:20″For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”  (what kingdom you increase faith in is the one you bear the name of)

For fellowship/trading to occur both have to be “buying and selling” individually from the king, because then they have something to exchange and trade. If one is buying from Christ and the other not, no exchange can take place. This disunity is why people can hear the truth from others, and not be changed by it. Someone can hear one speak of the truth, but it falls on deaf ears because they are seeped in “buying and selling” with the kingdom of lies jading what they hear. These people haven’t been buying the gold refined in fire from Christ, the Word of God, but have been “buying and selling” with the kingdom of darkness. It’s one or the other. Each one does their own “buying and selling” from the king, then they can fellowship. If two souls’ kings are different, there is no fellowship, there is no trade.

Matthew 25:9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’

We “buy and sell” in every area of our lives. Most everyone is taught to “buy and sell” from the kingdom of darkness from birth.  To move out of the kingdom of darkness, we have to make a choice to start “buying and selling” with the King of  the kingdom of light. John 6:29. As we do, we move away from the kingdom of darkness, its ways and philosophies, until we become aliens in this world, disconnected and consumed with the light of truth. As this happens, our lives start to bear the fruit of kingdom of light; rest, peace, joy, fulfillment, contentment, and love. There is only one kingdom whose ways deliver what it promises, the other is full of lies and manipulation of our hope.

Our faith determines what our lives manifest. Seek to “buy and sell” the truth from the King and fellowship with those who do the same.

 


by 12 Comments

Increasing Faith through “Buying & Selling”

Increasing Faith through “Buying & Selling”

Revelation 3:18 I counsel thee to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

A middle aged man wakes each morning scanning the Wall Street Journal while he enjoys his caffeine charge. On the train to work, he pours over his latest business magazine, one of many, soaking in the new trends seeking to be the best leader he can be. He’s proficient in implementing what he has learned and is seeing some results; though not enough for the advancement he wants, so he pushes on. After putting in extra hours at the office in hopes to earn a promotion (adding to his responsibility, time at the office, and stress) he heads home and gives the leftover energy and time to his family. He works hard and makes extensive sacrifices for the sake of his family. The next day the hamster wheel begins again. As the years close upon him, he battles between pushing harder and growing apathy as the youthful competition is at his heels. On the weekend, he goes to a conference in his industry in hopes of gaining insight on how to obtain his goals; the ultimate goal being to rest, enjoy his accomplishments and relax. But for now, the sacrifices must be made; it’s just the way it is, or is it?

Another middle aged man wakes each morning and spends time in communion with God as he enjoys his cup of steaming coffee with cream and sugar. He seeks for wisdom and prays for his employees. He receives specific counsel and instruction on pending business issues. He heads out to the office enjoying a relaxing drive after rush hour. He handles problems with astuteness, formulates creative business solutions with ease and proficiency. Because he trusts that God is in control and the provider, an atmosphere of joy, true care for the employees, and rest permeates the office. After a productive day, he heads home at 4PM before the traffic and enjoys an engaging evening with his family. On the weekend, he enjoys doing what he wants and continuing to abide in peace and rest.

Faith is acting on a concept or idea because we believe it will fulfill a hope. One man had faith in the wisdom of “successful” business practices of his effort, the other in God’s wisdom and His work.

Faith is increased in an idea by “buying and selling”.  This exchange is how we manifest “our truth”.

We “buy and sell” when we learn a concept, then mix our belief with it (faith), then act on it and see the results thus gaining more faith than we started with (selling). The process continues, back and forth. One man learned a business concept (put in more hours at the office), believed it would help him reach his goals, and acted on it.  If you receive (buy) the concept that working 12 hours a day will advance you in your career, then you mix your belief with that concept, and act on it and see results and continue in that direction, you are “buying and selling” that concept.  When you see some results, your faith grows that you are on the right path even though your end goal hasn’t been accomplished. Thus, your faith is established and increased in that concept.

We can “buy and sell”, or establish faith, with one of two kingdoms, which I mentioned in a previous post. One kingdom and all its ways are of God, and the other is counter to God. Thus, when we are buying from one, we can’t buy from the other.

Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

When we buy from one kingdom, we sell back to the same kingdom with our actions thus we serve that kingdom because we serve its wisdom and ways.  Which kingdom we have cultivated a relationship with, or “buy and sell” with, is the one we have faith in, thus serve and bear the mark or name of. Revelation 13:17, Deuteronomy 30:19

We glorify and worship with our lives the kingdom we “buy and sell” with. The first man chose the kingdom of worldly wisdom, thus serving its ways and king. 1 John 5:19 John 8:44 The second man chose the kingdom of God’s wisdom, thus serving its ways and King.

In Revelation, Christ Jesus tells us to buy gold refined in the fire from Him. Revelation 3:18  He is instructing us to “buy and sell” faith in Him. Gold is our faith. 1 Peter 1:7  The refinement in the fire is the purifying of that faith that occurs as we continue to “buy and sell” and increase our faith through acting on His ways and truths in our lives.

Here is how it works. We learn a concept from the Holy Spirit. With our current level of faith, we act on that concept; we see the positive results and our faith is increased. As we continue this back and forth exchange, faith in God and His ways grows in our lives and our lives bear the fruit of it:  peace, rest, joy, satisfaction, purpose, and unchanging value.

We “buy and sell” from one of the two kingdoms in all areas of our lives; health, relationships, work, hobbies, purpose, value, etc. Our lives will reflect which kingdom we’ve been fostering faith in and much more as the Day of the Lord dawns.

Which kingdom are you buying and selling with? Are you buying gold, which has been refined in the fire, from Christ? Do you experience the riches from having that precious gold? Or are you a serving the one that will never deliver what you truly seek but manipulates your hope to keep you holding on? Only an investment in the Kingdom of God will return to you what you ultimately seek.

Psalm 57:2 I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me.


by 18 Comments

Two Kingdoms: Where do You Abide?

Two Kingdoms:  Where do You Abide?

There are two kingdoms your soul can abide in; one of this earth, one of heaven; one of man’s wisdom, one of God’s wisdom; one of darkness, one of light; one of death, one of life; one of lies, one of truth. John 8:44, James 3:15-18 One kingdom is governed by evil and the other by righteousness. 1 John 5:19 The kingdoms are each governed by their respective kings;  Satan, Father of lies represented by following our will separate from God, and Christ, the Truth represented by following God’s will.

Whichever kingdom we seek life from is the one we dwell in; life meaning purpose, value, peace, joy, rest, happiness, and love. We seek life from them by listening to their messages (what we consider wisdom) and acting on them. Both kingdoms promise these aspects of abundant life, but one’s ways returns void, and the other’s fulfilled.

We dwell in whichever kingdom based on which one we have cultivated faith in. Faith is knowing a concept, believing it and acting on it with the hopes of fulfillment of what we desire.

These two kingdoms are represented throughout the Bible. From the beginning God made a clear distinction between them and the results of our choice …

Deuteronomy 30:19 I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;

Which kingdom’s path we choose to learn of and travel determines the results of our lives, one leads to curses and the other to blessings.

The kingdom of darkness engulfs this world. Satan governs this earth and all the man-made established systems of this earth; economics, politics, financial, education, health, religions, media, and so on. His messaging and instruction of his kingdom are EVERYWHERE full of promises of life, yet never delivering but always creating the hope. He promotes partial truth making it a twisted lie. As a result, people sacrifice, strive and become a slave to many empty philosophies in hope that one day they will find the life they seek.

Conversely, the kingdom of light isn’t dominant in this world, yet. But we can abide in it, if we seek. We are born into the mind of the kingdom of darkness, but if we seek, we can move into the kingdom of light by the knowledge of truth. We have to seek because the kingdom of darkness is consuming. Matthew 6:33 As we seek the truth of the kingdom of light, we know it, believe it and thus act on it. Bit by bit, our faith is transferred to the kingdom of light as our lives bear the fruit of it and we realize it’s where true life abides.  As the kingdom of darkness fades from our lives so does all it created; death, pain, suffering, hardship, unrest, worry, fear and afflictions.

Colossians 1:13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,

To abundantly aid us in our seeking, God gave us the Spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit, to teach us all things about walking in the kingdom of light down to the very details of our lives so in every way we can abide in His Kingdom of life. We simply have to make time to engage Him, which leads me to my next point.

How do we leave the kingdom of darkness and enter into the kingdom of light?

From the Holy Spirit, we learn to transition into the kingdom of light in two main ways, two ways that work hand-in-hand.

  1. Each day we seek the Holy Spirit’s instruction through the Bible with a desire to know the truth, thus to know God as He is. We let Him be our perfect teacher as God gave us Him to be.
  2. We listen and follow the Holy Spirit’s counsel in our lives. The Holy Spirit will tell/prompt us to do a certain act. A voice in our head will say, do it this way. At first, we will ignore or justify away the counsel and do what we’ve always done or follow someone else’s counsel. We’ll see the results and realized we should have followed that still small voice. But another day we’ll heed that voice, and witness the perfection of its guidance. We are like an octopus with a vast number of tentacles attached to the kingdom of darkness, but as we listen and follow the Holy Spirit each one is detached and our faith moves to God’s truth.

As we start engaging the Holy Spirit’s wisdom, we will see the perfection of His counsel and it will increase our faith to listen more carefully and follow. His voice is of truth, love, forgiveness, mercy, grace, and contrary to the world’s wisdom.

The door out of the prison of darkness has been opened, so that we can be free. It’s the truth that sets us free; freedom begins with our beliefs. Seek the truth from the One you’ve been given to teach you truth, the Holy Spirit, and begin to enter the kingdom of light, the only place where you will find true life.


by 22 Comments

Day of the Lord, What to Expect?

Day of the Lord, What to Expect?

In this video I talk about what I feel God has taught me about The Day of the Lord, I go over a chapter in Isaiah and a poem I posted a couple weeks ago. Pray it stimulates some “stirring the deep” for this Day is significant to all of us and is upon us.