Breakthrough!

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you - even Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets." Acts 3:19-21

Kingdom invasion

Jesus came to bring God's Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. The Kingdom of light broke into the kingdom of darkness as the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. John writes,

"The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world." John 1:9

Jesus broke into the kingdom of darkness to penetrate it and overcome the work of the devil. John writes,

"The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work." 1 John 3:8

The devil's purpose is to steal, kill and destroy mankind but Jesus came to bring fullness of life (John 10:10)!

Christ's death and resurrection fulfilled everything that was needed to overcome the kingdom of darkness. Sin and death had no power over Jesus so that through dependence on Christ and on His victory over the kingdom of darkness, the believer is able to overcome the world and dwell in fullness of life. John writes,

"Everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God." 1 John 5:4,5

Those who trust in Jesus and His finished work are rescued from the kingdom of darkness and brought into "the kingdom of the Son he loves" (Col 1:13).

Fullness of Life

Fullness of life is what Jesus provides through His death and resurrection. Christ's death on the cross dealt with all of man's problems. Through Jesus' sacrifice, man is saved/healed spiritually, emotionally and physically (Isaiah 53:4-6). Therefore, as man looks to Jesus for salvation, man is completely saved and healed and walks in fullness of life (John 3,14,15). Jesus is Eternal life and those who trust in Him are made one with fullness of life. John writes,

"God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life." 1 John 5:11,12

The believer, therefore, is restored to the Kingdom of Light and lives from the reality of fullness in Christ.

Times of refreshing

As man repents of his rebellion and sin and turns to God, times of refreshing come from the Lord. These times of refreshing are what the believer experiences as he is saturated with God, having been immersed in fullness of life as part of the Kingdom of Light.

Breakthrough is therefore not about trying to penetrate the kingdom of darkness or even trying to overcome it. Christ has already done that! Breakthrough is about appropriating or reckoning fullness in Christ. When Christ returns, all things will be restored and aligned to God's Kingdom. Until then, the believer must live from the spiritual reality of the Kingdom so that it breaks into the natural realm.

Times of refreshing are the manifestation of fullness in Christ!

Prayer for breakthrough

My prayer is for breakthrough - the realisation of fullness in Christ in my own life, the lives of those around me, the Church, Israel and the Jewish people and the nations so that times of refreshing may come until Jesus comes again! I believe it is time for the Church to arise and appropriate fullness of life in Christ by faith! The Church must intercede for the nations from a place of fullness and victory in Christ. We are seated with Christ in heavenly places and our lives are hidden with Christ in God (Eph 2:6; Col 3:3)! We must pray from our heavenly position and see heaven break through onto earth so that God's Kingdom will come on earth as it is in heaven! Hallelujah!

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you - even Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets." Acts 3:19-21

The power of "no"

 image coutesy of freedigitalphotos.net

How do you respond to someone who says no to you? Do you take offence or do you accept the boundary established by the other person?

The power of NO!

Saying no to someone has the power to reveal what is truly in the heart of the other person.

Saying no to someone affects the will of the other. Suddenly the other person cannot just do what he or she wants to. She or he encounters a boundary that demands a response. Will the boundary be met with resistance or with understanding; with selfish ambition or humility; with offence or respect; with conflict or compliance?

Sadly many people don't respond well to no. Instead of seeking to understand why the boundary is established and honouring that boundary, they take offence and will sometimes even leave the relationship.

Mature relationships are built as boundaries are respected

Unfortunately, in many cases, when boundaries are not accepted, the person who set the boundary is considered inconsiderate, unloving and ungracious. The tables are turned and the person who is actually the baddy and who disrespected the boundary, now accuses the person who set the boundary as the baddy! Amazing!

I have seen people walk out of relationships so many times because they were not prepared to respect the boundaries of others. People leave churches, friendships, and marriages rather than honour boundaries and accept no. Instead of respecting no and seeking to understand why the boundary exists, they take offence and accuse the boundary-setter for their choices.

Regardless of whether you think someone shouldn't be setting a boundary, how have you responded to their no in the past? Do you hold a grudge against them? Have you separated yourself from them, emotionally or physically?

What is your response when an authority figure in your life says no to you? Do you respect him or her or do you resent him or her for setting boundaries?

Do an attitude check, next time someone says no to you. What is your response? What does it reveal about you? How do you respond when God says no?

I want to encourage you to think about what boundaries are important to you that you would like others to respect and to examine what boundaries others are putting in place and learn to respect those boundaries.

Are you producing the fruit of the Kingdom?

"Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me." John 15:4

Our fruitfulness depends on the realm we choose to dwell in.

When I started to play the bassoon I began to take part in an annual orchestra course for young people. Everyone auditioned and based upon one's abilities, one was put into one of the orchestras - A-,B-, or C- orchestra. The C-orchestra was for beginners, the B-orchestra for intermediate players and the A-orchestra was for the best players. When I was placed in the C-orchestra I was happy to be part of a bunch of enthusiastic players my age but I quickly realised that there was a long way to go to get to the A-orchestra. I stood in awe of how the bassoonists from the A-orchestra could play. For me it was a different realm. The remarkable thing however was that when I had the privilege of spending time playing with the bassoonists from the A-orchestra and being around them, I made significant progress in a very short space of time. Somehow being in the A-orchestra realm produced something in me beyond my normal abilities!

The C-orchestra is like the natural realm whilst the A-orchestra is like the Kingdom of God - Jesus' realm. If I had stayed in the C-orchestra all my life and had never been aware of the A-orchestra, I would never have made it to the A-orchestra. I would have assumed that my standard of playing was enough since everyone around me had the same standard of playing as I did. However, the moment I came in touch with a different standard of playing, my expectations changed. I now had the evidence of what I hoped to one day achieve. Although my father was a professional bassoonist at the time, his example did not inspire me as much as the example of the young people who were just a few years older than I was - it became more tangible and in my mind, achievable. Dad was out there, one day I can play like that. These A-orchestra guys were nearer.

Sometimes, when we look at the life of Jesus and the miracles, signs and wonders he did, we can also think He is out there, one day I will be able to do that...perhaps. However, when we look at the lives of the men and women of God in the Bible or in our contemporary world, the Kingdom of God seems nearer! Jesus' realm becomes tangible and achievable. We have a "great cloud of witnesses" (Hebrews 12:1) as well as the "author and perfecter of our faith" to encourage us to dwell in the realm of the Kingdom so as to produce the fruit of God's Kingdom.

When Jesus becomes our reality, we can expect to see miracles, signs and wonders. We produce the fruit of the realm we dwell in!

I want to encourage you to hang out with the guys from the A-orchestra - those who dwell in the realm of the Kingdom and produce its fruit. Read testimonies and begin to expect the same fruit in your own life as you meditate on the possibilities of God. Don't stay in the C-orchestra. The Kingdom of God is near. It is tangible. It is achievable. Hallelujah!