Keep Your Vision in Front of You

Keep Your Vision in front of you

2 Cor 4:17-18

17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

1. God created you to be a winner. Great quality of a winner is to Keep the vision in front of your eyes. Troubles. “Temporary”
   1. Jim Carrey, early 1980s no parts. He drove on top of a hill in his beat up car overlooking Hollywood. There he wrote a check for 1 million dollars “Acting Serves Rendered.” He kept that check in his wallet and when things looked dim, he pulled it out. page 1
   2. We move toward our dominant vision.
   3. Sight is the most important sense we have.

2 Cor 5:7

7 We live by faith, not by sight.

Heb 11:1

11 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

1. We have two sets of eyes: one sees the physical, one sees the spiritual. Imagination.
2. Abraham “Imagine-Nations”

 

Gen 15:5-6

5 He took him outside and said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars — if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

6 Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.

Gen 22:17-18

17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies,

1. Abraham “Imagine-Nations”
   1. Human beings have this capability. Why? So that faith has a target.
   2. Little boy drew a picture of God. Teacher said. No one knows what God looks like. Child, they will when I get through.
   3. Things I do:
      1. Before engaged I put Sonia’s picture on my mirror and prayed for her.
      2. Sonia and I went to home shows to get a vision of our own house.
      3. We visit churches and see what they are doing to give us a vision.
      4. I have pictures of church buildings.
      5. I have a picture of Jesus laughing.
   4. Things you can do:
      1. Put an empty photo album on your table that you plan to fill.
      2. Go test drive an expensive car. Take a picture of it.
      3. Cut out a wedding dresses.
      4. Put picture of your dreams.
      5. Write out a check for yourself.
      6. Put up religious and Christian symbols in your house.
      7. Buy a school T-shirt to the college you want to go to.
      8. Picture of an orphanage you want to support.
   5. Write scriptures that speak to you. Put them up in a place where you can see them.

 

Zech 4:10

10 “Who despises the day of small things? Men will rejoice when they see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel.

• Memorials in the OT. Sacraments in the NT. All point to seeing the invisible.
  1. People set objects: stones, trees. Festivals.
  2. Communion, baptism, anointing
  3. Plumb line measuring tool for construction. It represented the finish product.
  4. Do you have a plumb line before your eyes?
  5. Wanted twins, but his wife, Lisa, could not get pregnant. One day, he got a package from Huggies of two diapers. Sign from God. He wrote the dates on the diapers and placed them on a desk. Call about adopting twins about to be born. page 5

Prov 29:18

18 Where there is no vision, the people perish:

KJV

1. I like to write down all the things that God has done.

 

Eph 3:20

20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,

1. Don’t imagine small. Imagine something only God could do.
   1. Don’t let negative talks shrink your imagination.
   2. Listen to what God is telling you.
   3. Conrad Hilton: 1930 saw an article about the Waldorf Hotel, most beautiful. God put it into his heart to own the hotel. He cut out pictures of the hotel and put in under the glass on his desk. 18 years late he bought 250,000 shares of the Waldorf Corporation.

 

1. Where is your focus?
2. A tight rope walker cannot look down, he looks straight ahead.
3. My story of learning how to overcome sea sickness.

Num 21:8-9 8 And the Lord said to Moses, Make a fiery serpent [of bronze] and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.  9 And Moses made a serpent of bronze and put it on a pole, and if a serpent had bitten any man, when he looked to the serpent of bronze [l attentively, expectantly, with a steady and absorbing gaze], he lived.

1. Many of you are spiritually sick, emotionally ill because you have focused on the wrong things.

The Name: Possession of the Church

The Name: Possession of the Church

Introduction: The generation that understands the power of name of Jesus will be the generation that ushers in the second coming of Christ. This generation will do marvelous exploits in Christ’ name.

1. W. Kenyon: “Oh, that our eyes were open; that our souls would dare rise into the realm of Omnipotence where the Name would mean to us all that the Father has invested in it; that we would act up to our high privileges in Christ Jesus….Here and there, some of us have experienced the authority vested in the Name of Jesus. We have seen the lame walk, the deaf hear, the blind see; those on the verge of death brought back instantly to health and vigor; but, so far, none of us have been able to take a permanent place in our privileges and abide where we may enjoy the fullness of this mighty power.“ But we have a conviction that before the Lord Jesus returns, there will be a mighty army of believers who will learn the secret of living in the Name, of reigning in life, living the victorious, transcendent, resurrection life of the Son of God among men.”

 

Rev 5:12

“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,

to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength

and honor and glory and praise!”

1. Church is rich beyond knowledge.
2. Church has been poverty bound, even some quarters of the church, poverty vows were common.
3. Poverty means total neediness—sin conscious, punishment mentality, and suffering attitude has been the norm, the reason because the church did not know its wealth. We have been authorized to act in Christ place with his authority, power and riches.
4. What he has, is now yours.
5. Power—ability, can do all things.
6. Wealth—total provision.
7. Strength—The quality or state of being strong, bodily or muscular power; vigor, mental power, moral power, firmness or courage. Power of resisting force.
8. Honor—to be given dignity.
9. Glory—to be worthy of that dignity.
10. Praise—to have others verbalize their approval.
11. Charles Haddan Spurgeon., noted English Baptist preacher…elderly woman with a frame document. She worked for English nobility. Bequest. (name of Jesus, page 56-57)

 

Rev 1:18

18 I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.

• The one who has the key is the authorized One.

            Matt 28:18

18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

1. He immediately delegated his authority to the Church.

Matt 28:19

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

1. Then he promised…

Mark 16:17

17 And these signs will accompany those who believe:

1. He authorized us by giving us the right to use his name.
2. Jesus never needed his name; He has ruled creation by his Word. The church needed the name.
3. The name is the token of our authority. It is a badge.
4. Badge represents the authority; it is not the thing that gives a police officer authority. He got his authority by training and knowing the Law, then he was conferred the legal authority to enforce the Law.
5. You can try to use the name, but without the disciplining of the Lord, you will falter when you attempt to exercise authority.

Acts 19:13

13 Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.”

1. They did not know Jesus nor really know about Paul’s teaching, for they did not attend with him daily in the lecture hall to be taught.

Acts 19:9-10

He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus.

 

1. Some people would have us to believe that healing, miracles, and tongues have passed away. However, these signs accompany the name. Has the name been taken away from the church? Of course not, for if it has then salvation has been taken away.

Acts 4:12

12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

1. There is more to salvation than forgiveness of our sins. Sozo, or Soteria according to Greek scholars everywhere means deliverance, preservation, soundness, health, and prosperity. Salvation in the Old Testament never meant going to heaven. The blessing of eternal life was added under the new and better covenant, however, that does not mean God took away the other blessings that salvation means.
2. Today, preachers seem to exclude the various meanings of the word salvation.

Acts 3:6-7

6 Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.”

1. The language is clear, “What I Have” should prove that the name of Jesus is the possession of the church.

Luke 10:17

17 The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”

1. The disciple knew the authority they had in the name, even before Jesus conquered the devil and rose from the dead.
   

Exod 3:13-14

13        Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”

14        God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what

you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.'”

 

John 8:56-59

56 Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.”

57 “You are not yet fifty years old,” the Jews said to him, “and you have seen Abraham!”

58 “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!”

1. God is what ever we need him to be.
2. This name is related to the English word “Yahweh”

“Jehovah” or “Lord”. “I am” begins a declaration of who someone is.

1. There are eight names compounded with the name

Jehovah in the Old Testament. These names meet

every need of ours.

1. Jehovah-Rophe–“The Lord that heals you”

Ex 15:26

2. Jehova-Tsidkenu– “The Lord our Righteousness
3. Jehovah-Shalom– “The Lord our peace”
4. Jehovah-Shammah– “The Lord is there”

Ez 48:35

5. Jehovah-M’kaddesh–“The Lord who sanctifies”
6. Jehovah-Nissi–“The Lord your banner”
7. Jehovah-Rohi– “The Lord my shepherd”

Ps 23:1

8. Jehovah-Jireh–“The Lord is my provider”

Gen 22:8

 

1. Rich beyond knowledge will do you good when your knowledge reaches the place of your riches. Many do not walk in their authority because they do not prayerfully, study the Word so they could know their place.