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BACKGROUND
DEFINITION OF TERMS
BLOOD
LAMB
LAMB OF GOD
WORD
TESTIMONY
TESTIMONY, TABERNACLE OF
MARTYR
DEATH
The
full background to this teaching is available online at this link
DETAILED DEFINITION OF TERMS
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Online links to scriptures (New International Version [NIV] unless otherwise stated) are shown in blue
| REVELATION 12:11 |
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"They overcame him (ie satan) by the blood of the Lamb and by THE WORD OF THEIR TESTIMONY; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death."
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| 2. “THE WORD OF THEIR TESTIMONY” (emphasising the Holy Spirit) Continued
Today looking at aspects 4 to 6. |
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| d. Revealing the Word: |
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 You may be surprised to find a section on the revealing of the word amongst the section on the Holy Spirit. Wasn’t that all done through Jesus? I know I was surprised when I first experienced it. But that is just what He did for me in the paragraph above! (See last week's teaching.) Many students of the word, including many theologians, feel they have an excellent understanding of the Bible, having studied diligently for many years. Yet I made an important discovery when I came into the Spirit. For there were things that were revealed to me, that the ‘experts’ I had read and heard, had not discovered in all their many years of study. I also found that this experience was not unique to me. There were many people who had these insights into God’s word and the nature of Jesus that were missing from my previous experience. All of a sudden the bible took on a new interest, a new vitality for me. How? Who better to answer that question than Jesus himself in John 16:13,15
“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. (v15) All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.”
John 16:5-16
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 Jesus is right! As always actually! I know it in my ‘knower’! My personal testimony is that when the Holy Spirit, who lived in me from the time of my conversion, was released to do His work inside me, my understanding of the Word of God (the Bible) and The Word (Jesus) increased dramatically. In spite of arguments to the contrary from those who feel that a Holy Spirit experience is unnecessary as a part of, or following conversion, I know this to be true. For we cannot move on towards the ultimate goal of intimacy with God the Father, without first experiencing both the salvation of Jesus (the blood of the Lamb) and the “in-filling” of the Holy Spirit (the word of their testimony).
Please, before I am hung, drawn and quartered, I am not condemning academics, for they do a most valuable job in researching, revealing and teaching scripture that we ordinary people do not necessarily have the time nor the ability to do. But an academic, working hand in hand with the Holy Spirit, is far more effective than one relying solely on his or her own abilities.
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| e. Experiencing Spiritual Realities: |
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 Writing about the spiritual dimension of our lives and existence is both easier and harder than writing about the more defined area of salvation. Easier because it is based on personal experience, how the Holy Spirit acts and reacts to our individual personalities. And we all like talking about ourselves don’t we? Usually the hardest part is to find someone to listen! But more difficult because our experiences can be different, the Holy Spirit working personally in the unique situation of each life. So your experience will be different to mine. The Holy Spirit deals to you in a different way than to me. Therefore our perceptions of Him differ, depending upon our personal experience.
This is further complicated by satan, who suddenly takes a much greater interest in us when we enter the spiritual world in a real and threatening (to him) way. For we see Christians who are walking only in the truth of salvation living good, relatively trouble free, if unexciting lives. Then you move into the spirit and all hell breaks loose in your life! Sooner or later that will happen, for suddenly you are a threat to satan, moving in the same realm as he is. It is obvious really, but so often misunderstood. And what does the Holy Spirit do? Take us out of the battle zone? Wouldn’t it be nice! But no! No! No! And again, no! He lets us fight! He uses the situation to train us, to rub off our rough edges, to make us more like Jesus. Of course we would prefer to be taken out of the situation, wouldn’t we? But I know personally that that would be a copout and I would be the worse for it spiritually.
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12)
Ephesians 6:10-18
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 Yes, we are instructed to stand up and fight.
“Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground……” (v14).
For the “real” world is in fact the spiritual world. I found this very difficult to both accept and understand at first. I am a pragmatic, task-orientated person who likes achieving visible goals. By definition the spirit world is not visible! Therefore I had a problem! But although we cannot see the battle, like the wind, we can see and feel its effects. So gradually, even I have come to understand more about this invisible world’s affect on my life.
But Pentecost isn’t all negative! Not at all! For we are on the winning team! Yes, we have Holy Spirit of God living in us!
“We have not received the spirit of the world but the spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. (1 Corinthians 2:12-13)
1 Corinthians 2:9-15
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 As we develop our relationship with God through the Holy Spirit, so we understand more of what is going on in the spiritual world. The battle we fight is not just to defeat Satan but is also God’s way of refining the dross out of the gold of our lives – moving on to the next step in our walk. Dross surfaces by heating gold without evaporating it. (i.e. not more pain than we can bare.) It sure can get pretty hot and uncomfortable in the process though! But all is not in vain! (Get the pun – vein of gold!) For God’s aim is “to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good”.(Titus 2:14) The spiritual battlefield is our training ground in the ways of God.
Titus 2:11-15
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| f. Summary: |
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 The baptism, release or ‘in-filling’ (different terms explaining the same experience - to satisfy man’s various theological positions! God must wistfully shake His head in wonderment at us!) of the Holy Spirit brings a greater reality to our Christian experience. It’s accompanying blessings of spiritual gifts, greater insight and understanding of God’s Word (the Bible) and The Word (Jesus), build our faith and help strengthen us to fight spiritual battles in the unseen but very real spiritual world. For we fight a battle in which, through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, combined with the power and wisdom of the Holy Spirit, we have the victory!
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| 'THE WORD' and 'THE TESTIMONY' |
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 Those who regularly read these teachings may have noticed that the style is different to most of them. The reason for this is that this revelation was given and written a number of years ago as part of my first book, 'Eagles Fly High!'. We all mature as we grow in Him. Hopefully not just grow older!
Revelation too, is an ongoing process. Through the continued teaching of the Holy Spirit. Many make the mistake of receiving a revelation and stopping there. Believing they have the 'final word'! This is how divisions arise in the body of Christ. For none of us will have the final word until Jesus returns and finally reveals all to us.
So, as I have been putting these teachings together (and this is the 1st teaching of the 2nd year - Issue 53) the Holy Spirit has continued to open up this verse to me, as follows. Thank you Lord.
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| The Word |
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 the word of their testimony is also a play on words by the writer, the apostle whom Jesus loved, John.
For if we go back to the first verse of John's Epistle we see, in reference to Jesus,
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1-5
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Therefore the role of the Holy Spirit is to reveal the person of Jesus, not just the word, but 'The Word' to us. A word play, if you get the pun! I still enjoy punning!
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| The Testimony |
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 The 'testimony' also has a double meaning. I love it! For in Scripture testimony refers not only to the words we speak but also to the Ark of the Covenant itself.
Let me quote from a far more authoritative source than myself!
TESTIMONY, TABERNACLE OF — the tabernacle, the great glory of which was that it contained “the testimony”, i.e., the “two tables” (Ex. 38:21). The ark in which these tables were deposited was called the “ark of the testimony” (40:3), and also simply the “testimony” (27:21; 30:6). Easton, M. G., M. A. D. D., Easton’s Bible Dictionary, (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.) 1996
And the Scriptures.
21 These are the amounts of the materials used for the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the Testimony, which were recorded at Moses’ command by the Levites under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron, the priest. (Exodus 38:21)
Exodus 27:20-21, 30:1-6, 38:21, 40:1-5
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 The Ark of the Covenant, as we shall see in following studies on the third part of the verse, represents the perfection we are called to aspire to, through the teaching and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit therefore teaches us all about Jesus and points the way towards becoming like Him as we apply the principles of the contents of the Ark of the Covenant, where the presence of God dwelled above the Atonement Cover, to our lives. Amazing, isn't it! Thank you Lord for ongoing revelation.
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| <i>NEXT WEEK</i> |
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 We are now entering the area that most of us don't really want to deal with. That of putting aside our own ideas and plans for those that form God's 'best' will for our life.
This is the ultimate calling of the follower of Jesus. "to love not your life so much as to shrink from death."
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| A NOTE FROM DAVID |
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 I just love how revelation (through the Holy Spirit) is ongoing. We must never believe that we have all the truth. That is simply pride! Man believing that he knows as much as God!
"Lord, may i never fall into that trap."
Something for the more adventurous! Still no effort, other than bravery (or foolhardiness!), required!
Subject: Tandem Skydiving
Location: Christchurch
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So until next week.......
MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOU BLESS GOD!
His servant and yours
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A DAVID'S DOODLING
388. The body performs better when lubricated by the oil of the Spirit.
David Tait
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Check
out the WWJ website for….
More David's Doodlings: www.wwj.org.nz/dd.php
Eagles Fly High! (Pastors, Teachers and Students): http://www.wwj.org.nz/eaglepts.php
God Facts (A mine of information): http://www.wwj.org.nz/gfacts.php
Facts for Fun: http://www.wwj.org.nz/facts.php
Marriage and Family Facts: http://www.wwj.org.nz/maffacts.php
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