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Bring Back the Joy --- B B t J . O r g
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Are you
receiving all that is available from the GRACE of God? Are
you a “grace shouter?” T D Do you know what a “grace shouter” is? Before you complete this study you will
know! You will become motivated to
exist as a “grace shouter!” The
prophet Zechariah reports of a “grace
shouter” in the famous and often quoted passage, “Not by might, nor by
power, but by my spirit.” He went on to
say, “ . . . and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings,
crying, Grace, grace unto it” (Zech 4:6-7). Sixteen different times, through twelve of the New
Testament letters and the Book of Revelation we find the blessing, “Grace be unto
you (or) with you.” The
apostles Paul & John each make use of that specific blessing. What is so important about that Greek word “charis”
or grace? It appears 156 times in
the New Testament and it is attributed to have been spoken/written by the
following individuals:
Jesus’ part of our salvation is already
finished! We can be certain that we
will never stand-up in heaven and proclaim the following, “Look at what Jesus
and I did!” When we get there it will
not have been because of anything that we have achieved! From our perspective at this point in time
it is not, “Do, do, do;” rather, it is “Done, done, done!” Perhaps another more straightforward way to understand grace is as follows, “We do not get good in order to get God; we get God in order to get good!” We need to repeat that as many times as necessary until fully understood! Oftentimes people confuse even that simple concept of grace! Through this study we will become more familiar with the simplicity of grace while investigating several of its complex aspects. We will ask, “How many different expressions of Grace are there?” We are all aware of “saving Grace!” Paul wrote in two separate verses, “by grace are ye saved” (Eph 2:5 & Eph 2:8); and on two other distinct occasions he taught about salvation through grace (Acts 15:11 & 2 Tim 1:9). It is normal and perhaps predictable that one would come to the conclusion that the principal expression of grace is “Saving Grace!” The second form of Grace is “justifying Grace!” Paul wrote, “Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom 3:24). Paul taught that we have peace and are justified freely by God’s grace! To help you remember the Biblical significance of the word “justified;” memorize the following simple phrase, “Just if I’d never sinned.” In Leviticus the Israelites were clearly instructed to take a lamb to the priest for their sins, “he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD for his sin which he hath sinned . . . a lamb or a kid of the goats, for a sin offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his sin” (Lev 5:6). When the sacrificial lamb was brought unto the priest, he examined it to insure that it was indeed without blemish, “if his offering be of the flocks, namely, of the sheep, or of the goats, for a burnt sacrifice; he shall bring it a male without blemish” (Lev 1:10). Realize that the priest would examine the lamb, not the man who was guilty of sin! If the Lamb was “without blemish” and therefore usable, the priest would pronounce over the Lamb, “Worthy is the Lamb therefore your sins are forgiven!” In like fashion, when Christians are justified by grace it is, “Just if I’d never sinned!” The man’s sin was transferred to the Lamb. When God looks at us through the Lamb we are justified, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain” as John wrote (Rev 5:12). Some have a hard time comprehending the Lamb’s role in the atonement of our sin! Nevertheless, its role is according to God’s word just as John the Baptist said, “behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29)! When we trust in God’s justifying “grace,” we are then permitted to use Jesus’ name with authority and we are persuaded to embrace rather amazing things, “unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us” (Eph 3:20). Obviously, His justifying Grace covers our sins! But is that all there is to grace? Are there other attributes of “charis” beside “saving” and “justifying” grace? The answer is absolutely YES! Third, the Bible demonstrates a “teaching Grace.” Again Paul writes, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world” (Titus 2:11-12). Once the grace of God begins to change our lives it teaches us of the new righteousness and awesome spiritual capabilities that we are endowed with! Through “teaching grace” we learn how to overcome impossible problems from the past! These added abilities are revealed to us through God’s, “teaching Grace!” The fourth type of Grace is “exempting Grace,” “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually . . . But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD (Every man in the pre-flood world was evil except for Noah.) . . . Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God” (Gen 6:5-9). By the way, the English word Noah, is read in the original Hebrew from right to left “tn;” and sounds like “Noach.” Those two letters are pronounced as “Nun” and “Het;” they express two significant Hebrew concepts as observable in the table on the next page! If you have not yet read/listened to the Rivkah Ministries, Bible Study entitled, “The Mysterious Hebrew Aleph—Bet and The Bible” you can obtain a copy of the study and/or the sound file from Http://www.Rivkah.org Notice from the table that the two letters of Noah’s name when added together result in the sum of 58! Fifty-eight is also the value of the Hebrew word for Grace, while five is the number of Grace. The Hebrew word translated into the English word Grace is, “chen;” the “c” is silent. “Chen;” is spelled “nt.” You might note from the last page that “chen” is spelled using the same Hebrew letters as Noah; however in reverse order. The Hebrew word “chen” is translated into the English as “grace,” “gracious,” “kindness,” “favor,” “pleasant,” and “precious.” It is an interesting digression to note that the name “Benny Hinn” when spelled in the Hebrew means, “the son of Grace!” We will note just three specific Hebrew letters in the following table:
We often express to one another the non-biblical phrase, “There, but for the grace of God, go I.” When we use the expression the phrase does properly demonstrates a form of the “exempting Grace.” We have observed that this grace has expression in the Biblical character of Noah. Other personalities delivered through the “exempting Grace” of God were Moses who was the only male Hebrew child of his time who was not drowned in the Nile; and Jesus who was the only Hebrew child under three years of age who was born in the area of Bethlehem that was not slain by Herod’s soldiers. These four types of Biblical Grace: (1) “saving Grace;” (2) “justifying Grace;” (3) “teaching Grace;” and (4) “exempting Grace,” all communicate very important concepts to the Christian! Most of us have a working understanding of these four types of Biblical Grace. However, in this bible study we are going to focus on a fifth type of Grace! This fifth type of grace is often much less understood or even realized! Can any of you express a fifth variety of grace? (Let’s pause or think for just a moment.) We all fondly recall the saving grace at work in our lives on that special day when we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior; secondly, every time that we need to repent of a sin, we are once again reminded of God’s justifying grace at work in our lives; third, as the Holy Spirit of God daily convicts us we are continually reminded of the type of grace taught by Paul as the teaching grace of God; and finally, we are all thankful that we are no longer part of the blindness of this world and that we are set apart by the exempting grace of God! However there is at least one more significant manifestation of the various expressions of Grace! A fifth expression of grace is actually the primary focus of this Bible Study! We all need to realize and learn to utilize the very significant fifth type of Grace in our Christian walk! This kind of Grace is probably best expressed as the “enabling Grace” of God! Paul asked God three times to remove a thorn from his flesh! Yet, Paul did not receive his precise appeal from God. Instead he obtained the “enabling Grace” of God, “For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor 12:8-9). Through “enabling Grace,” God made it possible for Paul to grow supernaturally and to take advantage of the spiritual production of God’s power in his life! In essence God told Paul, “No, I am not going to remove your thorn; instead, I am going to enable you through my grace to succeed despite the problem! Naturally, anytime we encounter a thorn in our flesh it causes great discomfort and we want it removed immediately! Whenever we encounter a spiritual thorn, we should realize that if we merely maintain our upward momentum, we would eventually arrive at the rose! Solomon expresses that a rose is a precious and tender object, “I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters” (Song 2:1-2). While wearing short pants we may easily run through any field of flowers such as tulips, irises, or daisies and casually brush against the stem of the flowers. However, we will never casually run through a field of roses while wearing shorts and casually brush against its stem! Instead, the plant itself teaches us that its blossom is of great and precious value. The plant naturally protects its bud with its thorns. In the same fashion, we do not fully appreciate Jesus (the true rose of Sharon) until we have gone through the painful learning experiences natural to life. Only through pain, bruises, and soreness do we learn to appreciate Jesus. Back to our sample “grace shouter” who was commissioned by God to rebuild the Temple of God! Through sixteen long years he only got as far as laying a foundation! The prophet encouraged the “grace shouter,” it is written, “The hands of Zerubbabel (the grace shouter) have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you” (Zech 4:9). (Read from Zech 4:7-Zech 4:9 & Ezra 4:1-5 & 11-24). Notice the arguments of Zerubbabel’s adversaries. Zerubbabel experienced many, many thorns in his flesh,” “Then the people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building, And hired counsellers against them, to frustrate their purpose” (Ezra 4:4-5). (Here the people of the land (this would be equivalent to the demonic realm to us) frustrated the work of Zerubbabel’s people. On the other hand, he had to deal with the Samaritans who were traveling with the Jews and had only a half-hearted spirit. He even had to deal with the negative spirit of the “old timers” and their “good old days” attitude. These were the ones who had seen the glory of the original temple.) Zerubbabel properly understood that, “The solution was not in the Temple of God; it was in the God of the Temple!” Likewise, we should realize when God is with us, then any vision from Him is going to come to pass! What we must understand is that Zerubbabel had received a word from the Lord that he would rebuild and complete the temple! Yet he found instead a mountain of a problem against him! He saw nothing but seventy-year-old ashes from the former temple. He experienced burnt and broken beams strewn about. This dominated his sight for sixteen years! Instead of a glorious temple, he saw tumbleweeds and lizards and insects! Subsequent to sixteen long frustrating years of modest progress he realized that he needed something more, which turned out to be the enabling grace of God! After speaking to the prophet he was told to begin again! Through this powerful injection of information he moved toward victory. Once God helps us lay our foundations, we can be encouraged through the fact that He will complete His commission. Have you ever laid foundations at the direction of God? We all have: possibly in our children; possibly our jobs; possibly personal visions. We must expect in all of these projects that He will see-to-it that they are completed! When God starts a project He always completes it, usually in a way where there was no way! Can we stand the rigor of remaining small until God’s set time comes? We must remember that God works as follows: (#1 seedl) à (#2 timeC) à (and #3 harvestm)! In between the seed and the harvest is time! But, the enabling grace of God teaches us that we gain victory, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my (God’s) spirit” (Zech 4:6). The key is that Zerubbabel didn’t
just rely on saving grace or the justifying grace
from God. He did not stop at the teaching
grace; and, he certainly realized that he lived within the exempting
grace of God. Yet, all of these
manifestations of Grace were not sufficient for him to finish! He ordered his mountain to identify itself,
“Who art thou, O great mountain?” Next,
he prophesied to his mountain, “thou
shalt become a plain.” Finally,
Zerubbabel exercised the vision that was placed in his mind. With direction from the prophet he took hold
of the final stone of the temple known as the Head Stone! Then, Zerubbabel shouted out his vision to
the Head Stone, “and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings,
crying, Grace, grace unto it” (Zech 4:7)! Zerubbabel shouted into existence things which were not
present! The word that he shouted was “Grace,
grace!” It is time to awaken! Wake-up, “And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep” (Zech 4:1) We are building blocks in the temple of God, “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house (temple), an holy priesthood (We are priests serving in the temple of God), to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:5). The Church collectively and individually is the temple of God Almighty, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you . . . for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are” (1 Cor 3:16-17). Can you hear God’s prophets speaking to you today? They are joining the refrain of the prophets of old, “Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built” (Zech 8:9)! Notice what happens to us once we are totally focused on The LORD God, “Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew (Christian’s now during this age; Jews during the millennium), saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you” (Zech 8:23). When the world recognizes that we represent God Almighty, they will naturally flow unto us. Simply ask! “Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession!” (Ps 2:8). Isaiah writes of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, “And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch “N-TS-R” shall grow out of his roots” (Isaiah 11:1). This “Branch” is a prophecy of the Messiah who was to have been a descendent of David the son of Jesse. We have previously learned that the Hebrew (not the Greek) word "NoTSRi" translated into the word “Christian” is recognizable in the book of Acts, “For we have found this man a pestilent fellow . . . and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes ("NoTSRi" in Hebrew)” (Acts 24:5). Obviously Acts was written in the Greek. The prophet Zechariah writes, “And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. And the crowns shall be to Helem, and to Tobijah, and to Jedaiah, and to Hen the son of Zephaniah, for a memorial in the temple of the LORD. And they that are far off shall come and build in the temple of the LORD, and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you. And this shall come to pass, if ye will diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God” (Zech 6:12-15). Let’s notice the specific names of those who marked to receive crowns, Helem (Which means “to cause to dream”); Tobijah (Means “the LORD is good”); Jedaiah (Means “God knows or God has known”); Hen (Means “grace”) the son of Zephaniah (Means,“God has concealed”). Taken all together those words of Zech 6:14-15 may be assembled together to make the phrase, “And the crowns shall be given to those who “dream” that “the LORD is good!” “God knows” the “grace” which,” He has concealed” for a memorial in the temple” individual Church members” of the LORD.” When applied to the entire prophecy listed above, verses 12-15, it indicates a prophecy about the temple that God is building through the church. The whole section may be phrased as, “God is going to give crowns to those who are so familiar with the kindness of God that they actually dream of His goodness. God is fully aware of the favor, which He has concealed for His Church members who need only to search-out His Goodness. These gentiles shall build-up the temple of the LORD. These prophecies are inevitable for those who diligently obey God’s voice!” As we seek God’s favor, we become worthy of crown(s), “And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible” (1 Cor 9:25). So let us begin to take to heart the words of Zecheriah the prophet who prophesied concerning the building of God’s Temple! We can be found here in these words of the prophet! We have literally laid the foundation of those things that God has given to us through His voice. Like Zerubbabel we still have many unfinished projects! What are we supposed to do now while the foundations remains in progress? What are we supposed to do now with mountains set-up against us? We all know what it is to stand in the midst of the incomplete while looking in the face of the impractical! We are to hearken to the words of the prophet Zecheriah, “and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it” (Zech 4:7). This means that we are to go the Head Stone and we are to start shouting, “Grace, Grace!” That Head Stone represented God’s firstborn son, Jesus Christ who alone proclaimed that forever, “It is finished!” (John 19:30) The Bible reports that once Zerubbabel began to shout, “Grace, Grace” suddenly the seven Spirits of God supernaturally materialized! These Spirits suddenly began to produce manifestations and visions and to make things happen. The Spirit of God caused those who had resources to ask, “How much money do you need?” The seven Spirits of God caused those with skills to ask, “How can my talents be used to build the temple?” The seven Spirits of God caused the mighty warriors to ask, “Where can I stand on the wall to provide the best protection while you are building?” There are situations in our personal lives where we are to become “grace shouters!” We are to walk by the door of that unsaved mate and shout, “Grace, Grace!” We are to go into that business which is not getting much business and shout, “Grace, Grace!” We need to walk past the picture of that rebellious child and shout, “Grace, Grace!” We are to shout to the empty bottle of alcohol which has bound our loved one, crying, “Grace, Grace!” Raise up your voice over the tumble weeds and the many ashes of the various situations in your life and shout, “Grace, Grace!” Shout it now, “Grace, Grace!” Shout it again, “Grace, Grace!” Do you “grace shouters” hear the demons as they flee? You better realize that our Father in heaven hears us and He is sending forth His Spirit, which causes things to happen! “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it!” (Zech 4:9) Put your name in that verse! The hands of _________ have laid the foundation of this project; his/her hands shall also finish it! If you are one of those who are facing the frustration of a mountain established by the enemy then fix in your mind a completed/final image of your project. Next, shout to the Head Stone, “Grace, Grace!” Do any of you have an unfinished or incomplete project? Talk to it! Speak to it! Prophesy to it! The following is a prophecy that I actually heard with my own ears regarding this subject, “The victory is in your mouth! For the Savior will honor the words and by the Holy Ghost, He will fill your spirit! So speak! For I am waiting to hear from you that I might begin to move in miracle working power while the open Heaven is above you to provide all that you need. But, you must speak and act in faith for you are like me. You have the God kind of faith. For you are my sons and daughters. So speak like my children! Says the LORD.” God finishes everything He starts! In our lives we must begin to speak and act like God’s children. We must begin to shout to the Head Stone, “Grace, Grace!” “Grace, Grace!” T “Grace, Grace!” D Don’t you dare to talk to your God about how big your mountain is; rather, talk to your mountain about how big your God is! Have you got a mountain of cancer? Begin to shout to the Head Stone, “Grace, Grace!” Have you got a physical disease? Begin to shout to the Head Stone, “Grace, Grace!” God is not through until He is finished! Begin Again! j There is a prophecy regarding the building of the temple in Zech 6:10. Below are the names of those who were to return from captivity and go into the church: Take of them of the captivity, even of Heldai (worldliness), of Tobijah (the Lord is Good), and of Jedaiah (God knows), which are come from Babylon (confusion), and come thou the same day, and go into the house of Josiah (God has founded) the son of Zephaniah (God has concealed) One Very Possible Interpretation: Take those Christians which came out of the confusion of the world; whose characteristics are: (1)
worldly and there are; (Outer
Court Christians) (2)
those
who know that the Lord is Good and there are; (Inner Court Christians (3)
those
who God knows (Most
Holy Place Christians) Bring these Christians with you on the same day you go in to the House founded by God which He has hidden. Bible Study coming soon entitled “Those Who Serve in God’s Temple Today”
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