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“And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’  So I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you.  I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’ “Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance. – Acts 26:14-20

“LIVING WITH KINGDOM VISION”

The overall driving force of a Kingdom life is VISION. It is not secular vision, which begins in the mind of humans (e.g. what is your career vision, or academic vision, or family vision?) but it is spiritual vision? Spiritual vision begins in the mind of God. That is a key distinction because where a vision originates determines which entity God will bless and bring to pass with certainty – yours or His. So, let’s begin to explore what the Bible says about vision, it’s purpose, and how it is manifested.

Vision is first mentioned in Genesis 15:1 where it reads, “The Lord came to Abram in a vision.” Vision was the medium or means by which God chose to communicate to Abram. Think for a moment about this: in the natural, when someone who is a lot smarter than you tries to communicate with you, they are normally speaking in a way that is beyond your capacity to understand them, right? To assist you and/or others in understanding their communication, a super-intellectual people normally will step out of their huge, complex vocabulary and break it down for us to simplify matters! In a similar way, God’s best communication to man is not in words, but in vision. When it comes to an infinite God communicating with finite humanity (“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.  “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9), God makes things much plainer for us. He breaks it down. You see, God is a masterful communicator, and He’s so good at what He does that His will forms a picture in your mind – vision!

As a term and concept, the Hebrew term for “vision” here in Genesis 15 is chazah, whose Aramaic root means “to see or to consider.” It simply means a revelation or disclosure of an unseen reality. Vision is divinely inspired and reveals to us what God intended to come to pass before creation (time) began. Through the medium of vision, God demonstrates that He can show you better than I can tell you. God communicated with Abram by disclosing to him an unseen reality. Spiritual visions require no ‘assessment,’ ‘dreaming,’ ‘engineering,’ or ‘planning’ on your part—as is done with our secular visions. It is something that has been there ALL THE TIME; thus, you do not have to come up with it – you simply have to tap-in. In my almost 35 years of ministry, I continually observe believers trying to engineer where they desire to be and how they are going to get there when God already has a vision for your life.

Visions help you staying connected to God. That is why the writer of Proverbs writes, “Where there is no vision (chazah), the people cast off restraint. But happy is he who keeps the law.” (Proverbs 29:18). This passage teaches us that vision releases God’s direction, instruction, and rule in your life, which help to keep us within the protection and will of God. When you don’t have God’s intention for your life, we will cast off restraint or “run wild.” What you have got to realize is that your personal vision for yourself fights against God unknowingly as you pray to God for your vision to come to pass against His Kingdom vision for your life. This shows us the critical necessity of spiritual vision leading and directing our lives. Beloved, we are mandated to live by God’s Kingdom vision.

A Prayer for Today:

Heavenly King, I willingly submit to Your dominion, power, and control over me and that means that I willingly submit to your Kingdom vision for my life. With my whole heart, soul, and mind, I will be intentional about knowing you and making you known daily. I seek You first, and I order my desires and all else in my life around what You desire and sovereignly chose for my existence. I bind the enemy who comes to discourage me through his tactics of fear, deception, worldliness, and divination. In Jesus name, I pray – amen.

Live Kingdom-focused in 2019

Who’s vision are you living? God’s vision or your own? Oftentimes we find ourselves back in the same situations and circumstances that we swore to ourselves we’d never be in again; if we ever managed to get out of them at all. The problem may be that you’re living your own personal vision instead of the God intended one. The good news is that if and when you strive to live for God’s Vision and put Him at the front of your decision making, you can reach desired outcomes and achieve the growth and success you’ve been longing for. If you’re ready for supernatural growth through a life centered around God’s Vision Order your copy today!

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What is a vision? If you ask the average person, they might tell you “it’s a plan or the goals you have for your life.” But is this REALLY what vision is? As believers, we all want to live a prosperous and victorious life in Christ, but how do we do that and ensure we are living a life that is also pleasing to God? In this life-transforming series, Dr. Dana Carson reveals the secret to living a victorious, prosperous, and effective Kingdom life that is driven by Kingdom vision! Order your copy of this life changing series today!

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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. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.
– 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

“I NEED AN EXTREME MAKEOVER”

Spiritual resolutions for the new year, if made, tend to be given even less weight than the dietary, career, business, and other various new year resolutions that many people traditionally make. However, as a believer and Kingdom citizen, we would be remiss if we don’t make spiritual resolutions;our spiritual life IS our life.  The Bible says, “For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). At the beginning of every new year, it is so important to recalibrate and realign ourselves in the spirit back with God.

One of the weekly teachings that I encouraged partners in my ministry to focus on during our annual 21-day consecration is my KIA (Kingdom in Action) Guide on “Extreme Makeover.” In it, I explore 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24, where Paul writes, “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. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. This is part of Paul’s benediction in his letter to the church at Thessalonica, and he was praying a blessing on the saints there.  In saying “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely…,” Paul was saying “May the Lord set you aside and use you for His Kingdom purposes.”  Beloved, my hope is that this year one of your resolutions is to be used by God like you’ve never been used before. I hope that you seek with your whole heart to be enriched, enhanced, and empowered in Kingdom knowledge such that God uses you to change lives and touch worlds with Kingdom impact.  You see, one of the challenges in walking with God is that in your flesh/physical being, you have to maintain your passion and spirituality.  However, if we are not intentional, our spiritual lives will wane rather than increase.  In essence, Paul’s prayer here is that God would increase your total being.

The scripture teaches that our outward man is perishing day-by-day:“Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16). In our physicality, we are aging and wearing out; our inward man, however, is being renewed day-by-day.  So when we refer to an “Extreme Makeover,” we are talking about a spiritual renewal.  A Kingdom citizen does not want his or her spiritual life to operate on the same plane or sphere as their older man. That old man is aging with all of the increasing limitations and restrictions that come with a deteriorating physicality. But spiritually, opportunities to become greater are constantly appearing as you are renewed and enriched by the Holy Spirit. In fact, every year spiritually, you are supposed to do more than you have ever done before!  So, every year in the spirit, we need an Extreme Makeover!

We do “grow up” in the spirit, and in our growing up in Christ, we should be increasing in maturity, walking in more power, and becoming better equipped to do greater works for God’s Kingdom! Paul says in order to do that, you’ve got to pay attention to and be intentional regarding your spirit, soul, and body.

“Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 (ESV)

The only way to do this is to intentionally put God first (Matthew 6:33). Matthew suggests that if we put God and His Kingdom first, He will take care of all of the other important issues in our lives.  And to put God first, you have to put your spirit-man first.

So, what plans and goals do you have for yourself this year?  Most importantly, are they reflective of you seeking first God and His Kingdom?  Did you make a vague and blanket statement like, “I want to do God better than I have before,” but then have these copiously detailed plans regarding your intellectual and career development or other things that you defacto prioritize over your spirit-man? Maybe you have outlined diets or workouts you want to execute, and that’s great.  But, the question I have is – Have you given that same level of specification to your plan for your spirit-man’s renewal? If not, you are setting your spirit-man up for failure!

It is your passion for God and intentionality in seeking Him first that will enable your spirit-man to be renewed day-by-day.  God is a gentleman God and will not ‘force-feed’ Himself onto anybody. He will not violate your free will.  So without passion for God, you will not be able to stay spiritual while your flesh is perishing day-by-day.  Why?  Because the increasing limitations of our physicality will overpower a weak spiritual life that is not infused with passion regularly and consistently. You need an Extreme Makeover; we need an Extreme Makeover!

A Prayer for Today:

King of kings and Lord of lords, I commit to my own spiritual renewal by intentionally seeking You and Your Kingdom above all else in my life.  That means the most pressing, urgent, and prominent thing in my existence is the spiritual reality of the world I see with eyes of faith—the unseen things. Please enhance, enrich, and empower me with Your Holy Spirit to passionately follow You in new ways for Your purpose – more souls, more miracles, more faith, more manifestations of your Kingdom!  I willingly submit to YOUR Dominance, King Jesus, and choose to totally trust you. All praises, honor, and glory to your Name.

Live Victoriously in 2018 

At the beginning of every year, we tend to
make resolutions – this is the year that we’ll become healthy and fit or we’ll perform well in our careers, and countless other new year’s resolutions that many people traditionally make. Spiritual resolutions for the new year, if made, tend to be given even less weight. However, as a Kingdom citizen, we must make spiritual resolutions. In this powerful home Bible study guide, you will put into action the steps that will change your entire outlook on life and move your spiritual life to the next level. Order your copy today!

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Have you ever asked yourself “What’s wrong with me?”  You want to change but just can’t seem to break out of your usual way of thinking and behaving. This revolutionary series will change your whole life – your health – your finances – and your relationships! Change your entire outlook on life! In this series, In this series, Dr. Carson will teach you how to break free from “average” and experience an Extreme Makeover in your life! Order your copy of this life changing series today!

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12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2 of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3 And this we will do if God permits. – Hebrews 5:12-6:3

“FAITH TOWARDS GOD – GOD’S GOT YOU AND HE’S GOOD FOR IT”

The essence of your faith is your belief, attitude, and corresponding action that God is good for it! Whatever His promise is, and your faith manifests in hope because you know God’s got you.  When you have hope, you RELAX in faith knowing He’s good for it. Beloved, are you relaxing in faith concerning that matter that God has promised to you? People who are always running around, panicked—exclaiming, “Oh, things are going wrong” and full of anxiety and worry—have no faith.  But still they will dare put on the end of all of that, “But I’m still trusting God…” A believer is not demonstrating trust in God like that. Recall that faith is the substance of the things hoped for, based on a promise from God.  That means you have hope in your future.  Until God becomes good for His promise in your mind, attitude, and corresponding action—you DO NOT have faith.

For example, God may promise you, “You are going to administrate a Kingdom-minded school” or “You will preach and teach the gospel to young women in the Houston area” or whatever it is He has told you. Because God told you, you don’t ‘trip.’ Anything that you are ‘tripping’ about is because God did not tell you.  So often, we are trying to force something on to God that has everything to do with our heart’s desire vs. His heart’s desire.

Faith counteracts anxiety, stress, and worry.  If you lived in hope, hope alone would have you in constant worry. Every day it would be, “Is it here yet; is it here yet? Did I get the job, yet?  Did anybody call me from that company yet?” You see, that is what hope [alone] does.  The Bible did not instruct us to live in hope—God told us to walk by faith (Habakkuk 2:4, Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11)! When you have faith, you can start acting like it’s already here; over time, your faith in God grows. The just actually live by the “past” faithfulness of God.  It doesn’t matter what the circumstances may say, you know God’s good for it. God made me a promise and that gives me hope; and because I have faith, faith becomes the substance of what I am hoping for.  My faith becomes the evidence of what I have yet to visibly see.

You might be reading this and thinking to yourself, “Well, you don’t understand Dr. Carson: faith is hard!” Yes, it is; Paul told Timothy you must fight the good fight (of faith). When the other trained warriors of Israel had refused to fight Goliath, do you think it was easy for David to go out there with no armor when he battled Goliath?  David only had five smooth stones while Goliath had a huge sword and his helmet weighed more than David. But David also had the presence of God in his life. He had an abiding faith in the living God of Israel who had delivered him from “the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear,” and he declared, “He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine” (1 Samuel 17: 33-37).

Beloved, you are cut from that same cloth but have even more than David!God refers to you as a “chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own special people that you may proclaim the praises of Him who call you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). As Kingdom citizens, we walk in, are filled with, and guided and empowered by the Spirit of the living God (Galatians 5:16, Ephesians 5:18, John 16:13]. Our very citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20) by virtue of our new birth (John 3:1-8). We are His, those whom he has delivered “from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Colossians 1:13). We possess much more than David! “The relationship we have with God is a covenant of faith, and faith is the thing that pleases God to no end:…without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him”(Hebrews 11:6).

Biblical faith is not a one-time act done at salvation, but a way of life. In the Kingdom, a true citizen must persevere to the end in faith – a lifestyle of consistent and persistent faith (Colossians 1:22-23, Hebrew 3:12-14; 10:38-39). God’s got you!

A Prayer for Today:

I praise and thank you King Jesus for giving me a measure of faith and for the Word of life that You so carefully crafted and inspired over the centuries to give me even more faith.  I rejoice in the fact that my citizenship is in heaven, and since I have been raised with Christ, I will seek those things which are above.  I will delight myself in You, my King, so that the desires of Your heart and Your Kingdom become the desires of my heart. I will know that I exist for Your purpose, and nothing can thwart the plans and purposes of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power of faith at work within us, let Your Kingdom be expanded through me. Amen.

Live Victoriously in 2018 

When we come to God for salvation, the part that we play is an exercise in faith. All of our deeds or “our works” are as filthy rags, and in order to be declared righteous, we had to place our faith in Jesus. In this powerful message, “Faith Towards God”, Dr. Dana Carson teaches us that faith is an unseen reality, faith is necessary, and that faith grows. Order your copy of this dynamic and life-changing message today!

Complimentary Product

The book Apostles’ Doctrine focuses upon the fundamental doctrine of the Kingdom of God.  Apostle, Dr. Dana Carson has written this book to expound on the seven foundational tenets of the faith, recorded in Hebrews 6, from a Kingdom perspective. Everyone who is serious about studying the scriptures, and desires to become strong in the faith and not able to be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine, must read the Apostles’ Doctrine.

The post God’s got you and He’s good for it appeared first on Dana Carson Kingdom Ministries.

12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2 of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3 And this we will do if God permits. – Hebrews 5:12-6:3

“FAITH TOWARDS GOD – OUT OF HIS FAITHFULNESS”

Doctrine is important. The Greek word for “doctrine” is didaskalia, which means “teaching.” However, doctrine is also a set of prescribed teachings, interpreted by the apostles, inspired by God.  At the beginning of the New Testament Church in Acts 2:42, the Bible tells us, “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.” Above, we see the elementary doctrines of the Christian faith set forth in Hebrews Chapters 5 and 6. This is a regimented and set order of teachings that God expects us to be proficient enough to, at some point in our walk, teach others (For though by this time you ought to be teachers…- v.12).God expects His Kingdom citizens to be skilled in the Word and to have the ability to live out doctrine and teach others.

“Faith toward God” is the second of what I term “the foundational principles,” about which I have written extensively in my book, “The Apostle’s Doctrine.” You have to know what it means to “have faith”; faith is one of those subjects that can get you really tripped up.  You can live your whole life and feel like you have biblical faith—and you don’t. Everybody feels like “my faith is strong,” but they know not one Bible verse, they don’t have an intimate relationship with God as defined by the Bible, and most importantly, they could not stand and teach the doctrine of “faith towards God” from the scripture.  What they may have is subjectivity, optimism, and positivity, but none of these is biblical faith.One thing we do not want is to miscalculate or misunderstand is biblical faith because the consequences are ETERNAL (Matthew 7:21-23).

Everything we do as a Kingdom citizen is and must be done by faith (Galatians 5:6) The Bible tells us, “We walk by faith and not by sight,” (2 Corinthians 5:7) and, “The just shall live (exist) by faith.” (Hebrews 10:38A) Your walk and life with God is by faith; not by works, lest any man should boast (Ephesians 2:8-9). Living the Kingdom life is not based on your moral discipline or spiritual duty; it is predicated upon your faith alone.

On the surface, this seems like a vacation from responsibility—until you really understand what the Bible is saying.  Since faith is the actual substance of things hoped for (Hebrews 11:1), that does not mean we walk by optimism.  Biblical faith is more complex than that. An examination of Romans 1:16-17 will assist us in unlocking some of the keys to Biblical faith.  This passage reads:

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

We see that the gospel—God’s good news to humankind—is the POWER of God unto salvation to them that believe. Everything that God wants to do in your life flows out of the gospel.  It is the POWER! But this POWER is only released when you believe it. That’s why the Bible says, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come,” (Matthew 24:14). There is no liberation without the gospel, and there is no experiencing the POWER until you BELIEVE the message.

In the gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed from “faith to faith.” In the Greek, this is ek pisteōs eis pistis —“out of faithfulness into faith.”  Paul is actually reaching back and quoting Habakkuk 2:4, “But the just shall live by his faith.” (Habukkuk 2:4B). So, Paul is recording that out of God’s faithfulness we get faith.  We could not trust God until He first did something; thus, God is not asking us to blindly trust Him. When you look at what God first did for you (made you righteous through your belief in the gospel), you should declare, “Now THAT’S a God I can BELIEVE!” Think about it. God always gives us His history and shows us how He has been faithful to others. He was faithful to David against a 9-foot tall giant named Goliath. He was faithful to Israel before the Red Sea and a raging army closing in behind them. He was faithful to Joshua in the Battle for Jericho, and He was faithful to Joseph who had to go from his brother’s betrayal to prison to the palace (Genesis 37: 39-46).

God is faithful and has a track record of being faithful.

Some of you should not even be here to read this right now because you have come through situations that many have died in. If it had not been for the King of kings on your side, you would not be here. You don’t need to look far or long and wide to see where God has brought you from. The Word says that, “If we are faithless, He remains faithful—for He cannot deny Himself.” (2 Timothy 2:13).  If you are going to have and exercise biblical Kingdom faith, Paul clearly directs us first to God’s faithfulness. Because out of the King’s faithfulness proceeds our faith.

Beloved, over the next week, make a list of at least 10 occurrences in your life where God has shown His faithfulness to you, apart from and in addition to your salvation.

A Prayer for Today:

I praise and thank you King Jesus for giving me a measure of faith and for the Word of life that You so carefully crafted and inspired over the centuries.  I rejoice in the fact that Your divine power has given us ALL things that pertain to life and godliness, by which we may become partakers of the divine nature, possessing your very DNA and becoming fully equipped to expand this gospel of the Kingdom all over the world.  Please increase my faith and make me ready to complete Your Kingdom mission through me and for Your glory. Amen.

Live Victoriously in 2018 

When we come to God for salvation, the part that we play is an exercise in faith. All of our deeds or “our works” are as filthy rags, and in order to be declared righteous, we had to place our faith in Jesus. In this powerful message, “Faith Towards God”, Dr. Dana Carson teaches us that faith is an unseen reality, faith is necessary, and that faith grows. Order your copy of this dynamic and life-changing message today!

Complimentary Product

The book Apostles’ Doctrine focuses upon the fundamental doctrine of the Kingdom of God.  Apostle, Dr. Dana Carson has written this book to expound on the seven foundational tenets of the faith, recorded in Hebrews 6, from a Kingdom perspective. Everyone who is serious about studying the scriptures, and desires to become strong in the faith and not able to be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine, must read the Apostles’ Doctrine.

The post Out Of His Faithfulness appeared first on Dana Carson Kingdom Ministries.