How Can I Know My Destiny?

These serve as a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was warned when he was about to complete the tabernacle. For He said, Be careful that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown to you on the mountain. (Heb 8:5)

There were three items contained in the Ark of God’s Covenant: the staff of Aaron, the tablets of the law, and the golden jar of manna. The STAFF represents CALLING. Aaron’s staff budded with almond blossoms as a sign to all of Israel that the Aaronic line was called of God to serve as the Old Testament priesthood.

The tablets of the LAW speak of SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY. All things in Heaven and Hell are governed by God’s Holy Law. Even satan, himself, must obey it and may act as destroyer only where the law has been violated.

…the curse without cause shall not come. (Pro 26:2)

The MANNA speaks of WISDOM. Unlike ordinary manna which was available to all, this Holy manna was hidden in a golden vessel, symbolic of the precious value of God’s special wisdom and counsel to his children.

Each of these amazing gifts awaits the child of God who enters by the true gate with a hungry heart and a thirsty spirit. When I approach God in this way to know the destiny He has reserved exclusively for me, I will receive my CALLING to it, the AUTHORITY to walk boldly in it, and the WISDOM to advance and protect it until my purpose is fully realized in the glory of Christ on earth.

There are no shortcuts and God is not obligated to a single one of His promises if we do not come according to His established pattern, meaning I appear daily before His altar of confession, to wash in His laver of repentance, eat the showbread of His Word, be enlightened by the candlestick of His rhema, and commune with Him in prayer.

Then, and only then, am I ready to enter the Holy of Holies and receive the promise of my destiny in His CALLING, AUTHORITY, and WISDOM.

And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he hears us: (1Jn 5:14)



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The Wife of Christ

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (Gen 1:27)

Most women have been gifted to multiply. They can to turn a seed into a child, a pile of groceries into a feast. This is not a natural function of men. Give most men a seed or some groceries and, not only will they not multiply it, you’ll be lucky to find the wrapper it came in.

For this reason, among others, the church was never meant to have a male mentality. She is to be female in every respect, the dutiful, Proverbs 31 wife to the King of Kings. Whenever she forgets this and starts acting like a man, the entire world suffers the loss, because men, by their very nature, are consumers. Left unchecked, they would eat both the seed and the groceries and come back for more.

This is precisely what is happening in the main stream church today. Most mega-churches are the result of hording seed rather than scattering it, raising fruit only to consume it as their own. Yes, there are outreaches and missions resulting from these churches, but even this, in many cases, functions only to expand the borders of the individual church or ministry, not the Kingdom of Heaven. This evidences a decidedly male perspective that is laying waste to the true purpose of the Bride.

For the husband is head of the wife as also Christ is head of the church…. (Eph 5:23)

When the church begins to see Christ as the sole provider of both seed and groceries, and the entire world as His household, then she can enter into her true role as wife by focusing her energies and resources on turning the seed (Word and Spirit of God) into true sons and daughters, and the groceries (gifts and provisions of God) into an abundant feast for the whole household of Christ on earth.

By operating in the male capacity, the church is, for all intents and purposes, committing spiritual homosexuality, men with men, rather than Christ with His Bride. I believe this is why, throughout human history, the downfall of a kingdom is nearly always preceded by a rise in popularity of this abominable sin.

But what occurs in the natural only evidences what’s already occurring in the spirit.


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Birthing the Kingdom

The first coming of Christ was all about the inception of the Kingdom. The life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Christ, as well as His sending of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, were all focused on sowing the seed (gospel) for the, yet future, Kingdom of Heaven on earth.

The second coming of Christ will be all about the reception of the Kingdom.

Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. (1Co 15:24)

On that day, the seed will have produced the long awaited fruit and Christ will present it as His gift to the Father. But, before that can happen, there must be a birthing of the Kingdom from the womb of the church.

Then another sign appeared in heaven: There was a great fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven crowns. (Rev 12:3)

HEADS in scripture refer to PRINCIALITIES, in this case, the territorial authorities of satan’s kingdom operating as one body. HORNS speak of POWER. And CROWNS symbolize the HEAVENLY KINGDOM AUTHORITY satan has usurped from the church.

…And the dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she did give birth he might devour her child.
(Rev 12:4)

The WOMAN is the CHURCH. She is weak and defenseless, but it is not the woman the dragon wants. It is the CHILD (Kingdom) in her womb that satan is after.

But she gave birth to a son--a male child who will shepherd all nations with an iron scepter--and her child was caught up to God and to His throne. (Rev 12:5)

The Kingdom is rescued from satan and given the throne (sovereign authority) of Heaven. At that time, like Israel in the land of Goshen, the Kingdom will function as a witness to the world of God’s faithfulness and power while remaining insulated from the Lord’s indignation and wrath which will come against satan and all those who serve him.

And I saw a beast coming up out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads. On his horns were ten crowns, and on his heads were blasphemous names. (Rev 13:1)

Notice that, just one chapter later, the crowns are no longer on the heads of the beast. This speaks a powerful truth, that what the church has surrendered in her day by choosing to follow the ways of man rather the Spirit of God, the Kingdom (male child born of her womb) will regain on the very day of its birthing.

For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly awaits the revelation of the sons of God. (Rom 8:19)

How Do You Pray?

1. If the object of your prayer is your own healing do you…

(A) Ask God to heal you?
(B) Rebuke satan for stealing your health?
(C) Declare that by the wounds of Christ you are healed?
(D) Both A & B?

2. If the object of your prayer is your own financial provision do you…

(A) Ask God to bless you financially?
(B) Rebuke satan for stealing your rightful wealth?
(C) Declare that by the promise of God you've been granted the wealth of Heaven?
(D) Both A & B?

3. If the object of your prayer is a need for wisdom do you…

(A) Ask God to grant you wisdom?
(B) Rebuke satan for denying your wisdom?
(C) Declare that you have the mind of Christ and know all things?
(D) Both A & B?

The answer to all three above, and any other similar question on the subject, will always be (C). Asking God for what He’s already provided under the new covenant (healing, prosperity, wisdom etc.) is a wasted effort at best, and destructive at worst.

Rebuking satan for withholding or denying a blessing that is yours by divine promise is equally impotent and often results in a life of meaningless “spiritual warfare” that is neither spiritual or warfare. Combining these two ineffectual methods (A & B) only serves to double the futility.

God spoke the promises and what He has spoken cannot be unspoken, nor can it be broken. By making this our prayer stance we become unmovable and unshakable because we are declaring, in full Kingdom authority, the word and promise of God.

Surrendering the Crown

Which is harder: preventing someone from taking something that belongs to you, or persuading someone to give you something that belongs to them? The answer should be obvious. If I understand that the thing I desire already belongs to me, I will aggressively defend my right to keep it, which puts me in control. But if I view the thing as possessed by someone else, then my access to it is determined by them. They are in control and I am powerless to obtain it.

Prayer works exactly the same way. When I base my prayers on the truth that WHAT GOD HAS PROMISED IS ALREADY MINE, then my prayers become declarations of my God-given authority, and I stand in a position of power to deny access to the enemy who seeks to rob me. I wear the crown.

…Hold on to what you have, so that no one takes your crown. (Rev 3:11)

However, if I view satan as the one denying me access to the promise or provision of God, and attempt to confront him in prayer to take back what is mine, I have, unwittingly, removed myself from the position of power and, granted that power to satan. In effect, I have surrendered my crown to him, for THE ONE WHO POSSESSES THE PROMISES IS THE ONE WHO POSSESSES THE AUTHORITY.

This is true even when I pray and ask God for things He has already given. By ignorantly asking for such things, I’m audibly confessing that I don’t possess them. If I don’t possess them, WHO DOES? Not God, for He has declared them to be mine. By repeatedly asking for what is already mine, I wear out my faith, and become easy prey for the lies of satan.

In addition to this, since possession of the promises doesn’t rest with God, and I am not laying claim to them because I’m still pleading with God for them, the only head that remains to wear my crown of authority belongs, inescapably, to satan. And, according the book of Revelation, he has seven of them.

Another sign appeared in the sky: a fiery red dragon with seven heads, ten horns, and seven crowns on its heads. (Rev 12:3)

The question we all need to ask is: how did the dragon get his crowns?

"Teach Us To Pray"

I recently had a wake up call about my prayer life I’d like to share with you. It happened while I was praying a very familiar and often quoted verse from 2Chronicles 7:14.

If My people who are called by My name humble themselves, pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land. (2Ch 7:14)

I suddenly realized that my prayer was distinctly flawed in that it was rooted in an Old Covenant understanding of God. It implied that unless I humbled and purified myself God would neither hear my prayers or forgive me. While this was certainly true of Old Covenant believers who had but the blood of bulls and goats to make them clean in the sight of God, it is not true of New Covenant saints who stand forever washed in the precious blood of Christ. Under the New Covenant I am no longer required to meet any such condition for God to forgive me. I AM FORGIVEN. Or to hear my prayers for…

This is the confidence we have before Him: whenever we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. (1Jn 5:14)

Because Christ had not yet come and paid the debt of mankind to God, believers under the Old Covenant were bound to pray such prayers as…

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. (Psa 51:10-11)

Or…

Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down… (Isa 64:1)

God has already “renewed a right Spirit in me”. And He has “rent the heavens and come down”. His work under the New Covenant is “finished”. When I pray to ask God for things like healing, prosperity, the salvation of loved ones etc. I’m, ignorantly, insulting His finished work by saying it was insufficient for my needs and I require Him to provide something more. Yet, until recently, this characterized the bulk of my prayer life.

But, as I said at the beginning, I’ve had a wake up call.

For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. (Mar 11:23-24)

You won’t find statements like this in the Old Testament.





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Turning Stones Into Bread

When satan tempted Christ in the wilderness to turn stones into bread, he was exploiting the fact that Jesus had not eaten for forty days and was in a place of genuine physical need. This wasn’t a casual suggestion. It was about Christ’s very survival. But the Lord’s response, essentially that He would only eat when the Father told him to, immediately nullified satan’s challenge. It would have been foolish of satan to try the same thing again, like asking him to make it rain quail as it did for Israel in the wilderness, or even offering him something to eat from his own hand. By the Lord’s first answer it was clear such tactics would be futile in drawing Christ away from His purpose.

But consider for a moment what would’ve happened had Christ rationalized the way satan wanted him to and prayed to turn the stones into bread. First of all, I don’t believe the power to turn the stones into bread would’ve been at Christ’s disposal, since His power was of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy spirit would never be party to a prayer not born of the Father’s purpose, not even for Christ, Himself. The decision to rationalize the importance of His own survival above His calling would have forfeited both Christ's authority and the power that goes with it. Isn’t this exactly what happened to Eve in the garden?

Had Christ given in to this rationale of satan, He may well have spent the rest of his time in the wilderness praying for bread from stones, or quail from heaven, or pleading with satan to give him something to eat, all because HIS FOCUS HAD SHIFTED from the Father’s purpose to his own. From that day forward all satan would have to do to draw Christ away from His purpose would be to create new physical needs for him. The rest of Christ’s ministry on earth would then have been spent praying and working to alleviate one physical need after another, or in a word, SURVIVING.

This precisely describes the condition of so many in the Body of Christ today. By putting SURVIVAL issues above PURPOSE and calling of God, the church has surrendered much of her authority and power and doomed herself to a life of “stones into bread” ministry as she moves from one crisis to another. Turn on virtually any televised ministry on the air today and you won’t have to watch long before you hear that the ministry is in financial trouble, please send your tax deductible donations (so we can turn our stones into bread).

Praise God that Jesus did not respond this way. He understood satan’s strategy in the wilderness and employed the only possible defense against it – absolute submission and obedience to the Word and Spirit of God. That means the first fruits of my time, money, passion, thoughts, resources, talents, etc. belong exclusively to the King and His Kingdom. Anything less is rationalizing the importance of my own survival above His purpose, which means that, intentionally or not, I’m trying to turn stones into bread.

So don't worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?' For the idolaters eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. (Mat 6:31-33)