THE GREAT EXCHANGE
Today many in Christendom talk about God’s power but the sad part is that so few of them demonstrate it. Their anointing is so miniscule that it can hardly do anything. Their vessels cannot seem to contain the anointing and dissipates very quickly! Yet God’s word is unchanging:
And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And He said to them, “This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many. Mark 14:22-24
God cut with Abraham an inferior covenant made with the blood of animals where all that Abraham was, all that he had or ever would have became the equal property of His covenant partner. Nothing would be exclusively Abraham’s again. During the covenant ceremony in Abraham’s day, the partners exchanged coats, each one giving their authority to the other. They exchanged weapons as a way of saying, “Your enemies are now my enemies. I’ll fight your fights as if they were my own.” They walked through the blood of slain animals, pronouncing their loyalty to one another, even to the death. God had proven how intensely He desired to be God to him. He had given him every thing He had and bound Himself to Abraham in a relationship that could not be dissolved.
Well the good news is that God also cut with the sons and daughters of Abraham, those of faith, a new and superior covenant established in Jesus’ blood as a result of His sacrifice that ratified our covenant with God. A covenant where He gave us His Name (John 16:23), His authority (Matt. 28:18-20), His armor and weapons (Eph. 6:10-17). God’s word is unchanging:
Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. Ephesians 1:20-23
Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:9-11
As a result of what Jesus did on the Cross on Calvary, by faith everything is ours now. Jesus Christ has substituted all things on the cross for us and exchanged it there for us. Our death, defeat and poverty and curses have been nailed to the Cross. On the Cross Jesus Christ not only won real victory and redemption over sin and death and the world, but also over the wicked arch enemy Satan and all his angels who had made the Cross necessary by what he did to Adam and Eve.
The enemy had deceived and entrapped Adam and Eve to sin against God and live a life that was cursed and full of toil and trouble. But on the Cross Jesus Christ did the great exchange. He exchanged His sinlessness for our sins, His righteousness for our unrighteousness, His strength for our weakness, His boundless supply for our needs, His stripes for our healing, His riches for our poverty, His victories for our defeats, His glory for our shame, His triumphs for our disappointments, His Honor for our nothingness, His prosperity for our lacks, His joy for our sadness, and His fullness for our emptiness. But all of this is also something that must be revealed to us by the Holy Spirit before we can understand and partake of it fully. Yet it is all our birthright and the blessing of the fullness of the gospel of Christ.
The message of the cross and the Gospel is not only that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. He was buried and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. He is now is seated at the right hand of the Father with all power given unto Him in heaven and earth waiting for His enemies to be made His footstool. But the message of the cross and the Gospel is also that as a result of the victories Jesus won on the cross, He has now given and shared all that He has with us (John 16:14) and He is also with and for us continually (Matthew 28:18-20).
God in Christ Jesus has literally become our inheritance and great reward; as well as everything else which we need, including our healer and deliverer. As result of the Cross, God said about Jesus and of us who have become strong and overcomers:
Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors. Isaiah 53:12
As a result of the cross, in Christ Jesus, we are rich, victorious and have a new life in Christ Jesus, as we walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh. The empty Cross now also stands as a reminder and says to the world and to all the demons of Hell “You did your worst, but God gave His best.” Now things are no longer the same, because Jesus is sitting at the right hand of the Father waiting for His enemies to be submitted to Him. He has also now given us the power to subdue all His and our enemies through the use of His name and Word and dependence of the Spirit. Hence the Cross is also a real testimony of what God’s power can do no matter what the Hell or injustice that the world or the devil will throw at us. For Jesus’ resurrection after a cruel and awful death signifies the real possibility of total and complete victory in our lives, hearts and circumstances as well in the current time of life as we trust in God just like Jesus did.
The empty Cross of Christ at Calvary now says to you and I, that for every defeat there is victory in its place, for every failure there is success, for every endeavor there is prosperity, for every weakness there is grace, for every sickness there is healing, for every hatred there is love, for every injustice there is justice and for every poverty there is riches. All of this and much, much more belongs to each child of God because of what Jesus did and won on the Cross. Hence we can by the Holy Spirit understand what the Lord said to Apostle Paul:
“My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
Jesus is still healing people! God is alive and well and present today! Jesus is still healing people! The presence of God and the power of the Holy Spirit is a precious gift that we can experience and see many lives are being changed as desperate people come and find God’s grace and mercy flowing to them bringing healing and encouragement. The anointing increases as we are press in for more of God! Then we can see God save people, heal people, deliver people, baptize in the Holy Spirit, bring encouragement and strength through the gifts of the Spirit. Many can receive from the Lord healing for their physical, emotional and spiritual needs and live lives that are whole and successful.
God is love and freely gives everything we need, both for our material and for our spiritual existence. But because the blessings of God’s spirit are so freely given, we often take them for granted. If all people had open and receptive hearts, they could see and hear God’s voice at all times and in all places. But we have lost this awareness. Through prayer, we learn to appreciate spiritual gifts, gifts that are at least as important for life as air and water, heat and light. Whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world-our faith. For when we have accepted Jesus Christ as Savior, Lord and King by the faith God gave us, the victory now resides in us and God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask, or thing. As God’s word is unchanging:
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height- to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:14-21
It is a fact that according to the power that resides and works in us, God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think and give us one hundred percent victory, one hundred percent of the time, in one hundred percent of the situations. After all He is God, not man! It is also a fact that Jesus, now as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, is no longer poor or weak anymore as He was when He walked the earth as man. He is now once again unlimited in power, riches, strength and might. But the best news is that God wants to use all of His power, riches, and resources on our behalf and meet our needs: If we only will believe Him and trust Him to do it for us; If we will only humble ourselves and on a bent knee give Him our all and ask for His all. Then we shall know the truth of God’s word which states:
Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. Romans 8:37
“Thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.” (2 Corinthians 2:14)
God in Christ Jesus has literally become our inheritance and great reward; as well as everything else which we need, including our healer and deliverer. As result of the Cross, God said about Jesus and of us who have become strong and overcomers:
Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors. Isaiah 53:12
As a result of the cross, in Christ Jesus, we are rich, victorious and have a new life in Christ Jesus, as we walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh. The empty Cross now also stands as a reminder and says to the world and to all the demons of Hell “You did your worst, but God gave His best.” Now things are no longer the same, because Jesus is sitting at the right hand of the Father waiting for His enemies to be submitted to Him. He has also now given us the power to subdue all His and our enemies through the use of His name and Word and dependence of the Spirit. Hence the Cross is also a real testimony of what God’s power can do no matter what the Hell or injustice that the world or the devil will throw at us. For Jesus’ resurrection after a cruel and awful death signifies the real possibility of total and complete victory in our lives, hearts and circumstances as well in the current time of life as we trust in God just like Jesus did.
The empty Cross of Christ at Calvary now says to you and I, that for every defeat there is victory in its place, for every failure there is success, for every endeavor there is prosperity, for every weakness there is grace, for every sickness there is healing, for every hatred there is love, for every injustice there is justice and for every poverty there is riches. All of this and much, much more belongs to each child of God because of what Jesus did and won on the Cross. Hence we can by the Holy Spirit understand what the Lord said to Apostle Paul:
“My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
Our strength and victory comes from God Himself and all the victories He had won for us on the Cross of Calvary. Although in the annuals of time and history, our Creator God died on the Cross-on Calvary, but He didn’t stay there. He arose triumphant and victorious over everything, over the worst that the devil or others could throw at or do to Him and to us. Because of the cross of Christ, God has reconciled all things to Himself whether things on earth or things in heaven for Jesus having wiped out all the enemies of His people and especially the requirements that were against them, He has taken it out of the way having nailed to the cross.
The King of Kings and Lord of Lords with His unlimited and unimaginable power and riches was never poor or debased. But He chose, because of us, to leave behind his infinite power and riches become a man and identify and relate to humanity in all its sufferings and ways. God in Christ Jesus stripped Himself of His royalty and Kingship. He then became an ordinary man and walked with men doing by faith and dependence on the Holy Spirit the impossible such as healing the sick, raising the dead and cast out demons. He did it all to show that we can do it also. Then the innocent Son of man and Son of God went to a Cross-on a hill called Calvary where He bled and died for all of humanity. But the Cross-was not the end of Jesus Christ or life, it was the beginning of something new, a New Covenant or New Testament. It was the beginning of a new life and a new man and a new Spirit for those who would accept what Jesus had done for them. It was the beginning of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all flesh. As a result God’s word was now true:
“But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the LORD Shall be saved.’ Joel 2:16-21
Now all flesh can be saved, healed and delivered and walk in the newness of life in the power of the Holy Spirit. All men can prophesy, speak in tongues and be filled with the fullness of God. The good news of the Cross-is that the different victories that Jesus won there, and the resulting New Covenant with all its rights and privileges, is now ours to be claimed and accepted by faith. They will be true if we will only believe, accept, confess and act on it and then allow the Holy Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead to change us. Jesus won for us, on the Cross, such a victory with such power and might that it made hell tremble and Heaven sing with joy as the Triumph of Victory resounded from one part of Heaven to another. Our ears will tingle and our hearts will sing, as the faithful and mighty Holy Spirit reveals this victory to us.
The fact remains that Jesus Christ, the author and finisher of our faith, is sitting at the right hand of the throne of God, ready to use His power on behalf of the good of His true children; to make them more than conquerors in all things that the world, the flesh and the devil would throw at them. For His word is unchanging:
“And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. “Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. John 16:23-24
“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
In the world lack of strength and dependence on others is considered weakness, but in the kingdom of God weakness that causes us to depend on and trust in the Lord is great strength and blessings. For it is when the power of Christ rest upon us, because of our weakness, that we are truly strong. As it is then that we rest upon the Lord and walk in the power of His might and Spirit and not our own. As we by faith tap into all the riches and resources of heaven which are now ours by Christ Jesus because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross two thousand years ago we become more than conquerors. It is when the power of Christ rest upon us, because of our weakness, that we are truly strong. For it is then that we rest upon the Lord and walk in the power of His might and Spirit and not our own.
Yes, as a result of the victories Jesus won on the cross we are now delivered from the hand of our enemies, and are able to serve the Lord without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life. Just like Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit stated about God and us:
“Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people, And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of His servant David, As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, Who have been since the world began, That we should be saved from our enemies And from the hand of all who hate us, To perform the mercy promised to our fathers And to remember His holy covenant, The oath which He swore to our father Abraham: To grant us that we, Being delivered from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life. Luke 1:68-75
The name of Jesus Christ is far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And God has put all things under His feet including sickness, defeat, poverty and lack and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body. So if it is under Jesus feet and we are His body it is therefore under our feet! And if it’s under believers feet then why do we allow negative things to raise their ugly heads in our lives? Because we really don’t believe that is all under Jesus feet. We are like the prodigal son who ended up in a pig’s pen even if his father was filthy rich. But then he came to his senses and realized what his father had and returned to his father and his negative circumstances changed.
How many of God’s people suffer needless in poverty, want or lack and with sickness or disease? Too many! How long before they will look at themselves and say as the prodigal son who when he “came to himself” said, “I will arise and go to my Father!” God is waiting with opened arms to receive every penitent child! God is waiting with opened arms to touch, heal, deliver, and bless His children. They can can rely on Him to do what He has promised to do! We need to understand the reality of all the victories that Jesus won on the cross of Calvary. God’s word is unchanging:
Jesus departed from there, skirted the Sea of Galilee, and went up on the mountain and sat down there. Then great multitudes came to Him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others; and they laid them down at Jesus’ feet, and He healed them. So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel. Matthew 15:29-31
Yes, the Word of God tells us that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever and we can be made whole through our faith in the finished work of Calvary where Jesus Christ wounded for our transgressions, was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5). Sin, sickness or any other curse doesn’t have to rule and reign in our lives because Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”) that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. (Galatians 3:13-14).
Jesus has provided for our healing, Spirit, Soul and Body in the atonement. All of the provision of the cross must impact the body of Christ. Jesus Paid the Price for our Healing – “By His Stripes” (Isaiah 53:5, 1 Peter 2:24) Hence we are anointed and sent to: Preach the Good News to the Needy, Bind up the Brokenhearted, Proclaim Freedom for the Captives, Release the Prisoners from Darkness, Proclaim the Year of the LORD’s Favor, To Comfort all Who Mourn, To bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. (Isaiah 61:1-3 and Luke 4:18)
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