You may have heard the phrase before, You are what you eat. It’s a common phrase that is often used to promote a healthy diet and healthy eating. If you consume unhealthy foods, you will become unhealthy – likewise if you consume healthy foods, you will become healthy. That is the general idea behind this popular phrase.
Spiritual leaders have sometimes latched onto this phrase as well, saying “You feed your body healthy food, why not your spirit?” (or something similar to this). And it’s true, that many people pay more attention to what they are feeding on physically, than what they are feeding on spiritually; even though the spiritual is far more important.
Today, I would like to share with you about eating healthy, from a spiritual perspective. How to eat healthy… spiritually – and how by seeing this, we can also see how Christ is the best possible spiritual nutrition that you could ever feed on.
I titled today's study this way, on purpose, after some consideration, because these two things: prosperity and protection, are some of the most often attacked – not just by the world in general, but from inside Christian circles as well. In many places it is considered “radical” or “extreme” to believe in and trust God for prosperity, whether it be financial prosperity, or prosperity of other kinds such as prosperity in your relationships or prosperity in your health (i.e. healing).
There seems to be a disconnect in these areas, because the people that I often speak with, seem to have no real issue believing in a God who can give them eternal life, and save them from final destruction in hell; yet they have great difficulty believing that this same God is able or willing to provide for their temporal needs right now on this earth.
What I want to share with you today, is precisely what Jesus said about the provision, prosperity and protection, which the Father has for you, right now, today. And by seeing this, you will no longer be subject to the doubt that is so prevalent in the world today.
I have been asked a number of times, about the name ThrivingBranch. What exactly does it mean, anyway? And while I have explained it before, It occurs to me that I have not shared an actual study on it in quite a while.
So in light of that, what I want to share with you today, is not merely the explanation of the name (that wouldn’t really constitute a Bible study by itself), but the words of Jesus from where the name ThrivingBranch comes from, and the amazing truth contained in it. And as we look at this today, we are going to see some aspects of our identity in Christ that will have a profound effect, even in our daily life.
I have encountered many anti-Grace beliefs and positions over the years. One of the most common push-backs against the Gospel of Grace in Christ, is that “Grace gives people a license to sin”. This is the one that I have encountered more than any other. It is a sentiment that is expressed in a variety of different ways, such as “So you’re saying people can live however they want?”, to the more subtle “well, there needs to a balance to prevent hyper-grace”.
Regardless of what form this sentiment takes, it is all rooted in the same thing: a fear of Grace. Many people have been trained to be fearful of the very Grace that can save… the very Grace that Jesus came to bring; and the sad reality is that this fear (which is based on man-made doctrines) actually prevents people from receiving the Grace that can save them.
So today in this study, we will be examining the most common anti-Grace beliefs, and see how they hold up to the truth of scripture.
In the ancient temple, there was a veil (the פרכת) – which was actually a very large and thick cloth, that separated people from God… Only one person (the High Priest) could enter in to the most holy place of the temple, which was sealed-off by the veil; and he could only go in once per year (Hebrews 9:7).
The high priest would enter only after a very thorough cleansing ritual, and offerings of blood sacrifice to cover his own sins, and the sins of the people for which he was a representative.
This continued for years, until one major event, until Jesus Christ, the final eternal High Priest offered the final eternal sacrifice for all-time; not just covering sins for one year – but completely removing sins for all-time.
And right after Jesus declared “It is Finished!”, and surrendered His Spirit, that veil which separated the people from God was torn – and this is what I want to share with you today… the tearing of the veil, and what it means for us today in Christ.
“Don’t Worry, Be Happy!” advice that is constantly given out whenever one person wants to encourage another… but would it surprise you that the first person to offer such advice was actually Jesus? And He doesn’t just tell you to not worry and be happy, but He actually gives you the reason why you can safely and securely cease your worrying and have both joy and happiness, because of the truth of Christ and the fact that you have a Heavenly Father who actually loves and cares for you.
You see, the message of “don’t worry, be happy” really doesn’t carry its full weight, until you understand precisely why you can do those things. Without the foundation, it will often crumble to the daily stresses of life. So what I want to share with you today, is what Jesus said about letting go of your worry, and how to be truly happy.
In many Christian circles there is talk about the relationship with Christ, we hear about that quite often in-fact, and I have mentioned it many times in these studies as well. However it has come to my attention that there is actually some misunderstanding regarding what this phrase means. In some ways we have turned this simple phrase into something mystical, magical or difficult to comprehend, when in-fact it is so simple.
As a result of this confusion, what actually is very simple and straightforward, now seems out of reach to many people. I have spoken with many Christians who are chasing after this unicorn of “relationship with Christ”, when it actually has already been given. And as such, believers are left dazed, confused and wondering when it will be completed, never realizing that the work was completed long ago.
This is what I want to share with you today – the truth about your union with Christ.
At one time or another, you’ve probably heard the phrase “dress for success”. It’s a bit of often-used advice, which basically means that you should always wear the appropriate clothes for whatever position or status that you are seeking to achieve. For example, you shouldn’t attend a high-level job interview in tattered clothes; but instead in a nice outfit appropriate for the intended vocation.
Spiritually speaking, the same type of advice applies, although with a couple of twists. First of all, we don’t really dress to attain a position, rather we dress because we already have a position.
And secondly, we don’t actually dress ourselves in this case, but rather we are clothed with a dress attire, given to us by none other than Jesus Christ Himself!
This is what I want to share with you today in this study; and by seeing this truth you will be able to step into your new identity in Christ with fresh eyes and a fresh perspective on what Jesus has given to you today.