Identity, Gratitude, and Prayer

 

Understanding Christian Identity and the Power of Prayer based on the book of Ephesians and related scriptures.

Key Themes:

• Gratitude and Thanksgiving: The importance of expressing thanks to God in all circumstances, recognizing the source of all blessings.
• Freedom and Sacrifice: Acknowledging the sacrifices made for earthly freedom and the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus for spiritual freedom.
• Divine Health vs. Healing: A desire to live in continuous divine health rather than moving from one healing to the next.
• Standing on Truth and Fighting for Beliefs: The necessity of holding firm to God's word despite opposing thoughts, feelings, or circumstances.
• The Power of Giving Thanks (Eucharisto): Connecting the Greek word for thanksgiving to grace and joy, and highlighting Jesus' practice of giving thanks before miracles.
• God's Abundance and Compassion: Illustrated through the feeding of the multitude, emphasizing focusing on what is available rather than lack.
• Victory Over Death (Physical and Spiritual): Demonstrated through the resurrection of Lazarus and the understanding of Christ's power.
• The Significance of Communion: Remembering Jesus' sacrifice and giving thanks for the freedom and new covenant established through his body and blood.
• Raising the Next Generation: The importance of older believers supporting families and teaching children God's word.
• The Church at Ephesus as a Model: Examining a historically significant and initially strong church, noting its characteristics and eventual decline in "first love."
• Christian Identity in Christ: Focusing on the spiritual realities and blessings believers possess through their union with Jesus as described in Ephesians.
• The Power of Confession and Declaration: Using voice-activated faith to bring spiritual realities into physical manifestation.
• The Workmanship (Poema) of God: Seeing believers as God's perfect and complete creations in their spirit.
• Paul's Prayers in Ephesians: Highlighting specific prayers for enlightenment of understanding/imagination and comprehension of the love of God.
• The Power Working Within: Recognizing the resurrection power of Christ dwelling in believers.

Most Important Ideas/Facts:

1. Gratitude as a Core Principle: The speaker repeatedly emphasizes the centrality of thanksgiving in the Christian life. "Such a heart of gratitude today." This is presented as a key to accessing God's promises and experiencing his glory.

• "Eucharisto is the original Greek word used that means thanksgiving. In each instance, Christ offers thanksgiving before a miracle is performed."
• Gratitude is linked to glory and receiving things from God.

1. Identity in Christ is Found in Scripture, Particularly Ephesians: The main focus of the latter part of the briefing is on understanding who believers are in Christ, drawing heavily from Ephesians. This identity is presented as a spiritual reality that needs to be accessed and lived out.

• Ephesians is described as the "most powerful book in the New Testament" for new Christians because it reveals "how God sees you. You see your identity. You see your authority. You see your position in heaven."
• The speaker highlights several aspects of this identity:
• Blessed with all spiritual blessings (Ephesians 1:3): "He has blessed us. It's done. It's past tense... Everything that Jesus died for is your spiritual inheritance. It's all there. It's in your spirit. We want to access it." This includes prosperity, peace, joy, deliverance, and healing.
• Chosen, Holy, and Blameless (Ephesians 1:4): "You're chosen. You're holy. You're blameless before the foundation of the world." This is God's perspective on believers, regardless of their current state.
• Adopted into God's Family (Ephesians 1:5): "This is aba daddy. He adopted you into his family... you had the same rights as every other child."
• Accepted in the Beloved (Ephesians 1:6): Using the Greek word "Charito," meaning highly favored or blessed by God, highlighting the same status as Mary. "You are God's beloved... God loves you not based on what you good thing you did or what bad thing you did. His love love is absolute and constant."
• Redeemed and Forgiven (Ephesians 1:7): Emphasizing that redemption and forgiveness are received through the blood of Jesus, not obedience, and are according to the "riches of his grace." Forgiveness is presented as continuous and covering all sins (past, present, future, omission).
• Obtained an Inheritance (Ephesians 1:11): "Your inheritance is everything Jesus did for you. The gifting, the anointing he put in you, his favor in your life, his desire to give you divine health."
• Sealed with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13): The moment of salvation, where the Holy Spirit "vacuum-acked and sealed your spirit. Everything you ever need is already there."
• Raised Up and Seated in Heavenly Places with Christ (Ephesians 2:6): This position signifies being "seated above all powers, principalities, and spirits of darkness," leading to an identity that is "invincible," "more than a conqueror," and an "overcomer," not a victim.
• God's Workmanship (Poema) (Ephesians 2:10): Believers are the "masterpiece of God's creation," seen by God as "perfect, complete, lacking nothing" in their spirit.
• Possessing the Fullness of Christ (Colossians 2, referenced): The reality that "the fullness of Christ is already in you," meaning "Onethird of you is Jesus. Jesus and the Holy Ghost living within you."

1. Accessing Spiritual Realities through Faith and Confession: The gap between the spiritual realities of identity in Christ and the believer's experience is bridged through renewing the mind with God's word and speaking declarations based on faith.

• "Now, the rest of our life is trying to activate everything God deposited inside of you. Getting your mind into agreement with your spirit. How do you do that? Well, you renew it by God's word."
• "Getting your body under submission. These are things that God wants us to do."
• "Faith is voice activated." Confessing "I am blessed" or reciting identity statements brings them to life.
• Philemon 1:6 is highlighted: "that the communication the expression the way you speak about your faith may become affected that word is powerful dynamic transformative by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus".

1. The Power of the Resurrection Working Within Believers: The same power that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in believers, enabling them to do "exceedingly abundantly above all that we think or ask (and imagine)."

• This power is connected to operating in Christian identity and fulfilling God's purpose.

1. Overcoming Negativity and Focusing on Truth: The speaker shares personal anecdotes about battling negative diagnoses and thoughts, emphasizing the importance of not repeating them and instead focusing on God's word and promises.

• "You go to the doctors... they start throwing out all these diagnosis, and you just don't want to let them stick. See what I'm saying? You don't repeat them. You don't own them. You acknowledge something, but you don't let it stick."
• Martha's focus on the "lack" (Lazarus stinking) when standing before Jesus is used as an example of negative focus to avoid.
• The media and the world are described as "very dark stuff" and "very evil," contrasting with the truth of God's word.

1. The Purpose of the Body of Christ and Ministry: The church community is essential for support, teaching the next generation, and helping believers overcome difficulties through prayer and prophetic gifts.

• The example of older women giving moms a break to teach children is mentioned.
• When individuals are struggling, "you need help from another Christian to pray you through." This is a purpose of the body of Christ "to lift you out of that problem and bring you into freedom."
• Prophetic gifts are seen as having the purpose "to set you free and to set you back on track for what God's doing."

1. The Nature of God's Love: God's love is described as absolute, constant, and not dependent on human performance. It is a love that "lavishes" itself on believers, seeing them as beloved as much as Jesus. This love is both theological and experiential.

• Paul's prayer in Ephesians 3 is to comprehend "the width and length and depth and height of the love of God."
• Experiencing God's love through salvation, healing, deliverance, etc., leads to thankfulness.

Conclusion:

The message strongly emphasizes that Christian identity is not based on performance but on what God has already accomplished and deposited in believers through Jesus Christ. This identity, described in detail using passages from Ephesians, includes being blessed, chosen, holy, blameless, adopted, accepted, redeemed, forgiven, possessing an inheritance, sealed by the Holy Spirit, seated with Christ, and being God's masterpiece. Accessing and experiencing these spiritual realities is achieved through renewing the mind with God's word, speaking declarations of faith, and cultivating a heart of gratitude and thanksgiving. The power of God, specifically the resurrection power, resides within believers, enabling them to overcome challenges and fulfill God's purposes. The church community plays a vital role in supporting believers in this journey.