The Spirit Connection

For [in the gospel of Christ] is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just [or righteous] shall live by faith. —Romans 1:17

Because we live our lives in the midst of a fight, we encounter opposition, an opposing force. This natural realm, what we experience with our five senses, will oppose the supernatural realm, or the realm of the spirit. Faith, a vital element of successfully living in God’s kingdom, takes us beyond the natural of what we see and feel, and it hooks us up to the spirit realm. The first thing you must recognize to operate in this spirit realm is that you, the real you, are a spirit. You have a personality, or soul, made up of your mind, will, and emotions. You live in a physical body. Your spirit is what became alive to God when you became born again. Your soul will now need to be reprogrammed to the Word of God, and your body will follow as the transformation becomes complete. If you are born again, you are also righteous. Those who are born again, who are (by that fact) just, shall live by their faith. When you were born again, born into the kingdom of God, you were made just, or righteous, by the blood of Jesus, and not by your own works or goodness. The righteousness that comes by faith in Jesus put you back in right standing and in right alignment with God and His kingdom—justified—“just as if ” sin never existed, “just as if I’d” never sinned. Once the sin question is forever settled by Jesus’s blood, the sinner–turned–just person will then learn to live in right alignment with and connected to God and His kingdom. God is a Spirit; you are a spirit. Living in agreement with His Word, which is also spirit (John 6:63), will keep you connected to the spirit realm.

Pastor Tom Kehres

It’s a Fight!

Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called. —1 Timothy 6:12

As born-again sons and daughters of God and kingdom of God citizens, we are commanded to “fight the good fight of faith.” We are to fight this fight every year, every month, every day. This is the only fight the believer is called to fight! We do not fight sin, because sin no longer has dominion over us (Romans 6:14). We do not fight the devil, because Jesus defeated the devil; we can simply resist him (and his tactics), and he must flee (James 4:7). But now, as sons of an unseen God and citizens of an unseen Kingdom, we must learn to live our lives by faith, and not by what we can see in this earth realm (2 Corinthians 5:7). We must go beyond what we see in the natural, what we feel, what we can perceive with the senses. We must learn to put the Word of God in first place over our senses, emotions, and situations. A believer walks by faith and daily fights the good fight of faith. In this walk, or daily lifestyle, sons and citizens must also learn to talk by faith (2 Corinthians 4:13). This means not only believing the Word of God, but filling your heart with that Word, so that what is in abundance in your heart will naturally come out of your mouth (Matthew 12:34). God’s children walk by faith and talk by faith in order to fight the good fight of faith.

Pastor Tom Kehres

Unseen Evidence

Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your son lives.” So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way. —John 4:50 nkjv

This man came to Jesus, desiring Him to come to his house and heal his son. He said to Jesus, “Come down or my son will die.” The only evidence this man had was a dying son and what he had heard about Jesus healing others. Jesus told him, “Go your way, your son lives." Notice, the man had no more natural evidence of his son living. His son was still sick, at the point of death. Jesus had not gone with him, touched the boy, or healed him with any outward act. The father only had the word of Jesus! But he believed the word! He believed it above the symptoms in his boy, above the fear of a dead son, above seeing Jesus physically touch and heal the boy—he believed the word! This is walking by faith and not by sight. This is believing the evidence of things not seen. This is hooking up to the blessings of God. This is putting the Word on the throne of your life. You may say, “If Jesus would appear to me and tell me I’m healed, blessed, or anointed, I would believe it too!” That is why He left you His Word. The Word is just as sure as Jesus personally coming to you and saying, “Go your way, your son lives.” Simply believe the Word! In spite of physical evidence—believe the Word. Do not let feelings and emotions change the Word—allow the Word to change feelings and emotions.

Pastor Tom Kehres

The “Except”-tion

Then said Jesus unto him, Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe. —John 4:48

In a way Jesus was scolding this man because he would not believe unless he saw signs and wonders. Most of the Church lives on this level. “I will believe if . . . I see something in the natural.” “I will believe if . . . I feel like believing.” Seeing and then believing is a choice to live in the natural. Believing and then seeing is a choice to live in the supernatural. Notice the power of your will in the area of faith. I will not believe! Except you see signs and wonders, you will not believe. You can decide to believe whatever you want. You can say, “I will not believe except . . . ,” or you can say, “I will believe.” Your will is the starting point of your faith and your connection to God’s blessings. I may not feel good, I may have pain in my body, but I will believe I am healed in spite of how I feel and in spite of the pain. I choose to put God’s Word in first place, so I am healed! People will tell you that is crazy, but, no, that is faith. “All the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen” (2 Corinthians 1:20 nkjv). He has already made every provision for your life (2 Peter 1:3). They are past-tense facts. They are yours today! But there is contrary evidence in the natural to keep you from believing them. You are a new creation! You may not act like one, feel like one, or even look like one, but that does not change the fact that you are! Stay in the Word until you get convinced that all the promises are yours and take the “except” out of your believing.