In Christ

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as I look around today, I see so many facing challenges in their lives, whether it be with health, finances, family issues or ministry. I want to look at some promises today that will help you walk in victory whether facing the fiery furnace or a den of lions that seem to be ready to devour you at any minute.

Isaiah 54:17 says, “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.”

This promise of overcoming circumstances and people that may come against us is based on two godly principals. First, as children of God, being more than a conqueror is our heritage. Because Christ overcame we will overcome also. He has defeated the powers of death, hell and the grave. We walk in His resurrection power. God does not promise to keep us from attack of the enemy, but the attack will not prosper because of who we are in Christ Jesus.  

Secondly, God declares that our righteousness of from Him. We do not stand in our righteousness but in the righteousness of Christ. This promise is not based on our goodness or our ability, but on who Christ is and what He has accomplished for us. We often fail to overcome because we are so aware of our weaknesses and failures, and we lose sight of who we are in Christ. Romans 8:1-3 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.”

I like to illustrate the principle of Romans 8:1-3 by placing a hanky over my fist. My fist represents my sinful nature, and the hanky the righteousness of Christ. The accuser of the brethren, other people, and even we ourselves often focus on what is under the hanky, while all God only sees is the hanky. I then begin to stuff the hanky into my fist to illustrate that over time as we walk in the Spirit, the righteousness of Christ that covers us begins to fill our life as we are changed from glory to glory in the image of Christ. However during the transformation process we are constantly covered by and stand in the righteousness of Christ.

Christ is our salvation, our healer, our provider, and our deliverer. God loves you not because of who you are or what you have done, but because of who He is. He is love. Victory is His because He cannot fail. Defeat is not in His nature. He has peace in the midst of conflict and turmoil because He is the Prince of Peace. As a born again believer, you are in Christ and it is out of your relationship with Him that you overcome and walk in love, peace, and victory no matter what circumstances you face.

Whatever weapon has been formed against you today cannot prosper because the God of the universe declares over you “this is their heritage and their righteousness is of me.”

Andy Clark

Old Clothes

Mark 2:21-22

“No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; or else the new piece pulls away from the old, and the tear is made worse.”

In Mark chapter two, Jesus has just healed the paralytic man who had been lowered through the roof and forgiven of his sin, causing a stir among the scribes who teach that only God can forgive sins. Jesus then goes on and asks Matthew, a tax collector, to be His disciple and goes to a party at Matthew’s house, causing more consternation among the Pharisees. They then ask Jesus why He and his disciples don’t fast twice a week like the Pharisees and their disciples. 

It is in this context that Jesus makes the above comment about old clothes. Jesus had a habit of totally upsetting the traditions of His day in His teachings and actions. What He did and said challenged the norms and traditions of His day. To choose a tax collector hated by Jews to be His disciple and then go hang out at a party with all his ungodly, corrupt, and wicked friends, when Jesus should have been fasting with His disciples, was total sacrilege. All of this was punctuated by a demonstration of power that no one had ever seen before.

Jesus has not changed. He still wants to strip us of our old clothes, our old nature, mindset, and traditions that war against what God wants to do in our lives and our communities. We tend to cling to our understanding and experiences to define our future. When faced with new challenges in the wilderness, the children of Isreal kept wanting to go back to the familiar of Egypt. Egypt was not a good place but a safe place that they were familiar with and understood. The wilderness was a hostile environment where they were totally dependent upon God.

Jesus calls us to a radical change of dying to our old nature, ways of thinking, and doing things. We, in turn, would prefer a gradual reformation. We want to keep the old clothes of our past that we are comfortable with and just have Jesus patch the bad spots in our lives. But Jesus wants to strip us of ourselves, so that He can clothe us with himself and move us into our future. The only way from Egypt to the Promised Land is through the wilderness, where we totally lose control and become dependent on the Father.

Sometimes we forfeit future promises of God for the security of our present. We become so familiar with where we are. It is not the best, but it is comfortable. Allow God to enlarge your borders. New borders bring new challenges but also greater capacity. God doesn’t call us to be normal because Jesus lives in us. God wants to introduce you to your future while you are in your present. “For I know the plans (plural) I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

Andy Clark

Rivers in the Desert

Isaiah 43:19

“Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it?

I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”

Maybe you find yourself in a spiritual desert or wilderness, whether it is where you work, live, or minister. You find yourself surrounded by spiritual apathy, no spiritual life, or actual antagonism against spiritual things. Maybe your own life feels a little dry or you feel you are in a spiritual rut. I believe God wants to do a new thing in your life, your family, your church, community, and job. But that new thing can only spring forth as we allow Him to build a road in the wilderness or bring a river into your desert.

Jesus said in John 7:37-39, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."  But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.”

Isaiah said God would make rivers in the desert. Jesus said, “…out of our heart will flow rivers of living water.” The source of living water for your desert begins with your relationship with God. The new thing begins when you become so thirsty for God that you cannot be satisfied with anything else. Jesus said we must come to Him, we must believe in Him, and we must receive Him. The man who found a treasure in a field sold everything He had to buy the field. To come into the fullness of what God has for us we have to sell out to the River Maker.

Jesus identifies the Holy Spirit as the living water that will flow out of us to water our desert. Now, in the context of this Scripture, it says the Holy Spirit had not yet come because Jesus had not yet been glorified, meaning He had not yet died, risen, and ascended to the Father. But I believe in a spiritual sense the Holy Spirit is unable to refresh our desert because Christ has not yet been glorified in us. As a believer, the Holy Spirit resides in you, but His presence, this living water, has not been manifested in your life, family, or job because Christ has not yet been glorified in you.

The key to a road in your wilderness and rivers in your desert is not only a pursuit of Christ, the treasure in the field, but a willingness to glorify Him in the midst of your wilderness and desert. Exalt His Name on your job, in your family, and in your church. Involve Him in your dry places, and rivers of living water will spring out of you, bringing refreshing into your environment. Be a cup of cold water for someone today in the Name of Jesus, and see what He will do for and through you for His glory.

Andy Clark

Empowered by His Grace

Ephesians 2:8-10

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” NKJV

The grace of God through Jesus Christ is not just good news for the lost, it is good news for every believer. We often think of grace as being soft, easy, getting a pass. But grace is the mightiest power we will ever see at work in our lives. It is also the only power that brings real fruit to our walk with God. The writer of Ephesians reminds us that we are not only saved by grace,but we are empowered by grace. Grace is what enables us to carry out the good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

We as Christians are often so hard on ourselves as we try to be like Christ or attain what we see in God’s Word and take on the burden of achieving what we feel God has called us to accomplish. Perhaps, we have tried and failed, or we have just given up and taken the grace card to accommodate our shortcomings. The great Apostle Paul struggled with some issues in his life and brought those issues to the cross of Christ. Jesus’ response to him was, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." To which Paul responded, “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)

In Mark, chapter 3, a man with a withered hand came to Jesus for healing. Jesus commanded him to stretch forth his withered hand. When he did, it was healed. We often want to hide our withered hand, our weaknesses and failures. However, Jesus commands us to extend into the open our weaknesses because in our weakness he is made strong and His grace is revealed. It is not by our ability and hard work that we overcome. It is by His grace that we overcome every failure and obstacle that rises up against us. It is when we extend our withered hand that the power of Christ rests upon us. It is not by our ability but by His grace that we overcome.

2 Corinthians 4:7 says, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.” By the Holy Spirit the full nature and power of God resides in you. His grace is sufficient for whatever you are facing today. Not only is it sufficient to carry you through, but it is sufficient to empower you to demonstrate His grace to those around you.

May you be empowered by His grace and may you empower others with His grace.

Andy Clark

A Call to the Nations

“Surely you shall call a nation you do not know, and nations who do not know you shall run to you,

because of the Lord your God, and the Holy One of Israel; for He has glorified you." Isaiah 55:5

God is calling His church to raise their voice and call to the nations. God is calling His apostles, prophets, pastors, evangelists and teachers to raise their voice and call to the nations. God is calling His people, His chosen ones, the ones upon whom He has given His spirit to call to the nations. In the midst of crisis, political and economic upheaval, it is time to raise the shofar and give a sound to rally the nations unto God and unto His kingdom.

It is time to turn aside from our daily routine of life and hear what the Spirit of the Lord is saying to the church. God wants to reveal Himself to us in a new way to enable us to do a new work, a work of His grace and power, “to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Luke 4:19 We need to see bigger than ourselves, our ministry, our program and our church. We need for God to give us a vision and heart for cities, people groups, and nations. Our hearts cry should be “GOD GIVE US THE NATIONS!”

Isaiah goes on to say that as we call a nation, that nations will run to us because the Lord our God has glorified us. We must prepare ourselves spiritually and position ourselves in ministry for the harvest that is coming and in many places is already here. Isaiah said people will run to us because the Lord our God has glorified us.  As economic, political and social upheavals happen in this world, people are going to run to us if the glory of God is in us. 2 Corinthians 4:7 says, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.” It is not about us but about God. We need to lift up and exalt His Name in our lives and in the earth.

Paul said: “I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named.” Romans 15:20 God is raising up a vast army of missionaries from around the globe to take the gospel where it has not yet been preached. At one time we had a saying on the wall of the World Horizons office that said, “We are here on the behalf of the church yet to be in a world where every second another person slips into a Christ-less eternity.” Jesus said, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:14

I want to challenge you to step out of the quagmire of your everyday circumstances, lift up your eyes in faith to the fields that are ripe and ready for harvest, and cry out for the nations.  As you watch the news, allow the Holy Spirit to reveal to you how to pray for the nations and people you are seeing on the news. Be open to the Holy Spirit speaking to you to go on a short missions trip or support a missionary.

“Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah.” Psalms 24:7-10

May the Lord of hosts, the King of glory be with you and empower you today to give Him glory.

Andy Clark

Kingdom Language

Matthew 13:11-13

"You have been permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others have not. To those who are open to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But to those who are not listening, even what they have will be taken away from them.” NLT

Jesus said in the above portion of Scripture that those of us who are born again into His kingdom “have been permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven.” The key word here is permitted. As born again believers we have been given the privilege and opportunity to understand these secrets that those of the world cannot understand. Jesus goes on to say that there is going to be a growing dichotomy, or difference, between us and those in the world. As we pursue His teachings we are going to come into an abundance of knowledge, while the little bit of understanding and knowledge the world has will be taken away from them.

So, we see this increasing separation between us and the world. That is why the world is becoming more and more foolish in what it promotes and does. Paul describes it this way in Romans 1:21, “Because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.” If we do not guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, we too can become caught up in this futility, foolishness, and deception of the world. Jesus warns in Matthew 24 that even many Christians will be deceived.

One of the main keys to avoiding the deception of these last days is learning the language of the Kingdom in order to hear, understand, and practice the principles of the Kingdom. When you learn a language, you have to invest time and resources to learn that language. You have to quit speaking your native language, and begin spending time with the people whose language you are learning, listening, memorizing, and beginning to speak. Book learning is not enough. No matter what your level of proficiency, you have to get out there and practice what you have learned.

If we are going to understand the secrets of the Kingdom, we have to stop watching, meditating, thinking like and imitating the world. We have to quit speaking the world’s language. Jesus, the Word, became flesh in order that we could think, talk and act like kingdom people. We have to spend time with Him, invest time in His Word, allowing it to become a part of us. Jesus said, “As we are open to His teaching, more understanding will be given, and we will have an abundance of knowledge.” They say you are really getting to know a language when you begin to dream in that language. In the same way, you will know you are beginning to master Kingdom language when you begin to have more dreams of the Kingdom than dreams of earthly things.

Andy Clark

Joy of the Journey

Psalms 16:11

“You will show me the path of life;

In Your presence is fullness of joy;

At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

Our journey to the heart of God is a life-long journey of discovering the greatness of the God whom we serve. It is not a journey of works but a journey of faith and obedience that constantly yields new doors of blessing and fulfillment. The journey of works is a hard road to walk, filled with hills and valleys of success and failure. When we are successful, we feel great; when we are doing poorly, we feel discouraged, frustrated, angry or depressed.  We measure the progress of our journey by comparing ourselves to others and where they are on their journey.

The journey to the heart of God is a life-long journey of discovering who God is in all of His love, greatness, and power. It is an ongoing revelation of His awesome character and nature. This journey is not void of works, but these works are an outgrowth of relationship and not a proof of value or source of identity and affirmation. Our fulfillment and contentment is solely found in our ongoing relationship with the Father through the Spirit.

Look at the focus of the Psalmist. It is totally on God. “You will show me that path of life.” The path of life cannot be found in a do-it-yourself manual of ten easy steps to success. The path of life is found from beginning to end in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ that is cultivated on a daily basis in every aspect of life. The path of life is a discovery of Jesus in our marriage, family, and job. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6) The path of life is found in Jesus Christ.

The Psalmist continues, “In Your presence is fullness of joy.” When you are in love with someone, it impacts every area of your life. It puts joy in your heart, a spring in your step, and a smile on your face. It has nothing to do with performance but radically improves your performance. It changes your perspective on everything. You respond to people and circumstances with optimism and joy. It is contagious! When you are in love with God, you will have a growing awareness of His presence and incorporate Him in every decision, everything you say and do. He becomes the center of your life.

The Psalmist concludes by saying, “At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”  It is only in His presence that we have access to His right hand, which is filled with blessings and pleasure forevermore. However, blessing and pleasure is not the source of joy. His presence is our source of joy. Pleasures and blessings are simply an outgrowth of our relationship. When we truly get to know Him, the greatest pleasure is spending time with Him. Enjoy your journey with God.

Andy Clark