Faith In The Working Of God

Greetings and a blessed Easter to each of you.

Colossians 2:12-15
12. buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13. And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14. having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.

Take a good look at verse 12, "...through faith in the working of God...". This phrase has been in front of my "eyes" the last couple of days. The working of God, or, the way God works and the power He releases. But it's more than that, I believe. God showed His WAYS to Moses and His ACTS to the children of Israel (Psalm 103:7). Moses got the close up view while the children only saw the results of God's move. The Lord wants us to go beyond the "children" stage into the kind of maturity where He can show us and trust us concerning His workings. You know, if Moses would have been like the people he was leading, he wouldn't have used the Rod of God on a rock! HE would have struck the earth under Korah's feet and then told God that they died! But there's something about the way the working of God is; something we're to have faith in (and, to a small degree, we do. That's how we get born again.).

Paul talks about the Resurrection of Jesus AND our resurrection WITH Him as an example of the working of God (see Ephesians 1:19). Understand, however, that the resurrection was the end result of the working of God. I'll show you what I mean, as I see the principle of God's working throughout scripture.

1. The working of God can be seen in the first chapter of Genesis. What is "without form and void (empty)" becomes fully alive, intricately detailed and beyond comprehension. God takes that which is completely empty and makes it full of His glory! Same way with Naaman, the leper (2 Kings 5) and the blind man that Jesus healed by spitting on the dirt and rubbing the mud on the man's empty sockets. That which was without form and void is a prime candidate for the working of God. In this we MUST have faith.

2. The barren become fruitful - always abounding with the touch of the Almighty. Just ask Hannah (1 Samuel 1 and 2). What about the widow of Nain who had lost her only son...or the woman that blessed Elisha and God gave her a son? Abraham and Sarah? The working of God is seen best when there's the least for Him to work with!

3. Beauty replaces ashes, dirt, decay, ugliness and ruin when God's works are on the scene. Isaiah 61 states, along with Luke 4:18, that Jesus was anointed to bring deliverance to the captives, make the blind eyes see, etc. Jesus, while ministering to the woman at the well, brought her from a place of ruin, decay, ugliness to a place where she radiated the beauty of the Lord. The woman who anointed Jesus' feet with her tears received the same thing as a result of the working of God. Are you seeing that the working of God is evident when people are at their greatest NEED, rather than dressed up in their SUNDAY BEST?!?

4. When there is faith in the working of God, there will not be the fear to stand before the Lord THE WAY WE REALLY ARE. Weakness becomes strong, while strongholds become demolished by the hand of God. See 1 Corinthians 1:26-30 and 2 Corinthians 10:3,4

5. The Working of God is, really, best illustrated by the Resurrection. Resurrection doesn't come until AFTER death FOR DOING THE RIGHT THING. Jesus followed the plan of God completely. Hebrews 5 - Philippians 2 - He became obedient unto death...Resurrection to fullness of life doesn't come just because someone dies, but it's the way they die. Jesus says - take up YOUR cross daily and follow Him.

Resurrection also follows, not just a death, but a burial and sealed tomb. I think that's why we must confess with our mouth AND believe God raised Him from the dead. We declare our faith in the working of God. We confess our complete emptiness and ugliness - ruin and decay - without Jesus. We see ourselves in such need and realize that, without the power of God, we are dead and buried in a sealed tomb. HOPELESS!

But friends, remember; that's when God works the best! Regardless of the situation, He works best when He's allowed to work the most.

This EASTER, I believe it would be good for us all to have faith in the working of God. Not just for the season, but for our life. This will be a key in seeing the End-Time move of God. This is a principle that He lives by and is calling us to embrace.

Amen, so be it!
Pastor Jan

Central Iowa Revival News @ http://valleyag.blogspot.com