Eternal Glorious Fountain Ministry (EGFM)
Programme: Writing the Vision (September Edition)
Date: Saturday, 24th September 2022
If we can be still on the inside, we would be able to hear anything the Son has to say concerning every situation, from our spirit. Jesus was raised by the Father to live before the audience of One; this was how He escaped Satan. Every man that has displeased the Father, from Adam until Jesus, fell into the snare of not living before the audience of One. The summary of the temptation of Adam was that he somehow touched the thoughts that Satan sold to him. However, when such temptation was brought to our Lord Jesus, He knew it was Satan and did not fall into his traps (Luke 4:1-13). Instead, Jesus looked into what the word of God says, unlike Adam who gave consideration to what the enemy said. The words of the enemy are not to be considered. If Adam had responded with wisdom from what God had commanded him to do and all that God had said to him in the cool of the day every time Satan came to tempt him, he would have had the victory over the enemy.
In the scriptures, we find men who were raised by God and were faithful and true to God, trusting and living before Him as before the audience of One. On some occasions, some of these men were careless; such as Moses, who struck the rock when God had commanded him to speak to it (Num. 20:11) or David who was moved by Satan to take his eyes off the Lord when he numbered Israel (1 Chron. 21:1). Before one fully conforms to the image of the Son (2 Cor. 3:18), there is an image of oneself that the enemy will always project, which will make one insecure. Some biblical characters erred in this regard, while some others won the warfare because they lived before the audience of One. This is the only way worship can be sustained. A man like Enoch, walked with God through those years because there was something his eyes were upon. Adam took his eyes off the commandments that God gave him. To do so is to fall into an unsafe state.
The image that Satan projects around the old man is what causes men to walk into temptation in the seasons of Christ. The old man is an image, it is a nature that men carry until they have the full stature of Christ. Every temptation man falls into is related to something short of the full age of Christ, and it brings some satisfaction to the old man. Overcoming that thing is what moves us from glory to glory (2 Cor. 3:18). This only happens in the season of salvation. This is the operation of the Lord Almighty and is a season wherein a Christ company will be changed into the image of the Son. Everything they do while not beholding the image of the Son leads them into being tempted of self.
Our Lord Jesus was able to get it right because He was skillful with what He heard. He knew when a word did not come from the Father, and knew not to meditate on such words. When we meditate on such words, something will go wrong with the atmosphere over our hearts. Those words are not spirit and life; they are death. When we meditate on them, we would find ourselves struggling because we would have admitted thoughts of death and insecurity in our hearts. Such thoughts will make us struggle to respond to the voice of the Son of God, which is to move us from a familiar ground to an unfamiliar ground, that is, the commandments of everlasting life and the things the Father is saying. When we have been careless with our ears, we admit thoughts and breaths that will affect the state of our hearts.
When the Father wants to generate the image that will generate the conversations of a little child in us (or when Christ is being quickened from the dead), we will have to be taken through chastenings. Good works are the works that would be born out of the image described in 2 Corinthians 3:18. These are the works that are well pleasing to the Father because such a believer is on his way to God. Such a believer lives with an overwhelming consciousness of the Father. Our Lord Jesus knew how to react when things come between Him and the Father. He knew that whatever came between them was death. Somewhere, we are comfortable with such things.
There is a birth process that is taking place in our midst that is raising us from being a Christ company to an everlasting company that can handle the conversations of praise, honor and glory. We are going to overcome the temptation that Jesus overcame at Jordan, but ours would be over many occasions that we are able to admit His speakings. So today, we would hear speakings from a face. We are meant to interact with this face all day long. Once we take our eyes off that face, the devil shows us another face or glory as he did to Eve. He showed her something that was pleasurable and could make her wise (Gen. 3:6). The Lord wants to emboss the glory in the face of Jesus upon our hearts so that we will know how to respond whenever we look within.
When the adulterous woman was brought to Jesus, He had to commune with His heart using the Urim and Thummim. There was an image and a formation within Him that He used against all the temptations that came His way after Satan departed for a season. With that, He was able to protect the interest of the Father. Whenever we are not discerning and defending the interest of the Father, we would be protecting our own interests. Whenever we defend the gospel, there will always be loss and shame. Whenever there is a loss, our comfort should be in that there is a gain for us in the content of the gospel. The content of the gospel in this season is glory.
As long as Christ formation is present, there is a glory in every negative experience that God permits. As long as such distasteful experiences are triggered by our defence of the faith, there will always be a comfort for us in the gospel. This comfort is the knowledge of glory. There are men that will come our way in the season before us. We will need the judgements from the knowledge of glory to comfort them because what they are facing are reactions from spirits that promote death. By doing so, we will overcome death.
Blessings!
Summary
1. Adam failed when he gave his ears to the things Satan had to say. However, when such temptation was brought to our Lord Jesus, He knew it was Satan and did not fall into his traps (Luke 4:1-13). He looked into what the word of God says and did not give consideration to what the enemy said.
2. The image of the Son is what we are meant to change into (2 Cor. 3:18). Before one fully conforms to this image, there is an image of self that the enemy will always project which will make one insecure.
3. As Enoch walked with God through the years, there was something his eyes were fixed upon – God's commandment. Adam took his eyes off the commandments God gave him, which made him fall into an unsafe state.
4. The old man is an image and a nature that men carry and are tempted by until they have the full stature or age of Christ. Every temptation man falls into is related to something short of the full age of Christ, and it brings some satisfaction to the old man. Overcoming this is what moves us from glory to glory (2 Cor. 3:18).
5. A believer who has become Christ can still be tempted (James 1:14). In the season of salvation, everything that a Christ company does while not beholding the image of the Son leads them into being tempted of self.
6. There are images in our souls that are not yet of the Son, and Satan can use them to tempt us. Our only escape from temptation is to always behold the Lord. This was the secret of our Lord Jesus.
7. Jesus was skillful to know when a word was not coming from the Father, and knew not to meditate on such words. When we meditate on such words, we have thoughts of death and insecurity in our hearts that will make us struggle to respond to the voice of the Son of God. When we are careless with our ears, we admit thoughts and breaths that will affect the state of our hearts.
8. All scripture is given by the inspiration of God and is profitable (2 Tim. 3:16). This is a higher level of profiting than that of 1 Corinthians 13:2-3. The profiting of charity can handle thoughts and temptations from the world. After profiting with the dealings of charity, we are brought into a higher profiting, which is the image of God.
9. Our Lord Jesus knew how to react when things came between Him and the Father. He knew that whatever came between Them was death. God is equipping us to react when He is not our only audience.
10. Many of our struggles can be traced to the images of ourselves that we gathered from our upbringing and experiences. We struggle to defend these images of sin and death that were raised in us and are ruffled when they suffer.
11. The Lord wants to impart the glory that is in the face of Jesus upon our hearts so that we will know how to respond whenever we look within.
12. Jesus had an image and a formation within Him which He used against all the temptations that came His way; this is how He was able to protect the interest of the Father. Whenever we are not discerning and defending the interest of the Father, we would be protecting our own interests.