OpenHeaven.com Digest April 06, 2017

The importance of knowing who we are in God reveals itself increasingly as we, the people of God, begin to take our place as to our destiny. This, our destiny, is God’s will and purpose for each vessel. We know that God created the first man Adam to have dominion over God’s creation. God’s purpose, from the beginning, is that man might subdue, have dominion over and replenish the earth. God’s purpose is that through Adam God might fill the earth with His presence in every dimension of life and throughout each order as released from God. Adam, while in total dependency upon God, had that dominion, which was recognized and realized as Adam and Eve related to God in the cool, the spirit of their beginning. Thus, Adam and Eve had a relationship with God that was one of constant communications, according to God’s purpose, for that day of beginnings.

Gen. 3:8a, “And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool [spirit] of the day…” However, their removal from this place of fellowship and dominion, within the realm of the garden, was the results of disobedience. However, God in mercy, left them with a continuing promise. This promise declares that the way to the tree of life was to be protected by God. That was until man could, through Christ, re-enter and again abide in the realm called the Garden of Eden, the realm of dominion. This garden represents the place, the realm wherein man might partake of the tree of life, therein to know and receive eternal life as God’s family.

What a glorious promise. In this promise, God is helping man to reclaim His purpose, it is important for man to know the place from which he fell. To also understand the why or reason for that fall. In the garden, when approached by the serpent, the exchanged communications between God’s enemy and Eve produced a mind-set that removed Eve and then Adam from their lofty realm of dominion. In accepting and receiving the serpent’s lies, that which the serpent is and represents became the mind-set of Eve, then Adam and then all generations following. Isa. 14:12-14 reveals that mind-set, “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken [subdued] the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven [the heavens], I will exalt my throne above the stars of GOD: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the MOST HIGH”.

God’s created man, coming out of Him, was purposed before the foundation of the world. He was created from the dust of the earth and by receiving the breath of life coming from God, Adam become a living soul. But now, that creation lives in a fallen condition. They could, in their fallen condition, begin to recognize the lofty place from which they had fallen. This fall was from a lofty realm of dwelling in light (dwelling in the knowledge of God) into a realm of living in darkness (separated from the God Life and purpose). However, God’s promise of restoration enables man to find his way back to that realm of light from which he fell. The promise from God concerning a Son birthed to become a sacrifice, came, and now makes available to fallen man the work of progressive salvation and redemption.

This sacrifice, in becoming progressive salvation is available to bring any repentant man back to that spiritual place God intended for the man to possess and dwell in. Back from darkness, line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, to that realm of light which abides in Christ. The completion of our salvation through Jesus Christ results in the true meaning of the “word” and “work” of resurrection. This “work” of resurrection begins for repentant man at the cross of Jesus to continue until knowing the completed work is accomplished. Note that the word “resurrection” is a word that means “a reversal”. In this, along with Paul, we can express our desire, “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection”.

God’s intention has never changed. From before the foundation of the world He purposed to make man in the likeness of His image. As written in Gen. 1:26, “And God said, Let Us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over …” This word “man” as used here is the Hebrew word “AW-DAM’ meaning “one showing blood (life) in the face”. This is speaking of man, whose countenance reflects the quality of his inner nature, a nature that is the results of the breath, the life of God breathed into the formed dust of the earth man. God’s breath, His Spirit caused the man of dust to become a living soul, a living soul reflecting the nature of God. “Made in God’s image” speaks of the man being in the same “shade” as God. “Shade” denotes that man vibrated or existed in the same realm as God. These vibrations speak of the different realms or expressions that extend from God in fulfilling all His purpose.

Psalms 89:15 reveals, “Blessed is the People that know the joyful sound: They shall walk, O Lord, in the light of Thy countenance [face, life]“. Remember that the scripture does declare that when we see Him as He is, we shall be like Him. In the above scripture, take note of the words “sound” and “light”. With each, sound or light becoming a manifestation, these are the results that come from a certain vibration. “Sound” has a certain vibration while “light” is the result of a higher vibration. Before man’s fall in Eden, he existed in pure spirit form and his body was a covering purposed to expressed God’s light. However, according to God’s wisdom, He allows man the freedom to fall from that higher vibration to a lesser vibration but with a purposed hope.

Note Rom. 8:20, “For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of Him who hath subjected the same in hope”. Hope, having its fulfillment through salvation means for man that deliverance from the bondage of fallen corruption is available. Salvation is the process, made available by the cross, by which we are returning to God. This reversal will once again give expression to the life and light that we are as being in Him.

This also speaks that unto those who continue to reject the work of salvation which God has made available; there is a continuation of life locked into that realm of darkness. Their countenance, their nature expresses a realm of evil that maintains the manifestation of that darkness. Matt. 6:23 states, “But if thine eye be evil, the whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness”. With darkness, having many forms of expressions, sometimes it even seems to have the appearance of counterfeit light; but its source continues to be of the realm of darkness.

Can we understand that darkness is part of light? It is simply light whose vibration has slowed way down. Thus, man, in his fall, fell from a realm of pure light to a realm of light slowed down to appear as darkness. Remember, God is “pure light” and in man’s present fallen slowed down condition, he cannot behold God and live. For this cause, God, the Word, became flesh. Meaning that God emptied Himself to become much less than what He really is. He lowered His vibration of light to become a man. For what reason did God Lower Himself? To deal with humanity on man’s level of darkness, a lower vibration than the eternal God.

This means that God took on the form of slowed down light to appear in the realm of fallen man. Jesus, as a flesh man now depended upon the Holy Spirit to maintain His total victory over the flesh realm. Jesus gained victory over the realm of darkness and that through His sacrifice on the cross. Man through receiving that available sacrifice could once again approach the realm of light. That is, a quickening of vibration by the Holy Spirit to relate again with God in the realm of pure light. Therefore, we are encouraged to let the revelation of God run its course in us, that we might again become that pure light in spirit, soul and body. Proverbs 4:18, “But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shines more and more unto the perfect day”. 

        With revelation from and of God coming in a progressive manner, man has the tendency to build temples around those certain revealed truths. When this tendency transpires, it takes those certain truths of light and boxes in the light, to slow it down again until it finally becomes darkness again. Remember, darkness is light which has slowed down. Man-made temples become walls that stop the progressive flow of Gods light, thus moving towards and again becoming darkness. Therefore, revelation must remain free to move us more and more into God’s perfect day. A day wherein the light shines brighter than the noonday sun, a perfect day of restoration. Knowing a reversal from death into the power of His resurrection, which glorifies the Father in all things.

John 8:12, “Then spoke Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life”. Therefore, let us rise up and shine for God’s glory is available for all who are willing to see Him as He is. In seeing Him as He is, man can become His image and likeness to manifest Christ unto the entire world. Thus, a called responding people becoming the light of God, as they began to know who they really are in Christ. Herein they manifest the Christ nature unto a darken world, becoming God’s light bearers until establishing completely the kingdom of God, that is removing all the darkness. Thus, who are we, but God’s light bearers establishing the kingdom of God in the earth. Arise and shine for God’s glory has come. 

Duane Stewart
https://voiceforgatheringsaints.wordpress.com/author/duanestewart/