BUILDING A FOUNDATION FOR FIRE: IDENTITY The Lord wants us to live a supernatural life filled with His love. A love that overflows with righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. From the place of overflow, we will walk in power and anointing to be His witnesses to our families, our communities and to the ends of the earth. To do that we must allow the Holy Spirit to lay a firm foundation to sustain the structure He wants to build in our hearts. Jason Cattell Evangelist Freedom Crusades Identification is everything. Because we are His children and He wanted us back (after the Fall) He chose to identify with our brokenness in order to reclaim us. 1 John 3:1-2 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. This “manner of love” is what causes us to be his children. The new birth is a result of the Father’s love. Because of this love, the world does not know us. This “manner of love” is the nature of God. We somehow expect to feel sugary valentines or something. Rather, we have identified with Jesus/Father and yielded to His nature, not our sense ruled old man 1 John 4:8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. John 13:34-35 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. Jesus made a new word of a colorless and faint Greek word to express love that does not require a comparable response: agape. Unconditional love. As opposed to: Phileo: love of family and friends, Eros: sensual, passionate man-woman love, Stergo: parental love Slavery was only ended after the agape love of Christ was known. Women were only set free after the agape love of Christ was known. “The new law of love is the nature of God in practice.” E.W. Kenyon UNDERSTANDING: Do we really understand love? We sing countless songs about it, be do we really understand the incredible power of the word agape? It is obvious, when looking at the Christian world that it is not well understood. Can you think of some examples or agape in action, or the lack of agape in our Christian world? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ EXPERIENCE: Empathy has been defined as walking in another’s shoes. Agape is identification. God’s love and the works of Jesus were accomplished by this love. It is the motive power behind all these works. Have you ever experienced this kind of love when someone ministered to you or you ministered to another? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ACTION: As you meditate on agape, try and identify with those that you connect with. Identify with them as Jesus identified with you to save and heal you. It is harder than it sounds. Record your experience below ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ Identification must start with I. 1 John 1:5-6 This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. We typically identify with others like ourselves or at least like we aspire to become. To identify with Jesus we must alter our thinking and our behavior. 1 John 1:3 that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. 2 Corinthians 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? LOVE/FELLOWSHIP VS SENSE/SELFISHNESS Galatians 5:16-26 I say then: Walk in the spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh (senses). 17 For the flesh (senses) lusts against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh (senses); and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.18 But if you are led by the spirit, you are not under the law. When our flesh is brought under the control of the fellowshipping spirit, we are led by, and walking in the spirit and identifying with our Lord Jesus. 19 Now the works of the flesh (senses) are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh (senses) with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the spirit, let us also walk in the spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. John 15:1-10 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. “ 3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. UNDERSTANDING: Have you ever been tempted to feel superior when you pray for someone? Is it important to you to appear more successful than you really are? Why is that? Are you trying to identify with the minister, or with the Master? Pray and ask Holy Spirit if your identity is rooted and grounded in Him or material success and the approval of man. ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ EXPERIENCE: Is it more important to identify with Freedom Crusades or with the Lord and the one we are ministering to? Would you say that in the past you have identified with others than Him in ministry? Is it possible that this is restraining you from progressing in the Spirit? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ACTION: Choose to identify with the Master and the one you are to try and help. Desire their healing and salvation as Jesus does and then think about the results. Record them here. ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ John 15:1-10 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. CLEAN IS ONLY THE GENISIS OF FRUIT BEARING 5 "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. 9 "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. WE ARE THE FRUIT BEARING PART OF THE VINE. THE VINE IS INCOMPLETE WITHOUT US!! WE ARE NOT AN ADDITION, OR AN ACCESSORY, WE ARE NECESSARY TO HIS PURPOSE!! HE DOES NOT BEAR FRUIT!! WE DO. WE MUST HAVE FELLOWSHIP, HARMONY WITH HIM. Romans 5:5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. UNDERSTANDING: The harvest is the evidence of the fruit being produced by the Holy Spirit in and through our lives. Are you producing the fruit God wants to produce through your life? What are some areas Holy Spirit wants to correct so you can produce more fruit? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ EXPERIENCE: Has your faith ever been tested only to find out that your foundation has strengthened enough to stand firm? Share your experience below. ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ACTION: The fruit comes as a result of hearing the word then following up with intensive and consistent “action”. A lifestyle of action! (James 1:22) Unfortunately we have many hearers in the church today, but not as many “doers.” What areas are you “doing” the word in your life that is producing spiritual growth? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ Our chief goal is to stand before the Lord as we step into our glorified bodies and hear the precious words “well done my good and faithful servant”. The scripture below warns us to build our foundation with the most precious materials if we can expect to sustain the fire. I Corinthians 3:12 If anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, or straw, 13 each one’s work will become obvious. For the day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire; the fire will test the quality of each one’s work. 14 If anyone’s work that he has built survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will experience loss, but he himself will be saved— but only as through fire. Pray and ask the Lord, what if anything is quenching the fire of God in your life. Share with Him your heart to build a foundation using only the finest materials. Ask Him to fill you with the Holy Spirit and fire so you can become His witness to your home, your community and to the ends of the earth.
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