Reigners Radio

Finding out and finally believing who and what we are in Christ doesn’t suddenly make it true; because we are born into His family we have all the benefits that go along with it, not because we believe it, but because it’s true. So if you are a believer you are living in a new time zone, a new realm, eternity, whether you believe it or not. The battle is to believe it; the behavior will follow. The Example of Lazarus We are probably all familiar with the story of Lazarus, Jesus’s friend who died. Imagine yourself standing outside the tomb, and Jesus has just arrived. Lazarus has been dead for 3 days now, and “he stinketh.” Now Lazarus died of something; for the sake of our illustration let’s say it was pneumonia. It could have been he had had an accident and had broken his neck, but for now, let’s say he died of pneumonia, and has been entombed. What does Jesus have to do in order to raise Lazarus from the dead? He has to restore his life (get his heart beating and his brain functioning again, etc.) and hea

The old covenant was like a marriage covenant. These days we include the phrase “till death do us part” in wedding ceremonies; it was the same thought in Paul’s day as well. The idea was that if either the husband or wife died, the remaining spouse was free to re-marry. Death ended the contract, or covenant, leaving the door open for either entering into a new contract or none at all, remaining free from contractual obligations. In Adam, we are all born “married” to the law. The law is still in effect for those born into it. So someone in the marriage covenant has to die in order for the new relationship to be instituted. How did God handle this? Since the law was still in effect, and someone in the relationship had to die, God killed US! In the spiritual realm, where eternity supersedes time, God takes us out of the time zone that we live in today, places us back onto the body of Jesus Christ as He is being crucified, and we die with Him, are buried with Him, and resurrected with Him as He is resurrected.

3 Realms of Reality Chart Through the Crucifixion, Jesus paid the debt once and for all. He removed all barriers through paying for all sins; at the Resurrection He became the Way to the Father, fulfilling His purpose on the earth and establishing a new covenant. It’s very important to note that the New Covenant begins at the Resurrection. Most of what is written in the Gospels and what Christ Himself taught was in fulfillment of the Old Covenant, the law. Before the New Covenant, His Testament, could be initiated, the old had to be satisfied. VICTORY OVER SIN came at the Crucifixion, but it wasn’t until the Resurrection that we gained VICTORY OVER SELF! Because of the New Testament, Jesus testifying that we are now in Him, we can boldly come before the very throne of God. We are now under grace, with nothing to achieve, prove or keep, which means that our success is measured by how much we let Christ live through us, not how much we do for Him. The Example of Lazarus   Lazarus died of something; for the

The Natural Realm Time was created as part of the natural realm at creation. Time is earthbound, though there may well be other forms of what we call time in other aspects of the natural realm. Time only affects our natural aspect, or body. God has given us exactly the right amount of time, and everything that happens is under His control. The Supernatural Realm Time does not influence the supernatural realm. When we feel controlled by time in our mind, will or emotions (our soul), we are believing lies. When we feel guilty or wounded by something that happened in the past, we are letting time control our soul. Or if we are feeling anxious about something that is going to happen in the future, such as expecting God’s judgment or speaking in public, again we are letting time control our soul. The Spiritual Realm The relative quality we refer to in the spiritual realm is “eternity” or “eternal.” But this is neither a qualitative (better time) nor a quantitative (more time) term. Eternity has no beginning

3 Realms Chart During the Age of Knowledge, God spoke to man through the written law. His boundaries defined relationships between people, between man and his environment, and between man and his God. But because the fullness of time has now come, God today speaks to all creation by and through His Son. We claim Christianity as different from all other religions in that each person can have a personal relationship with a Personal God. This is a significant differentiation between these two ages: * Under law, man could relate to a Holy God only through measuring up to His standards and keeping His commandments, by performing certain behaviors. So to maintain this surface relationship you always had to be on your best behavior. * Not so in the Age of Grace. Because God created us now to be His sons, we are members of His family. Often times we are in relationship with God IN SPITE OF our behavior. He has given us a new heart, a new nature, and a new identity. In the age to come, He will continue to speak th

An Age of Transition On one end, its beginning is the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ, by which the full debt of the law was paid. The Father didn’t forgive the debt; it was a real debt, and had to be paid in reality. Jesus PAID it; It is “finished.” Jesus’s sinless death was the full recompense necessary to conclude the period of law. The temple veil, the boundary separating God from man, was torn in two. Age of Grace As great and awesome and wonderful as the Crucifixion was, it only concluded God’s purpose for the previous time period (Age of Law): It didn’t start something new. It wasn’t until the Resurrection that the Tree of Life was made available again to any who were without sin (all sins were paid for, even those not yet committed). It was this Tree, Jesus, which changed the very nature of man, making him a new creature, not a re-newed one. Overlap of Law and Grace The law was given for a purpose and will never change until it has completed its work on this earth. So God changed us! We can’t be both

What Age Are We Living In? We are presently living in the Age of Grace, based on world events, time-line indicators and, most importantly, the aspects of relationship with God that are available to us today. In the Beginning We can conclude that we don’t know everything about time, that it is not an “absolute,” and that some of our beliefs that involve time and the boundaries it represents are probably incorrect. In the Garden We have no idea how long Adam and Eve were in the garden. But we do know that at a certain point in time God kicked them out. A new era, or age, had begun: What was okay one day was not okay the next. Every Man’s Heart During the Age of Knowledge, everyone did what their personal knowledge told them to do. During this time period there were judges, priests, kings, prophets, seers, and other leaders God would occasionally raise up in order to instruct and guide the people. Age of Transition One day God’s people were sacrificing animals in the temple, and it was acceptable; the n

God does things in terms of time, or eons or ages, and has a purpose or purposes for each age. It’s important to know what age we are living in so we can better understand what God is doing in, to and through us, and not be fighting against Him. The basic building block of time is an age, or eon. In scripture the term is rendered or translated “ever.” So where we find the term “everlasting,” we could also read it “age”-lasting. An age has a beginning, middle and an end, and generally reflects God’s purposes for that portion of time. The Ages of Time One way of categorizing the ages is: * The Age of God All-In-All (God existed fully self-contained) * The Age of Chaos (Process of Creation — even Chaos is from God) * The Age of Innocence (The creation of Adam, the first son of God, signified the manifest presence of God outside the Trinity) * The Age of Knowledge (the knowledge of law defined sin) * The Age of Transition (from death to life) * The Age of Grace (freedom and wholeness for mankind) * The A

Three Realms of Reality Chart Supernatural Environment The supernatural realm can become a distraction, as many believe that it is the same thing as the spiritual realm. So we often mistake what happens there, and what we see, as being 100% true and infallible. Thus, we can experience visions, manifestations of God, angels and demons, etc., and falsely conclude that there is absolute authority and clarity in them. Supernatural Warfare Supernatural warfare, often erroneously called spiritual warfare, is waged between the inhabitants of the supernatural realm, angels, demons and humans. Warfare here is strictly under the control and direct supervision of God, He is sovereign as much here as anywhere. Soulical Warfare Soulical warfare refers specifically to us humans, and involves overcoming the world, the flesh and the devil in our individual lives. These enemies can only be overcome through spiritual weapons made available through dependence on God. What is “Supernatural”? The supernatural realm is sim

3 Realms Chart Supernatural Environment The supernatural or soulical environment consists of those areas between the natural and the spiritual. Though this is one realm, it contains many regions. In order to understand our beliefs we can say that the supernatural realm is where the angels and demons dwell, also described as heaven and hell. We can also say that the realm to which our soul relates is the soulical environment. Our soulical senses work just as well (or as poorly) in heaven as in hell. God reigns supreme, and nothing happens here without His express permission, just as in the natural realm. We often mistake what happens there, and what we see, as being 100% true and infallible. Thus, we can experience visions, manifestations of God, angels and demons, etc., and falsely conclude that there is absolute authority and clarity in them. Supernatural Warfare Supernatural warfare, often erroneously called spiritual warfare, is waged between the inhabitants of the supernatural realm. This would be an

3 Realms Chart The Soul & the Supernatural Realm Each of us is born with a soul. The soul is made up of mind, will and emotions. The soul is distinct from both the body and the spirit. The soul God gave each of us is the one He wanted us to have. It is only when we depend on its attributes to get our needs met that we run into trouble. Our soul is a combination of our strengths and weaknesses, and can be called our temperament. God does not value one temperament over another. Soulical Senses The soul relates to our selves and to others. Its senses include understanding, choosing, feeling, awareness of self and others (intuition) and sense of time. There is also a sense of God, but God Himself must quicken this sense to recognize His Spirit. It is also in the soul that the so-called “spiritual” gifts are located: we can use the gifts without the spirit of God having anything to do with it. Before we became Christians, this would be called witchcraft, ESP, sorcery, etc. Using the gifts in our own strength

Spiritual Warfare The only kind of “spiritual” warfare going on now is actually between the spiritual and another realm, either the natural, the supernatural or both. Even these battles are completely under God’s control. What Does “Spiritual” Mean? When we refer to something as “spiritual” we are saying it is from the same place and made of the same stuff as God; it is therefore eternal, righteous, perfect, holy, loving, kind, pure, unchanging, unchangeable, gentle, true, etc. The Soul & the Supernatural Realm Each of us is born with a soul. The soul is made up of mind, will and emotions. The soul is distinct from both the body and the spirit. The soul God gave each of us is the one He wanted us to have; it ain’t broke, and He is well pleased with it. Soulical Senses The soul relates to our selves and to others. Its senses include understanding, choosing, feeling, awareness of self and others (intuition) and sense of time. It is also in the soul that the so-called “spiritual” gifts are located: we

3 Realms Chart Spirit of God If Spirit begets Spirit, what is true of the seed is true of what that seed grows into, even if it appears different. Jesus was begotten of the Father, by the Holy Spirit. All of the characteristics or attributes of the Father are found in the Son through the Holy Spirit! Spiritual Senses When God created Adam, He breathed into them His own life; He breathed into them zoe; a part of Himself. Before they were lowered, they had the spiritual senses required to have communication to the degree that all their needs were met just by being with Him. They walked with Him, spoke with Him, saw, felt, heard and probably even smelled His presence, and were heard, etc., by Him in return. After they sinned, and God’s Spirit was withdrawn from them, they no longer had the senses necessary to commune with Him on the level that met their deepest needs. Spiritual Environment This is where God dwells, and because we are in Him, this is truly where we already dwell (in spiritual places). Becau

3 Realms Chart Human Spirit? The scriptures shed surprisingly little light on this issue, except that one of the purposes of the Word is to divide between an individual’s spirit and soul and clearly differentiates between the two. Spirit of God When we speak of something in terms of its being “spiritual,” what we are really saying is that it has a spiritual source and spiritual attributes. If like begets like, and Spirit begets Spirit, what is true of the seed is true of what that seed grows into, even if it appears different. Spiritual Senses The spiritual realm has its own set of senses that function there. When God originally created Adam in the garden, He breathed into them His own life; He made them a living soul. All their needs were met just by being with the Living God. We have transferred our ideas of our senses as we experience them today onto the senses Adam and Eve must have experienced with God in the garden. They walked with Him, spoke with Him, saw, felt, heard and probably even smelled H

3 Realms of Reality chart The Body & the Natural Realm Our body was made to function in this earthly environment for a limited time and under earthly restrictions, and it is our body that communicates and relates to this world. The body is not eternal. Because the body is a part of the natural realm, it is subject to natural laws. Warfare in the natural realm consists of taking care of our bodies. The Spirit & The Spiritual Realm Spiritually speaking, there are only two kinds of people on the earth today — dead and alive! God first created man after His own likeness: as like begets like, Spirit begets Spirit. Human Spirit? There is no specific mention of a “human spirit” in the scriptures though clearly differentiates between the soul and the spirit. It is the spirit that communicates with and relates to God. Since we were born dead in our spirit, it took an act of the spirit to enable us to even hear God’s knocking. Spirit of God Generally speaking, when we speak of something in terms of its bein

These First Things 11) Man likes to make complex what God has made simple. 12) Accept what God reveals, even if it doesn’t answer all your questions or doesn’t seem to fit in with your other beliefs. 13) Is what you’re believing working for you? He has a purpose for our time here, and if we don’t learn it here we will have to learn it in the next age to come. 14) Religious Jargon. One of the first things we’re going to do is to try as much as possible to stay away from religious terms, and instead re-phrase the concepts into something that will hopefully mean something to all of us. Spirit, Soul & Body and the 3 Realms of Reality When we understand how God made us, and the changes wrought through salvation, we are better equipped to overcome the world, the flesh and the devil. We need to start with a solid understanding and description of what we are, and what our environment is. If you are a regenerated Christian, you can say, “I am a spirit, I have a soul and I live in a body.” The Body & the

These First Things 11) Man likes to make complex what God has made simple. 12) Accept what God reveals, even if it doesn’t answer all your questions or doesn’t seem to fit in with your other beliefs. 13) Is what you’re believing working for you? He has a purpose for our time here, and if we don’t learn it here we will have to learn it in the next age to come. 14) Religious Jargon. One of the first things we’re going to do is to try as much as possible to stay away from religious terms, and instead re-phrase the concepts into something that will hopefully mean something to all of us. Spirit, Soul & Body and the 3 Realms of Reality When we understand how God made us, and the changes wrought through salvation, we are better equipped to overcome the world, the flesh and the devil. We need to start with a solid understanding and description of what we are, and what our environment is. If you are a regenerated Christian, you can say, “I am a spirit, I have a soul and I live in a body.” The Body & the

3) Most of us don’t know what we believe. 4) We need to be practical — God is! 5) Wholeness, freedom and life are God’s provision for us — NOW! 6) We are often fighting the wrong battles. 7) A lot of what we have chosen to believe is because it fits our temperament, how we feel, our history, and how we perceive our identity. 8) We are all dealing with the same basic problems. There are only two kinds of people in the world; those that are spiritually dead, and those that are spiritually alive. Once we get beyond this, we can look at what is really keeping us from entering into life: the flesh. 9) How Do You Spell “Success”? Our true calling is to “live in the spirit,” yet we often don’t even know what that means. 10) Is what you’re learning practical? Can you apply what you’re being taught to your daily life? Is there something we can actually do to live in that promised peace and rest today? YES! And it’s simpler than you might think. 11) Man likes to make complex what God has made simple. Keep your

1) Truth is a Person — Jesus Christ Himself. 2) None of us has all the truth. 3) Most of us don’t know what we believe. That which is truth, from God for us at this time, will stand the light of day. That which doesn’t, well, it wasn’t bringing us life anyway. So let it go! 4) We need to be practical — God is! There are things we can do, and stop doing, by which we can cooperate with what God is doing. 5) Wholeness, freedom and life are God’s provision for us — NOW! God wants us whole, complete and entire, and will not cease his efforts until we enter His rest. 6) We are often fighting the wrong battles. We’ve been distracted by battles that have already been won, yet are not taking up the sword where we need to. 7) A lot of what we have chosen to believe is because it fits our temperament, how we feel, our history, and how we perceive our identity. As our perceptions change, our beliefs will also change. 8) We are all dealing with the same basic problems. There are only two kinds of people in the worl

1) Truth is a Person — Jesus Christ Himself. 2) None of us has all the truth. 3) Most of us don’t know what we believe. That which is truth, from God for us at this time, will stand the light of day. That which doesn’t, well, it wasn’t bringing us life anyway. So let it go! 4) We need to be practical — God is! There are things we can do, and stop doing, by which we can cooperate with what God is doing. 5) Wholeness, freedom and life are God’s provision for us — NOW! God wants us whole, complete and entire, and will not cease his efforts until we enter His rest. 6) We are often fighting the wrong battles. We’ve been distracted by battles that have already been won, yet are not taking up the sword where we need to. 7) A lot of what we have chosen to believe is because it fits our temperament, how we feel, our history, and how we perceive our identity. As our perceptions change, our beliefs will also change. 8) We are all dealing with the same basic problems. There are only two kinds of people in the worl