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Archive for June, 2009

Kenneth Copeland — Refusing Doubt

24 Jun

Kenneth And Gloria Copeland

Satan uses doubt with great skill and cunning to cause you to fail. He knows the importance of getting you to waver. He constantly tries to throw doubt and unbelief into your consciousness. If you begin to wonder whether you have the answer, Satan will purpose to secure a foothold in your mind. By gradually increasing his influence, he knows your faith will become ineffective and cause you to be defeated.

Matthew 14:24-31 is a perfect illustration. Jesus’ disciples were traveling to the other side of the sea by ship. But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.

But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come. And when

Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

When Peter cried out to Jesus, He answered him with one word, Come. That command carried the authority necessary to defy all natural power. Faith supported Peter on the water. He stepped out of the boat into a supernatural experience. When he saw the wind, however, he became afraid and failed. He saw, he feared, and he sank!

Three elements are always involved in defeat: SEE + FEAR + DOUBT = DEFEATED FAITH Doubt was the thief that robbed Peter of God’s best. Great sermons have been made about how Jesus was there to save him. God’s best was not that he be rescued in the nick of time before being overwhelmed by a raging sea! Peter had an opportunity to walk in the supernatural, in spite of what was happening in the natural. Faith or fear—you cannot function in both at the same time. Doubt causes defeat!

In praying effectively, a vital part of your success is knowing how to refuse doubt, fear and unbelief. If you are concentrating on your circumstances instead of the Word, you are building an inner image of the problem and not the solution. What you see on the inside will determine your attitude. If all you envision is your negative circumstances, you will doubt God’s Word. Satan will then be able to take advantage of you to thwart your faith process.

Doubt operates in the mental realm. God’s Word operates in the spiritual realm. Our responsibility is to use the spiritual weapons at our disposal. Second Corinthians 10:3-5 says, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” In Matthew 14, Peter’s battle was not with natural forces.

The combat was spiritual. Natural law was subject to the power inherent in Jesus’ word, “Come.” By stepping out of the boat, Peter acted on the authority in that word.

We can walk in the supernatural in spite of life’s storms raging against us. Our spiritual weapons are mighty! Do not allow doubt or fear to enter your consciousness.

Maintain control of your mind. Be ready to refuse any thought or imagination contrary to your prayer. When doubt comes, refuse to give it any place. Be selective about the thoughts you entertain. Do not build inner images of defeat!

You can control your thought life according to Philippians 4:6-9. Learn to think on things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely and of good report.

Satan uses doubt and fear to bluff you into accepting defeat. But you can overcome him by the power of God and faith in His Word.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

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Bible Faith Demands Action by Kenneth Copeland

18 Jun

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Jesus released power in His earthly ministry through words. At the tomb of Lazarus, Jesus said, “Lazarus, come forth,” and he did. At the city of Nain, Jesus stopped a funeral procession and said, “Young man, I say unto thee, arise.” The boy was raised from the dead. Matthew 8:16 says Jesus cast out the devil with His Word. Psalm 107:20 says God sent His Word and it healed the children of Israel.

Words carry power. The very forces of life and death are powered by the tongue (Proverbs 18:21). Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the importance of speaking right words. When faith words are spoken, they must be backed by corresponding actions. James 2:17, The Amplified Bible, says, “So also faith, if it does not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back it up), by itself is destitute of power (inoperative, dead).” God’s Word instructs us to be doers of what it says and not hearers only. In applying faith, two elements are involved: words and actions. Real Bible faith demands action.

You have to act by faith, not according to your feelings or reasoning. Faith is based on eternal truth and is more dependable than the evidence of your physical senses. According to 2 Corinthians 4:18, we are not to look at things which are seen,but at things which are not seen. The things which are visibleare temporal, or changeable. The things which are invisible are eternal—they never change. Don’t focus your attention on what you perceive through your five physical senses. Keep your heart fixed on the Word of God. Then what you see will come in line with the Word.

To believe God’s Word, rather than physical circumstances, is to talk and act the answer instead of the problem. Acting on the Word puts faith in motion. You cannot expect results from your prayer without the operation of faith.

An incident that occurred during the ministry of Jesus is a fine example of faith in action. Jesus was teaching in a private home. The crowd was so large there was no room for anyone else. Some men had brought a sick friend to Jesus to be healed. They could not reach Him because of the crowd, but they refused to be denied. They knocked a hole in the roof and lowered their friend into the room on a stretcher!

The owner of that house thought as much of his roof as you think of yours. How do you suppose he reacted when they tore that hole in his roof? But these men had only one thing in mind—to reach Jesus. They put aside their own dignity and refused to fear the owner of the house or the people around them. When they lowered the sick man into the room, Luke 5:20 says Jesus saw their faith. The invisible force of faith

became visible through their actions! In response to faith, Jesus forgave the man’s sins and healed his body.

What Jesus did 2,000 years ago, He will do today. He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). Once you have prayed, hold fast to your confession. Refuse to speak contrary to the Word of God. Do not allow circumstances to sway you. Act as though it were already done.

When you apply your faith accurately, according to God’s Word, you will get results. You will experience Hebrews 4:16 for yourself. “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” It does not say, “Come and hope to get.” It says, “Come and obtain!”

A very misunderstood concept, throughout the religious world, is that it is extremely difficult to get God to answer prayer at all—much less answer all prayer. That is a lie of Satan and absolutely contrary to the Word of God. When you believe God’s Word in your heart, and pray in line with His Word, you have every right to expect your prayer to bring

results. Jesus said, “Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive” (Matthew 21:21-22).

If God will answer the prayer of a sinner to be saved, He will certainly answer the prayers of born-again believers who come to Him in faith concerning their lives.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

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Applying Faith in Prayer by Kenneth Copeland

09 Jun

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When you begin your prayer based on God’s Word, you are starting with the answer. The Word contains the answer to every problem that could confront you.

The next step in praying effectively is found in Mark 11:24. Jesus said, “What things so ever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” This places a qualification on your prayer. You must believe you receive when you pray. Don’t wait until the manifestation comes to believe you receive.

This will seem very difficult at first. But as you get to know God personally, you will become convinced His Word is true. The problem area will diminish. Make a quality decision to believe God’s Word. Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” You can trust His integrity. When you pray, all you have to do is apply your faith.

Where does faith come from? How do you get it? Romans 10:17 says faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. Every believer is dealt the measure of faith (Romans 12:3). He must develop that faith by spending time in the Word of God. The application of your faith, in any given situation, is directly related to your knowledge of God. You could not have faith to be saved before you knew it was God’s will to save you. If you feel you need more faith, realize that you already have it. What you need is a more personal knowledge of God, through time in His Word.

Once you have prayed in faith, hold fast to your confession. God is aware of your situation. His power went to work the instant you prayed in faith. You can now rest assured that what you prayed will come to pass. Maintain your faith by keeping your confession—what you say—in line with the Word.

There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession (Hebrews 4:9-14).

Speak only words that agree with what you desire. Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father. As your High Priest, He is seeing to it that the whole system works the way God said it would!

The importance of speaking right words cannot be measured. Faith is released with the mouth. Words are the vehicles. God spoke faith-filled words when He created the universe. Hebrews 11:3 says, “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God….” God spoke and the Spirit of God used the faith in those words to create the worlds.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

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God’s Word in Prayer by Kenneth Copeland

03 Jun

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The No. 1 rule in praying for results is to base your prayer on God’s Word. It can be relied on just as you would depend on the word of your best friend. If you trust him, you will believe what he says. Faith in God operates the same way. God’s Word is the integrity of God Himself (John 17:17).

As an example, let’s use the prayer for salvation. The first step is to go to the Word and find out what God says you must do to be saved. Romans 10:9-10 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

Make this scripture the basis of your prayer. Confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead. God’s Word says it, so you can accept it as fact. When you fulfill these two prerequisites, the Word says, “Thou shalt be saved.” You must receive it by faith.

When you pray the prayer of salvation, you may not feel different. Realize that your feelings do not have anything to do with it. God’s Word is His part of your prayer life. He has already said in His Word, “Thou shalt be saved.” You have allowed the Word of God to engineer your prayer. It makes no difference how you feel. Exercise your faith. By the authority of God’s Word you are saved! In Mark 11:24 Jesus said, “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”

God’s Word is His will. When you pray in line with the Word, you have automatically prayed in line with God’s will. First John 5:14-15 says, “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.” Your prayer for salvation, based on God’s Word, wasclearly heard by the Father. After you pray and receive your salvation by faith, you then simply thank God for it.

Second Corinthians 5:17 says, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” Based on what the Word says, see yourself as a new creation. Visualize that the man you once were died the death of the Cross and was raised to new life by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 6:4). This is actually what happened. You prayed according to the Word of God, therefore you are saved. Praying for healing involves the same faith principles.

Search God’s Word for your answer. Isaiah 53:5 says, “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” Matthew 8:17 says, “Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.” Undoubtedly, healing is God’s will. According to these scriptures, Jesus paid the full price—not only for sin, but for sickness, disease and the consequences of sin.

More religious traditions have discounted God’s will for healing than discredit salvation. To know God’s will about healing, look at Jesus. He said, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (John 14:9). During His time on earth, Jesus was the express image of God (Hebrews 1:3). What did He do? He healed the sick. Acts 10:38 says, “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”

The prayer for healing is a simple one. Say, “Father, in the Name of Jesus, I see in Your Word that healing belongs to me. I believe I receive it. I thank You for it. I act on it now.” Once you have prayed…trust. Do not let Satan convince you that you are still sick. He will try his best to sell you his lies. Stand your ground! Say, “Satan, it is written….” Then speak what God’s Word says about your healing. Just as he fled at the command of Jesus’ words, Satan will have to flee when you speak God’s Word in faith (Matthew 4:1-11). He has no defense against the Word of God when it is spoken in faith by a believer.