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Embracing or Denying the Power of God

Embracing or Denying the Power of God

Have you ever sung the old Christian hymn There Is Power in the Blood? Consider the first verse and refrain:

Would you be free from the burden of sin?
There’s pow’r in the blood, pow’r in the blood;
Would you o’er evil a victory win?
There’s wonderful pow’r in the blood. 

Refrain:

There is pow’r, pow’r, wonder-working pow’r
In the blood of the Lamb;
There is pow’r, pow’r, wonder-working pow’r
In the precious blood of the Lamb.

Have you ever had to explain to someone who wasn’t raised a Christian what these lyrics mean?

Is there power in the blood of Jesus? If you said “yes,” do you mean the red corpuscles?

If we could find a piece of Christ’s burial cloth (which some allege is the Shroud of Turin) stained with His dried blood, would we obtain divine power to overcome sin? Is the power of God found in dead blood cells?

Jesus said the following to the Jews in Capernaum:

“I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever” (John 6:53–58 NIV84, emphasis mine).

When Jesus said these words, was He speaking about cannibalism? The Jews apparently thought so and were offended.

What about today—what do we understand Christ’s words to mean?

 

The Metaphor

Is the power in the literal blood, or is the power in the One who shed His blood? And if the power is not in the literal blood, then what does the blood represent? How does one access the power?

The flesh and blood are symbolic of something else, and if we fail to understand the reality to which Jesus’ symbolic language is pointing, we are vulnerable to believing in the idea of Jesus, engaging in religion, and church but being devoid of the actual power of God. The apostle Paul warned that at the end of time, this would be the case and that we would need to be on guard:

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them (2 Timothy 3:1–5 NIV84, emphasis mine).

People with a “form of godliness but denying its power”—what does this mean? It means they do not deny the forms—the formulas, rituals, ceremonies, symbols, sacraments—they deny the power. In other words, they do not deny the “power in the blood,” they do not deny the symbol, communion ceremony, the Eucharist, or singing the song. But they do deny the truth, the reality, the actuality, the experience, the internalization of the life of Christ, for the Bible tells us that the life is in the blood (Leviticus 17:11). The power that is in the blood is the power of the life of Christ, not His red corpuscles. And the life of Christ is the lived-out truth of God that exposes and refutes the lies of Satan and wins us back to trust. This is represented by the flesh:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. … The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:1, 14 NIV84, emphasis mine).

Jesus is God in humanity, and in Him is revealed the truth about God. He is the living Word of God. To eat His flesh means to take into our hearts and minds the truth about God that dispels the lies and wins us to trust. This is the eternal gospel, the eternal good news, that God is not like Satan has alleged, that God is not an imperial dictator who makes up rules and then uses His infinite power to inflict torture, pain, and death upon rule breakers. In Jesus, we see the majesty and glory of God revealed, that although He had all power, He never used it to advance self but only and always to serve. And even when the grossest evil and most abusive injustice was being perpetrated upon Him, He still would not use power to take freedom away from His intelligent creatures.

Why not? Because what God wants is our love, trust, loyalty, devotion, and friendship, and these can never be achieved through law and law enforcement, but only through truth, love, and freedom. In fact, any attempts to promote love through external enforcement, through punishment, only destroy love and incite rebellion. Thus, the power of God, the power in the blood, is the power of the truth and love of God fully revealed and lived in the person of Jesus Christ. This is the good news, this is the gospel, and this is the power of God that we may freely receive—just as Paul wrote:

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” (Romans 1:16, 17 NIV84, emphasis mine).

The power is in the good news about God that destroys the lies and wins us to trust; this is partaking of the flesh, which is symbolized by the bread. And once we partake of the truth and are won to trust, we open our hearts and the Holy Spirit brings us the life of Christ, which is symbolized by the blood. We receive a new life, a new identity, a new animating power—the pure, holy, righteous, life of love for God and others, which is the life (blood) of Jesus. As Paul wrote, “It is no longer I that live, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). We become partakers of the divine nature—the nature of love (2 Peter 1:4).

 

Applying the Metaphor

So how this works in day-to-day, practical life is that the Holy Spirit brings truth to human hearts and minds in ways we can understand that truth—truth essential for our healing and salvation, truth that leads us away from sin-sickness and back to Jesus for eternal life. This truth will always include truth about God, what Jesus has done, God’s methods and principles, but it will also include real-world, practical, applicable actions that each of us needs to take in our lives to experience healing of our hearts and minds.

We must first know that God is love, that He loves us, and that through Christ, He provides everything we need for our healing and restoration—and that with Jesus, our case is never hopeless. Then in that love, in the truth of who God is, the Spirit of truth will bring to our minds the truth about ourselves, where in our lives we are out of harmony with God, of things or people in our lives that are destructive, along with the truth about what is healthy and what choices we can make to harmonize our lives with the good, the right, the healthy.

We will find ourselves in various circumstances and situations in which some truth will be before us and we will know what our duty is; we will know what the right and healthy action is, and then the Holy Spirit will leave us completely free to decide what we will choose to do, choose to believe, choose to internalize into our heart.

And this is the key to accessing the power of God: We do not receive divine power to succeed until we choose to say yes to the truth and apply it to our lives.

However, it is not the truth comprehended, cognitively understood, that matters; it is the truth chosen by the individual to be taken into the heart and applied by the will to the life that opens the individual to receive the divine power of God—the animating, motivating, and transforming power of God.

The demons believe the truth of who Jesus is, but they have closed their hearts to the truth and do not love and trust Jesus; thus, their cognitive awareness of the truth has no saving power for them.

Many addicts accept the truth that they have an addiction, even that the addiction is harmful and that their lives would be better if they were free of the addiction, but they have not made the choice to get into recovery, to surrender their lives to Jesus Christ. Thus, many will pray for deliverance from their addiction, but what they are actually doing is praying for God to change them before they have chosen for themselves to give up their addiction. They are praying for their feelings to change, for the power of God to deliver them from something to which they are still clinging in their heart. They have not yet chosen in their own heart to say yes to Jesus and die to the old ways. We do not get the power until we make the choice. But when we make the choice to say yes to the truth, we are never left to win the battle in our own power; the power to succeed is always supplied by God through the indwelling Holy Spirit, but that power only becomes accessible to us when we choose to follow and apply the truth by our choice.

So I encourage you to choose to spend time with Jesus every day, to internalize (ingest) His Word into your heart and mind and to daily invite the Holy Spirit into your life to empower you with the life, the love, the motivation, the power of Jesus and, moment by moment, choose to do what you know is the right, healthy, loving, truthful action that is your duty in governance of yourself. For the power is in the truth and love that comes only from Jesus, and we receive that by our choice to trust and to act in that trust upon the truth we know and understand—it is then and only then that we receive the divine power to succeed.

 

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Testimony 33

I was invited over a friend’s house to see the “God and Your Brain” seminar today. I became [a christian] 36 years ago at the age of 19, but have struggled with the concept of God taking His ‘pound of flesh’ out on His Son to be appeased. Wow. Your seminar has been an incredible revelation and breath of reason and fresh air! I have your book, “The God Shaped Brain,” and it is SO eye opening. Finally, after 36 years enlightenment has come! Praise the Good Lord! What can I say, but that the Real Gospel is truly “Good News!” Thank you for your efforts in giving the Gospel a clear sound!

Paul C.,  Springfield, MA, USA

 

Testimony 8

Thank you for the ministry you are sharing with us, it is a real blessing to us and especially to my husband and myself! You are encouraging us to think for ourselves and not just to except everything, without thinking it through, with God’s word!

M.K., USA

 

Testimony 67

I was introduced to Come And Reason by a friend of my mother-in-law, who gave me several CD’s of Dr. Jennings. The clarity of the message and recognition that God’s is a God of love was so clear, advancing beyond Dr. Maxwell’s message. However, grappled with Maxwell saying God used emergency measures for the fallen world. Now after several years of being a regular listener of the Come And Reasoning bible study class and attending Jennings’ meetings in Dallas/Fort Worth, TX, things are becoming clearer for me. Design law versus imposed law has added so much to my personal understanding of theology. This message has really impacted my work in counseling so many people miserable because they are searching for and trusting human governments to create order and peace or believing in a God who says love Me or I will kill you. I am grateful that I have an alternative view to offer my clients that makes sense. I teach a bible study class on a semi-regular basis and I value the materials that Come And Reason so freely offers to aid me in presenting this vital message. Thank you for continuing to provide advancement in our very limited understanding of a Infinite God that is rational and believable.

Dr. Roger D, Arlington, TX, USA

 

Testimony 26

Your teachings about our heavenly Father have changed my life. Thank you sooooooo very very much! I know He’s doing some serious healing in my heart and life and I look forward to each new day to learn something new about Him and to just hear you speak about Him. Thank you, forever.

Nancy S.

 

Testimony 17

The blessings of clarity and understanding you and your class inspire me to take from the word of God have impressed upon me so greatly the true, loving character of our Creator. I have found amazing freedom and joy through building a stronger, more intentional relationship with Him. What is new is that this is now a relationship built on love, reverence and respect rather than fear and obligation, and as such my eyes have been slammed OPEN as I am continually impressed by the manifestations of God’s true character in His provisions for fallen man.

T.E.H., Salt Lake City, UT, USA

 

Testimony 36

Thank you and may God continue to bless you as you share with others the intricacies of how we are all “fearfully and wonderfully made”. I must share that you have opened a whole new world to me, and I have found tremendous healing through what you have shared in two of your books, “Could It Be This Simple?” and “The God Shaped Brain.” I praise God for what you shared, what I have learned, and how I have grown and healed! My prayer is that My Precious Jesus will be seen by others in the way I live, act, talk, etc. and they may be encouraged to know He is truly a GREAT God of LOVE, desiring that no one should perish! God Bless you in your continued endeavors to present Him as He really is!

Joleen H. GA, USA

 

Testimony 30

God lead me to your book “The God-Shaped Brain” while I was searching for another book about the brain and then to your interview about your book on HeartWise Ministries [where] I found out about [Come And Reason Ministries]. I’m now devouring the webcasts of your Bible studies. I have been so greatly blessed and I thank God so much for your courage to speak the Truth in love no matter what. Listening to you contrast the two opposing systems (laws) and digging deep to unearth the hidden treasures in the Bible makes me so incredibly happy and I feel very blessed to be part of your Bible Study Group although I live far away. I am just so excited that there is a group of people that is spreading the Truth about the character of God and it saddens me how few realize what our Father in Heaven is really like.

Kessy B., Australia

 

Testimony 29

Thank you for all of your work to correct misconceptions about God’s character. So many people that my husband and I have talked to seem to be against the natural law construct and view it as “errant” and “dangerous.” Having learned more about it through your blogs and lessons, I don’t really understand why they view it that way, except that it means they have to relearn theology they have known for their entire lives. But I’m so excited to relearn this. For the past few years I have been questioning how I could trust a God who punishes arbitrarily and is full of wrath for those who don’t obey His commands. That view made me afraid to “mess up” or “not be good enough,” even within my relationship with God. I really appreciated the point you bring out about God not wanting us to serve Him because we are afraid, but because we love Him.

Melissa H., IN, USA

 

Testimony 21

I am absolutly on fire with the message at Come and Reason! I can’t get enough! I’ve read your book, blog, and articles. I’ve listened to your Bible study podcasts, your radio show, and your series – all excellent! It wasn’t until the past couple of years that I have I like I’m becoming “healthy,” with more to share with others than just beasts and commandments! I used to be a Bible worker and preached when the pastors were gone until I had had enough. I didnt realize at the time what the problem was, but i know now… the message wasn’t properly focused. Now my flame is rekindled. All of your little examples are so perfect in explaining something “complicated” and making it easily understood! Now I’m trying to shape it into a life changing evangelistic series! Thank you!

M.T., USA

 

Testimony 37

Hearing Dr. Jennings’ presentations in person came at a pivotal moment in my spiritual journey that began about nine months ago, when the fault lines inherent in my belief system began to crack under questions that most reasonable people end up asking about God and His nature. These were questions I couldn’t find answers to, and they shook my faith. I was unable let it go any longer and be satisfied. My Christian experience became distant. I was afraid; the fear in me rose like thorns, pushing me away from Jesus. And then someone heard my questions and introduced me to this ministry, and my life has totally changed.

I can tell you that this new, “present truth” message is far grander and life-changing than when I shifted from being an agnostic and then a nominal Christian. It has radically altered my worldview, because it reveals a God that makes sense. It is a revolution. I believe that Dr. Jennings’ message is the final message that must go to the world. If any message could be called “righteousness by faith,” as abused as that term is by the right and the left, this is that message, because Jennings’ biblical message identifies a God who is different, whose character isn’t an impossible contradiction.

I walk this path now without fear. I see people differently, and the Holy Spirit burns in my heart. Many call Dr. Jennings’ message false and compromising, but it isn’t false, because I’ve seen the fruits within my mind and body. It is not compromising, because in this message is the only road to holiness that makes any sense. No longer do I behold a pagan god who is always angry and suspicious. Instead, I behold a God who is freeing and loving, always working for our good, and giving me every reason to love my enemy even to my own death, just as Jesus pleads with us. God is good.

Anthony L., CA, USA

 

Testimony 51

I Love This Ministry!!!!!!! I see first hand how this message is desperately needed, how erroneous beliefs about God and His Character negatively affect humanity at every level. I thank God for your ministry, as I was searching on my own and was discovering some of your same beliefs and was blown away when I found your ministry. I know you hear it all the time, but it is truly life changing. May God continue to reveal His Will to you and Bless you!

Eric S., Sanford, FL, USA

 

Testimony 31

It was very touching to hear the testimony of your class share how viewing God’s true character has changed their lives. My feelings are the same – there is so much freedom in knowing that God LOVES me – regardless of my… just, REGARDLESS! I’m still blown away by the true gospel, the fact that God is not ready to strike us when we fail. He is not arbitrary. He simply loves us and warns of the natural consequences because He can’t stand to see us suffer. I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS GOD!!!

Ceil V.,  UT, USA

 

Testimony 55

I was born [into the church], then I left it for many years. 10 years ago, I came back, but I could not take the hypocrisy and the lack of answers to the missing pieces. I struggled, but I did not abandon my commitment to know the truth. God is leading me to the simple understanding of his relevance and I am relearning what the church taught me as a youth… that he loves me, that he has led me to a knowledge of him such as I have never known. He is using Dr. Jennings to connect the dots that are now so apparent and hiding in plain sight!

Dean P., Arlington, TX, USA

 

Testimony 71

When I was 9 years old, I remember setting at our devotional table with a hunger and thirst for God that wanted more, deeper, BETTER. I can remember literally crying and pounding on the table, “I know these teachers didn’t mean to give us error. They taught what THEY had been TAUGHT, but didn’t ANYBODY READ THE BOOK?!?!?” It mattered to me then. It mattered to me as a teenager. It matters now as I teach bible classes. It didn’t have to be so hard as I watched so many give up and lay God’s great plan and gift of salvation aside as being “impossible.” Then, a friend sent me a link to Come And Reason’s website. I grew excited. YES! FINALLY! Then another friend told me to stay away, saying her son had just broken up with a girl because she was involved with Come And Reason and that “Tim Jennings preaches a false gospel.” But, AFTER many years of developing an authentic and, dare I say FUN relationship with Jesus, through the Holy Spirit I see this message has been around a LONG time, since the apostle Paul, Ellen White, Graham Maxwell, Ray Foucher, and yourself (though I admit, you’ve made me back up, rewind and replay the clips, and get out my well-worn Bible on a few things.) I’m so thankful I have found LIGHT during these DARK days. I am not alone.

Vicki DiNitto

Testimony 14

We really appreciate your views on the judgment and they make good sense considering our free choice.

Anonymous