Week 3 – The Power of Vision Devotional by Pastor Mark Cowart
And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. - Revelation 12:10-11 KJV
We get out testimony from testing, from trials of our faith that we come through victorious, as we believe the truth of God’s Word and see Him do what only He can do.
Like Pontius Pilate asked at the trial of Jesus before His crucifixion (John 18:38), we need to wonder, “What is truth?” Today, in so many people’s minds, the truth is relative to their experience and perceptions, thus changeable. On the contrary, truth is the ways things are, the absolute reality.
In Jesus' high-priestly prayer in John 17, He prayed not only for His disciples at that time but also for those who would believe in Him through their message—including you and me. He said: I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. – John 17:15-17 NKJV
The Holy Bible is truth. So, you can see why it is so much under siege these days. The darkness fights it from within and without the Body of Christ to keep people from its light.
The entrance of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple. - Psalm 119:130 NKJV
You have to love the truth more than anything else.
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness…. - Romans 1:18 NKJV
There is a battle going on right now over your life, over your region, your country – a war being fought in the heavenlies to suppress the truth. We are in Christ, and He’s in us, so we are not fighting for victory. We are fighting from a position of victory in Christ Jesus, the way, the truth and the life. The victory has been won. It is finished. These are the last words of Jesus to us before His death and resurrection. (John 19:30)
Nevertheless, we have to keep fighting the good fight of faith to complete the assignments given to us by the Father. It is only because we are in Christ that we can even begin to do that. How, you might ask, can I be here as well as in the heavenly places with Christ? In this natural world, you can only be one place at a time, right? We know there are laws of physics governing earthly life, like gravity, for example. But those don’t apply in the spirit realm. The closest I’ve come to comprehending this is the theory of “quantum entanglement,” to which I was introduced by another believer. One of the deep mysteries of our Creator.
But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
– Matthew 19:26 KJV
So, we are in this battle. And you don’t have a testimony until you have overcome.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God. - Revelation 2:7 NKJV
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it. - Revelation 2:17 NKJV
To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. - Revelation 3:21 NKJV
What are we to overcome? Specifically, there are obstacles to overcome to get to the vision that God has for your life. You must first believe that you can overcome them. Then, remember you cannot do it in your own strength.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. - Philippians 4:13 NKJV
To realize who we are in Christ and what is, therefore, available to us, the Lord will allow situations to develop that require nothing short of His miraculous power in our lives to take that ground for the kingdom. In the 1980’s we saw forces of evil arrayed against God’s people in the area surrounding Colorado Springs. We knew there was witchcraft, for example, being practiced in Manitou Springs.
Because of the “Colorado Springs Miracle,” the city went from being known as “The Preacher’s Graveyard” to “The Mecca of Christianity.” The number of believers and major ministries that came to be here since that time is astounding. God took back that ground through his people.
Many pastors who were here in those days did not make it through the battles. They didn’t walk in victory over certain things they faced. There are things you are facing now that will either overcome you, or you will overcome them. The things I share with you in The Power of Vision are intended to sharpen your tools, your weapons for this warfare.
When you are pursuing the things of God and wholeheartedly seeking to break through, it can be confusing to come against opposition. One might think, “I’m doing everything I can to please God. Why is He letting this happen?” At this juncture, it is most important that you understand that this is part of the process.
Remember, we are talking about the role of testing in the power of vision. Don’t despise the day of battles that you are facing now. To revisit one of my favorite aviation analogies, opposition is required to lift an airplane off the ground. The wind pushing back against the wings, as the plane moves forward, provides the lift that keeps it aloft. Knowing this, the pilot intentionally takes off into the opposing wind.
Incorporating this truth into your thinking can take time. I used to think, “Oh, if there wasn’t so much opposition going on, if I didn’t have this and that coming at me, I could really accomplish something. ” You know what I learned over the years? I learned that the opposition was working in my favor.
…we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance…. - Romans 5:3 NKJV
We know from other scriptures that the Apostle Paul, who penned this in Romans, had a pretty hard go of it. The address of his ministry was not Easy Street. He was in and out of jail, beaten and pursued relentlessly for his witness for Christ. I’m telling you, all hell broke loose against the Apostle Paul.
Some modern-day Christians would mistakenly conclude that Paul really missed God, since he had all these apparent consequences for what he did. He wouldn’t have ended up in jail if he had just kept his mouth shut, don’tcha know? Now, some 2000 years later, we can see how God used all that to build Paul’s testimony of His sufficiency, while he endured whatever the devil could throw at him.
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. - Romans 8:28 NKJV
When Paul was imprisoned in Rome awaiting execution, the enemy thought he had taken him out. But, oh no, in God’s sovereign plan this brought about what we call the “prison epistles.” These are the letters to the various churches in Ephesus, Philippi, Corinth and other places, which comprise a major portion of our New Testament scriptures.
I don’t know that Paul fully grasped how powerfully God was using him. He wrote those letters by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to instruct and encourage his brethren in mostly the gentile world at the time. It is the Word of God to us today as well. Without the opposition, the testing that came to Paul in his journey with the Lord, we would not have this overcomer’s testimony to guide and inspire us today.
We need to remember this when it appears our Lord does not hear our prayer for relief from our circumstances. As disorienting as the ups and downs of life can be at times, we eventually can look back and see how it all fits into God’s plan. We may not understand in the present, but we must trust Him anyway.
And beware. There are some dangerous, unscriptural beliefs that try to creep into our thinking to make sense of things. For example, the scripture above about God working all things together for good applies only to believers, and sometimes those for whom they pray. I know my mother’s prayers before I knew Christ resulted in doors shutting to me that prevented disastrous destruction in my life.
When God finally got ahold of me and set me on His path, I had a lot of testing ahead of me. It is the same for you. Don’t despise the battles. Don’t puzzle over the opposition. Know only that you’re in Christ, and He is in you. It has been said that a faith that has not been tested cannot be trusted.
With tested faith, you can move forward into the heavenly vision for your life, the ultimate, the highest and best, that which will reverberate throughout eternity. You can begin your study with Psalm 139, reading multiple times in different translations of the Bible. This is so important and will minister to you, because God tells you there he wrote a book about YOU. He’s got everything planned out.
Another dangerous belief, though, is this: If it is meant to be, it will be, no matter what I do. No, you have to think correctly, you have to fight the good fight of faith against the devil who opposes whatever God intends. You have to remember the victory has already been won by the One to whom you belong, and you can walk in the power of vision, through whatever trials come your way, only by His Spirit.
Father, in the name of Jesus, thank you for this teaching. I pray this Word will bring forth much fruit in my life, that You will continually quicken it to my spirit and cause it to renew my mind and transform my thinking and, therefore, my life. Amen.
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