ACCESSING THE PROMISE OF GOD - Part I
Todd Bentley
Jun 26, 2007

Many of you, it's like you are literally on fire for the Lord! Others of you, well, you just need a burning torch to touch down and ignite your flickering flame! So today I have a little fresh fire for you!!

I'm pumped about this Teaching of the Week! God is so faithful to His promises! He is so willing to download revelation if we will just bend our ear to hear what the Spirit of the Lord is saying. Equally, if we will just allow Him to enlighten the eyes of our heart we will see way beyond the natural circumstances and images that are around us.

THE REASON FOR THE SEASON

So let's jump right into the river! There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High. (Ps. 46:4). That river is the river of life spoken of in the Book of Revelation Chapter Twenty-Two. The water is as clear as crystal, proceeding from the very throne of God and from the Lamb! On both sides of the river is the tree of life which bears twelve fruits and each tree yields its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations (Rev. 22:1, 2).

Look! Recently I saw in the spirit golden maple leaves falling out of the heavens. Next I saw a pomegranate on the tree of life! Scripture describes the pomegranate, made of blue, purple and scarlet, on the hem of the High Priest's garment set in-between bells made of pure gold (Ex. 28:33, 34). This is the fruit chosen to adorn the hem of the priestly garment! [Today in the natural, the pomegranate is considered among a novel category of exotic plant sources called "superfruits" because of its beneficial health properties.]

Do you remember the story of the woman with the issue of blood who touched the hem of Jesus' garment (Matt. 9:20)? She pressed in through the crowds fighting off cultural tradition and fear so that she could touch that hem, and by that touch she received what was meant for her. This courageous woman did not let her hour of visitation pass her by! She was instantly healed!

Her legacy teaches us something. It's about accessing the promise! Scripture says about her: "For she said to herself, 'If only I may touch His garment, I shall be made well.'" She knew it was her moment to seize the promise of God! She knew! Likewise, it is time for us to know the season we are in - to be like the ancient Hebrew tribe of Issachar who understood the times (1 Chron. 12:32). It's about being synchronized with the seasons.

We need to understand that God wants to give us certain fruit, and that particular fruit only comes forth in its season (Ps. 1:3).

Although in the natural pomegranates are in season from October to January, right now, the Holy Spirit is saying that in the spiritual realm it's the season of the pomegranates! In fact, they're so ripe it's like I can feel them dropping off the tree and falling on my head! It's time to press in!! Access the promise just like the woman who touched the hem of Jesus' garment.

It's time to eat the pomegranate! Why? Because this fruit symbolizes the promises of God; the promises are ready for the picking and the eating right now!! That's the reason for the season! Listen! Can you hear the bells in heaven? They are ringing! It's time to reach out for the hem of Jesus' garment and say: "God, I acknowledge the promises over my life, the promises over my city, my church, and my ministry." I'm talking about prophetic words, dreams, visions! It's time to reach up and say, "I want to eat the fruit on that tree. Oh, the pomegranate!"

Friends, this is holy. That fruit was on the hem of the priestly garment. We must be careful not to harden our hearts against the holiness of God and what He is telling us by His Spirit today. Seasons change. Pay attention in this hour to the fruit that's on the tree; the tree brings forth its fruit in its season!

Now what happens when you eat the fruit of the tree of life? We can see the answer by examining this Proverb: "But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life" (Prov. 13:12b).

Desire fulfilled or desire accomplished is the tree of life. Note the word desire, because scripture also says: "Delight yourself also in the LORD and He shall give you the desires of your heart" (Ps. 37:4). So what happens or what does it mean to eat from the fruit of the tree of life? It means when God fulfills His promise and His desire in your heart, that's the moment you're eating from the fruit of that tree!

God wants to you eat the fruit! The righteous eat to the satisfying of their soul! Are you ready to eat from the fruit of the tree of life?

GOD IS AWAKENING THE AWAKENING!

Yes! Today God is issuing an invitation to eat the pomegranate! IT'S AN INVITATION RIGHT NOW TO ACCESS HIS PROMISES. No wonder I am hearing something in the spirit. Wow! An awaking angel is blowing a trumpet! There is a sound; something is being awakened again! It's the promise of that real spirit of revival, that real power, that real righteousness. It's real conviction; it's real harvest-it's about souls. Let's not forget about the harvest! God is awakening the awakening! He's blowing the trumpet in Zion! GET READY MY FRIENDS. Things are being birthed, released, and established. We're in an encounter with destiny!

Do you know that we stand right now at the greatest door of destiny? There are banners and standards set in the heavens today and we have choices to make. We have the opportunity to change and redeem the whole present generation and the next generation. [I'll speak more about this next week.]

GOD IS A BIG GOD!

A big part of our destiny involves believing God-uncomplicated, simple, childlike faith in what God is revealing. I say that because recently I was challenged to believe God when he wanted to release a particular prophetic word and blessing in a church in a certain city in eastern Canada. It involved a thousand-fold blessing. This blessing would not only affect individuals in the meeting and the city where we met, but I also sensed that its rippling affect would impact all of Canada.

We know about the thirty-fold, sixty-fold and hundred-fold blessing (Mark 4:20), but the thousand-fold?! That blessing was spoken by Moses to the children of Israel "according to all that the LORD had given him as commandments to them" (Deut. 1:3).

Here it is-"May the LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times more numerous than you are, and bless you as He has promised you!" (v. 11).

A thousand times more numerous! Pause and think about that. Now I realize that when Moses spoke to the children of Israel he was referring to the people being one thousand times more numerous. Yet I did sense from the Holy Spirit a liberty to apply the principle in Moses' blessing [the thousand-fold] for us today for more than only numbers of people.

Ponder the possibilities of a one thousand-fold blessing in every dimension possible. One thousand times more fruitful! It might involve dreams, finances, favor, or souls! We've seen over a million souls make a decision for Christ and I would like to see a thousand-fold return on those million souls!

In the church mentioned above I was instructed by the Holy Spirit for the first time ever to establish a foundation, a certain aspect, and it involved the thousand-fold blessing. I was challenged to stand boldly in the breaker anointing against the spirit of poverty over that city and our nation by urging the people attending the meeting to sow a financial seed above and beyond whatever they have ever given before. It was like a test and I knew it was the hour to give generously above and beyond. God was breathing on it and we needed to jump on it immediately . . . something would be broken . . . God was watching. Halleluiah! The people responded! [Just so you know, any finances sown were not for Fresh Fire Ministries.]

Listen! As a result of what happened I stand in faith today and I know that a spirit of poverty is being broken off God's people in our nation! Will you join me and believe God for this mighty miracle? This poverty spirit affects all aspects of life, not just financial, like: stingy love, just thinking of our own needs, and much more.

I also want to bring a further word of explanation concerning the thousand-fold blessing. I was given the go ahead to release this thousand-fold blessing in the east and right now I am hoping that God gives me this word again some day. But having said that, I believe God wants us to really open our hearts for the big things that He wants to do! God is a big God! So I'm going to be watching and waiting for more times when He wants to release a thousand-fold blessing!!!

NOT ONE WORD OF THE LORD WILL FAIL

Yes, God wants open hearts and for all of us to access His promises! In fact, I believe that's why I had a visitation from the Commander of the army of the Lord (in Singapore) recently. I was undone! It was the King of Kings, the Lord of Hosts, and I saw Him just as Joshua saw Him. Remember, He is the Lord of the armies of heaven. It's His battle, it's a military presence. The battle belongs to the Lord. Get a hold of that truth in this hour because there is a battle in the heavenlies but the battle is the Lord's.

When Joshua saw Him, he asked,"Are You for us or for our adversaries?" (Joshua 5:13). He replied, "Neither; but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come" (v. 14 NRS).

Look! It's not so much that we need to follow a Commander but we need to know the Commander. It's not so much that He's on our side but we're on His side. I'm not just trying to follow a Commander. In this hour we need to know the Commander. Yes, it's not so much that we're trying to get Jesus to come down on our side but we need to be on His side.

Being on His side, we are in the right position! And in that posture the Holy Spirit revealed something very important, a truth, after I asked why the Commander had come. The answer I received was a revelation - that the all-powerful One is ready to lead His people to victory!

Friends, there is great victory ahead. Get yourself ready for victory!! The victory is the Lord's and He is coming to lead us into the promise. He is the King of glory, strong and mighty!

We can catch God's heart about the scope of this victory by taking a look at what the Lord did for the children of Israel when Joshua led them into the Promised Land. Here is a prophetic picture of what accessing the promise looks like:

"So the LORD gave to Israel all the land of which He had sworn to give to their fathers, and they took possession of it and dwelt in it. The LORD gave them rest all around, according to all that He had sworn to their fathers. And not a man of all their enemies stood against them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. Not a word failed of any good thing which the LORD had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass" (Joshua 21:43-45).

The Lord gave to Israel all the land in which he had sworn to give to their fathers! He gave them rest from their enemies and delivered their enemies into their hand! It was a great victory! Not a word failed of any good thing of which the Lord had promised! All came to pass!

THAT DESCRIBES THE HOUR WE ARE IN! That's what the Lord is saying to this generation. Every word that He has spoken will come to pass. Not a word will fail.

I don't want to battle anymore - how about you? I'm ready for victory!



CLOSING

Next week we're going to have the taste of victory in our mouths! We're going to examine very significant historical information concerning the nation of Israel that goes hand in hand with prophetic revelation about June 7th and the time period of forty years.

Several strategic key areas that God is redeeming in our day are being launched forth on the platform of that information. You won't want to miss this because after next week's lesson you will have a good understanding about the crucial, pivotal time that we live in today. Once that revelation is quickened within you, no kidding, your passion will be literally on fire for what God has in store for us. Man! This is awesome!