"And so it is written, 'The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening (Life-giving) spirit.'" (1 Corinthians 15:45 Amplified Bible My input in parenthesis) We are no longer just living souls, through our relationship IN Christ, we are Life Giving Spirits! I am a firm believer that as Life Giving Spirits our words can create "realities," or "aions" in Greek. "By faith we understand that the worlds (aions) [during the successive ages] were framed (fashioned, put in order, and equipped for their intended purpose) by the word of God, so that what we see was not made out of things which are visible." (Hebrews 11:3 Amplified Bible)
"Let your speech be always with grace..." The word translated as "speech" is logos in Greek, and its meanings include- a word, uttered by a living voice, embodies a conception or idea (Thayers Definitions). I simply love that definition! We have a "Living Voice" resident within us, through the Holy Spirit! Father spoke us into existence (that is how He creates things) with life-giving words, words that actually embodied the conception of our intended destiny! Since we are made in His image, we possess that same creative power to speak words that actually embody the release of God-intended destiny to those around us!
As we move from a "stable" mentality to an "inn" mentality, there is a flagship verse that stands out strong, "Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man." (Colossians 4:6) The message of Grace will minister to EVERY man! Because Grace is FOR every man! Before we launch into that verse, we must look at the context in which it lies by backing up a couple verses; "And at the same time pray for us also, that God may open a door to us for the Word (the Gospel), to proclaim the mystery concerning Christ... That I may proclaim it fully and make it clear [speak boldly and unfold that mystery], as is my duty. Behave yourselves wisely in your relations with those of the outside world (the non-Christians), making the very most of the time and seizing (buying up) the opportunity." (Colossians 4:3-5 Amplified Bible)
"My little children, for whom I am again suffering birth pangs until Christ is completely and permanently formed (molded) WITHIN you..." (Galatians 4:19 Amplified Bible) So, what does this spiritual "birth" of Christ within us look like? "...only faith activated and energized and expressed and working through LOVE... For the whole Law [concerning human relationships] is complied with in the one precept, You shall LOVE your neighbor as [you do] yourself." (Galatians 5:6, 14 Amplified Bible) Jesus answers this question for us by painting a word picture. "Jesus, taking him up, replied, A certain man was going from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him of his clothes and belongings and beat him and went their way, [unconcernedly] leaving him half dead, as it happened." (Luke 10:30 Amplified Bible)
"My little children, for whom I am again suffering birth pangs until Christ is completely and permanently formed (molded) WITHIN you..." (Galatians 4:19 Amplified Bible) "The mystery of which was hidden for ages and generations [from angels and men], but is now revealed to His holy people (the saints)... this mystery, which is Christ WITHIN and among you, the Hope of [realizing the] glory." (Colossians 1:26-27 Amplified Bible) There is "much ado" the world over, and rightly so, every December concerning the natural birth of Jesus Christ (although that is not really when He was born). Personally, I love the time of year, even though I am fully aware of its pagan origins. Anything that celebrates the birth of Christ is good with me.
"Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast." (Joshua 1:3-4) The obvious and literal application of this verse has to do with natural territory. I believe that this certainly applies to us in the natural sense, however we are going to delve a bit deeper into the spiritual application first. I love the visual imagery of the "sole of the foot treading upon," the idea that something is under our feet.
The prophet Ezekiel speaks of proper Wheel Alignment; "As to the appearance of the wheels and their construction: in appearance they gleamed like chrysolite; and the four were formed alike, and their construction work was as it were a wheel within a wheel." (Ezekiel 1:16) "Wherever the Spirit went, the creatures went and the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit or life of the [four living creatures acting as one] living creature was in the wheels. When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up high beside them, for the spirit or life of the [combined] living creature was in the wheels." (Ezekiel 1:20-21 Amplified Bible) To Align is a verb, an action word. Alignment is all about our actions, our lifestyle, not just the way we think, but what we actually DO.
Alignment requires action that is rooted in agreement. The children of Israel were in agreement with the ten "spies" that brought an evil report, and thus they aligned themselves with a lie. Here we have the quintessential example of a wrong alignment; "And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt." (Numbers 14:2-4)
