BY REV. DORAL PULLEY | Today’s Church Tampa Bay
Read: Matthew 21:18-21
Scripture: “And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, look how fast the fig tree withered away (Matthew 21:20).”
Denial: “I release and let go of anything in my life that is not purposeful.”
Affirmation: “What I say about my life has more power than what anyone else says about me.”
God created the earth; therefore, the earth belongs to God. God has chosen to delegate dominion over the earth to humanity. He gave us dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the animals on land (Genesis 1:26-28). Whatever happens on the earth, we are responsible — not God.
Jesus, our Wayshower, realized his God-given dominion on the earth and his power over nature. On one occasion, Jesus was doing ministry and was hungry. He was looking for something to eat, and he saw a fig tree. As he came closer to the fig tree, he realized that the fig tree was barren. It did not have any figs; it only had leaves. Jesus needed more than leaves to eat so he cursed the fig tree. Immediately, it withered and died.
The disciples were astonished at Jesus’ authority. He assured those who followed him that they had the same power to ensure that everything in their lives fulfilled its purpose. Anything not fulfilling its purpose has no reason to exist. According to the Kingdom Principle of Divine Purpose, each of us has a divine purpose, and we cannot transition from one dimension of life to the next dimension of life until that purpose is fulfilled.
Reflection Question: What in your life is not fulfilling its purpose? What words can you speak to remove it?
Jesus spoke to the storm
Read: Matthew 8:23-27
Scripture: “The people were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him (Matthew 8:27).”
Denial: “No storm of life is beyond my control.”
Affirmation: “I use the power of my words to bring peace.”
Water is a powerful element in the ministry of Jesus. Jesus turned water into wine (John 2:1-11). He even defied gravity and walked on water (Matthew 14:22-33). Jesus did a lot of his preaching and teaching on the water. His disciples were often on boats following him. In one instance, a storm arose while they were traveling on a boat, and Jesus was asleep. The disciples woke Jesus, and he calmed the raging seas.
Jesus, our Wayshower, spoke to the winds and the waves and said, “Peace, be still (Mark 4:39).” The multitudes were amazed that even the winds and the waves obeyed his voice. Following Jesus as our Wayshower, gives us the same right to speak to the storms of our lives so that we can experience peace. When we believe and understand the power of our words, we can speak to the winds and the waves of our lives and say, “Peace, be still.”
The circumstances of our lives will obey our voice just as the storm obeyed Jesus’ (Mark 4:39). Seeing Jesus as our Wayshower reminds us of the truth that everything that Jesus Christ did, we can do and even greater works (John 14:12). We can preach with power (Matthew 4:23-25). We can teach with authority (Matthew 9:35-38). We can empower the blind to see (John 9:1-15). We can help the deaf to hear again (Luke 11:14).
We can assist the lame with walking (John 5:1-14). We can support the dumb with speech (Mark 7:31-37). We can develop disciples and train church leaders (Matthew 28:19-20). We can raise the dead (Matthew 9:18-26). We can cast out devils, which are negative influences (Mark 16:13-16). We can feed the multitudes both naturally and spiritually. The truth is that we can do all things through Christ, who strengthens us by showing us the way (Philippians 4:13).
Reflection Question: Describe a storm in your life that you calmed with the power of your words.
devil
Read: Matthew 4:1-11
Scripture: “Neither give place to the devil (Ephesians 4:27).”
Denial: “The devil has no power over me.”
Affirmation: “I take responsibility for my life.”
The devil is not an entity with a tail, a horn, and a pitchfork. The devil is the part of your soul that does not desire to grow, change, or heal. The devil is crystalized negativity. The enemy is the “inner me.” It is that part of you that desires to hold on to negativity instead of forgiving. The devil is your subconscious mind that continuously replays the tape of victimization instead of learning from your past experiences and letting them go.
Jesus, our Wayshower, never capitalized the word devil. He kept devil lowercase as a thing as opposed to a person. Jesus, our example of what it means to be fully human and fully divine, told the devil to get behind him, which means become a thing of my past. He cast the devil, the personification of evil, out of his current experience and limited this idea to his past. When Jesus took his rightful place in consciousness, the devil departed from him. As you continue to grow in Christ’s consciousness, you, too, realize that you no longer need a scapegoat to blame for your life.
You understand more and more that you are your own devil and that negativity can only manifest through your limited beliefs, faculty perceptions, erroneous ideas, and sins (self-inflicted nonsense). Taking total responsibility for your way of being, seeing, thinking, speaking, and behaving causes the presence of evil and the personification of negative feelings to leave you.
Reflection Question: Close your eyes and visualize all negativity leaving your body and your mind. Wrap it up in a ball and throw it away. How do you feel now?
