Tag Archives: king

Stay At the Foot Of The Cross

To stay at the foot of the cross is to functionally deny the Resurrection and the Ascension. “Gospel-centered” movements? Come on—they’re straight-up theological gaslighting dressed in pious robes. They use shiny Christian lingo to trap believers in spiritual poverty and powerlessness, like it’s some noble virtue. The “Gospel” isn’t a dusty historical biography of a dead man hanging on a tree. It’s the current, active decree of an enthroned King who’s very much alive and ruling right now. A theology that fixates on the bloody mess of Calvary while ignoring the present “occupied throne” is nothing more than a dead man’s religion. It’s like showing up to the victory party and obsessing over the scar from the battle that was already won—comical, if it weren’t so tragic.

Scripture never leaves us stranded at the cross. The doorway of the gospel is of first importance, because you cannot enter the King’s house and dine at His table without the doorway, but it is not the whole house and it is not the table. Jesus is not on the cross. He is sitting at the throne; He is seated at the table and has given us good things there. To receive you must meet His eyes at the throne, or that is, at the table and partake. You cannot have a relationship with Jesus on the cross because He is not there. How more obvious can that be. He is presently at the throne, and the throne is part of the gospel: without it there is no gospel. The gospel is you presently engaging Jesus on the throne, walking boldly to Him on the throne as your daily fellowship with Him. Without this you have no gospel and you mock the crucifixion of Jesus as ineffective. The gospel is a packaged deal; it is both the finished cross and the present ruling Jesus on the throne pouring out the Spirit’s power and answered prayers.  

The New Testament writers were obsessed with the throne, because the throne passage was their number one quoted O.T. passage, not the tomb. Cross-centered? That’s the entry door for newbies. Throne-centered? That’s full armor—advancing the Kingdom with miracles, healings, and unshakeable faith. Jesus isn’t still bleeding on a hill. He’s seated, victorious, and inviting you to rule with Him. Stop camping at the cross and start reigning from the throne. To stay at the cross is a dead man’s religion and a zombie theology. The King is alive. You cannot talk to a corpse, but Jesus is on the throne.

If Christ is enthroned and we are “seated with Him” (Ephesians 2:6), then the benefits of the atonement—including physical healing and material provision—aren’t optional extras or “maybe someday” blessings. They are your legal rights as a co-heir, paid for in full. Jesus became sin so you could become righteousness. He became a curse so you could walk in blessing. He bore your sicknesses so you could walk in divine health. He became poor so you could be rich. That’s  Isaiah 53, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Galatians 3:13-14, and 2 Corinthians 8:9 screaming at us from the page. The cross-centered crowd loves to weaponize the suffering of Calvary as a shield to protect unbelief. By obsessing over the bloody tree they explain away zero miracles, unanswered prayers, and powerless Christianity as “God’s sovereign will to suffer.” Doctrine of demons, plain and simple. It’s a sophisticated way to remain an atheist while still using Christian vocabulary—trading the tangible power of the living Christ for historical sentimentality and a permanent pity party.

Look at the exchange the Father made in the atonement and you will see why the throne must be our center. Isaiah 53 does not stop at forgiveness of sins; it explicitly includes healing in the same breath: “He took up our pain and bore our suffering… by his wounds we are healed.” It is quote in Matthew 8 as referring to physical healing not spiritual. Paul picks up the identical logic in the New Testament and applies it without hesitation. “He who did not spare his own Son… will he not also graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). All things. Not some things. Not spiritual things only. The full package was purchased at the cross so it could be released from the throne. Jesus became poor so that through his poverty we might become rich (2 Corinthians 8:9). He redeemed us from the curse of the law so that the blessing of Abraham—blessing in every area—might come on us (Galatians 3:13-14). To camp at the cross and call that “deep theology” is to rip the completion and effectiveness out of the gospel and then wonder why the power is missing. The resurrection proves the payment was accepted. The ascension proves the payment is now being disbursed from the right hand of Majesty. The throne is where the King sits and hands out the spoils of victory to His co-heirs.

The Lord’s Supper itself presupposes we are throne-centered. Jesus instituted it after the resurrection, not before. He broke the bread and poured the cup as the risen Lord, then told us to remember Him this way until He comes. The table is not at the foot of the cross; the table is spread in the presence of the enthroned King. You do not crawl to the table on your knees begging for crumbs while staring at a corpse. You sit down as a son, look the King in the eye, and partake of the finished work. The doorway (the cross) got you in, but the table is where relationship and provision happen. To keep your eyes glued to the doorway while the King is calling you to the table is spiritual insanity. It is like refusing to leave the foyer of a mansion because you are emotionally attached to the front door. That’s not merely immaturity, it is a slap in the face to the host.

This is why the New Testament writers could not stop talking about the throne. Hebrews spends chapter after chapter showing Jesus as the great high priest who has passed through the heavens and sat down at the right hand of God. Paul tells the Ephesians that God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms so that we might display the incomparable riches of His grace. The same power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him far above every rule and authority is now at work in us who believe (Ephesians 1:19-23). That power is power for here and now. It is the same Spirit that raised Jesus, the same Spirit that healed the sick through the early church, the same Spirit that is available right now to every believer who will believe. Faith is not a feeling. Faith is mental assent to what God has already said and already done. When you assent to the throne reality, you receive the benefits the throne releases.

Cross-fixation is vile precisely because it turns the greatest victory in history into an excuse for defeat. It takes the blood that purchased total salvation and uses it to justify half-salvation. It takes the empty tomb and pretends the tomb is still occupied. It takes the ascension and acts as though Jesus is still hanging in the air. Such theology does not honor the cross; it dishonors the One who left the cross. The cross was the doorway. The resurrection was the victory parade. The ascension was the coronation. The throne is the present reality. To live anywhere else is to live in functional denial of the gospel.

So stop the pity party at the foot of the cross. The King is alive. The table is spread. The benefits are yours by legal right. Healing is received by the same faith that received forgiveness. Provision is received by the same faith. Every promise of the new contract is received by the same faith. Do not limit God. Believe what He has already declared from the throne, confess it with your mouth, and watch reality obey the word of the King who sits there. The gospel is not a dead man’s religion. It is the power of an endless life flowing from an occupied throne. And for those who have received the free gift Jesus’ righteousness and unmerited favor, here and now, they also reign in life with Him from the position at the right hand of the Power.

The First Importance Of The Gospel

Some folks out there still treat 1 Corinthians 1:18 and 2:2 like a pair of spiritual brass knuckles, swinging them at anyone who dares point out that a lopsided “cross-centered” slogan has been twisted into an excuse for unbelief and disobedience. They read Paul’s words about the message of the cross being foolishness to the perishing and decide that any critique of a so-called cross-centered gospel must mean the critic is perishing too. They quote Paul’s resolve to know nothing among the Corinthians except Jesus Christ and him crucified, then act as if that single phrase cancels out the rest of the apostolic deposit. It doesn’t. It never did. The cross is glorious, but when the faithless use the doorway of the gospel to bludgeon gospel into a blood heap, they have become Satan’s little helpers.

Scripture never hands us a minimalist gospel; that’s the devil’s job. God’s revelation is the sole starting point for knowledge, and that revelation is a seamless, non-contradictory system. Paul did not preach a bare fact of crucifixion and then stop. The faithless love a bisected gospel because it reduces the one thing they can’t do, faith. They can’t believe Jesus and they will do all they can to make sure you follow them in their perversions. Paul preached the whole counsel that centers on Christ crucified precisely because that message, understood in its full biblical context, is “the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor 1:24). To rip the phrase out of that context and wave it like a stop sign against systematic theology, apologetics, sovereign election, miraculous gifts, or the present authority of the risen Christ is not faithfulness; it is the very anti-intellectual distortion the apostle confronted. The same Paul who said he knew nothing but Christ and him crucified went on to write thirteen chapters of dense doctrine, ethics, and correction to those same Corinthians. He reasoned, disputed, and taught the entire worldview that flows from the cross and resurrection. Anything less is not the gospel Paul preached; it is a counterfeit that leaves people sick, defeated, and emotionally broken while boasting that “this is the power of the cross.” That is not power. That is unbelief dressed up in Calvary language.

Vincent Cheung nailed this exact abuse years ago, and his words still cut through the fog better than most modern pulpits ever will. In “The Proof of the Spirit” (December 26, 2008) he wrote:

“The entire chapter of 1 Corinthians 2 has been distorted by many anti-intellectual commentators. For example, Paul says in verse 2, ‘For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.’ … The statement … refers to the gospel’s contrast against non-Christian thinking, and not an anti-intellectual strategy of evangelism.”

He said it again in “Remember Jesus Christ” (November 16, 2009):

 “Many people, especially those with an anti-intellectual bias, interpret this to mean that Paul did not preach an entire body of biblical doctrines, and that he was not interested in theology or in intellectual arguments, but that he only preached the ‘gospel.’ … such usage misrepresents what the New Testament means by ‘gospel.’ … although he uses ‘Jesus Christ and him crucified’ as an expression that embraced all that he preached to the Corinthians … this is only a representation (not even a summary) of what he preached, when what he preached was doctrinally much more extensive than the bare expression can convey in itself.”

And in “Theology of the Throne” (November 23, 2025) he drove the point home with surgical precision:

“If the cross becomes the sole reference point, Christianity risks degenerating into perpetual guilt and weakness, as if believers must linger forever at the site of sacrifice without grasping the triumph that followed. … We are not standing at the foot of the cross as if history had stopped there, nor are we waiting outside the empty tomb as if resurrection were the end. … A theology of the throne guards against distortions that arise from an incomplete focus.”

The same abuse shows up when people grab 1 Corinthians 15 and twist Paul’s phrase “of first importance” into another excuse to camp out at the doorway instead of walking through it. Paul opens that chapter by saying, “Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you… For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Cor 15:1, 3-4). The atonement and the resurrection are indeed first in importance—the doorway, the entrance, the non-negotiable foundation that gets you inside the house of God’s. But the doorway is not the dining room. The doorway is not where you sit down at the table and feast with the King. You do not build your whole life in the foyer, staring at the hinges while the banquet hall echoes with joy and power and promises kept. Paul goes on in that same chapter to thunder about the bodily resurrection, the defeat of death, the sovereignty of Christ, and the certainty that “God may be all in all” (15:28). He is not handing us a slogan to linger at Calvary or the empty tomb forever; he is flinging wide the door so we can enter the gospel, which includes the present throne life, Spirit baptism, healing by faith, mountains moved, and every promise made good in Christ.

The Lord’s Supper itself proves the point with blunt apostolic logic. Jesus commanded, “Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19; 1 Cor 11:24-25). If we were meant to stay perpetually cross-centered, locked in endless sin consciousness and weakness at the foot of the cross, then commanding a repeated supper that looks back while we press forward would make zero sense. The table presupposes we have already walked through the doorway. It calls us to remember the price paid so we can enjoy the victory won. It is a feast of triumph, not a funeral dirge. To treat the cross or the resurrection as the entire meal is to turn the Lord’s Supper into a self-flogging session that the apostle never authorized. That is not biblical piety; that is a unbelief that robs the gospel of its forward momentum and leaves believers spiritually malnourished in the foyer while the King waits at the head of the table.

Vincent Cheung saw this coming and warned against it with the same clarity he brought to the cross-centered slogan. The full gospel is never a truncated one; it is the doorway that opens onto the throne room. Anything that stops short of that full-orbed revelation—election, resurrection power today, miracle gifts, sovereign lordship over every thought and every sickness—is not protecting the gospel; it is shrinking it into something the faithless can do by human effort.

If you find yourself reaching for 1 Corinthians 2:2 or 15:3-4 every time someone says the atonement and resurrection are the entrance, not the whole house, stop. You are not defending the gospel; you are defending a half-gospel that leaves people sick, broke, and powerless while boasting that “this is the power of the cross and empty tomb.” And when they die before their time, their blood is stained on your hands. The real cross and resurrection say, “By His stripes you were healed” (1 Pet 2:24) and “All things are possible for the one who believes” (Mark 9:23). They fling open the door to the throne where we boldly approach and ask and receive. Anything that stops short of that is not the power of God; it is the power of unbelief sugar-coated with spiritual-sounding phrases.

The throne is where the story ends, not the cross or the tomb. Stop lingering at the doorway like it is the finish line. Get up, believe the full revelation, walk through, and sit down at the table with the King. That is where Jesus is. And that is the only way the cross and resurrection stay anything but empty in your life.

Aim for the Stars

Aim for the Stars and Faith Will Make You Hit Them

It is sad—borderline tragic—that even Christians have bought the lie to aim low. Most take the vision and desires God planted in their hearts, yank out a shotgun loaded with birdshot, and blast away at a target just beyond their own feet. And guess what? Without surprising anyone, they hit it. Then, to our astonishment, they start patting themselves on the back, congratulating themselves like they just won the Olympics. Most of the time they shoot so low that some of the pellets bounce off the ground and smack them right in the face. They call this “humble” and “suffering under the sovereign hand of God,” as if they accomplished something worth God’s time—or mine—to even notice.

Yet this is exactly the opposite picture Scripture paints. The Bible never spotlights a person who aimed for the dirt with birdshot and then high-fived themselves for a job well done. The Heroes of Faith in Hebrews 11 are the polar opposite. It puts a blinding spotlight on people who pointed their vision at the stars and watched faith rocket their arrow straight to Orion’s Belt. These weren’t cautious calculators; they were bold archers who refused to waste God’s ammunition on pebbles. And God loved it. He still does.

Take the Roman centurion for the masterclass. He was a Gentile outsider, not even under the contracts yet. In his context the ground was all he was supposed to aim for. Remember the Gentile woman? Jesus told her He was sent first to the lost sheep of Israel—it wasn’t her turn. But this centurion marched straight up to Jesus, looked Him dead in the eyes, and pulled his bow back to the moon. “My servant is sick and needs healing.” Jesus’ immediate reply? “You got it, bro—I’ll head to your house right now.” The man aimed for the sky, and faith slammed the arrow into the moon. Boom.

But wait—there’s more. The centurion could have stopped there like any normal person. Jesus had already said yes. Most would have grabbed the miracle and run hoping God wouldn’t change His mind. Not this guy. He looked Jesus in the face a second time, yanked the bowstring all the way to Centauri, and fired again: “Actually, Lord, don’t even bother walking—just speak the word right here, right now.” Imagine the nerve! In today’s church some faith-fumbler would have whispered, “Dude, you already got your miracle—don’t push it. Jesus might get annoyed.” Yeah, right. Jesus’ actual response? Astonishment. Public praise. “I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!” He didn’t scold the upgrade request—He celebrated it. The man aimed outside our solar system, and faith delivered. Jesus was all happiness and surprise, like a proud Father watching His kid dunk on the rim and then immediately ask for the NBA.

Put yourself in Jesus’ sandals for a second. Most people are drowning in unbelief. When someone finally scrapes together a thimble of faith, they still aim so low the arrow barely leaves the front yard. But this outsider Roman sized up Jesus, concluded He had absolute authority over reality itself, and instead of wasting time with self-debasing groveling, he asked for a miracle—and then upgraded the request on the spot. Jesus didn’t sigh and say, “Be satisfied.” He marveled. Publicly. Before the whole crowd. That is the God we serve.

The doctrine is as simple as it is explosive: the higher you aim, the more God likes it. Aim for Orion’s Belt and faith will get you there. The moment you land, God beams with delight if you immediately say, “Wait, wait—add Andromeda Galaxy in my other pocket too!” He doesn’t roll His eyes. He boasts about you the same way He boasted about the centurion. You can never aim too high or too often with faith. The only error is aiming too low and too infrequently.

This isn’t some prosperity gimmick; it’s the self-authenticating revelation of Scripture itself—our only starting point for knowledge. God’s Word is His will (Maxim 19). And His will, stated over and over, is that “all things are possible for the one who believes” (Mark 9:23). Not some things. Not safe things. All things. Jesus didn’t stutter when He said, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer” (Matthew 21:22). He didn’t add footnotes about aiming low to stay humble. The footnotes are the inventions of men who have never tasted what real faith feels like when it leaves the bowstring.

How about David? Kid with a slingshot stares down a nine-foot giant who had the entire army wetting themselves. David didn’t aim for “maybe I won’t die today.” He aimed for the giant’s forehead and declared, “I come against you in the name of the Lord of Armies!” One stone, one shot, one dead Philistine, and the rest of the army routed. Faith took a shepherd boy’s pebble and turned it into a guided missile that hit the Keyhole Nebula.

Even the woman with the issue of blood aimed high. Twelve years of doctors, twelve years of worse. As a child of Abraham she tried to pay for healing that was freely promised in the contract; and the result was poverty.  Society said stay home and bleed quietly. She said, “If I can just touch the hem of His garment…” She crawled through a crowd that could have stoned her for uncleanness, stretched out her hand, and grabbed healing that wasn’t even on the menu that day. Jesus stopped the whole parade: “Daughter, your faith has healed you.” He called her out publicly so everyone would know—high aim plus relentless faith equals miracles on demand.

This is why Jesus commands us to ask in His name and expect greater works (John 14:12-14). Greater. Not equal, not smaller—greater. The resurrected, enthroned Christ has identified us with Himself so completely that when we speak in faith, reality hears the voice of the Son. That’s not arrogance; that’s agreement with God’s definition of us. We are co-heirs. We are seated with Him. We are the righteousness of God in Christ. Why would we aim at our feet when the throne room is wide open and the King is saying, “What do you want? Ask big—I already paid for it”?

The faithless love to slap a “God’s timing” or “humility” label on their low aim. They call it wisdom. Scripture calls it unbelief, dressed up stupid. The Israelites limited the Holy One of Israel (Exodus 13-14) by their evil report. They could have aimed for the Promised Land in one generation, in one day. Instead they wandered forty years because they aimed at the dirt, and God hated them for it. Don’t repeat their mistake. God is still the same yesterday, today, and forever. His promises are still “yes” in Christ. The only variable is faith and aiming high.

So what will you aim for today? Cancer, diabetes? Aim higher—total eradication, and the healing of your whole family, and a testimony that shakes your city. Debt? Aim higher—supernatural debt cancellation that funds you with 5 houses, and the gospel with 500 houses. Loneliness? Aim higher—a spouse of your dreams and a household that multiplies the kingdom on steroids. Here is the big secret the faithless keeps from you. The dirt is not a starting line, it is the opening to the pits of hell. The stars are not the limit; they’re the true starting line for faith. Yes, Faith will make you hit them, then immediately reload for the next galaxy.

You were born from above, and so you were born for this. You carry the same Spirit that raised Jesus. You have the mind of Christ and the name that makes demons scream and mountains move. Stop aiming for your front yard. Load the bow with the promises of God, pull it back to the stars, and let faith fly. God is not rolling His eyes—He’s already leaning forward with a grin, ready to boast about you the same way He boasted about that Roman outsider.

Aim high. Fire often. Jesus already said all things are possible for the one who believes. The stars are waiting—and God is cheering louder than you can imagine.

The stars never looked so good, nor so close.

ALL Is Not Lost

I was praying the other day. It is now common for me to be praying in tongues and making faith confessions and praising God.

Over the last few years, God has been healing me, restoring me, and growing my inner man. And now, as I look to the future, my focus is more power, more righteousness, more kingdom expansion, seeing my dreams become reality, and taking all choke points and limits off God and what faith can do.

I am in my 40s, and I was feeling a little bit of hopelessness because of my age. I was wishing I could go back to my teens to teach myself what I have learned and practiced over the last several years. And so, I decided to use life’s greatest life-cheat: praying in tongues. After some time, I received an interpretation, “All is not lost. I have heard your prayers.”

When God says “I have heard your prayers,” as He did to Hezekiah, it means He gave you what you asked. Because God is so loving and so faithful to do what He promised, the same act of God hearing you is the same act as God granting your request.

When I heard the Spirit say this, I was unsure if God meant “all” as in “some things might be lost but not all things,” or “all the dreams you have ever had are still yours for the taking.” I looked up and said, “I don’t know how you meant ‘all,’ but I mean it as all my dreams are still here. Even if you did not mean it that way, I mean it that way and receive it that way, because you said ‘all.’” (Hey, if you’re going to quibble with the Almighty, at least do it with faith and a dash of audacity—its how scriptures teach us to pray.)

God told King David that He gave wives to David (this is mostly about sex), a kingdom, prosperity, and fame, and if David wanted more, God would have given more sex, more kingdoms, more prosperity, and more fame to David.

This teaches us that we cannot ask too much. The risk in praying is asking too little and shooting too low. If you aim for the Andromeda Galaxy but end up hitting Orion’s belt, then great, you accomplished some good things. But if you aim for the ground, then that is all you will hit—frankly, why settle for dirt when the stars are up for grabs?

The Gentile woman hijacked Jesus’ words, which meant one thing, to mean something else. Jesus approved and called her faith great. In fact, Jesus was arguing for God’s will to be done, and by the end of the exchange, Jesus confesses out loud, “Woman, your will be done.”

Jesus had already promised to go and heal the centurion’s servant, but the centurion asked for an upgrade to a miracle already in motion (just say the word). Jesus approved of this man asking for more, and he got the upgrade.

Last note: Pray in tongues and ask for interpretation. Even if you don’t have a spiritual gift for interpretation, by asking in faith, you will find you will receive interpretations. Don’t sleep on this. It will help you.

I am here to remind you: All is not lost.

Do not limit God. Do not shoot too low. Do not ask for only small things. Pray for big things; pray for upgrades to miracles you are already getting. Pray for more. And when you think you have asked for too much, ask for more.

And when God hears you, you know God has given.

This Is Where Our Eyes Meet


Jesus said to him, “You have said it. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
(Matt. 26:64 LEB)

And Stephen said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”
(Acts 7:56 LEB)

I remember seeing a Korean manhwa (anime cartoon) called Noblesse. The Noblesse was a loner character who kept bad vampires in check, by destroying them. In the first main showdown the Noblesse would not look at the villain in the eye, when they were face to face. This infuriated the villain. The Noblesse, then used his power to force the bad guy into a kneeling position. Now, when their eyes met, from the position of the villain looking up and the Noblesse looking down, he said, “this is where our eyes meet.”

The Noblesse, makes the villain look up to him in defeat, mirroring how Jesus will flip the script on His adversaries. When Jesus talks about coming on the clouds, He’s not planning a peaceful parade; He’s promising a divine showdown. Think less “slice-of-life” genres and more “apocalypse horror.”

This is like what is happening in the above passages. The high priest in a position of authority, forces Jesus to answer the question if He is the messiah. Jesus answers by confirming that He is the messiah. Jesus follows this up with a threat. He says, from now on, you will see Me at the right hand of the power, and coming in the clouds of glory. This is both a statement of reality and a threat. Right now, in the position of a man born under the law, and under the authority of the high priest He is forced to answer his question. But Jesus says, from now on forward, the roles will be flipped. I will be in the position of authority, looking down on you. Jesus has a mic-drop moment with the high priest, essentially saying, “You’re the boss now, but wait till you see Me in My final form!” He’s not just the humble carpenter; He’s hinting at His gig as the cosmic judge, riding on clouds like a divine superhero.

The Old Testament quote of “coming on the clouds of glory,” is about God’s judgments. It is apocalyptic language that describes God destroying His enemies. (see Deut. 33:26, Isaiah 19:1, Isaiah 34:4-6, Isaiah 13:5–10 Daniel 7:13-14) It is symbolic language describing real acts of God’s horrific judgments. It is not symbolic language to describe invisible spiritual or more symbolic things, but historic acts of God’s judgement. The first mention of this apocalyptic language is the Exodus story and God’s destruction of Egypt. God did not literally ride the clouds, like a Sky Rider, but God did bring in darkness, sickness, storms, frogs and a real angel came and killed all the first born of Egypt.  Jesus in Matthew 24 quotes Isaiah 13, 34, and Daniel 7 as a packaged deal that belongs to Him. He rides the clouds. He will bring judgement. He will be the one bringing the plagues of Egypt on His enemies.

Thus, when Jesus says that not only, will His and the high priest’s positions change, but also defines Himself with the Old Testament apocalyptic language, it is a full on threat.  Jesus is saying, I will be in authority, the next time our eyes meet, but I am also judgment.  He is saying, My authority will not be used for your salvation, but destruction. From now on, when our eyes meet, you will be kneeling looking up, and I will be looking down on you, with a sword in My hand. This is where our eyes will meet.

This will help us understand why Stephen was asking Jesus not to hold their murder of him, against them. Stephen, right before becoming the first Christian martyr, has a vision. He sees Jesus not as the guy who walked on water, but as the celestial commander in chief, standing (not even sitting!) at God’s right hand. It’s like Jesus went from indie band lead, at the corner café, to the headliner at the universe’s biggest rock concert. Stephen saw Jesus in all authority and power, at the right hand of the Power. Jesus is not the humbled man that we all read about in the gospel. He is now in all authority and power. From His position of power He works in the saints to advance the Kingdom of God on earth. He is in a position of military power. He is a ruling king who is currently in a military campaign. He is the King who rides the skies to bring destruction on His enemies. This is His current status.

Thus, when Jesus is looking down on the murder of Stephen, He is a King, in a current military campaign, watching His enemies killing His soldier. Any normal King would bring down fast destruction. In 70 AD, in the destruction of Jerusalem, King Jesus did just that. This is why Stephen is crying out for Jesus to hold back, because Jesus’ position is the current Sky Rider.  Stephen knows Jesus’ position and so is asking for more time for the church to try and bring the Jews to repentance and faith. He’s basically asking Jesus, “Hold off on the divine wrath, okay? Give us a bit more time to win some souls.” He knows Jesus isn’t just chilling up there; He’s actively directing the celestial troops.

Jesus was correct. The next time His enemies saw His eyes, they were kneeling in terror, and He was Riding across the Sky in the destruction of Jerusalem.

Let us not forget that this is the same Jesus we pray to everyday. It is this same Jesus, who is still sitting at the right hand of Power. He is still in a military campaign to advance the kingdom of God, through the church by preaching, baptism of the Spirit, healing, casting out demons and resurrecting the dead. Sometimes it is good to repeat Stephen’s prayer for more time, and other times it is good to ask king Jesus to mount up and ride the skies

Jesus isn’t just the gentle shepherd; He’s also the king with a sword, ready to ride the clouds into battle. So next time you pray, remember, you’re talking to the Cloud-Rider, the Sky King, and He is ready to bring the thunder! He is so ready, that Stephen pleaded with Him to hold back.

[1] Used Grok AI 2024, to help me with some of the witty summaries.

Once a Prince of Heaven, Always a Prince of Heaven

“For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things like we are, yet without sin. 16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Hebrews 4:-5-16

The immediate context of approaching God’s throne of grace for help is that Jesus can sympathize with our weakness and struggle against sin.  This verse should be used to approach God boldly for all types of asking and help, but it is important to remember the immediate context. In our struggle to fight sin we are told Jesus sympathizes with us and commands us to boldly approach God’s throne for help.

This is important because when we do sin, or if we are still fighting a besetting sin, one major battle Satan will fight us on is boldly approaching God for help. When we fight sin, approaching God boldly is the #1 thing we need to do. Why. Only God can help. And Satan wants to hinder you from going to the only one who wants and can help you.

The temptation is from shame. You feel ashamed and so you do not want to approach God’s majestic throne with boldness, and yet, this is the most important thing for you to do. We must remember that our faith is based on God’s revelation not “feelings.” We must repent and by faith know we are forgiven.

We do not fix a sin by sinning more. The command is for us to approach God with confidence, with our heads held high, and ask for help. Because we are asking for help in a sin, some see God is angry and does not want to help. They think a correct application of “the fear of God” is keeping them from boldly approaching. Yet, our passage says Jesus sympathizes with us and will help us if we ask Him.  Because it is a command, then to not boldly approach God for help is “not fearing him.”  Any sin qualifies for “not fearing God,” because it is a violation of God’s command. God has intelligently thought of everything, and His command is simple. If you are struggling with sin, repent, but do not stop there; you must also boldly approach God asking for help and you will receive help.  

You do not have permission to sit in the corner of your room in self-pity and whine and then approach God like a beggar for help. It is good to have godly sorrow for one’s own sin, but that does not excuse you from disregarding your identity in Christ when you approach God. A beggar is the definition of an outsider, but you have been redefined as an insider. You are always a prince of heaven, therefore, when you enter God’s throne room you always enter in as a prince, with your head held high. It is similar to the line from the popular book Narnia, “once a king or queen of Narnia, always a king or queen of Narnia.” You have a new definition, given by God himself. It is final and permanent. Therefore, when you approach God, you always approach Him as a child of God, a royal prince of heaven, especially if you need help fighting sin.  Let nothing hinder you from approaching God in confidence to receive His help.

Outsiders Beg; Kings Command

“…It is taught (from Characteristics) that a one-time prayer is enough, and all other prayers after should be in thanksgiving. I found this useful when I first followed the WOF, because Reformed prayer is just begging in unbelief...”

Read Vincent Cheung, The Extreme Faith Teacher.

This is the standard of faith and the immediate effects that come from a single prayer of faith. This is the standard Jesus held His disciples to. This is the same standard He will hold us to. This is the standard of faith and its effects we will be judged against. There is only one definition for what faith and its effects look like, and that glory belongs to scripture alone. This standard is not just a suggestion, it is a command. If you love God you will obey it, if you hate God you will disobey it. This is not rocket science.

I understand the context of a person coming from a teaching of unbelief and then hearing the many voices of the charismatics and Word of Faith. They are broadly correct on the topic of faith, but have many wrong points that come from Arminianism and self-imposed narrow applications that do not belong to Scripture (such as the 5 or 9 fold gifts of the Spirit ministry). With that said, this idea of faith is simple enough for a child to grasp, and so, one ought to be ashamed theologians can confuse them.

The reformed prayer is a beggar’s prayer, and this is why they see no results. Begging is for those who are outsiders of God’s contract. Insiders relate to God differently. I am glad you see this. Faith is “confidence” or “absolute certainty” God will do what He promised. One man asked Jesus, “if you can,” and Jesus was offended and said, “if I can?” Jesus never commanded us to “beg for the things we want.” Jesus commanded us to speak His Name in faith and make demons scream and mountains fly. The difference is huge. We are children of God. Children do not beg as if they are outsiders sitting abandoned on the road. Some theologians are indeed outsiders to God’s Contract and so all they can do is beg, and then try to deceive God’s children in following their outsider behavior. Yet we are indeed children of God. We sit at His table as co-heirs with Christ. Children ask the Father for a fish and they get a fish. They ask for the Spirit of God (can anyone put a value on the Spirit of God?), and the Father will absolutely give this to His sons and daughters. He will withhold nothing good from you. And “good” is defined by Jesus, as asking what you want and God giving this to you. The bible is the only definition of reality. Only God defines good and evil. God defines good as asking whatever you want and God giving it to you. This is good, because God thinks so.

In fact, we reign as kings in this life through the credited righteousness of Jesus and His unmerited favor (Romans 5:17-21). A king who begs is not a king. A king who does not speak is not a king. A king who does not decree is not a king. A king decrees and it happens. Royalty commands, and they are obeyed. “YOU will say… [then] nothing will be impossible to YOU, (Matthew 17:20).” “If YOU have faith … it will obey YOU, (Luke 17:6). When gods speak, reality obeys THEM.

Of course, it is God power at work in us, and not own power, but because the Bible rejects pantheism, when WE speak it is us, NOT God. Thus, reality will obey us when we speak in faith.

The basic idea is simple: read the promises, meditate on the promises, decree (in Jesus Name) the promises over yourself and then thank God for giving you the things you prayed/proclaimed. Some charismatic fools can get narrowly hung up on saying, “once you do this only keep thanking God for the results and do not pray the prayer again.” This comes from an overzealous fear of words. As Numbers 13-14 shows, you need to be careful with your words. (see Vincent Cheung, The Edge of Glory). If you speak unbelief, then God will give the evil you spoke; yet, if you speak faith, God will give the good you spoke. However, the bible says more about this. Consider David in Psalm 31:22 spoke a word of unbelief, but God helped Him.  Obviously, David repented and re-asked for help and God helped him. Peter denied Jesus 3 times, but then re-affirmed his devotion and God received him back. This is the big idea, unbelief is strong, but a word of faith is stronger. If you made a mistake, turn around and speak the word of faith again, and God will help you. The Word and Spirit are stronger. A Confession of Faith is much stronger. Do not fear.

Also, Jesus directly commands that we pray and never give up. Thus, to say you cannot repeat your prayer, is a direct rebuttal of Jesus Himself. Jesus had to pray for a blind man twice. A person with “great faith” and who as developed a mature faith will indeed speak short one time prayers or confessions and will often see it happen immediately. We are all to strive for this level of power and faith. We will all give an account for how well we sought to obey Jesus in acquiring this standard of faith. Here is the big idea, if we had perfect faith, then we would only need one prayer for all things, but even then there might be a few exceptions, like Jesus praying for the blind man. But since no one has perfect faith, we are commanded to pray in a group (when two or three are gather..) we are commanded to have our elders come and pray with us, and we are given the gift of faith to help compensate for our imperfect faith.  God loves us so much that He has given us many tools to help us get the things we ask for. He wants to give you many good things. He is more than willing and able.

Thus, many charismatic teachers teach faith in practical steps (although flawed), to help struggling saints develop faith. Thus, we have two categories. One is the standard of faith as taught by Jesus, and the Second are pastors giving practical steps in how to get to that standard. Do not confuse the two. Some of these steps are not commandments, but can be helpful tools, and yet others are just wrong.

Back to our basic teaching, “read the promises, meditate on the promises, confess/pray the promises and (if you need to wait), then thank God for granting your request. This is great teaching. However, some say only repeat the last one, but as shown above, this is not necessarily so. Sometimes it is better to repeat the whole process. Maybe your mind is not renewed enough, and you need to establish the promises in your mind more. Thus, the practical application of this does depends on person to person, but the overall biblical applicable is the same for all.

Another reason why the advice to never repeat your prayer, but only give thanks, is bad, is because it puts the focus man and brings up fear. It puts the focus on you and then fear comes from this. Giving thanks for the prayed outcome is great, but if your mind is not renewed as it ought to be, then just giving thanks will not work (although, God still might grant it out of sheer kindness). You do need a honest self-evaluation, but remember that the focus of faith is God, His Word, His faithfulness and His love toward you. If you are focused on your self-evaluation and feelings, then by definition you are not in faith any more. Often, when developing faith and even keeping it, you need to re-read the promises, re-meditate and then on this foundation pray, and faith will naturally arise by God’s power.

Because Jesus wants you to have the things you pray for, He made it a command to pray and never give up. Stop and think about that for a moment. He wants you to have your request so much, He commanded that you never give up. He promises God will absolutely give you what you ask for. This is how much He loves you. He wants you to have the things you pray for, more than you do. Thus, it is not God you need to convince to give you what you ask; rather, it is your stubborn mind and unbelief, that needs convincing. God has already convinced Himself to give you whatever you ask for in faith. Thus, if there is a lack of results, it is not on God’s part, but you. So, in the confidence of God’s love for you re-read the promise, re-meditate and re-confess the promises of God.  

The important thing to do when praying is to not hedge your prayer in uncertainty and unbelief. Leave no room for your prayer to not be answered, because God has already convinced Himself to give you what you ask. This is essentially what a Word of Faith declaration is. It is a short-hand prayer that knows the outcome is certain. Thus faith speaks this way, “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, standup and walk.” No fear, no hedging. Just absolute confidence in God doing what He said He would do. And if you have read the gospels, Jesus loved this kind of faith. In fact, Jesus publicly boasted about such people before God and men. And if you have this kind of faith, Jesus will boast and exalt you before God and men. Imagine, the God of Gods and the King of Kings exalting you. Surely there is nothing greater in all reality.