CHRIST IS OUR MERCY SEAT

In the Old Testament, there was a place where God met with His people. In Exodus 25:22, God said, “And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony...” This place was above the mercy seat of the ark of the covenant, under the wings of the two cherubim. The psalmist calls it “the secret place of the Most High…under the shadow of the Almighty.”

The mercy seat covered the ark which contained the three emblems of man’s rebellion: the golden pot of manna—man’s rebellion against God’s provision, two tablets of stone on which God wrote the Ten Commandments—man’s rebellion against God’s standard, and Aaron’s rod—man’s rebellion against God’s authority. Once a year on the Day of Atonement, the high priest would sprinkle the blood of the sacrificed animal on the mercy seat and so make propitiation for the sins of Israel.

Today, it is not the blood of animals that makes propitiation for our sins, but the holy blood of the Son of God (see Romans 3:24–25). The word for “propitiation” in the original Greek text is hilasterion, which actually means “mercy seat.” So Christ is our mercy seat. His blood speaks for us and puts God on our side. God does not see our rebellion. He sees the blood of His Son and accepts us!

That is why we can come boldly to the secret place of the Most High, in Christ, and feel secure that we have every right to be in God’s presence. We can come boldly to Him to obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need (see Hebrews 4:16).

And because Christ, our mercy seat, covers us with His blood, we are under God’s protection. We are in the secret place of the Most High, abiding under the shadow of the Almighty. Here, no evil will befall us, nor will any plague come near our dwelling (see Psalm 91:9–10). In the secret place of the Most High, we are favored and kept safe from all harm!!  (Article & Picture; courtesy of Joseph Prince Ministries used with kind permission).

SPEAK THE WORD

And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak.  2 Corinthians 4:13

Beloved, it is not enough for you to merely know the Word in your heart. You must say it. That’s when latent power becomes actual power. When our Lord Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, He did not merely think about Scripture. He spoke it out loud. You can memorize thousands of Scriptures, but if you don’t learn to say, “It is written,” and release the Word, there will be no power. God’s power is there, but it is all lying dormant inside you. The moment you speak it out, it is as if God is speaking. God’s Word in your mouth is like God speaking. Amen!

Fear is not something you can reason or analyze away. Fear is irrational. There are some fears that come into your life and you can think to yourself, Come on, what are the chances of that happening? or It’s so silly to fear this. But have you noticed that those fears still hang around? We are in a war, my friend, and the only way to defeat fear is to speak the Word of God to whatever fear you have by saying, “It is written.”

It is written—“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7).

I want you to memorize that. It’s a powerful verse of Scripture.

Now, I want you to say this out loud: It is written—“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” Do you feel the power that comes with saying this aloud?

This is the truth: God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. I don’t care what kind of fears you are battling with—fear of growing old, fear of contracting this or that disease, fear of losing your job, fear of failure. Whatever the fear that has come against you, declare, “It is written.”

What if the fear comes back? Then say it again! Sometimes, I speak Scriptures over my situation in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. Whenever the fear comes back, I speak the Word of God. If the devil wants a fight, give him one! Give him the sword of the Spirit and he will get the point every time. There are many Scriptures you can memorize. Write down the Scriptures that cover the areas of your need, and arm yourself with them!  (Article & Picture; courtesy of Joseph Prince Ministries used with kind permission).