Category Archives: King David

May 29, 2026 · 10:31 am

When Family and Friends Become the Furnace of Love

Nothing tests the reality of our conversion like the people who know us best. Their resistance becomes the very fire God uses to forge His love in us.

When our friends and family reject our newfound faith, we must not grow frustrated. Christ commands us to forgive, bless, and love them — and in doing so, His Spirit grows within us.

Christ said, “A man’s foes shall be they of his own household” (Matthew 10:36). It is often our families and closest friends who resist us the most when we begin to share the gospel. Their pushback can feel like a deep wound, especially when our hearts burn with new faith and we long for fellowship with them.

The Birth of Agape Love

But we must understand something vital: our Creator includes this resistance as part of His plan for our spiritual growth. Through these painful moments, He is cultivating agapē love in us. This is how we add love to our faith.

By faith we seek God, and by faith we receive into our spirit the love that flows from His divine nature. Agapē is described in 1 Corinthians 13 — patience, kindness, humility, endurance. These qualities are not learned in comfort. They are formed in us through suffering, especially through rejection.

Our loved ones “rub” against us. Through their unbelief they withstand us, just as Cain withstood Abel, Esau resisted Jacob, and the Pharisees opposed Christ. David faced pagan nations, but he also endured Saul and Absalom and his wives — enemies from within his own house. Without this friction, there would be little spiritual growth. Our spiritual muscles grow when we forgive.

Christ taught that our enemies would arise from our own home. Yet He also commanded us not to reject them, not to curse them, but to bless them, pray for them, and love them. They are not obstacles to our maturity — they are instruments of it.

Did not Christ say, “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you” (Matthew 5:44)? And why? “That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven” (v. 45). When we respond with divine love, we grow into His likeness. When we bless instead of retaliating, we mature. When we forgive instead of resent, we bear fruit. This is walking in the Spirit.

Christ gave us a new commandment: love your enemies. When someone puts us down, the old spirit of vindictiveness tries to rise. But this is the moment to exercise the divine nature within us. He has given us power to resist the old reactions that ruled us before our conversion. This is the first step in the journey of spiritual growth — knowing, doing, and being — the path toward 30‑fold, 60‑fold, and 100‑fold fruit‑bearing. This is what Christ was teaching in the parable of the Sower in Matthew 13:1-23. And it begins right where it hurts the most: forgiving those closest to us.     Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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April 12, 2026 · 12:38 pm

Abraham’s Vision: The Promise of New Jerusalem

The writer of Hebrews gives us a rare window into the inner vision that sustained Abraham through his long pilgrimage. Scripture says he “looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb. 11:10). This single statement lifts Abraham’s hope far above the realm of earthly geography, political nationhood, or human architecture.

His expectation was not tied to any manmade structure—not a temple, not an earthly Jerusalem, not even the land in its temporal form. Abraham’s eyes were fixed on something only God could build.

The text is explicit: the city has foundations, and its builder and maker is God. The Greek terms emphasize divine craftsmanship—God as both architect and artisan. Nothing constructed by human hands, however sacred or impressive, could satisfy the promise given to Abraham. His hope was anchored in a reality entirely of God’s making.

This promise did not end with Abraham. Hebrews tells us that Isaac and Jacob were “heirs with him of the same promise” (Heb. 11:9). Though they lived in the land, they confessed themselves to be strangers and pilgrims. Their inheritance was not exhausted by Canaan’s soil. They carried the same forward‑looking expectation of a divine city, a heavenly homeland prepared by God Himself. Hebrews 11:16 makes this unmistakable: “They desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He hath prepared for them a city.”

This heavenly city is not a New Testament innovation. The Psalms themselves anticipate it. Psalm 48 opens with the declaration, “Great is Yahweh, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness.” The psalmist is not describing the shifting political fortunes of earthly Jerusalem, which was repeatedly conquered, burned, and rebuilt. Instead, he speaks of a city marked by divine stability—“beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth”—a city whose security comes from God’s presence, not human walls. This “mountain of His holiness” is kingdom language, pointing beyond the earthly hill of Zion to the eternal kingdom‑mountain Daniel saw, which would fill the whole earth. Psalm 48 therefore stands as an Old Testament witness to the same God‑built city Abraham sought: a city defined by God’s presence, God’s holiness, and God’s unshakable foundations.

Revelation completes the picture. John sees “the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven” (Rev. 21:2). This is the city with foundations. This is the city prepared by God. This is the fulfillment of the promise made to Abraham and inherited by Isaac and Jacob. Its foundations bear the names of the apostles (Rev. 21:14), linking the patriarchal hope with the apostolic witness. Its builder is God alone. No human temple can stand as its substitute, for John declares, “I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it” (Rev. 21:22).

Paul affirms the same truth when he identifies “Jerusalem which is above” as the mother of all believers (Gal. 4:26). This heavenly Jerusalem is not a metaphor but the very city Abraham sought. It is the eternal dwelling of God with His people, the consummation of the covenant promise, and the inheritance of all who walk in the faith of Abraham.

Thus the biblical narrative—from Genesis to Revelation—presents a single, unbroken line of expectation. Abraham’s promised city is not earthly but heavenly, not temporal but eternal, not manmade but God‑built. Psalm 48 sings of it. Hebrews explains it. Revelation unveils it. New Jerusalem is the fulfillment of the patriarchal promise, the hope of the saints, and the final expression of God’s desire to dwell with His people forever.

All roads lead to the heavenly city New Jerusalem. It is coming to earth. Everything in scripture leads us to that destination. The patriarchs, prophets and apostles all looked for its arrival. They believed Yahweh’s promise that it was coming to earth. But they “all died in faith”—in their belief of the heavenly city’s touchdown on earth. We can read more about her (Rev. 21).

All the spiritual truths about salvation, spiritual growth, and the election—all has to do with getting ready to be a citizen of New Jerusalem. This truth is secreted in parables. Christ repeatedly speaks of the Kingdom of God when He says, “The kingdom is like…” He is giving us another clue of how it comes to fill the whole earth.    

It is all there for us to overcome the doubts. For the King has said, “He that overcomes shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son” (Rev. 21:7). The King will be inside the heavenly city. His children will be with Him. Let us lay hold of this regal promise by faith like Abraham did.

[If this has helped you, please share, like, and subscribe, and make a comment about how you see the New Jerusalem, as through the eyes of the patriarchs and prophets. For more on this go here:Looking for Our Mother, New Jerusalem | Immortality Road]

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March 22, 2026 · 10:49 am

Who Is the King? Yahweh the King of Glory Revealed in the Son

Psalm 24 opens with a majestic question: “Who is this King of glory?” (Psalm 24:8). The answer is unmistakable: “Yahweh strong and mighty… Yahweh of hosts, He is the King of glory” (Psalm 24:8,10). The Old Testament leaves no ambiguity—Yahweh alone is the King. Psalm 47:2 declares, “Yahweh most high… is a great King over all the earth,” and verse 7 adds, “God is the King of all the earth.” Isaiah 43:15 reinforces this truth: “I am Yahweh… your King.” Zechariah 14:9 summarizes the entire testimony: “Yahweh shall be King over all the earth… His name one.” There is one King, one throne, one divine ruler.

Yet the New Testament repeatedly identifies Christ as the King. The wise men ask, “Where is He that is born King of the Jews?” (Matthew 2:2). The crowds shout, “Blessed is the King of Israel” (John 12:13). Jesus Himself affirms, “Thou sayest that I am a King. To this end was I born” (John 18:37). Paul calls Him “the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings” (1 Timothy 6:15). Revelation 19:16 seals the identity: “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

This raises a profound question: If Yahweh is the King, and Christ is the King, do we have two Kings? Scripture forbids such a division. Zechariah 14:9 insists there is one Yahweh and one King. The only biblical conclusion is that Christ is Yahweh the King of glory revealed in human form.

The Old Testament prepares us for this revelation by showing Yahweh appearing visibly as a Man. In Genesis 18, “Yahweh appeared unto him” and Abraham saw “three men” (Genesis 18:1–2). Yahweh eats, speaks, and walks with Abraham. In Genesis 32:24–30, Jacob wrestles with a Man yet declares, “I have seen God face to face.” Hosea 12:3–5 confirms the One he wrestled with was “Yahweh, the God of hosts.” In Joshua 5:13–15, the Commander of Yahweh’s army receives worship and speaks as Yahweh Himself. These appearances reveal a visible Yahweh, distinct from the invisible Father whom no man has seen (John 1:18).

The New Testament identifies this visible Yahweh with Christ. John 12:41 states that Isaiah saw Christ’s glory when he saw Yahweh on the throne in Isaiah 6. Jesus declares, “Before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58), claiming the divine name revealed in Exodus 3:14. Paul writes, “In Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9). Hebrews 1:8 records the Father addressing the Son: “Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever.” Christ is not a second deity or a lesser King—He is Yahweh’s own visible manifestation.

Thus the Old Testament King—Yahweh—is the same King revealed in the New Testament as Yahshua the Messiah. The Father, who is invisible, dwells fully in the Son, who is His visible Image (Colossians 1:15; John 14:9–10). There are not two Kings, but one divine King revealed in two modes: the invisible Father and the visible Yahweh who became flesh.

Therefore, when David asks, “Who is this King of glory?” The Old and New Testament answer: It is the Father Yahweh, clothed in human form, who is called Christ, the Anointed One. He is “the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings” (I Tim. 6:15).

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March 3, 2025 · 5:47 pm

You Are Nothing, and You Will Be Happy

Here’s some gospel good news for you: You are nothing. Not just you. Me, too. I received this stupefying information from the apostle Paul, who wrote, “He who plants is nothing and he who waters is nothing, but it is God who gives the increase” (I Cor. 3:7).

If you are sowing the word, spreading the good news of Christ, you are still nothing. If you are not sowing the word of truth out into the good earth, you are still nothing. If you are watering the seed, the word of God, then you are still nothing. There is no place for one’s vaunted pride in the Master’s Regiment.

And he who waters what is planted, he who teaches and expounds on the spiritual truths that have been planted—he is nothing (I Cor. 3:6).

A few people reading this will notice a bit of bile rising in their craw when first being taught about our common spiritual state of nothingness. I call it the “good nothingness,” the nothingness born of truth and nurtured in love. Not the “bad nothingness,” that despondent nihilism, that dark and desperate and hopeless nothingness.

Conversely, the good nothingness is liberating. We are free to dance between the fingers of God, egoless, unconscious of those standing in selfish little pools of hubris, standing there judging the dancing David. For he danced knowing that he was nothing, and his father Yahweh was Everything.

For the Great Something is He who “gives the increase” in this life. Every good and perfect gift comes down from the Father of lights (James 1:17). He has called and chosen you and me to sow His word. We sow His seed/word, knowing that it is the power of his resurrection that causes the seeds we plant to spring to life.

If we are “in the picture,” and we think that we are something, when we are nothing, we deceive ourselves (Gal. 6:3). At best, we are a warm vapor distilling into the “voice of one crying in the wilderness.” And that voice plants and waters the seed, but it is that great, stupendous, and radiantly shining Everything, that shows us the way.

Being nothing begins at the cross. It is the beginning of our new spiritual life, and it is the ending of the old selfish life. We are nothing. After all, it is a “good nothingness” that brings happiness. There is no reputation to uphold, no sword of honor to fall on, no luxuriating in the “wonderfulness of ourselves.”

Rather, we are to have the mind of Christ. Though His destiny was to sit on the throne of the universe, He “made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant” (Phil. 2:7). He did say to his disciples, “Let the greatest among you be servant of all.”

[Let’s all say it together out loud: “I am nothing. He is Everything.” Now, that wasn’t so bad. I bet you’re smiling right now. See, I told you that you would be happy…]

With agape— Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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January 16, 2024 · 1:32 pm

King David—A Man After God’s Own Heart

Oh, to have our Savior say that about us! What did David say or do to garner such a testimony from the Father? For God “gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart.” David was “after” God’s heart; he was in accordance with God’s desire. But most stop right there when quoting this passage. However, God continues in the next breath, “which shall fulfill all my will.”

These last six words of Acts 13:22 are revelatory. King David is a man after God’s own heart because God knew that David would fulfill all of God’s will. He would champion all of His desires. AndGod desired to have His name glorified through the destruction of Goliath.

God would use the giant as a symbol of the evil world system headed by Satan. Goliath would come on as an undefeatable foe, too big and powerful to conquer and destroy. I am talking about the current world system in which we live. They have it sowed up. The system is rigged, and it looks like they are going to win. Remember how the Israelites said that the “giants are too big” to try to conquer.

David, a Type of God’s Elect Today

Then God would use David, a “stripling,” a “ruddy” complexioned youth, to battle the giant. David loved Yahweh, and it showed. God wanted Goliath confronted and killed. No soldier in Israel’s army stepped up to fight him; they were all afraid. At this, David said, “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” Then David said to King Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” [Look at David’s belief in Yahweh.]

“And Saul said to David, You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for thou art but a youth and he a man of war from his youth.” [This is the unbelief of the world.]

Then David tells of his adventures in killing a lion and a bear to protect his flock of sheep. “Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” [David has had experiences of doing battles with God by His side.]

You know the rest of the story (I Sam. 17:32-54). David defends the God of Israel and says to Goliath, “You come to me with a sword and with the spear and shield, but I come to you in the name of Yahweh of host, the God of the armies of Israel whom you have defied. This day will Yahweh deliver you into my hand, and I will smite you, and take your head from you, and I will give the carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, unto the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. And all this assembly shall know that Yahweh saves not with sword and spear, for the battle is Yahweh’s, and he will give you into our hands.”

This miraculous defeat of Goliath by a mere youth has been discussed by people for over 3,000 years, thus fulfilling the purpose of God: “That all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.” And this same God shall return on a white horse in magnificence and shall call to the “fowls of the air” to come to the “supper of the great God; that ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains and the flesh of mighty men…” (Rev. 19:11-18).” [Note David’s statement about giving the carcasses of the Philistine army “to the fowls of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth.” His words are a living prophecy as to what will happen to all who follow the beast system at the time of the end.

David is a type of the elect of God for these end times. Satan’s world looks too big, too corrupt, too unbeatable. But the elect sons and daughters will rise and answer their calling like David did. Only this time it won’t be with a physical sling, stone, and sword.

It will be a spiritual battle. We will put on the spiritual armor of God. “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but… against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Eph. 6:12). Our battle today is with satanic spirits who rule the masses here on earth. The time of their deliverance draws nigh. “And saviors shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S” (Obadiah 1:21). [Christ called out and exposed the “mount of Esau” in John 8:44.]

It is our honor—you and me—to be used by Yahweh to do His will like David did. He answered the call and set the precedent for us today. David’s faith in our God Yahweh is palpably stirring. He tells the bully Goliath that he is fighting Yahweh. This is the same faith that Christ walked in, the faith of the Son of God. Study this belief in Yahweh that David walked in and spoke of. Study it good, for it holds the keys to becoming “a man after God’s own heart” (That goes for women, also, for “He called their name Adam.”). David believed that it was God’s fight and that he was the vessel that God was using. No pride. David was defending the name and honor of His God, as well as defending God’s army. He was doing the will of God.

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January 4, 2024 · 5:39 pm

God’s Will/Desire Is to Bring His Kingdom to Earth–Christ to Share His Throne with Us

We have seen that God’s will is His desire. God’s desire springs from His purpose, which is to reproduce Himself, Agape Love, in us. God has a plan that will fulfill His desire for you, me, and the rest of the inhabitants of earth. His desire will come to pass. It will supersede all of man’s self-centered yearnings. His desire is to have His government here on earth, a kingdom so full of wonder that it will erase the memory of mankind’s miserably failed epochs and eras.

The border of Christ’s Kingdom will not be entered illegally. He will bring order, His divine order. To help the interlopers, Christ will send ambassadors to the far-flung territories of the earth. These ambassadors will institute God’s righteous government, helping the people build a life of loving the King by loving and helping each other. After the Tribulation period, He will have rulers, judges, and officers carry out in love His desire for the people of this world. For all the citizens of earth will be taught about our righteous King’s wishes. We will teach them God’s will, desire, and intention.

Our King Yahshua is not a chump. He does not come this time as a Lamb sacrificed for the world’s sins. He comes back as the “Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David,” ruling with a “rod of iron” (Rev. 5:5; 2:27).

There are many openings right now in the King’s royal army who carry neither sword nor shield. He has a promise for those who answer His call to overcome all deceptions and delusions thrown their way. Here is His promise to His elect: “To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with Me in my throne…” (Rev. 3:21). It is the Spirit speaking to us. Are we able to hear and comprehend the vastness of His promise that He, in His infinite love, has given us a chance to really know Christ, to be loved by Him like the disciple John was loved by Him. To know Him as a real friend, as well as our Captain.

I just take my cap off now as I write this and bow my head in the presence of One so kind and humble. He is so gracious that He would offer this vessel a chance to be with Him, a chance to repent from diving into rabbit holes, and an opportunity to become like King David, a man after God’s own heart. To have one heart—Christ’s heart. To be one with Him, thus fulfilling His will/desire.

We are not talking about being saved. We are talking unabashedly about being used by Christ to rule the earth! Becoming a governor in His kingdom, a “ruler over ten cities,” is the big bait that I am casting out into the sea of mankind. He did say that He would make us “fishers of men.” So, no more casting the minnows of just-walking-the-aisle-and-accepting-Jesus. No. That will not fulfill Christ’s will/desire, which is this: You and I are to be the “big fish” that His Spirit is angling for. Big fish like King David.    Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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September 5, 2023 · 2:33 pm

“The Sure Mercies of David”

(from journal entry, 9-11-16 and 9-13-16)

Yahweh through His prophet Nathan spoke to David. “And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.” What promises! What enduring love and steadfastness Yahweh showed to David, and by extension, 1000 years later, to Christ.

It is by God’s mercy that He saves us from sin and sinning. In so doing, He saves us from sin’s major consequence—death. We enter oneness with Christ, encouraged by His promise of immortality through Him.

In Acts 13:34 we see the “sure mercies of David” equated with the granting to us of eternal life—the opposite of death. He speaks of the resurrection of Christ and how Christ’s body did not see corruption [decay]. Believing in Christ’s resurrection will bring to us that same incorruptibility of the body when we receive our new spiritual body at the end of this age. Christ’s body not falling into decay insures for us that same future in Christ, to wit: We will receive from Him the “sure mercies of David,” mercies that He has promised us, also.

It is God’s mercy to extend to us and provide the way from utter destruction caused by sin in our lives to the eradication of sin on into the immortality of our spiritual body.

This promise of immortality in our new spiritual bodies that we receive at the end of this age is called the “sure mercies of David.” We are assured the same spiritual grace and mercy that was given to David. Hence—the “sure mercies of David.” God is inviting us to hear His words and to come to Him, to draw near to Him, trusting Him. We hear these same words from the Savior. “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Mt. 11:28). The rest comes to us when we believe in the “sure mercies of David,” when we believe we shall be blessed with a new spiritual body.  

He continues in Isaiah 55:3 by stressing the importance of listening to His words. “Hear and your soul shall live.” Take in the truth that I am saying, and your soul will live and not die. “And I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.”

Only those with immortality can partake in an everlasting agreement. God is saying, I am making this agreement with you that if you hear my words and believe Me, that you will live forever. It is an everlasting covenant, for you will be around forever to enjoy the life I give you.

This is the “sure mercies of David,” when Christ, David’s son, makes all this possible. It is for this reason: Yahshua is “the root and the offspring of David” (Rev. 22:16). The “root of David” is Yahweh; the “offspring of David” is the Son of God incarnate, with the Father residing within Him. The Son of God is “the image of the invisible God [the Father] …for by Him was all things created…all things were created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.” And now, through Him and his mercies toward us His body, we have everlasting life in Him (Col. 1:15-17).

The Key of David

The promise of immortality granted to believers is at the root of God’s mercies. I believe that these mercies correlate with the “key of David” in Revelation 3:7. It also goes with the “open door” given to overcomers—”doors of the shadow of death” (Job 38:17). Yahshua the Anointed frees the prisoners who are locked up behind the doors of death. I believe that it is the key [the sure mercies] of David that unlocks them.

The door was shut at the marriage feast. Those not ready were locked out. They obviously did not have the key to unlock the door; they did not have the key of David, a “man after God’s own heart.” Yahshua is the door. Enter through Him and you shall be saved (John 10:7,9; Acts 16:26-27).

After Receiving the Mercies and the Key of David

When you receive from Him the Key of David, you receive David’s power as an anointed king—the power to open doors and to shut doors.

Power. But the power that God will give to His “kings and priests” will be awarded to the sons and daughters on their merit according to their study and prayer and seeking His perfect will for their era.

At the beginning of the 1,000-year reign of Christ, the earth will lay desolate. Even a casual reading of Revelation of the events of the Tribulation Period confirms this. He will send out His spiritual offspring, resplendent in their new spiritual bodies. They will go out to the furthest reaches of the globe to help the survivors, to heal them, to feed them, to get them on their feet. They will comfort them, for most will have lost everything dear.

This is a new age, for these sons and daughters sent forth by the “King of kings” will have received their spiritual bodies. They will stride forth as immortals amongst the needy. They will walk in the full authority of the King Yahshua; they will serve their King as His viceroys and heralds, ministering in His stead.

They will attain this position, not through hubris, but through humility and brokenness and mercy and love for the unfortunate and needy. They will bring peace to the ravaged land and joy to the saddened faces. They will grant strength to the feeble and righteousness and justice to all those who long for them. They will be touched by the feelings of their infirmities.

They will, consequently, share with them the “sure mercies of David.”

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January 27, 2022 · 12:59 pm

Walking through the valley of the shadow of death

I write these words to those on the lonely journey– my brothers and sisters in Christ, fellow pilgrims walking on through “the valley of the shadow of death” (Psm. 23).

We are called and chosen by Yahweh to tread through death’s shadow. Who are the dead that casts such ominous shade? Christ said it, “Let the dead bury the dead.” They did not have the Spirit, so they were the dead walking around the earth.

And we, the children of light, intersect with their shadows daily when we come in contact with them. We are kind to them, even merciful, for we were once them. We once cast shadows of death and doubt, but now we, according to his great mercy, are rays of His brilliance called to burn brighter and brighter as we wait on the day to dawn.

But we usually wait alone, it seems. Most around us do not comprehend who it is that we serve. We are not alone, for Yah has a few scattered throughout the earth. It feels like we are alone, but we are not.

Elijah found that out. He walked alone as he stood against the evil of King Ahab and Jezebel of the northern Kingdom of Israel (ten tribes). He walked without an entourage as he waited on Yahweh to communicate with him (I Kings 17: 1- 4). They of the court of Ahab, no doubt described Elijah as a “one lone nut.” First, Elijah prophesied a dire drought on Ahab’s kingdom. He slaughtered 450 prophets of Baal, and defied Ahab at every turn. So Elijah was running. Exhausted, he was being chased by Ahab into the desert. You talking about a trial. You and I have not gone through trials like this!

Then “the word of Yahweh came to Elijah. Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan river. You will drink from the brook, and I have ordered the ravens to feed you there.”  Elijah was walking with God, waiting on Him, renewing his strength each day. Our takeaway is this: Though the going gets tough and lonely, if we stay in our Captain’s ship, He will guide us through the rough waters into a calm and serene bay. We may not realize it, but we will have learned that the trials and experiences on the rough seas are necessary for our spiritual growth. And now, as we rest on the beach’s comforting sands, we look around and see other sailors resting along side us. And then we realize that we are not alone in Yahweh’s work.   Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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June 5, 2021 · 10:31 am

On Spiritually Struggling with Family and Friends

You may be spiritually hurting right now. You are seeing deeper into God’s plan and purpose and you love it, and you try to share it with your family and friends, and try as you might, you just can’t seem to win your family members over. It’s a struggle as they seem to thwart you at every turn. It’s bad enough that the world, in general, is resistant to the truth. But your own family, too? 

Many of you are sparring with spirits in your own house.  They withstand you and plague you with worldly thoughts, tempting you away from thoughts of Christ and His righteousness and ways.

“Think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you” (I Pet. 4:12-14) Rather, rejoice. You are “partakers of Christ’s sufferings.”

Our sufferings are His because we are His. He knows that we are going through anguish with the unbelievers in our family. That wayward son or daughter, that wife or husband who resents us when we speak of Him, that uncle or aunt, or cousin or friend—all these He has in our world for us to overcome. Don’t we know—we’ve all read it I am sure—that a “man’s foes shall be they of his own household”?

He is come to send a sword onto the earth, not peace. This war is raging in our own families. Christ is “come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother (Matt. 10: 34-36).

He Is Sending A Sword

Christ says that He sends a sword, which symbolizes war, conflict, confusion, desperation, fear, dread, frustration, tears (v. 34). And then the very next breath He sets a spiritual war in the hearts and minds of us and our family and loved ones. The fight and struggle that we must endure is on the battlefield of our homes. Period. In this battle, the sword He brings will slice away our selfishness.

The apostles warn us of the sword that Christ will send to us. First, we are not fighting or wrestling with the flesh and blood of our family members. We are battling spirits. We are pitted against powers that God has ordained for us to overcome—for our spiritual growth. God has created that family member or friend to come against you. Remember, His purpose is to reproduce Himself in us. He is Love. He loves your family member who is your enemy. And we should, too. 

So He commands us to “love your enemies. Bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you” (Matt. 5:44). Our enemies are not in Washington, D.C. or Moscow.  Our enemies are those close to us dwelling in our house or close by.  When their actions and words break your heart, this is the golden opportunity to forgive them. The struggle is not with them. It is in ourselves. Will we love and forgive them, thereby expressing agape love?  Or will we remain the victim of a selfish hardness? 

Someone is saying “How can I do this? How do I love my family member who has tried to shipwreck my faith so many times? How do I do it?

You ask Yahweh, the God that King David served. Study the story of how his son, Absalom, betrayed him in an attempt to steal the crown from David’s head. Study David’s response, and you will understand why he was so loved by Yahweh and why David was considered “a man after God’s own heart.” Read of David’s heartbreak and then his love for Yahweh expressed through his heart and lips (II Samuel 19).

The poet and prophet wrote of this trial in Psalm 41:9. Though heartbreaking for David, the betrayal of his son Absalom helped develop God’s Spirit in David’s heart.  Your trials brought to you to overcome by your Father, will do the same, as we call on God with a humbled heart.

Knowledge is the first thing–knowing who the real enemy is. Then it is loving and forgiving them with Christ’s Spirit emanating out of your heart. This is part of fulfilling God’s purpose of reproducing Himself in us. Agape love is growing, and this gives us the victory.

Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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November 2, 2019 · 3:18 pm

Receiving Authority to Cast Out Satan and To Heal

We saw in the October 23rd post that when we “resist the devil, he will flee from you.” We resist by thinking God’s thoughts seen in the metaphor of God’s armor (Eph. 6:13-18). The Spirit says to “arm yourselves” with the mind of Christ. Think His thoughts; they are found in the armor of God. God is the armor.

But we Christians have a problem. We are not fully dressed with His armor–His thoughts. And we wade out into the spiritual battlefield to combat our enemy, Satan. And many of us do not believe that we will have the victory over him. Many of us are plagued with the thoughts that the giants are too big. Many of us do not approach the fight like David did facing Goliath. David had no doubts about who would win. His trust was with Yahweh working through him. He defeated Goliath and the Philistines melted in fear and ran.

How did David walk in such authority? God says that we have that same power in the spiritual realm today.  He said that we now have the power to heal, to grow in His Spirit, and basically to become like the early apostles.

Questions come to mind. Why aren’t we Christians using this power more effectively? How does the power to cast out of Satan happen exactly? How does God do it through us? Knowing the truth about this will make us free of spiritual impotency when we come face to face with the enemy. Which piece of knowledge ushers us into this kind of authority over Satan?

Sovereignty

The answers lie in an understanding of God’s sovereignty. We should realize that our thoughts are not God’s thoughts initially. When we study His word, ideally we discipline our minds to think how He thinks. It is a kind of self-sacrifice, an abdicating of our innate human-centered stance in favor of our Creator’s thoughts about us and our position in the universe. And our position as His son or daughter is one with authority.

First, based on His words about Himself, God is sovereign; we are not. Mankind is so humanistic that we actually think that we make the choices that govern our existence. When all the while it was God behind the scenes working His will out on the earth’s stage. He chose us, and with His choices, He has guided our direction back to Him. “You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and ordained you that you should go and bring forth fruit…” (John 15: 16).

For we in our first state have not the power to say to ourselves, “Live on forever.” Sooner or later we are faced with that disappointing reality called death. God rules in the kingdom of men. It is not our ball game; it is His. And with purposeful precision He has laid out the ground rules for us humans.

He Created Good and Evil

God in His sovereignty, created both good and evil. “I form the light and create darkness: I make peace and create evil: I the LORD [Yahweh] do all these things” (Isa. 45:7). But why the evil? God uses evil to develop and mature the good in those whom He has chosen, which are His elect. He foreknew that mankind would have a precocious predilection for self; He made man that way. He foreknew that the humans He had created would rebel and fall; He was the producer of that tragedy—for a purpose: that mankind would cry out to Him, seeking solace from their Creator. Our tragic fall into the evil of sin would be the very environment that would produce a grateful heart upon our deliverance.

God is sovereign; He does it His own brilliant way. We would not have written the script with evil causing us to suffer. We would write it where we would not have an antagonist to struggle against. God’s thoughts are not ours, but we can make them ours.

He Created Angels To Be Our Servants

He created the angels to be “ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation” (Heb. 1:14). “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” (NIV).

Lucifer is one of the angels, an angelic spirit created by YHWH to minister to the sons and daughters of God. Lucifer received orders from Yahweh to become the minister of evil here on earth. Lucifer became Satan and is the god of this world. He dispenses the evil under God’s supervision. He and his cohorts are sent to serve and minister sufferings to us. We become stronger in God when we overcome Satan and the sufferings. Therefore, Satan is my servant and minister. Yours, too. The irony is rich; what Satan means for harm, God uses for good. You cannot out-god God. All angels, then, are spirits created by God to help us reach the goals that He has set for us. They exist to help us grow up to be joint-heirs with Christ of the Father’s kingdom.

We Are Satan’s Master

Fifth, even though Satan is the minister of evil, he is an angel, and by definition, he is still serving and ministering to us. Satan is our servant. Therefore, with the Holy Spirit inside, we are Satan’s master. We have power over him. We have power from God to cast him out, “to loose the bands of wickedness and undo the heavy burdens,” and to heal those oppressed of the devil. When we resist Satan, he flees. We are to resist him in others, not just ourselves. We have power over our own servant.

When we really believe this truth, we will walk with authority, knowing the truth about our position and our enemy’s place in God’s plan and purpose. And because we understand now that we are Satan’s master, we will command him to leave and be gone from the people we love, and we will give them “beauty for ashes and the oil of joy for mourning” (Isa. 61:3).

For it is this authority, presented to us through the knowledge of the holy, that generates the power to first cast out the devil and then to heal others. Kenneth Wayne Hancock

 

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