{"id":476,"date":"2012-10-10T23:30:12","date_gmt":"2012-10-11T04:30:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/?p=476"},"modified":"2013-02-07T17:44:35","modified_gmt":"2013-02-07T23:44:35","slug":"to-gain-the-whole-world-%e2%80%93-see-through-the-contradictions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/?p=476","title":{"rendered":"To Gain the Whole World \u2013 See through the Contradictions"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u4e2d\u6587\u8acb\u9ede\u64ca<\/em><\/strong>\u9019\u88e1<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The 18th MTC<\/a> gathering is only six weeks away. \u00a0Please register<\/a> today for MTC 2012<\/a>.\u00a0 Please also join us for the 3rd week of intercession for MTC by clicking here<\/a> for the prayer guide<\/a>. \u00a0This week\u2019s prayer theme is: Jesus, the Author and Perfecter.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Please note, because we are traveling, there will not be a live prayer and message sharing this week.\u00a0 We will resume our Skype gathering next week.<\/span><\/p>\n

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, \u201cI am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. \u00a0I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, \u201cAs for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.\u201d \u2013 Genesis 17:1-8<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

As we ponder deeper into Abraham\u2019s sacrifice of Isaac<\/a>, we see God work in astounding ways to prepare His vessels for increasing kingdom authority*. \u00a0In qualifying Abraham\u2019s heart through an offering, God revealed His great passion for setting our hearts in the right place. \u00a0This passion is so great that He will even turn His desires \u201cupside down\u201d just to get our attention.<\/p>\n

With Abraham, God demanded an offering that defied all conventional understanding of sacrifice.\u00a0 For many people today, to abstain from a sinful lifestyle may be deemed as a tremendous sacrifice. \u00a0For most Christians, the giving of our time, finances, and talents are seen as honorable acts of offering. \u00a0For those who give up financial opportunities and lifestyles to do God\u2019s work, we commend them for their sacrificial faith. \u00a0But these acts of offering do not come anywhere near the realm of Abraham\u2019s test for kingdom authority. \u00a0What God demanded from Abraham was not just the sacrifice of his son, but also the very Kingdom call God gave him as the father of many nations.<\/p>\n

In God\u2019s interchange with Abraham from Genesis 17:1-8, He left absolutely no room for doubt.\u00a0 God\u2019s desire to raise up Abraham as the father of many nations is so strong that He tied its fulfillment to the confirmation of His covenant.\u00a0 And to seal His desire into Abraham\u2019s destiny, God even threw in a name change.\u00a0 As an affirmation of God\u2019s heart and desire, this ranks right near the top!\u00a0 Abraham thought that he can never go wrong.\u00a0 Right?\u00a0 Wrong!<\/p>\n

In the course of confronting our personal ambition, God\u2019s operating principle may take us through shock, confusion, disappointment, and even circumstances that seem completely contrary to His promises.\u00a0 It seems that God\u2019s greatest test for kingdom authority lies in our ability to see the \u201croad of the cross\u201d through the contradictions \u2013 to walk, in faith and humility, the only path that leads to true kingdom authority.<\/p>\n

For many of us today who are going through the process of offering up our \u201cIsaacs\u201d and working through confusion, disappointment, and even anger, please take comfort\u2026for the greater the call, the greater the contradiction.\u00a0 And when we have finally settle our hearts to the test, look for the \u201cram<\/a>\u201d!<\/p>\n

Market Place Reflection and Prayer<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Has God ever spoken to you promises similar to those in Genesis 17:1-8?<\/li>\n
  2. How has God led you to places of blessing in relationships, finances, career, education, company strategy, ministry, investments, or partnerships \u2013 only to see them taken back, leaving you confused, disappointed, and angry?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Lord, we ask for eyes to see, ears to hear, minds to understand the principles of your contradictions \u2013 in gaining the world.<\/p>\n

    *<\/em><\/strong> \u201cKingdom authority\u201d is defined as:\u00a0 capability, influence, and wealth in places where we work, live, learn, and govern (from message on Sept 20th<\/sup><\/a>).<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    \u4e2d\u6587\u8acb\u9ede\u64ca\u9019\u88e1 The 18th MTC gathering is only six weeks away. \u00a0Please register today for MTC 2012.\u00a0 Please also join us for the 3rd week of intercession for MTC by clicking here for the prayer guide. \u00a0This week\u2019s prayer theme is: … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=476"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":478,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476\/revisions\/478"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=476"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=476"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpc.168prayer.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=476"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}