Mighty To Save... Michael W. Smith

Single Eye...

In the Song of Solomon, the Lord compliments His Bride, for He sees within her a quality that He intensely desires to cultivate and use.

“Behold, you are fair, my love! behold, you are fair! You have dove’s eyes.”  Song of Solomon 1:15

When a dove fixes its gaze upon its mate, it is not distracted by any activities around it.  Therefore, a dove is often referred to as being a “love bird,” as it has what appears to be a “single eye” toward another dove.

Our Lord complimenting us for having this “dove’s eye” indicates that we have cultivated a spiritual sensitivity that will lift us above the pulls and distractions of the earthly, so we can respond to the Lord’s presence, in obedience to His desire and purpose.

The Lord’s approbation (divine favor) rests upon those who have this “single eye” toward Him.

“If you be willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land.”  Isaiah 1:19

This is possible only in those who have cultivated a close personal relationship with the Lord.  These can be easily led by Him, for they are close enough to see which way His “eye” is looking, in relation to His intention for them.

“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.”  Psalm 32:8

This “eye” guidance is silent, and is beyond any “word” that we might hear or receive.

Our being led by the gaze of our Lord’s eye is dependent on our living very close to Him.  It means that we have made a total commitment to live and walk in His presence, and have an active personal relationship with Him.

In contrast, the eye of a horse has a very different characteristic.  A horse is distracted by side vision.  Therefore, it must have “blinders” placed beside each eye, and a “bit” set within its mouth.  Only then can it be kept on the path.  Therefore, we are admonished:

“Be you not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near to you.”  Psalm 32:9

Once we have developed this “single eye” toward the Lord, we will no longer respond to Him as being like a horse or mule (according to our desires).   Instead, we will have become responsive to guidance by the Lord alone, and can ask of Him knowledge and wisdom.

We will be lifted into a higher level of personal relationship with the Lord in which we can share with Him in the outworking of His redemptive purposes.  We have progressed from working for the Lord, to working with Him.  Only now could we (His Bride) say to the Lord:

“We have a little sister, and she has no breasts (she is spiritually immature): what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for?  Song of Solomon 8:8

Now the Lord can further instruct us in order to prepare us to function with Him in this higher level of a cooperative relationship with Him.  He responded and said:

“If she be a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver: and if she be a door, we will enclose her with boards of cedar.”  Song of Solomon 8:9

Being a “wall” means that her spiritual experience is established on a firm foundation.  Therefore, she can be brought into a higher level of spiritual substance and integrity (a palace of silver).

But if she is a swinging door (spiritually unstable, sometimes in and at other times, out), her spirituality must be protected (enclosed in boards of cedar).     

This is the quality (her “single desire” toward Him) that so moved the Lord with a desire to be with His Bride in the outworking of this cooperative relationship.  Therefore, when she cried out:

“Tell me, O You whom my soul loves, where You feed, where You make your flock to rest at noon: For why should I be as one that turns aside by the flocks of Your companions.”  Song of Solomon 1:7

“Tell me.”  This intense desire that she expresses is singularly toward her Lord, and she seeks to gaze upon Him, alone.

The Lord quickly responded:

“If you know not, O you fairest among women, go your way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed your kids beside the shepherds’ tents.”  Song of Solomon 1:8

“Go your way forth by the footsteps of the flock.”  That is, find those who know the Lord, and they will lead you to the Lord Himself, not to some program or purpose.

She can no longer be satisfied with only the knowledge of things about Him.  The ministries, abilities, or personalities of His servants are no longer enough, for now she must intimately know Jesus.  An intense reduction of all her ambitions, desires, and dreams has brought her to this place.

Now that her vision has become single, the Lord is ready to lead her on:

“My beloved spoke, and said to me, Rise up, My love, My fair one, and come away.”  Song of Solomon 2:10

Psalm 27 was written by David about his experience with the Lord during the time when he was hiding in a cave, while Saul’s armies were outside seeking to kill him.  In the darkness of his present circumstances, David’s dreams about sitting on the throne of an earthly kingdom with all its grandeur, faded in the light of the eternal Kingdom, which he now saw.

“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. Though a host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear….”  Psalm 27:1-3

In this seemingly hopeless situation, David realized that only that which is of God has any lasting value.  All else vanished in the darkness of the cave, including the hope of his sitting on the throne of Israel, according to the prophecy that was given to him by Samuel.

David, now reduced to a single vision, has but one desire - to abide in the presence of the Lord.  The dark, musty cave has become a cathedral, for now he has “the eye of a dove” and sees only the Lord.  Only now could David say:

“One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple. For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion: in the secret of His tabernacle shall He hide me; He shall set me up upon a rock.”  Psalm 27:4-5

The values in David’s life are now in divine order, as the Lord has first place in his life.  Now, the Lord, in His time and way, can lead David to the throne of Israel.

“But seek you first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.”  Matthew 6:33

If we will respond and seek the Lord above all of the other pressures and demands on our time, and tell Him that we desire Him with “a single eye,” He will then respond and say to us, “Behold, you are fair, you have dove’s eyes.”

Now, we are ready to be led into a further experience of union with Jesus in the outworking of His Kingdom purposes upon the earth.

Today, the Lord is seeking those who are willing to be reduced to having this singleness of vision.

Are you one of these? 

Zion...

“When the LORD shall build up Zion, He shall appear in His glory.” Psalm 102:16. 

Within the Body of Christ (Spiritual Jerusalem) are those who are being especially moved upon (Spiritual Zion) by the Holy Spirit at this present time. “Spiritual Jerusalem” relates to those who are saved, but treat their salvation as being “salt” which only flavors rather than permeates their life style. They are satisfied with the promise of a future Heaven and have stopped short of the full work of the cross in bringing them to spiritual maturity. 
“Spiritual Zion” relates to the Kingdom of God. These are overcomers who have made Jesus both the center and circumference of their lives. They have a “single eye” toward Jesus and have taken up their cross. They have submitted themselves, and all that pertains to them, to His Kingdom rule (Zion). These are a called out “people within a people” who are being dealt with and qualified to become His Bride. “For many are called (Spiritual Jerusalem), but few are chosen (Spiritual Zion).” Matt 22:14. Another way to express this verse is, “Many are called but few will pay the price in order to be chosen.” Our being chosen is the result of the outworking of the process of qualifying, or overcoming. 
“To He who overcomes (Zion) will I grant to sit with Me (Bride) in My Throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in His Throne.” Rev 3:21. 
“Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things. I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord.” Matt 25:23. 
One can be saved and not become an overcomer. One cannot be an overcomer without first being saved. 
Zion is a high place within Jerusalem that originally belonged to the Jebusites. It was taken by David and became known as the city of David. 
“Nevertheless David took the strong hold of Zion: the same is the city of David.” II Sam 5:7. 
Zion speaks of the place of Divine spiritual and governmental authority. 
“Yet have I set My King upon My holy hill of Zion.” Psalm 2:6. 
The “overcomer” relates to Zion. 
“And has made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth.” Rev 5:10. 
Zion, in the eyes of the Lord, is a very special place. 
“Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.” Psalm 48:2 
“For the LORD has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His habitation. This is my rest for ever: here will I dwell; for I have desired it.” Psalm 132:13-14. 
The Lord has a singular love for Zion. 
“The LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God.” Psalm 87:2-3. Zion is the place of His anointing and provision. 
“And of Zion it shall be said, this one and that one were born in her; and the Most High Himself shall establish her.” Psalm 87:5. 
“I will abundantly bless her provision: I will satisfy her poor with bread.” Psalm 132:15. 
David set up a tent in Zion to hold the Ark of God, which became the abiding place of the Lord. 
“In Judah is God known; His Name is great in Israel. In Salem also is His tabernacle, and His dwelling place in Zion.” Psalm 76:1-2. 
There were no separations between the Lord and those who worshipped within this tent in Zion. There was no Outer Court, Holy Place, or Holy of Holies, into which a representative Priest entered once a year to make atonement for the people. All within the tent were together, and the Lord Himself continually dwelt in their midst. 
“They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appears before God.” Psalm 84:7. 
Zion is a place set apart for spontaneity in worship. 
“As well the singers as the players on instruments shall be there; all my springs are in You.” Psalm 87:7. 
Zion signifies the atmosphere in which His Bride will be made ready for the coming of her Heavenly Bridegroom.
This “building up of Zion” is a prophetic indicative concerning the return of our Lord Jesus Christ in manifest Glory. It speaks of those who have a consuming zeal to be brought into the highest that the Lord has. At the heart of this process is the cultivation of a personal relationship with Jesus, and a submission in every aspect of our lives to His Kingdom authority. 
“When the LORD shall build up Zion, He shall appear in His glory.” Psalm 102:16. 
Chapter six of Isaiah relates to this special working of the Lord in Zion. Isaiah had been looking to an earthly King (Jerusalem), and is now turning to a higher Throne (Zion). “In the year that king Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.” Isaiah 6:1. 
In the presence of this heavenly Throne are Seraphim (overcomers) who resound in pure worship. “And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of His Glory.” Isaiah 6:3. 
As they continued in worship, the heavens opened. “And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.” (Glory) Isa 6:4. These “posts” that moved speak of that which held the door that leads into the Lord’s manifest presence either closed or open. The unity in the audible voices of these worshippers (one cried to another) removed the hindrance that had kept the door closed. This “door” leads from Spiritual Jerusalem into Zion. Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.” Rev 3:20. 
As the door opened, there was a lifting up from Jerusalem (Type and Shadow, Earthly Government) into Zion. (Manifest Presence, Heavenly Government). This manifestation of His Glory is seen by Isaiah as being “smoke.” In II Cor 3:18 the Glory of the Lord is likened to a mirror. As Isaiah beheld this Glory, in its reflection, he saw himself as he had never seen himself before. 
“Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” Isaiah 6:5. 
To enter Zion means that we have moved through the barrier that exists between the temporal and the eternal. It is only in Zion that we can see ourselves as we truly are and can repent. Nothing will change us more than a visitation of His Glory. 
“Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: And he laid it upon my mouth, and said,” “Lo, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged.” Isaiah 6:6-7. This speaks of “The Baptism in the Holy Spirit (Jerusalem) and Fire” (Zion). “He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: Whose fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly purge his floor.” Matt 3:11b-12a. 
Multitudes have received the infilling of the Holy Spirit and have spoken in tongues. But they have not tarried until the “fire” comes to purge and purify them. As this coal of fire comes and touches us, we will be transformed. There will come within us a quality that will have a spiritual “ring” to it. We must go beyond our present level of spiritual understanding and experience and again enter David’s tent. We cannot do this literally, but in spirit we can. As we voice our worship to Him and express our desire to make Jesus Lord of our lives, the “posts of the door” will again move and we will enter His glorious presence. 
No longer will “Uzziah” (Jerusalem) provide the comfort we seek, but we will see the Lord upon His Throne (Zion)and make Him Lord of our lives. And, in the reflection of His Glory, we will see ourselves and be changed. We must allow this “coal of fire” to have its full work within us, until nothing is left but that which pertains to Zion.
Then Jesus will come forth in all His Glory and His Kingdom established

Change your diet...

Every time you have a new experience in God and there is a transition, an evolving or moving forth, God will change your diet.

The diet is the revelation of the Word of God, and you will have a fresh revelation of the Word of God, and you will have a fresh revelation of truth which will be adequate to carry you through this experience. We cannot live the same life we lived a year ago. Absolutely not.

The Lord says, 'As thy days, so shall thy strength be.'

'Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.'

'Give us this day our daily bread.'

God has something for your individual heart. Do not be afraid. Be patient. Be quiet. Look up into His face. Be honest with Him. Say, 'Thank you, Lord. You have some truth that will grip my heart and spirit and qualify me and make me able to march in victory through this day. Jesus, what is the revelation You have for me ?

The end of the natural...

The Cross we preach to others should first crucify us.

To proclaim the Cross is relatively easy, but to be a crucified person preaching the Cross is not so easy.

A person who desires to preach the Cross should adopt the way of the Cross.

So often what we preach is indeed the Cross; but our attitudes, our words, and our feelings do not seem to bear witness to what we preach. This is because much of the preaching of the Cross is not done in the Spirit of the Cross. Only a crucified person preaches the message of the Cross in the spirit of the Cross.

How can we give to other people what we ourselves do not have? Unless the Cross becomes our life, we cannot impart that life to others. The Lord Jesus was lifted up on the cross for the sake of giving spiritual life to men. If we desire to cause people to have spiritual life, we too, must be lifted up on the cross so that the Holy Spirit may flow out of us as well. It is only as the Cross is allowed to burn into our own hearts through the fire of sufferings and adversities that we will be able to see it reproduced in the hearts of other people. Whatever work is done by depending on our natural life is in vain, but work performed in the power of supernatural life bears much fruit. Death is the indispensable process of fruit-bearing. In fact, death is the only way to bear fruit

 (John 12:24-25 ERV)

24 Truly, truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat drops into the soil and dies,

it remains a single grain, but if it dies, [then] it will produce many grains.

25 The person who loves his [earthly] life will [eventually] lose it [forever],

but the person who hates his life in this world will retain never ending life.

Made in Our Image...Male and Female...

Gods truth always liberates us and lifts us above our circumstance and causes us to walk in the Spirit.

It is that witness of His Spirit that will teach us and lead us into all truth. When we approach the word

with this heart then we will not be deceived. Women everywhere need to hear the truth of the true liberty

that they have in Christ. Today it is my desire to shine some light on a most misunderstood scripture that

has caused much harm to the Women of the Body of Christ. (1Cor 14:34-35)

1Co 14:34  Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; 

but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. 

1Co 14:35  And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: 

for it is a shame for women to speak in the church. 

Paul would hardly cite the Torah (the Law) as justification for restricting roles of women; his entire ministry involved the exact opposite: he preached liberation from the Law. Some Biblical scholars say that Paul is here describing divisive practices being promoted by the Jewish Christians in Corinth - those who believed in Jesus as Lord while still following the Torah. They were generating discord by teaching that "As in the synagogues, women should remain silent.....as the Torah says." That is, they wanted to translate synagogue practice, as defined by the Torah, into the Christian assemblies. Women were not allowed to speak in synagogues, so they should not be allowed to speak in Christian assemblies.

Let me use red quotation marks in Verse 34 and 35 to help you understand.
I believe it is a statement from the church at Corinth that Paul “quotes“ and then responds to in
verse 36-40:

(1Cor 14:34-40) -   34 “the women should keep silence in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be subordinate, as even the law says.
35 If there is anything they desire to know, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.“

           Pauls Response in the form of a rebuke:

(1Co 14:36-40)  What! Did the word of God originate with you or are you the only 
ones it has reached? If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual,      

let him acknowledge that the things that 

I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord. 

But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant. Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, 
and forbid not to speak with tongues. Let all things be done decently and in order. 

                      

Paul uses the é particle to introduce rebuttals to statements preceding it. As a conjunction, é appears in Paul's Epistles in a variety of uses. This device is called the "rhetorical eta," and many Greek professors confirmed its use instead of quotation marks. Lets take a look at the original Greek letters to confirm this.

You can see eta in the chart. The e of which he uses looks like 

Now lets look at (1Cor 14:34-36) in the original Greek language so that you may see this for yourself.

34  αἱ γυναῖκες ὑμῶν ἐν ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις σιγάτωσαν· οὐ γὰρ ἐπιτέτραπται αὐταῖς λαλεῖν, ἀλλ᾿ ὑποτάσεσθαι, καθὼς καὶ ὁ νόμος λέγει. 
35  εἰ δέ τι μαθεῖν θέλουσιν, ἐν οἴκῳ τοὺς ἰδίους ἄνδρας ἐπερωτάτωσαν· αἰσχρὸν γάρ ἐστι γυναιξὶν ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ λαλεῖν. 
36  ἢ ἀφ᾿ ὑμῶν ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐξῆλθεν, ἢ εἰς ὑμᾶς μόνους κατήντησεν; 

It's importance here is that it clearly marks a refutation of the previous passage. That is what the rhetorical eta is for, it indicates that what precedes it immediately is being refuted. Since the Greeks did not have quotation marks, this device serves as quotation marks and shows the injunction against women speaking was actually the statement of the Corinthians to Paul.


"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free,
there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus."　 Galatians 3:28 

In the Church, "under the anointing," there is neither male nor female. We can all function as we are enabled by the Lord, totally irrespective of gender. Male and female become a type of our relationship to the Lord. As a "Bride," I am dependent and become "one" with Jesus. As a "son," I enter into a cooperative relationship with the Lord. I "rise above" the earthly as an "overcomer," and His power - His very life begins to flow out through my life. I am then able to give expression to the life of the Lord, as my life becomes the witness of His life. We are approaching the last days, the time of the closing out of the Church Age and the beginning of the Millennial Kingdom, which is the government of God ruling all mankind. May we all female and male lay aside the old order and embrace and recognize what the Lord is desiring to do in each of us as individuals and in His body in these last days.

A right heart...

“I love them that love Me; and those that seek Me early shall find Me... 

That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures.”  Proverbs 8:17, 21

           

          On the human level, our ability to love is limited and fickle.  But no matter how many reasons we may have as to why Jesus might not be interested in us, if we will consistently express to Him our love for Him, He will respond and take the initiative in bringing about changes within us.

           

          There are no exceptions to this experience of His approbation resting upon us; it simply requires of us a repentant heart and the continuing expression of our love for Him.

To Know Him...

Philippians 3:7-11(Amplified)  But whatever former things I had that might have been gains to me, I have come to consider as [one combined] loss for Christ's sake. Yes, furthermore, I count everything as loss compared to the possession of the priceless privilege (the overwhelming preciousness, the surpassing worth, and supreme advantage) of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord and of progressively becoming more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him [of perceiving and recognizing and understanding Him more fully and clearly]. For His sake I have lost everything and consider it all to be mere rubbish (refuse, dregs), in order that I may win (gain) Christ (the Anointed One), And that I may [actually] be found and known as in Him, not having any [self-achieved] righteousness that can be called my own, based on my obedience to the Law's demands (ritualistic uprightness and supposed right standing with God thus acquired), but possessing that [genuine righteousness] which comes through faith in Christ (the Anointed One), the [truly] right standing with God, which comes from God by [saving] faith. [For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly], and that I may in that same way come to know the power out flowing from His resurrection [[b] which it exerts over believers], and that I may so share His sufferings as to be continually transformed [in spirit into His likeness even] to His death, [in the hope] That if possible I may attain to the [[c] spiritual and moral] resurrection [that lifts me] out from among the dead [even while in the body].

Two Ships..

“And it came to pass, that as the people pressed upon Him to hear the word of God, He stood by the lake of Gennesaret, and saw two ships standing by the lake….”  Luke 5:1-2

Notice that the people were “pressing upon Jesus to hear the word of God.”  Whenever we take a step toward the Lord, He will respond and begin to draw us closer to Himself.

There will always be “two ships” (two possibilities) in our spiritual life experience.  These are placed in our path by the Lord to cause us to make a choice.  Jesus will never enter the ship that relates to our self-life (our being in control of all that we say and do).  When we make the right choice, Jesus will enter the ship that relates to His will and purpose for us, and become active in our spiritual life experience.

“And He entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And He sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.”  Luke 5:3

The “land” speaks of our self-life, in which we are in control and can do as we please.  The “water” represents the realm of the Spirit, where the Lord is in control.  For us to be “thrust out a little from the land” speaks of giving up the right to do as we please, so Jesus can bring us into a submissive, cooperative relationship with Him.

Here, we will be “made ready” to function in the deeper realms of the Spirit (He sat down and taught the people).  As we continue to make the right choices, the “water” will gradually become deeper and deeper until our feet can no longer reach the bottom!