Category: Our Relationship with God

Christ Alone

Christ Alone

Christ Alone

There is nothing in the New Covenant concerning salvation, that can be known or held apart from Christ. The boundless riches of God are “hid in Christ” and in Him alone. Eternal life is not a decree; it is not a commodity that can be had apart from Christ. It is not to be had by merely a confession, a statement, a rite of passage, or some religious formula that has been agreed to. It is ours only by virtue of relationship.

“And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life, and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life”
1 John 5:11-12

Eternal Life is nothing less than the LIFE of the Son dwelling in our hearts. Eternal life is to produce in us an abiding in Him who is the Life. It is crucial that we comprehend the Parable of the Vine in John 15; Christ is the Vine, and we are the branches. The branches only have access to the Life of the Vine by remaining joined to and abiding in Him. The key to our growth, to partaking of His grace, and His peace, is a current ongoing relationship with Christ ruling and reigning in our hearts. Religion reduces the living wonder of this salvation to confessions or beliefs separate from a living reality. The difference between those who live by confessions and statements, and those who know Him deep within their being in their daily lives, is enormous. Peter expressed this difference quite succinctly.

“Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner…”
1 Peter 2:7

To those who know the necessity of Him living within “He is precious”. They recognize the importance of obedience to Him to maintain the ministrations of His graces by which they can live a life that pleases Him. His presence in our lives becomes the atmosphere in which we live and breathe. But to those who are disobedient, He is disallowed; His graces are shunned and lost. The disobedient are those who hold their salvation in confessions alone by which they negate the need to obey Him. Their salvation is not contingent upon His Life being in them and therefore He is not precious to the point of necessity. This lack of the inherent need of Christ is revealed in lukewarm living and faith devoid of works. The confessions of Him replace the inherent need for Him. They may honor Him with their words and may even teach good things yet walk independent of His life.

It was the Church of the Laodiceans which declared: “I am rich… I have need of nothing”. Our need for Christ determines how precious He is to us. How quickly we tend to move from the essentialness of Christ into a life lived outside of His resources. Too often we live uneventful, unremarkable, and impotent lives resting on promises which are only ours IN CHRIST.

“For all the promises of God IN Him
are yea and IN Him Amen…”
2 Corinthians 1:20

The promises of God are YES and AMEN IN HIM. I have no access to the promises of God apart from Christ. To have victory over sin I need His Life daily. To know the power of grace enabling me to live righteously I need to be held by His Life within. To know experientially His Peace, I must abide in Him who is the Prince of Peace. Left to myself I am bereft of any hope. I dare not rely on any other means than Jesus Christ alone.

See: I Am the Resurrection

In Christ Alone

Everything I ever hope to be
Contingent on abiding in Thee

No other hope I’ve ever found
Except in Christ, my life is bound

No trust in words or thoughts of men
Only in the wonder of Christ within

When to this earth my body is given
In Him alone will I be risen
To the New Jerusalem glorious and bright
In Christ alone, I have this right.

Brian Troxel

Foundations – Jasper

Foundations – Jasper

The first foundation – Jasper

Excerpt From New Book

“And the foundation of the wall of the city having been adorned with every precious stone: The first foundation, jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald…”
Revelation 21:19

In Revelation 21:19 we see that John lays out the twelve precious stones of the foundations of the wall. Every one of those stones speaks of an aspect of the glory and the graces of God in us. The first foundation is the jasper. John said when he saw the throne of God, he saw One that sat upon the throne who was like jasper.

“And at once I became in spirit. And, behold, a throne was set in Heaven, and One sitting on the throne. And the One sitting was in appearance like a jasper stone, and a sardius; and a rainbow was around the throne, in appearance like an emerald.”
Revelation 4:2-3

The first foundation in our life is the character of God Himself. That jasper stone speaks of the immovable character of God and the immutability of His promises to us. We can trust His promises because we have come to know the One who made the promise. Many of God’s people try to embrace the promises of God without knowing the character of God. They are always trying to convince themselves of something. But as you come to know your God, spending time with Him in prayer and communion, you begin to step out of the boat of your own understanding into the storms that God brings. Think about Peter. He stepped out of the boat. Why? Because Jesus was out there and there was a faith that rose and said, “I can trust my God.” As you begin to feel the movements of God in your heart, He is going to call you out of all kinds of boats. The boat may be comfortable, but He is going to call you out into the turbulent waters, and you are going to find that His character sustains you. His grace enables you to walk beyond your own capability. Allow God to establish you by walking in His word, trusting His character and His promises, and He will make you one who is able to stand in the days ahead.

In the book of Isaiah 32:2, God is prophesying of the last days and says, “My people will be a covert…” for others. My people will be a hiding place. My people will be a source of strength and stability to others. You cannot give to others what you do not have yourself. That is why God has invited you into the school of His Spirit, to strengthen and establish you in Himself.

Brian Troxel

My Beloved

My Beloved

“My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
from the vineyards of En Gedi.”
Song of songs 1:14

THE SECRET PLACE OF COMMUNION

Our time of communion with Him brings intimacy; a knowing, touching, and seeing fresh revelations of Him. Our understanding of Him grows more personal as He draws near.

“My beloved is to me…”

Throughout the Old and New Testaments, one pervading beat resonates within the hearts of His Own: “My Beloved, My Shepherd, My God”. While many may know Him on a basic level, there are always some who know Him in a deeper way. This knowing transcends teachings and concepts. It is knowledge born of personal relationship. Those who speak of this ONE no longer speak within the confines of information and intellect. They speak of wonder, burdens, waves of affection, and gentle repose. The clouds of reason cannot dissuade, arguments and debates of the religious cannot disturb; it is the knowledge of His presence. Those who have touched this wonder can no longer tarry in the realm of man’s surmising and wisdom, of carnal thoughts and esoteric reasonings. The wonder and beauty of Christ eclipses all other things and makes them dull and withering by comparison.

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light,
we have fellowship one with another…”
1 John 1:7

In the sharing of who He is we experience that deep and personal fellowship with one another. There is an exhilaration in life that increases the depths of love and devotion for Him. This brings change, conviction, and awe to all involved.

“…in his temple doth every one
speak of his glory”
Psalm 29:9

Those who live and abide in Him can speak of nothing else. There is a communication of love, a release of His grace, within the atmosphere of those who meet in His Name (His Nature, His Spirit). They cannot find rest in the mundane and trivial words of men.

“To see thy power and thy glory,
so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary”
Psalm 63:12

True ministry arises effortlessly from those who behold Him in the sanctuary of their own hearts.

“My beloved is to me…”

Brian Troxel

PODCAST – Learning the Way of the Lord

Learning the Way of the Lord

Spiritual Warfare

“And David inquired of the LORD, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?” And the LORD said to David, “Go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand.”
(2 Sam 5:19)

2 Samuel 5:17-25 is the Story of David and his second set of victories, illustrating how we are to stay current with God, gaining conquests in our own hearts. Our inheritance in God, our place of growing under His authority, is going to be to the measure in which we gain our own spiritual victories, both internally and also externally.

God has graciously provided us opportunities to grow into that authority that He is going to unveil in and through each of us, individually and corporately on this Day. The key to victory is to never go up to do battle in your own strength, but to remain in the Stronghold – Him Who IS your victory!

Brian Troxel

PODCAST – The Truth of His Presence

The Truth of His Presence

“Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present Truth.”
(2 Peter 1:12)

Whenever the Spirit of God is speaking to you He is speaking the whole truth concerning you. He is ever seeking to bring you into the place of a connection and a living truth that you might be in the “present” Truth. In the Greek, the “present truth” is, in essence, “the truth of THE presence” that you might be equipped and prepared to walk in a living and consistent walk, in sync with what He is doing on the earth.

Jesus said, “the words I speak they are spirit and they are LIFE!” and as you develop that personal relationship with Jesus there is an unfolding, and a familiarity, that grows within your life of Him speaking to you on a very personal level, where the word of the Lord isn’t the word of Elijah or the word of Ezekiel, but it’s the Word of the Lord to you and through you!

The whole purpose of ministry is to bring you into the place where you begin to speak the voice of The Lord in that particular wonder of His revelation to you. In the hearing of Him, we begin to walk in the present truth of His ministration to this generation and to the church in which we live.

Brian Troxel

God’s Invitation

God’s Invitation

God’s Invitation to Newness of Life

“I am making all things new”
Revelation 21:5

I love the “ing” of God! He is ever in the present tense, creating, moving, influencing His nature upon our own. He has come and more importantly IS come, to work within the recesses of our hearts the wonder of our becoming new.

Resurrection life can only be known by those who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus. He breathes into our being His “newness” through the creative power of His Son.

“All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made”
John 1:3

The “ing” speaks to us of an on-going process; our lives interacting with His through the agency of relationship. The living ONE imparts grace and glory into that which is lost and dying. Regardless of our situation in life, there remains a consistent offer to come, drink, rest, and fellowship with Him. In our “becoming” we reveal the truth and authenticity of our relationship in Him.

“In Him was life;
and the life was the light of men”
John 1:4

The LIFE of Him within is the verity of our light; not a thing learned, studied, or discussed. Rather it is this Life that imparts His light and power of being into the lostness of our own. By the power of this relationship, He is “making all things new”.

“And this is life eternal,
that they might know Thee the only true God,
and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent”
John 17:3

The author and sustainer of eternal life defines it in terms of a relationship. The Greek word used here is one of experiential knowledge, a knowledge afforded us by a living relationship with Him.

“And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life”
1 John 5:20

The truth of Him can only be imparted to us by the sheer wonder of our abiding in Him. The newness He offers (through a mercy we can never comprehend) is available to all who come to Him by the living faith as He moves within our hearts.

God’s Word to His Own is:

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock: If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will enter to him, and I will dine with him, and he with Me.
Revelation 3:20

He is ever knocking, ever calling, and ever seeking the wonder of a relationship by which He is making all things new. May we hear and respond to His call every morning to the renewing power of His presence by prayer and communion with Him.

“O Lord; in the morning
will I direct my prayer unto Thee,
and will look up”
Psalm 5:3

See: The ING of Life

Brian Troxel

Becoming ONE

Becoming One

Becoming One is the result
of following the One Shepherd

“And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd”
John 10:16

Unity is inevitable where God reigns. Within the secularized landscape of Christendom, there are many who hold to the teachings of men, the agendas of men, and the ways of men. This allows the self to remain intact while claiming to follow the Crucified One. The true child of God who follows the Voice of the Shepherd cannot remain in the shallows of separation and division. Those who hear His voice grow INTO the ONE FOLD because they follow the ONE SHEPHERD. Unity of heart is the incomprehensible work of the Spirit of Christ. There is a fusion in the fire of His love of those who follow Him alone.

“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently”
1 Peter 1:22

Only through obedience can we know this unifying power. Those who cling to mere teachings of the Shepherd without the corresponding obedience to Him will never feel the fervency of the power of the love of God. It is His Voice that draws and gathers His Own. In the act of abiding in Him, the unifying wonder of His Life joins member to member.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,
he is a new creation…”
2 Corinthians 5:17

Unity is the result of a New Creation Life that transcends pride, variance, strife, and the divisive ways of men. Obedience to the truth is how the old leaven of the natural man is put to death (mortified Romans 8:13) by the Spirit of God in those who desire purity of heart. It is the “pure in heart” who see God; it is the pure in heart who are brought “unto the unfeigned love of the brethren”. This purity can only be known by each one “obeying the truth” in the sanctum of their own hearts. Unity is the offspring of obedience. Those who hold only to the tenets of Christ, though loved of Him, will never truly touch the power of this unifying love. Unity cannot be known apart from obedience, for unity, the true Unity of the Body of Christ is the result of His Lordship in our lives.

“And why call ye me, Lord, Lord,
and do not the things which I say?”
Luke 6:46

His Lordship is revealed by our obedience. It is the un-crucified self with all its passions, its desire for pre-eminence, it’s holding of unforgiveness, its refusal to humble itself, its inability to feel the press of His Spirit to seek reconciliation, its lack of understanding the need to preserve the Unity of the Spirit, that can never fathom the depths of the Love of Christ.

Sheep and Goats

The Judgment of God upon His own is pronounced upon the nature of the individual, not upon the beliefs of the individual.

“And before Him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left”
Matthew 25:32-33

The sheep are those who have received the Lamb of God and have allowed His Life to permeate their own heart by virtue of being partakers of the Divine Nature. The goats are those who may have experienced the “new birth” but failed to allow the nature of Christ to bring them into submission and obedience to Him. They may cry out “Lord, Lord…” and perform miracles and great “Christian” works yet have never been “known” of Christ Himself. They may have sat under His teachings, known His word, taught others, prayed, and a host of other things; everything except obey His Word and humble themselves to the WAY of Christ. These are the goats who by their very nature believe the things of Christ, but will not submit themselves to the doing of His Will. It takes the Life of Christ to obey the Will of the Father. It is that same Life that unites them into ONE BODY.

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light,
we have fellowship one with another…”
1 John 1:7

Brian Troxel

PODCAST – Strong Meat

PODCAST

Strong Meat

 

Strong meat belongs to YOU and the way you receive that strong meat is by having your senses exercised to discern between the teachings of men and the teachings of the Spirit. We must walk in the Spirit of truth in order to discern the difference between what men teach and what the Spirit teaches.

Truth is the greatest blessing, but it comes with great accountability. Any truth that is not walked in, any truth that doesn’t exert its power in my heart, I am accountable for that. It’s critical the things we hear, but it is more critical what we DO with what we hear! The more God communicates His truth to you the more He requires you to walk in it.

“For unto whomsoever much is given,
of him shall be much required”
Luke 12:48

Brian Troxel

These are small group bible studies given with the great hope that a new generation will arise with the Fire of God burning within their hearts and that they may shine with the very light and life of Christ Himself.

 

PODCAST – Your Own God!

PODCAST – Your Own God

Hear HIM!

“God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world” (Heb 1:1-2)

In times past God spoke through men, but now in these last days, He is speaking by His Son, in and through YOU! The five-fold ministry is to bring YOU into your unique ministry, to develop and add YOUR voice to THE VOICE of many waters that YOU should become HIS VOICE to others.

God has already apportioned to each of us a mighty deposit of His Spirit, but we don’t enter into it by prayer, but by obedience. God has already given you the land, but now says, “My land is not to be talked about, My land is to be walked about!”

Brian Troxel

PODCAST – The Four-Fold Revelation

The Four-Fold Revelation
of
Christ in You

“And I looked, and behold, a windstorm came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire flashing itself, and a brightness to it all around. And out of its midst, like the color of polished bronze, it came, out of the midst of the fire. Also from its midst came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was how they looked: they had the likeness of a man, and four faces were to each, and four wings to each of them, and their feet were straight feet and the sole of their feet like the sole of a calf’s foot. And they sparkled like the color of burnished bronze.  And the hands of a man extended from under their wings on their four sides. And their faces and their wings were to the four of them,  joining each one to the other by their wings. They did not turn in their going, each one went toward the front of their face.  And the likeness of their faces: the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side to the four of them; and the face of an ox on the left to the four of them, and the face of an eagle to the four of them. So their faces were. And their wings were spread upward, to each, the two wings were joined, and two wings of each covering their bodies.  And each went toward the front of their faces. To where the spirit was to go, there they went; they did not turn in their going.  And the likeness of the living creatures: they appeared like coals of burning fire, like the appearance of torches; it was continually circling among the living creatures. And the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.  And the living creatures kept running and returning, like the appearance of a flash of lightning
Ezekiel 1:4-14

Brian Troxel