By: David McFadden

Jesus said He would build His church upon this foundation - the Spirit -revealed knowledge of Jesus written upon the hearts of His people. God builds the church by revelational knowledge, “precept upon precept,” stone upon stone — it will be His building.

Psalms 127:1 puts it this way, “Unless the LORD builds a house, the work of the builders is useless. …”

Can you think of a better foundation for God to build His church than Spirit-revealed knowledge of His Word?

I love when I get an epiphany; the light comes on in my mind and I finally “get it.” God gives us ah-ha moments too except they’re bigger and better — because they are eternal. From my experience, the spiritual insight from His Word has been timely and intended to help me. When this happens to you, you will have an “ah-ha” moment that reveals His truth directly to your spirit where it is “written” on your heart. 

When you have a petition, a need, or a problem, ask God to help you as you search the Scriptures for His answer. Many times while reading the Bible, His answer for your situation will “leap off the page” as you search for His direction. To define this encounter, the Bible uses the Greek word “Rhema” — the unveiling of God’s Word by His Spirit. The experience can be quite profound, and even breathtaking.

When God reveals His Word to you in this way, you take His Word back to Him through prayer. What does this mean? By verbally agreeing with God’s revealed Word, you unleash His creative nature that is contained in His Living and powerful Word. When you pray His answer, given to you through His Word, you are agreeing with Him — there is no more powerful prayer than agreeing with the Rhema Word that God has given you.

God wants us to acknowledge His Word and agree with it in faith so that He may perform it. God will fight your battles, allowing you to enter His rest when you pray His Word. Ours is to proclaim His promises, His provisions, and His statutes aloud. When we honor His Word, He will honor His Word.

By vocally agreeing with God’s Word, the heavenly realm is moved into action.

Angels respond, demons respond, and provisions for health and healing that have been paid for by Jesus are appropriated and brought to bear. Through praying His Word, we access the treasures of heaven stored by God for His children, bringing His spiritual provisions into our temporal realm. 

This brings us to the truth that we live in a dual world; temporal and eternal. Our natural lives operate by the temporal application of God’s Word because it is instructive, inspiring and giving us insight into how to live our lives according to His desires. However, the point here is that God’s Word has a spiritual and, therefore, eternal application. When God gives you “revelation knowledge” concerning a scriptural precept or principle, He is unveiling its eternal value and the spiritual application to you.  

I was a new Christian the first time God revealed His Word to me in this profound way. I was in a bad place financially and needed God to intervene. I was confused and frustrated, so in this desperate time in my life, I did what many people do — I finally got to the end of my rope and looked to God as my last resort. I picked up my new Bible and “flipped” it open to what I thought was a random place. I began reading Psalms 91.

As I read, I soon felt as if God were reading to me. My eyes widened and I took a short breath in awe of what was happening. I realized God was personally assuring me that He was going to take care of me and that He, and He alone, was my provider. When God “illuminated” and made His Word “come alive” to me, He was indelibly writing His Truth on my heart. I was forever changed — I knew God had “revealed” Himself to me from the pages of the Bible.

This is what it means to know His Word personally. When God reveals one of His truths to us, we are eternally changed. Just knowing about His Word is not enough. My Pastor once said, “The only Word you really know is the Word God has written on your heart — His Rhema Word.” 

If the only Word you have is from someone else, it could possibly be taken from you.

However, when God writes His Word on your heart, it can’t be taken from you.

You cannot know God intimately by second-hand revelation. For instance, you cannot know the President intimately by just hearing about him from others. Another example is this book. It was written from studying His Word and discerning the truth God revealed to me personally through an intimate relationship with Him. Similarly, most sermons result from revelation (revealed knowledge from God’s Word) given to a preacher in his times of intimacy with God. 

The revelation given to the author or preacher by the Holy Spirit is intended to feed God’s sheep. The hearer and the reader benefit from the instruction and are edified. In other words, second-hand revelation is information and inspirational so it has a very important purpose. However, God wants to impart His Rhema Word, His revealed Word, directly to you. He wants to develop intimacy with you so you can know Him personally and intimately and not second-hand. How does this happen?

I have found that God writes His Word on my heart during personal times of devotion. Ideally, this time is “set apart” and begins with a preparatory time of worship through praise with expressions of adoration. This means that I focus my mind and heart on God to receive His Word. This is what King David meant when he penned, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving; go into His courts with praise.” David knew that the way into the Holy of Holies (God’s presence) is through praise and worship.

Reading His Word and meditating on it allows you to know about God, the things He has done, is now doing and is going to do. You will gain an understanding of His ways, His plans and how they apply to you. Also, try just listening when you spend time with Him. This is often the time God will reveal His Rhema Word to you.

God takes pleasure in revealing the treasures of wisdom and knowledge to those whom He knows personally.

Having God’s revelatory Word hidden in your heart this way produces powerful and effective prayers. 

When you walk close to God and enjoy His blessings, the Bible no longer seems a bother that is difficult to read and understand. God has an extraordinary life reserved for you — an overcoming life that will give Him Glory. God’s Word tells us that He rewards those who diligently seek Him — this is so true.

Excerpted and adapted from, “Prayer by the Book”

Available on Amazon.com by clicking here: Prayer by the Book

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