Building According To The Heavenly Vision

Recently, we’ve been talking about prayer—more specifically praying with all manner of prayer (Ephesians 6:18). Last week, we spent some time looking at the fact that one purpose for prayer in our lives should be to receive the heavenly vision of God’s plan for our lives or ministries and then pursue that plan. We’re not to just follow what others are doing but find out what God wants US to do.

We know that the general plan for all of God’s children—whether it be for our individual lives or for ministry--is found in the written Word of God. However, last week we looked at the fact that we’ll only get God’s specific plan for our lives as we spend time in the Spirit in prayer.

This week, I want to look more at how important it is to build our lives or ministries according to His plan before we move on to what God is really wanting me to emphasize regarding this subject.

Some people’s lives or ministries just seem to continuously struggle. Often, the reason is either because they don’t know what God’s plan is for their lives or haven’t agreed with Him concerning His plan. Rather, they have gone about to establish their own plans.

The Bible tells us clearly that the way of the transgressor is hard (Proverbs 13:15). However, a man can transgress God’s plan for his life either because of ignorance of that plan—meaning he fails to seek God until he knows the next step of God’s plan—or because of rebellion. Either way, the life of the transgressor will be hard. It’s just much better to move with God’s plan for our lives.

When Jesus addressed this issue with Saul on the road to Damascus, He said, “It is dangerous and it will turn out badly for you to keep kicking against the goad [to offer vain and perilous resistance] (Acts 9:5 AMPC).

Kicking against the pricks is a reference to knowingly resisting the will and plan of God. If kicking against the will of God is dangerous and will turn out badly, agreeing with God’s plan and moving with it is the place of safety for our lives and will bring the full blessings of God.

So, what are we going to do? We’re going to seek God in His Word and in prayer until we find His plan for our lives. Then, we follow and build according to that plan, so that we can experience the full anointing and blessings God has in mind for our lives.

God, the Builder

Psalm 127:1

Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it:

God is always on the move in the earth, building something. Men are also always building something—whether it be man's plans or God's plan. Wise men move with God, rather than go about to build their own plans without God’s direction or help (Matthew 7:24-25). Every man will stand before the Lord and give an account of what He did down here in this life to advance either God’s plans or his own (II Corinthians 5:10). Most Christians are busy with their own plans.

Since God is always on the move building something, those who move with God are always on the move also--laboring together with God to build what He’s building. They’re always reaching for the fulfillment of God’s plan, stretching and pressing forward to increase it or move it forward (I Corinthians 3:6,9; I Corinthians 15:58; Philippians 3:13-14).

Many men’s lives are full of activity. The difference though with those who are moving with God is that they are active with God’s plans and not their own (II Corinthians 5:10 AMPC).

But, whether it be for our own lives personally, for ministry or church services, how are we going to know what His plan is? Number one: His Word is His plan, generally. But, number two: there’s this nifty old fashioned thing that Christians in times past used to know about called seeking God in prayer that enables us to receive the knowledge of what God wants us to do more specifically.

God’s Plans Will Endure the Tests

If a man fails to seek God’s plan through renewing his mind with the Word or seeking God in prayer, by default, he will be in the flesh—fulfilling the plans of his own mind or flesh. He will just presume something is God’s will because that’s what others are doing when many times the Lord isn't in these things at all. This is the reason that some Christians, and even ministers, fail.

In life or in ministry, we are to build all things according to the pattern shown to us in the written Word of God or in prayer (Hebrews 8:5). And, we must always remember, the Word and the Spirit agree. You may see someone who got their own plans built in life, but if the Lord wasn't in it, or it wasn’t built according to the pattern shown to us in the Word, what was accomplished will have no power to stand in the tests and storms that are sure to come. And, in the end, all his efforts will be vain (Matthew 7:26-27).

One thing is for sure, every man’s work will be tried by fire (the trials and tests of life—not to mention the judgment seat of Christ (I Corinthians 3:13)). Only those works wrought in God will endure.

The reason works of the flesh won’t endure through the trials of life is because when the tests come, there’s nothing of the Spirit in them to sustain them. It wasn't built on faith. What do I mean? I mean, it wasn’t built on hearing what the Word says or what the Spirit said to do and acting on that (Matthew 7:26-27).

If the Lord isn’t in what you’re building in life or ministry, you won't be able to keep the devil out of it. The devil will have access to it because it was built in the flesh, and he has a right to attack you when you're in the flesh.

Fishing or Catching?

If what you are doing in life or ministry just seems to continually struggle, spend enough time with God in prayer to see if what you’re doing is God’s plan for you at all! When you're doing what you’re doing because you got direction from God to do so (Luke 8:22), the power of God will be in it to put you over in the storms of life—and, you'll have the God-kind of faith to overcome the opposition.

Luke 5:4-6

Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless AT THY WORD I WILL LET DOWN THE NET. And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake. 

When Peter switched from "toiling" in his effort to catch fish to acting on the Word, he went from his own efforts to releasing the power of God to accomplish what he desired. Now he's fishing with substance (Hebrews 11:1). He's moving with something that will support his success in the Spirit realm (Psalm 127:1). He began moving with God—being a laborer together with Him—and success was accomplished with greater ease because of the help of the Spirit.

When he did it "at thy Word," the power of God came upon him, and his faith put that power into action to cause him to succeed! He stopped fishing and started catching! In other words, concerning what he was putting his hand to in life, he went from failure to success.

The same will be true when any man today switches from living or ministering in the flesh--fulfilling his own plans--to moving with God’s plan that came to him by the written Word or by the Spirit. His life will go from struggling for success to being filled with marvels and thriving.

Plans Born of God are Full of Marvels

I John 5:4

For WHATSOEVER is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

When this verse says “WHATSOEVER” is born of God overcomes the world, He’s not only talking about God’s children who were born of God at the time of salvation. Yes, we are included in “whatsoever,” but He’s talking about ANYTHING that is born of God—including the plans that a man goes about to carry out in life.

Plans that are born of God are plans that you heard God speak to your spirit about. Faith comes when you hear God speak to you. It’s faith that taps into the power of God to put something over. Only those things that have the power of God moving in them because they were done by faith will be able to overcome the god of this world who seeks to oppose them. The victory that we have in life is born of faith when our faith is born of God.

Psalm 118:22-23

The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner. This is the LORD's doing; IT IS MARVELLOUS in our eyes.

This verse is talking about the church being built on Jesus, the Chief Cornerstone. That means it is built on His Word—whether it is the written Word of God or on specific direction that came to a man from Jesus, through the Spirit. If the church is built by man, it will not stand.

But if the Lord is in the building of it—I mean, if a man was directed to do what he’s doing by Jesus, the Head of the church, what he’s doing will be marvelous—which means full of marvels. Particularly when a man adds his faith to it.

You and I must constantly examine ourselves (II Corinthians 13:5) to see if we are in the Word that God gave us—the heavenly vision, which is the source of the God-kind of faith. You can only attach faith to what He told you to do: nothing more, nothing less. Everything else is done in unbelief and is sin (Romans 14:23).

Next week, we’ll look more specifically at the fact that what God is actually building in our day is His church--and how any specific revelation a man receives concerning God’s plan for his individual life will bring a supply to the Lord’s overall plan to build His church. We’ll also look at how the end goal for building up this spiritual house called "the church" is to fill it with His glory so that He can move among His people doing marvels, signs and wonders.