The power of Beholding! : By James Lantz

       There is a spiritual law that you become what you behold! The Spirit of God said it like this in the letter to the Philippians.  Phil. 4:9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.  The apostle James says it like this, if you listen to (or look at) the word of God and don’t do what it says, you are like one who looks in the mirror and goes away and forgets what he looks like. But if you diligently look into the perfect law that makes you free and act continually on what you hear (or see) you will be blessed (rewarded) for all you do. (James 1:21-25)   Jesus said, whoever  looks on a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.  Jesus is telling us that the sin of adultery was committed before the motel reservation was made. This power of beholding can be exercised to walk after the lust of the flesh or to walk in the blessing of the Lord. Many people are in trouble and don’t know they are in trouble because the harvest of their sin has not matured yet. If Adam, the head of the house, had run that lying intruder out of the garden the moment he started questioning God’s instructions, Eve would not have been led to the place of beholding and coveting and eating God’s fruit. We are not to keep company with the disobedient and liars.   1 Cor. 15:33 Amp.   Do not be so deceived and misled! Evil companionships (communion, associations) corrupt and deprave good manners and morals and character.  Jesus answered the question that many people are asking today, are people that are killed in a tragedy worse sinners than everyone else. No, the truth is that all have sinned and without repenting and asking God for eternal life and trusting Him for protection everyone will ultimately be destroyed. (see Lk. 13:5)     

       The word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision saying, Fear not, Abram, I am your shield and your exceeding great reward. Abram responded, what will you give me, seeing I go childless and the steward of my house would be my heir. The word of the Lord came again to Abram, saying, This shall not be your heir, but he that shall come forth out of your own bowels shall be your heir. Then God took him outside and said look up at the stars and tell me how many stars there are, so shall your seed be innumerable. And Abram believed in the Lord, and God counted Abram righteous because he believed Him, Abram believed that the God who made the countless number of stars could and would make his descendants as numerable as the stars of heaven.

       Joshua and Caleb had their eyes and hearts fixed on the gospel that was preached to them and refused to quit believing when they were surrounded by unbelief.  Heb. 4:2  For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.  Some people today, like Dathan and Abiram in the wilderness, can listen to the good word of God that saves and blesses and yet long to go back to what they experienced in the kingdom of darkness. Nathan and Abiram heard the same word of God preached that Joshua and Caleb heard. They heard that God had given them the land that flowed with milk and honey and that they were to go in and possess it. This included great and goodly cities and houses they didn’t have to build. God had said that He would give them their own homes fully furnished, debt free, and ready to move into with wells already dug and vineyards and orchards already planted. Dathan and Abiram and On had all 

Joshua and Caleb refused to take their eyes off of the prize!

believed to see protection from the death angel, multiple healings, supernatural wealth transfer and deliverance from Egypt. They were enjoying air conditioning in the desert and heat in the night and their clothes did not wear out. How could these men, who at one time believed and experienced the goodness of God, want to go back to the place of bondage and even refer to it as the land that flows with milk and honey? These wicked men had quit beholding God as the Almighty God and instead of being thankful for their comforts and daily provision they blamed God and Moses for the fact that they were not enjoying the promised blessing.  Num. 16:13  Is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land that floweth with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, except thou make thyself altogether a prince over us.  How sad when God’s people have their gaze fixed on the problems of life (giants) and view themselves as grasshoppers (without God). The person who refuses to worship God and put their full trust in Him, and choses rather to trust in men and the ability of what man can accomplish is under the curse.  Jer. 17: 5&6  Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited.  People who are trusting the Lord are depending on His goodness and His ability and His provision to bring them into that place of abundance and health! Because they are looking for and expecting God to prosper them and to heal them they recognize opportunities to increase and go to meetings where the anointing of God is. Those who see themselves without God do not recognize opportunities to increase financially, all they see is how hard it would be to get up early in the morning to go to that new job. Those who trust in themselves don’t even bother to go to the healing meeting because they are looking at their past experience where they failed to receive from God instead of looking at the fact that God’s mercies are new every morning and that He gives more grace to the humble. The humble person will say, I know that it’s not God’s fault that I failed to receive my healing, I repent for holding out on Him and I know He will help me come to that place of receiving my healing!

       If we are beholding our natural life as the most important thing there is we are being carnal and short sighted. These few years on earth are only a moment compared to eternity. These days on earth are precious because they are given to us by God’s grace to choose where and how we will spend eternity. Lot’s wife just was not paying attention to the exceeding grace that was being extended to her family. The angels warned her, flee to the mountains and don’t look back. She had to look back and turned into a pillar of salt.  Luke 17:32&33  Remember Lot’s wife. Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.  How quick do you respond to the Holy Spirit and the ministering spirits? The children of Israel were experiencing some difficult times in the wilderness and became tired of only manna to eat and they spoke against God and against Moses.  Num. 21:6  And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.  They responded differently than Dathan and Abiram and repented and asked their pastor to pray that God would take the serpents away. Moses prayed and God said, make a fiery serpent of brass and put it on a pole. Everyone who has been bitten may behold the brass serpent and live. This is a type of looking to Jesus. Jesus bore all of our sins, pains, sicknesses and hung on the cross! All who behold Him in faith will be saved, filled, protected, delivered, and healed!