Isaiah 43:18-19 18 "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
Do you see the New thing that God is doing in your life ?
What picture do you see in your life ?
In life you can either see the Big Picture or the Small picture ?
The Big picture is what God wants to do in your life The small picture is the troubles / problems that you are going through in life
The big picture is seeing God's purpose for your life being fulfilled. The small picture is seeing the pain you are going through in your life
The big picture is seeing God's faithfulness and restoration in the midst of our circumstances The small picture sees our Feelings being hurt and a sense of rejection
The big picture is seeing possibilities & opportunities in whatever situation we face in our life. The small picture is seeing problems & defeat in whatever we face in our life.
We must see it before we can possess it And we must see with the eyes of Faith
Too many people want to possess without seeing
Deuteronomy 1:8 See, I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land that the LORD swore he would give to your fathers-- to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob-- and to their descendants after them."
Joshua 6:2-3 2 Then the LORD said to Joshua, "See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. 3 March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days.
Revelations 3:8 I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.
Do you see God's healing upon your sickness & disease ? Do you see God's deliverance in your life ? Do you see God's provision in your life ? Do you see God's Protection over your life ? Do you see God's Blessing in your life ?
See, I am doing a New thing
YOU MUST KNOW THAT GOD IS GOD OF NEW THINGS
a) It started with a New Covenant
Jeremiah 31:31 "The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.
Hebrews 9:15 15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance-- now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.
Jesus established the New Covenant through the shedding of His blood on the cross and the old covenant was not longer effective.
b) Then came the New creation
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
Illustration: St. Augustine soon after his conversion was one day walking down the streets in Milan, Italy. And he met with a Prostitute whom he had intimately known her. And so she followed Augustine calling out to him but he did not stop or respond back to her.. But she continued following him and called out his name and said Augustine.. IT IS And St. Augustine with the full assurance of Christ in his heart now replied her back Yes, but it is no longer I
It is no longer the old Augustine you knew
c) Then there is New life
Romans 6:4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
d) Then there is a New heart and a new spirit
Ezekiel 36:26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
All these show us that our GOD is GOD who gives us NEW THINGS.
WHAT KILLS OUR VISION OF SEEING WHAT GOD IS DOING IN OUR LIFE ?
1) OUR PAST LIFE
Isaiah 43:18 "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.
Too many people are victims of their past And as a result they are stuck up in their lives They are not growing or maturing because they cannot see what God is doing in their life
God is saying Forget the Past. Do not Dwell on the Past Let go of the Past
Let go of the Hurt, pain, Mistakes, failures, disappointments in life, Don't dwell over these things day after day after day
What do you do to a dead person ?? Mourn over the body for 5 days. No. You have to BURY the body
Our Past is like a dead body We cannot do anything to undo or change whatever has happened
But you see We Dwell too much on the Past instead of Burying it in the sea of Forgetfulness. The Blood of Jesus.
If we do not let go of the Past , the Past will destroy our Future The devil wants to destroy our Future God has planned for us
John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Regretting your mistakes and failures makes you to suffer more than the actual mistake / failure committed.
Rehearsing the Past brings sickness & diseases to our body Instead of rehearsing the Word of God , we rehearse our past hurts & pains & mistakes over and over and over again
Mark 2:22 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, he pours new wine into new wineskins."
The past is like old wineskin it cannot hold the new wine that God wants to bring into your life. We must release the Past if we want to see the new thing God is doing in our life.
2) FEAR
Fear will keep us from seeing what God is doing in our lives.
Elisha's servant was afraid when he saw the army of the enemies... But he did not see the God's armies surrounding the enemies.
2 Kings 6:15-17 15 When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. "Oh, my lord, what shall we do?" the servant asked. 16 "Don't be afraid," the prophet answered. "Those who are with us are more than those who are with them." 17 And Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes so he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
Fear will paralyze our Faith and make us blind to what God is doing in our life. Fear kills our Faith. Without Faith the bible says it is impossible to please God.
So we must refuse every fear from controlling our lives.
3) OUR SINS Psalms 40:12 For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me.
Sin will not only Blinds us but it will also Bind us.
Hebrews 12:14 Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.
Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Sin makes us to see its pleasure and satisfaction it gives to us more than to see what God requires of us. We get engrossed in the end result more than the consequences of our sinful actions.
4) DISOBEDIENCE
Deuteronomy 11:26-28 26 See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse-- 27 the blessing if you obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you today; 28 the curse if you disobey the commands of the LORD your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known.
Disobedience brings a curse and makes us not to see the blessings of God
5) NOT COMMITTED TO GOD
Many Christians live a casual life of No commitment and yet they want a great Blessing from God. It will not happen
2 Kings 2:9-10 9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, "Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?" "Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit," Elisha replied. 10 "You have asked a difficult thing," Elijah said, "yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours -- otherwise not."
When we are fully committed to God , we will see and experience the New things God is doing in our life.
Elisha was committed to see Elijah, so that he could receive a double portion anointing. Today, many Christians want great things from God, but they are not committed to God.
6) PRIDE
Uzziah is symbol of pride
Isaiah 6:1-6 1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory." 4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. 5 "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." 6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.
Pride will make us not to see our wrong ways, actions & sin. Instead we will assume we are walking upright before the Lord. Pride makes us feel that we have a right to do what pleases us even when it does not please the Lord. Bible warns us that Pride comes before a fall and so we must be very careful not to allow pride to have a hold in our lives.
7) UNBELIEF
Hebrews 3:12 See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.
Moses sent 12 spies to check the land of Canaan. 10 came back with a Negative report because they SAW the giants in the land and fortified walls.
Two came back – Joshua & Caleb , with a good report because they saw the Greatness and faithfulness of God and His word..
What do you see Giants or God ?? Whatever happens in your life can either serve as a springboard to take you to your next level OR it can serve as an Anchor to ground you from moving further
It all depends on How you See your situation in life
If you see God at Work you go to your next level If you see Man at Work you will be offended, hurt, angry, resentful, bitter and you will be grounded
Today, I want to ask you What do you see ??
Do you see the New thing God is doing in your life or are you too busy whining about your past situation
Today, ask God to open your eyes to see what He is doing in your life
Maybe you have focused on your past for too long. Today LET GO. Today BURY IT FOREVER You have to see the new things God is doing in your life. God wants to fulfill His good plan and purpose for your life.
Don't let anything hinder you from seeing what God is doing in your life. Joseph is a good example we see in the bible.
Even though he faced many adversities in life, Joseph never gave up from seeing what God was doing in his life. He never got angry or became bitter with anyone even though he was betrayed, falsely accused, imprisoned, forgotten by his friends whom he helped.
Joseph knew that God was at work in his life. Today many Christians respond negatively to situations and circumstances that come into their life.
I pray God will open your eyes so see that He is doing a New thing in your life. Trust Him and commit yourself fully to Him.
God Bless You.