2016.04.03_The Key of Heaven

Be bold as children of God.
God is the creator. He created the heavens and the earth and everything within them for His Son. After He resurrected, Jesus Christ ascended to heaven with the authority of heaven and earth, and thus became the King of kings. He is the sovereign, the Lord of all creations. What is amazing is the fact that He gave His authority to those who believe in Him. We already became children of God, and will later resurrect to inherit the kingdom of heaven. Yet it is unfortunate that many Christians forget about this great authority they have and consider themselves as orphans.
Jesus said, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (Jn 8:31-32). If we are to become true disciples of Jesus, we must abide in His word. To abide in His word does not mean accumulating Biblical knowledge, but rather to understand the will of God as revealed in the Bible and put into practice, to fulfill God’s will.
Jesus also said, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you” (Jn 15:7). If God’s words abide in us, the Lord will give us whatever we ask of Him. However although people have received this promise, rather than using the authority given them, they first seek the help of other people, and thus lose the confidence they should have as children of God.

Have the faith that overcomes the power of the devil
When the people at Caesarea Philippi welcomed Jesus, Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” The disciples answered, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets”. Had Jesus introduced Himself as a prophet to the people, He would not have been killed. However because He called Himself the Son of God, He was put to death.
Christians today often say, “Since I started attending church, I feel peaceful, my husband’s work seems to be going well and my children listen to what I say as well”. Yet not many people confess, “Jesus is the Son of God and our Savior”. When Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God”. At this, Jesus said, ““Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven” (Mt 16:13-17).
Jesus built His church upon the faith that confesses, “Jesus is the Christ and the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:18). Though numerous denominations exist within the Christian Church today, the Church was not established upon a denomination but the faith that believes Jesus as the Christ and the Son of God. Jesus said that only the church built upon such faith will be able to overcome the power of the devil (Mt 16:18).
What is the reason behind churches not experiencing a revival? It is the oppression of the devil. Ephesians 2:1-2 says, “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience”. Whether people or the church, if they remain in sins, they will follow the ways of this world which proves that they are under the oppression of the devil. Only the church that confesses Jesus as the Christ and the Son of the living God will defeat the power of the devil and have a revival.

Use the key of heaven
Jesus said to the Church, “And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Mt 16:19). God gave a key to David (Rev 3:7), and it was because he had this key that David was able to enjoy a peaceful reign for 40 years. Whoever has the key has the right to open and shut the door. The Lord who received all authority from God gave us this key saying, “I will give you this key which you can freely use. If you open it, it will be opened in heaven; if you shut it, it will be shut in heaven”. We must use the key we received from the Lord and open the gates of heaven. Even if we attend church with a good conscience, unless we open the gates of heaven, there cannot be any development in our spiritual life.
What is the key of heaven? The name of Jesus. Jesus’ name is the greatest key God gave to His Son. Hebrews 1:4 says, ”Having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they”, and Philippians 2:9 says, “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name”. Jesus has now given us that name. Had we not the name Jesus, how could we cast off our sins? It is impossible to cast off our sins no matter how much we cultivate ourselves and practice asceticism. It is because of Jesus’ name that we have been set free from our sin; it is because of Jesus’ name that we came to have the mark of Jesus Christ through baptism; and it is because of Jesus’ name that the Holy Spirit comes inside us and manifests His many gifts.
When people are faced with problems, rather than relying on Jesus’ name and seeking God’s help, some people seek counseling or prayers from other people. These people appear to have faith on the surface, but they are actually inclined towards mysticism. It is no different even if the person they seek help from is their church pastor. Whenever we encounter a problem, the first thing we need to seek is not people but Jesus’ name. The Lord promised that He will do whatever we ask in His name (Jn 14:13). We are heirs of God who will inherit the glory of heaven. If we have such authority, we should not hesitate to use the key of heaven while we are on the earth.

Bow your knees before Jesus’ name
People that seek other people’s help in times of hardships have idols in their hearts in most cases. Such people will be ignored by God, let alone receive His help. God warned that anyone who sets up an idol in his heart and comes to a prophet to inquire of his matters will perish, and that the prophet who is induced to speak anything to the one who inquired him will receive the same punishment (Ez 14:3-10).
God listens to the prayers of those who are humble before Jesus’ name. Hence, it will be difficult for anyone that ignores the works God commanded in Jesus’ name to receive answers to their prayers. On the contrary, those who humble bow before Jesus’ name, in other words, who diligently discharge the duties they received in Jesus’ name and faithfully use the gifts they received in Jesus’ name will certainly receive answers to their prayers.
We must not give up after asking the Lord once or twice, but keep asking until we receive His answer. For example, Daniel did not cease praying once he started until he received God’s answer. Actually, God had answered Daniel’s prayer the moment he prayed, but the devil interfered the way of the angel who was trying to deliver God’s answer to Daniel. Nevertheless, Daniel did not give up, and finally after 21 days, he received God’s answer (Dan 10:13-14). The timing for us to receive answers to our prayers is up to God. What we have to do is ceaselessly go before God in prayer until we receive His answer.
We ought to seek God first rather than rely on men whenever we encounter problems. Though we received Jesus’ name, if we do not use it, the door will remain shut. On the other hand, if we use Jesus’ name, the Lord will open the doors of heaven and provide us with all the spiritual things of heaven without measure. The Lord already gave us the key of heaven. We need to go before God every day with this key, rather than begging other people for their help and leaving the key stored away.