What Really Happened at the Cross
by Keith Axsom
When Jesus died on the cross and said it was finished, Satan was defeated and we gained eternal life. A lot of Christians are happy to think that “when we get to heaven, that’s when everything will be great. No more crying and no more tears”. Well, certainly that was a part of it
But it is really so much more! Jesus defeated Satan at the cross and won eternal life. But he also gave us everything we need in this life as well: Peace (My peace I give to you), health (by His stripes you WERE healed), wealth (He became poor that you might become rich), and success in everything you do (He has overcome the world – which means that WE have overcome the world).
The fact is that people believe on salvation, but they don’t believe what the bible says about who we are in Christ. People pray for God to heal them when he already has. Christians beg God to give them the money to pay the rent, when Psalm 112 says “wealth and riches are in our house". So many Christians simply do not believe everything that transpired at the cross. When Jesus died he removed the curse (Galatians 3:13) and blessed us with the blessing of Abraham. Abraham was blessed in every way – and his blessing is ours! No curse can light on us or stand against us.
Why do so many Christians lead substandard lives? Two reasons: 1) a lack of knowledge about what the bible really says. 2) they will not resist the devil. Christians, by and large, will believe what they are taught and, unfortunately, there is a lot of bad teaching out there. I was in the same boat for a long time, taught to stay away from the “name it and claim it” people. A lot of teaching says that if you are poor, that is a form of humility that is Christlike (as ifJesus was broke). So your basic Joe Christian just believes that he can be healed (if God wills it), he can prosper (if God provides) and so on. Some Christians even believe that God is blessing them somehow by “giving them” cancer – or that he is teaching them a lesson. This line of thought has become popular in religious circles. It is a spirit of dead religion – there is no life to it. We must know that God loves us – and a loving father would not make his child sick to teach him something.
To resist the devil implies an active resistance, a using of our authority as the righteousness of Christ. Many Christians will actually attribute to God the works of the devil. Again, this is dead religion. But we are to actively resist the devil and his works, then he will flee from us.
What we believe means everything. We must believe we are healed, we must believe we are prosperous. We all have enough faith (you only need a mustard seed of faith). But not enough of us believe. FAITH is believing what the bible says is true. BELIEF is knowing that he will do it for YOU. Many believe that God will do it for others – but not for them. This is because they don’t really feel that God loves them. They don’t feel it because they don’t believe the scriptures and they don’t spend time with God. God will never leave us or forsake us. We have to know it, and believe it. Let God be true and every man a liar!
What we want must be spoken. Faith is voice activated! God spoke the world into existence – so we also must speak “things which are not as though they are”. What we say has power – life and death are in the power of the tongue! Many Christians will just speak sickness and poverty to themselves. They don’t know the power of their words. Jesus said to “speak to the mountain”. We must speak to the problem about God, not speak to God about the problem! Our speech will get our soul to line up with our spirit. Our spirit is already perfect. Once we get our soul in line with our spirit, we can overcome our flesh, or our body. Even to get saved, one will speak with the mouth, and believe in the heart. We will have what we say we will have!
The word says that things on earth should be the way they are in heaven. Is there sickness in heaven? Is there poverty in heaven? Since God said it we ought to believe it! God is not doing any new things. He is not healing anyone these days. The healing was done 2,000 years ago. By His stripes we WERE healed! We must take ownership of this. The devil wants to put sickness on us, and we must resist. Many Christians will point to Paul and say Paul was sick. Paul had a thorn in the flesh and was buffeted by a messenger from Satan. There are many old testament references to thorns. Paul was not sick and Jesus healed everyone he came in contact with. Jesus’s name is above every name, above cancer, above every infirmity which can be named. If we really believe what the word says then healing is our right.
What about prosperity? The spirit of dead religion says maybe we are middle class, or a little less, that godliness with contentment is great gain. The word says that we are equipped for every good work. The word says that we should prosper and be in all health. To be equipped means that when there is a need – we have funds available to meet the need! Wealth is good for that! God is pleased with the prosperity of his servant. I am talking about money, and lots of it! For us to fulfill his will, we must be very well off. Wealth is a good thing. The love of money is a bad thing. But to keep a perspective – if we are filthy, stinking rich and we are serving God – then He is blessed by that. For God to say we are prosperous and for us to agree is a humble thing. We are putting Gods word first by believing that we are prosperous.
When Jesus died on the cross and said it was finished, Satan was defeated and we gained eternal life. A lot of Christians are happy to think that “when we get to heaven, that’s when everything will be great. No more crying and no more tears”. Well, certainly that was a part of it
But it is really so much more! Jesus defeated Satan at the cross and won eternal life. But he also gave us everything we need in this life as well: Peace (My peace I give to you), health (by His stripes you WERE healed), wealth (He became poor that you might become rich), and success in everything you do (He has overcome the world – which means that WE have overcome the world).
The fact is that people believe on salvation, but they don’t believe what the bible says about who we are in Christ. People pray for God to heal them when he already has. Christians beg God to give them the money to pay the rent, when Psalm 112 says “wealth and riches are in our house". So many Christians simply do not believe everything that transpired at the cross. When Jesus died he removed the curse (Galatians 3:13) and blessed us with the blessing of Abraham. Abraham was blessed in every way – and his blessing is ours! No curse can light on us or stand against us.
Why do so many Christians lead substandard lives? Two reasons: 1) a lack of knowledge about what the bible really says. 2) they will not resist the devil. Christians, by and large, will believe what they are taught and, unfortunately, there is a lot of bad teaching out there. I was in the same boat for a long time, taught to stay away from the “name it and claim it” people. A lot of teaching says that if you are poor, that is a form of humility that is Christlike (as ifJesus was broke). So your basic Joe Christian just believes that he can be healed (if God wills it), he can prosper (if God provides) and so on. Some Christians even believe that God is blessing them somehow by “giving them” cancer – or that he is teaching them a lesson. This line of thought has become popular in religious circles. It is a spirit of dead religion – there is no life to it. We must know that God loves us – and a loving father would not make his child sick to teach him something.
To resist the devil implies an active resistance, a using of our authority as the righteousness of Christ. Many Christians will actually attribute to God the works of the devil. Again, this is dead religion. But we are to actively resist the devil and his works, then he will flee from us.
What we believe means everything. We must believe we are healed, we must believe we are prosperous. We all have enough faith (you only need a mustard seed of faith). But not enough of us believe. FAITH is believing what the bible says is true. BELIEF is knowing that he will do it for YOU. Many believe that God will do it for others – but not for them. This is because they don’t really feel that God loves them. They don’t feel it because they don’t believe the scriptures and they don’t spend time with God. God will never leave us or forsake us. We have to know it, and believe it. Let God be true and every man a liar!
What we want must be spoken. Faith is voice activated! God spoke the world into existence – so we also must speak “things which are not as though they are”. What we say has power – life and death are in the power of the tongue! Many Christians will just speak sickness and poverty to themselves. They don’t know the power of their words. Jesus said to “speak to the mountain”. We must speak to the problem about God, not speak to God about the problem! Our speech will get our soul to line up with our spirit. Our spirit is already perfect. Once we get our soul in line with our spirit, we can overcome our flesh, or our body. Even to get saved, one will speak with the mouth, and believe in the heart. We will have what we say we will have!
The word says that things on earth should be the way they are in heaven. Is there sickness in heaven? Is there poverty in heaven? Since God said it we ought to believe it! God is not doing any new things. He is not healing anyone these days. The healing was done 2,000 years ago. By His stripes we WERE healed! We must take ownership of this. The devil wants to put sickness on us, and we must resist. Many Christians will point to Paul and say Paul was sick. Paul had a thorn in the flesh and was buffeted by a messenger from Satan. There are many old testament references to thorns. Paul was not sick and Jesus healed everyone he came in contact with. Jesus’s name is above every name, above cancer, above every infirmity which can be named. If we really believe what the word says then healing is our right.
What about prosperity? The spirit of dead religion says maybe we are middle class, or a little less, that godliness with contentment is great gain. The word says that we are equipped for every good work. The word says that we should prosper and be in all health. To be equipped means that when there is a need – we have funds available to meet the need! Wealth is good for that! God is pleased with the prosperity of his servant. I am talking about money, and lots of it! For us to fulfill his will, we must be very well off. Wealth is a good thing. The love of money is a bad thing. But to keep a perspective – if we are filthy, stinking rich and we are serving God – then He is blessed by that. For God to say we are prosperous and for us to agree is a humble thing. We are putting Gods word first by believing that we are prosperous.