TWFJ SERIES 1 - 2. GOD's STORY

DO NOT MISS OUT! 
THE WATERFALL JOURNEY IS THE FATHER'S HEART.            BEGIN AT THE BEGINNING 
EPISODE 1 AND ONWARD TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE.
In this Episode: Our starting point is God's story.
 Seeing the consistent  narrative of God, from the realm that preceded Biblical times, through to end times, changes for many their whole perception of their faith. The discovery that our stories matter to God, indeed that  His story cannot be fulfilled without us because He chooses that to be so, is revealing. It makes how we travel with Him and how we approach each day of our lives important in Kingdom terms.

The Waterfall Journey is the Father's heart to bring us into the living, vibrant relationship He always intended for us. We can be restored, renewed and live in all the fullness that Jesus died to give us. Leading and guiding us on this journey back to the heart of God is the Holy Spirit's ministry, our part is being willing to travel and accept God's invitation to join Him in His story.
Are you ready for the adventure?
Check out the podcasts Series 1: 1-19 the nuts and bolts of TWFJ
Series 2:1-12 Essentials for Travellers, Series 3: Workbooks I & 2: Episodes 1-14
From Jan 2023 The Waterfall Journey the Manual of discipleship will be available on Amazon.
Plus check out The Waterfall Journey channel on YouTube.
Contact on us thewaterfalljourney.podcasts@gmail.com

The Waterfall Journey is the Father's heart to bring us into the living, vibrant relationship He always intended for us. We can be restored, renewed and live in all the fullness that Jesus died to give us. Leading and guiding us on this journey back to the heart of God is the Holy Spirit's ministry, our part is being willing to travel and accept God's invitation to join Him in His story.
Are you ready for the adventure?
Check out the podcasts Series 1: 1-19 the nuts and bolts of TWFJ
Series 2:1-12 Essentials for Travellers, Series 3: Workbooks I & 2:1-onward.
From Jan 2023 The Waterfall Journey the Manual of discipleship will be available on Amazon.
Plus check out The Waterfall Journey channel on YouTube.
Contact on us thewaterfalljourney.podcasts@gmail.com

Transcript

THE WATERFALL JOURNEY                                                     

EPISODE 2. GOD’s STORY

WE begin TWFJ by looking at the Biblical context and we start with God’s Story

The Bible does not tell the whole of God’s story – it is MORE the book of God’s relationship with his people.

We do not know a lot about God’s story before the Bible began but we do know God and it is His character that is the engine that drives the story.   

God’s essence was then, as it is now, LOVE.

            There was a heavenly kingdom characterised by the HARMONY 

            flowing out from the Trinity and enjoying all the fullness and delight                                                   that relationships with Father, Son and Holy Spirit bring.

              It was peopled by angelic beings. 

            There was a hierarchy with angels and archangels but

IN THE FIRST SUBPLOT OF GOD’S STORY Lucifer, a favoured archangel, 

            led a rebellion bringing discord to that realm. 

            It was his pride and ambition which led him to want the power that he saw in the            Godhead.        As we learn in Isaiah 14: 12-14

                        How far you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn!You                     have been cast down to the earth 

                        You who once laid low the nations! 

                        You said in your heart, 

‘                       I will ascend to heaven;

                        I will raise up my throne above the stars of God;

                        I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, On the utmost heights of                                                                            the sacred mountains.

                        I will ascend above the tops of the clouds;

                      I will make myself like the Most High.’                                                             

The contrast between Lucifer’s five declarations of “I will ...” 

and the attitude of Jesus when tempted by the devil at the start of His ministry is stark.

 FOR EXAMPLE in Luke 4: 5-8 Jesus will not encroach into the area of His Father’s authority 

 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms           of the world. And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor;                     It has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. If you worship me,               it will all be yours.”

            Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”

            Lucifer was driven by his own selfish ends,

            full of pride wanted position and power. 

            Jesus had his mind on the higher purposes of the Trinity:                                        

The rebellion in heaven led to a battle and 

            the defeat and banishment of the rebels. WE read in Revelation 12:7-9

                        And there was war in heaven. 

                        Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and the dragon and his                          angels fought back.

                        But he was not strong enough and they lost their place in heaven. 

                        The great dragon was hurled down - that ancient serpent called the devil or                      Satan, who leads the whole world astray.

                        He was hurled to the earth and his angels with him.                                                         

So Satan and his minions were now upon earth, ejected from God’s holy presence and determined to despoil all that God held dear. 

In the meantime THE SECOND SUB PLOT of God’s story takes centre stage

            Because God is love and it is the nature of love that it has to be shared with others, 

            a new plan was coming to fruition. 

            As the Bible begins God has created a world of order and beauty for a family bearing       His own image and He places them into a particular setting that will provide for them and bless them.  

Genesis is where the two subplots collide.  

Satan and the rebel angels were roaming the earth having been evicted from heaven and God had placed His children, Adam and Eve, within the very specific boundaries of Eden. 

To them He now gave a commission to carry out on His behalf: 

            God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the                 earth and subdue it.”Genesis 1:28  

The children of light were destined 

when the race grew in numbers 

to move out beyond the borders of Eden and 

subdue the dark forces of Satan and the rest of the fallen angels that roamed the earth. 

THE DEVIL’S PLAN – THE FALL

However, there are always setbacks in stories and the devil engineered one for Adam and Eve.

Satan wanted to spoil God’s plans and for the second time his strategy was to ferment rebellion and dissatisfaction in others by causing Adam and Eve to doubt God’s goodness. 

God had given His children free will for He longed for them to choose to trust Him, not that they should be required like robots to obey a protocol. 

            So they disobeyed God’s one prohibition, 

            not to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil 

            and sin came into the world fracturing relationships and trust. 

This rebellion too ended with an expulsion as Adam and Eve were put out of Eden, no longer able to remain in God’s holy presence.

            God clothed them with skins and 

            set a guard at the gate of Eden 

            that they should not be tempted by the Tree of Life, 

            as eternal life in their fallen state would have been purgatory for all time. 

Now mankind, the devil and his minions all inhabited earth together. 

            The devil’s aim was to distort the image of God in His children                                            as the effects of living in a world of broken relationships, 

            with evil rampant, 

            destroyed the harmony and love of God’s intention.  

THE RESCUE PLAN  

Nevertheless, like all good stories where there is jeopardy, there is rescue.

            The Bible is the story of God’s desire and plan to free His people. 

            The rescue plan unfolds through the Old Testament times. 

            God did not give up on mankind. 

            He chose a nation through which He would work.

 He chose ordinary people touched by the Holy Spirit to move His purposes forward,                 to prepare the way for Jesus, the Son of God 

            who would pay the price to redeem the lost. 

It is the Cross and our cleansing by the blood of Jesus, through the forgiveness of our sins, that gives us the way back to enjoy the fullness of the relationship with the Father which was lost to us in the Fall. 

CHOOSE WHOM YOU SERVE

Since Jesus won the victory over the devil on the Cross

we have the choice about whom we choose to serve. 

We can choose to live under the Lordship of Christ or we live under the devil’s bondage. 

As Christians living in the fallen world we can be pulled in both directions.

            There can be no doubt that evil is escalating in the world and 

            that the devil is active in promoting his worldview 

            where greed, envy, violence and hatred hold sway. 

However, I can choose where I stand to live my life. Understanding this amazed me. 

I choose to live under the authority of Jesus, where Kingdom values rule, where I am aligned to the will and purposes of God. 

For most Christians, they will sing and believe that Jesus is Lord on a Sunday morning but by the afternoon the pressures of life in the world have taken over. 

They sing of the majesty of God in their worship but in the afternoon they doubt whether He can aid them in their plans to survive. 

            They know the character of God is about love and trust 

            but they are not sure it includes them or 

            how to experience Him in their own lives. 

As we move towards the end times, what we do makes a difference in Kingdom terms as to when Jesus returns

            BECAUSE God has chosen to use mankind as the army to fight the last battle 

            and to be the bride of Christ.

            Much has to happen to change the church into both a battle-ready force 

            and a spotless bride before then. 

            At present much of the army of God is in sickbay, too wounded,     

            tired or burnt out to bear arms and 

            not knowing how to operate under the command of its General.   

How will we be ready? 

By each of us embarking on our own Waterfall Journey into true discipleship

             and as mature followers, living in the freedom of all Jesus died to restore to us 

            and by following where He leads. 

The climax of God’s story is the final overthrow and rout of the devil after which “every knee shall bow” to the Lordship of Jesus. This heralds in the “new heaven and new earth” where we will enjoy life in its fullness as God’s children, in chapters yet to be revealed 

Having this overview of God’s story helps us see that what happens day-by-dayin our lives has relevance.Each day we can be advancing God’s purposes if we are journeying under Christ’s direction. 

This is a co-operative venture between God and His children because He chooses for it to be so. The Waterfall Journey is significant for God’s story because it is about how we respond to His invitation to be part of His higher purposes. 

WHAT IS YOUR RESPONSE?

Will you accept God’s invitation to bring your story into His?

            As individuals, our journey to restoration and growth 

            into our full potential and gifting matters 

            to the fulfilment of God’s purposes. 

            For us to play our full part in the story, 

            we must know God’s perspectives and be aligned with them. 

Fulfilling our purpose has a direct bearing 

on when the return of Jesus will take place and 

As we journey, our relationship to the Father 

will blossom into all it was intended to be.