Category Archives: Manifested

Bible, Manifested, Messiah, Prophecy, Revelation, Righteousness, Salvation, Scripture

MANIFESTED RIGHTEOUSNESS

ROMANS 3:21

“But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,”

Have you ever witnessed an incredible sunrise? I love sunrises. I am usually out walking in the mornings as the sun rises, so I get to see a lot of them. Now, I know the sun is going to rise. I expect it to rise in the eastern sky, but I can’t make it appear. No amount of begging and cajoling will make it appear one second sooner than it’s supposed to appear. But when it does appear and blows up the sky with the colors of the day, it has manifested what I knew to be true all along – that it would appear.

Oh, listen! That is what Paul is saying in today’s verse as he prepares us for the next couple of verses. He says God’s righteousness “has been revealed.” The Greek word there is phaneroó, meaning to “make manifest, show.” It’s in the Perfect tense which means it happened at a time in the past but has lasting results. Don’t miss that. God did this back then so that we could see it today. Wow! We are so blessed to see that even now in the 21st century.

APPLICATION

All through the Law and prophets, the righteousness of God through the promise of a Messiah is talked about. I have a book on my bookshelf entitled, All the Messianic Prophecies of the Bible, by Herbert Lockyer. It shows how Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies which the Law and the prophets foretold. God chose to manifest His righteousness through His Son, Jesus Christ.

Jesus was always the Father’s plan for us. As mentioned in an earlier blog, the law wasn’t plan A that failed thus rendering Jesus’ death as a backup plan. No, God laid out in Scripture our need for a Savior, One Who was and is worthy of our praise. Jesus’ righteousness became our available righteousness when He died and rose again. All we have to do is claim that and follow Him.

That’s where the problem is. We want the salvation and the righteousness without the obedience. Christ’s righteousness may be free, but it’s not cheap. It will cost you everything. You have to abandon your old way of thinking and living and strive to live holy before Him. You can never “earn” this righteousness. It is truly freely given. But you do have to surrender to His will. I read the other day a quote by Spurgeon which said, “When you make His will your will, you will always get your will.” Try it.

Father God, I praise You for the manifestation of Your righteousness through Jesus Christ, Your Son.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Bible, Excuses, Gospel, Manifested, Revelation, Salvation, Scripture

WITHOUT EXCUSE

ROMANS 1:20

“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, being understood by what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”

There have been a few times in my life when I have been without excuse. One was the time I told my wife to “shut up.” There is never an excuse for that, and I apologized profusely. Another time was forgetting to send a group of children to a children’s camp. No excuse, just forgot the date. I could go on, but I am sure you have your own “without excuse” moments. But there is one moment in your life you do not want to be without excuse. Let’s look at today’s verse.

Paul says in verse 20 that no one, not even the person who has never heard the Gospel, has an excuse to not believe in God. He says God’s “eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived.” As I have mentioned in a recent blog, God isn’t trying to hide Himself. He wants to be seen by us. He wants us to hear His voice. Even in the deepest, darkest jungles God is revealing Himself.

APPLICATION

HELPS Word studies defines the Greek word translated as “without excuse” this way. “(anapológētos) comes from ‘alpha privative’ (a/‘not’) and apologeomai (‘to defend, excuse’). It ‘occurs in documents from the second century before Christ. Frequently it describes the hopelessness of trying to defend a case in court, while lacking an adequate defense.” The word is only used here and later in Romans 2:1 (which we will see later).

In Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary, he writes, “Our Creator’s invisible power and Godhead are so clearly shown in the works he has made, that even idolaters and wicked Gentiles are left without excuse. They foolishly followed idolatry; and rational creatures changed the worship of the glorious Creator, for that of brutes, reptiles, and senseless images. They wandered from God, till all traces of true religion must have been lost, had not the revelation of the gospel prevented it.”

Therefore, we have no excuse for not sharing the Gospel with these lost and eternally dying individuals. That’s why we send missionaries to the remotest parts of the world. I heard recently that approximately 4.5 billion people are lost. Of that 2.25 billion have never heard the Gospel. To put that in perspective, if you lined up that group five people across and three feet apart, they would circle the globe five times. All of them are marching to hell. We are “without excuse.” We must share to as many as quickly as we can.

Lord, give me opportunities today to share the Gospel with someone who needs to hear about salvation through Your Son, Jesus.  

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Bible, Evidence, Holy Spirit, Manifested, Revelation, Scripture

UNDENIABLE EVIDENCE

ROMANS 1:19

“because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.”

I don’t normally suggest books to you (other than the Bible), but today’s verse sparked my recollection of two books that you may find worthy of reading. “Evidence that Demands a Verdict” by Josh McDowell and “The Case for Christ” by Lee Strobel are both great books that take a look at the reason why we should believe in Jesus and follow Him. If you haven’t read these Christian classics, I suggest you grab a copy of each and read them along with the Word.

Strong’s describes this knowledge of God being made evident this way. “Phaneroó portrays the active unveiling of what would otherwise remain unseen. Whether the subject is divine glory, hidden motives, or future destiny, the verb marks the moment when something steps from concealment into the light.” Don’t you just love that? Paul is saying in today’s verse that God is not trying to hide Himself. He openly manifests Himself to those who are searching.

APPLICATION

Are you searching? Isaiah 55:6 says, “Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.” What an invitation! This word phaneroó is used in John 21:1 when it talks about Jesus revealing Himself to His disciples after His resurrection. I bet Jesus was just giddy to see them again. He had spent so much time with them over the previous three years. He knew them well. He wanted to manifest Himself again to them before He ascended to heaven.

Jesus wants to manifest Himself to us. He does this through the gift of His Holy Spirit. We have the privilege of being able to walk with Him every day in the light of His presence. He has removed the concealment. Jesus is an open book for us. Don’t you believe that? How has He shown Himself to you lately? I see it just about every morning when I walk and see the sunrise.

Check out these verses from Paul in 2 Corinthians 4. “10 always carrying around in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11 For we who live are constantly being handed over to death because of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our mortal flesh.” That’s what Paul is taking about in today’s verse! God reveals Himself to us and through us. Be His windowpane today.

Lord, let others see You in me.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

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Bible, Manifested, Revelation, Scripture, Testimony

REVEALED TO US

COLOSSIANS 1:26

“that is, the mystery which had been hidden from the past ages and generations, but now has been revealed to His saints,” 

Seeing something for the first time that you previously could not see is a pretty awesome thing. Take for example the upcoming alignment of the planets in a couple of weeks. We will be able to see several of the planets lined up with the moon. This occurs every so often as these planets circle the sun along with us on the earth. What was not visible becomes visible. Pretty cool.

God has revealed something to us that is far more amazing. He has revealed the mystery of salvation to us through His Son, Jesus. The Greek word for “revealed” is the verb phaneroó which is used in the New Testament to describe the act of making something visible or known that was previously hidden or not apparent. Before Christ we had no clue. Christ essentially takes off our blinders to reveal the glory of the gospel.

APPLICATION

I love how John the Baptist uses the word in John 1:29-31. “29 The next day he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is He in behalf of whom I said, “After me is coming a Man who has proved to be my superior, because He existed before me.” 31 And I did not recognize Him, but so that He would be revealed to Israel, I came baptizing in water.’” 

Not only does God reveal the gospel to us, He also reveals Himself to us through His Son. We know God because Jesus is God. When we accept the Son, we accept the Father and the Spirit. They are One. We can’t have one of the One without having all of the One. Did I lose you? Just know that God reveals Himself to us fully through Jesus.

Now, you are expected to reveal Him to others. How? By revealing what He has done in and through you. If you are a believer, you have a story to tell. You don’t need some drastic conversion story. Just tell your story. Reveal Jesus to others through your testimony and through your life. Let Jesus do all the talking.

Lord, thank You for revealing Yourself to me through Jesus. Help me continue that revelation to others.

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Bible, Enlighten, Light, Manifested, Scripture, Visible

THE VISIBLE LIGHT

EPHESIANS 5:13

“But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light.”

Have you ever been a room when the sunlight beamed through the window? Maybe it was coming through the window blinds. When it did, you could see rows of light in the room. It would almost seem you could reach out and touch them. Wouldn’t it be great if you could reach out, grab them and fold them up to use later? That would be way cool. Light changes things. It shows whatever it touches.

Paul uses a pretty common word in this verse by “visible.” It’s the Greek word “phaneróō (from phṓs, ‘light’) illumine, make manifest (visible); (figuratively) make plain, in open view; to become apparent (‘graspable’).” (HELPS Word Studies) Paul is telling us that everything will become visible one day. God’s light exposes the darkness. We cannot hide one single thing from His beam of brightness.

APPLICATION

Have you ever wondered why bars and nightclubs are so dark? People don’t want deeds of darkness exposed. Look at 1 John 3:2 where we find phaneroo used again. “Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.” When Jesus becomes visible to us again in His second coming, we will “appear” like Him. Wow!

John used this word nine times in his first letter (1 John). In 1 John 4:9, he says, “By this the love of God was revealed in us, that God has sent His only Son into the world so that we may live through Him.” God’s light and His love is made visible in us. We are the light and love of God to a lost and dying world.

One more example – Colossians 3:4 says, “When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.” Now, that’s shouting ground! We will be revealed with Him in glory. What was made visible in us will be eternal. Hallelujah, praise the Lamb!

Father, let Your light shine through me making visible Your love to others.

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Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Encouragement, Faith, God's Will, Gospel, Light, Love, Manifested, Mentoring, Parenting, Salvation, Satan, Scripture

ILLUMINATED

1 JOHN 4:9

“By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.”

How many of you have a nativity scene you set up outside? We had one growing up that I loved. It was life size and was lit up with spotlights. We even had an angel hanging on wire above the manger. It was so cool. I always loved it.

But my aunt and uncle had one that was lit from the inside. It had this awesome glow. Don’t get me wrong. I loved ours more. But their nativity had this awesome look because it was glowing instead of being lit from the outside. Hmmm, that sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

APPLICATION

The word “manifested” means to illuminate, to make known, to make plain in open view. Try this with your kids. Get some candles and light them. Cover them with different things like a box, a flowerpot and a glass. Let them tell you which candle can be seen. Of course, the only one is through the glass. The others are covered up.

Talk about the verse. God’s love is illuminated through us when we accept His Son as our Savior. John even partially quotes John 3:16, which he wrote. John knew Jesus personally. He knew He had been sent by His Father to indwell us. Our kids need to understand that. Jesus was sent to save us from ourselves, from our sins, from the world, from Satan. And when He lives in us, His light will shine. Our job is to get out of the way and let it shine.

Are you shining for Him? Are you letting His light illuminate your life? He wants you to shine for Him by loving others. Why? Because He sent His Son for us. If Jesus lives in you, you have the light of the world in you. Isn’t that amazing? Why wouldn’t you let the light shine through your love for others?

Lord, I praise You for illuminating me. You have given me the ability to love others. Help me do that daily.

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