Tuesday 22 September 2015

An Open Heaven





Scripture: Luke 3 v 21 - 22

"Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from Heaven, which said, Thou art My beloved Son, in Thee I am well pleased."



Also read Isaiah 25 v 7 - 8; Daniel 10 v 12 - 14.  



When Jesus was baptized in water, as He came up out of the water, He prayed and the heaven was opened above Him and then the Holy Spirit in bodily form descended upon Him like a dove gently landing on Him. The Father's voice was heard blessing His Son. A clearer picture of the Trinity cannot be made.



A prophecy about Jesus in Isaiah 25 says He will break the covering that is over all people and the veil over all nations then wipe away every tear from their eyes. In Daniel 10 where (the pre-incarnate) Jesus appears to Daniel, He says to him that the first day Daniel started fasting for 3 weeks  He responded, but that a demonic force called "the prince of Persia" withstood me for 21 days until Michael the Archangel came to help Me break through to you. 



There is a demonic covering over the Earth aimed at blocking Jesus out! The only way through was for Him to be born on Earth as a human baby and grow into a man. When Jesus was baptized in water it broke the covering over Him so that the Holy Spirit could come in response to His prayer.



Satan fights more against water baptism than against salvation and now we know why. The heaven gets opened over us as it did when Jesus was baptized and we receive power from on high. The demonic covering is broken every time a believer gets baptized! The veil over our hearts is removed so we can understand the scriptures.



This is why Jesus said that the veil remains unbroken over the hearts of His Jewish people who have not believed that He is their Messiah and Bridegroom. John the Baptist knew and declared in John 3 v 29 that he was the friend of the Bridegroom who stood and heard Him and rejoiced greatly at the Bridegroom's voice.



The Heaven is Open is a translation of the Hebrew words Rosh Hashanah, a feast of their September New Year. I believe this is also the time of year that Jesus was born as a baby on Earth because surely the heaven would be opened for such an event as the shepherds testified while out all night with their sheep.



They saw the angelic host rejoicing in the birth of the King of Kings!! I doubt that shepherds would be out with sheep in the dead of winter in December in Israel! So that could not be the birth time of Jesus. Likewise His baptism would have taken place on Rosh Hashanah when the heaven was opened for the fullness of the Holy Spirit to arrive upon Him.



All the things John the Baptist said about Jesus were true. He said Jesus was the Lamb of God who has come to take away the sin of the world; and that Jesus was the one who would baptize us in the Holy Spirit and fire. He called Him the Bridegroom and so He is, and Israel is His Bride.



Back to Daniel and the Prince of Persia demonic force which blocked Jesus from him. A spiritual prince is a ruling spirit in high places. Persia is now called Iran but that same demon prince still hates Israel and causes the Ayatollahs who rule that nation to declare perpetual war until she is totally destroyed.



They finance and arm Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Hamas in Gaza to fire missiles at Israel. When she fires back the whole world complains!! They refuse to even recognise the existence of Israel.  The nations who reject her will be put to a perpetual shame.



So rejoice that you are a baptized believer and the heaven is open above you to receive the abundant blessings of Almighty God who sent the Holy Spirit to make Jesus Christ real to us and to give us revelation knowledge out of His Word.



Prayer: Heavenly Father we appreciate You for Your thoughts which are toward us continually for our good. You made provision for every eventuality so that the Body of Your Son Jesus (us) could be kept from harm. We must adhere to Your rescue plan for us and follow Your Word to escape harm. We love You Father and ask for wisdom to understand all things. We praise You for opening the Heavens to let Jesus in. In Jesus' name. Amen.