One of the main reasons Christians don’t walk in a greater measure of power and authority is because we live in ignorance of what God has done for us through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Many of us cry out asking God for increased power and favor because we don’t see ourselves as carriers of the resurrection power of Jesus!
One of the reasons we do this is because we don’t see into the invisible world called the spirit realm. My goal in this article is to teach you about the spirit realm and what God has already done for us so we can increase in faith and walk in more spiritual authority.
In Genesis 28, Jacob had a powerful encounter with God at Bethel. Bethel is the Hebrew word for house of God. When Jacob fell asleep at Bethel, he had a dream where he saw angels ascending and descending on a ladder that extended from heaven to earth. After Jacob woke up he said:
16 “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” 17 “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”
Think about this, Jacob said God was in this place and he didn’t know it. This establishes a principle that God can be working in our midst and we can’t perceive it. We need to recognize and acknowledge this before we go further. Just because we can’t perceive Him, doesn’t mean God isn’t in our midst. In verse 17, Jacob then said this house of God is the gate of heaven.
A gate is a transitional place that permits passage from one realm to another. In this story, the Bible is teaching the place where heaven and earth collide is the house of God. Many think a house of God is a church building and while that is not wrong, it’s an incomplete definition. In a number of passages in the New Testament, God refers to Christians as the house of God (examples include 1 Corinthians 6:19, Hebrews 3:6, 1 Peter 2:4-5).
Jesus referenced the story about Jacob’s ladder during His earthly ministry. He was saying the same way angels ascended and descended on that ladder, they are ascending and descending on Him.
John 1:51 “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”
We know that Jesus now sits at the right hand of God the father in the heavenly realm, but his body which is you and me lives in this earthly realm. Those who are saved are gates of heaven that angels ascend and descend upon to serve and protect (Hebrews 1:14). Psalms 24:7-9 also confirm that people are the gates the King of Glory wants to dwell within.
I’m sure someone reading this is saying, “I see what the scripture says about Christians being a transitional place where heaven and earth collide, but I don’t see it or feel it.” This is where we have to remind ourselves the spirit realm can’t always be seen or felt. Before God gave Jacob the dream about the ladder the angels traveled on, God was already in that place; Jacob just didn’t know it.
God is in us and has far more power working on our behalf than any of us are aware. We must lift up our heads because the King of glory has moved inside of us in fulness of power and begin to live life like that reality is true.
When we realize we are carriers of the kingdom of heaven we will step out and lay hands on the sick and expect them to recover because heaven is backing us. We will give lavishly because we understand heaven supplies our finances so we have no lack. When we recognize what God’s grace has already done on our behalf, we will have full assurance and confidence to step out in faith as the Holy Spirit leads.
I hope this article has both challenged and encouraged you. To learn more about the gate of heaven, check out this recent message!
