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There is a progression in the spiritual life. There is
justification, receiving the forgiveness of sin, sanctification, the
law of the spirit of life setting us free from the law of sin and
death, the baptism of the Holy Spirit, evidenced by utterance, and then
the power. The principle in the Bible that makes all this happen
is faith, the substance of things hoped for the evidence of
things not seen. The word substance in the Bible is the word hypostasis, to undergird and make stable or stationary. From this we get the idea of steadfast, immovable, confident, stable, certain, foundational, and unwavering. However, in Hebrews 1:3 hypostasis is used to suggest that Jesus was press down or condensed as the express image of the Father. Like water is condensed from the atmosphere in the room, Jesus was slowed down and brought together and condensed. What was eternal in heaven became real on earth. With this aspect of faith in mind, we can condense all the promises of the scripture, what exists in heaven being made real on earth through faith. Once we go through the process of justification, sanctification, and the baptism of the Holy Spirit, what is necessary is to exercise our faith to apprehend what has been apprehended of us. As we do this we grow in grace and truth and all of the promises of God become ours. Amen |