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CHRISTMAS SERIES
EPIKAIZO – THE SHADOW OF THE ALMIGHTY
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Luke
1:26-38 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city
of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was
Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And having come in,
the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you;
blessed are you among women!” However, when she saw him, she was troubled at
his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. Then the angel
said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb
and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and
will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the
throne of His father David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and
of His kingdom there will be no end.” Then Mary said to the angel, “How can
this be, since I do not know a man?” And the angel answered and said to her,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow
you; therefore, also, that the Holy One who is to be born will be called the
Son of God. Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her
old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. For
with God nothing will be impossible.
Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me
according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
This
morning we will consider verse 35. Then Mary said to the angel, “How can
this be, since I do not know a man?” And the angel answered and said to her,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will
overshadow you.”
The
angel Gabriel said that the virgin birth will take place when the power of the
Highest will overshadow her.
I
want you to notice he is not saying the power of the Holy Spirit but he
says the power of the Highest. For a long time I have thought that, the
power of the Holy Spirit and the power of the Highest were synonymous. However,
as I began to meditate more in this area the Lord began to show me that the
power of the Highest is another realm beyond the power of the Holy Spirit. It
will be called the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. It is still of the Holy
Spirit but it is what I call the extreme end of the scale. The greatest power
possible demonstrated by the Holy Spirit is that it touches between eternity
and the natural world. The power of the Highest will overshadow you and then
this miracle will be wrought.
We
are going to consider the word overshadow because that is the key word
to understand this kind of power that the angel Gabriel is talking about. The
word overshadow comes from the Greek word epikaizo. This Greek
word here epikaizo has been used three times in the New Testament. Every
time it is used, it refers to a special manifestation of God’s power. It is not
the ordinary level of manifestation. What is the ordinary level? It is found in
Acts 1:8, But you shall receive power when
the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in
If
God were to manifest in all His fullness, this natural world would explode. It
cannot contain or take God’s fullness. Therefore, what God does is He manifests
a certain measure of His power on this earth. Later, when our bodies are
perfected we can see God’s power in greater and greater measure in the heavenly
places in eternity. However, now when this earth is in its imperfect stage, God
only manifest a certain amount of power.
Now
that amount of power is what we are talking about. Let us say the starting
amount of power in Acts 1:8 is one volt. Let us say that the maximum voltage is
just 240 volts. Then at the point where there is 240 volts of power is where
the word overshadow with the power of the Highest takes place. In other
words, that is the point where the natural contacts the spiritual at its
highest level. That is the point that Enoch reached just before his body was
translated into heaven. The power level of Acts 1:8 is not going to translate
you. It is only going to enable you to be a witness here. However, translation
and rapture has to take place not at the one-volt level of power. It has to
take place at the 240 volts where the spiritual power is manifested so much
that it transforms you from the natural to the spiritual. Therefore, what the
angel was saying if you understand that the release of the baptism of the Holy
Spirit in Acts 1:8 is God’s power at one volts, then at the end level at the
240 volts level, the power of the Highest is going to overshadow Mary. The
overshadowing of the power of the Highest is not just that one-volt level but
it is at the 240 volts level. At this level, it is going to cause a creative
act upon Mary. Notice that the word epikaizo has been used two other
times. Both of those times are special occasions. In other words, it is far
beyond Acts 1:8
Let
me illustrate with Luke 9 where we see the transfiguration. Verses 28 and 29, Now
it came to pass, about eight days after these sayings, that He took Peter, John
and James and went up on the mountain to pray. As He prayed, the appearance of
His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening. I want you
to know that the power of God was already working. It took the power of God to
transform His robe, to transform His face so that the glory began to manifest
to His disciples. When they looked at Jesus, He did not even look like Moses
when he came down from
Verses
30-31 behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, who
appeared in glory and spoke of His decease which He was about to accomplish at
Jerusalem. Isn’t it interesting that he is talking about Jesus going from
the natural world into the spirit world? How Jesus will die on the cross and
after three days, He is going to be resurrected, overcome this natural world
with its natural laws and natural limitations and translated into the spirit
world. In verse 31 these people were appearing in glory. Therefore, it was more
than one volt. It could be two volts, three volts or about 40 volts by that
time. There was a great amount of power demonstrated that day on the mountain.
Meanwhile
verse 32 However, Peter and those with him were heavy with sleep; and when
they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men who stood with Him. Now
they saw all these glory yet there was one more level that suddenly came. While
they were talking in verse 34 While he was saying this, a cloud came and
overshadowed them. Epikaizo was taking place. They already had so
much glory. They already saw this glory on Jesus and His clothes. They saw the
glory of Moses and Elijah who were there. The glory was shining all over the
Verse
35 a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son. Hear
Him!” You could see obviously from Luke 9 that there are different degrees
of glory. However, the word epikaizo meaning overshadowed is used
for the highest manifestation of God’s glory and God’s power. That word is
interesting because that word is from two Greek words epi and kaizo. The word kaizo means to block out
something. What is a shadow? A shadow scientifically is defined as the absence
of light on a place because some opaque material has absorbed the light. Let
says right now with this light shining down, I could see a faint shadow over
there. It is my shadow. That shadow is there because my body is blocking those
light rays from touching the ground over there. In other words, there is a
cancellation or blocking of that light. When that word is used in the spiritual
world in a sense it means that when the end level the 240 volts level of the
power of the Highest manifests, it brings a “cancellation” of the natural
world. That is why before we are raptured, God is going to show that amount of glory.
There will be a cancellation of the natural world to enable the Holy Spirit to
snatch the spirit man of those called to the rapture. I believe that was what
happened to Enoch as he walked with God. As he began walking with God, he
tasted the glory of God. Day by day as he walked closer and closer with God,
the glory increased until one as he reached that 240 volts level the end degree
and he walked one more step and his body was just transformed and translated
into heaven. Every natural law became cancelled. Every natural cells became
cancelled and was replaced by spiritual cells. Every thing was transformed
because of the power of epikaizo or overshadowing that took place.
Turn
over to the book of Acts 5 where we see the third time the epikaizo manifests.
You can see here in verse 12 of Acts 5 that there was already power
demonstrated. There was already Acts 1:8 demonstrated. You will never have epikaizo
until you move into Acts 1:8 first and Acts 1:8 becomes normal with you. As you
walk with God, it is normal for you to know authority over diseases, germs,
viruses, sicknesses, and over demon power. It becomes normal for your life.
Wherever you go demons are afraid of you. You have the authority to lay hands
on the sick. It is the normal part of your life. You live in divine health and
you know God’s power upon your life. It is normal to you. However, as you
continue walking at that level and increase it, you will reach epikaizo.
In
Acts 5, they were already having a normal special demonstration of the power of
the Holy Spirit including the gifts of the Holy Spirit. In verse 12 through
the hands of the apostles, many signs and wonders were done among the people.
They were all with one accord in Solomon’s Porch. Yet none of the rest dared
join them, but the people esteemed them highly. And believers were increasingly
added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, so that they brought the
sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the
shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them.
As
many as the shadow comes upon they were healed. There was a special
demonstration in Acts 5:12. In other words, as Peter walked with God and
demonstrated the power of God, there came a time when the voltage increased and
reached 240 volts. Suddenly even before he could touch them the healing took
place. However, it became even more powerful because it reached the epikaizo
level. This is what happened. It may not have been a natural shadow. It may have been that there was such a glory
that came upon that place that literally there was demonstrated a glory and a
light greater than the sun. That manifestation did not happen after that. It
was only on that occasion. Wherever that shadow was, the natural world was
cancelled. Every natural law becomes
subjugated to the spiritual and higher law. Under that law, there can be no
sicknesses. There cannot exist any demon. There cannot exist any disharmony.
There cannot exist anything that contradict the presence of God. Now how did they
reach that level?
Firstly,
in all three incidences in Luke 9, Luke 1, and Acts 5 especially in Luke 9 and
in Acts 5 that they already were very deep in prayer. Jesus in Luke 9 was praying. As He was
praying, His countenance was transformed. As you look at the greeting to Mary
in Luke 1, Gabriel said, “Thou highly favored one.” If you examine that title
from Genesis to Revelation, you will find that it is reserved only to those who
had spent a lot of time with God. It was used of Daniel when Gabriel met him
and said, “Daniel, thou greatly beloved of God.” That greeting had the same
sense of being highly favored. So just from that greeting, you could tell that
Mary was a woman who loved God, loved to spend time with God, and loved to
pray. That harmonizes epikaizo and the ability to tap into that. The
prayer level was extremely high. Daniel spent so much time with God that God
gave him a special title, “Thou greatly beloved.” To Mary, it was “Highly
favored one.” That is the first thing. And when you begin to move into that
240-degree volt level, you notice that the natural world becomes afraid. On all
three occasions fear came. In Luke 1, it says that Mary was troubled. Mary
began reasoning to herself. Then the angel had to say, “Fear not, Mary.” Now it
was not the normal fear that you will have of natural things. However, it was a
fear because the natural world is about to be absorbed by the spiritual world.
In
Luke 9 when the three apostles, Peter, James, and John saw the glory of Jesus,
it didn’t say that they were afraid. When they saw Moses and Elijah, it did not
say that they were afraid. However, when the cloud came and they cannot see
anything they were afraid because there is something about the highest point
where the spiritual contacts the natural and the natural becomes afraid. It is
going to be cancelled, dissolved and absorbed and transformed. In Acts 5, you
could see that as they move from the point of laying hands and having signs and
wonders deeper into the powers of the Highest, the people became afraid. It was
not out of natural fear but the fear of God. At that point, where the natural
totally yield to the spiritual, you notice immediately that special
manifestation took place. However, we see the first point here - prayer is an
important avenue. I will guarantee you
that if you spend 10 to 16 hours a day for 365 days in prayer, just see what
you will get next Christmas. You may be among the epikaizo. There is
something about spending time in God that no natural program or activity can
replace. There is something about spending that time with God and letting the
glory that is on Him transform your life.
The
second thing is Mary’s response. In order to tap on that Mary said, “Behold the
handmaid of the Lord. Be it onto me according to your word.” That was total
surrender and submission. That is the second thing. A lot of people pray but
their live are submitted to God only 70 percent. So, 30 percent of their
prayers are out. Some people submit 90
percent. Their prayers are 10 percent off track. Some people submit to God a
hundred percent of their life a few seconds a year. They reached that point and
then they come out again. The things of this world grip them so they come out
of that 100% surrenderedness. Surrenderedness is not a position that is once
made. Tomorrow you will have to make that decision again. When you got more
blessings and when you have more things about this life you have to make a
choice to surrender more. Therefore, yesterday you may be surrendered but today
you may not be surrendered. However, I am talking about this. If you live a
life that is 100 percent surrendered 365 days a year not just a few seconds or
a few weeks constantly day in and day out, something is going to happen. The
epikaizo of the power of the Highest is going to happen to your life.
The
third thing that takes place is worship. Even though the presence of God has
just begun, Mary was filled with the supreme presence of God and she blessed
the Lord. When she met
Let me close by reading Ps. 91 to show you that David knew
about that place. Ps.91:1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most
High.
Those three things will bring you into the secret place. He
will not overshadow you first and then you enter the secret place. You must
enter the secret place and remain there then He will overshadow you. The key
into that secret place was given by Mary - constant in prayer, constant in
surrender, constant in worship. David
had all those three things. He fell a few times but he always returned to God.
He was a person who sought God. He was a man of prayer. He was a person
surrendered to God and he was a person who worships God. Moses made this
statement but it was included among David’s Psalms that he sang. You will
notice that Ps. 90 and 91 were attributed to Moses. How did Moses get that
revelation? Moses only had it for a few moments. When he said, “Lord show me
your glory,” God said, “I will hide you in the cleave of the rock. When I pass
by, I will not show you the front part of My glory. I show you the back part of
My glory.” When Moses saw that glory, epikaizo
was taking place. My friends, if epikaizo takes place in your life, your
very skin will be transformed.
John G.
Lake
He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall
abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Verse 4 He shall cover you with His feathers. And under
His wings you shall take refuge. Therefore, understand the blessing of epikaizo
this Christmas and even as we worship God and bless one another and fellowship
together may we remember that it was all made possible because one woman called
Mary was yielded enough to allow epikaizo to take place. Every time you
talk about creative miracles and the growing of new limbs, you are talking
about epikaizo the creative highest power of God. The spiritual creates
the natural. The natural is dissolved by the spiritual.
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