To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Isaiah 61:3, KJV
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Open doors that lead to strongholds from heaviness.
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1. Unnatural sorrow.
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2. Wounded spirit
A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: But by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.
Proverbs 15:13 KJV
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The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; But a wounded spirit who ban bear?
Proverbs 18:14 KJV
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3. Angered soul
Be not hasty in thy sprit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.
Ecclesiastes 7:9 KJV
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Anger doesn’t come out of nowhere.
* Response to sorrow and wounds.
* Sits in our subconscious.
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And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. 56 For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.
Luke 9:53-56 KJV
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The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
Isaiah 61:1-2 KJV
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Anointing breaks the yoke of (strongholds) of heaviness (broken hearted,, captives, bound).
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Jesus healed those who mourned.
* Widow’s son at the gates pf Nan. (Luke 7:11-15)
* Jairus’ 12 year old daughter. (Luke 8:41-56)
* Mary and Martha stopped mourning for their brother, Lazarus. (John 11)
* Thomas ceased doubting. (John 20)
* Jesus liberated those who were held captive.
-Legion
-Young boy possessed with demon.
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Jesus appointed exchange to those who mourn.
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To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Isaiah 61:3, KJV
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“Beauty for ashes” _Body_
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“Oil of joy for mourning” _Soul_
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“The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness” _Spirit_
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The exchange:
1. Put off the old for the new.
* Jesus is the joy bringer/exchanger because He is the redeemer.
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* Jesus transforms sorrow because He transforms the mourner.
“Called trees of righteousness”
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* Jesus gives joy after sorrow.
Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world. And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.
John 16:20-22 KJV
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2. Put on the new to put off the old.
“The garment of praise”
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The garment of praise is not a cover-up of heaviness but it is THE garment that protects and drives away a heavy spirit.
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The garment of praise is a spiritual mantle designed by God to replace the spirit of heaviness.
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3. There is a price paid for the exchange of transformation.
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Garden of Eden
++Temporal relief “exchanged for” Sacred relief.
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Garden of Gethsemane
++Spirit of heaviness “exchanged for” garment of praise.
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Garden of Paradise
++imperfection “exchanged for” perfection.
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After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!” Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes- who are they, and where did they come from? And I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb. Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them,’ nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’
Revelation 7:9-17 NIV
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Here’s what Isaiah 61:3 is saying to us today:
“My child of sorrow and wounded spirit, I have given you beauty to shine, anointing of oil to have real, lasting joy and a new garment- the garment of praise.
++Put it on let’s celebrate.
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Communion
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By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.
Hebrews 13:15 KJV
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* Our praise is not based on our opinion of God’s performance but a choice to praise Him in the storms, an act of the will to lay our all on the alter.
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*The “sacrifice of praise” always comes from a humble broken heart.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: A broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
Psalm 51:17 KJV