1 O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. 2 Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. 3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; 4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? 5 For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. 6 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: 7 All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; 8 The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. Ps 8:1-8
We started this series with the coming of Christ and how certain it is. We considered the various stages of His coming with scriptural prophecies and their fulfillment. We also talked about why Christ must return in the second sequel. Thirdly, we spoke about the misconstrued scriptures that are leading to doubt about the return of Christ. Today, as we feast around the Lord’s table, we turn our attention back to a foundational truth of our faith: Why Christ Must Return, subtitling this message: The Power of the World to Come. If the prophecies concerning Christ’s first coming were certainly fulfilled, then the prophecies concerning His second coming will also certainly be fulfilled. Having previously examined the reasons for His return and addressed controversial scriptures, we now seek to stir our minds regarding the magnificent destiny awaiting man—the power yet to be attained.
Man: God’s Highest Creation (Psalms 8)
We begin with the awe and wonder expressed by David in Psalms 8. When considering the mightiness of God’s creation—the heavens, the moon, and the stars—David poses a profound question: “What is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou visitest him?”
Man is special. Of all of God’s creations, man is the only one made in the image and likeness of God. Man is God’s highest creation, and that includes the angels. Yet, David was amazed that such a mighty God would concern Himself with a fleeting creature whose breath is temporary, returning to the dust from which he was made.
The Holy Spirit, speaking through David in Psalms 8:5, explains man’s current status and his future potential. Man’s experience is divided into two major events, separated by the word “and”:
- He has made him a little lower than the angels.
- He has crowned him with glory and honor.
Lower Than the Angels—Death
The first phase—being made lower than the angels—is a temporary subjection to vanity. Romans 8:20 confirms that the creature was made subject to vanity “not willingly,” but against his own will, yet the subjection was done “in hope.” God had a master plan where death must always precede life. The death experience is essential because the cross must precede the crown, and the man who will judge angels must first be a man under angels.
For those who are in Christ, we must not be afraid of death, because there is nothing like death. Jesus Christ needed to die to conquer death, but what believers experience is merely sleep. Christ continually referred to death as sleep during His ministry, showing that the suffering of death is “just for a little while.”
We are given an analogy for this necessity: a tree that does not die in winter will not resurrect in summer. The tree’s sap (life) must go down to the protected trunk and root. Similarly, the Bible tells us, “Ye are dead and your life which is your sap is hid in Christ.” If your life is not dead to the world and hidden in Christ (the root and trunk), when the “sun” (resurrection) comes, there will be no life for that branch.
The Second Stage: The Power of the World to Come
The crowning with honor and glory is the second event, the ultimate destiny of man. This stage of glorification is separated from the first stage by thousands of years.
Hebrews 2 confirms that man has not yet reached his full status. Paul notes that while all things were intended to be put in subjection under man’s feet, “now we see not yet all things put under him.”
However, Jesus has achieved this twofold destiny. He was truly made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, but He has now been crowned with glory and honor. Jesus accomplished this “in bringing many sons unto glory” so that man can fulfill the twofold purpose of his creation. Jesus became a man so that He could complete the adoption of many more.
Full Adoption and the Spoken Word
The “honor and the glory” that Psalms 8 speaks of, which man is going to attain, is the power of the world to come.
Hebrews 6:6 describes those who have only tasted the heavenly gifts and “the powers of the world to come.” The power of the world to come is defined as the power of the spoken word.
Right now, we do not have full access to this power. We access power through an intermediary—Jesus Christ. When we lay hands on the sick, we say, “Be healed in the name of Jesus Christ.”
However, upon full adoption, we become co-heirs with Christ and achieve “super adoption.” This stage is what the Apostle Paul referred to as “becoming a man” in 1 Corinthians 13:11.
“For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.”
When man reaches this full adoption, he is fully known of the Father, just as Christ is known. At that point, the name of Jesus will have fulfilled its purpose as the intermediary. You will possess the power of the spoken word and will not need to say, “tree move away from there in the name of Jesus Christ.” Instead, you will simply say, “tree move away from there.” You will be a son of God, full.
God displayed this power in three distinct examples:
1. Abraham’s Provision
God displayed this power in Abraham, who is the father of the Jewish and Gentile bride. When Abraham was taking Isaac to be sacrificed, Isaac asked, “Behold the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”
Abraham responded with the power of the spoken word: “My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.”
This was not a coincidence. Though the angel stopped Abraham from slaying Isaac, the power of the spoken word took effect. Abraham had traveled many miles to a place that was not inhabited, yet a ram was found. Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah Jireh (God has provided for Himself an offering). The ram was created there by Jehovah through Abraham’s spoken word.
2. Christ’s Authority
Jesus, being a Son Himself and having full adoption, also demonstrated this power. When He spoke to the fig tree, He simply said, “Tree dry up,” without using any intermediary name.
3. William Branham’s Taste of Full Adoption
God gave William M. Branham, the prophet of restoration, a taste of the full adoption and power of the spoken word. This was necessary because when God restores man to the position he lost, that power must be restored.
- The Squirrel Incident: While hunting, the prophet felt a different anointing than his usual vision-inducing state. A voice spoke to him, distinct from the angel he usually heard, saying, “Ask what you want right now; just say it.” Challenged by the voice, he looked around and spoke the word directly, without the name of Jesus Christ: “Let there be a red-tailed squirrel” in a place where squirrels are known never to go. He specified its location and kind, and the squirrel appeared. He asked for three squirrels, and when he began to doubt after the second, the voice sternly questioned his doubt, showing that in full adoption, the mind and the mouth must be in total agreement.
- The Sister’s Deliverance: While describing the squirrel experience to ministers, a sister who was helping prepare food overheard him. She openly declared, “That is the truth.” This declaration—saying the right thing without skepticism—triggered the anointing in the prophet again. The prophet told her to ask anything she wanted. She instantly requested the salvation of her two sons, described as “sketchy human beings.” Because she spoke the right thing, the prophet declared, “I give you your son,” and those two sons immediately came and gave their lives to Christ.
God gave the prophet a taste of the spoken word’s authority.
The Path to Full Power
Today, the greatest obstacle is that our mind has not fully become the mind of Christ; it is not in full agreement with what we are saying. In the stage of full adoption, doubt is completely impossible.
We are living in the age of the power of the world to come, where we can experience a taste of this power. To attain this, we must put away childish things, clean up our lives, and dedicate ourselves to God.
The ministers sitting around the table did not get the fruit of the prophet’s experience, but the sister did because she spoke the right thing—she had no skepticism about the truth of the message.
If we can fully believe what is coming out of our mouths, like we believe we will go home tonight, that thing will happen. This desire for a taste of the power of the world to come should not be for self-glory. We have the down payment, the potential, and the name of Jesus Christ as our intermediary while we strive for full manhood and full adoption. Let us strive up by cleaning our lives and removing all skepticism so that we may experience the glory God intends for His highest creation. This taste is a direct result of unlocking something and aligning our minds with the Word, pending when we will reach full adoption and know even as we are known.