Derech, The Way - David Mitts

Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. (John 14:6)

The anointing of God is the power of God to manifest the will of God.  This is what Scripture calls the “Christ”.  Yeshua is the Christ, the anointed one.  He operates with the mind of God and thus reveals the will of God.  God’s thoughts and will are the same.  He is One.

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! (Deut 6:4)

The declaration of the Sh’ma is the revelation of oneness but also the recognition that oneness and Lordship come through the way we listen.

Listen to "Derech, The Way"

If we return to our parable of the sower and the seed, we see that the heart conditions that produce various outcomes are ALL linked to listening.

"Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. (Mar 4:3). Why does Yeshua begin with a command: “listen”?  There is a connection between how we listen and what we believe.  Trust is the atmosphere of listening with an open spirit to receive the Words of Life.

And He said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that 'SEEING THEY MAY SEE AND NOT PERCEIVE, AND HEARING THEY MAY HEAR AND NOT UNDERSTAND; LEST THEY SHOULD TURN, AND THEIR SINS BE FORGIVEN THEM.' “(Mar 4:11-12).  Parables, stories are a way to engage the imagination to communicate what is being resisted because of a lack of trust. Listening is an act of surrender.

The key to walking out our destiny is in how we listen, see and understand what we hear and see.  This is the realm of training and exercise.  We develop those aspects of our spiritual life that we exercise.   Look with me at 1 Timothy 4:7-8

But reject profane and old wives' fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come. (1Ti 4:7-8).

The promise of the “life that now is and is to come” is a way of speaking of our destiny.  The key is exercises that develop “godliness”.

What is godliness?  Godliness is at its most fundamental reality living a life that is sourced out of God, His way of thinking, and ultimately His way of Being.

What is His way of being?  Well Yeshua said, I am the way.  In Hebrew, the word for way is Derech. When we speak of a way, we speak of several things.

1. The path we take, i.e. the road we are on to a destination
1. Now the angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur. (Gen 16:7)
2. The literal footsteps of someone we are following
1. The LORD was going before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead them on the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. (Ex 13:21)
3. The quality of life of someone else, their “way”
1. "Now therefore, I pray You, if I have found favor in Your sight, let me know Your ways that I may know You, so that I may find favor in Your sight. Consider too, that this nation is Your people." (Ex 33:13)

This last meaning conveys the life of the anointing.  When Yeshua said I am the way, He meant that He would show the “way” to the Father.  In this context, “the way” becomes a living expression of the mind and heart of the Lord.  This is known in scripture by various metaphors.

1. Abiding:
1. "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they  are burned. "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. "My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. "Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. (Joh 15:4-10)
2. Abiding is a picture of the Way of the Lord.  Staying in a house is different than abiding.  Abiding means including your heart with the heart of the home.  It is a covenant picture.
2. One-ness
1. "I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are. "While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled. "But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves. "I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. "I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. "They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. "Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. "As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. "For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth. "I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me. (Joh 17:11-21)
1. One-ness, or echad is the place of intimate knowing of the “ways” of another.  You absorb the character, thoughts and inclinations to where you “are” as they are.

This is the place where the Torah is written on the heart.  The Word has become flesh in this place. This is first love.

Yeshua is the way.  He is the One who when we give our hearts fully teaches us His ways.

There is an interesting scripture I want to look at in the book of Proverbs, chapter 30, verses 18-19:

Three things are beyond me; four I can't understand: the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a snake on a rock, the way of a ship at sea, and the way of a man with a young woman. (Pro 30:18-19).

The eagle in the sky is fulfilling its purpose. The snake on a rock is similar as is the ship.  So the way of a man with a young woman becomes part of the oneness of purpose. As this is true and we are the Bride, the Young woman, in the metaphor, then our oneness with our groom becomes the fulfillment of mystery.  

This is how we become one with Him. Let’s then begin to look at what His Way is.

After Yeshua came out of the waters of mikvah or baptism in the Jordan, the scripture tells us He was led into the wilderness to be tempted of the Devil.  Temptation reveals the Way of a person.

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil. After He had fasted 40 days and 40 nights, He was hungry. Then the tempter approached Him and said, "If You are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." But He answered, "It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word, that comes from the mouth of God." Then the Devil took Him to the holy city, had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: He will give His angels orders concerning you, and they will support you with their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone." Jesus told him, "It is also written: Do not test the Lord your God." Again, the Devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. And he said to Him, "I will give You all these things if You will fall down and worship me." Then Jesus told him, "Go away, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only Him." Then the Devil left Him, and immediately angels came and began to serve Him. (Mat 4:1-11)

Now, it should be clear to anyone who has been born again, that this “temptation” of Yeshua was not just for Him, but for us to learn His way.  He was tempted for sure but we also know that He and the Father are one and always were one and always will be one.  No, I believe this temptation which is recorded in the Gospels is there to show us His Way.

First, we see Him tempted around provision.  The Devil never questions His ability.  Rather he assumes the ability and then tempts the use of the ability.  Clearly Yeshua can turn the stones to bread.  This is a parallel to your or my talents and gifts.  Clearly, we can use them to get what we want.  The Devil, as the spokesperson of the world’s system whispers to us in our wilderness, go ahead child of God, get all you can, be your best, succeed!  Now, I’m not saying you shouldn’t be your best and succeed but the temptation that will affect us becoming one is doing what we do out of our own inner voice versus the voice of the Lord.

Notice Yeshua was hungry.  The inner voice of hunger or lack is a strong voice.  It speaks with the authority of need.  It drives a panic into our being and we feel like we have to make choices.  In our culture, we are results driven.  We want to possess the fruit on the tree.  We want to prove our worth by the fruit.  We even evaluate fruit by the trappings of success, even though the scripture tells us the fruits are patience, kindness, peace, love, gentleness and joy.  We want to command the stones to become bread.  Yet Yeshua speaks to that temptation and says true bread, true provision comes from the Voice.  If He is the Way, the Derech, then it is by the Voice and His leading.

Second the Devil tempts us with the spectacular. Yeshua throwing Himself off the pinnacle of the Temple and having Angels rescue Him would have been spectacular.  It would have been supernatural entertainment at its best.  The anointing of God would have been used to put the glitz and glamour on Him.  It would have tested or exposed God in Him.   Why is this a problem? Because even though Yeshua did perform many miracles, they were never about promoting Him.  This is one of Satan’s traps in the true anointing, to use the anointing to impress.  Yeshua did have the authority that the angels would have protected Him, but He knew that His mission wasn’t to be spectacular but to show love.

The temptation of all our spectacular technology is to be enamored with our capabilities.  We trade the anointing of God for the glitz of sound systems and lighting, large audiences with huge video screens. We also put ourselves on pinnacles and fall expecting God to bail us out.  This temptation is a huge one.  You see the scripture Satan quoted was true.

For He will give His angels orders concerning you, to protect you in all your ways. (Psa 91:11)

Because it is true it is a principle of the spirit realm.  There are angels and they will protect.  Yet when we put ourselves into the spectacular need, we have placed ourselves in the position of testing God.  If we are going to walk in His Way, we need to operate with meekness.  He will protect us and direct us to amazing things but it will be of His origin, not our desires.

Thirdly, the Devil wants Yeshua, and us to step into ruling the world.  Satan is the ruler of a world system.  He will give us success and authority in the world’s system if we will but worship that system.  We don’t have to bow down and worship him.  What we must do is first rely on his system and then glorify that system.  There is nothing more valuable to Satan than a minister or a Believer who succeeds the world’s ways and then put’s God’s name on that success.  

What are Satan’s ways? John 10:10. A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance. (Joh 10:10)

You see it doesn’t just matter what happens in our lives but also the WAY it happens.

Activation:

Read Psalm 37:5

Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will act, (Psa 37:5)

Think of these 3 areas of the Way of Yeshua:

1. Provision
2. Spectacular-need for attention
3. Ruling, Authority

Now, press in and ask the Lord to show you any lies you believe in these 3 areas.  Where have you listened and believed the whispers of Satan?  Now ask Him to speak the truth.