Miracle Family Temple

Bible Study Guide

Topic: Vision
Class 1
INTRODUCTION

The Bible states in Proverbs 29:18, _____________________________________________

All over the world there are born-again believers who are perishing. No...they are not perishing
in sin. They have accepted salvation through Jesus Christ. They attend church services, read the
Bible, and may even be leaders in the church. But they are dying spiritually. Their lives as
believers are routine. There is no spiritual excitement. They have no goal or purpose. They have
no vision.

The vision of which we speak is not what is visibly seen in a trance. It is not natural vision. It is a
spiritual vision. God is taking spiritually dead men and women and making them spiritually
alive. The vision is providing new meaning and direction for living. It is uniting the Body of
Christ, the true Church, in common purpose.
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How can “vision” be defined?

Vision is a picture of what God will do in our life if we get out of His way and turn Him loose to
do it. Steven Covey has written, “All things are created twice.” First there is the mental creation
and then the physical creation. Vision pertains to this first creation. We have to see it before we
can shape it into reality. From a Christian perspective, vision is the ability to clearly see and
articulate where God wants us to go or what God wants us to do in a given situation. Vision is
the bridge between present and future reality
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The English word “vision” comes from the Latin videre which means “to see.”
A. The word “vision” means several things in modern language.
1. The faculty of sight in the human body
2. The act or power of seeing
B. The word “vision” means something unique when it comes to leadership.
1. Unusual competence in discernment or perception
2. Intelligent foresight
C. The word “vision” has a prophetic aspect to it.
1. A supernatural revelation to the mind of man
2. Something seen in a dream, trance, or ecstasy

WHAT IS SPIRITUAL VISION

Spiritual vision involves seeing beyond the natural world into the spiritual world. It is
understanding the divine purpose of God and recognizing your part in His plan.

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WHY SPIRITUAL VISION?
Why is spiritual vision necessary? Why do people perish without it?
The answer is found in one of many Biblical examples of spiritual vision. Read the story of the
Prophet Elisha and his servant, Gehazi in II Kings 6:15-17.

God's people, Israel, were surrounded by the enemy nation of Syria. There were many soldiers,
horses, and chariots of war. When Elisha's servant, Gehazi, saw the great force of the enemy he
was afraid. He cried out to Elisha, "What shall we do?" Elisha told him:
____________________________________________________________ (II Kings 6:16)

THE BIRTH OF A VISION

God wants to give you a spiritual vision just as He did to Paul. God also wants to reveal the
purposes and objectives which will enable you to fulfill the vision. As you experience the "birth
of a vision" you will become a participator instead of a mere spectator in God's divine plan.

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DEVELOPMENT:
When you first receive a spiritual vision, it is in "embryo" form. An embryo is a basic cell of life.
Just like the development of the human embryo, God develops your spiritual vision as you grow
in Him.
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CONCEPTION:
"Conception" means to create. A spiritual vision is created in your spirit by God.
When God gave Paul spiritual vision He identified the source. He said,______________ "I am
Jesus" (Acts 26:15). God conceived Paul's vision.
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TRAVAIL:
Ecclesiastes 5:3 states:
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The meaning of the word "multitude" is great. "Business", according to one Hebrew meaning, is
travail [difficulty]. So a dream or vision comes through "great travail.” In natural birth there are
facts about travail that parallel the spiritual travail which births a vision. Natural travail is a time
of intense, concentrated effort to birth the child. This time of travail is also called __________

The same is true in the spirit world. Let God take control of your life. If you try to birth the vision in your
own strength it will abort the plan of God. Everything within you may cry out to push and bring the
spiritual vision forth with natural abilities.
THE TIME OF TRANSITION:
In the natural birth process there is a time during labor known as the time of "transition.” It is the
most difficult time of travail right before the birth canal is open to permit the birth of the child.
This parallels the birth of a vision in the spirit world. When God births in you a _________vision
you will experience a time of transition.
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THE BIRTH:
The development of a spiritual vision has an expected end, just as a human embryo. That end is
birth. Prematurity of birth and delay of birth can result in death, both in the natural birth process
and in the birth of spiritual vision.
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THE VISION OF ABRAHAM

Abraham tried to bring forth his God-given vision through self-effort to bring in an heir to his inheritance.
He knew God wanted to make him a great nation and he thought an heir could not come through his wife,
Sarah. So he did something about it and __________ (Genesis 16 :11) was born.
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God
God is the source of everything that is good. God has attributes that help to define how He
functions. Our vision needs to reflect Who God is to the world. This means that our vision must be
consistent with the moral attributes of God. When asked, "What shall we do, that we might work the
works of God?", Jesus responded, _________________________indicating that He, Himself, was the
source (John 6:28-29).
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ARE YOU READY?

Birth requires change. In the natural world, the child must leave the security of the womb.
When you were born again you had to leave the old life of sin. You had to let Jesus change your thought
and action patterns.

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 Miracle Family Temple
Bible Study Guide
Topic: Vision
Class 2
How does one receive a vision?
The fact that God is the source of vision implies that we do not create our own vision, but we
must receive it from God .Remember, we do not originate or visualize a vision; we perceive and
receive a vision that originates from and is given by God.
John the Baptist said________________________________________________________
(John 3:27).

A. We must have general things in order in our lives.

1. This includes a separation from the world system (II Cor. 6:11-18; I John
2:15-17).
The thinking of the world system is so diametrically opposed to God’s
thinking that it is difficult to be saturated in that system and be open to
hearing from God.
2. This includes an attitude of humility before the Lord (Ps. 18:27; 25:9; Pro.
11:2; Mt. 5:3; I Pet. 5:5-6).
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3. This includes a life of prayer.
Many people in the Bible heard from God or received a vision from the Lord
While in prayer.
a _____________________________________________________________ (I Sam. 1:12)
b. ____________________________________________________________ (Dan. 9:20-21)
c. _____________________________________________________________ (Acts 11:5)
d ______________________________________________________________ (Acts 9:11)
e.______________________________________________________________ (Rev. 1:10)

4. This includes meditation on the word of God (Ps. 119:105, 130; Jam. 1:21).
5. This includes walking in the light that we have (obedience).
God’s plan tends to be progressive in nature. We move from ______________(II
Cor. 3:18). What we have been given to do now prepares us for what is yet to come.

B. We must seek the Lord for vision.

1. This means that we must have an open heart (I Sam. 3:9).
2. This means that we must have a willing spirit (Is. 1:19).
3. This means we must have a desire to do God’s will (Ps. 40:8).
4. This means that we must be serious before the Lord (Jer. 29:11-13).
5. This means we must ask God to reveal Himself and His plans to us (John
16:24; Eph. 1:15-19).
6. We wait on the Lord for vision (Lam 3:25).
7. We write down what we perceive the Lord is saying (Hab. 2:2).
8. We seek confirmation from our spiritual leaders (Pro. 15:22).
When Jesus spoke to His followers about the vision of the harvest He outlined five steps to
enable them to receive the vision:

(1) SAY NOT YE

(2) THERE ARE YET FOUR MONTHS then cometh harvest?
(3) BEHOLD, I SAY UNTO YOU,
(4) LIFT UP YOUR EYES, and
(5) LOOK ON THE FIELDS; for they are white already to harvest. (John 4:35)

STEP ONE: "Say not ye..."

Many believers spend their entire lives talking about the harvest. They are like a labor crew
trying to gather a harvest while sitting in a barn. They go to the barn [church] each Sunday
morning and study bigger and better methods of agriculture [spiritual harvest]. They sharpen
their harvesting sickles and then go home. They do this week after week until the weeks turn into
months and months into years, yet nobody ever goes out into the fields to gather the harvest.
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STEP TWO: "Yet four months.”..
In order to become part of this harvest time vision you cannot delay it. You cannot wait until some future
time to become involved. Souls are dying in sin now. For many, tomorrow will be too late

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_________________________________________________________________________(Joel
3:13-14)
STEP THREE: "I say unto you..."
God's ways are different from those of man:
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______________________________________________________________ (Isaiah 55:8-9)
Men talk about spiritual harvest. They delay it. But what God says is different than what man
says. He says...

STEP FOUR: "Lift up your eyes..."

The eyes of the disciples were distracted. They were not focused on the vision of the spiritual harvest
fields. In order to receive this spiritual vision you must take personal action.

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TO RECEIVE THE VISION...

-You must not just talk about it.
-You cannot delay it.
-You must listen to what God says, the challenge He presents when He cries, "
____________________________________Isaiah 6:8).
-You must lift your eyes from the distractions of the world to the harvest field.
-You must look at the fields of the world through the eyes of God
Bible Study Guide
 Miracle Family Temple
Bible Study Guide
Topic: Vision
Class 3.

Communicating and Casting Vision

It is one thing to have vision, but without clear communication, vision will never become reality.
Until others have understood the vision well enough to articulate it themselves, they cannot be
expected to pursue it with passion. It’s not people who are right who change the world. It’s
people who can communicate their definition of right to others who change the world.
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Building of the Temple 1 Chronicles 28:2-21
When God provided David with a vision of the Jerusalem temple, the king wanted to be
personally instrumental in making that dream a reality. But the Lord told David that the job of
building the temple would be given to Solomon, David’s son and successor

David chose not to view himself as having been cut out of the action. Instead, he energetically
undertook his new charge – that of instilling his vision and passion for the temple in Solomon
and enlisting his unqualified support:

Notice how David proceeded.

1. First, he made it clear that the vision had come from God(vv. 2-3).
2. he informed Solomon that his role would be to lead the charge in building the temple (vv.
6-7).
3. David assured the people that this enormous task would be accomplished because God
would enable Solomon to get the job done (v. 6).
4. David gave his son sufficient detail about the temple that Solomon could visualize what it
would look like (vv. 11-19).
5. Finally, after casting the vision, the king gave his son another dose of encouragement (vv.
20-21).

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You were given life because God had a dream for you. Individually, specifically, by name. You
were no accident. God willed you into existence, and He not only gave you life, but He also
invested you with promise and potential. Within you is the opportunity to join with God in
fulfilling the great adventure birthed in His mind for you from eternity

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Paul casting His vision, down to Timothy, Titus and others.

In Acts 1:8, Luke (the author of Acts) gives us the outline for this volume through something
Jesus told his followers just before his ascension:
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Paul has invested his entire life in helping God’s glorious vision become a reality. And he
handed the baton off to men like Timothy and Titus, and they handed it off to faithful men and
women who passed it to others. Down through the centuries the baton got passed until someone
placed it in your hands and said, “Go, be his witness to the ends of the earth.

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Once a vision is cast, it may need to be cast again – several times. Since God’s vision always
surpasses human comprehension, it requires persistence on the part of leaders to make sure
everyone catches it and remembers it.

Casting the Vision at Home

It is one thing to have vision; it is quite another to communicate that vision to others to enable
them to embrace and internalize it. Those who follow Christ are commissioned to communicate
the vision of newness of life to others within their spheres of influence. The obvious place for
this to start is in the home with our own children.

The central biblical passage concerning parents’ responsibility to create an environment in which
their children will hear and embrace the teachings and principles of Scripture is the
great shema of Deuteronomy 6:4-9:

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Clear communication is borne of what you say, what you do and who you are. There must be
integrity and alignment in order for your communication to be credible and persuasive. When
people connect with each other on the basis of a vision for who they are and what they could
become; when we see in others what little of Jesus has already begun to form beneath the
insecurity, fear and pride; when we long beyond anything else to see that little bit of Jesus
develop and mature; then something is released from within us that has the power to form more
of Jesus within them. That power is the life of Christ, carried into another soul across the bridge of our
vision for them, a life that touches the life in another with nourishing power. Vision for others both
bridges the distance between two souls and triggers the release of the power within us.