Bill Britton

The More Excellent Way

This faith way is not the best way. Whether you can receive this or not, the realm of faith is not the highest realm the sons of God are to walk in. Now, if you are still reading, let me assure you that only those who walk by faith will reach the goal and attain the High Calling of God in Christ Jesus. But faith is not the goal. We reach the High Calling "via faith". Faith is the "highway", but it is not the "City" to which we are going. God is taking us to a realm in the Spirit where faith no longer operates.

Faith Conquers

There is much that can be accomplished by faith. Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith no man can please God. The prophet declared (and was quoted by Apostle Paul) that "the just shall live by his faith". Men have been living by faith ever since mankind lost the state of paradise and were put out of Eden.

Adam’s son, Abel, was the first man who left a testimony of living faith, faith that brought him into the ranks of the immortal heroes of faith. Enoch obtained translation for himself and escaped death, tho he did not destroy him that had the power of death, and could not defeat our enemy death and deliver mankind from their bondage of fear and corruption. What he did receive, he received by faith. But the final victory of ALL enemies being put under our feet shall be accomplished by those who come to a higher realm of the Spirit than the realm of faith.

They Received Not the Promise

We are told in Hebrews 11 that through faith men subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, and stopped the mouths of lions. They quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, and waxed valiant in fight. They even received their dead raised to life again, but by faith they looked for better things than all these. "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them." (verse 13). "And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:" (verse 39).

Boastful men today are making claims of having reached the ultimate in God, men who would be terrified to be put into a dungeon full of mice, let alone lions. The Hebrew children who "quenched the violence of fire", moved in a great realm of faith. Some might say "Yes, but I have also gone through the fire, figuratively speaking". But the fire the Hebrew children faced was not a figurative fire: it was a literal burning fire. And it was hot. It took great faith to conquer that fire. You have never been faced with a literal situation like that. Those Old Testament heroes did not have all the writings of the prophets, nor did they have the Gospels and the Epistles of Paul. They did not have the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. But they had real living faith. But faith did not obtain the promise, nor did they conquer every enemy. The creation still groans for that people who shall release them.

Believing or Reigning?

"For he must reign, till He hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. For He hath put all things under his feet. But when He saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that He is excepted, which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto Him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all." (1 Corinthians 15:25-28).

Now notice that I capitalized the "He" and "Him" that refer to the Father in His deity, and that I did not capitalize the "he" and "him" that speak of Christ in his humanity, that is, the Body of Christ. The one who must reign until all enemies have been put under his feet is the "corporate man", the Body of Christ, also known as the "sons of God", or the Overcomer.

Now I realize that this is pretty strong meat for some of you, and that you find it hard to have faith to believe this… but let me point you to Romans 16:20… "And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under YOUR feet shortly". Paul is saying that it hasn’t been done yet, but it is in the future. Jesus had already died, been resurrected, and ascended to the right hand of the throne of God. "All power (authority) is given unto me in heaven and in earth" Jesus had said years before. But Satan has not yet been bruised under our feet. Hebrews 2:8 says: "But now we see not yet all things put under "his feet" (that is, the son of man). But we see Jesus crowned and ruling.

Jesus is Both Lord and Christ

Yes, Peter tells us in Acts 2:36 that the crucified Jesus has been made "both Lord and Christ". As Lord He is one with the Father, and is now ruling and reigning, the fulness of the Godhead bodily (Colossians 2:9), and the image of the invisible Deity (Colossians 1:15). As Christ, He is one with His body, bringing "brethren" into His image, and bringing them to a realm of the Spirit where they can reign with Him, as they receive the "exceeding great and precious promises" and are made partakers of the divine nature.

The Nature of God

The Bible does not say that "God is faith". Neither does it say that "God is hope". What it does say, twice in 1 John chapter 4, is that "God IS love". This is the substance, the nature of God. God imparts faith to men, and He gives them hope. But God does not hope for anything, nor does He believe or have faith for anything. What could He have faith for, when He has the authority to produce anything He desires? God does not operate in a realm of faith, nor does He "believe" for things to come to pass. He operates and moves in a realm of sovereign dominion.

Some may say, "What does this have to do with me?" Everything, dear friend, for God is imparting His divine nature to a people who have escaped the corruption of this world, 2 Peter 1:4, and bringing them into the image of His Son. Let us turn to 1 Corinthians 12:31 and read: "Covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way." "A MORE EXCELLENT WAY!" Hallelujah! Something above the gifts realm, above the realm of faith.

"Though I Have All Faith"

How much is all faith? It is so much faith that you could not receive anymore. It is the ultimate in the faith realm. Yet in 1 Corinthians 13:2 Paul says that it is possible to have all faith and understand all mysteries and yet be nothing, because you have not reached the realm of the "more excellent way".

I want to make it clear that the "love" Paul is speaking about is not just a human affection for wife or children or neighbor. It is certainly not the low lustful "love" that the rock and roll addicts sing about on the radio. It is not what the hippies practice in their "love-in" sessions. This love which brings us into a more excellent way is the very nature of God. "God is love". It is the substance of deity. Some people have for years claimed to have this love of 1 Corinthians 13 when they have not even progressed on the faith realm enough to speak with the tongues of men and angels, nor prophesied, nor given their bodies to be burned or even bestowed their goods to feed the poor. The rest of the chapter tells us that this more excellent way brings us to a place of bearing fruit in real honest humility, it is a realm that never fails, where we come to a full maturity and have true spiritual knowledge in the fulness of God.

Notice that Paul was speaking about a realm that he had not yet come into, but was looking forward to. He says: "We know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away". In another epistle he says: "Not as tho I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus… I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus". (Philippians 3:12, 14).

So the saints of generations past did not receive or attain to perfection by faith, but they received a good report through faith which qualified them to be resurrected into that perfect realm by a "better resurrection". But that perfection, that high calling of God, is to be manifested on this earth realm by a living people who receive the nature of God and come into this "more excellent way".

The Greatest of These

"And now abideth FAITH, HOPE, CHARITY (love), these three; but the greatest of these is charity." (1 Corinthians 13:13). Three great realms in the Spirit. But faith is not the greatest, nor is hope. Now notice something… God is a God of order, not confusion. He does things in order, and He has listed these three things in the proper order of their greatness. First is the faith realm, then the next higher realm of hope, and finally… love. These are three stops up, not down. We have been taught in the past that faith was a higher realm than hope. But now we see that this is not so. Hope brings us into things that are beyond the realm of faith.

But someone might say: "Faith is the greatest, because the worlds were made by faith". But this is not so. The worlds were not made by faith. "Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God." (Hebrews 11:3). "Now faith is the substance (Greek: the substantiation) of things hoped for". Before we could ever believe for anything, or have faith, there was an operation of the Spirit whereby hope was born and did it’s work. We believe for that which we see and hear. What we have received and now possess, we got by faith. But there are things which you cannot believe or have faith for, because you have never seen them, and you do not even know that they exist. An African cannot believe in Jesus Christ if he has never heard the Name, and does not even know that Jesus exists. You could not have faith for the Baptism in the Spirit, when you had never heard about it. Many people are sick today because they have not heard that Jesus heals. Of course, some have heard and do not believe.

Romans 10:14, 17 tells us: "How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

So then, until you have heard of the promise of God, until it has been revealed and brought forth by the Spirit, you cannot believe for it. But there is a realm that goes beyond that which is seen or been revealed. In fact, hope reaches up into that realm and brings it down into the realm of faith. We read in Isaiah 64:4 that "Since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him." This verse is quoted in 1 Corinthians 2:9, but then in verse 10 the Apostle goes on to tell us that the Spirit of God is bringing by revelation things that we could not hear about nor have faith for. In Ephesians 3:20 Paul tells us that God is able to do more than we are able to believe for, ask for, or even know about. How are these greater things brought to us, if we do not "faith them in"? Turn to the glory chapter, Romans 8.

Saved By Hope

After telling us how the creation is waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God, and how that we who have already received the firstfruits of the Spirit are also groaning for this… he goes on in verse 24 to begin telling us of the means that shall bring this about. "For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered… he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God."

So you see, there are things we cannot have faith for, because we have never heard of them. (Faith cometh by hearing). In fact, we don’t even know what to pray for… but the Spirit does a work deep within us, so deep that He causes groanings that cannot even be uttered. When we cannot even make intercession for ourselves, He makes intercession for us according to the will of God. For it is the will of God to do much more for us than we know about or believe for. This is the work of the realm of hope, which enters into that which is unseen. What we see, we have faith for. But hope goes further, into that which we have not even seen, have never heard about, cannot pray for, and groans for it until it is revealed and made visible. Praise our God! This is the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit on our behalf, to unveil and reveal the will of God for us. (Colossians 1:26).

Rooted and Grounded In Love

Faith works on the horizontal level, apprehending all things on that plane or level 6to which it has been brought. Hope works on the vertical plane, ever reaching higher into God, and bringing into visible existence those things which have been hidden in God, and propelling us higher in the knowledge of Him. But love brings the fulness of God, and swallows up all other realms of the Spirit in it’s all encompassing perfection. We find these things in Ephesians 3:17-19.

"That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length (the horizontal faith realm), and depth and height (the vertical hope realm); And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with ALL the fulness of God (the complete and perfect realm of love)."

No More of Faith

I would not have anyone to think that I am preaching against faith. Faith is important in the walk of the man of God, for it is the road to glory. But I am only presenting the limitations of faith, that I might go beyond and present the unlimited realm of the substance and nature of God. What God is goes far beyond what He does or the gifts He gives us. You can have faith, yet not overcome all enemies. You can die in faith, yet not receive the Promise. Faith is the road to this glory, this goal, but faith is not the goal. There is a realm where faith will not operate, for there will be nothing to have faith for. It is the realm of dominion, Kingship, ruling and reigning in reality. It is a more excellent way, a perfect way without spot or wrinkle or any such thing.

In the beginning God did NOT say: "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have great faith so that they can believe for many wonderful things"… Read Genesis 1:26… what He did say was for man to "have dominion", to have the authority over all things that God had created. But man fell from that realm of dominion, and entered into that lower realm where he had to, at best, live by faith.

David’s Two Anointings

We see the picture of the realms of faith and dominion in the life of David. As an immature lad he received a divine anointing, an unction from the Most High. (1 Samuel 16:13). Under the power of this anointing he went out and waxed valiant in fight. Through the supernatural power of the Spirit of God that rested upon him, he defended his sheep against a bear and a lion, and killed them. This would have been impossible in the natural. Then in the sight of all Israel, David descended into the valley of Elah and conquered the mighty giant Goliath. He fought many battles against the Philistines, and wrought great victories. All this after Samuel had anointed him with the horn of oil, and the Spirit had come upon him. This is a glorious picture of the work of faith, and I would not by any means minimize it.

But let me remind you that in all this, David’s activities were in the realm of exploits of faith, and through all this he did not sit on the throne and rule. Not until he had received a second anointing (2 Samuel 5:3). Now he sits upon the throne of Israel and directs the army, and makes the laws. No more lions or bears, or Goliaths for him. From now on he is in a realm of dominion. Those under him carry on with great exploits of faith, now on a much larger scale because this faith anointing is invested in many heroes in Israel. The Philistines are finally conquered, until all his enemies have been subdued and there is peace round about. Material is gathered and plans are formulated to build the Temple of God, and a son (Solomon) is given and anointed for this job. This is all done after David ascends to the place of dominion on the throne of Israel.

Killing Goliaths, other enemies and Philistines, may be glorious and thrilling. But the results are only temporal as long as a Saul still sits on the throne. For not long after the great victory over Goliath at Elah, we see that the Philistines are right back at Israel’s’ throat, trying to conquer the people of God again. And so it goes. No matter how many people are healed, or how many demons are cast out, as long as Satan remains as "god of this world" (2 Corinthians 4:4), the works of faith will only be temporal. For those who were healed of cancer will die with heart attacks, or something else. And those spirits that were cast out will wander about until they find vessels to enter back into. But thank God, Jesus said in John 12:31 that "the prince of this world (Satan) shall be cast out." Someone else is going to take over dominion of this world. "The Kingdoms of this world have become the Kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ" (Revelation 11:15).

Sonship Dominion

Genesis chapter 1, Psalms chapter 8, and Hebrews 2 all tell us the same thing… that God has a people He has destined to rule this creation and have dominion. His authority. They shall sit with Him on His throne. This does not mean to sit down on a golden chair up in the sky or on some other planet. I know that most of you do not need this explanation, but you would be surprised at the carnal, physical explanations of the things of God that are given out by the harlot system of Babylon religion. One pentecostal preacher, who has no reason to be so ignorant, wrote in a book that "we know quite a bit about most of the planets around us, with the exception of the planet called Heaven".

Well, I have good news for you, friends. Heaven is not a planet that spaceships could go to, and God is not a billion light years away somewhere in the blue. "In Him we live and move and have our being." (Acts 17:28). If this is true (and it is) then He must be here where we are, only in a higher invisible realm. Jesus has ascended into that higher place, and soon shall descend back into a visible realm, to which we shall be caught up. Notice, the Bible does not say that we shall go to Venus, or Mars, or Saturn, or any other planet. It does not even say that we shall leave this earth… only that we shall be "caught up: to where He is. And geographically speaking in miles or inches, He is not far from any of us. And this may shock you, but when He comes you are not going to "heaven" to see "mother". "Mother", along with the rest of the saints who sleep in Jesus, is returning with Jesus when He comes back into the visible realm. But tho they descend into a visible realm, they shall not descend all the way back into this carnal realm of death and limitation. And we who are alive and remain unto His coming shall not remain on this realm of death and physical problems where we walk by faith. But we shall ascend into that higher realm of the fulness of God and complete victory over every enemy. There in that place we shall rule and reign with Christ "on the earth". (Revelation 5:10).

This then, is the more excellent way. It is having the substance and nature of God. It is being the expression of Christ in this physical earthly plane. It is being the "body of Christ" operating under the full headship of Jesus. It is having dominion over "all things", instead of having faith for what we hear. It is having the mind of Christ and "knowing even as we are known" instead of hoping and groaning our way into new realms of revelation. It is moving into glory that I could not describe, for we still know and speak in part. But we know that this realm of the fulness of God is there, and we hope for that which is yet unseen, groaning for more and more of it to be unveiled and revealed to us that we might, by faith, move into it.

The Practical Application

What specific benefit to this confused world is there going to be in God bringing forth a people in His likeness, who have dominion over all things? Let’s be practical for a few minutes, and speak plain talk. I want you to see a world into which a great change has come. The anti-christ spirits which have fought the Gospel down through the centuries have been put under the feet of the Body of Christ. The people of the world, in all nations, begin to hear the pure Gospel preached in clarity and power. They are hearing the everlasting Gospel. Where before, most pulpit preaching was a mockery to the true Gospel, and even the greatest of the men of faith and spiritual power had to send most of their audience home still sick and afflicted and needing Christ… and even sometimes the man of faith himself becoming tempted and falling prey to a spirit of lust or an exalted spirit, thereby turning many from Christ… now we see men and women who are manifesting the fulness of God in both His nature and authority.

I do not wish to imply that the world has escaped a time of great trouble and tribulation. The time of Jacob’s trouble has come, and great war has taken place on the earth and in the heavenlies, but the Sons of God have emerged victorious, and Satan has now been bound for 1,000 years. The nations of earth will now feel the impact of the everlasting Gospel for 1,000 years. (See Zech. 4:16, Rev. 20:1-2).

Nations that before were under demon-possessed despotic dictators and closed to the preaching of the Gospel, are now seeing the "greater works" of Jesus produced, confirming the Word with mighty signs and wonders. A great time of tribulation and judgment has fallen upon the entire world. The Babylon system has fallen, and is being burnt with fire. And the true Body of Christ, instead of being divided into hundreds of fragments, now is only one Church manifested in local bodies throughout the world under the direct headship of Jesus Christ, with the government of each local group operated by the Holy Spirit through local Spirit-filled elders who speak only the mind of Christ. Sons of God, as they travel through the land, are recognized and accepted by each local group. As they plant the seed of truth in each locality, revival springs up and thousands are swept into the kingdom. The "Strong man" of the house has been bound, and his goods are being spoiled. God’s Overcomer emerges from the battle victorious. Riots are no more. Crime is stamped out. Prisons are empty, and the hospitals lose their business. Dope, alcohol, and nicotine lose their hold on the human race. Radio and T.V. become a praise to God, being wholesome and clean, instead of the rotten mess of former days under the leadership of the former "prince of this world". The world becomes a beautiful place to live in, with no cripples, or religious deception. Death begins to lose his prey, and the day approaches when this last enemy is to be destroyed.

The Lord’s Day

How long does this take? I’d shock you if I told you. But what a glorious process. A glorious Day when the Overcomer has ascended to the throne, Satan is bound, and God’s Kings and Priests reign over the affairs of this earth. The life of God being poured out of vessels that have received the Fountain of living waters. A Day when God rests, and Man rules and governs.

Some might say: "Oh that is false doctrine, I cannot believe that will ever happen". Why not? Oh, you would rather have it so that just you and a handful more of your denomination would be zipped through the air to heaven somewhere, and get your rewards and a wonderful supper in the sky, while the lost billions of earth who never heard of Jesus or heard the Gospel of the Kingdom preached are turned over to Satan and the anti-christ to be tormented for seven years, then cast into a burning lake of fire to be fried, sizzled, baked, broiled, and roasted for the rest of eternity while you polish your crowns and press your beautiful robes? Is that your desire, or your belief? Well thank God, He has a better plan. A plan born out of His nature which is love and compassion for His creation.

And moreover, He is now bringing forth a Sonship company of people who hear His voice, and are beginning to put on His nature. They are coming up into a higher realm, a more excellent way, a place in the Spirit that goes beyond the Veil, a place where Jesus (the forerunner) has gone to prepare a place for them. This is a people who are giving up the old ideas of a selfish reward for themselves, and their pie in the sky by and by. After all, we do not go to heaven to get our reward… Jesus said (Revelation 22:12) that when He comes, His reward is with Him. It is to bring us into our full inheritance, that we might minister in the full power of the Spirit to a groaning creation, and bring it to the knowledge of God. We will "spoil the strong man’s house", and escape with all his treasures. What a word! What a promise! Glory to the wonderful Name of our Lord!

But some say that the wicked shall be destroyed out of the land. And this is absolutely true. There are many ways to destroy an enemy… stab him, shoot him, poison him, etc. But the BEST way to destroy an enemy is to make a friend out of him. You have lost an enemy, gained a friend, and the both of you are benefited by it. And the best way to destroy a wicked man is to make a saint out of him. Some are still holding on to the hope that God will destroy all the unbelievers with a literal fire and a big explosion. But I am happy to disappoint you. Unbelievers are going to start believing because they see the reality of Christ manifested in truth, until every knee bows and every tongue confesses that Jesus Christ is their Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Some will say: "What then is the benefit of serving Christ now, and going through all the persecution of these troublesome times?" It is God’s Ark of safety from the wrath that is to be poured out. It is to be able to gain the High Calling of God, to attain to mature Sonship and be used of Him in this glorious time of restoration. It will be worth it all, to sit with Him on His throne, to bear His likeness. What you give up here will be as nothing, not worth comparing to that which He has prepared for you. Down through the ages and generations men have been faithful unto death, that they might attain to that first resurrection and have their part in that great Day of the Lord. Many of the dead do not live until after the end of the thousand years, and so miss out on this glorious time. And now the time has finally come. We are at the door of that which has been prophesied and promised. And the wonderful part is that most of what God has in store for the future has not even been revealed yet.

In the Last Time

The question in many hearts is: "How do we come into this? What can we do to hasten this along?" The scripture says that we with patience do wait for it. Everything is right on time. God is not being delayed in His program. He is not going to be hurried. You have come to this generation just in time to be part of this great manifestation of God’s glory in humanity. Praise God for it. Be full of faith, or "faith-full". The Bible says that those that are with Him are "called, and chosen, and faithful". Faith is the power that moves us forward. It is the straight path on which we journey. Hope is the anchor of the soul, sure and steadfast, which enters into that within the Veil, where Jesus our forerunner has already entered. (Hebrews 6:19-20) But love is that fulness of God which shall eventually swallow up all other realms of the Spirit. This is your inheritance, ready to be unveiled in the last time (1 Peter 1:4-5). This is the end of your faith, even this great full salvation (full deliverance) that comes at His appearing. (Hebrews 9:28 Amplified).

Yes, believe God for great things, for these are momentous days in which we live. Have faith, be faithful at any cost. But don’t plan on making faith a permanent home. For it is not just those in the faith realm who "believe" that every enemy, including death, shall be put under foot. But all enemies shall be subdued by those who are reigning, who are with Him on His throne. This is the Overcomer people to whom the promise is given. They shall eat of the hidden manna. They shall deliver the creation from the bondage of death and corruption, through the Lord Jesus Christ their Head and their Captain. This is the realm that lies behind the last Veil. This is the more excellent way.

"GOD IS LOVE. AND NOW ABIDETH FAITH, HOPE, LOVE, THESE THREE: BUT THE GREATEST OF THESE IS LOVE."

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