“After they had prayed, their meeting place was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly”
“Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God”
“I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.””
When you see a man walking down the street with no clothes on, you will not need someone to tell you the state of mind of the individual. You are able to come to the conclusion, that something is wrong with him. The reason why you are able to tell the state of mind of this person is because that is something you are able to use your physical mind to interpret. In the same way, when you enter a church or interacts with someone who says he/she is a believer, you can only discern the spiritual nature of the church/person if your mind is led by the spirit of God.
There are three important ministries that God has given to us as tools to govern the church/life of a Christian: (A) the ministry of the Holy Spirit (B) ministry of the word and (C) ministry of prayer. There is absolutely no way we can grow spiritually. All three are intertwined. When we dwell in the presence of God, all these three ministries are in play, and there is no way one can separate them. There seem to be an indirect or ignorant attempt by us/church to separate these ministries or to be passive or neglect their role in our daily walk. May God help us. We use the word of God to come into his presence through prayer, and during prayers, we stay connected by word of God. But the Holy Spirit is the one who prays through us, so that we are able to pray the right kind of prayer.
One the functions of the Holy Spirit as a gift to the church is to function as a covering of God’s power and presence in our lives. Therefore, the church cannot do anything without the Holy Spirit else it’s nicked. By rejecting the role of the Holy Spirit, the church may have committed a sin. Mathew 12: 31-33 “31 1 And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”
Before we go further, we should ask the Lord for forgiveness in any way we have violated the Holy Spirit.
Lack of knowledge of the Word: One of the greatest gift that has been given to the church, is the gift of the ministry of the word of God according to John 17:14 “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.” It is unfortunate that the church has not recognized the power of the word of God for our own advantage. Instead, the church has given the devil space to say whatever he wants. In Matthew 4:1-11, we see how the devil tried using the word of God even with Jesus. What more is when it comes to us where righteousness is like filthy rugs: Mathew 4: 5-7 “5Then the devil took Him to the holy city and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple. 6“If You are the Son of God,” he said, “throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command His angels concerning You, and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’” 7Jesus replied, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” The word of God is all we need for every step in life. It was the word of God that Jesus used to conquer the devil.
Pray this Psalm 84:2 “My soul longs, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.”
This verse is very crucial today because, the word of God, and the leading of the Holy Spirit, is missing in the church. The word of God is our hiding place. Pray for a new zeal and hunger for the word of God in the church. Pray that the desire for the word will consume our hearts and give no room for the devil. Pray that we will not fall victims of the enemy’s deception: 2 Corinthians 11:3 “3 But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”
1. Lack of the ministry of effective and fervent prayer: I know many will attack me for saying this, but, the truth is that the modern church has become prayer-less, and it is even getting worse. The church has become cold toward the ministry of prayer. The apostles of old were able to transform the world through prayer: Acts 1:14 “With one accord they all continued in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.” James 5:16 “…..The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
Pray that the spirit of the Lord will open our eyes to see where we have fallen and take us back to the place of prayer, and deep fellowship with the Lord. Effective and fervent prayer is what is needed to uproot the enemy.
There is no effective prayer without the guidance of the Holy Spirit: Pray that we will give the Holy Spirit access to align our thoughts with that of God in the time of prayers. Romans 8:26 “ In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”
The ministry of the Holy Spirit: I have had the opportunity to interact with many people, and the most interesting thing is the fact that some do not believe in the role of the Holy Spirit in the church/lives. The church has in many ways sinned against the Holy Spirt. 2 Corinthians 3:16-18 “But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” The reason why so many do not believe, understand, or acknowledge the role of the Holy Spirt, is due to the fact that their faces are still covered with the veil. The revelation of what Jesus Christ did on the cross during his death; tearing the veil at the altar, has not been made known to them. The worship of God as a Spirit being, is not understood and practiced. The bible says we should pray in the Spirit at all times. Ephesians 6:18 “Pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition. To this end, stay alert with all perseverance in your prayers for all the saints.” How can this even be possible when this ministry is not understood? When our faces are unveiled, the revelation of God’s glory becomes a reality and we are transformed into his image by that revelation.
Pray that we/the church will have a desire to turn to the Lord. For it is then that every veil is taken off, transformation takes place, and we are able to worship God in spirit and in truth. Pray for the filling of the Holy Spirit power upon our lives. Acts 4:31 “While they were praying, the place where they were meeting trembled and shook. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak God’s Word with fearless confidence.”
Pray that we/church will welcome the ministry of the Holy Spirit into our lives, as our bodies were created to be the temple where the Holy Spirit resides: 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”
Pray that through the power of the Holy Spirit, we/church will walk in righteousness, joy, and peace: Romans 14:17 “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.”
Pray that the church will experience the demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit through the message of the Gospel: 1 Thessalonians 1:5 “because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power, in the Holy Spirit, and with great conviction--just as you know we lived among you for your sake”.
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